3251/The First Christmas Tree

The First Christmas Tree
Date of Scene:	27 November 2017
Location:	Unknown
Synopsis:	Summary needed
Cast of Characters:	Jubilee, X-Man

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Jubilee has posed:
Nate is not a morning person. He probably never has been. He probably never will be. Jubilee is alight from the moment she opens her eyes, even if it's still dark. And it was, when she woke up. On waking, however, and looking over at Nate, sleeping soundly, her eyes shone a brilliant gold in the darkness, their colour owing to the gift that he gives her, whenever she needs it.

Stoking the fire to crackle within the little potbellied stove, Jubilee warmed the little cabin and started breakfast as the sun came up. And now, with the sunrise streaming over the windowsill, shining brightly on the flowers that Nate gave her the night before and set in the window, Jubilee is baking biscuits in the oven while a huge skillet of eggs, bacon, potatoes and cheese stays warm atop the woodburning stove. It's way more food than even Nate can eat in one morning, but there's a good reason for that.

Jubilee is twirling between the sink and the stove in a pair of feety pj's that makes her look like a snowman, with lumps of coal printed down the front, along with a crimson and gold scarf that bears a Gryffindor insignia. The candy cane pj's from the night before...didn't survive the night.

X-Man has posed:
Mornings used to be just very late nights for Nate in a previous life. For this reason, he never enjoys waking up early, and usually takes full advantage of a comfy bed when he has access to it. This morning is no different, but Jubilee also knows that the more he gives the longer it takes for him to recover. Last night he gave as much as possible, and is still fighting off the effects of the virus.

However... at the smell of food, even Nate's morning addled brain comes to life as he is ruled by his stomach. She can hear him stumble around the bedroom, his normal ritual looking for clothing, and eventually he comes out in a pair of gym shorts as he rubs his eyes.

Immediately he heads into the kitchen, wraps her in a hug, and kisses her cheek, "Mornin' Jubes. Smells great..." he holds her like that for a few long moments, and then asks (as always) "..can I help?" one more kiss on the back of her neck, and he moves to the cabinet with the glasses. He takes out a glass, moves to the fridge to take out the milk, and pours himself a glass. "Want anythin'?"

Jubilee has posed:
Jubilee gives Nate an easy smile as he shuffles into the kitchen, pulled by an invisible thread connected to his stomach. She revels in the hug and kisses, shaking her head. "Nope...I don't need a thing. I'm savin' the fudgecicles for when we get back."

She scatters roasted potatoes and spoons cheesy eggs over them, adding a little bacon, and snags a fresh, hot biscuit from the stove. She sets the plate in front of Nate, and takes her place at the breakfast table with him. She never eats. But she loves to share the morning with him, as he does. In the center of the table is a jar of apple butter, and a small tub of fresh butter from a local creamery.

"Best eat up, you're gonna need the energy!" Jubilee is positively beaming.

X-Man has posed:
"okay." Nate replies back, and she can see the remnants of the glowing blue in his eyes as he continues to fight off the virus. His tone is a liittle pale, and he definitely looks as if he could eat the entire house. He plops into a nearby chair, drinking his milk, and grabbing the apple butter. He puts a generous portion on the biscuits, making an MMMM sound as he takes in the smells. He digs into the plate, going through the food rather quickly, "Great as always, Jubes..." once he has some food in him, his brain starts working, "Where we goin'?"

Jubilee has posed:
"Camping!" Jubilee announces far too gleefully for that early in the morning. She nods toward the door, where a tent bag is already sitting, along with two backpacks, stuffed with clothing and essential items. And leaning against the doorframe stands an axe.

"I already packed us some food for the trip, but I'm gonna make some leftover breakfast biscuits in case you get hungry later today." She looks at Nate, now, with obvious pain in her gaze. "I'm sorry. I took too much last night. You're never still sick by morning...."

X-Man has posed:
"Huh?" Nate looks more than a little confused, but once it registers what Jubilee is talking about he nods his head slowly "Ohhhh... like in the woods campin'? Go, and spend some time outside?" He shrugs, he's done more than his fair share of roughing it, and he doubts Jubilee has any intention of reliving what he's been through. "Cool..." as he takes in the gear ready and waiting.

"Ok, I'll finish this up and off we go!" and he makes good on his promise. The food quickly disappearing, most of it anyways, and he is in a much better mood. "Nope, I /gave/ you what you needed, Jubes." His hand taking hers, squeezing with affection, "I'll let you know when it's too much." That said, he cleans up the plates, puts them in the dishwasher, and goes to pick up the packs "So, where we campin' at, and for how long?"

Jubilee has posed:
"I dunno. I figure you've been flyin' around a lot lately, and maybe you have some good ideas of where we could look." Jubilee finishes wrapping up the leftovers and placing them in a packet in her backpack, then wraps her arms around Nate's waist, giving him a tight hug.

"We're not doin' anything like what you've been through in the past. I think...maybe it's just time we went and found our first Christmas tree."

X-Man has posed:
Nate picks up all the gear with his telekinesis, opens the door for Jubilee, and nods his head "I've got a pretty good idea of a fun place, and they should have the types of trees you're lookin' for!" He grabs the axe on the way out, and shuts the door on the way.

Once they're all outside, he lifts Jubilee and himself up as well as the gear, "So... wanna see the place I first landed on this planet? Think they've got some pretty awesome trees there." And with a grin they are up, and flying across the sky. He takes her high so she can enjoy the sky above the clouds, his hand in hers, and thinks to her <Swiss Alps! Great place for camping and the first area I saw on this world.>

Jubilee has posed:
Jubilee giggles as Nate swoops up with her and all the gear, flying them in no time to the Swiss Alps. The clouds pass below them swiftly, and she sees the terrain below in between. Holding onto him tightly, she nods. <Show me, I wanna see...> THIS...is the only way to hike.

X-Man has posed:
The feel of the air, buffered and warmed by his shields, is still one of the most exhilarating things Nate has ever experienced. When he looks over at Jubilee, she can feel his excitement and sense of freedom through their link, and how important flying is to him.

As they close in on the Alps, he tells her <There's a crater, it'll be hard to miss, not too far outside a decent sized town...> and before she knows it, there it is, as if some meteor (which according to the news it was) struck one of the smaller peaks of the Alps. He lands them near there, his eyes scanning the crater and then the surrounding area. "Ok, here we are!" She can tell that he's keeping them warm, with the light snowfall around them not even being registered, "Let's go lookin' for our tree!"

Jubilee has posed:
Jubilee is...jubilant. The mid-afternoon sun shines brightly off the snow, and this is the brightest thing she's seen...definitely since she was changed. But possibly in all her life. The light snowfall from the thin clouds above just makes it all the more beautiful. "It's breathtaking, Nate," Jubilee breathes. Here, inside their bubble, she can look out over the mountains and not fear burning horrifically to death. As strong as Nate's blood makes her, she can still only brave a little while in the sun. And certainly not here in a place where the sun comes from everywhere at once. Nate's protective shield protects her from the ultraviolet rays that would otherwise lead to her demise.

"I want a great big one! Without a squirrel."

X-Man has posed:
"I know..." Nate almost whispers in response as he looks around, "...so different than my own Home. I didn't know what to think at first." His head shaking still in wonder these many weeks later. "Come on, I think I know where to look." He grabs her hand, and they start treading up the East side of one of the taller peaks.

There is a low glow from Nate's left eye the entire time, obviously his power providing comfort and care for them both.. as well as the protection from the Sun's deadly rays for Jubilee... "This time of year the Sun goes away quick."

Jubilee has posed:
With the gear coming along for the ride, Jubilee holds Nate's hand in one of her own. The other hand is swinging the axe whimsically to and fro with her steps along her side. She has no trouble keeping up with Nate, and she's aghast at every new sight, with the exhiliration of it all. "This is so gorgeous. And that..." She looks back toward the crater. "That is what brought you to me. My life will never be the same..." She looks back at him lovingly as they traipse up toward a peak.

X-Man has posed:
After a few hours they will find they are deep enough into the woods that the Sun is mostly blocked from the trees and the snowfall. "Now, let's see what we can find.." Nate tells her, having held her hand the entire way, and chatted about his time around the City down below.

It isn't long, another thirty minutes, when they come across a couple smaller trees that could have come from a Hallmark Christmas Card, and he looks over to Jubilee. "What do you think, Jubes? Find anythin' ya like?"

Nate has been keeping an eye out, but it doesn't look like they've come across any wild animal tracks. Maybe they are lucky, and this is a part of the mountain where there are no good caves to hide in over the winter.

Jubilee has posed:
"Ohhh...I like that one!" Jubilee clomps through the snow with surprising agility and dives headfirst into one of the trees. She's just legs and boots sticking out of it at this point. Squeaks and giggles come from inside the tree as her legs flail. "I don't see any squirrels in this one!"

X-Man has posed:
Nate grins, and follows behind her to tell her through her tree-suit "Remember it's gotta fit in your Cabin." He watches for a moment, smirking, and she'll feel his hand pinch her thigh while she's trapped. "And I can tell you only four trees in a thousand feet have squirrels or birds nested in them." Yep, not only people have minds, and Nate is familiar with identifying all kinds.

Jubilee has posed:
"Hey!!" Then more giggling as she tries to extract herself from the tree. "I didn't know you were gonna question my scientific approach! Besides, I'm sure this one will fit!" The tree is easily twelve feet tall and ten feet in diameter at its fullest. "If you're gonna be that helpful, PULL!"

X-Man has posed:
Nate laughs as he reaches down, grabbing her hips, and gently pulling her free from the tree she is trapped in. He sits down in the snow next to her, looking at the tree, looking at her, then looking back to the tree "Jubes, that ain't fittin' in your Cabin. I love you, but it ain't gonna work." He reaches over, pulls the front of her jacket towards him, and kisses her lips gently. "Come on..." breaking their kiss with a smile, "...tell me what ya think of this one."

He stands up, taking her hands, and pulling her to her feet. He walks about a hundred feet from her tree, and points to a very young tree, just over seven feet tall, and maybe three feet in diameter. The pine needles are fresh, there is no rot, and it smells of the woods they are in. "What do you think?"

Jubilee has posed:
Jubilee's hair is a mess, tousled by the tree branches, and decorated with needles. She straightens her clothes and sniffs. "Yeah that tree wasn't good enough anyway. It needs to be..." She pauses, as Nate shows her the young tree. "It's sooo perfect!" Jubilee grins, looking at the tree and back at Nate. "Do I need to check it for squi--" Then she trails off, seeing something just beyond the tree. She high-steps through the snow, circling wide and stopping in front of a small pine, barely as tall as she is. The branches are more sparse - it has lived in the shadows of its greaters. One side is damaged, seemingly mangled as the few branches on that side are twisted and broken. There is a strip of old tan velvet hanging from the tree. "This one."

Jubilee looks back at Nate, her eyes wide and shining gold in the setting sun. "This one has struggled. It's willing to give. See? A deer rubbed its velvet off on the branches." She pulls the strip free of the poor, malformed branches. "This side can go in back, so all we see is how beautiful it is. It needs to be beautiful and loved."

X-Man has posed:
Following Jubilee's gaze, Nate follows behind her as she moves to the smaller tree, and his smile grows as she explains why this would be the perfect tree. He takes her hand, looking into those now golden eyes, and nods his head slowly. "Ok, but we can't use the axe. Little guy won't last long. Let me take care of it, ok?"

With that said, he returns his focus to the Charlie Brown Tree, and his eye glows a little brighter. Jubilee will see the ground around the roots bubble, and then a small circle of dirt that encapsulates the trees roots is lifted about a foot off the ground. He looks back to her, "We'll keep it this way, and when we're done after Christmas we'll plant it at the house, in the Sun, and make sure it gets all the water it needs." His head tilted a little, he asks Jubilee, "What do you think of this plan?"

Jubilee has posed:
"Ohhh..." Jubilee replies breathlessly. "I love it! Then it can grow up big and beautiful, like it should have here, if it had just sprouted somewhere in the sun..." She's smiling brightly and nodding. "You wanna come home with us, li'l tree?" She wraps an arm around Nate's waist, and squeezes, then pulls out a large strip of burlap, meant to wrap around the branches of whichever tree they cut down. She wraps the root ball tightly and securely so that the soil won't fall away when it's moved. "Now then. The sun's settin'..." She looks back to Nate. "We can camp...or we can take him home." She hadn't planned on the Alps, and she's pretty sure it's colder here than she had planned on when she brought the tent.

X-Man has posed:
Nate watches as she Jubilee handles and talks to the tree that she's chosen. When she wraps her arm around his waist, he draps his arm over her shoulders, "Sounds like a great plan, Jubes. I'm sure it'll be a great tree some day. The only one from the Alps near the Mansion, I'm bettin'."

His gaze follows the setting Sun, and Nate suggests "We should camp here. It'll be fine, and you wanted to camp. Plus, how many other people do you know that have camped out in the Alps?" He takes the tent bag, and begins setting everything up. Once the tent is in place, he'll setup a fire pit, and get a fire started for them. Once the camp is setup, he'll make two stools from the rock in the ground near the fire, and gives Jubilee a half-smile.

Jubilee has posed:
Jubilee watches Nate, and she begins to gather firewood, as well, trying to create a big enough stockpile to keep the fire crackling all night. As he's building the fire and pitching the tent, she helps where she can, and she begins pulling out some packets from her backpack. "Are you hungry?" The day has passed very quickly, owing to moving ahead several hours as they traveled to the Swiss Alps. But they've done a lot of flying, hiking, and using of powers. Nate gave generously to her the night before, and she knows that he is still mending. "I have food. We can save the breakfast stuff for, y'know. Breakfast." She pulls out bowls of what appears to be a hearty stew, and a small pot with a wrought iron tripod that she's putting together over the fire. "I can have you some dinner hot and ready in no time!"

X-Man has posed:
"Dinner sounds great, Jubes." Nate replies, his left eye glowing continuously, and he paces around the perimeter of the camp. As he does, she can feel the wind die down, and the snow stops falling on their camp. By the time she's done cooking, Nate has walked the whole way around the camp, "Definitely ready to eat!" He tells her, and sits down next to her. "This'll hold tonight, and will let us stay comfortable but still be in the Alps."

Jubilee has posed:
Jubilee pours the stew into the pot that hangs over the fire, and tilts her head, looking up at him. "You're gonna wear yourself out, Nate...I'm fine. we'll be fine. I know how fixing the weather taxes you." She stirs the pot slowly, letting the fire warm it uniformly, and she brings two thick foil packets from her pack, and lays them in the coals at the fire's edge.

X-Man has posed:
"Nah, it's fine, just putting up a bit of shield around the camp." Nate reassures Jubilee, knowing that it would take too much out of him to change the weather, "Shields are easy, and they will work perfect for us tonight..." His eyes shift to the stew, rubbing his hands by the fire, letting the heat sink in to him. "I'm glad you thought of this, Jubes. It's nice, relaxin', and somethin' I've never done before." He breathes in deeply, enjoying the smells coming from the cooking pot, "Mmmm, can't wait for dinner."

Jubilee has posed:
"I wanted us to have the best memory of our first Christmas together." She smiles, and reaches out to give his hand a squeeze. "I'm glad you're enjoying it. I couldn't be happier than I am right now, here with you."

It doesn't take long for the fire to warm the stew. Once it's steaming and hot, Jubilee ladles it into a bowl and sticks a spoon in, handing it over to Nate. She takes the two foil packets from the coals, using a cloth to keep from burning her hands, and opens one, setting it beside him on the rock. "This one's cornbread. THAT one..." She points to the one she's set aside to cool a little, as it will take longer. "THAT one is a big thick slice of homemade apple pie."

X-Man has posed:
"This'll be my first real Christmas, ever." Nate explains to her, "We knew 'bout it, but didn't really celebrate it where I'm from. Spent more time worryin' about gettin' food and not dying than givin' gifts." He squeezes her hand back, "I'm lookin' forward to it too, Jubes."

As she hands him a bowl of stew he smiles, "Thanks!" and begins digging in. As always he eats more than should be possible for someone of his size, and finishes off the bowl in no time. He scarfs down the cornbread, and nods his head at the pie "Can't wait..." As the night settles in, the stars above begin shining, and the full moon lights the night sky in ways that is rarely seen on the East Coast.

Jubilee has posed:
Once Nate has finished his apple pie, Jubilee is leaning in against him, watching the stars as they twinkle above. The light of the full moon shines off the snow, lighting the mountainside so that it is almost as bright as early morning. Jubilee begins to speak a few times, but always thinks better of it. She knows that her thoughts and feelings are open to Nate through their connection, and it seems almost a sin to violate the silence of bright midnight. The bells in the town somewhere below toll twelve o'clock. Jubilee smiles and looks up at Nate's eyes.

X-Man has posed:
Pulling her close, the warmth of the fire bathing them both in more than enough heat given the area they are in, Nate watches the sky as it has fascinated him since his arrival here. How clear, beautiful, and full promise that sky shows in both day and night. Nate can sense Jubilee's feelings, and she knows that he returns those same feelings through their link. It is awhile before he realizes she is looking at him, but when he does he moves his eyes from the sky to Jubilee's own golden colored orbs. A content smile is on his face, his fingers brushing through her hair, "So many beautiful things here, and I'm lucky enough to see them all."