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[Voice/Action]
[Today is a good day for serious business, apparently. There's a certain something he's been putting off for a while, and after one-too-many dreams interrupting his sleep, he's had enough: this morning when Billy wakes up, the first thing he does is jot out a note in the journal-]
[Private to Ben Grimm]
Hey, would it be okay if I swung by to ask you a few things?
[He'll work through his morning routine until he gets a response, after which he'll go for a visit and get a hell of a lot more than he bargained for.
After that, his mood for the day is drastically altered; he'll skip out on school, trying to sort out his feelings on the matter. Tommy's still AWOL, and he's trying not to worry Teddy, but what he's just been told has really got him thinking- about people, and heroes, and the unfairness of mankind in general. And eventually he'll just go ahead and return to his journal for it. He's kind of in over his head here.]
[Open to All]
I know Luceti's full of heroes- seems kind of a standard trait for most of us, for whatever reason. Back on my world, super-humans aren't that uncommon, and in general they're revered for everything they do for the world. Some of them were born that way, and some of them are from other planets, and some were altered to get their powers, and some have a lot of talent or skill instead of powers. But they're all considered to be super heroes. There's bad guys, too- just as diverse and unique as the heroes they fight. People fear them and celebrate their defeat.
There's another group, though... humans who got their powers because of evolution. It's much more natural, in a lot of ways. Some are heroes, some are villains. Some are just trying to get by without becoming one or the other. But regular humans fear them, and hate them for it, even if they save the world just as much as the heroes they love. They're called criminals or monsters, no matter how innocent they might be.
[He hesitates- it's probably obvious to some, what he's talking about, and he's not sure if he should lock it from the mutant population, or apologize, or something, but it relates to them even if it's not by name. Hiding it wouldn't be right.
In the end he just leaves it be.]
...Sorry for the ramble. But it's not fair, and... I just can't understand why. Why hate one and love the other, when they're basically the same?
[Private to Ben Grimm]
Hey, would it be okay if I swung by to ask you a few things?
[He'll work through his morning routine until he gets a response, after which he'll go for a visit and get a hell of a lot more than he bargained for.
After that, his mood for the day is drastically altered; he'll skip out on school, trying to sort out his feelings on the matter. Tommy's still AWOL, and he's trying not to worry Teddy, but what he's just been told has really got him thinking- about people, and heroes, and the unfairness of mankind in general. And eventually he'll just go ahead and return to his journal for it. He's kind of in over his head here.]
[Open to All]
I know Luceti's full of heroes- seems kind of a standard trait for most of us, for whatever reason. Back on my world, super-humans aren't that uncommon, and in general they're revered for everything they do for the world. Some of them were born that way, and some of them are from other planets, and some were altered to get their powers, and some have a lot of talent or skill instead of powers. But they're all considered to be super heroes. There's bad guys, too- just as diverse and unique as the heroes they fight. People fear them and celebrate their defeat.
There's another group, though... humans who got their powers because of evolution. It's much more natural, in a lot of ways. Some are heroes, some are villains. Some are just trying to get by without becoming one or the other. But regular humans fear them, and hate them for it, even if they save the world just as much as the heroes they love. They're called criminals or monsters, no matter how innocent they might be.
[He hesitates- it's probably obvious to some, what he's talking about, and he's not sure if he should lock it from the mutant population, or apologize, or something, but it relates to them even if it's not by name. Hiding it wouldn't be right.
In the end he just leaves it be.]
...Sorry for the ramble. But it's not fair, and... I just can't understand why. Why hate one and love the other, when they're basically the same?
[Voice]
There's always going to be bad things that happen that you'll be left unsettled with. Best you can do is keep true to yourself.
[It's such a general catch-all response, though. He felt unsettled leaving it at that]
So if you don't mind, what'd you hear?
[Voice]
[There's an obvious reluctance in his tone, and a bit of regret.]
Sorry, it's... it's nothing against you, but it's a private issue.
[Voice]
[doesn't want to pry, after all. But the offer to help or whatever he could do in his limited capacity would stand.]
[Voice]
[Sweets are a better distraction than angsting about racial relations back home.]
[Voice]
[He'd enjoyed Billy's company the last time with the pies, and a part of him felt... a connection, though he didn't want to come across as a creeper]
Haven't really tried my hand at hard candies, yet.
[Voice]
[Voice]
[He could not even remember the last time he had those, but if they were here, he would have them]
I'm all for doing what I can to help people feel better. Providing delicious food is only one part of that.
[Sorry, Billy, a part of Eugene is that protective elder brother type and he just... he'll try to keep it to a minimum.]
[Voice > Action]
[And he'll be zooming off to the shop to find some snacks. He will, in fact, be knocking on their door within half an hour with a bag of pretzel sticks and peanut butter cups. And he didn't even have to "Iwant" them into existence.]
[Action]
Hey, welcome-- ah, Billy, was it? Oh, wow, they have Reese's?!
[Forgive him, he hasn't been privy to delights of that sort since well over a long time. Closes the door behind Billy and urges him to have a seat]
It's good you visited! Want something to drink? Water or-- well, how old are you?
[Gives him a narrow-eyed, considering look, guesstimating but...]
[Action]
[He loves Reese's as much as the next guy, but something about the way Eugene perks up makes him offer the package out immediately to give him first dibs. That's a man with more than your average craving.]
I'm sixteen. [....] Going on seventeen. [FELLOWS WILL FALL IN LINE- no okay.] I'm okay with just water, thanks.
[Action]
I, ah, thanks!
[Kickstarts into action again, moving to set the Reese's into the fridge. Save some for Jack and eat them later.]
Sixteen-- hah, sweet year, huh? Well, from the tone of your voice earlier, not all is well?
[Okay, seventeen was still too far from nineteen, so he'd stick to water. Sets the glass in front of him and settles back with a grin.]
I'm not generally nosy, but you seemed pretty upset. Hopefully no one's giving you trouble here? I hear the Malnosso can put a cramp in your plans...
[Action]
[...]
Alright, it's not great, but when it comes to the situation that's got me down today, it's fine. So I can't complain there.
[No one cares about mutants except the mutants themselves, and super heroes don't get special treatment either, good or bad. Everyone's equal. Even being gay doesn't seem to bother people.
It's a crazy paradise for the hate crime poster boy, as Rogue might say.]
[Action]
[The last part would go without saying but not without understanding as experiencing that here and back where Eugene hails from was not uncommon. He'd seen too many good people die, possibly had to put a few of them back do--]
Aw, you can complain, it's healthy. But what you do after that is also important.
[Opens the bag of pretzels and gets a nice little collection of snacks on the plate he'd designated for Billy. Entertaining guests was actually more fun than he realized.]
Alright, well-- some basics, then. Where are you from? I'm from Vancouver. Ah, if you've heard of it?
[Action]
Vancouver's BC, right? Canada? Just about the only part of Canada I know anything about. I'm from Manhattan.
[Action]
[Has a Reese's and just...to describe what he felt after such a long time without, it could be comical if he weren't absolutely genuine in his joy. But it was a quiet joy, brief and not disruptive]
I went to New York twice! Once for new year and once on business. Are you still in high school back home?
[Action]
[His brows lift, thinking back.]
But you run a radio show, right? With Jack?
[Action]
[But that was from a life that he was... doubly far separated from and he would rather not think about it being gone. Instead, he grins a little and props his chin on the heel of his hand, smiling fondly]
You might get this a lot but I'll probably treat you like a kid brother. Is that offensive? I don't mean it to be.
[Action]
[Though the nature of at least one sibling is awfully complicated.]
[Action]
Hm, sounds like my family. And believe me, I don't regret it. But that's all par for the course with family.
[Still, gauging how Billy responded to these sort of subjects, he seemed much more mature than first glance would permit. With a faint grin, he looked him over, measuringly]
So why do they claim you're a huge pain? Smarter than them?
[Action]
[If Eugene's looking for tone, Billy's pretty casual when discussing his family; there's obvious affection mixing with exasperation there, and a touch of longing. He misses them a lot, especially with Tommy still absent from the apartment.]
[Action]
[Scoots himself over and sits in a less mobile chair, curling his leg under him. It was like practice for interviews, though he had a genuine interest and... well, concern for Billy's welfare. He wasn't entirely sure why, but something was telling him to be faintly protective of him. Maybe he was misreading some loneliness, there?]
What about that guy you were with earlier? You're not brothers, right?
[Action]
[Tommy's a mystery regardless.]
As for the other guy- you mean Teddy? Blond hair, tons of earrings? [He taps briefly against his ear.] He's my boyfriend.
[Action]
[Oh, that last answer didn't blow him away because that would be hypocritical, but-- but it did make him frown consideringly. Not a bad consideringly, just a thoughtful quirk of his lips]
The guy with you for the pies. Your boyfriend? Huh...
[Smiles, sitting back]
That's... well, it's nice.
[Thinks about the implications of that for a moment, however]
No one's causing you distress over that, are they?
[Action]
[You'd think they of all people would have that sort of connection, being two fractions of the same soul, apparently, but logic has never factored in to their relationship anyway.
The last question surprises him a little, though.]
You mean here? No, not at all. To be honest, nobody seems to care. It's kind of refreshing.
[Action]
Most of the time, at least here, I'd expect the unexpected. Just on account of this place being full of people and things I've never expected to encounter.
[But now he's rambling and well-- in the end he realizes he's trying to make friends with a kid likely to be 11 years his junior. But a very mature 17 year old, at least. After a point it all became relative anyhow.]
That is a relief no one gives any trouble. Me and Jack are the same-- Well, I mean, we're a couple, not that we're related. We were asked that once, though. Spock-- do you have Star Trek in your world or is it just... mine?
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