Big Ears, Big Eyes, Big Teeth

@chrsgts

Even though they were related, Thierry had grown up much differently than his cousin. Often he wondered what his life would have looked like had he been raised by his aunt and not the guardian he ended up with, a godfather who barely deserved the title, but he knew there was no point in speculating. They’d been countries apart.

He’d managed to reconnect with Chris when he was here before, even though that was years ago. Since then he’d kept in lose contact. It seemed like the right thing to do, especially when his own lifestyle leaned toward precarious. Maybe it was good to have family, someone he could somewhat rely on, in spite of how independent he typically was. Chris was the first person he met who hadn’t asked or expected anything from him, anyway. That earned him a more elevated place than most.

They were meeting at a restaurant. Thierry was there early, having secured them a table outside. Often he wondered how their powers overlapped, or if Chris felt similarly sitting in the corner or with his back to the door. Chris was the only one who he openly discussed his abilities with, but he’d spent so long hiding them (or just not using them at all) that it was difficult to casually drop it in conversation. 

“Hi,” he said when he saw him, sliding one of the menus over. “You look the same.”

When Thierry popped his head back into Star City territory, Chris thought he’d be more excited. Sure, it was nice to have another family member around, especially one of the mutant variety - it made the expectations nonexistent. He could relax, breathe. If only he didn’t have June to worry about, which was a near constant for him. The only time he found reprieve was when he slept and even then, that could be touch and go.

Judging by how long it took her to get that answer, he was in no hurry to let himself give in. June never particularly entertained the idea that he would change his mind about anything, at least not with any seriousness, and if he wouldn’t change his mind then the natural conclusion was that he’d give in. So, as her phone chimed and she saw that very delayed response, she granted herself a moment to smile at the screen before telling him she’d meet him outside.

Still wearing her labcoat and with her hair swept up into a sleek, high bun, she stepped out of the lab and stood in front of the main set of doors. Only she and Adrian had full access to the grounds and the security codes. Chris wouldn’t have been able to get himself in even if he’d tried.

As she saw him waiting, she lifted a hand high enough to crook one finger and motion him toward her. “I have work to finish. Come inside.”

Chris didn’t like this — not one bit — but he walked into it willingly despite everything telling him not to. The full moon was set to rise soon and he could feel his skin just itch with want. His whole body felt alight and on edge, as if every nerve ending was working over-time. The few moments before were never his favorite.

He would have made a hole by now, or some sort of hideaway or locked himself in for the transformation. June’s tinkering definitely helped with that a lot, enabling him to have some semblance of control, but the moon’s pull was indescribable. He wanted to jump out of his skin.

Chris inhaled deeply when she motioned for him to follow, and stole a very brief momentary pause before he felt his legs surge himself forward and away from the safety of his vehicle. He looked back to the car, as if to make sure it would be fine where it sat, before he reached her and the front of the building. He’d never seen it before, so he made sure to get a good look at its face — just in case.

It’d been too long since Chris had last seen Dick. Of course they’d chat every now and then, but it wasn’t the same — and now with Bruce Wayne’s death, it seemed all the more imperative to reach out. 

He knew what it was like to lose a parent. How it settled in the crevices of the body and nestled in, the grief nurtured by the loss and the memories and the almosts. Chris would catch himself wanting to ask for his mother whenever he and his dad would catch up, to see how she was doing. Or he’d want to share something he saw, but always stopped himself short. It was painful to have to go through that day in and day out, even if death was expected in the end — he figured that Dick could use a break, at least.

It was a shot in the dark, but his suspicions grew the longer he focused on the faint traces of that familiar scent. She wasn’t here but it smelled exactly like her. “You hear that?” crooned Daken, waving his finger towards the other with a teasing grin. His gaze flickered back to the other patron. “This guy knows the rules. Now come on. I know you missed me, especially after-”

“Will you shut your fucking mouth already?” spat the bartender in Daken’s direction. The mutant watched with a growing smirk as a tense silence fell from their surroundings. The other bartender on duty reached over to tap his colleague on the shoulder. He shot one last glare at Daken before storming towards the back room, slamming the door behind him. Daken cleared his throat once, waving a hand at another former co-worker. He reached into his back pocket to pull out his credit card, passing it to her with a wink. 

“The usual for me and whatever the guy to my right wants. Put it on my tab.”

The shift in energy was palpable and it made the hair on his arms and the back of his neck stand on end. He kept to himself, however with eyes passing quickly between the very obvious regular and the bartenders on the other side. While he wasn’t very obviously a cop, he would intervene if necessary.

Luckily, that wouldn’t be necessary as the situation was deescalated as quickly as it arrived. Kudos to his coworker, but the regular still had that air about him; he looked to have a hair trigger, or at least an aptitude for getting under someone’s skin. Chris made note of his behavior before thanking him for the generosity.

He, however, wasn’t there for drinks. He wanted information, though he could already guess how it might go considering the audience. Chris kept his expression pleasant enough and turned from the patron to the bartender instead. He showed her his badge as discreetly as possible before sliding her the photo — it wasn’t his jurisdiction and he knew very well what sort of trouble he could get into, but this was too important to pass up, especially when he was already in the area.

“Yes, because I, personally, designed all the laws that put me in prison and let me walk out again to get a job working for the government. Silly me, I must have forgotten.” Walk out…break out…both had happened. If Chris wanted to snap at her heels, she wouldn’t hesitate to repay the gesture. It wasn’t her with the compromised morality. “I had to just-” she repeated, one pale brow arched in anticipation. 

He seemed to wisely think better of it before finishing the sentence. June just narrowed her eyes as she took another drink of wine. “Run along.” She didn’t stop him, nor did she follow him for a long while. She drained every last drop from her glass first. 

By the time she made her way into the bathroom, steam was rolling from the heat of the water. The door clicked audibly shut behind her, though her clothes falling to the floor a second later made no sound. Chris would have the sense to know she was there, presumably, and could insist that she not join him if that’s what he wanted. In the absence of it, she stepped in beneath the water. 

She wanted to blame the whole kit and caboodle — he wanted to blame her. It was why the bathroom option was the better one, to put some distance between himself and the target of his frustration. Staying engaged would likely lead to an argument and it was better not to, especially over something that wouldn’t be changed. Not then, not now.

He hoped that she’d distract herself with her vices and her paperwork and nefarious little dealings. Instead, he heard the weight on the other side of the door, the click of its latch bolt as the door opened and the soft click of it closing. Among the steam, he could make out the faint smell of her and then the glass door was opening.

The Worm Moon

@chrsgts

Many full moons had passed since June had augmented Chris’s X-Gene. She’d only heard about one of them and many of the others were apparently spent with him running around the woods in…wherever he’d gone. To his family. For months. Regardless, she’d not actually been able to witness the fruits of her labor and hearing about it was not nearly as satisfying. She’d seen him transform before, after all. The data wasn’t going to be complete without the follow-up. 

On the day leading up to the full moon, she’d been indisposed. Her work for Adrian Veidt involved a good amount of tinkering. For the first weeks, she’d been working with what she already had, or what he could provide to her, but she was still designing unique plug-ins just for him. It stood to reason that she couldn’t give him something that she wasn’t sure would produce perfect results, which meant…test subjects were necessary, and once the test was complete it wasn’t as if she could let them go. Something had to be done with them, and she had a solution. It would just need to wait until the sun set. 

Rather than risk losing track of him for the night, June sent a message a couple of hours before dark. 

[Txt - Puppy:] Meet me at the address I’m sending. I’ll take care of you tonight. 

I’ll take care of you tonight.

Usually that meant something along the lines of favorable for him, but unethical in some way. It meant him having to decide whether or not whatever June had concocted was worth that - especially on a full moon night, making it all the more unnerving. What was she planning? What was it that she had up her sleeve? Chris was wary, but he’d be damned if he wasn’t curious. Still, it wasn’t enough to get him to head there. At least, not at first.

He didn’t want to give in to it, in to the nagging need to head towards the address she sent, but the moon’s pull was growing stronger and he could feel himself start lose patience. He couldn’t take it anymore.

Luckily it didn’t take Chris too long to reach his destination; his senses were on high alert when he stepped out of his Jeep. The very top of the moon kissed the horizon line. He could feel it vibrate his bones.