Log: Jean and Scott: Anniversary (Backdated)

[x-cyclops.livejournal.com]

Jean and Scott leave the mansions behind as they celebrate their anniversary.

Jean sat curled up in her chair, reading a book in the nook in the suite she shared with Scott. The suite was thankfully spared from damage. Jean had a little bit of time before she went back on her rounds to check on Callisto. Clarice was doing well helping out. It took some of the burden away from Amelia and herself, and seemed to help Amelia's spirits a little. She seemed less irritated in general, which was a plus. Well, at least until the demon attack, but that was understandable.

After a few moments Jean realized she'd been reading the same page about 5 times and hadn't understood a word. It wasn't a very good book to begin with. Taking a sip of tea, she caught a glimpse of the lake out her window. Her gaze lingered on the ice, already refrozen. Her mind drifted, remembering the feeling of panic as she saw the ice above her, but knowing that panic would not help her. She remembered the demon thrashing to get free but she would not yield. They were not human. They could not be reasoned with. Their only goals were to damage, to kill, and to capture. In that moment there was no other option.

There was small comfort in that knowledge, but it was not enough to feel completely absolved. Death was death. And still she dreamed of water.

The end of the year always meant long days for teachers, and helping to organize a 'remodelling' of the mansion was just more work piled up on that. But Scott thought to himself as he pushed open the door to the suite, the holidays were just around the corner and the chance to relax that they offered. He was definitely looking forward to the break this year. Spotting Jean sitting in the corner Scott smiled at her raising his hand in greeting, Scott's smile faded a little as he followed her gaze out to the lake.

"Hey," he crossed the room and shook her shoulder gently, his worry apparent as his gaze flicked over to the lake and then back to Jean's face, "you doing ok?"

Jean drew in a breath, snapping out of her thoughts. She reached over and took Scott's hand, kissing it before letting it go so she could stretch her arms over her head.

"The demon invasion just stirred up some old ghosts I wasn't expecting," she admitted, then smiled. "At least it didn't happen on Christmas. Hopefully the mansion will stay safe through New Years. I'd like to celebrate our anniversary without fighting for our lives."

Scott returned her smile, "It would be kinda nice to get through the rest of the holiday without anything else going wrong," he agreed dropping onto a sofa, "I wouldn't count on the mansion being too safe, it is New Years, someone somewhere will get drunk and do something crazy. Someone always does," he told her with a grin.

Propping her elbows up on the armrest, Jean leaned her chin into her palms with a grin. "I suppose I can't say much considering I've been one of those crazy drunk people in time's past," she said.

"I still say we should invest in bubble wrap. Just wrap everyone up so they don't run into things and hurt themselves."

"I do have a plan kicking around here somewhere to put all the kids in their own plastic bubbles," Scott replied his grin getting even bigger, "I'm not sure people would be able to help themselves from popping all the bubble wrap," he said sharing an all too innocent look with Desdemona. It had taken Scott way too long to wrap presents this year thanks to one black cat's continued attempts to pop all the bubble wrap...partially aided and abetted by her owner.

"We don't really get much of a chance to cut loose these days and get into drunken antics of our own, do we?" Scott observed sadly reaching into his bag and pulling out a folder of papers and a sealed envelope.

"If they can't help themselves then the distracted and don't even try to get in danger. It's a win--" Jean tilted her head, smiling.

"Scott Summers what have you been up to?"

Scott gave Jean his most innocent look, "Me? What makes you think I'm up to anything?" he asked asked with a laugh, thinking about Desdemona playing with the bubble wrap. "I am entirely innocent of any nefarious plot and plans," he told Jean, struggling not to laugh, "by the way, someone left this sealed, unmarked envelope for you earlier today. Is there anything you want to tell me?" he asked passing her the envelope.

Jean turned over the envelope in her hands. "Either I have a secret admirer, or one of the students is trying to turn their homework in late," she said thoughtfully with a smirk.

"I do so hope it's the former."

"Another secret admirer?" Scott asked in mock horror, "How many does this make now? Although they did slip the letter under my office door and not yours. Which means they're either my secret admirer, or they have some serious guts."

"Now why would they slip it under yours if it was for me? Perhaps someone does fancy you," Jean said, grinning.

"That must be it, I can't think of any other reason" Scott agreed echoing Jean's grin, "Now I'm getting all nervous, hurry and open it." he urged.

Jean laughed. "If you insist," she said with a smile, a letter opener coming to rest in her hand from a nearby drawer. She neatly slashed the folded paper where the flap of the envelope had been sealed then turned it over to let whatever was inside slip out.

Scott grinned as a hotel booking slipped out of the envelope into Jean's outstretched hands, "A hotel?" Scott asked catching sight of the header on the booking confirmation, "So where is your admirer taking you?"

Cocking her head to the side, Jean rested her chin in her hands, drawing out the "suspense" as long as possible before actually deciding to look at the paper. She glanced up at him.

"Italy?" she said, a smile blossoming on her lips that widened as her attention drifted further down the page.

"It's...wow. My admirer has outdone himself."

"Italy wow, way to go that admirer, although that does explain these," Scott told Jean as he pulled a pair of airline tickets out of his pocket, "I just had an overwhelming urge to buy them." he told her with a smile.

"Did you now?" Jean said, leaning in to drape her arms over his shoulders, still smiling. "Well, I just had an overwhelming urge to kiss you." She found lately she couldn't stop herself from smiling whenever he was around.

"Well now," Scott replied leaning closer to Jean, "I definitely think you should go with your gut on that one.," he told Jean as he slipped an arm around her.

~X~

Jean flipped down her sunglasses to head off the glare coming from the guidebook, then glanced around the Colosseum. Its walls enveloped them, still there after thousands of years. This time of year it was less crowded, thankfully.

"I've seen history books showing what it used to look like in its prime."

Scott took a moment to just absorb the grandeur of the ruins, "It must have looked amazing back in the day," he noted "And the atmosphere, all the people, it must have been quite a party." He gave Jean a wry smile, "Not too sure about the whole idea behind it though."

"It was an entertainment complex," Jean said, peering down over a guardrail to spy the exposed lower levels where wild animals and gladiators used to roam, waiting to come out. "They staged mock battles, animal hunts and executions, among other things. The Roman equivalent of a party, I suppose."

"Sounds kinda like some of the parties back at Xavier's," Scott flashed Jean a smile as he leaned on the guardrail next to her and reached into his knapsack to pull out a camera, "well the mock battle part anyway", Scott noted with a grin as he raised the camera.

"I'd be interested to see if there were many mutants back in the Roman era. The prevailing theory from my fellow genetics colleagues is that the atomic testing done during the world war era may have hastened the advent of genetic mutation," Jean said, eyeing a stray cat as it darted through the tops of some of the ruins.

"Hmmm, let's talk about something other than shop, shall we? It's a vacation."

"That sounds like a plan to me, no more school or mutants or world-ending catastrophes for the rest of the trip, just us." Scott agreed as he turned around snapping a quick picture of Jean, "My grandparents always say we never send them enough holiday pictures, or well any to be honest," he explained by way of apology.

"My family says the same thing," Jean admitted with a frown and a shrug. "It's hard when you're traipsing across the world or trying to wrangle a school full of teenagers."

She strolled over beside him, then plucked the camera from his hand.

"I guess we should make a start?" she said, then kissed him on the cheek, snapping a picture as she did. Handing back the camera, she moved on down the path.

~X~

He knew it was meant to be a holiday, that he was supposed to be here spending time relaxing with his wife but Scott couldn't help himself. She'd caught his eye as he'd passed by the window and the X-man just had to stop and stare. He could easily imagine himself up a mountain or down along the beach with her as he stood completely fixated outside the window lost in a world of dreams.

A shock of red hair came up behind him, blurring the reflection on the other side. Jean folded her arms, cocking her head to the side.

"Am I interrupting something?" she said. It was hard to hide when you had a psychic link.

"Jean!" Scott spun around, a guilty look on his face, "I...ah," his eye darted around unwilling to face her eye. "I was only looking."

"Mmm hmm," Jean said, hooking him around the arm to drag him from the window. "That's what they all say. The next thing you know they're signing their life away at the promise of leather and tight curves. Come along, Summers."

"But but, we're here, in Italy." Scott protested, "Where better to try it out," he turned to Jean with a hopeful look on his face, "After all the time I've spent talking about it this could be our only chance to ever try it out."

"And then you'll want to buy it and the motor pool doesn't have enough room as it is," Jean said, shaking her head. "Not to mention I don't recall us bringing $70,000 in our luggage."

"But it's a Ferrari Jean!" Scott objected, "We've needed a bigger garage anyway, I'll knock out a wall, or I'd even move Logan's bike outside," he told her with a grin as the one-eyed man let his wife pull him away from the showroom..

"Oh, I'd pay to see his reaction to that. And Charles's, for that matter, when he finds out you decided to remodel over a new car," Jean said, smirking as they traveled down the cobblestoned Italian streets, the shops intermingled with a perfect mixture of old weathered stone and gleaming new glass and steel.

"But my answer is still no, with a dash of side-eye to really emphasize my point."

Scott gave one last lingering look at the bright red Ferrari in the showroom before turning away with a sigh, "You're right, if I sat in it you'd never manage to pry me out," he admitted with a wry smile. "Logan's reaction would be priceless," Scott agreed with a glint in his eye, "I'm sure Charles would understand where I'm coming from, he is the man with the Rolls Royce in the garage after all," he noted with a laugh.

"Still not going to happen," Jean sing-songed as the display disappeared out of sight.

~X~

Jean lay in the tub, steam rising from the water. The whole of Venice lay in the background, the view almost unreal. She propped her head on the end of the tub, wiggling her toes.

"Would you like to join me?" she called. "The water's still warm."

"Well with an offer like that from a beautiful woman, how could I refuse?" Scott asked with a laugh as his voice drifted in from the bedroom preceding the C-man as he walked in carrying two glasses and a bottle of wine. "Looks like we managed to get a good room," he commented nodding towards the window as he handed his wife one of the glasses.

"Mmm," Jean cooed in delight as she took the wine with a grin. "My favorite fruit."

She followed his nod. letting out a sigh of contentment. "My secret admirer did very well. Many people would kill for this view."

"I'll be sure to mention it to him...or her, you know if I ever find out who they are," Scott told Jean with a grin as he lowered himself into the bath and took a sip of wine, "Why can't we live like this all the time?" he asked with an amused smile as he slumped down slightly in the water as he relaxed

"If we did we'd become rich snobs, gorging on overprice truffles and champagne and turning our noses down at the little people," Jean said, staring out the window.

"I prefer something to look forward to,not to constantly indulge in. You get desensitized."

Scott stared musingly out out the window, "You're right, the life of leisure isn't really us," he agreed as he took another sip of wine, "I can't imagine life like that, although they do say that you need to have a piratical ancestor or two," Scott noted with a wink, "So we have that covered at least."

"Well, some of us do," Jean mused, plugging up the faucet with her toe. "While some of us were born into a family of college professors." She took a sip of wine.

"So what's on the docket for tomorrow? Or am I not allowed to know?"

"Well it is New Years eve, so I figured we could find ourselves a nice burger place and count in the new year," he replied teasingly with a twinkle in his eye. "A nice relaxing new years."

Jean quirked a brow. "A burger place in Venice," she said with a smirk. "Sounds...charming."

Scott nodded, "It does doesn't it?" he agreed. "Charles told me about this great place here, he even made us reservations, he called it the Ballroom I think."

"Interesting name for a burger place," Jean said, setting down her glass of wine (what was left) on the ground beside the tub. "What is the dress code for this burger place that takes reservations?"

Scott paused for a moment in thought, "Formal, I'd definitely say it was extremely formal," he told Jean with a smile.

Jean sat up. "While this would all sound like a fabulous excursion, I didn't pack for extremely formal," she said, tilting her head curiously.
"Did you happen to pack a ballgown and tuxedo in our checked luggage?"

"I'm sure something will turn up," Scott said with a mysterious smile.

"Well, consider my interests piqued," Jean said, leaning forward to wrap her arms around his shoulders.

"In the meantime, however, I think we should put this big tub to good use for something more than just getting clean."

Scott smiled as he put down the wine glass and slipped an arm around Jean's, "Well now that is the best idea I've heard all day."

~X~

An hour later, Jean wandered into the bedroom wearing one of the hotel's complimentary robes. Slipping down onto the bed, she tried to make out a few words from the Venetian newspaper that was 99% Italian. A knock sounded at the door and she glanced up.

"Would you mind getting that? It's room service and I'm not dressed for visitors."

"Sure, I got it" Scott replied with a smile as he made his way towards the door dressed in his own robe. "Yes I'm Mr Summers," his voice echoed around the corner, "Ok thank you I'll take those." A second later Jean heard the door shut before Scott spoke up again, "Jean, what exactly did you end up ordering?" her husband asked as he came around the corner with two garment bags in his hands, "Cause this hotel has the strangest room service I've ever seen."

It was clear by the sight of the garment bag that Jean was not going to be able to finish her paper. And that was okay because she had decided a few moments back that it was a lost cause beyond understanding more than a word or two and had taken to looking at the pictures.

"It seems like an awfully big bag for pasta e fagioli ," she said with a grin.

"I was wondering when your surprise would arrive."

"I don't know, it could just be a really really big piece of pasta," he teased, "Or maybe just a big helping, can't have honoured customers starving now can they?" he asked with a smile as he unzipped the dress and held it up for Jean, "Surprise."

Rising from her chair, Jean reached into the garment bag, running her fingers across the fabric. "It's a nice one," she said. She leaned in to kiss him, lingering for a moment or two before pulling away with a smile.

"And what is my date wearing?"

"I was thinking maybe a pair of shorts and a t-shirt," Scott replied with a twinkle in his eye, "I am on holiday after all and besides I wouldn't want to take anything away from the star of the evening." he noted with a grin.

"It would certainly have the crowd talking, but no," Jean said with an amused tone that was not open for debate.

"I want my chance to ogle the hottest man in the room in his tux."

"I guess I can't let the lady down then," Scott replied with a wide grin, "I'll just call the organizers and tell them to make sure their piano guy takes extra special care of his tux tonight then shall I?" he teased carefully laying the garment bags down over the back of a chair.

"Funny," Jean said, smirking as she picked up her bag. "What time is the event tomorrow? How much time do I have to get ready?"

"Not until the evening," Scott assured his wife, "you'll have the whole day to get ready, we only have to start thinking about leaving at 6 so we'll have plenty of time to enjoy our morning and maybe get some lunch before we need to head back to get ready."

"Well, I wasn't on planning on taking the entire day to get prepared," Jean smirked. "I was just curious. Sounds lovely."

"That's sort of the plan," Scott replied smirking back, now all he had to do was make sure the night lived up to all the expectations.

Jean smiled, leaning in to kiss him on the cheek. "I have every faith."

~X~

You can run for miles without losing your breath, can go toe to toe with anyone out there, and are in amazing shape, so it shouldn't be this hard to get through a dance without stepping on your partner's feet, Scott thought to himself as he spun Jean around, sighing in relief as he managed to gather her back up after the spin without dropping her or embarrassing himself. "You know, they make this look so easy in the movies," he told Jean with a smile, "Just grab your partner, then you start dancing like a pro," he laughed as he twirled her out into another spin.

"The magic of Hollywood," Jean mused, her white dress billowing outward in the spin. They had a live band with a singer on the stage that played a variety of musical numbers. People danced along side the couple each revelling in the festivities. The room was draped in gold curtains, crown molding, and a massive chandelier that caught the light and scattered it about the room.

"I would say for someone who doesn't dance you're doing pretty well, all things considered."

"Well it's easy when you have a partner who can steal the show," Scott noted with a smile, "Everyone is looking at you which means less pressure on me," Scott gathered Jean up after the spin, "and honestly, who can blame them?" he asked in a soft voice.

Draping her arms over his shoulders, Jean leaned in, a bright smile blossoming across her lips. "If you're trying to make me blush, Mr. Summers, it's working," she said, stealing a kiss.

Scott nodded sagely, "That was my plan all along," he admitted with a grin, leaning in to kiss her again as he slipped an arm around Jean's waist and slowly pulled her away from the dance-floor.

"Good plan," Jean said, following along as they headed for a table. A massive clock in the corner counted down to midnight, with two minutes to go.

"Have any New Years resolutions, love?"

"Just the one this year," Scott replied as he waved down a waiter, snagging a pair of champagne glasses from him and handing one to Jean, "Making more time for things like this."

"Sounds a lot like mine," Jean said with a nod of thinks for the champagne as she took a sip. She watched the people dance by in their glittering finery as the band finished their song and the announcer stepped onto the stage. A projector screen was lowered from the ceiling.

"The countdown will begin soon," he said in heavily accented English after saying it first in Italian.

"Say it with me! 10....9...8..."

"It's the only one that means anything to me," Scott told Jean with a smile before he turned to stare at the screen watching the scene projected as his hand slipped across the table and entwined itself with Jean's.

"7.....6.....5..."

Jean smiled back as she watched the countdown with him.

"4...3...2...." Then, she leaned in to kiss him.

"1." Her smile widened.

"Happy New Year."

Scott smiled and leaned over to Jean wrapping an arm around her waist, "Happy New Year" he echoed as he kissed her, oblivious to the fireworks bursting on the now forgotten screen.