MA

[jageskro]

Jag was just grabbing the old bag of peas they kept just for this purpose out of the freezer when he heard someone walk into the kitchen. He pressed the peas to his bruised cheek, then grabbed a beer out of the fridge, because one more wouldn't hurt. It wasn't like he was drunk. No, he wasn't drunk.

He turned around and smiled at the sight of Em. And no, he wasn't at all a little wobbly on his legs. "Heeey, Emma."

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[offthebeatenpath]

Em had cooked gumbo when she got home, wanting the 'chop vegetables, boil water' of it all with comfort food as the final product, but hadn't felt like eating by the time it was done. Later that night, though, her stomach had rethought it's uneasiness, and she'd decided to warm some up right around the time Jag got in.

Looking, she realized quickly, like he'd had quite a night. "Hi," she answered slowly, not needing to see it to know there'd be a bruise under the frozen pea-ice pack held in place by a hand that had thrown at least a few of the punches, from the look of his knuckles. "Hungry?" Probably better to start with that than asking him what had happened. Going to the fridge, she pulled out the pot of gumbo to spoon up some to reheat.

[jageskro]

"Not really," Jag answered, and stepped closer to hug her, because she was here, and he liked her, and why shouldn't he show affection. He awkwardly hugged her shoulders from the side, with the hand holding the bag of peas, then leaned back against the counter to pop his beer open. He took a drink, then put the peas back where they belonged - on his cheek, and looked over at her, before adding, "I had some chips."

[offthebeatenpath]

Alittle surprised by the hug, Em wrapped an arm around him anyway to hug back. "You had more than some chips, I think. And please tell me the other guys look worse?" She still dished up more food than she was likely to eat by herself, thinking he might change his mind, or need something to soak up some of the beer.

[jageskro]

"The other guy," Jag corrected. "He was a wanker. He was talking shit about shagging a drunk girl. Deserved it." Like John would have deserved it, Jag was certain. Which reminded him, "I've done something bad. Maybe." He took another drink.

[offthebeatenpath]

The gumbo reheating, she listened to him while pouring a couple of glasses of water. She set one in front of him and took a long drink from the other. "Protecting someone who couldn't take care of herself sounds like something good," she told him, offering a small smile of encouragement. She wanted to put a hand on his shoulder, or through his hair, but hug notwithstanding, she wasn't sure it would be welcome.

"What happened?"

[jageskro]

"I didn't protect anyone, he'd already done it, the bastard," Jag replied, completely distracted from what he'd been about to tell her. "Crowing about it. Fucking twat." Thinking about it pissed him off again, and he headed for the window, opening it to have a seat and, for now, abandon the peas in favour of a cigarette, can of beer still in his other hand. He lit the fag with a thought as he sat on the sill, apparently not caring that it was bloody cold outside at this time of night.

[offthebeatenpath]

That was different, then, but she still didn't see how Jag fighting the guy was a bad thing, or enough to upset him the way he was. "Then he deserved it. Jag. Tell me. What's going on?" She was starting to worry.

[jageskro]

"Hmm?" Jag frowned at her, having lost his train of thought. "It's all right. They kicked us out of the pub, is all."

[offthebeatenpath]

Em looked at him a minute, and put a hand on his knee. The area around the window was chilly, but she'd live, and she could always ask him for some fire to warm them up if they stayed there long. "Okay. But you don't get pangs of conscience over a bar fight. Especially when the other guy deserved it. You said you did something bad, remember?"

[jageskro]

"Oh, that!" Jag remembered. He winced, then confessed, "I ran into that wanker John. I told him to stay away from you. I know I shouldn't have. But he isn't right in the head, that one. And he's an arsehole." Two very separate issues, apparently. "I'm sorry."

[offthebeatenpath]

"You too?" she asked, wincing at the thought of Jag and John running into each other. Then she was wondering if Jag's bruised jaw and scraped up knuckles were all from the bar fight. And she was having a harder time than usual following Jag's non-linear, drunken thoughts. "You're sorry because you hit him? Or because he's an asshole?" Or something else she hadn't figured out yet, but best to start simply.

[jageskro]

Jag chuckled at that last one, and shook his head before taking a long drag off his cigarette. "No, well, yes, it might be easier if he wasn't. I'm sorry - I'm sorry I told him to stay away. Your life, your choice. But he's just wrong. I didn't hit him because I didn't want the Great Fire of London, take two." Which was clear proof that he was a wrong sort of person, if you asked Jag. No one ought to be worried that hitting someone would result in a city-wide disaster.

[offthebeatenpath]

Finally understanding - she thought - Em was far from upset. It felt good, having someone be protective like that, whether it was really necessary or not with John. She hugged Jag quickly, from the side since his hands were full. "You're always looking out for me."

Once she'd stepped back, picking up her water for something to do, she added, "Thanks for not hitting him. John's... not all bad. And I don't think he wants to do anything that would hurt me. He just... didn't know, about me and Pyro."

[jageskro]

"That's bad enough," Jag agreed, "but he's just wrong, Em. Even without..." He gestured vaguely with the hand holding the cigarette. "...without all that." He eyed her, suspiciously. "So you're not cross with me?"

[offthebeatenpath]

Talking about John's 'secondary mutation' wasn't going to help anyone, and the more they talked, the clearer Em was that wasn't really the point. She gave Jag a soft smile, pulling her hand back when she realized she was reaching to run a hand through his hair. "Family takes care of each other. You're trying to protect me, whether it's really necessary or not, and... It feels good, knowing you will." How could she be upset about that?

On the other hand, she could make her own decisions about the people in her life, and as hard as it was being around John sometimes, having more mutants around was a good thing. And now he knew about her Pyro, maybe things would be different. Not that she thought John would stay away simply because Jag told him to, or threatened him somehow.

[jageskro]

"I wish you'd steer clear of him," Jag mumbled into his beer, before taking another drink.

[offthebeatenpath]

"I have been." Other than going to dinner the once, but that was just the once, and she'd learned. "Today was completely accidental. I was... looking at my phone, not really paying attention. He came out of a shop and I almost crashed into him."

But she couldn't promise to avoid John and Bobby completely, even when it hurt. "But I used to live around a lot of mutants, and now... I have you. And there's Bobby and John. And only a few more people I don't have to hide from completely."

[jageskro]

"He's a fucking menace," Jag told her, looking up at her, his tone unusually sharp. "He was setting fire to a shop."

[offthebeatenpath]

Em sighed, but resisted rolling her eyes. "And this is him reformed," she muttered, mostly to herself. "Did he say why?"

[jageskro]

"Too busy being a smug bastard to say why," Jag muttered, and tipped the can back for another drink. There was goosebump all over his arms, but he wasn't feeling cold, and had no intention to move before he was done with his cigarette.

[offthebeatenpath]

"He was a little stressed when I saw him," she offered, not that stress was sufficient justification for setting fire to a shop. "Shopping for engagement rings. Maybe he had too much from some homophobic jeweler or something. Not that that makes it okay." But Em wanted to understand.

[jageskro]

"Or maybe he's a psycho, like I thought from the start," Jag retorted, and pulled hard on the cigarette, filling his lungs with smoke and keeping it in for a few seconds before sighing out. "I'm telling you, he's not right in the head, Em. He's dangerous."

[offthebeatenpath]

That John was dangerous was undeniable. But. Em lowered her eyes and exhaled slowly, before saying quietly, "You saw me kill a man with a thought. And if I see him in London, I'll do the same again without thinking twice. Dangerous is relative."

Running her hands through her hair, Em went back to her food. "Sorry. Maybe we forget about John for now? Talk about something else?"

[jageskro]

"Yeah, but you give a shit," Jag retorted, sailing right past her request with the single-minded obstinacy of the drunk, and a slightly unsteady pointed finger to emphasise his point.

[offthebeatenpath]

So much for moving on to something less incendiary. "Yeah. I do," she agreed quietly. "And I know John isn't Pyro. But, too many people looked at Pyro and saw what you see in John, and it's hard to let go of the idea he could be... better."