2013.10.13 - A Bad Case of Big Sister Syndrome

It's not overly difficult to find a large body of water in New York because, well, ocean! Which is where Onora headed after classes and work and a trip to the library and pizza with Garth and... It's been an interesting day for the girl.
She had stopped at home long enough to change her clothes. Despite the coolness of the air, especially with the breeze, the blonde has made her way to the beach in a pair of shorts, flipflops and a tanktop. Chances are, there's spare clothes in that backpack that lays just out of reach of the waves.
Around sand backpack are five different books, all open to various myths and pictures of mermaids.
One of the things that many people likely don't know about the Four is that even they have to practice -- coordinating their skills and timing, that kind of thing. Today is only different because instead of practicing in the training facilities of the Baxter, Sue managed to convince Johnny to 'take the show on the road', as it were. 
A few hundred yards out from the beach, Sue is floating in mid-air, the blue of her costume darker than the sky or the water, as she practices hefting various amounts of water in her force fields to then either throw or dump the water in an attempt to douse her sibling. It's his job to dodge the 'attacks'.
Well it's a perfect day out there, the sun's shining but it's juuuust breezy enough for the weather to not be -too- hot! And it's the weekend! So the beach is teeming with life, families with young children, students, elderly, all kinds of people just out to have a good time, even if it's a bit too cold to go for a swim without a wetsuit. But there are always other fun things to do at a beach besides swimming. Like making sand sculptures, hunting for shells, and flying kites. A few particularly fancy ones flap in the air over the rippling waves.
But there appears to be a small crowd gathering at one end of the beach, perhaps just a few feet away from where Onora is reading her books. They have come to watch a rare spectacle--it would appear that the F4 are practicing out in the open today instead of in their private training facilities. Now who wouldn't want to watch that?!
Someone in the crowd calls out, "Johnny, can you skywrite? I wanna see some skywriting!"
The Torch grins as he hovers a few feet above the waves as he waits for Sue to send another wave his way. "Yeah, yeah...sure thing. As soon as big sis over here is done with her lesson for the day." he chuckles, and flicks sideways as another torrent of water comes his way.
People everywhere... That makes this far more difficult...
With a sigh that can -almost- be heard, Onora packs her bags up and starts for an outcropping of rocks she saw earlier. Unfortunately, that means going through the crowd that Sue and Johnny have attracted. Not an easy feat!
In her attempt to get through, the bag ends up bumping into a woman. "Hey! Watch it!" This, of course, alerts Onora to a problem. She offers what she can. A soft but very apologetic smile and dip of her head before she starts to move on.
Or try to at least. A man beside the bumped woman reaches out to grab her arm. "You owe my wife an apology, missy." -- Great. Just great. Onora brings a hand up to her throat and then shakes her head, attempting to let the man know she can't speak.
And they're starting to draw attention. If the blush on her cheeks is anything to go by, Ona would prefer if the ground just swallowed her right about now.
Sue Storm smiles a sneaky little smile, having waited for that sideways move with another, smaller, completely invisible forcefield to suddenly drop about five gallons' worth of water directly onto Johnny's head from above. 
Of course, because she's worked hard to cultivate her ability to multitask, she has noticed the gathering crowd and in particular the angry-looking couple getting snarly at a young-looking girl who is gesturing in response. She most especially picks up on what Onora is trying to convey, and her eyebrows draw together briefly. Probably an expression that usually makes her brother cringe. 
Abandoning the 'practice', she zips past her brother toward the beach right up to where Onora is being scolded. Putting a hand on Onora's shoulder, Sue smiles her best 'talk to the press' smile at the angry couple and offers them a whole string of lies. "Please don't be angry with her, she's still not completely over her laryngitis. Deanna, you know the doctor said you're not supposed to talk yet. Come on, I want to see how your sketches turned out." And then she's leading Onora away from the gathered crowd.
Johnny hadn't been expecting THAT one. He gets cocky when he manages to dodge the big wave, but is totally smacked in the face by the second, smaller one. "Ooof!" Startled, he is effectively doused, and drops like a rock into the rippling surf below. There is a surprised "ooooh!" from the crowd as they cringe slightly at his defeat.
Meanwhile, the angry couple aren't taking this very well. "Ugh, but she just shoved us aside! Teach her some manners, for Pete's sake! She can't just cut in front of us! We got here first! If people are gonna show up late, they'd better stay in the back!" Like this was some kind of concert or something.
Johnny finally recovers from the hit, dragging himself out of the water just as the couple start protesting. He notices Sue ushering a girl away from the crowd and smirks at the story she's probably made up. Ohh, is she hot? Ooo, maybe. Too far away at this point to really tell yet. But first things first. He walks up to the disgruntled couple and addresses them as well. "Hey guys, just chill! Here," he steps over to his bag, which is sitting in the sand a short distance away. Whipping out an F4-themed calendar, he burns his Hancock into the back of it with an extremely thin and controlled line of flame, then hands it to them as they stare at him with their jaws hanging open. Yep, looks like he finally did master that. There is an awkward silence as Johnny turns away and hurries to catch up with his sister, until someone finally manages a "Wow...I've never seen him do -that- before..."
Still dripping, the Torch finally catches up with Sue and her new friend. "Nice one. Couldn't have said it better myself." he says, grinning boyishly.
The man's face is turning red as his anger grows and Onora is doing her best to shrink back and become invisible. Figuratively speaking.
All of a sudden, Sue is there and Onora's head snaps around and up to the woman. There's several blinks and then Ona seems to relax. She smiles apologetically at Sue, looking completely and utterly chastised. She even hangs her head a little, letting her hair cover her face while she fidgets slightly, like a child getting caught doing something she shouldn't.
And then Johnny is tending to the disgruntled couple and Sue is leading her away. Once they're clear enough of the crowd, Onora lifts her head and turns her eyes, one cerulean blue and the other emerald green, on sue and Johnny. The hand signal she makes is clear though may not be understood. **Thank you.** Hopefully the accompanying smile will make it clear.
Sue Storm never really got the chance to truly LEARN sign language, but she does now a scant few signs she's picked up here and there. And "thank you" is one she knows. However, not knowing yet if Onora is deaf on top of mute, she makes sure that she's got eye contact when she offers a soft but entirely sincere "You're welcome." 
Her eyes flick over to Johnny and she smiles her thanks at her brother for backing her on getting away from that angry couple, and once they've made it to an out of the way section of the beach a force field shimmers into existence around them, effectively blocking the three of them from everyone else's sight. The force field is an open-topped cylinder so that fresh air and sunlight can still filter in and large enough around that it's not claustrophobic.
"I'm Sue, and this is my brother Johnny. Are you okay?" Sue moves to sit on the sand then reaches forward to smooth what's in front of herself to use as a writing surface. You know, in case nodding and headshakes become insufficient as answers.
Johnny doesn't know sign language, either. She'd probably have much better luck with Reed. He's seen a few signs here and there, but unlike Sue, he doesn't usually pay enough attention to them to really remember them at all. But, when his sister responds with 'You're welcome', he gets the gist.
He plops down onto the sand next to Sue. "Tch, yeah---that was a close one, but nothing we can't handle. We get those types every once and a while." Nope, he doesn't think about her probably being deaf, too, since that's usually the case, but then again the Torch doesn't really do a lot of thinking in general when he's not in life-threatening situations. "So, what's your name?" he asks, smiling with a bit of a flirtatious glint in his eyes.
Onora smile warmly at Sue. She motions to her throat and shakes her head then points at her ears and nods. She can't speak but she can hear. Settling on the sand, she nods her head. Yep. She's okay. The writing area comes in handy though. She makes a small message: **I'm Onora.** A smile is given to them both. And then she adds to the message. **I'm used to it by now. Thank you both. Nice to meet you.** The look from Johnny causes Onora to blink a moment before she blushes.
Sue Storm turns to frown at Johnny, that same scolding expression she probably uses on him at least five times a day. Then she turns back to Onora and offers her a smile. "Good to meet you too... Onora?" She's not sure she pronounced the name correctly.
Johnny immediately raises his hands in the air defensively at the look he gets from Sue. "What?!" he asks incredulously. Yes, at LEAST five times, usually more, in fact. "What'd I do?" He sighs and shakes his head.
"Uh--yeah, nice to meet you, Onora." he copies Sue's pronunciation of the name, hoping it's right. "Sorry about that, she's got a pretty serious case of Big Sister Syndrome. Always on my case." he winks, and scoots closer to Onora. "So, yeah. So what do you do? School? Job? Both?" Are you seeing anyone? Okay, not THAT yet...
Onora blinks at Johnny. With a shake of her head, she reaches into her bag and pulls out an older tablet. A notepad program is opened and she takes a moment to type.
**ah-NOR-ah... And your reputation precedes you, Johnny.** She lays the tablet in the sand for both of them to be able to read even as she continues to type. **It's a pleasure to meet you both as well. I'm terribly sorry if that... incident interrupted something important. I was attempting to get to an outcropping of rocks that I saw on my way in.**
Sue Storm tilts her head a little as she reads the tablet screen and nods to herself at the difference in pronunciation. "No, no interruption at all. We usually try to stay out of eyeshot so that we don't attract crowds like that, but..." Why DID they stay closer to shore this time? Oh well, too late to ask now.
"'...your reputation precedes you, Johnny.'" Johnny reads the words on the tablet aloud, and sighs a little. Yeah, his reputation precedes him so he doesn't get an answer to any of his get-to-know-you questions. But then she mentions that she was trying to get somewhere. "Oh, an outcropping, eh? Yeah, lots of traffic here today." He turns toward the well-populated beach. It is quite crowded. "Well if you want, I can give you a lift. Much faster, and you get to bypass all the impatient tourists who get mad as soon as someone so much as -touches- them." he says, winking. "And yes, I can do it without burning you or your clothes."
Onora feels bad when Johnny sighs and reaches out to touch his arm, giving that apologetic look again. The message on the table is clear and she types again. **I'm sorry, Johnny. Both. I work and go to school. I'm hoping to become a linguist. Odd career path, I know.** She smiles gently. **A lift up there would be wonderful so long as I can still be close to the water. I'm trying to learn a new form.** She then smiles up at Sue. **As long as your sure. Is there anything I can do to repay the favor?**
Sue Storm levels an unimpressed look at Johnny, which, if possible, she uses even more than the frown. But she turns back to Onora again quickly, glancing over the words on the tablet, and a few sticking in her head. "I'm sure, and no need to repay anything. It was the least I could do. Though... a new form? Like... a martial art or something?"
"Linguist? Oh...like---oh I see. That's cool!" The Torch rolls his eyes briefly at Sue. -Again- with the Big Sister Syndrome coming into play. But his eyes light up when Onora agrees to let him carry her out there. "Yep, I can get you as close as you want." he holds out an arm for her to latch onto for the ride. "Whenever you're ready."
Onora smiles between the two and nods her head. **I'm a shapeshifter. I can change into four different forms at the moment. I'm working on a fifth. A mermaid.** The explanation given makes her blush a little before she looks up at Johnny and bites down on her bottom lip a moment. **Now?**
"It doesn't HAVE to be right now." Sue's unimpressed look gets tossed at Johnny again, second time in less than five minutes. "Really. Whenever you want. And turning into a mermaid sounds like it would be incredibly useful... though you might have to tolerate some Ariel comments." She hopes not. They'd probably be impolite.
"Right, whenever you're ready, like I said..." Johnny gives Sue a pointed look at this. He definitely did NOT insist on right now. "Oh, you're a shapeshifter?" A little late on that one. "And mermaids, sweet, you could totally play human Ariel in a--" But then Sue is condemning the Ariel comments just as he's about to make them. Foot in mouth. "Uh---nevermind."
A hand clamps over Onora's mouth and her shoulders tremble in silent giggle. After a moment, she reaches for the tablet again. **I don't typically allow myself to be seen shifting. And, I doubt many will see me as a mermaid. The Cait Sidhe is the safest... A Unicorn, a Dragon and a Gryphon all tend to catch attention.**
She smiles back and forth between the two. Just before her stomach reminds her she hasn't eaten in a while. **Sorry. It's been a while since I've eaten. I should consider doing that.**
Sue Storm can tell when someone is smothering a laugh, even when it's silent. She smiles and when she reads the explanation, her eyebrows going up briefly. "All mythical creatures. Any reas..." She blinks and her eyes go from Onora to Johnny and back at the stomach rumbling. "...uh, I have leftover lasagna back at home." She ALWAYS has leftovers even despite Johnny's usual appetite and his friend Bobby staying over. She got into the habit of cooking for Ben, and it's a habit she can't stop when he's out of town for whatever reason.
Oh, she thought that was funny, score! Johnny is certainly happy with this. He makes a mental note about the Ariel jokes--she likes them. "Oh, hungry huh?" He gives Sue a somewhat appalled look. Seriously? She's offering her leftovers? Ugh. "Uhhh...wellll...yeah, we do, buuuuut...I'm sure you have a favorite restaurant somewhere close by! I'll treat."
Onora looks back and forth between the two and blinks, blushing. **Uhm... Well...** She blinks again. **I should... actually probably head back... I have studying to do and... I'd be honored to join you some other time, though?**
Sue Storm smiles and nods to Onora after reading the tablet, understanding that the double invitation is probably a bit overwhelming. And she knows how that feels, only too well. "Sure. Anytime you want, come by the Baxter. We'd be happy to have you." She tosses another glance at Johnny, a silent demand to NOT pressure the girl.
Johnny just rolls his eyes at Big Sis again, and makes a slight exasperated noise. He really can't help but look disappointed when their new friend declines the invitation. "Oh...well, yeah. Sure. Right--any time. It was..nice meeting you, Onora."
Once she's left, he turns to Sue and sighs. "Did I do something wrong?"
"No, Johnny, you didn't. But you got really close a few times."
Johnny Storm says, "Well at least she liked the Ariel joke."
Sue Storm shakes her head. "I don't think that's what she was laughing at."
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