Participants:
| Scene Title | Man Gets Beat Up, Swears Off Women |
|---|---|
| Synopsis | Magnes returns from a tough fight, and Sable pesters him predictably. |
| Date | April 18, 2010 |
Magnes Varlane's apartment.
Having been out all night again, Sable probably could have assumed he either got into trouble, or Delilah's suddenly not sick, his two largest excuses for staying out. Last night would probably count as trouble. Magnes enters the apartment, locks the door, then throws his bag and coat into his room. When he walks back out, he's also removed his shirt, which gives Sable a good idea of how messed up he is when she comes out of her room.
He's got a large bruise across his back, like he took a bat or a very powerful kick. He has smaller bruises all over his arms and his stomach, bruises on his face, and new bandages over the burns on his upper left arm and the left of his ribs; the burns she'd already know about. "God, I hurt all over, and I had the nerve to hurt a girl's feelings." he says as he sits back on the couch, looking like he got hit by multiple trucks.
Sable headed to her door just as soon as she heard the front door open, and so she catches him as he bares himself and his wounds. Her eyes widen in an alarm she wouldn't likely show if /he/ could see /her/, and its an alarm she conquers quickly before scampering out of her room and over to the couch, clambering over the arm and flopping down, legs pointed towards Magnes.
"Lemme guess," she says, tone casual but not without sympathy and maybe just a little concern, "I should see the other guy?"
"I think I cracked his ribs." Magnes says with a slightly pained smile, grabbing the remote so he can relax a bit. He's kicked his snow boots off, so now he's just in his jeans. "But he had a weird ability, peak human condition. I basically tried to take Batman in hand to hand combat while only using my ability to make my hits harder. It was pretty brutal on both of us. Double KO, and I only got a KO on him because I lost my temper and used the ranged part of my ability to throw him across the… room." He sounds as if he almost said something else.
Whether or not Sable picks up on this last second self-censorship, she doesn't pry. Maybe because the particulars won't have a lot of meaning until this whole incident is properly framed. "Okay. So, like, now I have a dozen more fuckin' questions. Like… shit, where to begin? Why'd you end up in a fight? Was this dude trying to, like, destroy the world or some shit?" This is both a joke and a real guess, considering what she's heard of Magnes' extracurricular activities.
"I was testing myself, and I guess he wanted to test himself too." Magnes leans over after giving her a brief look for approval, moving to lay his head on her thighs. He's clearly exhausted and in no shape to attempt getting in her pants, even if it didn't stop him from attempting with Gillian the night before. "I need to get stronger, I had to know where my gap is, if all I had was my ability at touch range against an Evolved with a physically enhanced ability. I'm not strong enough yet, I've gotta find that guy and ask him to train me."
The intricacies of pants access are something that might bear discussion, but they take a backburner position to Magnes coming home pummelled. Sable folds her arms across her chest and leans over to glower at Magnes' face. "Yeah, yeah, and just in case you meet a fuckin' firestarter you should wear asbestos jockey shorts in order to protect yer goods 'n' services. Man, what the fuck were you thinking, starting a fight just so you could… what? Fuckin' what, man? If you get yourself killed… Jesus, I'll get evicted, plus I'll need to find another bandmate." Never sentimental, least of all in crisis. She raps on his forehead, not /too/ hard, "What the hell was goin' through your skull? Or can't your remember cuz you got beat on so bad?"
"It wasn't to the death, we both agreed to it. And… god, you know, I just realized…" Magnes suddenly looks a little worried, reaching up to briefly touch her cheek, then lowers his hand again. "I don't think about you enough, when I do dangerous things. I never thought about what would happen to you. I'm sorry…"
Sable bats at the spot of air Magnes' hand has just vacated, her lips turning down. It's not distaste at the concern as such, nor at the caring touch; it's embarrassment at being made an object of that concern, and the recipient of such a touch. "I was fuckin' joking, man. Yes, it'd suck hard if you died, and I'd be, like, sad, and probably write an album about the loss or something, like, commemorative, okay? But whatever just… what the hell? Where did this happen? How did this agreement or whatever get hammered out?"
"If I tell you, this will be another one of those secrets that you can't tell anyone, even the other people we have to keep secrets for." Magnes is apparently trusting Sable with a personal secret, and he sounds rather relaxed still, coming down off his sudden worry. "Promise?"
"Done," Sable says, with a nod. She casts her eyes heavenward and crosses her fingers, "Please please please say it's really from a serious bondage dungeon. From, like, a overzealous dominatrix. /Please/ let it be that." She grins maniacally at him. So very trust-inducing.
"Nah, I'm sworn off women for a while, as of a few hours ago." Magnes notes, though he seems quite comfortable with his head in her lap. "Went to an underground cage fight, with Evolved. Had to pay to get in, it's run by the Triad. I went in a mask since I'm pretty sure a lot of them would like to see me dead, considering when I was a cop I helped take one of their groups down."
Sable is so far past the point of needing to ask for details about Magnes' /cop/ past. This shit gets explained on its own time, as it better, since there's a whole lot of it to explain. She used to conceive of her own previous exploits as colorful. "Double KO… means a stalemate? You win any cash?" Right to the point.
"No, he was my first fight. I probably could have beaten him if I wasn't so hellbent on not using my ranged ability, but I really needed to test myself in melee, to see how far I've come, y'know?" Magnes places a hand on his ribs, where he has quite a few bruises. "I got out of it without breaking anything at least, and I'll probably be a bit tougher since I'm not getting healed. Abby used to heal me right after I got hurt, every time, but she can't heal anymore. And yeah, it means a stalemate."
"Bullshit!" Sable exclaims. To what it's not clear, and she doesn't explain. Instead she just plows ahead. "Is this somethin' you plan to do again? Because if you're really dedicated to, like, getting yourself beat to pulp, at /least/ lemme come along so I can scoop you up and carry yours bits and pieces back home."
"I can't risk anyone figuring out who I am, and that place is too dangerous, I don't wanna put you in danger." Magnes almost sits up, but groans when he tries to move from his prone position. "I don't want you to have to live a tough life anymore, I just wanna see you pursue your dreams. I can't put you in danger just because I have a Batman complex."
"Even Batman had that little Robin dude in the stupid tights to pull his ass out of the fire once and a while," Sable says - yes, she is right now suggesting she be the Robin to his Batman, "I'll wear sunglasses and a wig or somethin', hide my identity. I can say, like, I'm your manager, man." She grins, "All professional."
"If you let me disguise you, I'll say yes." Magnes finally gives his condition, and trying to sit up again. "If you go, no talking to strange people, don't walk off with anyone, those usual fieldtrip rules."
Sable gives Magnes steady push to help him get upright again. "Arright, that /sounds/ okay, I guess. Fascist."
Magnes just smiles at her when he finally gets in a position to lay back on what's free of the couch. "Sorry, I just have to do everything I can to keep you safe, y'know? I wouldn't forgive myself if I dragged you into my life and something happened."
Sable quirks her mouth to one side, one hand rising to scratch at the nape of her neck. Her eyes point at some spot on the coffee table. Normally so colorfully verbose, she resorts to a half-mumble: "…well don't get any grey hairs on my account…"
"Hey come on, Sable. I'm not saying you can't handle yourself, it's just that you know how things ended with me and Claire." Magnes suddenly points out, one particular subject he's been wanting to avoid period. "The thought of losing someone else close to me, just like that…"
"Man, do you want me to write myself a fuckin' letter, informing myself that I, like, know you and that we're, like, comrades in arms?" Sable suggests, "If that'll help put you at ease?"
"I just wanted you to know that I wouldn't be rushing to bring you into a room full of criminals, y'know?" Magnes stands, stretching and groaning a little in pain. "I need a shower. You wanna try cooking yourself tonight? If you start a fire, just call me out."
Sable grimaces, "Boy, you'd best pray for a fire. It might just kill whatever evil thing I get goin' in that frying pan."
"I could use some Atlantean food, maybe it'll give me a little more manliness." Magnes calls out from the bathroom, turning the water on. "I'll be out in a few minutes, just gotta make sure I don't die in here!"
Sable shakes her head, slipping off the couch and padding to the kitchen. "…and I'll try to cook somethin' that won't finish you off…" she mutters.