We're almost done! This is the next to last installment! What boring documentary will Scott pick? Read to find out!
This also happens to be the one all the readers have been waiting for. This is when Jubilee finally finds out what her present from Wolvie is! I'm so excited, I can't wait to type it! Hopefully, I can have this up by Veteran's Day……….if not, oh well. I posted today, so that should curb you animals. Hehe………just kidding. On with the show!
FLUFFY BUNNY WARNING: CUTENESS AHEAD
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Movie Night 8: A Mystery Revealed
The Professor carted in with six bowls of popcorn into a full den. He was hiding a small folder behind him and as he handed a bowl to Jubilee, he handed it to Logan. He nearly choked on his beer and snatched it a little more forcefully than he meant. With a slightly apologetic look to the professor, he tucked it behind him, out of Jubilee's reach. She really hadn't noticed, as she was scarfing popcorn, but she made a mental note to bug him about it later.
Scott came bounding in with the video, grinning like an idiot, and carefully pushed the tape into the VCR. Making sure the volume was at the correct level and that the tint and hue of the screen were right, he sat down next to Jean.
"What did ya get for us, Cyke?" Jubilee scoffed, "The Amazing Amoeba?"
"Life and Times of King Tut?" put in Rogue.
"Ok guys, that's enough Scott-bashing. I think you will actually be surprised at my choice." And as the movie began, they were. An almost psychedelic scene played before them, filled with old people dancing and carrying on. Jubilee looked a little disgusted, but Scott assured everyone it would pass.
As the "Red Eyes" attacked the old folk's home, the entire team, as one, looked over at their leader. He had picked a comedy.
"What?" he asked.
Storm was the first to find her voice. "To say this is unexpected is an understatement."
"Hey, 'Mystery Men' is entertaining and team-building."
"Knew there had to be a motive," Jubilee mumbled under her breath.
"Just watch the movie." As they refocused on the screen, Captain Amazing saved the day once more, after a botched attempt by the unlikely heroes.
Jubilee began comparing her teammates with the characters from the movie. Mr. Furious, a man who's power comes from his rage, was almost like her Wolvie. Deep down, he's not as bad as he wants to seem. The sensible Shoveler, always bringing the team back to earth, was Storm. The Blue Raja, the English-accented fork flinger, was almost like Gambit. He tries to hide up who he really is to fit in with the team, and at times he is underestimated.
And then there was The Spleen, played by Paul Reuben. No one really wants him on the team, as he is offensive, but they can't really get rid of him, and he does provide, er, cover fire. Jubilee cringed when she realized this was Cyclops. Not the fact that no one wanted him on the team, but sometimes he came off as offensive and overpowering. Not to mention he did provide more than adequate cover fire.
She stopped when she realized she was actually enjoying Cyke's pick. She had already geared herself up for a night of historical documentaries, or even training films of their Danger Room sessions. Never in a million years would she have expected a comedy tonight. She supposed her leader wasn't all bad, he just needed to let loose more. She resolved to try and help him on this endeavor in the future.
She shrugged and munched on more popcorn, watching as The Bowler was introduced. Jubilee always liked Janeane Garafolo, so this was shaping up to be her favorite character. With her confrontational attitude and constant jabs at Mr. Furious, she was definitely Rogue. Jubilee laughed at the fact that the skull in her bowling ball was her father's skull and that it talked to her. Without a doubt, Invisible Boy was her, having the weakest power and being the youngest member.
She laughed at the Disco Boys, the bad guy's lackeys. Jubilee was still in shock that anyone could listen to that music, much less be obsessed with it. As they attacked, and their guns were cut in half by the Sphinx, Jubilee focused on the newest team member. The Sphinx was appointed the new leader of the team and began to teach them with clichéd statements. This guy was a mixture of Jean and the Prof. Jubilee chuckled at the mental image of those two being spliced together. That left Beast. She began to think about who she should splice together to make one of the characters when they were introduced to Dr. Heller, an extremely eccentric scientist who makes only non-lethal weapons. She let out an involuntary laugh, causing most of them to turn to look at her.
"Are you ok, sugah?" Rogue asked.
"Uh, yeah, I, um, just think this movie is funny?" she offered.
"Uh huh," was Wolverine's only reply. She watched the rest of the movie in silence, only laughing at the appropriate places. When it was over, she slapped Cyclops on the back.
"That was good, Cyke. Never saw it comin.'" She followed her mentor out into the hallway. He had a really strange look on his face, and she wanted to find out what was bugging him. He usually walked her to her room, but he was headed outside. He didn't seem to object to her presence, in fact, he slowed to allow her to catch up. They walked in silence to the garden, Wolverine fingering the folder the entire time. A cold front had come through the night before, and a breeze sent a chill down her spine. Bandit had somehow found his way outside and was playfully romping in the garden.
"Wolvie, what's up?" She edged closer to him, trying to draw from his warmth. It's not fair, she thought, guys are always warm. She eyed the folder. "What's that?" That seemed to break him from his deep thoughts, and he looked at her.
"Yer present," was all he said. Her eyes got wide, and desperately tried to think of things that would fit inside a folder. Paper, of course, but what? Maybe he had lied to hide the cruise so it would be a surprise. No, her Wolvie wouldn't lie to her. She screwed her face up in thought, and he chuckled.
"What?" she asked accusingly.
"Yer cute when yer tryin' ta think."
"What do ya mean, tryin' ta think?" she shoved him playfully, and he went sprawling. She knew she hadn't pushed him that hard, but she also knew she was in trouble. He placed the folder on the bench in the gazebo and took off after her. She had almost made it out of the garden when she felt herself being lifted off the ground. She let out a shriek and giggled loudly as he placed her on the grass and began to tickle her mercilessly. She pulled her legs up and placed her feet on his chest, pushing with all her might. He backed off enough to allow her to bolt again, and she did.
Bandit, not being one to just sit and watch the fun, chased after his owner, crashing into the back of her knees. She went sprawling, almost hitting her head on a stepping stone in the grass before Wolverine caught her and pulled her back up.
"You okay, darlin?"
"Yep," she brushed herself off, "So where's my present?" She switched to her best five-year old impression and skipped behind him all the way to the gazebo where they both sat down on the bench. He held it out to her, but pulled it back just before she grabbed it.
"Jubes, this is totally your decision, I mean, if ya want it. All you have to do is say the word and it's done." He took a deep breath and handed her the envelope.
She took it with a quizzical look and opened it. The first thing she saw was her birth certificate. She looked at it with tears in her eyes and began to read.
"On this date, October 18, 1987, Jubilation Lee was born to her proud parents, Dr. Long Lee and Mrs. Cho Lee." She pulled it out and set it aside. The next things in the folder was her parents' death certificates. She didn't even bother and set those aside as well. Then, her papers as she became a ward of the state. Tears threatened to fall, but she didn't dare let them.
She pulled out this as well and found the papers that signed her over to Xavier. Great, I'm nothing more than property exchanging hands. She pulled this out, expecting to have reached the end, but another paper caught her eye. It was New York Civil Court decree. Curious, she glanced up at Wolverine, who had a very neutral expression on his face. She pulled it out and read it.
Wolverine watched her closely as she read the adoption document, searching for any sign. He sniffed the air and did not smell fear, so that was at least a good sign. She stared at the paper for a good five minutes, having read it three times to make sure she wasn't dreaming. A hand on her shoulder broke her trance. Carefully, she placed the documents back in the folder and closed it. Standing, she walked to the edge of the gazebo and looked out onto the garden.
In reality, she didn't want him to see her crying. She hated when someone saw her cry, even if it was Wolvie. No, scratch that, especially Wolvie. She heard him get up and walk behind her, wanting to talk to her, but not really knowing what to say. She knew how he felt. What could they say? Then it hit her. This was real. Her knees buckled and he almost didn't catch her. Carefully, he laid her on the cool grass, hoping it would help.
"Jubes?" he tried lightly tapping her face, and was rewarded with a small groan and a blink of her eyes.
"Wolvie?" she woke up to see his face covered in concern. She must have hit her head on that stepping stone when Bandit knocked her over. But the dream she had had was so real, she almost wanted to ask him.
"Hey, you okay, kiddo. I didn't mean to give you a shock like that." He stood and went back into the gazebo and retrieved the folder. When she saw it, her eyes bugged out. It hadn't been a dream. Faster than he could react, she launched herself into his arms, crying. She buried her head so he wouldn't see, but she knew he could hear.
"You mean it, Wolvie?" It was muffled, but he understood.
"Of course, darlin.' All I have to do is sign, and it's official."
He let out a 100%, honest-to-goodness, genuine laugh when she produced a pen out of seemingly nowhere. Bandit barked, not wanting to be left out of the happy occasion. Jubilee picked him up and he licked her face.
A scuffle of shoes turned their attention to the walkway, then there was a bright flash. Jean stood there with a Polaroid, with the rest of the team behind her. They had all just been clued in to the proceedings by the professor and all of them were grinning madly.
"Oh, that's gonna be a good one," she exclaimed. Jubilee was confused.
"How did you know?" Wolverine laid a hand on her shoulder.
"Come on, Jubes. You don't honestly think I could've talked to all those lawyers without snappin' and rippin' someone's head off, do ya? The Prof helped a lot there." She smiled and went over to Xavier. She placed a kiss on his cheek and hugged him.
"Thank you, Professor," she whispered in his ear.
"You're quite welcome," he whispered back. She shivered a little and turned back to the team.
"Uh, can we take this party inside? It's a little chilly out here." Everyone nodded their assent and walked into the foyer. Once in the kitchen, everyone watched silently as Wolverine signed the last line on the form and handed it to Xavier.
"I'll get this to Mike first thing tomorrow. In the meantime, I believe congratulations are in order." He pulled out a bottle of champagne, a Canadian beer, and a Pepsi. Everyone laughed, and Jubilee and Wolverine took the two smaller bottles. He held out his beer, and she tapped her plastic bottle against it, smiling. Gambit was smiling.
"See, der be a happy ending. Gambit was right." Rogue slapped him on the shoulder and handed him a glass of champagne. They all toasted the two, and they celebrated into the morning with jokes (mostly at Cyclops for his movie) and pestering the professor to tell them what his pick was.
Jubilee fell asleep at the table around 2 am, and most of the team was either hammered or passed out. Wolverine, by far the most sober, picked up Jubilee and took her to her room. It was a good thing she was wearing sweats; Wolverine wasn't comfortable changing her, not to mention she'd probably be a little peeved in the morning. He laid her in the bed and covered her up, kissing her forehead.
"Night, darlin.'" As he switched off the lamp and walked to the door, he heard her mumble in her sleep.
"Night Dad."
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Wow, did I just write that? That was extremely sappy, and not my usual taste. But hey, every now and again, I must deviate. So…how did everyone like it?
ARE YOU HAPPY? ARE YOU? I DID IT! PLEASE CALL OFF THE SQUAD OF RABID GERBILS!!
Well *sniff* only one chapter to go. I think you will all be surprised from the Prof's pick, if you aren't already floored from Scott's. Thanks to all my readers, both reviewers and silent.