Black Panther & Storm
Black Panther & Storm
The Bronx, New York
Ororo and had added a jacket with a hood to her attire to try and cover her pure white hair. Discretion was the name of the game here. Nailah on the otherhand was wearing a full tracksuit to cover herself. Her spear folded away and hidden up her sleeve for instant deployment at a moments notice. They walked up Seymour Avenue together fairly unassumingly, nobody really looking too much at either of them. Maybe a few leers from passing guys noticing... Well, the very reason that T'Challa had said to Ororo "I hate to see you leave, but i love watching you walk away" But apart from that, just a pair of nobodies that are just as soon forgotten as seen. Nailah was the first to speak.
"How well do you know this Evan?" She asked. Ororo thought back to the times before T'Challa, living with the Morlocks down in the sewers.
"He's my younger cousin. The son of my Father's sister. She was killed by the same people who killed my father trying to get to me. I asked Callisto to take him in and she agreed. Although it was only because Caliban, her lieutenant, sensed his latent Mutant powers." She replied.
"My ties to their community have gotten all but cut completely since the war and my eloping to Wakanda, i am hoping he will give me the in i need to get back in contact with them peacefully. The Morlocks are powerful mutants and could prove invaluable allies to Wakanda." They arrived at the unassuming street corner, a few matchbox houses heading north, a small church, nobody really around at this time of day, everyone either off at work or school. Ororo looked around and saw the scrappy teen boy dressed... Well, almost identically to herself. Although his clothes were far more baggy on him. She recognized that blonde flattop he had under his hood anywhere. Approaching him, she threw her arms wide and smiled.
"Auntie Storm!" He yelled, immediately thowing himself into a hug with her. He was about a foot shorter than her, he was only 15 after all.
"Been way to long!" He tried to pick her up in a show of strength, but only managed a few inches off the ground, much to Ororo's surprise. Ororo's head immediately snapped around to look at Nailah, who had subtly shifted into an offensive stance, ready to strike back at the one who had lunged surprisingly at her charge, but Storm scowled for her to back down. Nailah quickly did so.
"Auntie?" Nailah mouthed to her. She had said they were cousins. But she quickly went back to overwatch as she scanned around them for surveilance and/or threats.
"Evan, it's good to see you too." She replied and tapped his arm for him to put her down.
"Gotta say, we missed your ass during the Reach invasion, but they missed us too for the most part." He laughed. He then looked at Nailah and rubbed his hands together.
"Speaking of asses, Woooo, who is this fine momma you brought with you?" Of all of the things Evan could have said, should have said, of all of the things that could have fallen out of his mouth, this was probably the single least expected.
"Excuse me?" Nailah asked, caught completely offguard.
"EVAN!" Ororo scolded.
"Hey, Auntie Storm, you haven't seen me in 4 years, i've grown, matured and become something of a connoisseur of fine women and fine wines" He said, putting on his most dashing accent.
"Callisto had better not be letting you drink wine!" Ororo growled, her hand snatching his hood down, before reaching for his ear lobe and grabbing it firmly.
"This is my friend from work and you will treat her with the same respect you treat me with." She announced. Evan winced in pain as she held him.
"OKOKOKOKOKOKOKOKOKOKOKOKOKputmedownputmedown!" He replied.
"And we will behave?" She asked him. He turned and smiled at her.
"Oh yeah, behave like a gentleman. Proper, trim and respectful." He gasped in discomfort. Storm let go of his ear.
"Excellent. Now, let us away, i know a nice little cafe near here." She said, beginning to walk down Mace. Nailah followed immeidately after, with Evan starting in the rear, but a quick scowled glance from Ororo made him quickly jog to overtake Nailah, as he jogged past her, he put his thumb and pinkie to his head in the
'Call me sometime' motion.
"I do appreciate that you have gotten to that age where certain hormones have taken over, but i do ask that you please try to think clearly." Evan looked down, he could tell the disappointment in her voice.
"Alright, Auntie Storm, total seriousness. Playa face put away. What's the game plan?" He asked. Storm sighed, hoping he was telling the truth.
"I need to get back in touch with the Morlocks, specifically, i need a meeting with Calisto. I have something that might interest her. A plan to help not only the Morlocks, but all Mutants in this country that haven't been gotten by Lord and/or Waller yet." She said. Evan looked a little shocked, before gritting his teeth together and hissing as he breathed in awkwardly.
"Ooooooook, that's gonna be a big one." He sighed.
"See, Calisto... I mean, you know i love and respect Aunt Calisto... But the whole Aliens and then Dystopian government thing... Yeah, she's gotten a LITTLE paranoid... And well. I said i'd be prim and gentlemanly, so i'm not gonna repeat the words she used to describe you." Storm growled in frustration. She suspected Calisto had turned on her, but didn't realize it was THIS bad.
"What did i do to her?" She asked, already suspecting the answer she'd receive.
"You mean apart from running off with your African Boytoy a few weeks before aliens decided to invade and suck our brains out, leaving The Alley's security compromised and leaving us open to attacks which got a number of us killed?" He asked matter-of-factly. Ok, he had her there.
"I could not have known that was going to happen. And if you remember, it was not MY decision to leave.""Oh no, i remember the Skullcap Squad behind us practically dragging you away." He replied, before slipping into a sarcastic tone
"To the torturous ordeal of being waited on hand and foot by some despot African King's servants in your ivory palace eating off gold plates with marble knives and forks-" Ororo wanted to step in, but she also realized that he had ever right to be angry at her and were the positions reversed, she'd probably feel exactly the same way. Evan trailed off as he saw the regret in Storms eyes.
"Sorry." He replied.
"Hey, i understand it's just Jealousy. I'm just mad no African Prince decided to seep me up off my feet. At least, that's what Leech says." He sighed.
"So Leech IS alive. Excellent." Ororo sighed in relief.
"Oh yeah. To be fair, our losses to the Reach and the Government aren't as bad as Calisto's making out. I think she just wants to be madder than she has a right to be. I mean, some of us were always getting caught and hauled away, only difference is that they now know how to hold us. We lost Ash and Missy to the Aliens. MeMe and Irving got got by the Squads... But as i said, 1 or 2 a year's always been about normal... It's just... Look, Calisto's been listening to the radio recently." He stated.
"There's some big guy out there, doesn't announce a name on the broadcasts, but says all us Muties-" Ororo gave him a scowl as he said that word.
"Do not sully your tongue with that word!" She growled. Evan threw his hands up in apology.
"Sorry, auntie." He replied
"Anyway, this guy is saying we need to unite as in Brotherhood and take the fight to Lord and his cronies. Take this country for ours, wipe out the Normies and take our place as the superior race." He said, before putting a finger up to silence the obvious counter from his cousin.
"His words, not mine. Hey, i'm against it, i've got a few good friends up here... Not that they know i'm a..." Storm looked at him.
"Evan?" She asked.
"Have you...?" Evan looked around, not seeing anyone or any camera looking at them. He slowly lifted his shirt to Ororo, revealing a bone-plate had grown over his stomach. Ororo clasped her hands across her mouth and gasped, before throwing herself into him for a hug.
"CALIBAN WAS RIGHT!" She giggled.
"I'm so glad for you. You need to tell me all about it! When did it happen? What is it like? What can you do? Have you been christened yet?" Evan rubbed the back of his head as they continued to walk.
"Happened about a year ago. Was skateboarding, fell off, suddenly, i've got these bone-spikes growing out of my arm to break my fall. Turns out i can grow bones just about anywhere i need to keep myself safe. Armour on the skin, spikes for combat, still experimenting with it. Calisto is a good teacher. And yeah, you're no longer looking at Little Evan, i'm now Spyke." He grinned.
"Yup, got my freak club tee-shirt and everything." Ororo scowled at him again.
"We are not freaks." She growled at him. As they finally arrived at the cafe, they sat down. A waiter immediately saw to them. Ororo ordering a Cappuccino, Evan ordering a tall glass of milk. Ororo looked around this place. It was one of the first dates she had been on with T'Challa... Although she quickly decided she may have to disregard this place as she looked at the "Rules of Service: No Shoes, No Shirt, No Service" sign. Which wasn't the problem, it was the hastily written "We reserve the right to refuse service to Muties." note wasn't bellow it that made her decide she no longer wished to visit this establishment. As the drinks came, Ororo graciously offered thanks to the waitress, although she still did so with a sour taste in her mouth. In any case, she didn't want to upset Evan by making a scene.
"So... Milk... I thought you hated it." She said, Evan held his nose and began chugging the tall glass.
"Oh yeah." He replied as he put the glass down, his tongue flicking like a cats as he tried to get the taste out of his mouth.
"But, gotta keep the Calcium intake up. First few weeks afterwards was hell. Then Calisto made me start drinking and now..." Ororo nodded, it made sense. Growing bones would be hard on his body without enough Calcium.
"So... Calisto... Any chance you could set up a meeting with us in somewhere neutral?" She asked.
"My... Associates are delivering letters to her, but she's not answering them. I'm hoping that a face is something she can't ignore."Why not get the Smoothhead Squad to kidnap her like they did to you?" He asked.
"If they're dropping her letters, just pick her up instead.""Because, dear cousin, we are trying to start a dialogue, not a war. Calisto is bullheaded and strong, but she's not an unfeeling monster. I'm hoping that if we can just get together and i can explain my plan, that we can get her in on this. And if she's looking for somewhere in the sun, we can provide it for her." She quietly said between sips of her drink.
"Hmmm, tough choices..." Evan said, sarcastically.
"Live in a sewer somewhere that the government wants to kill us for breathing, or move to some savannah in Africa where the locals can shun us for being foreign and we can starve to death from the famine." He smiled skeptically at her.
"Damn, we win the lottery or something to get choices that brilliant?" Ororo REALLY wanted to tell him the truth about Wakanda, but he was a child still. It was safer to let him keep thinking of it as a dirt farming third world, rather than the technological paradise it really was.
"Can you PLEASE try, though?" She asked. Evan leaned back in the chair.
"Hey, Auntie Storm, when have i EVER let you down?" He asked. To be fair, she had never REALLY trusted him with anything immensely important before. Last time she saw him, he was 11.
"How do i contact you after i've delivered the message?" He asked. Ororo reached into her handbag and pulled out an old Nokia 3310 and handed it to him.
"Make no other use of that phone except to message me. It's prepaid. Do not turn it on until you are ready to contact me." Evan took it and pocketted it.
"Damn, we're doing some James Bond shit." He laughed.
"And watch your language, you're not too old for me to wash your mouth out with soap." She growled. Evan grabbed his nose and finished the rest of the glass.
Half Pint,
Sadu,
Captain Uni,
IAmTheIsland,
Cyberlad,
SONIC,
mickilennial,
King Kindred,
Lunamaria Hawke,
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