[ Ellie is quiet for a moment, a sentimental type of smile forming on her own features. Is this what it's like to make friends the natural way? Sure, Joel is definitely her closest friend, but their evolution into friendship was rocky and is only on a foundation solely built off of near-death experiences and harsh decision making. Before all of that happened? Riley was her only friend, and before Riley she had absolutely no friends to speak of. She was moved from military school to military school, kicked out for stealing, beating up other students, and sneaking out. It's safe to say that no one wanted to be her friend, and she never expected that to change. ]
[ The last time she was here? She'd made friends with so many people, Jesse included... And that guy still cares about her even after she can't remember shit and pulled a gun on him her first day back. Peter is legitimately the first friend she's made outside of her previous experience here. In the prolonged silence, she hugs her knees to her chest and briefly hides her face between them. ]
I'd uh...
I'd really like that. To know where you came from and all.
[ Her throat starts to burn a little, and she jolts back to an upright position. Sniffling a little, she rubs at her face to pull herself together. ]
[ -- ah, crap, did he make her cry? Peter is so not good when people cry. When she seems to collect herself, he lets out a silent breath. ]
You too, kid. See you tomorrow.
[ TIME SKIP
When "tomorrow" rolls around, Peter's waiting outside his door, a lot earlier than he had originally told her, just in case. (He'd hate for her to show up early on accident and not see a familiar face waiting for her.) He has a box of hard apple ciders in hand. Glitch had asked him to bring booze, and Peter is nothing if not a man of his word -- as evidenced by the fact that his two blasters are holstered on either hip. And just to add to the wow factor, he's left the house with his jet attachments for his boots. There's almost no need for them, surely, but hey, the kid likes space stuff, right? Distract her from the crowd of strangers with cool tech -- that's the ticket.
He waits patiently, checking his communicator every so often; he's fully expecting a call from Ellie, saying she can't do it. If that's the case, he'll just send her the list of flicks he had already put together and let her know they can try again next time. ]
[ It's not the first time she's left the apartment-- Ellie has left a couple of times with Joel to run some errands at the grocery store, but with how many times she's gotten uncomfortable among a crowd of non-infected people, they were short-lived trips that had her coming home early and just letting Joel do his thing. After about the third or fourth attempt, she didn't feel as uncomfortable. Perhaps this would be the last kicker to make her unafraid of leaving her home. ]
[ She's outside within minutes, alone, gun tucked neatly in the waistband of her jeans and hidden under her baggy t-shirt and plaid button up over top. Ellie keeps her phone in her hand, just in case she'll need to call either Joel or Peter upon getting lost. But by the time she makes it down the street, she quickly sees a flash of red and what looks like-- Oh my god is that a set of jets? Ellie had previously hiked her shoulders up to her ears, breathing heavily out of pure nervousness, but the site of a fucking space man has her mouth dropping. ]
[ He looks up from his gajillionth time checking his phone at the familiar sound of cursing -- because, man, does she swear a lot -- and he has to suppress a grin at her surprised. ]
Um, yeah? [ And now he's wearing a look that says, "For real, kid?" ] You know any other smokin' hot dudes with blasters and red leather jackets? 'Cause you seriously need to tell me about them. Can't have any competition.
[ A smile tugs at her lips as she scans his whole getup from top to bottom. Holy shit, what an outfit! He looks like he came straight from one of her comic books, and she couldn't possibly be any giddier. There's so much temptation to jolt for him to get a closer look, but there's still that lingering fear of what the dude is capable of and what he would do to prove it. ]
[ Ellie takes a hesitating step forward, head tilting. ]
[ He's careful about pocketing the comm device, movements deliberate, but not slow. He doesn't want her to notice, after all. He unholsters the gun at his right hip, laying it flat on his palms for her to see. ]
I know the temptation is probably killing you, but no touching. For Star-Lord's hands only, save for losing bets and emergencies.
[ She takes note of his slow gestures, pretty thankful for them too. When it's clear that he's not totally dangerous, she takes another step forward to get a closer look. Smile brightening, her eyes start to fucking glow at the sight of them. ]
Holy shit, and those are real? These better not be some fucking prop or something.
[ Her heart is pounding so fast. Both from the crippling agoraphobia and the excitement. It's a very weird feeling. ]
I could prove it, but then I'd have to explain why there are scorch marks on the sidewalk, and that's totally not something I wanna deal with. Shoots fire, remember? And lightning.
I can show you this, though -- just don't freak out, okay?
[ He holsters the gun -- again, with deliberate movements. No sudden, twitchy hands, here. He reaches up with his right hand and touches the trigger on the attachment behind his ear. Blue light wraps around his head, solidifies into metal with sharp, tinkling noise, and voila! One helmeted Star-Lord. ]
[ Even with the slow gestures and the warning, Ellie can't stop herself from taking a cautious step back. She looks up and watches as this strange mask begins to morph and piece itself together around Peter's face, and her mouth couldn't possibly open any wider. ]
No... fucking way!
[ Finally, she takes steps forward to get closer, head tilting as she looks up to the much taller Star Lord. ]
This is so awesome, you really are a space dude! You have to let me touch that. Just the parts without the buttons, I won't break it!
[ She's already on her tip toes and reaching up. ]
[ His voice is muffled behind the mask; despite the sort of beleaguered voice he affects, he says it with good humor. He ducks down a little so it's easier for her to reach. ]
Just don't go crazy, dude. No punching. I can still feel punches.
[ Ellie grins from ear to ear as she drags her fingers along the cold steel around his face. There's this weird vibration underneath it that has her a bit confused and shocked, but it must be the machinery at work. This has got to be some elaborate mask where he can see things differently or something. ]
So fucking cool.
[ After a couple seconds, she retracts her hand. ]
[ He grins behind his mask, glad that it's hidden. He fucking loves when people are impressed with his tech. ]
Honestly, you should be constantly impressed with me. I'm an impressive guy.
[ Once his expression is schooled into something less dorky, he reaches up and hits the button again; the mask retracts into the attachment, and Peter tilts his head. ]
You ready to go? [ And the softening of his expression says, You can back out, if you need to. ]
[ Ellie catches herself looking completely blown away and tones it down a notch, but it takes an awful lot to fight it when she watches him retract the mask. She's a child obsessed with sci-fi standing in front of a man straight out of a sci-fi movie or comic. She can't help but be a little star struck. ]
[ Enthusiastically, and more so than what she would prefer to show, she nods. ]
[ She shakes her head and holds both her hands up. ]
Okay, okay. You're going to need to slow down, because if I keep calling you out on how cool you are, you're gonna get a big head and I'll have to punch you in the face. That's not something I want to do.
[ Okay, that finally makes him break, and he grins. ]
Sorry, dude. One of the things you're gonna have to deal with hanging out with me? Tryin' to keep your jaw off the ground when you realize just how goddamn awesome I am.
Daily basis, by the way.
[ He reaches out a hand, letting her make the final contact. ]
You might feel a little woozy, after. Just don't barf on anyone, and we'll be cool
[ Ellie can't help but roll her eyes at the response. And it's a little bit of that and what he says next that calls for the gesture. Ellie grabs Peter's hand with only a little hesitation. ]
Don't worry, dude.
If it's one thing I've become pro at since I've gotten here? It's aiming where I projectile vomit.
Dude. Gross. That is not comforting. If you barf on me, I'm putting you in a headlock.
[ He punctuates this by making a blech noise, then shaking his head. Taking a breath, letting her mentally prep herself, he catches her gaze. ]
Alright. Gonna do this on the count of three. One-- Two--
[ And in an instant, wind rushes in to replace the suddenly empty space, whirls around them like a tornado. Not a second later, the scene has changed. Welcome to the suburbs of De Chima, Virginia, where the government houses are two stories tall, painted in greys and greens. From where they stand, the sounds of a party are muffled but audible -- voices laughing and chatting, with whichever movie they're watching buzzing in the background. Seems like they've found the place. ]
Oh come on, I just told you I know where to aim my--
[ Ellie doesn't even have a chance to finish her sentence. Peter is at two in an instant and Ellie is taken on the fastest, wildest ride she's ever been on. In a flash, they're in De Chima, but Ellie can't even focus on that. He was not kidding about the dizziness and nausea, not at all. Suddenly, she's desperately reaching to hold onto Peter's arm when her knees buckle. ]
Oh fuck--
[ She surprisingly doesn't feel the urge to vomit, or maybe she's just so used to puking she can't even tell at this point. ]
I think my stomach is between my butt cheeks. Hold on.
[ He lets her cling, hands still bracing her in case her legs give out. Yeah, his first time trying it was about this bad, too, so he doesn't rush her. It had taken about five trips or so to get the hang of it. ]
I dunno, actually. It wasn't something I could do before -- Porter gave it to me.
[ He says it with a bit of a sheepish smile. He should probably look into it more, the whole teleporting thing; at the very least, he's been practicing, taking bigger and bigger items on farther and farther trips. He's getting better. ]
Take your time. Warn me if you're about to blow chunks.
[ Ellie wrinkles her nose while she continues to struggle keeping her lunch in her stomach. Eventually, the world stops spinning so quickly and she's able to stand on her own, breaking away from Peter. ]
Man, that was fucking awesome but holy shit. The whole two seconds it took to get here took way more out of me than it should.
Good. I like this jacket -- if you got barf on it, I was gonna bill you for the dry cleaning.
[ His hands sort of hover around her even when she pulls away to steady herself. Once he's convinced she won't topple over, his hands drop to his sides. ]
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
Believe me, dude. I'm pretty good with weird shit. [ His entire life, after all, is weird shit. ]
Pretty sure we had a deal, too. Whenever you feel like cashing it in, I owe you one personal history.
no subject
[ The last time she was here? She'd made friends with so many people, Jesse included... And that guy still cares about her even after she can't remember shit and pulled a gun on him her first day back. Peter is legitimately the first friend she's made outside of her previous experience here. In the prolonged silence, she hugs her knees to her chest and briefly hides her face between them. ]
I'd uh...
I'd really like that. To know where you came from and all.
[ Her throat starts to burn a little, and she jolts back to an upright position. Sniffling a little, she rubs at her face to pull herself together. ]
You're a pretty cool dude, Star Lord.
I'll... I'll see you tomorrow. Have a good night.
no subject
You too, kid. See you tomorrow.
[ TIME SKIP
When "tomorrow" rolls around, Peter's waiting outside his door, a lot earlier than he had originally told her, just in case. (He'd hate for her to show up early on accident and not see a familiar face waiting for her.) He has a box of hard apple ciders in hand. Glitch had asked him to bring booze, and Peter is nothing if not a man of his word -- as evidenced by the fact that his two blasters are holstered on either hip. And just to add to the wow factor, he's left the house with his jet attachments for his boots. There's almost no need for them, surely, but hey, the kid likes space stuff, right? Distract her from the crowd of strangers with cool tech -- that's the ticket.
He waits patiently, checking his communicator every so often; he's fully expecting a call from Ellie, saying she can't do it. If that's the case, he'll just send her the list of flicks he had already put together and let her know they can try again next time. ]
no subject
[ She's outside within minutes, alone, gun tucked neatly in the waistband of her jeans and hidden under her baggy t-shirt and plaid button up over top. Ellie keeps her phone in her hand, just in case she'll need to call either Joel or Peter upon getting lost. But by the time she makes it down the street, she quickly sees a flash of red and what looks like-- Oh my god is that a set of jets? Ellie had previously hiked her shoulders up to her ears, breathing heavily out of pure nervousness, but the site of a fucking space man has her mouth dropping. ]
Holy fuck, is that you, Peter?
no subject
Um, yeah? [ And now he's wearing a look that says, "For real, kid?" ] You know any other smokin' hot dudes with blasters and red leather jackets? 'Cause you seriously need to tell me about them. Can't have any competition.
no subject
[ Ellie takes a hesitating step forward, head tilting. ]
Are uh...
[ She shyly gestures at his hip. ]
Are those your plasma blasters there?
no subject
[ He's careful about pocketing the comm device, movements deliberate, but not slow. He doesn't want her to notice, after all. He unholsters the gun at his right hip, laying it flat on his palms for her to see. ]
I know the temptation is probably killing you, but no touching. For Star-Lord's hands only, save for losing bets and emergencies.
no subject
[ She takes note of his slow gestures, pretty thankful for them too. When it's clear that he's not totally dangerous, she takes another step forward to get a closer look. Smile brightening, her eyes start to fucking glow at the sight of them. ]
Holy shit, and those are real? These better not be some fucking prop or something.
[ Her heart is pounding so fast. Both from the crippling agoraphobia and the excitement. It's a very weird feeling. ]
no subject
I could prove it, but then I'd have to explain why there are scorch marks on the sidewalk, and that's totally not something I wanna deal with. Shoots fire, remember? And lightning.
I can show you this, though -- just don't freak out, okay?
[ He holsters the gun -- again, with deliberate movements. No sudden, twitchy hands, here. He reaches up with his right hand and touches the trigger on the attachment behind his ear. Blue light wraps around his head, solidifies into metal with sharp, tinkling noise, and voila! One helmeted Star-Lord. ]
no subject
No... fucking way!
[ Finally, she takes steps forward to get closer, head tilting as she looks up to the much taller Star Lord. ]
This is so awesome, you really are a space dude! You have to let me touch that. Just the parts without the buttons, I won't break it!
[ She's already on her tip toes and reaching up. ]
no subject
[ His voice is muffled behind the mask; despite the sort of beleaguered voice he affects, he says it with good humor. He ducks down a little so it's easier for her to reach. ]
Just don't go crazy, dude. No punching. I can still feel punches.
no subject
[ Ellie grins from ear to ear as she drags her fingers along the cold steel around his face. There's this weird vibration underneath it that has her a bit confused and shocked, but it must be the machinery at work. This has got to be some elaborate mask where he can see things differently or something. ]
So fucking cool.
[ After a couple seconds, she retracts her hand. ]
Okay, I am officially impressed and satisfied.
no subject
Honestly, you should be constantly impressed with me. I'm an impressive guy.
[ Once his expression is schooled into something less dorky, he reaches up and hits the button again; the mask retracts into the attachment, and Peter tilts his head. ]
You ready to go? [ And the softening of his expression says, You can back out, if you need to. ]
no subject
[ Enthusiastically, and more so than what she would prefer to show, she nods. ]
Yeah, definitely. Let's go.
no subject
Okay. I'm gonna let you in on a secret, and you absolutely cannot tell anyone. Got it?
[ He puts in a dramatic pause, and before she can answer, he continues. ]
I can teleport. I figure we avoid the BS of getting to the porter and just hop there. You cool with that?
no subject
[ She shakes her head and holds both her hands up. ]
Okay, okay. You're going to need to slow down, because if I keep calling you out on how cool you are, you're gonna get a big head and I'll have to punch you in the face. That's not something I want to do.
[ And she looks up to him, grinning. ]
Fuck yes, let's do it.
no subject
Sorry, dude. One of the things you're gonna have to deal with hanging out with me? Tryin' to keep your jaw off the ground when you realize just how goddamn awesome I am.
Daily basis, by the way.
[ He reaches out a hand, letting her make the final contact. ]
You might feel a little woozy, after. Just don't barf on anyone, and we'll be cool
no subject
Don't worry, dude.
If it's one thing I've become pro at since I've gotten here? It's aiming where I projectile vomit.
no subject
Dude. Gross. That is not comforting. If you barf on me, I'm putting you in a headlock.
[ He punctuates this by making a blech noise, then shaking his head. Taking a breath, letting her mentally prep herself, he catches her gaze. ]
Alright. Gonna do this on the count of three. One-- Two--
[ And in an instant, wind rushes in to replace the suddenly empty space, whirls around them like a tornado. Not a second later, the scene has changed. Welcome to the suburbs of De Chima, Virginia, where the government houses are two stories tall, painted in greys and greens. From where they stand, the sounds of a party are muffled but audible -- voices laughing and chatting, with whichever movie they're watching buzzing in the background. Seems like they've found the place. ]
--Three.
no subject
[ Ellie doesn't even have a chance to finish her sentence. Peter is at two in an instant and Ellie is taken on the fastest, wildest ride she's ever been on. In a flash, they're in De Chima, but Ellie can't even focus on that. He was not kidding about the dizziness and nausea, not at all. Suddenly, she's desperately reaching to hold onto Peter's arm when her knees buckle. ]
Oh fuck--
[ She surprisingly doesn't feel the urge to vomit, or maybe she's just so used to puking she can't even tell at this point. ]
I think my stomach is between my butt cheeks. Hold on.
no subject
Easy, kid, easy. Take a few deep breaths. The first time definitely sucks.
Do you need to sit?
no subject
Nope. Nope, I got this.
[ She grunts, trying to take a deep breath as she holds on tight to Peter and fights to recover. ]
Okay...
Alright, I'm okay. I think.
[ Ellie heavily exhales. ]
Dude, how did that even work?
no subject
I dunno, actually. It wasn't something I could do before -- Porter gave it to me.
[ He says it with a bit of a sheepish smile. He should probably look into it more, the whole teleporting thing; at the very least, he's been practicing, taking bigger and bigger items on farther and farther trips. He's getting better. ]
Take your time. Warn me if you're about to blow chunks.
no subject
Man, that was fucking awesome but holy shit. The whole two seconds it took to get here took way more out of me than it should.
[ She rubs her face. ]
I'm fine. No puke from me.
no subject
[ His hands sort of hover around her even when she pulls away to steady herself. Once he's convinced she won't topple over, his hands drop to his sides. ]
Ready for this?
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