la_belle_rogue | Tis the season

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Tis the season

[Private to the Admiral]
Archer: He had a dog once back home. Ah'd like him ta have it back, plus everythin' Archer's gonna need ta take care of it.
Charles: A book about Shi'ar history, but in English.
Erik: Let me take care of this one.
Jean: A framed photo of all the X-folk she remembers. Nothin' with those of us she hasn't actually met yet.
Iris: Ah'd like her ta have a scrapbook filled with reminders of all her good times with Wade, and the other folks she loves here.
Arthas: He needs a coffee pot of his own. And a bag of Highland Grog. Strongest coffee Ah've ever had.
Dean: A new leather jacket. A nice one.
Kara: A winter cape.
Victor: Ah want him ta have a plush toy version of his Daemon from the breach. And it should have a collar with Blink on the name tag.
Beatrix: A crane art spiral. In colors that represent peace, long life, and internal balance.
Raven: A set of sapphire jewelry. A necklace, a ring, earrings and a bracelet.

[Private to Bruce Banner and the other Infirmary staff + Iris]

Hey there, Doc. Ah know you're probably flooded right now, what with all post holiday crazy people have suddenly decided t'indulge in, but Ah was wonderin' if Ah might bend yer ear on somethin'.

Archer's got a real bad case of tinnitus. Boy's been shot so many times it's a small wonder he's still around. But Ah was wonderin' if there's anythin' ya'll could do ta help him so he could maybe get some sleep without a fan blowin' all night long.

[Now just Banner]

And on another note, Ah was wonderin' if we could chat a spell 'bout our inmates, and how they sort of inadvertently brought up some painful stuff in a real public way.

[Spam for Archer]

[She knocks on his door, because she doesn't want to give him a chance to run from this conversation. She'd given him enough time to cool off and calm down. Now it was time to talk.]

Archer, open up. It's me.

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Oh, what came up? As in, nothing I'm going to talk to you about?

Maybe not today, but Ah want ya t'know that when you're ready, Ah'll listen. Ah'm pretty good at that most days.

Listen to what? How I don't like getting stupid accusations thrown at me? Because there's two huge threads of me doing that all over the network, Rogue! Jesus! What the hell do you want?

[She gives him a level look, leans forward, elbows on her knees. In this, her patience is pretty endless.]

Y'know that's not what Ah mean, and y'know Ah'm not stupid enough ta believe ya think it is. What Ah want, is for ya ta know that ya can talk ta me. About anythin', and Ah'll listen.

[Archer glares back at her and crosses his arms over his chest, pulling into himself a little more than he realizes.]

No.

[It's the kind of "no" a small child would give, petulant and hurt and angry all at once.]

[She can out last petulance. She's not really here to make him talk. She's here to make him understand that she'll be there when he's ready to talk. It's a different thing.]

That's okay. [And she means it.] It doesn't have ta be today. These things take time. Ah know that.

Well then I hope you're ready for it not being ever because why. Would I ever. Want to talk about my best friend raping me.

It's not so much when ya want to, but when ya need to. [How could she help him understand? Only way she could think of. She goes first.]

Some years back, friend of mine and Ah ended up in a bad teleport. We showed up in enemy territory, no powers, no weapons, no clothes. [She still hate talking about this. It was one of those times she had nearly lost her mind for good. She can't meet his eyes to tell him this story, so she looks at her hands.]

We were captured pretty much on the spot. The guards they....[Her faces screws up into a look that is part sarcastic smile, part wince, part snarl.] What'd they call it? They got 'handsy'. Yeah, that's the term they used ta describe it. Ah was defenseless, and they got handsy.

...Did you kill them?

[Because that's the important part of the story. He doesn't want to hear any more details, just a happy ending.]

No.

[She'd thought about it though. Some days, she even regretted not. But most days, she didn't.]

Ah've got enough blood on mah hands. Ah didn't need theirs.

Oh come on. Killing people like that is basically community service.

Ah try real hard not ta kill people, Sterling. It's... It's not the choice everyone would make, but it's the one Ah needed.

Well, you let me know if you want someone who does.

Edited 2014-01-22 08:43 (UTC)

[She looks up at him, her smile is small, but genuine. She hadn't teared up, but she still hated that memory so very much. Hated talking about it, and it showed in the tightness around her eyes.]

Thanks, sugah. But Ah didn't come here ta make this 'bout me. Ah just...wanted ya t'know that Ah can understand, if ya ever wanna get it out.

Well what's the freaking point? Luke's dead. End of story, boom.

Doesn't end for you.

[She says it quietly, because just because someone's punished for their crime, doesn't mean what they did hurts any less.]

No. It's over. [It's that same no from before.]

Okay. [She holds her hands up. She won't push him. She's made her point.]

But if it's ever not. Well, ya know where ta find me.

What kind of freaking friend are you anyway? You won't give me my wet bar or my Walther but you can wake me up and drag out trauma based on your whimsy?

[Kazak, who up until this point has remained in his place taking up half of the bed, lets out a whine, so Archer turns to argue with him.] How am I the insensitive one here? [Kazak barks in response, and Archer retorts.] Seriously, why do you want me to talk about this shit?

[Okay she's seen enough mutants that she shouldn't find his talking to his dog coherently surprising, but he's not from her world. So it's kind of got a novelty affect still. She's still not sure of what to make of it.]

Y'drink plenty without a wet bar, sugah. And ya know why ya ain't gettin' a gun.

Yeah but if I had a wet bar I wouldn't have to keep stea- uh, getting drinks from the Pub.

Oh, do I?

...I don't, actually.

[She's letting the stealing booze thing go. Because there's no sense in fighting with him on it. Because he's forced to steal though, she knows his supply isn't huge. He can't drink himself dumb all the time.]

Because ya shoot people with it, Sterling. Casually.

Oh my God! Just Brett! Usually. And sometimes Cyril. But I dare anyone to be in the same room with Brett and not shoot him, seriously. At this point I don't even think you'd need a gun.

[She bursts out laughing at that. Cuz it was kind of funny. And it was breaking the tension.]

Mah point still stands. Ya can't tell me ya wouldn't use it on some folks on this boat if ya had the chance.

[Well, he could. She just wouldn't believe him.]

You can't tell me some of them don't want to use guns on me!

But they haven't. So neither can you.

So I don't get a gun until someone shoots me?

Ya don't get a gun until ya prove that yer first instinct won't be ta shoot at folks, just cuz you're annoyed.

Well how the hell do I prove that without a gun?

When yer attitude changes. That's how.

[When he stops whining about not having a gun, that's when he'll get one.]

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Tis the season

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