Physics&&Hot Chocolate[Kam+Alice]

[kameron]

Pitch blackness had settled over the mansion. Along with that came a silence that was only disturbed by a large grandfather clock chiming in the time. Three O' Clock in the morning. Most everyone in the mansion was asleep. Emphasis on the most. At this time of the night, there were those handfuls of individuals still prowling around. That odd and slightly more isolated group that is rarely seen during the day but can often be found lurking around during ungodly hours of the night. This description fit Kameron Fan Gaurent.

How Kam had stumbled down a flight or two of stairs in the darkness was beyond him. He was coherent enough to brew himself some instant hot chocolate and hoist his body up onto a marble counter top. Drawing his legs closer too his chest and put the how mug underneath the 'roof' his legs had created. After finding a light switch, he turned one bank of lights. Fumbling around with a giant physics text book, he rested it on his lap.

Sure, this might not have been the highlight of most students here at th institute. For Kam though, this was pretty intriguing. He was in the green right now. Pretty calm. He didn't really know anyone that well yet, and didn't plan too. Studying on counter tops in kitchens was much safer. Safer then say, a populated library. Anything could set him off and he could hurt someone.

What did 'in the green' mean? Well, Xavier and hank had crafted somewhat a watch for Kameron. It was much more convenient then some bulky device. Much easier to conceal. This way, all he had to do was slide up his sleeve. Everyone would be safer. He could keep a much closer eye on his radioactive emissions.

Kitty drew his arms into an over sized, Grey hoody. His hair probably looked like crap right now, but that was fine. No one was up to see him in his flannel pajama bottoms. Almost immediately after pulling his arms into his hoody they were back out. Steadily, they brought the cup with its sweet contents too his lips as he sipped. The taste scolded his tongue but warmed his stomach as he read about advanced physics terms.

[alice]

If someone were to ever stumble upon the Xavier Grounds at night they’d learn one thing. There really were things that went bump in the night. And Alice happened to be one of them. She wasn’t just a night owl though. Her power made it difficult to be out and about during daylight hours, it was just too bright out for her. Rarely ever would you find her awake during normal hours unless she was having difficulty controlling her power. In those times… Well she was always awake, living off of energy drinks to keep herself awake and alert. You didn’t want a power like hers to go out of control…

Tonight was like every other night. Near all of the school lights were off but Alice had no trouble at all navigating the dark corridors, more than capable in seeing in complete darkness. Most people were asleep by this hour but she’d come across a few, some students being idiots, Hazel and Hank pulling an all nighter with some project…

Normally Alice would have gone out to that old abandoned boathouse she always hung out at, but it was colder tonight then most, and she didn’t want to go dig out a coat. She didn’t like the cold… Or the heat, really. So, she just wandered the halls, with no destination in mind, a thick novel open in her hands. Even though it was impossible to make out the title in this darkness for any normal mutant it just happened to be the first Harry Potter book. One of the teachers had recommended she read the series, and when she’d shrugged it off… Had decided to make it a project for her. Great, personal homework was always great.

A light suddenly turned on.

Even though Alice wasn’t anywhere near the kitchen, or even in sight of it, her head snapped up, her light sensitive eyes instantly registering the glow. It was the Kitchen light… Probably someone getting a midnight snack… A moment passed, and Alice’s curiosity grew even more. She sighed, closing the book and holding it close to her chest as she headed in that direction. The closer she got, the more she squinted her eyes. She hated random lights being turned on at night.

Alice stopped in the doorway, her half squinted gaze instantly finding the one who’d turned the light on, a boy who was probably older then her… with a text book… “What are you doing up..?”

[kameron]

Kameron was very engrossed in his text book. Some people couldn't really get into a book. They had issues forgetting their surroundings and just letting the words flow. No. Not him. He could get so into a book that hours would pass and he would continue reading. That is why, when he heard the voice, he hardly even responded. He had started to take another sip of his hot chocolate before the words of another person finally broke through to his senses. He nearly choked on the hot liquid.

God. He knew that he was bad with surprises but this was ridiculous. He felt his chore spike up. His dark eyes flickered over to his exposed wrist. It went from green to yellow so quickly he inhaled with a sudden sharpness. Closing his eyes momentarily he let himself settle down. The cup was burning his hands, but that was okay. It was a distraction. Distractions were life savers most of the time. If Kam could draw his attention away from what is was that spooked him, he would be alright.

Now it probably had been a minute since the girl had spoken. He pulled down his sleeve and put his hand behind his head. Tangling his fingers into his soft hair. It probably was really late by now. But then again, he obviously was not the only one awake. Setting the mug down, he looked down at the owner of the voice.

Impulse forced him to smile. Unlike most teenagers his age, Ronnie's smiles were odd. They were strained - forced. He couldn't explain it. If he did, then he would probably just get more depressed then he already was. "I could ask you the same," he said in a mock cheery voice. Over the years, he had become a master at killing off selected emotions from his features and voice. "If you must know, I'm brushing up on my physics." Kam chuckled, as if he was sharing a private joke with himself.

[alice]

Alice seemed all patient waiting. It’d taken the guy a moment to even realize someone was speaking to him, and when he did… It seemed like he almost lost his drink. Really, why was he so shocked? He couldn’t have thought he was the only one awake at this hour!

When his attention was finally brought to her she noticed just how…. Well forced he looked. Like he didn’t want to smile at all. Alice? Her lips didn’t even move, her expression completely blank as she just watched him with eyes that were nearly entirely black. That would probably unnerve the poor guy, but Alice didn’t seem to notice. When things were this dark, her eyes naturally started to go completely black… Thankfully the bright light had chased away most of the darkness.

Alice didn’t recognize him, but that wasn’t a surprise. She couldn’t recognize most the school’s occupants even though she’d been here for years! She rarely associated with other people for… obvious reasons.

“I don’t sleep at night.” Her answer was almost sharp, as if it were completely obvious. His next response though and laugh… She still didn’t seem to have much of a reaction. “At 3 in the morning..? In the Kitchen..?” Finally a small smile touched her lips. It was faint, but more emotion then she’d shown up until this point. “Don’t you have classes in a few hours like the rest of the normals?”

[kameron]

Kameron looked back at her. The pigment of their eyes were almost exactly the same. Almost. Hers might have been a shade darker. That in itself sort of shocked him. He had never met anyone who's eyes were darker then his. He wasn't too fond of surprises though. So he wiped the shock out of his mind. Tried anyway. Erase selected emotions. Looking down at the bottom corner of the page before closing it, he put the book next to his mug. The steaming aroma was tempting, but he figured he had better actually try to have a conversation with this girl.

He turned on the marble counter to face her. His legs dangled as he pondered what to say. The normals? That got an actual reaction out of him. A laugh. "I prefer to take up independent studies." he said with a why-does-is-really-matter shrug. After consulting Xavier, they had come to an agreement that he could pick up homework from teachers and turn in assignments like any other student. He was so much more comfortable not interacting with anyone. Too risky. "I'm anything but normal." A smirk hinted at his lips. He didn't know weather or not to let it escape or not. The result was almost... cute.

He pushed himself off of the table, regretting it immediately. He had to go up on his tippy toes to accomplish the goal he was trying to. Grabbing a mug that was the general size of his, he turned to her. "Hot chocolate?" Ronnie said, giving into old habits. The voice in the back of his mind kept urging him. be polite! it scolded. So maybe he wasn't all there. Who cared. He had left the kettle on a low boil, still just hot enough. "or coffee...." he added thoughtfully. Well, it was supposed to come out thoughtful but stung on his tongue. He hated coffee. As if he wasn't short enough.

[alice]

His laugh…. Why did he laugh? Her own expression showed signs of a small amount of confusion, trying to figure out what she’d said that was so funny. Finally though, she let it fade off, giving up on figuring it out. She shouldn’t try and figure out normals, she didn’t need to. With another half squinted look around the large kitchen she finally finished entering the room completely, taking a few steps towards one of the chairs. She didn’t like sitting on the counters much. And seeing as she had nothing better to do… Well why not stick around for a little while?

“No one is really normal here. But you’re like them. School normal.” Them obviously meant the other students. She seemed completely confident in ‘classifying’ him. But… He had no idea what her standards of ‘normal’ and ‘abnormal’ were. “You need that.” She pointed up at the lights, but didn’t look at them. Her eyes were already half closed as is, an obvious sign that she was a night dweller, who’s eyes were better suited for darkness. That was what normal and abnormal were to her. Day dwellers were the normals. People who couldn’t wander in complete darkness and see completely fine.

As she sat at the counter, she just watched him again, with that blank expression as before. That is… Until he offered her a cup of hot chocolate or coffee. This time true surprise crossed her expression, as if unable to believe her ears. No one had ever offered her anything before in her life! “I’m sorry… What?” She must have heard him wrong. No way would someone ask her something like that!

[kameron]

Kameron gave her a hard look. She wasn't very easy to read. And now she was calling him normal? That was a good thing, right? Then why did he feel like he needed to prove her wrong? Giving into his feelings, he switched off the lights. His eyes adapted pretty quickly. He couldn't manipulate the darkness, or live in it. A few moments later, a halo of orange light emanated off of his body.

Now this light would not hurt the girl. He knew she had some issues with bright lights already. But to call this 'light' at all would not be completely correct. It was more like, visible heat. For those who got close to him at a time like this, it was obvious how hot he was. Looking down at his watch, he bit his lip. He was in the yellow. It might have looked like he was checking the time, but that was not the case. In fact, he didn't feel tired at all. As long as this girl stayed that far away from him, she would be fine.

He couldn't help wondering what her reaction was going to be to this colorful 'light'. She wouldn't be squinting, hopefully. Because again, it was not that kind of light. He pour the boiled water into the mug, waiting for her to speak. And when she did, he was confused. "Do you want me to make you some hot chocolate?" he said for a second time. Curiosity masked the scrape of concern in his voice. He didn't really know her but she was interesting. Intriguing.

Maybe that was one of Kam's many faults. He just cared way too much. But he couldn't shake the feeling that this girl who's name he didn't know needed to be shown some kind of kindness. Dipping a finger into the water he had just poured, he realized it was not as hot as he would have liked. Dumping the water and turning on the burner the kettle was sitting on, he waited for it to boil. They had some time.

Dimming the light he was creating, he closed the distance between them. Sitting next too her, thoughts reeled through his head. This was so stupid. He shouldn't even be this close to her. There was a chance he could hurt her. His eyes shifted to his watch again. Green? That couldn't last very long. He was using his power. The heat radiating off of him would warm them both up. "If you don't uh.. want anything to drink its okay." he spoke, looking at the ground. He couldn't help feeling a little bit awkward.

"I'm Kameron. Or just Kam. Or Kitty.." he stopped himself before he ended up telling her all of the possible things that he could be called. Kam laced his fingers and setting them onto his lap. In his mind, he was trying to figure out what her name could be. It had to be something pretty. She was pretty.

[alice]

Alice had always been a difficult one to follow. She didn't seem as socialized as most people, and so when she was being talkative, like now, her words were awkward, as if unsure how to interact with the person. She'd always been like this though, never letting people get close, and avoiding all contact when it were possible. So why was she so curious today?

The stranger was odd, because before she really knew it he'd flipped the lights off. Why? Sure, the darker it was the more comfortable Alice got, but normal people needed like. Their eyes would adjust, but not like her's did. In only a second her eyes were entirely black again, like black holes. She was thankful when the bright light was switched off, but her thoughts were leaning more to wondering when this boy would start stumbling and fumbling. Everyone did in darkness.

Another wave of real surprise crossed her dark expression when that strange glow seemed to come off of him. It wasn't extremely bright, so it didn't irritate her eyes in the least, but it did make her curious. What was it? It obviously had to do with his power, but she wasn't one to ask a complete stranger what they could do. "You can leave the lights on, if you want." She paused for a moment, though it was almost like a hesitate. "They won't tell me to kill you if there's some light." Now that would shock anyone.

He wouldn't have noticed before, but when he sat next to her, his soft glow was giving just enough like that he could see dark shadows around Alice. Shadows that weren't being chased away by the light. And they almost seemed alive, moving in fluid waves, inching away from the glow.

Alice smiled a little at his awkwardness. No one ever acted this... well normal with her! It was a nice change, even though she knew it couldn't last. "Sure." She paused for half of a second, as if wondering if she needed to explain why she hadn't seemed to believe her ears. "No one's ever offered me anything."

She smile shrank a little, but was still there. "Which would you want me to use then?" She wasn't much of one for using nicknames for herself. Her name was already pretty short to begin with after all. "I'm Alice."

[kameron]

Death had always been a tricky subject for Kameron. He could reduce someone to skeletal remains if he got to emotional. Worse, he could poison them and be forced to watch them die slowly. Suddenly he felt uneasy. It was clear now, he should not be this close too her. He was being an idiot. Looking down at his watch, he realized that the glow had brightened. He was in the red. A few more moments of exposure and she could possibly die. The light coming off him immediately disappeared. Like someone had flicked the 'off' switch on him.

He nodded at her comment. Who was they? Who ever they were he had a feeling they shouldn't be in total darkness for a long period of time. Standing up, he glided over to the light switch, turning on a bank of lights once more. He tried his best to pick out the tense mannerisms as he went over to the kettle. Picking it up, you could still hear the water boiling.

With Kam's abilities, he could emit different types of energy. Gamma waves, micro waves, etc. The trouble was, he couldn't distinguish between light and heat most of the time. Right now it was obvious that he was giving out a lot of heat. the water in the kettle was still at a full boil. Ever so slowly, he took back some of the heat. Opening a brown, instant, hot chocolate package, he poured it into the cup. Then came the water, a little over 3/4's of the way full. Taking a loan silver spoon off of the counter, he plopped it into the cup, stirring.

He wrapped one hand around Alice's cup, the other still holding the kettle. Shrugging, he poured more hot water into his half empty cup. Now, holding both cups, he carried them carefully back to the odd girl, sitting back down. As he spoke, he offered the cup to her. "You can call me.. uhm, Kam." he had relaxed a little more. It was a compulsive habit, looking down at his watch. A needed one though. He was green. It was safe to sit next to her. For now, anyway.

Alice was definitely a suitable name, he decided. Kameron opened his mouth to say something but found it caught in his throat. She had never been offered anything? "-well, happy I could be the first." Kameron said, words finally coming to him. He brought his mug to his lips, sipping it slowly.

[alice]

Alice didn't explain to often who 'They' were, but she rarely needed knew. People just seemed to know that whoever 'They' were, she was dead serious about them telling her to kill someone. And what was worse... For some reason it just seemed like she might actually go through with it. Either way, people just knew it was a bad idea to let whoever 'They' were get even the smallest grasp over her. If only people knew that 'They' just happened to be the corrupted part of her powers. They weren't real individuals.

Alice tried not to squint when the lights were turned back on, almost succeeding. The dark coloring of her eyes was chased back to that same black, but not completely creepy, color as before. As long as she didn't look in the lights she'd be fine.

She watched with a quiet interest, her dark gaze intent on his fixing the hot chocolate. It might have been a little unnerving, if you hadn't figured out already that she did some rather.... bizarre things. Even then it was still a little weird! But she wasn't the only weird one. The guy, Kam, kept looking down at his watch, more times then usual, as if watching for something. Maybe just waiting for a respectable amount of time to pass before he could make a quick getaway? Alice wasn't that great at carrying normal conversations, so it wouldn't surprise her if she was making him that uncomfortable.... "Kam it is then."

With only a small hesitation, she carefully accepted the offered cup, staring down at it's dark contents for a few moments, before finally taking a sip. It was a lot hotter then she'd expected, burning her tongue a little. Alice didn't show any signs of the pain though, masking it behind her usual blank expression. She'd have to wait for it to cool down a little before daring another sip. So... She could focus on talking for the moment.

"You're surprised?" Her eyebrows her raised slightly, a puzzled look on her face.

[kameron]

Kameron looked back at her with wide and friendly eyes. Though they weren't that friendly. Its not like he didn't like this Alice, he did. But like his smiles, trying to make his eyes appear warm and welcoming would have to be forced. That was just how he was. As a child, it wasn't like he had been raised in a nurturing environment. Books were really the only friend he had. Besides the imaginary ones. He noticed that flicker in her eyes. What was it? Unease? Worry? No. It was something different, unnatural. Not that was all together a bad thing.

Most could not talk to Kam for very long. It wasn't a personality defect, more of a mannerism. He always had to look the other in the eyes. And even when they tried to look away, his eyes were like vortexes. The sucked everything in and gave nothing out. Talking with Alice was different though. Like she didn't even care.

His hot chocolate was probably a good amount colder then hers. Not to say that it was cold. But hers was probably scorching hot. He wanted to reach a hand out to her before she took the sip. Did she not know how hot it was? Surely the steam rising from it would have set her off. He watched with mild concern as she drank. Nothing. No widening eyes or shriek. How odd.

Okay. There was no use denying it. Alice was attractive and had an odd disposition. A good one, as far as he could tell. Then again, there was someone or something that possibly told her to kill people. Kam did his best to put that in the back of his mind though.

He listened to her speak, hand reaching to the back of his head and tangling into the mess of poofy hair. It was sort of a nervous quirk of his. Believe it or not, the subject of his hair was also an area where he was a little bit insecure. Some might have said it gave him that cute, boyish, charm.(especially with the pose he was in right now) But to him, it was annoying poof. An untameable nuisance. "Yeah I'm surprised," the way Kameron spoke was almost like he was about to chuckle. The ghost of a smile hinted on his lips. "Your nice and sweet and pretty-" he stopped himself. Whoops. He'd let his tongue slip. He barely suppressed a blush. "My point is, it doesn't make sense, you not ever being offered anything." His voice was a little frantic, easing out toward the end of the sentence.

[alice]

Alice knew what would happen if she ever told him just what exactly she was… Or thought she knew what would happen. There’d been a few daring people that didn’t seem to care about her… abnormalities. That is, until they saw firsthand just what it was she did. When that happened, everyone ran for cover. You didn’t want to be around Alice when she lost control of her power. It was a terrifying sight…

Strangely though, he’d already seen a few signs of her somewhat insanity… And was still there! Sure, they hadn’t been that big, more like signs of her just being extremely antisocial or socially awkward. It made her a little curious just what his reaction would be if he ever found out about the insanity…

Alice stared at steam coming off of her hot chocolate for a few moments, as if mesmerized by it or so deep in thought that her gaze had settled on the closest thing. He really was seeing her on a good day… If this had been any other night, she wouldn’t have even given him a second glance! She couldn’t even promise that if she did see him again she’d talk to him. It all depended on just how unbearable her power had been that day.

When he spoke her gaze lifted again, watching him with that same dark, blank stare. A second passed before both her eyebrows raised once more, a confused, shocked, and surprised look in her eyes. It’d probably been the first time emotion had finally shown in her eyes. “I’m not…” She stopped herself, as if unable to come up with the right words. Finally she sighed, shaking her head. “That’s cause this is a good day.” She paused again, that spacey look returning to her face. “Most days are bad. And if they’re bad, it’s really dangerous to be even remotely near me…”

[kameron]

Good and bad days? Kameron knew more about that then Alice probably thought. On a bad day, he could walk by a boucae of roses and have them automatically wither and fall to the ground. He could walk into a classroom and brush against someone - and then that someone collapse. He could melt entire buildings. Most couldn't grasp how severe this really was. He could kill someone in less then a minute. And a good day? No one fell over puking or blacked out in his presence.

"I know all about good and bad days." He confessed to her, his voice almost faltering. He almost didn't know how to continue his thought. He let his arm drop, still looking her in the eyes. That flicker of emotion he just saw? What was that? Whatever it was, he hated seeing it. Alice looked so tortured. Whatever her power was, it must be hell. He couldn't imagine.

Acting on impulse, he reached out with his hand, laying it down on top of hers. There was a gentleness that he had never used before. Well, that might not be entirely true. His ex had been the only one he'd touched with such concern and good intentions. Ever. And it had been years since her death. Pulling up the sleeve of his hoodie he revealed the watch. It was blinking a dull yellow, slowly reducing back to green. This was taking a lot of concentration, keeping his emissions at a safe level.

"No one is ever really safe around me," Kam kept his voice as even as possible. "I give out radioactive waves of energy... constantly. Anything could set me off." he gave her hand a gentle squeeze before pulling it back and pulling his sleeve down. The tell-tale signs of a small smile spread across his lips. "I know what its like to feel so-" he had to search for the word. He may not have known her for very long, but there was something about her. Some kind of deep, depressing, feeling. His mind finally found the word he was searching for. "Alone."

Kameron took his drink off of the counter. He propped his legs up so he could wrest his elbows on them after taking a sip. He let the cup dangle as the warm liquid coarse through him. It was nice. Comforting. Maybe not just the drink. Maybe having company as well.

[alice]

Everyone had good days and bad, it was just a part of life. She didn’t expect most people to understand just how bad those days could get. For some reason though… When he said he knew all about them.. She actually believed him. Somehow she just knew he wasn’t joking, and he knew exactly how she felt. It was strange, she’d never imagined someone might understand…

She didn’t want him to know just what a bad day for her meant. It wasn’t good, but… It wasn’t exactly a secret either. Near everyone had been warned at one point or another to be careful around her. Finally she just sighed. He’d find out sooner or later if he stuck around long enough…

When she felt his hand touch her own she almost flinched. Somehow Alice managed to suppress the motion, but it was obvious she wasn’t used to it. For being as antisocial as she was, even the smallest touch was unfamiliar. Her whole body went almost deathly still… until she finally seemed to relax. Why wasn’t he the least bit scared?

He was speaking again, this time sharing his power. So that was why. He couldn’t stop himself… It was a lot like what happened to her. Maybe… Maybe there was someone who understood. Maybe not entirely, but he understood some. Hurting people he didn’t want to hurt…

His hand had moved, and for a few minutes she just stared at it as if trying to figure out if he really had been touching her, before placing it back on her cup, It’d cooled off quite a bit now, so she took another long sip of the liquid. It was good, and nice to have a someone normal conversation with someone for once. Finally, she set the cup back on the table, staring down at it for a long moment, as if deciding something.

“Shadows.” She finally said, the word obviously forced. “I control the shadows… And darkness in general. But… It’s hard to explain.” She paused again. How was she supposed to explain what exactly she did. “They’re solid… Ish. You can’t really hurt them, but they can hurt people.” Another pause, but more like a hesitation this time. If he remembered he’d recall her mentioning a ‘They’. “They like to hurt people…” She stopped, unable to continue. There was obviously more to her power. How was she supposed to tell him that sometimes the darkness just took over, drove her into a killing frenzy? A frenzy she couldn’t even remember? A frenzy she couldn’t stop…

[kameron]

This was a school for the outcasts. And wasn't it ironic that the outcasts were now outcasting the two of them. Life was cruel though. That was a lesson Kameron had been forced to learn at a painfully early age. It was funny how he had this feeling that Alice and him were more alike then they knew. Maybe she could understand? But as he thought that, he stopped himself. It was impossible.

He had developed this method of thinking early on. You had to expect the worst. Getting your hopes up was useless when you knew would end up like everything else. Disappointment. So, the solution? If you didn't hope, or dream, then you could save yourself a whole lot of disappointment. Maybe that was just the depressed poet that seemed to take the reins at times inside his head. Through all of the hazy emotion that he was feeling, something he knew he shouldn't be fluttered through. Hope. This was getting scary. Kam was just setting himself up to get hurt. He should walk away from Alice. But then again, she seemed to be restoring some of his sanity.

So there were basically two conflicting voices in his head. The voice of reason and the voice of corruption. He knew what he should do, but felt this impulsive need to grow closer to Alice. Maybe it was the adrenaline of the entire situation. He knew this was a risky situation. Not only for him, because he did believe she could hurt him, but for her as well. So either way it was obvious that they were going to end up hurting each other.

Pulling himself away from his private thoughts, he examined her reaction to him taking her hand. It was cute in an odd sort of way. What could she be thinking under that head of dark hair? As she started speaking, the pieces started to all fit together.

So they were the shadows she controlled? Or rather, darkness. It was starting to make a little bit more sense. Anyone that held control over that much power, over something so black, had to be messed up. Or maybe that was it. She didn't have control over the power. He didn't know all of the details, and he knew that he should not start making assumptions. He was definitely too curious for his own good. He pondered what to say while he sipped his coffee. He didn't like seeing her have to force out the words. He shouldn't really expect them to come out easily though, right? Its not like he was so willing to talk about his abilities.

Resisting the urge to lay a hand on her shoulder, he spoke. "Must be a hell." the tone of his voice had gone down a generous amount. It was still gentle and curious though. "I guess life is a little bit complicated for us," or anyone he added mentally. They were the strong ones. The ones who, though had had such tortured pasts, still came out fighting.