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Post by cyclops on Dec 13, 2003 10:35:05 GMT -4
"Nice to meet you, Taela. Welcome," Scott said. He was bleary enough, his manners were on autopilot.
He shuffled to the cabinet to retrieve a coffee mug, and poured himself a tall cupful. Inhaling the aroma, he sighed and took a sip.
If anyone was able to see past the ruby-quartz lenses in his glasses, they would have seen both eyes squint, and his left eyelid start twitching.
Whoof. I needed that.
He swallowed the mouthful and cleared his throat. Casting about for the sugar canister, he dropped a spoonful in his cup and stirred it. Carefully taking another sip, he washed down his pills and turned back to the table, where the two women seemed to be smirking at him.
"What?"
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Post by Christine MacTaggart on Dec 13, 2003 10:36:47 GMT -4
Christine started laughing. "I can't believe you forgot I inherited my mother's skill for making coffee," she said, looking amused. "You should know better, big brother." She couldn't help but look amused at her latest successful prank against Big Brother.
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Post by cyclops on Dec 13, 2003 10:41:48 GMT -4
Scott smiled ruefully. "Yeah, it's been a little while."
He ambled over to the table, set his cup down, and mussed Christine's hair just like he knew she hated.
He grinned as she squealed in protest, fussing to put her hair back in place. He was suddenly conscious of the fact that he hadn't bothered looking in a mirror before he came down, so he probably had "bed-head" too.
"So what brings you two down here?"
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Post by Christine MacTaggart on Dec 13, 2003 10:44:09 GMT -4
"She, bad night for stargazing. Me..." her voice trailed off for a moment. "Had a nightmare, but that's nothing new." She had lost track of the number of times she had a bad nightmare and woke up the entire school.
She pouted and continued to unmuss her hair. "I *hate* when you do that." She was tempted to kick him in the shin. Why did he always have to make her feel like a little ten-year old again?
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Post by cyclops on Dec 13, 2003 10:54:36 GMT -4
"Ah. Fair enough."
He grinned. "You wouldn't know what to do with yourself if I weren't here. Someone has to keep an eye on you."
He softened a bit at the mention of her nightmares.
"Nothing new? Anything you want to talk about?"
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Post by Christine MacTaggart on Dec 13, 2003 10:57:56 GMT -4
"Remember the fiery bird that showed up in them when I was younger," she said softly. She waited till he nodded in rememberence. "She's back in my nightmares, only this time... this time I know who the female that was linked to her is.." She paused, biting her lip and trying hard not to cry. "And... I saw... I saw her kill people... She didn't care about who they were or if they had families... She just killed them."
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Post by cyclops on Dec 13, 2003 11:07:17 GMT -4
Scott remembered the dreams she had when they were younger. They would upset her something terribly, and she would often wake him up in tears. He would always write them off as just a dream, nothing a teddy bear and a glass of warm milk couldn't fix. But now, it sounded geniunely disturbing, as the fiery visage in her dream had become much more violent and frightening.
"So...who is the woman in your dream?"
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Post by Christine MacTaggart on Dec 13, 2003 11:13:14 GMT -4
Christine was quiet, biting her lower lip. How could she tell him it was her? "Remember the mission I told you we went on? The one to save the Professor? There's a lot I didn't tell you."
She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She quietly started to tell him everything about the mission, her voice faltering when it reached the part about the Phoenix appearing.
"Scott... I'm scared... I don't want to have that happen to me... I don't want to hurt anyone..."
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Post by cyclops on Dec 13, 2003 11:26:25 GMT -4
Scott rubbed his forehead. This couldn't be happening. Not to her.
He met her eye, and wiped away the beginnings of a tear.
"You've always been strong, whether you believe it yourself or not. I don't think you'll LET something like that happen. You have a good heart, and nothing can bury that. Not even this...Phoenix."
In truth, he knew next to nothing about what the Phoenix was capable of, but he thought she could use a pep talk. Besides, she WAS a strong person, and he truly believed that she could resist any persuasion that was contrary to her normal personality.
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Post by Christine MacTaggart on Dec 13, 2003 11:31:40 GMT -4
Christine smiled up at her big brother. "Thanks, Scott," she said softly. She hugged him around the neck. "You always knew how to cheer me up."
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Post by cyclops on Dec 13, 2003 23:04:26 GMT -4
Scott smiled and returned the hug. Making her feel better always made him feel better.
"Now, then, enough of this drama for a while. How're you and, ahem, Kurt doing?"
He looked at her in mock severity. "Do Kurt and I need to have a little man-to-man talk?"
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Post by Christine MacTaggart on Dec 13, 2003 23:09:36 GMT -4
Christine blushed a rich crimson. "Um.. nothing more then kissing and cuddling - fully clothed!!" she said rapidly. "Um.. we did establish a psychic rapport between us..."
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Post by cyclops on Dec 13, 2003 23:25:11 GMT -4
Scott chuckled a bit at her discomfort. Nothing to worry about, Scott. She's a big girl and Kurt's a good guy.
At the mention of a psychic rapport, though, he stopped.
"That's nothing to take lightly, Christine. I'm hoping this wasn't done in a moment of..." he searched for a tactful word, "haste?"
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Post by Christine MacTaggart on Dec 13, 2003 23:31:32 GMT -4
"I love Kurt, Kurt loves me," Christine said softly. "We did not rush into it half thought out. I told him what it consisted of - told him I would not be upset if he said no. He said yes."
She sighed. "Kurt and I grew very close while the adult leaders were missing, Scott. Very close. We were 'Mother Hen' and 'Papa Rooster' for the younger students."
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Post by cyclops on Dec 14, 2003 18:13:08 GMT -4
If Scott was able to, he would have lowered his glasses and peered over the top of them at Christine with an "Excuse me?" glare, much like his grandfather used to do.
He smiled ever so slightly as Christine blushed, averted her eyes, and bit her lip, almost as if she regretted her choise of words.
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