11613/Cars and Karaoke

Cars and Karaoke
Date of Scene:	09 June 2020
Location:	Garage - Xavier's School
Synopsis:	There's a small gathering of the Xavier family in the garage, where car work turns to singalongs and finally the inevitability of war over burgers. Mutants, always looking on the bright side.
Cast of Characters:	Phoenix, Cyclops, Cannonball, Nightingale, Wolverine, Prismatic

---

Phoenix has posed:
The garage at Xavier's. Home to some of the hottest tech on wheels this side of Dubai, and that's just what's out and visible. Currently, music is blasting from the open doors. Tom Cochrane's Life Is A Highway, appropriately. Anyone on approach could hear the voice of Jean belting out at shameless volume along with the music.

"Life is a hiiigh-way, I wanna riiide it aaall night long! --- Come on, Scott, sing with me! --- and If yoou're goin' myy way, I wanna driiive it all night long!"

Inside the garage is an eerie reflection of years gone by. Jean's sitting on the back of her 1970 convertible Chevy Malibu, the paint color a vivid chameleon metallic that shifts from cherry red to gold to bronzed green depending on how the light hits it. Her hair is pulled back out of the way in a ginger braid, and she's got on a well aged heather black t-shirt with a white and red Pontiac firebird symbol on it and ripped jeans that show varying stains of grease and dirt suggesting she's maybe done some work throughout their lifespan. Some.

The form of one Scott Summers is under the hood, doing much more of the work while she provides the entertainment and looks about half a verse away from just dancing on top of her car. Jean is likely not earning any credit for the class and will just mooch answers off of him later and he'll just frown disapprovingly but give in, because he loves her unconditionally and always has and always will. Some things will never change.

"Through all these cities and all these toooowns, it's in my blood and it's all around! I loved you now like I loved you then, this is the road and these are the hands!"

Cyclops has posed:
"Jean! I can't focus with you rattling around up there. You want me to figure out the 'sound' it's making. I can't hear the grinding if you're singing!" Scott loves it though. She knows that by just the sheer volume of his thoughts that pour through their psychic link. Despite being under the hood, working a socket wrench at a stubborn bolt, he is grinning like a fool.

The field leader is wearing a white t-shirt that clings to his body, covered in oil smudges and a pair of faded blue jeans along with a backwards Yankees baseball cap. His mop of brown hair is spilling out from beneath it in a haphazard manner. As he sways a bit side to side, he sings along the next lyrics along with her, his voice hardly one for any stage. He may be a great tactician, he's a terrible singer.

With another twist, he frees the bolt and removes part of the engine hood. "Can you rev the engine again, babe? Let me see if I can hear it again this time."

Cannonball has posed:
Samuel Guthrie is pulling into the garage in the car that is not some of the hottest newest tech. It is an older station wagon, but it has been well taken care of at least since Sam got it. He spends a decent amount of time down here under the hood of it to keep it running, but today it seems to be running well, as he pulls into the parking spot that is his. A trip into Salem center has rewarded with some goodies including take out from Harry's and yea he brought enough for a few folks.

Phoenix has posed:
Jean Grey is mid chorus belting when Scott's telling her to shush it and actually do work. "If you're goin' my waa--- Uuuugh! Fine." She grumps despite grinning while she slides off the hood so she can stop wobbling the car. Leaning one arm against the hood, she holds out her other hand and a pink glow starts up inside the car as keys turn and the gas is pushed, bringing out a low roar of sound from the car. As the engine settles, there's a low and steady grinding noise. "See?"

The arrival of Sam has her looking up and giving her non-working hand a wiggle-fingered wave of greeting. "Hey, Sam!" She calls out over the sound of the radio. Pointedly, she has yet to turn that down. She may not be singing, but she's still going to enjoy the music.

Cyclops has posed:
"Yeah, yeah. I hear it." Scott says as he rises upwards and gives a stretch of his body. "Okay, can kill the engine. I'm going to put in a new filter and change the oil. I figured that was it. Just need to drain the beast. It's kinda chunky in there." He wipes his sweaty brow with the back of an arm, then reaches out to wrap an arm about Jean's waist as he leans in to give her a kiss on the cheek.

Lifting his free hand, he waves towards Sam, then heads to the back of the garage to fish about the parts. He knows he bought spare filters earlier in the year for Jean's car. "You know I love you, right?" He calls over to the red head. "It's the only reason why I'm doing this. It's not a fun job. The filters on this beast aren't as easy as the new ones."

Cannonball has posed:
Samuel Guthrie will wave to the two and says "I brought food, you want some out here, or me to put it in the oven to stay warm inside?" He will ask. He has a couple card board boxes of stuff, and says "I got enough should be good for tonight, made sure threw in about 25 normal burgers for folks who might come around later.

Nightingale has posed:
     A familiar winged figure, wearing well-loved jeans, old white t-shirt, and old white sneakers, peeks into the garage /just/ as Scott joins in the singing. Shannon wrinkles her nose, stifling a giggle behind her hand. Shaking her head, she is soon finding her attempts at holding back mirth are failing. Rapidly. Enough so that she furls her wings around in front of her to hide the lower half of her face.

     "Ummmm... great singing, Mr. Summers!" All the while, she's just shaking her head very slightly to Jean. Give up his day job, he should not!

     Sam's arrival offers a timely distraction, the young woman scurrying over to reach for one of the cardboard boxes. "Need a hand with that, big brother?" Family never failed to lighten one's spirit, whether by blood or by bond.

Phoenix has posed:
"You should have gotten me an easier car!" Jean calls back to Scott with a warm smile as she telekinetically drives the car over onto the lift to make Scott's job easier, then turns off the engine. It's not lazy, it's practice! "Are you going to need my hand with anything?"

"Wait, twenty-five?" Food distraction. "Geez, Sam, decided to spoil everyone tonight?" Jean says over to him with a laugh. "You can leave some here, there's always room for Harry's burgers."

She then looks over to Shannon as she arrives. "Heya, Shannon. Good to see you. Heh, he usually leaves the serenading to me, so long as you like the classics from the eighties and nineties."

Cyclops has posed:
"You should have picked an easier car!" Scott calls out to Jean. "If I remember right, you dragged me to the computer, pointed at it and told me this was the car you want and to pretty-please buy it for me." He chuckles as he takes his hat off, then pushes his hair back to tuck it back under.

"Sure, Sam. I can eat. Will need to wash up first. Let me know if you need a hand as well." Though he is sure that Jean could probably do it better than him with her TK.

"Miss Lance." He says as he clears his throat, shrugging his shoulders upwards and giving her an amused grin. He got caught singing. "Thank you for the feedback."

Wolverine has posed:
"What the hell is going on here?" Logan grumbles loudly up from the open garage door. "I was in the kitchen waiting for the burgers to show, which by the way, Sam did you get my two Carnavore burgers as I asked? With jalapenos, sauerkraut, and horseradish?" he shakes his head to get back on subject. "And then I heard the sweet crooning of a Canadian mixed with the torture of an unhappy V8."

Cannonball has posed:
Samuel Guthrie will nod over to the shorter man, and says "Yup, and stopped and picked up a six pack of Carling Black Label. while I was in town." He looks over to Shannon, and says "Want to take those three bags into the kitchen and drop them off. Those are the standard hamburgers, got the larger burgers and fries and such in these two boxes." He will move to fid a clean tool table to set the stuff out on.

Nightingale has posed:
     Shannon just grins impishly at Scott, giggling quite openly now. "Oh, you're welcome, Mr. Summers!" Wait, was that a bit of an eyeroll from the young woman? Was she actually... le gasp... /teasing/ the notoriously stoic Mr. Summers? Would wonders never cease?

     But there is something else that gets a raised eyebrow from the girl. You see, dear reader, there is this curious matter of the odd dietary habits of the wild Wolverine, particularly when it comes to the dish known as the 'burger'. Curiosity wars with a mixture of disgust and horror at the description of the toppings on the grumpy Canadian's wish list. "Good God, how can you take that?!" Yet, at the same time, she peers at a particularly hmmmm, shall we say... aromatic... pair of greasy wrapped packages, poking at them in the box. "Think these might be it." Curiosity seems to win out, and she sniffs cautiously. One finely arched brow lofts, then the other, and she cracks a small smile. "Actually... that doesn't smell /too/ bad."

     The three bags indicated by Sam are retrieved by Shannon, and she grins at Jean on her way to the kitchen. "Seventies and Eighties had the best music. After that, it pretty much started going downhill from there." She's all but dancing to her own beat as she traipses off to the kitchen, belting out a classic song of the era.

"Sweet dreams are made of this
Who am I to disagree?
I've traveled the world and the seven seas
Everybody's looking for something...!"

Phoenix has posed:
"You only wish I was Canadian, Logan." Jean says to their resident beloved curmudgeon with a cheshire grin, though her tone indicates she knows exactly just who he means. "My girl's having a bit of trouble, but nothing that can't be fixed. Which your sinuses certainly are after that combination of your's. Just slap some Chinese mustard on that."

Speaking of. She crosses her arms as she looks back over to Scott with a fake look of petulance. "Hey, you coulda told me she was a pain in the ass to fix. I could have found something else." Could have. Everyone knows a chick means 'but I wasn't' on the end of that.

Then Shannon starts up singing, and Jean falls right into the chorus, humming as she wanders over to where Scott is to give him a hand with her car and swaying slightly to the music in her head. "Some of them want to use you, some of them want to get used by you...."

Cyclops has posed:
"Oh yeah. I really had a choice." Scott says dourly to Jean as he squints at her from behind his wrap-around ruby quartz goggles. Wiping his hands off on the front of his pants, he carries the new filter over and places it next to the car, along with a couple bottles of oil designed for this specific engine. He can finish this tomorrow.

"I'm ready to eat when you guys are." He says as he gives a nod of his head over to the feral Canadian. "Logan." He says to him with a simple introduction.

There's a small smile on his face as he listens to Jean sing along with Shannon, a brief one upon his tight visage. He can appreciate the music. It's his generation after all. Just one he wasn't born in.

Prismatic has posed:
    Alexis pokes her head around the side of the garage door, her long, dark hair pinned back behind her, and she gives an awkward sort of look at the assembly within, her dark eyes roaming from Scott and Jean and that firebird, to Logan (with a little bit of an intimidated look to the Canadian), and then to Shannon and Sam.

    She pursesher lips a moment. "Ah... I see that I'm interrupting a party!" she gives a light laugh.

Wolverine has posed:
As soon as everyone breaks away to eat, Logan has already eaten half of one of his burgers. The smell alone is enough to make anyone queasy. As he takes another bite he grabs a Black Lable and opens it with single-handed fineness and takes a drink. Hearing Alesis he raises a brow. "Shut it." Logan says while chewing. "Grab a burger."

Cannonball has posed:
Samuel Guthrie smiles over to Alexis, and says "Got your favorite." He motions towards one of the bags of food, it has her name on it. He made sure to get hers right even before getting Logan's right, he has his priorities right. He pulls out a double bacon cheese burger and cheesy fries for himself "I think I got everyone what they normally order if I was not sure told Harry to hook me up with what ya got the most.

Nightingale has posed:
     "Not interrupting. Fashionably late." Shannon grins at Alexis as she returns from the kitchen, her arms now empty of their burden of bagged burgers. Unless prevented from doing so, she draws the music teacher in for a hug. Why? No reason is needed. Hugs are their own reason.

     Sam gets a hug, too, short of stopping her, and she grins. "You didn't... a double chili cheeseburger with bacon, and a side of spicy curly fries?" For one who normally ate quite healthy, her little vice wasn't quite so little. It was also quite likely she'd just wind up working it all off again. "Thank you!"

Phoenix has posed:
"Mmmmm no, you didn't." Jean says affectionately towards Scott while she helps him carry supplies over to stash next to her car for later work. An assortment of crates are then lifted over to settle around the designated burger bench for those who want to take a seat.

"I don't look a gift burger under the bun." Jean says towards Sam as she moves over to join the burger crew, though her order is spot on as always. Bacon, cheese, lettuce, tomato, avocado, spicy ranch, and extra black pepper.

"Hey Alexis." She greets the other woman as she takes a makeshift seat. "Not a party, just some car work on a quiet day, but it's a bit of a party now thanks to Sam. How've ya been? I haven't gotten to talk to you in forever."

Cyclops has posed:
After washing his hands with a good dose of soap to work the grease and oil off his hands, Scott heads back out to grab a burger from the bag. He's not too picky about which one he gets. He's a guy. He can eat just about anything if it's cooked right. After unwrapping it and taking a bite, he gives a low, appreciative hum in his throat.

For now, he just watches the others talk around him as he eats, giving a welcoming nod over to Alexis. Not a private party, obviously.

Prismatic has posed:
    "Hullo Logan, Shannon..." Alexis states a sshe slips in. Looks like she might have been out on a jog; she's wearing an athletic top and some shorts and sneakers, not precisely her day-to-day wear. She leans in and kisses Sam's cheek, going up to her tip-toes to do so due to their height difference, but she does steal some of his fries with the smooch, but she gives a warm smile to Jean.

    "Been prettu busy getting plans together for next year. I'm considering polling the student body to see if I can't assemble a chamber quartet for say, an official Holiday function either here or at X-Corp, just to try and get some exposure for students who may not be willing to partake in extracurriculars like Sam's torture jogging." she gives a wry smile.

Cannonball has posed:
Samuel Guthrie smiles and hugs Shannon when she hugs him, and then hugs Alexis and making sure nothing on his lips kisses Alexis' cheek. He will smirk a bit and says "Torture Jogging?" He asks her grinning a bit more and will move to offer Alexis a seat beside him "Could be a good thing to get some of the kids interested in preforming out more."

Wolverine has posed:
Upon finishing one burger, Logan wipes his face clean into the shoulder of his shirt. Then he downs the rest of his bottle of Black Label lager. He grins, setting his second burger down, before walking over to the car Scott had been working on. He quietly checks everything he can without actually starting it up.

Phoenix has posed:
"Sounds like a cool idea." Jean says to Alexis around a mouthful of burger, looking pleased at the concept. "Go for it, you have my blessing on it. We could use some more arts options. It'll be a good outlet for some of the more creative students, and there's always room for more music around. Ya know, that's not me bellowing off-tune in a garage. Let me know if we need to update any of the music room equipment. We have some budget to spare this year, last I checked. Not that money is ever an issue, but still."

Cyclops has posed:
"I definitely am not going to be singing in a quartet anytime soon." Scott says once he finishes his burger and lobs the wraper into the garbage. He gives a lick of his fingers once he is done.

Jean's Malibu has the hood up and the engine cover off. Next to it is an oil filter and some bottles of oil, as well as the cover for the engine. Nothing too challenging to work on.

Prismatic has posed:
    Alexis helps herself to a burger, and then leans against the table as she looks over the surroundings.

    "I agree, Jean. Not everyone is meant for rigourous combat -- in spite of the best intentions." she gives a slight smile, and nomfs her burger. Mm. Extra pickles.

Wolverine has posed:
As Logan continues to look over the engine he starts to hum. It's slow and seems slightly sad a bit. But Logan continues grabbing the pan and sliding under the car as far as he can. Everyone else just seems to have faded. It doesn't take much longer till his foot is tapping and low and behold the old Cunuck starts to sing.

Where the sun comes up about ten in the morning
And the sun goes down about three in the day
And you fill your cup with whatever bitter brew your drinking
And you spend your life just thinking how to get away

. As Logan slides out from under the car, he goes back to humming again as proceeds with the oil change. and starts crooning again.

No one ever knew there was coal in them mountains
Til a man from the north east arrived
Waving hundred dollar bills, he said "I'll pay you for your minerals"
But he never left Harlan alive...

Cannonball has posed:
Samuel Guthrie looks over and chuckles a bit as he hears what is coming from under the car. He decides to add his voice to it. He aint as bad as he lets on, he is an ok singer, it is just when he compares himself to his brother.
Well Granny, she sold out cheap and they moved out west to Pineville
To a farm where Big Richland River winds
And I'll bet they danced them a jig, and they laughed and sang a new song
"Who said we'd never leave Harlan alive?"

But the times, they got hard and tobacco wasn't selling
And old Granddad knew what he'd do to survive
He went and dug for Harlan coal and sent the money back to Granny
But he never left Harlan alive.

Nightingale has posed:
     Shannon has been tucking into her greasy, spicy repast for a little bit, enjoying the conversations around her, and the rare chance to see those who normally didn't get much of a chance to, relax a bit. Too, she didn't get to see so much of her adopted big brother and Alexis these days, and looks pleased as punch that they're about. However, when first Logan and then Sam start singing, she glances between the two of them, her expression a mask of puzzlement. "What song is that?" she asks, looking a little bit lost--but enjoying the tune.

Phoenix has posed:
"Not everyone should be." Jean says quietly across the makeshift table from Alexis. "If we can keep one more kid innocent and free from war, then that's a victory. The rest of us fight so they hopefully never have to."

Thankfully, there's a burgeoning distracting from the sad business of fighting for peace. It's the sound of a very strange songbird indeed. Jean turns around in her head to look towards Logan, who is not only fixing her car but singing. There's a surprised grin that quirks at the corner of her mouth, and then Sam's joining in too. She gives a soft shrug to Shannon by way of answer, apparently unfamiliar with it. This time Jean's not singing along, but she seems happy to just listen and quietly bask in the moment of peace with those she calls family.

Wolverine has posed:
Logan can't help but turn his attention, pausing the oil changes upon Sam joining him in song. He does his best to harmonize with Sam as he turns his attention back to the oil job. After some more humming Logan decides to bring the song to an end.

In the deep, dark hills of eastern Kentucky.
That's the place where I trace my bloodline
And it's there I read on a hillside gravestone
"You will never leave Harlan alive"

As he finishes up the oil job and the song he nods to Sam. "Good thing you remember your roots, Hayseed."

Prismatic has posed:
    Alexis gives a small smile at the singing, humming slightly along. American folk songs weren't her forte, but she's content to let Sam and Logan take it, before she tilts her head back, and looks up at the ceiling, the singer quiet in reflection for a few moments, giving a soft 'hmm'.

Cannonball has posed:
Samuel Guthrie looks over and says "Cumberland mountains about twenty minutes as the crow flies from Harland. My pa put a lot more time in those mines than Ah did, but I put a couple months in them myself. It is a hard but beautiful country. " He will smile a bit thinking about home a bit.

Nightingale has posed:
     On the matter of fighting, Shannon pauses for a moment, going dead silent. "That's a talk Sam had with me several months ago, after the mutant rights rally that went south," she begins. Her brows furrow, and her breath is shortened, each drawn with a bit more difficulty than the one before. "War's going to find us whether we like it or not. I'd rather be out there backing you guys up, than sitting on my thumbs back here and pretending things like that don't happen." Closing her eyes, she pushes herself to slow down, to take a few deep breaths. "How can I do any less than Daniel did? Or any less than any of you do?"

     After that, the young woman falls silent once more, munching away on her burger and fries. There were no simple answers sometimes. But at least they all had each other, in the end. And wasn't that what counted the most?

     In the end, that is where peace could be found--with the ones near and dear to one's heart.

Phoenix has posed:
"The beautiful places are usually the ones the places that surprise you." Jean finishes her food and goes about taking her trash to one of the cans. She looks over her shoulder to Shannon as she goes, saying, "And I'd give anything so that you didn't have to. But, until that day comes, we'll all make sure we're ready to protect those we care about and find ways to enjoy the peace that we have."

She walks over towards her car then, looking down to Logan. "Thanks, but you didn't have to do that. I just need to remember to change my oil more often."

Cyclops has posed:
"That was my job, Logan." Scott says as he lets out a noise in his throat. There is a slight ripple of agitation under the surface. He's spent all afternoon trying to figure out what was wrong with the engine. He gives a pinch of his brow, then says. "Ah, I should get a shower in anyways." He leans over and pecks Jean on the cheek. "I'm going to head in and wash up, babe." As he meets her eyes, they pass something back and forth to each other in secret through their psychic link. "Thank you for the burgers, Sam. Good seeing the rest of you again."

As he takes his cap off his head, he ruffles his sweaty hair into place before he heads through the garage to enter the house again. A long, hot shower is awaiting him.

Prismatic has posed:
    Alexis gives a frown, and she rubs the back of her head as she looks to Shannon.

    "And what of those of us who can't support them on the front lines, Shannon?" Alexis inquires, and then she sets her burger down, and she splays out her fingers.

    "Art can be an act of rebellion. Every time I perform, it is something I steal back from my father. My talents might not be as offensively useful, but I can provide little bits of joy. Yours are so useful, Pidgeon, to those in the front lines. Combat medics saved more than a small amount of our lads in many a war." she states, and she purses her lips, looking to the winged young woman.

    "Not everyone is meant for the front lines. I admit, I am not. I'm a performer, and a teacher. A song writer. We pass words on to the next generation. Alas, the English are positively horrible for rebllion, the whole -- you know -- British Empire thing." she attempts to give a joke, but she looks over to Sam briefly, then turns to Scott and gives him a wave. "Have a good evening, Scott."

Cannonball has posed:
Samuel Guthrie smiles and puts his arm around Alexis ands says "IT is ok the Kentuckians are fighting for about anything most of the time." He jokes a bit, and says "I just want those who are going to be out there to know how to handle themselves. Ah aint ok wth loosing people and less so for those underprepared.

Nightingale has posed:
     Glancing over at Alexis, Shannon cracks something of a smile. "We have that in common. Music." As she listens further, she tilts her head, a bit of a smile tugging the corners of her lips upwards. "There's a thought, too. Songs have done their fair share of good at changing hearts. So why don't we put our heads together on that, maybe collaborate on a song or two and see what happens?"

     Turning towards Jean as she's on her way out, she calls out, "Miss Grey... we both know my gifts are going to take me into the worst possible situations, where they're needed the most. I'm slowly learning to make my peace with that. I'm just glad it's with you and Mr. Summers, and Logan, and Sam, and everyone else." She smiles a bit. "Someone told me to make a stand with the school--and they were right."

     Sam, for his part, gets a fierce hug. "You told me all those months ago that sometimes, no matter how prepared we are, it can still happen. It's the one thing you warned me about before giving me my bumblebees. All we can do is keep going, and doing our best." She smiles and reaches up to give him the mother of all noogies if not prevented from doing so. "Besides, between you and everyone else handling training, we do alright."

Phoenix has posed:
"Alright, I'll be along in a few." Jean says back to Scott with a light touch to his arm as their secondary message is passed. Then she lets him go and turns back to the crowd.

"Hey, never doubt what you can offer, Alexis. Historians are critical, especially when *some people* keep trying to change it. Memories, culture; once those are forgotten, there's no getting them back. There's a reason song is one of the oldest traditions of humanity, and a lot of other sentient species."

She gives a bittersweet sort of grin towards Shannon, looking both deeply proud and infinitely sad at the same time. "Just don't forget that you're never standing alone, even when its the darkest."