Nightscrawlers

timeline: current


Rachel: Rachel peered around the store Jean had led her into, warily eying the various racks of clothing and accessories. Raking her fingers through her hair, she considered all the brightly colored items and shifted awkwardly after sparing a glance down to herself. Yep, she didn't fit in… Sighing, she muttered, "This is like shopping with Paige."

Jean: "Paige has awesome taste then!" Jean was right at home, and immediately gravitated toward a hot pink skirt. "O.M.G. That's so cute! Need! Want!" She turned toward her cousin and held it up to her waist to show off. "This would look fantastic with some stilettos! OH! Or boots! Yeah... boots..."

Rachel: She blinked as she spun around to face her with the skirt, biting down on her lip as she considered the article of clothing. She vaguely gestured toward the opposite wall, offering, "I think there's some over there?"

Jean: Jean's eyes went round, head swinging around to look so quickly that her hair swooshed. "Boooooots!" Thrusting the skirt at Rachel, she was gone - on a mission for the cutest boots in the store.

Rachel: …This was definitely like shopping with Paige, except she was fairly sure it wasn't as fun. Taking the skirt, she trailed after Jean toward the small section of shoes, "So, I can choose the next store, right?"

Jean: "Yeah, sure, I don't care. I'm guessing the creepy one with the guy with green hair and the dog collar at the counter?" She stopped fondling a shoe to look at her cousin. "I wonder if he's a mutant? Think we should ask?"

Rachel: Rachel found herself glad she hadn't kept the green she'd dyed her hair for Halloween, but she nodded, "Yeah, that one, and I doubt he is…"

Jean: "We could check for roots?" She flipped her hair and put two fingers to her temple, screwing up her eyes in a squint. "Or, you know, check."

Rachel: "Or, y'know, just check out the clothes instead of the guy?" she suggested with a snort, shaking her head as she reached for a pair of boots.

Jean: Making an irritated sound, she snatched the skirt back. "No fun." As if there was anything in that store she would want. It was all black! Black! "Jess was more fun to shop with, bitch."

Rachel: Rachel held up the boots for her cousin to see, rolling her eyes, "Well, Paige is more fun than you."

Jean: "Only because you're boning her." Jean had to stop and think about this. "Or, well... not boning, but whatever you... oh my god, is that what you do?!" Luckily, in her flailing Jean didn't vocalize her mental image of teke bones. She may have projected it, however.

Rachel: While she'd had a response to that, she found herself floundering for words at that mental image, eventually stuttering out, "N-no! That's not… No!"

Jean: "No?" As horrifying as it had been, it had seemed pretty logical - to her, anyway. "So what do you -- wait, no. NO. Why am I asking this!?" Jean shuddered and spun back around. Shoes. She needed shoes.

Rachel: "I don't know! What is wrong with you?!" Rachel exclaimed as she turned to place the boots back on the shelf, taking a deep breath to compose herself. She stared down at the shoe boxes as she blew it out, vaguely wondering how they were going to make it through the day together. Clearing her throat, she turned, "Anyway…"

Jean: "I don't know! I'm clearly, clearly traumatized by this whole conversation." Jean made an expansive gesture with both hands to indicate the situation, then grabbed the boots Rachel had abandoned back up.

Rachel: "It wouldn't be half as traumatizing if I didn't know what you were thinking," she hissed.

Jean: "Blame our parents for that. Well, the Grey side anyway." She waved just one hand now, since she was busy looking for her size.

Rachel: Rachel watched Jean for a few moments, biting down on her lip as she considered that. She started slowly, "Speaking of our family and parents…"

Jean: "Oh God, no. Not even." Finding the box she wanted, Jean made a happy sound and dropped herself onto one of the chic modern seats to try them on. "I'm so not talking to my parents. Like, ever."

Rachel: "Oh… No," she shook her head as she leaned back against a shelf, crossing her arms, "That's not where I was going with that."

Jean: "Okay, well, thank God, because they can suck your bone." She smiled up at Rachel and zipped the boot.

Rachel: "Yeah, I can't exactly say anything since I'm pretty bad about talking to mine half the time," Rachel snorted, awkwardly adding, "But, I… I was just, um…" Why was she even considering talking to Jean about this? "Actually, never mind."

Jean: Jean finished with the other boot and hopped up, checking her reflection and posing, on her toes, even though the heels were already a good four inches. "This would look sooooo good with that skirt! And with my skinny jeans! Mine!"

Jean: The hard decision made, she looked at Rachel. "Never mind what? Now you have to tell me. That's, like, not fair."

Rachel: "I clearly have the best tastes," Rachel decided as she eyed the boots. Pushing a hand through her hair, she paused, huffed out a sighed, and tried again, "Fine, fine… What would you think if I, uh, if I had a kid?"

Jean: Jean stared at Rachel. She blinked. Then, she started laughing. "That's... that's fucking hilarious!"

Rachel: She blinked right back, her brow furrowing at the laughter. "Seriously."

Jean: The laughter died. "You're shitting me."

Rachel: "Not really…" Rachel weakly answered, shaking her head, "I mean, not necessarily me but Paige…"

Jean: "Paige wants a kid?!" Jean blinked some more for good measure. "I guess I could see that, but you?" There was just no way that was a good idea. "You don't even like not-kids!"

Rachel: "Well, can you blame me with our family? I mean, even with just my part of the family?" She had no idea how much Jean actually knew about that, but whatever.

Jean: "Well, no. But our genes have to have something wrong with them," she agreed.

Rachel: "I don't think it'd have any of mine, so that'd make it safe, right?" Then, she thought about what she'd just said. "Y'know, beside the whole parenting part…  You don't think I'd be that bad at it, right? Maybe?"

Jean: "You, like, used to carve on yourself like a Thanksgiving turkey. And so don't even pretend you didn't, because I could see the scars."

Rachel: Rachel opened her mouth, closed it, looked down at the tiled floor, and ran a hand over her forearm. Finally, she muttered, "It's not like I do that anymore… Or even considered it since, like… Well, y'know. Plus, what does that have to do with anything we're talking about?"

Jean: "Well, yeah, I guess, but you were like crazy... and you went all super crazy, like, last year!" Jean didn't see how Rachel was so retarded she couldn't see what this had to do with the subject at hand.

Rachel: "I'm pretty sure I was crazy before I was doing that, and last year…" she shook her head, sighing once more, "Okay, yeah, I'm not the best example, and I pretty much suck at life." Managing a tight grin, she nodded toward the register, "Let's go buy your skirt and boots and go bother the guy with green hair."

Jean: "No arguments here." Jean decided she wanted to wear the boots, and skipped to the register.

Rachel: Rachel scrubbed at her face as she waited for Jean to check out, starting out of the shop as soon as she was finished, heading toward her desired destination. After a moment, she commented, "Paige thinks I'd be good…"

Jean: "That's because Paige is all woobly-bears in loooooove with your crazy ass!" Jean nodded decisively, her package swinging from her arm as they walked.

Rachel: Looking over to her, she smirked widely as she suggested, "Or maybe it's because I'm so good at boning her."

Jean: "EW!" She smacked her with the bag. "EWEWEWEW! That's so not even, like, remotely funny!"

Rachel: "I couldn't resist! You set me up for that one!" Rachel protested as she turned to the side, guarding herself with her arm as Jean whacked her.

Jean: "Ueaaaghsfhsolghugh!" Jean shuddered dramatically and then walked on as if nothing had happened, ignoring the looks the pair was receiving from other shoppers.

Rachel: She was snickering as she slipped into the darker store, peering around for something that'd catch her attention before giving the dude behind the counter a nod. She'd joked with Paige she was going to buy pants more awful than the plaid ones, and she'd possibly spotted a pair.

Jean: Jean followed her into the store, curling into herself as if the awful clothes were going to reach out and grab her.

Rachel: Gravitating toward the pair of black and white striped pants, Rachel held them up for Jean to see. "How bad do you think these are?" Then, she reached for a leopard print pair. "Worse than these?"

Jean: "The leopard print would make you look like a middle-aged crack whore, and the stripes look like something my old roommate had. Soooo, whichever dreg of society look you're going for!" She gave a cheerful thumbs up.

Rachel: "Well… I already have leopard print pants, so I'll just go with no… and I may not wear them again unless I plan on going to visit my dad," Rachel said as she placed them back on the rack, considering her other option, "Also, I like Cassie, so I don't think that'd be too bad…"

Jean: Jean's expression was all the commentary needed on that. She watched her with the stripey pants for a time and then, growing bored, pushed through hangers to look at the clothing on display. Ugh. Ugh. Ugh. No. Maybe? NO.

Rachel: Amused, Rachel watched Jean's face contort in various forms of disgust as she flicked through the clothes, snorting as she held onto her find while she went to look at the jewelry in the case. Maybe she could find some earrings. Or a new septum ring.

Jean: Well, that was black, but it had pink on it. Pink skulls. Could she do pink skulls? But it was pink... Torn, she pulled the shirt off the hanger and went after Rachel. "What do you think?"

Rachel: Sparing it a glance, she shook her head, "I think I'd never wear that."

Jean: "Awesome, I'll take it!" Jean nodded. "It'll go with my boots and my skirt." She smiled. "I guess you're not totally useless!"

Rachel: "Oh, thanks," Rachel drew out sarcastically, rolling her eyes, "It's nice to know you've a slightly higher opinion of me."

Jean: "Just slightly." She sniffed, looking at the jewelry with another look of disgust. After another few moments of silence, she looked at her cousin. "Do you want a kid?"

Rachel: Motioning the guy behind the counter over to open the jewelry case to buy her time, she remained silent as she considered an answer while she picked out the ring she wanted. "I… I might, but…" she trailed off, shaking her head as she placed her selection back in favor of another.

Jean: Jean tried on a ring with spikes - neon green spikes. "But what? You either do or you don't."

Rachel: But the prospect was terrifying? However, she wasn't quite willing to admit that to Jean and insisted, "It's not that simple. I mean, you're practically committing yourself to five years of torture…"

Jean: "Five years? How about, like, a lifetime?" She still regularly deleted her parents' voicemails, so she knew this well.

Rachel: "Yeah, but the first… Well, no. I was - am - pretty awful…" she frowned, placing her second selection back on the hook as well, trying another as she groaned, "I don't want a kid like me."

Jean: "Well... I guess it'd be Paige's anyway." Jean shrugged, finding a slave bracelet and trying that on too. "But you could fuck it up by, like, raising it."

Rachel: Rachel nodded. "That is exactly my point."

Jean: "Plus the kid would be a freak on two levels since it'd have 'my two mutant moms,'" she said breezily, picking out another ring to add to her collection as she made her air quotes.

Rachel: She shrugged as she picked up another nose ring, deciding this was definitely an improvement compared to the first two she'd looked at, "It's not like Paige and I are obviously mutants…"

Jean: "Well, she isn't." Jean picked out another ring and rearranged the rings already on her fingers to an arrangement she liked better. She shot Rachel a sly side glance and grinned.

Rachel: "Oh, haha," Rachel deadpanned, shooting her a flat look in return as she took her items up to the counter to pay, "Anyway, you must be desperate if you're shopping with me. How're you holding up without Jess?"

Jean: That made her expression sour and she plucked the rings off and stuffed them back in the display. "It reminds me of Jamie," she admitted, following her cousin to the register and now picking through the container of buttons.

Rachel: She waited until she'd finished paying and had taken her bag to reply, "Yeah, I can't say I've been as involved in all of that this semester…"

Jean: "Giant bugs and people blowing up and the plane... I don't know if I could stop a plane from crashing. You know? If I was on it?" She looked at Rachel, brow furrowed. "Do you think you could?"

Rachel: Rachel's expression mirrored Jean's as she debated the question, finally shaking her head, "Not anymore, but I probably could've while I was batshit."

Jean: Jean was quiet for a while. "Do you still, like, see that bird?"

Rachel: "The fiery one?" she asked after a pause. Blowing out a sigh, Rachel peered around the mall at the various shops, not looking for anything in particular as she quietly admitted, "Sometimes."

Jean: "Yeah... me too." Jean chewed on her lip nervously, then added her thumbnail to the mix.

Rachel: Rachel reached up to rake her fingers through her hair, offering, "It was there. Like, when I demolished the Hellfire Club." That whole ordeal was a bit fuzzy, but she remembered going for Nur and taking the building down in the process while being surrounded by flames. "I'm pretty sure I reached out with its claws or whatever…"

Jean: "It was on the news," she agreed, giving her cousin a wary look. "It's on Youtube too, you know? It went all viral instantly, and then more and more started showing up from around the world and-" Jean stopped, having worried her nail down to the quick. "So my folks sent me to Trask."

Rachel: "I don't tend to Youtube myself," Rachel shook her head, opting to just go for the nearest exit. She had known about the news because she'd been on the news even after SHIELD had released her, however she'd somehow managed to avoid clips from the internet. Stepping outside, she fished the pack from her pocket, offering it to Jean before her cousin ended up eating her thumb. "Worried you'd end up like me?"

Jean: Jean took a cigarette, though now she'd have to brush her teeth and hang her head out of the window on the way home to keep Jamie from knowing. "Yes."

Rachel: Rachel rolled her eyes as she took one for herself, plopping down on a bench near the door as she lit up, muttering around the cigarette between her lips. How much had her uncle and aunt worried after all the other monumentally stupid things she'd done? Dropping her bag down next to her, she took a long, calming drag and reached up for the cigarette, exhaling as she assured her, "Not a whole lot to worry about there, really."

Rachel: Knowing it likely wasn't what Jean wanted to hear didn't stop her from saying, "It was probably an overreaction, y'know."

Jean: "No, because you're one of a fucking kind." Jean took a long drag and sat down, admiring her boots. "Yeah yeah."

Rachel: "That's a nice way of putting it," Rachel mumbled as she considered her cigarette, eventually asking, "Have you even considered the idea of talking to them?"

Jean: "Nope." She blew out the smoke slowly, trying to make patterns and then giving up and using her teke to do it. "Family sucks." Jean looked at Rachel. "There's another point for you on kids."

Rachel: "I'll take that into consideration when I try to draw any conclusions because it definitely could suck being related to you," Rachel easily replied with a snort. After another drag, she asked, "Is there any reason past them sucking? Because mine sucks, and I still make an effort." …After she hadn't talked to one of her parents for, like, four years, but still.

Jean: "Well, aside from that they gave me to a crazy guy? They just never listen. They're... parent-y!" She nodded, as if that explained it all. "At least they didn't cut off my credit card," she muttered, taking another drag.

Rachel: "That's… I mean… At least they're that," Rachel offered, adding with a shrug, "And if they didn't cut you off, they can't be that freaked out by things, right?"

Jean: She shrugged. "I don't know... I'm just not ready to talk to them," she mumbled, concentrating on her cigarette.

Rachel: Hoping she wouldn't regret it, she hesitantly offered, "I could. I mean, if you, uh, wanted… Might be able to gauge a reaction or something…"

Jean: Jean stopped mid-drag to stare at her cousin. "Really?"

Rachel: Rachel was in the process of taking a slow drag to keep from kicking herself while she tried not to focus on the look Jean was giving her. Shrugging, she answered as nonchalantly as possible, "Well, yeah."

Jean: She stared for a bit longer. "Maybe family's not so bad after all."