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The afternoon is quiet behind the school, with most doing whatever business still needs tending in the waning curricular schedule of the day. Cassandra is near the gazebo doing her daily workouts, which seems to happen whenever she's left to her devices. It's little wonder she has the level of condition she does.
The gazebo is lately frequented more and more by humming birds starting around this time of day, having honeysuckles growing up along it and amidst the topiaries. During the day is when it's a problem, as the bees take their turn then. The underside of it at least has been properly maintained lately, being free of grass and the like.
Cassandra's daily routine is likely winding to a close, as she is in the midst of tension and breath exercises. Her motions are mostly executed from a relatively stationary though shifting posture, with the movements not straying far from the beginning. A series of punches and arm sweeps, all performed with deliberate strain and core exhalation.
*
The Professor, meanwhile, has been sitting near the gazebo, watching Cassandra's routine out of curiosity. And probably taking a few notes for the conditioning routines of the students and X-Men, much to their eventual chagrin. When he sees that she's winding it down a bit, he stands up and enters the gazebo proper, using telepathy to boost his words a bit, "That's very impressive, Cassandra." He tilts his head slightly, making a few mental notes for himself too.
*
Cassandra Wu-San peers to the professor with her usual wide eyed and scarcely blinking gaze. She wonders quite how long he has been observing, having been in a mild meditative state for much of it. After the brief curiosity passes, she walks back to the gazebo, wiping a bead from her forehead. She cants her head and verbalizes the query,"How long?"
*
Charles smiles a bit, "Not very, to be honest, though I did wish to speak with you, if you had a few moments." He leans against the edge of the gazebo, nodding towards her, "By the way, excellent work with getting Angelica out of that so-called school. That was much appreciated, and welcome."
*
Cassandra Wu-San smiles modestly as his telepathy conveys his meaning when he expresses his gratitude over the Firestar incident. She nods slowly then before folding her hands before her, arching a brow expectantly at what he means to discuss. She has a fair idea, having shown her old and now perforated jacket and one of the darts to a few others.
*
The Professor nods, following along with her train of thought as he says, "Who attacked you that night, with the darts?" He listens patiently, mind open as he waits for her reply, sounding more concerned for her safety than anything else from how it feels.
*
Cassandra Wu-San has the word on the tip of her tongue. The frustration of knowing something but not quite being able to express it is palpable, but after a few moments she simply raises her open palm towards him, fingers spread wide. The sign of the ninjas that engaged her. She visualizes them perfectly in their red and black gi, faces hidden behind masks and cloth.
*
Charles nods, then adds, "Julie and Sophie said it was the 'Hand'." Apparently he had talked with them already, a bit, and he looks with concern at Cassandra, "Have you had run-ins with them before, Cassandra?"
*
Cassandra Wu-San nods curtly in reply to the Professor, then looks to her hand as she tries to reckon how many. She eventually gives up and shrugs, unable to be positive that it was always them. She says,"I fight, and run."
*
Xavier hmms, "Okay, the next question would be, how can we keep them from hunting you? Hunt them first?" He considers the tactics of such a thing, as he continues, "Since… well, I don't think they will stop hunting you just because you're secluded here."
*
Cassandra Wu-San shrugs at the question, not really having a solid idea. She'd have to know where to find them, she realizes. Cassie replies with a slight tone of bemusement since the notion does appeal,"Ok."
*
The Professor hmms, "We'll have to talk with Logan about this. He's more an expert on this kind of thing, moreso than I am, anyway." I mean, sure, he's heard a few random things while he served in Korea, but nothing more than rumors and shadows. Certainly nothing to show they were real.
*
Cassandra Wu-San replies to the professor at that,"Probably." She recalls him mentioning something that sounded a lot like one of them. She cants her head slightly the other way then, and offers,"Dart. Smell."
*
Charles blinks, then grins, "An excellent idea. We'll have to speak to Logan about that… assuming he hasn't beaten us to it already." He looks a bit rueful, "These final exams are driving me batty, I should have thought of that sooner." Of course, he has so much going on already, it's understandable he didn't think of this until now. But he won't believe that.
*
Julie has arrived.
*
Cassandra Wu-San has no idea what he's talking about now, still not in any actual classes yet. She blinks at him with upraised brows, expressing her ignorance visually. She smiles meekly to offset it, refolding her hands before her. She'll offer,"Julie…wants shop."
*
Charles nods towards Cassandra, talking with the girl in the gazebo in the back as they appear to be discussing recent events. "Julie… wants a shop? Well, I suppose we could see what can be done about that." He hrms, suspecting he knows what kind of shop Julie would be looking for, but would need to clarify that with her.
*
Dizzy happens to be just coming along, having slowed her gait so as to get an idea if the conversation's personal, but pops up on the short staircase. "Got a big shop in town, actually, my Uncle Sal's, really. I think she meant I been trying to get her in this shop class Teach McCoy's had me sorta setting up. Thought she might be good at it, the way she looks at things sometimes: that was before she had any words to say a thing about it, though." She pauses, and errs, "And, hey," she greets, belatedly. "Got the grill going, there was a bit of a hangup, someone didn't know their own strength a second there." For some reason she's got welding goggles hanging from her neck, possibly that's why.
*
Cassandra Wu-San peers towards Julie as she strolls up with the announcement. She'll point and nod at her, showing her agreement with that assertion of her meaning. Too many words to string together there. She smiles then towards her, offering a wave of greeting before asking,"Grill?"
*
Lorna has arrived.
*
Xavier smiles at Cassandra, "Memorial Day tradition here at the school. We do a barbeque grill dinner. And I think it's about ready to get started." He nods towards Julie, "Well, I think Cassandra would do really well with that, if she wants to do it." He gives Cassandra another look, and says, "It's entirely up to you, but let's get over to the grill before something explodes." Because… well, it's the school. Something ALWAYS explodes.
*
Lorna came trekking out of the woods in the backyard, covered in dirt and smelling heavily of iron with rust stains up and down her sweats. Clearly, the green haired mutant had been messing around with the piles of scrap iron and steel her father had set up for her well beyond the school. She had spent most of the day back there, well away from the school and the majority of folks. Rusted out cars and other scrap metal enough to likely give anyone else tentaus if they touched the mass was set out well away from anything that Lorna might accidentally mess up.
With a wave of her hand, she started picking off the iron dust from her clothes, a red cloud spinning itself slowly away from her in the air. Green eyes alighted on the group outside and she offered a hesitant wave. "Hey." She smiled as she approached.
*
Julie nods to Cass, "Yeah," she says, making a burger-flipping motion. "The kind for fire and food, like a …big hibachi, cookout." She nods, "Err, the scary-looking little gas tank Iggy's packing away is just argon, but I guess you never know around folks like us." Iggy being a slightly-younger lizard-tailed kid from Mutant Town it seems she's already taught a few things. I could do with a hotdog. Hope that don't blow up." Dizzy waves as they meet up with Lorna. "Hey, Lorna, guess we coulda used you a minute ago, but there's always the old-fashioned way," she winks, having her own ways to deal with metal.
*
Cassandra Wu-San nods slowly with glassy eyes at Julie. That explanation helped not at all. She doesn't inquire further so as to avoid detracting from evident festivities. Then, she spies Lorna making a cloud of some sort from the mess she's covered in. Offering her a wave, she goes to checking out what Julie was going on about nonsensically. Iggy gets a sideways glance from her, not being totally sure what he's doing down there.
*
Charles says, the grin he has conflicting with his serious tone, "Just so you know, making a world-destroying robot out of the backyward grill is /not/ going to get you an A." He says that loudly for everyone to hear, then smiles towards Lorna, "I see you were getting in some practice with your powers. Everything go alright?" Not that he thinks they didn't, quite the opposite, but because he knows she expects him to ask.
*
A shrug as Lorna deposited the iron dust on the ground off to the side with a wave of her hand. She smiled toward Cassie before the young woman took off to inspect the grill. Julie earned a huff of a breath. "Oh? What was wrong with the grill?" She asked, arching a brow and reaching up to shake out her hair and retie the ponytail that was all kinds of mussed up from levitation into the air.
Charles of course, merited a humble smile and a glance down at the ground. "Yeah. Still trying to get to fuse things down to the molecular level. I haven't quite got it. It's a bit frustrating to be honest. I can't sense things down that far without tata around." Her use of the Polish word for father returned, and only a select few now heard it outside of her family. One too many times of being picked on and defending her usage had seen to that.
"But I did manage to renew the finish on one of the old cars back there. No more rust." She shrugged, "So, hey, if all else fails I can get work in a bodyshop I bet."
*
Julie ahs, and smiles. "Hey, if you can deal with rust, I could line up a year's work with a couple phone calls," she winks. "I can run an angle grinder without bothering to turn the compressor on but you got me beat there." She winks. Adds, "Oh, one of the kids bent one of the gratings by accident, kinda had to do a few spot-welds by the time we got it bent back." She seems to have a pair of old welding goggles for a necklace at the moment, at that.
*
Cassandra Wu-San saucers her eyes a bit at X's sudden tone. She'll look from him to the obvious target of humorous reproach, the body lingo loud and clear there. She'll crack a bit of a grin then at the exchange, stepping away from the grill now that she has the gist of the concept.
Cassie goes to find a seat beneath the gazebo where she can watch, still not knowing the occasion or point. It's nice seeing something positive going on that doesn't involve shooting, with the popularity of westerns these days, at least.
*
The Professor ahems a bit at Julie, "Now, you know the tradition… I'm supposed to cook the first wave of burgers." He grins at Lorna, "Come on, you can help me out with this." The hazards of being an honorary niece, you get volunteered for things, as Charles walks over to the grill, "Julie, please tell me you didn't get rid of all the charcoal. My infamous grilled onions for the burgers aren't going to be the same without it."
*
Lorna wrinkled her nose at Julie's comment on work, "Rust is easy, it's entirely made of oxidatized iron. The only problem is when it eats away at the iron enough that there's nothing else left for me to manipulate." She murmured, a glance spared toward Cassie as the young woman settled down to sit. "And man, that is rather bad timing. I could've fixed that grill rather easy. I might not be able to molcularly bond things yet, but regular welds are plenty easy." She grinned and as Charles voluntells her to help out with dinner she claps her hands on her shorts.
"Uhm. Okay. What do you need? Do we have everything from the kitchen?" She arched a brow upwards. It helped that most everything in the kitchen had iron some where. Her father had far more control than she did, but she could still summon practically most of the kitchenware as needed.
*
Julie laughs a bit, "Oh, perish the thought, Professor, how can you have a cookout without a mess of charcoal? Do got a couple of robot spider legs stashed away though, Iggy and his friends grabbed em after that attack in town, maybe I could make em some kind of rotisserie, if we can work robots in somewhere, though."
*
Dizzy adds, to Lorna, "Well, that's where the panel-beating and skills come in, you make patch panels , weld em up, grind em down, finish em up, basically. Teach McCoy's got me running a bit of a shop class this summer, you interested?"
*
Cassandra Wu-San peers on quietly from the gazebo, almost stoic as she watches the trio getting on. She eyes everything, not missing a detail of the activities. Her hands fold and refold in her lap as she considers something, then dismisses to just watch on. She quirks her lip a bit and exhales to herself ultimately.
*
The Professor, ever mindful of tradition, dons his apron. Someone, probably Bobby, scrawled on the blue apron, "KISS THE PROF!" with a black magic marker. He then smiles over at Lorna, "It looks like we got everything, and Julie, those robot spider legs might just make good skewers, now that I think about it. We could mix it up a bit." He hmms. "Or a rotisserie. We, and by we I mean you, could build that into a charcoal grill."
He does glance over at Cassandra sitting off by herself, a bit of concern on his features, then he gets distracted by looking for tools, "Actually, Lorna… spatulas. Need the spatulas, if you please?" He sounds decidedly lighter in attitude than he normally does, a far cry from the Professor, as it's a side not all his students see at times.
*
Scott has arrived.
*
Lorna makes a face at the mention of the spider robot bits, "I had to fight those things, so I don't particularly want to see 'em around my food. Just saying. It sounds like it's courting bad luck or something." She rubbed her upper arms, and stretched them over her head before she rocked back onto her heels.
The green haired mutant had clearly come from training, just wearing a tank top and shorts with sneakers, her hair tied back in a ponytail. Yet at the Professor's words, she decided to try to stretch the bounds of her powers and her limits. It would be so impressive if she could direct the spatulas outside without having to go back inside. Her father had done it. A lot. So with a rough exhale and a grin, she nodded, throwing out her hands. Her features twisted in concentration, the door opening first followed, and… well, a couple of things floated out of the room like a bad Disney cartoon.
A spatula did in fact come out… Along with a march of a few knives, forks, a spoon, and.. a cookie sheet? She flushed and nearly lost her concentration, objects wobbling weakly back and forth. But she brought them all floating out of the kitchen and to the backyard.
"Well, uhm.. surprise?" She offered sheepishly.
*
Julie tilts her head to Lorna, there, grabbing herself a Pepsi, "Bad luck? Nah, more like a victory trophy, kinda. Kinda wish I was there, though, for a crack at those, myself." She wiggles her fingers in the air, mouth making a bit of an impressed circle of an 'o' as kitchenware floats out to them, and goes, "Things got bolts in em, after all. If we see em again, I could take the nuts off the spline bolts, then I bet you could pop the legs off easy." She winks, whatever she's talking about.
*
Remy LeBeau has arrived.
*
Cassandra Wu-San looks entirely too calm as she rises to her feet to put a stop to unnaturally festive cutlery and such. Marching over to the window, she approaches the metal parade from behind to proceed from the cookie sheet first with plucking things from the air and laying them on the sheet. This isn't her first time with a Lorna misadventure, clearly.
Once Cassie has done this, she proceeds with toting them over to the professor and company. One cookie sheet laden with cutlery coming right up. She even delivers it a smile. Sheepish, admitted.
*
Charles grins at Cassandra and Lorna, "Perfect. Thank you." Then he takes up his spatula, "Now, let's get cooking!" The Professor is wearing a buttoned shirt and jeans, rather casual for him, as well as a blue apron that has "KISS THE PROF!" scribbled on it in what /looks/ like Bobby Drake's handwriting. And with the arrival of cutlery, he then starts throwing burgers and hot dogs onto a massive charcoal grill that could, in a pinch, be converted by Galactus into a world-devouring engine.
Or, in this case, be used to conduct the Annual Memorial Day Institute Barbeque Dinner!
*
Scott doesn't often take days off, but since it's a holiday, he's as 'off' as he ever is. Which means he's at least in a t-shirt and shorts, and wiping his hands on a rag as he comes around to the rear of the building after finishing with one of the cars in the Institute's motor pool. Sure, technically it's work, but he also enjoys it, so…at least he's trying this holiday thing. The parade of kitchen tools gets a wry smirk, and he manages to catch a bottle opener on its way around the corner, heading for the cooler himself.
*
"Sometin' smell good round heah, dats for sho," Remy says as he closes the door behind him with an unlit cigarette in his mouth. Since he's only been here a few weeks he's never been to one of these cookouts before. As he joins the group he gives a nod to Xavier, "Professah." From there he's eyeing up the rest of them, many of whom he does not know. "Slim." He knows that one.
*
Lorna made a sheepish smile when Cassie went up to collect the metal kitchen utensils and she cut off her connection to them once they were in hand. A glance was spared toward Julie at the 'o' from the parade of metal objects and she blushed, scratching at the back of her neck. "If it's an iron based metal I'm good. So long as they don't make robots out of tin we're totally good."
A wave was offered toward Scott and then Lorna's gaze fell on someone she really didn't know. A blink, and her head tilted to the side, brows furrowing at his accent as she tried to puzzle out if she had at least heard his name before and failed. The green haired mutant offered a shy smile and a wave, "Hi. I'm Lorna."
Then she glanced back to Charles, "Need anything else?"
*
Cassandra Wu-San lingers by the grill for several moments, eyeing things in case Lorna decides to make them go on parade once more. That same little smile remains nervously across her features, even as she looks to the new arrivals. She'll offer them a small wave, regarding each in kind as she commits them to memory.
Cassie then looks back to Lorna, noting her expression at the red eyed man's accent. All manners of speaking are odd to her, that this should be special is notable. Her expression shifts to a bit of a wry grin, her brows teasing upwards as she glances then to Charles.
*
Emma has arrived.
*
Charles smiles at Lorna, "No, I think we're good here for now… though, next time I'll ask you and Julie to craft a deep fryer attachment, so I can make some onion rings… or better yet, authentic French fries." He chuckles, then nods over towards Remy and Scott as they arrive, "Good afternoon, gentlemen! I hope you brought your appetites with you, because I do a /very/ excellent grilling." He flips a few of the burgers with practiced ease, his attitude quite positive, even by Professor-doing-grilling standards.
Currently the Professor has a buttoned shirt with rolled up sleeves, jeans, and a blue apron with "KISS THE PROF!" scrawled on it in black magic marker. Manning the grill, he tosses a bit of seasoning onto the burgers, and sets up some onions to grill as well to go with the dogs, burgers, brats, and all sorts of traditional fixings. "First round will be ready in a few minutes!" Also, as he realizes someone /else/ is coming, he quickly tosses a salmon filet on the grill, some asparagus, making sure that's cooking separately as he whistles cheerfully, focused on the task at hand.
*
Remy returns Lorna's wave and gives her a friendly nod as he pulls out his lighter. "Lorna, ahm Remy LeBeau," he offers with his thick accent. She may notice him as the guy who tortured a cop last summer and got off when he got some high priced attorney. Or, she may not. Either way he lights the cigarette and blows the smoke behind the group out the side of his mouth. "Prof, ahll be eatin' whateva you be fixin, but ah ain't gun kiss ya iffen it jus de same to you."
*
"Professor," Scott greets as he straightens from the cooler, popping the cap off a bottle of Coke and taking a drink. "Looks like you've got quite the crowd out here." The faintest touch of a smile plays at his features, eyes hidden by his glasses. "Hopefully it doesn't work out like last time." There was probably no last time. Which means…that might actually be a joke from Scott. Miracles never cease!
He raises his bottle in a friendly salute to the others gathered, though Remy gets a bit of a cautious look. That one will bear watching.
*
Lorna grinned, "I'm pretty sure Uncle Charlie only wants kisses from one particular lady Mister LeBeau, and you're certainly not her." She offered dryly, coughing lightly into her hand as she moved to get herself a drink after Scott did. She was so gonna get it for her remark, but it was so worth it.
A blink followed Scott's attempt at a joke and she paused, her head tilting to the side. She didn't get it.
The green haired young woman settled down on the grass after that sprawling out in her tank-top and shorts. A sigh pulling from her lips.
*
Cassandra Wu-San is eyeing the two new arrivals, having not met either of them previously. She doesn't have an opinion as yet about them, but Remy is the one who gets the longer look. Eventually her gaze peels back to supervising metal things to ensure they don't break into dance once more, but she does keep her eye on it. Seldom a dull moment, someone's gotta be prepred.
*
Charles harrumphs at Scott, "I'll have you know that Jean and I had that perfectly under control. Or at least we were able to make everyone think that we did. Particularly with the improvised telekinetic rotisseries." Okay, either Charles is playing along with Scott or this was a Real Thing. And it's hard to tell which would be more frightening.
And at Lorna's comment, the Professor actually goes slightly red, though he keeps grinning, "You know, I have been telling Erik that there's way too much coursework for you. So ungrateful." Of course, he doesn't exactly deny it either, as he keeps working that grilling magic, starting to place some cheese slices onto the burgers. But not all the burgers… as he knows who wants cheese and who doesn't. Sometimes being a powerful telepath is about the subtle things.
*
Remy notices the long looks. He has to, perception is what he needs in his life as a thief. But he doesn't seem to mind. Living on the streets in New Orleans, he got quite a few long looks from everyone. He's been getting them since he was six. "Pro-fessa, you be needin' any help? Fah be it for me not to enjoy bein' waited on, but if you be needin' a hand, jus' go 'head an ask."
*
Emma, not finding Charles in his office when she goes looking, finds him in another way. (It will probably become a bad habit for her to reach out to him psychically, first, instead of second… But, for now, she has better manners and at least tries to find him without using her abilities.) Making a turn, she heads out to the rear grounds for the second time in as many days. She's wearing a white cap-sleeve blouse and a high-waisted white skort with white buttons down the front. Surprisingly, perhaps, to those who know her well, she's wearing comfortable white Keds! Sneakers, on Emma Frost! Her hair is up in a french twist with a white head scarf tied around her crown. She looks classy, as is expected of her, but very casual and appropriate for an outdoorsy cookout. Did she change her clothes? It's possible! Though she's no girl scout, she certainly seems to live by the motto of always being prepared!
Smiling to those gathered, she makes her way across the green lawn to greet them. "Hello, everyone. I hope you're enjoying yourselves," she says, looking at the various people present. "It smells absolutely delicious," she says, clasping her hands to her midsection. "I'm starving!" she grins at Charles.
*
Cassandra Wu-San now rewards Emma with a stare, having been there the last time she went back here. Noting the crowd growing in her immediate vicinity, she makes the self conscious decision of vacating the vicinity to the shelter of the nearby gazebo. Crowds are no fun when they are…crowding.
*
"You've always got it under control, Professor," Scott chuckles, taking another drink and finding a place to sit where he can watch the whole crowd. It's a habit, really, but he never quite lets his guard down. Which is probably why it's Remy who he addresses next, tipping his chin up in a greeting. "So, decided to stick around?" he asks the Cajun.
*
Lorna flashed a grin of an 'I told you so' look, her gaze shifting toward Charles and noting the blush there. "Pfft, it's obvious, everyone knows it." She chimed back, sitting up from her spot on the grass. "How much longer on the burgers?" She asked hopefully, glancing over at the grill.
As Emma entered Lorna stood up, clapping off her shorts of grass. "Hi Miss Frost," She waved, grinning toothily. Clearly there had been remarks made about Charles, and amusement was thick from the young mutant. Then she was off to the gazebo, taking up position beside Cassie with an arch of her brow in question - would she be welcome over, or was one person one too many for the crowd?
*
Charles beams as Emma makes her appearance, "Ah, Ms. Frost, you look positively enchanting, as always." He smiles and nods his head towards her, as he says, "I know how much you enjoy burgers and hot dogs, so I made sure to be grilling up something more fitting your preferences." Indeed, the salmon gets flipped even as he speaks, as he double-checks the asparagus to make sure that's getting properly cooked up.
Then Charles says towards Remy, "Actually, make sure the next wave is ready with the seasoning. Not /too/ much, Remy." He gives him a wry expression, as if knowing what the Cajun might think was 'properly' seasoned, then he smiles at Scott, "Oh, I do what I can, Scott, but you might be surprised sometimes." With that, he does pass a glance towards Emma, giving her a warm smile, even as Lorna tries to keep him blushing, with some minor degree of success. But it's the grill. Really. Honest. It's hot. That's it. Uh huh. Sure.
*
Remy can't help but whistle as Emma arrives. "Good on ya, Prof," he says as he grabs some of the seasoning and /lightly/ begins to season what's upon the grill. "Ah did, Summers. Ah believe in de mission of dis place. Despite some disagreement wit some of de students." He gives Scott a wink before continuing to speak to him over his shoulder. "Also, ole Remy never did no school. Was hopin' ta take advantage of dat dere GED program de Professa be havin."
*
Julie gives a little salute as Scott comes along, and there's a pause as it's the first time she's really encountered the new Headmistress, but of course has heard and has no doubt who it is. She's standing by Lorna and Cass, so when Remy comes up, also introduces herself. "Dizzy Bottero." She kinda looks back, and raises a Pepsi. "Hey, Headmistress," she greets, too. Her accent's pretty local, that of Brooklyn Italian-Americans, precisely, and she's in pretty typical work clothes, but donned a subdued Hawaiian shirt for the occasion, and for some reason welding googles hang by their strap around her neck.
*
Cassandra Wu-San has no problem with Lorna at all! Or Julie. She rubs at the back of her head watching the going ons from her safer vantage point, that sheepish smile returned to her lips. She raises her brows a little at slight attitude shift with the arrival of the Headmistress, but otherwise just goes to linger for the time being while things are completed.
*
"Well, we're glad to have you then," Scott nods to Remy. Maybe he is, maybe he isn't, but it's the right thing to say, at least. "Speaking of new members, Professor," he adds to Charles. "I've got a prospect. Ran into a kid in the city. He said he'd fallen in with the Brotherhood but he was looking for a way out, for a different sort of mission. Didn't want to get stuck in the rough things." Didn't want to kill anyone else, to be precise. "I gave him our number, but it's probably time to reach out to him"
*
Lorna settled in by Cassie and propped her chin up with her hands, crossing her legs as she waited for the food. "So, what do you think about Mister Lebeau? I think his accent is really groovy." She murmured behind her hand. Not that she expected Cassie to join in on gossiping with her, but the girl was there and had proven not to be judgemental. Which was good enough in Lorna's books.
"I think I heard something from my father about him. I could be wrong though." She mused, bouncing her foot and peering over at the grill.
*
Smiling to Lorna, she greets the girl, "Hello, Lorna. It's nice to see a smile on your face. I hope you make a habit of it." She smiles reassuringly at the green-haired girl as she makes her way past on the way to the gazebo. Clasping her hands behind her back, she turns to Charles with a bright smile as he shows her the salmon cooking on the grill. "Mmmm, I can tell it's going to be delicious!" she says approvingly. Then, her eyes take in the sight of the 'KISS THE PROF' message on his apron and she raises her brows in amusement. "Is that an order?" she asks with a laugh. Not waiting for a response, she pushes up onto her toes and kisses Charles on the cheek. Right there in front of everyone! "Let me know if I owe you more," she whispers playfully. At the whistle, she turns an arch look on Remy, shaking a playfully tutting finger at him. She watches people, then, trying to learn names and match them to faces. She's still new here, after all! She waves to Julie, smiling as the girl introduces herself to Remy. She also gives a wave to Cassandra, whom she notices on one of her visual tours of the gathered people.
*
Charles nods at Scott, "Of course, we can look for him and ease him in, that won't be a problem." He smiles, "Thank you for the update, I appreciate it." And he sounds very sincere about that, doubly so as he looks over towards Remy, "And setting that up won't be a problem, Remy, I'm sure it won't be that difficult at all."
Charles then is… well, struck speechless after Emma gives him that kiss, in public no less. Certainly, they've done that before, but in front of well, everyone… he just blinks for a moment. Then he smiles and returns the kiss, murmuring, "We can talk about paying what is owed later…" to Emma, before he mutters something about retroactively changing all of Drake's grades to straight As.
*
"Speak for y'self, Prof. Ole Remy can barely read and can'even write t'save his life. Ah'll be motivated, do, dat fo sho." LeBeau goes wideeyed and shakes his head innocently as Emma shakes her finger at him, but the slow exhale of smoke and evil grin belies his guilt. He spies Scott. He does not believe that Scott is happy he decided to stay. He seems to care zero percent.
*
Cassandra Wu-San offers a little wave in reply to Emma before looks back to Lorna. She arches a single brow as she regards her posture, the cast of her features, and the direction of her look. There is no mistaking it. She probably doesn't even need to be a body reader. She'll simply reply,"…He is…dangerous."
*
A giggle follows Emma's kiss of Charles, and she clapped a hand over her lips to hide it. Her mind quite literally screaming, "I called it!" in a loud enough projection both telepaths likely had no issue picking up on it even accidentally. She grinned toothily, and clearly seemed to approve of Uncle Charlie and her mentor Miss Frost being together.
Then her gaze returned toward Cassie and she blinked, "So are you?" She arched a brow, and shrugged. "So are all of us? I mean, really.."
*
Scott quirks a brow at the display of affection between Charles and Emma, but he keeps his comments - and his thoughts - to himself, taking a sip of his soda. Long association with telepaths has taught him that some things are best kept to himself. Especially anything dealing with said telepath's personal life. "It's…" He looks to Remy, and for a moment there's something a little more sympathetic in his features. After all, if it weren't for Charles, his life might not be all that different. "I'm not much with the writing myself, but I can help you with the math. We're a school, there are plenty of teachers."
*
Julie tilts her chin a bit toward Cassandra at her mention of Remy's dangerousness, seeming to perhaps take that into account, though without any real alarm. Says, generally, "I'm sure we can work something out," as a passing 707 makes bright spinning engine trails in the sky, to her special sense. What telepaths make of that, who knows.
*
Emma laughs as Charles whispers something back to her, the blush on her cheek hiding the natural blush that blossoms beneath it. And, the 'I called it!' hoot is met with a playful warning glance from Emma, lifting a SHH! finger to her lips. But, it's followed with a grin and a hint of a wink. Was it a wink? Maybe! Probably.
Scott's thoughts on the public display of affection remain his own, because Emma isn't trawling for anything. Charles told her that pretty much everyone knows or suspects - that the rumor's wide-spread, already. So, she figured she'd go ahead and rip that band-aid off! She'd rather people know and whisper about what a cute couple they are, than whether they are or aren't a thing. This way, she and Charles have more freedom to just be whatever they'll be!
*
"Tanks, Scott," Remy says, apparently warming his side of the earlier frost between them. "Pretty good wit de simple stuff, but will definitely need a hand on de more advanced tings." For a moment he thinks about Jess and his trouble with filling out their marriage license. The thought gives him a slight pain in his gut, and with un-erring accuracy, he flicks his cigarette a hell of a distance, perfectly into the fire pit.
*
Charles rolls his eyes at Lorna a bit, then quickly slides the salmon and asparagus off to a plate, offering the meal to Emma, "And as promised, Emma, lemon butter grilled salmon with garlic, and asparagus." He winks to her, then says a little louder, "Burgers and dogs are ready! Come and get them!" He quickly stacks the food up on the table, letting people serve themselves, as there's plenty for everyone. He also makes sure that the grilled onions are put into a bowl, ready to put on the burgers for those that want them.
*
Lorna sighed heavily, standing up and making to snag a burger for herself. A grin pulling at her lips as she picked up a paper plate, and doubled up her stack with two patties. "Thanks for the burgers!" She chimed, before wandering off to find a place to sit down with her haul of soda and food.
*
Julie also just smirks a little and to those nearby, quietly sings 'dat-da-da-dat da da' to the tune of 'That's Amore' to the others. "Ah, burgers up!"
*
Cassandra Wu-San walks up, following Lorna to help herself to a burger. She mirrors Lorna's decision, having no idea what she personally wants. She'll watch Lorna like a hawk as she prepares hers exactly the same way before returning to the gazebo with her dinner.
*
Emma smiles gratefully to Charles as he offers her the plate of food, which both looks and smells mouth-wateringly good. She exhales in relish as she accepts it, "Ah, thank you, Charles. I can tell I'm really going to enjoy this." And, she looks for the little foldable lawn chairs that are available for prisses such as herself. She settles into one and crosses her feet at her ankles, placing her plate on her lap. Since there are students present, she's not sure the white wine she was promised will be available, but surely, there's something to be had to drink! She glances over in Scott's direction, at the cooler behind him.
*
Remy heads up to the food and prepares himself a pair of hamburgers. Rather than just catchup, the Cajun removes a small bottle of tabasco from his pocket and pours it liberally onto the ketchup because the mixture is heavenly. "If anybody wanna spice up dey life, feel free." He leaves the bottle on the table.
*
Cassandra Wu-San eventually takes her meal up, looking to everyone in kind. She'll offer a parting grin as she goes, a bit of grease and mustard running down her chin after a large nom is taken. Cass will make her way back into the mansion with that, periodically taking smaller bites as she goes.
*
Charles nods towards Remy, "I can help tutor you on some things as well, if you like Remy. The summer sessions tend to be pretty light, though this fall things are going to be very interesting." And he smiles at that, as if relishing the changes that are coming.
Charles then takes a burger with cheese for himself, as well as a hotdog. Grilled onions on both, of course, and… well, he does put some tabasco on as well, since Remy brought that along. Then he goes into the cooler, fishing out a bottle of white wine. Taking a pair of plastic cups, as well, he brings his dinner over towards Emma, sitting down and offering her a plastic cup, "Shall I pour?" He does believe in being prepared after all.
*
Scott waits until others have gathered their meals before he stands up and heads to get his own burger. "Burger with cheese is fine for me," he chuckles, loading up his plate. Of course he doesn't need spice.
*
Emma smiles as Charles sets himself up next to her and brings out the bottle of white wine. She accepts her plastic cup and nods, "Yes, please." She smiles up at him as he opens the bottle and begins to pour. She glances over at Scott as he begins to load his plate with the barest of essentials, quirking a bit of a smile. She waves to Cassandra as the quiet girl heads back toward the building. Big gatherings aren't for everyone, especially when one struggles with the language. She turns back to Charles and gives him a warm smile as he settles down to eat. "Thank you for dinner," she says, before she's even cut into her food for a bite.
*
Julie laughs, opening up a just-completed burger again toward Remy about the tabasco, "Hit me," she smirks, on the spicing-up. "And here's to the cook," she raises her Pepsi.
*
Remy hands the tabasco over to Julie and nods to Charles, "Preciate it, mon ami. Figurin' I can start dat right away. If ahm tinkin' right, I heard dat de GED is one of dem courses you can sorta do on your own, non?"
*
Charles nods towards Remy, "You can, though we definitely can help with that. We'll get started whenever you're ready, and make sure you're going to pass." He smiles towards the Cajun, then glances back to Emma, "You should probably wait to try it first, just in case. But I've been doing these for a few years now, and despite the occasional telekinetic mishap, I've gotten rather exceptional at it." He seems to take almost as much pride in that as he does in the school itself.
*
Scott sets a napkin on his lap as he settles in for his burger, all the better to keep any juices off of his clothes. "So, Professor," he muses. "I've been thinking, we ought to look into something a little more…interactive than the obstacle course for training. It's great for conditioning, but we really need more field practice. Something so that we're ready when something comes up out in the real world."
*
Julie dumps a bit of tabasco on her burger, and fades back toward where Emma is, to eat, and in case a lot of discussion of remedial reading is awkward, perhaps. Does pause a little, thinking a bit consipicuously of a father she only knew from old photos, …it being Memorial day and all. Bearings sitting in a pocket spin of their own accord, it seems. Just looks back and forth as the faculty discuss that.
*
Emma smiles at Charles and his modesty, shaking her head gently as a nice, cool breeze sweeps in to chase off the remaining heat from earlier in the day. "I'm sure it's going to be perfect," she reassures him before she takes a bite of her grilled salmon. And, it is very, very good. She smiles at him, "Nothing to worry about - this is superb." She, then, digs into her meal, eating a bit of salmon, then some asparagus, and alternating, occasionally sipping at her wine. "What sort of interactive training were you thinking?" she asks, smiling down at Julie as she sits close by.
*
Charles actually lets Emma field the question first, giving Scott a slight nod as he instead looks over towards Julie, saying softly to her, "He would have been proud of you." For the record, he didn't use telepathy, as some thoughts are rather obvious. But he smiles in Dizzy's direction, before glancing back over towards Scott and waiting for his reply to Emma's question. As he looks somewhat curious about this himself.
*
Remy tears into a burger and eats them all rather quickly. Once he's done, he licks his thumb and remarks, in his thick accent, that the rumors of Charles dominion over the grill are not unfounded. "Be dat as it may, ole Remy is stuffed. An' I tink I'd like to get a head start on dem books b'fore I hit de hay. Tanks, professa." He gives a nod to Scott, and saves a wink for Emma, because he's a punk like that. "Have a g'nite y'all."
*
Julie does get a bit choked up at the thought regarding what the Professor says, …when she takes the spinning throwout bearing out of her pocket, it's going fast enough it stays gyroscopically at whatever angle it was sitting, …but, does smile back to Xavier there, with a bit of a shrug. "Probably don't want this to get too hot in there, and all," she explains for Emma. A bit of a habit of self-distraction, maybe. waves, "Hey, see ya around, there!" she says to Remy."
*
"Not sure, honestly," Scott shrugs to Emma, though he's looking at the Professor shortly after. Trust of new people is not a strength of this one. "But we're not getting the immediate reactions we need to be able to perform in the field. Maybe even just…Capture the flag. Team on team. Use the grounds, use the woods. When we run into trouble out there, I don't want it to be a surprise."
*
Charles nods, and glances over at Emma with a warm smile, before answering Scott, "A good idea. We need to have more strategy. If only there was some way to… simulate threats, a contained room where we could have any number of threats emerge and challenge the students." He looks thoughtful, then glances back at Emma, "I do know a few people I might contact… that might be a possibility."
*
"Well, it's a good note, then. Good work, Mr. Summers," Emma smiles and turns her attention back to her plate. Emma…is used to people having suggestions on how to resolve an issue when they bring one up to her. Scott's lost an opportunity to impress her with both measured problem-solving and thinking quickly on his feet. Then, looking to Charles, she nods her head as she is thoughtful about the subject, chewing on a piece of asparagus. "Yes, it would need to be something very unique, so that it worked on multiple levels," she replies, still looking thoughtful. Never let it be forgotten that Emma is a scientist and is more than a pretty blonde telepath!
*
Logan has arrived.
*
Julie does pipe up after a bite of her burger. "Well, we got a couple robot spider legs," she says. "Most of that ain't too hard to copy, for like a fake one anyway. I never saw the things but Teach McCoy got like, I guess whatever you'd call the main avionics box out of the thing, some kind of transistorized brain, guess he can figure out how that ticks over." Computer science doesn't seem to be somewhere her experience extends to.
*
Scott arches a brow at Emma's response, taking a slow bite of his burger without looking away from the woman. It doesn't take a telepath or a mind probe to read his expression, glasses or not: Not your puppy, lady. "I'm not sure a room is the answer," he notes to Charles, looking away from Emma. "It's not like trouble out in the real world is going to come from one of four walls, the floor, or the ceiling."
*
Logan comes out of his cabin, having spent most of the afternoon and evening dozing in his chair, a tattered copy of The Reavers well-thumbed and draped across his chest.
He comes out to the smell of food, having missed out on the cooking but more than content to take advantage of the results. He's in his usual shirt and jeans, cowboy boots on today, matching the broad-brimmed cowboy hat he has tucked back a bit on his head.
He loads up a plate and watches the tete-a-tete with a bemused brow. Looks like the civilized folk were havin' a discussion.
*
Charles is sitting next to Emma, each in their own foldable lawn chair because, well, Rank Hath Its Privileges after all. He smiles over at Logan, "Ah, Logan! Just the man I was hoping to see." Which is typically how trouble starts. But at least Charles is nice enough to wait for Logan to get is food before continuing. Or else he just knows he won't get an answer until that happens.
*
"Oh, I don't think you are, nor want you to /be/ my puppy, Mr. Summers. They're far too high maintenance - always yipping for approval, begging for a belly rub," Emma smiles icily at Scott. "I simply thought you'd have more than a half-formed idea of how to resolve the issue you brought up. You didn't, which is a shame, since all you do seem to have are negative things to say without adding anything positive. But, I thought I'd let you know it's a good note, well observed, which it is," she continues, every ounce sincere. She lets him speak his piece before she adds, "Well, you see, if it's possible to create a vast, endless space in the mind, a room is as large as it needs to be. Just as an example. Telepathy isn't a cure-all, especially as some people aren't as receptive to it. But, we're using our imaginations, to come up with unorthodox solutions for an unorthodox problem, yes?" She smiles to Logan as he saunters up and begins loading a plate with food. "Evening, Logan," she greets him.
*
Julie seems to have only heard about Logan perhaps indirectly, the way she takes a second look. She gives a bit of a high sign in greting, not to interrupt, but her relaxed attitude is a bit more genuine on seeing one of the older folks looking pretty clearly blue-collar. It's a bit ivory-tower on some levels at the Institute, after all.
*
"Lady, I don't know if it's the money, the telepathy, or the fact that you're diddling the professor that makes you think you own the place here," Scott says as he stands, setting his plate aside. "But I've been contributing here for eight years, so whether or not you like the way I do it is irrelevant to me. Trust me, it'll be a cold day in hell before I invite you into my mind. Professor…" He looks to Charles, shaking his head. "Sorry. Your lady friend's got some adjusting to do. I'll be in the garage."
*
"/EXCUSE YOU,/" Emma says hotly, leaping up at the comment about 'diddling' the professor. She throws her wine in his direction, aiming for his face. "NEVER have I been spoken to like that in all my life. How dare you cast such aspersions on my character?!" she demands, her cool all but forgotten. "I asked a simple question, to which you had NO answer, and I did nothing but praise you for pointing out the /obvious!/ Go cry into your little pillow, with all of your bruised ego!"
*
Logan nods at Julie's greeting, then addresses Emma and Charles, "Emma, Professor. And then Scott's having his little outburst and Logan can't help but laugh.
"Uh oh, looks like somebody's got a case o' the jealous, Professor," he says. "You been powderin' his bottom an' tellin' him he's the best boy for a long, long time an' he don't like bein' jumped over in the peckin' order, looks like,' he says.
He takes a sip of his beer and a bite out of his meat. Well. That was worth coming out of the house to see.
*
Julie just seems to simultaneously straighten her posture, lean back in her chair slightly, and shift forward in the seat of it. It's a practiced maneuver for any family-dinner arguments, but seems to work well enough here for 'ok, leave me out of *this.*' There's a bit of a darting of eyes about.
*
The Professor didn't say anything initially. However, at Scott's outburst, he does calmly rise to his feet. He narrows his eyes at the lad, just a bit, and keeps his voice even. Which is probably the best indicator about how angry he really is at this precise moment, "Scott. Emma is co-headmaster because we have merged with her Academy to provide for all mutants, as well as others that need our assistance. We did not do a 'hostile takeover' of her Academy. And this was not a decision that I reached lightly, and it has nothing to do with any personal relationships that might have arisen after the fact." His eyes narrow at Scott, "While you might not have liked her criticism, your response was inappropriate to say the least. And you owe her an apology."
*
Scott doesn't even flinch at the wine, wiping a hand over his face and flicking it away with a dry look in Logan's direction. "So we're going to be a corporation now?" he replies to Charles, voice steady and even. "We're not going to discuss things like people, like family, but we're going to have presentations and business plans? This place is my home, Professor. And it's my home because of you and the place you built here. Because of the way we treat everyone here. Like family. Not like employees. So if that's going to change because of some merger - whether or not she's your girlfriend - then I'm going to have some other decisions to think over."
He turns slightly to look toward Emma, head tilting in consideration. "None of them involve an apology. I won't mean it, and you know it. Maybe when I find out you don't think of this place as another number in a ledger, that we're not all just pawns on the board, you'll get one."
*
"This is exactly what I was talking about, Charles," Emma says in quiet exasperation as she turns to look at him…and, the wonderful meal he cooked for her, spilled onto the ground when she'd leapt up. Tears threaten to form in her eyes as she sees it like that, but she won't allow herself to appear weak in front of anyone gathered. She turns back to Scott as he digs his hole even deeper.
"It was a conversation over a cookout meal, you jackass. Not a presentation, not a business meeting. I have, literally, zero interest in what you do as a part of the X-Men. But, if it involves any of my students, you can bet your sweet bippy that I'm going to have a say in it, if it involves their education, their well-being, or otherwise. If you don't like that, you can… You can go suck an egg!" she says angrily. "You don't know me from Adam, and it certainly shows from the accusations you're leveling at me. These children are my life. They matter to me. I am going to be living here, so that I can be here for them. You don't know me well enough to be making any such assumptions about how I treat everyone. I called you Mr. Summers because you've never even introduced yourself to me, nor given me leave to call you by your first name - it was out of respect, you cretin. But, you can kiss all of that goodbye! Go boil your head, you snot-nosed crybaby!" And, with that, she turns on her heel and stalks back to the building without a backwards glance.
*
Logan just responds to Scott's dry look with a ragged grin. Far as he was concerned, Scott wasn't much more than a wet behind the ears pup. Now a raging jealous one.
Emma's outburst makes him look away for a moment, focusing a bit on his drink. He hated to see a woman get upset - yeah, it's old fashioned and maybe a bit sexist, but screw it, Logan didn't mind bein' an old fashioned guy. In Charles' position, Scott would probably have a fat lip by now, at the very least.
"Change ain't always easy, but it always happens, kid. You expect different, you ain't gonna be happy much."
*
Julie discovers a sudden need for more ketchup on her half-eaten burger, and slips out of the line of fire, discreetly. Does observe to Logan, quietly, "Well, they said something explodes around here now and again." One of those trying-to-make-light-of thinks half-smiles.
*
Charles actually nods slightly to Logan, then steps up towards Scott, looking at him evenly. "We were never going to be a corporation, Scott. I would have thought you could have trusted me that much. Yes, there are changes, but one thing I have never wanted to do, was change the fact that, first and foremost, we are family. Emma Frost is, among other things, highly intelligent, disciplined, and made herself a success in an area where most women are forced to take notes and stay silent." He narrows his eyes, "While you may have viewed her criticism as too harsh, there are better ways of dealing with it than personally attacking both her, and by connection with your comments, myself. Particularly when I was trying to bring her into our 'family' to see how well we got along." The last sentence particularly drips with irony, in a way that the only the Professor can manage.
Charles then turns towards Logan, "I'll need to talk to you later about the attack on Cassandra, and something called the Hand. I thought you might know something about that, but for now, it can wait." He gives a slight nod to Julie, her comment almost eliciting a smile from the man, but right now he has other thoughts, as he quietly goes off in the same direction that Emma did, towards the mansion proper.
*
Scott doesn't look like he's buying the temper tantrum, arms crossed over his chest as he looks after Emma. "I'm gonna say she was not a success, Professor," he snorts, shaking his head to Logan. "It's not change, Logan. It's that change," he points after Emma. To be fair, this is probably not the first time Scott's had a similar reaction to a new arrival. "What in the hell is worth all of that," he mutters under his breath, stalking off toward the garage himself.
*