are you not entertained?

/ .- / -.- / .- /  

Jessica blinked for a minute. Then a small, only slightly sarcastic smile crossed her face. “I didn’t know that,” she said, shaking her head. “But I’m not surprised. People in this city will eat just about goddamn anything.” She paused for a second, glancing over at him. “If you promise not to get anything weird like pineapple, then we could maybe order a pizza. Eat it properly,” she said, shrugging a shoulder. 

She nodded slowly. “Yeah, he probably does,” she said softly. “But I’ve got a feeling he wouldn’t accept it. I’ve been there. Just… be good to him, okay?” She bit her lip. “Even when he makes it hard. Or acts like he doesn’t want you to be.”

\\

“You are not wrong. I feel like they will pretend to like gross food to fit in with whatever is popular.” Which apparently includes pizza mixed in with salad. Shatterstar doesn’t know what to think about it, but the suggestion of ordering a pizza to eat it the way you’re supposed to makes him smile. No better way to eat it then have grease covering his fingers. “You have a deal. Pineapple sounds like an odd topping, do people really enjoy such a thing?”

Plus maybe sharing a few slices of pizza would be a chance for them to know each other better. “I promise I’ll always be good to him. Rictor can be stubborn sometimes but that never makes me stop trying to be there for him. I don’t want him to be alone in those moments, you know? I make sure he knows I’m there.”

/ .- / -.- / .- /  

“It’s really more about me being shit at small talk,” Jessica assured him. “You sit down for a drink with someone, a real drink, and you don’t have to talk. But coffee, tea… that requires a lot more talking. And I’m not exactly, uh, equipped to have a real drink right now,” she said, touching her stomach pointedly. She nodded. “Appreciate it,” she said. 

She smiled gently. He had a Danny-esque enthusiasm, but it wasn’t quite an endearing since she had never knocked him out. But then his tone went serious, and she was honestly surprised. “Yeah,” she said. “I guess I do. Don’t tell him that part, he’ll make a whole thing out of it.”

\\

Shatterstar never thought it about it like that, thinking about how different beverages could  resemble different conversations. He doesn’t drink much alcohol, maybe never seeing the appeal in getting drunk. Maybe those environments aren’t healthy for him but he wouldn’t say no to having one or two someday. It reminds him of Vegas which also reminded him of Mojo. “I’m good at small talk but I also tend to be okay with talking about just anything. There’s so such left to described about this world still. Did you know people cut up pizza into squares and throw it into their salad?” He laughs at that and shakes his head a moment. “I won’t make you do much more small talk though.”

He walks around to the other side of the desk and leans against it. “It will be our secret but he is a good person like you said and deserves to have more people caring about him.“ Despite the serious tone Star does smile too.

/

With his feet on the ground, Rictor had always been able to feel everything. The bugs in the dirt, the plants taking root, the vibrations of boots against the ground. Some days, it was so overwhelming he couldn’t stand it. Others, it was peaceful in a way he couldn’t explain. On Genosha, it was different. The island had a heartbeat of sorts, pounding in time with Rictor’s. It was like they were connected, him and this place, like they were one and the same. Rictor almost felt sorry for the island, having to share that consciousness with him of all people.

Glancing over to Shatterstar, Rictor shrugged. “Honestly?” He considered for a moment, exhaling through his teeth. “Still trying to reorient myself.” Making the island had taken a lot out of him, was draining in a way he’d never felt before. But it was a good kind of exhaustion, somehow. It came with a sense of accomplishment, like the kind of tired you felt after winning a race. “I guess it is,” he agreed with a quiet hum. He wasn’t sure how to feel about it, how to move forward with it. 

\\

Whatever Rictor is going through is something that Shatterstar might not completely understand. There is a connection with the planet that is special and one that the redhead always does his best to respect. There is also attempting to understand by asking questions when the moment is right. He’s always asking those — but the island made is remarkable. He can’t even begin to understand what it would be like for Julio since he doesn’t have any experienced that could be compared to doing something like that. He figures if his boyfriend wants to discuss it then he would bring it up.

“I believe you don’t need to have everything figured out. It wouldn’t be fair of anyone to expect that out of you. Is there anything I can do that would help you with this reorienting?” A pause. “What does it mean to reorient?” He asks curiously, voice quiet while just admiring their surroundings. A new home and somewhere that they’ll belong without bigots judging their every move. Well, they’ll still do it from a distance probably. He won’t focus on that right now and only the accomplishment  Julio has achieved. Should they celebrate?

/ .- / -.- / .- /  

She hesitated, then held out the envelope. “He didn’t want to get paid for this, so maybe… Maybe tell him it was an anonymous donation,” she said, biting her lip. She shook her head and took a step back. “No, I’m good, honestly. I don’t wanna take up anymore of your time.”

Jessica started for the door but paused. “Hey uh… Star,” she said, looking back at him. “Make sure he knows I’ll still do him that favor too. He’s a good guy, I don’t – I don’t want him thinking I just strung him along for nothing.”

\\

Do they even take anonymous donations? Do they take donations at all? Maybe this is the part of their little team that he doesn’t quite understand. Shatterstar isn’t one to really understand money. Rictor usually has to help him at the register because it takes him too long to count out the change from his lockers. “I’m not doing anything but alright. I’ll come up with something to tell him.” His hand taking the envelope from her and putting it somewhere safe.

His head looks up, standing up from where he had been siting though. What favor? “I can pass on that information. He is one of the best, so you are correct!” There’s a brief pause, getting more serious with his tone. “I can tell that you care about him.”

.

Normally Illyana would have insisted she could get it herself but the pain in her side barely allowed her to stand up, so instead, she just nodded and sat down again while Star went to get the water. “Thanks” she said with a slight smile as she took the bottle of water from him, opening it and drowning half of the water in one go. “I can manage” she didn’t like to appear weak, in Limbo she couldn’t take a break simply because she was injured and in pain, she pushed through it and tried her best to ignore it.

\\

“You’re quite welcome.” Shatterstar mentions after handing it over to Illyana. He thinks it doesn’t matter how powerful you are, a good warrior is able to recognize when it’s needed to rest. You can hardly fight if you’re hurt but trusts the blonde knows this already. He wasn’t going to preach or anything.  “I know you can.” Star says while opening his bottle of water and taking a large swing of it as well. The redhead might also be a hypocrite because he has pushed through injuries and pain before too. If Illyana needed anything else he trusts that she would ask him. “So you’re feeling alright then?”

He made an island. It still didn’t feel entirely real. Rictor felt as if he was walking in a dream, as if he was going to wake up at any moment to find everything the way it was before with a bounty on his head and sentinels roaming the streets in hopes of bringing him in, but he wasn’t. Rictor made an island, pulled it up from the water like it had belonged there all the while, and nothing had felt the same since. The world felt like it was buzzing, like there were bees under the surface of everything. It wasn’t a bad sensation, and it wasn’t a good one either. It just was. Rictor wasn’t sure yet what to do with it.

Shatterstar’s voice pulled him from his thoughts, and Rictor looked over with a faint smile. “It is,” he agreed quietly, humming softly. He could feel the ground under his feet in a way he’d never been able to before, in a way that felt different. He could feel everything. It was strange. “I… Shit, I guess I don’t have much of an idea what peace feels like. Maybe? I think so. I think this is it.”

\\

There’s pride felt in what Rictor has been able to accomplish. Shatterstar recognizes how much must have gone into forming an island for their people to build a community on. He always makes sure to show the other those feelings. This isn’t something just anyone could do and Star is constantly in awe. Even after all these years, they could still surprise each other. This does feel like a dream sometimes waking up and realizing that they finally have a safe haven. Somewhere   That sentinels wouldn’t touch them and people wouldn’t spew their hate at them. Everything has work to go on building up Genosha but it’s amazing to see.

Shatterstar finally brought himself out of those thoughts to speak up about those awestruck feelings. “You made an Island, babe. How does it feel being here?” The redhead decides to ask softly before continuing on to ask about peace. “I’m not sure what peace is meant to feel like either but I think this is our chance to experience it.” 

What do you do with freedom?

@shattcrs​

In her absence, the world hadn’t just flipped upside down – it had inverted. She walked the streets of New York and people still looked at her as if she had an extra head if they associated her with the person on the X-Factor advertisement posters, but there was a layer of respect there now that hadn’t been before, a layer of fear that humans never had the good sense to maintain before. They were protected by their sheer numbers before, and now mutants had a land all of their own, a place where they could grow and multiply. That’s where they were sitting now, where Terry invited Shatterstar to meet for the first time since she returned from Ireland. They had a lot to talk about, and it started in a newly constructed diner in Genosha.

“This is a pretty swanky place, huh?” Terry commented, glancing around. She could see mutants with blue skin and horns moving freely through the place, teenagers shooting fireworks from the palms of their hands as they gathered in the parking lot outside. “Gotta say, it’s kind of messing with my head a little. We went from hiding in the shadows to this.” She returned her attention to the milkshake in front of her and Shatterstar, too, her teammate now. “What made ya finally decide to join our esteemed crowd?” she asked. “X-Factor’s real prestigious, but I never say no to hearing compliments firsthand.”

\\

Shatterstar never thought about being a private investigator after first showing up on Earth. He hardly knew what the meaning of it had been, focused mainly on X-Force for many years. He told himself that he would follow Cable anywhere. It wasn’t until flipping through the many channels in their headquarters that he discovered what a detective is. The concept fascinated him so embrace would seek out getting to see films they showcase such a profession. He finally found something unusual enough to capture his attention. No more flipping through several channels every few seconds. Everyone had been thankful because Star did it for hours.

He was a lot more civilized since back then and Shatterstar isn’t as lost. He never thought that leaving X-Force would have ever happened but becoming part of X-Factor Investigations was like joining another family. “It’s a very fancy place and nobody is staring at us. I quite like that part about it. Jamie took me to this bar in Las Vegas once and I got in a fight with someone there for looking at me weird.” He laughs at the memory and it feels nice to have somewhere that they belong. “I often dreamt of what freedom would feel like but it brings great joy seeing the children getting to be themselves in public, isn’t it?” This is what peace looked like? This is what the universe has kept from him? He lifts the milkshake closer to his lips, the straw placed in his mouth to take a sip of the treat.

“It’s an interesting story. I was being controlled by someone else to hurt anyone they wanted me to but Julio talked me out of the mind control. I missed my best friend so it was easy for him to convince me to join the team. I didn’t think that I’d enjoy it but I do. There is never a dull day. My dog eats everyone’s shoes or tries to. Usually they’re Jamie’s.”

send ▄ for KATE’S reaction to shatterstar telling them a joke || @shattcrs​

She wasn’t known for her sense of humor. It wasn’t that she didn’t have one–she did, bone-dry and dark–it just wasn’t her top concern. Unlike some of the tights across the river, her line of work was more film noir than comedy special (though Maggie had made her watch a few of those together back in the day), and that was okay. Batwoman could be more wit than whimsy, and no one would ask for anything different.

But the boy (man?) was funny, she’d give him that. His enthusiasm was endearing. Kate laughed, honest and open, surprising herself. She realized she hadn’t in a while, not this easily. “That’s good,” she said. “You got a tight five to go with it, or are you more of a single punchline kinda guy?”

\\

Shatterstar tends to have a rather unusual sense of humor, sometimes misunderstanding certain references. He does try his best and even if that means laughing in his own ... surprisingly Star is alright with it. Someone should appreciate his humor even if that means standing alone. Although most of his jokes tend to be inspired from all the films he has seen. The redhead had a limited knowledge of pop culture but it has expanded quite a bit in recent years.

He seems pleased that the woman enjoyed his hike. This doesn’t happen often so it was an experience which would make his whole day. He spent so many years not laughing that since discovering it were possible tries to often as possible. “Thank you very much.” Star finally says, appreciating the kind words. “I always have more where they comes from. Do you want to hear another one?”

Cassie opened her eyes. Not on its own something of note, except that Cassie was pretty sure she’d died. She remembered Doom attacking her father, she remembered going after him, being thrown back and the pain. And then… Nothing. Until now. Except she wasn’t where she’d fallen, and there was no one around her fighting Doom. Nor was she in a hospital or her room, recovering from the fight.

She was still in NYC at least, that much she could recognise. But it felt… off somehow. Cassie scrambled to her feet and tried to orientate herself. A nearby newspaper stand told her why there seemed to be enough tension in the air to cut with a knife–a recent siege on Manhattan–but also something else more pressing. 

“2020? That’s impossible…” But Cassie knew better than to think anything was impossible. Still, she could feel herself beginning to grow a little, and she had to keep her emotions in check. 

“Excuse me!” she said to the closest passerby. “Could you tell me where Stark Tower is from here?” Tony would be able to help her. He’d know where her dad was too. Right?

\\

It wasn’t an encounter that Shatterstar expected to have while taking Noodle for a walk. She needed to get her exercise so she wouldn’t have as much energy to eat everyone’s shoes at the office. At least this is what Jamie told him the other day. Something about not having the money to replace them twice a week. Star thinks he just doesn’t want the puppy to gave fun.

The redhead stopped while the dog stopped to sniff one of the buildings. He overheard someone nearby saying something about how this year is impossible which catches his attention. It’s very interesting but it wasn’t until the stranger actually approaches him that he would speak up.

“Oh hello! Stark Tower? It’s hard to miss I believe but I‘ve never actually been there to know the exact address.” Shatterstar didn’t really do anything for the siege, Jamie had him working the whole time. “I think it’s in that direction though. Did you want help getting there as well?” He says pointing vaguely yo the north of their location.

CLOSED STARTER | Still accepting from here

13. — confusion / shatterstar - @shattcrs

— “Oh I thought it was mine.” Kori said quickly as look of confusion came on her face. She had been in such a hurry as to not be late for her appointment that she managed to grabbed an order that wasn’t hers and took a sip from it before realizing it wasn’t hers. “Please, I will buy you new drink as way of me to say the apologizes for what the bad thing i did.” She said to them in hopes that they wouldn’t be mad.

/ .- / -.- / .- /  

It was hard to believe that he was the same Mutant they were writing all the headlines about. Jessica wondered what it was like, to be that kind of person. Was everyone from his planet like this? “You’re a little hard to forget,” she said, nodding vaguely at him. 

“Yeah, uh, I did,” she said, swallowing at the lump in her throat. She resisted the urge to reach for her stomach. “I don’t like owing people,” she explained. “And I figured he could use the cash. He can, take you out to dinner on your new island or whatever.”

\\

Shatterstar is someone you don’t forget. Even on his other planet, they had been fond of him but for all the wrong reasons. They only cared about him giving them a show by fighting for their entertainment. He was a household name there but his life is different here on Earth. “You have a point.” The redhead laughs a little but smiles fondly all the same.

“I’ll make sure that Julio gets the cash and tell you stopped by when he comes home.” The idea of going out for dinner does get a brighter smile out of him at the thought. Although, maybe not somewhere fancy because he doesn’t envision either of them wearing a tie that long. “Did you want anything to drink while you’re here? I don’t want to be rude and not offer you anything.”

Frankie had been typing an essay for her psychology class in a small cafe not too far off from her apartment, Magenta was being pretty quiet for the time being and no-one has really bothered her.

She feels a small tap on her shoulder and Frankie turns her head around to face the person to see what they want.

" Hey, what can I do for you?" Frankie said with a small smile and minimized the page that her essay was on so it wouldn't distract her.

Shatterstar didn’t mean to disturb the woman who had been typing away on her computer. He realizes that it might seem rude to disrupt someone in such a way but the redhead doesn’t always remember social cues until it were too late.

“It seems that all the tables are being used so I was wondering if you were okay with me sitting across from you in the empty chair. I’ll give you my extra pastry as a thank you.” He said while holding up the paper bag in one hand with a bright grin on his face the entire time.