Isaac opened the door.
"Hi Nat," he greeted, letting her inside.
"Hi Ike," Natalie replied. "How you doing?"
"I'm great, and yourself?"
"Good."
"Cool. Tay's in the lounge room. Do you know the way?"
"That's the room we teleported into last week?"
"Yep."
"I know how."
"Cool."
They parted and Natalie headed to the lounge room.
"Hi," she said, a little shyly, upon entry.
Taylor
Taylor jumped up and indicated a seat.
"Hi Natalie," he greeted, "come on in and have a seat."
Natalie
Natalie smiled and sat down.
"So, how you been?" she asked.
Taylor
"The... the usual," Taylor shrugged, sitting beside her again.
"Yourself? Have you contacted your parents since last week?"
Natalie
Natalie nodded.
"Yeah. Told 'em all about it. Well, not all about it, but y'know, what they should know," she replied. "I don't know if they'll call or not. Mostly they trust me, so yeah."
Taylor
Taylor nodded.
"That's fine."
He held his hand out.
"Should we begin?"
Natalie
"Yeah, that's a good idea," Natalie smiled.
She took his hand, sat back and concentrated.
Taylor
Taylor sat back as well, his eyes on where their hands met.
"Have you ever done anything like this before?" he asked suddenly.
"I mean seeing someone often to work on something that's happened."
Natalie
"No," Natalie replied. "Not really. My grandmother had some problems before she died, and I tried to help her every visit before she died, but there is only so much than can be done about a deteriorating mind. She'd be good for awhile and then..."
Natalie shrugged.
"Old age, I guess. There has been the occasional friend who has had problems that I've fixed up a few times. Nothing like this, though."
Taylor
Taylor nodded.
"I don't know... what you see in there or anything," he indicated his head, "but if you come across anything you deem... well, dangerous, don't worry. That's what Tad's here for."
Natalie
Natalie took a moment before she replied.
"I don't really see anything specific," she said. "I can see the effects, not the cause. You're referring to your alterego?"
Taylor
"Specifically, yes," Taylor nodded.
"And... perhaps the cause of it."
He sighed and looked away from her.
Natalie
Natalie chewed her lip.
"May I ask?" she inquired softly, "or would you rather not talk about it?"
Taylor
"I'm sure you can sense that you can believe me when I say you don't want to know," Taylor murmured, wishing he could just tell her.
"Let's just say I was a torture victim."
Natalie
"Oh," Natalie replied softly. "Well, yes that would explain how you could get this bad. I'm... I'm sorry..."
She chewed her lip. What do you say to something like that?
Taylor
"Don't worry," Taylor insisted, turning back and squeezing her hand a little.
"It has nothing to do with anyone else, and they caught the guy anyway."
Natalie
Natalie nodded.
"That's good," she said. "I'm glad they caught him. Now he can't torture you or anyone else again."
Taylor
"That's what they keep telling me," Taylor shrugged.
"I guess we'll soon find out. The court hearings start this month."
Natalie
"Ahh, I see," Natalie replied. "And they want you to testify? Well, good luck."
She squeezed his hand.
Taylor
Taylor hesitated again, staring at their hands, then looked up at her.
"Thanks," he said wholeheartedly, "I mean, really."
Then he sighed.
"It might make your work harder around that time though."
Natalie
Natalie shrugged.
"It may, it may not," she said. "But thanks for the advance notice."
Taylor
Taylor nodded to himself.
"Would you want to come to one of the hearings?" he asked suddenly, trying to stop his face going red.
Natalie
"Uhh... sure... if you want me there..." Natalie replied uncertainly.
Going to court wasn't exactly on her top list of priorities.
Taylor
"It's just well... as much as anyone would hate to admit it, you're becoming a part of this," Taylor shrugged, getting slightly defensive.
"And it might help you actually know what 'this' is."
Natalie
Natalie chewed her lip and nodded.
"Point is well taken," she said. "And it may help at that."
Taylor
"Well, yeah," Taylor nodded.
"I mean if there's certain avenue's you're yet to explore by that time or something, you know. You know to go there or whatever."
Natalie
"Okay, cool," Natalie replied. "Do you know when it's on?"
She was starting to feel a little tired and glanced over at the clock. They had been talking for half an hour.
Taylor
"The first session is on the 20th. That's a Thursday. Then the other two are the Friday and Monday," Taylor offered.
"Maybe you could come to the Friday one? Or considering you'd be home by then the Monday, so you can just stay the night in Tulsa?"
Natalie
Natalie nodded.
"Okay," she said. "Sounds like a plan."
Taylor
"Great," Taylor nodded, mainly to himself.
There was another moment of silence.
"Have you got any siblings back home?"
Natalie
"Three brothers," Natalie replied. "Two older, one younger. And you've got six siblings, right?"
Yes, Natalie, reveal your fanhood.
Taylor
Taylor's eyebrows rose a little.
"Yeah," he replied.
"I don't... get to see them much anymore. Ike's and my apartment got literally hit by a tornado toward the end of last year and we've been staying here ever since. We found a place to move into but that won't be for another week or two."
He scratched his nose.
"I don't really see as much of the rest of my family as I should."
Natalie
Natalie nodded.
"That must suck," she said. "You get a lot of tornados around here?"
Taylor
"Well... Oklahoma is 'tornado country' supposedly," Taylor shrugged.
"But he hadn't really been involved in one until then. It was one of the scariest things of our lives. Well, of Zac and mine anyway."
Natalie
"Isaac wasn't there?" Natalie asked.
He did say that he shared the apartment with Isaac, right? Yes of course - this was Zac's place.
Taylor
"No, no. He was there," Taylor corrected.
"He just wasn't conscious. He'd gotten knocked out. Our main priority was to get him out because the whole apartment eventually caved in."
Natalie
"Oh!" Natalie exclaimed. "Well, that's just fantastic isn't it? Obviously you guys all survived okay."
She took in a deep breath, feeling a little more tired now.
Taylor
Taylor grinned.
"We've all survived a lot worse," he admitted.
Natalie
"Sounds a little grim," Natalie replied. "Worse things than a tornado, and being ina collapsing apartment block while one of you is unconscious?"
She raised her eyebrows. Y'know, torture aside.
Taylor
"We've all had our problems," Taylor shrugged, wondering exactly how much he should tell her.
Heck, they were going to be spending a lot of time together.
"Zac was taken by a stalker... the year before last I think. I don't know exactly what happened and I'm sure he wouldn't want it told. Isaac and I have both had run ins with Craig Morrison - the Spider."
He took a deep breath.
"And we've had a lot of dealings with alien hunters. It could be because we're in the public eye and they just figure we're easy targets. I don't know."
Natalie
"Wow," Natalie replied softly.
She was quiet for a moment.
"Or it could be because by attacking you guys, who are in the public eye, they can expose the lot of us?" she suggested. "Or maybe it's just coincidence."
Taylor
"It's happened too many times to be coincidence," Taylor just shook his head.
"Maybe we could have thought that before. But we've been targetted for a few reasons. That's... part of the reason behind Ike's nervous breakdown."
Natalie
"Oh."
Natalie didn't really know what else to say. She was quiet for a moment.
"And I suppose it isn't really something you can specifically avoid. You can't just go, okay alien hunters, Hanson season is over, come back next year."
Taylor
"Yeah, exactly," Taylor chuckled.
"If only it worked that way."
He tried to stop a yawn, but it didn't quite work.
Natalie
"I know how you feel," Natalie smiled in reference to his yawn.
She glanced at the clock.
"And hey, look at that. We've been here an hour."
She slowly started dissolving the use of her power (she didn't want to give him a shock or anything from cutting off too fast or something).
Taylor
Taylor ran his fingers through the front of his hair, then gave her a smile.
"If it's this tiring for me I'm not sure I want to know how it is for you," he attempted a joke.
"Do you know if it's always going to be like this, or if it gets better as it goes along?"
Natalie
Natalie shrugged.
"I should think it would get better," she replied. "There isn't usually this level of tiredness. But we can always cut down the time to half an hour if it gets too much."
Taylor
"Though you haven't really done it on this scale before, huh?" Taylor remembered.
He ground his teeth for a moment, thoughtfully.
"If you're too tired you can always stay for a while afterward. Just to recover, you know. For another half hour or so."
Natalie
"I'd be grateful," Natalie replied.
She yawned loudly, then covered her mouth and gave Taylor a rueful look.
"Lunch might be nice."
Taylor
Taylor chuckled.
"Sure," he agreed, "I think my stomach's about to complain as it is."
He eventually pulled himself from the lounge and indicated her to follow him, before showing her into the kitchen.
"Feel like anything particular?"
He opened the fridge door and stood there looking.
Zac and Natalie
Zac entered the kitchen at that point.
"I'm easy," Natalie began. "Just whatever -"
"Oh you hear that Tay," Zac said cheekily. "She's said she's easy. So, Nat, what are you doing tonight?"
Natalie stared at Zac.
"Uhh, sorry. Bad joke. Nevermind me, I'm an idiot," Zac nodded. "Ask anyone."
Taylor
"Yes, he's an idiot. I'd have to agree," Taylor murmured, beginning to pull out random things.
"We're just getting lunch," he told his brother, before turning back to Natalie.
"How does sandwiches sound?"
Natalie and Zac
"That'll be great," and Natalie stifled another yawn.
"Well, obviously not seeing as the very thought bores her," Zac joked. "Sandwiches aren't very interesting."
"They're fine, really."
"Me, I'm having noodles."
"Sandwiches are healthier."
"You're not a health freak are you?" Zac eyed her suspiciously.
"I like to keep my main meals healthy. In between snacks on the other hand..."
Taylor
"I like her more as we go along," Taylor chuckled, sparing Natalie a glance before going to the cupboard to get the bread.
"By the way, Zac's the only one with kids. Tell me how I'm not supposed to worry about their influences."
Zac and Natalie
"Ooh, hear that Nat?" Zac teased. "He likes you."
Natalie desperately fought back the blush.
"And my kids are all perfectly all right," Zac went on. "Saku hates eating vegetables just like every normal kid."
Taylor
"Saku is also half cat and could probably live without them," Taylor pointed out, getting out the cutlery.
He indicated everything sprawled across the counter.
"Take your pick of what you want and I'll put it together," he offered to Natalie.
Natalie and Zac
"Okay, thanks," Natalie said.
She looked over what was there, and told Taylor what she would like.
"That's completely besides the point," Zac declared.
But, finding himself auidenceless, Zac decided to start cooking his noodles.
Taylor
'It's not beside the point," Taylor pointed out, "if Saku's realised it, as he gets older he's going to debate it as much as he can. Unless in the meantime he grows to like something..."
He made Natalie's sandwiches and put them on a plate for her before making his own.
"Where's Ike?"
Zac and Natalie
Zac poured the water into pot.
"Three possibilities," Zac replied, now dumping in the noodle along with the sachet contents, "One, the music room, writing music. Two, his own room writing his latest novel. Three, somewhere that isn't the music room or his bedroom doing something that isn't music or novel related."
"That's decisive," Natalie remarked. "Thanks, Tay."
Taylor
"You're welcome."
Taylor smiled to himself, but not at what Zac had said - rather at Natalie already using his nickname.
"I'd probably wager on the music room. He's practically lived there for the past few weeks. Maybe we should set up a tent for him and start taking him meals."
Natalie and Zac
Natalie giggled and started eating her sandwiches.
"Naw," Zac replied. "He's telekinetic. He can get his own meals."
"Without leaving the room?"
"He figured out how to use his power without actually having to see anything. Although... I suppose he wouldn't be able to use it in the kitchen when he's in the music room... eh whatever."
Taylor
"Not quite," Taylor shook his head, "but I'll bet he's probably tried."
He took a bite out of his own sandwich before starting to put the stuff away.
"Want to practise after this then?" he asked Zac.
Zac and Natalie
"Yeah, sure why not?" Zac replied. "Hey, Nat, you wanna hang around and watch?"
Natalie swallowed her bite of sandwich.
"I should probably get home," she said. "Maybe another time."
Taylor
"That's cool," Taylor shrugged, before finishing off his food.
He brushed the crumbs off himself before heading for the door to show Natalie out.
"Same time next week?" he suggested, "have you organised a way to get back to Tulsa or should I send Tony to get you?"
Natalie
Natalie finished off her lunch and walked with Taylor to the door.
"Umm, would mind sending Tony?" she asked.
Taylor
"Sure, not a problem," Taylor shrugged, opening the door.
"I'll call you sometime during the week and give you his phone number."
He extended his hand to shake hers.
Natalie
Natalie shook Taylor's hand.
"That'll be great," she said. "Well, see you next week then."
Taylor
"Bye," Taylor smiled awkwardly, before waving and closing the door after her.
Then he headed back to the kitchen to finish tidying up.