13309/Milk Cartons: Rogue follows up with Dagger

Milk Cartons: Rogue follows up with Dagger
Date of Scene:	17 May 2021
Location:	Holy Ghost Church, Clinton
Synopsis:	Rogue drops by to talk to Tandy and have some girl time. Tandy unloads some emotions.
Cast of Characters:	Dagger, Rogue

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Dagger has posed:
It's morning, creeping towards the afternoon. Lunch hour during Hell's Kitchen is fairly tame compared to the rest of New York City. There isn't much in the way of street vendors, and the local bars and resturants are closed until the night activities kick in that will bring out the dark and the shady.

Sitting on the front steps of the church is Tandy, her thick blonde hair pulled up behind her into a messy ponytail. She is wearing an Xavier's sweater that hangs off one shoulder and a pair of ripped jeans. In her hands is a breakfast sandwich and a bottle of water as she stares out across the street. She has a tired look in her blue eyes.

With a soft sigh, she leans back a bit, closing her eyes and trying to enjoy the warmth of the sun on her face as it peeks through the clouds. The sound of screeching tires causes her to snap out as she watches a car peel away from the stop sign before her, leaving behind a cloud of smoke and peeled rubber along the pavement. With a sigh, she pushes up to her feet, brushing her backside off a few times.

Rogue has posed:
Rogue doesn't come to Hell's Kitchen that often, but she had been here a bit ago helping save some kids from being taken by big, bad and ugly. Since then life has seemed to be a roller coaster of saving kids, and personal growth. Part of which included speaking to her brother about the church, their lives - both professional and personal. So she's decided to come and pay a visit to the church she knows her brother frequents for several reasons. Following up, meeting someone important in Kurt's life, offering a further helping hand if needed.

The usual fare, she surmises, as she lands out of sight for anyone to see cause she had enjoyed flying since it was a nice morning. Coming out of the shadows and approaching the church just as Tandy stands and brushes off her backside. A tilt of her head given and the X-Man reaches to put her hair in a pony tail, wearing a black body suit, cut off shorts and a plain white tee shirt with tennis shoes. A smile as she gives Tandy an up-nod. "Morning."

Dagger has posed:
Glancing over at the voice, Tandy gives a bit of a skittish jolt for a moment before she settles in and nods back. "Oh. Hey Rogue." She says as she blows some whispy bangs away from her face, revealing that crescent moon that hangs over one eye. She gives a glance about casually, then upwards as if expecting a 'bamf' to appear. When it doesn't come, she looks back towards the X-Men. "What's going on? Everything okay?" She asks with a bit of hesitation in her voice. "I don't see Kurt unless he's doing something inside the church as a surprise. He .. does that. Sometimes .. When Cloak isn't lurking around."

Rogue has posed:
"Yeah, everything is fine. Kurt's fine, I promise. This is more a social call on my end." Rogue offers, though a part of her is expecting Kurt to somehow know she's here and 'bamf' in anyway to find out why. "I mean if I wanted to find my brother, I don't have to trace him back to the place he hangs out at in secret." She shrugs with a smirk and then furthers. "Actually, I wanted to come by and see you. See how things are goin', find out if you need any help with anything." A pause. "Kurt speaks highly of you, you know."

Dagger has posed:
Rubbing the back of her neck, Tandy says, "Oh. Hey. Cool. You .. wanna come in? To my dark and musty church? It's .. um.. home." She glances over her shoulder. "Or we can just take a walk through the beautiful neighborhoods of Hell's Kitchen. I'm doing fine. Cloak and I are both fine. Just, you know. Every day we wake up is a day we can celebrate. We have food and water." She slips her hands into her front pockets, kicking a piece of brick off to the side from the sidewalk and into the street as it bounce and rattles. "How about you? You doing okay?"

Rogue has posed:
"At the end of the day food and water only gets you so far. Kurt mentions he brings you blankets and such sometimes too..." Rogue offers gently and then motions to the church. "Please? I'd like to see your home. My brother's refuge." Rogue, obviously, isn't oblivious to the practices her brother has. She doesn't know everything her brother has faced, but she knows it's a lot. "I'm...okay for the moment. I've had my rough spots here lately but I think I'm settled out now for the time being." A pause. "Maybe a walk through Hell's Kitchen after I see the church. Hopefully we ain't struck down soon as I walk in."

Dagger has posed:
"Sure, I can show you around. Just don't make fun." Tandy says with an amused voice. "And, if Cloak is lurking nearby, just leave him alone. He's in a bad mood." Turning, she pushes the doors open and steps inside. It's dark within the old Holy Ghost Church, filled with dust and cobwebs and forgotten pews. The air smells stale, even with a few of the windows broken near the tall roof. When it rains, it gets musty and thick with humidity. In the corner is a sleeping bag, as well as a few large cardboard boxes stuffed with wellfare clothes, and some food in the form of nonperishables.

There is a wall with a large map set up, several colored pieces of yarn to signalize several different gang territories and pictures of children pinned to the map. Most of them mutant in likeness. The front of the church is pitch black, but the sight of Jesus hanging from a cross can be made out near the alter. "Here we go. Home sweet home."

Rogue has posed:
Rogue raises a brow, but then shifts to follow Dagger into the church, taking the moment to look around even as soon as they enter. The dust and cobwebs are noticed, the stale air, but it's home to people - and that's what matters. "What's got Cloak in a bad mood?" Rogue asks lowly while they walk through, letting her gaze drift to that corner with the sleeping bag, clothes and non perishables. She makes a mental note and then continues on.

That map gains special interest, Rogue shifting to look it over, though she doesn't touch it. Perhaps just taking it all in before she takes a deep breath and then moves back towards the darkness, barely making out the Christ on a Cross. "Well. At least I ain't bein' struck by lightning just yet. It seems a decent home. Roof over your head, and the like." She glances over. "I can see the appeal it would have to Kurt as well. Run down church like this, he can come here without fearing he'll be walked in on. Pay his penance and then leave."

Dagger has posed:
"Cloak is always in a bad mood. He's just eager for night to fall so that we can go back out on our mission. He isn't a morning person .. he can't eat or sleep, so he is just restless. Angry curtain." Tandy says as she gives a look around the church, rubbing the back of her neck. "I used to live in Boston. Huge fancy manor. Rich parents. They never knew I existed. I ran away from home to get their attention and found myself kidnapped and injected with experimental drugs. Now I live in a broken down church with an addict for a partner. What a life, huh?"

She flops her hands down at her sides, then shrugs her shoulders upwards. "It's cold in here at night, it's hot in here during the morning. The homeless try to use it for a restroom, though not so much now that Cloak started eating them and spitting them out in other parts of the city." There's a slight grin over towards Rogue. "Kurt doesn't really come here to speak with God, though he's called his name out a few times."

Rogue has posed:
"Why don't you and Cloak come live in the mansion? I know Kurt's already made the offer and you declined it but... is there some appeal to living here that would be missed elsewhere?" Hell Rogue could think of a few ways they could accomodate things if needed, and she figured hearing it for herself was a good idea. A shake of her head given. "I couldn't imagine. M'sorry that happened to you... it's what happened to Cloak too right?" Asking this much more while looking over to the woman.

"Ah...yeah. That would surely be annoying. People slipping in whenever and just because." This much more as she continues to walk, approaching the altar and Christ on a Cross, but at Tandy's confession she can't help but give a laugh. "I really don't need to know the details about my brother's sex life..." A pause. "But I'm glad he has someone...truly. Just, you know, I surely won't be pleased if you hurt him. But I won't be pleased if he hurts you either. I'm an equal rage opportunist."

Dagger has posed:
"Yes, it happened to Cloak also. He ran away from home when the police were looking for him. His best friend was murdered by the police in front of him for a robbery they didn't commit, and he ran for his life. They caught him also the same night as me. They took us to the island with all the other kids. There was so many of us." Tandy says as her voice cracks, squeezing one fist up as a ball of light bleeds through the knuckles. "And all we could do was listen to their screams as the poison killed them. When the screams stopped, it was just Tyrone and I, and we ran for our lives, swimmed the ocean and lost ourselves in the dark. We ended up in New York when we thought we drowned. We woke up in the shadows. I was burning like a star, he was cold and lost his body."

The young blonde stares at the wall for a long moment, then flicks her hand to the side to let a shard of light strike the floor before flickering away. "And now we can't live without the other. My light keeps him sane, his dark keeps me from blowing up. He's addicted to my light and I'm addicted to his dark."

At the warning, there is a soft scoff. "I can't be hurt anymore. Everything that hurt me has been stripped away. Kurt is one of the few things good left in my life and even he won't last forever. I won't last forever. This city is going to kill us one day, but I plan on going out fighting. I can't live in your fancy school and your mansion and all of your nice stuff. This is where I belong. This is where the children are, the drugs, the gangs, the real life." She says as she looks back over towards her, wiping at her eyes. "This keeps us humble. I don't want to go back to that poor rich girl, nose up in the air, nice clothes and hot showers. I don't want to .. forget this. This city /made/ me and I am this city now." Her voice stammers out. "Cloak and I have to see this through."

Rogue has posed:
Rogue listens, and as she listens she watches that light bleed through Tandy's knuckles, then she turns to look back at the map and steps closer to it again. There's nothing she can think to say as Tandy explains things, why she and Cloak are the way they are, why she can't live at the mansion, how her and Cloak's existance benefits the other. Then she turns back towards Tandy, stepping forward and reaching a very gloved hand to touch the woman's shoulder. "I get it." No, not quite. "I understand. Obviously you know that you have several people willing and wanting to help you and Tyrone see this through. I know it doesn't make it right or change anything, but I'm sorry the two of you went through such a thing..."

Her hand withdraws and she takes a breath. "At least let me know if there's anything I can bring you. Anything I can do to help. It's a good thing, what you're doing here." And that's about all she can think to really say on the entirety of the matter. So she seems to consider and then motions. "You wanna go take that walk now? Or have I disrupted your day long enough?"

Dagger has posed:
"I know you guys care about us." Tandy rasps out weakly for a moment before clearing her throat. "And it's appreciated. Cloak just isn't a team player and I don't think I'd look good in spandex with a red X belt." She says in an attempt at humor. She's the one with a leotard and a sword cut out through the chest. It's not the most conventional of 'costumes'. "I also know that the rules we play by doesn't synch up well with yours. The things that I've had to do to survive, to save some of these kids." She gives a sniff, looking upwards at the sight of Jesus, wiping under her eye. "I used to believe in God a long time ago, back when I was a little girl, going to ballet classes, praying my mother would come home and hug me. But .. there's no way he'd want me now. Not after what I've done."

She turns her gaze back towards Rogue, her face full of misery and emotion. "Kurt is too good for me. He believes that anyone can be saved, that there is a light at the end of the tunnel, but not for me. God won't want someone like me. I've taken too much." The air feels thicker now around her as she wraps her arms around herself a bit tighter.

"Sure, let's take a walk. I'm sorry. I shouldn't be unloading like this. I'm just tired."

Rogue has posed:
"Some rules are meant to be bent and broken. At the end of the day, what matters is our survival and the wellfare of those we're saving. If it means busting a few heads, killing a few gang members, or otherwise kicking ass and taking names, you'll find there are several of us who don't mind breaking those rules." Rogue offers and then she nods. "I used to believe in god too.. and like you.. I figure I ain't done as much good as I have bad... there's nothin' for me at the end of my own road."

At the mention of Kurt, Rogue smiles and moves forward. When Tandy wraps arms around herself, Rogue does the most she can while making sure skin does not touch skin. Her hand returns to Tandy's shoulder, and she gives it a gentle squeeze. "Kurt sees something in you...he has a way of doing that. Seeing beyond whatever thoughts we got in our own minds, and he picks it out. He's like your own jiminy cricket, ya know?" She smiles, trying to be funny herself. Maybe it works.

"Don't sweat it. Obviously you needed to vent, and I got nothin' but ears for you if you need them. Also, I would make sure Scott gave you like...a purple X or something..." To follow through with the last joke. "Walk sounds good, lead on."

Dagger has posed:
"I kinda like purple, would probably go well with my uniform." Tandy says with a smile at the squeeze to her shoulder. "Until I met you guys, I'd have .. a higher body count most likely. Some of these scum don't deserve their light. The things they do to children for cash, or how they hook those on drugs and string them along until they have nothing left is terrible. But, Kurt wants to be my .. cricket and whisper things in my ear, about how I'm better than that, or .. something something .. salvation .. stuff.. I know he means well. I'd just rather use his mouth for kisses." She says with an amused grin.

"I love him with all my heart. I just hope I don't break it by accident, or disappoint him." She says as she makes her way to the doors, opening them up to let the afternoon light flood in. She squints her eyes for a moment, then steps through as she gives a long stretch of her life. "I feel like all I do is vent. Every day I feel squeezed. Even now, beautiful day, but all I see is cancer."

Rogue has posed:
"Well the next time you're using his mouth for kisses, give him an extra hug for me..." Rogue says, stepping back and walking along as they walk to the doors of the church. "It's hard to view the world through the eyes of another. Especially when they're trying to...remake the veil that people try to see the world through. Some of us...that's an impossible task. We've seen too much, know too much..." Everything we've been through just tears that veil down." She looks around as the sun shines over them, peeking through the few clouds in the skies to bask the world in it's glow and warmth. Yet across the street is a man begging for change, there's sirens in the distance, a stray dog looking for scraps. So she gets it, but she doesn't say much more before taking a step out into it.