xp_logs | Amanda and Crystal; Julio, Crystal, and Marius; Crystal and Jennie

During the party at Silver, Amanda runs into an unusually cheerful Crystal. They discuss clubbing, team bonding, and (despite Amanda’s best efforts to avoid the topic) getting stoned.

Silver was never dull, but tonight it had outdone itself. Freed of their captivity, the Snow Valley crew were out in full force, making up for the loss of Christmas. The main dance floor was packed, Mark in the booth mixing up a storm and grinning like a maniac all the while. Students, young professionals, teenage runaways, teachers, X-Men, humans, mutants... all mixed together in a general atmosphere of enjoyment and cutting loose a little.

Normally Amanda would have begrudged the enforced wearing of the stamps marking her as underage, but after the week in the brownstone spent largely intoxicated, she actually appreciated the excuse for a break. Besides, it was only fair - there were enough Xavier's students here to make her underage drinking far too much like rubbing their noses in it. Holding her orange juice above her head to avoid spillage, she edged her way back from the bar to where Marie, Angelo and Sarah were.

Crystal grinned to herself as she made her way off the dance floor which had just become a bit too crowded for her taste. Normally, she would have protested the use of ink on her skin, but right now she really didn't care. Two parties for the same new year in one night, courtesy of a four-hour time zone difference and a teleporter. Here in America, she wasn't allowed to drink alcohol. You had to be 21 to be of legal drinking age in America. You could drive a car by yourself at 16, vote at 18, but you couldn't purchase alcohol until the age of 21. How...interesting. Things weren't that silly in Attilan. Of course, it wouldn't do to show up here inebriated, and Crystal wasn't much into drinking, so she hadn't had that much to drink during the party at the palace in Attilan.

Many people from the mansion were here as were the members of the "think tank" that shared the school's journal system. There was one of them now. "Hello, Amanda!" Crystal shouted, trying to make sure Amanda could hear her over the noisy din.

The Brit smiled as she caught sight of the younger Lady of Attilan. "Hey, Crystal," she said easily, pausing so the other girl could catch up. "Having fun?"

Crystal nodded emphatically. "Yes, it is quite the cultural experience!" she replied. "It is very interesting!" And crowded. And loud.

"I'm glad you're enjoying it!" Amanda called back, over the thumping bass. Mark was definitely getting a week's worth of being cooped up in the brownstone out of his system. 'Cultural experience' was a new description for clubbing, but she was glad to see both the Amaquelins there. "Ta for the tea, by the way. 'S good stuff."

"You are very welcome," Crystal replied. "I am glad that it was able to survive decontamination. Did the food from the Winter Ball make its way to you as well?"

"It did. Made a nice change from leftovers and instant ramen." Amanda chuckled a little. "Next time I'm going to get stuck in quarantine, I want some warning first so I can remember to do the grocery shopping beforehand."

Crystal nodded, grinning slightly. "Of course, it would be better to simply not need to be in quarantine. That does not sound like a very fun way to spend a week, especially when it interrupted planned Christmas gatherings."

Amanda snorted a laugh. "Yeah, well, 's what happens when you make yourself a nuisance to bad people. Remy helped put this silly bint in prison and she kind of took exception. Still, we made the best of it. We..." Remembering who she was talking to, she amended what she'd been about to say. "There was team bonding. Lots of team bonding. Like one of those weekends executives get sent to?"

Crystal took note of Amanda's change of phrasing. Yes, she was back in New York, where people did their best to hide things from her. Whatever. "Yes, I am sure that there was a lot of team bonding," Crystal told Amanda. "Team bonding seems to be quite popular these days."

"Yeah, I saw the results of some of that. I have to say, at least ours doesn't involve bruising." Amanda rolled her eyes a little. Just lots of booze and some illegal drugs, which she wasn't about to discuss with a student. "I have to say, this place tonight? Reminds me a lot of Brighton during the summer. Lots of people, all having fun not giving a rat's for whose genes doing what... I s'pose it's a bit like Attilan that way too, yeah?"

"Attilan is one of the few mutant-friendly countries," Crystal agreed cheerfully. "Did anyone win the 'stay drunk' challenge? How many pancakes and brownies did people eat?" Sugar high her foot.

"See, clubbing in Attilan must be wicked fun," Amanda mused thoughtfully. "I'd love to see what it's like some time." Then she gave Crystal a rueful look. "Caught me out trying to be a responsible grownup type, did you?" she asked rhetorically. Oh well, she'd tried. "Yeah, the whole team bonding thing was chemically aided, but frankly, when you get stuck in an enclosed space with the people you work with for a week? You'd get stoned too. Just no letting any of the teachers know I told, or I'll have my arse canned from the bus driving. Americans are funny about booze and drugs and the rest. You might have noticed." Amanda was very carefully avoiding lumping Attilan and its royal family in with that mindset. Besides, if Betsy and Sofia were anything to go by, the upper crust was just as bad as herself and Mark, in their own way. "And since you asked, I think Mark won that one, but only because Sarah's healing factor kept sobering her up."

"Yes, the laws and beliefs here are quite different from the ones in Attilan," Crystal replied. "I have never been clubbing in Attilan. Medusa has, though. I suppose I can see if she wants to go with me to one in the next few days and we can do a bit of 'compare and contrast.' If you want to see what it is like," she offered, proper-polite Crystal rearing her head above the current noisy, crazy setting, "you are more than welcome to come to Attilan with me and stay in the palace one time when I go for a weekend visit."

Amanda nearly snorted orange juice at the offer, but she gave Crystal a smile and a nod. "Could be a laugh," she said. "Thanks for the offer. I'm not sure how well I'd fit in at a palace, but hey, 's all about the trying new things. And if your folks are anything like you and your sister, I'm sure I'd do fine." Besides, the last time she'd hobbed with the nobs had resulted in her getting the living shite beaten out of her and Manuel's brain wiped, but she doubted that would be an issue on Attilan. She wasn't dating their precious heir, for a start.

"It is my home," Crystal said, remembering suddenly that to most people, a palace belonged in fairytales and legends, and was not an actual place to live. It was a very big, very fancy place to live, true, but it was home to her.

Amanda nodded, smiling a little wistfully. Home was where the heart was, to be corny. "Then I'd be honoured to be invited to your home, Crystal," she said, no trace of mockery or amusement in the slightly-formal words. When you were raised to magic, you recognised the important of gestures, symbols, small rituals of the mundane sort.

Crystal smiled. "It would be an honor to have you there," she answered. Hopefully, if Amanda did come, she'd leave a bit of her colorful vocabulary behind. If not, letting 'swearing is what I do' Amanda loose in the palace would be an interesting experience in and of itself.

Julio is at Silver, but his thoughts are elsewhere. Marius wishes he could drink something stronger. Crystal already has. Nicknames, questions, and flirting abound.

Julio stood over by the bar, pulling out his cellphone to check and see if he had any messages. It wasn't fair that the girl he guessed he was dating wasn't allowed in due to age restrictions. He wasn't going to go, but he got talked into it. Besides, Angel and the rest of the underaged Teen Girl Suite were occupying themselves just fine, if Angel's text messages were any indication.

Were they even dating anyway? He supposed he probably should take her on a real date, more than "Let's watch a movie together and make out," anyway.

The dance floor was crowded and noisy, but Crystal was actually managing to have fun. It was definitely a new cultural experience, all right, and as she'd told Amanda, she planned on checking out the clubbing scene in Attilan when she returned home. Still, getting jostled wasn't her idea of a good time, and when she was elbowed one time too many, Crystal left the dance floor and headed off towards the bar.

Marius accepted his orange juice with a nod to the bartender. He mourned the fact that his first public social event since the necessity of Jennie's birthday on Halloween was spent within the strict confines of America's legal drinking age, yet currently lacked the necessary caring required to talk his way around it. At least Xavier's had well-acclimatized him to the close presence of other mutants; had it not, that may not have been the case.

As he sipped his drink a familiar brush of aura appeared at the bar beside him. He gave the blonde a smile. "Ah, good evening, Crystal. Nice to see you've made it back in time for the party. How are you findin' your first New Year's Stateside?" Marius gestured to where his suitemate stood a few feet away, absorbed with his cellphone. "Mind not the Small One's utter lack of courteous acknowledgement, as if one is to judge by the preoccupied expression he is absorbed in contact with his tiny love interest."

Without even looking up from the text message he was sending Julio responded dryly, "I am not short, you are all just freakishly tall." He pushed send and flipped his cellphone closed. Julio had gone to clubs several times back home, but they were much smaller and he was usually more inebriated. He was finding it hard to dance without the extra help. Oh well, time to mingle.

"How are you doing, Crystal? Having fun?" Julio said, pointedly ignoring Marius.

"I am having fun and I am not freakishly tall!" Crystal proclaimed, looking at Julio. "Are you saying that my sister is freakishly tall?" Turning to Marius, she pointed out, "Julio is taller than me! If he is the Small One, what does that make me?"

"Ah, no, the suite that I live in, I am the shortest one, yes?" He cast a disparaging look up at Marius, and then continued. "It is my nickname, Small One. Just like he is forever Darth Vader." He jerked a thumb at his suitemate. "Your sister is a very beautiful woman, and her being tall does not take away from that at all."

"Good save, mate. Yes, it is but a term of endearment. Pay us no heed, for cheerful verbal abuse is the way of men. No worries, it is reserved for members of the same sex. As for you, as it is a special occasion, to you for the moment I shall surrender the title of Pretty One." Marius grinned at the younger girl. Crystal's slightly excessive vehemence was setting off his finely-honed ability to detect women who had been recently within the proximity of even minor amounts of alcohol. Marius briefly raised his glass to her in an amused toast. As well, apparently, as the Mildly Tipsy One. Nice one, Crystal!

"Your nicknames are silly!" Crystal told both boys, grinning at the title Marius had given her. Julio had said Medusa was beautiful but hadn't said anything about Crystal and that hadn't been nice at all! "Why is he Darth Vader?" Crystal questioned Julio, before turning to look at Marius. "He does not look like Darth Vader. He does not sound like Darth Vader. And he does not look very cheerful to me," Crystal whispered the last sentence in Marius's direction.

"Ah, Julio makes mocking reference to that period of time in which my pulmonary system was utterly unable to function without artificial assistance. Making light of our peers' more excruciating life-experiences at every turn is also a tenet of our gender." Marius leaned forward and stage-whispered to Crystal behind one hand, "As for his Mood, I theorize that there is an unspoken rule that within the composition of any living situation there must be at least one party who is sullen, introspective, an' so forth. It is that oft-referred-to state of existence known as 'emo.' Happily, my time in that role is now passed. It's not to be taken personally. It is simply Julio's turn."

"Ah, but see how good of a mood you are in when you are spending New Years away from a very pretty girl." Julio reached out and took Crystal's hand, "Though my heart is with her, my mood brightens with your presence, mi bonita, for I believe you are the finest of the Amaquelin sisters." He gave Crystal a wink and a grin.

"Gracias," Crystal replied, the current setting and the drinks she'd had in Attilan making her not react to the fact that Julio had taken possession of her hand. "~Did you not want to come? You could have stayed with Angel at the mansion, but she is probably having fun at the slumber party!~" She eyed Marius for a moment, then looked curious. "Who is the 'emo' one in my suite?" she asked him.

This evoke a thoughtful scratch on the chin from Marius. "An excellent question. Eh . . . perhaps that too is specific to the Y chromosome. In its stead you appear to be in possession of a plethora of Quiet Ones, each more trauma-repellent than the last. We, on the other hand, have only Mondo. Who upon closer consideration may technically count for several, and yet still only pulls our flat even with Angel. Who, incidentally, I'm certain will be appalled to hear her paramour has been fondling the hand of another woman."

"Angel would want pictures." Julio deadpanned. He released Crystal's hand with a flourish, and then held up his other hand. "That reminds me," he pulled his cellphone out his his pocket. "To answer your question, Crystal, Angel wanted me to go so I could take pictures and send them to her. Which if you do not mind..." He hit a few buttons on the phone and held it up, he gestured for Marius to move closer to Crystal. "Smile!"

"Ah, under the circumstances far from a difficult feat." Despite lingering misgivings after the Christmas of uncomfortable inadvertant touching, a photo was a photo. Marius reached behind Crystal's back, resting the tips of his fingers on one shoulder. He glanced down at Crystal to check whether a comfort-level had been overstepped, then nodded up to smile in the direction of the camera. "Fromage."

Close to the countdown, Crystal finds Jennie and they talk about (not) drinking, secrets, and the silliness of boys.

"Jennie! There you are!" Upon spotting her roommate Crystal shouted to be heard over the crazy amount of noise at the party, but it was to no avail. Barely avoiding a collision with a partygoer, Crystal stepped into Jennie's line of vision. "Jennie!"

Jennie looked up when she heard her name, and spotting Crystal, broke into a wide grin. "You made it! Right on!" She gracefully dodged two clubgoers and ducked under the arm of a third until she was standing next to Crystal, and curbed the impulse to give the girl a friendly hug. She knew Crystal wasn't fond of improper touching. "Well, how is it? Enjoying yourself?"

"It is loud and noisy and crowded and people are silly!" Crystal told Jennie with a smile. "But yes, I am enjoying experiencing this part of American culture firsthand!"

"Fabulous!" Jennie said, genuinely pleased. She was not missing the exuberance in Crystal's voice and the silly smile. At least one of us got to celebrate in style. Way to go, girlfriend. "Yeah, it is incredibly crowded. I didn't think so many people would come!"

"It must have had very good advertising!" Crystal said with a nod. "Lots of people telling other people about it. People telling their roommates to come. Are you having a good time?"

That was the second person to check on whether or not she was having a good time in an hour. Usually people didn't have to ask. Jennie's smile was strangely shy. "Yeah, I am. I actually am. In spite of not being able to talk my around the age limit at the bar."

"You are not supposed to do that!" Crystal scolded. "They are being very careful with their alcohol tonight! I do not want you to get into trouble!"

Jennie's grin turned mischevious. "Don't worry Crystal, I've been behaved tonight. No, really, for true!"

"But you tried not behaving, didn't you?"

"Shh!" Jennie smiled and giggled helplessly. "It was just one drink, and the guy really wanted to buy it for me. Like, he didn't believe me when I told him that I was underaged, or didn't care. Then he kept trying to paw me so I lost him." Jennie made a face. "It's our secret, okay?"

"I keep secrets!" Crystal pouted. "No one has to tell me to be discreet! I know how to keep secrets!"

"I know you do, that's why I told you, silly! You'd think I'd trust any of those other gossip-mongers?" There was a sudden shift in the crowd, and Jennie overheard someone saying it was three minutes to midnight. "Come on, let's find the others so we can ring in the New year."

"Marius was over there before," Crystal said, pointing toward the bar. "Julio, too." She giggled. "They are silly boys! Very silly boys!"

"Well, yeah, they're boys." Jennie craned her neck to look out over the crowd before she spotted them. "There they are, over there, come on!" Impulsively Jennie grabbed Crystal's hand and began to tow her through the crowd.

"Boys are silly!" Crystal agreed, allowing Jennie to direct her through the mass of people. Time to ring in the New Year! Again!