(no subject)

[balancingminds]

Charles enters the Bar and is barely aware of the difference as he pulls off his robe and finds a seat. As he walks, he keeps his eyes as closed as he can and navigates by the feel of the minds as he just ran into an awful anxiety dream, which has left him feeling like the floor's moving.

Once he's reached the counter, he puts his head down on the rolled up robe and takes a few deep breaths before lifting his head.

A glass of Scotch is at his elbow and he manages a smile but doesn't open his eyes too much. He's just going to focus on the little realities and block out the world until he feels certain that he's in control. Scotch with ice, the surface of the counter, all of these are real and apparent.

Tiny tag: Charles Xavier, Nathan Summers
OOC: At the moment, Charles has the majority of his shields up and isn't actively listening to minds. Also I'm reaching my max of tags with him, please contact me before tagging.

Comments

[realmrsreynolds]

"Charles?"

From somewhere behind him.

"Are you ill?"

[balancingminds]

He doesn't exactly jump, but he does twitch, his shields aren't as open as they usually are,

"Sallie, yes, just a little worn out."

[realmrsreynolds]

Frowning, Sallie moves to lean down towards Charles' line of sight for a moment.

"You got what you need though? I'll just leave you be elsewise."

Sallie can appreciate the need for quiet.

[wolflord_andain]

"I do hope you're not indulging in the 'hair of the dog', as they say."

The voice is cool, cultured, and polite, with a hint of the sardonic thrown in.

"It is remarkably less effective than folk wisdom would have it."

Depending, of course, on which dog it is.

The man who spoke is impeccably dressed in black and dark gray. There is a slash of silver hair at his temple, met and matched by a fading red scar.

Considering how tight and effective his shields are, he might as well not be there at all.

[balancingminds]

The voice makes Charles fear that someone from Oxford has shown up here and he sits up straight quickly as he glances over.

The man's tight shields are quite refreshing and Charles' outermost shield is opaque and barely open, "No, not tonight."

[wolflord_andain]

A complete blank is refreshing? The Wolflord might consider some to have very strange standards.

(Galadan does, in fact, believe this very thing about a vast host of people.)

"Other nights, then? Interesting, but perhaps unwise, particularly here."

[heartofthedream]

You don't look so well.


The voice is very soft. The first two words concerned, and the the last three almost apologetic. It's habit, habit older than this skin, not even to think about it. Speaking to him this way. But she should ask, perhaps. With this him.

[balancingminds]

I'm doing better. Other's anxiety can be wearing,

Her voice in his head is a nice surprise and he relaxes his shields though he's keeping a tight watch on his own perceptions. Images of shifting stairs and bookcases are being pushed farther from the front of his thoughts.

[heartofthedream]

Especially when they become our own?

Anxiety and small fires, spread so quickly without meaning.

[electro_kinetic]

Noriko sees the professor--and she's getting a little better at accepting that he might, just maybe, become the Xavier she knows--and comes over with the cleaning putty canister and a smallish multitool.

And the elasticky roll of bandage tape the bar presents her for the five already-healing burns on each of her forearms.

"Professor?"

[balancingminds]

He's savoring his drink and has a moment of thinking he's back at Oxford with the title before he spots her hair,

"Oh hello. What happened to you?"

[electro_kinetic]

"Got a little singed a couple days ago, but right now I'm just cleaning my gauntlets. You okay?" she asks. He looks a little worse for wear.

[madeyoudodge]

"Well," says the girl two bar stools down, "you look like you've had a long day."

Her back's to the Bar, with one foot tucked around the stool support, and the other legs crossed over the first. She's wearing jean capris and a sparkly tank top, drinking a bright yellow smoothie, and giving him a concerned look.

[balancingminds]

"Mm, oh yes, I have," He says with a quiet smile, he's feeling a little better now the dream is farther away.

[madeyoudodge]

"Cathy Bloom," she says, extending her free hand and not-quite-laughing at his reaction. "A talking-about-it long day, a distract-me-please long day, or a no-more-talking-today long day?"

[notabricklayer]

"Darlin', I know you've got better than that back there." Someone with a drawl that is (perhaps purposefully) thicker than mud is arguing with the bar.

Possibly because he ordered bourbon, and was given coffee.

Possibly a certain piece of wood is reminding him that back on board ship, his shift isn't over.

[balancingminds]

Charles looks over from his drink with a worn out smile, the world is looking more as it should, but edges are still strange,

"I'd offer you some Scotch but I don't think it'd be a fair trade."

[notabricklayer]

"She'd take it." He replies, his accent fading now that he isn't actively attempting to get that drink. "She's done it before." Normally he'd admit she's right, and even if the only consequence he faced was Spock's disapproving glares, it's still more than he feels up to today. It was one of those days, where he starts questioning the sanity of the entirely crew (including his own) after space takes some time to remind them that they're really not any kind of safe in their little ship.

"Besides, I suppose Starfleet General does tend to appreciate it when my notes make sense."

[nathansummers]

A scrape of boots, a few steps in, and a tightly shielded Nathan Summers settles to one side of the man. A beer materializes, and he pats the wood as he turns his head to eye the man there.

"Hey, Professor. Good to see you around."

[balancingminds]

Charles looks over with a frown, "You've got the better of me, I'm sorry."

[nathansummers]

"I know." Nathan chuckles, then extends a hand. "Nathan is the name, but people call me Cable, most days. Heard you were around these parts."

[magneticxman]

Lorna hasn't had a hangover in a while, but that certainly seems to be the problem with the cute new patron at the bar.

She asks Bar for a glass of water, and one of her earrings wraps around the glass, so she can push it toward him with her powers.

"You should have some water with your drink." Her voice is low and soft, in case he has a headache. "There's an infirmary here if you're really bad off."

[balancingminds]

He watches the glass approach warily as that doesn't help with how the world is seeming rather movable,

"I'll be fine, thank you."

[orchidkaboom]

Also apparent: the rap of Amanda's knuckles on the bartop. It's an automatic gesture before she remembers, oh yeah, no bartender.

"Hey, there."

[balancingminds]

He winces at the rap since that gets through, "Could you do that a bit quieter?"