2010-04-09: Music And Cigarettes

Players:

Kenta_icon.jpg Lucas_icon.jpg

Summary: Kenta gets to know one of his Paragons, Lucas.

Date: April 9, 2010

Log Title Music and Cigarettes

Rating: PG-13


Xavier Mansion - Japanese Gardens

A large area of the grounds is landscaped with a Japanese Garden. A river filled with coi fish runs through the middle with a wooden bridge. There is even a small waterfall splashing on the rocks. Bamboo can be heard clacking on the rocks. A small statue of a Buddha can be found in various places. The trees hang over the area and when the flowers are in bloom, it brings a variety of color to the peaceful landscape.


The dark never really bothered Kenta, so he's out tonight, taking a nice stroll while his six year old son, Armande, sleeps inside. Not unusual, since he's outside, Kenta's smoking so the orange glow can easily be spotted. Just like Lucas's hand. He walks over and and smiles down at the sitting teen. "That's an interesting way to write at night." He comments.

Lucas jumps, startled, and immediately closes the book. He's not hiding anything. Honest. Nothing to see here. Nothing at all. Not writing. The notebook is shoved under his leg. "Oh… Hey! Um… Hey." He furrows his brow a little, and looks up at Kenta, "Am Ah… Is this a curfew bust?"

"Yup, curfew bust, ya know, you're on school grounds, writing, there's so much wrong that I don't even know what punishment to begin with." Kenta says with a shrug before smiling to let Lucas know he's joking around. "Seriously, your on school grounds, that's good enough for me. The curfew is for getting back to the school, not a bed time. So how's it going tonight?" He asks taking a long drag off of his cigarette. "One of these days I gotta quit."

Lucas sighs, tucking the notebook under his leg a little more, almost protective. He nods a little, and then asks, "You got another one?" nodding towards the cigarette.

Kenta looks at Lucas for a bit. "How old are you?" He asks as he reaches for his pocket. "Shit, Scott's gonna kill me for this but…I was smoking at your age." He's a horrible influence and he takes a tin out and opens it, to see if Lucas will take one of his rolled cigarettes. Kenta prefers to roll his own over buying them. "So you're Lucas right?" He says double checking since he just got assigned to the Paragons today.

Lucas studies the rolled cigs for a moment, "These are just cigarettes?" he asks, making sure they're not pot, though his tone implies that would be okay too. Ah'll be 18 the end of the month, so relax. Ah'm old enough to murder students here, Ah should be old enough to smoke," he says dryly. "And yeah, Ah'm Lucas."

"I just smoke tobacco, never got into pot or anything harder. Drinking and smoking were my vices." Kenta says as he sits down next to Lucas, it's hard to tell if he's looking out over the gardens or at Lucas since his eyes are just solid black. "I should quit for my son but…it's tough. Nasty habit." He says taking another drag. "And I heard about that whole thing, so you still feel guilty about what happened?"

Lucas lights the cigarette on his hand, and takes a deep drag. He exhales slowly, like he doesn't smoke often, but loves it when he does. "That's good…" He smiles, takes another drag, and then glances at Kenta. "You don't look old enough to have a rugrat," he says, avoiding the question. "What happened to his maw?"

"I'm 32. I'm an old fart." Kenta says with a smile as he watches Lucas smoke. "She died a few years back. Joined SHIELD and one day gotta a letter. 'Dear. Mr. Kenta Gilpatrick, we regret to inform you of the death of Daphne Ovid.' You know, all that bullshit. So, it's just me and Armande, and my folks. He's a good kid." He says noticing the avoidance of the question but doesn't press it. The avoidance gives him the answer he needs.

Lucas nods, and he shrugs, "Sorry. That sucks," he says, quietly. He takes a slow pull from the cigarette, and looks off into the dark for a short moment of silence. Then he looks back at Kenta, "You weren't so bad on the guitar yesterday. Ah mean, you ain't no Cobain or nothin', but it weren't bad."

"Cobain's over rated." Kenta says with a grin. "Hendrix, now he's a guitar god. Clapton, Frampton, Page, Mark Knopfler, those are the people I look up to. But I've been playing since I was ten, I love guitar." Kenta says as he looks up at the sky, or at least his head angles up to it. "When I was your age, I was convinced I was gonna be a famous rock star."

Lucas chuckles, "Cobain may be overrated, but you still ain't him." He sighs, and knocks some ash off his cigarette. "Either way, don't knock Nirvana. They were the greatest rock and roll band ever." He shrugs, "Sorry about your dream not workin' out. Ah reckon that's what happens when you're a mutant. No choices."

"Again, I'd disagree but we'll agree to disagree on Nirvana." Kenta says as his favourite is Led Zeppelin. But then that can be called over rated as well. "So you play at all? I haven't seen you in any of my music classes but then there seem to be a lot of closet musicians here who seem to scared to admit that music isn't a 'woman's thing'." Yes, he's teasing Lucas lightly.

Lucas exhales, rolling his eyes and looking away. "You're damn right we'll disagree on that." He smiles, and then shrugs, "Ah ain't played in a very long time." He sniffs, pushing his stringy hair out of his eyes. "Ah, um…" He looks around, and then leans a bit towards Kenta. "Ah actually went to an art an' science magnet school back home. Biology and singing," he says, just a hint more softly. "Not really me no mores."

"Singing, no shit. That's my other hidden talent." Kenta says with a chuckle as he holds out the cigarette. "And these are one of the worst things for our voices." He says putting out his cig. "I used to be the lead guitar, lead singer in my band in High school, you know the full of himself dick like Billy Corgan." He says with a laugh but he wasn't even half as bad as him. "So tell me, why isn't it you no mores?"

Lucas chuckles, taking another hit from the smoke, the ash red in the dark. He holds his nuclear hand up, the brilliant light flittering across Kenta's face. "Ah sorta lost the ability to play and the opportunity to not have to be HERE." He shrugs, putting his hand back down. "Whatever. Now, Ah just don't need to have to deal with everyone here fuckin' with me for likin' Show Tunes." There it is. The bully's ridiculous secret.

"Nothing wrong with show tunes. I had to sing a few when I went to Juilard. They're good for learning vocal ranges." Kenta says with a chuckle. "I took voice lessons growing up, they made you sing a lot show tunes and such. And so, you can't even play with those white gloves I saw you wearing? And what about singing, that prevent you from singing? Look at me, I don't look normal and I still do what I love. Fuck, I don't think I could go a day without singing. And having to spend years without a guitar killed me."

Lucas shakes his head, "Ah ain't had the gloves long. Ah reckon Ah prolly could play the guitar with 'em but…" He looks away, "Anyway, it's fine." He finishes the smoke, tossing the butt off into the pond. "Must be nice to be an adult and have everything all figured out an' shit."

Kenta laughs audibly at what Lucas says. "Dude, you have no idea. I don't have anything figured out. Right now, it's just trying to make sure my son grows up and is happy. He deserves it, but anything past that…you have no idea Lucas. I'm displaced in this world." He says with a shrug. "And anyway what's this but you're not telling me? But you're afraid to pick it up again? You know, a guitarist can get as many chicks as a football player."

Lucas smirks, "More, if you can sing like Ah can." He pauses, and then looks off, "Not that Ah reckon we should tell Rashmi that…" He begins working the glove back onto his hand, the brilliant light sputtering out. "Ah just… Ah ain't got a guitar no mores. Lost it in the fire, and since Ah didn't have my hands, there was no reason to replace."

"I actually have an extra guitar if you want it. She's just been sitting in my apartment back in New York. I got another one and prefer her over the old one. Motoko and the acoustic, that's all I need." Kenta says chuckling a bit, he won't tell Rashmi what they're talking about. He doesn't find Lucas any less 'manly' for liking music. "Yes, I named my guitar Motoko when I was a teenager. She's this beautiful red stratocaster." He says almost tlaking about her like she's a daughter he's proud of. "But anyway, yeah, I got an extra acoustic. When I was stuck in the other dimension, I found this one acoustic, brought her back here with me and she and I have just gotten to know each other well."

Lucas shakes his head, "No, Ah couldn't do that. Look, Ah appreciate it and all, but, Ah don't need your charity," he says, firmly. He tries to then move the conversation along, "Ah used to have a Guilde," he says, which is a rather expensive brand of electric acoustic guitar that produces a full, somewhat unique sound. "Loved it."

"It's not charity for you, it's charity for the guitar. She needs a good owner." Kenta says with a grin as he knows it's just sitting there collecting dust. "You know, I never got one, an electric acoustic, but I played one a few times. The sound is nice. Just my band, our style wasn't really suited for that kind of sound, or acoustic but acoustic is just relaxing to play. You can take it anywhere."

Lucas shakes his head, his southern hospitality and pride now coming out, "Really, sir, Ah couldn't just take that. Ah appreciate it, but Ah just can't." He swallows, and he scratches the back of his head. "Ah had an electric as well. A Rickenbacker. It was pretty awesome, great full sound." He smiles, "You in a band now?"

"No, I'm not in a band anymore. I just too old for them. Shit happened, I don't know if you want the long confusing details, but, yeah. We just…it became weird." Kenta says pushing his hair back. "Well how about this, I'll bring here to the school, leave her in the music room and if you wanna play, you can use it?"

Lucas shrugs, kind of sheepishly, "Really, it's fine… Ah don't reckon Ah'll have time, but thanks." He sighs.

Kenta is gonna bring it anyway but he just drops the subject. He just takes out another cigarette and lights it up. "So what about you, you like anything else besides show tunes and Kurt Cobain?"

Lucas grins a little, "First of all, Ah'm totally makin' you a CD. You need to come terms with the awesomesauce of Nirvana." He pulls a little grass from the ground, playing with it in his hands. "Ah like hockey. You a Predators fan?" he asks, as if they're near Nashville.

Kenta laughs as he does own a few Nirvana CD's, they're just not his favourite. "Nope, have I have clue who the Predators are. I never got into sports, it was always music, music, sex, music and more music." Yes he just threw that other one in there to see if Lucas is paying attention, and to hopefully make the teen laugh. "Now it's music, son, music, son, teaching, music and son."

Lucas does laugh, "Wow. I was like, music, hockey, sex, music, sex, hockey, sex… sex…" He smiles, a wide, toothy and dimple-laden grin. "Well, the Predators ain't real good, but their my team, so," he shrugs. A moment passes, and then he asks, "So, who did you piss off to inherit Team Handi?"

"Team Handi?" Kenta asks Lucas with a raise of his eyebrows. "I didn't piss off anyone, just Summers talked me into taking a larger role in the school. He thought it'd be good for me and good for you guys. Who knows, if you'll lucky I'll program you some sessions based off of what I've been through." He say with a smirk.

Lucas shakes his head, "Whatever. Team Handi, the Paragons of Palsy. Whatever. Somehow, we ended up with all the crippled kids. It's insane." He looks at Kenta, "Ole Man Summers clearly has it out for us."

"Ah cause Tara is blind and Marshall is deaf. I read the files." Kenta says as he takes a long drag off his cigarette and doesn't say anything. "Maybe it's cause without my powers I'm completely blind, so I'm a good fit for your team Handi." Kenta says just looking up at the sky. "If it wasn't for my powers, I'd be s.o.l. though everything doesn't look like it used to."

"So, your powers made your life better." Lucas sighs, "Good for you. We ain't all so lucky," he says, a touch of the bitter jerk Lucas coming through again. He folds his arms over his chest, leaning back till he's laying in the grass looking up at the sky.

"No, I could see perfectly fine before they got to me. You see a few years back, well for you guys, the shit hit the fan here in New York and some alien race from another dimension decided that this was a fun place to invade. Me and a few others got abducted and well, for the next ten years we were screwed. They were the ones who made me blind, they were also the ones that made me able to see with my powers." Kenta spits out bitterly. "That's when we had Armande, in that other dimension. We got back here ten years later for us, but as shit would have it, only a month passed here. Thus, why I'm not with my band. They're still in their early twenties while I'm in my early thirties. So lucky, only thing good to come out of there is Armande."

Lucas sighs, and nods. "Yeah. Ah reckon that would suck, huh?" He shrugs a bit, "So, start a NEW band. Find someone else to play with if it's all important an' shit, ya know?" He smiles, "Or, waste your time teaching the gay, troubled brats of Xaviers."

"I'll waste my time teaching the gay troubled brats of Xavier's right now. Being in a band…" Kenta looks back at the mansion. "I have something more important in there. If you ever have a kid Lucas, they'll become the focus of your life. I just feel bad that he has to grow up without a mother but I'll make it up to him. Armande's the most important thing, though this school is a close second."

Lucas rolls his eyes, "Ah don't reckon Ah'll have kids." He chuckles, "Heh, honestly, Rash has this masterplan of hers to do law school an' be a fancy attorney and what all. Ah reckon if'n that plays out, we won't really have time. Just as well… Ah don't really much like kids. They ask too many questions."

Kenta can't help but nod at that. "Yup, they do ask a lot of questions, but I'm telling ya, you'll love a kid if it's yours." Kenta says standing up and he yawns. "Well I'm gonna get inside and go to sleep now. If I don't see you in one of my music classes or even stopping by the music sometime soon, I'll be disappointed. I wanna here this voice of yours, see if you can keep up with me." Kenta says with a grin as he reaches down and pats Lucas' shoulder. "I'll let you get back to your writing."

Lucas rolls his eyes, "Ah'd prolly blow you away. Ya'll don't want me showin' you up in your class." He smiles, "Anyway, just… you know… don't go tellin' no one, okay? Ah don't need that headache too." He sighs, looking at the notebook under his knee, and shakes his head, "YEah, don't mention the notebook either. Just… If'n they ask, tell 'em Ah told you off."

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