TJ Wagner (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
ax_nocturne) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
ax_main2018-03-15 03:55 pm
ax_nocturne) wrote in ax_main2018-03-15 03:55 pm
Entry tags:
Kurt and TJ - Backdated
More awesome alt-family time, the day after TJ and Clarice's little jaunt in Burlington.
The internet was a terrible place. TJ knew this already, but some of the comments below the pictures and videos of her and Clarice that had been put online drove this point home a lot more vehemently than it needed to be. And it was like a train wreck you couldn't quite look away from.
She needed a distraction, and there was a bunch of stuff she should talk to Kurt about. Time to kill two birds with one stone! Her phone went back into her bra, and she headed for the boys' dorm to knock on Kurt's door.
Grateful for the interruption, Kurt closed his English book, abandoned the homework he’d been struggling with, and went to the door. He smiled when he saw TJ, greeting her warmly, “Hallo, TJ!”
"Hallo!" she replied with a smile, tail swinging behind her. "Are you busy?”
“For you? Never. Come in.” Kurt stepped aside to give TJ room to enter. “How’re you?”
"In need of distraction," TJ told him with a grin. It was nice, practicing her German with him. She hadn't spoken it since she'd been unhinged from time, but it was coming back to her with the practice. Her dad would have liked that, she knew. "How're you doing?”
Kurt closed the door and gestured for TJ to help herself to a seat. She’d visited enough now that she knew the drill—His home was hers. “I'm good. Why do you need a distraction? Hopefully for a better reason than I do.” He made a face. “English homework.”
TJ snorted. "I don't know which is worse. English homework, or people on the internet being jerks." She sat cross-legged on his bed, completely at ease in his space. "I take it you haven't heard about Clarice's and my little jaunt. We just went shopping in Vermont. I wonder if they're nice up there in every dimension.”
Kurt hopped up onto the bed beside TJ, sitting cross-legged as well. “A universal constant, maybe?” He bumped her knee with his own, his expression softening with sympathy. “What happened?”
"Just a lot of staring and people taking pictures of us, the occasional pointing, but I didn't even hear any name-calling, so I'm calling it a total win," TJ answered with a bright, sharp grin.
“It must have felt a little bit more like you are used to,” Kurt said, trying to imagine what it must be like to walk down the street as yourself without any fear.
"Definitely," TJ confirmed, still smiling. "It was amazing." She had missed it, and she really did hate the thought of using the image inducer. "But, you know, internet haters had to come and try to ruin it. Ugh.”
Kurt had seen enough of the internet by now to know what TJ was talking about. Bobby had told him they were called ‘trolls’, a fitting name for people who bellowed a whole lot of nothing when you crossed their path. “What did they say?”
"The usual hate-filled bullshit," she said with a grimace, tail moving restlessly behind her. "But hey, it all went just fine, and Clarice made a new friend. I call it a win. Screw them.”
“Still, I’m sorry,” Kurt said, putting a comforting hand over TJ’s. “It will change. In time. They’re ignorant and afraid and they don’t know any better, but they’ll get there. One day they’ll even look back on it all and be ashamed.”
"Yeah, I'm not gonna hold my breath," TJ told him with a grimace, but squeezed his hand all the same. "Anyway. We should get our story straight. You're gonna come out at your protest thing, and we look pretty obviously related." She hesitated, and then offered, "I was thinking I might actually come, if you don't mind? I just - don't wanna do interviews.”
Kurt immediately brightened, looking thrilled at the prospect. “Of course, you can come! I’d love to have you there. And you don’t have to do any interviews if you don’t want to. No one does.”
TJ looked relieved at the prospect, and his enthusiasm. "Great. Thank you. So... siblings? I mean, people are gonna ask." Sure, they could also play it the 'what, all blue-furred mutants look the same to you?' way, but she... wouldn't mind it. If their story involved them being family. She wouldn't mind it at all.
Now it was Kurt’s turn to look relieved. “I’m glad you suggested it! I was thinking it, but I wasn’t sure if having the guy who looks like your dad be your brother would make you uncomfortable.”
"You have too much hair, and one too many eyes, to really look like Dad," TJ assured him with a fond smile. It was more than just the age difference, although that too. She could see her father in Kurt, but... yeah. "Anyway, family's family.”
“Yeah, family’s—Wait. He’s missing an eye?!”
TJ chuckled, tail swinging a little with her amusement. "He's rocking the eye patch thing," she answered, gesturing at her own eye.
Kurt grinned. An eyepatch? How pirate-y! “Is it very dashing?” he asked, leaning in a little.
"You know it," TJ replied, grin matching his.
“Speaking of family,” Kurt said, “there’s something I wanted to talk to you about.”
TJ's tail stopped swinging, settling down as she did. That sounded a little ominous, but she only looked curious. "What's up?”
Kurt felt nervous suddenly. “I wanted to give you time to settle in before dropping this on you, but my family wants to meet you. They can’t wait, really.”
"You mean at the circus?" TJ asked with raised eyebrows - she hadn't heard anything about Mystique being around, after all - and then grinned. "I'd love to.”
Kurt gave TJ a baffled, but amused look. “Who else? Of course, the circus! All we need to do is ask a teleport for a lift—Mom says bribe them with a hot meal and a good show—and we’ll be set.”
TJ laughed. "It's like she knows Clarice already. She'll agree in a heartbeat.”
Kurt, who had already looked excited at the prospect, looked positively thrilled now. “We should make plans for it. I’ll ask my mom when it would be a good time to visit.”
"And I'll talk to Clarice," TJ finished, her smile bright. "Did you explain... everything about me?" Her story was a bit out there for most people, after all.
“Of course!” Kurt said cheerily. “My parents are dead, so they wouldn’t believe you’re my sister, but why would I want to lie? I’m not uncomfortable with who you are.”
"I'm older than you," TJ pointed out, in answer to the bit about his parents. It would be a way easier sell than alternate reality daughters, after all. "Are they really dead?”
Kurt nodded. “My mom found me by the side of the road. They’d gotten into a car accident.”
"I'm sorry," she told him with a sympathetic twist of her lips. Should she tell him what she knew of their family in her world? What was Mystique even up to here? It wasn't like she'd heard about her.
“Thanks,” Kurt said with a small smile.
TJ reached out and covered his three-fingered hand with hers, giving it a squeeze.
Kurt turned his hand over to hold TJ’s, giving it a squeeze in return and giving her a smile. “I’m sorry you were taken from your home, but if you had to end up anywhere, I’m glad it was here.”
TJ couldn't help but smile. A smile tainted with some of her own grief, and some of her sympathy for his, but a genuine smile all the same. "So am I."
The internet was a terrible place. TJ knew this already, but some of the comments below the pictures and videos of her and Clarice that had been put online drove this point home a lot more vehemently than it needed to be. And it was like a train wreck you couldn't quite look away from.
She needed a distraction, and there was a bunch of stuff she should talk to Kurt about. Time to kill two birds with one stone! Her phone went back into her bra, and she headed for the boys' dorm to knock on Kurt's door.
Grateful for the interruption, Kurt closed his English book, abandoned the homework he’d been struggling with, and went to the door. He smiled when he saw TJ, greeting her warmly, “Hallo, TJ!”
"Hallo!" she replied with a smile, tail swinging behind her. "Are you busy?”
“For you? Never. Come in.” Kurt stepped aside to give TJ room to enter. “How’re you?”
"In need of distraction," TJ told him with a grin. It was nice, practicing her German with him. She hadn't spoken it since she'd been unhinged from time, but it was coming back to her with the practice. Her dad would have liked that, she knew. "How're you doing?”
Kurt closed the door and gestured for TJ to help herself to a seat. She’d visited enough now that she knew the drill—His home was hers. “I'm good. Why do you need a distraction? Hopefully for a better reason than I do.” He made a face. “English homework.”
TJ snorted. "I don't know which is worse. English homework, or people on the internet being jerks." She sat cross-legged on his bed, completely at ease in his space. "I take it you haven't heard about Clarice's and my little jaunt. We just went shopping in Vermont. I wonder if they're nice up there in every dimension.”
Kurt hopped up onto the bed beside TJ, sitting cross-legged as well. “A universal constant, maybe?” He bumped her knee with his own, his expression softening with sympathy. “What happened?”
"Just a lot of staring and people taking pictures of us, the occasional pointing, but I didn't even hear any name-calling, so I'm calling it a total win," TJ answered with a bright, sharp grin.
“It must have felt a little bit more like you are used to,” Kurt said, trying to imagine what it must be like to walk down the street as yourself without any fear.
"Definitely," TJ confirmed, still smiling. "It was amazing." She had missed it, and she really did hate the thought of using the image inducer. "But, you know, internet haters had to come and try to ruin it. Ugh.”
Kurt had seen enough of the internet by now to know what TJ was talking about. Bobby had told him they were called ‘trolls’, a fitting name for people who bellowed a whole lot of nothing when you crossed their path. “What did they say?”
"The usual hate-filled bullshit," she said with a grimace, tail moving restlessly behind her. "But hey, it all went just fine, and Clarice made a new friend. I call it a win. Screw them.”
“Still, I’m sorry,” Kurt said, putting a comforting hand over TJ’s. “It will change. In time. They’re ignorant and afraid and they don’t know any better, but they’ll get there. One day they’ll even look back on it all and be ashamed.”
"Yeah, I'm not gonna hold my breath," TJ told him with a grimace, but squeezed his hand all the same. "Anyway. We should get our story straight. You're gonna come out at your protest thing, and we look pretty obviously related." She hesitated, and then offered, "I was thinking I might actually come, if you don't mind? I just - don't wanna do interviews.”
Kurt immediately brightened, looking thrilled at the prospect. “Of course, you can come! I’d love to have you there. And you don’t have to do any interviews if you don’t want to. No one does.”
TJ looked relieved at the prospect, and his enthusiasm. "Great. Thank you. So... siblings? I mean, people are gonna ask." Sure, they could also play it the 'what, all blue-furred mutants look the same to you?' way, but she... wouldn't mind it. If their story involved them being family. She wouldn't mind it at all.
Now it was Kurt’s turn to look relieved. “I’m glad you suggested it! I was thinking it, but I wasn’t sure if having the guy who looks like your dad be your brother would make you uncomfortable.”
"You have too much hair, and one too many eyes, to really look like Dad," TJ assured him with a fond smile. It was more than just the age difference, although that too. She could see her father in Kurt, but... yeah. "Anyway, family's family.”
“Yeah, family’s—Wait. He’s missing an eye?!”
TJ chuckled, tail swinging a little with her amusement. "He's rocking the eye patch thing," she answered, gesturing at her own eye.
Kurt grinned. An eyepatch? How pirate-y! “Is it very dashing?” he asked, leaning in a little.
"You know it," TJ replied, grin matching his.
“Speaking of family,” Kurt said, “there’s something I wanted to talk to you about.”
TJ's tail stopped swinging, settling down as she did. That sounded a little ominous, but she only looked curious. "What's up?”
Kurt felt nervous suddenly. “I wanted to give you time to settle in before dropping this on you, but my family wants to meet you. They can’t wait, really.”
"You mean at the circus?" TJ asked with raised eyebrows - she hadn't heard anything about Mystique being around, after all - and then grinned. "I'd love to.”
Kurt gave TJ a baffled, but amused look. “Who else? Of course, the circus! All we need to do is ask a teleport for a lift—Mom says bribe them with a hot meal and a good show—and we’ll be set.”
TJ laughed. "It's like she knows Clarice already. She'll agree in a heartbeat.”
Kurt, who had already looked excited at the prospect, looked positively thrilled now. “We should make plans for it. I’ll ask my mom when it would be a good time to visit.”
"And I'll talk to Clarice," TJ finished, her smile bright. "Did you explain... everything about me?" Her story was a bit out there for most people, after all.
“Of course!” Kurt said cheerily. “My parents are dead, so they wouldn’t believe you’re my sister, but why would I want to lie? I’m not uncomfortable with who you are.”
"I'm older than you," TJ pointed out, in answer to the bit about his parents. It would be a way easier sell than alternate reality daughters, after all. "Are they really dead?”
Kurt nodded. “My mom found me by the side of the road. They’d gotten into a car accident.”
"I'm sorry," she told him with a sympathetic twist of her lips. Should she tell him what she knew of their family in her world? What was Mystique even up to here? It wasn't like she'd heard about her.
“Thanks,” Kurt said with a small smile.
TJ reached out and covered his three-fingered hand with hers, giving it a squeeze.
Kurt turned his hand over to hold TJ’s, giving it a squeeze in return and giving her a smile. “I’m sorry you were taken from your home, but if you had to end up anywhere, I’m glad it was here.”
TJ couldn't help but smile. A smile tainted with some of her own grief, and some of her sympathy for his, but a genuine smile all the same. "So am I."
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(Also, I think a bracket got missed because it's all italics after a certain point)
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