Timeline: During the last hour or two of the Bobby/Carol Drunkstance
Rogue: After answering Bobby's text multiple times and then calling with zero answer or return calls at least twice, she finally found herself hovering over Pietro's house. Her tears had dried in the wind, so her face felt sticky with the astringent streaks, and she swiped at one cheek before pulling out her phone to text him. Speedfeet... You home? "Please be home..."
Pietro: Pietro set down his tools and wiped the dirt off on his jeans before he pulled his phone out of his pocket to see who it was. I'm home. What's up? He stood up to take a look at the progress he'd made. Not enough. He should really hire a gardener.
Rogue: Rogue didn't even bother responding to the text, instead, lighting on the front step and knocking, then ringing the doorbell.
Heather: Heather had been in the kitchen harassing Emma for cake but then the doorbell rang so she went to harass the front door instead. "Oh, hello. Are we expecting you?"
Rogue: "Hey, Heather. No. Ah need Peeto. Please." Rogue stuffed her phone in her back pocket and her hands in her front pockets.
Heather: "He's in the rose garden..." Heather did a quick bit of mental navigating before deciding it was faster to go through the house, "This way..." she gestured for Rogue to follow her.
Pietro: Having not gotten a reply to his reply, Pietro put his phone back in his pocket and went back to digging weeds when he heard a gush of water and some swearing behind him, followed by Harvey's voice yelling, "FYI the watering system is fucked!" Pietro sighed and added plumbing to his mental to-do list.
Rogue: Rogue did as she was bidden, following Heather through to the back of the house. "Is he busy? Ah c'n come back."
Heather: Heather laughed, "He's always busy. But he'd be done way faster if he used his powers to do the gardening. But he was all 'blah blah, something boring and sentimental, nonsensense' and I got bored." She opened the door at the back of the servant’s corridor out into the gardens and pointed Rogue to the gardens with the flowers that fought back.
Rogue: "Thanks, sugah." She gave Heather as much of a smile as she could manage and headed to where she'd pointed. "Peeto," she called as she neared the roses. "Ah need t' talk..."
Pietro: Oh well that explained the lack of another message. He got up and headed for the sound of her voice, "Is everything okay?"
Rogue: "No," her voice shook, so she cleared her throat and tried again as she closed the distance, hugging him without asking, but making sure her skin wouldn't touch his. "No."
Pietro: Pietro had come a long way but he still wasn't that much of a hugger. Still, he returned it because she needed one, "Do you want to talk about it or drink about it?"
Rogue: "Both," she decided after a moment, then stepped back. She sniffed and licked her lips before looking up at him, "Is there somewhere we c'n go that's not gonna be heard by everyone who lives here?"
Pietro: "... Pretty much everywhere," he admitted with a small smile, "But we can go to my office if it makes you feel better? Option B is also in large supply there."
Rogue: "There, then. Please." Rogue knew she was in short supply of words right now, but she wasn't sure what to say yet. She had only recently realized that Bobby wasn't going to be any help so she needed to find someone else who could.
Pietro: "Okay," Pietro glanced over his shoulder for Harvey but didn't see him anywhere so he was probably 'stress testing' something else. He started walking back to the house wondering how large the bill for the next thing would be. "Did something happen...?"
Rogue: "Maybe? Ah don't know what happened. Ah was at th' rally an' then Ah suddenly couldn't breathe'r think'r do much o' anythin' 'cept force mahself t' leave. Which is th' exact opposite response Ah always have t' fight'r flight. Ah run, sure, but not like this."
Pietro: "Oh you went to the rally? I heard it kind of deteriorated..." he frowned, "Maybe start at the beginning." He walked her through one of the many random side entrances and straight through a hidden door into his office. "Unless you want that drink first?"
Rogue: "How 'bout pour th' drinks while Ah try t' figure out what t' say? Ah wasn't there long... An' Ah showed up late."
Pietro: "I can do that. What would you like?" He gestured her to one of the comfy chairs while he went to the drinks.
Rogue: Rogue curled up as small as she could make herself get in the chair and still be in an upright position. "Anythin' hard an' neat." She wrapped her arms around her legs and closed her eyes, trying not to cry again. "When Ah got there, Cameron Hodge was speakin' t' th' crowd. Ah figured some o' th' other X-Men'd be there, so Ah tucked all mah white hair up under a baseball cap an' found Jean an' Tandy in th' crowd."
Pietro: Pietro poured her some bourbon and offered the glass, "Oh so you weren't on the team supervising? Good call."
Rogue: "Ah didn't know there was a team that was gonna be supervisin'... Guess they left me off that memo..." She took the bourbon and downed half of it.
Pietro: "The anti-mutant front has been getting pretty vocal of late so they were probably there to manage potential shenanigans..." Pietro reasoned, taking a seat himself, "Not sure if you being there all suited up would have helped or given them a target..."
Rogue: "Prob'ly both." Rogue sniffed again and swiped at her nose with her glove covered wrist. "Ah just wanted t' be able t' see what was happenin' an' protect people if they needed it. It's what Ah'm supposed t' do. It's mah job... Mah job hasn't changed just 'cause Ah'm datin' th' President..."
Pietro: "I know that... but some of the things you can do for your job have changed now because you're a visible target. Situations like that are a bad idea but you can do other stuff instead... probably more useful stuff for the pro-mutant side, honestly." But they were getting off topic, "What happened while you were there?" He was pretty sure he could count on one hand the number of times he'd seen her cry.
Rogue: "Hodge'd been speakin', but he was interrupted by that woman who's basically Osborn's groupie. An'... When she spoke, it was like.... claws diggin' int' me. Mah inner me."
"But Ah'm not 'pro-mutant'... Ah'm pro-everybody..." She knocked back the rest of her drink and rested her chin on her knees, staring off into middle space. "Jean an' Tandy weren't pleased t' see me, so Ah said they didn't hafta hang with me, but Ah just wanted 'em t' know Ah was there if they needed help, then Ah moved deeper int' th' crowd. To th' front...”
Pietro: Pietro decided to keep his pro-mutant comments to himself and stick to the topic at hand. They could revisit the other thing later... much later. "Did you recognise her?"
Rogue: "No. Not beyond th' fact that Ah know who she is from news reports an' stuff... An' apparently she wants t' fuck Tony. But that's just eyeroll worthy 'cause prob'ly a quarter o' th' world does."
Pietro: "Probably at least a third if you factor in the gays," Pietro amended, for a bit of levity. "Does she have some familiarity to some personality fragment you have in there, maybe?"
Rogue: That did pull a soft chuckle from her. He wasn't wrong. "Maybe? Ah dunno. Hope wiped me a long time ago, Ah thought..." Rogue made a noise in frustration and sniffed again. "Ah hate mahself f'r runnin' away. But Ah could barely move. Ah couldn't think. Mah heart was racin' an' mah chest was tight... It was a nightmare."
Pietro: Pietro frowned, sitting back in his chair, "That... sounds like you were having an anxiety attack."
Rogue: "About what?!" She lifted her head and angrily swiped at her face. "Ah've been in situations like that tons o' times! There was nothin' t' make me anxious!"
Pietro: Pietro held up his hands, "I'm just diagnosing the symptoms!" His eyebrows rose, "Clearly something affected you. Maybe it's ptsd you didn't know you had or something else but what you're describing sounds like an anxiety attack... if you want I can pull up the information..." he gestured to his computer.
Rogue: "No," she grumbled. "Ah just... Ah don't know what made it happen. An' it didn't feel like anythin' ever... Ah've panicked b'fore 'bout things, like when Bobby got trapped in th' collapse on a mission an' we had t' leave him, is prob'ly a good example. But... It didn't... Ah just..." Rogue gestured helplessly and made another frustrated noise that she tried very hard to not sound like the choked sob that it was.
Pietro: "Panicking and having an anxiety attack are two very different things. And it's not something to be ashamed of. I'm not throwing accusations or calling you weak for having a moment. It happens." He reached over to put a hand on her shoulder, "Something about her triggered a visceral response in you. It's a sign of your strength that you managed to get out of there before it got worse."
Rogue: She shook her head, "No," she replied weakly. "It doesn't happen t' me. We cain't afford f'r that t' happen t' me. Not when Ah'm in a situation where Ah need t' be alert an' keep others safe."
Pietro: "Honestly, I think you're lucky it hasn't happened before with all the shit we've all been through," he sighed, getting up and taking her glass to top it up and get a drink of his own.
Rogue: "We cain't afford f'r it t' happen," she followed him with her eyes. "When it happens, innocent people die..."
Pietro: He offered her the refilled glass as he sat down again, "Rogue... that's why there's a team. It's not all on your shoulders."
Rogue: She gratefully took it and stared into the amber liquid. "Ah ain't even sure they want me on th' team anymore." Rogue sniffed and gnawed on her lip for a moment. "Which might be f'r th' best 'cause th' worst part, sugah? Ah didn't give a single thought t' th' people around me when Ah felt that way. Ah was so scared an' Ah only thought o' mah own hide."
Pietro: "Why wouldn't they want you on the team anymore? You're an asset. Your experience alone makes you good at this job..."
Rogue: "Ah'm a killer, that's why. An' Ah don't regret it. Ah don't regret th' evil people Ah took out an' Ah don't regret threatenin' Carol. Both things did what Ah needed them t' do: stop th' evil from killin' innocents an' forced Carol t' back up an' leave me an' mine alone t' handle things th' way we needed t' do it." Rogue finally took a large swallow of the bourbon then set her chin back on her knees.
Pietro: "Wait wait, back up," Pietro was confused, "You threatened Carol? About what?"
Rogue: "T' stay out o' mah business an' let me handle things." She cut her eyes to Pietro, "Y' knew that. She was gonna tell Tony everythin'. Didn't even give me five days t' figure out th' best way t' go 'bout it b'fore sayin' she was gonna blow up mah entire life."
Pietro: "So you threatened her? With your history? Rogue, that's not okay..." he frowned, taking drink of his own, "I suppose I wouldn't blame her if she didn't want to work with you anymore... but the others?"
Rogue: "It was literally th' only way t' get her t' stop, Pietro. Ah tried talkin' t' her, Ah tried beggin', Ah told her the semblance o' th' plan Ah had at th' time, which wasn't much 'cause mah mind was reelin', but Ah tried every way Ah could think of t' get her t' stop an' listen t' me. That's th' only thing that made her stop. An' that's th' part that's crazy t' me. That Ah had t' use that threat in th' first place."
Rogue: She shook her head. "She's not mah friend, Pietro. She never was. She just got okay with me bein' around. That's what that showed me."
Pietro: Well threatening her probably didn't help but he kept that to himself, "I don't believe that... I think you're all just too close to it right now. Maybe when the dust settles and apologies can be made you can rebuild the friendship. You worked hard on that..." He sighed, "As for killing people... Other people on the team have done just the same - Carol probably too considering she's Air Force."
Pietro: "No one's going to be judging you over that. If they were, you wouldn't have the job in the first place, would you?"
Rogue: "Ah'll apologize when she apologizes. If Ah back down even a tiny bit, she'll think Ah'm backin' down from th' threat which means mah life is wide open f'r her t' take her wreckin' ball of a self to." She shook her head, "Did y' not hear me, Pietro? She was never mah friend. Ah tried an' Ah was a friend t' her, but me? Ah was just th' girl that almost killed her when we were kids."
Pietro: "Okay, okay. I don't know her side so I'm not going to wade into this... but I think you both need cooling off time regardless." He took a sip from his glass, "As for this thing with the Senator... you need to try and figure out what it is about her that sets you on edge. You said you saw her on tv before? That was fine?"
Rogue: "Yeah... Ah mean stuff she said grated on me, but not anymore than most politicians..." She licked her lip and stared back down into her glass. "It was painful t' mah psyche. Th' most pain Ah've felt in a long time."
Pietro: It was odd that being in her presence and seeing her on television had different effects but psychology was not his area of expertise. "Then it seems obvious that something in your mind found her familiar in some way it didn't like and you had a physical reaction to it. If you want to stop that from happening again, the only suggestion I'd have is to figure out why."
Rogue: Rogue frowned and looked over at him, blinking away the tears that were still clinging to her lashes. "How? Ah cain't put anybody at risk again. An'... Feelin' like that on purpose?" She very nearly convulsed at the thought.
Pietro: "I'm not saying you should try and figure it out on a mission... you should probably avoid running into her at all until you have a strategy. But now you know that she has some kind of effect on you, you can think about it and try and figure out why."
Rogue: She shook her head and closed her eyes tight. "Ah wouldn't even know where t' begin, Speedfeet. Unless she's a mutant'r somethin' an' her power is t' gnaw on others? But nobody else seemed affected."
Pietro: "I wish I could help you with that... I'm not a psychologist so my knowledge of anxiety disorders is pretty limited to my sister. If you know any you feel comfortable picking the brains of, you should ask them for tips. But if you want to talk about anything I'm always here to listen."
Rogue: "Ah don't have an anxiety disorder, Pietro," she gave him side eye. "Ah had a one-time issue. That drove me here b'cause Bobby couldn't be bothered with being there."
Pietro: He held up his free hand in surrender, "Okay but I'm just saying... it sounds like you should ask a psychologist rather than a geneticist about how to fix it."
Rogue: "Ah just came t' one o' th' few people Ah trusted. Ah never said y' had t' fix it. Ah just..." Rogue sighed, frustrated. "Ah just wanted a friend."
Pietro: "Then I'll stop trying to fix it and offer you cake," he gave her a small grin.
Rogue: She gave him a weak half-smile. "Ah like cake. Feed th' stomach, feed th' soul, right?"
Pietro: "Want it in here or the kitchen? There's always emergency cake."
Rogue: "Depends," Rogue wrinkled her nose. "Do Ah look a fright? 'Cause if so, we should stay in here."
Pietro: "Okay First: everyone in this house has seen way worse. Second: You could never."
Rogue: "First: That doesn't matter. Second... Thanks." Her smile was a little more genuine this time. "Ah really appreciate it, Speedfeet. All o' this. Even th' hug."
Pietro: "Hugs are free," he confirmed, "You don't need to be even sad for those." He got up and offered her his free hand.
Rogue: Rogue took it and uncurled herself slowly before she stood. "Y're not exactly known f'r y' hugs though, sugah."
Pietro: "Because I have chronic shyness. I just hide it behind my enormous brain."
1/29 Issue: Emotional Support Speedster
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1/29 Issue: Emotional Support Speedster
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