12587/One more Christmas suprise

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One more Christmas suprise
Date of Scene: 26 December 2020
Location: Ororo's Attic - Xavier's School
Synopsis: Scott and Jean deliver late gifts to Ororo. Scott gives Jean one last present he's been holding on to. She said Yes.
Cast of Characters: Cyclops, Phoenix, Storm




Cyclops has posed:
It's the day after Christmas and Scott and Jean has made their way back home from a trip to visit the Grey family. Though it was nice to get out of the school and visit family, it always feels good to come back home and feel 'normal' amongst the chaos that is Xavier's.

Dressed in a pair of slacks and a festive green sweater, the field leader gives a knock on the attic door, carrying a small package in his hand, and a coffee in the other. He has a smile on his face as he waits, a rare moment of feeling content, rather than a stick shoved up the spine. He feels loose.

Phoenix has posed:
Alongside Scott is Jean, dressed in a lavendar sweater with white snowflakes scattered over it. She's holding a small, oval, wrapped package in gold and silver under one arm as she waits.

"Merry Christmas, Ro!" She calls through the door with a wide and beaming grin on her face. Oh, she knows the woman is in there. Awake may be another story, but too bad. Presents.

Storm has posed:
    Ro was currently draped across a sun bed that faces the East. Enjoying the sliver of warmth from the winter sun rising up over New York state. The mass of white hair currently wrapped up in a traditional scarf that she slept in to make sure 'bed head' was not in her vocabulary. In her hands a book and beside her was an empty cup on a small little table.

    Glancing up at the sound of a knock and she slid a bookmark into place before rising up. Pulling the white silk robe around her frame as she walked for the door. They were technically on winter 'break' so there were no classes, but in a school of Mutants there were no days off.

    Opening to door to see Scott and Jean and Ro smiles with all the warmth of a summer sky and gestures them both inside. "Scott, Jean. Merry Christmas. I am pleased to see you. Your visit went well?" Welcoming them into her domain. The massive windows that seem to dominate the attic give a very exposed sensation that not everyone is comfortable with. Yet, Ro seems more in her element. "I have gifts for you as well." Walking over towards the dining table that was currently laden with several wrapped presents.

Cyclops has posed:
"Merry late Christmas, Ororo. The trip went well, yes. It was nice to see her family again." Scott says with a smile as he hands over the package to her wrapped in green and red generic holiday wrapping. "You are impossible to shop for, but I tried my best." What do you get a Goddess? Hopefully it's the thought the counts.

Taking a look around her room, he takes his time to let the two ladies do their usual warm greetings to each other. Never get in the middle of best friends during the holidays. Speaking of, he needs to get with Warren and Hank later to trade 'bro gifts' as well.

Phoenix has posed:
"Too short, but for as much as I complain I need breaks its hard to stay away." Jean replies regarding the trip while she steps forward for a one armed hug with her best friend. "Hotel beds are a good inspiration to go home, but it was that or try and sleep in a house with ten people at any given time. It was nice to see the family, though. I don't visit home nearly enough these days."

She glances down to her own package with the slightly wrinkly package that comes from trying to wrap something soft. Her expressions are a bit self-conscious, as if she were silently echoing Scott's sentiments, before offering it up. "Yah, it's a bit lame but hey, I tried!"

Storm has posed:
    Ro smiled and accepted the gift, kissing Scott's cheek as she set the gaily wrapped gift on the table and picked up a large present that was wrapped in a reflective red paper with white ribbon and a traditional bow atop of it. "I would say the same for you, Scott." Chuckling softly as she handed over his present.

    Accepting the oval present in gold from Jean and gives her friend a look at it before laughing softly and embracing her before picking up a long, slender looking box wrapped in the same fashion as Scott's. "We must admit that we are rather spoiled here." Said with a sheepish grin as she glanced over to the king sized bed that dominated much of the western portion of the open room. "I have to echo your own words, I found it difficult to shop for everyone this year."

Cyclops has posed:
Returning the kiss to her cheek, Scott gives her a warm smile. Taking the package in his hands, he feels the weight, then puts it to the side so that he can thumb the tape open easily. He does not tear packages apart like a beast. "I am easy to shop for. Coffee and ties. The two constants in my life."

His lips curve upwards into an amused smile for a moment. "But we are spoiled, yes. It's hard to shop for people who have everything with world changing super powers. I hope you like my gift regardless. At least lie to me if you don't. I won't know the difference. Jean won't cheat."

Phoenix has posed:
"You forgot gift cards for AutoZone." Jean adds with a knowing smile towards Scott as she takes a seat at the table with the gift in hand. She waits to unwrap her's while Scott tackles his gift, because that is both polite and an excuse to drag out the visit as long as possible.

"You do get spoiled though when we've never really wanted for anything material. Not that I've really abused that since I was a teenager, but still. No mortgage, rent, or car payments makes the paycheck go a lot further. I did take a big chunk and donated it anonymously to one of the Bushwick charities to help some of the local families with food, toys, bills and the sort. Better to help them than go buy myself things that I don't need."

Storm has posed:
    Ro laughs when Scott insists she lies if she doesn't like the gift. Which, he knows better in that regard. Ro is an accomplished liar through necessity but morally finds it impossible to lie to those she loves. "I am certain it is fine." Beneath the paper Scott would find a backpack. Though, not just any backpack. It's a camper's delight which means there's a little of everything, including a hatchet and a pocket knife in boxes inside the pack (giftception)." She follows Scott's lead and carefully opens her own gift from him.

    Smiling over to Jean and nodding. The telepath would feel the pride in Ro that Jean would remember those less advantaged than they sometimes are. One of the things that Ro loves about her. "Ro gestures for Jean to open her gift and all Jean would glean from Ro is the sense of utter home, warmth and fields of Kenya stretched out before her. Even the soft native singing creeps in from the bakc of the mental imagery.

Cyclops has posed:
"Oh. This is really nice. Now I feel like a heel for not getting you something more extravagant. I was going for sentimental rather than essential." Scott says with a chuckle as he hefts the backpack up and slings it over his shoulder to test the weight. "You do realize Logan is going to steal this from me, right? Just like my favorite coffee mug. He always takes my nice things."

Inside Ro's package is a vinyl of Ella Fitzgerald's Christmas hits, as well as a CD that says: Sounds Of The African Rainforest. He also has a gift card for Pottery Barn as well for her. His lips gives an amused twitch upwards as he leans in to give Jean a bump on the shoulder.

Phoenix has posed:
The mental imagery brings a soft, contented smile to creep onto Jean's face. How welcoming it is to have a fleeting touch of Africa in the middle of the dark, cold winter. "It's a sentiment thing." She says as she listens in, though doesn't go into more detail than that.

She's not so meticulous as Scott when it comes to unwrapping, though there is some order as she undoes the ribbon then removed the paper in large bits. While she does that, she tips her head towards Ororo and the package she gave her. The package clearly has something soft inside, likely cloth of some sort, and it's not heavy but there's a subtle weight.

Storm has posed:
    "That is why your initials are on everything, including the hatchet and knife." Said with a smile as she zeroes in on the record. "Oh Scott, this is perfect." Smiling at the CD and shaking her head as she walks over to her record player and lifts up the cover. Setting the card to one side as she slips the vinyl onto it and drops the needle. Eyes closed when the music begins a fond smile on her lips.

    Ro smiles at Jean's unsubtle command to open her own gift and Ro does so with the same care that she opened Scott's. Trickier, since the gift is soft.
    Jean would open hers to a rather standard 'clothes inside' white box. Once that is lifted? A brilliant crimson swath of fabric that seems to be made of some impossibly light wool. Lifting it free and it will continue to simply fall as Jean may recognize the design of a traditional Kenyan dress that Ro favors. It is in all the colors of fire and sunset with a hand-made gold clasp in the shape of a bird in flight. Tigerseye inlaid to give the bird a regal and lifelike 'fire' look. "You and I will be visiting my home next year. I thought you would enjoy it."

Cyclops has posed:
"It's not going to stop Logan from taking my stuff. If anything, by marking my territory, it'll make him more eager to take it from me." Scott says as his eyes roll upwards and to the side from behind his red glasses. He looks pleased as she seems to enjoy the gift. Jean most likely gets a wave of relief coming from his thoughts. He was nervous!

At the reveal of the dress, his brows lift upwards. "Wow, Stormy. That is beautiful. Very symbolic." He slides his hand into his pocket as his other arm puts the backpack down.

Phoenix has posed:
Jean Grey does her level best not to get teary-eyed at the beauty of the dress as she gently removes it from the box. She stands so that she can hold it up and get a rough impression as to how it'll look once its on. "Oh Ro, this is *amazing*." She whispers as she looks it over. "Now I'm extra annoyed that it's cold out. I love a nice sweater, but this is art. I can't wait to show it off and see your home!" She says with all the enthusiasm - but far more dignity - than a kid being told they're going to Disney.

"Geez... now your present seems extra sad." She says with a blush but with a quiet laugh. Inside the package, carefully rolled in a cloud of white tissue paper, is a shawl. It's a lightweight crocheted, the colors a shifting hue of deep blue, stormy purple-grey, and soft silver with just a few threads of metallic gold here and there like bits of lightning in the cloud. It's also very clearly handmade by a novice's hand. "I tried taking up some hobbies to relax. I, uh... well I *tried*."

Storm has posed:
    Jean may be able to resist teary eyes, but Ro does not. Outside a few merry flakes begin to fall as Ro wipes at her cheeks and pulls the shawl around her before walking up to Jean and pulling the telepath into a tight embrace. "It is not sad. I will treasure it." Heartfelt and genuine and sniffing softly, the Weather Witch takes a moment to wipe at her face before laughing softly at herself.

    "I am glad you like it, I will show you how to put it on later." Ro never minded the cold or the heat. Part of her powers was that her body regulated itself to any natural environment. Sniffing again and smiling at the crooning of Christmas over her vinyl player. "Thank you, both of you. I love it."

Cyclops has posed:
There's a small chuckle from Scott as he watches the two of them. Reaching up to rub the back of his neck, he gives a clear of his throat. There is a shifting of his posture some as he presses his lips into a thin line of anxious emotion. Jean can probably feel it rising off of him.

"I have one more surprise I would like to give for this holiday. I wanted to wait until I was amongst family and the X-Men are as family as I will ever have."

Sliding his hand out of his pocket, he is holding a small black velvet box. He turns it around in his hands a few times before he looks over to Jean. "Jean. I don't know if this is a surprise to you, seeing how you can practically read anyone's thoughts, but I've tried my best to keep this one thing to myself. It's an important decision for me, one that took me almost a year of thought and worry."

Swallowing, he steels himself seriously. "You and I started this journey together as kids, and we have grown to be exceptional adults. I can't think of anyone better to not only manage this school, but to manage my heart. You've been my rock, my anchor and my motivation to be strong on not only the battlefield, but in life. Your love and friendship has got me through some of our worst days which would have broke most people."

As he turns the box about in his hands, he opens it up to reveal the ring. It's a beautiful diamond set in a gold band, surrounded by a couple of bright shiny rubies. It's a simple design without too much in the way of complications. Slowly, he settles down to one knee, presenting her with the ring.

"Jean, I love you. I will always love you. I have already got permission from your father and now I'm asking permission from you. May I have the honor of marrying you?"

Phoenix has posed:
Yes, Jean *can* read thoughts. But what started in coping with tragedy developed into avoidance due to respect and it's a rule that she tries very hard to live by. Thoughts are private and should stay as such. Besides, Scott's always a little nervous and flighty deep down - she learned to tune that out ages ago. It's also to his benefit that he's had the majority of his lifetime to learn from the most powerful psychics on the planet how to shield his thoughts. And so one Scott Summers managed to do what very few people on this earth or others could likely do.

Catch Jean Grey by surprise.

She's just in the process of folding the dress and placing it back in the box when she sees Scott stepping over. She sees the box and the connotation paired by his fidgeting and the meaning of it all hits her immediately. Now she does cry as he kneels, and it's a good thing she's not holding that dress because she really doesn't want to get it all messy when this inevitably turns from a happy cry into an ugly happy cry.

"Oh Scott." She whispers, but instead of taking the ring outright she instead kneels down in front of him and reaches out to cup his face in her hands. "You feel like you're ready to go into war. I promise you, I will never be a battle for you. I will always stand beside you, Always. Of course I will marry you. My answer has always been yes, I've just been waiting for you to ask."

Storm has posed:
    Storm looked over to Scott when she noticed her friend's nerves. She neatly lifted the dress from Jean's hands and set it into the box again. Turning and lifting her hand to her mouth as she watched her best friends do what she knew thay had longed for for so long. Tears streaking down her cheeks as she remained quiet and out of the way.

    The news would later comment of a beautiful snowfall, light as you please and leaving New York state covered in a glittery blanket of white. Currently, she was walking to the kitchen and taking down a box of tissues and some champagne from her fridge. Even some strawberries (how she gets fresh produce in the dead of winter is anyone's guess) and sets to work getting a small celebration ready.

Cyclops has posed:
Giving a smile to Jean, Scott tries his best to keep up his serious facade. This is a critical moment in his life, even if he's trying to hold in his own waves of emotion. As he takes the ring out of the box, he slides it over her finger, then returns the kiss before he rests his forehead against head. "That's good to hear, because if you would have said no, I was thinking it'd be a long fall from jumping out Ro's window."

Chuckling, he rises upwards, taking her with him, then draws her in for a firm hug. "Thank you for being a witness to this moment, Ororo. It made the nerves easier. I'll let you two catch up and gossip while I track my brother down to let him know I finally went through with it."

"This ring has been burning a hole in my pocket for a year." He brushes another kiss to Jean's lips, then lets her hand go as he takes the backpack up and heads out the door. "Merry Christmas, Ro."