veni vidi vici

“Anyone would have an ego if they looked like me.” Warren replied. He knew Gabe hated him, probably more than any of those alien assholes that he went on and on about. But it was also very funny to provoke him. To see the iotas of Scott creep up into his face, specifically when he was annoyed. “You’re literally so young compared to me. Come on man, when you’ve been in the hero game as long as I have, everyone that comes after you in young. I barely know how old I am, what with all the blipping and amnesia and whatever.” Warren looked around, realizing that the middle of a sidewalk was no place to have a conversation, especially when Warren’s wings took up so much space, even when crowded in close to his body. “Do you want to catch up somewhere that people aren’t shoving past us?”

❝ ... ... you’re not that handsome. ❞ he grumbles under his breath, not really sure ( or even caring ) if warren heard him or not. ❝ you’re not THAT old, you cannot be that old. ❞ to be honest, even gabriel himself isn’t sure of his own age. between the shi’ar artificially aging him to the blip, his real age is ... sadly lost in time. he doesn’t even know his REAL birthday ( and even if he did, he’s not sure if he can celebrate his birthday on the same day his mother died ). ❝ you were one of the first x-men, right ? with scott. well scott is only in his early 30s so you can’t be that far behind. or older if you were blipped. ❞ a little sad that gabriel isn’t even sure if warren was blipped or not. ❝ sure. i would like to be away from so many people. you can choose where. you know this city better than i do. ❞

settling dust prompts - closed.

❝ oh you are SO dramatic. ❞ ironic considering it is coming from him ! ❝ i’ll be fine, i know i’ll be fine so you don’t need to worry about me. i think ... i think between you and me, we can take the guy on. you run ahead and clear the path and i’ll keep blasting at him till he’s a pile of ash. ❞

hurt comfort prompts - closed.

❝ nothing. because i do not have much to smile for. ❞ he huffs and looks downwards before sighing and looking back the other. ❝ ... ... ... can i get another squishmallow ? i–––––– want another one. they’re comforting to me.  ❞

hurt comfort prompts - closed.

❝ yes. yes i’m sure. i’ve never not been sure of anything in my life. ❞ a lie but bart does not need to know that. ❝ besides, if i ever change my mind, i can just go melt another vending machine. and i promise this time i won’t completely reduce it to ashes. ❞

honesty weekend - closed. 

❝ i ... genuinely have not given this subject much thought. yes there are people who i consider ... attractive but to sleep with ? hm. i think laura kinney is good enough to engage with in this ‘ hook up ‘ culture. anya corazon. that black cat is ... interesting. and then maybe one of the other spiders. not peter. ❞

number prompt - closed. 

5: are you self-conscious of your smile?

he is not self-conscious about anything lol. but his smile ? no. he also doesn’t smile much so he doesn’t see it very often to have a good opinion on it. 

11: what’s an inner joke you have with your friends?

he doesn’t have inner jokes with his friends because he does not have friends :( well much. and the ones he does have, he doesn’t have inner jokes with. i don’t even think he knows what inner jokes are tbh. 

18: tell us about something dumb/funny you did that has since gone down in history between you and your friends and is always brought up.

not really with friends but when he first came to earth, he thought all earth birds were like ... spies for the shi’ar empire and so for like 6 months, he refused to look at a single bird and tried to avoid them. and then he had to be told that no, they’re just birds and they’ve got no affiliation with the empire. it used to be more sad than funny but now it’s more funny and he’ll occasionally get teased by it from those who are brave enough to. 

30: think of it: have you ever been truly scared?

yes. back in the shi’ar empire - he was scared everyday. truly everyday. because there were ... consequences of any behaviour the shi’ar didn’t like. and then when his powers activated he was scared of himself and what he could do in terms of damage. now he’s not so scared and in fact takes a little TOO much pride in his powers. 

37: do you like keeping your room messy or clean?

…

“y’know usually that amount of confidence would be ugly on anyone else, but not you, i like it. wish i could actually be as confident sometimes,” he mused often wondering why he wasn’t taking life by the balls like he promised himself. maybe not having a home could put a damper on his conquest, he guessed. “if that’s what it takes to see that smile then i might just have to keep this up. barbecue it is then, and don’t worry we’ll definitely make sure to eat to our hearts fill.”

❝ i don’t think confidence is ugly. on anyone. it’s only ugly when someone can’t back it up. and believe me : i can back it up. and you could be confident if you, again, can back it up. ❞ except for gabriel, confidence is arrogance. he’s powerful sure but he doesn’t have the infinite capacities he likes to pretend he has nor does he have a strong amount of CONTROL over his powers. ❝ thank you. i don’t smile much so this is about the best you will get. and as long as i don’t pay : i’m happy. ❞

Daken has received many answers to the ‘swinging for a team’ question over the years, ranging from outright disgust, to a very enthusiastic confirmation. He had no idea what ‘not swinging for any team meant’. He tilted his head to one side, trying to get a good read on this kid. Besides the odd answer to his earlier question, there wasn’t anything that struck Daken as being a red flag for bringing him onto the team. “I think they’ve blacklisted me too. After I attempted to put a bomb in the building, or something like that.” Daken offhandedly mentioned. “I work for an information broker. We kinda do anything that’s needed. Tying up loose ends.” Daken waved his hand back and forth. “Is that something you’re interested in?”

he blinks rapidly only because he’s slightly surprised at the other’s eagerness in revealing he tried to kill the x-men. there’s something very nonchalant about it. about the other. and honestly ? it does interest gabriel. ❝ well i haven’t tried to bomb them. they’re ... me and them are simply not a good FIT for each other. ❞ plenty of mutants weren’t x-men. wasn’t a big deal to him. plus with his behavioural issues, he’s sure most of the x-men are grateful at not wanting to deal with him full time. ❝ i’m too angry or whatever. apparently they’ve got their hands full in that department with wolverine and don’t need someone else. ❞ he waves his hand around. ❝ information broker ? hm. i am interested in that. as long as i get to use my powers, i’m happy. oh. and get paid. ❞

          “  investigating  .  ”   a  pause  .    “  and  maybe  grabbing  lunch  once  we’re  done  there  .   i’m  starved  .  ”  

@mspoiler​ // ❝ yes yes that’s all good but investigating what exactly ? and why would i care ? ❞ he shrugs. ❝ lunch would be nice. what are you thinking of having ? ❞

If Gwen had been marginally more immature, she might’ve stuck her tongue out at Gabe and his controlled, subdued demeanor. Honestly, how dare he be so level headed? Surely if anything was gonna loosen him up, it’d be exhaustion and a little party music, “I’ll walk it off, just you watch!” Gwen hopped out of her seat on the train, taking the comment as a challenge, “Let’s stop here, I think there’s a frat house that’ll let in lame guys if they’ve got a cute date.”

there’s that saying : someone’s energy being infectious ? for gabe, her energy is the OPPOSITE of that and all it’s doing is already irritating an already irritated man. ❝ go ahead. i don’t care if you permanently injure yourself. ❞ and that’s the truth. he doesn’t care about her so if she’s injured then she’s injured. it is what it is. ❝ i refuse to be your date. even as a fake one. and if i did agree, i would not be the lame ONE you would be. ❞

          “  THAT’S  LITERALLY  ENOUGH  FOR  a  basketball  team  .  and  i’m  including  starters  and  benchwarmers  ,  ”  jubilee  comments  ,  amused  .  seems  like  scott’s  got  some  explaining  to  do  !  “  at  this  point  ,  you  and  your  family  make  up  one  x-men  team  .  ”

❝ i suppose so. still. i’m sure there are bigger families than ours. ❞ he hasn’t really thought of it that way. maybe him and his family could form their own team - if they could all be in the same place at the same time and go without arguing with each other for 10 minutes. ❝ hm. perhaps one day we will. ❞

The signs were good. Ororo didn’t breath an obvious sigh of relief, but it would have been a disaster if Gabriel had resisted. There were too many watching eyes, too many ways the situation could have become a disaster. Even if nobody had gotten hurt - and she was fairly certain she could have contained him before anyone did - it still would have been terrible in terms of their image. Ororo hated that she had to think of things like that, but it was her life now, particularly as headmistress. She was still sorry, however, to see the defeat in his expression, in the bend of his shoulders. Ororo gave him a careful glance, assessing. “Perhaps what you really need is the chance to use your powers in a different context. They’re obviously strong.” She lifted her hand from his shoudler and tilted her head towards the door. “I have an X-Jet outside, if you would accept my invitation back to the school, for an hour or so. It doesn’t have to be now, but I’d like to talk to you further, Gabriel. You didn’t really answer my question, about what you want. Not just now, but for your future.” 

for someone like him, having to admit defeat is not good. it just makes him feel as HELPLESS as he did growing up. like he’s back in the slave pits of the shi’ar empire. hence why when his powers came in, he made a promise to himself that he would and could NEVER go back to feeling that way - come what may and as long as he could help it. ❝ i –––––– ❞ this is the moment he supposes. where he either changes his life or keeps continuing on the path he’s on. he also knows that storm is watching his expressions VERY carefully and will not hesitate to either fight him or change her responses. ❝ i don’t want to join the x-men. or even the school. but i would like to learn more about my powers. and control them. ❞ he admits sincerely. gabriel does not think the superhero life is the life for him. nor does he want it. too many rules to follow, especially as a mutant where you have to be too careful in how you act. ❝ that’s what i want. control. ❞

          “  SHAKE  THE  MACHINE  AROUND  like  a  normal  person  ?  i  don’t  know  gabe  .  vandalism  shouldn’t  be  the  default  answer  .  the  energy  is  just  very  ––  what’s  the  word  ?  karen  .  ”  she  might’ve  overheard  jubilee  say  it  at  some  point  .  “  come  on  then  ,  ”  she  motions  for  the  other  to  follow  her  .  “  we  don’t  even  have  to  get  you  a  soda  if  you  want  something  else  .  ”

❝ well that’s no fun at all. ❞ he replies as if he’s a petulant child. which many will argue that he is. ❝ i do not care what sort of energy i give out. unless of course, it’s energy from my powers. ❞ he’s heard it before. he has to LEARN how to live like a ‘ regular mutant ‘ and that includes not drawing too much attention to himself. which is something that he finds difficult to do due to the nature of his personality and powers. ❝ i would like a soda though. ❞

bart beams, throwing an arm around the other’s shoulders to lead him along. “crash! i think i saw another one nearby. it didn’t have chicken whizzies, but i’m sure we can find some other treasures. seemed a bit more, uh, private too, so we should be free to take our pick in peace.” he winks, hoping the implication of stealing isn’t enough to scare the other off. he doubts it, though, considering how unbothered he seemed by destroying public property. “my name’s bart, by the way. you been in new york long, or did you also find yourself moving here suddenly?”

he physically recoils and cringes when the other puts an arm around his shoulders. it’s a little TOO much physical closeness for a man like gabriel. but he finds even the simplest touch too much. why must people be so physical ? ❝ crash ? ❞ must be some new slang he hasn’t got the hang of just yet. ❝ that would be nice. some privacy i mean. ❞ god knows he doesn’t need MORE judgement. ❝ quick question : what are chicken wizzies ? ❞ gabriel pauses for a moment. ❝ nice to meet you bart. i’m gabe. and it’s ... a long story. what about you ? ❞

Tyrone had been exposed to the superhero world for long enough now that there wasn’t much that fazed him. It did occur to him, however, that the lock was not just stuck - it was melted together like something had gotten stuck in the lock. Not surprising, just needed a different approach, “Oh, have you looked into some of the educational places in the state?” Surely most people with powers had heard of Shield, Sword, or the X-Mansion - it felt a little stupid to ask, “I’m staying in the city for school, but I’ve heard all those training facilities can be pretty useful,” Not that Tyrone knew from experience. Actually, he’d kind of avoided using his powers, and they’d clearly been losing command since coming here… “Hey, this might be an overstepping question but have you noticed like… your powers being less controllable here?”

❝ i don’t wish to be beholden to any government agencies. ❞ so that’s shield and sword out of the question. plus they would just want to control him and gabriel HATES that. ❝ and i am aware of the x-mansion. ❞ he has family there. and they’re considered ‘ important ‘ but again, it’s out of the question for him. ❝ but i am not interested in that too. ❞ if he’s willing to put in some work to CHANGE his behaviour, gabriel is sure the x-men would not mind accepting him but he doesn’t want to change. especially not because he should join the x-men. ❝ i’m sure they are. but like i said - not for me. ❞ gabriel can’t help but raise his eyebrow when the other asks about his powers because no-one has asked about that before. ❝ hm. no not really. as mentioned, my powers are frequently uncontrollable so if they were less controllable, i may not be able to tell the difference. ❞

“Oh, so you kill people?” Daken said plainly. There was never any ‘hero’ who was secure in their moral alignments who made up some vague comment on their alignment. There wasn’t ever any question about it in their head, but it was always the…morally grey types who fretted about the right words to use. Daken was the same way; he practically wrote the book on it. “You’re not a hero, not a villain. You swinging for a different team?” Daken gave him a questioning look. “Don’t worry, i’m the same way. You looking for work?”

❝ i ––––––– ❞ there’s a pause. gabriel does not know the other and while he doesn’t have any regrets over his actions, he’s also slightly worried that someone will rat him out to one of his brothers or something. ❝ yes. ❞ he decides on that. if it comes back to BITE him in the ass, he will deal with it himself. ❝ i don’t swing for any team except my own. i don’t wish to join the x-men nor would i think they’d have me. and the supervillains here are ... lacking. ❞ head tilts. ❝ well i have a job but it’s not one i like. so if you have a better offer, i’m all ears. ❞