It's kinda stupid. He scratched the back of his head, seemingly embarrassed. I was just really fucking lazy and had just seen Star Wars. Not hard to put two and two together from there. Dalton mimicked his hand stretching to the other side of the street. "Come over here remote !" Then faked being surprised to see an invisible television remote in his hand. WTF !

She wasn't sure if it was stupid or great, but it made her laugh either way. "Good thing you tried teleportation and not Vader's distance-chokehold, the outcome might not have been as fun." She was suddenly grateful that she and her siblings hadn't had such a surprise when they were playing Harry Potter. Unless it was with something like the tickling curse.

I don't have anyone I'd want to chokehold at home anyway, he honestly admitted. Sure, Queenie might've gotten on his nerves sometimes and Akasha was a pain in the ass as well, but nothing to want to hurt them over. How'd you find out? It doesn't seem like something you'd find out at random. Unless you like to overstay your welcome in the bath tub.

"I'd have liked the bath tub better, to be honest." Warmer and way less terrifying. "I was diving and my air bottles stopped working. I thought I was going to choke before I reached the surface... Except I didn't. Wasn't even a bit winded." She'd never liked her mutation much, but that day she had started to consider that it might be useful. Still a pain in the ass, but one with some benefits.

Fuck. Must've been terrifying. Teleportation had been terrifying too, but at least he didn't have any near-death experiences with it (yet #neversaynever). I'd never willingly go dive. That's just asking for trouble. The ocean is sca-ry.

Uh-huh, sure. Dalton remained unconvinced. No use to argue about it though. He had no intention of going into the ocean anytime soon. Speaking of New York... Great segue. You're not a New Yorker, are you ? Where are you from ? He couldn't place her accent. It was too faint to recognize as German, and Dalton wasn't exactly the most "worldly" guy.

She knew her English wasn't accent-free, not by any stretch, so she wasn't surprised by his question. « I'm from Germany. Hannover and then Berlin, to be exact. I've only been in New York for the last few years. » Meanwhile, she was starting to mentally bet on the question/comment that would come next. The good thing was that, after four and a half years, she was starting to have a pretty good idea of all the clichés related to her nationality.

Except Dalton knew of no clichés. His only references of the German people came from movies. World War ones. Oh okay, was the extent of what he managed to utter. He needed a few more seconds to think. Hey! Our big boss is also from the continent, no? Bet you can make some excellent conversation with him, ha.

Eeeeerr... Unlike some of his American brethren, Dalton understood Europe wasn't a country. Still. He couldn't name more than three. Nevermind the home country of their faithful leader. Somewhere around there. Pretty sure it was Germany. He speaks German I think. I mean, spoke. I mean, I don't know. It sounded German.

"Oh, alright. I didn't know that." She wanted to ask him if it meant he'd met him, except she didn't want to sound too much like a star-struck newbie. "What about his English? Is it still noticeably foreign, or is there some hope for me?" A little self-depreciating humour could never go wrong, in her opinion at least.

I mean... I don't notice a difference. His brain wasn't made for linguistics, okay? It sure sounded like decent English to him. And yours is pretty comprehensible. Besides, accents are cute. You shouldn't hope to lose it.

She had some doubts about the whole accents = cute thing, but oh well, she wasn't the one (potentially) bothered by how she sounded, so she just shrugged. "As long as it doesn't mean people don't understand me it's fine." Meanwhile another question had crept up in her mind. "How long have you been in the Brotherhood?" He seemed pretty confident and knowledgeable about it, so either he was good at faking or he'd been around for some time.

Three years now, I think? He's bad at math too. I got here when I was 13. So by all accounts: yes, 3 years ago. His math wasn't that bad. Why? He wasn't fresh off the boat, but certainly not one of the ancients either. Dalton was still learning.

"It's just that you seem pretty at ease with, well... Mutation and everything. Everyone back there does. It's a nice change." There, she'd voiced it. She was amazed by how normal mutation seemed in that very special place she'd just stepped out from. As if she didn't have to hide to fit in.

Why shouldn't we be at ease with it? It's natural. It's evolution. But he understood where she was coming from. He had shared her disbelief a few years ago. It'll come, with time. I was basically walking around in a ninja outfit on a daily basis before I joined the Brotherhood, if you'll believe it.

I know it feels safer, but it shouldn't, Dalton offered. That they make us hide is wrong. He still was a firm believer. He had been before too. Young, upset and angry at the world. He had learned to channel that anger into something else. Used it as an armor now. Ah, there we go. He pointed ahead. Joe's Burgers. Best burgers in town. Aaaand I guess they also have salad if that's more up your alley.

Damn right you didn't. Dalton walked into the small, not-gourmet-looking burger restaurant. There were about four tables maybe, one occupied. Besides that, one guy was leaning against a wall near the counter clearly waiting for his takeaway order, and only a small line of two others behind the counter. No "Joe" to be found, though. He was probably in the kitchen.

Good thing there weren't too many people present: fewer customers meant shorter waiting line. They'd have to wait anyway, but hopefully not that long, because the scent of burgers was only making Katja more hungry. "Do you come here often?"

Eh, he shrugged. When I want a good greasy burger. Sometimes I want a bad one. And sometimes I just want fried chicken. He also didn't always have the money. That tended to be a problem when you wanted food. Do you have money? Great question. Cause if she didn't, Dalton only had enough for one meal. That wasn't gonna cut it. They'd have to procure it by... other means.

So, basically the place to be for greasy and fried food. She nodded when he asked if she had money. "Yup." Technically, her parents' money, but if they were willing to provide for her until she completed her studies, she sure wasn't going to complain.

You got a job or you stole it? A common question for the Brotherhood. Not everyone enjoyed the same treatment during the interview process. Like Dalton, most of them didn't even get to set a foot in the building.