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Kellan chooses something herbal, and probably citrus if those options are available, and if not he chooses something at random. He has eaten sparingly since being in Attilan, trying various things and eating whatever is served to him, but his appetite hasn't entirely been as healthy as it normally is back home. He's been quiet and observant, keeping an eye on Kaleb through this whole process, and aside from the little experimentation the other night with this ability to allow them to hear one another and communicate through his telepathy network, he's mostly kept his own power use to null. The tea, though, the tea is calming and he wraps his hands around his cup, finding comfort in that reassuring universal warmth.
Dining options in Attilan are pretty awesome when you are royalty, though honestly, Max seems to be doing his best to keep the non-inhumans out of view. Aside from a guard wandering by now and then, there is no one else in the large dining hall, such that its tall, bright walls practically swallow up the 3 measley diners. The meal is excellent, and followed by a round of tea, which is apparently universal. They have their choices, but Max picks the sort with the flower blossom in the bottom.(belongs at the top of the log)
Kaleb was slowly gaining ability to sense out how he was re calibrating. Having one's DNA scrambled like a snow globe was scary, tiring, and as it turns out not as much fun as it is in the brochure. He's spend a long time post practice int the silent room and as of last night working on sleeping outside of it in the guest room and trying not to get too neurotic with the scores of tiny noises in the process. At least there was progress being made to dampen the sound as to not cry out in pain if a door was slammed. It was a start but he was tired.
He was also not far from Kellan out of subliminal habit. In all the world he had one constant go-to person and this seemed to help keep him even keel at the very least. Though Max arrested his head yesterday it seems as if there was no love lost at the very least, and he took a great interest in seeing what they could make Kellan accomplish with neurolinks. There was a high point in all of this at least. It was something positive to focus on that seemed to bring him up slightly out of fear and rage which was a nice vacation of sorts.
His voice was quiet, but more resonate than before, "Wow, This kinda reminds me of Friday night dinners at home, don't it?"
Maximus looks skeptically at Kaleb. "Friday night dinners at home? You seemed the sort to be out on the town on a Friday night, with some girl on your arm, unfortunate as that is." The royal grins faintly and sips at his steaming tea, like he has all the time in the world. He moves elegantly and blinks slowly, clearly very relaxed with the twins. Observing them, though, helps him to learn about his own…practically non-existant relationship with HIS brother, in turn.
"He means Friday night dinners at home with our folks," Kellan says helpfully to Max. "Before the girlfriend and the nights on the town." He looks around the room and says, "Big empty room. Real quiet." He grins a little sidelong at Kaleb and then looks back to Max, "You're better company, though. And I don't have to pretend to live in a box in a closet. So.. I'm chalking this up to way better than dinner at home with the folks."
Kaleb glanced back up to Maximus, enjoying the food, but back to Kellan and the grin faintly reappeared. This was good. It was needed. "Yeah before my social obligations for feigning interest in society… This is better." He took a deep breath and considered this, "For us it's listening to our father go on and us trying to figure out what they wanted to hear from us and try, ever so much, not to disappoint them. It wasn't… I mean… it's our family. I suppose for that they're fine. This though? He doesn't have to pretend what he's not and you don't look at me like i'm a monster so it's a win."
"Then it is not the same, after all. Unless you want me to judge you. Oh I will. What /is/ that girl you areseeing…and why aren't you wearing a suit identical to mine, young man. And YOU!" Max turns to Kellan, "Its about time you stepped up to do something for this family." Apparently he knows exactly what its like to have judgey parents.
Kellan laughs, for the first time in a long time, a genuine laugh that actually reaches up to the blue of his eyes when Max turns on him and lays down the judgment. It's like there's been some weight lifted from his shoulders and he says to Max, "Yes, dad." Then he lifts his cup of tea and takes a small sip from it, eyes dancing a little as he regards Kaleb and Max over the edge of the cup.
Kaleb rolled his eyes and grinned. Of all the things that happened in the last month? that just happened. He laughed. It hurt to laugh but it was needed and he found it in him to appreciate the pitch for what it was. With a gesture of a fork he gestured to Max and asked of his twin, "Can we just adopt Max? All the judging, not of the dread." He shook his head, "I see you are familiar with these tactics of engagement? Excellent. You'll fit right in. Though I will admit, sometimes I DO miss going out on Friday night pretending to be you going out on dates. Obligations met and they never ever call me."
Maximus arches his brows at that and then suddenly laughs as well. "You pretend to be him and get him called, later? Ohhhhh, why that is delicious. But, do you mind too much, Kellan? Probably not. You get the illusion of going on dates and none of the time investment." He winks.
Kellan grins a little and says, "Yeah, well.. I didn't want to come out to my folks and tell them that I like guys.. and Kaleb didn't mind taking girls out to events and saying he was me because he can just tune them out. I don't mind them calling. I just make excuses until they stop. That part is easy enough." Then he smirks, "It's when he pretends to be me with my friends that it's less funny." But he grins a little afterward. "It's okay though, then I just get revenge."
Kellan also says, "Sure, we can adopt Max," with a little chuckle. "Honorary brother?"
Kaleb shrugged and admitted his deviance openly. Merit to him, he's never generally been one to lie unless the question was 'are you ok'. That had its own rules. "Yeah, and not having people assume for me that I'm horrible is sometimes a nice break. But I don't have to deal with the fallout and I don't have to watch him get burned out pretending all the fucking time. Then I have to sit around and be bent out of shape. It's exhausting." He glanced back to Maximus and chuckled, "Yeah so maybe I'm a bit of a cad. So what. It's not like they aren't all trying to fake interest so they can marry into money someday. Fair is fair. It's just a goddamned game to them." He sighed and covered his face with his hand. It occurred to him that at least Lorna wasn't like that and he found a spectacular way to sabotage that relationship too, short as it was. He offered to them, "Does it really freak people here out? Us being here?" Change of thought for him.
"Mmm…it sounds like there are things in your personal life that…have been complicated too. Were you not on a date when this occurred? We should look into finding the girl." A pause as Max absorbs the next bit, leaning back, legs wide, thoughtful as he considers it, "It does not freak them out. Barely anyone knows you are here, and that is how we should all keep it. Simply, I do not wish to be harassed by the genetic council, or the view of me, changed, in the eye of the public. They would not think me likely to bring an outsider here. Some of it is out of laziness. I don't want to explain the two of you. I don't want to explain mutants. I don't want to explain your problem to anyone. UGH. Intolerable. I just…want to be left alone."
Kellan smiles a little over at Kaleb and reaches over to give his shoulder a small nudge, gently in thanks. It's one of those wordless bits of communication that pass between them, that don't require any kind of special mental link. They just know. Then he looks back over toward Max and listens with some interest to his response to Kaleb. Quietly he says to Max, "We're not going to cause any trouble, or tell anyone, or go anywhere that anyone's going to see. What you've done for Kaleb, letting him practice here, letting him use that quiet room — that means a lot. Thank you."
Kaleb wobbled, being nudged, and it helped. He was hurting but even a flint heart like him really appreciated the nuisance of having someone there for him when he allowed someone to do so. Slightly a different person in these circumstances really. To Maximus he added, "Believe me. Most of my life all I wanted was to be left alone. You're in good company with us. Besides, from what you said to me about your people? Eh, We have many of the same issues. I'd think it'd be a short story."
"Yes…but…Inhuman is different than what you are. You are an alteration of a gene in your own body. We are born with alien DNA…that then is activated in a controlled fashion. The powers look similar, but you are human." Dramatic pause. "I am not. I am part human…and part alien, and all genetically crafted." He wets his lips. Maximus suddenly leans forwards, resting his elbows on the top of the table as he looks between the two men. "I am intrigued…I am enticed, by you. Being your brother has a certain appeal, but only if you can accept that I have terrible thoughts about my adopted brothers now and then."
Kellan smiles a little curiously as Maximus explains exactly what an Inhuman is, which is not something that he was familiar with before. "That's.. kind of fascinating," he admits. "So you actually know fully that you're going to have powers, and it's all.. a decision. And we're more like.. weeds that kind of crop up in the yard that you don't know where they came from." He smiles a little lopsidedly. "It's not really that bad, I mean.. being an accident.. could be worse." When Maximus leans forward, Kellan shrugs his shoulders and says, "It doesn't bother me." Then he says, "I don't know what I'd do without Kaleb. Having family helps, even if it's adopted family."
Kaleb knew what Kellan would do without him and responded drily, "Date a bunch of droll yappy women?" His hate for dating humans ought be night legendary by now. Looking to Maximus the comment drew a faint smirk, "EH, if you didn't I'd accuse you of having poor taste all a sudden. Serisouly I'm going to be twenty and aside from Kellan you and Jay are the first two people that ever really hung with me. We got you, Max." He paused though and looked to Kellan and blinked he looked at his plate and nodded quietly, "Yeah I don't want to think about that part, Kell." He flinched and and shook his head. A week and a half was enough of that. Nope. nope nope nope. Too much. Too… yeah.
Maximus shakes his head to unconfirm. "We do not know what we will be…only that we will be. Those who are chosen, are trained, and watched and eventually undergo the change. Many others…in fact /most/ others, never do. It is as if you suddenly had an intelligence test before becoming what you are." He grins a bit on the /sly/ side now. "You are not my first not-Inhuman friends, but you are certainly good ones."