Lorna Dane loves rocks and math (compassrose) wrote in valarlogs, @ 2013-08-27 13:56:00 |
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Entry tags: | !complete, billy kaplan (wiccan), lorna dane (polaris) |
Who: Lorna and Billy
When: Friday 16th August
Where: Milkshake parlour
What: Chatting with (un-known) family
Rating/Warning: None, unless you're allergic to adorbs.
Status: Complete
Billy was looking forward to meeting Lorna, he liked making new friends especially ones who seemed so bubbly. And Lorna had seemed bubbly even despite the anxiety attacks. He liked people who didn’t let things get them down.
So now he was stood outside the milkshake parlour waiting for her to arrive. It was a nice day and he stood looking up at the clouds trying to make out shapes like he used to do as a child.
Lorna smiled and tapped Billy shoulder softly. He looked so happy and normal. She hated that he was going to dream at all, and especially that he was going to dream of the same world as her, or one very like it. He didn’t deserve that. He was still young. She tried to ignore those thoughts. She was here to get to know him, not angst about her stupid family. “Hey!”
Billy turned at the tap and smiled at Lorna, unaware of her inner turmoil as he had yet to begin to dream, “Lorna, Hi” he said holding out his hand, “Good to meet you in real life”
She shook his hand and took a seat at the table. She decided to assume he wasn’t dreaming, for now. “Hi, it’s nice to meet you too. How are you doing today?”
“I’m good, great really” he replied happily, “And you? How are you?”
“Oh, it’s been a crazy week.” She laughed a little. “But not bad, actually. There was a wedding, we have a guest staying with us, and I had a doctor’s appointment for me and the new kid. I’m really glad I have tomorrow off.” She sighed and pushed her hair back.
“That does sound pretty busy” Billy said nodding, “Weddings and guests are fun. Definitely time to chill out and do nothing though. If you can. I’m kind of terrible at that, I have to be doing something” he smiled.
Lorna laughed. “I’m always busy. It’s better than sitting around, though I do know how to relax, too. I bet you’re always doing something as a personal assistant.”
Billy nodded, “Oh yeah, it’s great. I kind of love getting a phone call and not knowing what’s needed next” he grinned, “It’s definitely never boring”
“That’s good, it’s no fun being bored.” Lorna looked at the shop and got to her feet again. “I guess we should go inside, huh?”
Billy nodded, “I hate being bored but luckily that hasn’t happened yet” he said, “I guess we should” he opened the door holding it for her so she could enter first.
She smiled at him in thanks and made her way in. There was a little bit of a line, so she pulled out the (almost completed) baby blanket she was making for Scott and Emma. “Are you going to be starting school soon?” She could crochet and talk to him at the same time.
He chuckled, “Nope, finished with school so now it’s all about working” Billy told her watching almost in fascination as she began to do something with the wool.
Lorna smiled at his look of interest and moved to stand next to him, extending her arms out so he could get a better look. “That’s good. High school is pretty much the worst. I liked college so much I opted into a few extra years.”
“Yeah? What did you do at college?” he asked, smiling at her with a bit of a blush as she let him see what she was doing, “Did you learn that?” he added indicating her hands and the wool.
“I did, but I also got my masters in botany.” She almost said geophysics, but that was her dream self. “I teach science at a care program for at-risk teenagers.”
“Oh wow” he smiled, “That’s really cool. Did you always want to teach? It’s a pretty awesome job. My mom is a teacher”
His mom. It was a perfect opening, but Lorna decided not to take it. She wanted to get to know Billy for his own merits. “No, I actually wanted to explore the rainforests, discover new plants and study ones we don’t know a lot about. But then I decided I could do more good running a pot dispensary, which I now no longer do because prison time is not my idea of a good time.”
"Well that's different" Billy said nodding, "Glad you're teaching now if it keeps you out of prison. And you like it right?"
“I do.” She said with a laugh. “The kids are interesting, and it’s nice having coworkers. I couldn’t ever hire anyone for the shop, so it was just me for hours a day.”
"That sounds much better" Billy told her, "I mean I'm sure the shop was great but coworkers and interesting work is fun"
“That’s true.” Lorna said with a nod as she examined the ice cream selection. “Do you get to talk to anyone beside Zelda?”
"Anybody she wants me to really. I have to try and remember not to fanboy at people I meet, its a bit unprofessional" he grinned, "But I'm bouncing on the inside"
Lorna grinned and ordered her shake. “I bet, that’s so cool.”
"Its pretty great" Billy told her after ordering his drink too, and managing to sneak in and pay for them both before Lorna could. "And I mean the workings of a film set are so interesting, the amount of jobs and processes which need to be in place and ready before during and after. Its so vast and varied"
Lorna giggled. “Thank you. I bet it’s really crazy! Sounds like a lot of fun. What’s she working on right now, if you don’t mind me asking?”
"Of course not, she's just about to start filming on a new film but she's been asked to direct too so its even more exciting than usual. She's been super busy with meetings"
“Which means you must be super busy too.” Lorna said with a laugh as they took their seats. She tucked the blanket away to keep it clean.
Billy nodded, "Yeah but it's all good" he said as they sat, "I'm getting settled and it's nice to have something interesting to do"
“That’s true. It must be a lot different here than Brooklyn. I’ve never been that far east.” She sipped her shake after the statement. It was really good.
"It's a nice place. Not sure I'd want to go back and live there. Visiting is enough. But then having grown up there I guess I have different associations, both good and bad" he shrugged, sipping his own shake.
“That’s true. I have a different view of San Francisco than most people. I do love it there, though.” She wished she had a reason to go back.
"Yeah? How come you ended up here?" Billy asked, "If you don't mind telling me" he added with a smile.
“Not a bit. I didn’t want to compete with my old boss for business, so I decided to head south. I met my husband, and a bunch of good friends, some old a bunch new, and decided I liked it here.” And now her dreams made her want to stick close to the other mutants.
"Sounds like a good move for you" Billy replied, "I hope I get as lucky as you have. I've already made some awesome friends"
“I’m surprised at how nice people are here. I expected everyone to fit the LA stereotype, you know? Snooty plastic faced bottle-blondes trying so hard to be cool and make it big. I’ve been really pleasantly surprised.” Even LA wasn’t that bad, really.
"I know exactly what you mean" Billy agreed, "Everybody has been great. It's so different to what I expected"
“I briefly ran away to be an actress when I got my bachelor’s degree. Well, as much as you can run away if you’re an adult living with your parents. I met Thor then, he helped me see the good parts of LA itself. He also convinced me I was a terrible actress, which is sadly true.” She giggled at her younger self’s silliness.
"You know Thor?" Billy asked, "That is definitely pretty cool even if he did tell you that you werent a great actress"
“Yeah.” She nodded. “I’m actually going to start work on a commission for him soon. Well, for Natasha, but at his request. It’s a really pretty little shawl with dragonflies down the center. I think she’ll like it a lot.”
"Wow, is that using the knitting you were doing with the wool earlier?" he asked, "Because that was pretty fascinating"
“That’s for my brother-in-law’s baby. I’m just doing that one for fun. It’s one of the things I picked up to keep myself occupied. I’m sure you have neat hobbies too.”
"I tend to watch movies" Billy told her, "Or draw sometimes" he admitted. "Not really tried many hobbies. Though Justin has offered to take me surfing soon"
“Surfing is awesome.” Lorna said enthusiastically. “I think you’ll like it. Who’s Justin?” She was also curious about his art, but prying into his social life seemed much more fun at the moment.
"I've never done it before" Billy told her before blushing, "Justin's a friend. One I'm hoping might be more soon" he smiled.
“Awwww.” Lorna said, grinning widely at him. “Good luck.” That was so cute she couldn’t stand it. “I definitely think you’ll have fun surfing, then. It’s a really fun date.”
“Thank you. He’s pretty awesome. I think we’ll have fun no matter what we do” Billy told her with a brighter smile.
“Good. That’s important. It’s nice to have someone who can be there for you when things hit the fan. Especially since there’s the looming threat of those crazy dreams everyone talks about.” She was curious about whether he was dreaming or not, but she didn’t want to seem pushy or make him wonder why she cared. Explaining things would be awkward. She wasn’t sure keeping them from him was any better.
Billy nodded, “Justin’s had a few dreams already” he smiled, “I’ve not had any dreams yet. Does everybody, do you think? I’m hoping if I do that they’ll be exciting”
“I think everyone on the network does.” Lorna said with a nod. “Eventually. And I have a feeling yours will be exciting.” She sipped her shake, then decided that honesty was best. At least in small doses. “I think I dreamed about you, but I’m not sure.”
“Me?” Billy asked, eyes widening slightly, “Really? So what am I like?” It was kind of exciting to know that he was in someone’s dreams as it increased the chances of him having his own.
“I didn’t see you directly. You’re one of the kid Avengers.” She thought about how much more she should say. “I don’t want to spoil them for you, and I don’t know your life well enough to give you the context you’d need to make sense of what I dreamed.”
"Avengers?" he questioned, "Am I a superhero?" He thought about her words for a moment, "Oh, yeah I guess I see what you mean. Man I hope I dream soon"
“You are.” She said with a smile. That much seemed safe. “But be careful what you wish for. Being a hero is hard, heartbreaking work.” It had been for her, at least.
“But you get to help people, save people who could have perished” Billy said, “Do I have powers? Can you tell me that much?” Billy was a clever man but he was also young and to him right now there didn’t seem to be much of a downside to being a superhero.
She giggled. “You go by the codename Wiccan, as far as I remember. But my dreams from that time have been a little spotty.” Apocalypse didn’t exactly need her to know current events, and her time in space hadn’t helped, either. “I assume you have magical powers, but we’re not on the same team so I don’t know for sure.”
“Wiccan” he grinned, “Awesome. Thanks Lorna. You’re pretty neat you know. So what’s your codename? And what powers do you have in the dreams?” Billy was excited, and when he got excited he started talking and asking questions.
Lorna giggled. “I’m Polaris. I can manipulate and see magnetic fields, and some other forms of energy as well.” To demonstrate she unpacked her crochet hook and put it on the table. She didn’t move again, but the hook bent and twisted into different shapes. A paper clip, a little giraffe, a tiny tree with branches that seemed to move in the wind. Then it was a hook again. “You’re pretty neat too. You seem so mature and put together for your age.” She grinned at him, glad she’d taken the chance to meet him today.
“Holy...wow!” Billy exclaimed as she demonstrated her power after telling him what she could do, “So stuff really does bleed over from the dreams? I mean I’d heard about it on the net but never quite believed it you know? It just seems so fantastical” he smiled brightly at her, “Thanks, that’s really nice of you to say”
Lorna nodded. “Yeah. The green hair’s all natural, at this point.” She shrugged. “All the people who had powers in my dreams have them now, so you’ll get yours eventually.”
“You know I can’t wait to dream even more now” he said, “It’s going to be exciting seeing what my powers are”
Lorna nodded. She thought she knew, but she didn’t want to say something and be wrong. “I hope they’re as fun as you think they’ll be.” She tried to sound lighthearted, but it fell a little flat. She didn’t think that would be the case at all.
Billy tilted his head with a small frown, “I’m sorry. You said earlier that it can be hard - and here I am wishing I was dreaming already”
She reached over to pat his arm. “Dreading them won’t make them stay away any more than wanting them will make them come sooner. Don’t borrow trouble. Your life could be a lot better than mine.”
Billy nodded, “Okay” he said, “I am sorry if yours aren’t fun though” he told her, “You’re a nice person, you deserve nice dreams too”
“It’s okay. They’re not real, and they don’t have to make us into different people.” That’s what she told herself, anyway. It was the only hope she had left, as far as the dreams went. “You’ll have to tell me if you dream anything interesting.”
“Dreams are just dreams, they shouldn’t hold any power over us” Billy said, “I’ll definitely let you know. I promise. You and Justin are probably the only ones who are interested and you’ve seen how much I like to talk. You’ve totally opened yourself up to be talked at now” he added teasingly.
Lorna grinned widely. “I don’t think I’ll mind at all. I love to talk, and I figure all the people that dream the same stuff have to stick together, because who else is going to understand us?”
“Well that’s a good point” Billy said, “At least I stand a chance that you’ll know who I’m talking about when I start dreaming about all the superheroes right?”
“I’ll know them and probably have an embarrassing story about them.” Lorna said with a laugh.
“Even better” he grinned, “I look forward to hearing those”