it  was  still  a  mystery  to  the  vigilante  how  bruce  had  allowed  a  batburger  of  all  places  to  be  opened  up  in  nox,  but  he  found  it  amusing  at  least.  dick  took  a  long  sip  from  his  milkshake,  playing  idly  with  his  fries  with  no  intention  to  eat,  his  appetite  fleeting.  he’d  been  in  a  better  mood  earlier,  up  until  he’d  received  word  of  bludhaven  and  the  ongoing  state  of  chaos  it  always  seemed  to  be  in.  “  maybe  i  need  to  go  back,  “  he  muttered suddenly,  unaware  he’d  said  it  aloud  and  consequently  interrupting  the  conversation  he  was  supposed  to  be  having.  it  was  followed  by  a  shake  of  his  head,  almost  as  if  trying  to  dispel  the  idea  completely.  “ forget  i  said  that,  sorry.  i  was  distracted  by stuff  and—”  he  trailed  off,  not  sure  where  he  intended  to  go  with  that.  

two  weeks  into  leaving  new  york  to  relocate  to  nox  and  julian  was  already  starting  to  feel  at  home.  of  course  there  was  always  his  skepticism  to  keep  him  on  edge  but  after  the  countless  things  he’d  seen,  it  was  only  natural  for  him  to  be  weary. with  his  friends  and  team  gathered  in  one  place,  tucked  away  where  no  harm  could  touch  them,  it  was  easier  for  him  to  ease  out  of  that  uncertainty,  and  he  felt  it  now  as  tendrils  of  telekinetic  energy  snaked  out  from  metallic  hands,  wrapping  around  his  second  cup  of  coffee.  no  one  to  stare  at  him  with  disgust  or  fear,  no  one  to  yell  vulgar  things at  him,  no  one  to  call  him  mutant  scum;  julian  grinned  as  he  took  sip  from  his  coffee.  a  sudden  jolt  as  someone  bumped  into  caused  him  to  angle  his  head,  slight  irritation  splayed  along  his  features.  “  you  mind  watching  where  you’re  going  ?  “  he  said,  brow  raised  defiantly.   

“I’m just saying, I think someone could make a moderately sized chunk of change off a ‘Gotham Ambience’ mix tape.” Babs took a measured sip of her iced coffee, and fervently missed the barista at The Gotham Grind who knew exactly what was meant by a ‘splash’ of cream. What could she say, she was a creature of habit. “Twenty-something years in that city and now I honest to god can’t fall asleep without the soothing sounds of two drunk guys duking it out outside my window.”

the girl of too few words had one thing to say as they observed the situation. “bad idea.” eyes follow the other’s actions with interest, taking account for every little motion that the other does before speaking up. it was rare for her to voice anything to a practical stranger but she couldn’t just watch that happen. 

her return to earth was anything but eventful- she hadn’t expected it to be. tamaran had proved not to need her again, instead only caused more grief for the warrior princess. her sister sat the throne, as koriand’r had always felt was her right. battle after battle proved fruitless as the younger sister was still unable to revolt her people into uprising and in the end, starfire left tamaran in search of someplace to call home. maybe nox could be that place for her. the last month had proved well enough that she could potientally live here, that this part of earth had not rejected her as others had in the past. “i can not begin to say how much i have missed it here.”

“You know, I bet I could turn into a lion or something and actually bring some life here.”

comforted by the idea of nox, wanda had found what felt like a home to her in a long time. while still deeply regretful for what’s being called m-day, she was grateful that the band of mutants around the city held no deep anger or hatred for her ( at least any that she could see outwardly ). the weather had taken a turn for the beautiful, leaving the avenger to wander from their home into the streets full of bustling people and excited mutants. 

“be careful!” reaching out, scarlet witch stops the other person from running into the street while red energies surround her hand and their body. “you could be hurt.” call her a hero, call her a villain, but wanda will always save those she can. the cars rushing by had caused the mutant to panic and instinctively reach out to aid the other.

it  was  rare  for  the  young  mutant  to  venture  far  from  xavier’s,  but  today  he  was  adamant  about  avoiding  training  in  the  danger  room,  and  it’d  become  a  habit  for  kevin  to  skip  those  sessions.  no  matter  how  long  he’d  gone  without  incident,  kevin  still  feared  endangering  the  lives  of  his  teammates  with  his  touch,  he  couldn’t  bring  himself  to  participate  in  anything  that  might  put  them  within  that  risk.  valoria  park  was  serene  today,  usually  so  crowded  and  filled  with  noise,  today  there  were  only  a  few  people  here  and  there,  which  only  comforted  kevin  as  he  took  of  the  gloves  from  his  hand  and  set  them  on  the  bench  beside  him.  the  warmth  of  the  sun  warmed  pale  hands,  tendons  of  his  fingers  stretching;  if  only  he  could  take  his  gloves  off  more  often.  seeing  an  approaching  figure,  he  snatched  his  gloves  and  yanked  them  back  on,  disappointment  tangible  in  his  features.  “  this  bench  is  taken,  “  he  half  grumbles,  despite  the  excess  space  beside  him.  “ and  i’m  not  really  looking  for  company.  “  

one  year  in  nox  and  the  mutant  still  found  it  difficult  to  get  used  to  the  fact  that  mutants  could  showcase  themselves  so  openly  in  public  spaces,  such  as   now,   as  he  watched  his  students  bound  from  hall  to  hall  of  the  museum,  fascination  suspended  on  their  features.  it  was  a  moment  he’d  cherish,  a  change  that  surely  he  would  grow  to  love,  but  that  wave  of  caution  instilled  in  him  still  remained  as  he’d  habitually  scan  the  area  every  now  and  then.  “  thirty  more  minutes  before  we  head  back,  “  scott  announced  to  his  students,  their  collective  groans  drawing  a  chuckle  from  him.  he  might  have  allowed  them  to  stay  longer  if  the  museum  staff  hadn’t  kept  glaring  daggers  every time  his  students  nearly  knocked  down  an  exhibit,  he  figured  thirty  minutes  was  as  much  as  they’d  tolerate  before  they  resulted  to  kick  them  all  out  outright.  “  they’re  usually  a  lot  more   behaved,  “  scott  comments  to  the  person  next  to  him,  gesturing  to  his  lot  of  students.  “  they  just  don’t  get  to  go  out  on  field  trips  that  often.  “