PAYING RESPECTS (open)

[ROBYN CARLYLE]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=style, width: 350px; height: 380px; background-color:#E3E3E3; border-left: 30px solid #883a2f; border-bottom:30px solid #883a2f; border-top:30px solid #883a2f; border-right: 30px solid #883a2f;] The most peaceful part of the school grounds was here, at the memorial. Robyn hardly knew some of those the memorial was dedicated to but that didn't matter. She honored their names as much as anyone else. Without them, there would be no school to go to and she was grateful for that. She had a few bouquets of flowers. The students here looked up to these people, even in death. Placing the bouquets before the stone obelisk, she sat down on the grass. The girl was raised to be spiritual. This part of her personality never left her just because she was looked at differently for being a mutant. The individuals who have passed left a lasting legacy that students and staff at the mansion would never forget. Her blue eyes gazed on the stone statue reverently. Hoping she didn't look like a weirdo, she started talking. "Ah know there are not enough times one can say thank you, to those as brave and as selfless as you all were. But everyone including myself owe you so much and Ah know we are being watched over and that Xavier's vision is still very much alive," she said quietly. The girl felt it had to be said, even though it was more than likely said by others. Her heart grew sad that their lives were lost. This didn't have to happen to them. Asking why was pointless though. Nothing would bring them back. All they could do was keep them alive by honoring their cause. Despite the sadness, she felt they were at peace. She gave a smile. The sky was covered in clouds so the sun wasn't blaring down. There as a cool breeze that somehow added to the peace of the area. She closed her blue eyes and cleared her thoughts. wearing, here word count, 303 thanks brooklyn from caution

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[Sooraya Qadir]

There weren't any more graves.

It was a conflicted feeling, Sooraya had, at the thought. On one hand, they had been a reminder, a horrible, tragic reminder of what exactly could be lost, what had been lost, but on the other hand... They had also been a reminder of those who had come before, those that she did not wish to forget. If she could, perhaps she could get them to rebuild the graves, exactly where they had been before, if that was possible. She had prayed over every single one, surely they could get the locations from her memories...?

That was a question for another day, especially given she had had so many questions, lately, about what was going to happen, what she was going to do. Perhaps that would wait until later.

As it was, the Memorial was her praying spot, though it did not feel... correct. It felt like a poor excuse, but until she had a better location, until she knew what to do for all of those lost, she could do naught but pray at the Memorial, that they were in Allah's safe care.

Unfortunately... There was someone else there. Perhaps it was not truly unfortunate, for it was a good thing for the newer mutants (she did not recognize her, thus she must be new) to become acquainted with who had come before, but Sooraya had known all of these people, and had wished to pray for them, every single one, from the boy she only knew from passing in the halls, smile bright on his face, to Brian, Laurie, Jay... Too many lives had been lost.

As it was, though, she would never interrupt, and she hung back, keeping enough distance between the girl's back and her feet so that it would not seem as though she was rushing her, eyes lifting to fix up on the Obelisk. Too many were lost...

[ROBYN CARLYLE]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=style, width: 350px; height: 380px; background-color:#E3E3E3; border-left: 30px solid #883a2f; border-bottom:30px solid #883a2f; border-top:30px solid #883a2f; border-right: 30px solid #883a2f;] The tranquility of the place really made Robyn feel relaxed and serene. Having grown up in Georgia, she grew up going to church. It was a big thing in their household. Though she retains much of the beliefs she grew up with, a lot has changed to cause her to sort of break away from that mindset. They were a big part of her though. She did believe in a higher power. She fixed her gaze on the memorial until she felt a presence nearby. The redhead glanced over at Sooraya. She had seen the girl around several times but had never formally met her. Robyn stood up and gave a friendly smile to the girl. Did this girl come out to enjoy the same tranquility Robyn was enjoying? Robyn didn't know the girl's name, but she was bad at names sometimes. The girl looked no older than Robyn. Robyn hoped she didn't look ridiculous to the girl, talking to the memorial and all. "Was just paying my respects," said the girl, moving her hair behind her ear. "Hey. I'm Robyn Carlyle," she stated. Robyn wasn't new but she felt like it sometimes, being that she wasn't that social. "So, did you know any of them?" Robyn asked out of curiosity, glancing at the memorial again. The mansion was crawling with kids from all walks of life. It was a cultural hub. Robyn found it a pleasure meeting fellow mutants from around the world. She liked diversity. Despite someone coming from a different place or a background, they were united by the fact they had powers. It felt good to be at a school with others having the same struggles and being taught by the same mentors and teachers. Diversity was what was Xavier was all about. wearing, here word count, 303 thanks brooklyn from caution

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[Sooraya Qadir]

She had not meant to disturb the girl and her talking (she purposefully chanted a few prayers, mentally, not wishing to overhear what could be a very private conversation with someone she could possibly know), nor attempt to hurry her along, for she was content to wait, but it seemed as though she had, inadvertently, and Sooraya nodded a fraction at the other's statement, understanding.

It was no certain person she was here for, then, unless she was purposefully being vague to direct possible embarrassment (there was no embarrassment to be found, here, in Sooraya's personal opinion, but she found that she often disagreed with others on these sorts of topics), and the X-Man allowed herself to be pulled into a brief conversation.

"I am Sooraya Qadir, known as Dust, a pleasure," she greeted calmly, gliding past the girl to take in the memorial. Graves felt... more personal, and this felt far more lazy, one place to pray instead of many, only one stop to speak to those that, once upon a time, she had known. Speaking of known...

For a moment, she did not answer, allowing one uncovered hand to reach out and trace the memorial, hands running along the cool statue, before she spoke up, voice even more quiet than it had been before, eyes not shifting to look at her, instead focusing on the memories before her. "Yes. I knew every single one of them."

Once upon a time, they had ran, flew, laughed in these hallways, hallways that had been rebuilt on the ghosts of what had been before, and it was almost painful, her eyes closing for one fraction of a moment, before she exhaled, eyes opening and casting out towards the other, catching her in her gaze.

"I take it you did not know any?"

[ROBYN CARLYLE]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=style, width: 350px; height: 380px; background-color:#E3E3E3; border-left: 30px solid #883a2f; border-bottom:30px solid #883a2f; border-top:30px solid #883a2f; border-right: 30px solid #883a2f;] Robyn was mesmerized by the memorial garden. She frowned when she heard Dust knew all of them. It's always hard to lose someone. "No, ah did not, but ah feel like ah did, if that makes sense. The school is such an amazing place and Ah know all of them had a hand in making it what it is today. Ah know they were brave and fought for the good of everyone. Ah only wish ah was half as selfless as they were." she said to the girl. Robyn knew they were great mutants and fought for peace in this world. "Anyways..it's nice to meet you Sooraya. You have a pretty name. Your code name is cool too. Ah also go by Talon." said the redheaded girl, reaching a hand out to shake hers. She didn't know if Sooraya was the kind to shake hands, but Robyn decided it would be nice. Robyn got the name Talon due to her power. It was actually suggested by her good friend Andrey. Robyn could only guess what Dust's powers were based on her name. "So...where are you from?" Robyn asked Dust, making conversation. Dust's accent was not of this country. Robyn figured she must have been from the middle east somewhere. That didn't matter to her though. Though she was interested in where people came from, she was non judgmental and was more fascinated than anything. Learning about where people in the school came from was something Robyn liked doing. Never in her life had she been around so many people her age. When it came to Georgia, Robyn loved talking about it. The stone bench looked inviting, so Robyn took a seat on it as she waited for a reply. There were a few stone benches for people to sit, relax and reflect. wearing, here word count, 304 thanks brooklyn from caution

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[Sooraya Qadir]

Sooraya... was not certain if she liked or disliked Robyn's answer. On one hand, it was a great compliment to those that had passed on. They truly had been brave, selfless, fought for what was right, and left such a lasting impression on the school, and those within. Brian, Jay... She would never forget them, and though they left a ragged hole in her heart, she hoped she would see them again one day.

On the other hand... It did belittle, if inadvertently, those that truly knew them and were touched by them. She knew every person, and... Robyn did not, simply felt as though she did. It was certainly not intentional, and did not reflect poorly on the other, in her opinion, but she was simply not wholly pleased with it.

Regardless, she accepted the answer, as it was the right thing to do, and gave her a small nod. "I understand."

The compliments did catch her off guard, though, and for a moment, she blinked at the other owlishly, before her face softened into a smiler underneath her niqab, eyes crinkling. "Thank you," Sooraya spoke gently, warring with herself, before reaching out to carefully shake the other's hand, grip loose and brief, hand retracted quickly. You were not suppose to shake hands with a non-Muslim unless necessary... "I could say the same in regards to both your names, as well." But here, they were all equals.

Before she could continue the conversation in what she felt was the natural direction, Robyn put forth her own question (or should she call her Talon?) in an opposite direction, but Sooraya adapted easily. "I am from Afghanistan," the mutant replied, having long accepted that as a popular question. "I take you are from here?"

Though she had an accent, she seemed American... But Sooraya would not be the most accurate judge for a topic such as that.

[ROBYN CARLYLE]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=style, width: 350px; height: 380px; background-color:#E3E3E3; border-left: 30px solid #883a2f; border-bottom:30px solid #883a2f; border-top:30px solid #883a2f; border-right: 30px solid #883a2f;] "Thank you," said Robyn, of the comment on her name. Robyn noticed how quickly she retreated her hand but didn't say anything. She figured it was a cultural difference or maybe she was shy. Robyn hoped she hadn't created an awkward situation for the girl. That's the last thing she wanted to do. She wanted to make friends. Robyn didn't know much about the Middle Eastern cultures and religions. Then the girl said she was from Afghanistan. She wasn't sure what to comment on. "So you came far," she said. Robyn knew of the turmoil in that part of the world, but also knew of the beautiful places in the middle east. "Ah am from here...well not here here, but from Georgia in the south. So...what's your ability?" She was curious. Per her code name, she figured it had something to do with Dust, but she was interested in what she could do with it. She was always interested in the abilities of her peers. There were such a variety of abilities. "Ah bet it's something amazing and unique," she stated. Every gift was special in its own way. The memorial was relaxing, but was it the place for casual conversation? She wondered if they should move it to a more casual venue. The memorial was a place of reverence and silence. "We could always move this somewhere else if you wish," she offered. Robyn was comfortable but she wondered if Dust was. Robyn stood back up after sitting on the bench. "If you wanna go to a more casual place, that is," -she stated. wearing, here thanks brooklyn from caution

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[Sooraya Qadir]

"Yes, I did..." Sooraya stated, feeling vaguely awkward, her left hand folding over her body to clasp her right wrist. While she was perfectly find speaking with the other, and was enjoying their conversation, she had come out here for a reason, and in general, this... was an awkward place to speak. This was not a place for a conversation, not at all, but she would oblige the other, hopefully for not too much longer.

Georgia. She knew that was one of the, ah, parts of America, but that did not help her, one little bit, but she dutifully nodded, anyway, accepting that, only to have her face twist into a slight frown underneath her niqab, only visible if one looked very closely at her eyes. Something amazing and unique? She... supposed it was, it seemed that most powers were quite unique, but it was an odd sentiment to profess, particularly given the fact that she had shown no... insecurity, for lack of a better word, regarding her power.

Quite odd, quite odd indeed.

Regardless, before she could answer, Talon (she would address her as such) seemed to finally realize how odd this was, and Sooraya relaxed minutely, turning slightly to face her as she shook her head fractionally. "While I appreciate the offer, I did come out here to pray." What else would one choose to do at a memorial, after all? Barring using it as a meeting place for later activities, she could see how that would work.

"I have been enjoying this conversation, Talon, but perhaps we may continue it at a later point?" She smiled faintly, eyes crinkling. "Now does not appear to be the most appropriate time, but I would be most willing to seek you out in the future."

Quite soon, it would do good to get to know the newer mutants. She was among the experienced, after all.