1674/Actions Have Consequences

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Actions Have Consequences
Date of Scene: 14 May 2020
Location: Hammer Bay, in the X-men Base
Synopsis: Pietro comes to confront Lorna about what she did.
Cast of Characters: Lorna Dane, Pietro Maximoff




Lorna Dane has posed:
Lorna had passed out immediately after the incident on the beach, she had taken all of two steps and immediately fallen into a faint. She had been taken to the X-men base, and left to sleep off the power surge on a cot. A few hours later.. she's woken up to Bobby checking in on her, a cold compress and pain meds, followed by another nap.

Now it was well into the evening of the following day, and she was still blurry eyed and only half way functioning. She stood in what made up the 'kitchentte' of the X-men base, a long folding table with a camp stove on top. She stirred a pack of ramen into the bubbling water, yawning and rubbing at her eyes that felt too dry. Her whole head ached, but thanks to Bobby and his literally chill presence, it was more of a dull thud behind her eyes. She still wore the black tank and cargo pants from the previous day, but long gone were all the bits of metal she'd donned as armor.

Pietro Maximoff has posed:
    Meanwhile, there was another who had felt the equivalent effects of doing an entire 8 ball of cocaine, followed by a chaser of a 6 pack of Red Bulls. After his reluctant heroics the other day, Pietro did a crash all of his own. He had hurt....not only his head, for that felt like steel ships was ramming it, but also his body hurt. Like what happens after a strenuous run. And...that is *not* supposed to happen. The mutant populace knew better than to talk to their Prince when he returned to shore, disappearing *somewhere* to sleep off the effects.

    Because one thing that speedsters never really tell others about being fast. Pain hits fast and pain hits hard. And Pietro was never nice on a good day.

    And so, when Lorna is indulging in her royal dinner of the best ramen 50 cents can buy, Pietro actually walks in. Walks...not running. He looks better than Lorna, at least physically....but he still looks more angered than usual. That...does not bode well for his sister.

    There is no greeting. No Hello and certainly no hug. Not today. Just a flat out question.

    "What the hell were you thinking?"

Lorna Dane has posed:
Lorna turned groggy eyes to the door as Pietro enters, her mind still sluggish and fighting off the worst migraine she'd ever had in her life. She still felt queasy, as if she might move too fast and either fall over or throw up. It was a toss up. She squeezed her eyes shut at his question and turned away. A stir of the instant ramen noodles followed with a plastic spoon in her grip and she grimaced. "In asking Fabian to boost me? Or in what happened after?" She managed to mumble out.

Seeming content that the noodles were mostly cooked, she switched off the camp stove, and reached for the disposable bowl and up ended the contents of the instant ramen with the spice packet stirred in. "Because after my memory is hazy and right now I'm relying on what Bobby told me."

Pietro Maximoff has posed:
    "Either. Both. All of it."

    Not very helpful with the answers. But, that really doesn't seem to concern Pietro. He isn't at the raised voice stage. Not yet. But, he definitely isn't letting Lorna off the hook yet. "But, if you want to start at one, then let us start with the aftermath. You do realize that your little scene could have been a hell of a lot worse? As it is now, you did do yourself any favors by deciding to play demolition derby with the Magistrate fleet. You have no idea what you did, do you?"

    Those blue eyes focus on Lorna...then look away as Pietro remembers his own experience. "That Cortez. He's a dangerous one. We both took that boost. I know what I felt....that....that's dangerous. For both of us." There is that fleeting look of disgust, before he brings his eyes up. "But...he is a tool. That's what Father would have said, yes? Just a tool to be used. And we used him both."

Lorna Dane has posed:
Lorna exhaled a breath, moving to the folding chair and table to sit down with a shuffling gait. She set the still far too hot to eat ramen down and sat. She fought off the urge to sigh heavily at Pietro's words, and idly stirred the bowl with the plastic spoon still in her grip. "I don't remember what happened, no. I woke up here, and Bobby told me what happened. It's all a jumble in my head. All of it. I get flashes here and there.. but after getting boosted? I don't remember fully." She grimaced and lowered her gaze away from her brother.

"I'm not sorry for destroying those ships. They came intending a fight. And they came ready to attack and kill us. Whatever tech they had on those ships was dangerous to all of mutant kind and I'm not sorry its at the bottom of the ocean now." She pursed her lips together.

"And yes, father said that much about Fabian before. He's a tool, and if he didn't keep him close, someone else would."

Pietro Maximoff has posed:
     "Well...then you don't need me then to chastise you."

    It sounds so matter-of-fact that Pietro might actually be serious. The older brother doesn't sit down. No, not yet. He remains standing, leaning against a wall as a hand reached up, pitching the bridge of his nose as if fighting off the lingering remains of a headache himself.

    "No. You don't need me to remind you that you are single-handedly responsible for the deaths of almost three hundred people. Yes, they were on Magistrate ships and some of them were hateful towards us...but can you be sure that all of them were? I pulled a thousand of them out of the water...off of those ships...and placed them in the hold of one of those cargo ships....because I couldn't tell the difference. And, because of that, they needed to be treated the same, yes."

    "But, they did not need to die."

    With a grimace, Pietro picks up his head. Those blue eyes lift up...and for the first time Lorna may see just how *tired* they appear. "Father would have done the same thing. Without a second thought. He would have not considered to spare any of them." There is a pause...a moment of hesitation that lasts an eternity for the white-haired speedster. "I...probably would have done the same."

    It is an admission that Pietro didn't want to make. The look alone, the guilt on his expression that he is not trying to hide, is proof enough. But...only Lorna will ever see that. And only...now.

    "You are supposed to be better than him. You....are supposed to be better than me. Damn it, Lorna, don't let our history of blind rage and stubbornness be your legacy."

Lorna Dane has posed:
Lorna flickered a glance up at Pietro, and she set the plastic spoon in her grip down on the metal table top. She sat back, listening with green eyes that were still colored with the pain of her migraine. She listened, and didn't make to interrupt him. Not once. She looked down at her ramen, feeling her stomach turning as she let Pietro's words settle more firmly over her.

"They might not all be Magistrates.. I'm aware." She finally murmured, her hands sliding to rest flatly against the table top in front of her. Her shoulders rolled forward as she seemed to think of her words with care.

"But they were people that supported their ideals. Their messages. Their hate. They are at the very minimum collaborators with a system that tortured, enslaved, and killed mutants the world over." She breathed out slowly, "Does that deserve death? Many would argue no. That it's wrong for me to have made that judgement." She pursed her lips together.

"But I have held too many children in my arms that cried and sobbed from what they went through in the mutate bonding processes that were developed here. I've buried too many on this island, before and after the Sentinels marched through. Sentinels created by humans with that same hatred." She exhaled a breath, looking pale and tired, and so very broken.

"And I couldn't look those survivors outside in the face if I let those people back here. If I let them land and set up with their tech again. If I let them establish a foothold here and the innocent people here had to go through yet another civil war to protect themselves." She exhaled a breath, her hands curling into fists.

"I'm not arguing that humans all over need to die. Nor am I going to go up and kill those that you saved. I'm not advocating for a war on humans. Nor am I stating that mutants are in any way.. better than humans. But I am going to defend Genosha Pietro, Magistrates and their like are my line. And I'm sorry if that causes more problems for mutants around the world. But I have to put the refugees here first."

Pietro Maximoff has posed:
    There....isn't an immediate reply from Pietro. And that itself is surprising. For the man to not have an answer, even if it is completely biased and wrong on a fundamental level, proves that there are no easy solutions. No simple viewpoint in which to take.

    And...so Pietro just sits down. Opposite Lorna, at the same table, in a rather flimsy folding chair that threatens to fall at any moment. He sits there, quietly, as he places his elbows on the edge of the table...and his head in his hands. There is no indication of what he is thinking...or even if he is thinking at all. Just...sitting there, quietly, as the steam from the ramen rises.

    Finally, after almost half a minute of silence, words are uttered. Or...rather, one word.

    "Okay."

    Then...the head is picked up. Pietro doesn't actually make eye contact...but he does continue speaking. And...it seems instead of speaking of why....it is more planning for the fallout. "Get proof. I didn't have time to ransack that frigate before it sank. Show the world why. It won't be good enough for all of it, but right know I don't give a damn about the world." The eyes return to Lorna. "Because you are right. We need to protect the people here. Our people. And...showing what these Magistrates intended to do will help to show the world why such actions, while excessive, may very well be justified."

    Has Pietro had a change of heart? It could be possible. He was always passionate about mutant kind...perhaps he was reminded as to why.

Lorna Dane has posed:
Lorna exhaled a breath as Pietro sat down and seemed to turn over her words. His softly spoken 'Okay', earned her shoulders slumping slightly and she pursed her lips together. "You know that proof will not change those that hate us. It won't change their stances or their outlook on us. Those people are set in stone. But I'll see what can be found, if anything. I can't exactly pull up the anti-mutant tech, because a lot of it I'm willing to bet.. was made of nonferrous materials. I'll ask around though on who can." She picked up the spoon and idly twisted it between her fingers.

"And I want to phrase it in another way Pietro. If father showed up with a white flag on the steps of Washington DC and said that the President had twenty minutes to give him New York City, or whatever.. or he'd make them do so... Do you think they'd listen? Do you think they'd care that he showed up with a white flag? Would any other country out there not react similarly?"

Pietro Maximoff has posed:
    A flash of red colors Pietro's expression. The whole scenario, twisted back at him by Lorna to show just how much of an idiot Pietro could have been in assuming any other reaction could have been done, did not sit well with him. But, it seems to be anger more at himself than at any other person, much less Lorna.

    Because, with the way Lorna looks now, coupled with her points...it is really getting harder and harder to stay angry at her without being a condescending asshole. And, while Pietro can be both condescending and a huge dick....he is neither towards those he cares about. Including Lorna.

    Instead, the answer from Pietro is a flat, but truthful statement. "Father would never have bothered with the attempt to parlay with the President. He would have just taken the city."

Lorna Dane has posed:
Lorna didn't comment on Pietro's change in expression, nor try to poke him for the flush that crossed his skin. She was too focused on the slowly cooling ramen in front of her. She left the plastic spoon in it, and withdrew her hands as she let them fall to her lap. "No, father wouldn't do that. But imagine literally any other group out there demanding anything like that from a leader of a country. No country in the world would accept those terms nor would they react well to said threats." She murmured, "And if that country couldn't stop that threat... well.. look at the history. It doesn't end well for those countries taken over." She pursed her lips and exhaled a breath.

"Those are my thoughts on the matter Pietro. And what I was thinking about before I asked Fabian to boost me. I just.. I thought that I couldn't freeze again. That I couldn't fail Genosha's people again. It was my line. I've dealt with rich people coming to pose with the dead and the rubble. Hydra's attacks. Pirates. I didn't killed those people. I just made sure they went elsewhere because at the end of the day.. they didn't come here to take over anything. They didn't actively seek our people's deaths or enslavement."

Pietro Maximoff has posed:
    There is a wave from Pietro, as if swatting at a fly, while a wince of pain clouds his features. It appears that someone isn't quite over his experience with Fabian yet, either. "Yes, yes. I know. I get it. Honestly, I've entertained thoughts myself. You don't need to keep talking about it."

    Translation? It's time to stop reminding Pietro of his own shortcomings while still on the vestiges of his own hangover. Still....Lorna brought up Fabian. And Pietro...doesn't make a comment about him, either. Oh, he probably wants to....but Pietro wants to also forget about his momentary show of weakness, too, in taking that boost. And...the best way? Not talking about it.

    "Don't try to sell me. You don't need to. I get it. Believe me." Then, with a groan. "Oh, I am never taking Cortez's assistance again. It...is not worth it." Then...one more glance towards Lorna. "You...just watch him, too. That Fabian. Tools can hurt you if you are not careful in handling them."

Lorna Dane has posed:
Lorna nodded, but then immediately grimaced for shaking her head. She was beginning to feel the room spin at the edges of her vision and she slowed her breath to try to keep from wretching. Not that she'd actually eaten anything since she'd woken up.. hence the ramen, but looking at it now just turned her stomach. She knew she needed to try though, and made the half hearted attempt to sip the broth at least.

"Bobby got it less, he said it felt... good? Like he was just better, and stronger. He's not half as bad as either of us. And his memory isn't spotty like he went on an all night bender either." She wrinkled her nose and stirred her spoon about.

"He said Fabian yanked whatever juice he'd given Bobby and threw it my way. And well.. Fabian can drive mutants to the point of breaking them with enough power."

Pietro Maximoff has posed:
"Oh...it felt good. I am not going to deny that. Almost too good. I felt I could just keep on going, indefinitely. But....the crash. Afterwards. That I could do without." Pietro doesn't shake his head...but he does nod it slowly. "Figured. That...that make more sense now."

    Is Pietro going to say he is sorry for his initial anger? No, merely because he is too proud for that. But, he is certainly no longer angry....at least at Lorna. More of that day grows into focus...and that seems to pacify Pietro. Lorna may not have been in her right mind then....but is in her right mind now. And...that is enough for Pietro for now.

Lorna Dane has posed:
Lorna made a faint nod of her head to Pietro as he spoke of feeling that he could just keep going forever. She faintly remembered feeling as if she could rip mountains off their roots and chuck them into space. She felt like she could do anything. But the movement made her head spin, and she felt her stomach twist sickeningly again. She clapped her eyes shut, pressing her hands against her eyes as her head pounded.

One more sickened lurch followed and she was bolting for the trash can.

Suffice to say she agreed with Pietro. It wasn't worth the crash. Not at all.