ʜᴇɴʀʏ ʜᴜɢʜᴇs (hughhes) wrote in commandhq, @ 2018-06-08 20:35:00 |
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Entry tags: | henry hughes, p: lindsey, p: mena, waverley rowan |
WHO Henry Hughes | Waverley Rowan
WHAT Meeting, swimming, harmless pranks
WHEN Before the deaths
WHERE The Pool
RATING Low
STATUS Complete
Henry hadn’t yet been down to the pool and now seemed as good a time as any to visit. Swimming wasn’t his exercise (or leisure activity) of choice, but it was something to break up the otherwise monotonous routine he’d already rutted himself into since winding up in Limbo.
Since it was a little later in the evening, Henry fully expected that he’d be alone for a dip. Immediately upon setting foot on the tiles that surrounded the deep, blue rectangle in the room, he discovered that assumption had been incorrect. At the far side of the pool he spotted a figure making rather gentle ripples in the water.
Although he didn’t want to disturb the individual, it also seemed strange to arrive and then just turn around and leave—not to mention, kinda rude.
“Uh, hey,” Henry waved, smiling affably in their direction. “Hope you don’t mind the company. This place is just—well. Bo-ring.” He stripped off his t-shirt and tossed it onto a nearby bench before sitting on the edge of the pool to dip his legs into the cool water.
---
Waverley loved the water. She would spend all of her time in it if she could. She didn’t get wrinkly fingers and sometimes if she had a slightly stuffy nose, all she needed to do was to go for a swim and it would clear right up. She needed to swim a few times a week anyway, something to do with her powers, she just felt wrong when she’d been out of the water too long.
When she heard the door open, she lifted her head from where she’d been lazing about in the far end of the pool just bobbing in the water, breathing in deep and slow. She hadn’t decided to shift today, though the temptation was there. It was always there.
“Not at all,” she offered, treading water lightly before swimming over to the side and curling an arm around the steps, upper body coming out of the water slightly as she did. To help her shift, she didn’t ever wear a one-piece, she always wore a bikini, today it was a turquoise-blue. “There’s not a lot to do, that’s true,” she agreed with a smile, pushing her damp hair back from where it was clinging to her face. “Honestly, it’s a miracle no one’s gone insane yet.”
---
As soon as she swam closer for Henry to get a better look at her, he exhaled slowly through his teeth and glanced in another direction. Of course she had to be pretty—not just pretty, really, but knock-out gorgeous. He dipped his hands into the pool and got his fingers wet before he ran them sparsely through his hair. By the time he looked back at her again, his expression had dissolved into an easy-going smile and she had already gotten to the ladder of the pool.
“That seems an awful lot like tempting fate,” Henry warned her. “If someone ends up with their screws loose, I’m pointing the handlers in your direction. You’ll be the culprit to blame.”
After a beat, Henry cleared his throat and gestured to the placid waters. “So? How’s the water tonight? Now that I’ve disturbed your peace and essentially forced my company upon you.”
He realized then that he hadn’t even bothered to introduce himself. And not giving a name to a knockout in a bikini? Stupid, stupid idea. “Oh, Henry, by the way. I’m new around here.”
---
Waverley gave Henry a wide eyed, mock-innocent look. “You’d really pin the blame on me?” she asked, “That’s just rude. After forcing your company on me and all.” Her lips quirked up into a small smirk, that blossomed into a smile.
There was something in the water, she thought, there had to be. This base, just like the Florida one, was positively rolling in attractive people. She was suddenly glad that her makeup was completely waterproof. Honestly, though, someone could throw a stone and hit at least half a dozen unfairly beautiful people in this place.
She ran her fingertips along the water’s surface in a lazy arc as she looked at him and the water rippled in response to her, dipping and swaying as she manipulated it. It was nice having a handler who let her use her powers on the proviso that she wasn’t unruly with them, and even though she hadn’t shifted yet the night was still young. Well, relatively. She would likely be here until she was kicked out.
“Water’s fine. You gonna join me or just hang around on the side making conversation, Henry?” She lowered herself back into the water again and moved a little closer. “Waverley. Also relatively new here, though not to the Regiment on the whole.”
---
You gonna join me or just hang around on the side making conversation, Henry?
Unable to hide the gob-smacked expression from his face, Henry eventually just settled for a bemused smile before he slid right into the pool and ducked his head under. Who was he to keep a lady waiting?
Once he re-emerged from underneath the water, he shook his hair out and grinned across the surface at her. “By the way, for the record: yes. One hundred percent will put the blame on you entirely. So long as it keeps you from jinxing anyone else losing their minds. Though, my luck…,” he winced. “It’d probably be, so… nobody’s likely to believe me. You might be safe.”
He edged closer, treading water as he watched the way the liquid seemed to respond to Waverley in strange but intricate ways. “You—you doing that?” His smile grew and he laughed warmly. “That’s so cool.”
---
Waverley just smiled enigmatically as Henry finally joined her in the water. Company was never something to be frowned upon. She wasn’t always here to swim laps, or lengths, or to make herself exhausted. She just liked being in the water, how it felt around her. And the fact that she often got joined by attractive men wearing relatively little was a definite perk. She thought she should invite Kyra one of these days. Even if she didn’t get her in the water, she’d at least be able to share the eye candy that appeared so regularly.
Kyra would love it.
Waverley certainly did.
“Anyone else?” she asked, “Did I miss someone going insane or are you pre-empting me jinxing us more than once?” Her eyebrow arched and she resisted the urge to flick him with water, instead just gracefully treading water, using her powers to mean she didn’t have to make too many embarrassing or ungainly movements with her arms.
Eyes falling to where she was idly playing with the water, she lifted her hand above it, then held her palm flat, facing the ceiling. Water from the pool floated into her palm and formed a perfect sphere, just hanging in the air above her hand.
“Thanks,” she said, quite obviously flattered by the compliment. “It’s not my favourite trick of turning water into wine, but it’s close.”
---
“I’m—,” he tapped his forehead and then pointed towards her. “Pre-empting you. I think.” If he remembered the meaning correctly, anyway.
His eyes quite genuinely lit up when Waverley did her demonstration; the way the water flowed out of the pool and circled above her hand until the stream created a perfect sphere was quite bewitching. Henry had seen some pretty cool use of powers (from his to Halley’s to Simon’s to Summer’s), but this was the first time it ever seemed borderline magical.
If she could control water, though, Henry wasn’t dumb enough to think it couldn’t get really dangerous, really fast, especially if he stepped a toe out of line.
His expression melted into disbelief when she mentioned what else she could accomplish. “Wait, what? Like Jesus?”
Opening his arms out across the surface of the pool, Henry glanced around the room. “So you could make us literally swim in wine right now? Would the chlorine still be there? Because that might make the scenario less appealing—even though the aesthetics of a gorgeous girl swimming around in wine seems like something out of a French movie.”
---
Waverley’s expression softened a little into something approaching a pleased smile at the look on Henry’s face when she used her powers. It was such a liberating feeling, the only thing that she liked about this place (other than the liberal sprinkling of attractive men and the apparent not-dead status of her brother) was that she could use most of her abilities here freely and without restraint. As long as she didn’t turn into a shark or some kind of mentally scarring deep sea monster and didn’t make a habit of singing to draw a crowd of mindless, mind-controlled agents to do her bidding she could sort of just do what she wanted.
At least it meant she didn’t have to hide a part of herself that she was extremely proud of. Powers she was extremely proud of. She may have done things with her abilities that she wasn’t especially proud of, but overall she was at peace with her abilities.
She rolled her eyes, dropping the sphere, letting it pool back into the water like the sands of an hourglass. “I could,” she answered, because that was the truth. She shifted how she was in the water, semi-solidifying it around them both so that he didn’t have to tread water, and neither did she. The water just… held them in place like incredibly comfortable seats. “But I’m not sure I’d like the migraine that came with it. Or the rap on the knuckles for something that would probably mess with the filtration.”
She tipped her head, running her fingertips along the surface of the water again. “And no, I change the chemical composition of the water, so it would be chlorine free. Just wine.” Her eyes flicked back up to Henry, lips quirking upwards in the corner, “Or anything else you might fancy.”
Wetting her lower lip, she continued. “And you, sugar? What got you locked up in here?”
---
When the water around him became something that could only be described as—well, solid—Henry gained a befuddled and almost panicked expression. He no longer had to gently kick his legs or move his arms to tread in the water, he only needed to sit there. It was as though the water had seated him, keeping him elevated above the surface, and it was surprisingly comfortable. “Uh, thanks,” as the confused expression dissolved, it was replaced by a genuine smile and a sudden bark of laughter. “Goddamn, that is so cool.”
Waverley pointed out that she might get into a bit of trouble for turning the entire pool into a giant bath of wine. While it seemed like it might almost be worth the trouble, he didn’t think she deserved a headache for the experience. “Alright, alright,” he nodded. “Don’t get a headache on account of me. I’d spend the next couple of weeks feeling guilty.”
Or anything else you might fancy.
His eyes lit up. “How about beer?”
Henry ran his fingers through his hair again and flicked a bit of water towards her. “You must have been really popular in high school with a power like that one.”
As the conversation turned to how he ended up here, Henry opted to avoid the how and focus on the why. He shifted slightly in the water, trying to see if he could still move despite the consistency. As it turned out, the water just molded to however he moved, allowing him to easily shift onto his back to float without much effort. “I heal real fast and I’m really strong,” he explained. “I used to think it was all rather epic until I got here and saw what some other people could do.” He tilted his head towards her, grinning. “Like you.”
---
“I can make beer,” Waverley said, “long as I can see what it is I’m trying to change, I don’t have to touch it.” She’d had some fun with that in her job at the bar; assholes who didn’t tip, or who were pushy were given what they wanted but by the time they got back to their table, their drinks were fruity cocktails or alcopops in a manly glass. It was pretty good first thing in the morning, too, and meant that all she’d ever had to do was use water from the tap to have whatever she wanted to drink.
When she was flicked with water, she laughed a little and gently returned the favour, just with her fingers, rather than her powers. That would have been cheating somewhat. “I wasn’t,” she told him. “I didn’t go to high school.” Those years, she’d been living with her brother on the streets, keeping each other alive. Thinking back on it now didn’t have the same sharp sense of grief it did before, for the most part, but that reaction was still a kick in the teeth. The memory of grieving for her brother for almost ten years.
“I don’t know,” she said honestly, lower lip between her teeth for a moment as she thought about super strength, super healing. “Those are still pretty epic.” Her eyebrow quirked. “I bet you were pretty popular in high school though,” she said, “and… a sports player, so really great on the field and a hit with the ladies? Besides, what I wouldn’t give to be able to heal quickly.” She nodded, “Don’t put your powers down just ‘cause they’re different. Or not… as obvious.”
---
Henry blew a low whistle. It wasn’t meant to be lewd or crude, and in fact was directed towards her unbelievably cool and useful power.
Waverley was going to be wildly fun to have around at parties. Why did anyone around here even bother buying alcohol? Well, aside from it apparently giving her headaches; that might not have been worth it in the long-run. But for drinks among friends… maybe. Clearly, he’d have to see. Friends may have still been a bit off.
I didn’t go to high school.
Henry frowned. But high school was—the best. How had she not gone to high school? Given the expression on her face, it wasn’t a happy story, and although Henry was curious, he opted to cheer than pry. “Just know, you would have been literally the most popular person if you had. Not having to get someone with an ID to buy alcohol? People would have been begging to have you show up at their parties.”
The water she flicked at him hit him square in the face (at least she’d used her fingers and not her powers, that would have been too purposeful) and he laughed as he swept his hand over his face.
“Indeed, I was very popular in high school,” he agreed. “Although crazy strength and hockey didn’t work together great—you don’t wanna cave in someone’s chest with a puck, right?” He chuckled softly when she reminded him not to put down his powers. “Hey, no complaints. I never get sick and papercuts be damned. It’s just, you know,” he kicked back through the water, still impressed as it allowed him to float on, all while cradling him, “It never ceases to amaze me to find out what other people are capable of.” While such a phrase was typically saved for astonished disgust at the awful things people did to one another, Henry only used to express his genuine, pleased awe at the power of his fellow Supers.
---
Waverley watched him frown at her when she mentioned having never been to high school. She didn’t doubt that she’d have made friends, her and Jamie both. They’d have held the best parties, or maybe they would have done. Foster care hadn’t exactly been kind or set them up for a good run of trusting authority figures that were supposed to offer them a safe haven. “My brother and I are pretty fun,” she agreed with a small smile, tipping her head back and then disappearing briefly under the water.
When she surfaced, she smoothed her hair back out of her face and tilted her head, watching Henry lounging in the water. He was awfully comfortable. For the briefest moment, an impish look crossed her face and she fought to smother it. Though it was easy enough when he talked about caving someone’s chest in.
“Ouch, yeah that- that would suck. Though there’s people here who are invulnerable, or as close to. You could probably create some super-powered, invulnerable team to play. Some sort of inter-base hockey tournament. I’d watch that. I know a cryokinetic who’d be happy to turn one of the floors into a makeshift ice-rink for you all.”
Henry’s statement was filled with wonder, the almost innocence of a relatively blessed life. “Other people’s powers are pretty cool,” she agreed, not wanting to weigh herself or her new friend down with a darker mood. “But you better not get too complacent or comfortable. You never know what might happen next.”
That impish expression crossed her face again and she dropped the support from the both of them, but as she was prepared she stayed surfaced as the water that had previously been comfortably cushioning Henry was no longer in that half-solid state keeping him afloat.
---
My brother and I are pretty fun.
Henry felt a small lash of anxiety. He had every intent to continue flirting with and having fun with Waverley in the future (if she wanted), but if she had a brother around? That could be awkward. Though, admittedly, when he considered that possibility—of having a family member in a place like this—he instantly felt a pang of longing for his big sister.
Although he had Simon in this place, Simon, too, had his sister, and his mom.
He was suddenly very glad for Waverley if she had her brother around. “You guys both in here? Together?”
A bark of laughter escaped him when she explained that she knew a – what had she called him? – guy who would create them an ice rink. “Shit, I do not want to have to be the person who has to clean this place up after a bunch of super-strength and indestructible Super-people play hockey on an entire floor turned into an ice rink. That sounds like a wicked shitty job.”
You never know what might happen next.
And boy, she wasn’t kidding.
Suddenly, Henry was dunked in the water – it enveloped him as he sank like a stone. What might have been a yelp was drowned out as he inhaled a good lung full of chlorine water. He thrashed to try and regain that comfortable balance, but the pool had gone back to its natural consistency.
As his head broke back over the surface, he coughed and laughed, not the least bit angry and still mostly just surprised at her moxie. “Ooookay, Moana,” he coughed out the last bit of water, leaving him to dissolve into laughter as he opened his eyes again after rubbing them. “You’re a dirty cheat, and I am disappointed in you.”
She seemed rather amused by the whole thing; treading a few feet away with a sly grin etched onto her face and her blonde hair slicked back. She was very pretty – even if he had been mad, it would have been hard to maintain that ire.
“I don’t think I can trust you anymore.”
---
Waverley merely nodded when he asked her about Jamie. They’d been joined at the hip for so long, then separated, but even being apart from him here gave her some degree of anxiety, like she might wake up one morning and he’d been transferred. Or she’d wake up and actually she’d finally lost her mind and he’d never been here.
But the conversation moved on and then she was dunking him and as he finally surfaced, water-slick hair a mess and droplets running down his face, a grin on his face and warm laughter that was genuinely joyful to hear, Waverley’s grin dissolved into peals of delighted laughter as he ddi. “You should have seen your face,” she managed, regaining her composure after a few second before managing to look sort of apologetic. “Sorry.”
Not fully, but sort of.
“That was mean of me, though, you can return the favour if your really feel like you have to.” Her lips curled up again, laughter still clear in her eyes as much as it was on the cherry-red of her waterproof lipstick. “Also, mean for using a recent movie reference. I assume that’s who Moana is.”
---
At least his unceremonious dunking had caused her to—rightly—laugh. It wouldn’t have been worth the water and chlorine in his lungs if he hadn’t had the chance to hear that.
“Next time make sure there’s someone to film it,” he suggested as he shook some of the water out of his ear. “That way you, me, and the rest of the world have the opportunity to relive the wonder that is my surprised-nearly-drowned face.” When she apologized, Henry frowned with feigned intensity. “Hey, don’t lie to me. Nobody laughs that hard if they’re truly sorry.”
His face broke out into a wide grin when she told him that he could return the favour. “Tempting, really, but since you’ve got the whole Mistress of Water thing going on, I don’t think that turnabout is really fair play. Maybe I’ll have to get you on a basketball court or something. Then we’ll see.”
She hadn’t seen Moana? He couldn’t smack the incredulous expression off his face. “You haven’t seen—,” Henry shook his head and started swimming towards the edge of the pool. He climbed back out so that he was sitting on the edge. “Nope, nope, nope. I don’t accept this. Come on. We’re gonna go watch that shit right now.” He extended his hand towards her while she continued to float in the pool.
---
Waverley grinned, both at the comment regarding filming it and also for her faked apology. She resisted the urge to splash him. “I’ll make sure we’ve got someone on the side of the pool. When we’re all outta here, it can go on youtube.”
The mention of a basketball court had Waverley wrinkling her nose. “Yeah, sports aren’t really my thing,” she admitted, “but if it was going to be you playing a game with the other guys I’d happily sit on the sidelines and enjoy the show.” A sad fact; Waverley and a number of the other women in this place would enjoy nothing more than a good old fashioned basketball game where they got to watch the stupidly attractive men in this place running around on a basketball court. They could be shirts and skins teams.
Distracted by that thought for a moment, Waverley spotted the hand reaching out in her direction and she drifted closer, a little more strength in her movent and she took the offered hand, mind racing for context before she caught it. Moana, of course. “We are?” she asked, closing her fingers around his. “Alright, as long as there’s popcorn.”