#c:david

If coming back to the city had been hard, it was nothing compared to coming back to her mother's apartment. She still thought of it that way, even though her mom had been gone for long enough that it didn't hurt every time she thought about it anymore. She'd once broken her ankle playing soccer when she was a teenager, and that was the closest thing she could compare it to. The bone had healed, but it still ached a little on cold days, and it wasn't as strong as it was before.

The walk up the stairs and down the corridor was quiet, and Piper only passed one other person on her way up, a miserable looking blonde who paid her no mind. It wasn't until she got to the door that Piper realised she didn't have a key anymore, and she didn't know if Rocco was home, though unless things had drastically changed in the last few years, it was a safe bet that Caesar wouldn't be. She reached out and tried the handle, and was relieved to find that it wasn't locked. The door swung open, and Piper stepped in.

"Rocco? It's me," she called out, tentatively, switching her duffel bag from one shoulder to the other. Her gaze swept the room. It hadn't changed much at all since she'd left. Frankie Stone had been a swirl of chaos, and Rocco took after her in that department when it came to housekeeping. The living room was messy and colourful as it always had been, the same weird art hanging on the walls, the same damaged ornaments on the surfaces, the patchwork blanket that had been around since she was a child slung on the back of the sofa, where a man was sitting. There was no split second where Piper mistook that figure for Rocco's. It seemed that even though she'd been gone for so long, she could still recognise the back of David's head.

She wasn't sure when he'd turned to face her, only that one minute, she'd been looking at his haircut, and the next, she could see his face. Piper could feel her face burning. She knew she was unlikely to avoid the Stark's entirely, although she had hoped to, and definitely hoped she wouldn't be face to face with one so soon. And of all the Starks it could have been, it had to be David. Her cheeks burned as she remembered the last time they had been alone in a room together, and she tried to push the thought as far from her mind as she could.

"Sorry," she mumbled after what felt like an hour. "I didn't mean to interrupt." she gestured vaguely to her bag. "Don't mind me. I'm, uh, just gonna drop this and then I'll be out of your hair."

It wasn’t often David had Prue to himself. He often had to share her attention with her daughter or her career. And so when he did have her to himself, he made sure to savor every moment with her. Even now in the silence as they walked up to her favorite restaurant, he held an arm around her and placed a firm kiss on her temple. He wasn’t very good with words. But he hoped she felt just how much he loved her. He’d loved her for a long time really. They had been together for years at this point but sometimes he’d still catch himself in disbelief at how lucky he was that she somehow returned his affections.

Caesar was having the best night of his life. He had found watching both Piper and Rocco tank their relationships wildly entertaining, but his brother had relegated him to returning their weeping sister to wherever the fuck she lived these days, and even Caesar had to admit things had gotten a little bit too real. Clutching her by the wrist, he dragged her through the crowd, ignoring her snivelling as she trailed behind him. 

What he could not ignore, however, was the loud wails that suddenly emitted from Piper. “What now?” He said impatiently turning to look at her. Maybe she had gotten another red solo cup of lukewarm beer to the face. He would be disappointed if he had missed it, but she was, sadly, dry, and her eyes were directed toward the stage. He followed her gaze, finally settling on what had caused her fresh batch of tears. There was David, making out with another girl. Good for him, Caesar thought. He didn’t know David had it in him. Maybe he was more interesting than he had ever given him credit for, given that he always seemed like the epitome of a wet blanket. 

“Jesus Christ,” he muttered under his breath, looking from David’s softcore porn session to his sister. They had never really been close, but they were still family. He had to stick up for that. Plus, he couldn’t let Piper and Rocco, of all people, go around starting fights. He was letting the team down, when usually, he was the MVP in this particular game. “Want me to fix it for you?” he asked, one eyebrow cocking. When she nodded, he dropped he wrist, walked over to David, and tapped him on the shoulder, waiting with a patient smile on his face for him to detach himself rom the girl and turn around. 

Once he finally locked eyes with David, Caesar let out a little shrug. “I see what you’re doing, man, and I respect it, but I have to.” With that, he drew his fist back, following through to land a punch to David’s jaw. At least, that was what was supposed to happen. What he didn’t expect was for David to duck out of the way, nor for him to catch the girl he had made out with square in the face. Shit.

She didn’t sleep much. Not in her house, not at the X-Men mansion, not anywhere. She didn’t exactly need to sleep, her body could go on forever without any rest or food. In the past, every time she fell asleep she’d wake up to some new horror, some new cadaver she was somehow responsible for. And how could she sleep when she could hear everything? Every particle in the air, every heartbeat, every swallow, every single breath of air inhaled and exhaled. She could hear how the Earth got older, how the ground slightly shifted every now and then. She was too paranoid, too alert to do something as stupid as sleeping. Anyone could attack her. But despite the noise, the smells, the people wandering around the house aimlessly, Laura found herself nodding off on David’s bed after lunch. She could feel her muscles unclenching, how her eyelids grew heavy and began fluttering close. How her heart began slowing down its pumping until it was in tandem with the clock’s slow ticking. For a second, her eyes closed and Laura exhaled. Maybe just a few minutes—

Her eyes flew open as soon as she smelled Zelda’s all-too-familiar scent. Every single clone had a particular smell. Gabby’s was cinnamon-like, while Bellona smelled like gunpowder. Zelda’s scent was like someone had stuffed rusted metal up Laura’s nose. “Fucking hell, not this again.” She groaned as she peeled off the bed and ran out of David’s room, expertly avoiding every single one of the zombies wandering the house. Laura knew where her clone was even before she threw the front door open and flew down the steps. Zelda leaned against a streetlight on the other side of the street, a smirk on her face as she lazily pulled the petals of a white flower. “Go away.” Laura’s claws flew out as she stomped towards her sister. Zelda merely chuckled, “I’m totally digging the new crib, sis! Although it smells a little weird, to be honest, and I heard some people in there—”

“Leave.” Laura repeated, this time louder. “I don’t know why you’re here, I don’t care why you’re here, and I’m not coming with you. Leave.”

“But you haven’t even heard what the mission is!” Zelda stepped away from the pole and discarded the flower, stomping on it like the little girl she’d never been. Laura stared back at Zelda as if she were standing in front of a mirror. All ten clones were exactly the same except for some genetical or physical adjustments each of them had. Bellona had albinism so her hair was white, while Zelda’s back was completely covered in scars (which were artistic, according to Zelda). Gabby was the only clone who was younger than all of them and thus looked different. “There’s no mission, Zelda, it’s just you idiots going off somewhere to do some stupid crap.” Laura took a deep breath, already losing the little peace she’d managed to feel back in David’s room. Not that anything inside the house was sane or coherent, but Laura certainly didn’t want to bring her own craziness to David’s place. And she knew Zelda would hurt anyone when she felt like it. Because she would. They were killing machines. Killing was an impulse, not a decision. 

“Someone’s using the scent against us, Laura,” Zelda called as Laura turned to the house. She froze. “Bellona woke up yesterday in Paris with no memory of what she’d done. I woke up in Peru last week and I know you had something to do with all those deaths here in New York.” Laura winced, her back tenser than steel cables. Gabby, the only clone she actually considered her family, was back at Xavier’s School, so Laura knew she was okay, at least. She turned around. “So what’s the plan, huh? Hunt whoever’s using the scent so they can use us again?” Laura shook her head no, her claws retracting. “The smartest option is to lay low, Zelda. Just... lay low. It’ll go away, I promise.” Laura turned to see her sister at the other side of the street before climbing up the front steps. 

“Did that Guru dude fuck the cowardice into you or did you get it all by yourself?” 

Laura froze. She took a deep breath, ran a hand past her face, then closed her eyes. But her heartbeat was already speeding up, the blood pumping down to her hands and around her claws. They were itching to shred, tear, break. They itched. 

“What’s the matter, sis, are you into his Yogui crap? You taking deep breaths now?”

Her eyes opened as the claws flew past her skin. The last thing Laura saw was Zelda’s smile growing as Laura threw herself at her, the sound of metal reverberating across the street as their claws clashed against each other. 

He took a deep breath, a small smile gracing his lips as he looked at the skyline, lights turning on one by one. Nightfall definitely was his favorite time of day. The colors that painted the sky, it was just breathtaking. “What a waste of a lovely night,” David teased with a chuckle. This view was meant for lovers but instead he shared it with a friend. “Okay, answer me this, if you could share this view with literally anyone on this planet, who would it be?” he asked to make conversation.

“Hey asshole!” Voice carried over the empty plaza as she readjusted the backpack slung lazily over her shoulder, pushing sunglasses into messy hair. “Did you actually kill that bitch?” David was always the last person she wanted to call for a favor; and yet, as per usual ended up being the first. After all, a taxi home from the bus station seemed a waste of money. " I didn’t think you had the balls.”

A cigarette slipped easily between her lips as she shielded the flame of a lighter from the wind. Eyes refocusing on the man approaching the bleachers as she took a drag. The nicotine entering her system helped calm as far better than the time she had sat waiting for football practice to end. It was almost comedic the way teenagers bulldozed into one another in the name of sport. She’d been sitting long enough to forget exactly what Elsie’s offense had been this time, but it didn’t take much to set her off. “Hey asshole…” She blew smoke in his direction. “you know, you’re the only idiot I know who’d willingly go back to high school every day.”