3199/Love Bites

Love Bites
Date of Scene:	20 November 2017
Location:	Unknown
Synopsis:	Summary needed
Cast of Characters:	Jubilee, X-Man

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Jubilee has posed:
Jubilee is biting a stick. More specifically, she's biting a fudgecicle stick. First without fangs. Then with fangs. Then without fangs again on the other end, which doesn't taste faintly like fudgecicle, so it's not as fun. Then with fangs again. She always studies the bite pattern after a bite. She's cross-legged on the couch in NightWing pj bottoms and a blue tanktop, and looking incredibly focused. In front of her on the coffee table, propped up by books and puzzle boxes, is an oversized print of a 3D stereogram that looks like an acid trip. She looks up at it from the stick, studies the picture (or lack thereof), closes one eye and tilts her head while staring at it, then goes back to biting the stick. This time in the center. Only Jubilee could procrastinate doing something that she's only using to procrastinate doing something else.

X-Man has posed:
Nate comes in from the front door, wearing just some swim shorts, and a little bit soggy. Yes it is winter time. Yes it is very cold outside. However, despite that, it seems that Nate is coming in from just having a nice dip somewhere. There is a lake out front of Jubilee's Cabin, and that seems the most likely culprit.

"Hey Jubes..." standing at the front of the door, and the water starts to fall of him in a focused torrent, "...there is definitely no hidden treasures in your lake. Sad. I was hoping to find /somethin'/..." As he walks in, though, he takes a look at what Jubilee is focusing on, and asks "Uhm, Jubes, what are you doin'?"

Jubilee has posed:
"I'm trying...to see...the schooner." She narrows her eyes and looks back up at the propped-up picture again. "It's there somewhere. I -must- see it." From Nate's perspective, he can see that the identifying label on the back of the picture clearly reads "John Lennon." Jubilee closes the other eye and squints the open one, tilting her head the opposite direction. "Why are you searchin' for treasure in the lake when it's thirty degrees outside? And also why are you wet? Can't your bubble things keep the water off ya while you're searchin?"

Not a word is said about the new lake he's creating in the living room floor. The place is cozy and warm, as the potbellied stove is burning so hotly that the apex of its belly glows a faint orange. On the stove in the kitchen, simmering slowly, is a pot of orange stew, so named for the thick slices of fat carrots and chunks of sweet potato in it.

X-Man has posed:
"Is the name of the schooner John Lennon?" Nate asks as he looks at the picture, head also tilted similar to Jubilee's, and he looks down at the puddle on the floor. With a grunt, he moves his hand, and the water disappears as if it was never there. "How do you see the picture, it looks all kinds of messed up to me, like the colors are all run together." He stares more, but just shakes his head in confusion.

"Oh..." He adds in response to the treasure checking, "..well, really I was testing how tight i could get the shield on my skin. Also testin' to see how easy it is for me to keep the temp constant." He offers a shrug, completely dry, and walks to sit next to her on the couch. "The treasure thing was just a hope that I'd find somethin' cool..." He gives her a lopsided grin, "...no luck though."

Jubilee has posed:
Jubilee leans back against Nate, her skin warm against his. "Jee-zus...Hold me, you're freezin'. Let's get you warmed up." She pulls an afghan over them both and cuddles in against his bare skin. "There....no, John Lennon's a singer. Well he was a singer. He got killed and doesn't sing as much now." She opens both eyes wide and STARES at the picture. "There's a trick to this, you gotta stare like....THROUGH the picture, they say. I dunno, I think the're fulla shit, but it's like you have to look at it with your eyes unfocused and all those runnin' together colours will part ways and suddenly you'll see the schooner. I saw it on a movie."

X-Man has posed:
Nate hadn't even noticed the cold, but now that she mentions it he is a bit chilly. He wraps his arm around her shoulder, and she will feel the heat immediately begin rising for them both. "Oh, weird, the back of your picture says John Lennon. I figured that was the name of your boat..." He thinks about the story of John Lennon, and asks "Why was he killed? Did he fight some monster? Did his songs protect people, and so someone wanted him out of the way?" Oh the mind of someone from a post apocalyptic world, how wonderful.

Nate focuses on the picture, eyes open, pupils dilated slightly for at least two minutes, and he shakes his head "Nope, all I see is some blues, and greens, and reds... no picture pops out for me."

Jubilee has posed:
"Don't feel bad, Baby," she cooes, cuddling in against Nate to help with their warmth. "I've had this picture for three years. I think it usually takes people at least that long to see one. I've tried it so many times, but every time I think I see it, just turns out to be some dude in glasses." She thinks for a moment, then nods. "Seems like I heard something about a monster called Yoko. I don't remember the whole story, but he got shot by some scumbag, and the monster got away." She leans back enough to kiss Nate's cheek.

"Oh! There's orange stew on the stove, if you're hungry. She nods toward the kitchen. And somethin' for you on the dining table."

X-Man has posed:
Nate nods his head, staring at the picture a little bit longer, but not even seeing a guy with glasses. "Hmm, we'll have to watch out for this Yoko. It could still be out there, causin' trouble, and we may need to make sure it doesn't hurt anyone else." He frowns at hearing what happened to John Lennon, "It's always a scumbag that kills the best of people..." He let's out a long sigh, and his stomach grumbles at the mention of food.

"oh! Orange Stew! Thanks Jubes..." With a quick peck on her cheek, he leaves the blanket for her, and walks across the cabin in just his swim shorts. Again, the scars of his youth seen across his back and shoulders, before he learned ot heal himself. "For me?" Nate asks as he heads to the table first to see what it is that could be his.

Jubilee has posed:
In the center of the table sits what seems to be a perfect sphere of burnished steel. Upon closer inspection, there is a seam that runs around the midpoint of the sphere, where the halves can be unscrewed into two pieces. The ball is clearly hollow, but there's something metallic rattling around inside.

X-Man has posed:
"YES!" Nate exclaims as he finds his present, and immediately begins to explore it with his hands and his mind. He floats it around, scans it's mineral composition, and once he is certain that he's supposed to unscrew it, he places it on the table again.

"Ok, awesome metal sphere I could use as a weapon AND to carry stuff..." and he uses his hand to slowly unscrew the two halves. There is an excitement on his face like a child opening their first present on Christmas morning, and Jubilee could believe this might actually be the first 'present' he has ever gotten in his life. "I can't wait to see what is inside!"

Jubilee has posed:
Jubilee grins at Nate's gleeful reaction to the sphere, which only serves to house the gift. "Glad you like it. I made it. What's inside, too. It took me a long time to learn enough control to get it all right. God...months. But once I figured it out, I was SO stoked!" By now, Jubilee is on her knees, peering over the back of the couch at Nate and bouncing excitedly. As Nate opens the sphere, there is a thin steel chain inside. Clearly handmade, the links are all the same size, but not uniform in exact shape, giving the chain a rough-cut look. Likely the handiwork of someone who isn't good with exact measurements or attention span.

"Oooh there's the guy with glasses again, look!!" Jubilee is pointing excitedly at the picture for a moment. "Quick Nate!" But just like that...."Nevermind, he's gone."

Hanging from the chain is what appears to be a military dogtag. It's polished, and engraved in some strange manner on the tag is a red Chinese dragon with a large head, like one would see waggling in a parade on Chinese New Year. One eye is blue. The other gold. The gold eye shines brightly, as a tiny citrine is set into that eye, and engraved rays give it the illusion of light. The lines are disjointed, not connected or fluid in any way, so that it resembles very closely the great dragon that Jubilee created over Breakstone Lake the night that she met Nate Grey. The dragon appears to be made up of red foreworks. On the back of the tag is an engraved message that reads, "Thank you for teaching me to burn brightly. -J" A tiny heart punctuates the initital.

X-Man has posed:
Nate takes the dogtag, looking at it very carefully, his hand moving over the edges of the chain and then the tag itself. She can feel from their link a profound sense of appreciation and astonishment when he first looks at it. The longer he spends taking it in the more she can feel his emotions change and grow with each passing second. There is a sense of happiness and possessiveness as he has never had something truly of his own that was gifted to him before. Then, Jubilee will feel his love for her overpower everything else before it.

When he looks up at her, his left eye gives that golden glow, and he passes a hand over the chain and dogtag. She will see a light infuse it, not outwardly changing anything about it, but there will be a slight shine once he's done... almost as if the light is catching something around it... and he places it around his neck. "Jubes, it's amazing!" he shouts back to her, "I love it!! The dragon is perfect, and makes me think of when you showed me your powers..."

THat said, he jumps from the dining table, clears the couch, and tackles her into a comfortable and completely no furniture breaking embrace! "You're the best..." he says as he kisses her on the nose, "Thank you. I'll keep it safe forever."

Jubilee has posed:
Jubilee giggles as the John Lennon schooner is knocked winding by an errant bare foot as Nate tackles her and does NOT break the furniture. She holds him tightly, and tucks her head under his chin, whispering against his skin. "I'm glad you like it, Nate. You just...make sure you keep YOU safe forever..."

After a few moments, when the excitement has died down and the two are just quiet in a warm embrace, she adds, "I dunno, I don't think you looked ALL over that lake for treasure. I tossed some Peeps in last April to see if they'd float. They disappeared. Pretty sure they're still out there somewhere."

X-Man has posed:
"It's the best, Jubes." Nate replies, arms wrapped around her in a tight embrace, the chill of his skin gone He nods his agreement with her request, "I'll do my best. Nothing stupid. Only 'nough to protect the people I care 'bout." When Jubilee mentions something about 'Peeps' he asks, "You put people in there? That's brave considering your previous need for blood..." Nate says in all seriousness, "...there must be somethin' else in there that has eaten the bodies. I didn't even find bones in there?!?"

Jubilee has posed:
Jubilee nods with half a smile, her cheek nestled against the crook of Nate's cradling arm, and watches the fire burning in the little window of the wood stove. "Maybe it's a Yoko."