Xaviers!

"I... guess? I don't feel any different."

"Well, of course not -- it's probably happened gradually. For most people, that'd be the focused work of quite some time in the gym. You don't see it, because you look at it every day."

Will stood up and took a step back. "It's noticeable on you because, well, you don't really change. Benefit of being a shifter; y'always look perfect. But normally, you look a little more like...this," he...she said, as she shifted, losing a couple inches as familiar red hair cascaded down, familiar eyes and familiar proportions moving around under her plain jeans and t-shirt combo.

"Maybe a direct comparison will show you what I mean?" the Sammelgänger said, flexing. "This is more what I'm familiar with."

"What do you mean I don't really change? I don't look the same as when my powers came out."

"I mean okay, sometimes I think that's just... guesswork, but still."

"Well, it's all up in your head, yeah?," the other Sam said. "I knew the other you for a long time, and...well, she looked nearly the same the last time I saw her as she did the first time I met her. That's what happens when you look like you want to look -- and any changes were more dramatic and intentional. Mostly to scare freshman, I think.

You certainly don't randomly pack on pounds. Or she didn't, anyway. Maybe she was more firmly set? She was older than you are."

"I think calling a woman 'firmly set' isn't something very polite."

Will waved Sam's hand a bit dismissively. "Blame it on my clay-ness, then, for using a bad metaphor. There comes a time when anyone is less fluid than they were in their younger days -- not that we ever stop changing or whatnot, but the changes at age 30, 40, 80, 200 are less dramatic than for college students, and I'm not just talking about the Freshman 15."

"...well maybe for you two hundred isn't that dramatic but it's pretty drastic for everyone else."

"OK, well, think of the difference between when you were six and when you were seven compared to your parents between those ages, right? People change more when they're younger," she said, shrugging. "At a certain point, you just become comfortable in your own skin, and when you get to decide what your skin looks like..."

"I haven't been trying anything different, honest."

"Well, you may not have been trying, but you're definitley different," she said, walking over and rolling up her sleeve. "See?

...Flex with me here, Sam, I look ridiculous trying to get you to check out your own bod by myself," she grinned sheepishly.

"...I think this is going to look ridiculous regardless, but..."

She does as Will asks. There's definite differences.

"...why did you memorize me in the first place?"

"It wasn't intentional Just happens over time when you spend enough of it close to someone," she said, vaguely -- it wouldn't take a trained telepath to know that she was leaving something out. "Came in handy, though; I sat in a number of boring-ass meetings for you while you went off and did who knows what with who knows who," she grinned.

"And look at that. See? You done bulked up."

"Or I might just look different from her."

"A little, sure. But I'm just saying you're beefier. Believe it or not," Will shrugged, shifting back into his own form.

"Well I don't... know what that means. I guess I've been pushing myself a bit."

"It doesn't have to mean anything. It's just something I noticed, that's all. You want to be more muscular, that's entirely up to you."

"I don't... mind it so much? I feel like I haven't been keeping up with people."

"In what sense?"

"Tereza's got this thing where she acts like I'm made of glass sometimes."

"Ahh, so you want to show her you can handle yourself...wherever things need to be handled?" he put, delicately.

"Well it's not... a bad idea or anything, aye?"

"I mean, other than the time I... sort of died because of it."

Will stayed silent, and nodded.

"It was kind of a...memorable day."

"I still don't know what to make of what I saw, Will."

"What did you see?"

"It was... almost like when I'm in the tank. Like those times that I'm... more."

"I saw all those little lights around me and I saw them going out. I knew there was something I was supposed to do, but I couldn't do it."

"Do you know what it is you were supposed to do?"

"Like I needed to... guide them, or something. It was very fuzzy before everything went black."

"Well, hopefully, you won't have to experience everything fading to black anytime soon."

"Still feels like I failed someone, aye? Like I know nobody's blaming me for getting stabbed and all but that's not the part I feel guilty about."

"You blame yourself because you had a thing you needed to do, and don't know what it was, who it was for, or how to do it?"

"I know it sounds silly when you put it that way, but it just felt wrong."

"I'm not trying to make it sound silly at all!" Will said, putting his hands up. "Goodness knows, I don't want to open that door lest I be roasted right out of here.

I just...wish I knew how I could help, there. Sounds a little bit...above my pay grade, yeah?"

"It just feels like whenever I'm starting to understand this shite, there's another wrinkle."

"That's a perfect subtitle for my new book: 'Life.'" Will chuckled.

"Har har. Somehow I think the number of people who have quite the same problems are pretty few."

"You're absolutely right -- everyone's got their own baggage to handle, and while I'd love to Yoda it up here and give you young'ens a good bit of advice...I don't know what's expected of you, on that level. It's...not for people like me to decide."

"Well I'm not... trying to put you in a difficult position, aye? It's just you're the only person around here that I can trust who seems to know anything about this."

"Or at the least, you don't think I'm crazy."

"Oh, I know you're crazy, but that doesn't mean you're not talking truth.

I'm always willing to listen, and if there's something you can think of that I can do..."

"I get that. Worst case you'll just say 'no,' aye?"

"I find it hard to believe you'll come up with something I'd say no to," he grinned, lopsidedly.