Room 528, Wednesday Evening

[icecoldfrost]

It had been three whole days, and the rest of her family had not yet shown up wielding lawyers and demanding she be turned over, so Emma was starting to relax again.

So to celebrate, Emma had the radio up, a mug of hot coco, and was playing chess against herself, French homework ignored for the moment. Sometimes (usually) her sense of relaxation was a little different from most people.

[Fixed the broken internet, so open door & open post to celebrate!]

Comments

[theotherpeter.livejournal.com]

Peter Bishop was vaguely bored.

After wandering out to Kansas City in the course of the day, most of the things Fandom had to offer were not quite up to the same caliber.

So, he decided to drop in on one of his favorite ladies of the school. He leaned against the frame of the doorway with his shoulder and spoke. "I guess that's one way to win," he announced.

[icecoldfrost]

"At least I keep myself on my toes," Emma quipped. "It's easy to cheat, but hard to win."

"How are you, Mr. Bishop? Escape the weekend unscathed?"

[theotherpeter.livejournal.com]

"My mother was busy with work," Peter said. "And my father is apparently back at the institution. Or never left. I'm not ever sure on that one yet."

He shrugged. "May I come in?"

[icecoldfrost]

"Of course," she answered, gesturing for him to join her. "Isn't the multidimensional-ness of the island fun? I'm sure my sister that showed up was my sister, but apparently Bobby Drake and I have a friend in common, but in different worlds."

[theotherpeter.livejournal.com]

"Now there's a bit of a mind screw," Peter said, walking over. "Having the same friends that aren't the same person. This island definitely makes things fun in the confusion department. But I guess it keeps us on our toes. And in ways that aren't as traumatic as zombie fish."

[icecoldfrost]

"The zombie fish were disgusting, but not traumatic," she disagreed, making a face. "Alternate worlds are traumatic. If I never see Rivet City or that vampire island again, it will be too soon."

"Different versions of the same person I can handle. For instance, I'm going to start collecting how many versions of Scott Summers I can meet."

[theotherpeter.livejournal.com]

"I didn't really meet any of the visitors," Peter said. "Scott Summers some sort of... hunky jock?" He said those last two words a bit teasingly.

[icecoldfrost]

"Yes, actually," she laughed. "But people seem to want to keep him away from me, so it just makes it even more fun."

[theotherpeter.livejournal.com]

"So now would be the wrong time to ask to see if you wanted to go out sometime?" Peter said. "I mean, I don't know if I can compare with the forbidden fruit of Scott Summers."

[icecoldfrost]

"Considering that I prefer you over the jock who only shows up on family weekend? Now would be the absolute perfect time," she countered. "What did you have in mind?"

[theotherpeter.livejournal.com]

"I was thinking an evening of dinner and pool," he said. "I can show you my game. It's pretty impressive."

He was turning up the charm a bit, yes.

[icecoldfrost]

"Oh really? You'll show me yours, and I'll show you mine?" Emma asked, letting her smirk grow. "I think I could manage that."

[theotherpeter.livejournal.com]

Now that was something Peter liked hearing. Of course, he had to play it cool. So he just nodded. "Cool," he said. He eyed the board a moment. "You know, it looks like you plan a pretty impressive game here, too."

[icecoldfrost]

"Care to join me?" she replied. "I'll let you pick which side you want to take-over." Emma tapped one of the already-captured rooks against her hand. "Or we could start over, and see what you can do with a clean slate."

[theotherpeter.livejournal.com]

"The game's already pretty well in," Peter said. "I mean, we can just finish it off, but I think most of the fun is going to distance."

Not a double entendre. Really.

[icecoldfrost]

Riiiiiiiiiiiight. Telepath, Peter. Emma was just going to raise an eyebrow at the innuendo as she started clearing the board.

"Hopefully you aren't overconfident in your skill," she replied. "I'd have to reconsider our date if you were finished in five moves."

[theotherpeter.livejournal.com]

In Peter's defense, he was just being 'clever' and not a horndog. Mostly.

"I'm not kidding when I say I'm a genius," Peter boasted. "And that's actually proven, if we go by IQ."

He smiled. "But smarts and skill are very different things, I will admit that." He started helping her reset the board from where he sat.

[icecoldfrost]

"Ah, so modesty is one of the skills you're still working on," Emma teased as she pushed the pile of pieces closer to him. "Fascinating."

[theotherpeter.livejournal.com]

"I thought girls liked guys with confidence," Peter said, continuing to reset the board. "But I try to avoid the dreaded over-confidence. That way lies pain and embarrassment."

[intraspective]

"I'm bored," Ino complained from the doorway. "And it is either boredom or ripping my hair out and neither appeals."

Which meant, clearly, she had to go and bother Emma.

[icecoldfrost]

"So you're going to drive me to rip out my hair?" Emma teased. "How sweet."

[intraspective]

"Would I do such a thing?" she asked, eyes wide and amused. "I like you far too much to purposefully manage that."

Which still left room for accidentally, mind...

[icecoldfrost]

"You would, if you were feeling horribly naughty," she pointed out. "I put nothing past you."

[intraspective]

"Maybe," she admitted. "But I can say honestly that I don't have that in mind to do tonight?"

[icecoldfrost]

"Good," she said. "Getting in catfights with hair-pulling is so undignified."

"How goes the practicing?"

[intraspective]

She didn't need to ask what sort of practising.

"Not bad, I don't think?" Ino replied, wandering into the room to claim a chair. If Emma didn't like it, Emma would tell her so, Ino figured. "Ain't so great at doing it--automatically, though, you know? And if I get distracted I lose where I was goin' with an attempt pretty quick."

[icecoldfrost]

"It will get better," Emma promised. "It took me almost a year to reliably be able to read someone when I wanted to, instead of just picking up stray thoughts. Singling people out in the noise is confusing at first."

[intraspective]

She rested her chin against her arm. "It's just weird. It's not so bad 'cause if it gets too much--turning it off I'm strong at. But it's a bit like... bein' blind and then seeing and not quite sure what you're seeing is because you don't have a frame of reference for it. A year?" She sighed. "I suppose that's not so long as things go."

[icecoldfrost]

"It will probably go faster for you, since you don't have to focus on keeping everything out," Emma replied. "My focus was initially on keeping the voices out, before I could concentrate on letting particular ones in."

[intraspective]

"You think so?" Ino toyed with a bit of hair. "Guess I'll have to see. It'd be--nice--to be all caught up and knowin' of what I can do."

A beat.

"Do you think it's possible to implant a suggestion in someone's mind for them to act on once a trigger word has been said?"

[icecoldfrost]

"Oh yes." Emma was completely smug. "That's something I've been working on, and so far, results are favorable."

"I don't know how long it lasts for, as I rarely get the chance to follow-up, but I ought to check-in on one or two of my subjects."

[intraspective]

"Is it hard to learn?" she asked curiously.

Because who needed the baby steps, right? Oh, Ino.

[icecoldfrost]

"I didn't really 'learn' it? I was angry, and my will was stronger, so I just...overwrote a few things," she said, regretting yet again that telepathy lacked its own verb-tenses and vocabulary. "Like a having a desire to eat bugs every time someone sees the color blue, or they hear the word 'car,' things like that."

[intraspective]

Ino chewed on her lower lip. "Do you think you could show me sometime?" she asked, with a sidelong glance. "Or should I just focus on getting the rest of it up to par first?"

[icecoldfrost]

"It's best if you focus on everything else, first," Emma pointed out. "You don't want to accidentally break them, rather than just add to them."

[intraspective]

"Depending on who it is, I don't care much 'bout breaking them," she admitted. "But point taken."

[glacial_queen]

"You're playing it wrong," Karla announced from the doorway. "Kiss kiss, darling."

[icecoldfrost]

"I am not," she retorted. "Slander, darling, utter slander."

[glacial_queen]

"Are too," Karla said, sauntering into the room. "Blood chess is a much better game. Can you believe this version only has one starting position?"

Yes, Karla. Yes she can.

[icecoldfrost]

"Yes, Karla, I can," Emma replied dryly. "Since this is the version that those of us on this planet play."

[glacial_queen]

Karla shook her head a little. "Where's the fun in that?" she asked. "I've got to see if I can pick up a copy next time I'm in Kaeleer. Blood chess isn't as much fun as cradle, but it's still a nice way to spend a few hours." She frowned at Emma's chessboard. "It's so tiny."

[icecoldfrost]

"It's not the size of the pieces, but how they're used, that determines the enjoyment of the game," Emma quipped, waving a rook at Karla. "For shame, darling."

[glacial_queen]

"The board is tiny," Karla said, sticking out her tongue at Emma. "I'm used to playing with more pieces. And I have no idea how you're going to turn that into innuendo, but I have every faith you can."