(no subject)
Knock knock, dear second in command. Padraig O'Hara is here to see you, after seeing an incredibly bad picture of himself on the television. Standing relatively smartly outside Toxin's door, dressed in dark jeans and a close-cut black, short-sleeved shirt, his hands return to behind his back as he waits, rocking back a little on his heels.
"It's open." comes the call from inside the room. Toxin herself is hidden inside her wardrobe. Or at least, she's hidden from the waist up. Her head pokes out long enough to see who it is, and her eyes narrow. "Padraig. Close the door behind you." And she's gone again for a minute, then comes out, shutting the wardrobe and tossing a pair of boots on the bed.
"Toxin." Padraig greets, with a quick nod, before stepping his way carefully and slowly into the room, shutting the door behind him. He takes the opportuntiy of the vanished senior to have a quick scan around, eyes flickering as he adopts a formal stance. He waits for her to return, hands clasped behind his back, and doesn't speak until she is back. "I guess you've seen the news? Thought you might appreciate an explanation."
Toxin doesn't say anything for a moment, heading over to her desk chair and swinging into it. She crosses her legs and steeples her fingers under her chin, her expression screaming 'this will be good'. "Speak."
"Well, I assume you're aware what happened." Padraig begins, "Although the motivations are probably not actually known to you. Pyro needed something to sever his final ties to that school once and for all." His tone is level, expression relatively neutral. A far cry from happy, smiley, flirty Paddy. "We were not expecting there to be two people, or the police to arrive so quickly. Seems that it was successful, though." The faintest trace of a smirk begins to pull at his lips.
"I see." Toxin responds, not moving and her expression one of complete neutrality. But her voice is a low, soft purr. She tilts her chair back just a little, her fingers still holding her chin up. "And what was it that gave -you- the idea that this needed to be done?" Her droning voice carries no anger, but the emphasis on 'you' might just give the idea that she doesn't think much of Padraig's opinion.
"Speaking with Pyro." Padraig admits, eyes locking on Toxin for a moment, before they drift to a more respectful straight ahead. "He needed it, and I realised there was no chance it would be approved if I requested it. So I did it, and am now going to stand up to take the consequences." The lilt of his accent is almost forced fully out as he stands.
Toxin nods, as if she completely agrees and understands Padraig's choices. "No chance, you say. And this was an informed opinion?" she inquires, her voice still pleasant.
A quick, sharp headshake. "Not informed as such, but I am aware of the rules concerning a total lack of contact with people from that school." Padraig's body language is still static, unmoving and unwavering in his relaxed, but formal, pose. "And my hypothesis was that the chances were slim of it being approved if I /did/ request it. My deepest,-" A trace of sarcasm slips into his voice, a little humour finding its way in as well. ", most sincere apologies for using the incorrect wording for my initial statement."
"And perhaps these rules are in place for a good reason. Did you consider that, or was the idea of making yourself a martyr simply too tempting?" Toxin's calm demeanor stays in place, but there is an undercurrent of ice to her words this time around.
"The rules /are/ there for a reason." Padraig states, at least partially to himself in some like self-admonition. "I was not attempting matrydom. Merely trying to help out another recruit." Stiffening a little more, his hands and shoulders clench up, muscles bunching under the shirt. "I do, however, stand by my decision to do it. I won't apologise for something I felt was right."
"Of course you won't." And at this point Toxin's voice becomes cutting, though her posture does not change. Time to see how much Padraig will take before retaliating. "Your arrogance led you to believe that your path is the only one that is right. No, there couldn't be another reason for Magneto allowing Pyro to stay as he is, could there? No, there are no decisions other than the ones -Padraig- makes in his world."
Eyes close briefly for a swift intake of breath, and Padraig's jaw clenches tight. It is forced loose though, so he can speak. "Point taken. Arrogance is not necessarily a good trait, but it is one I bear." Words ripped out swiftly, clipped and careful. "I am aware that I have done something that may be against the wishes of the Brotherhood's command structure."
There's a tiny hint of a smile on Toxin's face, only to be wiped away in the next instant. "No no, my dear Padraig. You have -no- idea what you've done. If those idiotic X-Men were not so dedicated to peace, they could have come here when you attacked one of their students. With that delightfully moronic stunt that you pulled, you could have placed the entire island in danger." A pause, and then she continues, her voice still even. "Not only did you place yourself and Pyro in danger, you have drawn yet more unwanted attention to our little group and placed us in that much more danger the next time we perform a mission. What could the police have gotten out of you two had you been captured? You are -mutants-. They won't stop at extracting information by any means necessary. But you didn't think about any of those things, did you?" She rises slowly, and gracefully makes her way over to Padraig, until she's standing inches from him, then answers her own question. "No, you didn't. Because -you- do not -think-."
"But we were not captured, despite the police's uncharacteristic rapid response. And the X-Men /are/ dedicated to peace." Padraig states, a flash of defiance flaring in the set of his features. It is visibly and forcefully slammed into submission, before a slow, deep breath is taken, exhaled through teeth as the Irishman drops his eyes to lock on Toxin's. Then, in a bitter parody, slashed with dark humour, he states, "The recruit believes that any answer he gives will be wrong, so he shall cease to give responses."
Toxin's eyes flash, but whether with pleasure or malice is unknown. "The recruit cannot control his temper. The recruit is therefore dismissed until he can learn to do so." she replies in mocking tones, snapping gaze daring him to act upon offense.
"The recruit is not known for the control of his temper. Nor is he known for the temper disrupting his performance, in the main." Padraig's head tips, that defiance obviously being held in check as he turns, and begins to take measured steps towards the door.
"That remains to be seen." is Toxin's soft rejoinder, the same mocking smile on her lips as she watches him head out the door.