#their teeth Do Indeed clip through their mouth but it is Ok because i think they do the same thing on midnight lycanroc

[front-facing-pokemon]

[ramblings-of-a-cavill-lover]

Dust, Earth & Ash pt. 3

Summary: As you daydream of sad blue eyes, helping a stranger takes an unexpected turn. Clark deals with his grief as best as he can.

Warnings: canon typical violence

Word count: 2,3k

A/N: It’s been 84 years but he’s back. Thank you all who love this story for your patience. I hope I don’t let you down. Thank you to the always lovely @shellbilee​ for having my back, being my beta and my editor at the same time. 💜

Divider by @writeyourmindaway​

The days remained rainy in the weeks after meeting him.

You focused on work in the diner, doubling the attention you gave to your customers, helping in the kitchen - where you didn’t really have to be at all - and you mostly managed, but time and time again you caught your thoughts flashing back to those distraught, blue eyes that haunted your dreams and every waking moment.

You even earned a bonus for working that much.

Marla, noticed you spacing out one evening. Dinner rush had long dwindled and you two could chat for a bit, as you normally used to, the only problem being that you hardly initiated conversation anymore.

“Hey, you ok?” came her soft voice and warm touch on your shoulder.

You sighed deeply before you answered, “Yes, just fine. You need anything?”

Looking deep into your eyes she pursed her lips.

“I’m worried about you kid. I’ve been watching you working like crazy and everything is apparently going swell, but, somehow, it feels like you’re miles away and not at a resort in Aruba. Spill.”

She crossed her arms as if to tell you you wouldn’t escape this one. You lightly chuckled.

“Remember the day you missed work?” Marla nodded. “Well, that morning someone was here.”

You pause and remember as you debate telling her about his physical attributes. You decide against it and sigh once more.

“Well? Did the person treat you bad? Good? Was it a man or a woman?”

You smiled at Marla’s impatience and continued.

“He treated me… ok, I guess.” Marla frowned and opened her mouth but, before she could say anything you hurried to reassure her. “He didn’t treat me badly. He just wanted to be left alone.”

“And why didn’t you leave him alone?” she asked, cocking an eyebrow.

“Because when I poured the coffee for him, I saw the look in his eyes and it was clear that he’d been crying, you know. I couldn’t help it. I had to try and make it better.”

“And did you?” she insisted.

“I don’t think so.” you mumble, as you think about the cake barely eaten and the untouched coffee. “He took my hankie with him.”

“The one your mother embroidered?” her question was amplified by the long gasp.

“Yes."

The fact you couldn’t help the stranger coupled with losing one of the things you valued the most ate away at you, making you feel like you had failed everyone.

She touched your shoulder and pulled you in for a hug. Patting the back of your head lightly, she said it was going to be okay, though you were not so sure yourself.

As you left the diner that night, all your thoughts were focused on your conversation with the handsome stranger. Clark.

No news of any murder involving him had surfaced, so you were even more baffled as to what he could have meant by saying he had killed his wife.

He had left such an impression on you that you had dreamed about him more than once. Those nights were not the most pleasant; you’d wake up with a start, feeling a presence in your room, but upon turning the lights on, it was empty, just as you had left it before going to bed.

That same week you learned that your favorite customer unfortunately had passed, making things a little sadder. Her funeral was attended by a host of people, not only those who had worked with her, but who admired her work and wished to pay their respects.

The hot topic, however, was the absence of her husband, the not so famous, but equally well known, Clark Kent.

The buzz reached you from several sources and all of them told you a reason why he wasn’t there. Most of them, not so respectful. Even the newspaper they worked for, the Daily Planet, mentioned the fact.

Your customers talked about it, brought clippings to show you; it was on the radio, even on the tv news broadcasts. "Metropolis in Mourning” read one of the headlines, not really mourning but gossiping about the attendees at the funeral.

Your reaction was to always smile and let them gossip. You had never met the man, Lois was the one to come buy coffee almost every day. She was kind and always stayed for a while to talk to you. She bothered to ask you questions, as if you were an important person she just had to interview. She never failed to make you smile. A kind person through and through. But those were details you preferred to keep to yourself.

The walk back home wasn’t long, just a few blocks, but lost in your thoughts, you missed the fact that you were being followed.

The hand landed heavily on your shoulder and turning you didn’t know if you were more startled by the fact that someone got that close to you without you noticing, or the fact that the person whose hand had felt like a bag of potatoes on your muscles was such a small and frail-looking old lady.

“I’m sorry if I startled you.” she apologized in a feeble voice, that again, had such jarring contrast to the touch. “I called out, but you were on another planet!”

She laughed then, showing her blackened teeth, and you smiled awkwardly, not really knowing what she wanted.

She was repugnant. It wasn’t a mean observation, it was a fact. Her world-weary face was mostly wrinkles and you could tell life hadn’t been kind to her so far. She reminded you of fairy tale witches with the hooked noses and cunning eyes. The unease only increased as you took in the state of her clothes. She wore what looked like a voluminous tunic, of thick and frayed fabric. It stunk, but nothing like the city stench you were used to. It was something akin to the smell in the crypt where your mother’s remains were buried.

You shuddered and shook your head slightly to dispel the disturbing thoughts. The woman, thankfully concentrated on the movement of the cars on the street, didn’t witness your discomfort.

“Would you be a dear and help me with these?” she half requested, half complained, looking down at two very heavy looking shopping bags full of groceries, that you could swear she hadn’t been carrying when you first looked at her.

“Sure.” you replied, noticing your labored breathing as you picked the bags from her hands.

They were indeed very heavy. You wondered if she bought bricks and put them in the bottom, just for the exercise.

“Do you live far?” you asked her, as the light turned green, but she just started crossing the street without a single glance back at you.

She walked briskly, and the extra weight had you struggling to keep up.

“No, just three blocks that way.” her hand pointed to nowhere in particular ahead of you both.

“Okay.” was all you could add.

You didn’t know how you got yourself into this, but now that you were in, all that was left was to see it through. Even if you had to see the worst side of town along with it.

It wasn’t easy catching up with her, she seemed to be always a few steps ahead of you. But when you were about to give up, she stopped in front of a derelict house that looked abandoned.

She opened the door and asked you to put the groceries on the frail looking table in the middle of the living room, walking off further into the house.

You did as she asked, relieved not to be carrying them anymore, and looked back at the corridor where she had disappeared to, jumping when you saw her already next to you. It was as if she had the ability to simply materialize wherever she wanted.

“Forgive me, I didn’t want to startle you. Again.” she mumbled with a chuckle. “I have something for you. It is not money, for I do not carry such mundane things. I do believe you’ll find it useful. Eventually.”

From her pocket she pulled a leather cord, tied around a vivid, red crystal.

“You don’t have to repay me. It’s alright.” you said, taking a step back.

She merely grabbed your wrist and thrust the necklace into the palm of your hand. It was warm, and when your two hands connected around it, a blinding light emanated from it, blinking out almost immediately.

You felt heavy and sleepy, and the last thing you saw was her gruesome smile and the shears in her other hand.

Ever since Diana left, Clark had been alone with his thoughts in the silent, and aptly named, Fortress of Solitude. She had stayed for four days. They didn’t talk much, they didn’t eat or drink.

“Why did you bring me here? I told you to take me to Barda’s!” he didn’t mean to yell, but that direction wouldn’t take him where he wanted to go. He needed to blow off some steam, all of the steam, inside his head. “Kal-El, I know you are grieving, but that does not give you the right to slaughter an entire planet…” “I don’t…” he interjected, impatient. “Do not interrupt me. It’s quite rude.” she said, calmly. He hung his head, grinding his teeth. She was right, he knew it. But he was not in the mood to give her the satisfaction. “You know yourself.” she continued. “Right now, all that pain and anger at nothing and no one in particular will unleash the full force of your power on whatever enemy you have in front of you. And then what? How will you feel when you stop seeing red and all that’s left is the utter loneliness, the memory of what Lois would have thought of that, and the blood of a planet on your hands?”

The stillness in her voice had disturbed him. He hated her for it, for being right.

He actually hated himself. All the more for thinking ill of a friend. Another friend who put it all on hold to help him.

In Metropolis, Bruce would be taking care of everything. He contacted Ma Kent and was dealing with the funeral arrangements. He called the Lanes. He was the friend Clark knew he could be under that tough exterior.

“Give me all you’ve got.” he asked her. She then flew away, making him follow her, and put at least a hundred miles between them and the plane. “If you put the slightest dent on my plane I’ll never speak to you again.” she said with a shake of her head. “How would you know?” he scoffed. “It’s invisible.” He had had enough of talking and charged her. “Believe me, I’d know!” she said through gritted teeth absorbing the impact easily. “C'mon. Give me your worst.” she shouted. “You can’t handle my worst!” he shouted back, shooting up and hovering high above her. “We’ll see.” she exclaimed and attacked.

The blows coming from her fists hurt.

He couldn’t complain, as her stubbornness and willingness to beat him into venting his frustration had truly helped.

She had offered to take him back, as the funeral had been scheduled for the next day. He refused.

Now, a week after she left, after getting tired of Kelex’s updates on the state of the world outside, and not really knowing what to do with himself anymore, he decided to go back to the only thing that made sense.

Metropolis. Catching bad guys, frustrating their plans. Helping humanity in any way he could. Anything to fill the void that she left. Maybe making Bruce really mad by hunting down and putting an end to the Injustice League single handedly, or finally catching Joker… He couldn’t decide.

Indecision and life after Lois were frightening, even for the man of steel, and without her beside him to face humanity, he didn’t know what was left to ground him.

Despite that, he found a calming monotony in rounding up bad guys and had been quite effective in the short time after coming back.

He didn’t go back to work, telling Perry he needed more time, but he could now think about her and remember without all that anger taking over his every thought. He was able to feel the pain, really feel it, feel her absence, but not be consumed by it.

Metropolis had become a much safer city and he was tempted to tell Bruce he could do the same for Gotham. Slightly.

He checked on her a few times, thinking he should go back and return the handkerchief he absentmindedly took and perhaps try that pastry Lois loved so much.

The thought was dismissed as quickly as it came. It was still too soon for that kind of ritual. Her memory was still fresh in his head.

The kind woman went on with her life, and the few times he had observed her, he noticed that she went out of her way to make sure her customers were happy.

He regretted not asking her name.

He could have overheard the conversations in the diner if he wanted to, but that felt wrong somehow.

Now, flying over the area he listened for her heartbeat; it had become a habit.

She wasn’t at the diner where he had expected to hear it.

Frowning, he flew high into the clouds and concentrated.

Her heartbeat was slow, almost faint, and not in the region he knew she lived.

Speeding to the area where the faltering beating was coming from, he found her lying on the ground of a closed junk yard, still in her uniform, and a shimmering red pendant lying on her chest.

Using his x-ray vision to assess she was unharmed, he picked her up and not knowing what else to do, shot into the sky straight towards the batcave.

[szopenhauer]

What one event, big or small, are you going to tell your grandchildren about? I won’t even have kids...

What is your least favourite thing about your full name? it’s long, it’s polish, it’s feminine, it starts on a letter Z that is rarely used, people don’t know how to write my surname down, it reminds people of a stupid song that I hate etc. 

Do you like sunglasses? it’s complicated Do you think dreams can give us insight to things? sorta, sometimes Besides your computer, what else is cluttering your desk? what isn’t...

What is your favourite glass to drink from? prefer a mug When did your family immigrate to wherever you live now? they were born in Poland where we still live What time is it in the country you get the most of your heratige from? 14.42 Would you rather live in the 1960’s or the 1910’s? 60s  Is the computer your only current light source? window/sun too Do you think you look good with a hat on? I’m ugly no matter what so...

Do you have anyone you fully trust? not fully, not even myself, some I just trust more than others  When did you last talk on the phone with someone? yesterday with M.

Have you ever deleted Facebook friends for a significant other? kinda When did you last receive a hug and who was it from? mom, this day Was the last movie you watched a horror film? noooo Do you own a lot of tee shirts? shitload Do you handle pain well? been told  Have you ever been so nervous you threw up? I never threw up out of stress, I can feel nauseous though Do you enjoy your hairstyle? not really atm but it’s not the worst How much make up do you wear on a daily basis? none, ever Do you have a leather jacket? fake

What is the worst insult someone can call you? I’ve already heard everything I suppose... Do you write on your hands a lot? not anymore Do you think hugs are awkward? often Ever play Angry Birds? flappy bird only How late did you stay up last night? till mornin’ Has anyone ever been weirdly obsessed with you? mhm Are you afraid someone might steal your identity someday? they would have to be really stupid to choose mine tbh Is there a place you’d rather live right now? on my own... Do you go out often? lately Is there anyone who is overly nice to you? my current partner, I don’t deserve her If you’re reading a book, what page are you currently on? I’m not reading anything Do you have a job you like? I don’t have a job How many scarves do you own, if any at all? uh oh :x

What is one way in which this year is different from last year? where should I start... Do you feel like you have too much on your plate and your life is too hard? for me it is too hard Did you do anything you regret within the last 24 hours? probably What is your favorite day to go grocery shopping? I don’t have a favorite day to go but I don’t shop on Sundays and Mondays, Fridays and Saturdays are usually the hardest to get anything  Would you follow God even if it meant losing your home, your source of food, all of your friends, or even your life? jeśli byłabym 100% pewna, że Bóg tego chce i co mam robić Who’s death has affected you the most? my brother’s Have you ever grown sunflowers? they didn’t turn out well Are you scared to stand up to a police officer? no idea What is your doctor’s first name? which one?

Do you hate political posts on facebook? when there’s plenty, especially wrong  How many pictures do you have stored on your computer? omg  Which type of camera do you prefer: digital or Polaroid? hard to tell Have you ever had a camera that took film? we had when I was still a kid Do you ever squirt whip cream onto a plate and then eat it by itself? disgusting Have you ever had a hot flash? common Are you ok? my heart hurts badly Would you rather wear purple glasses or black glasses? black If you’re a girl, do you ever shop in the boys or mens section? absolutely If you’re a guy, do you ever shop in the girls or womens section? I’m a woman What do you think of when you hear the word “Christian”? religious person lmfao How many pullover hoodies do you own? bunch Which do you take more: videos or photos? pics What is the most embarrassing thing you can think of happening? my imagination is vivid What are two names you used to get mixed up when you were younger? for example - Ada and Adrianna What do u think of the quote “Life is either a daring adventure or nothing” I disagree Do you wear earmuffs when it’s cold out? I don’t own any

If you type for awhile, do your fingers start to hurt? on my phone, not computer What do you smell right now? luckily nothing much If you were an instrument, what would you be? smth annoying? Do you hate the usual 100 questions surveys? EX: Eye color boring Does your house have a doorbell? of course Do you know someone who has dropped out of high school? my classmate  If you were to get a pet turtle right now, what would you name it? mine was called Bob and I don’t want a new one  What’s your most hated commercial to watch? most of them are shit What was the last thing you charged? cellphone When you were younger, did you believe you could fly? if I did I would be dead by now (jumping out of window or smth) Favorite farm animal? chicken What’s your favorite name that begins with B? I don’t like polish names starting on B letter If someone payed you $500 would you take a bath in milk? why not Do you enjoy having time to yourself? :3 Can you do a cart wheel? still but crappy Do you like Ed Sheeran? blergh Would you rather become an author or teacher? author How many people are you currently texting? just 1 This time tomorrow, what will you be doing? hopefully spend time with @jonasz-cat Would you rather get money or gift cards for your birthday? money Have you ever been inside a recording studio? I have not Would you rather visit Mars or Neptune? Neptune Does it bother you when people keep talking to you and you want to leave? very Have you ever texted a landline phone by accident? my sister did Do you like quotes about love or life better? love is part of life What color is your garage? not applicable Do you like it when people give you compliments? they’re lying Was your hair straight today? my hair is wavy Do you ever share things on Facebook? quizzes from buzzfeed, music link from yt and selfies Do you pick out your outfits for the next day the night before or the AM? am What color was your swim suit this year? bluish Do ladders scare you? I’m cautious

1 through 10, how would you rate your day? low Any specific reason why? how I feel physically and those mirror demons mostly + some minor things

Salt or pepper? salt If you look to your right & then look down.. What do you see? bag Did you use swear words today? sigh... What did you buy today? food

If you had the choice to meet three famous people, who would you choose? dead or alive? Do you own any animals that aren’t domestic? dog is domestic ;)

Do you think people under fourteen should have sex? hell no How old were you when you had your first alcoholic beverage? 20+ What is something most people think of as lame, but you don’t? my interests? Have you ever feared that you would lose a body part? just my teeth, fingers or eyes Do you like gore? no thx Would you rather receive a kiss on the cheek, or on the forehead? neck :P Have you ever had a friend’s boyfriend/girlfriend flirt with you? someone who seriously tried to become my friend’s bf flirted with me and her sister and that’s one of reasons I say that you can lie with both actions AND words Where is your biological mother at the moment? kitchen Do you enjoy going places with your mother, like running errands? ... Do you have any annoying siblings? she indeed annoys me  How many people are in your immediate family? I count my parents and eventually my sister as immediate family Would you say you have good or bad luck? bad Do you like your laugh? uh... Do you hate it when people ask you how their survey was at the end? because they should do better, be more unique, sorry not sorry What are your plans for the rest of the day? we’ll see

Have you ever unbuttoned your ex’s pants? ... buttons? not zipper?... What does your last text say? it was the link to the article

Do you ever think about the past? I’m nostalgic and an overthinker Is math your favorite part of school? even in middle school when I was getting high grades for math I didn’t like it that much Have you held hands with anyone in the past 24 hours? yesterday  You’ve taken fifteen shots of vodka, what are you doing? exactly, WHAT AM I DOING?! Do you regret any of your relationships? yasss but I guess I learned yadda yadda yadda Whats the last taste in your mouth? stomach acid :(

What are your countries staple dishes? (Italians - pizza, pasta etc) *shrug* What was the last thing you felt disappointed by? my very own self Do you play games on your phone? nothing else but Choices Do you have music on your cellphone? spotify Name three black things that you can see? necklace, cellphone, calculator Do you like your best friends parents? Could you even tell me their names? I liked my elementary school’s bestie’s mom - Mrs. Krysia she was like an aunt to me and still recognizes me on the street, I miss her  Are you more of a mums kid or dads kid? dad’s Marilyn Monroe or Audrey Hepburn? Marilyn Monroe forever anything silly that annoys you? (i hate hearing nails being clipped) for example - someone scratching their plate with a fork, jak ktoś sztućcem zgrzebuje resztki jedzenia mam ochotę go zamordować >.<  would you perfer to do the dishes or hang washing? dishes

[theinsanecrayonbox]

KP Watches MSM: Venom Returns

i know, i haven’t watched any episodes of this since the first Flash=Venom episode, but that’s because this series just doesn’t really appeal to me on the visual style or story telling levels, and i just have not been in the mood top purposely put myself through them (that and when i was they’d bumped the episodes off i hadn’t seen and i was not in the mood to hunt them down). but since this has Venom returning and i am at a loss for something to do atm, why not try to drive back into this. lets see if season 2 can make me more interested than season 1 did

ok Miles is Pete’s current sidekick....and Gwen isn’t? i know that’s me not having watched previous episodes....

and they’re hunting for Eddie as Venom??? O.o well that’s a new one, Flash is Venom first then Eddie is the second one. huh...now i almost feel like i should watch the previous episode...

you know what, screw it, i have become intrigued enough to do just that

KP Watches MSM: Dead Man’s Party

ok show, show me why this was worth going back an episode

wow who knew JJ paid so well if Pete can afford school and vacation tickets; why was he struggling when he was only selling photos and not video clips?

Beetle talks???? not that i care, but that seems wrong.

oh hi you must be our Eddie Brock...carrying around a big news camera without any other crew....you should’ve just used a selfie stick, you’d’ve gotten better footage. is Eddie the old guy who’s gonna complain about Millennials ruining everything?

heh Miles is Pete’s intern. “quiet i can’t hear the voice in my head” good line, i give you that one show

again Eddie, you’re using a film camera? a digital one would’ve been easier to smuggle in...also you could take video hen instead of static photos. i get maybe it’s this way to imply you can’t afford digital tech, but just seem to make you dated...which i guess is the point really.

heh Miles is the bratty younger brother, ratting out Pete to May lol. ok i do like their relationship....would’ve worked a bit better with USM’s Pete just saying...

awww Flash only gets a mention cameo? boo.and lol teacher crashing the party; i know it’s just to exposition dump, but lol

wow Eddie really is the complainy old-man. i like the backtrack to spiel though.

Miles: hey look at my distraction everyone! lol

but so...Gwen and Anya don’t know/remember/still have spider powers then i guess? again, i know, i skipped episodes so that was probably explained there...

chess match to distract the super nerds at the party. oh wow ^^;;;

so the science tests “unlocked” the symbiote’s ability to communicate with its host...so either they augmented it’s intelligence, or  just taught i English inadvertently. that’s sorta cool...though one must wonder how it learned it could do that if they never let it bond before now. and experiments also made it loose it’s sound vulnerability, so it’s more likely that it augmented it’s intelligence. so...yeah, that’s actually sorta really neat. it’s like the science tests sped up it’s evolution because it had to adapt to what was being done to it. that is actually a pretty neat concept. ok kudos show. (it also would’ve been super cool to see that in USM happen, then we learn that the Klyntar do exist and that Venom is so similar they think it’s one of them so it has to make the choice to join them or stay with Flash and co)

but ok MSM, you win, watching the previous episode was indeed a good idea, i am even more intrigued now.

KP Returns to Watching MSM: Venom’s Return

ok so the call to Gwen to end the party makes more sense now with context

and the teeth around Eddie’s face when the Venom face retracts is still kinda creepy which is awesome

guys argue PR tactics after the bad guy’s caught, seriously ^^;

why is Eddie going after Gwen? because she was at his party? 

ok he has a digital camera, why was he using the giant one before then? his shadow didn’t have the giant camera on it.

oh yeah, stealing people close to Pete (cause Venom knows) and those that experimented on Venom, yeah that explains the Gwen taking

and May’s vacation wasn’t even a day? what’d she do, fly out in the morning, spend an hour wherever, then fly right back? that’s a sucky vacation...these episodes only looked like they took place over a single night with the whole Venom attacking stuff

Miles just go camo to get in there...just like you are doing....well thanks for the secretary scene i guess

oh we couldn’t see Venom catching Anya, but we needed to see everything else huh? sure makes sense

and huh, Venom saying Spidey’s Pete out loud in front of everyone Pete doesn’t want his identity exposed to, that’s great...oh wait they were on top of  building, so they didn’t hear any of that

STOMACH MOUTH????!!!!??? WTH???

AND HE DEMASKS PETE TO JJ????!!!

ah Miles, you are so on the ball, thank you for saving the day

wait the science guys made a gun to stun Venom off a host? so they were testing it’s bonding capabilities after all? how much does that guinea pig job pay?

Venom turned into a giant leech....man they’re really going the horror monster route here and i love it. Venom also have fantastic nails.

so the science guys are gonna try to split Venom from Eddie huh? can you can symbiote clones, as in they spawn from from chunks they remove and manipulate with other elements to try to find a way to break it down easily. yup, totally calling that as a future plot.

but ok MSM, you have actually surprised me; i actually really enjoyed these two episodes. then again, i still stand by the fact that the best s1 episodes were the Venom and Flash based ones anyways, so maybe that’s it. am i interested in the rest of the episodes i’ve missed; not really...i still don’t like the visual style or the writing i have seen. i mean, i’ve what...seen 15 episodes out of the currently 32 available, and i’ve only really liked 3 of them...yeah, not very good odds.

but just because this series isn’t for me, doesn’t mean others can’t enjoy it. so if you were curious, go take a look, because you’ll probably find at least 1 good thing you do like, if not more.

[elvendara]

V-Men

Alright guys, here is the next thing I am working on. A Mystic Messenger/X-Men Crossover! I saw a 707 art with him holding a playing card and my mind immediately shouted GAMBIT!!!!!!!!!!!!! And thus, this crossover was born. Major kudos to my lovely Tumblr daughter @booyakasha516 who fueled my tangent and helped me flesh it out. Here is the premise, and the ‘in progress’ first chapter.

This is still in the works, so things might change once I post it on AO3, which I plan to do later...... Enjoy! I hope you enjoy it anyway

Saeyoung: Gambit

MC: Rogue

Yoosung: Ice Man

Jaehee: Mystique

Zen: Cyclops

Saeran: Pyro

V: Professor X V

Vanderwood: Wolverine

 Saeyoung, MC, Yoosung, Jumin, and Zen are X-men under Professor V as the head. Professor V is blind instead of paralysed.

Jaehee and Saeran are part of Magneto’s group.

Vanderwood is a free agent, doing as he pleases according to his own preferences.

Rika is the head of the government agency that is tracking and covertly eliminating mutants, good or bad. Humanity First, ???? Might change the name....

 Professor V set his cane on the conference table and sat at the head. He heard the others sit around him. Their minds bobbing waves of energy and thoughts. He stayed clear of entering, as per usual, he did not eavesdrop on people’s inner thoughts unless the need was great. Most times he entered it was because that mind cried out for help. As the others settled he read their moods out of habit.

Saeyoung was bright, his energy vast and tightly contained. He could tell he was playing with a deck of cards, even if he couldn’t see him. He heard the crackle of energy that infused the small rectangles, passing from his fingers to the card and back. He also heard his heavy boots hitting the table as he leaned back on the chair. Professor V sighed and shook his head, it would do no good to remind him the table was no place for feet. Saeyoung was the same as always, hiding his insecurities behind his humor and smiles.

Yoosung sat to his left, he seemed amused, Professor V could vaguely see that he watched Saeyoung, who sat across from him, they were particularly close. Yoosung’s mind was strong, his passion stronger. He was well liked by the students, even though he was barely much older than them. He had also been the butt of many pranks. His youthfulness, innocence, and trusting nature making him an easy target. While the pranks had died down, because it just became too easy and cruel to trick the blonde, Saeyoung still enjoyed playing his own practical jokes on him. Unlike Saeyoung, Yoosung’s cheerfulness was genuine. He enjoyed teaching the children and often had very deep and meaningful conversations with them. They trusted he would keep their confidence and that he would listen with empathy. Professor V was glad that he had asked Yoosung to stay at the academy as a teacher once he himself had graduated. There was a special place in his heart for the young man.

Zen sat next to Yoosung, his mood perturbed. If Professor V had to guess, the mood was probably due to Jumin. Those two had yet to get along, Zen often threatening to use his laser eyes on Jumin’s wings. He was breathing heavily and had certainly sat down crossing his arms immediately. He could imagine Zen glaring at Jumin through his shielded goggles, his lips pursed and huffing. Professor V grinned at the stunning figure he must cut with his long flowing white locks, his high cheekbones, and wide shoulders. He heard his teeth grinding in his jaw.

As Jumin sat next to Saeyoung and across from Zen Professor V heard the rustling of his black wings. He would spread them so that they lay to each side of the chair and he would not crush them beneath him. He leaned back, placing his hands on the table ever so softly. His breathing was even and steady. Whatever had transpired between Jumin and Zen, it had not affected the stoic man as much as it had affected Zen. Professor V did catch a feeling of annoyance from the man, but he was impressed by how perfectly Jumin held his emotions in. There were times he wished that he was not so good at it.

“We’re all here Professor.” Saeyoung yelled, moving his hand in front of the Professor’s eyes. Professor V turned and pushed Saeyoung’s hand down. “I’m not completely blind Saeyoung, I can tell everyone is here, even without eyes as you well know.” He grinned.

Saeyoung chuckled and leaned back in his chair once more, throwing his feet onto the table as well. Professor V took his cane and shoved at his ankle until his feet hit the floor. Saeyoung only chuckled more, leaning over the table and shuffling his cards on the surface.

“Do you have to keep doing that?” Zen asked, his arms still crossed and his mood still bad.

“No.” was the sharp answer, as Saeyoung continued to shuffle.

Yoosung giggled, then covered his mouth. Zen backhanded him lightly on the shoulder and Yoosung just shrugged.

“Alright, listen up, this is important. Humanity First is at it again. They’ve taken someone with tremendous strength, she won’t be alive for long. Her psychic scream was deafening. I was able to gather some information before her mind was closed off completely. Either by her own design, which I doubt, or by outward means. Her name is MC, her alias is Rogue. Currently she has the telepathic power, a strong one.”

“What do you mean ‘currently���?” Jumin asked, leaning forward, elbows on the table, arms crossed.

“It seems as if her mutant power is the ability to steal other mutant’s powers, or, sadly, the life of humans.”

Yoosung gasped, his hands covering his mouth. “That sounds awful.” He said.

“Indeed. I did some research, she has been on her own for a little over four years now. Apparently, her powers manifested during an intimate encounter with her boyfriend. A single kiss was enough to drain him of his life force.”

“She killed him?” Yoosung gasped again. He couldn’t imagine killing anyone. Although he had the power to do just that, it was not something he ever contemplated seriously.

“I’m afraid so, people were afraid of her after that, including her own parents, so she ran away before they could put her in an institution. I’m not sure how she has survived up till now, but having done so for this many years, speaks of a great mind.”

“Do you know where they took her? Which facility?” Jumin asked.

“No, but I’ve narrowed it down to three.”

“How are we supposed to figure it out? We can’t just go in and check all of them.” Zen responded.

“No, we can’t, but I know someone who can.” Professor V answered. “Saeyoung has worked his magic and has all the details we need. I want you and Yoosung to go to Battalion Square, someone will meet you there with more information. Once you have ascertained which facility the girl is in, I will send the rest of the team to your location so that you can come up with a plan of attack.”

“Who are we meeting with?” Saeyoung asked.

“You’ll see, that will be all for now, I suggest you two get going, or you will be late.”

“Professor!” Saeyoung stood and pressed the Professor.

He sighed and placed a hand on Saeyoung’s shoulder, “Just, go Saeyoung. Trust me.”

Saeyoung’s lips thinned out but he nodded. He grabbed his cards and tucked them into his trenchcoat, he motioned for Yoosung to follow him and grabbed his staff as he headed out the door.

“Who do you think it is?” Yoosung asked.

Saeyoung clenched his teeth, “My brother.” He breathed out.

“Oh!” Yoosung had never met Saeyoung’s brother, but he knew that they had not parted under good terms. “But, but that means…”

“We’ll be working with Magneto again, yes. This new agency is a threat to all mutants, but I still don’t trust Magneto’s team.”

“Neither do I.” Yoosung agreed. They made their way to the underground garage and Saeyoung retracted his staff until it was no longer than twelve inches, he tucked it away next to his cards. He jumped into his convertible and Yoosung got into the passenger side. There were days when Saeyoung wished he had a cool traveling power, but, being behind the wheel of his sports cars was exhilarating in and of itself. He glanced over at Yoosung, at 21 he was still so much like a child. He wore ripped blue jeans and a white t-shirt with blue and yellow horizontal stripes. There were two hair clips that held his bangs away from his large amethyst eyes. The car was not moving and Yoosung looked over at Saeyoung.

“What?” he asked, his voice high pitched and sweet. Saeyoung grinned.

“Nothing, let’s go.” Yoosung put his seatbelt on and glanced at Saeyoung, he ran a hand over his yellow locks and wondered what it was that Saeyoung had been looking at. He was well aware that he did not quite measure up to the rest of the V-Men. He was the youngest, but it was more than that, he lacked any kind of experience. He only hoped that he would not let the team down, or Professor V.

They made it to the square in no time, Saeyoung ignoring all driving laws, Yoosung’s hair windblown and messy. He had also lost a hairclip along the way. He groaned as he looked at himself in the mirror, trying to make one hairclip work. He sighed and gave up, sliding it out of his hair and tossing it into the center console. His hair immediately flopped over his left eye and he blew at it to no avail. Saeyoung laughed and ruffled his hair.

“Stop it!” he pushed Saeyoung’s hand away and got out of the car. Saeyoung locked it and Yoosung arched his eyebrow.

“Gotta keep my baby safe.” He said, twirling his keychain around his finger.

“Saeyoung, the top is down, if someone wants to get into your car, it’s not that hard.”

“Oh really? Ok, smart water, go ahead, try it.” Yoosung rolled his eyes at Saeyoung’s attempted humor.

“Fine.” He reached a hand to the door and was about to jump in the car when the door flew open, knocking him down on his ass.

“Stay away or I’ll beat you senseless.” The car mocked him. Saeyoung bent over, slapping his knee and laughing.

Yoosung held his belly where the door had hit him, cursing at Saeyoung.

“What a mouth! You kiss your mother with that mouth?” Saeyoung’s eyes were wide in mock surprise.

“Shut up and help me up, that really hurt!” Yoosung held out his hand for Saeyoung to take. He yanked him and dusted him off, still snickering.

“Is this you get your kicks? Picking on children?” Came a sarcastic and nasty voice from behind them. They both turned around. The man, not much more than a boy himself, had shocking white hair with red tips, his eyes were an unnatural mint green, freckles across his nose. He had a thin red sweater on so loose at the collar that it fell off his right shoulder, although, the way it exposed a large tattoo of an intricate eye, he might be wearing it that way on purpose. He had a double choker around his neck and a spiked wrist band. His jeans were black and he wore motorcycle boots. Yoosung’s eyes widened.

“You’re, you’re twins!” he exclaimed.

“You’ve got a bright one here Saeyoung.” the man said as he tapped out a cigarette from his pack, tossing it into his mouth. He shoved the pack into his back pocket and with a snap of his fingers, he created a small flame to light it.

“Nice to see you too Saeran.” Saeyoung grated. The hand around Yoosung’s arm tightened and he could feel the crackle of kinetic energy along his skin.

The woman standing next to him had long brown hair and brown eyes. She was dressed in business attire. A white button blouse, black suit jacket and black pencil skirt. She wore little to no makeup and her heels looked too high to be worn in an office setting. She smirked at them both.

Saeran snickered and turned away from his brother, scanning the area, and exhaling smoke.

“I was told you had the location of the three facilities, let me have them. I also need someone to impersonate.”

“And you are?” Saeyoung’s eyebrows rose.

She held out her hand. Saeyoung smiled at her, his most charming smile and leaned in. “I don’t give it up that easily. What do I get?” he crooned. Yoosung rolled his eyes at the same time as Saeran, they stared at each other, Saeran narrowed his eyes and looked Yoosung up and down, as if for the first time. Yoosung blushed and turned away, letting his hair fall and cover his face.

“You get to stay alive, now give me the information.” She glared at Saeyoung dangerously. Saeyoung pouted, his charms usually worked.

Saeran snickered again. “Don’t mess with Jaeheee, she doesn’t have a funny bone. She’s a little boring, but.” He shrugged. She glowered sideways at him and pursed her lips but said nothing. He scoffed at her look, but kept all other comments to himself.

Saeyoung reluctantly pulled out the envelope and handed it to Jaehee. She took it in her long fingers and opened it, flipping through the information rapidly.

“Good, this will do, I will contact you when we learn which facility the girl is in.”

Saeyoung reached out to grab her arm, but the daggers in her eyes held him at bay.

“We go with you.”

“Why? You can’t help me, you would stick out like a sore thumb!”

“He can’t go in with you either, we’ll just keep him company, catch up, what do you say brother?” Saeyoung gestured towards Saeran who rolled his eyes again and puffed harder on his cigarette. Yoosung looked from one to the other, as did Jaehee.

“Whatever! He might be helpful if we need to hack.” Saeran conceded.

“Fine, but they are your responsibility!” Jaehee turned on her heels and walked off, Saeran glared at the other two and followed her. Saeyoung and Yoosung had no choice but to fall in line behind him. Yoosung was sure it was going to be a miserable few hours for him. He could feel the tension and aggression roiling off the two brothers. It was only a matter of time before it escaped, and he would be stuck in the middle.