Summary:Kitty and Illyana discuss Rachel's time traveling, Plokta, and how to communicate to Limbo Log Info:Storyteller: None |
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The sunny day outside has light shining in the windows and brightening the entire mansion-turned-school. The younger students are in classes, while the older who don't have class now are lounging about here and there, doing as college students are wont to do.
Kitty is sitting at a table working on her laptop. There's a bowl of cereal beside her which she takes a spoonful from, eating it and then going back to work typing. There are a few students starting to gather for lunch, though the rush has not really started yet.
When one doesn't have the money to buy food, or the skills to cook the food in your flatmate's kitchen, or the inclination to do the menial task of say, assembling a sandwich, you take advantage of the mansion's cafeteria. Where the food is free. The school is out of the way enough that if you don't live here, you're unlikely to eat a lot of meals here. Unless you're a teleporter. And then you can just abuse the fact that there's no cash register at the door. Which is why Illyana's here.
Having collected a tray of tomato soup and grilled cheese and other assorted, the blonde sorceress invites herself to Kitty's table opposite the brunette. "Late breakfast?"
Kitty Pryde glances up, flashing Illyana a warm smile as she comes over. "Or by now, probably an early lunch," Kitty says. She glances at her laptop's time. "Not even an early lunch," she realizes. Kitty scratches at her head as she looks at some code she's been writing, then gives a shake of her head and pushes the laptop a little bit away from her.
"So… I met a time traveler, apparently. Someone from the future. Though, it sounds like not our exact future. But she knew me there. Older me," Kitty says in a matter-of-fact enough tone it doesn't seem like it's a joke. She gets another spoonful of cereal while she watches Illyana's reaction.
"Well if she's from the future, I'd hope you're older." Illyana returns without batting an eye. "And cereal can double as desert, but it makes a terribad lunch." She says, clucking her tongue as she chastises Pryde. Time travel? Not anything new to the ruler of Limbo. "So was future you a bitch?" The question is asked with some amusement, one of Illyana's predatory grins pulling at her lips and flashing white teeth.
Probably 90% of Kitty's meals are cereal. Especially if she has to cook herself, otherwise. Illyana will have seen the messes that result from Kitty cooking. Seen the mess. Helped disperse the smoke. Thrown results in the trash, even when burning was not a part of the experience.
"I guess I was. She…" Kitty pauses and glances around, making sure no one else is near enough to hear. Which means looking extra hard for no one with mutant powers involving extra senses. "She is Scott and Jean's daughter. Looks so much like Jean it's scary," Kitty says. "Apparently… her future is bad. I was a good part of it I guess. She said I lived into my forties. And I was the one to force her to time travel back to here, somehow. Right before a nuke went off," Kitty says.
"She said Scott's not very believing of her, but Jean is. I haven't talked to Jean yet. But I figure, I mean if anyone would know if she's telling the truth, it would be Jean and the Professor, right?" Kitty says, shrugging. "She seems really sweet. Totally broke down when she saw me," Kitty says, stirring the spoon in her cereal.
It's a good thing that Kitty and Illyana aren't off sharing an apartment together. Between their (lack of) cooking skills, they'd surely starve.
When Kitty starts glancing around, Illyana arches a brow at the skittish behaviour and rolls her eyes a bit, though the smirk says she's amused. Looking around, she grabs the ketchup that sits on the table and squirts a bit onto the side of her cafeteria tray and then dips a finger into it. Using it as impromptu ink, she draws out a few symbols on the tabletop and speaks a single word. With a *wooshpop* a bubble forms around them, the faint, shimmering surface like a soapbubble. The sorceress licks the remaining ketchup off of her fingertip. "Poof. Instant privacy. Well, audio privacy at any rate." Of course the power use draws a few looks, but most of those here are familiar with Illyana, so there's no alarm raised.
When Kitty says 'Scott and Jean's daughter' the light goes on for Illyana and she snaps her fingers. "Rachel! That's who she looked like. Right? She mentioned Mr. Stick-up-his-butt thought she was here to blow the place up again. I mean, seriously, get in line, right? I told her pretty much the same. If she got the OK to be here, our 'best and brightest' looked her over and decided she was alright."
Kitty Pryde looks grateful for the magic privacy. "Yes, that's her, Rachel. I know how gossip travels amongst the students. If everything she's said is true, and I don't have any reason not to believe her… I can only imagine what the rumors would morph into by the time they've made the rounds. I don't want to be the one to start tongues flapping about her. Let her handle such things in her own time," Kitty says.
She lets out an exhalation, blowing a few strands of hair away from her eyes. "I need to hear a lot more of her story still. Just got little bits of it. But she indicated she didn't know if her future was our future. I tend to believe if time travel is possible, you'd spawn off a different timeline. So her being here means we aren't her past anymore and we'll continue on in a new direction. Though, it could have much the same shape as her own, so worth finding out what her time was like, I think," Kitty says.
She shrugs. "But mostly? She's a scared girl in need of help. Who looks so much like Jean did when I first met her and I was the scared girl in need of help. So I'm going to be there for her," Kitty says.
Illyana Rasputina can't help but roll her eyes a bit as she eats her soup, tearing off bits of her sandwich to dunk into it as she listens to Kitty. "Tell me about it." She says of the rumors, given she's run into the ones that she's dating Doug Ramsey.
"Oh, time travel's possible." Illyana says with a nod. "But definitely not common. It crops up around stuff in Limbo. The easy way to know if her future is our future is if part of her history includes her being in her past." Yeah, that gets a little jumbled up. "If in her past she never arrived in her past?" Illyana gives an easy shrug. "Different timeline. Doesn't mean our future might not end up damned similar." Illyana agrees as Kitty sketches out her worries.
As her former-roomie muses on Rachel herself, Illyana takes her time chewing, and then huffs at Kitty in amusement. "You realize that 'girl' is a) older than you and b) sounds like she's put on a lot more miles than you." The blonde isn't arguing against Kitty's decision, just teasing her.
Kitty Pryde lets out a soft laugh at Illyana's playful admonishments. She takes a bite of her cereal and finishes it before saying, "Well, all of that is true. But to her I was a… I don't even know. Mentor figure? What Jean was to us? Or maybe closer the way she reacted to me." Kitty waves her spoon around a bit to emphasize her points.
"In any event, I got the feeling I'd be one of the closest things to normalcy she has. Especially if Scott is being standoffish with her. Hopefully Jean is taking it better," Kitty says. "I'll talk to her more later. But figured you would be a good one to let know what is going on," Kitty shares with her bestie.
"Is that Kitty-cat code for 'don't traumatize the newbie'?" Illyana asks with a grin, leaning back in her chair and hooking an arm behind her. Kitty would know all too well the blonde's penchant for winding people up just to watch them go. Her reputation as something of a bitch isn't entirely undeserved. Most just don't understand the why of Illyana's actions, which makes it all the more puzzling to them why she'd risk her life to back them up when the situation arises.
Kitty Pryde gives a soft chuckle and nods as she gets another spoonful of cereal. "Exactly," Kitty says. She does know Illyana's tendencies there. While Kitty's own tend to be the opposite. Generally showing a lot of empathy. So long as she isn't wound up by someone. Someone like Illyana's brother being a butthead.
Kitty muses for a moment and says, "I can only imagine what it's like for her. All of us had to adjust to coming to school here. And it wasn't easy for a lot of us. But Rachel? The school isn't just the new setting. Our entire world is. I don't know what her world she's coming from is like yet, but it doesn't sound like it was a good one," Kitty says.
Though truly, Kitty has little idea yet of just how bad.
Illyana Rasputina doesn't really know what to say to that. She has far more in common with Rachel in that aspect than most of the other students, including Kitty. When Illyana first showed up at the school she had to be 'socialized'. One of the biggest things was getting her to break her habit of casual violence which resulted in at least one student getting his arm broken when touching her without invitation.
The blonde doesn't usually spotlight her past much, and finally settles on saying: "She'll manage, though I'm sure the help will be appreciated. She's survived, and that tends to build some resilliance. She's also a telepath, so assimilating should be a bit easier than for others that'd have to learn things the hard way."
The socialization that Illyana required probably has something to do with the hugs that she continues to get from Kitty even today, at that. Kitty nods about Rachel managing. "We'll get her through it. We usually manage to," Kitty agrees. "Ah, she's a telepath too? We hadn't gotten to talking about powers and all. Well, that might help me understand the time she's from then if she can share memories with me."
Which could be a far more interesting and not fun experience than Kitty is expecting.
Kitty finishes off her cereal and sets the bowl aside. "So how is Doug doing? And, how are you and Doug doing? Has there been any kind of spark there yet?" Kitty asks, swiveling in her seat to face Illyana.
Illyana Rasputina fixes Kitty wtih a Look as she asks after her relationship with Doug. "Doug's fine. Work keeps him busy. And his lizard. You know he takes that thing for walks?" She shakes her head, following it with an easy shrug. "And no, there's no spark. There's never any spark."
Illyana occasionally flirts. More often she drops teasing innuendo. But despite her obvious appreciation of eye candy of the male variety, the blonde has never shown any interest in taking things further, romantically speaking. She'll go out with someone, usually friends, which might qualify as dating. But she's there for the event. She cares for people, as her relationships with Piotr and Kitty and some of her former classmates, like Doug, can attest to but she has something of a disconnect towards the relationship that so many spend their lives chasing after.
Kitty does her best not to grin too much as she receives that Look. She no doubt figured it would be coming. If she can't wind her friend up a little, who can she wind up. "Well, too bad. You'd be cute together," Kitty says while she focuses on her laptop so she can pretend not to see whatever glare that gets her from Illyana. Still trying to keep a straight face.
Kitty does look back to Illyana finally to say, "So, was there anything more on the tie from Plokta to Belasco worth knowing? I didn't want to press to much on the subject. Is there a threat to you at all over there because of it?" Kitty asks.
"And we can be cute together and not be a 'couple'." Illyana says, making air quotes with her fingers. Mostly because she thinks it might annoy Kitty. "Besides, you look at the future and hope to see a long life with my brother and likely a few brats running around. I look to the future and hope that I haven't killed someone I care about." Again.
Illyana's turned to look off out the windows of the cafeteria that overlook the grounds so she doesn't have to look at Kitty. Her bitter remark dovetails too nicely into Kitty's question and the blonde sighs. "Plotka gave Belasco information on the ritual used to make… well, me." Metaphysically tied to the Elder Gods, a key to the locks that keep them prisoner. "But no specific threat, no."
Kitty frowns as she hears that. She also reaches over, just a light touch Illyana's arm, and only for a moment. "Do the tattoos serve a purpose towards that particular end? Or more like a different application of the knowledge for other purposes? I mean, do we think these kids might be going through what changes were done with you?" she inquires.
Because it's Kitty, Illyana doesn't flinch away from that light touch. The question gets a shake of her head. "Belasco traded information on the tatooing magic for the information. But what's being done to them sounds different. I think it's part of the indoctrination into Plotka's cult, with the eventual goal being that they give Plotka their soul. So maybe it's part of fattening them up for the big meal." So they're food, while Illyana was always meant to be a tool. "For them it's all about being able to recieve these higher levels of magic being bound to them instead of…" She trails off and shakes her head. "Anyway. Different." She's never been particularly forthcoming about the details of what Belasco did to her. Just that she was part of his plans to free his masters.
Kitty Pryde leans back in her chair, looking thoughtful. "Well. Not good. But, I suppose better for the world than facing a small army of you. I have one of you and I barely know what to do with you half of the time," Kitty says, her lips pulling into a teasing grin. So far she has managed to keep the same attitude with Illyana despite the recent change in their apparent ages compared to one another. Though there are times those extra years are noticed by Kitty even if she tries to keep from reacting to them much.
Kitty double checks something on her computer and then sets something to running. "That should fix Pete's phone and check for any more intrusions," she comments, shaking her head after having removed the Deadpool modifications.
Illyana Rasputina sticks her tongue out at Kitty in childish retaliation. "You'd never have an army of me. We'd go all Highlander on each other first. There can be only one, and all that." From Illyana's point of view, it's like people don't really age because large portions of her life keep going by in the blink of an eye for those around her.
"Something was wrong with his phone?" Illyana asks, arching a brow. Then something seems to occur to her. "Hey, you're Ms. Hardware Wiz. Can you come up with a phone that doesn't freak out whenever I go through Limbo?" In the past her phone has had the battery go flat in the space of moments, had it just stop working for no reason, had the programs just freak out, and occasionally develop a mouth that then tried to bite her. There's a reason the blonde doesn't usually have one on her.
The geek girl who loves sci-fi movies breaks out in a grin at the Highlander mention. Kitty leans back in her chair and nods at the mention of Piotr's phone. "Deadpool hacked it to set the ringtone, and make it so it was stuck on speaker whenever he called," Kitty says. If there were other things it also did she doesn't mention them. And having Deadpool on speaker all the time? Not the best situation.
A thoughtful look is given at the question about the phone. "I could certainly make you a phone. The question is how to make it resistant to that sort of thing," Kitty says. "Would you be able to work magic to help repel that kind of effect? Build it up together, with me doing the hardware and you hardening it against Limbo?" she asks.
Illyana Rasputina snorts at the situation her poor brother was apparently in. Kitty's proposal has her looking thoughtful and she nods slowly. "I might be able to. Question would be because my magic is tied to Limbo, would that be like some back door into it, magically speaking." Her fingers tap against the table thoughtfully. "I know another ritual caster, so maybe even if that's an issue I can get them to help." She chuckles then, eyes glinting with amusement. "Think we can get it reception too? Anchor a tiny stepping disk with an antenna in it or something?" She's joking with that one.
Though it's a joke, it has Kitty looking thoughtful. "It would be easy enough to test. I can rig up a simple pair of transmitter/detectors. Have you take one to Limbo and leave the disc open and see if an EM makes it through. I would think if light didn't make it through, EM might not either. But it's not a given. I mean, it can make it through walls to some extent that would block light. But I'm not real hopeful on it, no," Kitty says.
She pauses again. "Unless we actually ran a wire through it. As far as I know, that should work. You can stick your head through and the blood bumping from your heart on the other side still makes it through, so electricity should probably flow. I don't know if you want to leave a disc open like that all the time or not? But at the least you could open one now and then to pick up messages."
As Kitty starts thinking about the question seriously, Illyana tilts her head as she considers. "Leaving the disk open isn't a huge deal. Stepping disks are open all the time between here and Earth. I don't create them, I just find the one that opens to where I want, bring it to me and change the size. Getting it to stay put in the phone might be tricky…" Illyana has used her disks to core holes in walls and floors on occasion, since what is inside the circle gets teleported away and what's outside doesn't. They could certainly do some damage if the phone moved and they stayed still. "I could always stick my hand through with the phone, so the biggest part is not having the phone turn into a literal nightmare on me."
Kitty's hand moves to hold her chin as she thinks. "I was thinking more of, a transmitter and antenna here, that transmits through a wire that runs into a stationary disk. And runs into a transmitter and antenna there, that then connects to your phone. Though that would mean we'd need both to be protected from the effects of Limbo," Kitty says.
She leans back in her chair again. "You know, it might be easier to just keep a phone here that you can reach through and grab when you need, and find a purely magic way of notifying you that it is going off? I'm guessing you can get magic contacts to reach you somehow?"
Illyana Rasputina's head tilts the other way as she considers *that* idea. "Huh. That might be." She agrees, before smirking over at Kitty. She'll have to talk to some of the other magical sorts and see if they have any 'magiclifehacks'. "Guess that's why you're the smart one."