[hr][hr] [center] [img]https://i.imgur.com/mSO9bXg.png[/img] [hr] [color=b71d5d]Location:[/color] Home <3 [color=b71d5d]Skills:[/color] Enhanced Reflexes (Passive) [/center] [hr][hr] Magneto was waiting for her, once she had finished washing up. Even with the Louisiana heat, he found a hot cup of tea to be one of life’s few simple pleasures. Of course, his small home did have air conditioning - a must for a man of his advanced age. With a guided wave of his hand, a tray floated from the kitchen into the sitting room, laden with two small china cups, a teapot and cozy, and some biscuits he kept on hand for just such an occasion. There was a small television set in the corner, but the room was largely dominated by old black and white photographs, a record player, and shelves upon shelves of books. “How do you take your tea these days?” he asked. [color=b71d5d]”Sweet and strongly caffeinated.”[/color] She was still addicted to caffeine. Even though she did her best to get full nights of sleep these days. Maybe Andy had damaged herself by drinking so much caffeine that she could sleep through a dose that would kill others. Andy sat down across from him. Her face was clean of any makeup. It was in her suitcase, which she had left in Max’s front yard. Hopefully, he had brought it in. If not, well hopefully it was still there when she left the house to go over there. She’d live with almost everything in the suitcase being stolen, but not the jacket. Even if Max conjured it back it wouldn’t be the same. It wouldn’t be the jacket that Ash had given her. [color=b71d5d]”How detailed do you want me to be about stuff since I got to this time?”[/color] There were things she definitely wanted to tell him. Some stuff would be fine to glaze over. But she also wanted to be honest. She wanted to start this relationship fresh. The nervousness and worry was still there, but it wasn’t as prevalent as it had been on Genosha. The pervasive fear that had lived in her bones seemed subdued. Even with the new worry that was clawing at her. She did not have the look of the kicked puppy that she had on Genosha. Magneto nodded, pouring her a cup of tea and preparing it as to her liking. He wasn’t going to offer a comment on her overindulgence in caffeine - there were worse vices to have. And after all she had been through, she had more than earned a vice or two. Should she cause any damage to herself, it was nothing that James could not fix - a fact that he took great solace in. He set down the cup in front of her, before preparing one for himself. “Andy, my dear - every detail that you are willing to share, I would like to hear.” Andy nodded, [color=b71d5d]”Alright. Well the first thing we did was went to Zari’s world. I met her parents. That was a bit awkward. Her dad is a god of lies. He was able to tell that I was only there because Zari asked me and I didn’t have any ill intent. Once he got over the protective dad thing they helped me get an identity here.”[/color] She smiled and pulled her wallet out of her pocket and handed over the ID in there. It wasn’t a driver’s license as she couldn’t drive, but it was a state ID. Andy had been through a lot of names. She even still had her fake ID for Andrea Elliot that Ash had gotten for her, it was extremely expired and she didn’t keep it in her wallet. Andy had been born with a name she had never bothered to get from Selene. She had been given a name from the foster system - Andy Lee Phillips. And then after the Drummonds died she took their name and became Andy Lee Drummond. On Genosha she had become just Andy, or Thundering Champion. Now though she had taken Magneto’s last name and hyphenated it with Selene’s. She kept the Drummond name as those two years were as like a family as she had ever had. He studied the ID for a moment, a tiny smile breaking out on his lips. Erik Lensherr was a name he had assumed so long it was like a second skin - to see Andy using that surname filled him with a painful warmth. He had taken the name for his wife, for Magda, almost a century ago - disguising himself as one of her people, to conceal his heritage, his origins. Not that he considered Max Eisenhardt to be his true name any longer - it was closer than Erik to the truth, yet still eluding it, still missing the mark. His name was Magneto, now and forever. “A fine choice,” he said, “although I am somewhat surprised by the inclusion of Selene, my child.” Andy smiled brightly, pleased he approved of the name choice. There wasn’t much of a choice in changing it [i]again[/i] so she was thankful for that. [color=b71d5d]”Ah, well she realized I was taking your name and got jealous,”[/color] Andy explained. [color=b71d5d]”See the box that we imprisoned her in, changed. It became a doll and she can talk and interact with the world a little bit. I had a cat carrier bag I kept her in. Right now Max has her.”[/color] That was a relief. Even with the curse Selene had thrown at her she still felt lighter than she had in months. “It became… a doll,” Magneto repeated, his tone filled with disbelief - not disbelief in what she was saying, but rather in the fundamental rules and structures of reality. At least Max was now guarding Selene - Magneto had faith in Andy’s abilities, but she was still just a child forced into a role that many adults would fail to cope with. “I see.” Andy nodded. She could explain that later if needed. Though she didn’t really know the answers. Max would probably be better to ask than her. [color=b71d5d]”After all that we went to Avengers Academy for school. Her parents thought it would be good for her and she has a friend there. I thought it would be a good idea to join her too. I’ve not had the best formal education. I also did want to learn how to work in a team. We didn’t have a lot of time for that.”[/color] She frowned a little. [color=b71d5d]”Things went okay, sort of. The first day was kind of a mess.”[/color] She sighed. [color=b71d5d]”But I’ve forgiven the people who made that day bad. Let it go. We are friends now actually. I have a lot of friends now. It’s nice. Up until I met Zari I hadn’t had anyone my age that was a friend. Now I have a bunch.”[/color] [color=b71d5d]”School itself has been...difficult. I think something is sort of wrong with me and my ability to read. I always thought I was stupid. But a friend lent me these books and in the books the kids have something called dyslexia. That sort of matches what I experience when I read. It takes me forever to get through stuff. So I think adding that issue on top of not a whole lot of formal education, and what education I’ve had was sporadic, has just made it hard for me to learn.”[/color] Andy sighed and shrugged. [color=b71d5d]”Something else to worry about I guess. Anyway, just before Thanksgiving break there was an incident. We were all training really hard for the Contest and this kid on Zari’s team. Ed, or Arcade, he had set up these uh, tanks that the school has called the Framework and invited our three teams to go in and train in a simulation he had set up. However, he actually was using the whole thing as a ruse to start his path to supervillainy or something. We get into the simulation and Zari isn’t there. He didn’t let her in, instead dosed her up and tried to kill her. He told us that if we died in the game we died in real life too. We had to play the games to survive, but there was no end to it. Eventually I was killed in the game. But the girl, Ardere, who was helping him, dragged me away. She touched my skin. I...”[/color] Andy took a deep breath. [color=b71d5d]”I killed her. Ate her soul and brought myself back to life.”[/color] She didn’t feel bad about it, and she didn’t expect Magneto to judge her for it. It was just another body in her past, another person she hadn’t had a choice to do anything but kill. Andy didn’t know how many people she had killed. Had lost count in between the fire at the Drummonds and the fall of Genosha. A dozen or so between Purifiers and SHIELD agents alone (though the latter of the two were not her fault directly). He frowned. There was a lot that he wanted to touch on - beginning with the fact that she had been murdered (even now, it seemed mutant children could not simply be [i]children[/i], a truth that made his blood boil, and the metal furnishings in the house shake ever so slightly) and ending with her description of herself as stupid (she was not. None of his children were - except for perhaps the speedster). At least she was making friends - he remembered how lonely she seemed on Genosha, even with her [i]friend’s[/i] company. He did note how that friend was not here - but as to why, he could only guess. “You are not stupid, Andy,” he reminded her somewhat sharply. “You are a child, one who has been robbed of the opportunities human children take for granted. You have survived for nearly eighteen years in a world that hates and fears you. You have lived when so many others have been slain. Perhaps you cannot see your own intelligence yet, but I do. And I will not stand for a child of mine to think of herself as lesser in my home.” “As for this… [i]Arcade[/i]… I should hope you killed him, if not, there is nowhere he can hide where I cannot find him.” [color=b71d5d]”Thank you.”[/color] She appreciated his reassurances. It was something she had not had a lot of in her life, and he made really good points. She had slipped through so many cracks. The fact that she was alive was surprising. [color=b71d5d]”As for Arcade, I don’t know exactly what happened, but he became contrite after. Part of the group was ready to kill him, and I would have if I had been left alone with him. Drained him of his life with no mercy. However, Zari and I fought one of the teachers, Usagi, who was also working with Arcade. Then went up and fought Arcade. But we failed to save the others. He hit a button and they all died horribly in the game. So Zari reset the timeline. We went back and tried again. This time we were able to save everyone. Then the Avengers showed up. They sent us all home, and took him. I don’t know where. I didn’t know you were here. I went with Zari back to her world. We spent Thanksgiving break there.”[/color] She paused. Should she tell him about her sleepwalking? She took a sip of her tea. The sweetness rolling over her tongue. It was good tea. [color=b71d5d]”While there, the last night we were there, I killed someone else. But this was different. I did it in my sleep. I don’t know what happened. I’m a little worried I’ll do it again. I don’t trust that it can’t happen again.”[/color] There was other stuff that happened. Little things, but a lot of it was parts of other people’s stories. Things like what happened with Leah. [color=b71d5d]”After that Dorian told me he found a picture of Zari and I on Genosha. I told him the truth and we planned to surprise his parents. He did not tell me you were his dang neighbor.”[/color] She smiled and shook her head. Andy also wanted to unpack some of her feelings about Zari. She knew Magneto didn’t care for her. Andy had also come to realize that even if Zari did love her back it wasn’t in the same way that Andy loved her. It was time to let that relationship change. They’d be better as friends. She didn’t see a future for them as lovers. Andy wanted someone to give as much as she did. She wanted a relationship that was more than just friends. Even if a part of her was scared that it’d burn like everything else had. She couldn’t keep hiding from relationships. She needed connection with people and the relationship with Zari wasn’t what she needed. Not anymore. So it had to change. Had to match what it really was, which was good friends. Friends that had been through a whole shit ton together, but not lovers. He then considered the next portion of her tale - the sleepwalking in particular was alarming to him. He knew many mutants who had had their autonomy stolen from them, who had been forced to wonder if they were responsible for the sins they had committed. Magneto took some solace in the fact that every death he had caused, the choice had been his own. But he did not think Andy to be one to make that choice so lightly. “Andy… When we are done speaking, would you humor an old man and allow James to take a look at you?” He wanted the warlock’s consultation as well - he was vaguely aware that Max had a means of revealing the truth. Perhaps they could glean what was responsible for her sleepwalking. He then shook his head at the revelation that young Dorian Gray had not shared his location with Andy - “It’s the chattering one’s influence,” he dismissed. “There is too much of Casper in those boys.” Andy snorted. [color=b71d5d]”Yeah, if I hadn't learned early on that Casper and Max were involved in raising them I would have figured it out on my own quickly I think. I’m glad that we were able to make a friendship. Even before they knew who I was. It was funny actually. One of the first times Dorian and I were hanging out he told me all about Genosha and how his parents had been involved. He told me that they had looked for me and he didn’t even know it was me. I was too scared to tell him the truth though. Later when he found the photo and showed me, he was afraid I’d be mad at him. Really I was afraid they’d all be mad at me. As for James taking a look at me, I am alright with that. I like James. He was very kind to me when I first met him and the MU.”[/color] She remembered accidentally wandering into his room, the room of the guy who had died at the college. The two were roommates, and James hadn’t been told yet. Andy hadn’t had it in her to tell him the truth. He had no idea who she was but he had been so sweet. He let her stay there in the quiet until things settled and she was put in a trio room with Stareyes and Zari. At the time she hadn’t liked Zari much. She had thought Zari was insane. Andy had realized how mean she had been and felt bad about it and apologized. She also had promised that if Zari needed any help she would be there for her. “Mm, Maximilian is far more palatable these days,” Magneto admitted. “His ambition has finally grown into his power - and his diction has certainly improved as well.” He nodded though, pleased that she was agreeing to have James take a look over her - even if the sleepwalking was not due to some outside influence, it would bring him some comfort to know that his child was well, and that she was not suffering from some unseen malady. “I understand why you were afraid that they - that we would be angry. You are grounded, as I previously said. But it is not anger I feel, Andy, my dear. It is relief - relief that you are home, that you are safe, and that you are happy.” Andy smiled. She was thankful. Happy. Even if there was an aching fear that wasn’t going away. [color=b71d5d]”I am happy. Thankful to be back. I’m glad no one is mad. I accept being grounded. That’s fair.”[/color] She sipped her cooling tea. She had talked a lot. More than she had for a long time before coming to Avengers Academy. [color=b71d5d]”What about you? What have you been doing? How did the world become...so welcoming?”[/color] She frowned. [color=b71d5d]”I found it kind of unbelievable when we came to the future and there were just schools for mutants. For a while I was afraid the other shoe would drop and it’d be some sort of trap.”[/color] Magneto paused for a moment. It was a question he had asked himself many times - one that plagued him on a sleepless night, wondering when the other shoe would drop - when mutants would be led into the gas chambers, and the horrors of his childhood would be repeated once more. He wanted to believe that history was on the trajectory of progress, he wanted to believe that they were safe. And yet… if he truly believed that, he would not still cling to life. He would not be here, waiting for the humans to show their true natures once more. He allowed the Kingston-Grays to keep him alive, so far beyond his allotted lifespan, because he feared that mutants still needed him - that they still needed [i]Magneto[/i]. “I have done what I always have done,” he said finally, holding a steady gaze. “I have been the monster the humans fear, the nightmare lurking in the dark. The world may have changed, Andy. I do not believe the humans have. The moment that they return to their ways - the moment that they come for us - [i][b]I will be ready[/b][/i]. And for every drop of mutant blood they spill, I will answer with theirs.” She wasn’t alone in not trusting this. A part of her was worried she had missed some massive brainwashing that had happened or something equally bizarre. The universe didn’t seem to be afraid of bizarre situations. Andy nodded. [color=b71d5d]”I don’t think I could deal with it going back to what it was.”[/color] She looked down at her tea. [color=b71d5d]”The world was so terrifying and seemed to want to drain any joy from me. From the day I realized I was a mutant I knew my life was in danger. That I’d constantly be one step from a horrible fate.”[/color] Andy hadn’t talked about her childhood much with anyone. The Drummonds had been the last ones she had really told everything to. Not even Dr. Whitehall or Zari knew everything. She didn’t think Zari would even understand. Her worldview was so skewed. Andy decided now wasn’t the time to get into it all. No one needed to hear it all. Maybe someday she’d tell Dr. Whitehall, it was different with a professional. Telling family took time. It had taken Andy months to tell the Drummonds everything. [color=b71d5d]”On Genosha, I was afraid it’d fall apart like everything else. I wanted it to work out. God, I wanted it to be home. I was starting to feel like it was. But my experience has always been once I start to trust a place is when it falls apart. Every foster home, the Drummonds, then Genosha. It’s been a pattern since as long as I can remember. So even if I thought that things were real here, that whatever had changed over the last almost two decades had been enough, there is this constant fear bubbling in the back of me that tells me I can’t trust it. I think that’s why I’m doing the Contest. It is why I am making sure I’m capable. I say it’s just so I know I’ll be able to keep Selene contained for as long as possible, but it is also because I know there will come a day when I have to fight for my life again. I’m not afraid to take lives. Not anymore. Not since the Purifiers took the Drummonds from me. Part of me felt a little bad. But in the end I choose to kill because they chose it first. That’s why I don’t feel guilty about the girl and I wouldn’t have felt bad about Arcade. They chose to kill first. I will not allow myself or those I care about to die at the hands of another. Never again.”[/color] “Never again,” Magneto repeated, setting down his tea and placing a comforting hand on Andy’s shoulder. “We will not allow this place to suffer the same fate as Genosha,” he swore. “Within the confines of the French Quarter, mutants are safe. It may not be an island, but it is a home. And when the time comes… You and I will be ready. You have made your father proud, Andy, my dear.”