yourtruecolors (yourtruecolors) wrote in marvel_nextgen,
@ 2011-06-15 23:12:00

Entry tags:

inactive - julian gallo, inactive - lisa graves, inactive - minnie

But the way you play your game ain't fair (Julian)
There. That had finished the business they were working on for now. Julian's posture was sifting as he looked ready to settle in for some private time. Time that Minnie wanted. Time that she wasn't sure she could get enough of, when soon she'd be beginning her "errands" with the LOHN in earnest.

But she had to tell him. She'd been reviewing her memories, and she had to tell him.

"Julian? I need to talk to you about Lisa."

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Re: Later

your_talents
2011-06-17 01:43 am UTC (link)

Lisa raises a hand in greeting to Minnie, replying to Julian "I've had better days... I..." She stops.

He's got his 'I'm in control of the situation. Trust me.' face on.

Lisa deliberates a bit. Minnie's there. The girl who possibly doesn't dislike her, but is certainly a semi-unknown at this point. Whatever she is though, she's solidly devoted to Julian. She'll give her the benefit of the doubt that she can keep things private.

She lets her guard down a bit, as was reserved only for Julian, until now.

"I think... I need to see a doctor."

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Re: Later

hellfireprince
2011-06-17 01:54 am UTC (link)

"Are you in any pain?" Julian asks, sitting forward in his seat and looking her over. He doesn't seem /surprised/ but he is looking at Lisa a bit more intently right now. He wondered who was responsible for her being in pain. If he knew, Julian would find the bastard and drink him dry; he wouldn't even leave ashes.

He wonders if it was the man from the charity auction. He'd have to look into that.

"I can call someone to see you tonight, if you're okay with that." he says, rising from his desk.

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Re: Later

your_talents
2011-06-17 02:00 am UTC (link)

She crosses the room and sits on his desk, as she's used to. Her usual posture of bringing one leg up over the other is absent, however.

"Not like you might be thinking." She clears her throat. "It's been going on for a while. I thought it was just stress from the Mutant Town situation making it worse, but that's been long enough ago..." She gives him a rundown of the symptoms she's been experiencing. Headaches, the light sensitivity, exhaustion, occasional nausea. She'd already ruled out the typical causes like partying too hard, food poisoning, or (in one particularly horrifying contemplating) a pregnancy scared.

She lets out a grunt, cursing under her breath. "I don't get on with the whole 'vulnerable' thing."

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	Re: Later yourtruecolors 2011-06-17 02:04 am UTC (link)
	Oh, sweet goddess, not pregnancy, please. Not yet. She couldn't bear to watch this girl become the mother of Julian's children yet. Maybe she could get better as time went on. "How many people have you 'sampled' in the past week or so?" Minnie asks suddenly from her corner. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	Re: Later your_talents 2011-06-17 02:09 am UTC (link)
	Lisa turns her head at the interruption, but it seems an innocent enough question. "Five. A vapor-form shifter, super-strength, speedster, non-winged flier, and one girl who did some funky stuff with light she could absorb." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	Re: Later hellfireprince 2011-06-17 02:20 am UTC (link)
	"And, just out of morbid curiosity, you were going to mention you weren't feeling well...when?" Julian asks lightly. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

Re: Later

your_talents
2011-06-17 02:31 am UTC (link)

Lisa gets the distinct feeling that, even if it's with genuine concerns, she's getting scolded.

"Probably once I had gotten some doctor to figure it out and tell me. It's only been the past week or two that it got in the way of anything."

'In the way' in this case meaning a shoot and a paid appearance for a club pushed back, and a lunch with her siblings she had to cancel (which she felt horrible about).

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	Re: Later yourtruecolors 2011-06-17 02:34 am UTC (link)
	Minnie watches her, analyzing the colors, looking at the little pinpricks of 'residue' all over her. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	Re: Later hellfireprince 2011-06-18 12:59 am UTC (link)
	Yes, he has to mildly scold her, because the other option is to be incoherently angry at her for keeping this from him, and Julian will not give himself to such temperamental outbursts. "Well, you're going to take some time off to get better, effective immediately." Julian says. "Visit your family, get out of town, but no working. None. Are we clear?" he asks. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

Re: Later

your_talents
2011-06-18 01:09 am UTC (link)

Lisa curls a lip. "I haven't even been to the doctor yet... I might just need some kind of treatment instead of rest."

She stiffens at the general advice.

"I'll invite my siblings to come see me, or go somewhere with them." She states firmly, before letting out a mixture of a sigh and a huff. She likes her job.

"Can I book the pleasure of your company for some of the plethora of free time I'm about to have?" She gives him a resigned smile. "And I'll take up your offer to have a doctor in."

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Re: Later

yourtruecolors
2011-06-18 01:13 am UTC (link)

"The majority of specialists who can treat mutation-related conditions are here in New York, unless you want to go to the UK, because Genosha's not letting people in right now," Minnie says quietly. "And I don't think it's just work you need to avoid, but play. Rest won't do you much good if you keep distorting your colors with Julian's, or the people you mentioned, or that person with the bizarre green energy, seriously, it hurts my eyes.""

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	Re: Later your_talents 2011-06-18 01:18 am UTC (link)
	She blinks, turning back to Minnie. "...what about my colors now?" Bizarre green... had to be Aleks. He was still her only gamma-changed encounter. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	Re: Later hellfireprince 2011-06-18 01:28 am UTC (link)
	"Minnie informed me that your energy signature is...out of balance, Lisa. I'd be happy to spend some time with you, but only after we're certain this won't go any further. We'll need to schedule a meeting with a knowledgeable doctor as soon as possible." he says. Which reminded him to get a line on a good geneticist to put on payroll. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	Re: Later yourtruecolors 2011-06-18 01:34 am UTC (link)
	"I can make some calls. Dr. Bradley might be appropriate for this. I believe he's in the country at the moment," Minnie says rather blankly. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

Re: Later

your_talents
2011-06-18 01:44 am UTC (link)

What color Lisa has in her skin dims slightly. "Something's wrong with my power?" She looks to Minnie, then back to Julian.

"And she told you." It's not an inquiry, or even a statement of shock at this point. Lisa just seems to need to hear herself say it out loud.

She clears her throat, then nods to Minnie. "I'll take your word on his credentials." A pause. "If you could go call him now, I'd appreciate it."

That seems as polite and non-possessive a way as any to ask for some privacy with Julian.

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	Re: Later yourtruecolors 2011-06-18 01:46 am UTC (link)
	Minnie nods and goes into another office to contact the bizarre and imperious physician she'd run into in her years training in Europe. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

Re: Later

your_talents
2011-06-18 01:50 am UTC (link)

Lisa slouches a bit and swings herself across the desk to hop down on Julian's side, sitting across his lap.

"Julian... I need some disclosure from you. I hate to play into cliche, but... I need to know all you can tell me about the relationship between you and Minnie." She raises a hand. "I know you have your secrets, and I'm not asking to know where any bodies are buried, or things that personal, but..." She grasps for words.

"I'm good with contempt. Contempt I've got experience with and can deal with. I just don't know how she sees me, particularly the fact that I'm with you, if that makes sense." She touches his hand, then his face. "Just tell me what you can. The rest can come whenever you're ready."

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Re: Later

hellfireprince
2011-06-18 02:08 am UTC (link)

Julian listens to Lisa's words, looking up into her eyes silently as she speaks. This tone, this posture is unlike her. He's sensed it since the meeting the other day, but he wasn't sure what it was until he'd encountred it Minnie's posture and now, Lisa's.

Each seemed almost threatened by the other, to his mind.

He doesn't say anything for a long time, silently debating how much Lisa is entitled to know about his past and his family. She's never really asked before, as he's never asked about her family or her own history (sexual or otherwise), outside what he needed to know to avoid scandal.

When it seems as though he won't answer, he finally speaks.

"My mother is not a nice woman. Wait, let me rephrase: my mother is a cold, calculating and ruthless woman with no little to no compunction about who she sates herself upon. I learned many important lessons from her.

When I was thirteen, my powers emerged for the first time. I drained the family cat dry before I even knew what was happening. Father loved that cat. His name was Mister Buckles. I told him I let Mister Buckles out of the house by accident.

Anyway, Minnie was the daughter of our housekeeper. She and I played together all the time. She followed me everywhere, even when I told her not to. My mother showed up the night after I first used my powers and told me that I needed to learn about control. Control, she said, was the key to prolonging our existence, to keeping ourselves alive through the ages.

Yes, there are times we can feast, but often times, we must keep a rein on our hunger, lest it rule us outright, making us monsters that need to be put down. Minnie was eaves dropping that night, and Mother knew she was there immediately. She forced her to enter the room and then told me that I was going to learn my first lesson in control." Julian says, looking /through/ Lisa now, as if his mind is back in the sitting room in Anton Howard's house.

"Mother told me to slake my hunger upon Minnie, because, well...that's what she was there for. I told her that I didn't want to, but Mother is....persuasive. So, Minnie was the very first person I fed upon, Lisa. I barely stopped myself before killing her, but I stopped.

She is my first in many ways and the only person I can count on fully. She's never turned away from who I am, from /what/ I am, Lisa.

And I will not give her up." he says finally.

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Re: Later

your_talents
2011-06-18 02:24 am UTC (link)

"I wouldn't ask you to." Lisa says softly, smoothing a hand through his hair.

"I've seen smart people make idiots of themselves worrying about exes or even just old friends that are still present in the lives of their... significant others." She pauses to give her one of her usual confident smiles. "--so I'll believe you if you say what you and her have now isn't what you and I have now.

The night I was attacked, after you were there for me, you still told me to go off and have the night I was planning on with Aleks. That you trust me and don't try to own me is why I keep on with you, Julian. One of a lot of reasons, actually.

I care about you, but I'm happy you have someone else you can rely on, so I'm not going to care if you have both of us in your life. Hell, both of us in your bed, simultaneously even, as long as everyone is giving and game." She gives him a sly smile, having already assumed he and Minnie were intimate with one another. "As much as you can be, with all I imagine you have spinning in that wicked and brilliant mind of yours, just try to leave some space to only be thinking about me, now and then." She kisses his forehead.

"And really, it's already awkward, I just want to get it sorted out so everyone knows where they stand at least. What do you think she thinks of me?"

Something else gives her pause.

"And what did you mean... through the ages?"

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Re: Later

hellfireprince
2011-06-18 02:42 am UTC (link)

To be quite honest, he'd expected Lisa to take this whole thing with Minnie rather poorly. He'd expected some manner of veiled ultimatum, even, but when Lisa didn't start in on either, Julian found himself impressed with her, once again.

"Minnie is simply trying to find out if I'm safe with you. She's looked out for me for a long time, ever since I first fed upon her. She's always kept any eye out for me, always made sure that I wasn't in a position where I'd have to hurt someone to get what I need." Julian says, pulling Lisa closer to him.

"While I'd have no problems with both of you in my bed, I'd rather wait and see how that shapes up. But yes, there are corners of my mind that only you occupy, Lisa. You should know that." he says simply.

When she asks what he meant about 'through the ages', Julian slaps himself mentally. He hadn't meant to give her any further information about his family.

"Did I say that?" he asks, his brow knotting in confusion. "It's just a turn of phrase, where I'm from. Through the 'years', is a more accurate translation." Julian smiles, leaning up to kiss her.

He really hopes she bought that, because explaining the truth isn't something he's interested in just now.

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Re: Later

your_talents
2011-06-18 02:52 am UTC (link)

Lisa relaxes further, leaning against him and letting her fingers play at the cuts and creases of his suit. She lets herself feel a little bit smug at getting to hear the bit about corners of his mind out loud.

When he restates his earlier comment, and goes in for the kiss, however, she puts a finger to his lips. She gives him a look. It's not angry, but it's very firm.

"Sorry... headache brushing up again distracted me. I'm pretty sure I just heard you say 'That's something to discuss another time.'" She gives him a small nod, then kisses him as he was likely pursuing himself, before resting her head on his shoulder.

The whole moment felt, and would look like, had anyone else been in the room, rather like one of their more tender 'afterglow' moments, but with much more clothing still in place and less sweat and energy transfer (of any kind).

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	Re: Later hellfireprince 2011-06-18 02:56 am UTC (link)
	"If there are any complications or maladies or...scares of any kind in the future, I'd like you to let me know immediately." Julian says. "It would be for the best, so that I don't have to worry." Julian says. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

Re: Later

your_talents
2011-06-18 03:08 am UTC (link)

"Julian... I called you when I was a little more than half-naked in the street because someone tried to kill me. I think you're pretty well established as my personal health confidante." She strokes his chest, undoing a button or two in pursuit of feeling his skin under her fingertips. She tapped a nail against the torc she'd gotten him.

"You'll know." She reassures him. "I'll let you know whatever the docs turn up about my... aura, too."

A pause.

"She didn't have to tell you about me. I should do something to thank her."

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	Re: Later hellfireprince 2011-06-19 09:28 pm UTC (link)
	"No, she didn't, but Minnie is very protective of me." he says. "I think you two might like each other eventually. Try going out for lunch or something. She's into ethnic foods and has managed to get me to try a few I wouldn't have otherwise." Julian says. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	Re: Later your_talents 2011-06-20 01:20 am UTC (link)
	Lisa seems to consider that. "I know a place with wasabi grilled duck that I've never seen anyone turn down." She draws a finger over his chin. "I'll make sure to bring you back some too." And she'll just enjoy this bit of quiet intimacy until Minnie gets back. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)