Kitty and Scott: Back at the Mansion

[xp_cyclops]

Returning to the Mansion, Kitty and Scott have a small miscommunication and confessions to make.

This time, when she returned, Kitty didn't see the need to make a big fuss about it. It was getting to be a habit, she knew, leaving the mansion and coming back. She might as well have been a snowbird for what it was worth. But like a loving parent, those doors always greeted her when she returned. Never criticizing her absence, just there to guide her way. She'd spent her days away this time thinking about things. Her inability to commit, the fact that she hadn't ever really joined a team, and that fateful New Year's Eve which had taken her from one set of destructive patterns to another way of being that, while not exactly destructive, had been a removal of a different sort.

So she took her time in the return. Wrote a few replies on journals. Unpacked her suitcase quietly when she knew JP wasn't there. And thought. And maybe now, after all that thinking, Kitty thought perhaps she knew her own mind.

With that, she took ginger steps up, through the walls and balancing her molecules on the air, toward Scott's attic door. It was rare for her to embrace her power anymore but it was something she knew she had to learn to live here. Solidifying herself in the hall, she took a deep breath and knocked lightly. It was a little past ten at night but unless things had changed, that had never been late for the two of them. Taking a step back, she bit her lip and waited, wondering if he'd be happy to see her.

It felt like there was a never-ending avalanche of paperwork constantly flowing through his office, from preparedness reports from all the teams to intelligence to authorizing the purchase of groceries used by the mansion. The truth was Scott had no idea how Charles had managed to keep on top of it and do everything else that he had done. Most of the time he felt like he was barely keeping up with it, just a few steps ahead of drowning. He could still feel the paperwork, multiplying, waiting for him through the floor, almost calling out to him to just work a little more, to try to get ahead, the impossibility that still sounded so sweet. A siren song.

Brown eyes dropped down to stare at the floor, his teeth worrying at his lower lip for a moment before he shook his head and reached for his coffee, settling back in the armchair he'd claimed for the night as his gaze lifted to the window, watching the twinkling stars decorating the heavens, a satisfied smile pulling at his features as he snuggled back, letting that warmth take him over. He could let it be, let it go for one night right? It wasn't gonna be the end of the world. Eyelids started to flutter closed, the leader of the X-men just sat, enjoying the silence till a series of sharp knocks punctuated the calm, lite stones thrown into a calm pool.

Scott's eyes shot open, shooting upright in his chair as he fumbled with his coffee for a moment before he managed to find the coffee table without spilling anything. That was a knock he remembered. For a moment Scott fought a loosing battle to hide the smile threatening to overwhelm his face before he gave up, pulling upen the door to rest a shoulder against the jamb. "Hey stranger...I just put a pot of coffee and you show up? That's more than coincidence don't you think?"

She laughed, feeling a little giddy at the look on Scott's face. It was relief and she felt a little guilty at it, that she would have doubted anything else but a smile upon her return. Old habits died hard, however, even if the memories she was drawing on were years old.

"Well...I'm hoping not to be as much of a stranger anymore," Kitty said, going suddenly shy. She pulled a wild strand of hair behind her ear, looking up at him. "Mind if I come in? You almost look as if I woke you up."

There was something about being in the woman's presence that reminded Scott of a day on the beach, of that moment when you took a plane up through the clouds, it was that happiness, that pure joy that you found so rarely. Seeing Kitty still brought that genuine smile to his face, that feeling of elation he hadn't ever expected to feel again, and the way she just glanced down, the unexpected shyness well... "I was just watching the stars," Scott admitted softly, reaching out for Kitty's hand, tugging her into the apartment, "although, if falling asleep means waking upto you...suddenly the idea of sleep sounds a whole lot more appealing.

There was a soft click as Scott's foot pressed against the door, swinging it shut behind the woman as he drew her further into the room. "So...I'm hoping this isn't a fleeting visit?"

"Nope. Back for good," Kitty said, basking just a little in the warmth of his smile. "Or, you know, until the Mansion blows up or we get taken over by robot overlords or possessed by alien monkeys or something."

She followed him happily. Not much seemed to have changed in the attic or else, if it had, she was simply too glad to be there to see it. Her thumb rubbed the top of his hand thoughtfully, wondering what had him looking up at the stars. She admitted to herself that when she looked up at them herself, she always thought of him. Probably always would.

"Don't tempt fate," A wry smile twitched up the corner's of Scott's lips as he took a half-step back and to the side, pulling Kitty closer as he slipped an arm around her waist as if to check that she was real and not a phantasm of his overworked mind. In this place, you really never knew. "It's entirely possible now you've said that that the mansion's going to get blown up tomorrow, and robotic invasions seem to be a weekly occurrence, the next one's scheduled for Tuesday." The dim light of the stars and moon streaming through the windows lent an almost ethereal aspect to the scene, throwing up shadows where none might exist as a soft white light was drawn across the couple like a silken cloak. "I..." Scott's smile softened, a genuine look reserved only for the woman in his arms, "I'm glad you're back, I've missed you."

"I've missed you." She gave him a squeeze, smiling brightly up at him before she tilted her head. "So. There's really been robots? And you didn't call? Robots are practically my specialty."

Scott nodded solemnly, struggling to keep a straight face, "Giant killer one too," dark eyes twinkled with amusement while he kept his voice as steady as he could, as if this was just describing another day. "We're working out a whole song and dance number to do with them for you too."

"I was a ballerina, you know," she teased, pirouetting away from him. "Don't make a promise you can't keep."

Scott turned to face Kitty, the coffee forgotten as he grinned taking a step towards her, "You know, I do remember you mentioning something like that...although I have to say I'd love to see you dance." That smile reached the man's dark eyes, making them sparkle as he held out a hand to Kitty, dropping into a small bow, "Well then, in the interests of not disappointing, would milady care to help me practice?"

"Tempting, tempting, but don't you have work to do?" She teased again, staying just a step out of reach. Her eyes sparkled as she looked at him. "And I'll have you know that I actually came up here to ask you a very serious question."

Even if, now, there was nothing serious in her face at all.

"Oh you did did you?" A guilty flick of his eyes down to the floor, to the office he knew was just waiting for him down in the mansion proper..."You know, no work tonight. I would never spend the night working instead of...what do normal people do in their free time?" A grin just touched the man's lips "besides, tonight is all about you and your...question."

"I made that sound really dramatic, didn't I?" She smiled. With a shrug, Kitty added, "I was just thinking that it was time to commit, that's all."

Her mind swirled with thoughts of the teams and the mansion and her constant indecision about whether to fight for Charles' dream or leave it behind, hoping to be normal. She wondered if it was foolish of her to give this moment such import. After all, would she find herself just leaving again?

That wasn't the question Scott had been expecting, though a welcome one. "If you're sure?" The man straightened, slipping his thumbs into his pockets as his dark eyes fell to rest on Kitty's face. "Just..." he turned away, 3 pacing carrying him to the chair he'd occupied only recently, reaching for the table next to it. "I didn't want to pressure you but..." A small sheepish smile tugged up the corner of Scott's lips as he turned towards the woman, a glint of silver in his palm as he stepped towards her, holding out a hand to reveal the keys resting there. "I got these cut for when you came back...not that you really need them or anything but..."

"Oh... gee... um. Wait. What did you think I meant?" She stared at the keys, blinking hard as she wondered what <I>he</I> meant. Did he really-- was she-- Kitty wanted to snatch them from his hands and give him the kiss she thought he deserved but her heart was beating too fast. She'd made the mistake so many times before with Grant that even now, years later, she was afraid to think that her feelings were being reciprocated in any way similar.

"I...ah..." A hint of panic danced in Scott's dark eyes as they flicked back and forth between the woman and the keys in his hand. "umm...maybe to staying at the mansion and well if..." Facing killer mutants and government taskforces, all in a days work but this, this was different and Scott wasn't anywhere near so confident. "I mean," a small wry smile, "I was kinda hoping you meant committing to you know being here and with me so, well I think you're pretty amazing and well." He helld up the silver keys, "I was hoping you'd move in with me."

"It wasn't exactly where I was going with that--" Were there times it was possible to be too honest? Yes, yes, there were. "--but we can talk about that later." 

Kitty took a deep breath, reached out and caught the keys and his hand in both of hers, clasping them together exactly like the treasure they were. Her eyes focused on his, not for the first time. She loved their dark color--how brown they were, reminding her of so many things she loved both trivial and enduring, from the sparkling of a glass of root beer to the ancient cedars in West Coast forests. Though she imagined Scott would find her thinking of that, in this moment, an odd comparison, it seemed appropriate. Because if she did say yes, she knew that he, unlike Grant, wouldn't try to force her away from the things she loved. Instead, he would take her hand and go running with her toward them.

She opened her mouth to try and express that, to make some big wonderful speech like the movies, but instead, her heart jumped back into her throat and all she could say, somewhat helplessly, was, "I love you, Scott."

He'd guessed wrong. The man's cheeks flushed slightly, his eyes dropping away for a moment. He'd called it wrong, boy had he called that one wrong. While she'd been gone he'd missed Kitty, his thoughts drifting to her randomly during the day. It had always been small things he thought she'd enjoy, from the way the sunlight cast a dappled pattern on the floor to the smell of dinner cooking. The touch of soft hands on his dragged the man out of his thoughts as Kitty took his hand, uttered those soft words. 

Words he had hoped for, that he wasn't entirely sure that he would hear. Scott could hear the beat of his blood in his ears. Time around him seemed to slow as his head came down, staring at the woman infront of him. His mouth felt dry, drier than it had ever been. He wanted to shout, to sing but his brain was floating on a cloud right now and he just couldn't find the words. All he could do was reach out with his free hand to brush her hair away from her eyes, those glorious hazel eyes he could just fall into.

"I love you too, Katherine."

A huge sigh broke free from her mouth as she forced herself to look at him, laughing softly and a little nervously. "I was kind of scared I'd said that too soon." 

Her cheeks pinked and Kitty stood up on her tiptoes to plant a sloppy, shaky kiss on his mouth. She wondered how she was going to manage living with Scott when all she felt like doing was staring into his eyes half the time. I guess we'll figure that out, won't we? The thought made her smile even wider.