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The apartment Liv had given Karolina directions to is not difficult to find. The Albert Chambers building may not be much, but it is at least easy to navigate… even if reaching the appropriate apartment does involve taking the stairs to the ninth floor. No elevators. Ugh.
The door is currently open, revealing the modestly-decorated one bedroom in all of its humble splendor. Wearing jeans and a tanktop, Liv is puttering around the kitchen with a small white puppy tucked under her arm, humming to herself as she rummages in the fridge with her free hand. "Leftovers count as home-cooked, don't they?" she absently asks the dog, who yaps.
*
Lucy manages the stairs pretty quickly. She slept! And ate! And did Tony's laundry, which was actually kind of fun. She got out her frustrations on the stains. And now, she's at Liv's door. Sleep and food have done a lot to help her deal with her distress over having her powers revealed — for the moment. It's still not any fun. *Knock-knock!*
*
A knock-knock is answered by a yap-yap, and then Liv turns to aim a bright smile towards the open door. "Lucy! Come on in, just lock it behind you," she says with a grin, waving vaguely towards the door. Once the door is closed, she sets the puppy down on the floor. Yes, go say hello. "Hope you're not allergic. I keep forgetting we have him."
*
"No! A puppy!" Lucy sits down on the floor to welcome the puppy. "Ohmygosh, he's so tiny! And wiggly!" She giggles as the puppy washes her chin with its tiny pink tongue.
"I can't believe you have a puppy, you're so lucky. My parents would never let me have one." She kisses it on the nose and hugs it.
*
"My roommate's. Jack's. His name's Christmas," Liv says with a good-natured roll of her eyes, dusting her hands off on the front of her shirt before she closes the fridge. "But I've always liked dogs, just usually… bigger ones." She shrugs helplessly.
"Are you okay crashing on the sofa?" Liv asks, wandering out from the kitchen on bare feet. "I'd offer you my bed for the night, but Max — other roommate — she has this habit of ending up with her feet on my back despite having her own damn bed, and I figure we can probably spare you."
*
"He's perfect." Lucy holds Christmas up so she can kiss his belly, then she puts him down so she can run off. "The sofa is better than a bench or a store's step. Hell, I'll sleep on the floor."
Lucy looks cleaner today but still skinny and shabby. She scrambles to her feet to hang up her coat and bag by the door, then she kicks off her shoes and leaves them there. "Do you need any help?"
*
Liv considers the question for a moment. "Maybe. Can you cook?" she asks lightly, thumbing over her shoulder towards the kitchen. "We have some leftovers, but we also have a newly restocked fridge… and if there's a homecooked meal, Jack and Max might not give me as much grief for inviting someone home," she muses, flashing a grin.
*
"I can cook!" Lucy bounds toward the kitchen. "We had a French cook and a…" She lets it trail off. "Nevermind. I know how to cook. I can cook over a campfire or in a restaurant or…wherever. What do you want? Italian? Continental? Mexican?"
Lucy's already got her head in the fridge and Christmas is shoving in past her ankles. "Gosh, I haven't seen so much food in…" She inhales. "It smells so good in here."
*
"Anything you like. I've never been picky, I'm fairly sure Max is half garbage disposal, and Jack…" Now it's Liv's turn to trail off, but it's brief. "…she's Jack. So. Whatever you want. Make enough that you can take some with you."
Slowly, Liv wanders back into the kitchen and hops back to sit on the edge of the counter to watch her. "If you'd like, we can take a quick trip out tomorrow. Get you some fresh clothes."
*
"Clothes? Well." Lucy starts to work. Apparently she's making something involving potatoes and pork chops and cabbage and a bunch of other stuff she pulls out of the fridge. "We had this Czech nanny for a while and I loved her pork chops and dumplings," she says. Then she remembers — clothes. "I don't really have a place to put them but I guess I should replace the ones I have on. And it's going to get cold. I didn't know how cold New York really was."
*
"It does get pretty chilly. If it gets too cold, though, just come back here," Liv replies easily, folding her hands in her lap. She doubts her roommates would protest, but even if they did… she'd deal with it. Somehow. "But in the meantime… some fresh clothes, a coat. Scarf, gloves. Whatever. We'll take care of it." She offers a warm smile.
*
"I'm gonna be fine." Lucy knows her way around a kitchen well enough, maybe she'll get work cooking. "But I won't say no, if only because you're bigger than me." She starts peeling potatoes with great efficiency — sometimes she does get work at a diner near the Park. They always need potatoes peeled for their fries. "I shouldn't come here too much, though. I don't want to put anyone in danger. I like you too much. I like pretty much everyone too much."
*
Liv just hums softly and watches Lucy work, lazily kicking her feet without letting her heels hit the counter. "Thank you. But why would you be putting us in danger?" she asks lightly, her brow furrowed. There's no judgment on her face or in her tone, just gentle curiosity. "Is this about what that kid said in the park?"
*
"Noh Varr? I think he's crazy but." Lucy shakes her head. "I don't care about that. I mean, I do but I don't. I just can't stay where anyone might get to know me too well. Someone might be looking for me. Someone who might be like me. Two. Maybe more. I don't know. I don't know anything. I just." Lucy shrugs and gets to putting potatoes in the pot. "I saw some people kill someone. And they might know I did. That's all."
*
"Ahhh, I see. That's very noble." Still no judgment in Liv's tone, though her lips have drawn back into a very small smile. "You know… it's easier to disappear in a crowd than off by yourself," she notes gently. "And there is some truth to the old saying about finding strength in numbers. How long have you been by yourself, Lucy?"
*
"Just since the summer," Lucy admits. "But I'm getting good at it," she adds hastily. "I don't want anyone to get hurt because of me. And the people who would do it, they have a lot to lose. Lots of money, too. Money's all that matters sometimes."
*
Quietly, Liv slips down from the counter and steps over to stand next to Lucy instead, hands loosely clasped behind her back. "Do these people have names?" she asks, giving her a thoughtful look. "You can't live like this indefinitely, Lucy. I tried. You can either try to solve the problem at its source, or just… learn to live with it in the background."
*
"I don't want to hurt them." Lucy is studiously not looking at Liv while she cuts into a cabbage. "I just don't want them to find me. That's all. I don't think I can do or say anything to fix things otherwise. People will think I'm crazy. I have no proof."
*
"I won't think your crazy. But I won't press, either," Liv notes with a smile, reaching over to briefly, lightly touch Lucy's shoulder. "If you ever need to talk about it, I'll listen. I'll even tell you a thing or two about myself that might make you think I'm crazy, if you'd like matters to be fair."
*
"I didn't even know that I could do all that shiny light stuff until this summer." This seems like a non sequitur, but maybe not. Not given Lucy's artfully casual tone. "You can do pretty cool stuff, too. You're not…human. I mean, maybe you're a mutant, but maybe not. The sword thing, not a lot of people use those lately."
*
Liv thinks about it for a moment, casting a look towards — of all places — the closet at the end of the short hall. "Not human," she confirms quietly, letting her hands come to rest against the edge of the counter. "Not a mutant, either. Or metahuman, or…" She nods her head from side to side, glancing up at the ceiling. "…any of that."
*
"I'm not either. So. We're even." Lucy keeps working. Chopping vegetables, measuring spices. "I really don't want anyone to be hurt, Liv. Can you not tell anyone?" Normally she wouldn't say, but they are…kind of alike. And now she has some idea what's going on — what she is, who her parents are.
*
"If you can keep my secrets, I can keep yours," Liv says with a smile, though there is a slight twinkle in her eye as she says it. No, she has not forgotten the fact that Lucy apparently told someone about her to some extent already. "But. Really. I won't tell a soul. Not my place."
*
"Telling someone that you're awesome with a sword is not really a secret." Lucy sticks her tongue out at Liv. "And I told him you were pretty. But you're not very good at hiding that either. He just wanted to meet you, that's all."
Then, as fast as Lucy was amused, she's serious again. "I'm only telling you so you understand why I need to just…not stay. It's hard. When you want someone to stop but you don't want to hurt them." She exhales sharply. "My parents are the ones who might be after me. And even if they don't know what I saw, I can't ever go back. They never told me what I was, what they are, and they did things…" Lucy stops talking, mouth sealed in a thin, grim line.
*
Liv can't help but laugh, one hand coming to her chest in what is actually a very feminine gesture. "Oh, thank you. Keep flattering me, it's a nice change of pace," she says brightly.
But when Lucy sobers, so does she. Liv finds herself frowning thinly and reaching for the younger woman's shoulder again, this time to offer a careful squeeze. "I'm sorry," she says quietly. "I can't imagine."
*
"Neither could I, until it happened." Lucy shakes her head hard enough to flip her ponytail. "They have a lot of money. They could do a lot of harm, if they wanted. I feel responsible for them. But until I know I can do anything about it, I won't start something. I don't even know what I want. But I do know I don't want anyone else getting hurt. So. It's better to keep moving. I'd rather keep moving than hurt someone else."
*
"Well. If they come looking," Liv says slowly, "Or you figure out what you want to do about it. You can come and find me. You're a friend, and friends help friends out." She offers a small smile, raising her eyebrows at her expectantly. "Whether it's a couch for a night, or some backup in a fight. I've got your back."
She casts a brief look towards the pot. "…Max probably will too, once you feed her," Liv muses. "And she can hit about as hard as I can, when she's of a mind."
*
"Thanks." Lucy gives Liv a wan smile. "I'm trying to be normal. I mean, as normal as I can be while I'm homeless. It takes a lot of time, being homeless, which is good. But it's also boring, which is not. If it gets really cold or wet and I can't find somewhere else, I might come by. And I can cook for you, or do laundry, or mending. So it's fair." She manages a wink. "Now. Out of my kitchen — since I'm cooking, it's mine — so I can work on these dumplings. They won't be as good as Nanny's but you'll have to make do."
*
With an impish smile, Liv takes a step back and straightens up, bringing two fingers to her temple in what is actually a textbook salute — just not an American one. "Yes ma'am. I'll go find you something to sleep in." Without waiting for a protest, she heads for the bedroom, rubbing her hands together. "And maybe if you ask me nicely, I'll make some space in my closet so you can come by for the occasional change of clothes, mm?"
*
"I'll come up with a nice way to ask you, then," Lucy offers. She's remarkably calm for someone who just admitted what her parents are like but, maybe, she's not repressing things so much as simply dealing with them a little more evenhandedly than most people might. Obviously an alien. "Maybe I'll even make you dessert."