9698/Getting To Know People

Getting To Know People
Date of Scene:	21 October 2019
Location:	Vi's Room, Xavier's School
Synopsis:	Samuel Guthrie visits Vi, then brings Samuel Bean back to talk. Revelations result in a big hole in Vi's wall.
Cast of Characters:	Vi, Cannonball, Samuel Morgan

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Vi has posed:
Samuel Guthrie might have heard about an incident out back on one of the basketball courts. Alek had sent out an alert. The internal staff notifications would mention Samuel had threatened the newest student, Vi, with a metal baton. Apparently believing she was an assassin sent after him, after a recent Hydra kidnapping attempt. The matter was resolved without violence.

Since then, Vi hasn't been seen outside of the dorm room she was first shown to. If anyone inquires, one of the other girls in the hall saw her go in last night, but she didn't come down to eat today, and she isn't in any classes yet.

Cannonball has posed:
Samuel Guthrie will come by to knock on the door after announcing man on the hall. He seems to make sure all the proper procedures for a guy being on the lady's floor are followed. "Miss Vi, this is Samuel Guthrie, Ah was wondering if we might be able to chat for a bit.

Vi has posed:
After a few seconds there is a sound at the door. A little scuffing both from the floor and the door, the handle wiggling slightly. Another two seconds passes and then the sound of the lock being undone comes, and the handle turns. The door opens up a small amount, the small dark teen peering out briefly before opening it a normal width, wide enough to admit a person.

"Yes?" she asks quietly. After a moment it seems to dawn on her that Samuel Guthrie meant to come in, and she moves aside, opening the door wider for him to be able to enter. Vi is wearing a pair of jeans and a Henley shirt, the latter looking a little wrinkled as if she's worn it for awhile.

The room is pretty bare as student rooms go beyond the original furnishing. There's the bed and a desk and some chairs in front of the fireplace. Nothing hangs on the walls and there aren't many possessions sitting out. A knapsack sits in one corner. There's a wrapper from what look like a cherry Pop Tarts sitting on the desk, though no sign of the pastries themselves. Whenever Sam is inside, she shuts the door. Considers the lock, but leaves it unlocked.

Cannonball has posed:
Samuel Guthrie will step in once she seems to be ok with it. "Um, Ah was wondering if you might be ok with talking about what happened last night? Ah was not there of course but have heard about it, and would like to hear what happened from both your side of things and Sam's. I heard he freaked out when he saw you?"

Vi has posed:
Vi stands with her eyes down, peeking up at Sam frequently to spy his expressions and body language, but rarely leaving her gaze up long enough to truly meet his eyes. After a moment's indecision on where she should move to, Vi crosses over to one of the chairs in front of the fireplace, bare feet quiet on the carpeting.

She doesn't sit though, just stands there by it, her hands gently clasped one over the other down in front of her. "I was looking at the area on the other side from the road," she says, motioning towards the backyard of the school. "There was a concrete area with lines on it, and lights on poles," she says. "The lights went out, all but the one nearest to me. He was there and pulled out his club and opened it. He wanted to know where I came from, and he said he... um... he recognized my mission or something like that. I guess he thought I was from Hydra?" Vi says quietly.

"He saw me in the room people eat, in the morning. He and Nightcrawler. And he was telling me I didn't a ration card and then he suddenly got really spooked and backed away and left," Vi continues. "I think now... maybe he saw the image stamped onto my metal case. I had it on me there. The one the guards use," she says quietly.

Cannonball has posed:
Samuel Guthrie looks to her, and says "Please relax, mind if we both sit?" He will ask her trying to be friendly and approachable. "Sam has had some issues with Hydra in the past, and is a little gun shy when he believes they are about. It sounds a lot like you and he may have some things in common about how you were trained and raised. " He will tell her "Did your case come from a hydra incident?

Vi has posed:
Vi sits down on the edge of the chair, her hands resting in her lap, after Sam asks her to. She peeks up at him as he speaks of what connection Samuel Bean had. After a moment Vi nods her head to Samuel's question.

"They run Echo. The place I grew up," she tells Samuel. The girl looks down at her hands, fidgeting, her fingers giving little tugs on each other. "The case... they kept the things in it they found out when they captured me. A guard saw me using my power and they captured me. When I escaped, I took the case, it had what I need to use my powers. The things they figure out while they held me there," she says quietly.

Cannonball has posed:
Samuel Guthrie hmms and nods his head a bit to this and says "Yes, you and him have a decent bit in connection. Would you be willing to sit down and talk to him a bit about it? " He will ask the girl. "Ah think if you and he can talk a bit you and he maybe pretty good for each other to chat with and when your having issues know someone who is going through similar things.

Vi has posed:
Vi slides back in her chair a little bit. She draws her feet up onto the edge of the chair, her knees bent and hugged back to her body. "I don't think he'll want to be anywhere around me," she says quietly. "I guess he realizes I was never part of Hydra. I don't know what they did to him, but, maybe I'd just remind him of them," she says quietly.

Vi rests her head on her knees. "He seemed really nice when I first met him," she adds, tone seeming regretful. "I won't take the case out into the school anymore. I didn't realize it would cause that to happen. Though if there's anyone else like him, they probably won't want to be around me either. I heard the whispers in the hall about what happened," she says quietly.

Cannonball has posed:
Samuel Guthrie shakes his head and says "He is the only one like you, and Ah reckon he might want to get to know ya, I think he will feel pretty bad about last night and want to apologize to you to be honest." He looks to her and says "Ah will let him fill in the details, but he has been learning what it is like to be at a normal school, not a military instilation too

Vi has posed:
Vi gazes across the room at nothing, just the blank wall. "If he wanted to talk to me I'd be fine with it," she says, though Vi's tone suggests she doesn't imagine that is very likely. The girl gives a little sigh and slides her hands down to rest on the chair seat beside her toes.

"I heard everyone going downstairs this morning," she says quietly. "I wasn't sure if I would get in trouble for staying here. But no one came by before you, so, I guess that was ok?" she asks Sam.

She lifts her head from her knees, glancing towards the door for a moment. The sound of someone hurrying down the hallway draws near and then recedes as they continue along the hall. "So, what is expected of people here? What kind of work are they required to do?" she asks quietly.

Cannonball has posed:
Samuel Guthrie says, "The only work your required to do is your studies and clean up after yourself. If you want an allowance to get a little spending cash you can do chores around the mansion. We really are a school, and here to try to help you. We are not here to get something out of you for ourselves. We want to help you get the best you out of you for you."

Vi has posed:
Vi listens to Samuel Guthrie's response. Something he said makes her glance out the window. "There isn't any ash here either, is there?" she asks softly, but the view from the window confirms the question enough already.

Vi looks back over to Samuel Guthrie before dropping her gaze away as she so often does. "What studies am I supposed to do?" she asks him quietly. "Spending cash... is that like a ration card?" she asks him, her head tilting to the side with a bit of curiosity.

Cannonball has posed:
Samuel Guthrie hmms and says "Well only ash around would be in the fire places when someone has a fire going to my knowledge." He will tell her. At the ration card question he will hmms and says "Sorta, ok first off you understand food here at the school is free for you right? The only rules are if it has someone's name on it don't take it without their permission, and your to young to drink alcohol, so don't mess with that." He will tell her "Spending money is more for if you decide to go into town and want something there, it will cost money." He will reach into his pocket pulling out his wallet, and opening it pulling out some money she will see a few pictures of family and friends as he opens it. An older one she will see if of a blonde man looks sorta like sam standing in front of a hole in the ground covered in soot.

Vi has posed:
Vi gives a quick little nod at the lack of ash. She doesn't even look at the fireplace at the answer, so probably not what she was talking about. "Nightcrawler explained the kitchen to me," Vi says, her cheeks flushing just a little bit and her voice getting softer. "Though I am surprised that they food is left out like that where anyone can get it. It doesn't run out then?" she asks quietly.

As he pulls the money out, she leans over to take a look at the bills. Though probably most things are electronic, paper money is probably going to persist for a long time. "I haven't heard anything about studies. Are they very grueling? What are they exactly?" she asks, going back to the thing that Samuel Guthrie said needed to be done by everyone.

Cannonball has posed:
Samuel Guthrie smiles and says "We have enough food we don't run out no, and if your worried about it and decide your wanting to horde some here in your room, please try to make sure you have packaged stuff, and such that will not attract bugs. Seems Sam may have some experience with students doing this? "This is one type of currency. You get it when you do a job that someone has offered to pay you for, and you use it to trade for things you want. Food, clothes, electronics, you can buy most anything." He will tell her. "Studies are not to hard, it is learning math, reading, english, knowledge based skills. The tests can be hard but Ah would not call them grueling.

Vi has posed:
Vi does not turn and look at her cabinets when Samuel Guthrie talks of the possible desire to horde food. She doesn't actually look guilty though, she's much better schooled at this than that.

Vi's brows furrow with concern despite Samuel Guthrie talking about the tests being hard. "When am I supposed to do these? Is there... I am sorry. I don't know how any of this works," she says, her expression looking a little overwhelmed. "I've never had a school before or studies or anything like that," she says quietly.

Cannonball has posed:
Samuel Guthrie hmms and says "Ok, well we will be starting with a few tests to see where we need to begin your schooling. " He hmms and says "Ah don't mean to be insulting, but speaking of not having much experience with school, can you read and write, do you know how to do math? No offence ment.

Vi has posed:
Vi gives a shake of her head in response to Samuel Guthrie's question. "I don't know how to read. I can figure small numbers. How to split up ration cards equally or, how long food will last us until it runs out, things like that," she tells him.

Her eyes are down more often than not, but they stay down a bit longer this time, and her skin adds a bit of a flush to her cheeks. She might not have blushed about not being able to read back in Echo. It wouldn't have even been something she'd have thought about, around her own kind. But she's not dumb and can tell things are very different here, a completely different standard.

Cannonball has posed:
Samuel Guthrie looks to her, and says "Vi, look at me, please, I want you to understand we do not think anything less of you for this. It has to do what you have been taught. We will teach you how to read and how to do proper math." Sam looks at her, and says "Never think less of yourself cause you have not learned something, as long as your trying to learn none here will think worse of you. And if someone is a jerk about things you do not know come tell me."

Vi has posed:
Vi looks up and over at Samuel Guthrie when he asks her to. Though the urge to look away is definitely there. "Everything is so different," she says quietly. A thought strikes her a moment later. "Different is good. I mean, it should be. I don't want things to be like Echo every again. I just... feel pretty lost right now," she says.

Vi wraps her arms back around her legs, bent at the knee and pulled up to her chest. "Why does the school do this? Why give us all the food we can eat, and keep us in a building like this and.... why all of it?" she asks.

Cannonball has posed:
Samuel Guthrie looks to her, and says "The long answer is we as I said are trying to help you be the best you can be. To help you learn how to use your abilities safely and to live as normal a life as you wish to. The short answer and probably the most true. Charles Xavier is a good man."

Vi has posed:
Vi listens to that and it's pretty obvious from her face that she's trying to let this sink in. But there seems to be difficulty. Perhaps it's just too far from her experiences that people do things like that. She hugs herself a little tighter, arms wrapped around her legs.

"Nightcrawler said something, at the Tri... Tri... at the... SHIELD place, about some doctor that I should talk to. Something about the research they were doing on me at Echo. Do you know who that is?" she asks Samuel Guthrie quietly.

Cannonball has posed:
Samuel Guthrie hmms and says "Dr. Henry McCoy?" He will ask her. So you know when your talking to our doctors if they are doing something your uncomfortable with your allowed to tell them, and tell them you don't want to do it." Like we said about your choice to stay here working with the doctors is as well.

Vi has posed:
Vi lets that register, the young woman sitting there looking thoughtful. "So everyone here are like me in some way? They can... like that boy made the lights go out, and spark. And I saw some kids outside, one flew, and another stretched his arms out. Is that what this place is about? Only people like that are allowed here?" Vi asks.

She tilts her head as she looks at Samuel Guthrie. "What about you, are you like that too? Do you... I don't even know what kind of things there are," she says.

Vi has posed:
After Vi and Samuel Guthrie talk some more, the latter departs her room. Vi waits for him to depart and then locks the door and jams a chair up beneath the door handle, as it was before he arrived. And as it has been the whole time she's been in her room.

She retrieves the metal case that played such a role in the disturbance the day before, putting it on her bed and opening it up and going through the contents. Double checking them. Taking out out a few things for stashing in various places.

More time passes as she stays in her room. She double checks the sizeable horde of food she'd already built up. She hadn't worried about packaged or not as Samuel Guthrie had suggested. Ants? She wonders what they might be.

Cannonball has posed:
Samuel Guthrie will have found Samuel, and had a bit of a talk with him. Sam explained to the young man that it seems Hydra had controlled her and she had been freed from them much like himself. The big difference she seems to have been more an experiment and treaded more of property, where he was taught to be able to deal with the outside world, she was not. Sam would like them to talk, as he believes it would help both of them. He will be with them while they do.

Samuel Morgan has posed:
    It becomes obvious pretty early on in that talk that Bean already knows practically everything Sam is telling him. But equally, the whole time he remains respectful and slightly evasive, much more like the Bean that came to the school five weeks ago than the eager young man working on his bike he had become in recent past. But he does agree; talking is the way forward. For both their sakes.

    And so he follows Sam to the other wing, to the other room, and steps up to the treshold, knocking on the door. Gently. His hands are once again wrapped in bandages, a sure sign that he's been working off excess anxiety in the gym... and that the punching bag may need replacing again.

Vi has posed:
Much like when Samuel Guthrie came to the door, there's a moment's pause and then a brief sound of scraping as that chair that was lodged under the door knob to jam the entry shut, is removed and placed back by the desk. Vi sees the metal case still sitting on the bed. She moves over to quickly close it, and then slides it beneath the bed.

Finally she returns to the door, opening it up. She's wearing jeans and a Henley shirt with a few winkles in it as if it's had a few wearings since its last time in the wash.

The door is opened a few inches first only, and a brown eye peers out at the two men standing outside. Samuel²! She hesitates for a moment, but then they've already seen her. Finally she opens up the door, stepping back away from it. Her eyes peek up at them more than usual, especially Samuel Bean. She takes in the sight of his bandaged hands, glancing from them to Samuel Guthrie and back. "H-hello," she says quietly.

Cannonball has posed:
Samuel Guthrie looks over to her, and says "As Ah said was hoping you and Sam here might chat a bit." He nods his head to the other Samuel. "I am hoping with a bit of talking you two can get on better footing. You both are students here now, and Ah believe Sam here can help you out some.

Samuel Morgan has posed:
    Bean looks at Vi and then down to the ground. It's about as bashful as he's ever been, hands clasping in front of him in an almost ritualistic fashion. After a few moments, he bows, the way he saw being done in that other place, and repeats the phrase he overheard. "I request entry in your home, and come with good intentions. Would you let me in out of the ash?". He's not going to move any further, not one half inch, until he has explicit permission to enter. Certain things need to be done properly, or not at all.

Vi has posed:
Vi looks at Kentucky Samuel briefly at what he says, and then back to Samuel Bean. Down at his hands again. "He was disciplined for last night?" she asks, her eyes focused on the bandages wrapping his palms. She tries to repress a small frown, her lips pressing a bit together.

The bow and words from Samuel surprise Vi. She blinks, her mouth falling open a few inches before she closes it again. "Yes, find shelter," she says simply, backing away to allow the two men to enter the room through the open door. She waits until they are in before peeking out, making sure no one else is there in the hallway. Then shuts the door behind her.

The room is spartan by Xavier's standards, which means its nicely furnished but lacks anything suggesting it is being used. No pictures on the walls or homework or books on the desk. The closet door is closed, or a few items of clothing on hangars would be noticed though.

Vi moves deeper into the room, backing up. Her feet are still bare, as they were outside on the basketball court. There's a fireplace in the room, but not fire. Girls have all the benefits it seems! Even if she isn't making use of them.

Vi's eyes are mostly on Samuel, with occasional glances to Samuel Guthrie.

Cannonball has posed:
Samuel Guthrie noticed the bandages, and says "Disciplined yes, but not a physical punishment. He will have have extra chores, and some privileges he had earned he will have to work on showing us he can handle them to get them back. We understand this happening is more cause of the way people treated you both, and we want both of you to be able to one day with time, get past it, and understand it is not an easy task.

Samuel Morgan has posed:
    Bean takes a few steps inside, and remains standing, but away from both the door and Vi. Honestly, it's as if he's playing some kind of very elaborate chess on a board that isn't immediately visible. As long as he's not offered a seat, he will not sit. The rules of hospitality are unbending. "I was not disciplined as you would understand the term." he confirms, holding up his hands for a moment. "I injured myself training. In a sense, I punished myself. But that is still inadequate for what I put you through yesterday."

    Again with the formal looking bow, eyes downcast. "I have wronged you. My most sincere apologies attach, and I will make any amends that you see fit to name."

Vi has posed:
The petite teen gives a slow nod as she understands the bandages were not part of Samuel's punishment. Well, part of the school's punishment. Vi swallows and looks from Bean to Samuel Guthrie hesitantly, as if not sure what to do.

She hesitates a few more seconds and then says to Samuel Bean, "You didn't do anything that hurt me. You don't need to do anything to make amends," she says, backing up over to the desk and wrapping her arms about herself as she looks over at the fifteen year old.

"Why did you do that?" she asks him quietly. "Were you from Echo too?" she adds, wetting her lips nervously. Her eyes go from Bean to Guthrie and back again.

Cannonball has posed:
Samuel Guthrie will move to step a step or two away leaning besides the fireplace. Sam gets to be the fly on the wall for a bit letting the two talk, not planning on saying much unless there turns out to be a specific need for it.

Samuel Morgan has posed:
    Hands clasped in front of him, and standing rigidly still, Bean prepares to say one of the most difficult things in his life so far. It's one thing admitting a previous affiliation to people who were physically and intellectually removed from the evil of that organisation, it's quite another to actually look at a victim and claim the same.

    "I visited Echo, to my recollection four times." he starts, momentarily playing for time. His eyes dart over to Cannonball, checking to make sure the man is still there an able to intervene if this goes as he suspects this is going to go, and then looks back to Vi. "I was with HYDRA. When I visited, I came to hunt."

Vi has posed:
It quickly becomes clear Vi hadn't considered the possibility that Samuel was actually part of Hydra. There's a few moments of confusion as Bean speaks of having visited multiple times. People only come to go Echo Location once, and the only way they leave is in a bag. Or throw into the back of a truck. There isn't a surplus of bags to waste so unnecessarily, after all.

Realization dawns quickly though. Vi takes another small step back, realizing, before Samuel confirms her thoughts. The arms that were already about the diminutive teen tighten much further, hugging herself tightly enough that her shoulders can be seen to tremble from the exertion.

Vi looks over to Samuel Guthrie as if looking for confirmation from him. Though her eyes will drift back to Bean quickly enough. "I see," she says in a tiny voice, then biting down on her lips. "And now you're here," she says softly.

Cannonball has posed:
Samuel Guthrie looks to her, and says "Sam, was controlled like you were, but where you were worked about your abilities. Sam was made to be a weapon, they used him to hurt people. He did not know that he could live another life, as you did not know. He now wishes to protect the weak and innocent from the people who seek to hurt them.

Samuel Morgan has posed:
    Bean can't look at anyone right now, eyes hunting about the room. He's spotting telltales, small things that would have had him rummage a room for contraband at some point, and he's ignoring all of them. He himself has emergency rations in his room after all. There's so many things he has in common, and yet there is the one thing that is so wide a divide that it's like trying to casually step across the Grand Canyon. She was the oppressed, he was the oppressor. That is a fundamental fact that will never change.

    "It's true. When they found out I was ... when they realised I was like you, they tried to break my father through me. They succeeded. I no longer work for them, and I never willingly will again. But I must accept the fact that they will hunt me the rest of my life. I know that must sound as nothing but natural justice to you." And then he takes the plunge one step further. "Sam is right. My only hope, my only dream in life, after all I've done, is to become able to protect those who can't protect themselves. That way, I might be able to erase some of the pain I've caused."

Vi has posed:
Vi's eyes have finally dropped away from both men, gaze just fallen to the floor. It hovers there as Samuel Bean confirms his history to her. Vi's eyes lift again, the young woman paralyzed by her thoughts.

Suddenly a pouch on her belt jumps on its own, and something flies out of it, up towards Vi's chest where her hand has moved to catch it. It's a flat piece of metal, round like a washer. Actually it might be a washer but it's a big one, twice the size of a quarter.

Vi thrusts towards Samuel the hand that caught it. Fingers opening so the very large washer is lying flat on her hand, fingers pointed towards Bean. Her hand trembles. But trembling is nothing compared to the heavy metal washer that is moving fitfully on her hand as if in a tug of war, towards Bean and away from him.

Vi's face is a rictus of anger. She sucks in a breath which rattles in her throat. Her hand shakes particularly hard and then she moves it to the side at the last second before the washer jets off at high speed. It hits the wall, thankfully where a two-by-four beam is at. The washer hits so hard it cracks the beam in half and leaves a rent in the wall, but the wood stops it from continuing on into the hallway.

Cannonball has posed:
Samuel Guthrie was stepping forward ready to put himself in between the two of them, a glow surrounding him as he hovers a moment, but at the washer heading to the side, he realizes a bit. He will stand ready to get between the two but keeps silent, This is tough and he knows it, but sometimes facing hardness head on is the best way.

Samuel Morgan has posed:
    In the end, he always knew it was going to come down to this. During drill, when legs are sore and the mind is weary, when everything is a muddle and nothing makes sense anymore except the blind obedience to orders as muscles move by themselves, he always knew that one day he would have to do this.

    One day he would have to stand to the Birkenhead Drill.

    And so Bean stands, unmoving, unflinching, eyes not even on the washer. He is the target. He has deserved what is coming. If he is ever serious about being a hero, he cannot stop this. So he stands. Stands as the washer moves towards him at lethal speed. Stands as it veers off. Stands without emotion when it buries itself in the structural support of the mansion itself, showing that it was more than capable of killing him, had Vi so wanted.

    The point is that he now knows that she doesn't really want to.

    But still he stands. It is not his place to move or make reply. He forfeited that when he made his choices, all those years ago.

Vi has posed:
Vi's hand lowers. There's a sound of rattling from within the wall. The washer which fell to the floor between the drywall, rattling up the inside of the wall until it finally reaches the hole and flies back to Vi, much more gently than it was flung. She catches it. The metal is bent from the force of its impact.

Rather that put it back in the pouch, she drops it onto the desk behind her with a clattering sound. Tears are rolling down the girl's cheeks as she looks over at Samuel Bean. She shakes her head. Stops, and then shakes it again before finally looking away.

Vi moves away. There isn't far she can go. Over to the corner where a window is at, resting her hands on the window frame up above her head and leaning forward, head on the double-paned glass that is only a little cold despite the weather outside.

Cannonball has posed:
Samuel Guthrie will step over to offer the young woman a hug. He is not sure really how she will react, but he says "They both did horrible horrible things to you, Ah so wish Ah could take all the pain and hurt from both of you. " He did not know the full depth of the damage between the two, "Ah am not asking you to forgive him, but if you can find it in your heart to let him try to make ammends it is all that can be asked.

Samuel Morgan has posed:
    Once the danger is over, once it's clear that Vi has no more rage to give, Bean finally moves. And all he does, is move his hands from in front of him to behind him, so nobody has to see how they've started to shake. "It's what they do to people." he finally says, voice muted as he strains to keep it level and unemotional. "First and foremost, they teach you to hate. Not at once, never outright, but in little ways at first. Envy for someone that has been given more food. Jealousy for someone that doesn't have to work as hard. Making you wonder why that one person getting all the good jobs is doing for them, making you imagine your friends and neighbors are your enemies. There are suddenly spies and danger everywhere. And then they give you structure. They show you a few things, make you learn a few things, things that sound like they make sense. Of course it's /those/ people who get all the good jobs. They can't be trusted, after all. Naturally /these/ people get all the food, everyone knows they don't share. Layer after layer, little evil after little evil, until one day you're standing over someone with a bloodied knife, or pulling the trigger on someone tied to a chair. And it'll feel natural. You'll feel guilt, shame, all the things a normal person feels..."

    "And then they praise you for it. Make you think there was nothing wrong with what you did. After that..." He looks at the window, catching Vi's eyes in the reflection "... after that they have you. And no matter how much you try, they keep a hold of you. Because they're in your head now."

Vi has posed:
Vi holds out until the tall Kentuckian comes over to her and reaches his arms out to her. The petite teen might only be a year or two younger than he, but she looks tiny in comparison as she sinks into the hug, hiding her face against his chest and sobbing audibly.

It doesn't last for long. Vi pulls her head away, wiping a long sleeve across her eyes. "It wasn't that," Vi says quietly, their ears maybe having to strain to hear the girl well.

"We were with the other kids without families," she says quietly. Vi gives a little shake of her head. "Hiding from the foremen and guards. The jobs the kids get put to... it's bad. Most of our time was spent getting food. Water when the wells had problems and it was rationed," she says quietly.

The slave labor camp was nearly its own small town. Some of the laborers allowed to have jobs like cobblers and tailors, providing for the needs that the mine and foundry workers had to be able to work. There was some production of their own food, though growing plants required dusting them from the volcanic ash frequently, and they had few animals beyond chickens.

But even in a place like that, there's always a black market, and thieves, and as it turned out, child thieves.

Cannonball has posed:
Samuel Guthrie keeps her in his arms letting her talk. He knows a bit about a hard life, but nothing compared to these kids. He looks at the two of them. Oddly enough just on the barest hint of being either one of them if life had taken a slightly different turn. "Ah know it is hard to believe with all that you have seen, and I know it will take time and actions for you to believe it is even possible let alone believe it is really happening. We here just want the best for you and want you to eventually feel safe and secure enough to feel you can do and be what you want.

Samuel Morgan has posed:
    "There's no ash here." Bean continues, soldiering on, because some things that he was taught are actually useful beyond the narrow scope they were supposed to be used in. Its his way to defy them, to turn their own weapon against them, one step at a time. "No rationing, no guards, no nobles that can just do what they want and have you beaten for protesting. You can use as much water as you want, you can go where you want, and say what you want. You will never be punished for doing or saying something out of turn, only for what you said or what you did. And even then..." He looks at Cannonball. Punishments in the school were eminently bearable after living through what Vi and Bean survived.

    "One day I'm going to make them pay. For every single thing they've done. And I'm going to start by doing what I should have done two years ago." Now his face is set in a determined scowl, a slight hint of anger emerging. "I'm going to tell SHIELD all about Echo. Where it is, how it's guarded, what's being done. And if I have my way, we'll put an end to it."

Vi has posed:
Vi eventually lets go of Samuel Guthrie, with one last rub of a slightly too-long sleeve across her eyes. She takes a few small steps back over towards Samuel Bean. "People don't just do things like this for others," she says, eyes glancing about the room as if at the school. Her eyes end up on the big hole left by the washer, and the sight of the cracked wooden board within.

Vi gives a little wince at it, eyes going to Samuel Guthrie guiltily. "I'm sorry," she says quietly of the wall. Vi swallows and looks back to Samuel Bean. "What about the people there?" she asks quietly. Most of them were not born there. Most came from outside places, though they might have spent ten years or longer there. Children were encouraged. Small hands were needed for greasing machinery and other dangerous tasks. Plus they ate less.

Vi looks at Samuel Bean again. "You said you were like me. What do you do? You made the lights go off and on," she says. The girl looks to Samuel Guthrie as well. "And you, you can do something too?"

Cannonball has posed:
Samuel Guthrie nods, and says "Not sure if ya noticed it a bit ago. I fly and have a blast field around me that makes me almost impossible to hurt." He seems to think and says "And we might be able to set up a community for the people." He says "You think if they were offered jobs as miners they would want to do t?

Samuel Morgan has posed:
    "It wouldn't occur to them not to." Bean says, sounding at the same time sad and angry. His hands grip each other behind his back, so the rest of him can look impassive. "You're underestimating the kind of job they've done on these people, Cannonball. There's a reason they send ... that it's where they... " No. Even Bean can't finish that sentence. The illusion of tranquility cracks as he closes his eyes and takes a deep breath to center himself, the shaking starting to affect his arms and shoulders now. But he must plunge on, so he answers Vi.

    "I said the same thing when I got here. Turns out, people actually do. We were always just told that they don't. This place is real, not some elaborate Maskirovka like I thought. Like I'm sure you're thinking right now. As for what I do... In my case, I control electronics. Even here that's pretty rare. And so is what you do, you remind me of... of someone very powerful. I hope you get to meet them some day."

Vi has posed:
Vi considers the question, and then Samuel Bean's answer. "I... don't know how people would handle it. I mean, they do what they are told and don't question it. Or else. Even those of us who hid... I don't know how the others in the group would fair. It's very... cutthroat even amongst them. There's not enough food or water. I probably wouldn't have survived but... I called it my Luck. Being able to pull some metal to me," she says. "It only worked sometimes. I didn't understand it, then. That was before I was caught and they... the men in the labs, figured it all out,' she says.

"I guess some of them might want to go home. If they remember where their homes were," Vi says quietly. "Only some of Echo were born there." She looks to Samuel Bean as he speaks of her meeting someone. "Is he like us? What... are we anyway? Why can I do this but others can't?" she asks.

Cannonball has posed:
Samuel Guthrie says, "We are called Mutants, Homo Sapien Superior. We are born with the an x-gene in our DNA, and it expresses in different ways. Your abilities, Sam's, My own. Sometimes specific abilities run in families. The red headed lady that came in when you showed up last night, she has the same powers as her pa. My brother and I both fly but very differently, our sister has a vastly different power. The person I believe Sam wants you to meet is Erik Lehnsher, he is the king of a country called Genosha. He also has a troubled past and at times it has led him to do some not so nice things, trying to protect people like ourselves. He has three children one of them with magnetic powers, like what yours seem to be, but one is a super speedster, and one has the ability to warp probability. What Ah was thinking about the people of Echo is for those who do not have a home to go back to or do not wish to go back to it. Ah might be able to get a community set up back where Ah come from, where they could work and live, and probably would be given the land, but if they felt the need to pay for it, could pay for it in time. The reason Ah asked about mining, it and farming are the two main ways people make a living there."

Samuel Morgan has posed:
    "We're called different things by different people for different reasons." Bean adds on to Sam's explanation. "Personally, I prefer mutant. It's scientifically correct, as long as it can be shorn of its negative connotations. But that's a matter of time and politics. Some believe we are the next evolutionary step in humanity. It could be they're right, but some think that means we're automatically better than humans too." He manages a brief, wry smile. "We both know where that path leads."

    As for setting up a community... "I take it you approve of me speaking to SHIELD about this, then?" Bean asks Cannonball, and then looks to Vi. "I won't take any action unless you agree to it. Because it will take both of us to do this, and it will probably mean going back there, even if just for a short while."

Vi has posed:
Vi listens to the explanation, and there are definitely times that her brow furrows at some of the things said. X-genes and DNA. Warp probability. Though other things she seems to get, and Vi says, "They talked about my mutation. The men in the lab. I guess that is what they meant?" she says.

Vi considers something for a moment, and then goes over to her cabinet. It's not the most savvy of hiding places, but then she suspected she might not need to hide the food she'd horded. She opens it up and pulls out a bag and moves over with it to the two men. Samuel would know sharing food, in Echo, was the kind of thing people rarely did outside of their family. "I thought, maybe you might be hungry," Vi says timidly, before offering them the bag.

It's baking soda.

"I haven't tried it yet," she tells them, then moves to her desk, sliding up onto it as a seat. At one point Vi shakes her head and tells Samuel Guthrie. "Not magnetism. The lab men, they talked about that a lot. That it's not magnetism," she says. "They made me demonstrate again and again, and they'd get upset, not knowing how I was moving metal," she says.

Vi looks back to Samuel Bean. "Um.... yes. Ok. If it will free them. And if we won't be alone doing it," she says to him of freeing the people in Echo.

Cannonball has posed:
Samuel Guthrie looks to the bag, and will smile for a moment, but tries not to let his mirth show. "Um appreciate it, but that is not something you would like. You use this more when your cooking other things." He can just imagine Shannon trying to find it for some soda bread or something. "Iv your wanting to have food up here Vi, do you mind if We get you a mini fridge and help you pick out a few things that think you might like a bit more?"

Samuel Morgan has posed:
    Despite the offering being for all intents and purposes inedible, Bean bows his appreciation nevertheless. It was rare to be given that kind of hospitality. "My thanks. But I believe there may be better food available in the kitchen, the generosity of your offer notwithstanding."

    "And finding out how or why we do the things we do is high in the list of priorities of quite a few organisations. My father was frustrated for years when he couldn't figure out why my mind was able to run a computer, or switch off an alarm. And no, we won't be alone. There will be many friends with us."

Vi has posed:
"A mini-fridge," Vi says hesitantly. She looks to Samuel Bean as if for help answering. "Yeeees?" she answers, hesitantly drawing the word out so she has extra time to switch it should that have been the wrong thing to say.

Seeing they don't want what is in the bag - Vi peers at it, checking again it has something that looks like some sort of pastry on the front, cookies on a plate actually - she sets it aside back into the cabinet. "So this Doctor... Mickey... he is going to figure out how I do what I do?" Vi asks Samuel Guthrie, and if Beast were there to hear it, it's possible he could have ended up with a new nickname on the spot.

Cannonball has posed:
Samuel Guthrie keeps the smile and says "McCoy, Henry McCoy, you can also call him Beast if you have trouble with the name. He is blue and furry sorta like Kurt, but he is about yea tall, and yea wide." He will show the dimensions of everyone's favorite bouncing blue biochemist. He will try to figure it out plus with your normal classes we will also teach you how to use your power as we figure more out about it. Sometimes it may not be exactly teaching, but more having someone around with you while your trying new things to help you with it or if something goes wrong a doctor around to help with it.

Samuel Morgan has posed:
    And now it's Bean's turn to go rather quiet, since this is about the school. Despite being here for over a month, it's not his area of expertise at all. But one thing does need clearing up. "A fridge, or refrigerator to give it its proper name, is a means of storing food by keeping it cold. That way, most food lasts longer."