Alex & Felix, backdated to May 21

[om_ghost]

Alex and Felix bump into each other when the re-organized squads are posted. Alex takes his teammate's weirdness in stride while Felix makes intrusive observations.


Ever since the headmasters had announced it, Alex had been both dreading and looking forward to the revised squad assignments. He hadn't been close to everyone on his old team, of course, but he'd definitely had time to get used to them. But he also supposed that, since it had to be done anyway, it might as well be now, when he was still getting used to all the other departures that had shaken up his small social circle.

So, there he was in the hall, studying the notice that had been pinned up earlier intently. There were some familiar names, and at least one major relief. And, if nothing else, at least he didn't see anybody he would have had reservations about working with. But that happened more often, since Damon and Anders had left.


Felix didn't mean to creep up behind Alex. He wasn't naturally stealthy nor particularly coordinated, he just didn't tend to make a lot of sound when he went anywhere. Only the soft scuffing of his shoes -- loafers, since he only wore gym shoes when actually in gym class -- announced his presence at the younger boy's side.

"Hi, Alex," said Felix absently, placing his glasses on his nose and settling them into position so he could read the posted listing. In the time they had been on the squad together, Felix had managed to catch up with Alex in height, and was well on his way to passing him. For now, it was comfortable enough not to have to crane his neck or tilt his head down to have a conversation with someone. "Oh... aren't we still Squad Four?"


Alex managed not to start too much when Felix spoke to him, but that was mostly because their being on the same squad had given the younger Summers time to get used to being startled by his quiet teammate. "It looks like we're Squad Six now," he said, his tone a bit dubious. "But at least we've still got a few familiar faces on board. And we'll be fine as long as Nori's around to keep the new kids in line, right?"


"She's even better at it than Brian was," Felix agreed, stepping up close to read the printed list. After barely a moment, he gasped, and suddenly, the normally quiet and dreamy-eyed redhead was positively alight with excitement. His eyes lit up like he'd just been given a present, and he turned to Alex with his hands pressed together as though he needed to contain them somehow.

"Caius is on our squad now! Isn't that fantastic?"


Alex squinted at the list. "Oh, yeah. I guess he is." He shrugged. "I mean, I guess I don't know him all that well, so ... it's not bad news? Anyway, I'm glad you'll have another friend around to train with. That's always good." He really wasn't sure what to add; Caius Greylace's inclusion on their squad really didn't mean very much to him personally--he hadn't exchanged more than a handful of words with the kid, since he'd arrived! But it was rare to see Felix this excited, in Alex's experience, and he definitely didn't want to be the asshole who put a damper on it. So. "I'm sure you guys will have a blast. And that makes it a great addition to the team, in my book."


Felix positively beamed at Alex in approval, and the expression transformed the normally shy young man into someone momentarily, almost startlingly, beautiful. If Alex was just humoring him, Felix didn't recognize it at all, and took him at his word. "Caius is a most astonishing person, and his abilities are so unique. With the way things were before, there really wasn't anyone I could..."

He fluttered his hands meaninglessly, as if to convey something specific, but only Felix understood whatever he meant. The entire squad had likely felt the tension between Felix and Victor that had rapidly cooled into Felix pretending that said tension didn't exist. Young, inexperienced, and somewhat isolated by the confusing nature of his abilities, Felix had been rather alone on the team. "Perhaps I can actually contribute now."


... Alex wasn't exactly sure what to say to that. On the one hand, he didn't want to make Felix think that he hadn't believed he'd been contributing; true, he wasn't exactly the most motivated member of the squad, but nobody had really expected him to be. Frankly, Alex was a bit surprised the airy--no, ethereal, that was the word--ethereal teen had humored the rest of him as long as he had. Mostly, it had seemed like training had been kind of an imposition, and as much as the younger Summers had felt it was necessary, it had also kind of felt like they'd been a bit demanding.

On the other hand, he definitely didn't want to discourage Felix, if he really felt like this might be the thing that got him interested in training. Hell.


Smiling, Alex said, "Well, that's about the best recommendation I've ever heard. Can't wait to see what you guys can do, when you put your heads together.


Looking pleased, Felix finally settled his over-active hands, and leaned his weight back on his heels. "We'll do our best to impress all of you, I'm sure." For the first time, it did seem like maybe Felix was interested in being part of the team. It wasn't really something he had considered before, but now, possibilities were taking root in the back of his mind. Perhaps he wouldn't give up squad training after all.

"Do you know the other new boys? Tim and Conner? They live next door to me, they came in together."


The blond Summers shook his head. "I've seen 'em around in class and stuff, yeah, but I can't really say I know them. Drake seems like he has a pretty good head on his shoulders, though. And Kent ... well, it looks like he listens to Drake? Most of the time, anyway. So it seems like a pretty good addition, personality-wise.

"Powers wise," he added, a bit more uncertainly, "I guess we'll see." Getting a bunch of teenagers used to real teamwork was hard enough. Finding a half-dozen seemingly random mutant abilities that complemented each other was even worse.


Felix stopped himself from announcing Tim's power just in time; it was considered rude, in the very local etiquette Felix had observed at school, to give away other people's abilities. "Timothy seems like a good leader. Noriko could probably use him, considering Brian's graduated."

There was no doubt in Felix's mind that Noriko would take the lead in their team. She practically had already done so, if Brian Braddock hadn't been a little older than the rest of them. What was more, Felix would actually consider listening to Noriko. He was just a little afraid of Brian. "Caius and me, Tim and Conner... maybe you and Benjamin will partner up too? Goodness. You'd be a tremendously powerful team, wouldn't you?"


Alex's chuckle was more than a bit nervous. "I guess? I mean, Ben really doesn't seem like the sort of guy who needs a partner, you know? Kind of like Laura. I'd always feel like I was dragging him down. I mean, I can hold my own okay, when I have to," he added quickly. "Toph was giving me lessons, before she decided to go home. And I get in as much practice time as I can. But he's just ..." The blond teen trailed off, waving a hand. "He's on a whole other level, you know? I guess I'll just have to play heavy artillery for the rest of you."


To Felix, people with physical abilities or prowess or even just good solid training were all in the same vague category: people who knew what to do with their bodies. Felix would sort of prefer not to have one at all, if he'd been asked. "We are supposed to all learn to work together, I suppose." He was less concerned with the reality of it than his own imaginings of what that might mean, now that he'd abandoned the idea of leaving the squad. "Ben might need help with other things," Felix added, thinking of the assistance he'd needed with English and understanding the meaning of stories.


"I guess that's true," Alex conceded with a thoughtful nod. "There's more to being on a team than just the ass-kicking part, for sure." Still, the blond Summers shrugged, guffawing helplessly. "I can't imagine what anybody'd need my help with that didn't involve blowing things up ... Maybe a walking space-heater? Towel-warmer? My brain's definitely not the biggest in school. I'm kinda a one-trick pony, I guess. Not that it's a bad trick. Just applies in a very limited set of circumstances, you know? If we'd gotten to pick, I think I probably would have gone with something more versatile."


Felix had some other things with which Benjamin needed assistance in mind. Things like talking comfortably to people, and understanding jokes. Things that Alex seemed pretty good at, even if he was rather self-deprecating at times. "There's more to it than our abilities," Felix observed thoughtfully. "You, Noriko and Benjamin have the most firepower, metaphorically speaking, but none of you are just a weapon and you wouldn't want to be seen that way. I doubt Benjamin does, either. I think you'd be a benefit to each other."


The blond teen's nose wrinkled. "I dunno if I'd be the best role-model, y'know? I mean, if my orphan issues don't warp him, my kid-brother issues probably will. But yeah, I do get your point, and it makes sense. Ben's the kind of guy who needs more help outside of training, right? And I guess that's something I could try to help him out with--I'm not the most popular guy at the school, but maybe that's a good thing. Like the social equivalent of training wheels, or something. Setting realistic and achievable goals, like occasionally going out for a burger, or talking to girls." Alex colored slightly. "Or boys. Or ... you know, whatever works."


Though he tried to lift his hands in a faintly quelling gesture, Felix couldn't manage to stem the flow of Alex's self-deprecation. Even if he'd heard Alex talk this way in squad practice plenty of times, he still wasn't really accustomed to it. Or comfortable with it. Possibly because it pricked too close to his own fears of inadequacy. "Just talking to people would be a start," said Felix with a small smile, privately amused at how cute Alex was when he got pink. "Maybe in return Benjamin can help you get through a sentence without putting yourself down?"


"Heh, that would be a pretty great trick, wouldn't it?" Alex said, scrubbing at the back of his head. Then he flushed a deeper shade of red, and gave Felix an alarmed look. "Wait ... It's not actually that bad, is it? I don't really whine that much, do I?"


"It's not whining," Felix answered, blinking as he leaned back slightly, as if trying to see Alex more clearly. "You learned to do it, one way or another. You can learn to stop, too."


"Maybe, I guess," he said with a shrug that was even less decisive than his reply. "It's just kind of surprising to find out I do it so much that even you've noticed." Alex held up his hands apologetically almost at once. "No offense, Felix. It's just you don't always seem, uh, completely engaged. So I wouldn't have expected something like that to catch your attention. It's a little embarrassing." More than a little, but a tendency toward understatement seemed to be one of those Summers traits that had survived the years of separation and surrogate caretakers more or less wholly intact.


Felix's brows lifted, but he didn't seem to be insulted by Alex's choice of words. Quite the contrary. Alex saw what Felix wanted him to see, so Felix could observe the others safely. Privately. "No offense taken. I suppose I listen to how people speak, maybe more than what they say." He smiled a small smile, then, and added, "There's nothing to be embarrassed about. But if you feel shy about my paying attention to you, I understand."


Smiling sheepishly, Alex replied, "As long as you're not paying that much attention, it's fine. I mean, that'd be good advice for anybody, not listening too closely to what I say--I stick my foot in my mouth so much, I'm a little surprised I don't have athlete's tongue, or something."


Very suddenly, Felix burst out in a laugh, that seemed to be very much against his better judgement. His nose wrinkled in distaste even as he did, at the very thought of such a malady. "Oh, Alex, really!" he laughed, the words tumbling out musically even as he feigned drawing back in horror. "My advice, don't say that to girls... or boys, or whatever works," Felix advised, borrowing Alex's own phrasing from earlier.


Alex laughed. To see Felix so animated in his reaction, so suddenly removed from the distant and dreamlike way he usually interacted with people, it was ... pretty cool, actually. Made him feel kind of special, like he was catching a once-in-a-lifetime glimpse of something that only a very select few ever got to see. "Probably a good thing I don't try to talk to whatever works all that often," he said, grinning, though the blush refused to die entirely. "I'm almost as bad at sweet-talk as I am the ... not being conspicuously self-deprecating all the time. I'll work on that."


"I believe in you," Felix promised, now that he had settled down from his conflicting reactions. "One step at a time, after all. But, you know, it's all right. You're a bit cute when you're flustered, and that counts for a lot." He explained this to Alex as a simple, helpful fact without anything leading or hinting behind it. Just because Felix was queer and the entire school knew it didn't mean that he was after every boy there.


"Then I must be really, really cute," Alex replied ruefully, in a tone that suggested he still might be a bit skeptical. "Because I've noticed I tend to get flustered a lot." He shrugged. "My lack of an active dating life aside, it looks like I'll have plenty of squad stuff to distract me. Probably for the best; Cat probably wouldn't like it if I were to start spending all my free time with another human being. She thinks love bites and the occasional bloody clawing are all the affection I should need."


Felix didn't think there was a girl named Cat at the school, so he decided it must be an actual cat. He pressed his brightly-decorated hands together in a moment of excitement. "Oh! Do you have a secret pet? Caius and I have... well, rather, I think Fix has us, because we bring him food and he sort of just looks at us oddly, but, he's a fox. He lives in the woods."


It probably would have alarmed Alex to know there was a fox on the grounds back when his cat had been smaller ... but, at this point, he could only feel a tremendous swell of sympathy for anything that crossed his mostly-grown sort-of-pet. That, and it was really pretty awesome that Felix and Caius had their own fox. Awesome, and weirdly appropriate. "She's not such a secret--she's pretty much taken over the barn where they keep the horses. Most of the students that go riding have at least seen her--most of them feed her, too. That doesn't stop her from trying to give me dead mice, for some reason." He shrugged. "But, yeah, I think that's what most animals do, no matter how domesticated we think they are. We give them food, and they look at us like we're crazy or slow for doing it. Ingrates."


A giggle escaped Felix, and he touched his fingers to his mouth as though to muffle it, or keep it from venturing forth too far. He didn't mention that he rarely went in the direction of the barn because the horses were large and kind of frightening to him. It was enough just to listen to Alex talk about the cat (named Cat), and to see that he was clearly fond of the animal despite his complaints. "I suppose it's just as odd as the cat bringing dead mice to you. She doesn't understand why you don't want to eat them, I expect."


Alex appeared to think that over for a few moments, then gave a decisive shake of his blond head. "Nah," he said. "I think she's just a jerk, and likes freaking me out by dropping half-gutted mice into my lap. But what can you do? I'm pretty sure I'm stuck with her now."


"Maybe," Felix theorized, tilting his head and letting his attention drift to some meaningless corner of the ceiling, getting that disconnected look in his eyes that usually meant he wasn't fully in the real world any more, "maybe one day we'll have a student who talks to animals. Do you think that's a kind of mutation? Then we would know what Cat and Fix are thinking. I should like to know. Then I could take him chicken if he likes chicken better than fish."


"I don't see why not," said Alex, his smile edging on a smirk as Felix's expression assumed a familiar, faraway cast. "I mean, it probably wouldn't be like telepathy, like the Professor or Psylocke use, but I can't see why not. Animals seem to communicate with each other just fine, so their brains must have the right kind of wiring for it. Why shouldn't some kid turn up someday who's a real-life Dr. Doolittle?"


Felix gave a little thoughtful hum, and had already begun to wander away from the bulletin board. He might well become lost if he wandered without paying attention, but this did not seem to concern him. "If they do, we might keep them quite busy. I hope they're prepared. You know, now I'm a bit hungry for chicken."


It might have been a little off-putting, Alex supposed, to people who didn't know him. But Felix's sudden detachment from their conversation wasn't really anything new, and certainly wasn't any kind of personal thing. Ghost was just ... Ghost. He only seemed about half-engaged with the rest of the world at the best of times--and tenuously, too. He waved at the ephemeral boy's back as the other mutant set off. "Guess you probably oughta do something about that, then," he said. "Catch you later, Felix."


"Bye, Alex," Felix answered, at least aware enough of his surroundings to partially hold up his end of the conversation. He wiggled his fingers lazily in a wave over his shoulder, and wandered down the hall not actually in the proper direction of the cafeteria.

Comments

[om_red]

I love so many things about this log, but mostly I love that Alex named his cat Cat. Like. Really, honey?

But excellent growth and development for these boys

[om_velikaia]

Caius loves this thread, mainly for his part in it but this should not come as a surprise. He also always loves anything that brings his best friend out of his shell (especially when he's part of making that happen).