Who: Heath Cameron and Sarah Wisdom When:backdated to Memorial Day Weekend Where: Australia! No really, Heath and Sarah bail on the whole team sport thing, to go visit Heath's parents. What: A trip to Australia people. Talk of kangaroos, Marz the dragon, and they go to a boardwalk with those kind of board walk games ... You know. It's official. I can not summarize to save my life. NPC's in this are Davis and Marie-Ange!
All day long, Heath had been tracking his father. Just that little mutant ability that Heath managed to get from his dad. The time change wasn't something he was looking forward to, but he made sure everything was packed before he went and found Sarah. Heath lost his dad for just a moment – that was when he knew Davis was in the warp tunnel. Wanting to spare the students (especially Ren) of having to deal with the beach bum of a father, he and Sarah met Davis outside. As soon as Marz saw him, the dragon grew a little and bum rushed him ,wrapping Davis in what some may have thought was a stranglehold, but really a hug. Plus, Marz liked wrestling with Davis. Once the man called uncle, Marz disappeared back onto Heath's arm.
The two never did affection well, aside from Marz, but half hug and slap on the back was enough recognition for the two manly men. Davis greeted Sarah with an almost curious interest, eyes darting between Heath and her. With a roll of his eyes, Heath said it was time to go.
He protectively took Sarah's hand, warning her that it was a bit of a trip. Not literally so much as…being inside a warp hole. The three were off, surrounded by what appeared to be a collapsing wave all around them. The trip was short and landed them just outside Davis and Marie-Ange's home, the home that Heath had grown up in. He wasn't looking forward to all the baby pictures of himself that Marie-Ange took such care to preserve still on the walls of the living room.
"Right, go say hi to your mum and get Sarah settled in…?" Davis left it open
"The guest room, Heath finished for him, picking up Sarah's tote with his and walking toward the front door. "We'll come see you at the shop later," he added, not wanting to send his father away just yet. "Thanks for the lift."
"Glad to have you back, son," Davis said, the lines around his eyes becoming more pronounced when the tan skin seemed to crack when he smiled.
Sarah had a thing about teleportation of any kind – she didn't like it. She was convinced that something would go wrong, and bits and pieces of Sarah Wisdom would end up scattered all over the place she was trying to be teleported too. Sure, teleportation, or warp waving, or whatever it was, was so much faster than jet travel … but still.
Heath was lucky he got his hand back, after the trip through the warp wave.
"So this is Australia … please tell me there's a pet kangaroo around someplace." Teasing, totally teasing there as she followed Heath towards the front door, glancing around as she did so to take in the scenery. Being on the X-men meant she got to travel of course, but this was her first trip to Australia.
And yes, she sort of did want to see a kangaroo.
Almost as if knowing it was safe, Marz leapt off Heath's arm, burying himself in the warm sand and....not moving. "It's okay - people know him around here. And if they don't...well, it's cool." God, not only did he have to worry about his parents, but now his mutation was getting all happy and territorial. "Really, Sarah? A pet kanga? Those things don't exist outside of books and movies. But you better watch out for Dingos - babynapping is on the rise I hear." Totally joking on that, the playing grin hopefully conveying that.
God, he had needed a break! Knocking briefly before opening the door, Marie-0Ange was nonchalantly reading a magazine on the chaise. The house proper was decorated with things that she and Davis had collected over their trips. baby pictures of Heath ran up the wall by the stairs. "Heath!" Marie-Ange exclaimed, the magazine being tossed to the side, missing the table and skidding onto the floor. "What are you doing here?" Her voice was a mixture of French, American and Australian.
"Dad picked Sarah and I up this morning for the long weekend," Heath said cautiously, looking around and making sure this was some sort of rouse. "That man, never tells me anything," Marie-Ange hissed rolling her eyes but gathering up her son (who was a couple heads taller than her) in her arms, suitcases and all. "It's good to see you and...Sarah?" Marie-Ange finally turned her attention to the pretty little thing that was behind Heath. "Welcome to our home. Would you like a drink?" And by drink, it meant that Marie-Ange had champagne and orange juice or bloody marys or cranberry and vodkas waiting (all suitable morning drinks to her). "Really Heath, a pet kanga, and they only exist in books? Well that sucks." She mimicked the pronunciation, as she watched the dragon in the sand. Not that a dragon in the sand was that unusual, Lockheed liked the beach. He also liked to burry her father's cigarettes in the sand. Good times.
Eyebrows went up for a second at the mention of baby napping, before she responded with; "Well good think we've got Marz here. My moneys' on him, in a tussle between a dingo and a dragon."
Oh parents, Sarah couldn't help but grin when Marie-Ange claimed that Davis never told her anything. It seemed some phrases, no matter how different the families might be, where universal. As was parents feeling the need to decorate homes with baby pictures. Yes, Sarah had seen them, and yes, she would be studying them in detail, soon as she got a chance. You found the best "blackmail" in baby pictures.
(And hers, hers where all at the Wisdom house in Chicago, so she was safe.)
"Hi," Sarah greeted Marie-Ange somewhat belatedly, as she stopped studying the house. She smiled. "You have a beautiful home." Well, what she could see of it, so far. "Umm, a drink, water, water would be good." Very tame, but hey, she was making sure her stomach had survived the trip from The US to here.
"Heath, be a dear and get your....friend," Marie-Ange looked Sarah over for just a moment, trying to gauge the two's relationship by the way they were standing. "Bottled water in the fridge, don't want Sarah getting a bad feel for Australia from the water." She patted Heath on the shoulder, excusing him. When in his parents' house, Mother was definitely in charge. "And bring me a glass from the pitcher in the fridge." She looked at his arm and sighed, almost irritated. Opening the window at the front of the house, Marie-Ange opened it, her words coming out sharp and loud. "Marzipan! In here now, you'll scare the neighbors!"
heath was halfway to the kitchen when he froze, hearing Marz's full name spoken out loud...in front of Sarah. He groaned some, The dragon shaking off the sand and snapping happily. Marz flew in through the window and rested around Marie-Ange's shoulders like he just belonged there. "Come now, Sarah, sit sit, Heath? Drinks please." She directed to her son, seeing him still standing there, not looking back, not moving. Her voice got him moving, hoping that Sarah could keep Marz's real name a secret.
Busying himself in the kitchen, the pitcher that his mother had spoken of was actually bloody mary. Snapping off a piece of celery from the fridge, Heath plopped it in and came back into the living room with his hands full. Looking at Marz, Heath rolled his eyes. "Traitor." He got the answer in the form of a chomp, Marz not leaving Marie-Ange's shoulders.
Honestly, Sarah had though that Marz was some sort of surfer slang for Mars, like the planet. Or possibly like the god of war, because well, it was a dragon. Dragon's could be feisty, and they could also be extra terrestrial in origin so, it had made sense to her. To find out that Marz = Marzipan . . . well it made her smirk a bit. But just a bit. There was a story there somewhere, and yes, Sarah wanted to know what it was.
Taking a seat, Sarah glanced around the room some more, than over at Marz (or Marzipan) when Heath came back into the room with the drinks.
And because Sarah was a rather cut to the chase kind of girl, she turned to grin at Heath as she asked; "Marzipan?"
"Thanks, Mother," Heath said, sighing and sitting himself down. There goes a big secret. That he'd never live down. Marie-Ange, just snickered, raising her glass and taking a sip, happily being entertained by Marz. "When I first got him as a tattoo, and when we started to...interact as dragon and...guy." God, this was difficult, "The first thing that I realized to call him was Marzipan. He...likes to make a mess with it. But I shortened to Marz because it's a bit more intimidating than an almond dessert."
Marie-Ange cackled quietly another sip of her drink. "Mum, I brought Sarah here to get away from stuff, so if you'd please just go on ahead and show her the pictures of me in the bathtub, maybe she and I can get out and enjoy the beach, not so much my embarrassment." He spoke sarcastically, still a little boy when inside the house.
"Fine," Marie-Ange said, standing up and moving to the entertainment center. "Heath used to do the cutest thing with his penis -"
"MOM!" Heath groaned, standing up and gripping Sarah's wrist gently. "Okay, we're out of here. Ready to go?"
"I don't know, if someone was say, allergic to almonds, that name might have them shaking in their boots." Or not. And Sarah wanted to tease, but she wanted to make sure the teasing was directed at Heath, not at Marz the dragon Even if they where possibly the same thing … Sarah wasn't sure how sentient Marz was, but hey, he seemed sentient enough. So yes, teasing the guy, that was fine, but she wasn't going to pick on the poor dragon.
And actually, it seemed like maybe she wasn't going to be teasing the guy, as he seemed to get a lot of that from his mom …
Sarah had been all set to somehow stop the cute penis story, she was possibly going to yell 'oh my god is that a kangaroo?' while pointing out a window. Thankfully Heath also seemed to have a plan, and it was a better plan than hers.
"Ready to go, nice to meet you!" Said very cheerfully to Marie-Ange, but yes, Sarah was ready to go see a beach.
Marz answered to both names, even though, unless he did something Heath didn't like (which would be unusual), Marz was just...Marz. Because Marz was tough. Unlike Marzipan. Let the blackmail begin. "Yeah yeah, Sarah, get your digs in while you can," Heath smirked, much rather taking some teasing from Sarah than listening to his mother wax poetic about his bathing habits as a kid.
"We're having dinner at seven," Marie-Ange called after them, Marz getting up from her shoulders and flying over to Heath. The dragon knew that walking around the beach wasn't something he could really do when they were off the Cameron-Colbert property, so he went back onto Heath's arm. "I think I'll be taking Sarah out to dinner, ;et her try the specialties of Paradise. Roasted kanga and dingo soup." Marie-Ange laughed again and shooed them away.
Once they were outside and the door was closed behind them, Heath scrubbed at his face an sighed. "You'd think she didn't know how to deal with people, right? Just wait until she has her third Bloody Mary - she'll be in good spirits when we get back." Or asleep. Heath could pray that she would be asleep, right? "The beach is a straight show, and maybe we can walk onto the pier. If you're lucky, maybe I can even win you a stuffed kangaroo." Girls liked things that were stuffed, right?
"It's okay, we only let my dad out on the weekends to interact with others. It's a parents job, apparently to be severely embarrassing, all the time." Sarah was all for teasing, but honestly, she truly got what it was like to have a parent who said the most embarrassing things, at the most random moments.
"If I'm lucky? Please, if your lucky I'll win you a … something English-like. That's stuffed. Possibly a stuffed English monarch. Not that they'd have those here … okay stopping now. Let's go see this pier, if a stuffed kangaroo is the closest I get to a real one, well it will do." Please know Heath, that know you owe her a stuffed Kangaroo.
"Lead the way, Mr. Local."
"They've been through all this before, even if Dad's parents were either dead or alien and Mom? I kind of think she was hatched." Heath chuckled some, his fingers slipping down to loosely hold her wrist. But only for a moment before he let go, the hand going into his pocket. "I don't need a teapot, but thanks anyway." Heath said, the sun colder than it would have been in New York. "And when you use the toilet, don't overflush - it does flow in the opposite direction, but that's just because Mom likes it that way."
They continued to walk, the pier coming into view. "That's Dad's shop over there." Guys were waxing their boards, girls were sunbathing entirely too close to the door. "He's a celebrity, but not for being a mutant and saving the world, but for winning surfing competitions. Don't let him fool you, Dad was a champion back in the day." Heath actually smiled some, remembering all the photo albums that Aunt Heather had pieced together over the years. How she managed to get them in deep space was still beyond Heath. "So, cotton candy and a kanga. Pretty easy company so far." Date? Heath almost said date. Was it a date? No pressure!
"You shouldn't talk about your mom that way!" Sarah scolded, glancing down at the hand for a second, and than giving a shrug of her shoulders when he pulled it back. She glanced at the shop than back at Heath; "So, do you surf? Because you know, you're a mutant, you help save the world, or at least part of it from time to time …?"
Rolling her eyes, she reached over and slid her arm through his.
"Did you just call me 'easy?'"
"What!" Heath chuckled, rolling his eyes. "There's no way of knowing, it's just a hypothesis." And if Marie-Ange could bring up penis stuff, Heath had the total right to say she was hatched! At least Heath knew that his mom would move heaven and earth if Heath was ever in danger. "I do surf. Maybe tomorrow, I'll get you up bright and early and we'll go. Don't think I have a wetsuit that'll fit you though. I hope that your bathing suit can fight off waves."
When her arm slinked through his, Heath smiled. Not a snicker, not a dirty grin, but a smile. "No in that terminology. I wouldn't have invited you if I thought that." Heath was over the loose and easy - the sexually thrilling. He wanted something more solid. And it looked like Sarah didn't mind calling him out when she had cause. "So, food first, or am I going to spend twenty bucks on a two dollar stuffed animal?"
"Oh crap, bathing suit, was I supposed to bring one? To the beach? Joking, but wait, what do you mean fight off waves?" That sounded ... scary. And possibly involving more physical activity than Sarah really wanted to engage in. She had come to Australia to get away from sports! The baseball game at the school to be exact. "I'll watch, be an arm chair surfer, or a beach chair surfer as the case may be."
She got a mock thoughtful look on her face when he asked what was on the agenda first. As the guest, she obviously got to call some of the shots. Cool.
"Oh, the stuffed toy first. I want to show it off the everyone else when we go get food." Just the thought of Sarah perhaps not having a bathing suit made Heath smile. But then she broke that mental image by pulling his chain. Not very fair on your end, Sarah! "Oh, sometimes the waves can be a little...rough. And big. Those are two reasons why a lot of people come from all over the world to surf - the challenge. But hey, you can sit on the beach and watch me make a fool of myself if you want too - it's been a while since I've been on a board. They're not like bicycles. Well, maybe they are...but flatter. In water. With less metal."
And guests always got to call the shots. Marie-Ange would have set half her children's book collection on Heath if she got word that Heath had directed Sarah around like a robot. "Right-o," Heath said, walking up to the pier and looking for the perfect game. It really did depend on the prizes, not so much the game. He found one of those leap frogs where the prizes were all kinds of kangaroos. "This one's set up for tourists," he murmured, which meant to him it was probably fixed. "What say we give it a go anyway? Best pick out the color you want beforehand." He gave the man the fee ad grabbed up a mallet, spinning it in his hand.
"I like how you paused before you said rough, you know when you say it like that 'a little ... rough.' You make it sound like the waves are crazy. And oh than you go and throw in words like 'all over the world' and 'challenge.' However for the record, I am so up for watching you make a fool your yourself. Although hate to break it to you, but I live at the school with you Heath, I get to see you make a fool of yourself allll the time." She was grinning as she said that, and she also said it in a teasing tone.
Reaching the game, Sarah surveyed it for a second, rather glad that it wasn't one of those 'move the claw, grab the prize from inside the box!' games. Those where just no fun -- well when you had a phasing power. Sarah might not have been able to go intangible as a child, but her mother had been. She had "fond" memories of her father trying to encourage her mother to just "phase already and grab the bloody toy out of there!".
Glancing up at the toy kangaroos she asked mock seriously; "I'm going to come across as a total girl if I say I want a pink one aren't I? Oh well, a pink one. Now, lucky you, you get to mash at things with a mallet." She took a step back and looked at Heath and grinned, adding; "Okay, come on, impress me."
With the mallet in his hand, Heath turned and grinned at Sarah. "Thing you don't know is, I grew up on their pier pretty much." He pulled the string attached to it as long as it could go so he could whisper to Sarah: "About six yards downward, was where I first used Marz to save a little girl's life." With a wink, Heath moved back to the game and twirled the mallet one more time.
"Get some practice swings first, though - don't go waging all my masculinity on this first shot." The mallet slammed down, the frog flying high and plopping down into the water. "See, told you not to," Heath said, setting another plastic frog on and winking over his shoulder at her.
More gently this time, Heath hit the pad and watched the frog fly up and land on the Lilly pad, almost sliding off but staying there long enough to get a pink kangaroo. He held the mallet out and waved it back and forth at Sarah, challenging her. "Think you can win one for Marz?"
That...probably came out more sexual than he had meant it. "And I don't make a fool outta myself very often, you've must've witnessed the few times." Which, probably, all revolved around May. He pushed her out of his head, glad to be with Sarah. She could match him wit for wit and didn't mind taking an educated low blow without being much of a bitch about it. "And I'll get you out on those waves yet - you can even use Davy's board...it's shorter and more feminine. Don't want to get you on something you can't handle. C'mon, give it your best shot. I'll be holding onto this," He gripped the pink kangaroo and gave it a shake, "just so you can't blame it for not making it."
"So I should call you a pier rat, not a beach rat?" Just asking for clarification mind you. She stood there, keeping quiet through the first display of "masculinity" , since she wasn't exactly sure that she could do better that's why she was being quiet. The second time she gave a polite little golf clap. Alright, so maybe it was a kind of sarcastic little golf clap more so than it was a polite little golf clap.
Still, he had won the kangaroo, and oh was that a challenge?
Walking forward she took the offered mallet, and than glanced at the frogs and than the lilly pad.
"And what colour kangaroo, or should that be 'roo, does Marz want?" Because Sarah was going to win one of those darn stuffed animals, even if they had to stay here all damn night. "We'll see." Was all she said about the surf board for the moment, Heath had made the frog onto the lillypad thing look pretty darn easy, she figured that he'd make the whole surfing thing look easy too . . . weather it was easy or not, well that was yet to be seen.
"I suppose I'm just a rat, Sarah. No need to quantify it." How had Heath never known that Sarah could be so much fun? he supposed that he'd been too blind with how it felt to get off with May to see much of anything else. He was glad that such an affliction had been successfully removed by May's own hand. Lucky Heath - for once he did something smart by inviting Sarah along with him. "You'd be more willing to applaud once you get over here and see how hard it actually is." The guy running the booth snickered goodnaturedly, quickly looking away from Sarah. Something told him to not find Heath all that funny.
"Probably a blue one - maybe green." They were all brightly colored, and Heath really didn't know if Marz was colorblind or not. And, at least Sarah called him Marz instead of the dragon's full name in public. That would have been embarrassing for her though, talking about Marzipan as if it were a person. Heath grew quiet and allowed Sarah a moment of concentration. He was placating her, better to not have her use the mallet on him!
"Do they have a blue and green one?" Seriously an indecisive dragon? And in public, well the general public she was going to stick to referring to Marz as Marz. But once back in the company of people who knew that Marz = The Dragon, well she might call him Marzipan. Or maybe not, she might save that information for a while.
Frowning in concentration, Sarah lifted the mallet and hit the frog . . .it went flying wide. The frown turned into a scowl, and she smacked the mallet down with far too much force the second time.
Muttering about beginners luck, and the third time being the charm, Sarah took a moment to breathe, collect herself, and than brought the mallet down. And just like that, she landed the frog on the lilly pad, and won Marz a green kangaroo. She went with green in the end, because, well green was better than blue in her opinion.