Remy & Lorna - Monday Morning

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Remy picks Lorna up from the airport.

The airport was busy, cramped, thronged with travellers hurrying to and fro to gates, lined up for security, and locked into the hampster cage inspired network which was required these days to board or deplane a flight. It had been a struggle to get the bags, to navigate the terminal, and now consider the madness of a cab or a rental car, or worst of all, making the way down for the train under the aspecies of New York City`s public transit. However, the universe this once had decided to provide a solution to Lorna Dane.

`Remy heard dat you needed a ride.`The voice was predictably far closer than it should have started from and remain unnoticed up until that point. But once you got to know LeBeau, his particular quirks became familiar. The Cajun was leaning casually against one of the pillars beside the street, arms crossed and ever present trenchcoat stirring around him in the cold breeze.

Lorna's time away in California had obviously done her some good. She looked healthy. Thin but healthy. Her long, green hair made her stand out in the crowd.

Lorna Dane had been easy to spot. The same however couldn't be said of Remy.

Trenchcoat wearing men were a dime in a dozen in current New York weather. As Lorna's eyes met Remy's, the look of surprise was evident on her face but the young woman recovered quickly enough. Lorna plastered on a brave smile and shrugged one shoulder in response.

"I'm surprised you managed to fit this mundane task into your busy schedule." Her smile turned into a full fledged grin and she leaned in for a quick hug, air kissing his cheek in greeting. "Good to see you've been keeping fit, Monsieur." She turned to look at her trolley where four large luggage bags sat waiting. She lifted a finger up. "Not a word. These are my bare necessities." She had already left half her belongings in Berkeley.

Lorna lifted the smallest of her bags and took a step back. "After you."

"Dis is why Remy should have brought staff. Dat way-" Remy lifted one of the bags with a grunt and settled it into the trunk. "-dey could be doing dis while I smoke and look cool. What de hell did you bring back wit' you, femme? Spare bags of metal 'case you need it?" He hefted the second bag into the trunk. Despite the theatrics, he was settling the bags carefully, and seemed to have no problems with the weight.

She tutted in disapproval at his complaining. "Now aren't you glad we never dated for too long? Imagine having you tag along on one of my shopping trips..." The instant the words were out of her mouth, she regretted it. Considering they had only just met up again, maybe it was still too soon to be joking about that? But surely, they were both past that now. Not willing to meet his gaze though, Lorna helped to lift the last of her luggage and placed it carefully into the trunk. "I'm starving," she announced suddenly. "I could really use breakfast. Are you hungry?" She actually wasn't. Not really. But coffee would be good. A whole potful of it.

Remy didn't seem to react to the comment, but as she was aware, the professional mask that he used for his work also guarded the rest of his life. If the comment had stung, she'd only know it if he let her. Instead, he closed the trunk and waved her at the side door.

"Remy know a place not far from here. 'less you like you pancakes wit' a healthy dose of diesel fuel fumes along wit' you syrup." He said lightly as he slid into the driver's seat.

Lorna wrinkled her nose in disapproval and got into the passenger side of the car. She strapped her safety belt on with the use of her powers and drummed her fingers on her knee as she waited for him to start the engine. "So how goes everything?" she asked, breaking the silence. "Still living at the brownstone?"

Remy nodded as he wove through the typically dense JFK traffic. At least it wasn't still snowing.

"Oui. Least my things do. Been on de road a lot lately. How 'bout you? Didn't figure dat dey'd ever pry you back out of California wit' out blackmail being involved. You finished school?"

She quirked a smile at him. "Believe it or not, I did volunteer to come back. It's shocking, I know." She turned her head to stare out the window. "As for school, I'm working on my thesis and once that's done, I'll have the appropriate qualifications." To do what though, was the question. But Lorna decided she wasn't going to worry about that right now.

She had always been a bit fickle minded. Lorna thought she wanted a normal life for herself: settle down, buy a house, find a suitable partner, marry, have babies. White picket fences. The Brady Bunch. "But I'm giving myself a year to do whatever." She shrugged. "I'll work on sealing my future plans in concrete later."

"Figured you more for locking dem in steel myself." Remy said, negotiating his way through the crush and towards an upcoming off ramp. There was the obvious question hanging between them, but he decided to let it lie for now. "Xavier talked you into putting de black leather on again?"

"Mm. It's in discussion." She ran her fingers through her long locks and pulled her hair into a ponytail then busied herself with reapplying her lipstick. No talking about her powers or the severe lack of it. She wasn't ready for that. "Are we there yet?"

"See dat you've gotten more patient in your time away." Remy said wryly, even as he was pulling into a smallish roadside diner. It was only moderately busy, and being New York, Lorna's green hair drew only a couple of glances before the people returned to the food and table conversations. A waitress at the counter held out a couple of menus as they passed, and slipped into one of the near booths.

Lorna scanned the menu, pretending to be interested in whatever they were serving. The truth was she had no desire to order anything other than coffee, coffee and more coffee. Seated across from Remy, Lorna stole a glance at him over her menu, quietly satisfying her curiosity now that a year had passed and gone.

LeBeau waved for coffee, only glancing as his own menu. He'd memorized it the first time in, and really, all diners served variations of the same thing, so it wasn't exactly a stretch to guess what was available. He crossed his hands, leaning his chin on them as he watched her from across the table.

"You think dat you take up teaching again too? Dere's a whole crowd of new teenagers, dey tell me."

"So I hear." She grinned. "But you know me, I like a good challenge. Plus, it'll be nice to see some new faces." She played with the napkin on the table, tearing the edges apart. "Also, I can't deny that I've missed it. All of it." She looked up and thanked the waitress with a nod as she served them their coffee.

A tiny voice in her head reminded her that she needed to eat but she ignored it. Everything on the menu was above her daily caloric intake. Too much.

"I hear Scott and Jean's left the mansion. A few others too," she murmured and took a sip from her cup. "I haven't quite decided if I'll rent an apartment in the city, live at the school or scare the current tenants away from my old house."

"Dey went to California to work on de team dere. You missed have just missed dem." Remy said, taking a sip from the black coffee. Her lack of ordering hadn't gone unnoticed. Remy wasn't the people to lecture anyone on not eating, considering the days he survived on coffee, cigarettes and street food, but he didn't have Lorna's problem. "Might be best to not commute. Don't know if you saw, but dere's been some incidents around de mansion and in transit. Remy know dat you can take care of youself but-" He shrugged. "Don want to see you get hurt either."

"I'll be fine," she assured him - entirely too quickly, she realized. Lorna felt a blush creep up her cheeks.

"I'll see how things are like at the school before I decide." She let out a smile and nodded. Stubborn. "But thanks. I appreciate the heads up."

"Remy paid to be de professional paranoid, remember?" He looked into his cup for a second. "Tell you what. Get dese cups to go, and you can point out where you want to stop to eat on de way to de school, neh?"

"Worried I'll starve myself to death?" She arched her brow at him, smiled again and shook her head. "Here is fine. I have all I need. I'm just tired," she said, hoping that would explain her lack of appetite. "But we should leave soon. I have a meeting with the Professor."

Her fingers shook, hands unsteady as she reached for a pack of smokes in her handbag. She needed something to calm her nerves.

"How--how are things with Ororo?" Anything to keep the focus off her.

"Good, when both of us aren't working all hours, dat is." His own tendancies aside, Ororo put in a schedule as heroic in responsibilities, and it was always a challenge to find regular time to be together. On the other hand, their time together was always important as a result. "How's Alex?"

This was exactly why she had avoided the subject earlier. She knew the moment she asked about Ororo, he would ask about Alex. Lorna chewed on her bottom lip and continued to rummage in her bag. "He's fine, I think. I last spoke to him a week after New Year's?" She dropped the almost empty pack of cigarettes onto the table then remembered she had packed her lighter in her suitcase. "Drats. Can I have a light?"

Remy leaned over and touched the end of the cigarette with his finger. There was a faint purple glow, and the end of it flared slightly as it lit. "Dat's good to know. Since we been dancing 'round dis de whole time-" Remy paused for another gulp of coffee, his red on black eyes locked on hers. "-how are you? Really."

She sucked the smoke into her lungs and blew it out of the corner her mouth before leaning back, crossing one arm over her stomach. She didn't like his question. She didn't like him probing into her life. But she was not a child. She couldn't just sit here and pout. She would give him an answer. Even if it wasn't the whole truth.

"I'm fine." Lorna locked her gaze on him and lifted her chin. "I'm glad to be back. There's so much to do, you know." Part of her wanted to talk to him, to tell him everything. To share all of her worries. Every single one of them. Her powers. Her failures. Her constant habit of running away. Her inability to commit. But no. Those were her weaknesses. She couldn't possibly.

Besides, it had been a long time since they last spoke. What right did he have to expect anything from her? What right did she have to expect him to sit here and listen to her blubbering?

"I can't wait to try out my new recipes. I have a whole list. And the Danger Room. God, I've missed training." She wasn't fooling him she knew. But she hoped he understood that she couldn't talk about that. Especially with him. He always made her feel inferior. Weaker. She needed time.

Remy held her gaze for a moment longer, and nodded. She hadn't fooled him, but he knew he wasn't going to get a real answer right now, and pushing her would force her to push back.

"Bet de students will appreciate a new stack of recipes to work wit'. You just make sure you ease youself back in, neh? Break de Danger Room on de first day, Xavier likely to bill you for it."

Lorna stifled a giggle. "I'll be careful." She drank her coffee, inhaled more smoke and offered the stick to Remy.

"How's that sidekick of yours doing, hm? Amanda? Does she know you're playing chauffeur today?"

"'manda is working. I'm de only one allowed to play hooky on a work day to head out to de airport." He checked his watch and made a noise. "Speaking of, we should get you to de mansion. Remy told 'ro dat I'd drop you off, and if I'm holding up some kind of surprise party, dere's going to be a thunderstorm in my living room to make me pay for it."

"Ha!" She clapped her hands in glee. "I like the sound of that. The party that is." She winked and got up, taking her things with her.

Once they were outside, she turned to him and said, "Thanks for picking me up, Remy. I appreciate it."

Remy gave her a thin smile and a nod. "It's what I do. You know dat."