Westerns and Questions

Participants:

melissa_icon.gif ling_icon.gif kendall_icon.gif faron_icon.gif

Scene Title Westerns and Questions
Synopsis Socializing abounds in Melissa's home
Date July 12, 2010

Little Green House


Evening. A very wet and hot evening. A wet and hot evening when most of the residents of the little house on Staten Island are actually home! It was Chinese for dinner, at least for Ling and Melissa, and now it seems that Melissa is trying to show Ling the joys of Mel Brooks. This time it's Blazing Saddles. It takes a refined taste to appreciate the campfire scene, so Mel is sure that Ling will love it.

Sprawled on the couch, Mel's in cotton pants and a tank top, both black. Her blonde, red, black, blue and purple hair is pulled up into a knot at the back of her head, and she's made margaritas, one in hand, which she uses to gesture with. "See Ling, how can you not love the humor in this movie? It's so totally not meant to be taken seriously on any level. And there's Mongo. How can you not love Mongo!"

Kendall is indeed in the house, but 'locked away in his room' is definitely the norm for him, considering that he's got about twenty different video games he could be playing. Ah, if only he could clone himself, that would have been the perfect power for himself! Being able to play more than one game at once? …oh wait, he'd probably need more than one TV, and the room's pretty crowded already. Regardless! There is the sound of Final Fantasy XIII being played,

Sadly, Faron decides not to take any of the events on in the evening. Instead, he's holed up in his little hovel in the basement. Warm and wet? Not here, with the cold air that seems to surround him in this area. He wants to rest and think things over. He was supposed to be on his own now, away from Melissa. Instead, he's still here and he didn't know why. Well, he knew why: no job. And if he didn't have a job, how could he move into an apartment?

Hearing the commotion upstairs, Ron decided to get up and talk to Mel. Apologize? That was on his mind. Standing, Faron makes his way up the stairs and into the living room, peering inside to at least catch a glimpse of the classic comedy.

Ling has remained largely quiet since the visit she and Melissa had received during dinner, and had put up little fight as to what movie Melissa insisted they watch. If nothing else, it was likely better to go ahead and get it over with, while she was busy mulling over the developments of the day and thus didn't particularly care. The movie in question had done largely little to grab her attention, Ling able to remain largely stoic throughout.

That didn't stop the occasional hint of a smile from crossing her face

"If it's not meant to be taken seriously, what's the point?" Ling asks, looking over at Melissa with a raised eyebrow. "I don't mind an… occasional comedy of some sort, but it all has a point. This…" She trails off as Faron comes into view, her first glimpse of this particular housemate, eyes narrowed at him as he peeks in.

When the sound of Final Fantasy is heard in a quiet point of the movie, Melissa tilts her head back and hollars, "Kendall! Get your ass down here and be social for once!" Which means that Faron can probably hear it too, especially once he comes up the stairs.

She looks back to Ling and grins. "To amuse. It's meant to make you laugh. That's all. And don't think I haven't seen those little smiles over there. It's amusing you. You've started to become a Mel Brooks addict!" Her drink is lifted in a toast, then sipped.

The game is put on pause, and the door opens. Kendall peeks out around the door jamb. "But she doesn't like me so I'm staying out of her way." Kendall calls down in his usual manner of saying whatever comes to mind. And the 'she' he is referring to is pretty obviously Ling.

Noting that he had been noticed by this newcomer…Ling, if he remembered correctly, Faron steps into the room, smiling in a greeting towards the two women. He decides to let the Melissa and Kendall finish arguing before asking Melissa for a minute with him. He hadn't gotten the chance to truly meet Kendall, all they did was keep in seperate rooms of the house, but he's still eager to meet him. The time will come; more important things were at hand.

Ling rolls her eyes when she hears Kendall. "As long as he doesn't act like a fool, I'll have no problem with him," she states, before looking back at Melissa. "I never said it didn't amuse. It just seems so… obtuse. There's much better ways to make someone laugh." An over analytical assessment, if anything. She hesitates a moment, before holding up her drink as well, if only to acknowledge the toast. Her eyes drift back to Faron, though to him, she remains silent.

The reply from the teenager has Melissa rolling her eyes. "Just get your ass down here!" she calls back, shaking her head. "Hey Faron. Care to join us? It's Blazing Saddles." Ling gets another grin. "Well what way do you prefer? If it can be found in movie form, I'm pretty sure I have at least one example of it." She does have a lot of movies. Like, a lot a lot.

Kendall shrugs and comes closer since Ling doesn't seem too bothered. He flops on a chair, looking at the TV. He watches it for a few minutes, then frowns. "This movie has the most racial slurs and stereotypes I've ever seen." he sounds…. disapproving? Faron is glanced at, but since Kendall doesn't know him, he doesn't say anything to him.

Faron shifts in his stance, seeming to be a bit eager. "I will, yeah, but I kind of want to talk to you about something." There's a bit of an apology in his voice, like a child coming to admit he broke something. "You mind if I pull you away for a quick second, Melissa? It's okay if you don't want to." He looks at Ling with a genuine smile, almost saying sorry to her as well with his eyes.

Watching Kendall come in, he feels reassured that now might be a good time to pull Melissa away. He doesn't know about the relationship between Ling and Kendall, but now neither will be alone. He gives Kendall a smile and a nod, not knowing exactly what greeting he should be given. His eyes move back to Mel, waiting for a reply.

Ling doesn't offer much in the way of an initial response to Melissa, instead continuing to watch the movie, and find something more than momentary amusement in it. So far, she's failing. "He makes an astute observation," Ling notes, with a motion Kendall - if he kept actiung like that, maybe she would at least more readily tolerate his presence.

When Faron requests Melissa's presence, though, Ling's eyes narrow a bit, moving to Faron, and then back to Melissa. "If you have business to attend to, don't let me keep you."

"It does," Melissa agrees, nodding. "But I can enjoy the movie without agreeing with the racial bullshit, because I know it's bullshit. now play nice," she says, rising to her feet and nodding towards the kitchen. "We'll talk in there. Ling, Kendall, play nice," she says, grinning at them before moving into the kitchen. She waits until Faron has followed, then asks, "What's up?"

Play nice? Kendall looks over at Ling with some apprehension. What, Melissa's leaving him here alone with this lady who doesn't like him? Help! "Ah…" so what's Kendall supposed to do in a situation like this?

Faron waits until he's out of earshot, making sure that it's only him and Mel who are in on this conversation. The content is not exactly private, but he's still embarassed. "…I want to apologize for not being able to find a place. I know that I promised I'd be out in a day or two, but I'm still here. I feel bad for it, and I feel like I'm being a burden to you." He looks at her kindly, sheepishly. "If you want me out of the house, I can do that. I can make whatever arrangements you want me to, as well."

A glance is given over to Kendall at the instructions to play nice, before she turns back to face the movie again. Nothing is actually said to Kendall, what in the world is she supposed to say to someone who was likely almost twenty years younger than she is. Occasionally she glances over to Kendall again, curious as to if he'll address her.

Melissa blinks as Faron starts talking, and she shakes her head. "If I wanted you out, I'd tell you. I like being direct and honest. If you feel like you need to be doing something though…how are you with AC units? 'Cause frankly, I'm tired of being so hot. It's cooler in here than out there, but not by much. So don't even worry about it. Now c'mon. We're missing the movie!"

Kendall rubs his forehead with the back of his hand, using that as an excuse not to make eye contact with Ling. "Pity I can't make it less hot here. I bet whoever can control ice or whatever's got it made in this weather. Unless they melt themselves, I guess."

Ah, finally! A mundane use for Faron's powers. "It is hot here, isn't it? An air conditioner is a machine, like any other one. All I need to do is get some tools and a unit, and we're in business." His grin is broad as he talks to Melissa. "But yes, we can conquer that later. I haven't seen Blazing Saddles in a long time." He chuckles slightly. "Did the sherriff roll into town yet?"

Ling is silent for a moment before she nods, taking a sip of her drink. She'd only known one person who could manipulate ice; someone she was glad that, outside of being stuck in the bizarre coffin she had been kept in, she would never have to see again. May Song Ye rot in her frozen prison.

"This, I can sympathise with you on," Ling remarks finally, sitting up a bit in her seat. "I imagine there were several people making a good bit of money off of the snowstorm as well."

"Ages ago," Melissa says, nodding as she heads back into the living room. "And there are tools downstairs. Surprised you haven't found 'em yet." She sprawls on the couch, catching the tail end of Ling's remark. "Nope. The snowstorm was an attempt by the Institute to get back a teenaged girl they were experimenting on."

"Well I certainly wasn't one of them." Kendall shivers at the mere thought of it. "Of course, I was sick, and abandoned by my parents at that time, so…" yeah, Kendall was left out in the cold, literally.

Faron smiles as he makes his way back to the living room, following Mel and leaning against the doorway, peering at the TV and chuckling at the movie. He knew great, yet pointless comedy. His smile was genuine and happy, something he hadn't been for a long time. Maybe things would work out for him. Too early to tell, but…

Ling looks over at Melissa with an amused expression. "Now, that seems like a bit much, if you're trying to convince me," she remarks, before looking over at Kendall, for a just a moment. Her arms fold across her midsection, shaking her head.

Kendall gets a warm and sympathetic look from Melissa. "Yeah, but if they hadn't abandoned you, you wouldn't be able to hole up in a room full of geek gear and wouldn't have me as a surrogate mom or big sister or whatever the hell I am." Looking back to Ling she shakes her head. "I'm being dead serious, Ling. The girl, Liette, was an evolved who could gather multiple powers and keep them for a few months. Her adopted dad was Doctor Luis of the Institute. He tried a couple of times to get her back, and threatened that if she wasn't returned, that the storm woul djust get worse. It was Liette's sister who personally caused the storm," she says, sounding deadly serious.

"Eh." Kendall accompanies that highly eloquent response with an equally eloquent one-shouldered shrug. "Every silver lining has its rainy cloud." That's…. not how the saying goes. "Wait, all that? Really?" Kendall sounds surprised when Melissa starts explaining stuff. "Liette? That cute girl?"

Faron cocks an eyebrow at Melissa in between bouts of small laughter. "Honestly, I hadn't heard much about the storm, other than being one of the people in it who survived. How do you know who caused it?" He moves to the floor beside the couch, not opting for a chair, oddly. He wants to be part of the group, and sitting in a chair would only isolate him, he figured. Besides, leaning on the couch was comfy enough to him.

"You're serious?" Ling inquires, sounding genuinely surprised by this revelation. "Mmm. The storm didn't do much to affect me personally. I was trapped at home the entire time anyway. And it's not like I can't get around on my own." She wrinkles her nose, looking thoughtful for a moment. She has more to say on the matter, but remember Melissa's request, and Kendall's presence, prevents any of it from coming out.

Melissa frowns a little at Kendall. "I told you at least some of this. But yeah, Liette. She was innocent. Hell, they actually found her real parents." She shrugs at Faron. "I rescued Liette from one of her keepers, and was one of the few people she trusted. I was there once when the Institute tried to steal her back. Men in white suits and masks," she says, glancing towards Ling, giving her a look. Yes, those white suited men.

"White suits and masks?" Kendall raises an eyebrow. "What, the reverse of MIB? Don't these people have any originality at all?" wait! He remembers seeing a guy dressed all in white including a white mask! But he acted like a superhero, not a bad guy.

With genuine interest, Faron looks at Melissa. Just what kind of past does she have? The look she gave Ling was, as well, very thought-provoking. However, he thinks maybe that's a tale for another time. If the other two wanted to press her, he might follow along, but Faron decides to drop the subject. Might be a bit hard on the woman, he thinks.

The mentioned of men in white makes Ling's expression go sour, bringing that unpleasant memory back to the forefront of her mind. "You don't need originality when you think you can get away with anything," she grumbles, having now absorbed this story, her own experience, and the one Peter had told her earlier.

Melissa shrugs at Kendall. "They're scientists. Their originality is all in their experiments, I guess. I don't know. I just know that they put all of us into dangerously cold temperatures all so they could get a little girl that they'd turned lab rat back. I know that they've done a lot of really bad things. So they're not my friends by any stretch of the imagination."

Kendall snorts. "Do people like that even have friends or are they like those mad scientists who think everyone and everything exists for them to do experiments on?" someone's been reading too much manga lately it seems.

After a moment of watching the movie, his attention is once more turn towards the conversation at hand. Leaning over to look at Melissa, his questions either start becoming annoying or curious. "I don't recall anyone ever saying that a real culprit was behind it, or that it reached a definite conclusion. Did they ever find that Liette girl, or did you help protect her?" He seems very interested in finding the truth behind such things. Maybe more fuel for the terrorist side of him, eh?

"Mad scientists with friends are the most dangerous of them all," Ling intones darkly, as if speaking from experience. "You never know what'll happen if they lose them." Like start working for insane institutes, as it seemed Bao-Wei had in the absence of the Ye siblings. She had little else to say on the manner, remaining quiet as she listens.

"The public doesn't know the truth, that's why you don't recall anyone saying anything about it. And from what I've heard since the storm ended, Liette is back with her real parents," Melissa says to Faron, shrugging. "And yeah, Kendall, probably." She glances to the other three, then nods to the TV. "Anyway, let's get back to Blazing Saddles. The Q and A is over for tonight. At least about this."

"Who's her parents, anyone special?" Kendall asks. Seems like the Q&A isn't really over after all. "I wonder if… eh, nevermind."

Faron nods, now knowing something of the truth. Probably a subject for another day. "Oh, tomorrow, Mel, I can work on the AC if you'd like. Shouldn't be too hard of a fix." He grins broadly. "Besides, how saintly would it be to finally have some cool air in here for a change, huh? I could sure go for some."

Ling, unlike Kendall, is willing to let it rest ffor now - partially because Melissa strikes her as the type of person who will start the movie over again if they end up sufficiently distracted from it. She looks over at her host with a nod, turning her attention forward to the TV.

That is the type of person Melissa is, but it also seems as though she's just tired of the topic, because Kendall's question has her giving him a sharp look. "Movie. And yeah, tomorrow works. The sooner the better on the cool air. Thanks, Faron."

Kendall innocently blinks at Melissa in complete and utter innocence. Did he mention innocent? Oh yeah, there's that too. And innocence. What's with the sharp look, huh? He's not up to anything! "I don't understand that movie at all." he complains, speaking of Blazing Saddles, of course.

Faron grins again, shaking his head at Kendall. "This is Mel Brooks. His movies aren't really meant to be looked into, at all. They are pure satire, slapstick, and comedy. Just enjoy it, I think you'll like it, blatant racism and sexism aside."

"Once more, I agree with him," Ling remarks flatly, shaking her head. Despite that, she's still watching the movie, and another one of those small amused half smiles briefly forms on Ling's face. "It uses comedy like a blunt instrument. It's overwrought."

"Okay, let's just say that Mel Brooks is an acquired taste then," Melissa says, turning back to the screen. "But still, looks like Ling is enjoying it more than she's letting on," she says with a quick grin.

"Well I guess even something like fish oil would taste good if you got used to it…" Kendall flops back on the chair, looking upward. "I'd rather watch something like Advent Children." geek.

Already, Faron doesn't seem to like Kendall. Reminded him of a few foster kids he helped raise: convinced everything older than they were was insipid. He looks at Kendall with a frown, not saying a word but sighing heavily. He was getting frustrated but decided to drop the subject. Best not to get on Mel's bad side.

Ling looks over to Melissa, staring daggers at her for a moment, before looking forward again. "I never said it wasn't somewhat amusing."

"Have you even looked in my DVDs, Kendall? I've got Advent Children in there," Melissa says, still watching the screen. "And true, you didn't," she allows with a nod to Ling. "Anyway. Enough talking. Movie! You don't like it…go to your room! Or something," she says, though she's smiling.

"Okay." Kendall stands up and goes to his room. Hey, she said that, didn't she? It's reason enough for Kendall! He didn't want to leave his room in the first place!


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