Scott and Jay, Friday morning

[x-cyclops.livejournal.com]

Set after this request and before these emails, Scott has a talk with Jay about Paige's departure. Jay finds out that there's more to the situation than he realized.


Jay knocked on the door to Scott's office and waited for a response. He was dreading this confrontation and hoped that it could be done with quickly so he could go back to his room and continue being angry.

"Come in, Jay," Scott's voice answered. As Jay stepped into the office, Scott mustered a brief smile. "Close the door, take a seat," he said, not beating around the bush. "I wanted to clarify a few things."

Was that a Smile of Doom that Scott wore? Closing the door, Jay reluctantly stepped further into the room and took a seat opposite Scott's desk. Jay looked like he was ready to get up and bolt out at a second's notice, although that was partly due to the fact that his wings still ached and he didn't want to press them back against the back of the chair.

"I don't know what this business was with this secret club, or whatever the hell it is," Scott said calmly, "but I think it's highly unlikely that it had much, if anything, to do with why your sister left." He paused for a moment. "You read her message on the journals, I'm assuming, and saw what she said about having been removed from trainee status."

Jay nodded. "Yeah, saw that. Dunno much 'bout what it entails ta be a trainee or whatever, but knowin' her Ah'd imagine it's one of the reasons she left." He emphasized the word "one," because he knew that Paige wouldn't flip out because of any single factor. And that didn't rule out the gossip club.

"Jay..." Was it possible that he actually knew more about what made Paige tick than her brother did? The thought was vaguely depressing. "Paige's life here, at the school, was largely geared around training for the team. What she said about letters from Harvard and MIT? Absolutely true. Universities everywhere would snap up your sister in a heartbeat."

"It don't surprise me none," Jay replied. Everyone knew that. "Ah know she's a genius, and Ah know that even though she said she applied just ta see iffn she couldn't get in, that she probably wants ta go to a really prestigious university."

"So, given that she has more options than she knows what to do with, what did you think her reaction would be when she felt as though we removed her reason for staying here?"

Jay let out an exhasperated sigh. He could see where this was going from a mile away. "Ya don't think that this betrayal had anythin' ta do with her decision?" he asked Scott instead. "Yeah, sure, bein' kicked off the roster limited her options here, but don't'cha think she'd be at least a little reluctant ta go iffn her friends hadn't decided to intervene like she's an addict or somethin'?"

"No," Scott said simply. "You've said you don't know what being a trainee or on the team really entails, Jay, and I know you and your sister haven't always communicated very well since you've been here - " It wasn't as if they hadn't both made that blatantly obvious on the jorunals a number of times. " - so without meaning it harshly, I doubt you really know how much she's built her whole life around becoming an X-Man. Trainees and team members go through regular psychological evaluations, Jay. Their actions and reactions and motivations for doing this get picked apart on the microscopic level every day." He sighed. "This was a huge blow for Paige," he said. "Whatever nonsense has been going on with her classmates, it's just that. Well-meaning, badly executed, whatever you want to call it, it's nonsense. This was her dream, and we told her she had to put it on hold."

Jay didn't like how other people who'd known Paige for less than two years now knew her better than he did. Even though people he'd known for eight months knew him better than she did. But that double standard was beside the point. That he'd been proven wrong in front of everyone else after the big deal he made was embarrassing.

"So what's gonna be done 'bout it?"

Scott took a deep breath. "There's not much that we can do," he admitted quietly. "Paige does have legitimate opportunities at Harvard and MIT, and if she's chosen to explore those, we have to respect her choice." He met Jay's eyes levelly. "That doesn't mean we're not going to keep an eye on her. Personally, I hope she decides to come back. We didn't kick her off the trainee team, Jay, we just removed her from active training so that she could deal with what she needs to deal with. It was her decision to regard that as dismissal."

Jay didn't like it one bit. But what could he do? He could raise a big fuss and make an even bigger ass of himself, or he could just accept it and hope for the best. Neither of which were appealing alternatives. "So you'll bring her back if somethin' happens to her?" he asked, trying to sound forceful rather than concerned.

"Absolutely. Without a second thought," Scott said, still quietly but just as forcefully. "As far as I'm concerned, Jay, on a personal level, my responsibility to your sister hasn't ended just because she's eighteen and no longer under this roof. Especially not under these circumstances."

"Okay, then." He had nothing more to say, really. He was still pissed, sure, but it was tempered by his chagrin and getting things all wrong. He still stood by his conclusion, for appearance's sake, but he wouldn't make a further issue of it. "M'sorry," he said awkwardly. "'Bout the mess Ah made, then."

Scott shook his head a little. "The journals are tempting, when you're angry about something and wanting to express it," he admitted, "but often doing that isn't the best idea. You so often wind up wishing you'd said something differently, when you post in the heat of the moment, and unfortunately it's all there in black and white reminding you, when that happens."

"They need some kinda block so ya can't post unless you're happy," Jay mused wryly as he got to his feet. "Did Paige leave any kinda contact info so's Ah can call her or somethin'?"

"Not yet," Scott admitted, not particularly happy about that. "If she lets the school know before she lets you and Sam know, I'll give it to you immediately. Vice-versa, do the same for us?" He paused, smiling a bit wearily. "And if she doesn't do either, we'll find it anyway."

Jay nodded. "Sure, thanks." He offered an awkward shrug, then left the office. Oh how he wished he could just fly away from this all, if even just for an afternoon.