metaheroes | ourpowers | text

i'll let you know when i'm done with my business

( which involves a little intimidation and a few additional birds on a rooftop. it goes--surprisingly well, all things considered. no one comes out of it bruised or beat up, jason doesn't have to take out his knife. only one bullet gets used. and then there's fucking with kyle inside a different coffee shop, which keeps him from getting too pissed at the turn of events that left him stuck here.

another coffee shop means another, actual-coffee coffee. jason sits himself down with his back against the wall and sips idly at the nice hot coffee in his hands. there's no red hood mask, no visible weapons--and he looks, for all intents and purposes, the same as he did the day he stepped off the shuttle returning to earth from the moon. )

Edited (if i use the same icon twice in a row i'll be sad) 2023-03-06 01:12 (UTC)

[ Stephen arrives and clocks Jason immediately - an odd feeling, to see a familiar face he's not seen in months, one from a world that wasn't his until it was. No doubt he's been noticed right back: Stephen, for his part, looks barely a little older but so much less harrowed than he was in the time after the Aerie. Hands still scarred, no sign of a lightning scar creeping out from under the collar of his shirt.

Too bad for Jason that he arrived first or Stephen might've asked Perry for a second free coffee. As it is he keeps his cool long enough to wait for a latte, accept it with a laugh at a customarily stupid joke, then finally makes his way over. ]

You're in one piece. That's a strong start.

( he hopes stephen doesn't think he actually bought this with money he'd earned, or the card given by the alliance, because really: jason just picked the nearest, richest person's pocket and stole a few bucks out of their wallet before returning it.

fuck the alliance and also he's not getting a real job. when strange approaches, he raises a hand in a mock little wave, and rocks back on the balls of his feet so the chair's front legs come off the floor. sitting normally is for scrubs. )

But I was very intimidated. All I wanted was a nice rooftop meet up and instead I was surrounded by birds. ( the grin says he's bullshitting, why would it have been intimidating? except the grin doesn't quite meet his eyes; feels a little like being replaced with someone else, when his family appears out of the blue to protect someone who isn't him but is. clearly they've found a younger, better model, why bother dicking around with someone who's already tried to come back again only to fuck up harder? ) We've all said our hellos, so no one's gonna be surprised when they see my face around.

Good. The last thing we need is a sudden outbreak of avian attrition warfare.

[ Making himself at home with a chair pulled out and settled into, Stephen sets his cup down on the table and takes a moment to just. Look Jason over. But low and behold, he looks fine, if strange now against the backdrop of a 21st century American coffee shop. The pause breaks with a sucked in breath, Stephen shaking himself out of the easy drift into memories of another world. ]

Where are you staying?

[ Not the Diadem, obviously. First things first: get everyone settled. ]

Can't a guy have a few days to figure his shit out, Stephen? I did just get here.

( he'll likely settle with damian, if he settles at all. fuck around in kyle's apartment, because antagonizing kyle is it's own reward. and he's shown enough concern to be absolutely disgusting with it, so clearly jason has to fix that.

for now: he takes another several gulps of his coffee to finish off the cup. who knew how much he'd miss the bitter taste of bean juice. )

You'll likely get your bird fight eventually. Too many of 'em stuck in the same small space. ( read: he's here now. )

Not if it means the guy's sleeping on the streets of Central City, no.

[ Look, Jason may be a big mob boss man, but he's also the these-days-baby brother of a man who has officially labelled himself Stephen's family. If that doesn't give him the right to give a shit, what will?

He does let it drop enough for the conversation to move on, distracted with a smirk by the guzzling of coffee. He can barely remember what it was like to really miss it now, the transition not having been so abrupt in his case, but he definitely drinks more of it these days than he used to. ]

I'd rather I didn't, but I'll be ready to referee. You want another?

[ He has a feeling Jason may soon find himself on the brink of the shakes, but who's he to deny him the sweet bean nectar? ]

( what if he wants to sleep on the streets, stephen. why do you hate him and his big exciting plans. why can't he be a street rat again? he was so good at it the last time.

but no comment means that strange will drop it so that's what he goes for. luckily for both of them, jason doesn't get the caffeine shakes. but he does get the restlessness associated with them--which he's getting mildly close to. )

I'll take another. Never thought I'd be happy to find a cafe before. ( but more importantly, with a surprisingly (fake) sincere grin: ) If a bird fight does break out, you gonna take my side?

Depends. Will you still be a pigeon?

[ Pigeons: the rat of the bird world. A.k.a he hasn't, in fact, dropped it. An equally sincere (fake) smile and he leans back over his shoulder, calling over to the little place's owner for another coffee. "Coming right up!" is the peppy response, and then he's back in the convo. ]

I have room when you need. I don't think my place is your scene, but it's better than the ground.

Ouch. ( what did he ever do to you, stephen. was it the stabbing in the safehouse? he's running with it being the stabbing in the safehouse. a legitimate thing to be pissed about; less so the stabbing of himself in there, but jason being pissed off about strange being upset with him. but jason's still angry about stephen backing up clarke, too. fuck clarke griffin. if he ever sees her face again he's going to make sure she regrets stepping in his space.

maybe. )

I can handle myself, even if I've lost the edge of having a big, cushiony group of thugs to fall back on. ( hand raising to his neck, to press his palm against one of the nastier scars there. ) 've got a friend here, from back home.

Yeah? Which friend?

[ Truth told Stephen's spent relatively little time around his fellow Starfallen lately, so there's every chance they won't have met. But that leaves some chance that they will have, so it's worth the enquiry. He's interested to know what kind of a person a Jason Todd of pre-New Amsterdam fame would've deigned to call a friend.

Or perhaps that's only a title he'd reach for now. All the same, the curiosity's there.

Meanwhile, Perry behind the counter issues a too-fun "One coffee for Strange!" and Stephen, rolling his eyes in fond disparagement, throws a thanks back at him and flicks his fingers in the air. The coffee floats on over to them of its apparent own accord, settling on the table in front of Jason.

Oh, right. He's a wizard now. ]

( kyle's not a secret anyway. hasn't had a reason to be, as a spaceman who rarely sets his feet down on earth these days. all the people who made him vulnerable have already died. which is sad as fuck if jason stops to think about it.

so he doesn't. he does open his mouth to give his name, when strange just. makes their coffee float over to them and jason shuts his mouth again.

watches it. )

Pick up something new?

[ Oh.

Right. Stephen blinks, recalibrates, then - smirks a very self-satisfied smirk. ]

Regained something old.

[ Surprise, he was a wizard this whole time. ]

( why is almost everyone he knows powered. is this a club that he was shoved into as an afterthought? is coming out of a lazarus pit and eventually chilling out jason's superpower. does tony have one too. )

Green Lantern. He's an asshole. ( like attracts like. ) He can create essentially anything he can think of. An' he's one of the stronger ( strongest, but jason's not giving him that. ) ones. Essentially, an overpowered glowstick.

( he's grabbing that coffee, thanks. and drinking it. )

He's one of the good guys. Better'n me.

[ It's not a surprise that Jason takes that in stride. By the sounds of things, his world isn't so unlike Stephen's own: this shit happens.

Speaking of... Green Lantern. As hero names go, that one has to take a cake. ]

You Robin Hood the mafia then repurpose them, how high's the bar?

[ Jason's good, that much is irrefutable, but that doesn't mean he can't be playfully sassy about his methods. A sip of scalding coffee as a prelude, giving just enough time to either let guards down or to pull them up for the inevitable - ]

So you'll stay on his couch?

[ Turns out he's not going to drop this one, actually. ]

Heroics scale of one to ten: I get one, GL's more of a nine.

( superman gets a ten just because superman, and kyle gets half a point taken off for being a snarky asshole. but it's close enough. kyle gets high points because he's dumb and heroic and a space ranger who does space ranger shit in his dumb near-spandex hero get up. and jason gets a one for being a fuck up. )

Nah--he's more of a cuddler. Likes to be the little spoon.

( they're not cuddling. jason isn't sleeping on his couch. imagine how terrible that would go. )

[ Sorry - a one? There's an immediate little furrow between Stephen's brows at the comment, amusement bordering concern. Is that a joke? Surely. Stephen had been joking, is he going to have to regret it?

It means that the actual joke goes ignored, alas, and Kyle wherever he is is welcome. ]

One, huh. This guy must really be something. [ He'll let it breeze past, knowing how fond they all are of conversations bordering vulnerability, but let the record show he has a complaint. Speaking of complaints - ] If you're not going to stay at his place, don't put him on your list of 'I'll be fine' refutes when my offer was for a somewhere to crash. You need a roof over your head.

( stephen's determination is noted, but it's pushing hard enough that jason decides the easiest path to take here is the one that gets him the fuck out of here. he's counting at least two 'no's' with strange still trying for it. he's not sticking around for number three. so he pulls himself up to his feet, coffee still in hand. )

You've got an easier line in with me than most. ( free hand raising to scratch at the back of his head. a reminder of his fun and exciting gifts from new amsterdam. ) Use it if you need it. You're not gonna find my name anywhere else. ( well. ) Not me with it.

[ Aaand he's lost him. It's not surprising but it's still frustrating: Jason can, of course, look after himself. He doesn't doubt that. But he's new here, fresh out of a life that has treated them - not kindly always, maybe, but kindly in the parts they'd made their own - and into a world where not all family is family and friends don't always remember their names, and that makes him vulnerable.

Perhaps not so vulnerable that Stephen needs to worry. But he can't help but be aggravated that the help he has on hand can't just be accepted. Call it a lack of practice. It's been a surprisingly long time since he last had to do battle with a wayward youth over their own basic welfare.

Since he has lost him, Stephen doesn't bother rattling on any further. He stands too, head tilted in a wry riff on I'm not angry I'm just disappointed, and rather than take the bait of Jason's cool exit speech steps away from the table until he's got enough room to slip his sling ring from out of his pocket and raise his hands to tear a hole in space, amber sparks shaping the frame of the portal he's just created.

He steps through. Turns so he's looking back into the coffee shop, while behind him the foyer of an old Victorian manor house sprawls in all its over-embellished, vaguely spooky glory. ]

Got it. If you ever want a tour of Sunset Falls [ or a bed for the night, but he's done harping on a non-starter ] you know how to reach me.

( if he had a penny for every time someone pulled the i'm not angry with you i'm just disappointed face out on him, he'd--not be rich, but have a shitton of pennies. usually he gets the i'm disappointed and angry ones which are significantly easier to handle because anger he can manipulate. disappointment just stings.

his brows furrow tight, nose scrunching up and he opens his mouth like he's got something else to add to the conversation, something biting, something to get that look off of strange's face.

except then he opens a fucking portal in the middle of a coffee shop. he knows zatanna, john constantine, dr fate--but they're all leagers who are. out of his league. and he doesn't remember any portals from the brief time he'd spent around them. not like that anyway.

surprise gives way back to irritation, but the snarky comment he was going to give falls off his tongue, so he's left with-- )

Yeah, whatever.

[ The mock up of disappointment does slip here, replaced with an exasperated almost-fondness. It's been a while since he last contended with Jason's specific brand of obstinance. Funny what you can miss without realising it. ]

You're not alone here. Try not to act like you are.

[ And with those parting words of unsolicited wisdom that echo sentiments he's already shared with Jason in a world far, far away, Stephen let's the portal spin closed.

On his way out, Perry the owner will offer Jason a pastry on the house. ]

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