Notes: Hello and welcome back! For those of you that have been following this travelling beauty, Hi. Keep it up. We're enjoying ourselves. And for my regulars that have not followed this one yet? I know it's a departure from the norm, but you'll be back to your regularly scheduled story soon enough. Someone short was fighting terribly with me to get ANY progress on that. You'll see why when the next chapter on the Ferals goes up.
We thought we'd start off this volume with some long-overdue happiness and see where it goes from there. After all, that's what we're in the business of doing: making these darlings happy. :)
Chapter 1: "Blackbird, Fly"
Half the mansion was in a flutter of activity getting ready for the trip up to Alaska for Scott and Annie's wedding, but when Noh announced that he'd finished putting the last touches on the new blackbird, it was a welcome distraction from the packing and the planning and the stress. Plus, he'd really wanted to get it done as an early wedding present to Scott so that it would be one less thing Scott had to worry about when he got back from his honeymoon.
Noh was absolutely beaming as he led the X-Men down to the hangar, excitedly explaining to everyone present what he, Forge, and Scott had done to create a "much better craft than that Shi'ar monstrosity you had before." The intuitive controls — the low-grade self-healing functionality that meant minor damage would heal itself ... that sort of thing. Though, of course, Forge and Scott seemed to be the only ones following half of his explanations as he just excitedly took them through.
But Noh and Forge had been working on the blackbird alone for the past few days while Scott had more pressing things to attend to — and really, they were only finishing touches, most of which Noh wanted to do himself. Making sure the Kree technology was fully integrated, making sure the intuitive controls wouldn't reject any of the potential pilots, and so on.
"And here she is," Noh declared happily as he swept an arm out to show off the new blackbird.
The design was definitely familiar from the outside at least, though perhaps a bit slimmer and sleeker. Even without the engines running, though, the whole thing seemed to hum slightly with energy that Noh explained was simply part of the Kree technology he'd integrated, though the low hum only contributed to a feeling of power that Noh was going for in the design.
"Scott, why don't you try her out for yourself?" Noh asked with a wide grin once everyone seemed appropriately awed.
Scott broke into a wide grin. "Let's see what she can do," he agreed as he climbed into the cockpit, the beaming smile obvious to anyone as he looked over the controls he and Forge and Noh had been working on for so long, clearly excited to see the plane in action.
Noh was in top form as he showed the rest of the team the upgrades they'd made, the slight changes to the interior of the craft, though he was sure to point out that they'd tried to keep much of the layout the same — like where the stash of medical supplies was — so that they wouldn't get tripped up on missions.
"Can't change too much or the dinosaurs get confused," Kate told Logan with a huge smirk.
"Rawr," he deadpanned right back.
As soon as Noh felt they'd seen as much as they needed to see, he suggested that everyone take a seat and then called up to Scott to tell him they were ready for the test flight — and Scott was clearly only too happy to oblige.
When the engines started up, they were almost silent except for the ever-present hum of energy — and then, for those of the X-Men who were listening, or who had enhanced senses, there was another noise just underneath the sound of the engines. A very soft, melodic sound of strings starting up.
The music only got louder as soon as the blackbird was in the air — and it was quickly apparent that Noh had chosen this song specifically for this moment.
"Blackbird singing in the dead of night," came the opening line over the speakers that Noh had been sure to set up in the plane — the sound system was perfect, and of course, it meant that they could hear every word.
The X-Men all glanced at each other and then at Noh, who was entirely straight-faced as the song continued: "Take these broken wings and learn to fly."
It was obvious as the song kept playing that it was starting to click for the team just how perfect the song was for the occasion — for Scott ... for the whole thing. And by the time they got to the second verse, Logan simply fell apart laughing. Not the usual chuckles they had all seen — but honest to God, clutching his stomach belly laughing with tears streaming down his cheeks.
Scott's face and neck were nearly as red as his glasses by the time the song was over, and half the team was in stitches — partly from the song itself, partly from laughing at Scott's reaction, and partly because Logan's laugh was infectious when he was laughing that hard. Kurt in particular was wiping tears from his eyes as he was also unable to sit upright, simply doubled over beside his best friend as, every time it seemed one of them might be able to stop, they'd start up again all over at the other's laughing fit.
And of course, the bamfs were in fits. Their giggles were the loudest thing in the plane as they simply fell apart, on the floor and rolling around — especially when one of them managed to stop giggling long enough to sit down and pretend to be flying a plane, which just set them all off again.
It seemed like Noh had queued up an entire playlist for their first flight — though nothing quite matched the perfection of that opening number. As soon as "Blackbird" had ended, the opening to "Be My Baby" started up, and Noh finally broke his straight-faced routine to grin over at Jubilee and Kate and mouth 'the drums.' It was his favorite song, and they both knew it — though his enthusiasm for it did nothing to help the two gasping, crying X-Men behind them.
When they finally got back to the hangar, Scott was doing his best to try and act like nothing had happened as he told Noh that the plane handled wonderfully — but it was obvious he was still a bit pink around the edges as half his team was still chortling as they walked off the plane.
"I think you broke Logan," Jubilee told Noh with a giggle.
Noh was grinning wide as he kissed her cheek. "I didn't realize it was possible to do this thing," he teased, looking over at Logan, who didn't look like he'd be getting up anytime soon.
"I don't think I've ever seen him laugh that hard," Jubilee said with a grin. "Ever."
Noh puffed up his chest the slightest bit — Jubes wasn't sure he even realized he was doing it. "I just thought it was the perfect song for the unveiling," he said with as much of a straight face as he could manage.
She shook her head and threw her arms around his neck to kiss him with a little laugh. "You are the perfect straight-man — has anyone ever told you that?"
He just grinned broadly at her. "Not until now, but I do like the sound of it from you," he said as he kissed her back.
A short while later, Kurt and Logan finally emerged from the plane, still chuckling, arms around each other for support. When they passed Noh, Logan just started to lose it again. "That was perfection," Logan managed to get out.
Noh couldn't help but chuckle. "I thought it was an appropriate soundtrack," he said with a smirk as he tried and failed to keep up the straight-man routine.
"Thank you for that. I needed it," Logan said as Kurt led him off, still half-shaking with laughter.
Noh just grinned after the two of them as they left the hangar before he turned to Jubilee. "It wasn't my intention to cripple him with laughter, but… do you think it has earned me a better name than 'Bug Boy'?" he teased.
"I'm sure," Jubilee giggled. "You may or may not like whatever he comes up with next, though. And when you irritate him, it will go back to Bug Boy."
"I have suffered through months in this mansion with the first name. I'm sure I can handle the next," Noh laughed.
Even in August, it was still cold enough high in the Alaskan mountains where Kate and Kurt were staying that the mornings were best spent curled up in warm blankets with coffee and snuggles — not that this wasn't how the two of them spent most mornings anyhow, just that it lasted a bit longer because it was colder outside.
They'd made good on their plans to head up to the mountains for a few days alone before the rest of the X-Men arrived for Scott and Annie's wedding, and for the past three days, it had been nothing but skiing, hot chocolate, and snuggles — the perfect getaway.
The rest of the team was set to arrive that evening, so they were supposed to pack up and head back down to civilization soon, but for the moment, they were content to stay in bed for a while longer and enjoy the peace and quiet before they hit the hustle and bustle of a lot of wedding preparations.
"Would you look at this," Kate teased quietly as she poured herself another cup of coffee. "Made it through a whole vacation just the two of us and nobody got grabbed or stabbed or anything. Must be a record."
"I'm nearly as surprised as you are," he teased right back. "Though we do have a few hours before we leave. Maybe we should hold off on the victory celebrations just yet."
She just smirked and reached over him to set down her mug on the nightstand on his side of the bed so that she could properly snuggle him. "We'll throw a parade: 'Successful Vacation, No Kidnappings.' Everyone will be so impressed."
"It's the little things in life," he agreed as he nestled into her hair.
It took them an absurd amount of time to finally leave behind the little lodge where they'd been staying and to start the hike down to the main roads to go back to Anchorage and meet the rest of the team, and they weren't exactly in a hurry then, either. The mountain air was crisp and refreshing, and it was nice to just amble down the mountainside without hurrying from one thing to the next — from class to training to a mission to whatever else.
Kate kept her arm tightly looped through Kurt's — he was warm and fuzzy, and he was comfortable, and there was just something about walking down a mountain with her little personal heater that made her grin. They were about halfway down to where the shuttle would take them to the airfield to meet up with their friends when she spotted the first glimpse of movement and picked her head up off of Kurt's arm, frowning as she swept her gaze out over the area.
Welp. Vacation's over, she thought to herself when she spotted it again — just a quick glimpse of someone hiding, but enough to tell her that someone was watching them.
Kurt had noticed the change and looked at her curiously for only a moment before he started to follow her gaze as well, both of them half-tensed as they made their way down — though it wasn't until they reached the stop where they were supposed to meet the shuttle that they actually spotted their follower, and the words Kurt muttered under his breath were not ones that he'd taught her in his German lessons yet.
The guy had to be a Marauder. Big and brutish and stupid-looking — he just had to be. He had the same garish, pale complexion, with dark circles under his eyes. And as soon as he saw that they'd seen him, he just got up and walked off — which was not all that comforting, considering the last time they'd run into the Marauders.
The two of them kept their eyes peeled for any sign of anyone else all the way back to the airfield, but for the time being, they didn't see anything — not that it made them feel much better about the situation.
When they greeted the rest of the X-Men after the blackbird had landed, it was obvious that they weren't the only ones who were tense, though with Scott, it was for an entirely different reason. He was clearly nervous, and no matter how many times Annie assured him that everything was going to be perfect no matter what, there was no mistaking the stance that looked like he was half-ready for a battle.
So they decided to talk to Logan and just… leave Scott out of this one. At least until absolutely necessary. If they told him now that they'd seen Marauders, they weren't sure his heart could handle it.
"Ok," Logan said as he slid up next to Kurt, sure already that something was going on just from the look on the fuzzy blue Elf's face. "Spill."
Kurt looked over his shoulder to make sure that Scott was safely out of earshot — talking with Jubilee, who had taken over on Annie and was chatting happily about all the details of the reception and making sure Scott stuck around to be just as excited "because you should be excited, mister."
"Kate and I saw one of the Marauders on our way down here," Kurt said in his lowest whisper. "He left before we could see where he went — and we haven't seen any others. Yet. But they're here."
"Show me where he was," Logan replied with a little smirk. "Those guys all have a similar stink."
Kurt nodded with a little smirk to match, and it wasn't long at all before the two of them were standing halfway down the mountain as Kurt explained where he and Kate had been when they spotted him.
Logan nodded and started to spiral out until he found the spot, and from there, he nosed off down the guy's scent trail as easily as if it had been lit with neon light. But — it ended at an old railroad track. He turned to look at Kurt, who of course had stuck with him the whole way. "We probably oughta go take a look around wherever this wedding is going down. I know Scott didn't invite that creep."
"Agreed," Kurt said with a little frown as he followed his friend back. "I'm sure a perimeter sweep or nine couldn't hurt, either."
"That's the plan," Logan agreed. "And one of us should keep a close eye on Scott. Just in case."
"I'll ask our resident Hawkeye," Kurt suggested with a light smile.
"Might be better to have her stick to the bride," Logan pointed out. "You know how Essex is."
Kurt nodded, though he'd lost all trace of a frown at that. "Yes. I know," he said softly, then shook his head. "I'll stay close to Scott myself — if nothing else, I'll try and 'port him out if I have to, and keep a few bamfs with Annie and Kate. Just in case."
"Alright then," Logan said. "Meantime, let's go try and … be social."
The two friends made their way back to the resort lodge where most of the wedding guests were staying for the night — where it was plain to see that Annie and her two older sisters were running the show, with Annie's middle sister, Theresa, looking proud as she showed her siblings the adorable little boy she and her husband had just adopted from Honduras. She and her husband, Craig, couldn't have children of their own, and they had adopted Aman from Ethiopia a few years previously. And while Theresa was more than happy to show off the adorable little boy, she also seemed to have put herself in charge of making sure no party guests asked the "when are you having your own?" question of her little sister — not when it was none of their business to pry anyway. And her strategy of deflecting the question with a cute little baby was highly effective.
Annie had a fairly large extended family, all of whom were thrilled to pieces to hear as many stories as possible about how Annie and Scott has met as well as anything else that they felt they needed to catch up on, and as the night wore on, those that weren't part of the Hale clan found that it was getting more and more difficult to follow the conversation. All of them were from the Deep South, and the accents seemed to be getting thicker not only as it got later — but simply as a result of talking with each other, like they were feeding off each other.
Most of the X-Men were content to stay on the periphery of the family group, half keeping an eye on things and just enjoying the show as Scott was pulled from one little knot of Annie's family to the next for introductions — though a few of them got pulled into the fun.
Leslie Ann, Annie's oldest niece, was leading a group of a few other kids in trying to wear Bobby and Peter out — since, she insisted, they were the most fun and would play tag until they dropped. Which they did.
Though, of course, Annie's nephew, Aman, didn't play tag. Instead, he was content to just quietly stare at Kurt for a little while, tightly holding the bamf doll Kurt had given him the last time he was in Alaska... until one of the bamfs approached him and quietly said 'bamf,' which had Aman giggling so loudly it drew Kurt's attention to the little boy. And after that — Aman refused to crawl out of Kurt's lap for the remainder of the night, which, naturally, had Jubilee repeatedly elbowing Kate in the ribs as soon as she noticed Kurt being held willingly hostage by the adorable little boy.
"I'm just saying. You should look at him," Jubilee said out of the corner of her mouth. "Now."
Kate stuck her tongue out at Jubilee for a second and then turned to see Kurt … and let out a noise that was somewhere between 'this is adorable' and 'I can't believe this.' She tried to cover by taking a sip of champagne and said, with a wave, "Aww, it's his biggest fan."
"Kurt's or Aman's?" Jubilee asked with her best innocent expression.
Kate raised an eyebrow Jubilee's way and then smirked. "Both."
"That might be true," Jubilee said. "But for very different reasons."
"I'm going to have to take a page out of America's book and start calling you Glitter Queen if you don't shut up," Kate said, shaking her head. She couldn't believe Jubilee was still teasing her about this; it had been weeks since the tiny Katie incident, and still Jubilee was convinced that a baby Elf was just necessary to her life.
"I'll shut up — you just have to prove me right first."
"Well now I'm just going to have to invest in purple earplugs," Kate teased. "Seeing as that means you'll be loud and obnoxious about this forever."
"Forever must be a lot shorter than I thought," Jubilee said with a laugh.
"If Noh was here, he'd say something about temporal relativity, but I don't speak Kree nonsense," Kate teased. "But you? You better brush up. I'm sure he'll want to teach your itty bitties his native language."
"That could be fun," Jubilee shot back, not even shrinking from the shot. "You're already learning German, right?"
Kate had to shake her head at herself. "Oh, I walked into that one."
Jubilee just giggled and leaned on her shoulder. "You really, really did."
Meanwhile, across the room, Annie's brother-in-law, Anton, had made his way over to talk to Storm with a little smile. "I never did thank you, ma'am," he told her politely, "for helpin' me an' Rachel move down with our girls an' gettin' me that job with the state police so we could be close to Annie."
"What makes you think I did anything?" Storm asked with a serene smile.
"I know y'all X-Men had somethin' to do with it, else I wouldn't've gotten so many questions 'bout how I found myself with a personal recommendation from Nick Fury, director of SHIELD," he pointed out with a low grin. "Didn't tell 'em nothin' 'cept to say it was a friend of a friend, in case y'all would get in trouble."
"I'm afraid I can't take credit for that," she replied, still with that same calm smile in place. "I don't even know Nick Fury but in passing. Certainly not well enough to arrange for something like that."
He just grinned at her even wider. "Yes ma'am, but our Annie says you run things 'round here, so you're the one to thank all the same."
At that, Storm finally had to laugh lightly. "I may have asked someone to arrange for an impressive recommendation," she admitted, "but I didn't know who it would come from."
"Well, I sure appreciate it," Anton told her sincerely. "The job and the way you been with my girls. They been tellin' me all 'bout visitin' the school, and the whole lot of you're spoilin' 'em rotten."
"You should be proud; they're beautiful, smart girls," Storm said with a genuine smile.
"Get it all from their mother," he said. "I just put food in their mouths."
Storm just laughed at that. "Good answer."
The party continued on for some time, but eventually, slowly, people started to head up to bed. After all, there would be plenty of time for socializing and partying at the reception the next day, and some of Annie's massive extended family had little ones that needed to go to sleep.
They were all sure to give their congratulations to the happy couple on their way out — and the X-Men were sure to promise to keep an eye out and stop trouble, since Scott still looked like he was sure something cataclysmic was going to happen. But still, the only troublesome thing that had happened so far was the fact that Aman had nearly pitched a fit when he was told he had to go to bed and couldn't stay with his favorite X-Man — until Kurt promised to see him at the wedding, and he calmed down enough to let his parents take him to bed.
The difference for those who stayed down in the foyer with a still-nervous Scott was astounding, as the silence seemed louder than the ruckus of Annie's family had been. But eventually, even Scott headed to bed — after Kurt talked him into at least trying to get some sleep — and the lodge fell finally into silence.