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Callie shook her head slightly as Casper started to go a little bit off topic as she downed the rest of her drink as she listened to Max's answer. She honestly didn't feel attracted to any of the men that were suggested in the first round, but she decided to not answer as Callie turned her attention towards Ben. She nodded she wasn't going to bug him at all about being alive again, Ben clearly was uncomfortable with the subject about life and death. "I might go and check that out then." Callie said looking over towards Veil giving her a slight smile, she wanted to get a few more drinks anyway.

"I'm going to get some more drinks, does anyone want to come with or any requests?" Callie asked looking at the group, she obviously wasn't going to give any to the younger mutants at their table mainly Andy and Zari. Callie's attention turned towards Selene as she approached their table mainly addressing both Andy and Jack, though she was really curious why Selene was calling Andy her daughter. "Do you actually know her?" Callie asked as she turned her attention over towards Andy, as well as Jack to clearly something was up here.

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Andy's stomach twisted when Selene started to approach them. She didn't know how to act around her mother. When she lived in foster homes, she had been a bit on the antagonistic side with her foster parents. Most of the time, it was self-defense. However, here on Genosha, her 'parents' (Magneto and Selene) could easily kill her. She didn't want to die. Not with Zari in her life now. It might have been different months before she met the Mutant Underground group.

She stood up. Pulling at her dress a bit. "Uh, hi mom." Her face turned bright red, but she didn't kiss her. She glanced at Callie; she shrugged and nodded at the same time. "It is complicated. I don't know the whole story yet, but it turns out Selene is my mother." She looked back at Selene. Andy wanted to know the story, wanted to know the truth.

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Max almost spat out his mead. Choking it back and swallowing before eyeing Casper up and down. "You don't look it." (Or act it for that matter). He tried to hide his smile behind the rim of his stein as Casper rolled on having a one way conversation with himself about what his answers would be had he been presented with the choice. That was when he spotted Selene coming towards their table. He didn't doubt that her help was immeasurable during the attack on the island, and he loved that she gave those with magic a space for themselves. But he still didn't trust her or her motives. Maybe it was the way she dressed, the memories that had swirled in him when their consciousness had fused, or the fact that she devoured souls. Something just didn't sit right.

Now Max hadn't had a date for the evening. Love never really did seem to find its way towards him, and those he crushed on tended to look the other way. So when Veil had told him of where she'd gotten her drink, and Callie asked if anyone would care to tag along, Max quietly stood at the invitation wanting an excuse to distance himself for a moment. "Ben wanna join? It'll be better than McDonalds." he joked, hoping the tease wouldn't go too far. "Veil want another while we're out?" He held his hand out slightly towards Ben, offering it to help him out of his chair if he chose to come along.

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Harry chuckled at Zari and her mechanical friend as they argued. He still didn't quite understand any of that, but he realized quickly there was very little he did understand. Trying to focus now on what he knew, that he was with the ones he loved and wanted to make every moment count like it was his last. Because it very well might be someday. "Play nice you two. It's never a bad idea to ask questions you want answers to. Even Davie - I mean David, here had asked about the little game. To be completely honest there's no point to it. It's just a way to pass time and have fun while poking fun at each other's choices or joining them in comradery. It's a lot like asking…what would you get rid of if you had to choose, Pancakes, Waffles, or French Toast?"

Harry wasn't about to ask a child to fuck,marry, or kill anyone. But a simple question about which breakfast food is inferior to the other two is a close enough question that was more age appropriate than what Sunshine had originally had in mind. Hearing Casper through the question back at Jack seemed a little odd. Maybe it was just Harry's gay brain going off but he'd always imagined Magneto and Charles to be like fueding exs, so it was like asking your brother if he'd fuck your father's ex bf. Either way he was interested to hear the answer.

---

James had a few curt replies to Casper's off-handed check in but he instead chose to curl his arms a little tighter around Casper. James wasn't under any illusions- sharing was not caring unless someone also wanted to share James's knife in their guts. But that was for another time, not while the group was supposed to be relaxing and enjoying the party. He satisfied himself by gently knocking his head against Casper's back before turning his attention to Veil at the question.

"Would you mind grabbing water for Casper and me? It's been a long night." He asked Spark Plug at the offer, entirely unwillingly to move until Casper decided he'd had enough cuddling for a while. Thankfully, there was a show unfolding right in front of them as Selene made a beeline for her apparent daughter. Dinner, Dancing, drinks, and a show. Anytime Selene was involved, James knew it was going to turn into a shit show.

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"Well, no wonder this group is so confusing, since no one really explains much of anything that's going on or answer questions," she said bluntly, before looking at Echo, as he actually acknowledged her question and explained things. His explanation wasn't exactly the greatest, and she tilted her head to the side, almost like she was trying to think about the best answer to what he had said to her. You practically could see the gears turning in her head.

Eventually, she decided to answer, "But... Why would you want to wonder if someone would want to do something like that or get rid of anything or something? It sounds weird to me. So why would you want to? Though my answer to your example is French Toast, that always was weird to me," Zari said, before her attention turned towards Selene, who was now talking to Andy. Currently, she still didn't know what to make about Selene, the woman weirded her out a bit that was for sure.

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"I mean I was perfectly fine not being a part of the conversation Casper, but that's just me. Since the game is a bit weird to me. And honestly I do not have an answer to those choices at all," Jack said towards Casper with a bit of an eye roll. It always was fun being the youngest in a family, since then everyone teased you for one thing or another. Personally he didn't want to answer the question partially because he figured that Casper would sit there and ask the full reasoning for why he made those choices.

His attention was drawn away now by Selene deciding to make her way to their table, and she seemed to refer to Andy as her daughter. Well now that wasn't something he expected to hear, of course, she then decided to refer to him of course. That was a bit unwelcome for the moment given no one knew about his interactions with Selene, or anything involving his father. That was just something he didn't want to discuss. He didn't say anything to Selene immediately, but he did give her a slight wave in response.

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She fully had expected his answer, but it didn't help to dampen the sting from his words. Miranda had been trying to talk to him for a while, and she figured that since he was avoiding her for the most part, now was the moment to just talk. Things were over, and that she easily knew, however, she figured since they had been together for so long, she might as well tell him the full truth. He only knew the basics of what had happened, not even close to enough to potentially create a full explanation, but that wasn't the only thing she was going to tell him.

"Well, I figured that would be your reaction. However I do believe I owe you something, after all this time... And that would be the truth behind what I did, or the reasons why I never told you. The main reason I never told you was because I knew that you would react poorly and not give me a chance to try and explain anything, which might I add you've proven my point. The reason why I helped shift things back... Well now that is an interesting question... And a bit of an explanation... It comes down to me wanting to protect my children, and before you say anything, yes, I said children in the sense of plural, as in I have more then one... I also did it for your kids, the twins? I know you care about Wanda but Pietro always was a lot more like you then you could possibly realize... But I did it for them, to help them too, since yes, Wanda created that false reality, she created it in hopes of bringing her family back together, something that let's be honest in the real world tends to not seem very likely as you and her brother don't tend to see eye to eye... You think you know everything, but you don't... And I helped fix everything because I actually cared about my kids, and yours who I sometimes tend to see as my own anyway..." she said to him.

Miranda did know that she at least owed him that sort of explanation. It didn't explain much about the alternate reality or anything like that, but it did explain her reasoning for why she did what she did, and why she kept quiet. "Good bye Erik," she said, before turning to walk away, but she hesitated for a moment, forgetting to fully explain one more thing. "Oh, and you have another son... He's older then the twins though, but I'm fairly certain you've actually met him once before..." she added, not explaining anything more as she walked away.

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Mutant Underground Table -

Veil held up a finger, indicating that she wanted Spark Plug to wait for a moment, before she downed the rest of her drink. She had worked as a bartender a bit after graduating from Xavier's school and prior to joining up with the Mutant Underground - so naturally, she appreciated the intergalactic brews available for them tonight. And with how conversations were going, plus the fact that Selene had waltzed on up, she figured she was going to need to get at least heavily buzzed to get through the night without getting a migraine from stress. "I'll show you where I got this from - and get myself something new to try," Veil said, standing up from the table.

"I'll take something strong - otherwise, surprise me," Marrow said, having finished her beverage. She was planning to gradually but steadily increase her alcohol intake as the night went on, allowing her to get to her desired stage of black-out drunk ideally around 3AM or so. The more she drank, the later she found she was able to stay up anyways.

"Make that two mystery drinks!" Sunshine piped up. She wasn't old enough to consume alcohol in the United States, but they were on Genosha. Silly human rules like that didn't apply. Sunshine also didn't care if people were worried about how her brain would develop - there was probably a mutant out there who could repair any damage she could do. Hell, she was pretty certain that James could do so. She was feeling like a princess in her dress and she wanted to get drunk. The alcohol options tonight were way better than what the Green Lagoon usually had anyways.

"Might I recommend the absinthe? It's divine," Selene said, snapping a finger and a chair instantly pulled up for her and she sat down. One of her powers was telekinetic manipulation of inorganic matter - though most people knew her for being a psychic vampire. "Oh child, it's not too interesting of a tale. I would much rather hear about what you youths have been up to - and why your leman seems to have a hatred for French toast?"

Casper wanted to sulk slightly, hearing James' request for Max to fetch the two of them water, but he was pretty much instantly distracted by Selene's fit. Her fascinator was completely fascinating - a moon symbol with an entire array of ostrich feathers. The sculpturing evocative of the triple moon, the black blue gradient of the fabric, the tasteful skin that was shown... Casper was instantly in love with Selene's outfit. If he had had cards in front of him, he would've been giving her 10's all the way across the board. "Damn, Jumbo outdid himself," Casper whistled. "How's all of the metal bits not just falling off of you?" Casper asked, thinking more about the design and structure of the dress now than the fact that Selene was Andy's mother.

"My mutant powers, of course," Selene answered. "I am holding this dress together through sheer force of will. Of course... A suitable distraction might find me suitably undressed," she then added, giggling a bit at her own joke.

Ben got up from the table. Selene gave him the creeps. He wasn't a ghost anymore, but she had eaten enough ghosts that he wanted to steer clear of her. She was so incredibly sinister and campy that most people seemed to have let their guards down around her, but Ben wasn't so trusting. She was up to something - he just had no idea what it was. (Of course, Ben had also blushed slightly when Max invited him to go with Spark Plug to get a drink. He had to get better practice at hiding his emotions, he had gotten too used to just showing it all with Casper).

David was staying relatively quiet. He was picking up on the tension Selene's arrival had caused, and he was curious as to what exactly was going on between her and Jack. If Selene was Andy's mother, who was she to Jack?

House of M Table -

Magneto listened to what Miranda had to say. He didn't agree with her, but he listened. He didn't interrupt. And she didn't give him a chance to respond before she walked away. If she turned her head to look back though, she would notice that the pocket watch that was part of Magneto's outfit had been crushed into a tiny wad - no doubt through his magnetic prowess. He was angry.

But he didn't go after her.

He let her go - for the last time.

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"Two waters, and two strong mystery drinks, got it." Callie said as she looked towards Veil and nodded towards her as she stood close by to her friend letting her take the lead to where she had gotten her drink. She was fine with getting Sunshine and Marrow something strong it was a party after all anyway. And after everything that had happened they needed to have something that they could help enjoy the party that they had been working on setting up.

Selene Callie still wasn't sure about her fellow Quiet Council member something was off with her which she didn't like but she didn't attack the group or anything like that just yet. Max and Ben were willing to come and join them which was good she could use the company anyway. "Lead the way Veil." Callie said looking at her friend, maybe they would bump into someone and they could find a late date or something as well to. "We'll be back with the drinks you all want." Callie told them.

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There was still tension related to Selene. Andy could tell. But no one seemed too bothered by Selene being her mother. Some of the group left, but they had a good reason. She hadn't ordered a drink, it would be a good excuse later to step away alone, or with maybe just Zari.

She glanced at Zari, thankful that Echo could explain the game further. She didn't know why it existed, just what it was. She looked back to Selene, unsure what she meant by leman. But at least she agreed with Zari about French Toast. She didn't like the texture of it.

Selene skillfully avoided answering Andy's unasked question. Claiming the story of how Andy had been 'orphaned' wasn't interesting. She didn't quite agree. But maybe it was boring. How though? Selene was clearly taking an interest in her now. What was different between fourteen years ago and now?

"I agree with you, Zari." Andy said, shrugging slightly. "I don't like the texture of French Toast much. Soggy bread isn't appealing to me." That was completely true, as she sometimes liked to dip muffins into coffee, but that seemed different. She supposed this weird small talk conversation was what was going to happen. Though Casper and Selene's conversation was...unsettling. Andy couldn't tell if Selene was hitting on Casper or just meant in general.

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It was a damned good thing that he and a few others decided to join Callie on the drink run. There were about as many drinks as there were hands now, and Max surely was going to grab himself two drinks so that he didn't have to get back up again later. He caught the hues of pink forming on Ben's cheeks, trying not to smile as he thought he looked particularly adorable at this moment. Once Ben had stood up, Max used his free hand to gently take his hat off by the top and plop it down onto Ben's head. "Blush looks good on you." he said, barely making eye contact from above the brim of the hat. It never came natural to him, flirting, usually ended in a disastrous mess.

"So do you drink? Maybe we can have matching blue and purple tongues like Veil here." Max joked, trying to fill the silence while also offhandedly letting Veil know of the drinks…after effects. As they walked off, Max tried to keep his hands to his side near his pant pockets, though every once in a while he'd have to move to avoid colliding into another party guest. His hand barely brushed up against Ben's as he did so before pulling back into the place the sat originally in his pocket. He

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A part of Harry wondered about James' powers. Did his Omega level healing factor allow him to get intoxicated? Could he even feel hungover later? Where did one line end and another begin for the limitations of his powers? He wondered if James had ever even tested it out, or if he was always so conscious about his drinks as to stay hydrated between them to avoid it even having the chance of happening. His attention snapped back towards Zari as she began to answer his question. He wasn't quite sure how to explain it any further than he already did. There was no real why to the matter. And the more anyone lived the more they realised that somethings in life just didn't have reasoning behind it.

Jack was all work and no play which made him a dull boy. Though Harry figured that's where the saying came from. Though Selene's arrival seemed to bring about a new Era of interest. All eyes pointed towards her, as both her outfit and attitude seemed to command attention. Every ounce of her oozed confidence but even more so it radiated a power that was so suffocating it almost felt numb. He'd seen her defend this island and what she would do, and it still unnerved him. "Leman? Though I'm curious to your answer Selene. If you had to pick, which would you eliminate permanently? Pancakes, Waffles, or French Toast?"

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James found himself content as the conversation moved around him, happy to listen and watch. Waverly’s face on the steps of the Hellfire manor tonight hadn’t ruined his mood tonight but as he sat listening to the remaining members of the Mutant Underground talk and drink in peace, minus the ever looming doom that seemed to swirl around Selene like a bad odor, he couldn’t help but consider the scars at the table, the spots where still others should be sitting and celebrating. Waverly, lost at the hands of an interdimensional mutant. Sapphire, sacrificed so that those she cared about could live in the face of certain death. Cayden, killed in the process of securing a cure. Leighton, Magik, Luna… James never felt the weight of those losses more than he did now, seeing their faces in gaps between people, where they should have been teasing, arguing, laughing all the same as they usually did.

James turned his attention away from the phantoms of the dead and returned to the now, where Selene was making everything decidedly less enjoyable to everyone but Casper and Harry. Selene was a dangerous thing, wrapped up in whatever pretty wrapping suited her fancy, like a time bomb hidden in a cartoon present. It didn’t help that she was a powerful sorcesses, wizard, vampire thingy? James would have to ask Max about titles and labels at some point but the fact of the matter was, James didn’t know shit about magic and Selene’s inherent need for chaos rivaled Max’s, making it difficult for him to predict what her goals were for this place when she treated the island like a dollhouse for her to play with however she found fun at the moment.

“We’ll find you a few zip ties if that happens.” James promised Selene, wholly uninterested in even entertaining the idea of her losing clothes.

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Zari wasn't too sure if she was fully comfortable with Selene being around the group, since she was definitely a bit intimidating at times. Though the instant the word leman left Selene's mouth and how it was clearly referring to her made her face turn bright red blushing. Based on everyone else's reactions, she was the only one who seemed to even understand what the word meant. Or the way it was typically used really, and she was trying to calm down a bit to try to stop blushing, but that was not working out too well for her.

"Oh um... I just never um... Cared for it... There are better breakfast foods then um... That..." Zari typically never stuttered or stumbled over her words, so this was a bit strange for her, and for others. Maybe later she'd explain to Andy her reaction or whatever, but right now she was not going to just openly explain it in front of everyone given what the word means.

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Of course Casper was instantly interested in the whole outfit that Selene was wearing and all. That was definitely not surprising at all, given his brother's intense interest in clothing. Most everyone else seemed to act a bit wary of Selene, and honestly he usually tended to act that way before when he first met her, she wasn't so bad to be around. She definitely was an interesting person to be around. Those who had stayed at the table seemed to be asking her a few questions, Casper about the outfit, Echo seemed to be asking her the question that the kids had been talking about?

"Lovely as always to see you Selene, and beautiful as ever too," he said to Selene with a smile. At this point it was a bit obvious that something was up between him and Selene, though he very much was not going to explain anything away. He figured he might as well lean into the whole situation. People were going to ask questions anyway no matter what he did, so why honestly try to hide anything?

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She had gotten a lot off her chest in her overall rant to Magneto. Truthfully she had wanted to tell him more of her reasonings, particularly why she had given up her son, the one who also was his child. It wasn't just because of him or anything, it was also because of her, and more so really because of her and knowing she likely couldn't really provide a stable home for the kid at the time, and everything else that had been going on. No, there wasn't enough time in the world to explain that whole thing.

Miranda didn't look back, deciding to go see about getting a drink. Right now she wanted something strong, and was really wishing that Ellie was still at the party, since she right now could really use a friend to talk to or something. So many things were going through her head currently, and she didn't know what to think with everything going on. So now that she needed to figure out what it was that she was going to do, what better way then to find something strong to drink?

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Mutant Underground Table -

"Aww, you flatter me, darling," Selene cooed at Jack. Of course, anyone with a functioning gay-dar would likely pick up on the fact that Selene wasn't flirting with Jack. No, they would realize that Selene was a hyper femme lesbian. Men were snacks to her, whereas women were something she could really sink her fangs into. (No, Selene does not actually have fangs - although many people swear up and down that she does...) Of course, if Andy's gay-dar is functioning, that would likely only inspire more questions around the circumstances of her birth and apparent abandonment by Selene.

Case in point, Selene was smirking at Zarina as if the little Valkyrie was something to devour. "Zarina, dear, would you share with the others what leman means? It appears they lack your sophistication," Selene baited. She then turned her attention to Echo's second question, pondering it with due consideration. "Well, pancakes I adore, as they mimic one of the finer features of the female form - when the topping is placed correctly, biting it off is like playing with a nipple," Selene said matter of factly, as if teaching a class, "And I do like a spot of French toast - that or an actual Frenchman, I'm not picky. So I suppose waffles will have to be the one to go, then."

Casper audibly gasped. He had been really digging Selene's style moments ago, but to hear her DESECRATE THE MOST HOLY OF FOODS?! That couldn't stand. "Waffles? You would get rid of WAFFLES?!" Casper blurted, acting like Selene had just said she would kill his brother or a beloved pet. If Casper could eat nothing else but waffles for the rest of his life, he would be content and not even protest; he was a kindred spirit with Leslie Knope in that regard.

Meanwhile, Sunshine was doing her best not to burst out laughing too hard at Selene's antics, resulting in Marrow looking at her with concern as Sunshine shook, crying ever so slightly. "I'm sorry, this is just... This is too iconic, I can't," Sunshine apologized, her face red - probably from alcohol and not embarrassment. She was really doing her best to contain the giggles, but she ended up snickering regardless. "I think I might have to stan."

Marrow rolled her eyes. She could see that this crazy evil lesbian witch aesthetic was really working for her wife, and she wasn't going to begrudge her that, but she found Selene to be annoying personally. She didn't even know if Selene realized how campy she was being.

"Are you having a stroke, child? What is... this... STAN?" Selene asked, serious as the grave.

"Oh, I know this one - it's really simple, it's like how people who were crazy for things used to be called fans, but now everyone uses fan, so now the super crazy fans are stans - but also, it's kinda like saying that you HAVE to support something even against your will, like how we have to breathe in order to live, you're forced to stan someone just in order to be alive," Casper explained. "Like there's at least ten Real Housewives who are totally terrible people, but I just have to stan Ramona. I can't help it."

David looked at Echo for a moment. He couldn't help but think they should've gone off with the group that went to go and get drinks. This was... a lot. "How drunk do you think they all are, on a scale of one to ten?" he asked his date softly, before grinning.

Shi'Ar Bartender Set-Up

Ben's heart did summersaults and a few flips as Max's hand brushed his - his touch felt electric. It had been so long since he had felt the touch of another person, so long since he had been able to want someone who might want him back. And poor Ben felt so incredibly rusty when it came to flirting. The irritated edge he had had earlier when people were pestering him about what it was like to be alive again was gone, replaced with something between anxiousness and desire. "I'd like to see your tongue," Ben muttered, internally cringing the instant he said it - but he didn't regret it either. He had been a ghost for almost two decades and he was lonely. He realized he hadn't answered Max's question, but Ben waited - waited to see how Max would react.

"It's right over here," Veil said, once they had made it over to a crowded booth where a small crew of bartenders were preparing drinks for a lengthy line. There weren't any drinks left unattended for just anyone to drag, as even in utopia people were wary about date rape drugs and whatnot. Taped to the tablecloth was blowouts of the drink menu, all including things with ingredients and flavors not known to this galaxy. Veil didn't care that her tongue had gotten stained - as long as it didn't last too far into the next day, it wasn't anything to worry about.

Veil noticed someone else getting into the drink line though - one of the quieter Quiet Council members, Moneta. Moneta always reminded her of Winona Ryder, to the extent that Veil was suspicious that she might've been a mutant clone of the actress or something. Veil stepped into line behind Moneta, her hands shoved into her pockets. "Enjoying the gala, Moneta?" Veil asked. "You look like you could use a stiff drink," she then added bluntly. There was something off about Moneta - something wrong.

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Callie followed alongside Veil she occasionally looked over her shoulder towards Max and Ben for a moment, and smiled they looked like a cute little gay couple. She wished that she had some pockets sadly her dress didnt have any which was the bad thing about the dress that she had chosen. Callie could see a rather large line as Veil pointed out the particular bar as the bartenders were busy making the drinks for all of the customers. Callie spotted Moneta and gave her a slight wave and smile towards her, she seemed nice enough for the most part as she stood next to Veil.

"Hows it going?" Callie asked looking over at her it looked like she did need to get a few drinks in her or something like that as Callie looked over at Veil. "Maybe you'll meet that one girl you seem to like here." Callie said playfully nudging Veil slightly as she waited in line, she was curious about what sort of drinks this stand did have for them she didn't really care if it stained her mouth or anything like that really.

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As supposed family reunions could go, this wasn't the worst. It was awkward. There was no question about that. Even Zari was blushing about something. She glanced between Zari and Selene. What had she missed? Then, Casper was affronted by Selene, saying she'd do away with waffles.

Andy's gay-dar did not seem to be functioning. Considering her socializing, that wasn't totally surprising. The only one in the group she would have said with ease was somewhere on the LGBTQ+ spectrum would have been Casper, but you'd have to be deafblind not to notice that.

The conversation at least seemed to be flowing, and no one was asking her questions she couldn't answer.

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How interesting.

James eyed Jack for a moment after his interaction with Selene. This was probably the most social James had seen him since he’d awoken from the cryostasis and with Selene of all people. James had tried to connect with him back when he’d first stumbled out, when it was just the three members of the MU awake, but he’d been closed off and distant as he shouldered whatever demons hounded him. All of them had their issues and unfortunately, it’d just pushed them further apart when they should have been supporting each other. However, Jack was a little more like his old self in this moment and normally, he’d be happy for Jack that he’d found something that help but when that help is Selene, it’s a whole different story.

“When did you and Selene become so friendly? You’re a hard man to find most days.” James asked Jack, desperate for a distraction from current conversation. Casper’s adorable waffle related antics aside, the conversation at the table made him regret requesting water and not something that would black out everything that just assaulted his ears. Honestly, Selene mostly just annoyed him with her easy dismissals of anything that required half a drop of empathy but hearing her talk like this made him want to slam his forehead into the table as hard as possible. Maybe a concussion would make dealing with her easier.

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Selene weirded her out to no end, and she preferred to not] explain the full meaning of the word even though she knew it. That would be way too awkward considering the word is a bit archaic. Not to mention that the word means lover or sweetheart, which isn't so bad. It's just that usually the word tended to be associated to referring to someone's mistress or affair partner. That was what had made her face go red, and what made her very much not wanting to actually say what the full meaning for it was.

She was still somewhat bright red, and Zari sort of ended up stammering out a reply. "Uh, no... I really don't think the meaning of the word is that important..." she ended up saying. Her attention was being drawn to the other random bits of conversation going on, apparently Casper got offended about waffles or something like that. It was weird to her, but then again, Casper was always the weirdo.

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It was kind of amusing to see Casper going on a little about the waffles was a bit amusing. Though Casper and Selene's interactions in general were something entertaining in general. Their personalities seemed to just match in how they acted and interacted and all. He was just watching the chaos that was ensuing unfold, when he heard James nearby talking to him. Now that was a bit unexpected, but maybe it had to do with the fact that Casper was currently thoroughly distracted.

Jack had to think for a moment to create a response to James. "Oh, only the past week or so, give or take. Was a bit unexpected but definitely makes things more entertaining. And I know I'm typically not around or distracted or not the best at conversations lately. Just had to deal with a few things and figure some stuff out before, but found the answers to those issues. Not honestly what I was expecting them to be, but eh whatever. Ended up talking with Selene a bit not long after all that was dealt with. She's definitely entertaining at times," he responded with a shrug.

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She was still a bit caught up in her own thoughts, and she got startled slightly by Veil walking up and talking to her. "Oh, sorry, didn't hear you walk up. Hello there," she said, with a slight wave at both Veil and Callie. When Veil commented about how she looked like something was up, that was not that surprising. If she had been paying more attention, she probably could have masked it a bit better. There wasn't much that she could really say to really explain what was going through her head.

"Yeah, a strong drink or something would be nice... Just a lot happened where secrets came to light from a long time ago... So that was an interesting time... Otherwise I'm doing alright. How are the both of you doing? Enjoying yourselves?" she asked the pair. Miranda looked at the drink menu, and was a bit unsure of what to order. Usually if she was with Ellie, she'd go with whatever Ellie suggested, so this was an interesting moment.

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Mutant Underground Table -

Some might have been disappointed in Zari's lack of an answer, but Selene was eating all of this up. It was just so easy to make the girl blush and act all shy and embarrassed, which only made Selene want to mess with her even more. The power that a few words could have over the young Valkyrie was positively intoxicating. Selene had come over her to toy with her daughter, and she quickly found that the Valkyrie took such a light touch that Selene was becoming a little bit obsessed. "Aren't you just adorable?" Selene said with a sigh.

Sunshine raised an eyebrow, a little unsettled with the way Selene was looking at Zarina. She looked like she wanted to eat her. Sure, if Zarina had been a few years older it wouldn't have bothered Sunshine as much - even though she was fairly certain Selene was thirty going on a thousand years old. But Zari was basically still just a kid - and Selene was way too old for her. Sunshine pulled her wife's ear close and whispered to her - "if this gets weirder, we need to get her away from Zari."

Marrow nodded, keeping an eye on Selene. Psychic vampire witch or not, Marrow wasn't going to let her keep on bothering the little lesbian girl.

"What sorta questions, Jackie?" Casper asked. His attention had already pretty much moved on from Selene, and he was happy to hear any tea that Jack had to spill. James was right though - Jack was different now, behaving more like he used to back with the Mutant Underground. Of course, even back then Jack hadn't always been the most stable of people, but it had been Sinister's fault. As if right on cue, Casper spotted Sinister in the party, chatting away and laughing with people. He frowned slightly. He hoped this wasn't Sinister messing with Jack - again.

"I do have one question for you all - were this your last night in the world, what would you do?" Selene asked, rather seriously.

Sunshine frowned. This definitely felt weird - and somewhat loaded? She wasn't sure if this was Selene just making ominous small talk or if it was something more. "I'd probably have wild sex with my wife - duh," Sunshine said with a shrug, to which Marrow gave her a kiss on the forehead. "That or fight whatever stupid flatscans decided to end the world."

"Ditto - well, not the wife, since I'm happily with James and he isn't a wife by any meaning of the word - and also not the second thing, since I hate fighting and would rather be doing something fun, like watching reality TV or something or making waffles or doing more sex with bae," Casper answered. "Or playing with our son. Danny is such a cute little baby boy, he's soooo smoll and squishy and stinky but I love him."

Shi'Ar Bartender Set-Up

Veil's toes curled up slightly inside her shoes, and she couldn't help but smile a bit as Spark Plug brought up the girl she had been crushing on. She hadn't seen Aurora very much since the day of the massacre, and Veil hadn't really talked much about her feelings for Aurora. It felt wrong to be thinking about a hot girl on the day that 198 mutants had lost their lives during the attack. But still, that hadn't stopped Veil from scanning for Aurora in the crowd tonight, hoping that she could share a dance with her. "Maybe. Would be nice to have a walk of shame in the morning to do," Veil admitted to her friend, trying not to change her smile into a smirk.

Moneta seemed up for some conversation though, so Veil didn't say much more to Spark Plug about her feelings towards Aurora - or how much she'd very much like to have Aurora screaming her name later that evening. Or any evening, for that matter. "Yikes, gotta burn those receipts," Veil commiserated. She didn't want to pry too much as to what secrets Miranda was talking about, though she had a feeling it had to do with Magneto. Those two seemed pretty rocky. "And I'm doing good, about to be better once I get some more alcohol inside me."

They made it to the front of the line and Veil ordered a round of drinks for everyone, including Moneta. She got a few of the Gin Crimsons, the drink she had tried before, and then she got a few of something new that looked interesting called the Starjammer. The Starjammer somehow had what looked like swirling nebulae and stars inside of it, something Veil doubted could be done with any Earthly booze.

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Max paused for a moment, trying to process what it was that Ben had just said. I'd like to see your tongue. The words mulled over in his head as he tried to stifle a laugh. As rusty as Max had previously thought he was at flirting, Ben clearly had him beat. Max childishly stuck his tongue out at Ben, following with a small laugh before continuing to look ahead. "Well there you have it, you've seen my tongue." he joked. Nervousness filling up inside of him. Luckily for him, it appeared that Veil and Callie were in their own little world, only growing larger once they'd run into Moneta.

He didn't notice Callies glances backwards, too enraptured with the wound of his footsteps and the beating of his heart rapidly increasing in his ear. He'd never had a guy potentially like him back, well not unless it was met with a cruel prank at the end. Once they reached the line Max had turned to look at Ben, a dopey smile plastered on his face. "Oh hey, you've got a little something there." he said as he reached for a strand of hair and tucked it behind Ben's ear while smoothly conjuring a flower behind it. He pulled the flower into view and handed it towards Ben. "Oh hey, it matches your style. Maybe it can just be tucked behind your ear. Um if you wanted to, that is." Max cleared his throat, looking away towards the bartender as he blushed and ordered two spelljammers for Casper and James. Sure they'd asked for water but James needed to loosen up a bit and have fun.

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Harry raised an eyebrow as Jack flirted (or at the very least paid a very well placed compliment) towards Selene. He'd never seen this side of Jack before, nor did he know the man to be particular…friendly. That wasn't to say he was rude by any sense of the word, it was more that Jack tended to be distant, aloof, and exceptionally secretive with his life. He was like a noir character plucked straight out of a movie and placed right before him. His thoughts were cut short as Selene began to answer his question. Ofcourse this campy vampy would find a way to turn this extremely kid friendly question into a more sexual topic. It was as if Selene couldn't live without flaunting her sex drive.

If Harry were a worse person, he'd ask David politely (and mentally) to tap into Jack's mind and see what was going on. He knew he'd already had bad run-ins with telepaths before or mutants capable of messing with his mind. Now here he was acting chummy with a Sorceress that devoured souls. Casper went on a childish tirade and Sunshine couldn't help but contain her laughter. David was adorable as usual. Harry simply smiled at him, squeezing his hand a bit in reassurance. "On alcohol? Probably a 3, but on themselves and the evening? Clear 10." he said between laughs. It was easy to get high off of the vibes, especially when you were a mutant that could literally feel them.

James had asked the million dollar question, and to a shocking surprise Jack had actually answered. No half ass response or excuse not to speak. But a full on answer. He took another sip of his champagne as he watched things unfold between the two, keeping an eye on Selene and Casper as well. It all seemed to be going well until Selene dropped a bomb of a question. Everything in Harry's mind was ringing warning bells, but he had to tell himself this was just another party type of question. He couldn't assume the worst just because it was Selene. "I'd make sure I gave David the night of his life. Anything he'd want we could do. What about you Selene?"