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31_days2005-08-12 11:37 pm
of-carabas.livejournal.com) wrote in 31_days2005-08-12 11:37 pm
[August 12] [X-Men] Summers in the Stars
Title: Summers in the Stars
Day/Theme: August 12th/Man or astroman
Series: X-Men
Character: Corsair
Rating: G
Christopher Summers stood with his feet planted on solid earth - Earth, capital letter, for the first time in years. A decade, now that he stopped to think about it. More, even. Had it really been that long?
He'd dreamed of coming back here, once. In the slave pits, sometimes, it had helped to keep him going - he needed to escape, needed to get back home.
It had kept him going for a while, that is. A short while. Because home didn't have quite the same pull when he knew that despite the dreams he had at night, Kate wasn't going to be waiting for him at the door. The kind of dreams that took a while to realize they weren't real, and then it just made everything that much more miserable. And home wasn't all that attractive when it wasn't the place where his boys played in the front yard, but rather the place where they were buried, long before their time. He couldn't even make it to their funeral, assuming anyone had ever found the bodies. A grand father he was.
It was stupid to beat himself up over that, of course. But he was a Summers. He didn't let a little thing like logic stop him.
He had no way of getting back to Earth. And, he slowly came to realize, no reason to. Home isn't really home anymore when you have no reason to go back.
And honestly, once he got past the whole stinking slave pit and evil empire thing, the rest of the universe wasn't all that bad. Sure, it lacked some of the comforts of Earth - you couldn't get decently greasy, salty, fast food quality fries anywhere, he'd tried. Burgers were okay, though, provided you didn't ask what was in them.
There were compensations. He might not be able to fly an airplane anymore, but after flying the Starjammer, who'd want to? The scenery out his window wasn't the Rocky Mountains, but between the hundreds of alien vistas and an endless field of stars, he wasn't complaining. And the company - well. He had no complaints there, either.
He learned to live away from Earth. And when he discovered that he could return... well, he'd intended to. Eventually. There were just so many loose ends to be tied up first. Good fights to be fought, and all that. No hurry, after all; it wasn't like there was anyone waiting for him.
Except, as it turned out, there was. Seeing Scott again, alive, realizing who he was - that had been one of the happiest moments of his life. And painful, and more than anything else, eye-opening.
When had he started answering to "Corsair" faster than to "Christopher"? When had he gotten so used to the daily routines on board the Starjammer, the rhythms of the crew's conversation, the way the ship handled and Zee's presence at his side, that it was hard to even remember another kind of life, even when one of the most important parts of that life was staring you eye to eye? (Well, eye to visor, anyway.)
It was funny - well, funny probably wasn't the best word for it, considering the look on Scott's face - but after so many years living among the stars, solid earth just didn't fit right anymore. Even when it was the capital "E" kind.
Day/Theme: August 12th/Man or astroman
Series: X-Men
Character: Corsair
Rating: G
Christopher Summers stood with his feet planted on solid earth - Earth, capital letter, for the first time in years. A decade, now that he stopped to think about it. More, even. Had it really been that long?
He'd dreamed of coming back here, once. In the slave pits, sometimes, it had helped to keep him going - he needed to escape, needed to get back home.
It had kept him going for a while, that is. A short while. Because home didn't have quite the same pull when he knew that despite the dreams he had at night, Kate wasn't going to be waiting for him at the door. The kind of dreams that took a while to realize they weren't real, and then it just made everything that much more miserable. And home wasn't all that attractive when it wasn't the place where his boys played in the front yard, but rather the place where they were buried, long before their time. He couldn't even make it to their funeral, assuming anyone had ever found the bodies. A grand father he was.
It was stupid to beat himself up over that, of course. But he was a Summers. He didn't let a little thing like logic stop him.
He had no way of getting back to Earth. And, he slowly came to realize, no reason to. Home isn't really home anymore when you have no reason to go back.
And honestly, once he got past the whole stinking slave pit and evil empire thing, the rest of the universe wasn't all that bad. Sure, it lacked some of the comforts of Earth - you couldn't get decently greasy, salty, fast food quality fries anywhere, he'd tried. Burgers were okay, though, provided you didn't ask what was in them.
There were compensations. He might not be able to fly an airplane anymore, but after flying the Starjammer, who'd want to? The scenery out his window wasn't the Rocky Mountains, but between the hundreds of alien vistas and an endless field of stars, he wasn't complaining. And the company - well. He had no complaints there, either.
He learned to live away from Earth. And when he discovered that he could return... well, he'd intended to. Eventually. There were just so many loose ends to be tied up first. Good fights to be fought, and all that. No hurry, after all; it wasn't like there was anyone waiting for him.
Except, as it turned out, there was. Seeing Scott again, alive, realizing who he was - that had been one of the happiest moments of his life. And painful, and more than anything else, eye-opening.
When had he started answering to "Corsair" faster than to "Christopher"? When had he gotten so used to the daily routines on board the Starjammer, the rhythms of the crew's conversation, the way the ship handled and Zee's presence at his side, that it was hard to even remember another kind of life, even when one of the most important parts of that life was staring you eye to eye? (Well, eye to visor, anyway.)
It was funny - well, funny probably wasn't the best word for it, considering the look on Scott's face - but after so many years living among the stars, solid earth just didn't fit right anymore. Even when it was the capital "E" kind.