Aftermath (closed)

[Typhoid]

Typhoid had left the basement and the Mansion quickly, although not quickly enough for her. She kept running into people coming around corners or out of rooms, all unexpected, all feeling like constructs to her instead of the people she knew they were. The more she walked, the worse the panic, and by the time she'd made it to the grounds she was ready to scream in frustration.

[Pietro Maximoff]

::Pietro had not slept the night before, although he had reason to; Magneto had left after their altercation. Concern for Rossignol, knowing that it was Saturday and she intended to do what she did kept rest at bay. After his security sweep, he had come outside to bide his time, and had spent it chopping firewood once again; he had needed to buy a new axe for the job.::

[Typhoid]

Ty scanned the grounds, feeling horribly limited, reduced to locating someone by sight only. No heartbeats to hear, even the trees had none of the sense of life to them they'd had before; they were simply there, dull and brown. She started off in an aimless direction, not even knowing where to start.

[Pietro Maximoff]

::It was by happenstance only that Pietro had turned to get another log, and caught sight of Rossignol in the distance. She appeared distraught, and that told him that the deed had been done. Leaving the axe where it was, he ran towards her.::

[Typhoid]

She stopped, tired of wandering with no purpose, half making up her mind to go back inside and wait at his dorm or hers, until one of them found the other. There were tears on her cheeks, and now she felt foolish.

[Pietro Maximoff]

::A gust of wind announced Pietro's presence before he came to a stop beside her. Immediately, he noticed the streak of tears, and his expression hardened on her behalf. He spoke tentatively.:: "Rossignol?"

[Typhoid]

She startled, but not as much as she would have if there hadn't been a gust of wind in his wake. His voice was the cue; she knew that voice, even if she couldn't feel anything else. Immediately she turned around and wrapped her arms about him, her head against his chest as if she were trying to hide.

[Pietro Maximoff]

::Pietro wrapped his arms around her without hesitation. Every small sign he saw: the tears, her confusion, and now her urge to hide proved to him that he had been correct, and for her peace of mind, he wished that he hadn't been.::

[Typhoid]

With her head against his chest, his heartbeat came through loud and clear to her- a poor substitution for how things had sounded before, but it calmed her, and her breathing slowed a little. He was alive, and at least she could hear it. "Everything feels like cardboard cutouts to me," she said.

[Pietro Maximoff]

::Pietro was not one to say "I told you so," and thus did not. Instead, he moved his hand to her cheek, brushing the tears away.:: "Ask him to undo it."

[Typhoid]

"I..." She'd almost said "I will" but his hand- fingers ungloved- had brushed her cheek, wiping away tears. Her head tilted automatically towards the touch of skin-on-skin. It had been entirely too long.

[Pietro Maximoff]

::There was little need for Pietro to speak; she knew all he had to say. That he detested seeing her miserable, that he worried about her, that he felt responsible for the entire situation, and that he wished only for her happiness. Her cheek turned into the touch of his hand, and from that, he knew that in a mild way, she had gotten what she craved, for now.::

[Typhoid]

"If I..." She swallowed, knowing what this would mean for the both of them, but having to say it anyways. "If I'm going to have it undone, we should make the most of the day I've got."

[Pietro Maximoff]

::Pietro rested his chin atop her head, his thumb stroked her cheek.:: "We'll do that."

[Typhoid]

"Dinner tonight?" she questioned softly, leaning into the touch with her eyes closed. "Somewhere nice? I have until tomorrow morning."