Vernique Denning (butterflybullet) wrote,
@ 2013-01-14 03:00:00

Some time when the world's not ending at all.
Room service. A glass of water at her left hand and of wine on her right. They'd had a lovely time, but Vernique had been quiet for a minute. Not the preoccupied, melancholy quiet that had overtaken her so often on so many date nights these past few months. Not an entirely sanguine quiet, either, though.

"Something I wanted to talk about, Jordan. You can stop the conversation at any point if you really have to. Okay?"

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	strongbox 2013-01-14 06:52 am UTC (link)
	"Uhm... sure. Anything you'd like, beautiful." (Reply to this)(Thread)

	butterflybullet 2013-01-14 06:56 am UTC (link)
	She thinks, then curls up some more, and says it quietly. "Our first date, your friend Melanie was in a wheelchair. Our second date, you said that two of the team had been hospitalized on that mission." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	strongbox 2013-01-14 06:56 am UTC (link)
	He nods. "Her and me." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	butterflybullet 2013-01-14 06:59 am UTC (link)
	"Can we talk about what happened?" (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	strongbox 2013-01-14 07:02 am UTC (link)
	He nods. "We can. I was physically fine - but had a nervous breakdown. Well, sort of anyway. They described it as sort of overriding guilt for letting someone under my command get hurt to that level, when I felt I was supposed to be the one taking the hits. I'm seeing occasional psychiatric help on the side, plus, of course, family history." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	butterflybullet 2013-01-14 07:06 am UTC (link)
	She listens and nods a little, knowing about the family history. As to the other thing, "Taking hits being sort of your metier ever since the blood transfusion from your mom, right?" (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

strongbox
2013-01-14 07:08 am UTC (link)

"The transformation, but a healthy dose of Catholic guilt on top of it. Kind of akin to survivor's guilt, but not the same. I've lived with a lot of gifts for a while, after being conditioned to believe I didn't deserve much. So with the whole invulnerability gift, apparently its kind of translated into having trouble seeing anyone else get hurt when they're my responsibility."

(Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	butterflybullet 2013-01-14 07:15 am UTC (link)
	"Makes sense," she says. "You know, in a not-at-all-right sort of way. Obviously, having a family who loves you and a hot invulnerable body doesn't make for any intrinsic obligation that you're stuck failing by random chance, but then, you know that, intellectually, I'm sure. But you're good at taking care of people." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

strongbox
2013-01-14 07:20 am UTC (link)

"Having a loving family and gaining a hot, invulnerable body without ever doing anything to deserve either, after spending most of my life with sleeping in, effectively, closet space, emotional abuse and being on death's door sick three or four times a year... may not create any obligation, but its been its own thing to kind of get over. I do try to take care of people though."

(Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

butterflybullet
2013-01-14 07:25 am UTC (link)

"Yeah, I think I get that as much as any girl born and raised on purple cushions can. I'm not trying to just talk you out of something I know you can't control." Goodness knows she's learned how impossible that is with the people she loves. "Has the therapy stuff been going well? Besides your being terribly self-aware about the whole thing, which doesn't surprise me."

(Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	strongbox 2013-01-14 07:27 am UTC (link)
	"I think its been going alright. Enough that they let me back in charge of the team, and the doctors seem ok with that. It hasn't really come up again. After getting sick for the first time in forever and collapsing, there wasn't much denying it, so now, just trying to do my best to control it." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	butterflybullet 2013-01-14 07:35 am UTC (link)
	She listens, nods. "Your best is pretty good," she says quietly. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	strongbox 2013-01-14 07:51 am UTC (link)
	"So far. Enough to be ok with trying leadership again, anyway. Its always kind of there when I give out assignments and all, but... so far, so good." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	butterflybullet 2013-01-14 07:54 am UTC (link)
	"Do you think you'll handle it if there's another injury?" (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	strongbox 2013-01-14 07:57 am UTC (link)
	"Handle it with grace and no problems... I'd hope so, but can't say for sure still. Handle it better than last time, yes. And probably far less drama." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	butterflybullet 2013-01-14 08:00 am UTC (link)
	"Better's good." She kisses his cheek. "Nobody sane handles that stuff with no problems." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	strongbox 2013-01-14 08:07 am UTC (link)
	He relaxes a bit, snuggling her into him a bit more. "Yeah, I'm not even trying for sane anyway. I'm in Alpha Flight. I'll settle for 'managing'." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	butterflybullet 2013-01-14 08:10 am UTC (link)
	She laughs softly. "I love you." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	strongbox 2013-01-14 08:14 am UTC (link)
	"I love you too." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	butterflybullet 2013-01-14 08:23 am UTC (link)
	She sets a hand on his face. "And I know it doesn't need to be said, what with your being remarkably self aware, but strictly for the record, you do deserve what you've got." Another kiss. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	strongbox 2013-01-14 08:24 am UTC (link)
	He returns the kiss. "I try to." he replies. Best he can do with that one. For now anyway. "Whatever I did to deserve you, must have been something good though." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	butterflybullet 2013-01-14 08:33 am UTC (link)
	"Likewise. Absolutely." (Reply to this)(Parent)

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