Chapter 17 - The Future Is In Good Hands
Howard was starting to think that there was some kind of unwritten rule of the universe that he couldn't go for too long without the press descending on him for something or other, though at least this time, he knew it was coming.
When his dad had offered James his position as the vice president of research and development, he also offered Howard the equivalent, but on the business side of things. Howard had been surprised, since he was younger than James by a couple years, but he quickly figured out why after Tony announced the positions publicly.
One of the first things a reporter asked him after the announcement — not Tony, but Howard specifically — was whether Tony just didn't think he was smart enough to take over the company fully like he had.
Not that it was all negative toward Howard — since they'd already accused him of being stupid in plenty of different ways since Sadie got pregnant. But the press had plenty to say about James as well. There were a few who didn't let the Horseman thing drop, and then there were plenty who didn't believe he was smart enough… yeah, it was definitely a mixed bag response. To say the least.
He made his way up to James' lab the weekend after the press conference after fighting his way through some reporters and then waved at James when he arrived. "Well, at least we're in this together," he muttered. "How do you deal with the reporters every day? I used to like them."
"Well," James said slowly. "I'm used to them assuming I'm an idiot, so that's just a matter of grinning and asking if they think they're smarter than your Dad — for starters." James was more focused on his project than he was the question, though, and he sort of faded off at the end.
Howard smirked at that. "Yeah, I maaay have challenged someone to show me their IQ results, and we could compare notes on if he could do the job."
"And when it gets to the anti mutant stuff, I just laugh; the really aggressive ones I'll flick off with a claw."
"Yeah, I don't get that as much as you do, considering you're on the team, but they do know I'm a mutant too, and I get a lot of the… crap."
"Honestly, it's more over the Horsemen thing lately. You know, earlier when I was with your Dad, I had one of them ask him if the other three were working in the company too?" He set the tools down and turned toward Howard. "And someone actually ticked him off when they said that having Death making weapons should be a good move."
Howard winced visibly at that. "Yeah. Ouch. No. Bad move." He let out a breath. "I had some idiot ask me if the reason I'm not as smart as my dad is my… genetics."
"What?" James said, turning to face him fully.
"Yeah, thus the bad mood when I came up," Howard said, falling into a scowl.
"They don't have anything rotten to report, so they'll make crap up," James said. "You know that. Just ignore 'em."
"I did ignore that one," Howard said. "Doesn't make me any less annoyed."
James smirked at him for a moment. "Wanna blow something up?"
"Yes. Please," Howard laughed. "Whatcha got?"
"Nothing in particular, but it's not like we don't have a few explosive components and somewhere to use 'em."
Howard grinned at that. "Then what are we waiting for? Let's blow up the range."
Charlie and Gerry were set to go back to Westchester soon for the holidays, and Charlie found herself sitting in their living room wrapping some presents ahead of time. Gerry was still working, so she was listening to some music, looking forward to seeing her family again as she wrapped up some toys for her niece and nephew.
But then, she paused, frowning to herself as she tipped her head to the side and listened. She paused the music so she could listen a little better before she realized that it was a new song. Not physical music, but someone new.
It wasn't anything complicated… just a few notes, like someone sitting down at a piano and lazily plinking out a few keys.
She listened hard to see if she could determine where it was coming from, if someone new had moved into the complex, but she was surprised to realize that this new song… was close.
Very close.
Her eyes widened when she figured it out, and she glanced down at herself. "Oh… oh wow," she whispered softly, one hand drifting down to her stomach as she tried to listen in a little more. The little song was just barely starting, and there wasn't much to it, but…
Charlie put a hand over her mouth and simply started to cry, surprised into sudden emotion. She hadn't even been keeping track… not when she had been so busy with trying to help Gerry with his residency, with moving, with getting used to a whole new city.
That was how Gerry found his wife: very emotional with no real indication for him to know why, so he came to sit down beside her as soon as he came through the door. "Is this you, or is one of our neighbors having a really rough breakup or…?"
Charlie shook her head, wiping her eyes with the heels of her hands before she seized Gerry's hands with both of hers and brought them over to hold onto him for a moment. "You're not going to believe whose song I heard today."
"Okay… so… if I can't guess…" Gerry said with a teasing smile.
Charlie shook her head at him, then looked up to meet his gaze. "I heard a brand new song today. Right here," she said, moving his hands with hers so that they were resting on her stomach.
Gerry looked completely taken off his guard, his eyes wide, before he broke into a grin. "Lottie, that's… wow," he said before he pulled her into a solid kiss and wrapped her up tightly. "What a great early Christmas present."
"Yeah, Merry Christmas," Charlie said, her eyes shining again, especially when she could hear all of the emotions coming off of Gerry — excitement and joy and nervousness and shock and everything that came with an unexpected announcement like this.
Gerry just grinned at that and pulled her into another kiss. "We gotta … we gotta tell our parents," he said. "We should put it in a Christmas present or something."
"We'll figure it out," she agreed, for the moment, shockingly, not too worried about a plan as much as she was just enjoying her husband's excitement. She pulled him into another long kiss and couldn't stop smiling the entire time.
Kari's book tour had positively exploded with requests from around the globe, and Kate was tickled to book her in some of the places that Kari had said she wouldn't mind going to see — or going back to. And while Kate was proudly bouncing on her toes at her big book signing in Tokyo, Kari was dealing with a somewhat more possessive boyfriend who simply couldn't handle the affection and borderline hero-worship she was getting from the locals.
Kate was just wondering how she was going to handle her daughter's boyfriend when a familiar voice started up over her shoulder. "You're getting lazy. I cleared out six ninjas before I stepped in here, Auntie Chicken Hawk."
Kate spun around to wrap James in a hug. "How could you?" she laughed. "You're supposed to tell me if there's fun to be had!"
"Oh, right. Hey. There are a few ninjas sticking their noses in," James said as he pulled her tighter. "Figured you were contractually obligated to have one of us along if you set foot in Japan. So … Hi."
Kate grinned, still with an arm around him. "Hi. You're a sight for sore eyes. I've been dealing with the stoner bro this whole time."
"Stoner bro is anxious, crazy broad bro."
Kate laughed at that. "He can't handle how much people love her. Which is just a shame — because they love her."
"It really is," James said. "Do you think she'd be up for a few suggestions while she's in town, or is her free time dedicated to searching out hashish? Because I can't really remember the last time we were all here."
"Oh, please, let's go somewhere good," Kate said. "I'm sure if you suggest it, she'll jump at the chance. And if the stoner bro argues, I will put my executive foot down."
James smiled at her for a moment. "For a stoner, he's awfully tense."
"You'd think it would be the opposite, but here we stand," Kate said with a sigh. "He's usually such a great kid, though, all jokes aside. He just sucks on tour."
He tutted and crossed his arms as he stood next to her. "He does seem a little more … insecure."
"Which is just a shame, because she adores him," Kate said with a sigh. "If he could get over the anxiety, maybe he'd notice she's paying more attention to him than anyone else."
"Maybe he just needs a little time," James said. "But if he's that sensitive, how do you want to play this? Meet up later, or do you want me to stay here with you and make snarky comments?"
"Um. Snarky comments. Obviously," she chuckled.
"Yes, ma'am," James said, though he simply relaxed a little and leaned against the nearest wall. "The locals have their questions about him too, by the way. If the buzz I'm hearing is right."
"Oooh, please. Please tell me about the local gossip," Kate grinned widely.
James grinned. "Mostly they just want to know who the heck he thinks he is, since none of them know — or care."
"Pitiful little art student getting in their way of worshiping Kari," Kate giggled.
James turned his head, watching a pair of students walked out and burst into laughter. "They're mad that he got into the frame."
Kate couldn't stop her laughter at that. "Oh yeah. You are staying right here. I so decree it."
"What if I have something ...um … important to do?" James teased.
"That's just too bad," Kate said, looping her arm through James'. "You're mine now. Not even sorry."
"Alright. I look forward to the duel at dawn with Tony," James laughed.
Kate just laughed harder at that, which got Kari to turn around to see what her mom was so entertained by. And when she saw James with Kate, she broke into a huge grin and teleported over to the two of them before she tackled James in a hug.
"How long have you been here?" she demanded, beaming at him.
"Not long," James laughed. "Just getting the lay of the public opinion."
"Oh, like you'd let that stop you from a little thing like a hug," she teased. "It's great to see you, really!"
"I was just telling your mom that there's some kind of international law that says no Wagner is allowed in Japan without a Howlett to draw in ninjas for them." James had to smile. "And … great turn out of the locals … but D- on the ninjas. Only six."
Kari laughed and hit him in the shoulder as Lucas caught up to the group, sliding a hand around her waist to pull her back a small step into him. "What's going on here?" he asked.
"I've been hired by Bishop Publishing to play translator while you're here in Japan," James said without missing a beat.
"He speaks the language and knows where the best places to eat are," Kate added, her arm around James' shoulders.
"Besides, I asked him to come to one of my events and say hi," Kari told Lucas, standing on her toes to kiss his cheek. "He's being a good friend."
"And even if she didn't, I'd have come anyhow," James laughed.
"Because he's a good friend," Kate said, grinning widely. "So, tour guide, what do you suggest for food?"
"Can't we just… eat at the French bistro?" Lucas asked.
"How long have you been in town?" James asked, though he frowned at Lucas. "And why the hell would you go to a French bistro when you're in Tokyo?"
"Because the food there is good," Lucas said with a sniff.
James scrunched up his nose. "No. French bistros in France are good. Here, you're better off with hibachi or sushi. You know. As the locals do."
"Ooh, can we get hibachi?" Kari asked. "That's fun. I love to watch the chefs work!"
"Got a great place that lets you grill your own if you don't want the teppanyaki tables," James said. "But if you want a show … yeah. I know a place."
"Please!" Kari beamed. She grinned up at Lucas. "You'll love it. It's so fun to watch."
Lucas glanced toward James and then let out a sigh, looking resigned to the situation.
James didn't wait to hear what Lucas thought before he turned to Kate. "You want regular or Kobe?" he asked as he offered her his arm. "Because there are two good spots."
"Surprise me," Kate said, grinning, just because she wanted to irk Lucas for how uptight he was being.
"You got it," James said with a smirk as they headed out. And the first sign of real trouble to Lucas was when James started talking to the driver in rapid-fire Japanese that sounded just as polished and natural as the locals. And it was the same once they were at the restaurant, too. Nothing on the menus they got was in English — or any other language that Lucas knew — and when it came time to order, it was clear that while Lucas had no idea what to ask for, but the ladies were perfectly trusting James' judgment.
Which might have been fine if he wasn't getting an instantly good rapport with the chef.
"Oh, relax," Kari said, holding onto Lucas' arm with a wide smile. "If you don't want anything too strange, just tell James. He'll make sure you don't get anything odd. Won't you, James?"
"Oh, I figured if he prefers French, then he wouldn't be game for anything really interesting anyhow. Don't sweat it," James said. "It's all top-grade Kobe beef anyhow - the really good stuff."
Lucas frowned between the two of them before he simply pulled his arm tighter around Kari. "I still think it would have been better if I'd chosen something," he whispered to her.
"Next time," she promised.
"No, no, tomorrow we're getting sushi," Kate insisted.
"Excellent," James said with a grin.
"Don't scare anyone," Kari warned him, leveling her finger his way. "I know how you can be."
"Then you know how tortured I've been being stuck with whatever New York and LA have to offer lately," James pointed out.
Kari shook her head at him and then laid her head on Lucas' arm. "Then order that for yourself, but you know if you get us squid or something…"
"You know the only way to order here is to go omakase," James pointed out. "Then I can't request anything until the end — and that's only if there's something you really liked."
"It'll be fun!" Kate promised, grinning wider when Lucas looked incredibly put upon.
"Come on, bro," James said, smirking lightly to himself. "What's it hurt to get a little culture? When's the next time you'll be in Japan after this anyhow?"
Lucas frowned at James for a long moment before he looked down at Kari and then let out another put-upon sigh. "Fine."
"Oh, I like this one," James said to Kate. "It's like going to dinner with my brother."
"But with less tattoos, bro," she whispered to him, giggling.
"That you know of," James whispered back.
"Oh, I really, really don't want to think about that," Kate said, making a face. "No. Stop. Bad Mini-Wolvie."
"Hey. I'm taller. That doesn't really … whatever," James said, waving it off with a laugh. "So you know, we might get an extra tomorrow if we go out."
"You're perfectly welcome to bring Joulie. I love her," Kate said with a warm smile.
"She's not here," James said. "I actually am going to be here for a week or so with Tony."
"Oooh, that's right. Big tech conference this weekend, right?" Kate beamed. "Look at you all grown up and going to conferences."
"He's doing the whole showman thing," James said. "They were a little … grumpy. Apparently, the position wasn't really … a thing? And anything that I sent in for Tony …He knows how to work the crowd to his benefit."
Kate nodded her agreement. "He's good at that," she said.
"He's been enjoying himself," James said. "But that'll all depend on his timing, of course."
Kate nodded. "Well, we're glad to have you as long as you want to stick around," she said, still with James under her arm before she leaned back to enjoy the show as the chef got down to work.
As it turned out, Lucas could not handle the sushi lunch, but Kate and Kari both were determined to keep up, even if Kate had made a few spectacular faces where Lucas and Kari couldn't see her. But after that, it was a quick goodbye before James headed off to meet up with Tony, with a small following of photographers that were keeping their distance behind him.
Of course, his portion of the Tokyo trip wasn't really much longer than that, since he had a joint junior/senior team simulation to get to that would have meant horrible jet lag for just about anyone else.
And though he was a little bit tired at the start of the practice, moving woke him up as the exercise progressed. It wasn't until halfway through that he realized that Joulie was pulling off a few evasive maneuvers that he hadn't taught her. And it had him wondering to himself how long he'd blown off the lessons that had once been at a three-times-a-week rate. He knew he'd worked with her last week … but he couldn't remember which day, and everything was starting to bleed together between the two teams and the day job.
But it didn't really bother him when he realized it. And that only had him thinking a little harder as the program wore on. By the time Logan had called it, James was wondering if he was being a horrible boyfriend or if it was just a matter of no real chemistry.
He rushed through getting cleaned up and changed, flat ignoring Kaleb and Sying so he could catch Joulie before she disappeared. "Hey, you got a minute?" he asked when he caught up with her, though they didn't get more than that out before James pulled her into his lab and locked the door behind him so they could talk in private.
It wasn't a long chat, and no one outside of the room really knew what the heck was going on. Eventually, the two of them stepped out of the room looking as if a weight had been lifted … it wasn't really a shock to anyone to hear later what had happened when they looked like that.
"Well, that was an interesting afternoon," Joulie said to Amadi when she found her friend.
Amadi smiled at her. "Interesting good or interesting bad?"
"Just interesting," she said, though she smirked a little bit. "The team practice got me thinking, and now … well. My lessons will be a little more scheduled to allow free time."
"Oh good. We can go skiing," Amadi said.
"We can," Joulie said, nodding. "Since outside of the team, my only conflict now is my job."
Amadi's eyebrows shot up, and she put a hand on either of Joulie's shoulders. "Are you alright?"
"I am," she said, smiling at her. "I think it was a long time coming, really. It just … wasn't there."
"Well, if it's not there, it's not there," Amadi said, though she was still watching her friend's expression closely. "But you're taking this exceedingly well."
Joulie smiled at her with a little chuckle. "The truth is: I was thinking the same thing? And I really want to focus more on this. This. Not boys. Not … other things. So, this simplifies things."
"You definitely do well on the team," Amadi said. "It's nice having more of us ladies to balance things out," she added with a teasing tone. "We outnumber the boys so much now; it's so nice.'
"It is," she laughed. "And he said the same thing … that he thought it was time for an all-girl team to wipe the floor with everyone."
Amadi laughed outright. "Well, if we can get rid of Zach and Kaleb…"
"Maybe they can go be Avengers," she laughed.
"There you go," Amadi said, then draped her arm around Joulie's shoulders. "Even if you're not terribly broken up, I feel like I would be a bad friend if I didn't offer you a shoulder to not cry on."
"Unnecessary," Joulie said with an easy wave. "My grandmother will be more tore up about it than I will."
"Well, tell her that family's allowed to come up and visit anyone here at the school or on the team. She can get her fix anytime."
"I think I may just," she laughed. "It'd be worth it to see the expression on his face."
"And it would be worth it to see the two of them doing their thing. The picture you sent was hilarious, but seeing the whole thing in person? Priceless."
Joulie grinned at her. "How about we head up to see what the schedule looks like? I'd like a little more time with those sticks, and I think that means more time with Chance if he's free."
"He won't complain; he loves to teach," Amadi promised. "And even if he's busy with his kids, I'd be happy to spar with you. Remy's taught me a thing or two with a staff and staves, you know."
"Then let's figure out when we can get to work. Not … right now though. Miss Krissy needs something new, I am told."
"What are you going to do with all your free time when April comes around and she's had that little baby?"
"Keep outta the kitchen," she said pointedly.
Amadi chuckled at that. "Come on. I'll help with the little floor monsters so you can get in and out faster."
"You let him embarrass me."
The door had hardly closed behind Lucas as he and Kari arrived at their hotel room before he had whirled on her, his face flushed. Kari had thought he was just embarrassed, and she did feel bad about how the whole sushi thing had gone, but now she saw that he was angry.
"It's a family tradition," Kari said quickly. "We've done it to everyone at one point or another. It was-"
"It was a way for him to laugh at me," Lucas said. Kari hadn't noticed how much taller he was than her until he was standing over her. "And you let it happen."
"Lucas," Kari said softly, reaching for his arm, but he pushed her hand away.
"This keeps happening. And it keeps happening with him," Lucas said. He hadn't raised his voice, but she still felt small.
"I'm sorry," Kari started to say, and Lucas scoffed.
"That's a start, anyway. That's not happening again, do you understand?" He was already walking away from her, peeling off his shoes once he sat on their bed.
"I really am sorry," Kari said, and Lucas scoffed again, waving her off.
"Are you coming to bed?" he asked. "I'd hate to end the night on such a rotten note."
Kari let her shoulders drop before she slipped over to him to sit down beside him, putting her hand on the inside of his leg as she leaned in for a kiss.