etrayalogs | (closed) i need another hour of sleep

(closed) i need another hour of sleep

WHO: sophie, quentin, magik, scott, clive, kell-el
WHEN: ... august. for sure.
WHERE: corrine's cafe
WHAT: sophie is trying to connect some of her friends for mutual benefit.
NOTES\WARNINGS: if something comes up, it will be noted in the subject line.

(Look. Last mission? Complete disaster. Some got possessed, some got fucked up, some got kidnapped and experimented, some were left to their own devices, some were late arrivals. Reasons for this meeting include: extra layer of protection, as for some here are inexperienced, squishy, or both, and to keep a good eye on Sophie's dear OP friends, just in case some crazy shit happens again. Either way, everyone wins, right? Mission information through different networks, access to different powers on both sides, everyone wins.

And hopefully some of us fucking chill. Cough, Quentin, cough.

Corrine's Cafe is chill enough, although the fact she can't quite place the songs that are playing doesn't make her particularly happy, her eyebrows furrowing as she taps her finger on the table trying to figure out what damn Spice Girls-ish song is playing right now. Not like she knows all of them by heart or anything and this is not bothering her at all, her eyebrows are nearly pinched together because that's her neutral expression, absolutely.

At least she's distracted while they wait. Tap, tap, tap.)

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Aren't you smart?

[Another huff, his voice taking on some of that teenage sarcasm-- and he even likes Clive, or at least thinks he's pretty cool. Guess no one is immune to it.] Yeah, they happen whenever my eyes are uncovered. If I want to stop them, it's either the glasses or keeping my eyes closed.

[...] And before you ask, no I haven't had much luck in controlling them. Doubt it's even possible for me.

[Clive hides a smile behind his hand. What a little brat. He isn’t sure why he finds the slight surliness funny, but then again, Clive has never really had regular reactions to other people.

He claps a hand on Scott’s shoulder.]

There is no shame in that. You have found a way to keep yourself and others safe while still being able to easily access your power when needed. Maybe one day you will learn, but until then, you are doing what needs to be done.

[Clive stands, jerks his head towards the counter.]

Let’s get something to eat.

[Squints. Is he actually smiling about this? He's hiding half of his expression behind his hand, but he's probably doing that for a reason. He's onto you man!! It's just hard to say something about it right now when Clive is doing his usual supportive thing, encouraging words meant to make him feel a little better.

And dammit, it kind of works still.]

Fine, only because I'm hungry.

[Thin ice, Clive!! But Scott's amendable enough to stand up and join Clive to grab something to eat before this whole... meeting or whatever officially starts.]

Mmhmm, sure Scott.

[Clive leads the two of them to the counter and looks at the menu. He is still getting used to how different things are here. There are so many options he frequently doesn’t know what to choose.]

Do you have any recommendations? I’m still getting used to how varied everything is here.

[When you have basically been relegated to root vegetables, hunted meat, and broth to varying degrees of thickness, being able to choose between four kinds of sandwiches can be a bit overwhelming.]

Oh yeah, you don't even know what chocolate is. Your brain must be exploding right now with what you can get.

[...Wait, has Clive had coffee before? Caffeine? This he has to see and find out. Along with suggesting a pastry that is actually good because well, he does want Clive to enjoy this still. Something something showing him culture, can he claim it as American culture? Probably not, but whatever.

He smiles up at the older man, and no that's not a shit eating grin. What are you talking about, he's totally innocent.]

Yeah, I have a couple, good thing you have the expert with you. But I recommend getting the largest size of the cafe mocha and a chocolate croissant. Oh and the bacon, lettuce, tomato sandwich? That's a must.

[Not only does Clive have a little brother who has the tendency to be a little tricksy, he has also had both the torture and the pleasure of taking care of the kids back at the Hideaway. He knows trouble when he sees it. Even still, he follows Scott's suggestions. Mostly.

He gets a small cafe mocha instead of the large, but orders everything else and a water.]

So, how much are you trying to poison me today?

What? Why would I do that? I'm just trying to give you a quick cultural lesson here.

[Scott meanwhile orders a medium sized chocolate frappuccino, along with the same sandwich, as if trying to prove a point here. There's no poisoning going on, really! Everything is 100% well-intentioned from a slightly shitty teenager with a comfortable grin spreading across his face. Uh-huh.]

Don't think I forgot the whole chocolate conversation. So, we're dealing with that now. And just decided to throw in an extra bonus of something that's from my world, the famous BLT.

Alright, but if I am climbing up the walls later, I’m blaming you.

[Clive can’t help but be a little charmed with Scott’s playfulness. Was this at all what it would have been like had he been able to be with Joshua through his teen years?]

If only I could return the favor. Alas, I am not a good cook, and the ingredients I would need for some of the meals are not ones that I can get here.

[You’re lucky, Scott. That would have been torture. Clive gives a nod of thanks to the bot that offers his order. Once Scott gets his, he takes the two of them to a table. As much as he would like the comfortable couch, what he had on his plate was a bit more for balancing on his legs.]

Does BLT stand for bacon, lettuce, and tomato?

[Clive takes a bite of the sandwich while he waits for a reply and yes, this is most certainly a delicious sandwich. He needs to tell Dion about these.]

You mean thanking me.

[Just clarifying that, obviously. A part of him is actually a little curious about the food that he has from his world, but if they don't have the ingredients here, then guess he won't be able to try it. Damn, so much for getting the chance to try medieval food from some fantasy world. That really would've been kind of neat.

But he takes his order and joins Clive at the table, plopping his meal on the surface before taking a seat with all the confidence of a teen that thinks he owns this place. Clive really is stuck with this now...]

Wow, you figured that out, good job. [Okay okay maybe in a slightly less shitty attitude:] So, like it? It's good, right?

[It seems like this is actually just a little important to Scott.]

Hmm. I suppose that depends on if you also end up regretting the decision to overly caffeinate me.

[He does know what caffeine was. Now anyway. He has been learning a lot. You can’t pull all of the wool over his eyes, Scott.

Clive quirks his eyebrow at the brattiness, but otherwise seems very unbothered by it. He has a great deal of patience, particularly for difficult or ornery people. One of the people he was closest to was Cid, who had quite the penchant for defaulting to ‘asshole’.

Clive nods.]

It’s delicious. The flavors marry better than I thought they might.

[Clive takes a bite and chews, enjoying the saltiness of the meat and the freshness of the vegetables. Once he swallows, he speaks again.]

I would like to shake the hand of whoever thought of this.

[Clive does resist the urge to ruffle Scott’s hair at the poorly veiled eagerness.]

[Definitely just a little pleased seeing Clive enjoying the sandwich. Why? Eh, he doesn't know, but that feeling is just there. It's inescapable and makes the teen grin, unable to control himself entirely.]

Well, luckily for you, the great inventor is sitting right in front of you.

[Scott raises his hand to Clive, as if expecting the older man to actually shake it. Yep, the BLT was thought of by him, Scott Summers. He's always had the best ideas, all the time.]

[It's heartwarming, really. There was a satisfaction to be had in watching someone enjoy something that you also did, and for Clive to be able to help provide that while also having a delicious sandwich? It was a good day.]

Really now?

[He does not believe you, Scott. Not even for a second. He shakes Scott's hand anyway.]

I hope whoever did happen to think this up doesn't find out you are taking credit for their discovery.

[Not believable even for a moment, huh? Scott seems to take this in stride however, biting into his sandwich after pulling his hand away from the older man.]

Eh, I'm sure they're fine. Long dead anyway. They're probably thanking me for spreading the good word around.

[And then Clive can bring the BLT to his medieval world with huge dragons. Scott almost snorts into his food at the thought, but it wouldn't be bad at all.]

[Clive can't help the quiet chuckle that bubbles out of him. Moments like these were what made Etraya more than tolerable. A part of him was afraid of that, of the comfort and general happiness many people here brought him, but more of him was grateful.]

You make a very good point. I'll have to tell An Zhe about them. They don't seem like they would be terribly difficult to make.

[Clive takes a sip of his drink.]

We could have you over for homemade ones. An Zhe also makes a delicious potato soup.

Oh hey you know An Zhe too? Didn't know he cooked... or lived with you.

[But the cool mushroom kid. It's been a long time since he's spoken to him, but Scott's honestly kind of happy to hear that he's been doing okay and apparently making friends with Clive. The mutant smiles a little into his sandwich, before glancing up at Clive with a familiar easy smirk.]

But sure, yeah, I'll come over, especially since you're talking big about this potato soup of his. I have to try it.

I first met him at the waterpark. I was teaching him how to swim.

[It had been an interesting way to meet someone. It wasn't until later that he realized An Zhe had trusted a complete stranger with his safety without batting an eye, which had been, in retrospect, a little concerning.]

Turns out he already lived in the place where I was offered a place to stay so. We're roommates, in a way.

[Clive returns the smirk with a smile of his own.]

I'll have to ask him to make it. He seems to particularly enjoy soup.

[It was pretty cute, actually.]

[Oh huh, he never really thought about An Zhe not knowing how to swim. Makes sense though, because of the whole mushroom thing... well, he's glad Clive helped him out.]

All soup except mushroom soup, I imagine.

[...] So uh, you don't stay with the other people from your world?

[He remembers Clive mentioning Dion and Odin a while back. At least, warning everyone to stay out of their way because of a huge battle going on. A class between titans that would endanger anyone nearby and possibly only stopped by the guy sitting near him. He still wants to see his fire dragon form one day...] Because yeah, I stay with Sophie and the other mutants, mainly.

[He lifts one shoulder in a half-shrug, like it's just a thing that happened.]

[Clive covers a snort of a laugh, grateful that he had only been in the process of picking up his drink.]

I am curious as to whether or not he would eat other mushrooms. I’ll have to ask. I’ll report back.

[Clive looks down at his drink, swirling the mug to watch the remnants of whipped cream slowly integrate into the cooling beverage. There’s something there, a slight furrow in his brow. He does not try to smile.]

No, I don’t. Joshua, my brother, lives there with me but everyone else is elsewhere. Dion is a private man and stays in the apartments. The rest were already established when I arrived and— [Clive sighs.] There was no room. But Yuri found me and offered me a place to live. It was him, An Zhe, and Dimitri when Joshua and I arrived.

[Dimitri was gone. Despite his reserved nature, it felt so much quieter in the monastery now that someone so integral to its existence was gone. He shakes his head and looks up.]

I like it at the monastery. It’s beautiful and I always have something to do.

Oh shit, really? I didn't know your brother was here.

[There's something that flashes across Scott's face, a sort of longing that he'd deny forever, as he thinks about his older brother. It's been a year since he's seen Alex, heh, he probably is worried sick back home. Or maybe he's finally glad that he doesn't have to deal with him anymore. Maybe a bit of both.

Scott squints at Clive, nodding a bit as he mentions his overall contentment living there. He's listened to all that, but honestly, he's focused on one particular thing.]

Let me guess, you're the older brother.

[Clive nods, an answer to both statements.]

You know, you're the second person to peg me as the older one without even meeting both of us. Is it that obvious?

[Clive finishes his sandwich and politely wipes his fingers on a napkin. Oddly enough, there was little like talking about his family that dredged up old habits.]

[With his own meal completed, Scott leans back against the chair-- tilting it just enough that he doesn't fall back. Yet. Don't worry he has this completely handled.]

You just give that older brother feeling. Super responsible, put together. [He waves a hand at Clive.] I have one, back home.

[Alex is going to be the person that's going to do great things between them, probably, even if all these other mutants tell him that he's some great mutant leader. That's. That Scott. Not him. It doesn't feel like it can be him.]

[Clive still shifts his legs under the table so he can hook a foot around a chair leg to yank Scott back down to safety just in case he does not, in fact, have the situation completely handled.]

Ah, that might do it, yeah. Although, my younger brother is generally pretty responsible.

[Clive is slowly learning that Scott's flippancy seems like it might be a defense mechanism.]

What is he like? Your older brother.

[Scott yelps as his chair is suddenly righted, all four legs firmly on the floor and preventing him from being the cool kid on campus. So rude. The mutant grumbles and nearly slumps in his chair, but he just crosses his arms in a manner that's totally not pouting--]

Responsible, the hero. Everyone likes him. [Snorts.] He's going to be the one doing great things in his life.

[He really does look up to Alex, but. It sucks sometimes feeling like he's not enough or won't amount to much. He's sure that's what his parents feel. Then it feels even more stupid that he is supposed to be some great mutant leader, but that is some other universe. That's not him.]

[Clive tries not to smile at the pout, he really does, but it’s kind of… cute? It makes Clive want to ruffle Scott’s hair, that’s for certain. Clive is certain that is not Scott’s intention so he distinctly does not ruffle the teenager’s hair.]

You say that like you don’t think you are going to do great things.

[Clive rests his arms on the table and leans a little closer to Scott, focusing in on their own little bubble.]

Why?

[A small grunt, like he's trying to sound disaffected or disinterested. He thinks it works, because actually sounding hurt or pained by something like this is so lame and he's not that.]

That's just how it is. [He was pretty much an 'accident' anyway, even if his parents haven't confirmed it. Yeah, 20 year difference between him and Alex? Give him a break.]

Not like anyone expects anything out of me.

(closed) i need another hour of sleep

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Scott, you might just be getting adopted. Enjoy having a big brother.

i'm here for this uwu

<3 <3 <3

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