driftfleet | Let's all hold hands and sing Kumbaya

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Let's all hold hands and sing Kumbaya

Who: Everybody! It's a planet mingle!
Broadcast: If You want!
Action: On the Holding Hands plant!
When: From June 23 until whenever we need a new mingle.

[At long last, the fleet has arrived to a new planet. This means it's time for a mingle guys! Get in! ]

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[ It's easy, once they're away from the tree, to slip down and settle beside Hank, to lean against him and shove herself against his body so his arm has to go around her. It's easy to be the one to support him because at the moment she's doing a rather good job at hiding her own tangled emotions, and her conversation with Charles comes back to her memory with tingling sadness, prickling at her thoughts and making her frustrated as she stomps it down.

She doesn't want to expose Hank to that, not right now.

Instead, she leans against him and closes her eyes, forcing all those thoughts and memories away. Right now all she can do is focus on Hank and soothing him, sending love and affection in his general direction. It's so strange to be so deeply connected to someone and she feels as though she's fallen into something; her breathing catching before she shakes her head and relaxes.

Oh, but she loves him, so much, and that's what makes all of this so much harder.

Raven wants to believe that he'll find Viva again, that they'll be together, that everything will work. He wants to believe that Hank can find the people from the world he was in before and be happy. It doesn't stop her being a little selfishly jealous, that he had all of that, a brand new family, and she has nothing (not literally, she's aware of that, but...) She wants to be a part of it and she can't be, because that's untouchable, and she can push all those thoughts away.

Instead, she tilts her head up and offers him a small, soft smile. ]

It's actually a really nice forest.

[if only he knew how she felt; he'd argue it into the ground, that just because he had someone else he considered family outside of their own, didn't mean it was separate. It was just an extension, just like Erik and Charles had their own people that Hank didn't know, they were family in a way, too. In the sense that they were important to someone he cared about, and any of his overprotective needs extended to them. Raven's as much apart of that as anything else, and he'd tell her every day if he had to. Even if she didn't know Viva, that could be changed one day. Maybe.

She has no reason to be jealous, not when her own family loves her as much as they do. One day she'll understand.

But he lets her shove close and takes a moment to let her feelings push back his own ache. It never goes away, not really, but her affection is enough to tame it for now, to put back in the corner where it always lurks, along with other things he rarely lets get the better of him. At least now they're better at not letting it overwhelm them, as amusing as it would be for them to get all caught up with each other in the middle of nowhere. Amusing and a little dangerous.

He returns the smile and gestures upwards with his chin, to the top of the trees] The view from the top is gorgeous. It really is beautiful here.

It's been a long time since I climbed trees for fun. Charles and I used to mess around on one of his grandfather's trees when we were little, but we grew out of the habit.

[ They also grew out of blanket forts and tag around the mansion, and tea parties and ridiculous games where they'd roll around on the floor laughing. They'd never quite grown out of cuddling into each other, though, or pressing close, basking in each other's comfort and warmth when they had the chance. Those are the times she remembers with fondness, the times before they grew up and the world changed, before she was Raven, the sister that had to hide while Charles was the brother who could use his mutation freely and without fear.

It's different now, of course. Charles supports her, wants her to be herself, has learned and grown just as she has. It's different and she's still getting used to the change.

Leaning her head on Hank's shoulder, she softens and closes her eyes, basking in him.

Then she grins, unable to help herself. ]

We should climb to the top once we've relaxed a bit. I could probably make it easily, even if you'd definitely be faster.

Ah - one of the big ones? I know which ones you mean.

[he can't help but lean into her a little, curious and a bit eager. Charles and Raven both rarely spoke about their childhoods past brief details, and while he could understand why, every time they did go into more than just that they had his complete attention. He liked learning about them, the things he didn't know and the things they did together. They were his family, his best friend and girlfriend, and they'd had such a different upbringing than he'd had.

He knows they spend time together now, too, and he hopes they've been able to rekindle some of that.

He huffs out a quiet laugh] I'm definitely faster. But I'd go slow so you could keep up. [he tilts his head to glance at her]

I could carry you somehow but that isn't a good idea, I think. [for obvious reasons]

One of the biggest ones. It was the best one to climb and when we got to the top it was like we were invincible.

[ Which wasn't the case, of course, but when you're a child and you're that high up it feels like nothing can stop you - nothing and no one. It had been amazing and freeing for a young Raven who still worried about being lost, about having this wonderful new life taken away from her, as if she might stumble somehow and lose Charles - but she hadn't, not then, and it was only in the future when she realised what she was missing that she had to walk away from all of the things she had been so lucky to get in the first place. She couldn't stay there forever, and she thinks that secretly both she and Charles had always known it.

Things are better than they used to be, and she embraces that; the idea of ignoring it just hurts too much. She needs him in her life and if ten years of isolation had taught her anything it's that abandoning him was just... Wrong.

Softening, she kisses Hank's jaw gently. ] That's very gallant of you.

[ But, of course, she can't help her laughter. ]

We definitely wouldn't make it all the way to the top.

They do look fun to climb.

[not that he'd ever considered it, circumstances at all, but the thought of the two of them being children and climbing to the top makes him smile. Even if things would never be the way they were - and he'd be foolish to hope for that, and it's already been proven it's near impossible - he's glad that she can still talk about things like that and it doesn't seem to bring any old hurts, not like other memories do.

He almost wishes he had stories to share like that. But he'd grown up alone, too quickly to even have much of a childhood, even if his parents had tried.

He huffs a noise, leaning into her kiss with a grin] I'm just being fair.

[he just barely resists looking away, but the tips of his ears turn red]

I don't think we'd make it up at all.

Something to think about for dates at the mansion, then.

[ It's a tentative thing, because the future is still uncertain, but - she thinks even if she never stays, even if she never lets herself live there forever, she would still want to spend time with Hank in the familiar lands of the mansion proper. It was her home, once, even if she denied it in front of Charles, the place that she loved and grew up, and she wants to share that tender nostalgia with Hank. She wants to share her life with him.

All she wants right now, though, is to be closer to him, warming as she chases away his melancholy and the sadness that had crept up on them both because of the tree. Now she can bring out the softer, happier side of him and be contented by it and she feels like that might be something she could get used to.

Still, it would be nice to steal a few more kisses. ]

Like I said, it's very gallant and very fair.

[ Lifting her hand, Raven lets her fingertips trail against his cheek before she breathes out. ]

A part of me can't wait to get away from this planet.

I don't know, I'm fond of the roof. [a pause, and then a little sheepishly] It's nice at night.

[he'd never climbed the trees around the mansion, but sometimes he'd go up to the roof. It was quiet, and he was completely alone, and it gave him the perfect opportunity to dwell on all the things he'd held back over the course of the day, letting them overwhelm him in peace as the serum wore off. He'd only done a few times, and after he'd shut down completely it wasn't necessary. But maybe he can replace those memories with better ones, now.

And replacing them with memories spent with her? How could he not want that?

He leans into her touch and lets his eyes fall shut, the ache the tree brought forward finally moving back to its little corner. He knows it'll be back later, but now - now he can focus on his feelings for Raven, without sharing other things that were getting all tangled up in those emotions]

Mm, well . . . I could be a brat and race you anyway. With my shoes on - I'd still win.

[Hank McCoy, the most romantic. He turns his head just enough to kiss one of her fingertips]

I know. But at least we're - getting better at this. It isn't as overwhelming.

I've never been up to the roof at night. I'm not quite a good at you.

[ Raven thinks it might be nice, to climb up and rest there as the sun sets and night sweeps over the mansion, colouring the garden in darker shades. She used to like sitting by her window, in the quiet of her room, fireplace burning as the house fell silent. It had felt cold, she remembers, a lot of the time, and that's why she had always ended up finding Charles and crawling up beside him, settling down at his side and not hesitating to seek his comfort and his company. She thinks he always understood - the house had been so empty and silent that it had been almost scary.

Now she can think of better things to replace those memories in her mind, and it all starts with Hank. She already knows she wants to bring Hank to her room and spend some time there, alone, to chase away the nastiness of the last time they were there together.

It's impossible not to move closer and Raven wants to crawl onto his lap and lean against him, she wants to press her body against his and settle there - she wants to be as close to him as possible because all she can feel is the burn of emotion under her fingertips, the way that this stupid, amazing planet makes her want more.

It only gets worse when he kisses her fingers, and she thinks she can feel her own flush spreading. ]

All that gallantry just gone right out the window.

[ But she's smiling, and her thumb traces his lip gently. ]

Maybe it's because we're always so close. We're just used to it now.

To be fair, I have a bit of an advantage.

[he thinks he could show her the way he climbs up - it isn't as easy as the old room he had, but easy enough once someone gets used to it. And while he hadn't chosen one of the bigger rooms, and had moved to one even smaller on the other side of the mansion, he still had a great view of the land around the mansion - untarnished by city lights at night, and bright and sunny during the day.

He admires her restraint, though, because he's resisting pulling her into his lap, to get her as close as he can and outside be damned. He always feels like that, but the planet seems to up it a notch, especially in response to her own feelings. Or it makes it that much clearer, how much he desires her at times. He wasn't one to sit and fantasize but the way everything was so open, and knowing the way she felt, it was hard not to when they were together. To fantasize about laying with her in the grass, pressed up against one another, kissing and hands wandering—

And he immediately cuts that thought off because he realizes he's sharing that, and his ears go bright red. There's no way he can successfully play it off, so he doesn't bother]

Well - I've - I've never been gallant anyway, so you shouldn't be surprised.

[at least his voice is mostly even. For all of a moment or two]

That's probably why. And we've been trying to - control it, more or less.

I bet you make it look easy, too.

[ Back at the mansion she might even be able to be carried up by him; it wouldn't be like here where she has to be careful where she touches him in case the planet decides to mess around with them. At the mansion she could follow him or let herself be brought up and they could sit together at night and bask in being alone. It would probably be all the more important if Charles really does manage to get the school running again - escaping the kids for a while, having some kind of freedom together. It might be nice, if she goes back.

It might be a big if, but she's working on it. She really, truly is.

Right now the only thing she can think about is how it would feel to crawl onto Hank's lap and rest there, to cuddle close and have the warmth of his body and the wonderful thrill of his arms around her; it feels good enough when they're on the Blameless together, but here? There's a new intensity to it that she doesn't think either of them can avoid - their emotions are painted all over them and it feels a little bit like actual fireworks spark whenever they touch. The only thing that stops her mind going is what Hank shares, and, well...

She bites her lip, her eyes a little darker as she gazes at him. She wouldn't protest, exactly, but their control is tenuous at best. There's no need to run the risk of embarrassing either of them. ]

I can think of a handful of times that gallantry worked for you.

[ And she leans back, not tearing her eyes away from him. ]

We're getting better at it. We're not even struggling right now, not really.

And I bet you I look funny doing it.

[the roof would be a great way to escape the children, though it's been long enough since the school was last open that he doesn't remember much of what it was like. It was a strange time, after Cuba but before he and Charles became who they were, both trying their best but entirely unsure. The war had been the start of both their spirals, and the school closing had been the final straw. He has a feeling that the school reopening will be different this time, with both of them free of their darkness - but he'd still want to flee to the roof with Raven, just for a little bit of privacy. Because that will be something in small doses once everything opens once more.

He can't say that he minds.

He sees her expression and he reddens just a little more, knowing she felt all that, but thankful she isn't addressing it. They're both open books, especially this close, and while he enjoys the freedom the planet affords them . . . it honestly goes to show just how tenuous his control is when he's around her. Something he's been working on and still is even now, even with these difficulties.

He glances away, as if he heard something in the trees. Perfect fake distraction]

Oh yeah? Like when?

[oh no he's not struggling at all</>]

Not - really, no. Better than - when we first got here.

Probably not funny.

[ But, well, Hank does know how she feels about his mutation. He might not see it the way she does, but she marvels at everything he can do - the climbing, the speed, the strength. It's incredible to her, amazing, just like the very first day they'd met and Charles had outed him, and all she can do is bask in how proud she is, how remarkable Hank is to her. Maybe he won't ever get used to that pride, but at least she can offer it to him in gentle touches and sweetness, promising him the things that she knows that he deserves.

They're going to have something together, though. A gentle promise for the future. That means something to her.

Raven is, of course, picking up on all the things that he's feeling - and, honestly, it's mirrored in her own thoughts, and she can't exactly hide it. She wants to do all the things he's thinking about but she has to resist the urge, shoving it to one side so she can focus on the more tame of suggestions, despite how charming she finds his pink ears and how lovely the idea of kissing him senseless is, the way he always leans into her touches and her mouth as if he can't get enough, how they slot together so well -

and that's enough of that. ]

Do I really have to talk about jumping out a window in Paris again?

[ She settles down again, looking out over at the trees. ]

Practice makes perfect, doesn't it?

A skinny guy scaling a tree like a gorilla? It's a little funny.

[he does know, but it says a lot that he's able to joke as casually about it as he is, too. He's embraced it as much as he's going to here - training as himself, taking advantage of their surroundings to train his powers when he's like this, too - it's a huge step compared to before Paris and Washington, when just transforming in front of Logan was enough to bring back familiar insecurities - even if the only surprise Logan showed was when the serum changed him back.

He doesn't have pride or confidence in himself, per say, but he is proud to be a mutant. That, at least, he can admit to now. He spent a couple of days without it, once, and it had bothered him in ways he didn't think was possible. Who knew a simple penalty would change his outlook so easily. And he knows how she feels - has always known, and every time she shows it, it gets a little better.

Is she doing that on purpose, though? Letting those thoughts flitter through? Maybe not; it isn't as though he's doing the greatest job holding back his own desires, and each time her own slips through his mirror it. He wants all of that, and the more he thinks about it, the more he just wants to give up on holding back.

It's terrible and wonderful all at once. Freeing and frightening]

That - that's entirely different.

[he makes a noise of agreement]

That's how the saying goes.

You're not as skinny as you used to be, you know.

[ They've grown into their bodies and their mutations a little more, now, she thinks, and with that comes a slight change in confidence that shapes how they look each other and how they think about each other. Raven doesn't see herself as being normal or abnormal anymore, not really, she just sees blue skin and pale skin, with one being a disguise to hide behind when she feels threatened. Maybe with a little encouragement Hank would share her feelings and there'd be no more worrying - and, quietly, she thinks, no more hiding either.

Well, they're both still working on that part.

The fact that he's joking about it now when, once upon a time, a casual jerk move from Alex would have been enough to knock his confidence for a week - that means something, and Raven appreciates it with a gentle, soft expression, her eyes flickering over his face. She's seeing Hank grow, seeing how time has changed him, and she truly appreciates it, what she can see in him. She's glad that they're able to share these moments, because it makes being together all the more sweet and incredible.

At least she can try and hide some of her lust behind her pride, now, before they really do get overwhelmed. ]

It's not different at all, thank you. [ And then she's smiling, kissing his cheek. ] My hero.

[he smiles a bit] No, I guess not. Lanky, then.

[past his mutation - both of them, honestly, before and after he tried to hide it - he's never cared about his looks. It's why when Raven tells him he's handsome, or that he's good-looking, he doesn't know how to take it. Not that he really minded, but he was always the awkward skinny kid no one really paid attention to, and compliments have never gone over well with him regardless. Though honestly, it's been a long time since he was able to look at himself and not see his mutation, no matter what he actually looked like. It always came back to that.

But it is easier to joke and make light of it, far more than it ever has been, and that isn't even something he actively worked towards. It was people he grew close to, who made him feel comfortable and as relaxed as he could be in skin that always felt wrong, and offering him nothing but positives to cancel out the negatives in his mind. Sure, it does nothing for his confidence, but - that was always a work in progress no matter what. But if Alex were to walk by and make those old, snide comments . . . well, Hank would have a counter for them, this time. (He misses Alex, more than he lets on)

He feels like he's drawn in by her affections, though, the masked desires covered up by her love for him. He can't help but nuzzle against her cheek, bump her nose against hers - it's so ridiculous, what this planet does to them, and that wasn't really a complaint. He doesn't think he's ever wanted to be this affectionate before.

And that close, it's easier to hide, so he doesn't have to see the faces he knows she's making]

If you say so.

At least you know I'm not complaining.

[ If it means she can flatter him, even in the gentlest of ways - she'll do it. Raven enjoys complimenting Hank, she enjoys reminding him of all the things she likes about him, all the little bits and pieces about him and his nature and his body and his mind that make her love him and want to keep loving him - even the things that peeve her are still endearing, somehow, and that's as charming as it is frustrating. It's part of being with someone, she thinks, of trusting yourself to them, and she offers Hank that without hesitation because she's learned that he's someone she can trust, even if it had been awkward and stumbling and painful along the way.

Shifting, Raven moves forward, settling between Hank's legs and then, without even saying a word, leans back against his chest, taking one of his arms and just holding it gently. If she's going to resist the urge to climb all over him then she's going to have to have something to anchor her, and being in his arms is good enough; she's warm and comfortable and this way they're touching, but not enough that it's skin on skin and they have to fight all of their urges.

She can still touch his hand if she wants - and for a moment she twists her head, leaning up to press a kiss to his face, ending up leaving it somewhere between his nose and his mouth, the position and angle awkward. ]

I do say so, and remember that I'm always right?

[ Leaning her head against his shoulder, Raven closes her eyes, daydreaming about a future where she and Hank can sit on rooftops and climb trees and be blissfully happy in a way they were never able to be once upon a time. It's a nice daydream and it makes her smile, expression softening. ]

We should make a list of things we want to do together and then do them.

You could if you wanted. I wouldn't mind.

[he's used to being teased, and used to it being affectionate teasing more often than not. And it isn't as though he doesn't take shots at himself all the time regardless, to ease the tension or to sympathize with others. And coming from Raven - he knows it's always affectionate, that kind of teasing reserved for someone you love and care about, and in a way he welcomes it. She brings out a side of him that he rarely shows to other people, the side that's still young and full of ridiculous notions of love and the future, and while it isn't what it may have been once, it's hard to deny that it's still there.

He's glad it is. That ten years in the mansion hadn't taken that much from him.

He blinks down at her, and then he can't help but smile and both arms go around her, hugging her just a bit closer. It's easy like this, to duck his head and rest his chin on her shoulder, to wrap his arms around her and keep her as close as he wants. He feels pleasantly buzzed, the warmth of her pressed against him and the warmth of the feelings their sharing making him feel lazy and content. It's a nice feeling, he thinks, and he makes sure to focus on it enough that she gets to feel it, too. So she knows exactly how something as simple as this makes him feel]

Mmhmm. How could I forget.

[it comes out a little dry and deadpanned, but that's not a discussion he's getting into again knowing full well it will backfire.

Like this, he can turn his head and kiss her temple, and she'll feel his smile widen at her suggestion]

Don't we arlready have a list? Or is that one exclusively for this planet?

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Let's all hold hands and sing Kumbaya

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