Evelyn executed another surprisingly good attack - she just had a knack for learning on the fly. Gawain lept forward to strike at the monster's head...
... and then everything fell apart.

Instead, Sam appeared from above on an ice slide, carrying a picnic basket. Gawain felt his hands ball into fists.

>>”Evee, great job with the scenario. Even the kiss was entertaining to watch! For the two of you figure you two could use a easy date after that one. Hopefully one with nothing trying to eat you…”

The young knight blinked in disbelief at Sam's tone. He talked as if nothing had been trying to maul them mere seconds before. As if it had not been his fault. Entirely. Gawain took a step forward, not sure himself if it was going to escalate into more steps and end in a punch. It was a distinct possibility.

>>”So crazy scenario right? Think I figured out why it started to alter from the original path. It was supposed to be a super date but… You two did get to lock lips…”

"God Sam what the hell's wrong with you?!" Gawain growled, glaring an arsenal at the team leader "Do you have any idea how much this super date of yours sucked?! Or how dangerous it could have been if you didn't decide to show up?! Get a grip..." he took a breath, holding back from punching the iceman with great effort "... and as for the kiss, that's between me and Eve. And it should not have happened that way. Next time, meddle with someone else."

Sand. Angry owl/cat. Angry Gawain. The last few moments of the scenario seemed to blur togwther as Evelyn let reflex take over to keep her in one piece. Some people had muscle memory, Evelyn had blind trust in her echoes. If they said duck, she listened, and while she was less than athletic she was fairly unscathed by the time the room melted back to normal. Then she became painfully aware of just how exhausted and drained she was.

>>”Evee, great job with the scenario. Even the kiss was entertaining to watch!”

Her cheeks momentarily burned crimson, and she exhaled through her nose as a wave of emotions and thoughts crashed through her; pain, exhaustion happiness, laughter, frustration; she considered yelling, considered crying, considered laughing it off and letting it go. Instead, she took a deep breathe as he finished talking, and lightly took the basket. Carefully, she set it down next to her, brushing her hands off on her Jeans.

"First things first." In a flash of motions, her hand curled into a fist, are went back and straightened and her knuckles nailed Sam on the chin. It stung through the bites on her hand and arm, but the satisfying thud was worth it. "You're an ass and who and when I kiss someone is none of your business. I have enough problems trying to date without getting by echoes fried by electricity during a dating scenario!" She glared up at him, shoving her hair out of her face and crossing her arms, makingg sure the message got across.

"Second, if nothing else at least I still got training in. You may have created a disaster, but no one is seriously hurt and ...I am, if nothing else, a little proud of that. I used to feel like my mutation was pretty much useless for anything but working at the museum. You guys are making me start to see otherwise. So...thanks for not completely screwing this day up."

As somewhat of a peace gesture, she picked up the basket and tucked it under her arm, but not without giving him one more glare, "So help me though, if you screw with my love life again, I'll have the echoes help devise some godawful form of revenge even you won't find funny." With that she marched for the door, waiting only momentarily at the edge to see if Gawain followed or spoke his own mind to the ice mutant.

They both stared at them both face seemed to be in disbelief. Really how was this something that seemed that far out of the ordinary for him he was known for giving both of them a hard time. Maybe they just didn’t fully know what he did to set the whole thing up? Okay using a program like the automated scenario start when the two first walked into the room probably wasn’t the safest bet and he probably should have tried to find out a little more information about it but really, was this not something he would do? He started to think his ‘on the field’ activates greatly shadowed his potential for trouble.

<<<<"God Sam what the hell's wrong with you?!"

Gawain seemed angry meaning it wasn’t the best time to respond with, ‘Where you want to start? I’m pretty sure Gemma has a psych eval on me, or you can ask Granny Goodness pretty sure she’d point out what is wrong with me.’ Sam remained silent only showing he was about to say something like that by opening his mouth and raising a finger but then closed it and then dropped his hand. ”Danger Room is for training, not killing and the room sent me a notification when you both entered and the scenario started so I was going to be here anyways,” Sam paused then pointed to the picnic basket that was now on the floor, ”to drop that off.”

Sam was about to continue on the and explain the only reason the scenario took a turn like it did was because he set it up to not be shut down and when Gawain attempted to alter and or stop the session it altered it in the process. Something Sam didn’t know was possible with the automated start, something he was going to have to look into more. However, he never got a chance to explain it because he blinked and while he was expecting Gawain to swing on him he didn’t see the punch coming from Blondie.

Stumbling back a foot Sam put his hand to his jaw and stared at the girl who just swung on him. Sam tried not to smirk towards her impressed she’d do something that until now seemed so out of character for her. Opening his jaw instead of smirking he heard a click and he shut it again. Again he didn’t care that he saw them kiss just the fact they did, meaning in his mind this session was a successful one. However he didn’t verbalize it, not now anyways. When Eve started to walk off with the food he nodded his head in her direction and then clicked his jaw by opening it, ”You’re partially welcome then.” he closed it and the jaw clicked again.

Given the past year he had and all the horrors he committed under the influence of Amanda and everything the mind controller put him through, he was sure there was nothing that Eve could come up with that seem all that terrifying. She was a spoiled little rich girl he had saved a few times already and even though he thought highly of her and enjoyed her company he didn’t think she was capable of the threat she just gave him. He however nodded his head still surprised she swung at him and said, ”Enjoy the picnic.”

Looking back to Gawain and raising his eyebrow Sam clicked his jaw open then spoke, ”I’m sure you’ll enjoy expressing yourself tomorrow morning at our next spar session…” Sam said stepping aside to make sure he wasn’t in Gawain’s way to follow Eve, ”and you should know by now I wouldn’t let anything serious happen to either of you.” Sam then looked back up to the danger room god room and was about to call out for a session of his own before he snapped his fingers, ”Best not upset her, she packs a punch for someone her size.” Sam’s jaw clicked again and he waited till the two of them left no longer watching to see if Gawain was going to take a swing at him. ”Danger Room, program 602….”

Gawain opened his mouth to yell some more, and so did Sam, however neither of them got to get in another word before Eve punched the X-leader across the chin. Gawain gaped.

>>"You're an ass and who and when I kiss someone is none of your business. I have enough problems trying to date without getting by echoes fried by electricity during a dating scenario!"

Gawain gaped some more, half enjoying the fact that a girl just decked Sam, and partly amazed at Eve's new found spunk.

I so wanna kiss her right now.

>>"So help me though, if you screw with my love life again, I'll have the echoes help devise some godawful form of revenge even you won't find funny."

"What she said." Gawain managed to add finally, trying to look as determined as she was and not crack up at the whole situation as she stormed off with the picnic basket. He gave a final warning look at Sam.

>>”I’m sure you’ll enjoy expressing yourself tomorrow morning at our next spar session… and you should know by now I wouldn’t let anything serious happen to either of you.”

"I know. You're still an ass."

>>”Best not upset her, she packs a punch for someone her size.”

"Surprise" Gawain finally grinned as he marched after Eve and out of the Danger Room before they could get stuck in another training "C'mon Eve let's get out of here. I'm starving..."

Enjoy the picnic... The statement echoes behind her, and she waited for Gawain to catch up before shutting the door behind them. Without Sam there, she walked a bit more gingerly, exhaustion starting to show through now that the adrenaline was starting to wear off. She had escaped without passing out though. That was a step up from last time.

"Figured we shouldn't let the food go to waste at least." She gave a little smile as Gawain's last remark echoed her own thoughts. She pulled her braid over her shoulder, the bow from the morning loose now and just ribbons danging from the end. The echoes noted her hair was free of sand though.

"So, kitchen, living room? It is a picnic basket, I guess we could eat outside too if you wanted." She adjusted the basket, the injuries from the danger room scabbing on the other arm. She'd clean them better later, but food seemed a lot better right now. Food, and sleep. For once she was far more tired than she was nervous about the playbacks she'd have to deal with. After today, they couldn't be much worse than the danger room session.

>>"Figured we shouldn't let the food go to waste at least."

"Let's hope he cooks better than he plans dates." Gawain smirked, following her down the hallway and towards the exit.

>>"So, kitchen, living room? It is a picnic basket, I guess we could eat outside too if you wanted."

"Let's go outside. I could use some real sunlight." the young knight decided. Sunshine greeted them as they walked through the front door, mixed with the happy barking of Angua who had been prowling the Mansion grounds. Gawain scratched her behind the ears, even though the hellhound was more occupied with sniffing at the basket. He looked around for a picnic spot.

"How about over there?" he pointed at a spot in the shade of a willow tree, off the main path around the building.

It was nice outside, and Evelyn breathed deeply, letting the sunlight soak on her face and hair for a moment, white hair standing out even more here in the light. She smiled as Angua approached, careful not to let the dog sniff too vigorously and sneak away with any of the food, then nodded at Mirror's suggestion; the natural shade would leave the grass cool and the air cooler, but the willow tree wouldn't shed as bad as some of the other trees at least. No one wanted leaves in their food.

Setting the basket down, she sat next to it and fished through the objects inside. She pulled the soda out, which accounted for most of the basket's weight, and then a few sandwiches. There was peanut butter and jelly, then ham sandwiches, but the thing that made her blink in surprise and shake her head were the few sandwiches that had the crust cut off.

"I'm not sure whether to be amused, or frightened... He cut the crust off. Jensen is probably the only person who knows I like my sandwiches best that way." She said, scooting the basket towards Gawain as she unwrapped one of the pb&js. The grapes, cookies, and extra sandwiches were still in the basket, and she took a bite, shrugging her shoulders.

"It hasn't tried to bite me back yet. I think we're safe."

They settled down in the shade and Gawain sighed, enjoying the fact that nothing was trying to kill/maul/chase them. Angua followed, lying down at their feet, giving both of them the 'feed me' eyes.

Eve opened the basket.

>>"I'm not sure whether to be amused, or frightened... He cut the crust off. Jensen is probably the only person who knows I like my sandwiches best that way... It hasn't tried to bite me back yet. I think we're safe."

"Maybe it's just his mother instincts kicking in" Gawain chuckled, reaching for another sandwich. "So... how are you feeling? Have the playbacks stopped?"

Food, quiet and sunshine were probably good for that. Still, Eve suddenly fainting would have greatly ruined the picnic...

Evelyn chewed her bite of sandwich slowly at Gawain's question, and fiddled with a can of soda as she assessed herself. The echoes were a bit quiet now, which was nice, but they occasionally remarked about what Angua was doing, or a nearby squirrel. There was a small ladybug on a leaf behind Gawain. 6 spots. After their performance in the danger room it was as if they were reminding her that all their information would not be useful.

"I feel ok. Exhausted, honestly. No playbacks right now, but I think next time I'll risk the full nights sleep the day before a Danger Room session. Working with no sleep is one thing, I'm surprised I could hit anything today." She shook her head, and popped open a can of soda. She resisted digging around more in the basket for the moment. Knowing Sam he'd hide a note somewhere near the bottom, and that would just embarrass her further.

"I'm not sure fun would exactly be the right word for that experience, but some parts were nice. Then again, as nice as it was to have them gone for a few minutes, I have kind of grown to rely on the echoes and their feedback. Not that knowing what bugs are nearby will help much in the future..." She took another bite and shrugged. "Playbacks are impossible to deal with though, awake or asleep..." She shivered slightly just at the idea of them. She hated dealing with her memories. It wasn't always the content, but the sense of repetition that seemed to sink in with them involved. Nothing happened once. Everything was doomed to be repeated.

>>"I feel ok. Exhausted, honestly. No playbacks right now, but I think next time I'll risk the full nights sleep the day before a Danger Room session. Working with no sleep is one thing, I'm surprised I could hit anything today."

"All things considered, you did pretty well" Gawain smirked "I don't think I woulda done that good at my first DR session. That owl thing was freaky."

She had mentioned before that she did not sleep well or often, and it bothered Gawain the same the second time around.

>>"I'm not sure fun would exactly be the right word for that experience, but some parts were nice. Then again, as nice as it was to have them gone for a few minutes, I have kind of grown to rely on the echoes and their feedback. Not that knowing what bugs are nearby will help much in the future... Playbacks are impossible to deal with though, awake or asleep..."

"Yeah some parts were nice" Gawain grinned before he set the rest of his ham sandwich down where Angua immediately snatched it up. Scooting over he ended up behind Evelyn.

"C'mon, lean back." he said, putting a hand on her shoulder. The tree trunk was behind him, and they could both sit back comfortably, with her back to his chest, if she wanted to. "So... is there anything I can do to make you deal with the playbacks easier?..."

>>"...That owl thing was freaky."

Evelyn chuckled slightly , and the recent memories easily flickered through her mind in vivid detail. The slight dappled feather pattern, toothed beak and large golden eyes planted themselves at the forefront of her thoughts. "I think the worst thing was trying to sneak up on it when it's head could turn around like an owls. I'm just glad it's not something that would ever--well, likely-- show up in real life." With the x-men, nothing was really impossible.

The echoes picked up on Gawain's movement, flickered to a moment as Angua snatched the sandwich, and then he was sitting back against the tree. At his suggestion, she leaned backwards, and shifted until she comfortably nested against the Mirrorwalker. The contact stopped her echoes for a moment, but they came back with quiet remarks tracking the dogs movements by the food. Shutting her eyes for a moment, she sighed deeply and shook her head at Gawain's question.

"I don't really know. I used to draw before I slept, taped all my old pictures of favorite memories on the wall of my room just to have something positive to wake up to... I lost a lot of my art during the riots, and now I'm just trying to find a new normal I guess. The problem with the playbacks is they feel real. When I wake up, it's just hard to... ground myself, I guess." She shifted, trying to think of a better way for him to understand.

"I feel like a plant that got my roots ripped up. I don't like that feeling. It's like and avalanche plows over me. You get spun around so many times, you don't know what way is up to dig yourself out." She took a sip of a soda, then set it back down and shut her eyes, leaning back against him and listening to Angua sniff by the picnic basket.

>>"I don't really know. I used to draw before I slept, taped all my old pictures of favorite memories on the wall of my room just to have something positive to wake up to... I lost a lot of my art during the riots, and now I'm just trying to find a new normal I guess. The problem with the playbacks is they feel real. When I wake up, it's just hard to... ground myself, I guess."

Gawain remembered the first time he had seen Eve woken up from a nightmare. It must have been terrifying, re-living real memories in vivid detail. The mirrorwalker was not sure he could have lived with that for years and stayed sane. No wonder Eve did not sleep much.

>>"I feel like a plant that got my roots ripped up. I don't like that feeling. It's like and avalanche plows over me. You get spun around so many times, you don't know what way is up to dig yourself out."

"Well... I'm here if you need me." Gawain said, wrapping an arm around her waist as she leaned back against him. Angua chomped away on the sandwich and rolled on her back.

"I mean, I know what it's like to have a mutation you can't turn off. Too bad you're not dating an adapted... hey, maybe you could get the room next to Miss T's? And sleep in her aura? Bet that would stop the echoes for a night..."

Evelyn relaxed slightly as Gawain spoke. The physical contact felt comforting, and she smiled at his remark. "That helps a lot, honestly. Jensen was always a good bodyguard but he never was much help with the Playbacks..." The echoes noted Angua sniffing around the picnic basket, and she hooked her foot under the basket handle and scooting a couple inches to the side before the bloodhound could investigate it too much. She didn't open her eyes to do it though. Nice thing about her memory was she could know where things were without looking. As a kid, she would shut her eyes and run around the living room, finding her way by memory. She freaked a few kids out trying it at school. Her teachers weren't as amused.

>>"I mean, I know what it's like to have a mutation you can't turn off. Too bad you're not dating an adapted..."

"I think I'm enjoying just dating you." She smiled, glancing at him then feeling slightly shy and looking away again.

>>hey, maybe you could get the room next to Miss T's? And sleep in her aura? Bet that would stop the echoes for a night..."

"Might work." Evelyn said slowly, considering. She opened her eyes and thought about it for a second, letting the echoes help pull up her more frequent memories about what an adapted was. "I've never been around one though, so it would probably depend on what effect she had on my powers. She could shut off all the 'noise', true, but I've grown up with it for so long, I don't know exactly what that'd do.

"My concern would be that it would be like when you sit in a car and listen to the radio. Every so often you turn it up a little more, so eventually the music just gets louder and louder. If you don't turn it down before you get back in, you get blasted by the volume. Turning off the echoes might not even be the bad part. Having them turn back on could be..."

She mused over it for a moment, and took a sip of the soda she had set nearby. She liked the idea of sleeping without her playbacks for a bit, but the Echoes and Playbacks sort of went together. As annoying as they could be at times, she felt safe always having that amount of extra awareness nearby to point out things she might have missed otherwise. They got her out of a few bad situations, and, while the mansion was safe, if something were to ever go wrong and she didn't have the echoes during it she'd feel blind.

"I could always talk with her sometime though, and just see if she helps or hurts with my powers... It's a good thing to know."

>>"I think I'm enjoying just dating you."

"Good" Gawain smiled and pressed a kiss on the top of her head, the only part of her he could reach without upsetting their comfortable position. Her hair smelled good. He felt a moment of regret for promising not to kiss her again unless she asked. Sucks to be a knight sometimes.

>>"...My concern would be that it would be like when you sit in a car and listen to the radio. Every so often you turn it up a little more, so eventually the music just gets louder and louder. If you don't turn it down before you get back in, you get blasted by the volume. Turning off the echoes might not even be the bad part. Having them turn back on could be..."

Gawain tuned back into the conversation just in time to realize exactly how much he did not know about Evelyn and her echoes yet. He wondered how an adapted would effect them. In fact he wondered how it would affect him, gender bending and all...

>>"I could always talk with her sometime though, and just see if she helps or hurts with my powers... It's a good thing to know."

"Yeah... I mean, there is a couple of them out there, I have run into them by accident before. It's better to be prepared so you are not surprised, I guess."

Angua made a whining noise as the basket was pulled out of reach, then settled for resting her head on Evelyn's lap.

"Whatever... um, what you did, in the Danger Room today. You know, you are not half bad in stressful situations." Gawain chuckled "You learn fast."

Evelyn scratched Angua behind the ears, and blushed at Gawain's compliment. She could feel the movement of his laugh against her back, and glanced back, fiddling with the ribbon on her braid somewhat sheepishly. "I've always been a fast learner, but that's mostly because I never forget things so I really only have to learn it once. It takes practice still to get things down, but the instructions stick, which is the useful part. Honestly though, I never expected to feel capable of doing anything other than work in the museum though. Jensen always fought my battles for me... It's probably going to sound really silly, but I just always assumed I'd never be able to fight my own."

She was reminded of their first meeting, when she was still bound and determined to show Jensen she could stand on her own two feet. She had felt offended when Gawain tried to help, wanting to prove she didn't need someone to watch out for her. After her handler left, she got herself into enough trouble that she started to doubt herself and her confidence fell. Now, she was somewhere in the middle. A little bit vulnerable, but having a better understanding for what she could do.

She tied her ribbon back in a bow as she considered it, and straightened the ends of it. "It feels... odd, being in a fight, honestly... The echoes help because they point out things around me, so if something is thrown they can tell me to dodge, or keep notes on where everything is. Then having my memory makes it easier because I know where everything is. If I dropped a book, unless someone moves it I know where to go back for it. Jensen always suspected I think faster than most people too, because I respond so fast to what's happening. Since I don't have anything to really compare it to though, I'd have to take his word on it." She looked down at Angua, then up at the tree above them, studying the way the light illuminated the leaves. Then she blushed and glanced back at Gawain.

"I'm rambling, I'm sorry, I mean..." The echoes shifted to the mirrorwalker, and her blush deepened when she realized she started to stare. She gestured towards the basket instead. "Sam packed cookies, if you want one..."