3160/Family Magnetics

Family Magnetics
Date of Scene:	30 August 2020
Location:	Main Foyer
Synopsis:	Lorna, Gabby and the Cuckoos run into Magento at the Mansion.
Cast of Characters:	Lorna Dane, Gabby Kinney, Erik Lensherr, Stepford Cuckoos

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Lorna Dane has posed:
Lorna walked back inside after a loop around the Mansion, her hair soaked around her shoulders, and a towel wrapped around her shoulders. It was warm outside, but having spent an hour or so swimming in the lake with Wanda's potion had been an interesting test run of what it could do.

She had hoped to have dried off a bit more, but the inside was cool with the blast of air conditioning and she'd have to go up the stairs anyways to get to her clothes and change.

"I still can't figure out who plays golf around here to have found like ten different golf balls in the water." She tsk'ed under her breath, shaking her head. "I mean... maybe Scott? But that implies he has time to spend on something like relaxing." She shivered as she padded into the entry way, heading for the stairs.

"And who put the AC onto like 70 in here?"

Gabby Kinney has posed:
"Don't look at me about the golf thing. Maybe Warren?" Gabby reasons as she walks alongside Lorna with her flip flops slapping against the floor as she goes. She's equally wet but doesn't seem to mind much. Her own towel is tugged around her arms and shoulders like a blanket or shawl and her hair is twisted into a coil behind her. After a moment of considering it she nods. "I could see Warren playing golf."

Erik Lensherr has posed:
Magneto had arrived at the School over a week ago but had largely kept to himself. There were rumors that he was here, of course, because they followed him everywhere, but he had been avoiding the students and faculty for the most part. His guest room was well-appointed, and he saw little reason to leave. His motives for being there were his own and he kept them to himself, passing the day with a book.

Today, however, he's ventured beyond his room. He moves through the lobby, dressed formally but simply in a dark suit with a button-down shirt. In one hand he holds what looks to be a particularly ancient edition of 'Politeia' bound in leather. He pauses a moment upon hearing Lorna's voice alongside an unfamiliar one, pausing where he is so they will come across him as he stands there in the foyer.

Stepford Cuckoos has posed:
"We typically use the pool, so we do not know," comes a quintaphonic rejoinder, denying knowledge on this particular mystery.

As ever the clique unto themselves, the Five in One arrive as a group from another interior part of the mansion, and in 'fomration' no less. It's always the same one in the lead, and even if they look identical (and they do, right down to their posh prep school-style outfits), their apparent alpha-Cuckoo definitely carries herself with a certain commanding presence. Behind her, the others walk in sync but otherwise do show cracks in the perfect facade of conformity as they engage in more personal side-distractions: a daydreaming glance here, a snippet of actual spoken conversation between a pair of them. And while they react fairly 'normally' to Lorna and Gabby's arrival, the other presence makes them stop, as a unit, and they all stare.

Magneto's kinda famous!

Lorna Dane has posed:
Lorna stopped in her tracks as she felt the magnetic presence of her father, usually impossible to miss anywhere in the world, he'd been purposefully keeping to himself to the point she hadn't noticed. Her jaw dropped open as she gaped openly at her father's presence in the Mansion.

"Dad?" Her eyebrows furrowed sharply and she rapidly approached him. "What are you doing here?" Her voice was short, clipped, and clearly struggling with a heat of temper that traced her voice.

"Why are you here?" She stopped in front of him, towel held tightly around her shoulders as she stared.

Gabby Kinney has posed:
It's the distraction of the arrival of the Cuckoos that keeps Gabby from immediatly noticing the tall, pale haired man that was standing in the path looming so purposefully. Hearing them speak she breaks into a grin with a hand lifting in greeting toward them cheerily. Nevermind she was still damp and wearing her swimsuit which was a tomboyish two-peice of shorts and a cropped fitted tanktop in the school colors of yellow and black. "Oh hey!" She greets about to say more when Lorna blurts out that word.

Nearly skidding to a halt she stops in the hall snapping her head in the other direction to stare at the man there openly. Wait. Dad? A questioning look is shot to the Cuckoos, eyebrows raising as she mouths 'THAT'S Magneto?' He might be famous but she hadn't really been out in the world when he wasn't 'dead' so she didn't know what he looked like. Other than that famous helmet thing he always wore.

Erik Lensherr has posed:
"Charles and I are old friends," Magneto answers, as though that weren't already known, "Can I not pay a visit to my old friend from time to time as the mood strikes? I find myself with an abundance of time, after all."

The last words prompt a slight tick at the corner of his mouth, the sort of smile that seems entirely without humor and serves more as a show of superciliousness. Steely eyes pass from his daughter, to the gathering of near-identical cuckoos, and then finally to the diminutive wolverine.

"And who are your friends?" He gestures vaguely towards Gabby, brows knitting, "There's a ... resemblance here, but I daresay I can't put my finger on it."

Stepford Cuckoos has posed:
When they're all together, the group mentality is strong and can be a little overwhelming, drowning out the individuals. Still, it's hard not to notice that one Cuckoo in particular reacts to Gabby's arrival; they all look over, but she lifts a hand to give the barest sort of wave hello, just a shy little lifting of her hand and wiggling of a few fingers worth. This even distracts her a moment as the others look back, observing this reunion of father and daughter with open curiousity.

They do not interrupt the reunion, however, and instead Gabby gets a silent confirmation of her question. Actually, she gets several, as their whole 'talking as a group' thing happens mentally, too. << Yes, that must be him - Duh, she called him 'dad' - 'We've studied the files' - 'I wonder if he's here to cause problems!' >>

None of this mental barrage interrupts them responding when the man finally does acknowledge the others beyond his daughter. "We are the Five in One." And then they even do a role-call through their various names. It was Celeste waving at Gabby.

Lorna Dane has posed:
Lorna shot Magneto a look, an eyebrow arched upward and she crossed her arms as she managed to twist the towel around her figure and tuck it in so she had free use of her hands. "Yeah, I know you were friends with the Professor once upon a time." She muttered shaking her head, "But oh I dunno, the X-men wanting to run your little space station to the ground and see you put on lock down might be a pretty good reason for you to not come here?" She snapped, gesturing around her with a wave of her hand.

"Seriously! What part anything..." She trailed off and pinched the bridge of her nose with her thumb and forefinger. She sighed heavily. Her green eyed gaze swung toward Gabby and the Cuckoos briefly and back. Irritation plain on her expression.

"Everyone meet my Dad." She gritted out.

Gabby Kinney has posed:
It's not the first time that Gabby was spoken to mentally so while it might come as a slight surprise to get the barrage of many voices, she recovers easily. Honestly the mental thing was something she still thought was cool as well as super useful. She wasn't sure if they could hear her back, though she focuses on her response with a bit of a mental shrug. <<I just figured he'd look meaner, I guess. And purple-er.>> Totally not a word.

Curiosity aside, Lorna was upset which made Gabby concerned. With a wet slapping of flipflops against the floor she moves over to Lorna's side to tip her head back and stare up at Magneto without a hint of fear or trepidation that might otherwise be shown by those who know of this man and his history. Her green gaze is unflinching as she regards him. This small dark haired girl with scars on her face that were far too symmetrical to not have been purposefully inflicted just watches him a moment before she breaks into a wide grin. "I'm Gabrielle, though everyone calls me Gabby. I'm from the future--It's so good to meet you, grandpa!"

Erik Lensherr has posed:
"It's a pleasure to meet each of you, both collectively and individually," the Master of Magnetism answers with a dip of his head in the direction of the Cuckoos, "How interesting to meet the next generation of Charles' students. It wasn't so long ago that there were only a handful ... "

His attention turns back to Lorna now, eminently calm despite the obvious resentment bubbling there. He tucks the book he carries under one arm, holding his palms out open in a gesture of harmlessness - or, at the very least, temporary peace.

"And what reason would they have to do that? Beyond suspicion and fear? I am merely pursuing my beliefs, and I've taken no aggressive steps to do so ... at least not yet. It is interesting to see how the doctrine of acceptance and coexistence does not stand up so readily to personal and emotional bias, isn't it?"

He looks down towards Gabby with the patronizing smile that many adults spare for children who are better seen than heard. His expression does not flinch as he asks: "Do you have gills?"

Stepford Cuckoos has posed:
<< It's probably a trick, >> one of the head-voices warns Gabby, sly and cautious. Esme. << Yeah, we should warn- >> Phoebe, that time. Hostile. But Sophie asserts dominance in this space as much as elsewhere. << No. I believe his presence is allowed, or an alarm would have been raised. We should give him the benefit of the doubt. Perhaps he has come to negotiate with the Professor. >>

Uh, so yeah, there's a little mental debate going on, actually more amidst the Cuckoos than anywhere else, but Gabby is FORTUNATE enough to get a front-brain seat to the whole thing. This is probably a time when the ol' Magster should be VERY happy for that helmet! Outwardly, however, true to their namesake, they are the image of politeness and propriety. "It is a great honor to meet someone called a friend by the Professor," Sophie declares both in echo to Lorna and Magneto's own greeting, speaking singly for the collective now, rather than the group going full chorus-mode.

"That being said," the alpha-Cuckoo continues, "we do admit to a certain curiousity over the purpose of your visit. I think the reason for concern is obvious enough. Must we say it out loud? Speak of the violence?" There's actually some challenge in her voice there, though for once, not with one-hundred percent confidence. "But if this is family business, perhaps we should leave you alone? Or have you come to open a dialogue with the Professor?"

Lorna Dane has posed:
Lorna tilted her head back as she pursed her lips and focused mostly on her father. "Oh yes, right your beliefs that you want to be Emperor of the planet and bring war down all over to liberate mutants." She shook her head, and she exhaled a rough breath. "Can't imagine why they'd disagree with that." Sarcasm lacing her words thick and dry.

Which is about when Gabby spoke, she blinked and made to try to grab Gabby's shoulder and tug the younger mutant back and away from her father if possible.

"Gabby! It's not funny." Which is about when her father's response sank in fully. She went pale, her hand falling away as she turned her gaze back to her father.

"Are you //spying// on me?" Her voice hushed and low.

Gabby Kinney has posed:
Gabby Kinney is still smiling confidently and without blinking when Lorna reaches down to grab her back. She stumbles backwards, one flipflop being abandoned in the process as she regains her balance from the backward step. Even as she protests, the acting continues a moment longer. With an utter hautiness she retorts, "Don't be ridiculous, only low born Atlanteans have need of *gills*." As IF.

Though when Lorna goes quiet and upset she looks toward her with a more serious, concerned expression. "He's here and he's upsetting you. He didn't even have the courtesy to let you know he WAS here... Especially when he knew you were likely here to begin with."

The front row mental seat is responded to with a simple << I don't like this guy either way, but I'm not going to start trouble. I know he's powerful. We should all be careful. >> It's the only sensible thing she says though because the next thing out of her mouth is, "Just because you had a shitty, hard life, doesn't give you the right to be a jerk to your kids."

Erik Lensherr has posed:
"Don't be absurd," Magneto says to Lorna with a shake of his head and a mirthless chuckle, "It's my prerogative to know things, and there's much to catch up on after being believed dead for so long."

"Which leads me to the larger point of my visit. Understanding. I'm afraid my daughter puts it rather crudely. Mankind censure injustice fearing that they may be the victim of it, and not because they shrink from committing it."

A look is given to Gabby, and all that patronizing warmth is sapped out of it. Now it's only cool, even analysis.

"The summation of a child. I've done nothing but exist here and I am being met with scorn and hostility," the same gaze shifts to Lorna now, "If you have no interest in a frank discourse, daughter, then I see no need to continue this. Please, don't let me keep you from your ... swimming, was it?"

There's another dip of his head and he walks through the pair, not shirking from a shoulder bump or two if they don't part for him. He strides purposefully towards the double doors, both of which swing open wide at his mere thought.

Stepford Cuckoos has posed:
<< Yeah, we can't fight him. Not with that thing on his head. If there's trouble, try and knock it off. >> This is allllll Phoebe. Uh, especially the next part. << Though I guess if you get that close to his head it might just be easier to take -it- off instead of the helmet...>>

What?

So yes, there's some mental musing about potential beheadings but otherwise, the most apparent reaction of the Cuckoos is not to the grand debate of world-shaking philosophies. Maybe Sophie tried, but the rest of the group seems far more reactive to the emotional turmoil of the moment. They might not be able to read Magneto, but as their last run in very much proved, they can read Lorna like a book, often without making much effort at it. And so what they finally say echoes Gabby, except this time in all five voices: "You -are- upsetting her."

Of course they make no effort to intercede, and simply wait as the man marches off, before finally moving closer to the other pair. Which sort of leads to a bit of semi-encirclement as -all- of them join in on it. "I think I was wrong," Sophie admits, aloud. "He does... live up to everything the files say about him. Are you alright, Lorna? Do you... need anything?" They have a surplus of empathy as telepaths, but far less experience putting it to practical use.

Lorna Dane has posed:
Lorna stared at her father chastened and silent and pale as she stood there. She was clearly processing his words when Gabby spoke. Her eyes rounded and she made to try to push Gabby backward as her father made to walk by, an attempt to put herself between Magneto and the younger mutant that was as much as reflex as anything else. She'd allowed her temper to get the best of her, and while //she// was his youngest daughter and had spent years with him... not everyone else in the Mansion had. And there were kids still attending school there, unaware that Magneto had come to visit.

Lorna lowered her gaze as her father made to pass by, and it was clear he'd impressed his point on her at least.

"We were just finishing." She breathed, her heart in her throat as the Master of Magnetism stepped out and the doors flew open. She remained ramrod still, until he'd stepped out, and only as the Cuckoos approached did the slight tremble in her hand start. "Keep Gabby out of trouble.." She managed, and made to dash up the stairs toward her room.

Gabby Kinney has posed:
"We're training for a mission that includes swimming," Gabby retorts back to him. She's pushed aside, and looks to Lorna again with a frown at how she was acting so very terrified of her father. Or angry? Or... she couldn't tell anymore. There were to many emotions clearly warring over her features. "You were still rude not to mention you were coming to visit so my point stands," she adds though she doubts that it's heard. Instead she reaches up to rest her arm on Lorna's hand with a pensive expression. Maybe she HAD said too much. Probably she had. She was called 'Gabby' for a reason after all.

Just as the Cuckoos come around she starts to think of what to do to help... but then Lorna runs off leaving her there uncertainly. She looks to the girls a single time each, then drops her still hovering in the air hand to her side with a sigh. "Sorry."

Erik Lensherr has posed:
Magneto doesn't seem to respond to the words shouted after him. He simply steps through the door, moving out onto the driveway. For a moment, a shudder passes through the very superstructure of the mansion. The walls and floors themselves begin to shudder, not enough to cause damage but certainly enough to be felt. It lasts for several seconds while the man simply stands outside, his back turned to the place.

Then it stops, and everything has once more settled down. He steps forward, as though mounting an invisible staircase, and then begins to rise through the air like a cork beneath water. Up and up until he is entirely out of sight.

Stepford Cuckoos has posed:
<< We could help her- >> Celeste.

There's an impulse, not fully voiced, but still partly formed, because thoughts are kind of funny that way, and mental communication doubly so. And Gabby is still somewhat privy to it, as the collective has integrated her into their prior discussion and perhaps 'forgotten' that she's there. It's a powerful thought, urge: They could try and fix it. They could MAKE her feel better. Erase the negative feelings. They could-

<< No. >>

Sophie is the one who puts her foot down, figuratively speaking. Mental meddling, mindwiping, psychic surgery no matter how minor... these are things that are definitely on the 'not allowed behavior' list.

A group hug MIGHT be a more acceptable alternative, but they don't even get a chance at that, as Lorna runs off, leaving them with Gabby. "It's OK. I think she needs... alone time?" They do look after the retreating woman, thoughtful, concerned and unsure... at least until Magneto, apparent drama Queen, literally shakes the building and then presumably flies off to the moon.

Their final verdict is given in full group unison: "We do not think we like him very much."