xp_logs | log: Clarice and Scott

Set last night after Clarice's fight with Illyana. She has bigger problems that just revealing a little TMI and she wants them solved now damnit!

Clarice stalked to Mr. Summers' office seething. She knew she'd fucked up, but that was a moot point as far as she was concerned. What was more important was that she was sick and tired of the crap and it needed to end. Yesterday.

She knocked on the door a little harder than she intended and winced, hoping she didn't sound as angry as she felt. Anger wouldn't help her and this entire situation proved it.

"Come in," Scott called. When the door was flung open, he raised an eyebrow at Clarice's obvious anger. "Sit down," he suggested. "And close the door behind you."

"I fucked up, I know," she began without preamble once the door was closed and she was seated. "But that's not the problem."

"Then what is?"

Pulling her legs up underneath her in the chair gave Clarice a few seconds to gather her thoughts into something less jumbled, "She drives me nuts. She pushes all my buttons. I try to ignore her, but we live in the same suite! Nothing I do is okay, I'm too messy when I'm sewing, my musics too loud, my tv shows aren't intellectual enough, it never ends! No one else complains about me, I always clean up when I'm done, I keep my music down if someone's sleeping or studying or whatever, but she just keeps on!" she paused to take a breath, "I'm just sick of it. And I didn't pull her hair either."

"Look." Scott leaned forward a little. "She started it, this time. I'm not denying that. But you shouldn't have continued it, especially not when it comes to something like this, something you were specifically asked to keep entirely quiet about. What would you have said if someone asked you about why you'd pulled her hair?"

That was random, even if the question made sense, "Gremlins possessed me?" she shrugged frustrated, "I don't know! I didn't pull her hair though! I put my hand on her head to 'port her to the hospital, that's it, I swear. I wasn't trying to start anything and it was an emergency!"

"And why did you argue with her about that on the journals, rather than personally?" Scott asked, trying to sound as patient as possible.

"SHE took it to the journals and she's ALWAYS right," the sarcasm was almost thick enough to cut with a knife, even though Scott had just said as much said that Illyana was wrong. Sighing, Clarice looked at her knees, "I couldn't ignore it, she torks me off, so I tried to deflect it before anything happened with the hair grease comment. I as much as apologized! Didn't work, obviously."

Scott raised an eyebrow. "You couldn't ignore it," he said flatly. "You were physically incapable of ignoring it? You, who were so affronted that Jean could question your discretion?"

Clarice sighed again, this time more loudly, "It would have looked funny if I hadn't replied though," she pointed out, "Our fights aren't exactly quiet and discreet. I just want her to stop bugging me!" now she was whining.

"You were asked not to discuss what happened on Saturday night," Scott said inexorably. At least Illyana had been willing to back down.

"And I said I was wrong, I know that," Clarice said quietly, "I know what I did wrong and why and you're going to punish me. I know and I'm not arguing it. But I wanted to tell you about the bigger problem. At least, my bigger problem."

"I would be a little more inclined to focus on your bigger problem if you weren't trying to use it as an excuse," Scott said, more coldly than he'd intended. "So, while we're still on what I consider the big problem... you're grounded for two weeks. I would suggest that you reread your response to Doctor Grey's email and think about the meaning of what you promised. Now," he said, a little more moderately. "What is it that you want, in regards to your roommate situation?"

"Yes, sir. Can I still go to work?" she asked, concerned. "We share a suite and a common room and neither of us can just avoid it. I have my sewing machine and whatnot in there. I don't know. I like rooming with Terry too, or I'd ask to switch rooms."

"You can still go to work," Scott said, tugging over his to-do list. "What I'm going to do is make the pair of you an appointment with Professor Xavier. To talk this out, and see if you can come to some resolution before we go switching room assignments."

"Okay," Clarice nodded, getting up, "Is that all?"

"No. I'm proud of you for how you reacted on the weekend," Scott said. "I want to make that clear. The fact that you're being punished now doesn't change that."

"Thanks, Mr. Summers," Clarice smiled, somewhat surprised at the praise after their talk, "I really don't know what happened though...just that something bad happened on an X-Men mission. And I can't tell what I don't know."

"Keep thinking just like that," Scott advised, and finished scrawling the note to himself. "Good night, Clarice."