[That gets a quicksilver smile and a huff of amusement, but neither reaches Vance's eyes. This isn't a subject he likes talking about, after all.]
Nah. I probably still would have done that. I didn't need comic books to show me that was something that I could do. All that I needed for that was the six o'clock news.
[A pause, then, as his face settles to something more serious again.] Rich, Robbie. Nita, if you're watching. I'm taking this private with America. [They already know the story, after all. And he's not ready for the entirety of the Legion to know it.]
[Private]
[Once he changes over the settings, Vance settles back. He's out of uniform at the moment, so there's nothing blocking his face or any part of his expression.]
Okay. Bit of background. My father was an abusive asshole. Mostly because his father had been an abusive asshole. Cycles of violence that you still see in a lot of families, no matter what their socio-economic station. Dad hated anything that was different. He hated being seen as different. I think we were the only Jewish family I knew that celebrated Christmas more than Chanukah because he didn't want to be the only house on the street without a Christmas tree.
As far as he was concerned, different was wrong. If I didn't conform as a child, I was beaten. And it only got worse once my powers showed up.
[He rolls his shoulders, trying to alleviate some of the tension there. Even after so long, it's something that is difficult to talk about.]
Comics were my escape hatch. Even before my powers, they gave me a look at a world where being different wasn't so bad. Where the bullies got what they deserved and where the little guy could be a hero because of the strength of his heart over the strength of his muscles.
Comic books didn't push me to become a vigilante. But they did help me figure out the type of person that I wanted to be, with or without the powers. And they helped me realize how to break the cycles of violence in my own family, so that I wouldn't become the same man as my father.
no subject
Nah. I probably still would have done that. I didn't need comic books to show me that was something that I could do. All that I needed for that was the six o'clock news.
[A pause, then, as his face settles to something more serious again.] Rich, Robbie. Nita, if you're watching. I'm taking this private with America. [They already know the story, after all. And he's not ready for the entirety of the Legion to know it.]
[Private]
[Once he changes over the settings, Vance settles back. He's out of uniform at the moment, so there's nothing blocking his face or any part of his expression.]
Okay. Bit of background. My father was an abusive asshole. Mostly because his father had been an abusive asshole. Cycles of violence that you still see in a lot of families, no matter what their socio-economic station. Dad hated anything that was different. He hated being seen as different. I think we were the only Jewish family I knew that celebrated Christmas more than Chanukah because he didn't want to be the only house on the street without a Christmas tree.
As far as he was concerned, different was wrong. If I didn't conform as a child, I was beaten. And it only got worse once my powers showed up.
[He rolls his shoulders, trying to alleviate some of the tension there. Even after so long, it's something that is difficult to talk about.]
Comics were my escape hatch. Even before my powers, they gave me a look at a world where being different wasn't so bad. Where the bullies got what they deserved and where the little guy could be a hero because of the strength of his heart over the strength of his muscles.
Comic books didn't push me to become a vigilante. But they did help me figure out the type of person that I wanted to be, with or without the powers. And they helped me realize how to break the cycles of violence in my own family, so that I wouldn't become the same man as my father.