InsaneJournal

Log: Jonas Wagner & Aleksander Rasputin
WHO:
WHAT Apartment hunting
WHEN Monday (backdated).
WHERE All over the place! Mainly apartments.
RATING PG-13
STATUS Complete

"So that first place? We can't live there. We were the most attractive people that I saw. And everyone knows that you don't want to be the most attractive person anywhere you live. There's no where to go but down, and I really don't need Uncle Kurt coming down on me for you slumming it." Alek nudged his friend, looking at the folded newspaper. Some apartments were circled, there were a couple that had big, red sharpie drawn through them. Either the place was too trashy, too expensive or just not in a good neighborhood. Alek wasn't worried, though. There were still several places to go and the more places they saw together, the more realistic it seemed that the two of them would be good roommates.

He took a sip of his coffee, blowing into the tiny hole on the lid beforehand. It was slowly warming up, but coffee was still coffee. Then again, maybe he should have gotten tea. "Okay, Jonas, you get to choose the next place we go to. And do me a favor, bud? Stop trying to cover my mouth? You know I can just phase away from your palm." Alek stuck his tongue out at Big Blue, barely looking in time to phase his lower half before ramming into a newspaper holder. Alek wondered why people wasted their time downloading papers on the streets.

"I don't think it was that horrible," Jonas said with a shrug, "It's not as bad as that one in Brooklyn." The first one in Brooklyn had tenants already there who greeted them at the door. Unfortunately, they were four legged tenants and there was no way he'd move in to that. He teleported them both out of there before the landlord could try to explain away the rats. Jonas snatched away the newspaper from Alek, unfolding it to look at the closest address. The more they began to work together to find somewhere to live, the better it seemed that it would really work for them.

He tapped his finger on one of the circled addresses and handed the paper back to Alek, "We can head to this one. It's not too far, plus this is one of the only ones that allows pets. So I want to try to check it out. Also? I am going to keep covering your mouth if you keep trying to boast over who your parents are to landlords. I don't care if you think it'd get us a rent deduction or whatever."

"The apartment wasn't bad, but there were some fugs lookin' at us through the windows. And the last thing I need is nosy neighbors, especially if they aren't attractive. But the one in Brooklyn was pretty bad. You're lucky I'm used to teleporting I would have probably yarfed all over the place." Alek took another sip and looked over Jonas's shoulder to see which apartments he was looking at.

"You...want pets? What kind of pets? Like a pet dragon?" Alek perked up a bit. Maybe Jonas knew something he didn't about Lockheed finding a mate and having a litter. Or a nest, whatever a horde of baby dragons was called. "You know I'm lucky to keep my plants alive, right? What kind of pet were you thinking of?" Because Alek was pretty sure it wasn't a dragon. He snorted, nudging Jonas again. "What? I think it shows responsibility. At least people seem to be over when my dad went all depressed and evil there for a while. You should tell 'em about Uncle Kurt - the magnificent, high-flying Nightcrawler!" That was money in the bank!

Jonas rolled his eyes at the younger man and teased him, "You'd like a nosy neighbor if they were hot then? I'll remember to ask the next place if there's hot, nosy guys in the building." He shook his head, nudging Alek back. "Sorry, though, about the quick port. I'll warn you in advance so you don't vomit everywhere, but that place was a dive." He squints up at the street sign to see if they were heading in the right direction. Jonas liked to insist they traveled by more conventional means rather than 'port everywhere sometimes. It made him feel a bit more normal, even if he wasn't.

"Well, I'm not saying no to dragons. If Lockheed finds a Mrs. Lockheed, sure a dragon would be neat," Jonas told him, "But I was just talking how I wanted a cat...I'm cutting you off at the pass -- no pussy jokes. I always wanted a cat. I don't care if you can't take care of a plant, but I can because I'm still the more responsible of the two of us. Anyway, I hate telling them my dad is Nightcrawler. You know what they think of when they think of my parents?"

Jonas counts it off on his fingers as he told Alek, "1. The priest debacle, 2. My mom ruled a place that sounds like Hell, 3. Grandma." The last part was with a little distaste. Alek knew quite well how Jonas was not on good terms with Mystique or liked to have any association with the shapeshifter. "If they do think good things, it's the last thing in their mind even if they do like my dad."

"No, but it'd be nice for us to not be the hottest there. Too much attention and people baking us all kinds of food just to oogle us. Then we'd both get fat and unattractive and get addicted to the treats. Before you know it, we're turning tricks for half a cup of Splenda." Alek knew he was blowing things out of proportion, but it was really the only defense he had - turning a 'what if?' into a diabetic affair for the both of them.

"Ugh," Alek grunted, rolling his eyes and hip-checking Jonas. "When your mom's name is Kitty, you hear enough pussy jokes by the time you're ten." He rolled his eyes and looked up at the sky, not worrying about the street signs. Jonas wouldn't let them get lost. And if they did end up in a bad part of town, it wasn't as if they were defenseless. "Okay, you can get a cat. But it has to start out as a kitten so I can play with it before it turns into a cat and reflects your attitude. The last thing I need is two moody roomies. Oh, and I get to give it treats so it becomes one of those fat lap cats the size of a dog." Always with his stipulations.

Alek got quiet for a moment and then put his arm around Jonas's shoulders in his attempt at a mobile half hug. "Well, then I can at least sing your praises. How we're both toilet trained and the little maid's outfit you wear when you clean. We're gravy, wherever we go." Alek would have to mention the under ground fights to Jonas at some point, but not yet. It'd be obvious enough when Aleksander walked around the place with his shirt off, should the weather get too warm later on. "Thought up any names yet? For the cat," he clarified.

"Like you wouldn't turn tricks for Splenda anyway. I saw how many packets you put in your coffee," he grinned at Alek and snatched the coffee cup out of his hand, taking a sip of Alek's coffee and wrinkling his nose at it. Jonas handed the cup back to Alek and asked him, "Why do you fork money over for this? Horrible, burnt franchise coffee bullshit."

Jonas turned the corner with Alek, casually glancing up and making sure they were still on the right street. He rolled his eyes a little at the electronic billboard shifting it's promotion to an ad with his aunt staring back at him. He hip-checked Alek right back with a little snorting laugh, "You're not turning my soon-to-be cat into a fat lap cat. If you do, I'm letting the cat sit on you in your sleep so you get smothered by cat." He playfully leaned in to Alek when he went in for the mobile half hug, "Yeah, tell the possible landlord I wear a maid's uniform around the apartment. That won't land us in X for the tenth time at all."

He laughed and gestured in front of himself, "Headline of the week: Jonas Wagner the drag queen!" They rarely brought up the X rumors, but Jonas was really good at taking most of it in stride even if it ended with concerned calls from his mother sometimes. Jonas paused before he added, "I'm going to name the cat Mao, by the way." A corny joke, sure! But it was a classic.

"Oh man, shut your yap," Alek shop back with a grin. He let Jonas take the coffee and then just shook his head when it was returned to him. "Says the man who just snatched up my coffee only to make fun of it...and wet his whistle. Uh huh, I see I see." Taking another pull, the coffee was down to the grounds at the bottom so at the next trashcan, Alek tossed it in.

"Like I can't phase in my sleep? You must think I'm some untrained ninja, Jonas." Not that Alek had made a habit of that ever since he got control over his powers, but it might just be enough to keep the cat off his head. "That's the brilliance, man," Alek continued. "We rent one, you put it on, I snap a pic and as an anonymous photographer, I sell it and make bank so we don't have to pay for rent at all! Why can't you see the beauty in my plans? So narrow-minded," Alek added, his voice sounding sad and wistful, all at once.

He stopped where he was, just staring at Jonas and shaking his head back and forth. Cozy hug one second, stupid cat name the next? "I will not be calling a cat Mao. Then all it'll do is say its name over and over when we say it. I'm going to call it...hmm.." Clearly over his shock, Alek though about the name as they walked, his head looking at the clouds, tipped back and thoughtful. "If it's a boy cat, I'm going to call him Sir Thomas of Winchester Abbey. If it's a girl cat, I'm going to call it Miss Scarlett in the Kitchen with the Candlestick. Maybe you should get collars made up with those names, just in case." A wink and Alek looked up at the building they were passing. "That it?"

"I'll enchant the cat so it can smother you in your sleep." Jonas wasn't sure he could actually do that. Maybe he would need to call home and ask his mother if he can enchant cats. Jonas raised an eyebrow at Alek at his 'plan' for the photographs. He shoved Alek's shoulder, "We're not selling a photograph of me in a skirt to magazines, dude. Unless you're trying to get me fired from school. How about we dress you in drag for it, man? You don't have a real job yet. We throw you in a dress, have you stand on a corner, and it'll be amazing."

Jonas stopped them in front of the building, "No I'm naming my cat Mao. You don't get to change my cat's name. Come on this is it." So far, the building from the outside looked at least a lot better than he thought it would. A little vintage and it wasn't in the best area, but Jonas didn't mind it too much. He let Alek follow him up the stairs and pushed open the door to head to the landlord's office, "Best behavior, Alek or I'll teleport you outside."

"So you would for real take the time to find out how to enchant a cat just so it could kill me? Dude, I don't think I want to be your roommate anymore," Alek's voice had taken on a cautionary tone for half a second before he smirked. "I don't look good in dresses," he admitted, flexing. "I'm too muscular and uh..." He glanced down toward his crotch. "Too big to tuck." Not that he'd ever tried it, but it was just fun to see that expression on Jonas's face.

"I can change it when you're not around. But I doubt I'll be talking much to your cat anyway. Knowing you, it'll be stuck up and snooty." Alek started up the stairs, letting Jonas take the lead. "I'm always on my best behavior, Jonas. Geeze, you don't give me any credit." Alek pouted, hanging his head and putting his fingers into his back pockets like a child entering an antique shop.

"What can I say? I'm very dedicated to my threats," Jonas grinned at him as they headed down the hall, "You'd make a super ugly girl. And I don't think you need to worry about tucking anything." He holds up his pinkie finger and grins, "I know how big it is, muscles." Alek could dish it out, but Jonas could to. Not that he particularly liked to, but he still could! Students didn't sap out all his will to live yet.

"Cats, inherently, are kind of stuck up anyway. You know, when they're not getting their heads stuck in boxes or trying to fight their reflections," Jonas shrugged, "And I do give you credit. But, so far, you have offered to have your dad flex for a landlady. Then told her I liked to teleport around the building in the buff. So forgive me for not expecting best behavior, man."

He drops the conversation when they meet the landlord at the model apartment. Jonas shakes the man's hand, "Hi I'm Jonas Wagner. I called earlier about seeing the apartment?"

"Pssh, we haven't bathed together since I was two or three," Alek added, rolling his eyes. Why did everyone think he was such a weakling - or one of those people that would end up all awkward and gangly as a teenager? "Since cats are like that already, you, Mister Snooterpuss, would only make it worse." Alek's voice had grown quieter the closer they got to the door. His hands remained in his back pockets as Jonas opened the door. Alek just walked through it as it closed. He couldn't remember the last he'd actually opened a door to walk through. If there was someone behind him, sure, because it would be rude to not hold the door for someone, but typically Alek wandered alone.

Alek watched the man scan his eyes over Jonas. His eyes squinted for a moment before they were back to his easy-going nature. He removed his hands from his pockets, extdning his right hand. "Aleksander Rasputin," he introduced himself. Every time Alek said his full name, it always came out in Russian and not some amalgamation with English thrown in. He was proud of his heritage, but he'd try to keep it to himself. This was Jonas's show, and it wasn't like it'd actually gotten them anywhere yet.

Jonas, when it came down to it, ran a hard bargain with landlords. He knew housing rates and building safety codes -- not really the last part, but he was certain to look it up if he had to. The landlord led them out and up the stairs to the empty apartment, which wasn't all that bad. At least to Jonas' standards, it was pretty decent. No sign of visible property damage, looked clean, and the landlord assured them that he was fine with pets. When the landlord stepped out, Jonas turned to Alek, "So what do you think, Alek?"

Jonas peered around and went to look at the bedrooms -- definitely going to claim the larger one. "It's not too shabby. Plus, the neighborhood isn't bad either. Some of the utilities are even included.." Jonas sounded pretty set that this was going to the top of the list of potential places.

Alek listened to the landlord, his eyes moving between Jonas and the other as they spoke. He offered up a couple questions of his own, wondering if there was a fire escape and what day the rent actually had to be there. He didn't see rent being a problem, especially since the two were splitting it. When his questions were satisfied, Alek began to walk through the walls, looking at the bedrooms, the bathroom, even taking a peek into the neighbors to their left and the ones above them. No one seemed to be home, and it was the middle of the day, so hopefully that meant they were either students or working professionals.

Another good sign was the lack of kids' toys laying around the other apartments. That meant no screaming babies or random kids wandering the hallways. Coming back in, Alek saw Jonas eying the bigger room. "You want the bigger, you gotta pay more rent," Alek advised. It was only fair! "You just want that cat," Alek raised an eyebrow, looking around the apartment and then going to check out the kitchen. Not a lot of counter space, but there was a bar that ran half the length of the kitchen where stools could be sat on the opposite side. A small dining area and opening into a bigger living room. He stretched upward, and his fingers didn't touch the ceiling. Another good thing. He snatched the newspaper out of Jonas's back pocket and looked at the street address. He pulled out the bus pass he had and coordinated it quickly with which line he would need to take where in order to get to school.

"Not too far for me either. Sure," he decided coolly, offering the paper back to Jonas. Apparently, they'd found their place.