Scott & Logan: Welcome Home (Backdated)

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Logan's settling back into his old room when Scott shows up with a peaceoffering, beer, and they head out onto the mansion grounds to discuss the past year and what's in store for the future.


Logan hadn't been surprised to receive his old room back. Chuck was always eternally hopeful that those who left would return. Though he'd forgotten how spartan he'd left it. That meant he didn't have much space to fill which was good since he didn't have much stuff to fill it with anyway. He walked to the window and tugged it open to let some air in. The place was a little stale smellin'. He scowled as his thoughts turned to how they were still in the dark about what happened to Alpha Flight and the Weapon X connection. He and Marie'd had more luck in Europe even if it didn't pan out to anything.

Scott stared at the door in front of him, so Logan was back. Scott wasn't sure quite how he felt about that. He wasn't even entirely sure what force had drawn him towards the other man's room, perhaps it had been fate. Scott smiled wryly, knowing Logan's nose he already knew Scott was outside and the X-man wasn't willing to lose face in front of the other man. Smiling at how childish he sounded Scott knocked on the door and stood back to wait.

Logan couldn't believe what he was smelling. Summers was actually voluntarily seeking him out and within hours of him being back in the mansion? He'd figured he'd have a couple days peace before they had a face to face. He gave one last glance out the window before he moved to the door and opened it. "Summers. Here to welcome me back to the fold?" He leaned against the doorway casually and crossed his arms.

"Something like that," Scott replied dryly holding up a six-pack. "Olive-branch," he explained. "Figured you'd like to tell your new war stories get caught up at the mansion." And it was better than sitting in his office doing paperwork, anything was better than more paperwork.

Logan eyed the six-pack with relish. He hadn't had decent North American beer in months. "Best kind of olive-branch." There wasn't much to tell about his year away but if Summers wanted to hear 'em, why not. Maybe he could put together something Logan was missin'. "You got a place in mind where over inquisitive ears won't eavesdrop?"

"That interesting huh?" Scott asked as the thought for a moment. "We could always stake out a hill on the grounds somewhere, or use the Blackbird. I'm pretty sure that no-one is supposed to be working on it today." Scott gave Logan a small smile, "If you promise not to drink all the beer we could go somewhere out there," he gestured to the countryside beyond the mansion. "Pretty sure we could find a spot where no-one is gonna creep up on us."

"Violent more like. Not sure who knows what about the Alpha Flight and Weapon anymore among the kids either and with that shit, it's better to know less than more." Logan arched an eyebrow at the Blackbird suggestion. "You let beer up on your precious 'Bird? Takin' a risk with that." He chuckled. "I could use some fresh air. All the scents are takin' some gettin' used to again so how about that hilltop?"

"This is you we're talking about, I doubt that you'd let even a drop get away from you. But I was really thinking of the hanger, big open space, easy to spot any eavesdroppers. But the hilltop is probably better, especially if the story is...something we'd rather the kids didn't know all about." He gestured to the door, "After you."

"You got a point there. Nothing too out of the ordinary. Just blood, guts, and gore with goons chasin' after me but I'd heard it's been a bit of a rough time around here. With the new year just startin' and things settlin' from whatever happened before, I wasn't wantin' to stir things up again." Logan walked out of his room, pulling the door shut behind him before he headed for the stairs.

"Sounds like a typical one of your adventures," Scott replied. He fell silent as they walked towards the front door, "I don't think you need to worry about stirring anything up," he started hesitantly. "Like you said it's been quite a year, I just think that everyone is walking on egg-shells waiting for the other shoe to drop at the moment."

"Well, I don't want to be part of that other shoe especially with some of the other rocky relationships I got in this place." Stepping outside, Logan couldn't see or hear many students nearby. Seemed like most were tucked away somewhere in the mansion. "That's the second time someone's implied things went to shit. What exactly happened, Summers?"

"It's a long story," Scott replied pulling a can of beer out of the pack and passing it over to Logan. "Basically we had a couple of refugees show up in New York, kids from the island of Genosha. They had this wild story about how the government there was basically turning it's mutant population into slaves. Only it wasn't actually a story, turns out that they were telling the truth. We gave them refuge at the mansion while the government tried to sort out their status and the truth of the story. But while they were in the FBIs custody they were kidnapped, snatched out of a guarded room. The Genoshan's didn't take to kindly to our... interference; the kids went to a rally with some of the staff and they were all abducted too."

Scott stopped and sighed, "We completely underestimated them. They gave us an ultimatum, 'let us be and you'll get the kids back a few at a time'; we were having none of it so we went in to rescue them and ended up trapped imprisoned and tortured. We managed to break free and bring down their government but some of them," the one eyed man nodded back at the mansion, "were transformed into mutates. Think super enhanced controlled attack dogs. We all made it back, more or less but we're supposed to protect them and instead they ended up exposed to that. And that's on top of the usual fare here, invasions, fear, hate, psychic attacks; you know, life as usual."

Logan popped the top on the beer and took a sip as he listened. He shook his head at the slaves then scowled when Summers got around to the kidnapping part. They were just kids. Why did all the bastards in the world always want to screw with kids? They had enough problems just growin' up. He squeezed the beer can too hard, crumpling it slightly. He glared at it then relaxed his hand. He was gonna need all the beer he could get 'cause knowing how shit like this went, it would only get worse.

He growled deep at the description of the mutates. 'Cause they didn't already have enough to deal with on a regular basis like Summers said. Nope, they had to add governments turnin' against their citizens too and takin' the kids down with them. He polished off the beer and crushed the can in his hand, staring hard at the horizon. "I don't know what to tell you. Never been a fan of the sheltered existence of the mansion but I can see why it's necessary." He looked back at Summers. "You and everyone else, do your best by 'em. That's really all you can ask but the best thing you can do? You're already doin' it." Logan reached out and squeezed Summers' shoulder. "You're there for them when it's over. A place to return to and deal with it and move on. Even though it may be a place that's also crazy half the time." He grinned. "But it's their place and sometimes that matters more 'n anything. Trust me." He reached out to snag another beer from the pack and popped it up for a long swallow. "Don't beat yourself up over shit you didn't know would happen. It'll only drive you crazy." He paused. "Crazier than you already are."

Scott gave a small smile at that, "It's my job to see this coming, we should have predicted there would be some kind of retaliation." he looked over at Logan and shrugged. "I've been beating myself up about it since we heard the kids had been kidnapped. We let it happen, no two ways about it. But that's probably why everyone seems a little off around here. It just seems to get harder and harder to keep everyone safe and happy these days."

"Not sure what you can do about that other than go completely isolationist. Probably do more harm than good though and not really yours or Chuck's favorite policy." Logan tilted his head. "You can't predict everything and give the kids some credit with all the training you put 'em through, they would've done you proud if they hadn't been outmatched. Always could develop some kind of emergency beacon thing for them to carry around?"

"Don't think I haven't considered it, but those kids are trouble magnets; they always have been. They get attacked at home or here with us, doesn't seem like they're safe anywhere does it." He looked over at Logan, "Do you. really believe that isolationism would work? Do you even think that we could enforce it?" Scott tapped his phone through his pocket, "The phones are pretty good at keeping us all in touch, but when one of our enemies comes after us, it's normally too fast to reach for your phone."

Logan arched an eyebrow in disbelief. Never thought he'd hear those words comin' out of Summers' mouth. He'd been too much like the professor for years with wantin' to set an example and forge human-mutant relations. Genosha had really done a number on him. He shrugged and his mouth curled into a grimace. "If we had a private island maybe otherwise no chance in hell. With the mansion this close to the city and everything, you try to implement that now, you'd get kids and adults sneaking away every other weekend." That reminded him. He needed to see about gettin' himself one of the mansion's spare cells. Burner phones while good for what he'd needed them for weren't as useful now. "Yeah. The beacon idea couldn't hurt though. Single press and it'd send an alert to the mansion or somewhere that something was up. Might be better to have some indication than nothing."

"You don't happen to have a private island of your own stashed somewhere do you?" Scott asked attempting to lighten the mood, "cause I know you'd be leading the charge out to 'sneak' out of the mansion every weekend. Installing a panic button on the phones isn't such a bad idea though, I'll have to see if Doug can whip something up for us." Scott settled down on a rock pulling a can of beer out of the six-pack and took a sip as he looked back at the mansion. "Doesn't really look like a hive of trouble from out here does it?"

"Hah, I only wish. I also ain't the one you should be asking. Think Chuck would be the better candidate to have a private island stashed somewhere." He chuckled and grinned. "Ok, you got me there. I probably would be leadin' the contingent sneakin' out. I'd also probably be the best at gettin' away with it too." He drummed his fingers against his thigh. "Might wanna think up something that's more immediately accessible. The phone switch could be a backup to...like a ring or something. Something they won't have to dig out of somewhere. Probably'd need to tailor it to each kid or give 'em some options. Could even pass it off as an School emblem or whatever." Logan gazed back at the mansion too. "Nope, it sure don't. But then it don't look like it houses all it does inside it either."

"Oh, I don't know about that; you can be pretty predictable. After someone gets to know you that is." Scott mused. I'm not too sure how we'd pull that off. They'd probably end up forgetting it more times than they took it with them. Or worse leave it behind because 'they don't want to be babied'. The kids weren't really that happy about how over-protective we got after we got back from Genosha. To have something that would allow us to track them whenever we want? Might push them beyond the pale."

That comment made Logan pause. He hadn't thought he'd be predictable at all but then how long have he and Summers been pickin' at each other? Pretty close to a decade if he remembered right. "Well, you don't hafta tell them it's a tracker. You could make it out to be something else. Spin it in such a way that they'd feel like they should make an effort to have it on 'em all the time. 'Cause sort of havin' a telepath permanently connected to 'em, I don't know what else you could do." He shrugged. "Either that or let things continue like they have been and just deal with the trouble when it comes and push 'em harder on the trainin'. There ain't no easy middle ground here."

"Push them harder on the training? I didn't even think that was possible." Scott smiled at Logan, "So if I double the hours of training they have to go through I can blame it on you now can I?" Scott took a sip of his beer and glanced out over the lake. "I'll talk to Charles and Jennifer see what they think about giving the kids something. You're right, either we change or just stop complaining and just deal with what we've got; and what we've got really isn't working that well is it?"

He chuckled. "What's the use of me bein' the resident asshole if you can't blame me for stuff?" He nodded and swished the beer around in the can. "Couldn't hurt to ask. And yeah, the system you got right now isn't workin' at all. You're supposed to be one of the smart ones around the mansion. I'm sure you and the others can come up with something that won't incite rebellion and still do what it's needed to do."

"Glad we agree on that," Scott noted, "Any limits to the blame game? Cause I was thinking about increasing the X-men's training hours and having a willing scapegoat around would be pretty useful." Scott sighed, "We have to try every idea, and it can't hurt to consider it. We need to explore every idea that we can come up with." Scott turned to Logan as a thought struck him, "Speaking of helping the kids have you given any thoughts to what you're going to do now you're back?"

"Long as it doesn't lead to me ripped to pieces lyin' in a ditch somewhere, but I don't think they'd believe you. Everyone 'round here knows you too well, Summers." Logan took a couple swigs of beer before he replied. "I'm not too sure actually. Don't think comin' back and teachin' would go over too well with some folks." While the incident with the Amaquelin princess had been years ago, he'd never been officially reinstated as a teacher. He'd ended up just hangin' around the mansion stayin' out of the way and goin' on any missions they needed him on. "Eventually maybe I could do a probationary period if no one's against it. I'm not the same asshole that left a coupla years ago."

"Oh I don't know. There are plenty of people left who don't know you, or wouldn't put anything past you." Scott replied with a laugh. "If you do want to come back, there is a lot you could teach the kids," he continued. As much as Logan drove him up the wall even Scott couldn't deny the experience and skills which Logan had accumulated throughout the course of his life. "If you ever do want to come back to teach I'm sure something could be arranged, I'm sure Kurt could use some help in his dance class."

"Guess I'm gonna need to watch my back from here on out." He doubted anything excessive would come out of things if Summers did blame it all on him, but that didn't mean some shit couldn't still go down. Logan gave him a disbelieving look. "Don't think dance class would be the right fit for me. Probably one of your worst ideas." He tapped the beer can against his knee. "I wouldn't mind comin' back and teachin'. 'Bout the only thing I'm good for anyway. Think you could arrange a probationary period?"

Scott smiled, the image of Logan in a tutu was gonna keep him chuckling for the rest of the day, if not the rest of the week. "I don't see why not, Charles is always willing to give people another chance. Besides we can always use another teacher. Did you have any particular subject in mind?"

He gave Summers a look. "Thought that was fairly obvious. Only thing I know well enough to teach is combat though I wouldn't be teachin' the kids the lethal aspects. Think we can both agree to save that part of their innocence from bein' stripped away as long as we can. How big of a bunch you got floatin' around the mansion right now anyway? Smelled quite a few new scents since the last time I was around."

"We've got a couple," Scott replied as he counted off the students in his head. "We've got around 10 students, well 11 to be precise. It's pretty much the return of the teenage girl squad; we've got 3 boys and 8 girls. I think the boys might be feeling a little under-represented at the moment."

"Heh, yeah. Must make classes interestin' for the teachers. But yeah, whenever you and Chuck want to start that probationary period, I'd be good for it. Probably should settle in for a few weeks before gettin' into all of that and meet some of 'em before they get tossed into a class with me." Logan shifted to lean back on a hand and gaze at the mansion. "Here's hopin' this year's a little less eventful than the last."

"I'll drink to that," Scott replied lifting his beer in Logan's direction. "May we not live in interesting times."