may-time mingling (starstruck!)

[mucked]

Who: Starstruck crew + visitors
Broadcast: N/A
Action: Aboard the Starstruck!
When: The merry merry month of May

[ there's been a tiny regime change and doubtless some debriefing after that masquerade! have at it, starstruckers. mingle away! ]

Comments

[mucked]

[ peggy is quick to rise to her feet and answer the door. ]

For you? I have several. [ a glimmer of an almost smile. ] How cam I help you?

[notmutantbutmiracle]

[Wanda stands awkwardly in the doorway. Looking as though she's not sure if she should leave or not. Peggy's reaction to her words likely going to dictate her choice to leave or stick around.]

This is probably rude of me to ask, considering your new position... but Yosuke... he is really gone?

[mucked]

[ -- and that ghost of a smile promptly dies. peggy swallows hard, and then gently gestures wanda into her room. ]

Never fear being rude, Wanda. Not with me. Sometimes, you need to be rude to get what you...[ the lesson loses its way, because she can't bring herself to pontificate at a moment like this. ]

I'm so sorry.

[notmutantbutmiracle]

[Wanda hesitates at the door, but does hesitantly follow Peggy's invitation inside.]

There is no reason for you to apologize. It is not your fault.

[Wanda stands awkwardly in Peggy's cabin, unsure if she should sit or even where she should.]

I had thought I'd be used to this by now. The constant coming and going... it is inevitable that people here will leave us in an instant. It does little though to numb the pain of their departure.

[Wanda grips her arm tightly. She does not look about to cry, perhaps because she's shed too many tears already and has finally run out. But she still looks as though she's hurting.]

[mucked]

It's a two-sided coin. This place offers so many opportunities, but only in such narrow windows. [ peggy pulls the chair out from beneath the desk and offers it to wanda. ]

[notmutantbutmiracle]

[Wanda hesitates one second further, seemingly finally deciding on whether or not she'll stay. Peggy has been open and sympathetic so far, so there's really no reason for further hesitance. Wanda accepts Peggy's offer of a seat, and sits down in the chair.]

He was young... [Wanda couldn't have been a few years older than him, herself.] but he was a good captain. Wasn't he?

[mucked]

He made a very fine captain, indeed, [ she assures wanda. ] I could never fault someone for standing up and doing their best for any collection of people. He cared very deeply for the ship.

[notmutantbutmiracle]

[A small, sad smile crosses Wanda's face. Peggy's reassurance clearly appreciated.]

I know he had you to thank for a lot, being his first mate. Do you think... did I do enough to help out? Around the ship?

[And the concern that Wanda had been harboring finally comes out. For a while now, she'd been questioning whether or not she actually does enough around the Starstruck, a part of her starting to consider herself dead weight even.]

[mucked]

[ her brows knit. ]

Are...are you worried he might have doubted your worth?

[ peggy sounds surprised -- perhaps a little concerned, to boot. ]

[notmutantbutmiracle]

[Wanda gives something that looks halfway between a shake of her head and a nod. An affirmative and a negative. Clearly, she is not even sure herself.]

I... I think he was too kind to have told me if I had been.

[mucked]

Well. I can't speak for him, Wanda. But no one has ever accused me of being too kind.

[notmutantbutmiracle]

[Wanda looks up at Peggy, looking worried yet sincerely desiring to know Peggy's opinion.]

And?

What do you think then?

[mucked]

I believe your powers are worthy of awe -- and of the Avengers, no doubt. But quite aside from what you can do, I like the person you are. You're thoughtful. You feel things, as well. That's bloody important in any crew of any sort.

[ ... ] But maybe you worry a little too much about being unwanted. My darling, you are most definitely wanted.

[notmutantbutmiracle]

[Wanda looks up at Peggy, tears welling up in her eyes at her words. She tries to wipe them back, a small giggle manages to work its way out as she does. She nods her head, agreeing with Peggy's evaluation of her apparent concerns. After a moment spent collecting herself, Wanda continues. Her eyes still somewhat red, as it's likely she may start tearing up again.]

I... I have seldom had places to which I could say I belonged. That I could call home.

[Even in Sokovia; with her abilities, it was hard to be close to anyone besides Peitro. She scared people, and she understood why.]

Whenever I was briefly able to have it... It would be taken from me. Now that I've possibly found it again...

I don't want to lose it.

[mucked]

[ she crooks her finger and tucks it gently under wanda's chin. chin up, dear girl. ]

At times, home isn't a place. It's -- [ peggy tries to keep her smile, but trepidation seeps in. ] It can be a state of mind as much as anything else.

[notmutantbutmiracle]

[Wanda looks up at Peggy, again wiping some bubbling tears away before they can fall. She closes her eyes, shakes her head, attempting to end her little display before it can turn any more embarrassing.]

I understand, but... to have a real place to go, where you know people care for you, want you to be there... that is something that a state of mind can not truly ever match.

[Wanda knows. She's tried as much to convince herself of the very opposite.]

[mucked]

My dear, you have it precisely right. The home-like state of mind finds its origin in such people, and such desire. I only meant the specifics of the place mean little in the face of those emotional supports. We can make a home of space, while we can, if need be.

[ ... ] I saw a great many make a home of the Eurpoean front during the war, although their mothers and siblings and sweethearts were far far away.