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It's barely lunchtime, and this day has already been an embarrassing waste for Sam Guthrie. The lanky teenager shuffles out of a boutique, hands stuffed into the pockets of his threadbare trousers, loafers scuffing on the sidewalk, shoulders hunched in his short-sleeved button-up. His cheeks are pink and his arms are empty: if he's shopping, he hasn't found what he's looking for yet. He huffs out a long breath, blue eyes shooting a resentful glance back into the boutique, then starts looking up and down the street for other options.
*
Nightcrawler is used to ignoring the looks. As long as no one gets violent, he's just going to go about his business, which, today, is doing some exploration and potentially some shopping as Winter is around the corner and he didn't have time to pack all of his things for his trans-continental move. He's stepping out of a Thrift store when he notes a familiar-looking blonde boy in front of one of the shops. Yellow eyes look about a moment before he approaches the other, "You should not look lost in a big city," is offered quietly with a grin, "People might not be so nice if they think you are a target."
*
Already flustered and feeling out of place, Sam's mood does not improve when he turns and sees that, in a city of seven million people, he has managed to stumble across one who already has a bad impression of him. "Oh, great," he mutters, glancing around the street to see whether anyone has spotted him talking to the blue-skinned German. "Ah guess you're here to yell at me for bein' a jerk. Well, go on, then." The southerner turns and stalks along the sidewalk at a pace easy enough to keep up with. "Have at it. Ah ain't gonna argue with you." He hunkers down, ready for Kurt to do his worst.
*
Nightcrawler tilts his head at the other when he seems to expect some sort of yelling. He then trots a few steps to catch up with him as he walks down the sidewalk, "Nein, mein freund. You were scared und you have never met me before. I am not angry at you." He already prayed for the boy a while ago and has forgiven him for the names he was called in ignorance. "I was here to search for clothes," he holds up his plastic bag from the Thrift shop.
*
Sam narrows his eyes and turns to peer at Kurt, reluctant to trust this olive branch, but his posture does seem to relax a bit, gaining him a couple of inches in height. "Ah'm supposed to be shoppin' for gifts," he says, voice tentative. "For my family and, um, other people. Everythin' around here's just so expensive, though! Ah ain't made of money." He trails off, glancing in a few display windows. "Plus, Ah think that last shopgirl was laughin' at my accent. People up north ain't got the manners of a coyote, I'll tell ya." Ironic, coming from Guthrie, no doubt.
*
It's the shift in posture that actually gets a smile from Kurt. It's so much easier to be kind than mean to people, especially when he looks as he does. "Gifts…what kind of gifts? Und how much do you have to spend? Some of these shops are very expensive. What were you hoping to buy? Could you save up und buy something more for Christmas?" It's not all -that- far away and that's usually a time when one sends the gifts.
He does look bac towards the indicated shop, "Some people do not understand that it is our differences that make us interesting." Maybe there's a little jab in there, but it was a gentle one.
*
Sam Guthrie has been accused of many things, but being acutely perceptive is not one of them. Kurt's pointed comment passes well under the Kentuckian's radar. "Got about two fifty to spend," Sam admits miserably, answering the plainly stated question instead. "Ah just wanted to get little things for my family back home. And… maybe somethin' nice for someone, too." This last is said with a noticeable flush hitting his cheeks. "You ain't kiddin' about the expensive shops, neither. Ah went down to that Tiffany's place, 'cause Ah'd heard of it before?" The lanky boy shakes his head. "Don't."
*
Nightcrawler shakes his head, "I do not know this place…but it is good to know." Not that he does a lot of shopping. He'll walk along with the other for a little, pondering the question. "For the something nice, what if you did something nice for them? Or took them some place special to you? Not everyone needs to have a 'thing' to know that they are special to someone. Can you cook? Make her dinner, or a picnic maybe?" He's been on more than a few creative dates in his time. "For you family…could you get one thing they could share?"
*
"Well, Ah mean, Ah do stuff," Sam says, almost defensively. "But doin' stuff ain't quite the same as a gift. Gotta show that Ah'll be a good provider, you know? No girl wants to marry a cheapskate." He sighs as they walk past a small jewelry boutique, but Sam isn't dumb enough to even bother going in. He's scoped the prices out at enough of those places today to know better.
"As for the rest of my family, well…" He scrunches his nose up and shrugs. "There's a few too many of 'em for a shared present, unless it's somethin' boring like a paintin'. But Ah suppose 'boring' might be all Ah've got the cash for. Maybe you're right, and Ah should just save up for Christmas." He looks over at the blue mutant, eyebrows canted upward. "You ever got a bunch of people a gift to share?"
*
Nightcrawler chuckles and actually reaches out to clap the other on the shoulder, "Mein fruend, if the girl is just liking you for your money, you should get a different girl." He says this from experience here. "What about a New York puzzle? Something they can all do together? Or…" he thinks a moment as to what some particular New York food might be. "Bagels?"
There's a pause as he looks to the younger man before he gives a sad little smile, "Nein. I never had many to share things with."
*
"If the girl is just likin' me for my money, she's barkin' up the wrong tree, that's for sure," Sam answers glumly. He casts a glance at the unusual hand on his shoulder — perhaps too obviously — but after a moment of thought accepts its presence. "It's not so much about havin' lots of money, Ah reckon, as lettin' her know that what money Ah do have, Ah want to spend on her," he explains, eyebrows tilted upward in the middle as he thinks his way through this. "Showin' her she's at the top of my list, Ah suppose."
That mystery of the dating world solved, Sam turns his head to give Kurt a sidelong look. "Ain't many Guthries fond of spendin' lots of time indoors," he says, skeptical of this puzzle idea. "Then again, a puzzle does sound like somethin' sophisticated folks might do in their drawin' room." Sam isn't entirely clear on what a drawing room is, but it sounds fancy as hell. "That's pretty New York, ain't it?"
The sideways look turns sympathetic at talk of Kurt's family history. "No, Ah suppose that you might not," he says. "But you've got folks livin' with you now, right? Those kids?"
*
Nightcrawler gives the shoulder a pat before taking his hand away, "I think if you show the girl that you want to spend your -time- with her, that might mean mor. But that is just me. I have met some girls who liked my time and some who liked things I gave them." There's a shrug then, "I do not know this girl, so I do not know." His hands then go to clasp behind his back with the bag.
"You could get a puzzle of the New York Skyline? Or a map? Or of the Statue of Liberty? Maybe something that shows the city? Or bagels. Bagels are very much 'New York', I think."
There is another glance when he's asked who is living with him. "The children? Ach, no…they live in their own homes und flats. I live with Herr Nick…one of the soldiers who rescued me from the Camps. It is just him und me."
*
"Herr Nick?" Sam looks puzzled for a second, then his blue eyes go wide. He looks at Kurt and puts his fingertip to the corner of one eye. "With the patch?" he asks, voice full of trepidation. He turns to face forward again, hands back in his pockets, and shakes his head. "Man. You would not believe the talkin' to Ah got, that day."
He walks in silence for a few more paces, then, "You sure do seem to like bagels." The blond boy hitches up his shoulders and puts on an apologetic half-smile. "Ah don't get it, myself, to be honest. It's like a doughnut made of plain ol' bread. Why do that when you could have somethin' nice 'n sweet, instead?"
With a soft 'hmph' sound, the southerner starts looking for touristy shops where he might find a puzzle, like Kurt suggested. There's one less than a block up ahead, and he settles on that as a destination. "So… do you get, um, a lot of… interest?" Sam asks, grimacing and hesitant. "From girls, Ah mean?"
*
Nightcrawler grins as Sam remembers Fury! "Ja, that is the one!" He can't help a little chuckle when the admonishing is mentioned, "Well, you did deserve it, I think." He'll just walk with the other, looking about as well and learning the lay of the land in this part of town. The more he explores, the more he learns, of course. "I like that the bagels are chewy. Und they are good with the cheese on it." When in New York, right? "The doughnuts are different, a little."
If they're going to be discussing this, they should probably know each other's names. "I would back home, but…maybe not as much here. I am not sure that Americans are so…that they can open their mind as much. Most of the girls were interested because I was a little famous," he grins before offering that strange-shaped hand in a handshake gesture, "I am Kurt. I do not think we really met before."
*
"Sam Guthrie," the freckled kid answers. He extends his hand toward Kurt's, but hesitates for a moment before actually shaking — the German's unusual physiology still seems to throw him off, a bit. "You're famous in Germany? Ah didn't know." He sounds perplexed by the revelation, but it's not as though he knows much about European pop culture.
He leads the way into the shop; Kurt does get a perplexed look from the proprietor, but Sam is already scratching his head and peering at the wares on sale, so it seems an inopportune time to drive away a customer. "Ah'm always gettin' into trouble," Sam admits. "What folks know as plain common sense in Kentucky, folks around here seem to object to more often than not." He picks up a box, showing the Manhattan skyline at night. "Ah'm at least learnin' to keep quiet long enough to figure out what's gonna rile people up."
*
"In much of Western Europe. I was with the Circus there for many years," Kurt explains. As his hand is taken in the shake, he grins a little wider. It's the little gestures, even if they start out afraid, that matter. He follows Sam into the shop, gives the proprietor a big smile and a wave, and then looks over at the box that is picked up. "That one is very nice. I do not know Kentucky…where is it? Is it close to here?" US Geography isn't his forte.
"I find that if I am nice and patient with most people, they will be nice back. It is the Christian thing to do, ja?"
*
"Well, sure," Sam answers the theological question with a nod. "That, and fightin' commies."
He tucks the skyline puzzle under one arm, then picks up another box — this one, conveniently, is a US map. New York is marked with a big apple, but the southerner points to Kentucky. "Down south, here. Nice country — lots of hills and farms and forests," he says. "Nothin' like the city here. Ah know Ah look like a rube, gawkin', but Ah can't help it. Lexington's the biggest city Ah've been to before this, and there ain't no comparison, believe me."
*
Nightcrawler isn't going to get into a discussion about Communism. Nope. Not when he's sort of made peace with the one who called him a Nazi Demon. He'll take what little victories he can get. Yellow eyes do glance at the map of the US as Kentucky is pointed out, "Ah, so it is far away! Hills and farms and forests sounds very nice…we played in some of the smaller towns too," so that rural life isn't unknown. It's usually where he got into more trouble, however.
Even though he didn't catch some of the words the younger man used, he offers, "I think New York is a very different city. It is not like London or Paris or Rome…"
*
"You've been to all those places?" Sam says, awestruck. And then, he's just struck — specifically, by his own palm to the forehead. "Wait, that's it! All this time, Ah've been thinkin' expensive, when all Ah really gotta do is exotic." He sets down the map puzzle, but keeps the skyline one, leaning toward Kurt and saying quietly, "Ah don't know if you know what Ah do, but… it makes long trips kinda cheap 'n easy. Ah can just sneak away to some cool places and bring back some simple stuff from each. That'd impress a girl, right?" He beams a lopsided, enthusiastic grin. "Ah'll seem worldly 'n sophisticated."
*
"Well, the Circus traveled a lot…" Kurt starts but then blinks as the other smacks himself on the forehead. "Was? I know you know Scarlett…" he starts but then blinks. "I…ja, I guess? But…" He's not sure he's going to be able to talk the other out of this new thought.
*
Indeed, Sam is off in his own little speculative world, scratching at his chin and muttering, "Ah don't really want to go over any oceans — that's kinda scary. But Ah could do cool places in the good ol' U.S. of A." He glances back at the puzzle box. "Canada 'n Mexico, too," he adds. Flashing a smile at Kurt, he takes his purchase up to the counter. "Well, Miss Rogue's speedy, no question. But Ah ain't no slouch in that department. We ain't raced, but Ah'd at least give her a run for her money."
*
"She is?" Did he know she was a mutant? Maybe he thought she was just popular? Kurt blinks some at Sam, "Und…'Rogue'? Is that her name too?" Maybe her surname? He waits while Sam pays for the puzzle, glancing around at the shop and thinking about what was just revealed. Did he even know Sam was a mutant? Probably.
*
No, it's unlikely that Kurt knew any of this ahead of time. Sam Guthrie is just woefully bad at keeping secrets. Rogue seemed to know him, and he's certainly a mutant, so Sam just assumed there was no need to keep anything from him. Keep him talking five more minutes, and he'll probably divulge his membership in the X-men and his codename.
As he pays the cashier, Sam's mind is elsewhere, anyway. "Y'know, Ah've been wonderin' that myself," he says. "She called herself Rogue when she introduced herself to me, but Ah've seen her call herself 'Scarlett' to other people. Maybe she's Rogue Scarlett? Scarlett Rogue sounds like…" Sam goes a little scarlet himself. "Well, it don't sound like a woman Ah'd be acquainted with, that's for sure."
*