8037/One Night, in the Kitchen...

One Night, in the Kitchen...
Date of Scene:	28 September 2021
Location:	Main Kitchen
Synopsis:	Late night munchies results in helpful advice for Dashenka - and strengthened alliances.
Cast of Characters:	Clarice Ferguson, Logan Howlett, Rahne Sinclair, Dashenka Ivanov

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Clarice Ferguson has posed:
    As Roxxi and Dashenka make their exit, Clarice spends a moment struggling with the donut box half-filled with fritters. You know how sometimes the little cardboard tabs don't want to fold in correctly, and make closing the box much harder than it has any right to be? It's one of those moments, as the magenta-hued mutant is forced to re-open the box, fold the tabs back inwards, and try closing it again.
    There. Finally. //Geeze//. Did that have to be so hard?

Logan Howlett has posed:
Logan is a quiet man when he wants to be, and smelling a familiar scent in the air he was quiet. Easing up on the kitchen he quickly realized it wasn't the actual creator of the scent, just the rub off onto her. He would know her scent now, having gotten it twice, but that she was in the school. That raised the hair on the back of his neck.

Lingering in the door way in silence, he watches her struggling with the box, a dilemma he has experienced as well. "It won," he states calmly, leaning against the door frame.

Clarice Ferguson has posed:
    "I won't be defeated by a box," Clarice says with determination, as she finally gets it closed, and turns her gaze towards Logan. There's a hint of uncertainty there - she's on //his// turf now, and she know enough to wonder if she's really welcome.
    "Of course, then you'll decide you want a fritter, and we'll be right back at square one. That's how these things always go, right?"

Logan Howlett has posed:
Folding his arms lightly across his chest, Logan remains silent just looking at her and the box of fritters. He wasn't really one for sweet things like that, much preferring to stick to meat and potatoes. On occasion he'd have something sweet, like the cake when he first got back, other wise he stuck to healthier choices.

"No thanks," he finally says, then stands himself to walk into the kitchen. Heading straight to the coffee pot to start a pot brewing. This puts her slightly behind and to the side of him, either a sign of trust or he's still watching her from the side of his eyes.

"I prefer to save sweet things for mornings," he then adds, so as not to be completely rude.

Clarice Ferguson has posed:
    "Well, who knows if they'll still be there. Midnight raids from teenagers seems to be a thing," Clarice remarks with amusement. Most of the tension eases out of her form, as he seems willing to turn his back on her. She definitely took that as a good sign. "I just stopped by to talk with the Professor about some stuff we discovered in China. Hopefully you can be on one of the teams - helping us free some of the mutants being held there."

Logan Howlett has posed:
Coffee into the basket, water into the back, flip the switch, hate that it takes so long... that was making coffee. Logan turns to lean against the counter so he doesn't stare at the magical brown liquid dripping slowly into the pot.

"I'm more than willing to join a team to help the mutants," he states plainly, watching her again with his pale blue eyes. Some would call them cold eyes, but really they are merely calculating. "I don't even need all the details."

Clarice Ferguson has posed:
    Clarice stands in the kitchen, leaning her hip against the counter, and facing towards Logan - who has his back turned to the pot of slowly percolating coffee. In front of Clarice is a closed donut box, half-filled with apple fritters.
    "I mean. Basically the Chinese government is a bunch of assholes who thinks they can use their citizens as breeding stock to create an enslaved and brainwashed mutant police force," Clarice remarks, giving the basics anyways. "We're assembling a number of teams - it's going to be a big job. They have hundreds of locations throughout the country." She lets out a frustrated sigh. Organizing the whole thing was working up to be the biggest headache of her life.

Rahne Sinclair has posed:
Rahne, who's been doing her schoolwork, sleepwalks past the doorway.

That's it, she just wandered past with a toothbrush in her mouth, and both of her eyes still closed.

After a moment though she does stick her face around the corner, peeeeering at what people are doing up so damn late.

Not a word. She considers going back to bed. ._.

Logan Howlett has posed:
Once again Logan folds his arms across his chest, listening to her explain the situation, but more importantly he was listening to the tones of her voice and learning the changes to her scent. She was definitely enraged by this, which added realism to what she was saying.

"It happens all over the world," he says as calmly as he can manage, which at the moment is not all that calmly. The topic raised his hackles and his temper. He was a victim of those types of experiments once, thanks to Victor, and it was why Laura, Gabby, and the other existed at all.

Having said that much with to much anger to his tone, he takes a moment, collects himself, then continues. "It needs to stop, so you can count me in... but I have to ask, why are you heading this? You're just a kid? What happened to Raven and Victor? Too busy being asshats?"

Clarice Ferguson has posed:
    "Mister Creed's helping with the strategy, as is Raven. And really, if we were going to send anyone here to talk over things with the Professor - you think we'd be dumb enough to send Mister Creed?" Amusement quirks at the corners of Clarice's mouth at that, but her expression soon sobers again.
    "I'm not just a kid. I've been fighting since I was little. You know how it is - this shit happens all over the world."
    Her gaze towards towards the doorway where Rahne peeks through - and for a moment, her expession goes from grim and serious, to a bright, welcoming smile. "I'd offer you a fritter - but you're brushing your teeth. Probably make the fritter taste awful..."

Rahne Sinclair has posed:
SleepyRahne wanders in then, and walks up to Clarice. She doesn't hug her, but she does walk directly into Clarice's shoulder, bumping into the woman like a toy train running into a block. She stands there, eyes closed, and mumbles around her toothbrush.

Then she mumbles something more audible. "Go to bed, y'two." It sounds almost like she cares. Bumps into Clarice again, then just leans her forehead there.

Logan Howlett has posed:
Logan glances to the doorway for a moment, not even going to ask why she has a toothbrush hanging out of her mouth at this hour. His eyes follow Rahne into the room and over to Clarice, one brow lifting as she bumps into the magenta mutant a couple times, then he looks back to Clarice.

"Sure, send Victor by," he comments dryly, then lets that drop. "Raven is the leader of the Brotherhood, so why didn't she come? Last I heard, we're allies after all... and kid," he pauses there, to emphasize the word. "You are a kid. You may have been fighting your whole life, but you're what, twenty-two, twenty-three? You've hardly lived a life, and if you been fighting all that time..." he shakes his head, not worth his time or effort to say any more.

Turning back to the coffee maker, he reaches into the cupboard above it for a cup then pours some of the coffee into it. Putting the pot back to get the rest of the coffee as it brews, he turns back to look at Clarice.

Rahne Sinclair has posed:
A yawn almost cracks Rahne's jaw. Then she puts her face back at Clarice's shoulder, and says, "Had tae rescue Mystique. She be wounded. Th' mission ...country's all pissed off. Killin' off th' prisoners."

Then she says something that sounds distinctly like 'too many nuggets' and her lips stop moving intelligibly. If you weren't sure, you'd swear she just fell asleep standing up.

Clarice Ferguson has posed:
    As Rahne bumps into her, Clarice wraps her arm around the other girl, leaning her head towards Rahne. Whatever tension may have been lingering is gone now - and she seems for all the world like she is exactly where she's meant, and wants to be.
    "Yeah, yeah - I know. My experience isn't a fraction of what you guys have, gramps," Clarice teases lightly.
    She's silent a moment before adding, "No one's infallible. The Chinese Mutant Police managed to get their claws into Raven. She'll be fine, but I'm doing the legwork for her while she handles more of the planning end of things."
    Giving Rahne a nudge she adds, "So. Which bed should I go to?" she teases.

Logan Howlett has posed:
Where one brow raised before, now both of Logan's brows go up. First the notion that someone actually managed to catch Mystique and hold on to her long enough to injure her. It was something he had tried a number of times and failed, she was quick, clever, and the ability to mask her scent by changing forms made it a difficult thing. Second was the fact that apparently Rahne and Clarice were a thing, which meant Clarice would be around here a lot, and he still wasn't entirely certain how he felt about that.

He lets the gramps comment just slide right by, because he's heard it a million times and it no longer effects him. He couldn't help that he basically stopped aging and had seen more shit in his life than most other living beings, so whatever.

"I'm sorry to hear she got hurt," he finally says, actually meaning it. He'd seen the news report, and though he seriously doubted Raven would be able to stay on the right path, she was there right now. "Tell her... she's got my claws for revenge."

Rahne Sinclair has posed:
Sadly, Rahne doesn't invite Clarice to her bedroom. Not directly, though the fact that she's snoring softly into her shoulder could be considered implicit consent. She's still standing up, and that tootbrush is still in her lips, though it's starting to look like it could be dangerous.

Has she always been a sleepwalker? That would actually explain a few things from her teen years. She never was able to explain how she got to Egypt that one time.

However, it does limit her conversation options.

Clarice Ferguson has posed:
    "Dork," Clarice murmurs quietly. She does try to gently take the toothbrush out of Rahne's mouth, though. "I'll let her know. I'm sure she'll appreciate the support." She smirks slightly as she adds, "And I'll keep an eye on the plans." Make sure Creed isn't deliberately putting Logan into a bad spot. She doesn't //think// he'd use an op like this to take a swipe at his old foe. Not if it would at all endanger the mission - or the rest of Logan's team.
    ...unless he really hates all the other people he puts on Logan's team.
    Yeah. She'll keep an eye on the planning.
    Giving Rahne a nudge she adds, "It's more comfortable to sleep in your bed - rather than standing in the kitchen."

Logan Howlett has posed:
Logan moves to the fridge to grab the milk, adding a touch of milk to his coffee before walking back to lean against the counter again. He has nothing to add about the sleeping Rahne, but he knows the feeling of sleeping standing up. Military life, you sleep where you can, when you can, even if that is standing up in a closet while the building above the bunker you're in is being bombed out.

Rahne Sinclair has posed:
I'm sorry, the werewolf you have tried to contact is unavailable at this time. Please wait until morning and try again. If you wish to leave a message, you're pretty much out of luck, toots. Consider switching internet providers?

Dashenka Ivanov has posed:
The night is dark and full of terrors, as they say. As the conditioning has worn off Dashenka has started to get nightmares, and sleepless nights have become more often. On these nights she would patrol the mansion and the school grounds. It's not something that needs to be done, but it's something familiar to do and she finds some comfort in it.

Of course this late at night there isn't anybody about. Anybody with any sense would be fast asleep in bed, which is why the light in the kitchen catches her attention. Swinging by she's surprised to see Clarice still here, as well as a couple of other bodies. Logan she knows, but has never personally met. Rahne is a new face.

"Privyet," she calls out as she enters the kitchen. For those with enhanced senses, her smell is decidedly off-human. Ursine in fact. Polar bear if you want to be exact. Her impassive features study the group, wondering why everybody is up. "It is late."

Clarice Ferguson has posed:
    "Do I need to teleport us back to bed?" Clarice murmurs to Rahne with amusement, holding the other woman against herself, to prevent any chance that she might stumble in her sleepy state. She's not sure how she can just doze off like that - sleep was rarely such an easy thing for her, even when she's exhausted.
    As the large teen returns, Clarice looks towards her, offering a nod of greeting. "Back for more sandwiches - or more pickles?" she asks in an amused tone. Then with a hint of concern, "...don't you have classes in the morning?"

Logan Howlett has posed:
Logan could hear Dashenka approaching, but first he could smell her. The newest scent he had placed in the mansion, but had yet to actually see where it came from. Standing there with his rump against the counter, sipping his coffee, watching Rahne sleeping standing up, he shifts his eyes to the new arrival.

"Privyet," he offers, no hint of an accent at all, his Russian flawless.

Rahne Sinclair has posed:
New scent. Predator scent.

Rahne's eyes snap open and she's wide awake, her toothbrush forgotten. Her eyes look around and she lowers slightly, getting ready for anything. She's not entirely quiet, a soft growl emanating from the depths of her throat.

Then she sees how others react, and tries not to look embarrassed. "Smelled a bear," she whines.

Dashenka Ivanov has posed:
"Pickles," Dashenka answers, going to the fridge and pulling out the jar of pickles. "I could not sleep," she says as the answer to an unasked question. Her Russian accent is comically thick, and her English is far from perfect.

Her ice blue eyes turn to study Rahne for a moment before giving her a curt nod. "Da. That is me." She pulls out a pickle and takes a bite out of it, chewing slowly to savor the flavor, a bit of pleasure leaking out from her stoic demeanor.

Clarice Ferguson has posed:
    "Dashenka is a student, Rahne," Clarice murmurs quietly, her tone reassuring as the woman startles awake. "I take it you haven't met her yet?" Nodding towards the younger girl she adds, "She and I- well. We have similar pasts."
    She looks thoughtful as she muses, "I've had time where I struggled to sleep. It's less of a problem now..." Much less, now that she has Rahne, most nights.
    "Is this frequently a problem?" she asks the girl.

Logan Howlett has posed:
Logan almost spits coffee out... almost. He manages to swallow and cough instead, because Rahne's reaction, while fully true to her nature, is also exceedingly adorable and he just can't hack that at this hour.

"Polar bear to be exact," he offers, once he's done coughing and watches Dashneka get her pickle. "I'm Logan," he then offers, not putting out a hand or anything, just giving a name to go with his face.

His eyes then shift to Clarice, then to Dashenka. Since the magenta mutant was asking the question he intended, he'll just go silent and wait.

Rahne Sinclair has posed:
Rahne blinks, her sleep a happy memory, and adjusts to the situation. This is what she does, and given how quickly she's able to do so is a good sign for combat missions. She naps, but she also awakes as easily. Little bitch, her typist wishes she was so good at life.

Glance at Logan, Then at Clarice. Then, "Oh! Oh, welcome!" She goes right up to Dashenka, and with her customary complete obliviousness to tact she offers the much larger lady BOTH of her hands. "Wot Clarice said. An', if y' need, ah can check on ye or bring hot drinks or...wotever! Sleep be important."

Dashenka Ivanov has posed:
Logan gets a curt nod in return. "It is good to meet you," she says in a rote manner. Rahne's hands gets a glance before she places one of her massive hands in them. "It is good to meet you," she says to her as well. She does let a puzzled look slip past her mask as the Scottish girl speaks, the accent making it hard for Dashenka to track.

Turning back to the question at hand she says, "Nyet. I sleep well at night. Some nights... not so much." Another bite of the pickle. "Bad dreams come to me. So I wake, and patrol."

Clarice Ferguson has posed:
    "The dreams can be awful," Clarice agrees. "It helps having someone there..." But is that a choice for Dashenka? She frowns in thought before offering, "Maybe it would help if you had some sort of... pet? I never tried that myself, but..." It could, in theory, help. Couldn't it?
    "I also used to go running. Just... run until I was exhausted." Which wasn't as helpful as having someone with her, honestly. But when you have no other options...
    She isn't sure what else to offer, so she looks towards Logan to see if he has any input on the subject.

Logan Howlett has posed:
Logan takes another sip of his coffee, listening to the three talking. He doesn't miss the look from Clarice.

"There's a few options," he offers plainly. "A pet's never a bad choice to help, therapy animals have helped thousands of vets around the world. Exercise is another good choice," he nods to Clarice with that one. "I can join you for a 'before bed' routine if you'd like, help work off extra energy maybe."

He pauses a moment considering options. "There's sleeping pills, but Dr. McCoy likes to save those as a last resort, and finally, there's me. If you need anything, any time of the day or night, just get me. Hell, I'll outside your room if you think that will help you sleep."

Rahne Sinclair has posed:
Rahne eyes Clarice, just to see if there's some kind of teasing joke in there. She lets Dash have her hand back, and steps back. The fact that this is exactly what Clarice did do, within certain tolerances of 'exact' and 'did do' makes her wonder.

Still. New student. "Sorry aboot th' accent. Translation be available oan request."

Then she eyes Logan, wondering if what he just said was dirty or not. He doesn't give that scent though, so she moves on.

"How'd I get here anyway?"

Dashenka Ivanov has posed:
Dashenka's full intense attention is directed at Clarice as she tries to offer advice. "Having someone there?" she repeats, envisioning someone in a chair sitting next to her sleeping form. "I do not think that will work." The pet suggestion, however leaves her thoughtful, but, "I do not think school allows pets."

Then her attention is drawn to Logan. She considers his words for a moment before nodding. "I do exercise in morning to wake up. Perhaps I shall do before bed." The corners of her lips dip in a slight scowl. "It makes me hungry," she says. This means that she'll have to get more snacks late at night, and the only ones she knows of right now are poptarts and sandwiches.

Rahne gets another curious glance. "You walked in."

Rahne Sinclair has posed:
"Fairly certain tha' they do," Rahne says dryly, about the pet rule. She shapeshifts to a wolf without preamble, and then proceeds to sit and look at Dashenka with a mildly amused expression on her face. Which if you can't tell, means that she's amused.

Clarice Ferguson has posed:
    "You were sleepy, and brushing your teeth, silly wolf," Clarice remarks - just before the girl transforms. She ruffles at the wolf's ears, before looking back towards Dashenka. "You know, everyone's different. And hopefully you manage to fine the solutions that work for you. But for me - having someone physically there, next to me - someone I trust - it helps. I can smell them, and feel them..." She gives a shrug of her shoulders. "But I know it isn't always easy to find the right person.
    "And I don't really know the rules around the school, but sometimes you need to make exceptions to the rules," she points out. "Maybe if you had a dog, or something like that, who could sleep on your bed with you... I mean, the worst thing that happens is, if it doesn't work, you still have a pet dog."

Logan Howlett has posed:
Logan smirks. "Therapy pets aren't just pets, beside," he shrugs. "Rogue has a dog around here some place... and that."

He eyes Rahne for a moment. Sure he's seen it before but it still amuses him to see it. "If you think a pet will help, pet's are welcome. As for hungry, there's all kinds of snacks around here that don't include processed sugar and crap fillings."

He walks over to one of the cabinets and opens it, to reveal an actual pantry behind it. Not many realize it's there when they first look at the kitchen. "You can help yourself, and if there's something you want," he points to the dry erase board hanging in the pantry. "Add it to the list... see, Rogue has more sweet tea on the list already... but that's permanent marker."

Dashenka Ivanov has posed:
Dashenka doesn't look entirely surprised at Rahne's transformation. After all, she /did/ smell a little wolfy. However, "You are not pet." She says this firmly and with conviction.

All this talk of pets has her thinking. The idea of something warm and fuzzy sleeping with her does have its attraction. And taking care of it would give her something to do. This might be a good solution. "I will think on this." She decides.

She nods at Logan, "Da. I have seen the food. I do not know what to eat. All is new to me. Too many choices."

Clarice Ferguson has posed:
    "She hates sweets and stews. She likes pickles," Clarice offers helpfully, when it comes to the food. That's all she knews, herself. But it seems to be just about all that Dashenka knows, as well. Standing so one of her legs presses against Rahne's lupine form, she rests one hand on her head, scritching idly and comfortably. She didn't seem to care what form the other girl was in.
    "In my experience - the dreams have gotten better with time. I don't know that they'll ever really go away, though. And when I'm stressed... It gets worse."

Logan Howlett has posed:
With a nod, Logan ahs softly. "Alright, I can relate to that. Looking in there can be daunting, I mean I think Rogue and Jean by entire grocery stores and stock this place." He glances inside, looking around, then looks back to Dashenka.

"Are we talking super hungry or quick snack hungry? There's a lot of fruit in there, you can never go wrong with fruit." He glances inside again and spots one of his favorites, wondering for a moment if Rogue got it or it something else actually liked it. Stepping into the pantry for a moment, he returns with a can of spam with barbeque flavoring. No human being should like this, but he does. "You could try this," he then offers.

He knows about nightmares, too much really. He lives them every time he sleeps, but he also knows that most of them are a link to something in his past, a memory just out reach of being remembered, so he endures them. "Once you feel comfortable and safe, the nightmares will start to let up."

Dashenka Ivanov has posed:
Dashenka nods in agreement, holding up the pickle jar. She reaches in and pulls out another pickle which she immediately takes a bite out of. "Pickles are heaven," she opines.

"In morning, very hungry," Dashenka explains. "At night not so much. I had a sandwich, it was good." She's silent for a moment as she thinks about this. "I will try this, see if it helps."

She takes the can from Logan, turning it around in her hands. "I will try this, too. But not now. Will tomorrow night."

"Mm," she says as she stifles a yawn. "Perhaps I try sleep again." She nods to the room. "Thank you for advice." Still holding the can of Spam she turns and heads out to go back to her room.

Clarice Ferguson has posed:
    "I hope you find sleep," Clarice offers - one hand still resting on Rahne's head. She was fairly certain if she asked Rahne to go along with the girl - she'd do it. ...but that selfish part of her didn't want to give up the wolf girl, tonight. She's had a tough week, herself.
    "I hope she'll do alright. I think she will - being here and all. It's a good place." No matter what some folks may say about the school.

Rahne Sinclair has posed:
Rahne, suddenly human, has a Clarice hand on top of her head. She is actually about the same height as a sitting oversized wolf, so no major issues would occur. Aside from the sudden lack of oversized wolf. "She seems bonnie enou'," she says, watching the huge woman leave. "Ah mean, she seems nice." She can talk American when she has to. It's just annoying.

Then she looks at Clarice and Logan, and says, "So. Did ye both hash out th' China thing?" She means, can I go to bed yet? But she's too polite to say it out loud.

Logan Howlett has posed:
Logan moves back to the place at the counter he had been leaning, one more resting back against it.

"I believe we worked it out," he offers. "So long as I'm not on a team with or near Victor," he growls the name. "I'm more than willing to aid mutants in need, even if I had to tear my way through buildings to do it."

As he picks up his coffee and takes another sip, he studies Clarice more intently, trying to decide something. He seems to reach a decision and says, "I think I like you kid, you got passion, and you've used it for good with the Brotherhood. Maybe when all this is done, and we're sure another country has learned not to fuck with mutants, I'll buy you and any guests you wish, a drink of celebration."

Clarice Ferguson has posed:
    "Won't happen," Clarice promises Logan. "We're all working in good faith here. And besides, that's the point of putting two melee healers on the same team?" she asks.
    She pulls Rahne in towards her again now that she's a girl again, resting her head against Rahne's before she suggests quietly, "Maybe one of these nights - we can see if Dashenka would be willing to try out having a wolf in bed, and see if that helps her sleep at all? Before anyone goes to the trouble of buying her a dog. I dunno - maybe that's a dumb suggestion." She'll let Rahne sort that out, herself.
    Her gaze goes to Logan, and she offers a nod in agreement. "I'm glad you feel that way. Like I told you before - I really want to find a way to mend bridges. We're stronger together."
    She gives Rahne a little hug before murmuring, "I'm tired. Your place tonight?"

Rahne Sinclair has posed:
"Well, et be either tha' or ah nap right here, again," Rahne says. She smiles, then proceeds to let Logan talk. Because he clearly wants to say something. Also, naps are super important.

Logan Howlett has posed:
Finishing off the coffee, Logan takes a moment to wash the cup and set it in the drainer. Turning he looks at Clarice, "Depending on the situation, you might want Creed and I together." He doesn't growl that name for some reason, it's just the first name. "If that's what happens, it happens. I've worked with him before, I know his techniques and I know how to back him up. There was a time..." he stops there, clearing his throat. "If Creed thinks it'll be good for the mission, then I'm in to work with him."

That said, he heads for the back door. "Gotta get back to my patrol. Night."