It's really complicated

Log Info

Title: It's Really Complicated
Emitter: None
Characters: Linus and Tyche
NPCs: None
Place: The Student Center - Steranko Institute
Time: 22nd June 2010, early-afternoon
Summary: An afternoon discussion about Adrian, powers, and general teenaged drama.

Linus is sitting at one of the tables with a small stack of books beside him, and one such text book in front of him. Summerschool, O harsh mistress who does not even wait a few days before getting directly down to brass tacks. The student center is moderately populated, with kids coming and going, getting snacks, and generally spending their renewed meal plans a little unwisely, having forgotten or never learned the fable of the squirrel who stores his nuts for the winter.

Tyche makes her way into the Student Center, bookbag slung over her shoulder and iPad in her arms. "I know," she says into her cell phone, "but it's better than last year, right?" She slides up to the table across from Linus and smiles. "Can I sit here?" she asks as she lowers her bookbag across from him. Back to the cell phone. "Hey, Libby, I gotta go, okay? I've got to study. Ethics class is actually /interesting/. Yeah. Call you tonight." She hangs up the phone, then smiles at Linus.

"Hrm? Oh." Linus blinks at Tyche, "Sure. You're… Tyche, right?" He slides his books aside, though it's meaningless, since there's plenty of room for anyone to sit. "You know I'm Linus, right?" Cautionary, but not unfriendly. There's a hint of amusement in his voice. "God, I hope the second day of classes go better than the first."

Tyche laughs at Linus's cautionary questioning, and nods her head. "Yes, yes, Linus, the cuter brother of Adrian, intimately and totally linked with Sunday .." she pulls her ethics book out and flips through it, then offers, "You somehow manage to look more intelligent and cool than he does, even if you look the same."

Linus blushes red like a lobster. "Yeah, uh… well, you know. That's me and Sunny. We look out for each other. A school like this, it's kind of… well, you know. Most schools, the new girl is just a bitch. Here, she's got a rapier. You don't really mean that, do you? Adrian's… well, Adj' is Adj. He's got it all together."

"I mean every word except the 'cuter'," Tyche replies with a warm smile. "You really do look smarter. Adrian looks more athletic. I think it's how you dress." She shrugs and starts going through her notes in the iPad, but then stops to look up. "How long have you known Sunday, anyways? You're awfully close."

"Oh." Linus shifts a bit, looking vaguely uncomfortable, but it's just general nerves, perhaps. "Since I got here about a month ago. Second person I met. There was a mishap with my powers and she sort of… well, she totally cleared things out for me. I bumped into a telepath by accident and it got a little ugly, so I sort of stuck with her and when she needed someone, I was there and that's kind of how it goes, you know?"

"Aww," Tyche says, then leans forward curiously. "Do you always take people's powers when you touch them, or is it only sometimes? I know that Sunday and I have both managed to touch Adrian without losing our powers."

Linus leans backwards when Tyche leans forward, a completely reflexive tendency at this point. "Always. I mean… people who don't have powers, I don't get it. But it happens every time. Last night I started doing some weirder stuff, though. I mean… I'm starting to just -feel- powers too?" He peers from side to side, shifting uncomfortably. "Like it's braille, I guess. Probably the only way to explain it without making me sound nuts."

And now she leans back again, then tilts her head. "You can … what?" she furrows her brow. "Like you know exactly what my powers are without me having to tell you?" Gulp. "That's a little … weird. Isn't it?"

"Any weirder than copying your powers by touching you? Because I kinda thought that was way up there, too. It might just be with Sunday, though. I touch her a lot…uh," Woah! Wrong words to use! He turns crimson again, "I mean, I'm around her a lot, so I've got her powers a lot. Maybe I'm just more familiar with them now. But I could feel the landscape of them. Kind of like her powers were -things-, I guess. I mean, things in some other place, and I could feel them. Reminded me of a hand coming out of the sky and just feeling some buildings on a farm, but that makes me sound a little crazy."

"Trust me," Tyche says with a vaguely flat voice, "you're about as sane as it gets." Which may or may not be a reassurance. Pushing her hair back behind her shoulder, she asks, "So what's it like having a twin, anyways?"

"Oh. Well, uh… it's alright, I guess." Linus sounds less than enthusiastic, here. "He's usually the guy who gets all the breaks, so I kinda think it's funny that I have the more colorful power. But he's… Adrian. Probably have half the school eating out of his hand in a few weeks. Just the way he is. Very personable, I guess."

"I don't think that's quite true," Tyche counter sgently. She pushes the ethics book aside, then offers, "I mean, think about it this way. You have a really cute, sweet girlfriend who's totally into you. Adrian has a lot of friends, but /he/ doesn't have a girlfriend. And," she adds, "you're less likely to make enemies. He's more flamboyant, you're quiet. He turns people /off/, you just copy them."

"I guess. Though it's Adrian. I'm sure he'll have a girl in no time flat." That he's lightly toying with Tyche is probably obvious. Maybe he means Tyche. Maybe he's trying to imply she'd better make a move soon before it's too late, either way, it's not an unfriendly comment. "I used to think my power was the most dangerous, but there are people here who would be in really big trouble without their powers. THere's an ancient egyptian girl, Eshe, who's something like two thousand years old. If Adrian touched her, I think she'd die."

"Yeah, I met her," Tyche replies with a nod of her head. "She was … amazingly self-aware, and humble, for a girl who has probably literally lived longer than anyone else on earth." She shakes her head, then says, "Listen, even if Adrian does get a girlfriend, you got one first. And you'll probably treat Sunday better than he'd treat a girl. I mean … I feel bad for poor Violet. She still calls him to talk, and he won't even admit she's his girlfriend? What's that about?"

"Oh. Violet." Linus swallows. "She's… she's Violet, yeah." As if that explains things. "Violet's kind of this force of nature. And she's into swords." He says that last part as if he's trying to get at something, but isn't quite sure how. He lowers his voice, muttering, "-Really- into swords." Ahem. "Eshe said she was unconscious for most of that time, though. She's okay, I guess."

"Unchanging, she told me," Tyche says, "but grieving for her lost lover. Something like that." She scratches her head, then says, "A force of nature? Does that mean she's /not/ actually Adrian's girlfriend? I'm confused."

"No. Not really. They're just… well, childhood friends. I mean, I thought they were going to get together, but it never really happened. But they're kinda close, really." Linus shrugs his shoulders. "And they've got a lot in common. Both jocks. I mean, she's a cheerleader, but she's a total jockhead. But I guess a lot of cheerleaders are. They work pretty hard. So I guess he doesn't quite want to let her go. I try not to understand any of it. Makes my head hurt."

Tyche studies Linus thoughtfully a moment, then nods her head. "Al… alright." She frowns a bit, then looks back at her ethics book for a few moments of silence. It doesn't last, though; curiosity wins out. "Listen, I guess I can understand why you wouldn't quite trust me." She looks up at him again, then offers, "We've only really just met the once, and you were … distracted. But I just … I don't want to hurt you or your brother, okay? So if I should just keep my eyes off him, would you let me know?"

"Hrm? Oh. No, it's oaky. I mean, his old life was great. He was varsity, everyone loved him, he was basically going to be homecoming king if he'd been able to stay for another two years." Linus shrugs. "He comes here, and now he's kind of… well, it's not as cool as it was. When your power is turning off the stuff that makes other people special, you're not going to be as popular, so he's probably just trying to hold on to the world where he was on top of things. It's different here."

"Ah," Tyche replies, then smirks and looks up at Linus. "I guess it's pretty sucky to have conversations always turn back to him, huh? You wanna talk about something else?" Beat. "Yeah, let's talk about something else. So what classes are you in during summer term?"

"Oh, I'm used to it. Like you said. He's the flashy one." Linus twists his head to either side, stretching. "Biology." He makes a face, peering at the textbooks next to him like they kicked his dog. "That and Intro to Music. I really want to take Basic Comp, but I have to take Intro first. I've been doing enough with my drums that it's just a stupid class for me, but I guess you have to start somewhere, right? This is really an in between summer for me. I just came here, but I'm a sophomore, so this summer's my transitional period. You?"

"Heroism and Ethics, powers training, and fitness training," Tyche wrinkles up her nose, then admits, "I'm sort-of in the ethics class just to see if I can't get the professor to admit that vigilante justice is really bad for the economy and the world. Somehow, despite being older than most sophomores, I get to be a /freshman/ this year. Yay."

"And powers training." Linus gags slightly. "It's really complicated for me. They're deciding how they're going to approach it, because I need test subjects, and that's kind of dangerous. But on the bright side, they told me I -might- be able to get a part time job working for the -school- once I have things under control, helping them powertrain other students. Because if I can have their powers, then I can help them learn to use it. I can't complain."

"Wow, really?" Tyche asks curiously. "That's pretty neat. I have … no idea what I'm going to do with my powers after I graduate." She frowns a little, then says, "I guess I have four years to decide, really, but I'll be twenty by then and it's a little late to get started on finding a real job. I really wish I could just pretend I didn't have powers and go draw comics or something." She shakes her head, then says, "I'd actually be curious if you could copy all of my powers, or just /my/ powers. But I'm kinda nervous about you having my powers, because … they're kind of dangerous, too, and I don't want you hurting yourself."

"After I graduate, I don't know either. I was meaning more while I'm here. I, uh… seem to be heading in a certain direction, though." Superhero, of course, though it's apparent he does not want to say it out loud. "Adrian almost called my parents to pull me out of the school when he found out what I was up to." He peers at Tyche at her question, "Wait. What do you mean all of your powers or just -your- powers? You have somebody else's? You don't have another person trapped in you, do you? There are a few people like that here. It usually seems to suck ass."

"Oh." Tyche straightens a bit, then looks back down at her book and frowns. "Uh, I guess I hadn't told you. Yeah, there's a dead lady in my head. She was a telepath, and I've sorta got some of her powers, now. But her telepathy isn't really /mine/. I had my own powers … sorta … before that. I just didn't tell anyone." She shrugs and looks back up at Linus. "So yeah, there's another person trapped in me."j

Linus groans inwardly. Could it be he is starting to get slightly jaded about superpowers? "Yeah. That really sucks. I'd probably get both sets, or at least as much as I can handle. Some people are really powerful and I can't absorb them all. Sunday, for example. There's just a -lot- there. But I'd probably get the spirit, too. I mean, just from past experience. Is she a bad spirit?" He peers at Tyche warily, "Does she want you to do bad things, kill everyone, stuff like that?"

Tyche turns her book around and flips it up so Linus can see the cover. "Define 'bad'," she challenges him, then smirks and sets the book back down. "She's selfish. She is always looking out for what's best for her—which right now means what's best for me, too. And I don't mean long-term benefits; for example, she /really/ wants me to press you more on Violet, so that I can know what I'm getting myself into. She also really wants me to read your mind to see what you think of us. And she really /really/ wishes I'd stop telling people about her, since she's worried that if the government finds out they'll forcibly remove her and then she'll die, or something."

Linus narrows his gaze somewhat. "Somebody on campus is inhabited by a dark presence who constantly encourages him to go on a murderous rampage, tearing people limb from limb, -dancing- in ther blood, delighting in suffering and pain." Linus looks a little pained by this. He does not have to say that he's played host to this dark presence for it to be obvious that he has. "It makes it seem that being a source of violence, suffering, and anguish is the best way to solve any problem. He lives with this presence every single day and he manages not to give in and, in fact, does good things with his abilities." He peers at Tyche, frowning a little, "That is a bad spirit."

"Alright, alright," Tyche holds up a hand to forestall Linus, her eyes a little wide. "Mine's not that kind of bad." SHe shivers a little. "She's still bad, I think, but she's way easier to control and contain, and she isn't …" she trails off, then waggles a hand. "She doesn't make me want to delight in anyone's pain on a grand scale." A soft sigh escapes, then she asks, "You want a snack? I'm feeling a litle peckish. My treat," she starts to stand, leaving her bookbag and iPad behind.

Linus relaxes a bit, "Oh, uh… sorry. Sorry." Back to being shy, it seems, but for a second there he was.. bolder. "I'm okay. Well, look. How dangerous are your powers? I mean, can you hurt people? Because I've had mindreading before, I've had something like a mind attack-thing. Kind of just like… I don't know -what- it was. You'd have to ask Claire. If you're like her, I might be able to handle it."

"/Her/ powers aren't that dangerous," Tyche says, pausing her trek towards the snack counter. "I mean, mind reading is invasive, and I can make people do or feel things, too, but that's … not what's dangerous. They're just irritating to people. What /I/ do is dangerous enough to kill me. Or you. Or someone else. If you're not careful, I mean."

"Then I shouldn't. It's bad enough when I lose control and put myself in danger. Do you know Jerry?" The mutant regards Tyche with a careful eye. "Kinetic controller. He touched me and I flew something like 2000 feet into the air. He had to come get me." He laughs a little uncomfortably. "I can take his powers all the time now, though. Did I mention I'm afraid of heights?"

Tyche smiles and says, "Guess that means I never get to kiss your cheek for being sweet." She shrugs, then says, "So … do you want a snack, or no?"

Yeah. That makes Linus blush, but not very much, "That might get very ugly, yeah. I'll go to the Thunderdome and try it, but I try not to take powers from anyone new unless it's a life or death situation." The ease with which he says that comes as a surprise to the boy, and it shows on his face. "I really should go. I have to go to Bio soon. But I'm sure I'll see you around, Tyche."

"Alright," Tyche replies, then offers him a smile. "Have fun in bio!" And then she heads away towards the snack bar to collect something to eat.

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