ArchivedLogs:Truancy

Truancy
Dramatis Personae Anole, Jax, Marrow
In Absentia	2015-10-07 "Pretty much everyone bounces if you drop them far enough."
Location <MOR> Welcome to the Freakshow
Wider and more spacious than many of the surrounding nooks and niches, this chill cavern is the central hub of the Morlock's underground network. With tunnels branching off in many directions, it takes a while to learn to /navigate/ from here to where you want to go, but there's generally plenty of more experienced people around to teach newcomers the ins and outs of the pathways. Here, though, is a safe place to come and relax, for what value of relaxation can be found among moss-covered walls and the occasional stagnant puddles on the floor. There's been furniture brought in, a mismatched assortment of crates, mattresses with busted springs, a few broken and subsequently repaired chairs, a folding table in a corner. Shelves along a wall hold entertainment; books, a smattering of board and card games, sometimes snacks. There's even electricity, wiring none too safe and visible in places where the wall has been broken open; the naked light bulbs flicker often and the lone outlet has had so many power strips attached it is undoubtedly a fire hazard. Down here it's hard, really, to tell exactly what time of day it might be. Dim-o-clock, the lighting kind of meh -- it's actually warm-ish, though, if /smoky/ and a little hard to breathe; a fire's been lit in a metal trashcan in the center of the large room, someone actually taking the effort to cook some sort of stew (gods only know what's /in/ it.) Near one of the several entrances of the room, Anole is tucked on a large pile of cushions, a thermos beside him and a tablet in his lap. He's barefoot, in ratty filthy jeans that were probably once blue but look more greyish, and an oversized NYU hoodie. Every so often his eyes flick up, looking over at the stew-in-progress kind of hopefully. Hmm. Adding to the smokey atmosphere is the number one charming and friendly Morlock. Marrow leans against a wall taking idle tokes off a big fat joint. "You want some of this runt?" she asks, in a tone suggests it's more for show than out of generosity. "Or do you only have eyes for mystery meat?" When she isn't adding to the air polution she's busy sharpening a wicked looking bone dagger. Jax isn't exactly an /un/familiar face around here -- which probably explains why he's not currently /bleeding/ -- but he's not the most familiar one, either, which draws a few stares (or glares) from around the cavern as he makes his way in to the entrance Anole sits by. He's dragging a tall narrow shopping cart behind him, heavily loaded down with food -- mostly canned goods, though a pair of coolers on top imply some perishable fresher things as well and a huge tupperware on top of /those/ is filled with cookies. He's dressed in lightweight hiking pants, boots, a grey-and-rainbow-striped sweatshirt, black and silver eyepatch over one eye, his bright hair dyed in peacocky blue-purple-green tones. He hesitates in the entrance, leaning against the handle of his cart and glancing down to Anole. Up around the room. Back down. "Oh! Um --" Anole glances up, green eyes wide and blinking; his lips purse like he's seriously /considering/ this idle offer. "I -- I don't, I haven't -- is that --" But then there's a rattle of cart-wheels, an arriving /teacher/, and he immediately fades into the dingy dirty mottled shades of the pillows that he's nestled into. Reflex, rather than an actual attempt at /hiding/; if he was looking for cover he blows it a second later by greeting Jax: "Mr. Jax? /Cookies/?" There's an excited squeak to his voice, though it fades soon after into a kind of guilty tone. "... I could've met you it's a long walk." Marrow lazily points the dagger at Jax. "This is a stick up. We'll be taking all your baked goods, food, tobacco and drugs." The last two added more out of hope than anything else. She blows a smoke ring and adds "If you're here because you're worried about the kid skipping school then maybe you guys should have stayed off the fuckin' news." Jax's eyebrows lift, a small twitch tugging upward at his lips. He pushes the cart forward, stepping along with it further into the cavern himself. "Fresh out of drugs," he says with more amusement than apology, "but I got a whole lotta snickerdoodles an' there's veggies fresh from the garden 'long with --" He waves towards the rest of the cart, indicating the canned goods it holds. "An' some loose tobacco. But Anole took off 'fore the news hit. Don't think those things had much t'do with each other." His smile has faded with this last, teeth scraping down against his lip as his eye darts back to the younger teen. Anole's skin and clothes shift back to their regular colour, his head tipped down and fingers fidgeting with a corner of one of the pillows. His toes curl against the pillows, too. "I'm not /skipping/ school I /left/ school." He sounds kind of defensive. "I don't care about the news." Though he looks back up at the mention of snickerdoodles. Eyes wider. Brighter. Hopeful. "No, but if you didn't have reporters outside I'd have dragged him back kicking and screamin'," Marrow notes cheerfully, she takes another long drag on her joint and waves. "Tobacco huh? With such fine tribute you shall be permitted to leave our domain unharmed." "You're very gracious." Jax digs into a pocket of his cargo pants, tugging out a large pouch that he holds out to Marrow. The smell of tobacco can be smelled from it, even through the smoke. The smile that he gives Marrow along with this is a little crooked. "/I/ ain't here to drag nobody back. I just -- I been worried. I get that things there wasn't -- good. But folks is working on it, you know? An' there /are/ people there who'd be lookin' out for you." "I don't -- scream," Anole protests. "Well. At least. Not when getting. Dragged." Though he's eying Marrow's knife now with an uncertain frown. Like maybe he's /reconsidering/. He slouches back against the pillows, curling his enormous arm around his shins. "Things were terrible. And /most/ people there just want to /keep/ pretending they aren't." His nose wrinkles up as he admits: "... you're okay, though." Marrow snorts. "So you have a bad day at school and decide it's better to live waist deep in shit?" she wonders. "You are pretty goddam messed up kid." She accepts the tabacco and offers Jax a toke on the joint. "Maybe I need to toughen up your training routine. Think you're ready to start sparring with real knives?" "I don't think it's really that simple," Jax hedges cautiously to Marrow. "And a lot of people there..." He bites down harder against his lip, finally exhaling a slow breath. "A lot of people /anywhere/ don't. Really spend a /whole/ lot of time considering. What life is like for -- anyone who isn't. Them. But I think that's kind of a common trait of people. Some'a them are trying. 'least we're trying t'make it school policy now t'... try." He takes the joint from Marrow after relinquishing the tobacco, hesitating only a moment before drawing a puff from it and offering it back. "I ain't gonna pretend nothing's perfect there. I doubt it ever will be. But I'd be doin' you a hella disservice if I didn't even try t'get you t'finish your education." "No! Not a -- bad /day/, a bad..." Anole shakes his head fiercely, frowning down at his toes. The breath /he/ pushes out in counterpoint to Jax's is sharp and quick. "Maybe they'd have expelled me anyway if I'd punched the next normal-looking teacher who got all sanctimonious about how we're all mutants." His voice is lower, grumbly. "And we should just /learn/ to /fit in/ because /that's/ obviously -- you know the whole /principle/ of that school is nonsense, right?" There's a small tilt to his head when he looks up at Jax. UNCERTAIN. DOES Jax know? He shivers at Marrows question, though. Scoots a little bit to one side. "... I spar with Shane and B. They're /covered/ in knives." "The real knives are for you," Marrow says, rolling her eyes. "You're not even close to ready to spar with /me/ using blades." She leans forward and rolls her shoulders. "Sparkles there is right though. People never consider what it's like anyone else. This kid I know, he drops out of school even though he's the only good example any of the kids back home have to look up to." She shakes her head "What a selfish little prick, right?" A flush of red creeps up into Jax's cheeks at Marrow's answer, his hand lifting to rub at the back of his neck. "I know it is," he answers Anole, though. "But it's still a good education. You don't /gotta/ buy into the party line. The classes is solid. The ideology --" Shrug. "Think about it. Regardless of what y'want to do with it -- havin' that grounding, it'll be a huge help. T'you, t'your family here. An' if people give you crap there, you come t'me, I'll give 'em whatfor." Anole's cheeks darken a few shades greener, his shoulders hunching. His mouth opens, then closes again. Opens. Closes again. "I --" He looks up sharply at Marrow. Looks back down at his toes. His head drops forward to thunk against his knees. A small strangled groan sounds in his throat. Marrow takes a few more casual tokes in silence. Glances between Jax and Anole, then spits into what passes for the gutter. "Just be glad you weren't one of us when Callisto was well. A sanctimonious teacher is better than rabid dogs. No-one will make you go back. But think about it this way, you do go back you're scamming the sanctimonious fuckwits out of three meals a day and a warm bed for winter. Sounds like a much better scam than picking pockets and shoplifting." She offers a thin smile "Unless you think you're ready to help with the real Sewer Knight business? There's a gang moving into our turf and someone needs to make an example." Jax winces at the mention of rabid dogs. He starts to unload the food from the shopping cart, piling it neatly on thr ground beside. "S'been a pretty -- hectic time at the school this year but. You decide you want to come back, there's still a place for you. Aright? Just -- let me know. I jus' want t'make sure you're..." He trails off, weight shifting uneasily to one side. "An' Shane's stuck around. Kinda in an advisory -- capacity. So y'know I won't be the only one's got your back." He looks up at Marrow once he's done unloading. "That goes for any the other kids here, y'know. I don't know as to who'd -- /want/ to be there. But if they do -- you talk to me, I'll make sure they got a place." Anole snatches up the cookies once they're unpacked. Drags them into his lap to curl his arms around them a little possessively. His head has lifted back from his legs, nose scrunched up. "Winter /does/ get really cold down here." Not so great for lizardkids. His shoulders shift a little uncomfortably. "... thanks." Not that that's an /answer/. Yet. He just opens the tupperware. Munches a cookie. "You think you could take Leech for a bit?" Marrow wonders aloud, she glares at Anole. "More fuckin' importantly you think you can talk him into going? If he could learn to switch his goddam power off for five minutes then maybe I wouldn't want to murder him every time I see him." The tobacco pouch has by now vanished into a pocket and she has resumed sharpening her blade. "If not I have a sack he'll fit in." "Sure. We could do, if he wants to come. I'll talk to the administration. Make sure of arrangin' the space." Jax's smile is a little lopsided. "Makin' sure he's agreed t'go, though, that part's up to you all." He straightens once the last of the food is unloaded, folding his cart up flat. "But when you're ready, y'know where t'find me." Anole's head ducks again. "I can try." He doesn't sound overly /enthused/ about this, admittedly. He finishes one cookie and starts on a second. "I -- guess we'll. See you soon." More hopefully: "Maybe you'll make cupcakes when we come?" Marrow scowls at the notion Leech should get a say in the matter. "I guess this means I can't just turn up outside the gates, throw Morlock kids over the top and have you suckers look after them until they can spell their own names?" The small coughing-splutter Jax makes might be a laugh. Might be choking. His hand lifts to cover his mouth, eye slightly widened. "That -- ain't the usual way t'enroll people, no, there's -- should come /in/ the front door an' -- make sure they sign /up/ --" He rubs at the back of his neck, giving his head a small shake. "But I'll make sure there's cupcakes, for sure. Make the paperwork less tedious." The widening of Anole's eyes looks slightly more /alarmed/ than Jax's. Not laughing. Just looking at Marrow -- sliiightly nervous. "I don't bounce," he informs her cautiously. "I'll use the gate the normal way." "Figures there'd be a catch," Marrow laments. "And of course you fuckin' bounce. Pretty much everyone bounces if you drop them far enough." A statement of fact, learned in a way that it's best Jax and Anole never discover for legal reasons. (And because it would put them off those cookies.) Jax just scrubs his knuckles against his eye, now. Kiiind of bites back a groan. "I'll," he says, wincing, "see you soon, yeah? With cupcakes. An' not bouncing. Or sacks." Anole's head dips in a small cringe at Marrow's statement. Only very small, though. He busily starts eating another cookie. "Soon," he agrees.