station72 | [ closed ] what if cinderella had to save herself?

[ closed ] what if cinderella had to save herself?

CHARACTERS: Avior: Rogue, Bakugo, Peter, Joshua, Elliot, Kate
WHERE: The Red Coast (Barracks)
WHEN: Early Day :038
SUMMARY: Rogue sends out an FYI to her broodmates.
WARNINGS: Talk of violence/injuries; will update as needed.

[ It's early. The sun's barely come into the sky, but she's been up for hours, sleep an elusive creature thanks to the pain in her neck and the fear of what form her nightmares would take after the previous night's events. She's been working hard to keep her shields up, wanting to be sure her broodmates wouldn't be disturbed by the emotional aftermath of the ordeal, but it hasn't been easy and—

They need to know. It feels right to tell them, a roundabout way of taking care of them by warning them of her state, and she doesn't have the strength to question it right then. So instead she opens her mind a little, reaching out to all of them slowly, making sure she has a hold on each of those threads before gently sending along the message from where she sits curled up in a corner of one of their small buildings. Her smooth southern drawl comes through even in her mental voice. ]

( I'm sorry to bother you all so early, but something happened last night I think you should all know about. I had— a physical altercation with Bucky, and I'm a bit worse for wear from it. I'm gonna try and keep it to myself as much as I can, but I thought you should know in case I slip up. )

[ And then, to Kate specifically— ]

( It's nice to have you with us, by the way, sugar. I'm awful sorry we have to meet like this, though. )

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[ It's a kind of consideration that honestly never would've occurred to Joshua. His idea of dealing with things is bottling them up, using politeness as a shield, and avoiding the hell out of people as much as he can get away with.

So there's a tinge of surprise coloring his thoughts, when he responds - that she's so upfront about this. ]

( Were you injured? Do you need anything? )

[ Truth be told, Rogue is also usually the sort to bottle things up and avoid dealing with whatever it is. Living with a telepath taught her that it only works when her shields are at full strength, which they most certainly are not at that moment. So instead of risking being a burden to her team later on, she'll address the matter—

And then go about avoiding it afterward. ]

( I'm a little bruised and it hurts to talk, but I'll be alright. I've been through worse than this. Thank you for asking, sugar. )

[ There's genuine gratitude there, and affection for someone who feels like a part of her soul now. ]

[ Gratitude and affection are - well, he shies straight back from any of that, because clearly that just means she doesn't know him well enough yet, if she hasn't realized he's not worth wasting them on.

But there's one more pressing question here. ]

( Was the situation satisfactorily resolved? )

[ By which he really means - do we need to worry about this happening again? ~~Does he gotta shank a dude?~~ ]

[ Oh Joshua, just you wait. When she knows you better, she'll practically drown you in affection. And no, there's no getting out of it. ]

( I don't think it's very likely to happen again. )

[ And if it does, she'll be prepared for it. ]

[ Just don't die like his last big sister and all will be cool.

He's willing to trust her assessment, though - it feels sincere, and it's a fair bit easier to judge intent given their entire circumstance here. ]

( Just...keep us informed, okay? Even if he didn't mean to do it - that just makes it even more important for us to intervene if we have to.

He'd probably prefer it that way, too. )

[ He doesn't know Bucky, but he still feels confidence in saying so. He does know what it's like for your control to be in something (someone) else's hands entirely. ]

Edited (i tyep gud) 2018-01-24 00:52 (UTC)

[ She's not going anywhere anytime soon, sugar. ]

( I will. And you're right, I'm sure that's what he'd prefer. Thank you, sugar. )

[ Not all of their brood have taken this news so well, or handled it with such pragmatism. She appreciates Joshua's way of looking at things. ]

[ Barely a day after his own distinct "meltdown", handled by Elliot and Hadrian's quick response, this is not the news he wants to get. Not even from a teammate he barely knows and understands. Like a bad hangover, he's still treading water and the emotional dampening ( #blessuelliot ), but has enough of himself together to recognize what emotions poured off of her when she was fighting back. ]

"Physical altercation". What bullshit, just call it what it is. That psychotic fuck tried to kill you.

Edited 2018-01-23 06:14 (UTC)

[ Well, okay then. If you're gonna take that tone with her, then she'll let go of the nice turns of phrase and be frank. ]

( Yeah, he did. It wasn't the first time someone tried to kill me; I doubt it'll be the last. But this wasn't his fault. )

How's it not his fault -- and why's everyone so quick to absolve someone of their actions?

[ what happened to personal responsibility ]

Nearly getting killed shouldn't be an "oh i hate to bother you about this" matter!

[ Shouldn't it? It always had been before. Anything she could walk away from was just another day on the job; shaking that instinct is going to be easy. ]

( Sugar, I appreciate that you're upset, but it's more complicated than that. I think what happened was a result of what the symbiote does to him, and that's not something any of us choose. )

Nuh-uh. How's a brain-parasite designed to make us all one big happy hivemind supposed to cause that?

[ Disbelief. Confusion. ( Why's she defending a guy who hurt her? // How dare he hurt her. ) ]

What if he did this to Joshua, or Hadrian? Or that new girl? Would you defend him then?

( Yes, actually, I would. That brain-parasite gives us special skills, but from what I've heard, they all come at a cost. Whatever it does to Bucky — I couldn't feel him in there while it was happening. He wasn't in control. )

[ There's a firm insistence to her words, a stubbornness to see the situation in any other way. They can argue about this all day and she still won't change her opinion. ]

If he's not in control, then why's he here? Attacking members of our team - whether he means to or not - isn't helpful. It's just dangerous.

Get him help, because if he lays a finger on anyone else --

[ In his anger is a deep, underling concern. A need to protect that hasn't been defined -- because she seems wants to overlook dangerous behavior on the grounds that that guy "can't control it". He won't change his stance either, and with a crack -- he snaps his connection to Rogue shut.

Slams the door. Barricades himself behind force and fire as best as he can. ]

[ Oh, sugar. She can see that concern plain as day, has known so many who cover up their emotions with anger, and it breaks her heart. If only he'd held on a little longer, she'd have assured him of what Shepard told her — they can't kill each other, the symbiote won't allow it. But it'll have to wait. And really, maybe it's a conversation best had in person. ]

[ there's a strength to rogue that he's very much aware of, the kind where she can certainly take care of herself. even still, little pinpoints of sensation in constellations leave him prickling, edging on the line of defensive. rogue's call, warm and familiar in tone, has peter parting a thick velveteen curtain in response, softer than glass. he wraps her voice around his finger, giving a soft tug back. the tone that follows is cool, flat. ]

( This Bucky doesn't plan on a repeat performance does he? )

[ held a beat, and then warmer: ]

( Looking for a distraction? )

[ There's a smoothness to Peter's mind that she loves, that calm celestial warmth a safe haven that she'd like to stay in for a while. Maybe one day he'll let her and she'll find a brief reprieve from her own mind with its tangled web of tragedies. Her attention focuses on him when she feels that little tug, and it's affection that flow across the thread between them. ]

( No, he doesn't. And I could certainly use a distraction right now. )

[ it’s difficult to let anyone stay in the little fissures of his mind. juno worked his way in there, elliot was hatched with him from the very start of avior’s formation — and it allows him a branch that’s developed longer than the rest. but rogue... rogue feels like a natural extension, one that doesn’t outright resist the bond. peter tries not to himself. if only because this? it could be more of a hindrance to deny than to appease and learn to control.

the affectionate feeling is mirrored

in earnest. ]

( So long as you’re certain, darling. I don’t take physical altercations lightly. But I pray you know what you’re doing.

Do you like card games? )

[ Does she know what she's doing? That's the real question here, and one she's asked herself since becoming part of the Nest. Is she making the right decisions, is she handling all of this as she should? Does she even deserve any of this? It's a neverending spiral of questions that just try to lead her down to that basement in her mind and so she resists their call now, focusing instead on that calm mind that she can tell is so much more complex than he seems to let on. ]

( I like anything that lets me spend time with people. )

[ An honest answer, if incredibly sad. She'll do just about anything if it means having a chance to spend time with someone, to be close to them. Years of feeling unwanted and unwelcome have scarred her as deeply as half a lifetime of physical isolation. ]

[ a lonely fissure he knew when he was young, packed away because there wasn’t any more room for it to split wider. he takes a moment to mull it over, the faint sound of slowly riffling cards one deck at a time. ]

( Wonderful, I’ll teach you. This game takes ages to play, you’ll love it. )

[ and he isn’t lying. one deck, two decks, a table scattered full with them, dozens. it’s a lesson in how to be sly and patient, a series of words that at first won’t quite make sense, but in time and with practice will mean something to the game itself. he’s through in showing her the set up itself, a prologue to the game itself in a guise of tranquil card shuffling and laying out to easy her troubled mind at least a bit. a balm of repetitive sounds, the ruffling of cards. ]

( Shall I come find you while I set us up? )

[ Anything that takes time and focus is just what she needs right now, a project to keep her mind off everything weighing on it. What happened with Bucky, her worry for him and what he's going through, her concern for Bakugo, the guilt over being a burden to her broodmates. All of it combined threatens to crush her, so she gratefully embraces this chance to escape that fate for a little while. ]

( I'd appreciate it, please. Thank you, sugar. )

[ The game seems complex, but she isn't daunted by that. It'll be nice to learn something new, and it is relaxing to go through the mental motions of setup. ]

[ the mindlink makes it far easier to explain the rules, and easier to lay out a game when the tools aren't at your immediate physical disposal. he knows it won't completely assuage her thoughts on the situation entirely, but they could all perhaps use a distract of some kind. stepping into one of their designated buildings is like breaking the water's surface. he's pulling the topmost veils piece by piece as he finally approaches her, the sound of decks riffling gradually dying down as he spots her and leans into her space slightly.

he speaks with her through the link quietly, letting the room resonate in its own pale dawn hush ]

( Have you slept at all? Or just a particularly early riser? )

[ he seats himself beside her, folding a leg beneath himself as he shrugs off the mantle of scarves some more. ]

[ She absorbs the rules as much as she's able, though it's doubtful she won't make at least a few mistakes during the first game or two. Still, it seems an interesting game, and she's glad for the distraction and time to spend with him.

As Hadrian (the name still resonates ever so slightly off to her) enters the building, it's like a ray of sunshine entering her world. It feel right to have him nearby, and he's certainly the broodmate she feels closest to so far. She moves over on the carefully made bed to give him room to sit, and an automatic smile spreads softly across her lips. ]

( I tried to sleep, but it was hard. I didn't want my nightmares to both any of you; pain makes it more difficult to keep my shields up. )

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[ closed ] what if cinderella had to save herself?

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