Inconceivable Ch. 24 (Invincible AU) (Patreon)

(Every character depicted in the story below is a consenting legal adult over the age of 18)

A/N: Argan learns more about earth culture.

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“Explain this… ‘family dinner’ concept to me one more time, Nolan.”

Argan thinks he mostly has his head wrapped around it at this point, to be fair. But seeing as Nolan insists on them flying to his living domicile slower than they otherwise could, Argan feels like there’s no harm in asking for further clarification. You wouldn’t think it from the small, almost imperceptible sigh that leaves Nolan’s lips, however.

“… It is a human tradition, sir. As I’ve mentioned before, humans are far more ‘family oriented’ than Viltrumites are. They tend to pair up and mate with only one individual at a time. The offspring they produce are raised between them usually in ‘family units’. These family units are far more closely knit than anything we had back on Viltrum and part of that is because they often share meals together at the end of each day. Hence ‘family dinner’.”

Yes, that’s what Argan had picked up at this point. How very strange. It just all seemed so… well, pointless? He didn’t know why anyone needed to share a meal with anyone else, even one’s parents. Food was sustenance, fuel even, the thing that kept one going. Beyond that, it had no purpose.

And yet, in the short time he’d been on Earth, Argan had admittedly seen that humans put a lot more emphasis on food than Viltrumites ever had. Perhaps that was tied to this.

“You know, if you don’t wish to attend, I can make some excuse for you sir. Just say the word…”

Argan arches a brow and shakes his head.

“No. I see no reason I cannot accept this invitation. Others are watching over the Earth for me in my absence and it should only take a few hours, right?”

“… Yes.”

Heh, he didn’t quite know why Nolan had even invited him to this meal if he didn’t want him to come. It seemed strange to Argan seeing as the other Viltrumite had been trying to offer him chance after chance to decline ever since Argan had first said yes.

Truthfully, the entire idea was very weird to him… but if he and his fellow Viltrumites were going to make a new home here on Earth without conquering the humans and while successfully blending into human society… well, it stood to reason that Argan would have to get used to a great many very weird ideas, wouldn’t he?

Not to mention his conversation with Anissa from a few days ago still remained on his mind and from what he’d been told, Maya would be at this ‘family dinner’ as well. It wasn’t as though Argan intended to proposition her right in front of her parents or anything like that, but he did see this as an opportunity to interact with her some more and see if she was indeed a potential candidate for his... ‘harem’ as Anissa had deemed it.

Nolan finally veers off towards the ground and Argan follows him home. They land together in a grassy yard surrounded by a weak looking wood fence connected to a large building. Looking around, Argan hums.

“This is your domicile then?”

Grimacing a little bit, Nolan nods.

“… This is the backyard. Entering from the front would be a little bit too eye-catching. Come, let’s head inside.”

Argan shrugs and follows Nolan to what he’s learned are ‘sliding glass doors’. They don’t slide open on their own though, which he finds very strange. But well aware of his strength and the fragility of human building materials, Argan steps gingerly over the threshold and lets Nolan handle the manual closing of the sliding glass door behind them.

“Argan, you’re here!”

He finds himself almost immediately beset by Maya Grayson, who hops up from the couch she’d been lounging on and all but skips over. Funny, when he’d interacted with her during her training session, Argan had felt nothing but encouraging pride over her determination. Now that he was looking at her as a prospective mate however… well, he still wasn’t going to let his emotions control him, obviously. He stomps down on them with ease and stoically inclines his head towards the young hybrid.

“Maya. It is good to see you again. I am indeed here for this… family dinner I’ve heard about.”

Before she can reply, another feminine voice calls out from a nearby area that seems to be set aside specifically for cooking food.

“Dinner will be ready in just a minute! Maya, why don’t you show our guest around! Nolan, help me in the kitchen please!”

Argan looks over and gets his first real view of the human woman that Nolan had used to create Maya. It dawns on him then that perhaps it should be a bit surprising that he’s only just now meeting Maya’s mother. After all, as impressive as it was that Nolan had managed to produce a viable Viltrumite Hybrid with a human, it was equally impressive that the human in question had survived the experience. Soon enough, all of their male warriors would hopefully be repeating that feat.

Regardless, his first view of Debbie Grayson… is from behind. He supposes what little he does see is aesthetically pleasing if nothing else, but he only gets a glimpse at most before Maya is pulling him away and Nolan is leaving his side.

Truth be told, Argan is not very interested in Nolan’s domicile. What he is interested in is the furious whispers coming from the human woman that Nolan had called a ‘pet’ back on Viltrum.

“… you were supposed to take the long way around so I would have time to finish everything before you both arrived, Nolan.”

“That was us taking our time, Debbie. Otherwise we would have been here in thirty seconds. You know how fast I am. He’s faster.”

Fortunately Argan has centuries worth of practice with multi-tasking and splitting his focus. Mostly from being on the lookout for ambush while in the middle of pitched battle, that sort of thing.

As such he has no issues making all the correct noises and nodding as Maya shows him around the domicile. She seems unusually focused on the décor of the place for some strange reason. Argan admits, he doesn’t see the appeal. As she leads him up a flight of stairs, he continues to listen in on Nolan and Debbie’s conversation downstairs.

“So that’s him then? That’s Argan?”

“Yes, that’s him.”

“Hm. You’re taller.”

“Debbie…”

“I’m just saying, Nolan. He doesn’t look like much. You could take him.”

“He can hear you, Debbie.”

Argan could indeed hear Nolan’s mate. But if the other male is worried he’ll take offense, he needn’t be. Argan is more amused than anything. While it was true that Nolan had a couple of inches on him and was even slightly broader in the chest, the difference in strength between them made it impossible to be offended by Debbie Grayson’s gross inaccuracies.

“And this is my room!”

Blinking, Argan refocuses on what’s in front of him to find that he’s been led right into Maya’s bedroom. His eyes slide to the bed as she prattles on about this and that, seeming quite nervous. Should he…? No. This probably wasn’t the time for something like that. He hadn’t come here tonight for it anyways.

Fortunately before things can get awkward, Debbie raises her voice downstairs.

“Dinner is ready now!”

And so Maya and Argan return downstairs, with Argan following the young hybrid over to a table set for four. Debbie looks surprised when Nolan gestures him to the head of the table.

“Sir.”

Argan shrugs and takes his seat there, watching as Maya sits to one side of him and Debbie sits to the other. Nolan sits at his mate’s side even as she shoots him a furrowed browed look. Truth be told, Argan doesn’t pretend to understand most of the byplay. Debbie certainly doesn’t act like a ‘pet’ would though, he can’t help thinking.

Then, he looks to the food in front of him and blinks as he allows himself to actually focus on his sense of smell. This was…

“What is this?”

Debbie turns her gaze away from Nolan and straightens up in her chair, puffing out her chest a bit. Admittedly, now that Argan has gotten a full view of the human woman, he can see why Nolan took her as his mate.

“Korean BBQ. I hope it’s not… too much for you.”

Argan arches his brow at the challenging tone, even as Nolan covers his face with his palm. Maya, meanwhile, just lets out a little laugh.

“Don’t be silly mom, Argan is going to love this stuff! It’s your cooking, after all!”

Any would-be tension is broken by the young woman’s guileless words as Debbie’s face softens a bit and Maya quickly begins loading up her plate. Seeing what Maya is doing, Argan follows suit even as the smells continue to assault him. Hm, at the risk of sounding unpatriotic… this food smells better than anything Argan has ever eaten in his entire life. Certainly better than any ration or form of sustenance that he’s ever seen the Viltrumite Empire produce in the past thousand years.

To be fair, your average Viltrumite needed very little food and water to maintain their strength. At the same time, their society had long mastered the art of such sustenance, which often came in the form of dense, functional nutrient rations made to keep them fighting, not for pleasure.

And so, as the first bite of this ‘Korean BBQ’ hits his mouth, Argan jolts. It’s the largest involuntary reaction he’s had in centuries, but the flavors mixing on his tongue, running over his tastebuds… his eyes widen as he shudders. It takes every ounce of his remaining self-control not to embarrass himself further with an actual moan of enjoyment.

Slowly bringing himself back under control, Argan chews carefully, savoring every second of the bite. And then he swallows. For a moment, he feels a deep sense of loss and regret once the bite is gone. And then he looks back down at his plate and realizes… that was only the first bite of many.

“What do you think, Argan?”

He’s just about to go back for more when Maya cuts in. His first instinct is to smack the hybrid across the room for daring to interrupt this moment of euphoria for him. But… he tamps down on that and holds himself back. Her question is innocent enough. Any aggression or hostility would be… unreasonable on his part.

At the same time, he can’t exactly tell her that it’s the best thing he’s ever eaten. That feels like showing weakness for some reason. Still…

“It is very good. I will have more.”

And with that, he begins to eat at what he considers a managed, consistent speed. Each bite is a fresh explosion of flavors across his tongue, filling his mouth, but as he eats more of the ‘Korean BBQ’, the novelty slowly wears off, replaced by a sense of simple satisfaction more than anything.

Yes, it is delicious food. Yes, it is better than any form of sustenance that the Empire ever produced. But it is still just food. He will not be unmanned by this meal. He will simply… enjoy and savor it for as long as it lasts.

Unfortunately, that time comes far sooner than Argan would prefer as he finds himself bereft of further Korean BBQ. He’s eaten everything on his plate and on the plates closest to him. Hm, could he justify taking from the other plates?

It is then that Argan realizes he’s being stared at. Maya, Nolan, and Debbie all still have food on their plates and are watching him with expressions ranging from wide-eyed to open-mouthed, as though shocked by his behavior. Argan furrows his brow... he doesn’t think he’s been especially shocking, has he?

… Although, looking back, what he’d thought was a reasonable speed might not have been. In fact, if he considers it further, he’s fairly sure he just ate at several times the speed of human perception.

Hm. A startling lapse in judgment and self-control. Human food was… dangerous. Sitting back in his chair, Argan moves his hands to the armrests and decides then and there that he’s eaten enough. He’s long past the point of sustenance anyways, any further ‘Korean BBQ’ would just be for pleasure at this point.

The silence lasts a bit longer before finally, the other three at the table return to eating. Though Argan notices that both Maya and Debbie keep stealing glances his way. Until finally Debbie Grayson breaks the silence.

“So, Argan… how are you finding Earth so far?”

Ah, this is an easy question to answer.

“More than acceptable.”

Debbie frowns slightly. Was she expecting him to praise her planet further? Argan was not prone to flattery, truth be told.

“Well, that’s good to hear. I suppose you’re very grateful to Nolan here, aren’t you? Seeing as he found it in the first place.”

“Debbie…”

There’s a challenging tone in the human woman’s voice, as though she expects him to deny it. Nolan calling out her name in warning seems to build on this assumption. Argan just tilts his head to the side, confused.

“Yes? Nolan has served well. He has our gratitude for all that he’s managed to accomplish here on Earth, and for leading us to your planet.”

Again Debbie looks caught off guard by his easy agreement. Nolan, meanwhile, looks torn between pride… and concern. Argan doesn’t understand why until Debbie speaks again.

“So then why have you been giving him such a hard time?”

“Debbie!”

“Mom?”

But Nolan’s mate doesn’t even look to him or her daughter. She only has eyes for Argan, an intense stare that would perhaps be a little intimidating if she was a Viltrumite. As things stand, Argan just arches a brow.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Debbie Grayson just scoffs and crosses her arms over her chest.

“Ever since coming home from Viltrum, Nolan has been different. You’re really going to sit there and tell me that you have nothing to do with it?”

His confusion mounting, Argan slides his gaze from Debbie to Nolan to Maya and back again. Debbie looks certain of her strange hypothesis. Maya just looks confused, signaling a complete lack of knowledge of what this is all about. Meanwhile Nolan… Nolan looks pained.

In an instant, Argan understands. Everything becomes clear as he watches the a vein in Nolan’s neck throb in a panic. So that’s how it was…

Well then.

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A/N: What does Argan think he understands? Hmm, find out next time on this thrilling family dinner two parter, lmao.

Throw me a comment if you can but please leave a Like if you don’t want to, it’s the main metric I use to track whether a story is doing well or not!

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Google Doc Link: https://docs.google.com/document/d/10xbH8hXcOPgt-23rHWJPEOyuzjKsnCBe2ME1854DTds/edit?tab=t.0