Participants:
| Scene Title | So Much Beyond |
|---|---|
| Synopsis | Elle fills Dax in on his history, and the two bond— for the first time for Dax, and all over again for Elle. |
| Date | November 23, 2010 |
Located in the Upper West Side, West Side Sushi is a small sushi bar and restaurant that caters towards a medium income though manages a more upscale environment. The decor is tasteful and modern, vibrant in the tone of wooden floors, reflective glass bars, tricky lighting fixtures and artwork on the walls. A winding bar occupies one side of the building, the other devoted to private, comfortable tables with booths and armchairs. A decent range of Japanese cuisine is offered, from light meals to proper dinners, with a focus on sushi of varying prices. A full range of liquor is also available, including sake.
It has a trendy kind of vibe that implies temporary success and limited lifespan, but while it's in its prime, it's a nice place to go, with a casual if still sophisticated ambience with prices that aren't out of reach of the common man but quality that doesn't guarantee it will be overlooked by the wealthier patron.
Dax was just buttoning up a computer that he had cleaned some spy-ware off of when his phone buzzed with a number he wasn't familiar with. A quick conversation later, and he found himself invited to sushi on the West Side later that evening, despite any protests to the contrary. Now, normally he would just go home, work out, take a long, hot shower, and then hit the hay, but the woman on the phone sounded so…..excited? Happy to see him? It wasn't anything he really expected to get over a cell phone, but there it was so, cleaned up after his workout, Dax steps out of the summoned taxicab and makes his way into the sushi bar.
The first thing that hits Dax's nose is the scent of tempura cooking, not fish - always a good sign in a sushi bar, and he stands there waiting to be seated, scanning the restaurant to see if the woman with the cast might be around. He bounces on his toes slightly, his thumbs tucked into his hip pockets, dressed in jeans, black Converse shoes, and a button-down shirt with a white undershirt and a coat thrown over it all to keep the chill out.
The electric blonde is certainly looking much better than she was at one point, with her healing pretty much accelerated by about a week after an encounter with Kayla. She's still got time to heal, but she should be able to get her stitches out within about a week, and her cast will be about three weeks after that. The knee— well, that's going to take a little more time, but she's should be off of the crutches within another week or so, to be replaced by a cane.
She is so going to make Richard buy her a pimp cane, once that time comes.
For now, however, her crutches are leaned against the booth that she relaxes at, sipping at some hot tea with a small smile on her face. She's excited— she always did like Dax, ever since he was brought in to the Company when she was still young. Being newly single after ending a relationship that just wasn't meant to be is just an added bonus to all of this.
As Dax enters, her black-casted arm raises, offering a wave in his general direction. She's looking fairly casual, wearing a cream-colored long sleeve shirt under a short-sleeved purple sweater, the ensemble complete with a pair of jeans and tennis shoes. Casual yet stylish, but also comfortable. Next to her, a black coat is folded on the seat.
The hostess seemed to be leading Dax toward the sushi bar, but when Elle raises her hand, he stops and taps her on the shoulder. "It looks like the lady I'm meeting is right over there." The hostess, a girl dressed in a kimono tied over black khaki pants and comfortable seeming shoes, simply nods and leads Dax over, putting the menu down in front of him and, with a small smile, scurries back to the hostess station at the front where she can get back to texting on Facebook.
Dax waits a moment for the hostess to depart, shucking his jacket and tossing it into the booth before sliding in across from the Electric Blonde. There are probably stories between the two of them that could fill a book or be used as a basis for an awesome television show, but sadly, Dax doesn't remember a moment of it. "Evening, Elle." His voice is soft, well-spoken. "It was a bit of a surprise, getting your call, after our brief meeting, but I'm kind of glad you did."
Elle is all smiles as Dax seats himself, grinning up at the man with appraising blue eyes. "I couldn't just let you go just like that. Especially not with your little memory problem." She tilts her head to one side, her eyes traveling over his face, remembering times where they would sit in the dark and talk to each other.
And for all she knows, he could one day be the father of her child.
"Anyhow, where should we start? There's so much to cover, I think…and that's only what I know about you." She offers a charming smile to Dax, pouring him some tea into the empty cup she requested. "There's still so much beyond what I know, I'm absolutely sure."
Dax takes the cup up in one hand, steadying it with the other, and sips - a very Japanese way of doing things. When you work with computers, you work with all types, and manners, no matter who you're working with, shine through beautifully. "It's not little, to be perfectly frank. I like to compare my memory after the wreck to a block of Swiss cheese that's been attacked by termites and an angle grinder. Not much to remember up there, sadly." The cup is placed back on the table with a soft clink of china against china, Dax lacing his fingers together and sitting in the dead center of the booth, across from Elle.
"So, anything you can fill in is wonderful. Might be able to discover something about myself that I didn't know."
"Oh, I can tell you so much that you don't know, I'm sure." Elle tilts her head toward Dax, sipping at her own tea in a much more casual way— which is to say, she can't exactly use her casted right arm to do much of anything when it comes to eating. "Let's start out. I'm Eleanor Zoe Bishop. I'm 27, and I'm…not your average girl." She smiles faintly.
Then, she leans forward, resting her elbows on the table. "You came into my life when I was about 11 or 12. We kind of grew up around each other. We never really spoke much about your life before, except you telling me that you were from Louisiana." She tilts her head to the side.
There's a pregnant pause, then the little blonde continues, leaning back in the both as she sips at her tea. "You remember the whole thing with the Company? Back in August, when they were hunted down. It was all over the news."
Like a switch was thrown, Dax's normally clipped English switches to something a little…well, a lot more rustic and Frenchish sounding. "Mais, amais d'lai vie." He laughs and takes another formal sip of his tea, leaning over slightly in the booth over the table, the outburst of Cajun causing a couple of people to glance over since it's probably the last thing anyone would expect to hear in the middle of a Japanese restaurant.
"Well, you know me apparently. Daniel Jackson Arceneaux, or Dax to people that know me better. I'm 29 and…I don't exactly know what you're getting at, not being an average girl."
Dax leans back slightly his hands on top of the table - something the Company taught in one of their classes to look non-threatening, more than likely - blue eyes fixed on Elle. "Course I heard about it. That was all over the news. Couldn't turn on a channel without hearing about it."
Elle visibly swoons as Dax begins to talk French or something. Even with the harshness of the Cajun accent, it's still French. And it's always nice when men can talk french. Elle certainly didn't understand that, but she's certainly amazed by it nonetheless. She even forgets to talk for a good long moment, smiling warmly up at Dax.
"I always did like it when you talked French." She giggles softly.
Then, Elle tilts her head to one side, taking a breath as she remembers her words. There's no easy way to say it, so she may as well live up to her reputation of being completely blunt and honest and lacking subtlety. "Yeah…well." She fidgets for a moment. "The Company— my dad was the one who pretty much ran it. Bob Bishop— I don't think that name is even public yet." She frowns, suddenly, talking about her father. It wasn't a calculated 'let's make Elle swoon' maneuver, but he'll take what he can get. Dax chuckles a little at the cute little smile, finishing his cup of tea and setting it aside near the edge of the table where the waitress quickly spirits it away without a word to be returned and refilled shortly.
"Well, I don't do it very often. Not many who like the harshness of the Acadian accent up in these parts. If I ever bring it out, it's only to bring home a point…or if I'm tired and just forget." he rubs the back of his head with his right hand, stainless steel watch glinting on his wrist as he does. "What I wouldn't give for a decent Cajun restaurant up here that wasn't fusion…" This is muttered to himself, almost, as an aside, before Elle speaks again.
He listens as she tells about her dad running the company, not rolling his eyes or coughing. Someone admitting to be linked to the company these days isn't very good, due to public sentiment, but being told that their father ran the place and that you had been part of it? And she knows that he's evolved? Hooboy. Dax goes a bit pale, sitting up straight in his seat, glancing around to see if there are cameras, SWAT teams waiting to pounce, or an assassin with a garrote in the booth behind him and, seeing none of these things looming, leans over the table, his hands still flat. "My ability, officially, is something stupid. I can disinfect things by touching them. That's all."
She can't know about his amplification powers….that's the kind of thing that gets you…talked to.
"Well, if you ever want to speak Acadian French to me, you're allowed." Elle grins slightly, leaning against the table. "And I'll happily listen, even if I don't understand a word you're saying. There's just something about any derivative of French that gets me blushing." She giggles a little, sipping at her own tea as she thoughtfully regards the man she's sharing a table with, her eyes briefly trailing over his form.
Then, those blue orbs up to Dax's face as he responds to her words, and she offers a faint smile. "I know that your explanation about your ability is a lie, and I know what you can actually do. Don't worry, you're safe. I'm with good people who have helped me. Nobody's going to do anything to you. And— now that we know that you exist, I'm sure we can keep you safe from anyone who differs in opinion." Well, unless you count her crush on him as 'doing something'.
"You came to us, to the Company, when you were about 13 or so. You're special, too. Like me." Suddenly, she raises a hand, allowing little sparks of electricity to crackle over her fingers oh-so-briefly, before they die down just as quickly.
"Well….." Dax clears his throat. "<You may not understand me, and we may never meet again, but for you, my dear, I will speak it.>" There's a twinkle in his eye and a wink before that smile fades to obscurity again, the man fidgeting a little in his seat. "It's…It's not something I'm used to, being in the dark about myself, but here I am. I mean…you know about the whole…." Dax reaches out and mimes twisting a knob, and Elle may be able to feel her powers kind of….bump….a pleasant tingle, most definitely.
Elle remembers this feeling from an assignment. Doesn't stop it from feeling almost good, having her ability 'bumped' up, as it were. It's lucky she was almost expecting it, or the restaurant might have gotten a little display of Elle's ability. That, combined with the French speaking, and Elle has a rather large smile on her face, leaning closer to Dax.
"I know about…lots more, Dax. You worked for my dad. You and I worked together, actually, a few times." A few times when Elle's ability was needed to be stronger than it already is, and it became 'two of us, two of them'. "We kind of grew up together, after you came around…you and I used to talk to each other a lot. I remember, sometimes, we would just lay in the dark and talk about things…me about my dad, you about your parents, and all the things we did."
She tilts her head to one side. "You disappeared after the bomb went off…I thought you'd been killed or hurt, or…worse…" Suddenly, Elle frowns. "They had this man. He's a negator, and he can erase memories. I— I think you might have tried to leave or something, and they used him on you." From the way she talks, she's not too fond of her father's Company.
"Whoever he was, he did a good job because I remember moving to new york and then…nothing else. I mean, I was in a car crash. I have the hospital records and a few scars to prove it." Not big scars, obviously, and something that could have easily been put in later, but he doesn't know that.
There's a shake of Dax's head, a lowering of his chin. "I don't remember anything about my teenage years. Nothing about friends, nothing about places we went, nothing about anything. It's just a big hole - a blank."
Elle tentatively reaches out, placing a hand over Dax's, if he'll allow it. "I don't think there was a car crash, Dax. Those pictures you said you have— they didn't fuck around with potential security leaks, Dax. Those under their employ who ran were hunted down, and the Haitian came in and removed all traces of my dad's company from their minds."
She tilts her head to the side. "You were always nice to me. I think it's that southern hospitality, or something, but I got along with you better than I did most of the kids I grew up around."
He has no complaints about her putting her hand on top of his, but the loss that he felt so many years ago when he 'woke up' in the hospital, it comes crashing down on him again like a ton of bricks dumped on him from low earth orbit One can almost see Dax's shoulders slumping, his head lowering as he finds out that the one truth he knew - that he was in an accident that caused this loss - was not a truth at all, but a falsehood that was intricately formed to make him think.
"I….I don't know what to do now." his voice is small, quiet. "I've got an ability that will make me vanish if I'm found, I've got no memories of why I have it, or how it came to pass. I've got nothing."
The woman squeezes his hand once. Then, with a slight grunt, she switches around, scooting into the booth next to him. Thank goodness for the healer. "I— I'm sorry." Tentatively, she raises her good hand, placing it on his shoulder. "Hey, you still have your life as of now. You fix computers, don't you? You have that, definitely. The life you've lived since they made you forget them hasn't been a lie, has it?" Words of wisdom from someone who has been there, done that.
"I have a memory like Swiss cheese, too. Not nearly like yours, I'm certain— I still remember things. But…my dad made me forget my mom after she died. Until recently…I thought she had abandoned my dad and I, and was still out there somewhere. He made me forget some pretty horrible things that he and his workers did to me. They electrocuted me a lot. To 'test my abilities'." She frowns. "He made me forget my birthday…he made me live a lie."
Then, rather out of the blue, Elle's wrapping her arms around Dax's chest in a timid hug. "But what I've lived since I've found everything out…that's not a lie. And— we just have to keep on going, you know? It's the only way."
Elle Bishop was never really good at being a comforting presence.
She may not be very good at being a comforting presence, but there's something to be said about having someone next to you that says she went through the same stuff. "Yeah, I do. Pretty decent work, too. Keeps me busy…keeps food on the table in this crazy world." Dax sighs and lowers his head, the waitress scampering away since it seems the pair are having a moment that she doesn't want to interrupt.
"Did they do any of that to me, I wonder?" How, he can't think of, but he's sure there's a way it happened to test his limits - to find out exactly how much he could boost someone's powers in a pinch or, at worst, under duress.
Her arms wrapping around him cause Dax to sit up, to look over, then down at the cast-covered arm going across his chest. "Yeah, I know. Pick up the pieces all over again. Keep Calm and Carry on, as the British say." There's a pause. "When's…um…when's your birthday?"
When he doesn't put up any resistance to her putting her arms around him, Elle relaxes slightly, giving him a slight squeeze. "That's about the best thing anyone can do after finding out something like this, really." She peers up at him with wide blue eyes for a moment, before offering a faint smile up to him. It's not as weird for her as it might be for him, hugging him like this. To him, she's a stranger. To her, he is an old friend who she hasn't seen in a very long time.
"September 17th, 1983. I didn't find out about it until recently…and then I completely forgot about it." She frowns. She wrote about that. Even just reading about it and not remembering it, it gave her a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. "I used to think it was June 13th, thanks to my dad." She turns her eyes down toward the table.
You'll never really get over it. You can never really get those memories back. I only know one person who can do it, and lord knows if he's alive or not." She frowns. "I really only wish I could undo one thing. I wish I could stop them from making me forget my mom."
There's something nice about having an attractive blonde, casts and injuries set aside, sitting next to you in a booth in the middle of a sushi bar. She says she knows him, but he doesn’t. She says she remembers spending time with him in the past, where all he has is a gaping hole in his memory that was not scrubbed clean by a car accident but by someone else with a more benevolent, or malicious bent.
"At least I remember when my birthday is." Cold comfort, but it's all he has now. His eyes close and he slumps against Elle, looking up at her after a moment. "So what now?"
As he slumps against her, Elle squeezes him a little. Admittedly, she enjoys the closeness. It's nice. She doesn't offer voice to that, however. She's quiet for a long moment, leaning her head against his chest. Then, she raises those blue eyes, offering a faint smile up to Dax, with a blush tinging her cheeks ever-so-slightly. Another squeeze is delivered.
"Now…let's get some sushi, and get you some sake. I'd drink it with you, but I have codeine. Hooray for opiates!" She offers a faint smile. "And then, I'll help you in any way I can, okay? We can take it one step at a time. And if you don't want to be alone or anything, I have a comfortable couch that you can stay on."
"Do not use with alcohol…I know, I know." Dax gives a shaky smile and nods, reaching for the menu and flipping it open in front of them both. "I've got a place to go, and I don't mind being alone for tonight. Gives me time inside my own head to get things straight, y'know?" He gives Elle a small smile and actually reaches up to tweak her nose lightly before motioning to the waitress, pointing to the 'chef's choice' selection and holding up two fingers. She nods and scampers off to bring them various sushi rolls and nigiri while the two sit in the booth.
"Besides, even though you know me, in my head we just met, and staying over at a stranger's place right after the first dinner out? A bit fast for my tastes."
Elle wrinkles her nose as he tweaks it, still smiling a little. "That's completely alright by me. You do what you need to do." She smiles. "Just…figured I'd offer, you know?" She offers a warm smile up to Dax, tilting her head toward him. "I'm glad you're alive. I was worried you'd been killed by the bomb or something." She leans back, smiling to him, though her arm still remains around his back— she likes being close to him. It's just as much for her as it is for him.
"We'll just have to make sure to have another night out soon." She smiles.
The first course is brought - two bowls of miso soup with the flat spoons that always seem to be around oriental restaurants, along with two glasses of water to drink, and Dax and Elle just sit in the booth, Dax trying to come up with something to say before his entire world was derailed and sent into a ditch. "So…um…" Dax shifts slightly, glancing over to Elle. "Tell me about….us, then? What did we do when we were younger?"
Elle takes up her spoon, taking a few sips of the soup with a soft sigh. She does so love Japanese cuisine. She turns to Dax, tilting her head to one side. "I remember that you were nice. I was nicer to you than I was to any of the other kids they had there. I— well, my childhood is a lot of Swiss cheese, but I wasn't really a happy kid. You were kind of a breath of fresh air."
The first course is brought - two bowls of miso soup with the flat spoons that always seem to be around oriental restaurants, along with two glasses of water to drink, and Dax and Elle just sit in the booth, Dax trying to come up with something to say before his entire world was derailed and sent into a ditch. "So…um…" Dax shifts slightly, glancing over to Elle. "Tell me about….us, then? What did we do when we were younger?"
Elle takes up her spoon, taking a few sips of the soup with a soft sigh. She does so love Japanese cuisine. She turns to Dax, tilting her head to one side. "I remember that you were nice. I was nicer to you than I was to any of the other kids they had there. I— well, my childhood is a lot of Swiss cheese, but I wasn't really a happy kid. You were kind of a breath of fresh air."
"Um…thanks, I guess? My parents, before they died….they are dead, right?" He arches a brow slightly before continuing. "I always thought manners were the best thing, and I tried to treat people politely no matter the situation, so I can't say I'm surprised, but I'm sad that I was the breath of fresh air." Dax smiles sadly, picking up his bowl and sipping directly from it in the Japanese way.
"They are dead, yes…they didn't lie to you about that, at least." Elle tilts her head to one side, taking another sip of her soup and offering a small smile. "Sad as it is to say, I'm glad you were there, at least. You always had this way of making our situation seem much less…painful, I guess?" She suddenly reaches out with her good hand, brushing it over the back of Dax's hand. "And I'm extremely glad that you're alive."
Dax's gaze flicks down to where her good hand brushes his, his right still dealing with the soup bowl. He tilts the bowl quickly, nomming a bit of tofu that's right at the bottom of the bowl, crushes it against the roof of his mouth, and swallows along with a mouthful of the miso broth. "So, I was dead, they said? Lost in the bomb? OR did I just kind of….vanish into the aether, never to be heard from or seen again? I'm kind of lost on what you were told. I can tell you what I've been doing up past 2006, but anything before that, you'll need to fill in for me."
The little blonde pulls her hand away, turning back to her own miso soup and slurping it down. "You just kind of…disappeared. We all assumed it was either because you had left, or died, or done something bad. They were very controlling over their information." She tilts her head to the side. "I can tell you about how we trained together, with you kind of helping me control my ability. And we worked together a few times out in the field, but…a lot of it's Swiss cheese for me, too. I just know that you were a special kind of agent, like I was."
She tilts her head to one side. "We did a few bag and tags together— captured others like us and brought them in. The ones you and I went after were a bit scary."
"Sounds interesting…." Dax's voice is a bit wary, his bowl set at the edge of the table to be whisked away in preparation for the first bit of sushi to arrive. "Let's avoid the people I helped…bag and tag, as you so succinctly put it…" He shifts in the booth slightly, his back going against the wall, one hand on the back of the booth the other on the table, facing Elle kind of sideways. "So…training. IF we trained you know the range of what I can do…I guess with that little light show of yours, I was head to toe in a rubber suit or something?"
Elle nods slowly, turning a little in the booth so she can face him, once finished with her own soup. "We can definitely avoid that one." She doesn't mind so much, even though she kind of liked what she did, when the going was still good. Still, she's better off as she is now. "You were in a rubber suit, yeah. Head to toe. You looked pretty funny, really."
Her voice lowers slightly, gaining a more hushed tone. "When I was a kid, before I ever met you, my dad asked me to power a generator for a block of houses. Instead, I caused a blackout that spanned over four counties." She tilts her head to the side. "When you come into the picture…well."
One can almost see the wheels turning in Dax's head when she says that, yes, he was encased in a rubber suit. "I bet I looked like a reject from a nine inch nails video, head to toe in black latex with a little window to peer out of. I hope it flattered my figure."
Dax nods when she tells the second part of her story. "I guess with me involved, you did quite a bit more. I don't know how much I can boost someone…I guess I did at some point, but they took care of that." He straightens when the waitress approaches with a square plate designed artfully with a spread of nigiri sushi - tuna, salmon, shrimp - and a seaweed salad with a small dot of yellow-orange roe on top, to be shared.
Elle can't help but giggle slightly, putting her hand over her mouth. "It was very…form fitting. It's a good thing you're gorgeous, otherwise it probably wouldn't have looked so good." She offers a wink, before turning toward the food with a grin on her face and a blush on her cheeks. Her chopsticks are briefly picked up, before she realizes that she certainly can't use them properly with her favored hand in a cast. So instead, she goes for a fork, frowning at it briefly.
"I don't know exactly how much you can boost someone, either. I know it's an interesting feeling." She smiles faintly to Dax, before spearing a bit of the seaweed salad on her fork and popping it into her mouth.
Dax uses the chopsticks quite deftly, lower held like a pencil, the other on top, some of the seaweed salad clasped between the two lacquered sticks and eaten quickly, a bit more slurped in that didn't make it all the way into his mouth. He does blush a bit at the compliment, too, hiding it well by taking a drink of water until it fades. "What does it feel like when I….turn up the volume, I guess is a good way to put it."
The blush is noticed, and Elle can't help but grin a little. It's always nice to know you can make a person blush. Even if he doesn't remember her, she's still horribly fond of him. "It's…interesting. Like…a buzz, kind of? I feel more…acute, or something. More focused." She spears a piece of salmon nigiri with her fork, popping it into her mouth. "It's an interesting feeling."
The nigiri is not even half done by the time that the next course - the rolls, come. Several colorful rolls, each with different kinds of fish, vegetables, fillings, and the like, are laid on the table, and Dax looks at the waitress a bit wide-eyed. The chef, apparently, enjoys people putting themselves at his mercy!
Now, if Dax were a suave kind of guy, he'd make a snarky comment about wanting to help make some interesting feelings later, but instead he just smiles and puts down his glass, takes a bit of tuna and chews thoughtfully. "So…I guess the question is, what now? You going to go tell whoever is in charge that you've found me and then I get used as a portable battery? You going to keep me secret and come visit now and again?"
Elle peers at the selection with raised eyebrows. Despite the large array of choices, she's quite certain that there will be no take-home boxes. She promptly spears an interesting looking roll on her fork, and pops it into her mouth, chewing thoughtfully. Upon gulping down the bite, and washing it down with tea, Elle grins over to Dax. "Well, a lot of that is up to you. And…well, I don't think Redbird is in the habit of using people. I have to beg Richard most of the time, if I want to do anything. He's actually told me to take a break and go be a normal person for a while." She tilts her head toward Dax. "If you want me to tell Richard about you, I will. If you would rather I not, then I won't. Simple as that."
"Let me…let me think on that. It's kind of a big step, suddenly being discovered and thrust into the limelight by…Redbird, was it?" Dax shrugs slightly and snags his own bit of roll, one with some tuna on the inside, some crab and eel on the outside with a small bit of sweet sauce on it too. "listen…What're you doing Thanksgiving? Any plans?"
Elle nods slowly, smiling softly up to Dax. "It's entirely your decision, and I'll happily let you sit on that choice for as long as you need." She pops another roll into her mouth, this one with a bit of spicy mayo atop of it, smiling as she savors the flavor. As he asks of her plans for Thanksgiving, Elle blinks a few times. She didn't even realize it was coming up. "Thanksgiving? Well…unless Peyton throws us a dinner or something, I don't think I'll be doing much of anything. You?"
"Well…might do something if you decide to come by. Roast a chicken, do some stuffing…the whole nine yards." Is Dax asking her out? I think he's asking her out.
Elle leans toward Dax a little, smiling. "I think that sounds spectacular, actually. I'm not much of a cook, but…I guess I should say, I would love to spend Thanksgiving with you." She smiles brightly up to him, her cheeks flushing a little.
