Careless Moment, Lifetime Regrets

by Kerri

Part 5

Charlotte sat in Xavier's study, tense and silent in the chair he offered. She held a glass of sherry he'd given her, but she hadn't touched it. It gave her something to do with her hands, other than try to fight her way out of here, or knock the bitch across the room silly. That wasn't fair, the other woman had done nothing but grate on her already raw nerves. It was Thomas's fault. She could have had her hands on Jess and gated out if he hadn't stolen her homing belt.

Emma Frost sat in another chair, coolly regarding the other woman. She didn't want to be here either, but Sean insisted.

He stood by the window, doing his best to counteract Emma's coldness and disdain with a friendly smile. So far, neither woman had spoken, but there was plenty of emotion flying around the room. Emma was just reacting to Ms. Ashcroft's mental state, he told himself. As far as he knew it wasn't personal. The visitor's only personal agenda was apparently with Wolverine.

Thomas was doing all the talking, asking questions about the school that Emma left Sean to answer.

Charlotte closed herself off and began planning a funeral. She hadn't yet decided who's funeral, but someone was going to die a slow, excruciating death.

That thought cheered her immensely.

Emma smiled slightly at the direction Charlotte's thoughts were taking. Sounded interesting. She wondered if the other woman would take requests.

~*~*~*~*~

"So, y'really Wolvie's kid?"

Jazz looked up at the petite Asian girl in the screaming yellow coat standing next to him as he sat on the outside deck by the pool. "Look's that way."

"Kewl. Can I sit?"

He shrugged. "Go ahead."

She plopped herself down by him. "I'm Jubilee."

"Jazz."

"Great code name. What's yer real name?"

"Jess."

"Jazz is way better. Y'comin' to school here?"

"Tom's trying to get me into the one in Massachusetts."

"That's where I go. What do ya do?"

"Do?"

"Yeah, yer power."

"I can do stuff with energy when I get loaded up. Mom says it'll get stronger when I get older."

"Like, if I paff ya, y'can shoot it back at me?"

"What's a 'paff'?"

She extended a hand and released a few sparks into the air.

"Pretty cool. Hit me."

She giggled and let him have it.

Jazz absorbed it easily, his eyes glowing with the extra power. He released it out across the pool, giving a little extra kick to the fireworks to make them brighter.

"Wow. Anythin' else?"

"I heal pretty quick. Mom say's there'll be more when I get older. That's why Tom wants me to get a handle on what I got now."

"Tom's the Indian guy?"

"Yeah."

"He's yer brother? That's kinda neat."

"He's a neat guy. I'm really lucky to have him. He's been like my dad."

"Y'll like havin' Wolvie for a dad. I wish he was mine."

"Why do you call him Wolvie? I thought his name was Logan."

"It is, we think, but his code name's Wolverine. Scary. Wolvie sounds friendly, like a teddy bear. I think yer mom's gonna kill him." Everyone in the mansion was talking about the strange woman. Gambit was already taking bets on who would win the second round; she'd taken the first one hands down.

"Me, too." She was so mad she couldn't even speak. He'd never seen her like this, and he'd done some pretty bone-headed things in the last decade.

Thomas had, and he told him to just stay out of her way till she calmed down enough to start yelling. When she yelled she was just mad. When she got quiet she was killing furious.

"Y'wanna come meet the others? I think ya'll like 'em."

"Sure." He moved to his feet, then held out a hand to help her up.

She looked at the hand a second, then took it. "How old are ya, anyway?"

"56." He lifted her effortlessly.

"That in dog years?"

Jazz laughed at that. "Maybe. Mom says it makes me a 16 year old smart ass. She's over 300 herself."

Jubilee shook her head. "Wow. You oughtta meet Cable. His family's as screwed up as yers in the other direction."

~*~*~*~*~

Logan watched the two kids talking, (damn, the boy was his) from his window. A boy. A son. Who would thought he'd have a kid?

Not him, that was for sure.

And the mother! Damn. She was pretty, but what an attitude! He wished he had memories of her, just so he would know if he hated her or not. She sure seemed to hate him. He'd hold judgment on that till he found out the whole story, if she was going to tell him the whole story. Maybe she had a right to hate him. Right now he didn't think she'd tell him how to get to Hell.

Maybe she'd draw him a map.

What to do about the boy, though. His first thought was to warn him off Jubilee; the second was to warn her off him. It would've been a lot easier if the boy'd been a girl. Probably too late to do something about that.

~*~*~*~*~

"Do you have any questions, Ms. Ashcroft?"

Charlotte lifted her eyes to the Irishman. "Yes, I do. How much?"

"We don't-"

"No, Mr. Cassidy, I like to hear this from Miss Frost."

"The student, if we choose to accept the student, is not required to pay tuition or other expenses."

"Your academy provides room, board, education and training without reimbursement for as many years as required?"

Thomas closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose, trying to relieve the headache he felt coming on. She was starting to sound like Lady Charlotte, reverting back to the proper English of her youth. He could even hear the faint accent creep back into her voice. She was well and truly angry.

"Yes."

"Our students, being what they are, are often unable to pay for their schooling. Most don't have families that can provide for them. Some don't have families at all." Sean broke in.

"I understand that, and I sympathize with the situation," Charlotte answered him, her eyes still on Emma. "Jess is not one of them."

"I'll pay for the boy's schoolin'," Logan said from the doorway.

All eyes, other than Charlotte's and Emma's, turned towards him.

"Jess has a mother who is more than capable of providing his support," she continued, ignoring the interruption. "I fully intend to do so."

"Very well, would you prefer to be billed by the semester or the year?" Emma asked.

"The semester, after I tour the facilities and meet your student body. That will allow you enough time to have an itemized statement prepared for me."

"I said I'll pay the boy's tuition."

Sean pursed his lips, biting back the laugh that threatened to escape.

"Will you prefer a personal check or will a wire transfer be sufficient?"

"Did ya hear me?"

~Are you going to answer him?~ Emma asked.

~Was someone speaking?~ Charlotte responded with a arched brow.

"Either way will be fine."

"I'm gettin' tired of this."

"Perhaps you would care to meet the students now?" Xavier spoke up. "They are gathered in the Danger Room. Jess is also there, I believe." Anything to stop the violence that threatened to erupt in his study.

"I'll introduce you," Emma rose to her feet. Charlotte followed suit.

Logan stepped in her way. "Ain't no one goin' anywhere till this gets straightened out."

"Out of my way," Charlotte growled at him. The icy calm she'd been cultivating cracked almost immediately at his challenging tone.

"I don' think yer given me any say in the matter."

"Oh, a scholar. Impress me, why don't you? Now move your hairy ass out of my way."

"Don't think so. I think I'm takin' part o' this plannin'."

"Unless you can back up that mouth with something sharp, I don't want to hear anything out of you, Daddy," she said sarcastically.

"Anytime, darlin', just name it."

"Now."

Thomas got to his feet. "Wait a minute," he started.

"Got a broadsword?" she asked, ignoring her son's interruption.

"I can get ya one, if you can handle it," he retorted snidely.

"Find it, and meet me on the back lawn." She pushed past him and stalked after Emma.

Once the ladies were gone, Sean let out his snickers. "Oh, my, she's a feisty one." For the woman to ignore Wolverine, who could be damn annoying and impossible to overlook when he set his mind to it, was too much.

Then to issue a challenge, well, this was better entertainment than he'd seen in a long time.

"Ya take her money over mine, Cassidy, an' there be trouble," Logan warned him with a scowl.

"Talk ta Em, she handles that side o' things."

"Damn woman." It wasn't clear which one he meant. It didn't matter, right now that statement included all women.

"Look, I don't know about you, but she's good," Thomas said slowly. "She's been taught by one of the best, and she doesn't know how not to kill."

"Fine wi' me, I don't know how to die."

End Part 5.

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