Cable
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The furture for the House of M
Posts: 38
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Post by Cable on Dec 21, 2005 0:24:39 GMT -5
<Cat> Yeah, that explained it. < Who taught you to speak…in you mind? > Nathan tried to clear up the question. He didn’t want to use the word speak because she really wasn’t speaking, but it was the most applicable term he thought she’d understand.
< You’ve been a cat longer than you have a human, haven’t you? > The question just came out. He was almost sure he was right, especially after what she had just said. Everything pointed to this one conclusion.
There were so many questions he actually wanted to ask, but he didn’t want to overwhelm her. Mostly he wanted to know if anyone else knew about her. Sean wouldn’t have left him in here without telling him about her, would he? Who was he kidding? Nathan didn’t know a thing about Sean.
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Post by Catseye on Dec 22, 2005 0:51:31 GMT -5
< Who taught you to speak…in you mind? > She cocked her head to the side, thinking. She'd done it and then Luv had made her do it again and then Luv talked to her which made her talk back to Luv. She hadn't even realized that she really really understood what all was being said around her. Evidently, though, she had understood it. < Just did. >
< You’ve been a cat longer than you have a human, haven’t you? > She nodded. She'd always been a cat. For as long as she could remember. And she remembered pretty far back. Well, sorta far back. Okay. She remembered maybe a year back. But she could remember more if she tried. She just never had a reason to. < Always cat. >
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Cable
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The furture for the House of M
Posts: 38
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Post by Cable on Jan 1, 2006 21:26:09 GMT -5
<Just did.> Just did…Well, that made about as much since as anything else in this conversation. This Cat was really starting to bother him. Why exactly had they left him with her without saying something? They must have had cameras in this room. Everyone was in another room watching him squirm. Damn, he hoped not. Nathan found himself ready to meditate again, this time form stress instead of a desire to study his environment.
He positioned himself like he usually did and closed his eyes. He began reaching out to what he assumed were the edges of the grounds. He basically just stopped where he felt a drop off in brain activity. He felt reached out and felt everyone on campus, not in an invasive way though. He just wanted to familiarize himself with the surroundings. <Always cat,> Sharon answered his question. It didn’t startle Nathan this time. He was expecting it. Slowly again, he began floating. He wasn’t trying to scare her or anything, it was mostly involuntary. < Does anyone else know you can change? > That would help answer his questions. It would be nice if he was the first to know. At least then, he wouldn’t believe this was some kind of joke on him.
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Post by Catseye on Jan 2, 2006 6:36:18 GMT -5
She watched as he started floating again, highly amused. Shiny, floaty people just had a special place in her heart. Mostly for their entertainment value, but that's how she tended to rate most everything. And he was a lot of fun to watch. And not mean like the Glasses man. < Does anyone else know you can change? > She nodded, hopping onto the table so that she could see the spots of light that his arm cast on the walls better.
< Luvs knows. Both saw. Girl too. > What was that lady's name? She couldn't remember. After watching the spots for a moment, she jumped back to the blankets where she'd been sitting. She settled in, folding her paws beneath her to watch him float some more. < Not know how change, just do. > Maybe that'd explain. She really wanted to try and figure out how to do it, but Luv said not to. And she didn't want to make Luv angry.
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Cable
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The furture for the House of M
Posts: 38
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Post by Cable on Jan 10, 2006 1:26:57 GMT -5
<Luvs knows. Both saw. Girl too.>
The definition of insanity, as told to Nathan by Essex, is repeating the same action and expecting different results. Why, oh why did Nathan keep asking questions when the answers only confused him more? The Luvs? And Girl? Hopefully those were nicknames she had given to a few people(three, as far as he could tell).
Shaking it off, Nathan decided not to ask her for clarification. Instead, he concentrated his mental scanning of the grounds. He focused mainly on following the Red Guard Member here for the inspection, without entering her mind, sure they had training for that type of thing.
<Not know how change, just do,> Sharon added on her own, and breaking Nathan’s concentration a little. He wasn’t used to mentally multitasking like this. “Well, try concentrating really hard on being something else,” he replied. It was just a random suggestion really. He didn’t know how her powers worked. It could be mental suggestion, or a biosignal, hormone signals, or any number of different bodily functions.
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Post by Catseye on Jan 11, 2006 19:11:18 GMT -5
She watched the floating boy some more, still trying to figure out how he floated. His answer probably should have been enough, but she couldn't get over the fact that he didn't have wings.
“Well, try concentrating really hard on being something else.” She cocked her head to the side. What would that do? One way to find out. Closing her eyes, she concentrated on being a shoe. One of the big brown shoes that Orange Luv always had laying under the bed. Big brown shoe. She sniffed the air before opening her eyes. She didn't smell the shoe. Wait. Maybe she couldn't turn into a shoe? People. She could try trying to be people.
Closing her eyes again, she thought about what it had felt like to be a person. Slowly, her body started to transform. Opening her eyes, she looked down. Her paws were getting long, turning into fingers. She slid off of her perch, landing on her knees, as the rest of her legs sprouted underneath her. Collapsing into a seated position, she looked over at him, suddenly remembering that Betsy had told her not to change. <Luv says don't. >
...Now how did she go back?
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Cable
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The furture for the House of M
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Post by Cable on Jan 13, 2006 13:58:58 GMT -5
Nathan followed Red guard member into his parents offices, idly wondering which one it was. He had memorized the files on all of them. Overthrowing the current regime would require going through them. In fact, he felt almost sure he could defeat whoever it was now if needed, but didn't want i to come to that. He never held any ill will toward them. It was just something he was going to do. It was basically his only purpose in life until now.
Nathan's thoughts were interrupted by a thud sound. He opened his eyes for a moment and snapped them back. The cat was a girl again, a naked girl. <Luv says don't.> They do, huh? So someone did know they left him with a weird shapeshifting cat. She just wasn't coherent enough to follow orders. "Try changing back then, the same way." Nathan must have guessed correctly on the thought signal. As he waited for her to try, he found himself pulling one eye open, trying to catch a glimpse conspicuously. He didn't know why he felt the need to be sneaky about it. The girl didn't seem to have any hang ups about nudity.
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Post by Catseye on Jan 15, 2006 22:36:14 GMT -5
"Try changing back then, the same way." That was a good idea. She nodded, closing her eyes. Think of being a cat. Think of being a cat. It was hard. She couldn't think of just being a cat, she was so used to it. Maybe if she remembered being a big cat. Big cat.
Again, she felt her body change slowly, her joints bending and shrinking into place, the long hair shortening and spreading out, her vision sharpening. She grunted a bit as she realized that she was sitting on her own tail. That was bad. Standing up, she padded gleefully over to the boy with the shiny arm. < Did! Back cat! >
She knew how to change from big cat to person! Now all she had to do was figure out how to go back to normal...
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Post by Psylocke on Jan 16, 2006 18:17:09 GMT -5
Enter from Admin Office
Betsy walked as casually as she could through the school until she reached the secret elevator for the lowest basement level. She was tempted to reach out and find out if anything had happened by looking in Sharon's mind but if the girl was in her cat form, like she is supposed to be, then it would be too hard to read. That was how they had missed her being a mutant, after all.
At least Nathan wouldn't know she was coming. If he had inherited his mother's telepathy, Betsy would still be blocked from him like she was to all telepaths. Sharon, however, would be able to sense her with her ears and nose long before Betsy made it to the room.
The silent elevator doors swooshed open and Betsy walked silently down the hall. If something was wrong, she wanted to discover it first hand. Besides, she was still not willing to just blindly believe this boy was really Nathan, no matter how much he felt like the baby she used to spoil. Stopping in the doorway, she didn't hear any conversation, not that Sharon could really talk yet, but she did see Sharon in her “panther” form sniffing “Nathan's” arm.
The boy looked remarkably like Scott, she had to give him that but clones can look just like their genetic templates as well. Crossing her arms, Betsy leaned against the door frame and softly said, “Sharon.” With that, she held her hand down for the large cat to come to her, never once taking her eyes off of Nathan.
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Cable
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The furture for the House of M
Posts: 38
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Post by Cable on Jan 17, 2006 11:47:19 GMT -5
Before Nathan's peeking eye, Sharon changed into a panther. It was...odd. She'd changed a few times in this room but this was the first time he'd watched it. He'd seen Essex change before but never into another species. Her entire body was different in one way or another. Afterward, she walked over to him happily. <Did! Back cat!> Instinctively and still a little dazed after seeing the transformation, Nathan began scratching her head. Were he thinking correctly, he probably wouldn't have done that, knowing it she was just a teenage girl a few seconds ago.
An echoed clicking sound snapped him out of it and Nathan stopped scratching her. It sounded like footsteps. Was someone coming to check up on them? If it was Sean, Nathan needed to have a little talk with him. In mid air, Nathan turned toward the hallway door just in time to see Psylocke walk up. "Sharon" If looks could kill...
"Ms. Braddock," Nathan greeted her, bowing his head in her direction. Catching sight of the ring on her finger, he added "Or is it Mrs?"
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Post by Catseye on Jan 17, 2006 14:59:55 GMT -5
She leaned into Shiny Arm Boy as he scratched her head. It felt good. The shiny arm was her new favorite thing. It was shiny and army and it scratched well. Those were just about all of the qualifications for being her best friend. Her ears perked up as she heard footsteps, and shortly after, Shiny Arm Boy heard them too. He stopped scratching her, and she sniffed his arm. It didn't smell like an arm, even though it scratched like one.
"Sharon" Uh-Oh. That was Purple Luv's angry voice. She padded over to Luv, head down, and sat next to her. < Sorry changed. No mad please? > She didn't want Luv to be angry at her. It wasn't like she'd coughed a hairball into Orange Luv's shoes again or anything. Actually... if she remembered correctly, Purple Luv had found that somewhat amusing. If Luv was mad, she'd go find her a present. That might cheer her up. Looking up at Luv and then at Shiny Arm Boy as he spoke, she cocked her head to the side. Ms. Mrs... what was the difference? Maybe Luv would say.
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Post by Psylocke on Jan 17, 2006 21:34:30 GMT -5
Both of them looked at her in what Betsy would only call a guilty manner. Nathan looked like he had been scorched and Sharon slowly padded to her with her head hung low in her panther form. <Sorry changed. No mad please?> Sharon begged as she nudged Betsy's hand.
Betsy knelt down on Sharon's level, stroking the panther's face with her hands as she spoke gently. “Sharon, there was a very specific reason that I told you not to change once I found out Sean put you down here. You don't understand those reasons now but you will,” she told her new student/pseudo daughter. It was way too complicated to even think about at this time.
Standing back up, Betsy locked eyes with Nathan as he addressed her. "Ms. Braddock. Or is it Mrs?" Nathan asked, his eyes dropping to her ring.
She was really going to have to take the bloody thing off. This was no time to be discussing her recent engagement with everyone, not when they had Red Guard agents upstairs, newly resurrected children and cats turned mutants in the War Room. Sean was going to be spending a hell of a lot of time making all of this up to her. And to Jean, just in a different way.
“It is Ms. still. I am not married yet,” she replied, her voice still emotionless. Walking into the room fully, sitting down on one of the chairs at the computer console, Betsy crossed her legs and looked at Nathan. “Your parents believe you. How do you propose to make the rest of us believe you? You look like the baby I handed to his mother mere seconds after birth, the baby I helped take care of when Jean was completely exhausted from being a new mother. But looks, as I know all to well, can be deceiving,” she confronted the teenager. If Scott heard her now, he would probably try to strangle her but Betsy had to do this. Her best friends were at stake and she wasn't going to let anything else bad happen to them if she could help it.
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Cable
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The furture for the House of M
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Post by Cable on Jan 19, 2006 1:47:42 GMT -5
Nathan stayed focused on Psylocke. She didn’t look very happy to see him, which wasn’t a big surprise. That part was definitely Sean’s blind acceptance after hearing from his parents. He didn’t seem suspicious at all. Ms. Braddock was giving him the evil eye though.
Sharon gently padded over to betsy with her head down like she had done something wrong. Whatever could have caused that, he’d never seen a cat accept blame. Then it dawned on him. Psylocke must have been one of the luvs she was talking about. Crouching down, she basically accused Nathan of being a murderer. Then again, he was a murderer, but he didn’t pose a threat to anyone here.
With Sharon dealt with, she stood up again, giving Nathan an icy stare. “It is Ms. still. I am not married yet,” she said before walking in and sitting at the console. Her words were as cold as her eyes. “Your parents believe you. How do you propose to make the rest of us believe you? You look like the baby I handed to his mother mere seconds after birth, the baby I helped take care of when Jean was completely exhausted from being a new mother. But looks, as I know all to well, can be deceiving,” He caught her condescending tone when she said ‘parents’. It was grating but he kept reminding himself that she had every right to be suspicious. “I could show you what I showed them,” Nathan replied, before adding “or you could look for yourself.”
He vaguely remembered that she was a telepath, but what really tipped it off was that he couldn’t sense her at all. If she wasn’t a telepath, she was definitely shielded. But just to put her at ease, he opened his mind completely. Unlike with his parents though, it made him very nervous. He could tell by her hostile attitude that this was a much bigger risk.
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Post by Catseye on Jan 19, 2006 13:42:10 GMT -5
She watched as Luv knelt and petted her. “Sharon, there was a very specific reason that I told you not to change once I found out Sean put you down here. You don't understand those reasons now but you will.” She was still confused, but at least Luv wasn't too mad at her. Nodding, she head-butted Luv's leg gently.
Luv sure seemed to be angry at Shiny Arm Boy, though. “It is Ms. still. I am not married yet.” Married. Okay. Following Luv as she moved to one of the seats, Sharon laid at her feet. Better stay close if Shiny Arm Boy was not nice. But he'd seemed nice. So why was Luv so angry? She looked up at Luv as she talked about parents and babies and looking at things. As she finished, Sharon tilted her head toward Shiny Arm Boy. If she understood correctly, Shiny Arm Boy was a baby. But he looked really big for a baby. She'd seen babies before. They were tiny and didn't have hair. He had hair. He had funny hair.
He offered to show Luv something, and his arm glinted again. Jerking her head toward the spot on the wall where it reflected the light, she followed it across the room. How could someone with a cool shiny arm be bad?
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Post by Psylocke on Jan 20, 2006 22:56:35 GMT -5
Sharon came and sat at her feet, looking between her and Nathan. Betsy unconsciously reached down and began stroking Sharon's head as she watched Nathan. He also kept his eyes on her although his were guarded. Understandable, she hadn't given him a warm reception and knowing Sean, he'd probably hugged the boy and welcomed him home with open arms. Betsy couldn't allow herself to be that blind, however. She had seen too much treachery and backstabbing in her time and her number one priority was to protect them all, especially Scott and Jean, if Nathan turned out to be a fake.
”I could show you what I showed them or you could look for yourself,” Nathan offered and Betsy felt his mind not only open up but more or less invite her in.
At that point, Sharon took off, racing across the room and bounding into a wall trying to catch a reflection off the boy's arm. “You know as well as I do that memories can be manipulated. I see how you were “aged” but a clone can be aged just as easily, can it not? I sense you are a telepath as well. As a telepath, you have a very acute memory, from very early on in life. Tell me, Nathan. What is the one lullaby I used to sing to you when you had a hard time sleeping and your mother needed rest?”
There was no way anyone but the real child would know that. It wasn't something that anyone could have picked from his mind because the mind of an infant was extremely, if not nearly impossible, to read. They thought of food, dry diapers and soft places to sleep and that was about it.
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