Jean-Paul, Lil and Johnny

[x-ricochet.livejournal.com]

When Johnny arrives at Jean-Paul's suite for prom-related dance lessons, he finds two Canadians for the price of one.



"...and then the next I know, the drunken bastard has sent us both over the railing!" Jean-Paul shook his head, grinning across the table at Lil. "I only just stopped us both from going splat. That man is dangerous. It is a shame he's so cute."

He knew that Johnny should be stopping by soon for his dance lesson, but he was almost certain that would be another fifteen minutes at least. In the meantime, he was enjoying the company.

Lil snorted and took another sip from her glass of water. "Danger is a great aphrodisiac," she agreed with a knowing nod. "Not that it's working for me right now but hey, at least one of us is getting some, eh?" Her smirk spread slightly but with everything that had been going on, it didn't quite touch her eyes. "Maybe you should just save yourself next time and teach him a lesson."

"But he's no fun if I have to wait for his bones to knit. Even for a shapeshifter, that might take a while." He glanced up as someone knocked at the door. "Oh, hell. I think my internal clock is off."

There was a pause, followed by a hesitant test of the knob that seemed surprised by its own ability to turn. Johnny pushed back the door and poked his head inside, "Mr. Beaubier...?" The sight of his teacher was a relief (he still had a lot to learn, after all) and the sight of Lil was...an unexpected, but wholly pleasant surprise. He smiled at both, the expression touched with faintly nervous energy, "Sorry...Are you guys in the middle of something?"

"Just catching up on the week. Johnny, have you met Lillian yet? We worked together briefly some years back."

"We've met," Lil supplied. "When you were back home and then he helped clean up Mist once, right Johnny?" The giantess smiled at the white-haired boy then took another sip from the glass she was holding.

The teen bobbed his head, but allowed Lil to provide the remainder of the answer, adding only "Right!" in a jovial tone when he was prompted. He lingered by the door, half holding to it and beginning to rock idly on his heels. Was he allowed to come in? He wasn't sure...

Jean-Paul nodded. "Bien. Come in and we can get started. Lillian, you are fully welcome to stay and watch us embarrass ourselves, if you like."

"I rarely pass on free entertainment," the blonde woman chuckled as she settled back into her seat further, crossing her legs in front of her with the same Cheshire grin on her lips. "Plus, I get a sneak peek at my date's fancy footwork."

Johnny smiled, visibly relieved as he finally stepped into the room and closed the door. They had made some progress since the informal lessons began, but whether it was enough for him to avoid stepping on Doreen's feet at prom had yet to be seen. A faint hint of color touched the boy's face at Jean-Paul's offer to Lil, but her words to him left his embarrassment a secondary priority and his features wearing almost humorously blatant surprise. "Your...date?"

"That would be me. I am going to make sure that I the students stay out of trouble; Lil is coming along to make sure that she gets pictures of any trouble I get into."

Johnny could only look blankly between the older mutants for a moment, his mind working to wrap around the unlikely idea. When his words came, they did so quickly at first, but soon dwindled out into uncertain mumblings, "I didn't know you guys were...you know...I mean...are you?"

Lil's eyes went wide, her mouth dropping open slightly - whether to laugh manically or deny the accusation entirely, she wasn't sure which - but one look at the speedster and the giantess decided on a much different route. Her astonished expression faded into one of feigned disappointment as she slid from her seat and moved to stand in front of Jean-Paul. Long arms dropped over his shoulders, a pout coming to her lips. "You mean you didn't tell him, Snookums? I'm wounded." Lil's fingers tangled in the back of his hair in what was meant to appear an intimate gesture but actually served to keep the Quebecois from darting away. "Always denying our love."

"Lillian, there are moments when I am tempted to deny that we even know each other." Jean-Paul ignored the Amazon using him as a leaning post and turned his attention back to Johnny. "I like men. Lillian and I are just friends, and relatively recent ones at that. That I have mellowed in my old age is the only reason I put up with this shoddy treatment."

It took Johnny longer than it should have to laugh, the sound small and almost forced, just like the accompanying expression that Lil could not see from her new posture. He was relieved. As much as he liked the pair, the idea of the two of them together... He shook his head, feeling suddenly embarrassed and smiling somewhat more genuinely, replying lightly if only to change the subject, "This is you mellow?"

This time the blonde woman's laughter did ring out. Pressing a quick but chaste kiss on Jean-Paul's cheek, Lil turned to smile at the boy. "Horrifying, isn't it?" she chuckled and dropped both her hands to the speedster's shoulders.

"If you are both quite finished, we can get started on the actual lesson. We were going to work on slow dances today, I believe. Lillian, if you would not mind, we could give Johnny a practical demonstration."

Lil's smile faded almost instantly and a look of hesitation and confusion bloomed in its place. "Wait, what? Practical demonstration? You do realize that I haven't done any formal dancing in three years and that's only because it was expected of me when I did." Damn wedding reception traditions. "My version of slow dances usually involve a drawn out bump and grind that would probably get any student copying it thrown off the dance floor."

This sudden and foreign look of hesitation upon the blond was strangely endearing. Johnny smiled, moving to offer her a shy hand and hoping it would aid in coaxing her to agreement, "I'm sure Mr. Beaubier will show us what to do." And if not, there were worse things than bumping and gri-- he pushed the thought out of his head and looked to Jean-Paul, "Right?"

"Actually, Johnny, we'll be showing you what to do." It had not slipped Jean-Paul's notice that Johnny was almost exactly chest-height to Lil. "You get to watch and take notes for this part. Unless you want me to go fetch the mop again, of course."

Biting back a second round of laughter borne of the image of Johnny dancing with a mop for fear of damaging the poor boy's dignity, Lil ruffled his hair affectionately. "Maybe next time though I gotta make a small correction: he is going to be showing you want to do. Unless, of course, the good monsieur would like me to lead."

Johnny was wholly unsuccessful in fighting back a small blush at the embarrassing charge, but did manage to keep himself from sulking over his usurped dance. Lil's playful tousling of his hair, of course, made it a little easier. He bobbed his head in agreement, stepping back to allow them the imaginary dance floor.

"Trust me, Lillian, this is for your own good - if we do not do this, then we will simply be supporting the wall all night. And, luckily for everyone in this room, the slow dance is more about paying attention to your partner and giving only perfunctory attention to the dance." Jean-Paul scooted the chairs back a bit and beckoned Lil over. "Now then, if you are leading, your right hand goes on your partner's hip. Right. Here." Jean-Paul made a show of placing his hand right over Lil's hipbone. "This is information important to your well being -- any further down or back and you risk being slapped into next week."

"Unless she likes it," Lil purred, smirking at Jean-Paul. This had the potential markings of a good time, even if she hadn't danced this way with anyone in years. The one night with Bishop at the Jazz club had been different as had the reopening of Silver. "Wouldn't recommend trying though," she added to Johnny with a wink. "Not unless she likes you and you like her and you're outta sight of this old grump."

"Dori and I aren't...we're going as friends," the white-haired teen clarified quickly and sheepishly, wondering silently if he even needed to learn something like this. It was hard to imagine his energetic companion actually wanting to slow dance. But he opted not to argue, nodding again, "...Right hand on the hip. Got it."

"You take your partner's right hand in your left and establish a simple step to the music..." Jean-Paul demonstrated. "Though it is acceptable to simply sway in place. Then..." Lil took that moment to bat her eyes at the Quebecois and lay her cheek atop his head (his shoulder would have been a bit of a stretch, considering the height difference). "Then you remember why the mop is a better dance partner."

Lil chuckled and nuzzled her nose against his temple. "You're ruining the mood, Snookums," she admonished him, clicking her tongue. "What else is there to tell him? 'Leave room for the Blessed Virgin?' Do kids even still dance like this?"

Johnny couldn't help but laugh, giving a shrug and watching the blond continue her light-hearted assault on Jean-Paul's dignity. Even if he wasn't Lil's dance partner, maybe this lesson wouldn't be so bad.

Jean-Paul scowled and brushed tumble of blonde hair out of his face. "Why do I put up with you people again?"

"Because you need us people to take care of you in your old age, Speedy. Old and getting older soon, eh? How old you gonna be again or do I have to look it up online?" Lil asked, her green eyes sparkling with mirth while her arms moved to encircle his shoulders again.

Johnny grinned along with Lil until his mind caught on to the fact that she was talking about his birthday and that he was about to miss another one. And, knowing Jean-Paul, none of them would have heard one word about it. But now that the cat was out of the bag... The teen smiled anew, for unspoken reasons, and nodded along with the jovial giantess, "Don't think we won't."

"Old enough to know better," he stepped away and twirled Lil, sensing that any actual learning was on pause for the moment. "And still younger than Nathan, so you may keep your comments to yourselves."

"Older than Johnny and my age combined?" the blonde asked, still amused by the teasing game as she spun. "I'm twenty-three, plus... How old are you, kid?"

"Fifteen," Johnny replied, doing his best not to sound reluctant or to add quickly that he would be sixteen in September, as if it made any difference to the two older mutants. He considered her proposal, features contorting as he found the answer and shook his head, "...Thirty-eight? No way! He's not that old. That's, like, my dad's age..."

"Truly decrepit," Jean-Paul said dryly, releasing Lil's hand and offering her a slight bow as he stepped away. "I am going to the maintenance closet to get your dance partner. Hopefully you have been paying attention."