Random Wanderings (Abby Stark/Polaris)

[lorna]

She was back in the city, just days after her run in with Cable. Her mom, the adopted one, gave her a box of her birth mother's stuff that they had saved after her death and Lorna had spent the last few hours going through everything that was in it. She'd read through letters, shocked that they had been kept, fingered a few pieces of jewelry and even put on an emerald ring that her mother had once worn. There had been yearbooks, magazines and even a scrapbook that hadn't included any photos of her birth father.

Why this was eating at her, Lorna didn't understand. She had to wonder if it'd been anyone but a world renowned terrorist if she'd have been this obsessed. If she had to admit the truth, she was hoping to find more and more reasons that would disprove Cable's claims. Deep down inside, she didn't want that blasted man to be right. Not about this.

Finally putting it all away, she packed it into her car and had left the house she'd grown up in. They were worried about her, she knew that but she didn't do anything to make them feel better. In a sick way, she was hoping they were suffering for keeping this secret from her for so long. Lorna had driven around, not really having a destiny in mind and had ended up parking her car on a rather posh side of town and getting out to walk for a while.

The air was crisp and she was dressed for the cold weather. Light blue jeans clung to her legs, a deep purple sweater was worn beneath a thick, black leather jacket and heeled black boots were on her feet. She didn't bother hiding the green hair today, letting it hang loose around her shoulders. She wasn't even aware of anyone staring, if they even were. The blessed thing about New York City was that one could fit in no matter what one looked like. For the most part.

Ducking into a smallish cafe, she went to the counter and ordered a bagel sandwich and a cup of hot tea. She took her small, but rather expensive, meal to a table toward the back of the cafe and sat down, picking at the sandwich more then actually eating it. She'd added a bit of honey to the tea and without even realizing what she was doing, she began to stir the tea with her powers, the spoon moving without her hand actually touching it.

[safetytronic]

Abby was out and about the streets of the city near Stark Tower. She needed to get a new wardrobe, and some things for her project. She had told her father that she was going out for a bit, but he seemed a bit occupied and then told Jarvis to remind him that she was out running some errands in case he decided to look for her. Her shopping trip had been a pleasant one to start. She had gone into a nice looking shop and picked up some outfits that she had paid for with some of her trust fund money, and then went to the next shop on her list. It was a specialty shop of electronics and technology. Sure, she could have just asked her dad for what she needed, but she didn’t want to disturb him from his workshop and running the company. So she had decided to get it on her own.

The clerk in the specialty shop looked at her weird when she told him what she wanted exactly, and tried to tell her that she didn’t know what she was talking about. He then proceeded to tell her that the nearest toy store was three blocks away. She took a deep breath and briefly closed her eyes. When she opened them she leaned toward the counter and proceeded to give her order again, but this time she wasn’t so nice about it. ”Listen here. I know what I want, and I know that you have it. I also know that if you had even looked on the cover of any magazine you would know who I am. So are you going to give me what I want or should I purchase your little store and rent out the space for an artist studio?” She demanded and then pointed to the newest cover of Tech News World with a picture of her and her father on it. The headline asked will she become the next Stark. If they only knew the truth…

Abby watched as the clerk nodded his head in understanding and then looked at the magazine before it donned on him who she was. The rest of the transaction was fast and hassle free. With her newly acquired item in a bag, she walked out. And right into a horde of reporters that were covering something else across the street. One of them in the back spotted her and alerted the others, and before she even gave them a chance to cross the street she took off in the opposite direction. She really hates being in a crowd full of the press. She barely manages one on one interviews. And then there was that whole touching thing about her…

She ran for a few blocks and she could hear their chasing footsteps after her, and she decided to try to shake them. She made a few turns and twists, before she came to a small café. She zipped inside, slammed the door closed, and slung down behind the nearest large floral that would hide her body nicely. When she heard them pass the establishment right up, did she get back to her full height and approached the counter. ”Excuse me, but what part of the city is this?” She asked the worker, as she had lost track of where she went while trying to out run the press. The answer was surprising. She was no longer near Stark Tower. She sighed and slinked to the farthest empty table after ordering a peppermint tea and a tuna fish sandwich.

[lorna]

Lorna had finally stopped using her powers once she realized what she was doing. Thankfully, the cafe was fairly empty and the mug was pretty close to her so no one saw her. The last thing she needed was to be ratted out as a mutant. Especially if they realized what her actual ability was. Maybe she was actually a clone of Magneto's or something and wasn't even a real person at all? Okay, that line of thinking had come out of left field but her mind was beginning to fray a bit at the entire situation. She should just ask the man himself if he'd ever known her mom. That would take care of that, right?

Oh, god, what if he said yes?

She was about to sink down into the seat a bit further, her stomach in no mood for the sandwich, when she heard the commotion at the door. Looking up, she watched as a teenager entered the cafe then hid behind a large plant. That was...interesting. As the crowd of reporters ran by, not a single one of them even giving the cafe a second glance, she looked from the window back to the girl who finally stood up and made her way to the counter.

Lorna looked at her to see if she was famous or something but she really, honestly couldn't place her. She knew she wasn't the best with pop culture so if this was some teenage pop star or the latest Disney star, she was clueless.

The girl sank into the booth near her own and ordered her food. Tuna fish made her a bit nauseous but to each their own. The peppermint tea, however, did sound rather appealing although her own Earl Gray wasn't anything to scoff at.

Curiosity got the best of her so she glanced back at the girl and asked, “So, are you a famous movie star hiding from your adoring public?” Lorna guessed her age to be about sixteen or seventeen. Most teenagers she knew would be loving the spotlight.

Lorna, however, knew what it meant to have to hide. She'd hid her green hair until her mutation manifested in high school. She had to hide the fact that she was a mutant at all. Luckily, she'd not been born with worse then an odd hair color. She really felt for people like Blink who had very physical mutations and while Clarice was beautiful to Lorna, they did live in a very mutant hating world.

[safetytronic]

Abby sunk down in her chair as she tried to figure out how to get back toward the side of town where Stark Tower was. She wondered if she didn’t return in a certain amount of time, if her father would go searching for her… She noticed the press started to double back and held up the menu that was nearest her to hide her face from the media. Gawd, how she hated to be hounded by the bloodsuckers! When she heard them pass again, she sat the menu back down to be asked a question that wasn’t asking if she was Abigail Rasmussen or what she plans on doing next. It was a complete refreshing drink of water so to speak.

”So, are you a famous movie star hiding from your adoring public?”

She turned her head to see a woman with green hair looking at her waiting on her to answer the question, and shook her head. ”No. I’m Abigail Rasmussen.” She answered as if she thought that would explain everything, and she thought that the woman didn’t recognize her. She smirked, grateful that she was recognized…yet. ”Child prodigy. Some of the magazine articles say that I’m the world’s next Tony Stark. Eventual heir to Rasmussen Incorporated.” She explained happily. She was actually glad to find someone who didn’t know who she was at first sight. She was also grateful that the café was nearly empty, and that she could talk somewhat freely about who she was here without someone calling the press for a sighting. She honestly can’t understand how her father could stand all the attention. She had the same attention since she could walk and talk, and quite frankly she hated it.

[lorna]

Watching this girl hide was definitely taking her mind off her own issues. Eh, that was sort of amusing, calling Magneto an “issue”. If she wasn't so focused on the hiding girl, she might have even laughed at herself.

As it was, she watched as the reporters, paparazzi, whatever, went by again, this time taking longer to look in the windows. Thankfully, the two of them were sort of hidden in the back of the cafe although it did draw the attention of the employees. They kept looking from the girl to the door and back again as if they, too, were trying to figure out who she was. This was New York City, for Pete's sake. There were any number of celebrities walking around at any given time. Surely the people on the rampage would find someone new in minutes and be off the girl's butt.

Abigail introduced herself and Lorna smiled. Abigail seemed to think that just by saying her name that she was going to know who she was but alas, Abby had stumbled on probably the only person in the city who didn't read magazines or watch television unless she was assigned to do so. Which had happened a few times. No, Lorna was usually stuck studying for her next class or writing her next paper. Which, by the way, was being ignored at the moment so she could harass her adoptive parents about her birth mother. Again.

“Tony Stark?” Lorna repeated, the man's name rolling off her tongue with a rather nice ring to it. Oh, yes, she did know who he was and Abigail almost lost her at that point. Her mind flooded with images of a dark haired man who was too good looking for anyone's good and the fact that he was brilliant as well...well, that just made him all the more appealing to the young mutant woman.

However, she did manage to pull her head out of the clouds long enough to hear the rest of what Abigail had to say. Before she could stop herself, she said, “So, you're like Kitty.” Not that Abby would have the slightest idea who Kitty Pryde was but the girl was an absolute genius, especially with anything electronic.

“Well, Miss Abigail Rasmussen,” Lorna began, “I'm not entirely sure what Rasmussen Incorporated does but it must be rather important with the sort of attention you are generating. I'm Lorna Dane and you might want to duck or slide over here by me. One of your fans is about to enter and he looks a bit determined to find you.”

Geez, didn't they give the poor girl a break? Lorna was half tempted to magnetically seal the door but that might just rat out the fact that there was a mutant among them.

[safetytronic]

Abby had noticed that the other girl had seemed to almost drool when she repeated her father’s name. It didn’t surprise her that the other girl knew who he was, but not her. He after all had been born first, and she came a close second. It didn’t bother her the least that she came in second behind him. What did matter to her was that he was proud of her, and that he had claimed her as his. She was simple in that way.

”So, you’re like Kitty.”

She had no idea who this Kitty person was, but she was nothing like whoever they were. She knew she was better. She then nodded her head slightly to tell her that she was partially right. Her mother’s family company was one of the top computer software companies in the world, and her being the child prodigy she was only sweetened the pot for the news reporters to keep an eye on the family. She cocked her head to the side as she figured out that the girl hadn’t been paying much attention to the news lately or she would have defiantly heard the part about the whole Stark and Rasmussen relationship and as a result her. The news has been buzzing with the speculation of her being his daughter, but he hasn’t quite come out and confirmed it yet. She had hoped that he would so that she wouldn’t have to hide in Stark Tower forever.

”I’m Lorna Dane and you might want to duck or slide over here by me. One of your fans is about to enter and he looks a bit determined to find you.”

Abby looked to the door to see the guy Lorna mentioned peer inside and spot her. ’Oh crap!’ She thought to herself, and deemed it time to head back home as soon as she could. She quickly slid into the chair on the other side of Lorna and looked at her. ”We need to get out of here. I need to get back to Stark Tower. You have any idea on where that is from here?” She asked, hoping that they can make a clean get away from there. She took out two twenties and laid them out on the table. That should cover both of their bills, and still leave a large enough tip.

[lorna]

Abigail slid into the booth across from her and Lorna smiled slightly. The girl really did dislike media attention, it seemed. Sliding the menu across the table for her to hide behind, Lorna glanced at the man who had come into the cafe. He looked around but didn't seem to find quite what he was looking for so he wandered over to the counter and asked the man if he'd seen “this girl”. Apparently, he had a photo of young Abigail and was showing it to the guy.

The girl then decided to inform her that “we” had to get out of there. Lorna blinked at her in confusion. Since when did she become involved? Oh, yeah, probably when she'd opened her big mouth...That got her into more trouble then anything else ever had.

Grabbing her jacket that was sitting on the booth next to her, she handed it across the table to Abby and said, “Here, put this on. I'll distract him.”

Once the coat was handed over, she looked up to see that he was panning a video camera across the restaurant. When he stopped at her, Lorna gave a grin, waved, then winked at the man as if she was suddenly interested in him. As her fingers moved, the video camera began to glow slightly with a green color and suddenly, bits of metal fell onto the floor.

In seconds, he was holding onto only a small plastic piece of the camera and was cursing about damned immigrant workers and their cheap products. The second he dropped to the floor to collect the pieces of his camera, Lorna cocked her head at Abby as if to say it was time to get out of there.

[safetytronic]

Abby saw as Lorna slid the menu over to her, and she didn’t need to be told what to use it for. She picked it up and hid behind it like she had done just a few moments before. She got a feeling that this guy wasn’t with the press, all because most press reporters don’t take their time to search a place for their story. They sure don’t carry around a photograph of someone and ask general people if they had seen the person. Something told her that this guy was private detective or something. Perhaps hired by her uncle to find her and get some dirt to use against her.

She carefully took the offered jacket and then hid under it in an effort to hide further from this private investigator. The last thing she needed was her snake of an uncle making her life miserable like he had done with her mother. Of course with her not telling them who her father was didn’t help things either, but she had made up for it with her intelligence from an early age. Somehow her uncle never did get over his resentment for it. She started to panic when the guy standing at the counter began to pan the room with a video camera. Just what she needed. To be caught on tape. Next thing she knew was that Lorna pretended to flirt with him and his camera started to fall to pieces.

Abby suddenly understood. Lorna was what the media had called a mutant. She didn’t fear them, after all they are people too. The just have special abilities like the rest of them. Theirs are just more powerful than the average human. Granted her mind works like a supercomputer on steroids, but she wasn’t a mutant. No matter what that overgrown oaf had told her. She knew what she was and that what matters for her classification. She then glanced at Lorna and saw her cock her head, and she nodded getting up from the table. She was ready to follow her out of there.

[lorna]

Lorna wouldn't have known the difference between a reporter or a private detective out to destroy a little girl if she'd been hit over the head with it. The only thing that made her even remotely “famous” were her powers and even that was kept a deep, dark secret. At least by her parents. However, deciding to destroy the camera probably gave her away, at least to those who had been watching her. Thankfully, the man with the camera hadn't realized what she'd done as he'd been more interested in figuring out why she was waving at him.

She didn't have any delusions about herself. She knew she wasn't the type of girl that men looked at twice and she had no doubt that the reporter (as she still thought of him) was confused as to why she thought she was good enough to try to flirt but it had all been a distraction, no matter which way Lorna looked at it, and it'd been successful.

Abby got her meaning and the two of them slid out of their seats and made their way to the door. She'd give the girl some money once things were calmed down to pay her back for what had turned out to be a super expensive meal for someone on a student's budget. Lorna hadn't even had to the chance to really enjoy any of it.

Letting the door close behind them, she looked around and then made sure that the hood was brought up well around Abby's face. She'd hid her own weird hair color for so long that she was well versed in keeping one's features hidden so she tugged at the hood slightly before smiling. “There, no one should notice you now,” she told the girl.

It was cold out, though, and Lorna ran her hands over her sweater clad arms. Luckily, her car wasn't too far away but she wasn't about to direct the girl there. Abigail might think she was into kidnapping teenagers when the truth was, Lorna really didn't have any idea what to do with them. “So, do you want to get a cab or walk? Stark Towers is about ten blocks away from here. I have my car but I'm a stranger and I'm sure you've got the same lectures I did as a kid about taking rides from people you don't know,” Lorna told her, still smiling.

Although catching a cab in New York City was usually a feat in itself, Lorna had ways of making sure that large bodies of metal agreed with her and stopped when she wanted them to. Not that she really wanted to have to resort to that but she would if that was what the girl wanted. The sooner Abigail got out of the public view, the better.

A thought occurred to her, though. “Why do you want to go to Stark Towers?” she asked, a bit perplexed. Maybe Abby just wanted to meet her idol or something. She did compare herself to Tony Stark back at the restaurant, after all.

[safetytronic]

Once they were outside, Lorna reached over and adjusted the hood of the borrowed jacket so that she wasn’t quite recognizable. The way she did it, reminded her of her mother when she dressed her for school in the winter. Abby closed her eyes to keep the tears from falling at the tender memory that the simple adjust to the hood brought back. Only a few days gone, and she really hadn’t grieved for her loss properly. She even wondered when the memorial was going to be and if her father would take her. Oh there was going to be a field day for the press unless he claimed her before hand. Why is Tony Stark escorting Abigail Rasmussen to her mother’s memorial service? Is he Abigial’s biological father? Did Mr. Stark know Miss Rasmussen? Those were the questions she could see the media asking. She’ll have to ask Jarvis to check up on that when she returned.

”Why do you want to go to Stark Towers?”

Her mind had drifted as the question brought her back to her current situation. Of course she had heard what Lorna had asked earlier, but she wasn’t listening. She gave the girl a ‘thank you’ smile and shook her head at the offer of a cab. ”No thanks. I’d rather walk. Helps me think. As for why I want to go there, well I want to go home.” She finally said, a bit awkward at calling Stark Tower home. She was so used to the modern, large one story home out in the suburbs, that calling one of the most famous buildings in the world home seems surreal to her.

[lorna]

Lorna completely missed the look on Abby's face as she adjusted the hood, which was a good thing. The young woman was already uncomfortable and really wasn't sure what to do from this point on. She was more used to helping and protecting young mutants from harm then she was used to protecting a young girl from the media frenzy that tended to follow her everywhere. Not that they were really all that different, though.

With a sigh, she struggled to figure out what she was supposed to do now that Abby wanted to walk the ten or so blocks to Stark Towers. Should she go with her? If anyone could keep the girl safe, it was someone like Lorna but that would also draw them more attention. Attention neither the human girl nor the mutant wanted. She could just send the girl off on her own, tell her to keep walking in that direction and she'd come to her destination fairly soon.

That option left her stomach feeling odd and she knew from years of listening to her instincts, that wasn't the best solution, either. So Lorna shored herself up to walking in the middle of December in New York City with nothing to wear but a sweater and began to walk in the direction that Abby wanted to go in.

The part about wanting to go home didn't escape Lorna's attention but she really didn't ask about it. Sounded like the girl grew up in the city but how was that possible if she didn't know where Stark Towers was? As soon as it became Stark Towers, Lorna had known where it was and while they were going in the opposite direction of the area that she'd grown up in, she was still very familiar with the city.

“So, Miss Abigail,” she began, not really sure what she was going to say or what she should say. She was escorting a very well known figure across a very busy area and trying to keep people from noticing the girl. “Have you lived here very long?”

That had to be about the lamest thing she'd ever said.

[safetytronic]

Abby smiled at her, truly grateful for her help. She knew she wouldn’t make it back without being recognized by the press. However, it didn’t take her mind long to wonder from the task at hand. She was already at home, working on her new pet project, and wondering if her father would like the finished result. She turned and faced the direction that she had ran from without thinking if Lorna was going to accompany her or not. She really should get home before her father realized that she had been gone for longer than she should. She was even worried that he would worry about her being abducted again, which would be totally unfair to her. She just gets out of one situation, and then gets thrown into another one… So not fair.

”So, Miss Abigail, have you lived here very long?”

She turned to look at Lorna when the question was poised to her. She gave a small smile at how she came to live in the big city. ”Only since last night, when I suddenly moved in with my father.” She answered with a slightly bigger smile than what she started with. She then stopped and looked at her wanting to ask a question of her own. ”So how long have you lived in the city?” She asked gesturing for her to walk with her if she wanted to do so.

[lorna]

Lorna began to walk in the direction that she'd indicated they needed to go. Before too long, the building would come into sight as it was one of the taller ones in the city. That was part of what had made it so famous when Tony Stark had built and moved into it. It could be seen for quite a ways through the city and if not for the other tall buildings that were before it, they would have been able to see it at that point.

When Abby said that she'd only moved there the night before, Lorna nodded. That made more sense then thinking she'd lived there for a while and not known where Stark Towers was. She'd already made up her mind to see this thing with Abby through, making sure the girl got home without another incident, even if it meant going beyond what she'd been planning that day. Actually, her plans had included returning to her room at the mansion and going through the box of stuff that had once belonged to Suzanna.

“All my life,” she replied to Abby with a smile. “I grew up on the north side of the city and spent many a days traversing these roads and shopping with my mom...er, my aunt. It would drive my uncle crazy how quickly we could put a hole in our budget when we headed into the city.”

For some reason, she was finding it harder to call them “mom and dad” in light of recent revelations. They were still her parents in all ways that mattered but the young mutant was just really confused, not to mention conflicted, over her own adoption and the fact that it had been kept a secret nearly all her life.

“Do you like your dad? Are you happy that you moved in with him?” she asked the girl, absolutely clueless as to the nature of how Abigail had come to live in New York City. She was making conversation, trying to keep the girl's mind off her worries while keeping an eye out for anyone that looked suspicious to her.

[safetytronic]

Abby’s mind had begun to wonder yet again, back to her father. She wondered how much her life is going to change once he tells the world that he is her father. She could see the surprise on all the reporters and closest associates to him. Not many people think that he would be the type of person needed to be a father, but the way she saw it was that he had missed all the trouble areas of her growing up. Now he would only have to worry about the results of him saying that he has a daughter, and what could possibly happen from the public.

”Do you like your dad? Are you happy that you moved in with him?”

The questions caught her a bit off guard. She was going to have to handle this delicately and without giving Lorna an idea on who her father was. She was sure that it would be revealed in due time, when he was ready to reveal it to the press. ”Dad is great, but I’ve only known him for less than 24 hours. He is a busy man. Of course I am happy that I do have a father, and place to call home. Since mine got blown up into a large crater a few days ago. What about you? Do you like your family? Why do you find it hard to call them mom and dad?” The slip from Lorna calling the woman who raised her from mom to aunt was not lost on her. She did find it interesting that her new friend didn’t find it easy to call the woman mom… She of course would always call her mother “Mom”, even if she is no longer with her. She turned her head to hide the pain that the thought brought only long enough to push back to where she could give into it more privately.

[lorna]

Lorna couldn't help but stop walking and stare at the girl. She'd only known her father for 24 hours? Her house had been blown up? Just what sort of life did this kid lead? She sounded almost like she lived with the X-Men, given how many times their own lives had been turned on their collective heads. It was probably a good thing she wasn't a mutant. The last thing Abby needed was more bad luck.

What Abby needed was a full time bodyguard. Lorna was just about to inform her of that when she asked about her own parents and her reluctance to call them mom and dad.

“I'm glad that you are getting along with him, then. It sounds like you've had quite the busy several days. You holding up okay?” she asked, having absolutely no clue about Abby's mom.

Then she went on to try to explain her own situation without getting into too many details. The last thing this kid needed was her to unload her own problems on her. Lorna was the adult here and would play that role.

“I found out recently that I was adopted,” she began as she started walking again. “My mom died in a plane crash when I was a baby and my aunt and uncle took me in. My dad apparently didn't want me, or so they tell me.”

It was still hard to decided what to and not to believe at this point. The secret of her adoption had been a huge one to her and although she still cared a lot for them, it did change things. It made her wonder how much more of her childhood had been a lie.

“Don't get me wrong, I still love them. They were, are, good parents but it has created a few trust issues with me. I can't, for the life of me, figure out why they never told me when I was younger. The odd thing is, they can't give me a reason, either,” she added a few moments later. “But enough about me. You are the one I'm concerned about right now and we need to get you back home and to your father in one piece,” she continued, flashing Abby a smile.