A/N - we ... really can't wait to put this one out there. Practically An Avenger ... you rock. Please, feel free to scream at us. - CC

Chapter 118 - Ooohs and AAAAAAAAH!

It had been a rough couple weeks, all things considered. James was still having trouble relaxing around his family and friends. Anyone but Billy, that is. The whole time James had been instinctively reacting, Billy had been careful, understanding, and he knew how to gently get James to relax around him. And though Emma had thoroughly screwed with his head, James did have the memories of how nice it had been for both of them while he was free of his trauma. So he was trying. But it was long overdue when they finally got to step out and celebrate now that Wanda had given Billy and Tommy a little breathing room. Tommy was out with Mia, of course, and James had asked Billy to pick out his favorite spot for a more romantic retreat. And Billy had jumped at the chance to do something just the two of them in the city - even if he had to cast a spell to avoid most of the onlookers and press.

"Okay, but I actually grew up in the Indian ocean, and I'm telling you - this is the closest I've found to anything like good Indian food," Billy said as he and James got seats at the restaurant Billy had chosen.

"I'm game for whatever you want to do," James said - again. "Since you know what you're doing, you're running the show."

"Perfect. I'll order for us," Billy said, grinning. "There's this amazing spiced grape salad for an appetizer and I can't stop eating it."

James rested his chin in the palm of his hand. "It's really cute when you gush about things you love."

Billy blushed high on his cheeks. "It's just… been a while since we've gotten a romantic dinner."

"At least, since we weren't making it ourselves," James said, still halfway smiling.

"You know what I mean," Billy said, though he couldn't stop smiling with James smiling at him. And once they got into their dinner, Billy was having even more fun, telling stories from home and talking about his dad's graduation present - they were going to go shark diving again, this time in South Africa.

The boys were having a good time, entirely ignoring everyone around them until a tall, muscular woman approached their table with her chin tipped up, looking down her nose at the two of them. She stopped in front of their table and cleared her throat, waiting for them to acknowledge her.

Billy turned her way mid-laugh. "Hey, we're kind of in the middle of a date - is it okay if whatever you want waits?" he said politely - just in case this was someone who wanted an autograph or something.

She looked between them with a raised eyebrow. "I won't take up much of your time," she said. "I'm simply here to deliver a message for the rest of my associates." She offered her hand to Billy as she introduced herself. "Monet ."

Billy's eyebrows rose, and he smiled lightly. "I know your name," he said. "You were in the X-Men - the old team, I mean."

"Junior team only," she said, smiling lightly, though it didn't reach her eyes at all.

"Still counts in my book," Billy said. "What can I do for you?"

"May I?" she said, gesturing to the table before she pulled a chair over to sit - though she had yet to look James' way more than to asses the situation. And now that she had Billy's attention, she was moving in to business mode.

And James was purely entertained since this had never happened outside of Genosha.

"You are annoyingly hard to reach out to," Monet said. "I've been trying to speak with you for several weeks."

"I've been busy," Billy said, frowning at the fact that she was starting out so snobbishly. "School, you know?"

"Yes, well, that hasn't been the case for a little while now," Monet said. "My secretary did attempt to make contact at Xavier's first." She waved her hand before continuing. "I have some rather sensitive matters to discuss. Privacy would be best, of course."

"Alright," Billy said, muttering a quick spell before he turned his attention back to Monet. "There you go. No one can hear or record us - what's up?"

Monet didn't seem to relax at all, though, and finally barely glanced toward James. "Are you sure?"

"Very. It's just the three of us."

She tutted softly, then shifted how she was sitting so she couldn't really look toward James at all - which had him somehow more entertained. "There are several major things we need to discuss, William. One of which being the membership that you inherited upon your grandfather's untimely death and the duties that go along with it."

"Membership?" Billy repeated, frowning.

"I'm surprised that you weren't informed sooner," Monet said, then picked up her purse to pull out an envelope with a wax seal to hand to him. "Others have attempted to get this to you. Or they claimed to have tried."

Billy frowned as he quickly opened the envelope - and pulled a spectacular face. "Yeah, that's a hard no," he said and pushed the envelope back across the table. "See, to be in the Hellfire Club, I'd have to associate with people I want to wish out of existence, and I already have enough on my plate, thanks."

Monet smirked. "The trouble, William, is that the spot has to be filled, and as your grandfather elected when he took the position - it needs to go to someone that he chose."

"You don't need a Gray King; you made that spot up in the first place, and it can die in oblivion along with the other things he's done," Billy said firmly.

"You don't exactly have a choice in this," Monet said. "You inherited the membership upon his death. You can't just … shake it off. Ask Ororo. Or Warren. Elizabeth. There are many people you know who are members."

"In name only," Billy pointed out.

"They have all participated," Monet said. "And unless you do something to help to restore our members of the inner circle, we'll be forced to make sure your name is attached publicly."

Billy narrowed his eyes - and though he wasn't aware of it, James could see power sparking at Billy's fingertips as he crossed his arms. "I don't like being pushed around," he said. "Say what you're looking for and I'll decide if it's worth a second thought."

She was much less subtle with her attitude at that, though. "That's information only for members." She looked toward James. "You should leave."

"I'm good here, thanks," James said, settling in and very sure it was about to get interesting. "Don't really have any respect for your power hungry club either, so…"

"I'd tell him whatever we discuss anyway. Just spit it out so I can get back to my date. This is getting melodramatic - and I'm a Maximoff. That's saying something."

"Fine." Monet rolled her eyes. "Give us Frost back. Fully."

"Absolutely not."

"There is no reason-"

"St. Croix," Billy said, sitting forward with his eyes literally flashing, "I don't think you understand the position you're in. I think you're so used to being catered to, to being the powerful one in the room, that you forgot I'm the heir to the throne of Genosha and can wish you out of existence without losing a wink of sleep. So I'd be very, very careful whose side you take here - mine or a washed-up White Queen."

Monet stared back at him for a moment with a blank expression, weighing out his words. "You feel as if this is a personal attack. That's simply not the case."

"I'm not undoing my magic," Billy said. "She deserved it." He seemed to be completely unaware of the fact that the table was floating slightly along with several small items around them. "And now, I'd like you to deliver a message," he said. "Nopowersnopowersnopowers." The table landed with a slight thunk, and Billy sat back, smirking at Monet as she fumed. "That will last for a couple days. Enjoy."

Monet was beyond words as she got to her feet and turned on her heel, furious but unable to fight back - for the moment - a fact that was accented nicely when she did turn back to them and James let out a low, warning growl.

"Tell the Club to leave me alone, would you please?" Billy called after her. "That, Ms. , is what we Maximoffs call a 'warning'."

As she left, James didn't say a word, just smiling crookedly at Billy while Billy glared after Monet, but the second he turned toward James again, James had to go back to what he felt was his best response to just about anything Billy did when he lost his temper momentarily. "So hot."

Instantly, Billy lost the flash of power at his fingertips and eyes, and he blushed brilliantly. "I… um… maybe I lost my temper…"

"No, no. That was amazing. Very well balanced 'tremble, peasant' going on."

"Really?" Billy blushed again. "You don't think it was too… Magneto..y?"

James was already slowly shaking his head. "No way. No cape, for one thing."

Billy cleared his throat and straightened up. "Yeah, well, I guess that's a new wrinkle we'll have to deal with, huh? I'll talk to Ororo about it when we get home."

"Wrinkle? Where? You bein' all … badass everywhere you go? I don't see a problem, little prince. You got your 'fear me' turned up a little bit -but she was asking for it."

"She kind of was," Billy agreed.

James leaned toward him. "No offense, handsome … this dinner's been amazing, but are we done talking now?"

Billy grinned even wider. "Yeah. We totally are."

James took a moment to throw the cash he had with him on the table. "Well?"

Billy didn't need any more prompting than that to wish them back to one of James' cabins - conveniently leaving out that he was very much out of magical energy after that last spell, so they were temporarily without instant transportation after that. Not that James would be making requests to do anything that required leaving until they had to.

The Fourth of July party started out early for the Summers family as they packed up to head out to the school. The day promised to be a good one as the first holiday post Emma Frost's manipulations and misery toward the family at large. And it was the first big holiday since Scott and Annie had gotten engaged - so both of them were excited to share the day with their extended family in Westchester, as well as their close families, who were all meeting them there.

Annie was newly minted on staff at Xavier's after all - and proudly wearing the honor of being the first human teacher to work full time at the school since it's inception. It was cause for celebration no matter how you looked at it.

The twins were already at the school, helping Ororo to set up for the festivities, and James had promised to meet them there after an obligatory stop at the tower since … it was also, fittingly, Steve's birthday and James refused to let the day pass without taking a moment with 'Uncle Steve'. The rest of the Summerses would have joined him too - if not for the massive influx of press that had been harassing all of them, and the fact that they had to get to Westchester ASAP to help set up for the day.

Scott was working at the grill, smirking lightly over at Annie as she laughed with her niece. Leslie Ann was already begging her dad to let her be on the X-Men, and Annie was outright encouraging her, even if she wasn't quite old enough yet. But she and Lexi Barton were both making cases, and it was fun to watch that enthusiasm. He remembered how much the junior squad had wanted to be heroes, and it reminded him of that feeling again.

Annie caught his gaze and waved at him, though she was in the middle of telling Anton that his little girl wasn't so little anymore, so she didn't break up the conversation to join him. Which was fine by Scott, because he was preoccupied with his own thoughts anyway. He had been working hard to patch things up with Annie, and he knew he was lucky she wasn't fully holding Emma's manipulations against him. She wasn't thrilled with how easily he'd fallen for it, but they were back on good footing, as far as he could tell. He was still making the extra effort - the occasional note on her pillow if he woke up before her, that kind of thing - but things were alright there.

With James… it was another story. He knew he couldn't take back what had happened, and he was worried if he tried to push James, if he tried to insert himself back into James's life at the level he used to be involved, that James would resent it. He knew James needed time and space, and Scott was trying to give him that.

He just… hadn't expected to find a letter from Oxford in the mail the morning before the fourth. And all at once, he couldn't stop thinking about that possibility - about James being on an entirely different continent for school, getting far away from Scott… Scott knew that James had to have reached out to Oxford before everything that had happened, but he also knew that there was suddenly an intense awkwardness between them, the feeling of losing his family… that had the potential to drive James away.

Scott was trying to brace himself for that, for the idea that James might not ever get past what Emma had said through Scott. And Scott couldn't blame the kid; no one could be expected to shake off their dad telling them they weren't wanted. Scott hadn't shaken it off, and he was fully grown.

He'd just… have to make sure he looked out for James from the sidelines. He wasn't going to stop caring about his son; he'd just have to do it from further away. Maybe reach out to Moira and some old contacts…

"Lost in thought again?" Annie asked, coming over to wrap him up from behind and peek around his shoulder at the burgers. "I didn't realize grilling out was such a serious adventure."

Scott shook his head at her and picked his arm up so she could duck underneath and he could pull her into a hug. "Just imagining the X-Men being led by your niece," he teased her. "She's already well on her way. Taking after Jubilee and demanding her spot on the team…"

"She'd be thrilled to hear you say it, too," Annie said.

"And you're encouraging her."

"She's almost as old as Mia was when she started," Annie pointed out. "Anton's going to have to realize that sooner or later."

"'Almost' isn't the same," Scott said.

"Oh, are you taking his side?" Annie raised both eyebrows. "I don't even know if I can speak to you right now," she teased.

"You and Leslie Ann already have a superhero name picked out for her, don't you?"

"And you will hear it when she makes her debut. Jan has an outfit designed for her and for Lexi."

"Of course she does," Scott said, shaking his head.

The food wasn't ready yet, and it wasn't dark enough outside yet for fireworks. Nate and his old teammate, Tim, had been tossing a football back and forth as they waited for the food. When Kate spotted them, she challenged Nate to face off - because neither of them could resist competing with each other.

It sort of spiraled from there, especially once the older X-Men caught wind of what was going on when Leslie Ann delightedly pulled Lexi along so that they could get in on the action. Before anyone knew what had happened, they were actually organizing a game. Bobby and Johnny got roped into being referees by an enthusiastic Mia. Angel and Kitty volunteered as coaches, and a bunch of the students at the school were gathering to either watch the show or join in the game.

Obviously, as soon as Kate had declared war, she'd roped America in - who brought Rachel along so that the two Summerses could start ragging on each other long before the game even got going. Kate's sister, Lexi, had to join in, too - with Leslie Ann siding with her best friend at the school, obviously.

Mia and Tommy had to be split up - both teams agreed to that. A teleporter and a speedster on the same team just wasn't going to happen. So, Mia joined Nate and Tim's team, which now also included May - and James and Billy once Nate flagged them down. Throw in a few students from the school, and it was shaping up to be a good game.

James had been late to show up, and then did a fine job of avoiding the crowd once he'd gotten in from Steve's birthday bash, so he wasn't really up on the teases for the day - yet. Though, he stopped cold when they started lining up across from Kate's team and he had to blink at her a few times, just … processing that something was very different about her. He was trying to put his finger on it - but wasn't fast enough to avoid being teased for spacing out. Especially since he very suddenly got it, and his whole expression fell flat.

And then, Nate hiked the ball, and the game got started in earnest, with Mia teleporting down the field and already calling for Nate to throw to her. When Tommy started to zip over to intercept, Billy cast a spell to slow his brother down - and Tommy started swearing up a blue streak that made Leslie Ann blush down to the tips of her toes.

Kate was headed right for Nate with a crooked smirk, and America was right there with her wearing a smirk to match - especially when Rachel let Tim run into a telepathic bubble when he tried to defend Nate so he could get a clear shot to pass the ball. And before James could get between Kate and Nate, America plowed into him, laughing when Kate tackled Nate - and Nate's pass fell short of Mia.

"Nice hit, Miss America," James said from the ground before he picked himself up. "You planning on making me your tackle dummy for the whole thing?"

"Depends," America said, grinning crookedly as she popped up to her feet. "I'm also partial to taking May down. I like a challenge, and she's stronger than anyone else on your team."

"She absolutely is," James agreed in a heartbeat before he called over to May. "Hey Mayday- Miss America said she wants a piece."

May grinned their way, then took a wide stance to point at America. "You're going down, princess!" Which had America grinning.

Laughing, James looked down the line as they gathered up again and he leaned toward May. "We're so gonna lose though."

Nate overheard James and let out a loud scoff as May laughed loudly. "Seriously?"

"Um … yes," James said, gesturing to the other team.

"You're so underestimating us, handsome," Billy said, grinning widely.

"Mmmm. Nope," James argued, then reached over to give Billy and Nate both a shove. "Feel free to prove me wrong though."

"My pleasure. So. Let's do a link-up," Nate said, nodding to himself.

James did a quick double take. "Nope. Not happening." He hadn't meant to let that slip out so harshly, but from what he'd just sussed out about Kate, there was no way he'd let a telepath into his head - especially Nate. Kate needed to figure it out for herself, and Nate needed to hear from her that she was pregnant. James wasn't going to mess that up for either of them if he could help it.

"Are you serious?" Nate gestured toward the other team. "Rachel's already got them linked up!"

"So link up with everyone else," James said, rolling his shoulders as America and Kate shared a trouble making look.

"James, it's not going to hurt you to-"

"No means no, little brother."

Nate glared at James and then threw his hands up. "Billy, your boyfriend is sabotaging the game."

"You act like I have any control over him," Billy shot back, laughing.

"Whatever," Nate grumbled as they got into position for the second down, and Kate shot him a smirk across the line because she recognized his grump.

"Still mad I tackled you?" she called over to him. "I kissed you to make it better!"

"No, he's mad he's going to lose to the cheerleader," James called back, just to get Kate off her game, too.

Kate blinked at him and then grinned, but before she could say something sassy in agreement, Nate hiked the ball and moved fast to hand it off to Tim, faking the other team out so that they had to scramble to stop Tim.

"First down," Johnny said, and Nate blew a kiss toward Kate.

The game continued like that for a while, with both sides trading taunts and barbs and getting under each other's skin the way only good friends and siblings could. Tommy threw Billy off his game asking if there was going to be any American football in Genosha now that he knew he had an open excuse for slapping James's butt in public. Billy faked America out by pretending to wince away from her tackle only to wish her frozen instead. Mia kissed Tommy after teleporting into his path and made him fumble the ball. May completely sidelined America hard enough to get her to skid in the grass and start laughing delightedly. And Rachel and Nate were telepathically trash talking to each other the whole time. James got a good play in when he realized Tommy was taking the same paths toward the end zone and clotheslined him - which at least got Nate to back off of pushing to link up.

The game was gearing up and they were all getting a little rougher - especially once it was clear that the princes weren't off the table to take a hit after James peeled Tommy off the ground. But that had James watching who was going after who consistently. When he saw Kate gearing up to take Nate out when he was lined up for a throw, he utterly abandoned trying to stop Rachel like he was supposed to and rushed to tackle Kate instead… as gently and carefully as possible. Nate had no idea that James was trying to keep Kate from getting hurt, but Kate caught on fast when the tackle turned into a clearly protective Calvin and Hobbes style roll that Kate barely felt. But being that close only had James more concerned with ending the game faster after he got a more concentrated whiff of the shift in Kate's scent.

"What, are you trying to play softball? You got money on us winning or something?" Kate asked as she hit him hard in the shoulder. "You goon."

James shifted and hopped to his feet, already offering her a hand up. "Why in the world would I bet on you winning?" James asked with a smile he knew would throw her off - then made a point to kiss her cheek. "You are paranoid."

"You're playing dirty," Kate shot back, though she was starting to relax a bit, figuring he was trying to get in her head.

"How … how the hell am I playing dirty?"

"I haven't figured it out yet, but you're definitely up to something."

"Wow. Your Widow is showing … just … peeking out a little bit."

"It was there the whole time," Kate teased him, saluting him with two fingers as they lined back up again. There wasn't much time left in the game, and the scores were close enough that everyone was playing harder now, too.

James leaned over to give Billy a quick kiss on the cheek and make a quiet request outside of Nate's telepathic team link. He just wanted Billy to handle America, who he knew would be gunning for him after that last clearly protective move on Kate.

Billy, of course, took it as an invitation to show off, so as Nate called the last play, Billy simply wished the entirety of the other team to freeze, then bowed and gestured dramatically for Nate to walk the football down.

The scores were dead even, so the extra point would decide the game, then - and that had everyone ready to throw a few superpowered elbows. May lined up to take the kick; the rest of the X-Men scrambled; and James saw Tim headed for Kate.

He darted around America, who was going for a little payback, then shifted direction fast to slam into Tim a lot harder than he'd ever come close to hitting Kate -making a clear line between the two and completely confusing the rest of the players on both teams as he took Tim entirely off his feet before knocking him into the ground.

May still made the kick, but she was staring at James. "So, um, what the hell was that?"

"What?" James replied as if nothing had happened, then pulled Tim to his feet and dusted him off.

Tim pushed his hands away. "I'm on your team, you lunatic!"

"Oops. Forgot."

"Used to haze new guys way worse than this," Bobby said, grinning with his arm around Johnny. "But points for waiting until you won."

"Hey. No one has ever accused me of being a team player," James said, holding both hands up. "And Nate didn't tell me what he wanted me to do, so I had to improvise."

Nate rolled his eyes and threw up one hand toward his brother. "If you'd have let me loop you in-"

Kate was laughing as she slipped over to him and stole a kiss. "Pretty sure the burgers are done now," she said. "It smells amazing. We should make your dad show off his skills for Annie on every holiday."

Nate smirked and shook his head. "Just wait until she's got her hands on Thanksgiving."

"Even better," Kate declared happily.

James, meanwhile, had made a point to try and smooth things over with Tim, though he saw Scott watching them out of the corner of his eye. "I was just having a little fun. Mayday had it in the bag anyhow. If it would have been someone else where you were, it would have been them."

Tim shook his head with a disbelieving laugh. "Hey, no harm, no foul," he said. "That was a good hit."

"Just a game, right? You've been covering Nate for a couple years now, haven't you?" James asked. "Pretty sure I saw him bossing you around at the high school."

Tim laughed. "Hey, don't worry; we always knocked him down a few pegs when he got like that."

"Sounds like you have a lot of work on your hands," James said with a smirk. "He's a horrible little brother. Almost as bossy as Rachel."

"Wow, yeah, you got a double dose, huh?" Tim said with a growing smile.

"Pretty sure they kept me around just to keep those two from killing each other."

"Oh, sure," Tim agreed, chuckling. "Every family needs one, right?"

"Probably?" James said with one eye closed.

Tim shrugged easily and socked James in the shoulder, experimentally - he hadn't really been around the rest of the X-Men his age, but he wanted to get to know the group better. "C'mon, let's go bust Nate's balls."

"Like it's a challenge," James said as the two of them fell into an easy chat - mostly about how Tim was settling in and what he wanted to do after school because James knew Nate wanted the guy to feel welcomed. And he wasn't above using the positive impression most of the school had when it came to using his popularity to brighten someone's day. He didn't say anything to Tim, but he could already hear a few younger students on the sidelines that were whispering about how tough Tim had to be after that hit. The kids knew Tim had played ball with Nate - and that was proven by how well the two of them had worked together, so after that game, they were already talking about if Tim was going to be joining the X-Men or not.

But, as soon as Tim had headed off toward his new group of friends, Scott came up to stand next to James, quietly looking for an explanation. "Kind of playing favorites out there, weren't you?" Scott said, and James was careful about not reacting too guiltily.

"I haven't had a chance to screw with Nate … this seemed like exactly the thing that would work."

"Uh-huh. I've got a stack of mail for you," Scott said. "Lots of colleges looking for answers. And one that I didn't realize was on the list."

"Yeah, I already said I wasn't interested in Stanford," James said distractedly. "Reed told me they'd probably send stuff anyhow."

"Wasn't Stanford I was looking at," Scott told him, and that got James to turn his way. "No, it wasn't Cal Tech, either."

"Okay …Who was it from?" James asked, distracted from the rest of the crowd now. "Or did you just schedule something out?"

"I wanted to talk to you about it first -and I didn't want to open it for you," Scott said before he stepped aside with James and lowered his voice to keep it between the two of them, looking stressed around the eyes and unable not to at least ask. "Oxford?"

James instantly lost his ability to not look guilty as he held his breath and tried to find a way to answer him. "Oh. Okay … I didn't think they'd be that quick to reply." He shook his head lightly and tried to downplay it. "That - probably wouldn't be a real option until next year anyhow … deadlines and …. Yeah." James looked toward his siblings, and the twins before he turned back to Scott, frowning. "I sort of reached out to them on a whim? I don't know if they'd be interested or not, to be honest."

Scott's eyebrows lifted in surprise. "Why wouldn't they be interested?"

"Well … foreign schools have different application criteria for one thing," James said with a wave. "And different tests they need covered. Might bomb it on stupid spelling alone."

"James, you're internationally known as a genius. Why wouldn't they want you?"

James let out a nervous laugh, but didn't answer as Scott gestured for him to join him. Most of the family was already sitting down to eat, and from the hushed gossip James heard as he and Scott sat down a little apart from the group, Annie was just looking for another reason to celebrate. Scott handed him the letter, and James blew out a breath, reminding himself that they might not be interested at all. The staff at that college were known to be less than impressed by flashy Americans, after all.

James glanced up toward the rest of their group, who all tried to act as though they weren't watching what was happening as he opened the letter. He looked up at Scott when he laid it out for both of them to read, fully expecting a rejection. So of course, that's not how it went. A rejection would have been easier to explain, but … a fairly excited response welcoming him to come for a tour of not only the Physics department and the Engineering department … but also to tour and test for their Physiology, Anatomy, and Genetics department? He'd almost forgotten that he'd even put feelers out for that area of study, and he realized quickly that … was something Emma must have poked at, though she couldn't have known anything about that particular hobby of his had it not been for whatever she'd done while she was in his head.

But he could feel the moment that Scott read that line next to him, and he could tell that Scott hadn't expected that at all.

"That's… are you diversifying your degrees?" Scott asked haltingly, trying to rally. "I didn't know you were - I thought you were doing more with… Stark's kind of thing…"

James rubbed the back of his neck as he worked out how to explain it since he really hadn't thought this was a remote possibility. "I mean, that's one way to look at it, yeah," James said. "It's been an interest?"

Scott nodded more times than was necessary. "Alright, well - of course, if that's what you want to do, you'll be amazing at-"

"It was just a passing …," James said. "Doesn't mean anything."

"You said that," Scott said. He let out a soft breath. "I know we talked about - well, I don't want you to hold back from pursuing whatever it is that you want to do… and, really, Oxford is, well - I really am proud of you, James. That's where the professor went, you know…"

"Yeah, I know," James said quietly. "Kinda part of why I didn't think I'd hear back, honestly."

"Really?" Scott frowned. "You're more than qualified. And if that's where you want to go… I can help you…"

"I don't know where I want to go. Not really. This sort of throws a monkey wrench in things."

"I know. I just… if you need… well, if you want me to reach out…" Scott gestured vaguely with both hands as his gaze dropped.

"I think Tony would have an actual heart attack if I took that route right now," James pointed out. "And there's still a lot between this," he tapped the letter. "And getting in."

Scott nodded. "You know it doesn't matter what Tony or I think, right? You should go where you want to go," he said gently. "I mean, I'd like it if you were close, obviously, I just… don't want you to feel…" He gestured vaguely again.

"Dad," James said, quietly stressing the word. "There are conditions I'd have to meet if I actually pursue going that route. Big ones. Like the whole criminal conviction thing? If the findings in Genosha say I'm going to be tried, that would probably be it anyhow. Instantly over."

Scott blinked and then suddenly reached over to yank James into a hug, pulling his arms tight around James's shoulders and almost burying his nose in his neck. "You'll be fine," he said, trying to stick to the conversation at hand, even if James didn't need his senses to know Scott was that emotional.

James returned the hug just as tightly. "What, you psychic now, too?" he had to tease.

"Oh yeah. Late secondary mutation."

"Tertiary. Throw 'em all for a loop."

Scott chuckled and hugged James a little tighter before he finally let go enough to look at James fully. "Alright. Well." He cleared his throat. "I just… I'm trying to look out for my boy," he tried to explain.

"Love you too," James said, then started to fold up the letter. "But … I don't know if I want to commit to a program that long in London. What I will do is take them up on a tour to keep the door open, and bring this with me when I renegotiate with Harvard."

Scott broke into a genuine smile. "That's my boy."

"I mean … if Oxford is willing to welcome me to that program, seems like I should be able to take a few classes at Harvard to see if it's something I want to play with, right?"

"Oh, absolutely. Never have a Plan B; always a Plan 2 and beyond."

"I'm sorry I didn't say anything about Oxford," James said. "I really thought that letter would be shredded."

Scott let his shoulders drop and couldn't help but reach out to touch James's hair like when he was little. "Sooner or later, you'll realize you're as amazing as the rest of us know you are," he said, then gestured to the folded letter. "Got the proof right there, after all."

"We'll see if they're right or just … going along with the circus."

Scott shook his head and got to his feet. "Saw the whole game, by the way," he said as a means to change the subject.

"Do I win the medal for unsportsmanlike conduct?" James asked with an obviously fake smile.

"I just want to know if you're cushioning Kate on purpose," Scott said.

"Well, yeah. Obviously," James said, frowning at Scott as if it was unreasonable otherwise. "Have you seen how she gets bumps and bruises just walking down the street? Put her in a semi-real football game and she'd be in traction until her birthday."

"Pretty sure she's specifically asked not to have special treatment, James. And you've been right there with her supporting that," Scott pointed out.

"Did she or did she not play harder?"

"I just don't think it's a good idea to undermine her," Scott said, frowning. "Unless there's a reason."

James tipped his head. "I blocked Rachel from getting hit, too."

Scott let out a slow breath, but he didn't want to push things when things were still weird with James. "Alright. Well. Annie's just about to convince Ororo that her niece is ready to be an X-Man."

"Oh, we already discussed that," James said. "She's got to get by Cap first. That's why she's mad at me right now."

"Nice," Scott said, smirking. "And since Cap doesn't want anyone too young getting hurt…"

James nodded. "Yep. It's a conspiracy."

Scott smirked. "If she can get up the nerve to face him, I'll take her side," he said - half serious, because he knew Leslie Ann was intimidated by Captain America.

"Yeah, but Cap has age limits he won't budge on now," James said.

"So no harm in taking Annie's niece's side," Scott said, smirking a little wider.

"Nope. He's solid on his 'no'. Said Mia was too young and had a couple too many close calls, so … he won't do it again. At all."

"Honestly, I agree with him. Sixteen is a better age cutoff," Scott said. He tipped his head toward Leslie Ann and Lexi, who were talking to Kate. "But our junior squad members were thirteen, so I can't talk, can I?"

"That was a long time ago," James said. "Before you had the Captain America hurdle."

"Hey, Bobby was fourteen; I was fifteen…"

"Bobby's still fourteen," James said dryly.

"Fair enough," Scott said. "He flirts with Johnny like an awkward teenager too."

"It works for them," James said. "But … I don't think he can pass the Captain America hurdle right now."

"That's okay; he's going for a spot on the Four," Scott said dryly.

"He's got it already," James said. "Reed said so."

"Well, there you go," Scott said as he and James headed back toward the others - and it took all of two seconds for Annie to grab Scott and drag him over so he could join her and Ororo. By then, they were knee-deep in talking about the upcoming school year; and Leslie Ann and Lexi had gone off with Kate.

James, meanwhile, slipped over to sit down with Billy, and as soon as he did, he just leaned his head on Billy's shoulder. With all the trouble Nate and Kate were about to pull down on their heads, even if he wanted to go to Oxford, he couldn't not stick around to help them when it all came out. It was exhausting.

"Worn out?" Billy asked, shifting to get more comfortable.

"Emotionally, yes," James agreed. "But I can still blow shit up. It's the American way."

"Oh, of course," Billy said thickly. "You learn that right after your letters, right?"

"With Tony? Yes. You need to read enough to get the right compounds."

Billy laughed. "Okay, fair enough," he said.

"What did I miss?" James asked before he picked his head up and kissed Billy's cheek.

"Well, my family and I are going back to Genosha after the fireworks for a bit if you want to come be a cabana boy for a few days," Billy said.

"I might, but I kinda need to make some official business be official," James said since he and Billy had already talked about the options he knew were good. "And technically i have one more tour before I talk to my pick."

"Right, time to make headlines," Billy teased. "That's alright; I have to go make a few of my own. Mom heard about the Hellfire Club, so we have to do a little domestic political stuff just to prepare for if they try to pull anything publicly."

"You can wish me there later if you need back up," James said.

"I may just. We're probably just going to tell the press on Genosha that the Club wants me to take Grandfather's spot and I don't want it. Get ahead of it, you know?"

"Yeah, probably smart," James agreed. "And more mature than the option of letting the Hellfire club say what they want then laugh out loud when the press asks. But I think a properly placed snort of laughter would make the statement for you."

Billy laughed. "I'll do that," he said. "But I do actually need to go to this interview."

"I know," James said. "You know where I'll be, right?"

"If I don't, I'll wish to find out," Billy teased and stole a kiss before he stood up. "I'll find a nice, private spot to watch the show." He smiled encouragingly, leaving James not far from Wanda and Vision - who had been planning things out with Billy before then.

While James had a moment to himself, he took the letter out to re-read it, once again weighing out options he didn't realize were open. And overthinking every aspect of it.

"Is that where you've decided to go?" Vision asked as he came to sit down by James. "Billy told me you had basically made up your mind - though he did mention you kept second-guessing yourself."

"Yeah, I do that a lot," James said, then slid the letter over to him to read himself. "This was out of left field. I'll be going to Harvard … this year at least."

Vision read over the letter and smiled to himself. "This doesn't surprise me," he said. "Nor does your second-guessing. I would be concerned if, presented with many good options, you were overconfident in choosing just one."

"Truth be told, Oxford would be a statement. Harvard's still the top in every subject I want to study that's not at MIT."

Vision nodded thoughtfully. "It would be," he said. "The distance can be overcome with Billy's help, I'm sure. You travel farther with him to Genosha now than you would from London, after all."

"Yeah, half as many time zones, anyhow," James agreed, then shrugged. "Well. Maybe in a year or two."

"I'm sure it's worth revisiting," Vision agreed. "But there are always other considerations beyond the statement."

"I know. I'm keeping them all in mind."

"I'd never suggest otherwise. I know you don't make decisions lightly." Vision smirked. "You learned that lesson well - from multiple teachers. "

"Yeah, and all of them get thrown off by my impulsive streak, too," James laughed.

"Imagine, then, the look on Tony's face when I showed impulsivity," Vision said, smiling broadly.

"Considering all he had involved? He shouldn't have been surprised at all."

"You make a good point." Vision looked toward Wanda. "I should tell you, from experience, how difficult it is to leave a team like the Avengers or the X-Men, even if you only mean for it to be temporary or if the change is good for you. Living in a different part of the world does make it difficult to maintain membership." He turned James's way. "Despite Captain Rogers' insistence that we were never off the roster, of course."

"It was a challenge even when I was just in Cambridge," James agreed. "It's good that they don't rely on me."

"Of course they do," Vision said, frowning his way. "Just because the two teams are led by brilliant tactical minds that are able to find strategies that don't require you in order to give you space to live your life does not mean they don't rely on you - it means they love you enough to inconvenience their own plans."

James tipped his head. "No, I think they have better paths. It's fine, though." He smirked crookedly. "I'm the most underpowered on the team, outside of well. Kate, maybe. But she makes up for it with the sass and the aim. I'm really just there to take hits."

Vision shook his head lightly and called Wanda over. "Wanda, dear, our young friend is underestimating himself again, and you always know just what to say."

Wanda looked up from the article she had been reading - she was still doing some last-minute research into the journalists talking to Billy, just to be quadruple-y sure. "Oh, that's normal," she said, though she was already headed over. "I've never known Scott or Logan to have any idea of their true worth, so, really, it's Tony's fault this sweet boy has any self-confidence," she teased.

"Yeah, don't let me interrupt your reading," James said. "That's more important."

Wanda waved one hand. "Not really. I've already read it. I'm just nervous for Billy, that's all. Though I heard he handled Monet spectacularly, so…"

"He's got it covered," James agreed.

"I know he does, but he's a little nervous too," Wanda agreed. "So, knowing that, what can I do for my future son-in-law?" Her eyes were sparkling with trouble. "Don't try to deny it; I know you've got the official process started. I'm the queen. I do actually talk to my advisors."

"Figured I'd get the ball rolling," James agreed. "But you don't need to do anything for me. I'm set." He gestured to Vision. "He's trying to stir up trouble."

"Yes, that is precisely my aim," Vision said dryly.

Wanda smirked and kissed Vision. "Oh, always."

"Full confession," James said.

"I called you over because he believes the team doesn't need him," Vision said.

Wanda sighed. "Oh, that argument. The same argument that Scott and Logan had every two days while I was in the X-Men - and more often, as I heard it, when I wasn't?"

James held up both hands. "I'm not complaining," he said, trying to clarify. "It's just a fact, and that's good." He tipped his head toward Vision again. "He's the one that thinks I'm whining or something."

"Devaluing yourself, not whining," Vision said.

"Rachel said it was whining."

"She's also your big sister, and if I have learned anything watching Wanda and Lorna, that's her job."

James put on his best scandalized expression. "Are you saying she's blowing things out of proportion? That … just isn't possible."

"No, of course not," Vision said dryly. "You would never do such a thing either."

"That's what I'm trying to say though. I'm okay with not being needed with the teams."

"As long as you understand that you're wanted," Wanda said as she sat down on James's other side.

"That is not what he said," James replied, attempting to skirt around an answer.

"I'm not him," Wanda said. "So - you do understand that you're wanted, yes?"

James frowned at that, though. "That's not really up for discussion right now," he said finally.

Wanda sighed and brushed his hair back from his face. "And that is why Vision called me over," she said. "I love him and his faith in my ability to say the right thing, but honestly, I get it. After everything that just happened, everything Billy's told me? I get it." She leaned over and kissed his forehead. "But you're very wanted, James. And I can't wait for you to officially join my family."

James sighed heavily - he really wasn't expecting to have to deal with all the heavy emotions flying around, but he knew he needed to respond appropriately. "Love you too," he said quietly.

Wanda smiled at him and got to her feet. "I'm sure I'll see you in Genosha, James," she said and took Vision's arm so they could flirt in private before returning to Genosha.