xp_logs | Log: Jubilee, Farouk.

Time: Late afternoon, Thursday April 10th.

Jubilee and Farouk have dinner.

Farouk leaned back in his chair, looking grimly at the gray skies
outside. It was going to rain again, he just knew it. The little
restaurant was almost empty, most of its clientele had slightly more
regimented work hours than him, so usually he was able to enjoy his
late lunch or dinner in relative peace. And as he had suspected the
view of Sefton's place was perfect.

Amanda was beginning to get used to his presence, much as he suspected
would happen over time. The reluctant mark of approval from her boss,
prompted by Kane's (presumably grudging) recommendation in the fall out
of the Cuban incident also helped. Still, once and again, he was still
forced to resort to the waiting her out. Sometimes it rained.

The waitress appeared as if by magic and Amahl smiled at her, suddenly
all avuncular charm and warmth. "Afternoon, Ginger. And may I say you
are looking particularly lovely today."

The redhead dimpled prettily. " Why thank you, kind sir. Your usual?"

Amahl began to nod his assent when he suddenly spotted the flash of the
familiar face, the diminutive figure determinately making her way toward
the steakhouse through the gusting wind, her hair flying like a banner.

Farouk sighed. "Better make it a double, Ginger."

"Sure. Be a few minutes..."

Sometimes it rained.

***

Jubilee had gotten home late from work, covering Reception for Mark
while he was in hospital meant working normal office hours, something
she wasn't particularly fond of, but then she'd had a note to meet
Remy's 'friends' afterwards and had spent a somewhat confusing hour
repeating instructions she couldn't quite see the purpose in but knew
better then to protest. It would all become clear eventually, she hoped,
either that or she'd find herself out on her ass. She wasn't a starry
eyed hopeful to think history and personal connections would keep her at
Snow Valley if she couldn't prove herself competent and useful.

It was thus with something less then happiness that she noticed a
familiar face sitting at one of the window booths.

"I'll just sit with my friend" she said to the waitress who had just
asked her if she was dining alone. She motioned toward Farouk and
stepped around the girl to head over without a backward glance.

Amahl's lip quirked under the mustache as he stood to pull out a chair
for her. "Hope you like your steak well-done... friend."

As if on cue the skies broke suddenly, the rain blanketing the street
like a gray, shimmering curtain.

"Depends on the steak." Jubilee responded, taking a seat and waiting for
him to seat himself again. "Still doggin' Mandy, I see."

Farouk smiled at her, the right eye closing in a slow deliberate wink.
"Everybody needs a hobby."

Shrugging, he twirled his fork absently. "Besides the mansion is a little
too hectic these days for the man of my rapidly advancing years."

Not to mention that that he found it advisable to tone down his profile.

His brief but memorable tenure as the Shadow King's host seemed to have
been rapidly eclipsed by newer catastrophes that seemed to befall

Xavier's school a regular intervals. Which suited Amahl just fine.

"I'm surprised they're still payin' you if you're spendin' all your time
around here." Jubilee replied, gesturing for a waitress as she made her
way by. "Burger an' fries, please."

Farouk nodded his thanks as Ginger put the drinks on the table and shook
his head at Jubilee. "Isn't it terrible? The work ethic standards have
really fallen in the American education system. These days I just leave
a photo of me in the class room and just wander off..."

He glanced at her shrewdly over the rim of his glass, "And how is your
own homecoming going?"

"That would be in the way of being a personal question." Jubilee noted,
snagging a drink and taking a sip of it through her straw.
"Think we know each other well enough for that sort of thing?"

Not well, then. Farouk translated.

"Do we ever really know anyone?" He asked philosophically.
"But I was just making conversation."

"You'd be surprised. Observant types can know a lot more then you'd
think." Jubilee said, slouching in her chair and giving him a knowing
look. "You don't like being in the dark on things, do you."

Amahl shook his head amiably. "That's a remarkably silly question, my
dear. Tell me - has anyone ever answered in the negative to it?"

"That would depend on the person, and the situation."
She nodded her head as the waitress brought her food, grabbing the
ketchup from the middle of the table and pouring it over her fries.

Farouk cut hix steak into small neat pieces, frowning a little at the
culinary disaster taking place across the table. "Well, ignorance is
bliss. Ever an attractive idea. Although in my experience few people
openly own up to following that precept as a life philosophy."

"Most people wouldn't know they're dirt ignorant, even if you held up a
mirror an pointed it out to them." Jubilee noted, swallowing the bite
of burger that she'd been chewing. "This is all very nice, Farouk. But
just exactly what is it you want from Mandy? Why are you so interested
in magic?"

"Well..." Amahl drawled. "Your first query is answered by your second.
Which itself..." He smiled cattily. "Would be in the way of being a
personal question, don't you think."

"Oh, I don't know. You're dogging one of my colleagues, and you were
till only recently possessed by a really nasty entity, quite the
anti-social kind." Jubilee said, her return smile chilly. "I would think
it was a question of business to know just what your intentions are. I
wouldn't want you falling under bad influences again, who knows what
could happen next time."

Farouk sighed reaching inside his jacket. "You know it's strange what
people consider personal. Some would argue that bringing up a recent
traumatic moment in my life to score points in a conversation is
invasion of my privacy. "

He shrugged, still looking for something in his pocket. "Not me, though.
I could probably point out that, logically, someone who made a series of
conscious decisions to break the law, engage in smuggling, narcotics
use and demon-summoning presents a slightly higher security risk than a
victim of a psychic attack."

Amahl spread his arms, one hand lightly gripping a cellphone. "But that
would be petty."

He placed the phone carefully in the precise middle of the table and
smiled warmly. "So let's just call your Mr. Lebeau. he strikes me as the
kind of boss who will probably appreciate your concern for a friend just
enough to your willingness to threaten a member of a mansion's faculty
in order to get access to information you are not cleared for."

Jubilee took another bite of her hamburger, chewing on it in a decidedly
slow fashion as she fixed her gaze on Farouk's and didn't look away.

After a moment she swallowed, and reached for one of the napkins to wipe
some sauce from the side of her mouth, continuing to stare silently at
the man in front of her.

"So," Farouk said, turning back to his steak. "Let's start fresh, shall
we? How is New York striking you after Madripoor? I remember the novelty
of the East Coast weather worn of rather rapidly for me..."

"Cold." Jubilee said, relaxing again, and poking a fry into ketchup
before sticking it in her mouth to chew. "People are less...friendly
here."

Farouk laughed out loudly despite himself, making heads turn. "Ah, yes.
There's an old adage that an armed society is a polite society.
Madripoor certainly provides a rather peculiar illustration of that
thesis." He shrugged. "On the other hand I found this city to have its own charm. And
it's refreshing not to have to worry about the riots..."

Or kidnapping, but it would probably be impolitic to mention that to
Jubilee, given her experience.

"Madripoor at the very least had a structure, and you knew where you
stood." Jubilee mentioned, taking a sip of her drink to wash down the
fries. "It's a lot messier here. Still, I didn't come back for the ease
of things."

Stoic front or not, the girl was barely out of her teens, Farouk thought watching her eat.
The pressure to find some sort of anchor must be overwhelming. To get some stability in her life.

And if the rest of her peers in the mansion was to go buy stamped with the indelible mark of a martyr complex that Xavier seemed to put on every student that passed his school

"Ah." He dabbed at his lips with a napkin and leaned back. "I never subscribe to the idea of searching out trials and challenges, myself. In my experience life will provide them aplenty without our input. Taking an easy path when possible is not a crime, Ms. Lee."

"The easy path's what got me here, Farouk." Jubilee stated, tapping the fry in her fingers against her plate. "In my life experience people start talking to you about an easy path, they're tryin' to sell you something. You trying to sell me something, Farouk?"

He sighed and shook his head slightly. "It's Amahl, my dear. Or Dr. Farouk."

Reaching for his wallet, he counted out the money. "Cynicism makes for a romantic persona, Ms. Lee. But going through life angry and lashing out at the world is unlikely to result in the optimal outcome, of whatever goals you have set yourself. At the moment there isn't anything that I am tempted to 'sell' you. But if you forgive the presumption I would like to offer you a bit of advice."

He smiled and raised his hand. "Free of charge. It's pretty simple, really. You can always show people that you are smarter than them, tougher than them, better than them."

Farouk grinned suddenly, the teeth flashing whitely. "I should know, it's one of my favorite hobbies."

The smile slid easily off his face, leaving a chilly neutral mask in its place as he continued. "The problem with it - as enjoyable as it might occasionally be - it seldom gets you far. For instance, if I was in fact planning to cheat you, subvert you, bamboozle or corrupt you - wouldn't it have been better to find out why? With honey rather than vinegar?"

Standing up Farouk collected his cellphone and reached for the coat hanging of the back of the chair. "The right choice is seldom the easiest, Jubilation. But the hardest path is not always the right one."

He tilted his head in farewell. "It's been a pleasure."

Jubilee nodded to him in reply, not speaking but instead watching him walk away with an unreadable expression. He'd given her a lot to think about, that was for sure.