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Summary: Sage has some trouble with his powers, Connor helps talk him through it.
Date: October 7, 2011
Log Title: Bad Hair Day
Rating: PG
Xavier Mansion - Quad
There is a square side walk of pavement with a nice grassy area in the middle with a few stone benches and trees along the corners. The pavement leads to the paths to the grounds of the school, the Dining Hall in Xavier's and the Ramsey Dormitories. It's not particularly large but it's a nice place for students and teachers to relax and enjoy the outdoors.
For the first time since coming to Xavier's Sage has skipped all his classes. He's been in a bit of a panic this morning and hasn't known what to do. He's finally made his out to the quad where he stands there fiddling with his phone. He's pressing on it but he can't quite figure it out. It might be obvious to anyone whose met Sage before what the sorce of his panic is, his normal dreaded hair isn't in it's usual dread locks. Instead it straight and almost flowing around him and trailing behind him on the ground. It looks like he has a least eight feet of hair around him.
Having stayed overnight at the mansion for reasons unknown, Connor is on the pavement around the school for a morning jog when the luscious locks of the new student are spotted. Dressed down into a sleeveless top and track pants, smartphone as MP3 player strapped to his arm, he tilts his head in curiousity, and then slows his pace somewhat until he's close by, and says loud enough to be heard, "Is everything allright?"
Sage recognizes Connor as the nice British fellow from another world and assumes that it's still him. "Oh thank goodness Connor. No, I don't know what's going on." He says trying to push his hair out of his face but there's just so much of it it's almost impossible. "I woke up and my hair was like this, just everywhere. I'm trying to find where my squad leader is but I can't work this phone to try to call or do that message thing."
Connor's accent seems to have changed to the accentlessness that comes from the northwestern region of the US and the western-most part of Canada, evidenced when he says, "Okay… look at me… look…" And he tries to meet the other young man's eyes, before putting his hands on his shoulders, "Take a deep breath… just calm down for a moment. You're moving your fingers too fast across the screen is all. Slow movements, and even pressure."
Sage looks at Connor for a bit and takes a few deep breaths. "My hair shouldn't be like this. Dreadlocks don't just come out." He explains to Connor a bit more calmly but it still seems his a bit scared. He tries to use the phone more slowly but his hands are shaking a bit. "I just…I don't know what's happening." He says before looking up at Connor and blinking. "What happened to your accent?" It seems like that at leasted clicked with Sage.
A little way in the distance there is the distinctive thud and startled cries of Chloe leaping out of a window, landing next to an unsuspecting passerby and apologizing at high speed. Then she's off zooming down towards the Quad as if the hounds of hell are on her heels. She comes close to zipping by without a word when she actually spots that it's Connor talking with Sage and has to make a breaking maneuver that ploughs a line out of the grass. "Oh. There you are," she says, hand blurring in a wave. "I heard you were around on campus and thought I'd track you down and apologize for last time I saw you." There is a fractional pause. "You okay Sage? … That is Sage under there right…"
Tilting his head at Chloe, Connor just gives a light shrug, and says, "It's over and done with… no reason to let it linger. Anyways…" Stepping back from Sage he nods a couple times, "The accent? Oh right… interdimensional counterpart. I was gone, but there needed to be a…" And he stops, grinning and shaking his head, "You know what? It's not important. Let's try and get your hair stuff settled, allright? First things first… is your hair your power?" Asking in as light a tone as he can, trying to keep it friendly, "It is Sage, Chloe… he's just having a had hair day, I think. We'll get it figured out."
Sage stops trying to figure out his phone and pushes his hair out of his face with both arms, holding is back. It takes a bit but he nods at Connor. "Yes, it is my power. It's never done anything like this before though. I've had my dreadlocks since I was eight, they cannot be gone." He says before looking at Chloe and the worry on his face is about all the greeting he gives her. "I woke up and it was like this."
"Did you have any weird dreams?" Chloe wonders, carefully extracting her foot from the furrow in the grass. "Perhaps while you slept you subconciously de-dreadlocked yourself…?" She glances at Connor and shrugs. "That doesn't make it right for me to not say sorry, but anyway good to know we're still cool. As I will probably need your input in my great undertaking." She grins cryptically. "Sage have you tried just willing them to resume the shape they had before? If you can control your hair you might be able to will it into whatever style you like."
Connor puts a hand up to forestall Chloe from going a bit farther, "Careful… I think I know what's going on. Gimme a shot." Turning to face Sage, he takes a couple more steps back, "You're out of your element, you're in a place that's totally unfamiliar, trying to get a grip on a lot of stuff that you're not sure you can handle. Right?" The question is left there to hang, and he continues on, "The first thing they teach you about your powers here is that it's mostly mental. While the effects might be physical… your mind directs the effects to some degree. So… you're stressed. Because you're stressed your power… in this case… your hair… is out of sorts. Chloe's right, I think… but she's getting a little ahead of herself. First thing's first… take a deep breath… close your eyes… and think about something pleasant. Something from home that always made you smile."
Sage shakes his head a Chloe, his hair almost flying out a bit. "No, I don't recall and horrible dreams." He says before he looks to Connor and lets his words sink in as he nods. "Something pleasant, from home. I want to think of Cinnamon but that just makes me miss her." He says but he tries to focus on that. "She's a wonderful minature pot belly pig and my pet." He says as a faint smile finds his lips.
"It's more like I get ahead of everyone else rather than myself," Chloe points out with a shrug. "But the end result is largely the same. Anyway I see what you're getting at Connor. Have you ever thought about taking Tai Chi or meditation classes? Relaxation seems to be key especially for the kinesis type powers." She blinks a few times, then winces. "I'm going to stop bombarding you with thoughts because it can't be helping." She makes a zip motion over her own lips and takes a few steps back to run through a light warm up routine.
Connor nods once toward Chloe, and then mouths the words 'Thank you' exaggerated enough that she can easily read it, and then turns back to Sage, saying with still as calm a voice as he can bring to this, "Okay… Cinammon… tell me a story about Cinammon. Keep your eyes closed, and picture that memory as you talk about it."
Sage is about to say something to Chloe but instead he takes a deep breath also remembering some of the meditation his father taught him. "I got her for my eight birthday, the same year I got my dreads." Sage starts to explain. "My grandfather knew I liked pigs so he got me a minature pot belly pig for my birthday. One I wouldn't have to kill or eat. The first time I helped a sow give birth and the tiny little piglets, they were so adorable that I just fell in love with them." As he talks his hair starts to shrink, not into dread form but it goes from being eight feet long to about four feet. "Cinnamon would always sleep with me and follow me around. She's a sweetheart."
Done with her warm up Chloe hops into a handstand on a nearby bench. Her head turning between Sage and Connor as the conversation flows so as not to be rude. "Pigs are supposed to be /really/ smart aren't they?" she asks. "I bet they make great pets."
Connor grins at Chloe, and then gives an encouraging not to her as he looks back at Sage, "I have a cat… about all it does is pounce my head and mew at me at two in the morning… So, how did you end up naming her Cinammon?" Smiling now as he watches the hair shrink, and the girl can see his shoulders seem to shift and then relax in relief that he's done some good.
"They are quite smart." Sage responds to Chloe though his eyes stay closed. "Cinnamon was a great pet. I miss her but I know Violet is taking good care of her. I can't remember how she got her name." Sage says trying to think. "It believe it was because it fit with the rest of our names and I liked to chew on Cinnamon sticks, it fit her. Cats can be like that, we had a bunch of barn cats but they rarely came inside. What is your cat's name?" He asks as his hair starts to twist and knot back together. It's a slow process but without even thinking about it, it's going back to normal.
Chloe bites her lip, then carefully moves so she's balancing (still upside down) on the raised back of the bench rather than the flat seating section. "I was never allowed to have pets back home. We just didn't have the space with all the stuff we needed for my dads gym and the guest room for people he was doing intensive training with." She hrms. "Is a cinnamon stick an actual piece of cinnamon? Like you'd get in the kitchen. They must have a really strong flavor when you chew them, I thought you could only boil them in stocks and things."
Chuckling a bit, Connor crosses his arms over his chest, and replies, "He's lived in a different place than us, Chloe… different palate, different spices… what might be bitter to you tastes good to him. It's not up to us to judge." Though his tone isn't admonishing as he replies to Sage, "His name's Bamf. He was a stray who was living in the apartment I moved into… and so he kinda adopted me. Which is about normal for cats." He pauses a moment and his eyes seem to be a bit amazed as the prehensile hair seems to pull itself all back together where it used to be. Looking again to Chloe, he adds, "I couldn't see you with a pet Chloe… not like this. It wouldn't be fast enough for you. Maybe a hummingbird, but even then…" Back to Sage, he says, "Allright. Take a couple more deep breaths, and open your eyes slowly."
"Oh it's quite like chewing on bark." Sage says with a chuckle as his hair finishes reverting back to what it is usually like. "But I enjoy the taste. My Mum hated it because when she went to bake and there wasn't enough cinnamon." He chuckles. "My brothers and sisters all used to sneak them." He takes a few more deep breaths and opens his eyes, running his hands back over his hair. "Blomey, it's back. I didn't even know I could do that. Thank you both very much."
"I never claimed cinnamon sticks tasted bad. I just didn't know you could actually chew them," Chloe admits, still balancing upside down. "Honestly I can't say I've ever been suited for having a pet. Before my power I was almost always out of the house for one reason or another. And it just isn't fair to have a pet and leave them alone… Speaking of your cats they are /totally/ freaky Connor. Just watch out that no-one finds out about them or you might have mutant petnappers after you."
A hand falls on Sage's shoulder as Connor replies to him, "Look… my first three weeks here was hell on me. My power wasn't working properly because of reasons no one could understand, I would teleport places all over the school in my sleep or when stressed out. Thank GOD I knew how to swim, because twice I landed in the lake. What we don't realize at the start is we have a subconscious control, which we have to unlearn and then relearn." Nodding he pats a couple more times, and then turns his head to look at Chloe, "I'd dare any of them to CATCH any of them. And I wouldn't mess with Rashmi's cat. Something in his eyes is off… like he'd beat up a raccoon or a rottweiler and not bat an eyelash."
Sage nods at Connor. "It's been quite difficult here. Home is very different and I miss it. I don't hate it here but it's just strange. And then losing my dreads…it scared me. My hair, it's important. When I was eight, on my birthday, my parnets dreaded my hair. When my sisters and brothers turned eight they did the same thing. It's something special in our family so when they were gone, I got frightened." He says before looking between Chloe and Connor. "What's strange about your cats?"
"They're his cats so I'll let him explain. I don't think I can process that level of strange right now," Chloe teases, beginning to walk on her hands down the back of the bench. "Connor if I asked for your input on a new martial art I'm going to develop would you be interested in acting as a consultant? I thought rather than try learn /everything/ I would instead steal the bits from every style that suits my build. Sort of like how Bruce Lee talked about martial arts in his latter years."
"Jeet Kun Do, Krav Maga, and a couple others do the same thing, Chloe… but to be honest, after a while, each person develops their own style within style…" Connor replies with a grin, "I can try… but I'm not sure how much what I would know will help." Giving another shrug, he takes a deep and long breath, "Well… We have three cats. One is blue like Professor McCoy… one can shapeshift into anything animate or inanimate, and Bamf… well… Bamf teleports, but every time he does he leaves a stink sulfur behind, and it makes a small… well… Bamf sound." The smile he gets is a 'what can you do?' face as he then adds, "There's some good that comes from this Sage. Now you know your hair can extend. Don't think of it as something bad… but good. Imagine what you could do with a bunch of small arms… like a bunch of tame octopi…" But even he winces at that, "Okay, bad Harryhausen imagery right there… but I think you get the idea, right?"
Sage looks at Chloe but he keeps his mouth shut and doesn't say anything about finding martial arts to be unecessary. "I'm not quite sure who Professor McCoy is but you mean that the cats were blessed by the dunlalaps like we were?" He asks sounding quite amazed. "I didn't know they also blessed other animals. That's amazing!" He says giving a big smile. "Well I came here to learn Connor so I am looking at this like a good thing, even if octopi isn't any sort of real pie that I know of. And who is Harryhausen?"
"They're a sea creature with eight legs," Chloe explains with a smile. "And don't worry Sage a lot of what I'm planning isn't about violence. I know you don't approve of that sort of thing, but the physical motions themselves can be a tool for enlightenment and meditation." She glances at Connor and does an upside down shrug. "I would love to learn Krav Maga but finding a /proper/ teacher is near impossible. Jeet Kun Do.. I haven't actually looked into finding classes for yet but it strikes me as against the spirit of Bruce Lee's intent to learn when I could make something truely personal."
Once more he looks back and forth between the two, and his shoulder slump a bit, "Harryhausen was a special effects master for movies… The Fantastic Voyage and Clash of the Titans. It's epic stuff… the kind of things you can't see anymore." But then Connor waves it off, and he grins and reaches to put his headphones back in once more, "I've gotta finish my jog, and then I've got a drive back to New York… but if you want Sage, I'll program my number into your phone, so it has my face. You would just have to touch it, and it'll dial me. Would that work better for you?"
"I haven't heard of either of those films." Sage says as he's quite out of the loop there. "I know what an octopus is but an octopi is the same thing? Is it a pie made of octopuses?" He asks kind oc confused. "That would be wonderful, thank you Connor." He says as he hands him the school issued phone. "Chloe it's your choice not mine. Just because I don't agree with it doesn't mean you shouldn't do what you would like. It's not my place to judge." He says honestly.
Chloe giggles, an action which very nearly topples her off the bench. "Nah it's just the plural. I wish they had a cool name for a group of them, like crows get to be called a murder of crows. But anyway I digress," she proclaims. "You have a remarkably enlightened attitude Sage. You could probably make a fortune if you wrote a lifestyle guide. Horror films just aren't something I've ever been into Connor, perhaps you could get some on a usb stick for me to watch? I'd have to try convert to my speed for proper viewing, so dvd is right out."
Taking Sage's phone, Connor makes it look easy as he goes through, and not only does his own face after snapping a shot, but set up several others, and even makes the interface a little bit simpler. It's odd watching him work, because for those few moments he seems hyperfocused and not even looking at the rest of the world. But when he stops… he passes the phone back to Sage. The school's directory with faces is now his front page, and when he takes on a face it gives him the options. Phone, Instant Message, Email. Simple and efficient, "There you go. The default settings on these suck. I gotta head out. Later!" And just like that, headphones go in and he's off at a good clip down the path to the mansion proper.
"Thank you very much. I should go as well and explain to my teachers why I missed class and talk to Xorn and tell him what happened." Sage says with a smile. "Thank you both very much I owe you both." He says before waving and heading off towards the school.
"Not a problem. I'll catch you both later!" Chloe says, wiggling her foot in an approximation of a wave. "I'm sure no-one will hold it against you Sage, the teachers expect that kind of thing to happen to new students."
