Logan and Jean-Paul

[x-cynosure.livejournal.com]

Jean-Paul and Logan meet for the first time in years and wind up discussing those left up north.



No one could say that the students at Xavier's did not live dangerously.

Jean-Paul shook the remains of a three-quarters slush snowball out of his hair, glaring up at the roof. "You realize, I hope," he called up to his students, "that there are many, many ways for a speedster with a meat-grinder to hide bodies. Keep this in mind before you throw that next snowball."

Logan couldn't help it. He really couldn't. Bending down to pack a nice tight snowball, he wound up like Sandy Koufax and let one fly right at Paul's head. If his aim was good he'd stick the snowball right into his pointy little ear.

The younger man dodged -- barely -- and almost went down on his ass doing so. If he'd managed to make it look easy, he might have managed to greet Logan with something a bit more welcoming than a glare.

"I think you were better at stealth the last time we met."

Or maybe not. Those early days of Alpha Flight didn't hold many warm memories for Jean-Paul.

"Sloppy-ass dodge, Paul." he said with a cocky look. "Thought you were better than that." he said, grinning around his smoke. "Didn't think I'd see you back in the game again. Seem to remember you bein' pretty adamant about goin' to find your sister." he said carefully. "Any luck?"

Jean-Paul lowered his hackles somewhat. At least there was no more of that "JP/junior partner" nonsense. That was promising.

"Yes, I should remember to expect attacks from teammates." He gave the roof another glance, then moved out of the line of fire before responding again. "I am not 'in the game' as you say. I am only here to teach. Saving the world as a career got very old, very quickly." More quietly, "It seems that my sister either does not want to be found, or she is dead someplace very remote. Either way...there is little to do now but wait, it seems. I could not put my life on hold forever." He'd told himself that a thousand times, and he still felt like a traitor each time.

"Just teaching. Right." he said. "No black leather for you." he said, quirking an eyebrow at JP. "You let Heather know you fell back onto the world?" he asked.

"Only the old smart armor," Jean-Paul confirmed. "There is nothing else in my wardrobe that can stand up to flying at Mach one and up." The mention of Heather brought the frown back to his face and he shrugged. "Mac got in touch with me during the Day Zero disaster, so I am assuming Heather knows. There didn't seem much reason to send out announcements. I left Alpha Flight years ago, Logan. I am not their problem now and the reverse is just as true."

"Heather asked me to command Alpha." he said, leaning against the wall. "Told her no. They're a good bunch. Could use someone like you." he pointed out.

"You must be joking." Jean-Paul shook his head. "I would imagine we find the Department H bureaucracy equally distasteful, Logan. I only ever stayed with the Flight program because Aurora would not leave and Jeanne-Marie needed me, and, even so, it was a twenty-year-long mistake." He let out a deep breath before he could get himself worked up. "Besides, I would have to make a rug out of Langkowski."

Logan barked out a laugh at that. "Guy had the balls to chase your sister - who slowed down long enough to get caught - and you want his hide on your floor?" he said with amusement. Ah, the Beaubier twins. Endless amusement for the whole team. "I'm hardly the poster child for it, but figure you may want to unclench just a bit." he said.

"Chased her, caught her, used her, and discarded her." Jean-Paul's gaze was pure hatred, but it was meant for a man many hundreds of miles away. So much for not getting worked up. "You were gone by the time my sister and I had our first real fight. She went to him, begged him to make her something other than my twin. He experimented on her, even knowing her mental history." His tone was clipped, the ends of the sentences all but bitten off. "They were going to be married, did you know this? Four years ago. We fought over that as well, vowed not to speak to each other again. The next time I saw her, he'd had her committed -- abandoned her to men who knew no more how to help her than he did, but so long as she was no longer his problem..." He broke off with a growl far more suited to the man beside him. "I will 'unclench' when he is dead."

"Huh." he said. This was all news to him. "I didn't know." he admitted. "Sounds like you got a legit beef with Walt." he said. "You try talkin' to the man, hear his side of the tale?" he asked.

Jean-Paul averted his gaze, trying to calm himself. "There...was no reason you should know. As I said, you were gone when it all started and then we were gone by the time you returned. But there is nothing that man could say that I would be willing to hear, Logan. It is best that we stay far, far away from each other." He squeezed the last of the snowmelt from his hair, seeking a distraction. "So you're back here now. I assume you are fine with the black leather, then?"

"Not a question of if I'm fine with it, but if it's fine with me." he admitted. "We'll see how things go. Been down that road before, it didn't end well. Got tore up pretty bad by Wendigo, had to go down deep to keep Gar, Marie, and Heather safe." he said. Paul was not by any stretch of the imagination his go-to guy for sharing time so he left it at that. The rest was personal, wrapped up in his own nature and Weapon X's changes to his mind.

"Why didn't you stay up north?" The question was curious, not dismissive. "I can hardly fault you for not wanting to lead Alpha Flight, but you always seemed close to the Hudsons."

"Got restless. Too much unfinished business. I'm needed more down here, not up there." he said. "I owe Heather and Mac everything but I can't be what they want me to be." he admitted.