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xp_logsSooraya lures David out his room and takes him for a nice stroll around the grounds.
Sooraya let out a slow sigh as she studied Jim's pale face and dark circles beneath his eyes. "You know, if I didn't know any better I'd say you're preparing to take vows as an anchorite and be immured in your suite. No one seems to have seen you for days."
Jim turned from Sooraya to exhale the cigarette smoke away from her before replying. "Maya asked when my last vacation was, too. Time to myself is restful right now." He turned back and gave her a slight smile. "Besides, I made it out to the porch."
"I know you are still struggling with your shields and time to yourself helps with that, but the porch doesn't really count as outside. Or..." Sooraya watched the cigarette smoke drift away in the wind for a moment. "... as fresh air. Would a little outing on the grounds be okay?" With a small nod Sooraya indicated the small picnic basket nearby.
Jim gave her a crooked smile, but stubbed out the cigarette in the nearby ashtray nonetheless. "Sure. Although a picnic in February is an interesting choice."
"It'd certainly give the kids something to chatter about." Sooraya rolled her eyes affectionately at the memories of last summer. "I think we should be happy Sharon and Hope weren't fully around then. But there is just some hot chocolate and soup while we have a nice little stroll to the lake."
"I am officially back on solids, you know," Jim joked as he accepted a thermos of soup. He paused to press the warmth of it to his forehead; any sort of sensation helped to defuse the headache.
"Sorry I haven't been around much," he continued, lowering the thermos.and unscrewing the lid. "Between his injuries and some power issues Arthur wasn't in great shape for a while there, and once he finally got settled all I wanted to do was crawl in a hole for a while."
"The last few months have been pretty crazy... even for mansion life." Sooraya wryly agreed, pouring some of the hot chocolate in the attached mug before sipping from it. "But you do seem to be one of the universe's favorite playthings when we talk about throwing weird stuff at people, Jim. Do you have any idea why that might be the case?"
"Roll of the dice. Use anything enough and there's a chance it breaks. My primary tool is my brain, so . . ." He took a sip from the steaming thermos. Chicken. He took a moment to breathe in the scent of the broth, letting the heat flood his sinuses. "What about you? You didn't say much about France. I know that was a bad one."
"France was... yeah..." Sooraya dropped her head a little, not quite sure how to put it into words. "I'm still not fully sure what to say a month after. I mean... I wasn't that close to Wade, but it still really smarts... especially after having to call Angel to warm her."
"I can imagine. I hope you're taking care of yourself, too. Anything you feel like talking about?"
She let out a wry laugh: "Too much and nothing at the same time, to be honest. I was actually thinking about hopping over to Muir for a couple of days when I can ask Clarice. It'd be good to get a hug from Moira and ask for some advice... Maybe sneak in a session just to be sure as well... though that might be a bit over the top."
Jim snorted. "I wish you would be the first one in the mansion to be over the top in taking care of yourself. Set a good example for the younger generation. God knows we have enough of them now."
"Yeah, that's another thing I'd love to pick Moira's brain about. It's amazing how quickly you can grow attached to them... but also almost scary sometimes." A small grin curved around Sooraya's mouth. "But also so very rewarding... but then you want to pull out your hair again..."
A smile crossed the older man's face. "Do you think that's why the professor lost his hair? It was just him for a while. On the other hand, not many of us necessitated a whole remodeling, either."
"Could be. That'd be a funny question to ask." Sooraya's smile broadened. "Hey, why don't you join me? Stay for a day or two in one of the cottages on Muir. It must be quieter there than all the ruckus going on in the mansion. And we know both Moira and your dad will be happy to see you."
Jim, about to take another sip from the thermos, paused. "Maybe," he said, though he sounded unsure. "I don't know. Things on Muir are less dramatic, but more intense. I don't want to upset any of the patients or their families."
"I wouldn't worry too much about that. You know there are ways around that." She gently scolded him, opening up her own thermos with soup. "It's just an idea, but a break would do you some good. Heck, even I probably should be taking a bit of a longer break, but I don't want to be away from here for too long right now.
The older man chuckled. "I'm off active duty, and I've reduced my patient load to emergencies only. Aside from a little more rehab I have a pretty clear schedule. I just need time to get my feet back under me. Anyway, I'd like to make sure Arthur isn't going to have any more complications." Jim gazed at her from over the lip of the thermos and quirked an eyebrow. "But you should take a break. When's the last time you had a vacation? Not just a couple days on Muir, a vacation like Clarice just took."
"I talked a bit with Angel about visiting her for a week or two this summer. But I don't really want to leave for a longer time right now with Sharon and Hope." Sooraya rubbed her neck, a little embarrassed. "I know there are others who care for and about them, but still..."
Jim's smile returned, this time laced with understanding. "Yeah, I feel similarly about Shatterstar, and his needs aren't so . . . I'm going to say 'complex.'" He gave her a gentle nudge with one elbow. "Thinking about starting an orphanage?"
"Not something I picture in my immediate future, no. That'd be a bit too much." Sooraya rolled her eyes at him affectionately. "And definitely not something I'd pursue while I'm active on the X-men.... or my other projects in DX."
"At this rate it feels like a natural outgrowth of your interests. This place is already halfway th-"
Jim stumbled a little as his shields suddenly cut out just enough for a pulse of Sooraya's mild, teasing affection to leak through. The telepath paused, heel of one hand pressed to his forehead as he concentrated on shoring up his defenses like a sandbagger reinforcing a makeshift dam.
"You okay?" Sooraya reached for his elbow to steady him, but immediately pulled back her hand when she recognized what was happening. Instead she smoothed out her thoughts and emotions as much as she could, waiting patiently till he had shored up his shields.
"Yeah, I'm fine." Wincing, Jim lowered his hand and gave her an apologetic smile. "Sorry, it sneaks up on me sometimes. I just don't like the feeling that I'm prying."
"You want to continue walking for a bit longer or should we start heading back home?"
Jim hesitated, then shook his head. "I should probably start heading back before it has a chance to get worse. Charles gave me a few exercises. Meditation helps." He twisted the lid back onto the thermos and shot her a smile. "At least you can say you succeeded in getting me out of the mansion for a while."
"Hey, it's fine." Sooraya quickly gathered her own thermos. "Let's just meander back and we can go out again for a bit in a day or two. I'm still determined to get you on a horse one day, you know."
"At least give me a chance to finish physical therapy from my last stay at the Medlab . . ."'
Sooraya let out a slow sigh as she studied Jim's pale face and dark circles beneath his eyes. "You know, if I didn't know any better I'd say you're preparing to take vows as an anchorite and be immured in your suite. No one seems to have seen you for days."
Jim turned from Sooraya to exhale the cigarette smoke away from her before replying. "Maya asked when my last vacation was, too. Time to myself is restful right now." He turned back and gave her a slight smile. "Besides, I made it out to the porch."
"I know you are still struggling with your shields and time to yourself helps with that, but the porch doesn't really count as outside. Or..." Sooraya watched the cigarette smoke drift away in the wind for a moment. "... as fresh air. Would a little outing on the grounds be okay?" With a small nod Sooraya indicated the small picnic basket nearby.
Jim gave her a crooked smile, but stubbed out the cigarette in the nearby ashtray nonetheless. "Sure. Although a picnic in February is an interesting choice."
"It'd certainly give the kids something to chatter about." Sooraya rolled her eyes affectionately at the memories of last summer. "I think we should be happy Sharon and Hope weren't fully around then. But there is just some hot chocolate and soup while we have a nice little stroll to the lake."
"I am officially back on solids, you know," Jim joked as he accepted a thermos of soup. He paused to press the warmth of it to his forehead; any sort of sensation helped to defuse the headache.
"Sorry I haven't been around much," he continued, lowering the thermos.and unscrewing the lid. "Between his injuries and some power issues Arthur wasn't in great shape for a while there, and once he finally got settled all I wanted to do was crawl in a hole for a while."
"The last few months have been pretty crazy... even for mansion life." Sooraya wryly agreed, pouring some of the hot chocolate in the attached mug before sipping from it. "But you do seem to be one of the universe's favorite playthings when we talk about throwing weird stuff at people, Jim. Do you have any idea why that might be the case?"
"Roll of the dice. Use anything enough and there's a chance it breaks. My primary tool is my brain, so . . ." He took a sip from the steaming thermos. Chicken. He took a moment to breathe in the scent of the broth, letting the heat flood his sinuses. "What about you? You didn't say much about France. I know that was a bad one."
"France was... yeah..." Sooraya dropped her head a little, not quite sure how to put it into words. "I'm still not fully sure what to say a month after. I mean... I wasn't that close to Wade, but it still really smarts... especially after having to call Angel to warm her."
"I can imagine. I hope you're taking care of yourself, too. Anything you feel like talking about?"
She let out a wry laugh: "Too much and nothing at the same time, to be honest. I was actually thinking about hopping over to Muir for a couple of days when I can ask Clarice. It'd be good to get a hug from Moira and ask for some advice... Maybe sneak in a session just to be sure as well... though that might be a bit over the top."
Jim snorted. "I wish you would be the first one in the mansion to be over the top in taking care of yourself. Set a good example for the younger generation. God knows we have enough of them now."
"Yeah, that's another thing I'd love to pick Moira's brain about. It's amazing how quickly you can grow attached to them... but also almost scary sometimes." A small grin curved around Sooraya's mouth. "But also so very rewarding... but then you want to pull out your hair again..."
A smile crossed the older man's face. "Do you think that's why the professor lost his hair? It was just him for a while. On the other hand, not many of us necessitated a whole remodeling, either."
"Could be. That'd be a funny question to ask." Sooraya's smile broadened. "Hey, why don't you join me? Stay for a day or two in one of the cottages on Muir. It must be quieter there than all the ruckus going on in the mansion. And we know both Moira and your dad will be happy to see you."
Jim, about to take another sip from the thermos, paused. "Maybe," he said, though he sounded unsure. "I don't know. Things on Muir are less dramatic, but more intense. I don't want to upset any of the patients or their families."
"I wouldn't worry too much about that. You know there are ways around that." She gently scolded him, opening up her own thermos with soup. "It's just an idea, but a break would do you some good. Heck, even I probably should be taking a bit of a longer break, but I don't want to be away from here for too long right now.
The older man chuckled. "I'm off active duty, and I've reduced my patient load to emergencies only. Aside from a little more rehab I have a pretty clear schedule. I just need time to get my feet back under me. Anyway, I'd like to make sure Arthur isn't going to have any more complications." Jim gazed at her from over the lip of the thermos and quirked an eyebrow. "But you should take a break. When's the last time you had a vacation? Not just a couple days on Muir, a vacation like Clarice just took."
"I talked a bit with Angel about visiting her for a week or two this summer. But I don't really want to leave for a longer time right now with Sharon and Hope." Sooraya rubbed her neck, a little embarrassed. "I know there are others who care for and about them, but still..."
Jim's smile returned, this time laced with understanding. "Yeah, I feel similarly about Shatterstar, and his needs aren't so . . . I'm going to say 'complex.'" He gave her a gentle nudge with one elbow. "Thinking about starting an orphanage?"
"Not something I picture in my immediate future, no. That'd be a bit too much." Sooraya rolled her eyes at him affectionately. "And definitely not something I'd pursue while I'm active on the X-men.... or my other projects in DX."
"At this rate it feels like a natural outgrowth of your interests. This place is already halfway th-"
Jim stumbled a little as his shields suddenly cut out just enough for a pulse of Sooraya's mild, teasing affection to leak through. The telepath paused, heel of one hand pressed to his forehead as he concentrated on shoring up his defenses like a sandbagger reinforcing a makeshift dam.
"You okay?" Sooraya reached for his elbow to steady him, but immediately pulled back her hand when she recognized what was happening. Instead she smoothed out her thoughts and emotions as much as she could, waiting patiently till he had shored up his shields.
"Yeah, I'm fine." Wincing, Jim lowered his hand and gave her an apologetic smile. "Sorry, it sneaks up on me sometimes. I just don't like the feeling that I'm prying."
"You want to continue walking for a bit longer or should we start heading back home?"
Jim hesitated, then shook his head. "I should probably start heading back before it has a chance to get worse. Charles gave me a few exercises. Meditation helps." He twisted the lid back onto the thermos and shot her a smile. "At least you can say you succeeded in getting me out of the mansion for a while."
"Hey, it's fine." Sooraya quickly gathered her own thermos. "Let's just meander back and we can go out again for a bit in a day or two. I'm still determined to get you on a horse one day, you know."
"At least give me a chance to finish physical therapy from my last stay at the Medlab . . ."'
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Date: 2024-02-28 05:59 am (UTC)This log once again proves that Sooraya gives the best advice and showcases her natural ability to consider what others need to be put at ease. Also how Jim weaponizes the advice others give him against anyone else.
I do greatly enjoy how Jim and her tease each other.