[open log] Packing, planning, general running around!

[jono-stars.livejournal.com]

Characters: Everyone! Even if you plan for your characters not to go on this trip, they can be doing other things here or talking about what they plan to do while the others are away.
Setting: The mansion.
Content: An open, free-for-all thread for all characters to talk about planning for their upcoming getaway to London (Jono's trip, which everyone else has appropriated for the whole school)
Status: Open and incomplete. Really, just talk about anything!

Jono was in the kitchen of the X-mansion, stocking up on snack foods for the plane ride, but it seemed to surprise Josh how little he was packing. "I'm going to pack for the plane," Jono explained, "and then buy food there. You didn't expect me to bring food to my hometown, did you? I have to eat what I can get over there!"

Meanwhile, some members of the staff were surveying the damage done to the west wing of the mansion during their recent attack by Kimura. "Oh well," Logan shrugged it off. "We'll bill it to the school, and anyway, most of the kids will be gone for the trip. Saves a lot of hassle not having people around for the construction."

Fortunately for the students, most of their living quarters hadn't been damaged, so they were able to pack their still-intact clothes and other necessities. As the days grew nearer to the trip, anticipation and excitement levels were rising.

"What's the deal with you and Gayle, now?" Josh asked Jono, as the two of the paused for a cookie break.

"Dunno," Jono answered with a shrug. "I mean... we'll see." He stuffed more cookies into his mouth and then said for an abrupt change in topic, "I wonder what everyone else is up to."

Comments

[archangel-iii.livejournal.com]

"Well, this bird has already finished packing," Warren suddenly announced, appearing from behind the two boys. "Can't tell that I'm looking forward to this, can you?!"

[jono-stars.livejournal.com]

"I guess not," Jono answered, his mouth still full of cookies, crumbs spraying on the counter. Jono's manners have improved somewhat at the dinner table, but at the kitchen counter, just eating snacks straight out of the package? Forget it.

"Aren't you used to jetsetting around the globe with your family, or whatnot?"

[archangel-iii.livejournal.com]

Warren nabbed one of Jono's cookies, knowing he wouldn't mind. He took a bite, and contrary to Jono, finished his mouthful before responding.

"Yeah, I guess so. I mean, we've been to Egypt, Italy, France, Australia..." Warren counted them off on his fingers. "But we haven't ever been to England. I mean, I think dad's been there on a business trip but he never took mom and I."

[pixie-gwynn.livejournal.com]

Umbrella… boots… waterproof coat… Meg was preparing for autumn in the UK. She was trying to get excited about it, she’d already emailed a couple of old friends from her village who attended university in London to try to meet up and it would be great to phone her mum at a decent hour, maybe even manage to see her. But Meg just couldn’t shake her bad mood. Meg knew the reason. Ever since Jono had mentioned motivation behind his trip she’d fretted over what it meant. She couldn't begrudge either Jono or his ex-girlfriend and ended up feeling horribly guilty for getting so upset. Sighing, Meg folded another woollen cardigan and tried to think of what she might do in London.

She really could use a distraction.

[jono-stars.livejournal.com]

There was a soft knock on Meg's open door, and Jono peered in. "Hey," he said, unaware that he was exactly the wrong distraction she needed right then. "Almost ready to leave?"

OOC

[archangel-iii.livejournal.com]

AWWEE I want to hug Meg!! XD

[dazzlerock.livejournal.com]

"Hey tinkerbell," Ali leaned on the jamb of a less than chipper Pixie's door, "what's the weather like over there? Is it going to rain the whole time? I need to know if my hair is going to melt..."

She touched her spiked coif with concern. Then, cocking her head to one side and regarding the pink haired girl, she frowned. "What's up? Aren't you blitzed out to be going home for a visit?"

Someone come and either un-emoify Bobby, or help him angst it out!

[never-too-cold.livejournal.com]

Bobby listlessly tossed another shirt into his bag. He'd been playing hermit for the past few days, struggling with his own personal aftermath from Kimura's attack. He kept turning over and over in his mind all the reasons why Kimura's death had been a good thing, for the greater good. But Bobby had always believed in another way. He'd always believed they were better than killers. This whole incident with Kimura, everything with Laura... he was beginning to see that the world couldn't always be neatly divided into good guys and bad guys. Sometimes the good guys had to do bad things in order to keep the good in the world.

The sound of someone laughing in the corridor caught his attention and he paused in his packing. For the most part, for most of the students, life had gone on as normal, just as it had after Stryker's attack. Just as it had after Alcatraz. Tragedies and terrible things happened, and life moved on. And no matter how Bobby felt about it, what was done was done and there was no changing it.

And besides, no matter how conflicted he felt, it was surely nothing to what some of his teammates had gone through, possibly were still going through. Maybe it was time he stopped avoiding his friends.

He made his way downstairs in the direction of the rec room, in search of company.

Re: Someone come and either un-emoify Bobby, or help him angst it out!

[golden-elixir.livejournal.com]

Josh was on his laptop in the rec room, eyebrows furrowed, deep in concentration. He was in a bit of a dilemma and sighed heavily as he tried to make a decision. Finally, he clicked on something and sighed again, hoping he made the right choice.

"Oh," he said, looking up at Bobby, who had just arrived. "I... can leave you alone, if you want." He got up to pack up his laptop, since a lot of people had been avoiding Josh like the plague - or like he had the plague, or could give you the plague - these days.

How about another serving of angst? Or some angsting out...

[canstillkickass.livejournal.com]

Rogue has decided that the best way to avoid the horrible mess that is packing is to put it off until later. Instead, she'd ventured out of the girls' dormitory and had just as quickly retreated to the rec room, book in hand. Far too many people were talking about the attack in the corridors. Granted, the way some of the younger kids told it, half a dozen of them had taken down the entire army and then some.

She looked up from her book as Bobby came into the room. There was a sharp intake of breath which she quickly masked with a small smile. "Hey sugah."

[dazzlerock.livejournal.com]

Guitar. Headphones. Boots. Chucks. Cargos. Rock tops.

Ali chewed her lower lip, trying to think of what else to cram into her plain little army duffel.

"Oh right!" She rummaged around and found a massive stack of old Dazzler t-shirts from her last round in a band named after herself.

She cranked her music louder, trying to drown out her thoughts. Dark thoughts about bullets and botched plays and what if Josh hadn't been there? Thoughts too dark for the Dazzler, she was the lady of light, enemy of emo.

"This sucks." She flopped on her bed on top of the pile of everything in her life with packing in a bag and sighed, letting off a bust of purple sparkles.

[kickasstelekine.livejournal.com]

"The pigsty in your room, beautiful? Yeah, it does." Julian's voice was sarcastic as he leaned against the door jam, kicking the slab of wood in further. His hands were stuffed into his pockets, and he looked around Ali's room with a slight grimace, but also in amazement at how messy she could be while having so remarkably little to fill it with.

"I got extra luggage. Doubt you can fit a whole week's worth of shit in a duffel." He didn't know why exactly he'd stopped by, since he'd rather avoid her when it wasn't necessary or logical to come see her this week. But here he was.

[trainedweapon.livejournal.com]

Laura is sitting, cross-legged and quiet, on the bed in her room. Her back is slouched, and she is staring into her open, half-packed duffel. It is hard to describe the look on her face; most would call it blank, expressionless, and leave it at that. But there is some sadness around her lips, and her gaze is unseeing.

But she's not daydreaming. She is thinking, absolutely, inhumanly still. She is thinking about why she is packing. Where she is going. She has two choices: London, with her family, her friends, her teammates.

Or she can leave. Grab the strap to her bag, sling it over her shoulder, and slip out the window. Logan will expect it. He might try to stop her. But Laura calculates the odds in her favor. She is fast.

She has put everyone in danger. Emma Frost is right. She doesn't belong here.

[witheredecay.livejournal.com]

Kevin knocks on her door, hesitant, nervous. He's been meaning to speak with her since...well, since.

"Laura?" He cracks open the door and peers in at her motionless form. "Laura I wanted to--" But words fail him. Wanted to apologize? Wanted to thank her? Wanted to know how to be more like her? More like death?

He slides into her room and sits cross legged on the floor. She still has not moved. "You're packing."

[scottheboyscout.livejournal.com]

Scott hadn't seen Laura in quite some time. Possibly days, but it could have been only hours; his perception of time was still not always accurate. He was getting better at remembering her name - it felt wrong to call her "the clone", so he sometimes referred to her as "Logan's girl" even though he knew that wasn't technically right either. Another thing she had in common with Logan was how uneasy Scott felt when he didn't know where she was or what she was up to.

He wasn't worried in the sense that he thought she was up to no good, though, which was sometimes the case with Logan.

There was no discernible noise or movement coming from behind her door, and Scott guessed that she was probably out, but he tapped on the door anyway. "Laura?"

[never-too-cold.livejournal.com]

Bobby has been standing outside her door for the past five minutes. He's not sure what he wants to say to her. All he knows is that there's something instinctive in him telling him to see her, make sure she's okay.

His knuckles have barely hit the wood of her door when it opens. Of course she knew he was standing there, and now he feels like a bit of an idiot for just lurking for so long.

"Laura. Hey. I just wanted to check that you were... okay." He shoves his hands in his pockets. What is it about this girl that makes him feel so awkward and aware of himself?

[justphases.livejournal.com]

Kitty wasn't in the thick of things during the battle, but she's heard enough to know what happened while she was protecting the kids wasn't pretty. Laura's been quiet lately, even more-so than usual - and that's certainly saying something.

After spending some time in the kitchen, Kitty pokes her head into the room, finding Laura in the same position as when she left. "Hey," Kitty greets softly, hiding the plate of cookies (which are, in all honesty, a bit burnt) behind her back. "I hope that duffel's for London."

[scottheboyscout.livejournal.com]

Something was up.

Students were busy in their rooms, the washing machines had been occupied and running all day, and Logan was well into his second six pack during a time when he was usually only just finishing his first.

His attempts at flagging down anybody who might know something had been unsuccessful. "Will somebody please tell me what is going on?"

[canadamantium.livejournal.com]

"Field trip, Scotty." Logan clapped him on the back, handing him a cold one. "Drink up. We're going to England."

No, of course Scott hadn't volunteered, but Logan hoped that he would conveniently overlook that and save him from a week in dreary London with a bunch of emotionally and hormonally unstable youngsters.

[jono-stars.livejournal.com]

"Julian, look," Jono said, pointing at his laptop screen. They were seated in the rec room that evening after dinner, with the TV tuned to SportsCenter. Unfortunately for Jono, the sportscasters words were meaningless to him when it came to NFL, so he continued his usual routine.

"These helmets are both ugly. I don't like the Jaguars or the look of these Bills, either. What's a bloke to do, eh? Who should I pick for this matchup?" Jono asked, unaware that the football pool now had a new combatant.

[kickasstelekine.livejournal.com]

Julian's head perked up a little, and he was quiet for a moment before he smirked a little, happy Jono couldn't see the glint in his eyes or passing smirk on his lips. "I'd, uh... bet it all on Buffalo, dude. They're like ten times better than the Jacksonville, easily."

Discreetly, casually, Julian took out his phone and drafted a text to Josh:

After Ali and Julian have their talk in her room...

[jono-stars.livejournal.com]

Jono was doing a few rounds in the hallways, to get a general idea of what kind of touristy things the others wanted to do, so he could try to form a plan. When he got to Ali's room, he knocked on her open door and said, "Hey. Uh... just thought I'd let you know. I got us a place for the gig. In Camden."

In case you were sleeping through the golden age of rock, she's talking about "I Wanna Be Sedated"

[dazzlerock.livejournal.com]

"Jono, we've been over this!" Ali threw up her hands, not even sure what she was looking for in the mess that was her room anymore. "The closest I've ever come to London is Guy Ritchie movies, okay? You just make like a Ramones song and get me to the show, and I will rock their stuffy tea-drinking socks off, kay?"

She frowned, holding up a bunch of old Dazzler shirts she'd packed, then upacked, and was now considering repacking again. "Can you believe this? How lame, right? I can never wear them because it's so tacky to wear your own band's shirt, especially a band named after yourself, but I just...couldn't bear to throw them out."

[golden-elixir.livejournal.com]

Josh was champing at the bit, practically walking around in tight circles, anticipating that night's Yankees-Twins game - the second in the series of five, in the first round of playoffs. His favorite, the Yankees, were leading by one so far.

In an effort to calm down, he went to his room to grab a jacket so he could run around outside. But when he opened his door, he found Julian seated in front of his closet, packing for the trip. Oh, right. I forgot to pack, Josh thought to himself, having been so occupied with the baseball playoffs.

Josh was about to just dart in, grab his jacket, and leave, when he saw that, as Julian was digging through his closet, had taken out an old basketball.

"Hey..." Josh said softly. "Brian's, huh?"

[kickasstelekine.livejournal.com]

The last thing Julian felt like doing was rehashing more shit. He was a miserable sort of depressed person and he knew it. He didn't like helping Josh kill Kimura, but he'd been struggling to just accept it and forget it as one of those necessary evils Frost was on about all the time. He didn't like Ali almost dying, didn't like the angry and grief-ridden streak this mission had made in him. And he didn't like remembering Brian. Even after James, even after the Academy bombings, the only way Julian coped was forgetting.

And maybe that was a problem if being an X-man was turning out to be a constant reminder.

So when he happened across Brian old basketball in some back corner of his closet, he gave it more than a once-over, more than a passing thought he pushed away. His fingers ran over the bumps and grooves for a moment and he exhaled, a little bit exhausted, and then set his jaw.

It was stupid, acting like that. It didn't accomplish anything. How many times had he been surly and angry for weeks on end, and for what? How long had he stayed in California after James' death? Grief was useless. So was anger. It was how he dealt with crap when he was a kid. But now he was at a loss how to deal with it at all.

He was thinking this when Josh ran in, and Julian's head snapped up in surprise, and he stared at the other boy for a moment, as if deciding how to react to his soft question.

"Yeah," he said guardedly, casually. He spun the ball on the tip of his finger, then tossed it back into its corner.