17118/The Waking Is The Hardest Part

The Waking Is The Hardest Part
Date of Scene:	06 February 2024
Location:	Kitty's Bedroom
Synopsis:	Hank stops to check on Kitty, waking her from a dream about the digital simulation they were trapped in
Cast of Characters:	Henry McCoy, Kitty Pryde

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Henry McCoy has posed:
It has been some little bit of time since things settled down in wake of their 8 Bit Adventure. On the whole, Hank has been keeping busy, and then there was a short stint in which he had a speaking engagement at bio-conference in California. Freshly back, the first thing he does after dropping off his bags at his rooms and switching into more comfortable clothes - blue knee shorts and a baggy t-shirt that states in old school computer type: There are 10 types of people in the world, those that understand binary, and those that do not.

And then he heads to Kitty's room, knocking on the door after he didn't find her in her office.

Kitty Pryde has posed:
There is a delay before there is any response. And then the door handle slowly turns and the door opens inwards partway. At first there's no sight of who opened the door, but Henry's hearing will pick up the beat of wings just before Lockheed hovers over from where he'd clasped the door knob, to moving where he can be seen.

Lockheed retreats further into the room. The lights are out but a fire is going in the fireplace. The little space dragon lands on the warm bricks there, head turning to look towards the bed.

Assuming Henry comes in far enough to see her, he'll see Kitty Pryde asleep on the bed. It looks like she just plopped down atop the covers and pulled the coverlet halfway over herself. She has on footies, and enough of her side is visible where the blanket is partway off to show she's wearing boxers and a tank top as she snoozes, dead to the world seemingly.

Henry McCoy has posed:
Hank is a little surprised that it is Lockheed that answers the door, then smiles to the chibi dragon. "Good evening, Lockheed, I owe you a Twinkie." Alas, he clearly does not have one at the moment. Hank's good for it though, for reals! That the dragon retreats is tacit permission to peek in, and he notes the sleeping Kitty. Part of him wants to enter, but he pauses, not wanting to disturb her or invade Kitty's space. He does scent carefully, checking to see if she is unwell without a physical exam, or crossing further into the room and potentially acting inappropriately.

No harm in that, after all, if he doesn't detect any untoward signs of illness, or distress, he'll simply close the door quietly and go to his own office to get caught up on his reports, emails, and the like.

Eyes of gold are back lit in blue as he peers in, nostrils flaring.

Kitty Pryde has posed:
There doesn't seem to be anything physically wrong with Kitty that Henry can detect. Other than perhaps just a need for sleep.

Though his fine sense of hearing will hear a tiny little whimper sound deep in her throat. One of her arms gives a little tremble. Just as she's lapsed back into silence for long enough he might be about to turn and head back to his lab, there's another soft whimpered sound, and this time Kitty gives a more overt movement. Pulling her arms in closer to herself, one of her legs moving beneath the blanket fitfully. "No..." she murmurs in her sleep, one hand briefly struggling with the blanket for a second or two.

Lockheed sits upright a little more, head lifting to peer over at his girl.

Henry McCoy has posed:
Hank was about to depart, sure, they have some history - he remembers the time some years back when they'd been much closer, when she helped him during a regressive period when he desperately needed help. He knows she's comfortable with him in her space, but that was a couple years ago, and he didn't want to presume. Those whimpers, however, those draw him up short as he started his retreat, the second drawing him into the room.

The door is closed softly, and he pads nigh silently over to the bed, settling on the covers side of the bed, as he gently touches Kitty's shoulder. "Kate...shhh...it's okay. Your safe." Hank murmurs, his voice soft, deep, and very gentle. As always, his deeply bass tones are lovingly enunciated, and even soft spoken, the rumble is tangible - albeit mildly.

Kitty Pryde has posed:
It takes more than the first gentle touch to wake Kitty. Likely a tiny little shake, but not a big one, that finally brings her up out of the unpleasant dream she was having.

Her eyelids flutter open and she sees Hank there. And at first she doesn't seem to register that things have changed and she's awake. But his gentle, melodious voice offering those quite reassurances get through eventually. "Hank," Kitty says, letting out a gasp. Her hand struggles free of the blanket it's tangled in, coming up to rub at her forehead.

"I was dreaming of the digital snakes, and crabs. The ones that I couldn't phase through without them hurting," the young woman says, body giving a shiver and her arm dropping to join the other in hugging herself. "I hate things I can't phase through. They weren't as bad as that one demon, but... still bad," she says, shuddering.

Henry McCoy has posed:
When the gentle touch is not sufficient, a firmer shake follows, until she wakes. He takes pains to sit very still, offering a warm smile until she parses who's there. After all, even knowing Hank, a big, blue, furry, fanged, clawed feline-morph might be a tad off-putting when you wake from nightmare! Once she DOES, however, he gathers her close to his chest as she wraps her arms about herself.

"That was more than a little unpleasant, yes." And then he frowns at the mention of the N'Garai. "Not especially a merry Christmas, was it? Nor the best of Hannukah gifts, I'm pretty sure that the gift of demon will never catch on." The tone is wry, his expression is not, he's not making light, he's trying to help a friend.

His long arms can easily enfold the girl (a couple times over!), and her blankets, and he's very warm. "Magic is always tricky, as are force fields and the like." He agrees about things she can't phase through.

Kitty Pryde has posed:
The only thing that likely gave Kitty pause at seeing Henry's familiar face, was that he was there in that digital construct, and in her dream. Making her take another second or two to realize he wasn't the Henry from the nightmare she'd been having.

But as his arms close about her and he draws her in against him, she more than willingly lets go of her own self-grip and slides her arms about him, hugging herself tightly in against his chest. Kitty closes her eyes as if to just focus on the feeling of being held in his strong arms.

"No, but I suppose it did wonders for my self-confidence, dealing with it by myself like that," she says of the night everyone else had gone out for some Christmas show or something.

Kitty draws a slow, deep breath and lets it out. "I'm glad you were here,' she tells him softly, lifting her face upwards to gaze up at Hank. "You're very calming, you know that, Hank?" she asks, her hand brushing his back gently where she hugs him.

Lockheed gives a few little flaps, coming over to land on the bed. "I'm ok now boy," she tells him, reaching over to give him a little ruffle under the chin. He gives Hank a nudge in the leg as if thanking him for taking care of the girl.

Henry McCoy has posed:
He's a rather scary fellow either way, but that Kitty clearly is undisturbed actually is rather soothing for the man. Despite that time since he feared regression having passed, he's always somewhat to a lot aware of his bestial appearance and the effect is has on people. Even dear friends.

The shift from self hug to Beast hug is also reassuring, and truly - welcome.

"You have always been capable, and inventive. Your first encounter with us, as you must recall, had you rescuing several of us from the machinations of the Hellfire Club...you were what, fourteen?" He offers a lopsided grin even as he shifts to settle her against him, and a low rumble thrums as she strokes at his back.

"Am I? I'm glad you find me so. I strive very hard to be a positive influence, that means a lot, dear lady."

He grins at Lockheed. "And I *will* deliver on my promise of golden snack cake goodness." He will, if allowed, scritch the dragon.

Kitty Pryde has posed:
Lockheed's reaction is a faint nod and an expression that could best be interpreted as, "Damn tootin you will." He leans into the scritching from Hank, even as Kitty is completely relaxed resting in the reassuring embrace of his strong arms.

"You've succeeded at that, maybe even beyond the Professor himself," Kitty says. "There are so many times I've been down and you've always had a way of making me feel better, Hank. And you stimulate and drive me intellectually, and sometimes infuriate me with how brilliant you are. Which makes me just go out and work all the harder to try to keep up!" she says, breaking out in warm laughter at the end.

Outside the winter winds blow, rattling the windows in their frames and making the warmth of the fireplace quite welcome. "Did you come up here needing me for something?" Kitty asks. She leans her head back enough that she and Henry can look at each other, but hasn't made any movements that suggest she's not content to stay there in his arms.

Henry McCoy has posed:


A snort of amusement at the imperious dragonling's expression, and truth be told - Hank will absolutely make good on the promise. He's not prone to breaking his given word, after all. AND...Lockheed can torch his stash, so there's that!

"Well, I am glad to exceed your expectations and to inspire you to greater heights, even if from frustration and spite." This with a low chuckle she can /feel/ as she laughs. "I'm not sure I can agree that I've exceeded Charles, however, though...perhaps I might be a tad more.../approachable/." A nod. "THAT much, I can accept."

He smiles. "When do I not need a friend?" He queries, eyes mirth-filled, and then he looks more serious. "In truth I wanted to check up on you in the wake of that digital debacle, with me having been gone, there just wasn't time sooner." The hand that was scritching Lockheed shifts up to idly pluck at Kitty's hair as she seems content to stay in his arms. It isn't like he's going to complain!

"I did not have any other agenda, having just gotten back from California. Anything going on I should be aware of?"