kxnel:
He grinned down at his friend, his eyes lighting up in a way they rarely did these days as he chuckled at how the sleeves of his jacket hung cutely over her palms. He knew she didn’t need it, would probably be better without it, but there were only so many ways he could show that he cared, and as of late it seemed like he was getting worse at most of them. Everything seemed to end in a fight, with Tim, with Jon, in the group chat, hell, even with Cassie. What used to be as easy as breathing suddenly seemed to be nothing more than a exercise in futility.
It was funny, because when they were just friends sometimes Cassie would lay with him under the stars and tell him about the Greek myths. He had laughed at the tale of Sisyphus, one upon a time, and oh how irony rattled in its cage.
“Yeah,” he shrugged, “but so are you, so,” He trailed off with a halfhearted shrug, “It’s way cooler than a cardigan anyway. Better to blend in style.”
His eyes narrowed but he nodded, his eyes drifting to the poster that hung pristinely on the brick wall next to her head. Agent Liberty had been getting more and more bold and his pathetic followers had grown substantially in numbers since the beginning of this madness. He reached out and tore the poster off the wall with a grunt that devolved into a disbelieving laugh as the razor blades hidden behind it glinted in the dull streams of sunlight peaking through the breaking rain clouds.
“Ridiculous.” He scoffed, stuffing the poster in his pocket before crossing his arms over his chest with a huff. “You shouldn’t have to blend in if you don’t want to. You’re worth more than everyone who would say otherwise combined.”
"I have style!” M’gann shot back, bottom lip jutting out. “I just dress comfy too. There’s nothing wrong with cardigans. It’s very librarian chic, after all. I read that it’s all the rage right now!” She had been on Earth for years now, but she felt like at every turn she was still learning. It was hard to learn Earth customs when all her knowledge came from magazines, TV shows, and hoping for the best. She didn’t have anyone to tell her otherwise. She’d look to J’onn for guidance and he was just as, if not more, lost as her. They were in the same boat, as humans would say, but she had tried more actively to fit in.
They could shapeshift, trying to fit into whatever shape in society there was for her was all M’gann knew.
A grimace pulled at her features when he revealed the hidden razor blades, her stomach churning. “Pull them out of the wall. Please.” She sighed softly, thankful that they were the ones who had found them. They wouldn’t hurt Conner like they would some other unsuspecting alien without durability. Though the hurt behind the sentiment was enough to sting the strongest.
Conner’s words got a small smile out of M’gann as she looked at him, “sadly not everyone shares your feelings. Or understands like we do. Humans fear what they don’t try to even begin to understand.” It had reigned true since she was younger and they had killed her parents without a second thought alongside other Martians. Pale skin bled away to reveal green fingertips before she let her disguise take back over.
“It’s easier, to blend in. To pick a human name and pretend. It’s what I do best anyway: pretend. Shapeshift to fit in and make it so I’m not some big scary green alien who could kill you with no effort.” And she could, if she really wanted. She was optimistic, tried to remain so even in the face of all the hatred thrown her way, but even she had her stormy days that made every dark thought arise.
