If I Only Had a Heart....OTA

[hunteroffreaks]

Bored was a dangerous state of mind to be in when you were a mutant hunter. It meant that either your mind was getting sloppy and slowing down, or that there hadn't been anything to do in a while. In Jack's case, it was the later. Granted, he had 'visited' Victor in his cell, and while he had come away with an extremely bruised throat out of the

Comments

[fuzzylittleprob]

Kurt was down the hall when the dulcet sounds of Oz reached his ears. He knew that movie from his childhood--the yellow brick road had even reached his small circus in Bavaria, as cut off from the real world as they sometimes had been. Or they had reached it, rather. When the circus traveled close enough to towns for shows he and Stefan and Jimaine would sneak out for bookstores and movies, things that the circus could not provide for them. The Wizard of Oz they had seen every night for two weeks in a row until the circus had moved on, Kurt teleporting them into the back of the theater where they'd watch, rapt, each time the movie exploded into such bright color. He had even, for a while, harbored a slight crush on Judy Garland

[hunteroffreaks]

Unfortunately for Kurt, Jack was occupying the couch. One minute, he was sitting there, quietly watching the movie. The next, with a loud bamf! and a cloud of smoke, there was a man sitting next to him like it was the most natural thing in the world. For a moment, Jack glanced over and just sat there, blinking.

"What the hell?!" Jack had vaulted over the couch and had his gun out before his mind had finished processing everything. Despite age slowing him down, he still had his agility. Still, his hand didn't pull the trigger. Most likely, this was a mutant with more powers then sense.

Jack was madder at himself than Kurt. He had been sloppy and careless. Besides, with so many mutants around camp, at this point he really should have been used to people randomnly appearing out of thin air. However, Kurt was very lucky not to have a hole ventilating his skull right now. As Miss Gulch made her way down the road, the witch's theme playing, Jack yelled out. "You trying to get yourself killed?!"

[fuzzylittleprob]

Kurt usually teleported away when presented with a gun--but he wasn't exactly inclined to incapacitate a team memeber. Nor was he inclined to think that there were threats in their own building.

Blue eyes blinked at the older man. Apparently, he was. (Five-fingered) hands were raised like a stick-up.

"I... was thinking about watching the movie," Kurt replied lamely, using a finger to point toward the tv without actually dropping his hands. "I love it when the witch melts." He smiled sheepishly.

[hunteroffreaks]

Jack just stared at Kurt for a moment, the gun still leveled at the German's body. There was a look in his eye somewhere between still being freaked out and possibly amused at Kurt's fear. His protests edged Jack towards the latter. "Well, then."

Jack put the safety back on his gun, and stuck it back into his gun belt. "That's okay."

The hunter warily sat back down at the other end of the couch. "Just don't do that again, or next time I'll blow your head clean off."

[fuzzylittleprob]

Kurt nodded and seemed to settle from being a target perhaps a little too quickly to bode well for his future safety. He scooted himself back against the couch a little more comfortably and leaned into the cushions, crossing his arms loosely over his chest.

One finger tapped against his arm.

There was the movie... and then there was his new companion. And Kurt had never met anyone whose knee-jerk reaction was to pull a gun. So while Kurt loved Dorothy, he was staring at the other man instead of watching. Finally he spoke up.

"Do you pull a gun on everyone who surprises you?" It was actually a geniuenely curious question.

[hunteroffreaks]

Hendley studied the man as he settled down onto the couch. Jack stayed wary, sitting a little too stiffly to be naturally comfortable. This guy didn't have very strong self-preservation skills, or was just too trusting of people in general.

For a few minutes, Jack sat there, calming down a little as he watched the movie. Out of the corner of his good eye, he could see Kurt watching him. So it was no surprise when he finally voiced his question.

The hunter looked at his potential prey, none too impressed. As far as he was concerned, that should be everybody's reaction to someone surprising them. "As a general rule? Yeah. Its kept me alive this long."

[fuzzylittleprob]

That got a frown from Kurt. "I am sorry to say, Herr, but that sounds like a sad life." He shrugged just slightly and then promptly looked at his hands, clasped in his lap, embarrassed by what he'd said. It wasn't any of his business, really.

[hunteroffreaks]

Jack's jaw tightened up just a little, and his eyes turned flat. This guy was just a little too nosy for his own good, and more than just a little astute in his assessment. "Mind your own business, kraut." Jack snapped the words out. He turned his attention back to the TV screen.

[fuzzylittleprob]

Hurt blue eyes flicked to the man and then away and Kurt sighed. He hadn't meant offense, certainly, though he most assuredly had been rude. Still he didn't think it warranted a slur in return. Or a gun in the first place, for that matter!

Kurt straightened his back a little. "Yes," he said, specifically not slipping into German the way he tended to without thought for the simple words that others could understand, "mind my own business. And you will mind yours. And the next man will mind his." Kurt tilted his head just enough to see his companion.

"And then we will all be alone."

[hunteroffreaks]

He watched the movie, but his good mood has been disrupted by this German stranger. This was why he preferred to keep to himself. The minute he was in any way social, all his prjudices and contempt of the whole stinking race just couldn't be held back.

Jack made the mistake of glancing back at Kurt, with those blue practically x-raying him. Oh hell. The small pang of guilt that bubbled up was quashed down back inside him as he controlled his emotions. Kurt's words were true, but Jack had lived by a different code of his own for a long time now.

"That's just fine by me."

[fuzzylittleprob]

And those blue eyes kept on x-raying. For a moment Kurt was completely silent, reading the lines of his temporary companion's face. Then he looked away. "Being alone is a terrible fate," Kurt said, standing. He knew that the man was trying to watch and that he was disrupting.

He suddenly, very much, wanted to find Jimaine and just... hold onto her.

Kurt thought about asking the man about God but something held his tongue. Sometimes spiritual talk made men angry and Kurt thought that perhaps now was not the best time to take that chance. "It was nice to meet you, Herr," he said, honest in his respectful tone. "Enjoy your movie."

[hunteroffreaks]

He made his own observations even as Kurt studied him. Jack's eye roved over his face, taking in the details. There was just something about his current companion that was completely rubbing him the wrong way. But its not like that was hard to do. "Only if you wish it to be."

Damn. Kurt had to be a respectful, polite one. Sometimes Jack disliked the nice ones more than the psychopathic mutants like Victor. It was so much harder to hate them just on principle then.