963/Lakeside Conversations

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Lakeside Conversations
Date of Scene: 03 April 2020
Location: Breakstone Lake
Synopsis: A handful of X-People converge on the shore of Breakstone Lake. Introductions are made, and discussions of current events are had.
Cast of Characters: James Proudstar, Hope Summers, Gabby Kinney, Scott Summers, Illyana Rasputina




James Proudstar has posed:
It's a nice spring day in Westchester County, and mostly that means James Proudstar has been out of the house, traipsing across the grounds, clearing out excess underbrush, cleaning up the Boathouse and the Campsites, and generally preparing for the late-spring/early summer rush of folks who'll be out here to enjoy this fairly idyllic landscape. Maybe it's a little early, but it's not unheard of for the shore to at least get a bit crowded in the Spring, even if the water doesn't really get to swimming temperature until closer to summer.

But James is apparently done for the moment, and is instead just a bit upshore, throwing a big bowie knife at a target hanging on a tree, retrieving it, and repeating it. The center of the Target already looks virtually hollowed out from the repeated strikes, but James either hasn't really noticed or (more likely) doesn't care.

Hope Summers has posed:
The gym and the danger room are nice and all, but Hope's not really an indoors sort of girl. And as time wears on without an active crisis chasing her down, she's gotten a little bit...well, restless. Her solution today was to go out for a run around the grounds. And if maybe she always checked the perimeter security in the process, then hey, things might be a little bit safer. In theory.

Despite the lingering chill in the air, she's in a tank top and sweatpants, rounding one edge of the lake as she approaches James' throwing range. When she catches sight of him, her brows rise and a quick smile flashes across her features, though she schools it away as she slows down.

"Runner coming up," she calls over, in the interest of //not// getting knifed.

Gabby Kinney has posed:
There's a smaller dark haired figure running with Hope though a bit behind. Gabby wasn't wearing anything quite so revealing as Hope (hey she was a kid!) but legggings and a t-shirt worked well enough. It's a colorful shirt really. Black background with a rainbow print overtop featuring what appears to be the face of an opposum. With an upside down cross over it. The text reads: Eat Trash, Hail Satan'.

She manages to keep up with Hope even if she was smaller, and shorter, and having to really hoof it to do so. When she hears Hope call out she looks over herself to spot James with a quick grin and lift of her hand to wave. "Hey he's throwing knives I want to throw knives can I throw knives?!"

Scott Summers has posed:
Scott usually does his running (plus yes, checking the perimeter defenses) too early to see anyone. He is one of those evil morning persons, as surely was expected.

After the running he also ran Hope through a Danger Room evaluation scenario. It was overdue, but everyone has been too busy. Now he is watching Hope run, arms crossed over his chest. After a minute or so, he makes a decision and walks to intercept her, more or less in the place James is throwing knives at trees.

James Proudstar has posed:
Jimmy hears the pitter patter of feet of varying sizes, having newly retrieved the big knife and walked back the several dozen meters away he's been throwing from. He catches sight of Hope and gives her a nod and a faint smile, for the moment sheathing the knife at the small of his back. Not so much a weapon as a tool he uses while working on the grounds...and apparently a bit of a time passer. A dark brow raises with considerable amusement as Gabby decides knife-throwing is a lot more interesting than running, but he doesn't answer for Hope.

"Mr. Summers." James does intone as the scarlet-spectacles wearing fellow moves into easy conversation distance, only turning to look in his direction after the greeting has been given. "Everything all right?"

Hope Summers has posed:
"I am definitely not qualified to make that decision, but I'm personally always in favor of throwing knives," Hope grins at Gabby, shrugging in her best imitation of innocence. In her defense, she //does// like big knives. She's also not //really// responsible for Gabby. Sure, she wouldn't let her really get hurt, but that's not that much of a worry with that particular family line.

She dips her chin in a nod as Scott comes over, not really breathing hard. She's made good time, but she's also paced herself. And running is definitely something she's practiced.

Gabby Kinney has posed:
"I probably could but I don't think the knives I have would really hold up against a tree," Gabby considers as she pauses near the tree James had been targeting to get a better look at the damage already done there. "Hi James," she offers as well with a glance past him to the approaching man as well. Not a face she'd run across yet. Her attention shifts back to the tree to reach up and wiggle her finger inside the hole he'd created drawing an appreciative whistle from her.

"This thing's about had it. Nice job!"

Scott Summers has posed:
"It is a fine morning, James. Yes," he replies, looking distracted. Then he smiles faintly. "Well, actually the day started pretty well, or at least interesting. Hope, can you wait a minute?" He says, turning to the redhead. A glance is directed to Gabby, and a nod of greeting. He had never seen her in person but Scott knows her name. It is part of his job to know who is allowed in the grounds, after all.

James Proudstar has posed:
"Hey Gabby." The big Apache's lips twist in a wry expression as Gabby expresses her admiration for his work, "Heh...thanks. Practiced a bunch." He beckons her towards him, giving Scott a nod and letting him carry on his conversation with Hope. "You said you have your own knives?" He queries, mainly because Gabby trying to throw his might be kind of comical (Then again she might be perfectly capable, who knows around here?) Either way he doesn't seem to be acting like knife-throwing is on the menu when Scott and Hope are in "accidental stab victim" range.

Hope Summers has posed:
Hope takes a few steps out accidental stab victim range without really seeming to think about it. Avoiding getting stabbed is second nature! Especially when no one here has force field powers to keep from getting stabbed right now.

"Sure, I'm good," she answers Scott, hands slipping into her pockets. There's a slight defensiveness to her posture - she had enough arguments with Scott back in her world about what she could and couldn't do that bracing herself for one is //also// second nature.

Gabby Kinney has posed:
Gabby Kinney glances back toward James when he questions about her knives. "Yep I've got a few! Got a black blade bowie knife, that's probably the biggest, a switchblade--Laura took that one from me actually," she admits with a little frown. She'd have to get that back. "Then I've got my boot knife." With that she bends down to wiggle her fingers into her hightops. Not *quite* boots but they do the job, and she eventually pulls out a double-sided knife that's about four inches long. "Not the greatest but good in a pinch if you need something sharp."

Dropping her voice a little she leans in closer to James, "Who's the guy talking to Hope? She's tense as heck." Did she need to back up Hope? Hmmm.

Scott Summers has posed:
Scott never relaxes, that is a well-known fact around Xavier's. Always expecting an attack and planning for it. It is not paranoia if the are actually after you. And there is always someone after mutants, particularly if they are have Summers somewhere in their name.

"I got the final evaluation results," he says to Hope. "Eh, I suppose congratulations are in order. You broke the record. No nineteen year-old has ever scored so high in a solo Danger Room run."

James Proudstar has posed:
"Nice." Jimmy grins at Gabby's description of her collection, and her display of her last-ditch defense. "Target's still up, give it a toss if you want, they're behind us now." He pauses a bit at Gabby's question, mostly because he kinda thought everyone knew Scott, but apparently he was wrong. "That's Scott Summers. He's pretty much the number 2 guy around here besides Professor Xavier." It's not said with reverent tones so much as matter-of-fact. He does lift a brow at Scott's words, being almost unable to avoid hearing them, given his enhanced hearing. Solo record for a 19 year old? He's gonna have to train harder, apparently. Not that he's super-competitive or -really- cares about the record, right? Purely as an exercise in self-improvement. That's it. Yeah.

Hope Summers has posed:
"Yeah, well. I can't recommend the training regimen," Hope replies with a faint smirk and a self-conscious shrug. "Besides, send Laura through and that'll change real quick." Pride is nice, but realistic assessments of others are what keeps you alive. She hesitates for just a moment, then tilts her head, giving him a steady look. "Does that mean I'm cleared to help out with the Genosha missions that don't involve handing out aid?" she asks.

Gabby Kinney has posed:
That was news. Gabby glances over to leeean slightly around Jame to peer over at Scott. The news she overhears of Hope earns a quick, "Go Hope!" of congratulations before she continues to study Scott thoughtfully. VERY thoughtfully. Only after a moment she determines, "THAT'S Rachel's dad? I don't see the resemblance."

Easily distracted away from her train of thought by James suggesting she take a go at the tree she nods quickly and turns to stare at it. The knife is hefted, and she hauls back to throw it so hard that she nearly doubles over from throwing her body into it. It's likely a good thing she did though: she doesn't have the strength to do it without it. The knife does hit the target, and sticks... for a few seconds before falling out. It wasn't really well balanced to be a throwing knife. "Well, at least I hit."

Scott Summers has posed:
Scott arches an eyebrow at the comment about Laura. There is a silly moment of family pride. No Loganspawn is going to break Hope's record, damnit.

That was weird. Passes quickly.

"Maybe," he replies to Hope's question. "You still would be considered a trainee for around a year. Teamwork takes time to learn. That is... if you want into the team. We are sending people to Genosha soon. But it is not a X-Men operation, and Polaris will be calling the shots there."

James Proudstar has posed:
"Hey, not bad. Better than I did the first time I tried from this range." Jimmy comments, giving Gabby an encouraging pat on the back. "And range can come with time." He strides over to retrieve the knife, offering it back towards Gabby, hilt first, obviously. When he straightens back to his full height, he cants his head at Scott, "Puttin' her with our squad, Mr. Summers?" He doesn't sound disappointed by the prospect, just to be clear, more just curious.

Hope Summers has posed:
Hope is silent for a moment longer than it takes to have a genuine reaction - the urge to tell him she's led her own team is strong, but...also irrelevant to a Scott of any universe. If it can't be proven and shown, it doesn't matter. And arguing about it is just going to make him think she's //less// ready.

"Sure, teamwork's key," she agrees neutrally. When James chimes in, she looks back over toward him and Gabby, a small smile surfacing again. It looks familiar for her part - like she recognizes him and has pleasant associations with it. "And, uh...are you sending someone to advise her?" she asks of Lorna, quirking a brow. "She's understandably been in kind of a rough place lately."

Gabby Kinney has posed:
Gabby Kinney tips her head up to grin at James. The height difference was certainly notable with her standing that close to him. "Thanks! I'm used to hitting things, just not usually throwing things. I mean besides grenades. Those don't matter so much for accuracy," she points out while reaching to take her knife back. It's flipped in hand a time or two, and she glances back over toward the talk of Hope, teams, and Genosha rather quietly.

"Make sure it's someone who knows to keep her spirits up! She's trying hard but needs someone to give a nudge now and then," she suggests helpfully.

Scott Summers has posed:
Scott glances at James. "I suppose I have to; she broke my record. No one had in six years." Which might explain why he also looks somewhat bummed. He had set that score way back.

"I know what you mean," at this he gives Hope a considering look. How much does she know about Polaris anyway? "Polaris is better keeping busy than idle here. But yes, I will talk with Robert Drake and the others so she has all the support she needs. There might be some combat involved during the expedition. I hope not with other super-humans. But one never knows."

After all Sinister might be in Genosha. That alone raises the danger level considerably. Maybe he should ask Jean to go.

James Proudstar has posed:
"Cool. Welcome aboard. James Proudstar, Jimmy to my friends." James glances down at Gabby and chuckles, "We've got some people who're good at that kinda thing. Not me though. I'm mostly good for punching. And throwing. General property damage, that kind of thing. Did you say grenades?" There's a bit of a quizzical expression at that, when realization dawns on him. He's seen a lot of weird stuff, though, and did just see her bulls-eye with a thrown knife. So yeah...guess she's either had some training or...something.

Hope Summers has posed:
"Gabby's got the idea," Hope agrees with the younger girl, pointing a thumb over her shoulder. "I heard something about Sinister," she says, putting her hands back in her pockets in an attempt at looking nonchalant. "If he's still hanging around there..." A pause. "Well. Good news is, I'm not genetically a Summers." She flashes a sunny smile at Scott, then turns to Gabby and James again, taking half a step in their direction.

"Did I hear something about grenades?" she asks cheerfully. Who doesn't like grenades?

Gabby Kinney has posed:
Gabby Kinney does one final flip of the knife before she tucks it back into the small sheath she had for it. Putting an open knife in your shoe is never a good idea. "Well not *live* grenades. Usually," she points out with a solemn nod as she turns back toward the tree to regard the target again. When Hope comes over as well she flashes a grin. "Yeah. Long range weaponry was part of our training. Handguns, semi-automatic, grenades. Pipe bomb construction though that was more theory if needed in a pinch. The rest of it was physical training like martial arts and sword fighting."

Realizing how this might sound she glances over at Hope again, then Scott and finally James to offer a shrug. "We were supposed to be training to be 'bodyguards' for people but really it wasn't that nice." There's even little air quotes given around the name 'bodyguard.' "I guess since none of my sisters ended up with the x-gene active they decided to use us somehow."

Scott Summers has posed:
"I don't like explosives," points out Scott. "They are indiscriminating. Best left for demolition work and away from live targets." Because, yes, the super-hero 'code'. Blame Reed Richards and Superman for that.

He frowns at Gabby's words about her background. He is going to have to talk with Logan about 'his girls' soon.

"You heard about Sinister, hmm? I'll clear you to see the reports. Yes, there was a sighting. And then Mystique's statements." Mystique is not as much 'unreliable' as having a personal agenda that goes against everything Xavier wants, in his opinion. But he can't see how the woman would benefit from lying about Sinister's presence, so he gives her words a small degree of credibility.

James Proudstar has posed:
"Huh." Is James oh-so-succinct reply to Gabby's explanation. And here he thought he had it rough as a kid! He does give Scott a glance, "If there's a chance of a fight, I'll gladly go along. May as well make myself useful." Sinisters and Mystiques are above his pay grade...as is often the case with James, he listens and processes and otherwise keeps his yap shut unless he thinks it's important or someone asks his opinion.

Hope Summers has posed:
"You got sword fighting?" Hope grins at Gabby. "That part sounds interesting." Sure, Cable covered just about every kind of firearm and improvised explosive device in this and several other timelines, along with knives and fighting styles, but swords weren't really on the menu. "They had swords when I was learning kung fu, but we weren't really...There was't really time to learn that."

She offers a hand over to James then, grin flashing. "Hi. I'm Hope," she introduces herself.

Gabby Kinney has posed:
"Oh, yeah!" Gabby gushes with a quick nod at mention of the swords. "They knew we were prone to tempers so tried to give us something that would help be like, meditation and shit. We'd all line up and practice... Anyway, I haven't really gotten to use that outside of the labs. But it was fun!" Grinning wide she glances between Hope and James only to mouth a silent 'oops' when she realizes they apparently didn't know each other.

"This is Hope, she's awesome, and this is James, he's great. And Hi Scott I'm Gabby!" She finally calls out to the elder Summers loitering a bit away. At least she seemed cheerful in spite of her history.

Scott Summers has posed:
"Good to meet you, Gabby," replies Scott amiable enough within his usual aloofness. "There are a few competent swordsmen in the grounds. I am sure Kurt would love to teach you two all there is to know about the rapier, the cutlass and swashbuckling."

There is also Illyana. But lets spare the girls from those lessons until they are at least twenty one. Or maybe thirty one.

James Proudstar has posed:
"Nice to meet you, Hope." Jimmy's massive paw practically engulfs Hope's when he shakes it, but shake it he does. "And while I appreciate Gabby's vote of confidence I dunno about "great" but I mostly try to be at least all right." He looks to Hope, "I've got a friend who's good with swords. You'd probably like her." Just a hunch on Jimmy's part, really. "So she knows grenades, you know kung-fu. Sounds like you two have the important angles covered." It's a gentle teasing, but despite the humor in James' expression there's still enough of a sense of gravity that he realizes it may not be -entirely- a laughing matter.

Hope Summers has posed:
"That's me. Full of surprises," Hope says with a crooked smirk, her own grip firm despite the difference in size. "It's always good to learn a new skill. Besides, it's a good way to meet people, learn how they work too. That way you work better in a team."

The last comes with a sidelong glance in Scott's direction and a wink that only James and Gabby can see. For as much as she's //like// the elder Summers in some ways, she's also a terrible influence.

Gabby Kinney has posed:
Gabby Kinney grins as everyone gets properly introduced and gets to know one another. She stands there, lightly bouncing on her feet, before her attention pulls away to stare off into the distance for no apparent reason what so ever. "Okay I'm bored now. I'll talk to you all later!" She explains before she dashes off in a burst of energy. Maybe she just needed to keep burning off some energy in the first place.

Scott Summers has posed:
Scott's teacher-sense usually allow him to notice when a teenager is being sarcastic with him. But Hope is a Summers. Technically. So blind spot. This time. He nods at the redhead. Then glances surprised at the dashing Gabby. Bah, kids.

"I am glad you are going to Genosha, James. Keep the other safe. I doubt it is going to be pleasant given the devastation. It is a graveyard now," he turns to go back to the school, too. But without running.

Illyana Rasputina has posed:
On Breakstone Lake, there is a boat, a fine and lovely boat. It should be called the Wednesday considering that Pugsley Creek spills into the place. Such elegant waterways have absolutely no reason to be named for everyone's fourth favourite Addams, but taking that into account, it needs a bit of the weird. Rocky outcroppings host the breaking, cold waters that only the bravest or least sane want to splash around in the depths of early April. Below the water, a bluish-white glow takes on increasing force after first blossoming out of nothingness.

Still, the lake's surface breaks like a bubble. Ribbons of water coalesce into black leather and further more black cotton, possibly drenched or not. Stepping up sends Illyana shuttling into an airy environment, proof that if Scott invokes her name in thought just once, she will properly appear. Even if he runs away after.

James Proudstar has posed:
"Count on it." James replies to something Scott says, after a wry grin to Hope at her sass, though there's a blink of surprise as Gabby rushes off. Still, sass is good. Hey, speaking of Sass, James' eyes slide past Hope to spot Illyana's spectacular arrival. "So...speaking of friends good with swords."

Hope Summers has posed:
Hope watches Scott walk away with an expression somewhere between amusement and deep thought. "I feel like he could really benefit from...literally any kind of win," she says in a low voice in James' direction before the sound of the water breaking in the lake draws her eye as well.

"Illyana, right?" she asks, head tilting speculatively. For an unknown face, she certainly seems to know others.

Scott Summers has posed:
Scott nods in greeting to the blonde sorceress, but he has work to do in his office, so he doesn't stop to chat with her. "See you later Hope," he offers. And "James," as farewell. Uff, the idea of Illyana teaching others to hack and slash with swords is vaguely disturbing. But they are also considering Logan as an instructor, so... what could possibly go wrong?

Illyana Rasputina has posed:
A shake of her wrists casts off the water and gives Illyana enough time to flip some of her golden hair from her face. Important when negotiating the proper direction to shore, rather than trudging her way to land by way of several dozen feet of water and a far longer sheet of liquid getting in the way of expeditious arrival. Marching onward, the waves unsettled around her, she snaps the portal in her wake shut. Worry nothing of the soot smudging her shoulder or elbow, nor the vague haze of cinders falling from her hair, since very little of it can hope to remain.

She could salute Scott, but he is already departing for his office. Hope and James remain in perfect contention for trouble, though, so they receive that lift of her hand.

James Proudstar has posed:
"Yep, that's Illyana." James is perceptive...he's noticed a bit of Hope's somewhat odd sort-of familarity. He's not about to comment on it, though. People will tell you what they want you to know in time. No point badgering them about it. In the meantime, James lifts his hand to return Illyana's greeting, and moves over closer to the shore where she's likely to make landfall. "Lady knows how to make an entrance."

Hope Summers has posed:
"Right?" Hope agrees with James, smile wry as she raises a hand to wave to Illyana in turn. In sweatpants and a tank top, she definitely looks less dramatic than the ruler of Limbo. "Has she been out or something? Or is this the usual return spot?" Despite the easy tone in her voice, there's a readiness about her. That's probably wise.

Illyana Rasputina has posed:
Right is right, as it happens. The hint of a smirk plays on Illyana's expression while she wanders up to the shore. Boots only slightly wet hit the sand, and then soon enough dirt. Up the path, then, one footfall at a time. It makes less sound than otherwise it would. "I go where I like," her explanation comes to answer Hope. Nowhere near James' level of hearing, but still, she can tell something at a distance. "Good evening." The accent is definitely Russian, sharply so, spilling through the perfectly enunciated English and meeting with her habitually laconic way of talking. Though with a stranger around, maybe moreso than usual.

James Proudstar has posed:
"Illyana Rasputina, Hope Summers, Hope Summers, Illyana Rasputina." James offers by way of introduction, "Hope wants to learn swordplay. Scott suggested Kurt, which y'know, is probably a good suggestion. I mentioned I knew somebody good with a sword, too. And just like magic you're here." There's the tiny glimmer of a grin from James at that. "Call it a hunch, but I think you might get along." A hunch is all it is really, but James can recognize someone that got the steel in their spine the hard way, and for all her relatively gregarious manner, she gives the impression.

Hope Summers has posed:
"Nice to meet you, Illyana," Hope dips her chin in a nod with a small smile. Friendly, but not //too// friendly. Some people should definitely get the courtesy of personal space until proven otherwise. Illyana is one of those people. "Going where you like around this place is a good trick," she adds, wry. "I get keeping track of kids and I get keeping track of outsiders, but it's definitely a tight ship." And really, she's not used to taking orders from anyone but Cable.

Illyana Rasputina has posed:
"Hope." Turning the name into a greeting takes some skill, but Illyana possesses the 'compress multitudes of words into minimal words' downpat. Henry Cavill must be her spirit animal, in more ways than one. Sharp swords, minimal words, sighs of lamentation at the state of the world? Righto. Her hand lifts, wrist flicked slightly, giving status and purpose to the invoked greeting. She looks up, way up, to James and upnods him with the purposeful intent. "I come when called." Truer to life than not, perhaps, and not because it's a Beetlejuice sort of thing. Demon Queen or not, presumably demons /can/ be summoned with the right invocation. All the same, it matters not at all. She looks at his grin, and then back to the redhead.

She turns her attention back to Hope. "The rules are good for children, da. Prove they are unnecessary and..." A shrug full of import and purpose answers that little shrug, telling Hope all she needs to know.

James Proudstar has posed:
"Doubt it'll take long for you to be mostly off the leash like Illyana and me and some of the others." James grins just a touch, this time towards Hope, "Unless Scott catches some of that sass." He holds up a hand, finger and thumb just a tiny bit apart, "Then maybe a little bit longer."

Hope Summers has posed:
"I've got no idea what you mean by sass," Hope smirks, chin rising as she crosses her arms over her chest. "Every word of that was nothing but truth." And it's still true! Rolling her eyes, she shifts her weight to one hip with a slight sigh.

"The thing is, I don't really need a lot of supervision. I've been trained. My whole life. By lots of people. Including an older and grumpier version of him," she adds, pointing a thumb in the direction Scott went. "And yes, he can get both older and grumpier. It's a thing. But it's not like you can tell Scott Summers that you're sufficiently trained and older grumpier him even signed off on giving you a team and failed pretty hard to stop you when he didn't like how things went and expect him to just buy it and back down, right? Buying things and backing down is //not// his thing."

Illyana Rasputina has posed:
This is all preaching to the choir, if by choir a single young woman of pale blonde hair and eyes embodying the chill of the permafrost in all its spectacularly diversified waterings of blue. Illyana absorbs the explanations about a much older Scott being even grumpier, even less trending towards bonhomie and excitability, giving the faintest arch of an eyebrow. "He would demand supervision for someone a century old, nyet?" Leaving just enough room in there for doubt is the way to spark mayhem on a long, long fuse.

"Leashes make others feel better." Another light shrug, a tip of her head in James' direction, would put paid to this purpose.

James Proudstar has posed:
"Older and Grumpier Scott. Older I could see, maybe." James looks like he might be skeptical of the grumpier part. "But yeah, Scott doesn't make snap decisions on stuff like that." He glances to Illyana and chuckles, "And probably two centuries. Or more. He's good at what he does but what he does is really make people earn their place."

Hope Summers has posed:
"And I can't blame him," Hope sighs. "I'd do the same, because it's just tactically smart, even if it's a pain from this end. You guys have been here for a while then?" she asks, looking between the pair. "Long enoguh to have teleporting lake permissions," she adds with a wry smile for Illyana, "And be assumed to be part of a mission, at least."

Illyana Rasputina has posed:
"Forge and reforge until the flaws leave." A crisp nod then from the Demon Queen. She certainly has no disagreement with the other pair on Scott's foibles, or what benefits they bring either way. Rather, she hooks her thumbs through the loops on her leather pants that normally support a rather weighty leather belt, the perfect for Sam to fling her by or to hang a sword on. "You survived on your own. Show sense, fewer barriers. Or ask forgiveness."

James Proudstar has posed:
"It's smart. Takes strong shoulders to accept that you might never be the guy people invite to the party, if it means those folks survive to have the party at all. Somebody's gotta be the drill sergeant." James shrugs a shoulder, then nods to Hope, "Been here more or less four years. Guess you could say we're on the second string for now. Us and a few others."

Hope Summers has posed:
"Yeeeaaah, but he's gonna have to find some balance," Hope grimaces faintly. "Anyhow. Second string, huh?" she asks, quirking a brow with a flicker of a smile. "Probably not for long. I get the feeling they're going to just have more first strings as people get more experience. And unfortunately..." The smile fades. "It's starting to sound like whatever's going on with Genosha is going to push that."

Illyana Rasputina has posed:
Four years and second string. Illyana points at herself with fingers in a gun pattern. "I am 'complicated,'" her voice holds the requisite finger quotes, "for many reasons. Da, Genosha is terrible. Sixteen million dead. They still seethe and rage, and not freed only."

James Proudstar has posed:
"Yeah. It's heavy. Worst it's been since I got here. And even then I've seen some pretty crazy stuff." James glances out over the water, "Somebody declared war in a big way. Knew I was training for something, didn't know it was to play soldier, but we're all gettin' drafted whether we like it or not." He doesn't sound so personally resentful about it, more like just...making the observation. "Probably gonna get uglier before it gets better."

Hope Summers has posed:
"Hopefully we're early enough to stop it." Odd way to put it, but Hope seems equally sanguine about the concept of being a soldier. And fighting for the survival of the species. Those things are familiar. "But hey, on the up side, at least everyone here is pretty complicated. The weird sort of balances out when you spread it over the whole population, right?"

Illyana Rasputina has posed:
Being a soldier, survival, they ring true for the blonde Russian with equal ease. "Da. Weird mostly becomes normal. Not for everyone." She doesn't have to explain further on that, looking past them to the house that sprawls on the green lawns still coming into their original lushness. Then back to the lake, it warrants a lengthy regard with a tip of a smirk back to her head. "Genosha is personal for some. What do we do now? There is no simplicity in fixing the island."

James Proudstar has posed:
There's a curious cant of James' head at Hope's phrasing, but and the implication of knowledge others may not be privy to, but much as before, he doesn't jump to coax it out of her. She's probably one of the future-folks, and may have good reason for being tight-lipped, he reckons. "Find out who did it. Make sure they can't do it again, maybe so well that nobody else gets keen on trying. Try to help 'em recover and rebuild. May not be simple in the fine detail, but it's pretty straightforward in the overall."

Hope Summers has posed:
Hope nods to James. "I got the impression Lorna's worried about the finding who did it part first. Makes sense to a point. Hard to take the next step of stablizing things and moving forward if you're worried about getting hit again. Personal for you?" she asks with a curious quirk of her brow in Illyana's direction.

Illyana Rasputina has posed:
"Sentinel is not enough. Tracing them would give direction." Illyana follows that line of thinking from Hope and follows up with a faint gesture of her hand. "A who or what goes to how. From how, we can resolve a plan. Scott no doubt will have ideas on how to proceed. I can take us anywhere, but we need to know the where of it. To go in blind, to strike wrong, only invites us to have more problems and fewer resolutions. Scalpels, not sledgehammers." It's the longest sentence she has conducted so far as she slinks around behind James, keeping an eye on the water for a time, and slipping back in to triangulate off the nearest point they are that. "Erik is dead. Genosha is fallen. It could be a political statement. Nyet, though. Not personal, not like for Lorna or Charles. But I stood in the river of the dead while ruins smoldered, and that means something. Justice is not in this world. An answer, though, that we can give."

James Proudstar has posed:
"Political statement usually has somebody taking credit for it. Nobody's done that here." James glances to Hope, "Not personal for me, except that it's got some of my friends hurting. So yeah, guess it's personal after all, just in a different way." The big guy gives a shrug, and then a nod, "Anyway, probably about time to head back in, for me. You two comin' with or gonna talk it out out here?"

Hope Summers has posed:
"I'll believe Magneto is dead when there's a body," Hope snorts softly, shaking her head. "I don't say that to make light of Lorna's grief, just...he's a survivor. And sometimes being a survivor means playing dead for a little bit." Still, she seems to share Illyana's feelings, straightening up and reaching up to crack her neck when James mentions going in.

"Yeah, I should probably go get cleaned up before dinner," she agrees. "You guys don't much care for the stench of sweaty people at the dinner table," she smirks.

Illyana Rasputina has posed:
"Dead on the face of it is all they need. A message sent. But few stay dead. I would know." The conversation point there is hardly explained, but it's easy to dismiss as the fatalistic Russian viewpoint. The Rodina is eternal, but the black soils saturated in the tears and struggles of her countrymen colour their outlook as bleak and rich as the loam of the Ukraine and the dense forests once clotting the low Urals. She saunters after the taller man, engulfed by his shadow. "I may call you when we make a move. You handle yourself, it will help. Not bothered by bodies and ruins, da?"

James Proudstar has posed:
"When we can avoid it." Jimmy glances over his shoulder at Hope with a touch of a wry expression. "For some the shower doesn't make much difference though." Says the guy with super-smelling powers that's wrinkling his nose at the thought. The nose knows! Unfortunately....

And with that, he sets a leisurely pace back towards the mansion.