The X-men run missions and work together with the NYPD, striving to maintain a peaceful balance between humans and mutants. When it comes to a fight, they won't back down from protecting those who need their help.
Haven presents itself as a humanitarian organization for activists, leaders, and high society, yet mutants are the secret leaders working to protect and serve their kind. Behind the scenes they bring their goals into reality.
From the time when mutants became known to the world, SUPER was founded as a black-ops division of the CIA in an attempt to classify, observe, and learn more about this new and rising threat.
The Syndicate works to help bring mutantkind to the forefront of the world. They work from the shadows, a beacon of hope for mutants, but a bane to mankind. With their guiding hand, humanity will finally find extinction.
Since the existence of mutants was first revealed in the nineties, the world has become a changed place. Whether they're genetic misfits or the next stage in humanity's evolution, there's no denying their growing numbers, especially in hubs like New York City. The NYPD has a division devoted to mutant related crimes. Super-powered vigilantes help to maintain the peace. Those who style themselves as Homo Superior work to tear society apart for rebuilding in their own image.
MRO is an intermediate to advanced writing level original character, original plot X-Men RPG. We've been open and active since October of 2005. You can play as a mutant, human, or Adapted— one of the rare humans who nullify mutant powers by their very existence. Goodies, baddies, and neutrals are all welcome.
Short Term Plots:Are They Coming for You?
There have been whispers on the streets lately of a boogeyman... mutant and humans, young and old, all have been targets of trafficking.
The Fountain of Youth
A chemical serum has been released that's shaving a few years off of the population. In some cases, found to be temporary, and in others...?
MRO MOVES WITH CURRENT TIME: What month and year it is now in real life, it's the same for MRO, too.
Fuegogrande: "Fuegogrande" player of The Ranger, Ion, Rhia, and Null
Neopolitan: "Aly" player of Rebecca Grey, Stephanie Graves, Marisol Cervantes, Vanessa Bookman, Chrysanthemum Van Hart, Sabine Sang, Eupraxia
Ongoing Plots
Magic and Mystics
After the events of the 2020 Harvest Moon and the following Winter Solstice, magic has started manifesting in the MROvere! With the efforts of the Welldrinker Cult, people are being converted into Mystics, a species of people genetically disposed to be great conduits for magical energy.
The Welldrinker Cult
A shadowy group is gaining power, drawing in people who are curious, vulnerable, or malicious, and turning them into Mystics. They are recruiting people into their ranks to spread the influence of magic in the world, but for what end goal?
Are They Coming for You?
There have been whispers on the streets lately of a boogeyman... mutant and humans, young and old, all have been targets of trafficking.
Adapteds
What if the human race began to adapt to the mutant threat? What if the human race changed ever so subtly... without the x-gene.
Atlanteans
The lost city of Atlantis has been found! Refugees from this undersea mutant dystopia have started to filter in to New York as citizens and businessfolk. You may make one as a player character of run into one on the street.
Got a plot in mind?
MRO plots are player-created the Mods facilitate and organize the big ones, but we get the ideas from you. Do you have a plot in mind, and want to know whether it needs Mod approval? Check out our plot guidelines.
Posted by waitingtovan on Mar 28, 2010 14:08:50 GMT -6
Guest
Green. Kelly, Green. Van had never actually met any Kellys that were green, but apparently that didn't matter when it came to the color of aprons. The boy actually didn't mind the apron itself, or the color for that matter, it just had a funny name: Kelly green. As the young mutant walked from the bus stop to the Full Circle bookstore he wondered what kind of color his name evoked. Van purple, perhaps? No, that wasn't quite right. Van violet? He liked the alliteration but it was almost identical to Van purple which was not quite right. Van red? Van blue? Van gray? Maybe his name wasn't cut out for color names--he made a note to talk to the people at Crayola and ask if they had a List of Suitable Names that they whipped out every time they came up with a new color. If so, was his name there?
The Kelly green apron made its way around the boy's thin frame a second after he deposited his coat in the back room of the store. hand washing came next. He checked his reflection in the staff bathroom, mostly to make sure that his gel was maintaining its hold on his usually messy, crazy hair. When it was established that he looked presentable, he took a few deep breaths. Van was uncharacteristically nervous that morning, probably because this was his first day solo behind the food counter at Full Circle. It was weird thinking that he was no longer going to be training in under the watchful eyes of his coworkers that had shown him the ropes and explained how to avoid unfortunate toasting accidents. The training hadn't been hard, it was fairly straightforward and everyone had been really patient with the young mutant, but still...being all alone...it was just weird and kinda exhilarating. Beyond the nerves Van was excited--he was starting to like the job in the bookstore more than he thought he would. It wasn't just about getting his camera, it was about doing something five days a week (for as many hours as Child Labor allowed), doing something consistent and that made people smile. It was a good feeling this doing, and the boy wished he'd tried it more in his life.
Doing something involved relieving the earlier morning shift and making sure that his station was clean and orderly. Clean and orderly were not things that usually described Van's spaces but the bookstore wasn't his space, it was someone else's and he was there to keep it looking nice among other thigs. There weren't any customers at that particular moment but some had obviously been there based on the small messes on each of the tables near the counter. That would be Van's first order of business since he had the time. Reaching behind the food counter, the boy grabbed a spray bottle and a wash rag and then moved to the nearest table, carefully clearing it of dishes and food before spraying it down with the contents of the bottle. When it was rubbed down, the table reflected the boy's face back at him. Well don't you look dashing in green? He thought to his reflection as he moved on to the next table. Clear, rinse, repeat.
It had been too long. Far, far, far too long since the owner had been in the bookstore.
Maya kept a firm grip on Jude's hand. This having a kid thing was more work than she had been expecting. It was pleasant work, but it was still work. Once Jude got into a proper school it would be better. For now, he was getting the grand tour of new York from his new mum.
"Ghost?"
"Jude, call me Maya, please."
"That is bad as calling you mum." His little accent was just precious. Maya was glad that Jude couldn't yet read minds.
Maya led Jude into the revolving door first and around they went. And around. And aroun- Maya hopped out while she could and once the door had revolved once more, snatched Jude out as well.
"But why are we here?" He didn't particularly enjoy being led around by his shoulder.
"Mummy has some business to take care of, that's all, Judey. Why don't you visit the cafe? I bet Aurum will have a pastry for you." Eleven years difference wasn't enough for her to be Jude's mum even though technically now she was.
Jude wrinkled his nose at Maya --a trait he had picked up from her already-- and ran off to pester the man in the kelly green apron. "Are you Aurum?" The 'rum' in Aurum was particularly hard to make out with Jude's fresh-off-the-boat French accent. He was doing superb adapting to using all English, though.
Maya, mean-while went straight for the middle register to visit with the clerk there.
"Do you have a snack for me? My Ghost owns ziss place."
Posted by waitingtovan on Mar 29, 2010 18:10:23 GMT -6
Guest
Van was almost finished with the fourth table when he heard the increasingly familiar noise and whoosh of air that signaled the revolving door was getting some use. He glanced up quickly from his table, in time to see a young boy and a woman that barely looked old enough to be his nanny had entered the store. Quickly he looked back to the table top, intent on getting the last sticky remnants of someone's breakfast off of the surface before returning to his post as sentry behind the food counter. He was almost done with his task when he heard it. A tiny click-clack that was only made by tiny feet carrying a tiny frame.
Van tensed up, unsure of where the sound was coming from. He'd never been all that good with children since he'd always been the youngest of the cousins on his father side but not so young that any of them were quite ready to reproduce yet. Children and babies were as enigmatic and confusing to him as the fake hair pieces that some men wore and why people thought a handlebar mustache was once attractive. The sound came closer and the young mutant's heart began to race a bit as the theme from Jaws played somewhere in the back of his mind. The music climaxed and then he heard another slightly distressing noise--that of a child's voice.
Van turned around to see a young-ish boy standing behind him, looking up expectantly. The first thing he noticed about him was that he had an accent. "Wh--Oh wait." The teen amended after finally realizing who he was being asked about. "No, I'm not Aurum, " Gray eyes scanned the rest of the bookstore. "I haven't checked the schedule...I don't know if he's--" Before he could get the rest out the little boy had resumed talking. As he watched the boy talk with mild confusion Van realized that he talked to the kid the same way he'd talk to someone his own age--was there some way you were supposed to talk to children?
An image of himself baby talking to a random little French/Portuguese/Swedish/Croatian/European(?) little boy made him cringe, so when he spoke again his tone was the same as before, although colored with a bit more confusion. "Do I have a--wait, what? Your ghost..." A hand reached behind his head to scratch there as he tried to make sense of what he'd just been told. "Um...why don't we go ask the lady you came in with about getting you a snack?" His tone was questioning more than anything and it was a stark contrast to the teen's usual sure tone. Van really didn't know what else to do--obviously he was dealing with a kid with an active imagination or something...or something. It was always something.
Jude was not amused. He'd been told he was crazy for months. Now that he was validated in his insanity, he didn't appreciate the accusation, however subtle.
"I would like an eclair, sir." He could be grown up too. "What is your name?"
"We don't have eclairs." Ghost had meanwhile come up from behind. "Unless that's changed. And I'd be interested in learning your name as well. I'm Maya Csendes." She offered a slender hand. "Also known as Ghost. This is my bookstore." She tried not to sound like she was asking what he was doing here, but... she knew all of her employees. At least, she had when she left.
"This is Jude my...uhh..." Her hands sort of shrugged along with her shoulders as Maya helped herself to the behind the counter area. "My son?" No, but that was too funny.
Jude offered his hand in a very I-am-not-10 way. Maya set out two cups from beneath the counter. They weren't in regular circulation. They'd been a wedding gift for Maya and Sebastian. Now they would do nicely for Maya and Jude. After that was taken care of she went around to the front of the pastry case to inspect the day's haul.
"Ziis one?' Ghost pulled Jude's finger off the glass. He didn't know what a pain it was to clean fingerprints off of it. Ghost did. She'd started as a clerk.
"Two teas, a chocolate doughnut and that puff pastry whatever-thing then." Ghost rumpled Jude's hair before remembering her "Please."
Posted by waitingtovan on Mar 31, 2010 19:57:53 GMT -6
Guest
Before the young mutant had to tell the little boy that he didn't have any eclairs, that he was certainly not worthy of 'sir' status, and that his name was Van, he was beat to at least half the punch by the woman the child had walked in with. She told him that there were indeed no eclairs and that she wanted to know his name just as much as the boy. Csendes...?He'd been told about her, he thought--just not about the fact that her name was sometimes Ghost and that she had a tiny charge. For some reason Van smelled that she hadn't heard of him at all. It was kinda awkward, but one of his large hands found its way into her thinner one to shake and he managed to smile--even if it was a bit of a confused one. "Good to meet you, I'm Van Sanders-Adamson." No matter how many times he said the name it still seemed obnoxiously long--the hyphen a proof of his parents division even before they had troubles.
She half introduced the boy, Jude, before wandering behind the counter. Van knelt down a bit and took the hand of the dark haired child. "Nice to meet you, Jude." Any kid that could use the word 'sir' in correct (if misplaced) context deserved a shake--not that the young mutant really had any other ideas as how to respond to the situation. Kids were not.his.bag. Decidedly.
He was her son? A furtive glance at Miss/Ms./Mrs./Madame(?) Csendes, reinstated his original assumption that she was not old enough to be his mother. She didn't look all that older than Van himself and Jude looked to be a bit beyond the toddler stage. A secret eyebrow was raised and then drooped hurridly--who was he to judge or assume or make crazy theories, there were more pressing matters at the moment. Making a good first impression with the owner of the bookstore was much more pressing, for example.
He traded places behind the counter once she found the cups she'd been looking for--the teen had never noticed them before, but that made sense if she wanted to use different cups than your average customer. His cleaning sense tingled just before a tiny finger smashed itself onto the glass--in the back of his mind something screamed Nooooooooo! over the death of the shiny display case glass. Then it moved on to other things, smudges weren't as bad as other scenarios. He listened to her order patiently and a calm smile found its way onto his face--he'd practiced it his first week there and now it came without command.
"Alright, just a second." The doughnut and pastry came out of the case through the use of some wax paper first and then the mugs were lifted off the counter to retrieve the tea. As he brought the drinks back to the counter the boy felt the need to explain himself to his employer. "Rosaline hired me a couple weeks ago, I'm gonna guess she didn't talk to you about it?" It was half a statement half a question. He didn't hand either plate or mug to woman or child, as he was unsure about the carrying situation--was it different with a child and hot cups? "Would you like help carrying or anything?" It made sense to off, as there was no line of patrons behind them.
Gold. Aurum Gold. It was a shame there weren't any aprons that came in Aurum Gold. It was shiny, it was yellowish... the color of cheese. No, there weren't many aprons that came in Aurum Gold. It had to be a descriptor.
Aurum Gold was the color of his life. Currently, his situation was golden. he'd talked with Rosali about cutting down on his Full Circle time, so he could focus on his upcoming Internship. They'd gotten around to hiring a new kid to fill in for the hours he wouldn't be saving the collective palate of New York, one cup of coffee at a time. The kid was green, but he seemed to be catching on. No notable microwave mishaps, no toaster terrors... no coffee catastrophes. Yet. He was passable. Aurum had taken that fact in good faith, and seen to getting the morning off. He had errands to do, and people to see. And so, he'd left the shift to Van.
The first thing he'd done that morning was visit the law offices he was to be interning at. He'd met with some people at Wayne and Clark associates to discuss rules, regulations, what he'd be doing, and who he'd be working with. For the most part, it sounded like Aurum would be getting a good view of the paperwork side of Law. That, he wasn't enthralled by. His Mentor, Lonnie Ozment, quickly told him he'd finagle Aurum some courtroom time, so he could get his thrills. The comment had been accompanied by an overconfident wink. Aurum wasn't sure about the wink. The information backing the wink, though, he could live with. Courtroom time, he'd agreed, would be fantastic.
They'd wrapped up their business, and Aurum had left. He'd finished his other errands. Now, all that was left... was pestering the coffee boy. It was time for coffee. Aurum made his way to the Full Circle.
He walked through the revolving doors casually. It wasn't everyday he could stop by the store to lounge, rather than work. Aurum looked around. His eyes fell on Ghost and... who was that she was with? She was also with The Kid. Aurum walked up behind them, and waited patiently, hands in his jacket pockets.
"Hey, Ghost." He said after a moment. It was a long time since he'd seen her. This was certainly a surprise.
Maya's brain didn't like the name Van Sanders-Adamson. It kept trying to say Van Sanders-Anderson. She heard it differently, but when she tried to form the words? Sanders-Anderson. Every. Time. She'd have to stick with Van then.
"Ah. No. Sorry that I wasn't here to meet you earlier, I was detained overseas."
"In France!"
"Well, detained in Romania. We picked up Jude in France. Oh. Actually, if you could put those on one of the tables over there that would be lo---Aurum!"
It had been so long! If she'd been strong enough she would have picked him up and slung him around in a circle. Instead she gave him a delicate hug. "Aurum, I want you to meet Jude. You know Jude. From the future?" Because that really explained everything quite nicely. Maya had met him some... 6 years from now? She was sure she'd mentioned him some time in their long days inventorying or something.
And it suddenly occurred to Maya that this was all very odd for Van.
Maya cleared her throat. "So how uhh.. are you enjoying your job, Mister Van?"
Jude was already at the table, sticking his fingers into the cream filling of his confection.
Posted by waitingtovan on Apr 8, 2010 18:09:20 GMT -6
Guest
Of course he was a surprise. The biggest question this provoked was: Was Van a good surprise, like extra money in a banking account or a nice card from an old friend, or was he the bad kind of unexpected-evil-in-law kind of surprise? There was a decidedly big difference. It was too soon to tell, the boy supposed since he didn't get any major vibes from his employer either way. Had he known she was detained overseas? Maybe, definitely maybe. He couldn't quite remember, his first days and his interview all kind of blurred together in a rush of scattered information.
A shrug to ward off the apology. His shoulders said 'it happens' and the rest of him stayed mute, so as not to step on some manners line in the sand that he couldn't see without corrective vision or a better grasp on social situations involving higher-ups than yourself.
Detained in France and Romania. Did that make Jude french? It seemed like it, based on his accent as well, but Van wasn't one for assuming things like that. Some bells tinkled in the back of the boy's mind about some news program or something about Romania, but he couldn't remember what it was about. Gray eyes were lifted from the conversation at the sound of the door and footsteps. Aurum, the barista who also helped train Van in had entered the bookstore and was heading towards them. The boy smiled when Maya/Ghost/Csendes stopped mid sentence to give an exclamation and hug the man behind her.
This was the perfect moment for Van to carry the order carefully from the counter to the table. When he got back to his post he turned back and saw the boy, Jude, sticking his fingers in the pastry. Maybe kids weren't so strange after all, Van did the same thing and he was almost an adult. A second quick trip was made with a pile of extra napkins for the table. This was plenty of distraction from the conversation that his employer had started with his trainer/coworker--it would have been awkward to listen in on the talk of people he didn't know well that he would be dealing with for some time in the foreseeable future.
Another rag and a spray bottle were procured to distract some more when he realized something had been directed at him. Blink. Blink. Spray the glass on the case to attack the residue of tiny fingers. Wipe. Pause. Look up. Hesitantly smile. "Very well. I mean, I like it a lot so far--a lot more than I thought I would, to be honest." Was that rude? He hadn't meant it as rude. Was he going to offend? Van was just being honest, it's what he did. Honesty was the best policy always, unless you were under threat of some physical pain or something--then maybe the young mutant would make some giant twists of the truth. The only person he ever tried to lie to was his father and that was a whole other bag.
The smile was genuine as the boy turned back to the smudged glass, making no apology for what he'd said. Sometimes it was best to ruin your shot early for something small rather than going out in a giant fiery ball of epic fail glory--or in this particular case maybe a fiery ball of burnt toast, scalding muffins, and a million health code violations. Van hated the smell of burnt toast.
Posted by Aurum Mellitus on Apr 14, 2010 15:35:20 GMT -6
Alpha Mutant
924
0
Feb 13, 2014 21:49:19 GMT -6
While he was waiting, Aurum couldn’t help but overhear Ghost’s comment about ‘France’. So, she’d been in France, huh? He wondered how that was. There was plenty of good food in France, after all. Romania, he had no idea about. And who was Jude—
>>” ---Aurum!"
Ghost turned to hug him. Aurum smiled. “Welcome back. Who is this?” He looked towards the younger child she was with. He hadn’t seen that kid before. He seemed… Aurum’s eyebrow rose as she replied to his question…. Futuristic. “Er, okay… Hey, Jude.” Aurum gave the child a friendly nod of acknowledgement. His eyes fell to the pastries and the glass. “Pastries, huh?”
He swung his attention back to The Kid, as The Other Kid (Jude) hurried off to the table to eat his pastry. Ghost had asked Van a question. Aurum watched Van’s cleaning and his reply for any signs of weakness.
“Glad to hear you’re getting used to it,” Aurum stated. “After you’re done with the cleaning, think you could grab me one of those chocolate pastries, too? And a cup of coffee? Thanks.” Aurum turned back to Ghost. “How have you been? Also… who’s Jude?” Last he’d checked, Ghost didn’t have a son. “I’m not sure what you meant by ‘future’.” Was that a joke? Aurum gave a light laugh, in case it had been.
Well, Mister Van's answer seemed right as rain. Ghost gave him a smile (a pat on the back would have been too personal) and went to pull apart her chocolate doughnut.
"Well ih tisn't the future now." With the cream filling on his face like that, it was hard to take him and his accent seriously.
"There's room for 3 here." At a table meant for two it'd be a squeeze, but what were friend's for? Ghost wrangled a chair for Aurum. "And you're free to pipe in if you like, Mister Van." That was a carte blanche for eaves dropping and contributing to their conversation if he so desired. Ghost always hated when employers pretended the employees were furniture, or worse, invisible.
"Aurum, do you remember when I blew out the windows on this block and we had to scrape up restitution money? You know... when I met Sebastian?" They pulled in a good amount of money at this venue, but she'd done a lot of money's worth of accidental damage. That was a poor looking month in the ledgers. Ghost had gone door to door with repair tickets in hand. One of the windows she'd destroyed in her not-really-haywire fit had been Sebastian's clinic window. The clinic she now lived above.
"That was after the future dream some of us refer to. I don't remember every detail, but I remember enough. And you can really meet a lot of people in ten years. Jude is someone who was very important to me in the future. Knowing what I know now about what might or could have happened, I wanted to know if it was real... or could have been. So I went to find Jude."
Jude waved. His pastry tucked away in his belly and a napkin scrubbing his hands. "I am real, I assure you. I am the me of now who is ten."
"And uh- ten years wiser than he ought to be. Just like the rest of us that shared the future dream." Though the extra knowledge didn't help Jude know that he still had cream puff on his cheek. Ghost used her own napkin to dab it off for him.
"Ghost and Sebastian adopt me so that I could come to here with them. Ghost is not my mama, but I have to stay with someone until I can be a grown mutant." And it was apparent in his tone that he would protest any more cheek wipings on principle. He was more than a ten year old, but at the same time still ten.
Posted by waitingtovan on Apr 17, 2010 20:46:36 GMT -6
Guest
So he'd said he hadn't exactly been thinking highly of working at a bookstore and there was a chance he was going to get in some kind of trouble for it. Van had paused his cleaning for a moment as he waited for a hint of reprimand or whatever it was that angry or insulted adults gave stupid teenagers that hadn't yet grasped the idea of putting a polite filter in their minds. Pause. Blink. Breath. Small sigh. Everything seemed alright, blue skies and all that. If he'd crossed some line no one was letting him know he had and the matter was quickly put out of the young man's mind. Smudges were bigger than honest comments anyway, and much easier to remove from most surfaces.
He was being spoken to again. Van looked up to see his employer's smile and to focus on Aurum as he asked for a coffee and a chocolate-thinger-ding. A moment later Jude chimed in with his cream filled accent something about it not currently being the future. What had he missed in his tunnel of cleaning distractions? "I think that could be arranged." He replied to the barista in a slightly dramatic slightly cheery tone before once again attempting to shine up the front case. Just a few more strokes and the glass would once again be glistening and perfect. It was strangely gratifying when Van knew that the display case and the counter he worked behind looked clean--just another random thing that he hadn't expected when he applied at Full Circle.
He was given permission to 'pipe in', which made everything a bit less uncomfortable. Not that the boy was all that up there in the uncomfortable department, but Van still felt like he was the random guy watching a reunion special on TV from a show that he knew nothing about. Maybe he'd listen to their conversation and throw his words in here and there or maybe he'd just watch enough commercials that he'd slide into part-time invisibility. "Alright." A greatful smile was thrown the way of the woman cast as his boss.
What were they talking about anyway? The future? Right. Van didn't have time to make sense of the talk about future something-or-anothers at the moment. He needed to be focused in the present, focused enough to get a doughnut and a coffee for the man that had helped train him on getting people doughnuts and coffee. With the case towel buffed to clear perfection he couldn't really put off the fetching without being epically rude.
More wax paper and some very very careful cup maneuvering later...
Van walked over to the table just in time to watch some cream being wiped off the cheek of Jude, who didn't look all that pleased to being wiped at. As he found places for a cup and a plate on the table the young mutant wondered if he'd ever looked at someone like that. Probably, but there was no way of being sure. Van didn't remember much about his early life--it all seemed a jumbled blur of legs and smoke and art shows. Part of him wanted to ask about the 'future dream' thing but instead the brunette found himself simply say: "There you go." In a much more normal tone than his previous one before turning to walk back to his counter.
Posted by Aurum Mellitus on Apr 18, 2010 16:11:35 GMT -6
Alpha Mutant
924
0
Feb 13, 2014 21:49:19 GMT -6
That’s true. It wasn’t the future now. It was the past. Two seconds from now, it would be the future… and there it went. A second ago was the future, two seconds from now in reverse, and this kid… was from the future, past-tense. So, he was part of Ghost’s future, and potentially, the shop’s. He was from the future, and he was it.
Cool. He also sounded French. Also cool. Ghost offered Aurum a seat. Aurum swung a look to the coffeeboy, then made his way to the table. The Kid would have to bring him the beverage and his pastry. And the Other Kid would need a napkin.
Ghost spoke, and Aurum nodded slowly. He remembered the unicorn, the emerald-eyed interloper, and the long words that required many thesauruses. How could he not? Ghost had nearly died. He still remembered the man’s eyes… those malicious malachite marbles that glared perversely at the world. They were the stuff of nightmares.
The rest of her description, Aurum couldn’t quite follow.
Dream? Hmm… confusing. He’d go with his definition of ‘person she knew in the future’. He was her ten seconds ago important person, and he’d be important twenty seconds ago, and two minutes into the future. He mattered. He was important, in the future, and in her past. There wasn’t much else to say. Okay. He still had cream on his nose. That was worth mentioning. Ghost took care of that.
“Interesting,” Aurum stated.
His coffee arrived. Also, interesting. Aurum took a drink. Things kept getting more interesting.
“You adopted him?” Aurum asked. He took a bite of his pastry, and chewed that thought over.
"Sebastian and I adopted him, yes." It wasn't like she just swooped out of the sky and stole him away all on her own. Maya definitely had an accomplice. "I know you're probably thinking I just made a big mistake, but I know Jude. I've known Jude for six or so years. At least. That's what it feels like." She felt a little defiant just speaking the words. Jude was just bobbing his head right along.
She didn't have to explain herself any further. She'd explained herself blue in the face (and Sebastian blue in the face translating) why it was so important for Jude to grow up in a nurturing environment.
"I only need adopting because of my age."
Well, he needed more than just age, but Maya had to learn the hard way that talking to him about it didn't make him understand. Until he came to the realization himself it probably would never sink in that though he'd dreamed up ten years of his life, he still had to live those again.
Whatever. Maya went back to the fastidious plucking apart of her chocolate doughnut. These things made her brain hurt.
"What have you been up to Aurum? I heard you cut way back on your hours."
Jude engaged sulk-mode while the adults went on with the boring talk. His confection long gone, he moved on to nursing his tea: no sugar, thanks. Because adults drank it that way (maybe minus a few sullen looks).
Posted by waitingtovan on Apr 26, 2010 13:35:35 GMT -6
Guest
At the table they were talking about Jude's adoption and more future things and it was all very strange--well, not that the boy had been adopted, just everything else. Maybe these people were LARPers or something and he was listening to some random role play. That seemed unlikely...Van didn't think they'd do something like that with a young child--that would be weird. Not, of course, that his employer and coworker couldn't be weird, but they just seemed so normal.
Comments from the uncomfortable boy: None. Nope. I'm not even going to touch that.
He wanted to know...but at the same time, it seemed like waaay to much information to delve into all at once, especially since he just met two of the three people at the table. Two out of three is failing...or something. I don't really remember. Van attempted the math in his mind but stopped because he had a short attention span and hated math anyway. Maybe I should go back to school...
Some random tidying up was done behind the counter and then the boy had nothing pressing to take up his time and attention. Gray eyes traveled once again to the table and noted that a certain young boy was sulking or pouting or whatever it was called when children looked unhappy and bored. This, the mutant behind the counter could relate to. Looking behind him at the low shelves behind the counter, Van looked for something to entertain the both of them.
"Hey Jude, wanna help me with something?" He'd found a deck of cards left by some other food counter worker after his or her shift. Normally Van avoided children, but he felt more comfortable with the not-confusing-or-weird child than the adults at this point.
Ghost and Sebastian adopted... But she was so young. He didn't think she'd made any sort of mistake, it's just that it was such an unusual choice.
"That's a lot of responsibility," Aurum commented, taking a sip of his coffee. "If you ever need help." He volunteered.
Here's the part where a more brave man might have volunteered his younger sister, a girl of baby-sitting age. Aurum was cautious. Ami was a handful. Likely, a bigger handful than Jude. He volunteered himself, in her stead, to save them both from a bad idea.
A smirk slipped across his lips as Jude defended himself. He only needed adoption due to his age. Right. That was entirely correct. The boy was smart. There were obviously other things he'd need, but age was indeed one factor in adoption cases.
Ghost turned the conversation back on him. Aurum set down his coffee for a moment, to talk.
"I've been looking into apprenticing at a law firm, and wrapping up the last bit of college before I get my J.D. degree. That's why I needed the extra time," he replied.
