Meggan and Jean (backdated to October 4th)

[x-meggan.livejournal.com]

After Meggan loses her notebook, Jean helps her with finding it. Discussion then goes on to other topics, such as what Meggan might want to do once she graduates.



Jean gathered up her teaching materials as her students filed out of the classroom. Their numbers were smaller and smaller these days, and often there were more teachers than there were children to teach.

As she closed her laptop and unplugged the wires connecting it to a AV system built into the wall, an eraser behind her wiped away the evidence of the day's lesson and the shades covering the windows slid up toward the ceiling, casting the sun's rays across the desks.

Jean squinted against the sunlight and stifled a yawn, mulling over what questions might be included on the upcoming test as she put her laptop in her messenger bag.

Meggan was a few feet down the hall before she looked down and noticed that while she had everything else in her arms, she was missing her small notebook. Either she dropped it somewhere else, or she had left it behind. She had everything else, but she needed those notes for studying.

With a slightly embarrassed grin, Meggan poked her head back in the door. “Hi there. Sorry I’m back so soon...but you wouldn’t happen to have seen a bright pink and green notebook anywhere in here, would you? It managed to get away from me.” Given the color, it wasn’t usually that easy to lose track of.

Jean glanced over at the sound of Meggan's voice and she smiled warmly, setting her stuff back down on her desk. "I don't think I've seen it but I can help you look for it," she said, crossing over from behind the desk.

“Thank you,” Meggan replied, grateful for any help. “Maybe it fell, and then slid behind something else,” she added, as she checked around her desk. It wasn’t behind there, that much was certain.

Jean nodded. "Could be," she said as she surveyed the area near Meggan's desk then turned to look toward one of the tables by the window, where a variety of dioramas sat on top.

"Hmmm," she said as she crouched down and plucked the notebook out from underneath the table, where it had become wedged under the narrow space.

"Ah ha, here we are. You were right," she said.

In the process of offering the notebook back to her she couldn't help but look her over. It'd been some years since the first time she'd met the girl, no, young woman. She had started off as a tiny thing that had blossomed beautifully over the years, growing in leaps and bounds from where she'd been, despite all the hardships she'd endured.

Too relieved to really notice the once over at that moment, Meggan took the notebook from her with an ecstatic and relieved grin. “Oh, thank you!” She wiped off a stray speck of dirt she saw clinging to the edge of the cover. “It doesn’t look like anything fell out when it was bumped around. Even better.” And, she knew, very lucky—she would have been trying to piece together what was missing for the rest of the day, otherwise.

Jean grinned a bit at the sheer sincerity in Meggan's voice when she thanked her. "You're welcome, sweetie," she said.

There were times when she peppered in terms of endearment in as part of natural reflex toward the younger students, things like dear, sweetheart or love, to make them feel more at ease. But as they grew up she often found herself wondering if their age would make them embarrassed by the nickname, as if it tethered them to their adolescence, making them still seen as a child. So she kept those names to a minimum for some, but there were others she still sensed they didn't mind that reassurance or didn't feel that connotation.

"Glad everything's in order," she said, taking a seat on the edge of the table.

"So how've you been?"

Now that Meggan had the notebook back in her possession, she made sure to tuck it safely between two of her textbooks. It wasn’t going to get away from her again. “Oh, I think I’ve been doing pretty well,” Meggan answered with a smile. That wasn’t a lie. And while the year thus far had been the exact opposite of dull with the occasional detour into severely strange territories, Meggan honestly felt like she was dealing with it pretty well.

“Even if things can get weird, they usually get better.” Or so she always believed.

If a person was consistently and constantly faced with what some considered "strange" it ceased becoming as such. Many people who didn't have abilities often found themselves calling something "weird" when seeing a mutant for the first time.

And being within Xavier's network also often meant having brushes of experiences which were far too unique to have anything in common with one another except for all being "strange." They were taught to anticipate the odd, the weird, and the wonderful almost daily.

"One man's weird is another man's normal."

Falling silent for a few moments, she glanced out the window, reminded of her conversation with Angelo.

"Have you given any thought to what you want to do when you graduate?"

While Meggan didn’t graduate for another year or so, she had been struggling to come up with something that would fit her. Something that wouldn’t leave her bored out of her skull. Meggan nodded. “A little bit, yes. I haven’t really settled on one specific thing yet for jobs, but I am thinking about it.” She did know she wanted to try a college close to home, but beyond that nothing was really set in stone.

She was quiet for a moment as she thought of options. With a small smile, she added, “At one point, I thought…maybe something water related. I love dolphins and I can stay underwater for an hour before I have to come up for air, so it might work.” As long as she didn’t have to deal with sharks. She didn’t like sharks or jelly fish.

“Or maybe something with kids. I don’t really know right now.”

Jean smiled. "You have awhile to think about it," she said.

"And you don't have to do just one thing anyway. But I think you'd be great with children." She seemed to have this innocence that helped calm a person. It would work wonderfully with a child.

“Yeah? I wasn’t sure. Just…probably not something medical like pediatrics, since I don’t know if I could give a kid shots,” Meggan mused with a slight shake of her head and a small smile. Taking blood might be a tiny bit worse, but at least she would be more likely to sense their fear and at least try to talk them down before they started to cry or—possibly worse—scream.

"You don't have to settle with the first thing you try. If you don't like it, try something else. That way you're able to get a true opinion because you've experienced it," she said, then grinned.

"For all you know you may find salsa dancing or origami your true calling."

She nodded. "I'm glad you're weighing your options, though. Like I said, you have awhile."

Meggan’s attempts at origami in the past had tended to go the way of crumpled and sad looking almost paper balls, instead of resembling the elegant little cranes like they were supposed to, but she understood the point. “I know. Thank you. And yeah, you’re right. It’ll be a little bit hit or miss for a while until I’ve figured out what works.”

With a small chuckle, she added jokingly, “But one job I don’t think I will ever do? Becoming a mime.” Trying to get out of an invisible box while fighting the nonexistent wind? Not the career path for her.

Cocking her head to the side a moment, Jean was initially caught off guard by the joke, not expecting it, and therefore her laughter came off louder than it might have been.

"I think it takes a special kind of person for that job," she said with a grin.

"Though it would be amusing to see you with the face paint."

It made her wonder if any of the students were going to dress up for Halloween this year.

"When I was a girl I naturally wanted to be a rock star."

Meggan was in total agreement. It would take someone that could deal with everyone out there who hated mimes, for one thing. And for another, someone that was utterly dedicated to all that street performing, come rain or shine. Probably not rain, though, if their paint streaked anything like regular make-up. As she had already said, she wasn't cut out for that.

There was only a moment’s hesitation at the idea of wearing that. “Oh, don’t tempt me, or it might happen with a costume,” she said with a small grin. If she put too much thought into that, she just might end up with one of the strangest Halloween costumes ever. Something like Red Riding Hood: The Mime Edition. Complete with a jaunty little beret right on top of the hood, if she came across one. She might look ridiculous.

There was a slight tilt of her head at the thought of being a rock star. Rock music was a little bit too loud for her tastes, but she thought she could see the appeal. “Yeah? The singing part or an instrument?”

"Actually, now I'm far too curious as to what you might dream up," Jean mused. A return grin appeared across her lips.

"Should I be afraid?"

Jean stood from her halfway seated position, walking toward her desk at the front of the room.

"Singing. I wanted the fame and the perceived glitz and glamor. Eventually I grew out of it, mainly after Professor Xavier caught me trying out my Rock Star look, complete with teased hair, leg warmers, jean jacket, and solo power ballad, in front of the mirror when I was 15," she said.

"We'll leave the song choice better left unsaid."

“Maybe…but probably not,” she mused. Meggan shook her head. She had quietly realized that a Red Riding Hood Mime costume might actually have more than a slight resemblance to Queen Amidala than what she had been thinking. Except for the beret, which might make it obvious she wasn't dressing as the other character.

“Ooh, bad timing. I won’t ask,” she said with a sympathetic wince and a chuckle. Leaving the song choice unexplained was so much more fun for her. She was probably in the middle of an embarrassing dance number when he caught her, too.

Jean grinned again. "Well if you decide to do it let me know, I'll be interested to see it," she said.

She thought about doing something for Halloween, some party to mask her birthday. The older she got the less she'd rather acknowledge the fact of that. After age 30 birthdays hit a plateau. No longer did you revel in the celebration that you were one year closer to an adult. After 30 you'd rather age backwards than get close to the land of grey hairs, crows feet, and creaking joints.

Glancing around, Jean resumed the act of picking up her teaching supplies.

"Thanks, I appreciate it," she said with a chuckle.

"Anyway, I need to get to some grading done. If you need anything you always know where I am, okay?"

”If whatever it is ends up with anything mime-related mixed somewhere in there, you’ll be one of the first to know,” Meggan promised. She really would sneak around everyone else just to give her that sneak peek at it if it did go anywhere in the direction of mime. If it could look that way without looking more like another character, at least.

Meggan nodded, knowing that was her cue to head on out. “Yes, I know.” Before turning to go, she added, “And thank you again for helping me track down my notebook.” It meant she wouldn’t be forced to rely on memory and asking everybody else in class for help in recreating some of the more vital notes. Which was a huge relief.

"Great, I'll look forward to it if you do," Jean said with an amused smile as she finished putting the remainder of her supplies in her bag, slipping it over her shoulder.

She nodded again. "You're welcome. Have a good rest of the afternoon."