Timelined right after Go Home, Hope, You're Drunk
<Venom> Slowing down as he rode his motorcycle up the grounds of Xavier's University, Eddie sighed, recalling the first time he'd seen the grounds. He remembered how he'd walked from the entrance that first day after breakfast, walking all the way to the gate he'd just passed through, stopped, turned, and just beamed at his new home.
<Venom> Nudging his passenger with his shoulder as they approached, he did his best to smother that nostalgia. It hurt to think about it, to remember the happiness somewhere beneath the pain of the last few days, "Hey. Asshole...", he smirked over the soft growl of the Daytona, "We're home..."
<Hope> Home. A word so simple, usually accompanied by a feeling of safety and security. Would they ever have that 'home' feeling again? "Greeeeeeeeeeeeeat," she called back, releasing her hold on him a bit as they pulled in.
<Bobby> He heard the noise of the bike and drifted in closer. Eh. She was fine. Just wasted. And with captain crazy.
<Venom> "Hope...", Eddie stopped the bike in front of the school, kicking the leg down, "Hope, if you vom in my helmet I will freak out and punch you.", he sniggered, slipping off the bike and moving to help her, "You alright?"
<Hope> "I'd kick you in the balls... but you don't haaaaaaaaaave annnnnnnnnnnnny." Hope snickered at him, stumbling off the bike.
<Venom> Eddie shook his head, pulling the helmet off and resting it on the bike before going back to her, "Hey, seriously, you good?", he ruffled her hair, giving her a quick once-over, "You look about ready to clock out."
<Hope> Hope swaggered a bit at the touch, but she gave him a lopsided grin. "I'm soooooolid, yo!"
<Bobby> Oh yeah, she was solid, all right. He made himself so as well, swirling into form not far from the dynamic duo. "Have fun, kids?"
<Venom> Triggering Eddie's senses, Bobby ended up in his vision in a split second, "Oh...hey, Drake.", he waved to him with a smirk, "Just...you know, puttin' you out of a job and such."
<Bobby> "Yeah, yeah." He smirked at Eddie, sizing the guy up and looking for the warning signs everybody had been telling him about.
<Hope> "Pfffft, all Popscicle does is guard the Captain Crunch." Hope grinned and hiccuped.
<Bobby> "You just don't know when I'm there, babe." He winked at Hope.
<Venom> "If you're still alive, he's more than earned that paycheck, Hope.", Eddie nudged her, grinning at Bobby's words.
<Hope> "Screw both of you." She shoved Eddie a bit, still grinning.
<Venom> Eddie raised his eyebrow at Bobby, "Hey-hey, we're in luck...", he laughed back.
<Bobby> "No thanks. At least not each other." He chuckled.
<Hope> "...that.... that wasn't an invitation! You dirty, dirty men." Hope eyed Bobby a bit. He should stand still... he'd get dizzy doing all that swaying.
<Bobby> Hope was doing all the swaying, and he moved in closer to her to mimic the action, just for the hell of it. "You at sea there, Princess?"
<Venom> "Come on...", Eddie sighed, patting Hope's back, "Let's get you up and to bed, you look about ready to pass out..."
<Bobby> "That's all right... I can get it, dude." He straightened up, creaking a little in his ice form.
<Hope> "Well hey now... usually i insist on dinner first," she teased, but grabbed onto Eddie to steady herself. Bed did sound awesome.
<Venom> Nodding, Eddie offered Hope over and stood aside, "She's all yours, cheif.", he backed off.
<Bobby> A bit surprised at how easy that had been, Bobby moved over to take Hope's arm. Maybe people were exaggerating Eddie's state? "Come on, drunkie."
<Hope> Reluctantly, Hope glanced back to Eddie as she was hauled off. "See you tomorrrrow tomorrrrrrrow!" She sang as she walked off.
<Bobby> "Got another drunk date tomorrow?" He gave her a suspicious glance, then looked back at Eddie.
<Hope> "We gotta find my groom!"
<Venom> "Yeah, we will, Hope.", Eddie called after her, smiling weakly, "We will...."
<Bobby> Bobby glanced between them again, thinking about this.
<Venom> --- Time Passes ---
<Bobby> Keeping spare clothes in the mansion was just second nature to him nowadays, so he picked up his stash on the way to Hope's room and got dressed before he helped the girl get to bed.
<Bobby> It didn't take long, and he was back in the hall, closing the door quietly behind him and surprised to see he wasn't alone.
<Venom> "She alright?", Eddie smiled at him, face overcast in shadow, "She had a lot to drink. She was...really upset about Johnny..."
<Bobby> "Yeah, she'll sleep it off... besides, she just needs to latch onto somebody with a healing factor and she won't even have a hangover. Thought about telling her to use my powers to sober up, but... eh... she doesn't need to be sober really. It's good to get a little escape."
<Venom> Laughing dryly, Eddie nodded, "Amen to that...", he sighed, "So er ...I guess I'll see you around, hm?", he pushed off the wall he was leaning on.
<Bobby> "Hey... I've been hearing things... since Cassie disappeared and Johnny and Jamie, really... since it was all at the same time..." He shifted his weight, then looked up to gauge Eddie's reaction. "Everybody is torn up over all this... but I just wanted to make sure you're cool, all right?"
<Venom> Eddie took a silent breath, "...I'm...t-to be honest, It hurts.", he smiled weakly, "It....feels like I'm trapped in some kinda dream. And...I'm so full of uncertainty, like...should I be angry, should I be crying....I don't know.", he sighed, "...I...got to thinking that maybe..."
<Venom> He looked up at Bobby, "...I condemned you all for the X-Force, but maybe you were right. Maybe sometimes...sometimes we just have to strike back."
<Bobby> He blinked, not sure what to do with that at first. "No, man... we were wrong. I mean... I don't regret getting Rae back, or the others, but the way we did it? No... it just made things worse."
<Venom> "...but Essex is gone. He can't hurt anyone anymore.", Eddie frowned back at him, "...I just...I-I believed so much in my ideals. A-and now Cassie's gone it just....", he sighed, "...she believed in me and I let her down. She's gone because she tried to live up to that."
<Bobby> "He's gone, but at what cost? And there will always be another one... just like right now. We... we can't get them all, man, and we shouldn't try. It makes us just as goddamn bad as they are. Believe me."
<Venom> 'HE IS WEAK. WE WERE WEAK. AVENGE HER. KILL THEM! KILL THEM ALL!
<Venom> Cringing at something, Eddie shook his head, "I don't get it, I don't see WHY!", he looked up at Bobby, eyes alight with fury, "You LED them! You were so sure and now I'm telling you that you were RIGHT! This wouldn't have happened if someone finished Kraven! I-if I'D finished him when I had the chance!"
<Bobby> Bobby shook his head, now seeing what the others meant. "I was never sure, Eddie. It seemed... like the best option at the time, and maybe even the only option... but after I saw... it... this shit changes you and it eats at you. Makes you crazy."
<Venom> "I J-...!", Eddie started, biting back his words and turning away, covering his face with both hands, "WHY did she have to die!? For what!? Why did she leave?", he took a deep breath, lowering his hands, "I-I just....there's so much hate in me and...I-I don't know what to do..."
<Venom> 'WE BOTH KNOW WHAT TO DO. KILL THEM. AVENGE HER.
<Bobby> "I know, man... believe me. What Essex did to me, to Lorna, to Rae... and the idea he just kept doing it over and over again? It made me sick." He moved in closer to Eddie, and risked putting a hand on his shoulder. "But revenge... it doesn't help. It won't bring her back, man."
<Venom> 'Fool....you are wrong. You promised her. WE PROMISED HER VENGEANCE...'
<Venom> Shying from his touch, Eddie shook his head, "You're wrong.", he looked up again, "Y-you....you are. You all are.", he shook his head, "Just...y-you have to...", he backed away, shaking his head, "I can't let this go...I WON'T. You were right, Bobby, you were so, so right..."
<Venom> His voice cracked, he looked about ready to break down as he backed away, "You were right..."
<Bobby> "No... I wasn't." He shook his head and sighed, wishing there was something he could say to fix this.
<Venom> Eddie turned and left, biting back his feelings of anger and sadness. He wanted to believe it, he wanted so badly to believe there was some other way, but there wasn't. All he could picture, no matter what he looked at, what he did, was that image of Cassandra, lying there in that hellish place. Broken angel, abandoned by God.
<Venom> He was right. He had to be. This was the only way. And he promised her. He promised.
<Bobby> "Just... stop. What you're thinking, what you're planning. Just stop. Talk to Cess, or Dai, or... if you don't want them to know... I'm here. But don't do anything stupid, man." His eyes narrowed. "And don't take Hope with you."
<Venom> Not stopping, Eddie continued until he was out of sight, proceeding to his own room. Damn right he'd not take Hope - this was his job and his alone. He had the power, he alone had the responsibility.
<Hope> The yelling had prevented Hope from sleeping, and despite her best efforts to ignore it, she had heard most of it. She sighed, laying back down as it grew silent once more. Another way... what other way would that even be? Every time one of those wackos got away they came back for more. Hope ran her fingers through her hair, thinking. Maybe so... but she knew exactly how Eddie felt. And screw Bobby. She was going with him.