http://x_sanfuaiyaa.livejournal.com/ (![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png)
x-sanfuaiyaa.livejournal.com) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
xp_logs2009-06-28 10:43 am
x-sanfuaiyaa.livejournal.com) wrote in xp_logs2009-06-28 10:43 am
Entry tags:
Shiro & Nick, Sunday morning
Shiro is surprised to run into Nick at NYC Pride, and they share an intimate conversation about grief and humanity.
If pressed, Shiro had to admit that he actually was enjoying himself. Despite feeling completely out of place both sexually and racially (were there no non-White gays and lesbians in New York?), it was a nice if overcast day out and the attendees' cheer was contagious. He'd even caught a few guys checking him out as he walked down the street fair, though no amount of pressing would get him to admit that he was flattered and had returned their glances. An exhibit caught his eye, some organization for an ethnic group dubbed "Asians and Pacific Islanders," and he wandered over to it. Finally, some kinsmen.
Nicholas Gleason was like a kid in the candy store at pride. He had hated being grilled on the stuff by his father when he was younger, but he couldn't be happier for it now. All of the booths, all of the exhibits, all of the things his father had dedicated most of his life to. It was like a living breathing piece of his father was alive, right there with him. For the first time in months, Nick had let his guard completely down and was letting himself enjoy life. As he turned from the Asian and Pacific Islanders exhibit, he was in for a bit of a shock at running into Shiro. He gave a quick wave of greeting, but had to make sure it really was the professor. "Shiro?"
Shiro nearly toppled over the table upon hearing his name. With a apologetic look at the exhibitor, he bent down to pick up the fallen brochures before turning to see who had called him. "Gleason. Hello. I did not know you were . . ." Gay. "Here."
Nick smiled upon seeing the same faculty member that had greeted him only a few weeks before into his new home. "Yeah, I kind of owed it to Jay, there was a little bit of a... fork accident." He scratched the back of his head, remembering that he was not the biggest klutz in the mansion. "But I used to go to pride in Chicago all the time." He furrowed his eyebrows together. "What brings you here? Showing your pride for the Pacific?" The Midwest really did make Nick naive to things around him.
"Guthrie is recruiting everyone," Shiro said, mostly to himself. "He asked me to come as well. He was very, anou . . ." Obnoxious? Insistent? Sexy? "Adamant about my attendance. So, you go these often?"
"Yeah, one of my dad's main groups of interest was minorities that were repressed by society. He loved these things." He let his eyes fall to the ground. Unfortunately, that was also wad led to his father's end. Before he turned into emo Nick again, he decided to change the subject. "It's amazing that they're including mutants in these events now too, isn't it?"
"Begrudgingly, I suspect. The few mutant groups have been relegated to the ends." Shiro pointed to the end of the row, where a couple of lonely booths sat, barely patronized. "New York still has not fully recovered, as much as people would like to think it has, and people are very good at marginalizing others even if they themselves are marginalized." He caught the look on Nick's face and bit his lip. The kid obviously wasn't having an easy time and Shiro's own self-loathing was inappropriate. "But still amazing nonetheless," he added.
"I guess that anything will always be better than nothing. Back in the Midwest, the hate groups are still in the majority in their opinions." Nick closed his eyes for a second, breathing in deeply. He weighed his options for a few seconds before deciding that with all of the festivities, it was a safe place for him finally to take a chance with the first person he felt a connection to at the mansion. "Did they fill you in with the details behind my coming to the mansion?"
"Unless you have a super villain coming after you, Professor Xavier typically allows the students to maintain their confidentiality." And since that didn't seem to be the case (Doctor Essex notwithstanding), it didn't particularly matter to Shiro. The exhibitor was giving them both weird looks now, so Shiro took his leave and continued down the street with Nick.
"The local chapter of the Friends of Humanity saw me transform. They were angry at my parents for harboring a mutant, and decided they needed to punish them. They lit our house of fire, and I was too late." He decided to stop there before details or the rest of the story would bog him down. "So that's why I'm happy to see any kind of mutant representation."
"My condolences," Shiro replied solemnly. One might think that having met dozens of people with similar stories, they would no longer be so troubling to hear. One would be dead wrong. "I can understand how you feel. I witnessed my father murdered, too."
"I'm just starting to realize that coming to places like this. Seeing the things they used to enjoy, those are the few things that help me really remember them. And that's one of the few things that doesn't make it hurt so bad." He quickly forced his glance back up at Shiro. "How about you? Do you have any tricks that help out?"
Shiro shrugged. "It has been a long time since my parents passed, so I do not grieve as I once did. Although recently there was an . . . incident when I dreamed my father to still be alive, and waking to discover that was just a fantasy was a trial." He could remember his father’s frightened voice their final time speaking as clearly as if it were yesterday, when after Richter's insistence that they return to reality, Shiro bid a confused Saburo farewell. "But I believe that since they both died selflessly,” he followed, swallowing the lump in his throat, “they have been rewarded and are closer to breaking through the cycle of death and rebirth. That offers me some solace."
"I guess that offers me some comfort too. My parents were both good people, so I'm sure that if there is a 'better place' they found it." His eyes quickly fell to the ground. "Plus, there they won't have to hide who they are, or worry about protecting their loved ones from those that might have prying eyes."
"From what you have said, I think they would be happy that you have come here." Shiro hesitated, and then awkwardly put a hand on the boy's shoulder. "One thing that I have learned in the States . . . actually, in general as a mutant, is that while human capacity to hate is endless, so is capacity for compassion." He nodded at the many booths advertising HIV/AIDS counseling, free legal assistance, homes for wayward youth, and drug rehabilitation. The hand on Nick's shoulder trembled a little at the sight of that last one. "Everyone will get what is coming to them eventually."
Gleason felt the nerves in his stomach begin to grow as they always did. "I just hope that I'm one of those people that can help those that aren't able to." He turned towards Shiro with a smile. "I always found it funny, that even though minorities tend to be feared, they usually are the first to reach out towards others."
"I wonder if that is strictly true. There was significant news coverage in November about the passing of that amendment, reporting along racial lines. And here, that booth was the first non-white person I have seen all day, barring Guthrie and Clarice. I have seen more diversity in Chinatown."
"People have a tendency to be scared, though. But while I think they are slow to reach out to others, they are always there for each other in their darkest hours." Nick had to pause for a second, as he realized that he should be taking more advice in this department than giving it.
As if Shiro had much to give. He probably ought to have come with a warning that loudly dissuaded people from taking his advice. "Maybe. At the very least, despite people's differences, the school certainly does serve that function. People suck, but there is always sunshine somewhere behind the clouds."
Gleason couldn't help but smile at this one. "You keep talking about sunshine and going to gay pride events, Shiro, people may start to think you're losing your pessimistic touch."
"I go where the Buddha leads me. If that is to a happier view of humanity, then so be it." A tendril of fire snaked down and around his bare arm, coalescing into a small fireball that he immediately extinguished with a fist. "I am a big fucking ray of sunshine."
If pressed, Shiro had to admit that he actually was enjoying himself. Despite feeling completely out of place both sexually and racially (were there no non-White gays and lesbians in New York?), it was a nice if overcast day out and the attendees' cheer was contagious. He'd even caught a few guys checking him out as he walked down the street fair, though no amount of pressing would get him to admit that he was flattered and had returned their glances. An exhibit caught his eye, some organization for an ethnic group dubbed "Asians and Pacific Islanders," and he wandered over to it. Finally, some kinsmen.
Nicholas Gleason was like a kid in the candy store at pride. He had hated being grilled on the stuff by his father when he was younger, but he couldn't be happier for it now. All of the booths, all of the exhibits, all of the things his father had dedicated most of his life to. It was like a living breathing piece of his father was alive, right there with him. For the first time in months, Nick had let his guard completely down and was letting himself enjoy life. As he turned from the Asian and Pacific Islanders exhibit, he was in for a bit of a shock at running into Shiro. He gave a quick wave of greeting, but had to make sure it really was the professor. "Shiro?"
Shiro nearly toppled over the table upon hearing his name. With a apologetic look at the exhibitor, he bent down to pick up the fallen brochures before turning to see who had called him. "Gleason. Hello. I did not know you were . . ." Gay. "Here."
Nick smiled upon seeing the same faculty member that had greeted him only a few weeks before into his new home. "Yeah, I kind of owed it to Jay, there was a little bit of a... fork accident." He scratched the back of his head, remembering that he was not the biggest klutz in the mansion. "But I used to go to pride in Chicago all the time." He furrowed his eyebrows together. "What brings you here? Showing your pride for the Pacific?" The Midwest really did make Nick naive to things around him.
"Guthrie is recruiting everyone," Shiro said, mostly to himself. "He asked me to come as well. He was very, anou . . ." Obnoxious? Insistent? Sexy? "Adamant about my attendance. So, you go these often?"
"Yeah, one of my dad's main groups of interest was minorities that were repressed by society. He loved these things." He let his eyes fall to the ground. Unfortunately, that was also wad led to his father's end. Before he turned into emo Nick again, he decided to change the subject. "It's amazing that they're including mutants in these events now too, isn't it?"
"Begrudgingly, I suspect. The few mutant groups have been relegated to the ends." Shiro pointed to the end of the row, where a couple of lonely booths sat, barely patronized. "New York still has not fully recovered, as much as people would like to think it has, and people are very good at marginalizing others even if they themselves are marginalized." He caught the look on Nick's face and bit his lip. The kid obviously wasn't having an easy time and Shiro's own self-loathing was inappropriate. "But still amazing nonetheless," he added.
"I guess that anything will always be better than nothing. Back in the Midwest, the hate groups are still in the majority in their opinions." Nick closed his eyes for a second, breathing in deeply. He weighed his options for a few seconds before deciding that with all of the festivities, it was a safe place for him finally to take a chance with the first person he felt a connection to at the mansion. "Did they fill you in with the details behind my coming to the mansion?"
"Unless you have a super villain coming after you, Professor Xavier typically allows the students to maintain their confidentiality." And since that didn't seem to be the case (Doctor Essex notwithstanding), it didn't particularly matter to Shiro. The exhibitor was giving them both weird looks now, so Shiro took his leave and continued down the street with Nick.
"The local chapter of the Friends of Humanity saw me transform. They were angry at my parents for harboring a mutant, and decided they needed to punish them. They lit our house of fire, and I was too late." He decided to stop there before details or the rest of the story would bog him down. "So that's why I'm happy to see any kind of mutant representation."
"My condolences," Shiro replied solemnly. One might think that having met dozens of people with similar stories, they would no longer be so troubling to hear. One would be dead wrong. "I can understand how you feel. I witnessed my father murdered, too."
"I'm just starting to realize that coming to places like this. Seeing the things they used to enjoy, those are the few things that help me really remember them. And that's one of the few things that doesn't make it hurt so bad." He quickly forced his glance back up at Shiro. "How about you? Do you have any tricks that help out?"
Shiro shrugged. "It has been a long time since my parents passed, so I do not grieve as I once did. Although recently there was an . . . incident when I dreamed my father to still be alive, and waking to discover that was just a fantasy was a trial." He could remember his father’s frightened voice their final time speaking as clearly as if it were yesterday, when after Richter's insistence that they return to reality, Shiro bid a confused Saburo farewell. "But I believe that since they both died selflessly,” he followed, swallowing the lump in his throat, “they have been rewarded and are closer to breaking through the cycle of death and rebirth. That offers me some solace."
"I guess that offers me some comfort too. My parents were both good people, so I'm sure that if there is a 'better place' they found it." His eyes quickly fell to the ground. "Plus, there they won't have to hide who they are, or worry about protecting their loved ones from those that might have prying eyes."
"From what you have said, I think they would be happy that you have come here." Shiro hesitated, and then awkwardly put a hand on the boy's shoulder. "One thing that I have learned in the States . . . actually, in general as a mutant, is that while human capacity to hate is endless, so is capacity for compassion." He nodded at the many booths advertising HIV/AIDS counseling, free legal assistance, homes for wayward youth, and drug rehabilitation. The hand on Nick's shoulder trembled a little at the sight of that last one. "Everyone will get what is coming to them eventually."
Gleason felt the nerves in his stomach begin to grow as they always did. "I just hope that I'm one of those people that can help those that aren't able to." He turned towards Shiro with a smile. "I always found it funny, that even though minorities tend to be feared, they usually are the first to reach out towards others."
"I wonder if that is strictly true. There was significant news coverage in November about the passing of that amendment, reporting along racial lines. And here, that booth was the first non-white person I have seen all day, barring Guthrie and Clarice. I have seen more diversity in Chinatown."
"People have a tendency to be scared, though. But while I think they are slow to reach out to others, they are always there for each other in their darkest hours." Nick had to pause for a second, as he realized that he should be taking more advice in this department than giving it.
As if Shiro had much to give. He probably ought to have come with a warning that loudly dissuaded people from taking his advice. "Maybe. At the very least, despite people's differences, the school certainly does serve that function. People suck, but there is always sunshine somewhere behind the clouds."
Gleason couldn't help but smile at this one. "You keep talking about sunshine and going to gay pride events, Shiro, people may start to think you're losing your pessimistic touch."
"I go where the Buddha leads me. If that is to a happier view of humanity, then so be it." A tendril of fire snaked down and around his bare arm, coalescing into a small fireball that he immediately extinguished with a fist. "I am a big fucking ray of sunshine."