[Verdant looms in the distance, and they probably could use a drink if they're going to dig into their daddy issues. And, with all the confidence of a rich kid who gets in everywhere, she strides right up to the doorman rather than acknowledging the line:]
Mia Queen. She's with me.
[She gestures to Hope. The doorman checks the list, before nodding and waving them both through.]
[Verdant pulses with sound once they step in the door, with the tell-tale green lights strobing through the dance floor packed with people. It's a scene Mia remembers well, one she used to enjoy not that long ago.
It's a great way to hide.
She steps to the side, before leaning towards Hope.]
We can grab a booth or I can see if we can get one of the rooms.
[She points up to the glass walled private rooms on the floor above.]
Your choice. But, I've always been a fan of privacy.
( Hope's never been to a place like this, both from her age and from the home town of her school. It's loud, thrumming, thumping and dark, but bright at the same time. )
[And it doesn't take much for her to get it, once she talks to one of the hostesses. They order their drinks and are escorted up to one of the rooms overlooking the dance floor.
It's quieter, but you can still feel the thrum of the bass in the floor.]
But yeah. My dad started out killing people and then he got ... less outright murderous in defending the city? But his first impression never really wore off.
That took time. The - headmaster, the twins' father, he sort of took me under his wing because my dad was MIA being fake crazy. They resented me for it, and I was never nice anyway. But, I grew into friendship?
I had the friends and the connections. And then I got my Slayer powers, freaked out and ran away. Though piece of advice, don't fall in love with your dad's best friend's kid because ... the expectations get way too high.
So, you ran because of your powers, and not because of the pressure you felt you were under.
( She looks back, then, assuming it was probably both. Slayer powers or not, those expectations sound confining. Her father's expectations are Hope growing into herself, whatever that looks like. She can do very little wrong, even when she's done wrong. )
Was it more pressure from your father, or his?
( Or was it the pressure she put on herself?
Hope can never live up to how she wants to be, and that pressure is always directed inward. )
More from ... him, actually. I don't think either of our parents would have really cared one way or another but JJ ... I think he had this whole picture in his head. Didn't really bother to ask if I was on the same page.
[There's a beat as she thinks about how that sounded.]
It's not that I didn't love him, because I did. But ... not like that. Not the way he wanted me to.
Sometimes, the best thing we can do is let each other go. My ex boyfriend and I are cosmically incompatible. Like, he will turn to mud if we -- he did turn to mud.
[Mia stares at her for a minute, before her face gets that expression that Oliver has when he realizes that he hates the fact the word they live in means he has to ask this question.]
... Like, literally? You guys kiss and he'd just ...
It led to one of the worst years of my life and multiple false alarm Landon's. ( That... weren't him. ) But, I've grown up, and Landon and I are friends now. Actually, honest to god friends. And Josie and I found our way to each other. So, even if JJ wasn't the right one, maybe the right one is out there. And until you find them, you're a slayer, and you have your brother, and - now, us. We all kind of come packaged together. You are honorary super squad.
It's more than just witches. It's ... everyone. If Tamara Monroe had her way, she would kill all of us.
[Witches, vampires, werewolves, probably even Slayers too. No one not human would be safe. But that isn't the point.]
My dad managed to get out eventually. He doesn't really do that much heroing in his old age. But he had a choice in it. He's human, through and through. People like us -
[and it's so strange, setting herself apart from him, as though she's something different. And she is, but Oliver's still her father, still a hero.]
- I guess we have to make a choice, whether we can live with standing by or if we can't. I can't, not really. It's in my blood. But I can't make that choice for anyone else.
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notwitty) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
everyonelives2021-10-27 05:46 pm
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So was my dad, technically. I mean, he saw himself as a hero, but in his early years he did some pretty shady stuff. Star City hated him on and off.
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( But not much past that. MG is their superhero guy. Landon, SciFi. But not Hope. )
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[Verdant looms in the distance, and they probably could use a drink if they're going to dig into their daddy issues. And, with all the confidence of a rich kid who gets in everywhere, she strides right up to the doorman rather than acknowledging the line:]
Mia Queen. She's with me.
[She gestures to Hope. The doorman checks the list, before nodding and waving them both through.]
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( Interesting. )
Mia Queen has clout.
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[Verdant pulses with sound once they step in the door, with the tell-tale green lights strobing through the dance floor packed with people. It's a scene Mia remembers well, one she used to enjoy not that long ago.
It's a great way to hide.
She steps to the side, before leaning towards Hope.]
We can grab a booth or I can see if we can get one of the rooms.
[She points up to the glass walled private rooms on the floor above.]
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( Hope's never been to a place like this, both from her age and from the home town of her school. It's loud, thrumming, thumping and dark, but bright at the same time. )
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[And it doesn't take much for her to get it, once she talks to one of the hostesses. They order their drinks and are escorted up to one of the rooms overlooking the dance floor.
It's quieter, but you can still feel the thrum of the bass in the floor.]
But yeah. My dad started out killing people and then he got ... less outright murderous in defending the city? But his first impression never really wore off.
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My dad is The Great Evil. He's a subject in, like, four of our history books.
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[Mia settles onto one of the couches, getting comfortable.]
Having to shoulder a legacy that heavy.
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I'm also the only one of my kind, so. My legacy is pretty much blood, paranoia, and isolation.
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[She says it somewhat sarcastically, but she's still sympathetic.]
But you don't seem to be isolating yourself. You're here with your friends. That's good, right?
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( Which is good. )
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[She takes a drink.]
I had the friends and the connections. And then I got my Slayer powers, freaked out and ran away. Though piece of advice, don't fall in love with your dad's best friend's kid because ... the expectations get way too high.
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( She looks back, then, assuming it was probably both. Slayer powers or not, those expectations sound confining. Her father's expectations are Hope growing into herself, whatever that looks like. She can do very little wrong, even when she's done wrong. )
Was it more pressure from your father, or his?
( Or was it the pressure she put on herself?
Hope can never live up to how she wants to be, and that pressure is always directed inward. )
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More from ... him, actually. I don't think either of our parents would have really cared one way or another but JJ ... I think he had this whole picture in his head. Didn't really bother to ask if I was on the same page.
[There's a beat as she thinks about how that sounded.]
It's not that I didn't love him, because I did. But ... not like that. Not the way he wanted me to.
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( He's alive again, though. )
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... Like, literally? You guys kiss and he'd just ...
[Makes a plop! gesture with her hands.]
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( Let that sink in. )
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[And she thought Buffy's first time was bad.]
That doesn't sound traumatic at all.
[Sarcasm, obviously.]
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I appreciate that.
[She knows what it means to be on a squad.]
The feeling is mutual.
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( Wars of all kinds for her, really. )
Do you think this life follows us?
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[Witches, vampires, werewolves, probably even Slayers too. No one not human would be safe. But that isn't the point.]
My dad managed to get out eventually. He doesn't really do that much heroing in his old age. But he had a choice in it. He's human, through and through. People like us -
[and it's so strange, setting herself apart from him, as though she's something different. And she is, but Oliver's still her father, still a hero.]
- I guess we have to make a choice, whether we can live with standing by or if we can't. I can't, not really. It's in my blood. But I can't make that choice for anyone else.
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Neither can I. And, I can't stand on the sidelines, either. I tend to put myself into the middle of everything. Or, lead the charge.
( She is much more of a team player now. )
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But the great thing about being on a team is that when you can't step up, someone's there to cover you. It's good that you have a squad.
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