7026/Robert's Moving Day

Robert's Moving Day
Date of Scene:	21 July 2021
Location:	Robert Marksman's Penthouse #1
Synopsis:	And tomorrow is a new beginning.
Cast of Characters:	Robert Marksman, Clarice Ferguson

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Robert Marksman has posed:
Robert Marksman has recently had a bit of a public disagreement with his brother, and after selling the elder Marksman his shares of the business Robert is packing up his things and moving to a new place. He called Clarice and asked if she would like to come hang out maybe help him pack. Others maybe thinking of using her powers to help move the things, but since Robert can do the same it is more for company than labor.

Clarice Ferguson has posed:
    If Robert'd been planning on using Clarice's abilities - he would have been sorely disappointed, given her recent struggles. As it is, she sppears near by building via the rather gut-wrenching teleport ability Ritz offers, before making her way to the penthouse, and knocking uncertainly. Going somewhere private like this, when she felt so vulnerable without her gifts, left her feeling rather exposed - she just hoped it didn't show too much in her features.
    It did help her to know that Ritz was on standby, though. Not that expected the need to call on the other woman for more than a lift home.

Robert Marksman has posed:
Robert Marksman will come open the door. Today the young man is in a black band t-shirt, and jeans. He does wear a pair of sunglasses even in here. When he sees Carice he smiles at her, and says "Hey glad you could come, come on in." He steps aside for her. She will see there are some boxes already boxed up and stacked in one corner.

Clarice Ferguson has posed:
    Clarice steps in - dressed simply in a pair of jeans and a shirt herself, with her hands shoved into her pockets. She glances around the living space as she enters, offering a simple, "Nice view." Well, not when compared to the Asteroid, but still - what could compare to that? "Umm. Have a lot of stuff to box up?" she asks - as if this is an entirely foreign concept to her.
    Probably because it is. Clarice travels light, and doesn't have very much by way of personal possessions.

Robert Marksman has posed:
Robert Marksman smirks a bit "More than I realized, but have been living here for 5 years or so now." He motions towards a box and says "I already boxed up most of my closet nerd items." He jokes a bit and says "Still got the main room, and kitchen to pack up, but been working on it a while. Would you like a soda, some water or something?" He offers.

Clarice Ferguson has posed:
    "Water'd be fine," Clarice agrees easily - her brow furrowing a little in puzzlement. 'Closet nerd items'? She hasn't the faintest notion of what that would be. "I've only been on the Asteroid for, well, months," she remarks. Considering it had only been built some months back. Was it coming up on a year now? "I don't really have much, though - aside from clothes."

Robert Marksman has posed:
Robert Marksman nods, and will get her a bottle of cold water, and brings it back to her, he has one for himself, and says to her "Yea, mostly collectables sci-fi, fantasy items, a couple of swords made after ones in World of Warcraft, a cell phone blue tooth set up in a Star Trek badge, stuff like that." He explains to her. Stuff that some folks would judge me cause of." He helps a bit "Well, if you want a room in the hotel let me know, you can have one there to fill with stuff if you want it.

Clarice Ferguson has posed:
    "Why would I want a room for stuff?" Clarice asks - the idea honestly seeming to baffle her. She takes the water, cracking it open, and takes a deep drink from it. "I didn't know you fought with swords," she adds. "I thought that was more... Magik's thing." I mean, who fights with swords in this day and age? She glances around the room once more, before focusing her attention back at Robert. "You did get the Hotel, then?"

Robert Marksman has posed:
Robert Marksman nods and says "Yea, final paperwork came in this morning, which is good, after the fight my brother and I staged needed to make the move soon." He offers her a grin and says "I have played around with them, but not really ever fought with them. I just thought they were neat on the video game, and saw they made replicas of them, but figured if I was going to get a replica, why not have one made that was actually combat capable, if it is physically possible. I mean some video game weapons made real only reason I could wield them is cause I can lift a few tons."

Clarice Ferguson has posed:
    "Oh," Clarice replies without any real understanding. Swords from a video game - that //can// be fought with, but that he doesn't fight with. "...so why have them, then?" she asks bluntly.
    Without any pause she adds, "So you're distancing yourself from your brother, and the company? Did you decide you're going to come out, after all? Or is this just a 'just in case' thing?"

Robert Marksman has posed:
Robert Marksman smiles and says "Cause I thought they looked cool, and pretty much always had more money than I could think of things to spend it on, so if I thought it was cool, and had a place to put it I bought it." He grins and nods a bit "Yea, making sure Johnathan and my fight shows as a purely money thing. He will make a few donations to some mutant neutral charities, but is going to deep fake him being normal human. Should keep any blow back from the company.

Clarice Ferguson has posed:
    "Oh. They're decorations, then?" Clarice asks. "Like paintings." Only swords. ...it's makes sense, sort of. She takes another sip of her water, starting down at the bottle for a moment, before returning her attention to Robert. "And it really doesn't bother you if the news starts reporting that you've been seen in the company of terrorists? Because I'd be surprised if that didn't come out eventually."

Robert Marksman has posed:
Robert Marksman sips his own water and says "Honestly some yea, but I also know your trying to look out for people. And you will try to save people, even some asshat in the park if the paper is to be believed." He offers her a smile Mystique is a bit ....direct with her feelings and such, and I do worry she may see someone's race before their actions, but she seems to be trying to help and make up for some of her past actions. Giving people a chance is important."

Clarice Ferguson has posed:
    "She has no fondness of humans. She's seen too much harm done in her life. I guess I could have developed a similar viewpoint, but Lorna insisted I see things... a different way," Clarice answers quietly. She focuses her attention down on the bottle in her hands before she adds, "I do try to help people - but not always in a way that everyone will approve of. I'm trained to kill - it's what I'm good at."

Robert Marksman has posed:
Robert Marksman hmms and nods his head a bit to this and says "Well, I know you have shown, you did not have a lot of time for the things most would consider normal growing up. I have enjoyed showing you some of them and spending time with you, I do hope you have enjoyed it too."

Clarice Ferguson has posed:
    "I have," Clarice admits. "But Robert... some parts of me aren't going to change. I am what I was made to be. I just- I use it in a different way. I..." She lets out a frustrated sigh, and sets aside the water so she can pull out her phone. It takes her a few moments of concentrated effort to navigate the phone to the right page - but once she has, she holds it out towards Robert, a news article on the screen.

Robert Marksman has posed:
Robert Marksman looks over the article. taking a time to read it, and says "So, you are saying you were raised as a child soldier, but you put the training to use to try to help people, and it is not something you want to change?" He watches her reaction not showing much reaction himself yet.

Clarice Ferguson has posed:
    "Something alone those lines - yeah," Clarice confirms. "I mean - I was trained more as an assassin. But I don't do //that// as often as... well," she gestures towards her phone. Wholesale slaughter, really. But of //really bad people//. Did that make it okay?
    "That's who I am, Robert," she says flatly.

Robert Marksman has posed:
Robert Marksman will move to sit down so he can look at her "It maybe part of who you are, but it does not have to be all of who you are. You can be more than just what you were trained for. You have enjoyed learning more. I will admit, I am not a fan of killing, I am a doctor, but I also understand the need to remove bad portions of an organism to keep the rest of it healthy.

Clarice Ferguson has posed:
    "It isn't all that I am," Clarice admits - leaning back against a blank patch of wall, and shoving her hands back into her pocket. "But it's a part of it, and I don't think that'll ever change. And for now, the world seems mostly unaware of what me and Mister Creed have been up to - but that might not always be the case. And there's a lot of people who will view me as a murderer, a dangerous psychopath." And who's to say they'd be entirely wrong?
    "Is that someone you want to be seen around?" she asks flatly. "We can call things off here, Robert, and there'd be no hard feelings."

Robert Marksman has posed:
Robert Marksman says, "And if I want to keep seeing you, having fun and see what this grows into if anything, are you ok with that as well?" He looks at her, and says "You are not a psychopath, I can tell from how you react around people and the people you chose to save."

Clarice Ferguson has posed:
    Clarice gives a shrug of her shoulders. "I just wanted to make sure you were working with all the information. I didn't realize you were trying to keep your abilities under wraps or- or I likely would have turned you down from the beginning, for your own good," she admits.
    "I mean - you know I still don't know if this is even going anywhere, yeah? I still don't really know... what I want. There's a lot of stuff I still don't understand - about the world. About myself."

Robert Marksman has posed:
Robert Marksman nods, and says "I know, and I know I want to help you understand yourself and the world more. If this becomes more than friends, I am good with it, if it is just friends, well at least I hope I end up with a really good friend out of the deal. May I ask you something?

Clarice Ferguson has posed:
    Clarice nods her head at that, tension subtly easing out of her shoulders and her arms. "Sure," she agrees. "I mean, I guess I can't guarantee I'll be willing to answer, but you can still ask."

Robert Marksman has posed:
Robert Marksman looks to her, and says "Do I make you nervous when I am around?" He asks her. He starts packing up some books off a bookcase. I noticed when I set down you seemed to tense up and pull your dress thing in closer yesterday.

Clarice Ferguson has posed:
    Clarice bites the inside of her lip gently, an uncertain look on her features as she tries to sort out her thoughts, and her feelings - not an easy task for her. "That's... complicated," she admits quietly. "I mean, I'm a little on edge right now, in- in general. Ummm... You remember I said I'd gotten hurt?" she waits for some sign of confirmation before she continues with, "Well, my powers aren't working... temporarily. It's something that's supposed to just... wear off. But not being able to just..." she pulls one hand out of her pocket to gesture with it vaguely, "blink away in a moment's notice leaves me feeling exposed. Trapped. I feel better when I'm around Mystique, or Mister Creed. As far as I'm concerned, my life began the day they freed me, so I've known them my whole life. And I know they've got my back, and they have the power to back that up, and keep me safe."
    She lets out a sigh as she adds, "And I still just - don't really know how I feel about us, and how I should behave, and what it is I really want, anyways, and- it's just confusing. That's all."

Robert Marksman has posed:
Robert Marksman hmms and nods a bit to this, and puts the books down. He walks over to her, and says "Well I promise to do my best not to hurt you and it has nothing to do with the fact Mystique will try to hurt me if I do." He hmms, and says "You said it was a head wound?" He steps a bit closer "May I look at your head?"

Clarice Ferguson has posed:
    "Oh, she would find a way to hurt you," Clarice says wryly. "But I don't intend to- I mean, unless you were to do something //malicious,// and if I thought you capable of something like that, I wouldn't be here now." Telling him just how vulnerable she is.
    In fact, she's only just now realized that not only has she told him just how vulnerable she is - she'd also given him her phone, her only means of asking for help. She hastily steps forward to reclaim it, shoving it back into her pocket.
    "I got a concussion," she confirms. "But the real problem was that there was a mutant there - from Liberia. His name's Mansa. He was being controlled, so it's not his fault, but his power - it sort of temporarily scrambles your powers so you can't access them correctly. And it caused these seizures that made me open portals without being able to control where they led, or shut them down. So... I'm on medication for now to suppress that, and I can't really access my powers again until after that wears off. From what he said... I should be fine in another week or so?"

Robert Marksman has posed:
Robert Marksman hmms and nods a bit to this and says "Ok, I was going to look inside your head to see if there was any damage they might have missed, but if it was caused by that, then would probably not be any physical sign of it." He hmms and says "Do you guys have someone who can stop powers from working?"

Clarice Ferguson has posed:
    Clarice shakes her head at that. "No," she answers quietly. "We have a few collars, though. I- umm. Had to put one of those on for a little bit." Her expression grows tight, and tense at the memory. "I mean, once the medications were onboard and working... they took the collar off. And we're going to have to do some periodic tests where I go off the meds - and see if the problem's resolved itself, which means I- I might have to put a collar on again just to keep things in check until the meds are working again. If the problem hasn't been fixed yet."

Robert Marksman has posed:
Robert Marksman hmms and nods a bit "Well that gets rid of one theory. I thought maybe if your powers were canceled out, then let to restart, it might have wiped the effect on your powers. Sorta the biological version of turn it off and turn it back on again." He looks to her, and says "If you ever need to go somewhere I can gate to, I will help you, but I do want to warn you, you will probably not like the trip."

Clarice Ferguson has posed:
    "As a general rule, I prefer my own portals, I've found," Clarice agrees with a nod. "And it seems a lot of other people do as well. So I guess it's not just me." She lets out a frustrated sigh. "I do appreciate that - but Mystique actually has tasked a teleporter with the Brotherhood to keep me as her priority for the time being. If I call - she drops everything and gets me out. Which feels a bit silly, to be honest, but also- I mean, it does make me feel a little less exposed."

Robert Marksman has posed:
Robert Marksman nods his head a bit and says "Well not many want to use mine unless they have to, if you have done things you feel guilty for, it seems to make you feel more so, as you seem to feel as the victim if what ever your feeling guilty of did, or at least how some part of you imagines they did."

Clarice Ferguson has posed:
    Clarice's eyes go sharply to Robert at this bit of news - and she can feel her stomach doing a flop at the mere thought. "They made me do many things I- I regret," she voices quietly. "And I remember all of them. I think I'll stick to Ritz's portals, or my own - when I have a choice," she says quietly.

Robert Marksman has posed:
Robert Marksman nods, and says "It is brief, but it rattles most, I seem to be immune to it cause it is my power I guess. I have wondered if I maybe able to get that effect somehow with my blasts, but I have not figured it out yet. He starts stacking books again. He then sets the box on some others "Luckily it seems to have no real effect on stuff." He says and a black portal will appear under the boxes and either the boxes sink into it or it raises to the boxes cause soon the boxes are gone.

Clarice Ferguson has posed:
    "...yeah. If you could hit people with a sense of guilt- hell. You might be able to take me out of a fight completely with something like that," Clarice says in a wry tone. "I- I mean, the Magistrates used to use me to- you know, fight against groups like the X-Men. Or people who protested for mutant rights. Or who tried to expose what- what the Magistrates were doing to people like me. I killed the people who were fighting for me, and I know it's not my fault, but..." She still did it.
    "Anyways. I came to help, didn't I?" she asks, forcing a smile onto her features. "What should I, uhh... be doing?"

Robert Marksman has posed:
Robert Marksman will walk over to offer her a hug he is slow and gentle so not to scare her, and after the hug if she is ok with it. He says "You want to wrap those things off that shelf and pack them up for me? He motions towards a shelf with some pictures and some awards.

Clarice Ferguson has posed:
    The hug is allowed - largely because she sees it coming so easily. Clarice even leans into the contact for a moment, before she starts to pull away. "Uhh... yeah, sure. With this paper and bubble wrap?" she asks - picking up the supplies. She moves towards the shelf so she can start gathering up the things one at a time - studying them with curiosity before wrapping them up for safe keeping.
    These are the sorts of things important to other people? It's still so foreign to her. "What did you get these awards for?" she asks.

Robert Marksman has posed:
Robert Marksman smiles a bit and says "The ones with the gold guy on top of them are sports trophies, I played before it was unfair for me to." She may notice all are junior high and below. The one with the crystal leg, was for the best new invocation in cybernetics, the year before last." He will tell her a few others not bragging but telling her the ones she has in hand for a bit. She will find a picture of him, and his brother when they were young with their father, and a picture of his dad, and a woman (His mother?) holding a baby. The woman seem pregnant in the picture.

Clarice Ferguson has posed:
    "...should I put up the picture I have of my parents?" Clarice asks quietly, as she looks down at the photo in her hands, her expression distant and uncertain. After a moment frozen that way, she seems to come back to her sense, carefully wrapping the picture up, before tucking it into place in the box with some of the other things.

Robert Marksman has posed:
Robert Marksman looks over to her, and says "Do you feel a connection to them? I never met my mom, but heard stories from dad, and always wished I had, but she died when I was born."

Clarice Ferguson has posed:
    "That's complicated," Clarice answers quietly. "I- well. For a long time I was lead to believe they gave me to the Magistrates," she explains, keeping turned towards the shelf as she grabs another picture and wraps it up. "But I found out more recently that we were both deceived. I remember - they day I last saw them, they took me to the doctor's, and said I had to sleep for a while so the doctor could fix something, and they'd be there when they woke up. Only they weren't. Well - turns out they were told I died."

Robert Marksman has posed:
Robert Marksman looks over and asks "Are they still alive? Can you contact them, and talk to them?" He has stopped packing looking over towards her.

Clarice Ferguson has posed:
    Clarice shakes her head, her hands tightening around the wrapped trophy in her hands. "I, uh- I never looked them up when I was freed. Why would I look for the parents who gave me to those people? But I did look for their names on the lists of survivors when Genosha fell. They aren't registered anywhere as having survived the Sentinel attacks. And-" She takes a deep breath out and lets it out slowly. "I know someone who can see spirits. He spoke to my mom. That's- It's how I found out they thought I'd been dead all this time."

Robert Marksman has posed:
Robert Marksman will walk over and this time while he wants to hug her, he puts a hand on her shoulder letting her know he is there if she wants the hug but lets her be the one to start it. "I would say it is totally up to you hon, but if your unsure, maybe you can see if any of the survivors knew them, learn some more about what they were really like, learn if they are people you want to remember and think about. I can see you having pictures of Mystique and this Mr. Creed up for sure.

Clarice Ferguson has posed:
    "But what's the point of a picture when I could just go... see them? Sit at the cafeteria over dinner, or at the bar over drinks..." Or in the forest, hunting murdering assholes. Clarice looks over towards Robert for a moment, then down to the trophy in her hands. "I just - I don't really have any keepsakes. It baffles me a little, but lots of things do that."

Robert Marksman has posed:
Robert Marksman says, "Well pictures are there to help bring a smile to your face, when that person can't be there. Not just when they are dead, but if say for some reason one of them had to go on a mission for a month or so, you can find having a pic of them there comforting. You don't have to have keepsakes though if you don't want them. You may pick up some as we experience things together, things that remind you of a happy time.""

Clarice Ferguson has posed:
    "I mean... I suppose that's true. If one of them went away for a while," Clarice confirms in a musing, uncertain tone. "I do have a picture of my parents - on my phone. I've had it for a little while, now. Not something I looked at much, but- I don't know. Still something that's there." She lets out a sigh. "I grew up without any possessions at all. And then - what little I did have, on Genosha, was destroyed with the palace."

Robert Marksman has posed:
Robert Marksman hmms softy and heads into the other room, and comes back with a top hat with sparkly sequins on it. "Ok, well how about taking this ad your first keep sake, I know I gave you the picture I drew, but I think this might be a bit more of a connection to the memory of the night." He offers her the hat.

Clarice Ferguson has posed:
    "But - it's yours," Clarice says with some surprise as she's offered the hat. She sets the trophy in the box, hesitating a moment before she takes the hat, turning it over in her hands uncertainly.

Robert Marksman has posed:
Robert Marksman looks to her, and says "Well it aint as if I will be wearing it to dress like Columbia, if I wear fishnets, it would be as Frank N Furter. He offers striking a pose for her. "Besides, if you want to go again with me or someone else, you will have the start of a costume for it.

Clarice Ferguson has posed:
    "Why not? You'd make a cute Columbia," Clarice counters - a small smile breaking across her features with this teasing remark. She looks down at the hat again, then back towards Robert with a grateful nod. "Thanks. I'll, umm... keep it," she agrees, before perching the hat atop her head. "How do I look? As charming as ever?"

Robert Marksman has posed:
Robert Marksman smiles and says "Totally, and even more reason I could never compare as Columbia." He jokes a bit back with her, and says "Oh you think you or anyone else on the watch would want a room in the hotel?"

Clarice Ferguson has posed:
    Clarice gets a thoughtful look on her features at the question. "I could ask Mystique," she decides after a moment. "I mean - it wouldn't hurt to have somewhere else for our people to go. But we do have a few safe houses in Bushwick already. Just- apartments, really, that we've got equipped with a few essentials and a little extra security."

Robert Marksman has posed:
Robert Marksman nods his head a bit to this and says "Well let me know, I plan on being on the top floor, keeping some rooms for mutant and non mutant celebs if they come by and then thought maybe offer some to some of the protectors of the area.

Clarice Ferguson has posed:
    "Will your brother be the one who technically owns the hotel?" Clarice asks uncertainly. "Will it hurt the busienss at all if he's seen to be giving shelter to... the likes of us?" she asks rather flatly.

Robert Marksman has posed:
Robert Marksman shakes his head and says "No, I will be the one owning the hotel, I am using my side of our money in Bushwick. Johnathan will technically own all of Marksman Industries, our father's business, but I will have a job here that will be in research but will be hard for folks to track down that it happens. I will have a lab that has no doors to work in.

Clarice Ferguson has posed:
    "Ohhhhh," Clarice replies, her expression going a little sheepish. "Got it now. Sorry, umm.... Business things aren't really my strongest suit, you know?" She gives a shrug of her shoulders before adding, "I mean - really, I'm only very good at portals and fighting." She she's trying to learn new things. She turns her attention back towards the packing, picking up the next item on the shelf and some of the paper, starting to wrap things up neatly once more.

Robert Marksman has posed:
Robert Marksman nods, a bit and says "Were not mine either, I had to learn some luckily dad had a guy set up to help us run things. Tom Swift, he is like an uncle to us, and ran things till Johnathan was ready to and still helps alot.

Clarice Ferguson has posed:
    "Well. I have Mystique teaching me how to run things," Clarice remarks - a smile tugging at her lips. "I mean - she's the one who trusted me to organize the Neighborhood Watch. Who helped me make sure I was organizing things effectively. She's been mentoring me a lot. I mean - there's just so much to learn. It's a little overwhelming sometimes, really," she admits. "But she's actually surprisingly patient and encouraging, even if she does put on a pretty gruff public persona."

Robert Marksman has posed:
Robert Marksman nods a bit and says "She seems the type who will do pretty much anything for those she considers family. Perhaps even when they don't want to." He admits. He continues packing things. "If you want one of the apartments let me know, most time for people will have them set up with the basics, but if you want one we can go out and buy them, so you have a better idea what you need if you do it again.

Clarice Ferguson has posed:
    "I really only need the one home," Clarice points out. "I have a place on the Asteroid. And it's safe. I mean- my last home was on Genosha, and that was all destroyed, so..." She shrugs her shoulders. "I like that we live somewhere where it's, you know, so hard to get to us.
    "I could take yo up there sometime - when my powers are back?" she offers, glancing over for a moment, then returning her attention to her work.

Robert Marksman has posed:
Robert Marksman nods his head a bit and says "Would love to see it." and with that and a bit of small talk here and there, they finish packing up Robert's life to start him on a new chapter.