(no subject)

[not_so_smooth]

Sam felt somewhat guilty about standing outside Dr. Magnus's office once again, looking for advice. He knew that she said she was always happy to help him if she had time, but sometimes Sam just felt like some annoying kid taking her attention away from more important things. She had never made him feel like that, quite the opposite, but Dr. Magnus was... Dr. Magnus and he couldn't help but feel a little intimidated.

Still, she had never served him wrong so far and he really respected her so when something really mattered, he came to her for advice about it. He was already feeling better about the situation with Cassie and his growing feelings for her. For all Aphrodite's... Aphroditeness he had come away from their talk feeling a bit better.

But when Sam needed advice on something big, it always came back to Dr. Magnus. Knocking on her office door, he cleared his throat.

"Dr. Magnus, it's Sam. If you've got a moment I'd like to talk to you about something."

Comments

[not-so-smooth.livejournal.com]

"Plus, advice just sounds better when coming from a proper British accent," Sam said. Or maybe he just really liked her accent. Either way, it sounded very good.

"I think Zell took my advice just because he's the one person on the island who is more of a spaz than I am."

[notsocommon]

"I wouldn't so far as to refer to you as a spaz," Helen said gently. "You're actually quite mature for a boy of your age, Sam, and I should say so more often."

In so many ways, he reminded her of Will - the good ways, though, and she was eager to see him grow up and do good things.

[not-so-smooth.livejournal.com]

"You don't have to say it," Sam said with a shrug, even as he blushed a bit at the compliment.

"I mean, you prove it to me all the time by how much faith you put in me and how much you help me. I know you wouldn't invest to much time in me if you didn't believe in me."

[notsocommon]

"And I keep wanting to prove that to you," Helen reminded him. "Because I think intelligence and hard work should be rewarded."

Helen tucked her hair back behind her ear. "How is school going, by the way?"

[not-so-smooth.livejournal.com]

Sam wanted to do more to make her proud, he wanted to do exceptional things. He'd discovered an alien race and saved the world twice. But he still didn't want his high school years to be where he peaked.

"Good, I've got three classes with Dr. Langowski. I'm her only student in Speed Reading, actually. But that class is helping me in the others a lot."

[notsocommon]

"Most likely, yes. I spent many a sleepless night when I was at Oxford," Helen said, grinning. "We had to read by lamplight, then, or candlelight. It was quite different than the advantages we have now, I assure you. Of course, you're not going to replace your favorite teacher with Dr. Langowski, are you? I would be so cross."

[not-so-smooth.livejournal.com]

"You know that you're the only one for me, Dr. Magnus," Sam said, giving her a grin. He doubted that she would really be all that bothered. Not that anyone could ever replace her, but everyone that Sam knew that knew Dr. Magnus adored her. He was pretty sure she could handle it if some kid she was helping suddenly liked another professor more than her.

But, he doubted that would ever happen.

"I mean, unless Dr. Langowski is going to start taking up topless sunbathing."

[notsocommon]

"Cheeky monkey. You'd be whipped for that back in my day," Helen said, shaking her head a little.

"I do appreciate the praise, though. Believe it or not, I get a bit insecure sometimes. Especially here on the island - I've done extraordinary things, yes, but I'm no superhero."

[not-so-smooth.livejournal.com]

"Had they even invented the whip yet in your day?" Sam teased, grinning more. She had really been asking for it with the 'in my day comment' so he didn't feel too bad making it.

"And I'd think you were amazing even if you hadn't done extraordinary things," he said with a shrug. "It's not the things that you do that make you an extraordinary person, Dr. Magnus. It's just who you are. How you help people and care about them, how you joke, how hard you work..."

[notsocommon]

"Will says I make terrible jokes. I'm so glad there's at least one person on the island who has some sense about him," Helen said, smirking a little.

Still, it touched her that he thought so highly of her. "Well, you know, anyone has the potential to be extraordinary, so long as they have friends to help foster it."

[not-so-smooth.livejournal.com]

"It was a good joke," he said, smiling back at her.

"And you're good at that, aren't you? Fostering people, I mean. It seems like you're really good at that and just... giving people what they need to succeed."

[notsocommon]

"I won't be here forever, Sam. The future needs bright and brilliant leaders just as the present does and if that can be my legacy, I want it to be. I want to know that when I'm gone, I've left the world in capable hands. It's much more important now, considering I'm no longer immortal."

Helen smiled a bit. "That's a bit morbid, though, and it won't happen for a while yet."

[not-so-smooth.livejournal.com]

"You're what, like thirty though in body right now?" Sam said. He knew she was much, much older but Sam had seen her in a bikini and she had looked damn good.

"But I think there's going to be more than just that as a legacy. I mean, you and Will are super serious, right? And the island seems, uh, seems like a pretty good place to raise kids. And there's lots of them..."

[notsocommon]

"First off, I'm closer to forty than thirty, but I thank you for your flattery. Second, I suspect Will might die of a heart attack if I suggested adding to the island's population just yet. I'm not even married."

She pressed her lips together, hating how that sounded. "Not that a couple has to be married to raise a child, they most certainly do not. I would just prefer to be married if I did, or at least have a steady partner."

[not-so-smooth.livejournal.com]

"Oh, well, I hope it happens before too long," Sam said, realizing that he might have stepped into a sort of sensitive subject.

"It just seems like you, um, like you really like helping others. Especially mentoring people. I don't want to say it's mothering because that seems, sort of negative. But it's mothering. In a good way."

[notsocommon]

"I was a mother, once," Helen agreed.

"I had a daughter named Ashley. She'd be just a bit older than you now, actually, were she still alive. Ashley was my entire world for the time she was with me and while I could hardly regret those years I did have with her, hers has always been the hardest loss. I could endure anything but I couldn't bear to lose a child again. Not like how I lost Ashley."

[not-so-smooth.livejournal.com]

"Oh," Sam said, not sure if he should ask about Ashley further or just let it go. On one hand, she might like to have other people know about her. On the other, it could be really painful. Sam really, really sucked at this stuff.

"This place though, it seems a really great place to raise kids. I mean, yeah it's dangerous at times, but I think a lot less dangerous than most places. Plus all the people from all the different cultures and stuff here."

[notsocommon]

"I don't think what killed her would find her here, no. I know people who are dead can come here," Helen said, pressing her lips together slightly. "And I pray every day that Ashley comes here to the island so that I can see her again or, at least, so I'll know she's happy."

[not-so-smooth.livejournal.com]

Sam felt like he had opened up a very sore spot with Dr. Magnus without meaning to. He could only imagine how hard it would be to deal with the hope that someone you had lost might show up.

"I hope she comes here too. I'd like to meet her. I mean, hey, maybe kids that you have in the future and don't even know about will show up."

[notsocommon]

Helen arched a brow. "I'm not sure who'd be fathering said children. You know that Will and I aren't together at home, yes?"

At least not from the point she was from. Maybe in the future...

[not-so-smooth.livejournal.com]

"Didn't you just spend a good amount of time convincing me that sort of doesn't matter here if you really love the person?" Sam asked, giving her a look. Once again, it was a lot easier to make a judgement on the situation when he wasn't involved.

[notsocommon]

"Well, no, I just...don't have any prospects back home, Sam. I'm quite busy with my work. I've no time to date."

It seemed silly admitting it but if she couldn't trust Sam, who could she trust?

[not-so-smooth.livejournal.com]

"So you're too busy to have kids back home," he said, somewhat slowly as he tried to make sense of what she was saying.

"And you have the time and leisure to have kids here. But you won't. Because... you're too busy back home. Have I got that right?"

[notsocommon]

"It's a little more complicated than that, Sam. Will's not ready to have children. So unless I go have them fathered by someone else, I'm to be childless for the moment," Helen said, unsure whether or frown or laugh. She tried for both and ended up just plain laughing.

[not-so-smooth.livejournal.com]

"Right, so finding a baby-daddy probably isn't the way to go," he said, rubbing his jaw thoughtfully as he considered her situation.

"But seriously, what's he waiting for. He's old. He has a job. He's got a wife. Maybe I should have a talk with Will."