Rictor & Liam, backdated to January 15
Jan. 15th, 2024 04:41 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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xp_logsRictor tries to be a good friend to Liam and somehow ends up a drug dealer instead.
To other people, Rictor's room was a mess. There were houseplants on every surface except the small altar in the corner between the bed and closet, which instead was littered with candles, crystals, and small statues of the saints and the Virgin. But to Rictor, everything was in its place. There were no dirty clothes or dishes strewn around. The altar was unobtrusive in its corner. The plants brought life to the room, each one in the right location for optimal sunlight. On the windowsill sat a small pot with a blooming gardenia, housed in the soil Shatterstar had gifted him.
Really, the only actual mess was the pile of pieces for the IKEA Milsbo cabinet and the unopened Rudsta next to it. But with Liam's help, these would soon be assembled and the chaos would be controlled again.
"Thanks for the help," Rictor said, twirling a screwdriver in his hand. "This will be faster with two people instead of just me."
Grinning, Liam responded by activating his electric drill. When Rictor had asked him to help, Liam had brought all sorts of tools in a tool bag, unsure what they'd need. He had never assembled an IKEA cabinet before, there wasn't an IKEA nearby but anyways, his dad made a lot of their furniture since he liked to do woodworking and then they could control the quality.
Looking through the pieces and instructions, Liam made a face, "It's all particle board?" he asked, confused. Surely they had better options?
"Steel and glass," Rictor corrected him, flipping through the assembly instructions. "It's a cabinet, not a sofa. Pues, it will be a greenhouse when I get fans and lights. Philodendrons and monstera need the humidity." He set the instructions down on his bed so they could both read them. Seemed simple enough, like assembling a giant LEGO set. He started putting together the feet and base of the cabinet.
"Oh, well, that's good. Better than particle board," be reached for his hand screwdriver since the instructions said to use that instead of an electric one, and started working on the other side. "You really like plants, huh?" This was actually the first time he'd been in the other guy's room.
"What gave it away?" Rictor teased. "There's a magic to them I try to understand. And I can . . . mmm, I don't talk to plants, but I can understand them, if that makes sense. I can tell if a plant and the dirt it's in are in balance, or what I would need to do to put them back in balance. I don't know if that's part of my gift or something else." Though he silently prayed for the latter.
"That's kinda cool. You're like Toph from Avatar," Liam answered finding the next set of parts they needed. He paused thinking and then continued, "You should grow catnip."
Rictor thought about that while he and Liam finished the base and started on the corner pillars. "I probably could. Why, does it affect you like actual cats? Would I get in trouble for trafficking drugs to a minor?" His grin slipped a little at that prospect, but he hid it by reaching for the next assembly piece. "Sharon might leave Match for me, and I do not want to be responsible for breaking up a marriage."
"I think Shatterstar would stop her," Liam pointed out, tightening some screws, "But uh... yeah. I've had cat nip before. It's kinda fun. Dunno if it would affect Sharon, but probably?"
"Well, sure, why not? Consider it a reward for the help." Liam had been working hard on the restorations, he deserved a treat. And, per Sharon's email, also for what he went through in the Horseman attack. Drug distribution was the least Rictor could do for a friend.
Catnip was kinda.... it wasn't addictive. Or illegal. And in reasonable amounts, fun. Liam had never experienced anything unpleasant with it, though it wasn't like he did it a lot. But it would be fun to have some sometimes. "You're my dealer then?" he asked teasing. "Better not cut it with baby powder."
"It's catnip, not cocaine." Rictor handed Liam the next piece as he considered the question he'd been burning to ask. "So. That stuff in District X was crazy, wasn't it?"
Liam nodded, not looking at Rictor and drawing his tail in closer to his body. "Yeah, crazy," he agreed.
There was a moment of silence, unusual for the two of them, before Rictor spoke again. "My nose was broken in a fight. It probably would have been worse if Shatterstar had not pulled the guy off of me. My parents video-called me after because they heard about it on the news and asked if I had been there. I lied and told them my camera was not working so they wouldn't see me. They would not have approved of me fighting."
Liam nodded, "Same. I told mine I was here, because how do I tell my parents that oh, no, not only was I in the middle of this giant horrible battle in New York City, but I was a spotter for a sniper? Like, oh yeah, she lives here, no big deal," he sighed. It was a big deal. Huge. "They sent me here because they thought I wasn't safe at home anymore. And here's worse, but also... better? Because here is equipped to deal with things better than my parents with shotguns."
"And are you . . ." Asking if Liam was okay was stupid because how could he have been? This wasn't a bout of Fortnite. "You're going to stay here, right?" Rictor course-corrected mid-sentence to something more reasonable. "Even though it's not as safe as we thought. Here." He passed the next piece over.
Liam nodded, "Yeah, I mean... where else do I go? The world isn't safe and I think it's better here, with other mutants than trying to pretend I'm normal at home," he liked his home, he liked his parents, but the older he got the more he realized there wasn't much future for him there. Not the kind he wanted anyways. Tightening it in place, Liam played with the screwdriver, "I wasn't sure I'd like it here when I first came, but I don't think I could go back permanently."
"Same." Rictor was almost surprised to hear himself say that, but Liam had articulated something he felt, too. "Home was never scary or unsafe for me," he started to clarify, partly for himself, "But I was always . . . different? It was hard to fit in. I feel more . . . I guess more me here. I don't want to leave that, either."
He nodded, "Yeah. I'm adopted, right? And me being a mutant was never a problem, they knew from when I was born that I was and it was fine. But my birth mom.... she used to come visit sometimes and stuff, but she'd just appear and disappear without any sort of rhyme or reason or calling ahead or anything. I haven't seen her since M- day though, so I guess she died? But then I found out my parents had a plan in place if anyone ever came for me, and they did. That's why I'm here, now. So....I don't know what my birth mom was involved in, but it was probably hinky." He'd figured out that she likely wasn't involved with anything X either.
"That's rough, buddy." What else could Rictor say to that, really? But as long his friend was safe and had the support to process everything, he was content.
To other people, Rictor's room was a mess. There were houseplants on every surface except the small altar in the corner between the bed and closet, which instead was littered with candles, crystals, and small statues of the saints and the Virgin. But to Rictor, everything was in its place. There were no dirty clothes or dishes strewn around. The altar was unobtrusive in its corner. The plants brought life to the room, each one in the right location for optimal sunlight. On the windowsill sat a small pot with a blooming gardenia, housed in the soil Shatterstar had gifted him.
Really, the only actual mess was the pile of pieces for the IKEA Milsbo cabinet and the unopened Rudsta next to it. But with Liam's help, these would soon be assembled and the chaos would be controlled again.
"Thanks for the help," Rictor said, twirling a screwdriver in his hand. "This will be faster with two people instead of just me."
Grinning, Liam responded by activating his electric drill. When Rictor had asked him to help, Liam had brought all sorts of tools in a tool bag, unsure what they'd need. He had never assembled an IKEA cabinet before, there wasn't an IKEA nearby but anyways, his dad made a lot of their furniture since he liked to do woodworking and then they could control the quality.
Looking through the pieces and instructions, Liam made a face, "It's all particle board?" he asked, confused. Surely they had better options?
"Steel and glass," Rictor corrected him, flipping through the assembly instructions. "It's a cabinet, not a sofa. Pues, it will be a greenhouse when I get fans and lights. Philodendrons and monstera need the humidity." He set the instructions down on his bed so they could both read them. Seemed simple enough, like assembling a giant LEGO set. He started putting together the feet and base of the cabinet.
"Oh, well, that's good. Better than particle board," be reached for his hand screwdriver since the instructions said to use that instead of an electric one, and started working on the other side. "You really like plants, huh?" This was actually the first time he'd been in the other guy's room.
"What gave it away?" Rictor teased. "There's a magic to them I try to understand. And I can . . . mmm, I don't talk to plants, but I can understand them, if that makes sense. I can tell if a plant and the dirt it's in are in balance, or what I would need to do to put them back in balance. I don't know if that's part of my gift or something else." Though he silently prayed for the latter.
"That's kinda cool. You're like Toph from Avatar," Liam answered finding the next set of parts they needed. He paused thinking and then continued, "You should grow catnip."
Rictor thought about that while he and Liam finished the base and started on the corner pillars. "I probably could. Why, does it affect you like actual cats? Would I get in trouble for trafficking drugs to a minor?" His grin slipped a little at that prospect, but he hid it by reaching for the next assembly piece. "Sharon might leave Match for me, and I do not want to be responsible for breaking up a marriage."
"I think Shatterstar would stop her," Liam pointed out, tightening some screws, "But uh... yeah. I've had cat nip before. It's kinda fun. Dunno if it would affect Sharon, but probably?"
"Well, sure, why not? Consider it a reward for the help." Liam had been working hard on the restorations, he deserved a treat. And, per Sharon's email, also for what he went through in the Horseman attack. Drug distribution was the least Rictor could do for a friend.
Catnip was kinda.... it wasn't addictive. Or illegal. And in reasonable amounts, fun. Liam had never experienced anything unpleasant with it, though it wasn't like he did it a lot. But it would be fun to have some sometimes. "You're my dealer then?" he asked teasing. "Better not cut it with baby powder."
"It's catnip, not cocaine." Rictor handed Liam the next piece as he considered the question he'd been burning to ask. "So. That stuff in District X was crazy, wasn't it?"
Liam nodded, not looking at Rictor and drawing his tail in closer to his body. "Yeah, crazy," he agreed.
There was a moment of silence, unusual for the two of them, before Rictor spoke again. "My nose was broken in a fight. It probably would have been worse if Shatterstar had not pulled the guy off of me. My parents video-called me after because they heard about it on the news and asked if I had been there. I lied and told them my camera was not working so they wouldn't see me. They would not have approved of me fighting."
Liam nodded, "Same. I told mine I was here, because how do I tell my parents that oh, no, not only was I in the middle of this giant horrible battle in New York City, but I was a spotter for a sniper? Like, oh yeah, she lives here, no big deal," he sighed. It was a big deal. Huge. "They sent me here because they thought I wasn't safe at home anymore. And here's worse, but also... better? Because here is equipped to deal with things better than my parents with shotguns."
"And are you . . ." Asking if Liam was okay was stupid because how could he have been? This wasn't a bout of Fortnite. "You're going to stay here, right?" Rictor course-corrected mid-sentence to something more reasonable. "Even though it's not as safe as we thought. Here." He passed the next piece over.
Liam nodded, "Yeah, I mean... where else do I go? The world isn't safe and I think it's better here, with other mutants than trying to pretend I'm normal at home," he liked his home, he liked his parents, but the older he got the more he realized there wasn't much future for him there. Not the kind he wanted anyways. Tightening it in place, Liam played with the screwdriver, "I wasn't sure I'd like it here when I first came, but I don't think I could go back permanently."
"Same." Rictor was almost surprised to hear himself say that, but Liam had articulated something he felt, too. "Home was never scary or unsafe for me," he started to clarify, partly for himself, "But I was always . . . different? It was hard to fit in. I feel more . . . I guess more me here. I don't want to leave that, either."
He nodded, "Yeah. I'm adopted, right? And me being a mutant was never a problem, they knew from when I was born that I was and it was fine. But my birth mom.... she used to come visit sometimes and stuff, but she'd just appear and disappear without any sort of rhyme or reason or calling ahead or anything. I haven't seen her since M- day though, so I guess she died? But then I found out my parents had a plan in place if anyone ever came for me, and they did. That's why I'm here, now. So....I don't know what my birth mom was involved in, but it was probably hinky." He'd figured out that she likely wasn't involved with anything X either.
"That's rough, buddy." What else could Rictor say to that, really? But as long his friend was safe and had the support to process everything, he was content.
