Some Things Can't Be Learned From Books (Jonathan)

[Revenant]

::Mariella once again had her nose buried in a book. Since she had come to Xavier's, this was the place where she was most likely to be found. The library was cool and quiet, and she noticed that the students tended to be nicer here, either seeking her help at the desk or studying quietly.

Today she was standing in for the librarian once again, sitting behind the desk and not really monitoring much of what was going on. Occasionally she would loan some books out, but things were slow today. The school year was nearly at a close, and the teachers were letting up.

She wore a white blouse, skinny jeans, and plain black heels today, keeping it casual. She was a girl that never left home without her proverbial pearls on though, and she still tried to look her best. The book she was reading was entitled: "Ancient Religions and their Influences".::

[The Weaver Twins]

Jonathan teleported into the library. He had finished reading an interesting book on MPD by Doctor Leonard Samson, but now he was looking for a certain specific book. It was a book on particle physics written by Reed Richards. Mostly Jonathan was going to read it for entertainment value to try and spot how many things Mr. Richards had gotten wrong. Of course Jonathan knew that Reed Richards was one of the worlds leading physicists, but due to Jonathan's powers he had a much greater understanding of how things worked at the quantum level and below.

He spotted Mariella Map sitting at the Librarian's desk. "Oh hi. I didn't expect to see you here. Umm I just wanted to return this book and check out another one if we have it here. If we don't I'll just have to go and see if they have it at the New York Public library."

Then he spotted her book. "Hmm. That looks interesting. I'll have to check that out after you're finished."

[Revenant]

::Mariella smiled girlishly and glanced at Jonathan with a sideways look, putting down her book. She took the book from his hand gently.::

"You didn't expect to see me here? I'm always here..."

::She gave one slight giggle before flipping through the pages of the book, checking for damage. She stood and placed the book in the proper section of the return cart, all alone, as nobody ever checked out such heavy reading materials. Returning to the desk, she leaned her elbows on it and folded her hands in front of her, crossing one ankle behind the other. She was still smiling her girlish smile.::

"Well, what would the title of this elusive book be? Maybe I can dig it up and dust it off for you."

[The Weaver Twins]

"I meant I expected to see the librarian." Now Jonathan felt embarrassed.

"Well actually it's a fairly new book, called "The Dance of the Atom, a study of sub-atomic reactions." By Reed Richards. I'm pretty sure I can get some pretty decent entertainment value out of it. Though I'm not sure whether we have it yet."

Jonathan was starting to feel like he shouldn't be here he was making small talk about a book that he was going to read for fun, while he should be working on finding a way to stop the physical manifestation of his other personality. Or was he the physical manifestation. Either way he should have been working and he should be working now and he felt guilty about it.

[Revenant]

"Hehe, yeah...pleasure reading...well, let's have a look..."

::She slid over to the desk-top computer and typed in the title, momentarily concentrating on the task. Then her smile returned and she glided back over to where Jonathan was standing.::

"Wow, either I'm really good today, or you're really lucky. It turns out that the one you're looking for is one of the books I picked up from shipping in Westminster today...I just couldn't wait, little impatient thing that I am. Follow me."

::Mariella walked around to the saloon-style doors that acted as an entrance to the librarian's area and stepped out into the common space, headed off towards the stacks.::

"It should be over in this direction."

[The Weaver Twins]

"Thanks" Jonathan followed Mariella into the shelves. He was glad that they had the book he was looking for. It would have been a bother to try and find it in the Public library.

Jonathan also figured it was also kind of good to find out there was another mutant who enjoyed reading as much as he did. "Yeah I was thinking about finding all the errors in it, and either laughing about them to myself, or sending Mr. Richards a letter. You know cause understanding how things work like that is part of my mutation."

Jonathan wondered why he said that.

[Revenant]

::Mariella stopped, turning around and leaning on one of the shelves. Her smile widened and her tone was teasing.::

"You think about that a lot? Your mutation I mean? You talk about it and use it a lot..."

::They were stopped not in the science section, but in the historical fiction and folklore section. Mariella seemed quite content to pause here for a while until he answered. Her hazel eyes were bright and engaging, searching for the answer in his face. She crossed her ankles, seemingly cementing herself in place while she played absentmindedly with the ring on her forefinger.::

"Starting to think there's no Jonathan Weaver under that 'strand telekinesis'."

[The Weaver Twins]

Jonathan heard her mention his power and ask about. "Umm it's String as in 'String theory'. Umm yeah, I do..." Of course when he wasn't thinking about his power he was busy thinking about his "brother". But this was getting into uncomfortable territory for him. He didn't want to put that burden on her shoulders, even though most of the teachers knew about his issues.

"Let's just say I have to be really good at using it, say the best. Let's just say the fate of the world rests on it."

[Revenant]

::Keeping her smile, Mariella looked down at her ring. She bit her lip and looked back up at him.::

"I know what it's called, stud...I'm just fooling...maybe sometimes it would be nice to take a break and consider that the world isn't as important as it's thought to be...

::Those who knew Mariella well knew that her view of life was abnormal. Many people thought that it was because she saw spirits, while others thought that it was because she had died before. Whatever her reason, she kept it to herself. She uncrossed her legs and began walking backwards, keeping her green eyes on Jonathan.::

"Did you ever consider that for Mr. Richards the thrill might be in not knowing...in the search, and not necessarily the answer?"

[The Weaver Twins]

Jonathan thought about what Mariella said. "Yeah, I shouldn't really do that. Well maybe just enough to get his attention, like that scene in the original 'the day the earth stood still'. I mean a conversation with the world's leading physicist, that would be really interesting."

He kept following her, musing on what she said about the world. This conversation was bringing his mind back to the reason why he was such a study-holic. "Ok. If I'm not the best a lot of people are going to die, starting with me."

[Revenant]

::She turned around, brushing her hand against the stacks as she walked by them, looking over her shoulder at Jonathan, her bewitching smile seemingly pasted on her face.::

"But like I said...what if that's not so bad? Ever stop to question what it is that you're fighting for? If it's really important?"

::She stopped, turning her attention to one of the shelves. Mariella pulled a book down and looked at it happily before handing it to Jonathan. The cover read 'Paradise Lost'.::

"Sounds like you're busy trying to play God...doesn't Satan seem like he has more dignity?"

::She winked at him, once again leaning against the stacks. She searched his face before delivering another question.::

"Is he really in the wrong?"

[The Weaver Twins]

Jonathan realized that she wouldn't understand, couldn't understand until he told her. Until he told her the entire truth.

"OK. I have a brother, well more like a physical manifestation of another personality. Currently since we have the same powers, we're in a state of perfect equilibrium. He's a sadistic psycho. He turned a puppy that I had inside out and kept it unnaturally alive until I came home so it would die in my arms. Then he killed our parents...Our Parents in ways too horrible for me to describe."

Jonathan broke into tears partially from the memories and partially because he was exposing his soul for her discretion. "I don't feel like God... to tell the truth I feel like atlas. The weight of the world is constantly on my shoulders...and I dare not drop it."

His emotions kept on pouring out, they had been held inside for so long... so very long.

[Revenant]

::Mariella was out of her element. She no longer understood such emotions. His story would have been touching to her in another life, but not in this one. Her smile faded as he began to cry. He took all of this really seriously.::

"Hm...well, maybe stick to physics, Atlas...but good news for your shoulders. Atlas didn't have to hold the whole world...just the sky."

::She turned, a slightly disappointed look on her face, though she hid it from Jonathan. Mariella headed towards the physical science section, wondering why people thought that their particular struggles were any different from anyone else's.::

"Everyone's problem bears the weight of the world."

[The Weaver Twins]

Almost as soon as it began he became cold and removed. Inside he was horrified that he showed her exactly what he felt like. "I'm...sorry...."

He felt incredibly responsible for his brother. He knew the extent of his powers, and the thought of Jonah using these powers without any restrictions, horrified him. "Maybe we should just find the book."

The sooner he can get the book checked out, the sooner he could get back to his room. Which meant the sooner he could get back to work.

[Revenant]

::Mariella heaved a light sigh before deciding that the issue wasn't worth pursuing any further. He wasn't the kind of person that she normally could get along with. He placed too much importance on everyday life. She moved to where the book was and pulled it from the shelf. Mariella hesitated for a moment before handing it to him, feeling as though she was damning him in some way.::

"Well, there you have it...don't hurt yourself...or Mr. Richards...especially Mr. Richards."

::She had her polite smile on, and it was visibly less warm than the smile that she had been wearing before.::

"And, uh...good luck with the whole 'saving the world' thing."