Marie and Ororo

[x-traction.livejournal.com]

Ororo comes by late at night to ask Marie an unexpected question.

"Marie?" Ororo winced, knowing it was late and hoping that she wasn't waking anyone up as she knocked lightly on the door to the suite. Still, she had a question for the southern girl, and the sooner it was answered, the better. There wasn't much time.

Ororo shouldn't have worried. Marie barely slept most nights and that evening was no exception, though she hoped her roommate was peacefully resting after her hard evening. Turning off the rerun of Conan O'Brien, she padded to the door and opened it, surprised by who was on the other side. "...'Ro. Is everything ok?" She stepped aside to allow the white haired woman to enter the suite.

Ororo nodded, smiling slightly as she turned towards Marie. "Yes, everything is fine... I am sorry to disturb you so late in the night. But I have a question for you, and time is somewhat short."

Marie shrugged. “It’s not a problem. Ah was up and Ah’m sure whatever you have to say will rot my brain less than finding out what brand of diaper Brangelina uses.” She smiled and walked over to turn the television off. “But since it is late, Ah’m gonna assume that the question isn’t somethin’ like what color Ah want to make the gym uniforms, so maybe Ah should make us some tea.”

"That would perhaps be a good idea." Ororo took a seat on the sofa, clasping her hands between her knees as Marie put the kettle on to boil. Though she was internally conflicted, she managed not to show it too much - after all, who had more practice at controlling her emotions than she?

Pursing her lips in concern, Marie quickly took out two mugs and her special blend of tealeaves, remaining silent during her preparations. The tea was ready quickly and Marie handed a mug to ‘Ro before settling herself on the armchair facing the couch. “Is it a student?” she asked, assuming the headmistress wanted to speak with her in her capacity as an R.A.

"Actually... no." 'Ro wrapped her hands around the mug, keeping her expression carefully neutral as she looked over at Marie. "It is about the team, and a mission. Something has come up, all of a sudden, and I need a team to accompany me to South America."

“Oh.” She hadn’t spoken with anybody about her decision to take a break from the team and no one had really pushed her on it. Of course, one of the team leaders wasn’t currently on active status himself. She looked down, avoiding Ororo’s gaze as she blew on the top of her cup.

"This is only an offer," Ororo continued, watching Marie carefully. "If you do not wish to come, you do not have to. But there are young girls in trouble, and I need to have people there I can trust." This was perhaps not a fair tactic, and Ororo realized this, shaking her head.

"Do not feel obligated, Marie, I only ask that you think about it. It will be a very quick and busy day, but at least it is out of the country and below the radar of nearly everyone. We have a chance to do good without having to deal with the political repercussions and backlash and paperwork." Honestly, she didn't know how Nathan did it. Or Scott, for that matter - she had luckily avoided the worst of that after San Diego by returning to the mansion.

Marie sipped her tea as she thought over Ororo’s words. She hadn’t dealt with the reasons that had caused her to leave the team in the first place, but being off the team hadn’t really helped and she was getting tired of staying on campus. And as Shiro had rightly pointed out, she was healthy and probably more stable than some of her fellow teammates. “Ah’ve never been to South America,” she said slowly and then smiled weakly. “What’s happening to the girls?” With that question, she knew she had made up her mind about the mission.

Ororo smiled, relieved, and sipped at her tea before replying. "It is a strange and unusual situation... it seems there is a cult intent on sacrificing some young girls for a ritual of theirs. Some of the girls may even be mutants, it is suspected. I do not have much information, to tell you the truth, but I will share what I know..."