fandomhigh | Fandom High Welcome Picnic, Front Lawn of the School, All Day: Part II

"True enough on both counts," Kathy said, examining the tree. "Might be better a little higher up where the boughs are closer together. Mind if I join you up there? I'm willing to share chips."

Kathy had discovered the fastest way to make friends at Fandom was to offer food. It worked on almost everybody.

Normally it wouldn't work on Laura, like at all, but she was willing to give it a shot. Didn't any anything better to do at the time anyway.

"Sure." There was enough space on the branch for both of them, not to mention it was sturdy enough to support another girl-shaped person on it. It was just a matter of seeing how Kathy would get there.

Hands protectively sandwiching her plate of chips, Kathy got onto the branch by the simple expedient of bouncing. There was a small hop in place to get up momentum and the next sent her up into the air. Like a cat, she landed softly on her feet, managing not to jostle the branch overmuch, though she did need to duck a bit to keep from beaning herself on the branches above. Examining her plate to make sure all the chips were safe, she sat down easily. "Good," she said. "I would have been embarrassed if I made it up here just to drop half my plate as I did. Also, what a waste of food."

She held her plate out, offering Laura as smile as she did so. "Want some? Take as much as you like," she invited. "I'm Kathy, by the way. Welcome to Fandom."

Laura watched, interest rising. She remained silent until Kathy was all the way set. Picking a chip, she offered the pack of cookies she had in return. Equivalent exchange and all that, right?

"I am Laura." She supposed there wasn't any need for her last name. "Are you a mutant?" She knew a power when she saw one.

Kathy happily snagged a cookie. She'd long outgrown the initial polite refusal that had been ingrained into her by her parents.

"Something like that," she said with an easy nod. "I've never had any kind of official confirmation or anything, if such a thing is even possible. But it makes the most sense for how I got my powers."

There hadn't been any chemicals, comets, or bizarre experiments, so random genetic mutation was Kathy's guess for the hows and whys.

"Enhanced speed and agility, plus, uhh, bouncing powers." Which still sounded ridiculous no matter how much Kathy practiced saying it. "You come from a place with mutants, then?"

She wasn't going to ask Laura if she was a mutant. From the things Raven had said about her childhood, Kathy thought it was better to let someone decide to tell her than to ask point-blank.

"Bouncing powers. Appropriate." There was no mockery in her voice. You had what you had, and you dealt with it. Besides, it was useful.

Laura was about to tell her how easily it was to locate the X-gene these days, but her question regarding her world reminded her of the fact that maybe Kathy came from somewhere different. "I do", she replied. "I am one myself." There was little reason for Laura not to share, specially if she had asked Kathy like that.

Yeah, Kathy's mutation wouldn't show up on any scan looking for the X-gene. She was a more generic ~~non-copywrite infringing~~ kind of mutant.

"I've found that most people who come from worlds with mutants usually are," Kathy said with an understanding smile. "There are a bunch on the island, too. My roommate's another one." She pointed down to where Raven was wandering around, all blue skin and bright red hair. "There are a couple of teachers who are, too. And then there are all the other people who have powers but aren't mutants."

Like Ringo and Anders and Ezra and whatever the heck Dante was.

A luckier kind of mutant, Laura would say.

Laura nodded a few times, following Kathy's directions at different people. The moment she saw Raven though, her entire body tensed, adamantium claws popping out from her hands as she leaned forward, as if she wanted to jump off the tree and charge at the girl. Which she did. Strongly. Raven was bad news, even if she looked like a teenager.

But she was smarter than that, or Laura wanted to believe so anyway, so she didn't. Instead she relaxed, claws sliding back in, skin patching itself immediately afterwards. "I am sorry", she said at least, remembering Kathy. Laura skidded a bit away. This was the part where the other girl went away in a panic, or disgust, or both.

There was a whole list of things that Kathy hadn't run away from when the opportunity presented itself, including but not limited to house fires, demons, and techno-organic zombies. One slender girl popping claws didn't even trigger an adrenaline surge these days.

"Are you okay?" she asked, sounding concerned but not afraid. "Was that your mutation? Claws and a healing factor?" She bit her lip. "I hope it doesn't hurt when that happens."

Even with a healing factor to mitigate the effects.

Her not reacting badly earned her some serious points, and some concern because really, it was pretty gross if you were up close. "I am fine", Laura said a moment ago, lifting her hand to show her where the claws had popped and retreated. The skin around it was raw, but quickly losing its redness. "I believe I know a version of your... Raven." It could be the same, but why would she be here? Laura wasn't about to go crazy thinking about it, but she would look to talk to her sometime later.

Making a fist, Laura let the claws come out again; blood pooled in her knuckles. Her face remained impassive. "Those are the most notorious, yes. It always hurts, though." The claws shone with a cold metallic light, the light of the fire barely giving them any warmth.

It was hard to be squeamish when you lived on Fandom for awhile. Kathy had been spattered by fish guts from vicious flying eels, covered in spider guts from fighting off giant poisonous Deep Roads spiders, and had practically bathed in demon ichor. Add that to stitching up Nick's gunshot in a hotel and the cop that had been fatally shot in her arms and the knife-fight with The Butcher in the alleyway in Baltimore...

Okay. Yeah. Laura was possibly right to be concerned. Good instincts, Laura.

"Here," Kathy said, reaching into her bag for a package of wetnaps. "This might help." Because blood got sticky when it dried, as Laura likely knew very well. "You know a version of Raven? That's really cool. We're going to stay roommates after we graduate, out in my LA."

As she spoke, she examined the claws as closely as she could without actually touching them. "Those don't quite look like steel," she said. "Tungsten? Not platinum."

Laura's appreciation would grow for her in time, then. Also the need to keep her away from other animal's visera in the future. Ew, Kathy.

Laura's claws shot down, disappearing once more. The blood on her knuckles dripped down, but some of it seemed to be reabsorbed in her skin. She thanked Kathy and cleaned the remaining blood. Usually, Laura was too busy cutting through people that hygiene wasn't a concern. She couldn't very well walk around soaked in blood here now, could she? "Are you?" It was a different version, most likely. "The version I know is older. She is not someone I would trust, but I cannot say this Raven is like her." And she looked younger; Laura knew that how you grew had a lot to do with the way you turned out, so...

"Bone laced with adamantium." One claw peeked a few inches from her skin, just enough to let Kathy see, but not enough for the wound to have the time to bleed.

Kathy would really appreciate being kept out of the way of internal organs, regardless of what kind of creature they came from. However, her tendency to rush into the thick of things without really thinking would make that job harder than it really had to be. Apologies for that.

"This Raven is my best friend," Kathy said staunchly. "I'd trust her with my life. More than that--I'd trust her with my sister's." There could be no higher declaration. "Once you get to know this version, you'll understand."

It was important to note that none of Kathy's mutant powers included precognition.

"Adamantium?" Now Kathy just looked confused. "Is that some kind of high-tech alloy...?"

That usually ended with something poking out of Laura's body after she got in the way of whatever trying to kill a person she was protecting. It happened a lot.

But if Kathy defended Raven so much... maybe she was right. Maybe Raven was that good. She wouldn't judge her just because. Talk about being a hypocrite. "I will trust your judgement."

The claw sunk entirely, and Laura flexed her hand. "It may not be native to your world. In mine, it is the second most resistant material on Earth, only a close second to vibranium."

It would get a little ridiculous, both of them trying to protect the other. And anytime Laura got hurt trying to help Kathy, she could be assured of guilty apologies and baked goods.

Kathy shook her head. "Neither of those are ringing bells," she said. "I mean, I'm no material scientist, but I feel like I would have at least heard of them."

Considering she was the one that healed, Laura would be appropriately cross if Kathy tried to get herself in harms way to protect her. Let the tank be the tank, Kathy.

Laura nodded. "They are relatively well known. Do not worry; just know that nothing will break them, and they will cut through everything." Barring vibranium, but that wasn't an issue here.

Until she met Steve.

And, honestly, Kathy had been built for DPS. Her main problem was that she solo'd too often to really learn how to sit back and let other people do their stuff.

"Handy," Kathy said, eyebrows up. "Is it a really common element, then?"

That was the only reason she could come up with for how Laura's mutation had fashioned internal claws out of the stuff. Trace amounts in her system for it to bond and shape?

If anyone had the gear to do a Leroy Jenkins, that was Laura. Who probably was a WoW geek in the works.

"No, it is not. But a few individuals have made them well known." You know, the guy she's a clone of?

A moment later, Laura realized the deeper implication of Kathy's question. "My claws were removed and laced with it then reinserted. My claws were originally just high density bone.

There were more people running about with adamantium claws? Weird.

"They were?" Kathy asked, boggling. "That must have been--especially how quickly you heal--does that count towards metabolizing--" Now Kathy was turning green. "Someone must have thought this surgery was very important to go to all that work," she said carefully. "I hope it was you?"

She was remembering some of the things that Jono and Evan had said about what could happen to mutants in their world.

Just the one, bub.

Laura's eyes were plastered to her hands. Kathy was spot on all the way to her last assumption. "It was forced on me", Laura admitted. "It was deemed necessary." Her voice was distant. She would answer if asked, because that was her, she wouldn't lie in the face of kindness, but she feared she was about to push someone else away not a day after arriving.

"Fuck," Kathy breathed; appalled and not even trying to hide it. "I can't believe--no, I can believe it and that's why it's so terrible. I'm so sorry that something like that was done to you."

Laura had been forced. Not persuaded or cajoled, not even tricked, but forced. Now more than ever, Kathy was glad she'd convinced Raven to come with her after graduation, rather than having her go back to live with Charles.

"I've got nothing useful to say," she said, offering Laura an apologetic smile. "But I'm really glad you're here and away from whatever assholes deemed invasive surgery on a minor was necessary."

Laura turned to look at Kathy, veeeeeeeery slowly because she was still pulling herself together on the inside. If she only knew. No more than ever did Laura think she really couldn't share her life with anyone, specially if they cared so easily. It wasn't fair on them.

"You do not need to say anything." Many had tried, but at least she was being honest. And Laura wasn't going to tell her that the invasive surgery wasn't the worst they did to her. Or that said assholes were long dead. "The circumstances of it... are maybe better left for another day." Hopefully not soon.

(And then Atton's class happened).

Kathy would argue what wasn't fair was what had happened to Laura. And that people who cared needed to be told about stuff like this so they could work to keep it from happening to others. But then, Kathy was an idealist.

"Yeah, I can imagine this isn't the kind of talk you want to have with a random stranger your first day on the island," Kathy said with a nod. "Especially not where the squirrels can hear."

Idealists didn't live much in Laura's world. Not her world world, but the circles she ran. Those were bad circles.

"You are not a random stranger", Laura said, perhaps too quickly. "Not anymore, at least." She didn't understand for a moment, but then she remembered what Frank had said. "Seriously." The little critters.

"Seriously," Kathy told her with an aggrieved sigh. "Hopefully your big sib told you that they can be bribed by rum?" She shooed off the one that she could see, complete with notepad and hat, but she knew better than to think that was the only one around taking notes. "And--thanks. I'm really glad I decided to climb up here."

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cw: blood? better safe than sorry

Re: cw: blood? better safe than sorry

Re: cw: blood? better safe than sorry

Re: cw: blood? better safe than sorry

Re: cw: blood? better safe than sorry

Re: cw: blood? better safe than sorry

Re: cw: blood? better safe than sorry

Re: cw: blood? better safe than sorry

RE: Re: cw: blood? better safe than sorry

Re: cw: blood? better safe than sorry

RE: Re: cw: blood? better safe than sorry

Re: cw: blood? better safe than sorry

Re: cw: blood? better safe than sorry

Re: cw: blood? better safe than sorry

Re: cw: blood? better safe than sorry

Re: cw: blood? better safe than sorry