nysalogs | c-c-c-catchall early meetings,

[ it's a prompt two minutes before their allotted time that John arrives outside number 36, still not quite having a decent grip on the amount of time needed to travel the higgledy piggeldy streets here. he knocks on arrival and will be waiting with a bag slung over his shoulder, wherein waits whatever offering he's come bearing. ]

[ Charles straightens the folds on his pants before moving to open the door. His smile is warm and welcoming as he wheels to the side to let John enter before shutting the door behind them. ]

Welcome. Please, take a seat anywhere you like.

Hello. Thanks.

[ and so he does, helping himself to what he can only assume is the comfiest of the available seats their generous housing has to offer. sarcasm where sarcasm is due, he really cannot wait to move out of this street.

sat down and situated, John's quick to start rooting through his bag even as he speaks. ]

I brought the best of both. Teabags for hot [ because he hasn't pinched any coffee yet. out of the bag comes a mystery bottle: John's been dabbling in local beverages ] and whatever this is for cold and probably alcoholic.

You've come well prepared.

[ Charles nudges the table towards John so that he can unpack its content onto it. ]

I'm surprised you wished to see me so soon.

[ Most people hold off on seeing Charles once he drops the telepathy bomb. He can't fault them for it. ]

[ John, somehow not having fully made the small step it takes to get from this man could single-handedly ensure the safehousing of the ship's criminal output with his mind to Charles' surprise at his choosing to arrange a visit, casts a vaguely questioning glance at him as he fishes out the teabags and sets the lot onto the table to make way for his freeing a notepad and pen from the bag, ]

Yeah? Seemed logical to get on with it sooner rather than later.

Of course, but what do you have in mind?

[ Charles is dutiful enough to get the cups and starts pouring hot water. The smell of tea fills his senses and his smile goes a touch fonder. ]

Honestly? I don't know. But I thought it better to not know in a room where we could throw ideas around than sitting on my own scratching my head.

[ because it's... sort of a gargantuan dilemma they're facing here. and it's going to take many heads - for now, two will have to do. ]

I've got a list of things that we can do to start us off. And I'm starting to make lists of names of people we might need to reach out to. But after that, God knows. There's a lot of work in this. We'll need more hands, that's a definite.

Hmm.

[ Should he recommend Bruce? While Charles trusts him, he highly doubts that people will take to him so easily and a secret identity won't last long in a place like this. ]

I would also limit candidates to a certain age. People with experience helps too. Perhaps we should start with a list of qualities?

[ if anything else had followed, John might have apologised for launching straight into this, slowed down and dealt with some social niceties first. as it is, he's pleasantly surprised and more than happy to barrel on. ]

Yeah, that sounds like an idea. But in a way we need to know what we want them for before we know what we need. Although there's always going to be staple requirements.

[ meanwhile, he's turned the notebook to a page covered with a doctor's scrawl, lists and thoughts scattered here there and everywhere. finding a bit of free space, he starts— ]

Right. So. Qualities to look for in people who might be worth talking to now. A level head for a start?

[ Charles would never stop anyone's momentum. He's a teacher after all and an excellent listener and advisor. At John's remark though, Charles chuckles softly. ]

How exactly are we meant to gauge that? What is put down on paper or said might be very different to how they react to emergencies.

True. True.

[ haha... fuq ]

Might be that we look into former professions then. I've met a couple of soldier types, and one or two who kept their heads in enemy captivity in the training programmes up on the ship. [ #thatThesalife. neatly taking us back to exactly what Charles suggested in the first place: experience. ] Strength, expertise and experience it is, then.

[ Charles nods slowly. ]

Soldiers from various different backgrounds. It will take a longer time to come over a new kind of regiment, but not impossible. We're all on a learning curve after all.

Yeah. [ this is... a headache and a half. ] The problem will be in making sure we don't stumble into anyone who's more in favour of team "let's murder immediately" than working on an alternative. You'd guess most of the people who have killing their enemies as a first thought are from the sort of backgrounds that establish a need for violence. [ including... soldiers.

which means a great deal of care is going to need to be taken in choosing who to approach in these very early days ]

I've started reading through all the available related conversations on the network. There's a list of usernames to avoid, but there's also a list of people who might be willing to talk to us about whoever it is that's waiting in the pods, and why we should be worried about them. The more we can find out about what we might be up against, the better.

[ Charles can feel the headache creeping in his own senses. Quietly he folds his hands on top of his lap, his fingers twined with each other. ]

You're . . . having a hard time, aren't you?

[ oh. that wakes him up a bit, pulls him just far enough out of his thought process to realise how deep he already is into it. a glance up at Charles, expression halfway to a frown. ]

... I'm fine. [ he manages a laugh, doing what he can to wipe the discomfort from his features: having a hard time isn't anything he ever likes to discuss. ] Sorry. Bit full-on, I know. I'm fine.

[ Charles' lips quirk slightly as he reaches out for his cup. ]

You've seen action. I knew a man like that. He found it hard to sit still and often ran himself in circles. So, yes, you are fine but you're probably heading towards some kind of manic phase.

[ a raise of eyebrows!!! they hold there for a second or two, threatening to turn into something... and that something happens to be a genuine laugh, tension breaking. wow! straight to the point! ]

Right! Well. That told me. [ chuckling! in gentle disbelief! ] There's not a lot else for it, is there? I don't see a miraculous space police force appearing out of nowhere to solve all our problems any time in the near future.

[ He softens despite himself. John was easily more reasonable than Erik ever was. ]

No, but there's no point driving yourself into the ground getting it all done. That's why we're discussing it over tea. It will take a month or so to truly have any certainty in our candidates.

[ scrubs... at his face with a hand. yeah, alright. okay. ]

Thanks, mum.

[ doesn't mean he's going to act like a fully grown man about it though. going in for a sip of tea. ]

[ Without missing a beat. ]

And don't you forget it, young man.

[ oh my god ]

This is going to set a precedent, isn't it?

[ Charles merely smiles benignly behind the rim of his cup. ]

I don't see why it should. Unless you do?

[ clever. ]

Mm. [ hmmmmm. he's still smirking though. well played, Charles, well played ] Right. Well. Are we allowed to keep talking about this, or am I on a time out?

Of course I'm invested in having a system in place that benefits all of us.

[ He sets his cup down with a quiet clink. ]

But not at the expense of ourselves. And I think that seems doable.

Yeah, alright, thank you, I think I got the message.

[ john watson, don't run yourself into the ground, signed charles xavier. but this isn't just about him, now, and he relents to the point. ]

We'll take it steadily. But it does need doing, and there's no saying when someone will wake up next. Or if it'll be someone we'd rather hadn't.

[ so there's a case to be made for urgency, too. at least in the gathering of information. ]

for Charles, House 36

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