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Post by Beriadan on Nov 29, 2023 13:11:25 GMT
Parsley watched him with a curious gaze. It was like he was setting these barriers up by himself, creating an artificial wall where he could be reclusive on one side while the rest of the world ticked away on the other. Even among the other students, all afflicted by powers like him... she scratched her nose vaguely, watching her coffee steam before her.
"I ain't had too much trouble getting outta the school to spend time in the gardens an' woods. I love being outdoors. Before... everything changed, I was a mighty fine gardener."
Parsley smiled sadly at her coffee, slipping her hands around the cup. She didn't like thinking about it. Not pre-Parsley days. Then... Femi surprised her, somewhat, and that showed in her expression. First a startled frown, then a glint in her eye, and a smile slowly spreading on her lips. Friends? Was he not as stand-offish as she had taken him?
"Aw, well, shucks. You'll make me blush. What a lucky girl I am, to have a friend in you! It'd be no fun if we liked the same stuff, anyway. Friends are supposed to have differences."
Parsley eyed him again as she drank her coffee. Slowly she lowered her mug, looking into his dark eyes with a level gaze.
"Y'know, there's more like me in school, or at least... kinda like me. People who won't think y'all are weird 'cause you got a power like you do. Y'all don't have to be a lone wolf. It makes life a bit easier, the more people you can chat to, y'know?"
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Post by notdomino on Dec 1, 2023 7:45:26 GMT
Femi relaxed a bit. He seemingly had degrees to his mood. This was the best of what he'd shown so far. He stared at his hands, however, when the girl mentioned others. She was confusing her acceptance of her as acceptance of the school. He'd never truly accept everything that came with... this. "We'll have to see about that." An answer to both her and himself, the smile clearing itself off of his face. Didn't Parsley ever want to just let the rage out? Did she have any? Perhaps Femi was just being negative. Maybe she was overcompensating. There was no right or wrong in this case, and that was the troubling part. Everyone had a right to feel the way they do. The boy scanned the diner. Was this a common thing, kids ditching to come to eat breakfast... Or was it just them.
He wondered how she could ever stumble across such a place, but she'd already explained her luck. An idea came... "So if we never come back after these pancakes... what would happen?" He was seriously considering it... or maybe he was joking. It was hard to tell. He was one of those people who could forge through with minimal changes to his relaxed facial expression. The prospect of testing it out sounded fun to him. Something that would truly challenge the both of them if they had some sort of failsafe of spies watching them. Perhaps it could be the start to one of those comedy duo movies. No no, his mind was moving far too ahead. He eyed her. If she were lucky... they'd make it, right?
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Post by Bixir on Dec 14, 2023 6:20:37 GMT
”Hey.” Suddenly, a not so tall - but no less imposing - man dressed like he belonged in a motorcycle gang was at their table. He was most definitely not their waiter, though he looked nonplussed enough to be. He had a chili dog in one hand, freshly bitten. He didn’t wait for either of the students to say anything before he edged his way into Femi’s side of the booth. The history teacher of the Xavier School for Gifted Youngsters took another bite out of his chili dog. It was nearly gone now. He didn’t seem to be focusing on either of them in particular, acting as if he had always been a part of this conversation. His eyes, dark and placid, glanced between Parsley and Femi. He sniffed. "Whose idea was it?” |
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Post by Beriadan on Dec 14, 2023 12:29:43 GMT
Parsley paused, a slice of specially made vegan pancakes on the way to her mouth. What would happen? She kept her eyes on Femi for a moment, before taking a bite and chewing. It was a question that had never occurred to her. Femi was so keen to escape from this place. She frowned, placing her fork down on the plate.
Yet before she could reply, Parsley realised too late that they had company. She looked up into the stern eyes of Professor Logan. Quickly she looked across at Femi, but before he could say anything she was on her feet.
"It was me, Professor. Sorry! Femi's new, he was feeling a bit cooped up and down in the dumps. I wanted to cheer him up, an' what better than some of the best pancakes around?"
Parsley looked at Femi with an apologetic smile.
"Sorry. Guess I ain't as lucky as all that, huh?"
She turned her gaze to Logan, then pointedly at her pancakes.
"Any chance y'all will let us finish our food? Since I'm guessin' I'll be missin' out on dinner for a while, huh? Water an' stale bread for kids who break out without askin'?"
Parsley was rambling, but also trying to give Femi a chance to think about what he said. He might get away without a black mark if she took the fall. Why was she doing this for him? Parsley looked at the boy, and smiled. Maybe because she thought someone had to give him some kindness, now more than ever.
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Post by notdomino on Dec 15, 2023 5:08:28 GMT
Femi's eyes dragged to the man who invaded their booth. He didn't need much of an introduction, most students knew him. Femi just looked at him... He glared at Parsley who decided to take all the blame. She could have very well just stayed quiet and pretended the man wasn't there like he was. Sadly, he was and yet Femi would eat in silence as if only Parsley were in attendance. Sure Mr Howlett was one of the most respected in the whole school, but he'd never exactly saved Femi personally. So beyond nothing, he'd give the man just that... nothing. This wasn't particularly a new behavior, Femi treated all teachers the same way.
Actually, he- "I'm pretty sure you're not supposed to bring outside food." Though the man demolished have off it already. It would likely be gone before the waitress could catch him.
Addressing the teacher once more, " She only invited me, because it was originally my idea to leave the school entirely. She stopped me." There were times lying was in order, but there were also times being brutally honest was more important. So he'd choose the latter. "If there's anyone who should be in trouble. It's me." He'd look at neither of the two, only at his pancakes. Whether Mr.Howlett forced them to leave now, or wanted to lecture them first, Femi was going to finish his meal. He paused his eating, and slid the hero the plate of extra bacon... a peace offering, if possible.
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Post by Bixir on Dec 15, 2023 6:37:46 GMT
Logan stared at the kids; Parsley in particular, since she had spoken up first. Whatever he was thinking, it didn't show on his face. The girl's pleas were met with the same stoic gruff that had joined them at the table. Similarly, he appeared unfazed by Femi's own explanations for what had happened. Logan maintained his demeanor while he finished the rest of the chili dog in another bite. A waitress passed them by, even though it wasn't the one who was handling their table. They didn't seem to mind Logan's behavior, crass and all.
He supposed this was long enough. He leaned forward and gave Parsley a piercing stare, and then the same to Femi. As off-putting as Logan could be, there wasn't any anger behind it. None of the students saw Logan when he was angry; they would know. "In trouble for what? Going to Denny's?"
He looked around. The place looked busy. It was that time of day, after all. "You aren't the first kids who played hooky. You aren't even the first ones to do it this year." Logan paused. He glanced at Femi, and cocked one of his eyebrows as he eyed the bacon offering. Was he... smirking? He reached for it, and quickly helped himself to it.
"What you do is nunna my business. You want to run off, run off. No one's forcing you to stay here. Not really." Though Logan says this to both of them, it is clear who the words are meant for. "The school is a place for you, though." Logan look out a nearby window with disdain. The sun was almost done setting. "Take it or leave it, bub."
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Post by Beriadan on Dec 15, 2023 7:38:01 GMT
"She only invited me, because it was originally my idea to leave the school entirely. She stopped me."
Parsley sat back down, looking across at Femi with her head cocked. Did he think she was just a hall monitor of sorts? "Not the only reason," she said softly, maybe not even go anyone in particular. The phrasing... it had hurt her a bit. Parsley had hoped to make a friend.
Logan's dismissive tone did brighten her up though. She took another bite of pancake when she realised she was in the clear, looking across at Femi with a smile and full cheeks. A lucky roll after all. Other teachers would have dragged them back, or worse, lectured them.
"Looks like you wasted your extra bacon, Femi. Lemmie get Betty to bring us some more. Hey, Professor, y'all gonna join us for some pancakes for a while?"
Parsley glanced at Femi, giving him a shrug and a smirk. Logan would surely refuse, but she felt like getting into his good books would bring better luck down the line. Not that Femi would agree... but perhaps the man might be able to give him some real advice. Parsley took another bite of pancake. It still kinda hurt, though.
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Post by notdomino on Dec 20, 2023 6:32:37 GMT
Something clicked. His eyes veered toward Parsley before quickly departing out the window. Her expression alone hit him like a ton of bricks. What had he done wrong? Even when he tried to do the right thing, it was the wrong thing. Logan wasted no time letting Femi know the door was wide open. How... comforting. He wasn't exactly looking for someone to coddle him, and the man was never going to, but how bluntly it was expressed didn't satisfy the teen either. There was nowhere for him to go out there, but there wasn't exactly anything for him here either. He could understand that much in the deepest pit of himself. "Take it," He'd say... "For now." The school did have it's uses though... They could teach him to get better with his power. Perhaps with a bit more patience, he could leave. He'd just have to plan accordingly. If this were a put up or shut up moment, he'd shut up. He knew what was good for him.
Still... another glance to Parsley. He rolled his eyes... He wasn't going to apologize for trying to protect her, especially not in front of Mr. Logan. "Yeah... grab a seat." The sarcasm was oozing off of him as Logan was already well within their booth. With a pancake focus, he ate and ate, mainly to avoid conversation, but that was a bit impossible.
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Post by Bixir on Dec 27, 2023 23:15:41 GMT
Logan stared at Femi, not caring how much he was trying to ignore him. He knew that he knew that he knew that... what mattered was that the boy was going to hear him, whether he decided to listen or not. "There is something here for you, you know." Had Logan just read Femi's mind? None of the students actually knew what Logan's mutation was. He had made a point of maintaining as much anonymity with the students as possible, to the point that he was the faculty member with the most rumors and gossip surrounding him. He didn't care for any of it, but people - especially nosy teenagers - were going to talk no matter what. Either way, Logan seemed to care at least a little. It was hard to tell just how much.
Logan's eyes go to Parsley. He pauses for a moment, seeming to assess her before shrugging his shoulders. "Sure." He stabbed his fork into a pancake, tugging hard enough to rip out a piece for himself. The man ate without fanfare, though he swallowed it quickly, then went for another one. "So what's your damage?"
The question could just as well be directed at either of them, or both.
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Post by Beriadan on Dec 28, 2023 12:34:07 GMT
Parsley looked across at Femi with a lopsided grin, addressing the strange turn their evening romp had taken. Yet she noticed he had shut down again. Logan's presence seemed to push him back into the shell that he had been slowly coming out of... she frowned, staring at her plate, then looked across at Logan when he addressed them.
"Same as everyone else in school, I guess. Had a normal life, now I don't. Chuck in a few dead friends and parents into the mix, sprinkle with the inability to enter normal society, shake it all up with some teenage angst, and, my stars, you have a Parsley milkshake all ready and waitin'."
Parsley shrugged, glancing at Femi. Would be connect what she had said earlier with her blasé statement about dead family? It wasn't something she had told anyone. Something about him made her want to... but not in front of Logan. How open would he be with him, she wondered, taking a bite out of her vegan pancake and chewing slowly.
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Post by notdomino on Dec 30, 2023 4:25:43 GMT
Femi recoiled. All this time he'd been complaining about something Parsley didn't even have anymore. He hated how insensitive he was being and more than that, he hated how flippantly she referenced it. Above all else, Wolverine was here, making things uncomfortable. "And suddenly my pancakes taste sour." He gently placed his fork down and just stared at his plate. To answer Logan's question, "Teenage kid, homesick with no home to go to, extremely over it." He'd say before wiggling up and over the bench behind them. Rather than asking for the teacher to move, he'd just maneuver himself up. "I've gotta use the bathroom. Be right back." He wouldn't but they didn't need to know that. He'd activate his terror powers, his specter both locking the door and tracing the edges of the door with icy cold ectoplasm. It was the same tactic he'd used to seal off his dorm room earlier. He walked over to the mirror and rinsed his face, condensation leaving his lips as he huffed in mental exhaustion. His eyes slowly veered to the window, which his specter promptly slid open before vanishing. "Yeah... I'm over it for today..." He'd double down on his statement to Logan. Poking his head out of the window, he surveyed where the restaurant windows were. This was a good angle to remain hidden. In a high step and a jump, he landed on his bum before getting back up. Logan was no dummy though, he'd need a distraction. Walking toward the nearest car, the boy traced his fingers along the lines of the car. His specter would appear inside, on the gear shift, bumping it into neutral before making a distinct impression on the ignition. This little trick only worked on older vehicles. Newer cars were a bit too high-tech for his poltergeist-like powers. Pinching his nose before an incoming nosebleed, he kicked the door to settle it into motion. The vehicle was gently rolled forward before the engine kicked up. "I haven't seen a rolling start since my dad taught me how to drive stick shift... Kinda nostalgic" His specter would cut the wheel toward the main road before vanishing completely, and Femi would disappear into the darkness of the woods. Surprisingly, he was heading back toward school. More than anything, he wanted a nap. "Is this the diner? Someone's car is on... Like... I mean it's rolling and nobody's in it. Very weird. The old rust bucket... yeah that one. Look outside the window." Femi immediately shut his phone off. If they were quick enough, they could just chase after the car... otherwise, it would just keep on rolling. This little trick was fairly harmless in Femi's eyes because at worst, it would just gently roll into a tree or the car would just die again since there was no one to give it any acceleration from the gas pedal. While he did well to not leave any foot prints, he did leave droplets of blood. Just another annoyance to add to today's list. He needed more stamina to use his power and more ideas for more complex things than starting a car. Like Logan said... there was something for him at school. He'd get his fill on knowledge with his powers... and after that. Well it was up to where the wind would blow him. For now, he'd try to do a little better so Parsley would stop worrying so much. If memory served right, he had gym class with the laser dude tomorrow... Whatever. ~Exit Thread~ |
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Post by Bixir on Jul 19, 2024 17:26:37 GMT
He could've just said he wanted to leave... Damn kids.
As much as that boy thought of himself, he was actually pretty clever. It took Logan a minute to get his ride in order again. It took far less time than Femi probably hoped, but it was still long enough for him to have made his escape into the night to do... whatever it was that he thought would upset the school, probably. That seemed to be a running theme this year.
And yet, Parsley was still here. Maybe she felt guilty, about her friend or that she had been left behind. Logan was familiar with that feeling. They had been standing outside the diner for a few minutes now, recovering from that... was it an incident? Logan was used to this sort of thing, but Parsley probably wasn't. He looked over to her, allowing at least a little concern to slip into his voice.
"You wanna talk about what just happened?"
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Post by Beriadan on Aug 3, 2024 19:27:13 GMT
Since the moment Femi left his seat, to the moment Logan asked her a question which, she guessed, came slightly from concern but mostly from teacher-student responsibilities, Parsley was silent. Her usually amicable face, applied either a healthy smirk and decent dose of amusement, had fallen into a strange state of flat apathy.
She didn't even look up as Logan addressed her, fixing her gaze on his dented car. Slowly, shoulders slumping somewhat, she sighed sorrowfully, soulfully, seemingly suddenly solemn, sad, shattered.
"It's fine. What is there to talk about? Jus' everytime I seem to get close to someone, they run away. Even in a small place like Xavier's school, it seems like I ain't lucky enough to catch a break."
Now Parsley looked up at Logan. Even in the dark, the glisten in her eyes was apparent, reflected in the lights of the diner like stars across a placid lake.
"I mean, shit. Can't a girl pour her heart out and not have every guy leap out of a window to get away from her?"
Parsley turned away, wiping her eyes, then letting out a deep sigh. Anger, more than grief.
"Y'all might be the luckiest mutant, Parsley Stichwort, but y'all sure are the unluckiest person when it comes to friends. Ah. Shit. Prof, please don't tell anyone about this."
She turned her head towards him, just enough to give him some side eye. Tearful, yet angry.
"I don't want anyone to feel sorry for me. So what, Femi ran away? It ain't like he owed me anythin'."
Parsley gave a deep sniff, nodding her head towards the car.
"What's a girl gotta do to get a lift home, huh, Prof?"
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Post by Bixir on Aug 11, 2024 19:21:09 GMT
Let it never be said that Logan wasn't a good listener. He left Parsley say her piece, down to the last word. There was a lot of hurt there. Boys could be ignorant assholes - she'd get no argument from him on that subject, even if that may not be what she needed to hear right now. Pain was pain, no matter how much people tried to soothe it. Only when Parsley was done did he step over to her to offer his arm around her for a half-hug. And maybe a couple pats on the back. "Your secret's safe with me, kid."
He looked over at his ride. The Harley had been through a lot worse. He wass more worried about the flesh and blood. He regarded Parsley with what seemed like a serious look, but it was actually rather sincere. "Ask nicely. C'mon." He led her over to the motorcycle, waiting for her to tell him that she was ready before offering her a spare helmet, and then took off his jacket to offer it to her. He could tell this wasn't her sort of thing.
That, and Summers would kill him if she came back with bruises.
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Post by Beriadan on Aug 15, 2024 20:24:50 GMT
The half-hug was unexpected, yet received gratefully. Parsley got a faceful of Wolverine in the awkward contact. He smelt of cigar smoke, of musk and something bestial. It was the first human contact she'd had for a while, and Parsley revelled in it. As extroverted as she was, deep down she still had fears of getting close to people.
"Gee... thanks."
Parsley shrugged on the leather jacket. It helped against the chill of the night, and she was, again, thankful for the gesture.
"Well, please and thank you, Prof. Y'know, you ain't as mean as they say. I reckon, deep down, y'all are a real sweetie."
She gave him a lopsided little smirk, eyes still red and watery, but a spark of her usual self still there. With all the grace and poise of a platypus, she scrambled onto the back of the bike, where she sat expectantly. Parsley looked at Logan, her expression for a moment full of the fragility and pain of youth.
"Take me home, please."
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