I think that would be good, if you can. When we found out she was alive, we went to rescue her, but the reality is it was only to use her on Logan's quest. She has some skepticism surrounding that, which I understand. It would be good for her to reconnect with all of us and feel like part of the family again.
[ Charles feels for her, he truly does. He did reassure her that he knows for a fact if older him knew she was alive and where she was, he would have immediately rescued her. It wasn't a question of whether they would, it was because they didn't know. But he can understand how her being needed at the same time as being rescued would make this feel complicated.
She's attempting to reach out now that she's reached more peace with him and Logan. Charles has hopes. But Scott was a leader. She surely looked up to him like with the other X-Men, and as she became one and grew up within the mansion. He hopes Ororo will do the same. Charles doesn't know if Scott's death led to the fracturing of the X-Men, but it probably didn't help. Their path was more about the mutant vs human problem at large. The point is they are here together now, and he wants to fix what he can.]
Right now, we have space cleared out at Ororo's temple, and I was hoping to decorate it a little bit to be festive. Rogue offered for the food, and Logan is going to get what tree is possible.
[ Charles hasn't seen any mega Christmas tree offerings around here, so it may require some finagling, but he trusts that Logan can handle it. He likes having missions.]
I never had an official mansion Christmas, I must admit. My first class was small, and we never really got kicked off the way it was later. You'd know more than I about the X-Men celebrations.
[ A nod and a silent promise are what Charles receives from Scott pertaining to Rogue. There's a lot of complicated feelings there, for sure, not helped by how they're scattered timeline-wise. Normally, if they're back home, he'd schedule a one-on-one. Walk through the halls of the school while he talks to Rogue.
But as it is, Scott's somehow at a loss where to start. How can he fix her issues when he's also in the process of fixing his own? They're all a mess right now, but it doesn't mean they have to stay this way forever. He'll talk to her. He just hopes it yields good results.
Speaking of good results, though, Scott's face slowly lights up at the mention of the things planned for the gathering. All good things. So good, in fact, that he wishes he's not too engrossed in his work at the Scrapyard and came up with some of these things. ]
Those sound like good preparations already. I can help you with the decorations. Many things at the Scrapyard can be turned into some. Been to the temple a couple of times so I'd know the lay of the land.
[ He can also tell them where certain things should go, etc. ] Do you already have a guest list?
[ Scott and Ororo always prove themselves the perfect team leader to him by their unfailing speed at trying to help. He loves that dearly about both of them. The two of them have such constant competency about everything that they do. He has faith that this celebration will go well, and maybe Scott will get that chance to speak with Rogue at some point. It would be good for her to talk to more than Charles and Logan, who both have their own reasons to feel guilty about her particular future.]
I invited the same people as the diner. All of us and Wade and Cable.
[ Technically he considers Laura and John automatically as 'all of us,' because in his eyes they are still X-Men. And all of us includes Erik. Perhaps it's the mutants he means in a general way, but Cable is one too. He's still somewhat outside of them though. He's guarded about his future, outside of telling Charles that it is yet another bad timeline. And Wade is something mutant-adjacent. It's close enough.]
Perhaps someday we'll have people here we consider family enough to make this larger, but for now, it felt better for it to be us.
[ Charles isn't against people bringing anyone they've become close to later on, or at other gatherings of the group. It's only for the time being that he feels they should really stay close to one another.]
[ That it feels better that the gathering's for them only first. It's their first Christmas in this place, only having been here for six months, so it feels appropriate they keep this a bit more private.
The mention of Cable, though, visibly piques Scott's interest. His jaw tightens a little, as if in contemplation. It takes him a few seconds to follow-up on his earlier words. ]
Did Cable ever tell you about who his parents are, Professor?
[ That honestly seems highly unlikely knowing Cable's allergy to say more than one sentence but Scott only wants to make sure they'd be on the same page here before dropping the proverbial bomb on Charles. ]
[ It didn't occur to Charles to ask that despite the fact Cable is from the future. So it was possible yes, but considering Cable's age and general coldness, he didn't go there in his mind. Now it seems obvious that he might be the child of X-Men, and that's why he knows everything about them.]
He's not very forthcoming. I wouldn't have known that he was from our world at all if Wade hadn't brought him along before.
[ Charles was glad that he did, and Cable agreed to be there, but he simply would've missed it. He knows that Wade is from theirs, from later in the timeline, and Cable did some time travel. It's one giant headache, and Charles has only recently accepted time travel as a necessary part of their story.]
I suppose with Laura here I should have guessed. Enlighten me.
[ Scott's not surprised Cable didn't tell Charles. Again, his son's penchant for not speaking more than one sentence is the one to be blamed here. Granted, this also means he'd be the one to break the news to Charles, which is probably for the best. He doesn't think he'd be able to live it down that Cable managed to beat him to it. Call it the Summers competitive gene, or just Scott's utmost respect for Charles that he doesn't want the Professor discovering something this important about Scott from someone else, even if it's his own son.
Although, he really doesn't know where to start with this. Swallowing a bit, jaws tightening a little after, Scott lets out a breath. ]
Well, it's me. Apparently, I'm his dad.
[ Nothing like ripping off the bandaid than meandering off-topic first before getting to the point. Scott has never been not straightforward, and this is no exception. He thinks Charles also deserves to know the point-blank truth. ]
And his mom? A clone of Jean, if you can believe it.
[ Charles is only slightly surprised in that the concept in general is surprising, but it makes sense now that it's Scott. He led up to this, and he must have been told by Cable. He's glad that he didn't learn about it first, like with Logan and Laura. This is far preferable!
The clone part though, that ... well that's a new one for him. Their world has its oddities, but the futures it could go to are all kinds of science fiction to him. Charles really should get used to it by now! ]
I do believe it. Insane as it is.
[ Charles can't imagine why Cable would deceive Scott about that. He could have said it was Jean only. Interesting. He smiles faintly.]
A grandfather twice over.
[ It's a joke, but also the truth. With Cable it'll be more amusing, given he's got Charles beaten by at least a decade, but that's two unexpected children for his sons. What's next? Ororo having a daughter? Now that would be lovely.]
[ Charles commenting he's a grandfather twice over earns a small, soft smile from Scott. What are the odds that both he and Logan are surprise dads? It's crazy to think about, but what isn't in this place, anyway? Here he is talking to a younger version of the Professor. That alone's already odd.
Scott's used to it by now, though. It's been more than six months (half a year!) of being in this planet. He probably adapted to the strangeness of this place better than most.
The question Charles asks makes him sigh a little. ]
It's still a lot to process, to be honest, but I'm doing fine. Just wanna get to know him a bit better, which is a little tricky since he's a man of few words. [ And older than him by two decades. How can he even father someone like that? ]
Yes, he is a bit closed off. But he wouldn't have told you his identity unless he wanted you to know.
[ Cable could have found a way out of the conversation, Charles has no doubt. Perhaps like Laura, he didn't want to admit to how much he cared about knowing his parent, but sort of gave into the impulse. Bit closed off is an understatement, he knows that, but the man has been through a great deal. From what he's told Charles, his timeline is one hell of a hard one. ]
As someone who found himself an unexpected parent, I'd say it matters that he came clean. He was reaching out, in a way. So I think he'll let you get to know him, if you press a little.
[ Charles knows from his own experience that pushing a little will be tolerated to a point, as he got to know the boundaries of Scott, Ororo, and Logan, and they all made it work. He thinks Cable might end up somewhat similar.]
He came voluntarily to our meeting, and he did mention to me he knows the X-Men, so it seems like he was reaching out, in a way.
[ Cable put himself in a position where he connected with Scott, Charles, and even met the others. That says to Charles that a part of him wants this, even if he's going to be gruff about it.]
[ Everything Charles said is true, of course. To be fair, somehow, Scott can feel Cable's reaching out but it's still a bit of a challenge actually connecting to him on some level. Not that this would actually deter him, stubborn as he is, since he had been trying his very best.
Scott just has to always mentally take note that Cable's a fifty year old man who had experienced things he's unaware of. So he's giving him space to come to him instead.
With a slowly forming smile that he hopes would reassure Charles, Scott nods. ]
You're right, Professor. I just have to always remember we're coming from two different worlds. [ Literally and figuratively. ]
I do update him of my whereabouts from time to time. Let him know what I'm doing some days. And well, he replies. [ With a thumbs up emoji. Always. ]
Yes, but I believe he wouldn't have told you if he didn't think the space between those two worlds was small.
[ No one would have questioned Cable about his heritage. Charles knew that he was a future mutant, but didn't expect him to be that connected. Maybe he should have, given the small details he was given. But if Cable wanted to put firm boundaries between them, he would have just never said it. It's touching, in a way, that he wants to take this opportunity, slow as it may be. ]
You know, I don't know his real name, only his codename. I wonder if it's Summers, and perhaps he didn't introduce himself for that reason.
[ Charles does not believe his actual name is 'Cable.' No. And if he is Scott's son, than certainly not Cable in that case. Charles might have to ask him for details, because he'd love to know more about it. In their own time. He smiles at Scott.]
This could be good for both of you. More family typically is.
[ Charles has one exception, and that is Cassandra Nova who he hopes never shows up and he never meets. He has a lot of complicated feelings around an evil twin sister from another world, but in a way, he's curious too. He's already promised to handle her himself if she shows up. This is a far better way to unexpectedly have family.]
I'd have to ask him about it when I get the chance.
[ Which, spoiler alert, he eventually did in the aforementioned get together. For now, though, Scott does believe 'Cable' is just his moniker like Cyclops to him is. He just hasn't had the opportunity of scrutinizing further, only because he's also respecting Cable's space. Which he thinks the other's also doing with regards to his own.
The compliment, though, earns a warm smile from Scott, genuine and bright. He hasn't really thought about it before, even when he and Jean skirted around the topic of settling down. They've probably talked about it once or twice during aftermaths of intimate episodes, but never seriously. So, while the compliment's appreciated, it also catches him a bit off guard. ]
Thanks for thinking, though, Professor. I do try.
[ Even if he really doesn't know where to begin most days. Then again, seated in front of him is the very man who inadvertently taught him how to be. ]
I didn't expect to be a grandfather twice over at my age, but all kinds of wonderfully bizarre things are happening here.
[ Charles was an old man at a young age though. He's hardly representative of his true age, when he's acted like a parent since he was a teenager. Now he just happens to be one for real. He returns Scott's smile, pleased to see it. This may be a bit of good news for Scott, after he's had some terrible news. It will give him something special to experience while stuck here. Something he could not have back home. ]
Alright, let's go over the plans for the holiday party. Rogue has agreed to make the food, so we'll just need to get her the ingredients, but I found a few other things that might go well.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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[ Charles feels for her, he truly does. He did reassure her that he knows for a fact if older him knew she was alive and where she was, he would have immediately rescued her. It wasn't a question of whether they would, it was because they didn't know. But he can understand how her being needed at the same time as being rescued would make this feel complicated.
She's attempting to reach out now that she's reached more peace with him and Logan. Charles has hopes. But Scott was a leader. She surely looked up to him like with the other X-Men, and as she became one and grew up within the mansion. He hopes Ororo will do the same. Charles doesn't know if Scott's death led to the fracturing of the X-Men, but it probably didn't help. Their path was more about the mutant vs human problem at large. The point is they are here together now, and he wants to fix what he can.]
Right now, we have space cleared out at Ororo's temple, and I was hoping to decorate it a little bit to be festive. Rogue offered for the food, and Logan is going to get what tree is possible.
[ Charles hasn't seen any mega Christmas tree offerings around here, so it may require some finagling, but he trusts that Logan can handle it. He likes having missions.]
I never had an official mansion Christmas, I must admit. My first class was small, and we never really got kicked off the way it was later. You'd know more than I about the X-Men celebrations.
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But as it is, Scott's somehow at a loss where to start. How can he fix her issues when he's also in the process of fixing his own? They're all a mess right now, but it doesn't mean they have to stay this way forever. He'll talk to her. He just hopes it yields good results.
Speaking of good results, though, Scott's face slowly lights up at the mention of the things planned for the gathering. All good things. So good, in fact, that he wishes he's not too engrossed in his work at the Scrapyard and came up with some of these things. ]
Those sound like good preparations already. I can help you with the decorations. Many things at the Scrapyard can be turned into some. Been to the temple a couple of times so I'd know the lay of the land.
[ He can also tell them where certain things should go, etc. ] Do you already have a guest list?
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I invited the same people as the diner. All of us and Wade and Cable.
[ Technically he considers Laura and John automatically as 'all of us,' because in his eyes they are still X-Men. And all of us includes Erik. Perhaps it's the mutants he means in a general way, but Cable is one too. He's still somewhat outside of them though. He's guarded about his future, outside of telling Charles that it is yet another bad timeline. And Wade is something mutant-adjacent. It's close enough.]
Perhaps someday we'll have people here we consider family enough to make this larger, but for now, it felt better for it to be us.
[ Charles isn't against people bringing anyone they've become close to later on, or at other gatherings of the group. It's only for the time being that he feels they should really stay close to one another.]
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[ That it feels better that the gathering's for them only first. It's their first Christmas in this place, only having been here for six months, so it feels appropriate they keep this a bit more private.
The mention of Cable, though, visibly piques Scott's interest. His jaw tightens a little, as if in contemplation. It takes him a few seconds to follow-up on his earlier words. ]
Did Cable ever tell you about who his parents are, Professor?
[ That honestly seems highly unlikely knowing Cable's allergy to say more than one sentence but Scott only wants to make sure they'd be on the same page here before dropping the proverbial bomb on Charles. ]
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[ It didn't occur to Charles to ask that despite the fact Cable is from the future. So it was possible yes, but considering Cable's age and general coldness, he didn't go there in his mind. Now it seems obvious that he might be the child of X-Men, and that's why he knows everything about them.]
He's not very forthcoming. I wouldn't have known that he was from our world at all if Wade hadn't brought him along before.
[ Charles was glad that he did, and Cable agreed to be there, but he simply would've missed it. He knows that Wade is from theirs, from later in the timeline, and Cable did some time travel. It's one giant headache, and Charles has only recently accepted time travel as a necessary part of their story.]
I suppose with Laura here I should have guessed. Enlighten me.
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Although, he really doesn't know where to start with this. Swallowing a bit, jaws tightening a little after, Scott lets out a breath. ]
Well, it's me. Apparently, I'm his dad.
[ Nothing like ripping off the bandaid than meandering off-topic first before getting to the point. Scott has never been not straightforward, and this is no exception. He thinks Charles also deserves to know the point-blank truth. ]
And his mom? A clone of Jean, if you can believe it.
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The clone part though, that ... well that's a new one for him. Their world has its oddities, but the futures it could go to are all kinds of science fiction to him. Charles really should get used to it by now! ]
I do believe it. Insane as it is.
[ Charles can't imagine why Cable would deceive Scott about that. He could have said it was Jean only. Interesting. He smiles faintly.]
A grandfather twice over.
[ It's a joke, but also the truth. With Cable it'll be more amusing, given he's got Charles beaten by at least a decade, but that's two unexpected children for his sons. What's next? Ororo having a daughter? Now that would be lovely.]
How do you feel about that?
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Scott's used to it by now, though. It's been more than six months (half a year!) of being in this planet. He probably adapted to the strangeness of this place better than most.
The question Charles asks makes him sigh a little. ]
It's still a lot to process, to be honest, but I'm doing fine. Just wanna get to know him a bit better, which is a little tricky since he's a man of few words. [ And older than him by two decades. How can he even father someone like that? ]
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[ Cable could have found a way out of the conversation, Charles has no doubt. Perhaps like Laura, he didn't want to admit to how much he cared about knowing his parent, but sort of gave into the impulse. Bit closed off is an understatement, he knows that, but the man has been through a great deal. From what he's told Charles, his timeline is one hell of a hard one. ]
As someone who found himself an unexpected parent, I'd say it matters that he came clean. He was reaching out, in a way. So I think he'll let you get to know him, if you press a little.
[ Charles knows from his own experience that pushing a little will be tolerated to a point, as he got to know the boundaries of Scott, Ororo, and Logan, and they all made it work. He thinks Cable might end up somewhat similar.]
He came voluntarily to our meeting, and he did mention to me he knows the X-Men, so it seems like he was reaching out, in a way.
[ Cable put himself in a position where he connected with Scott, Charles, and even met the others. That says to Charles that a part of him wants this, even if he's going to be gruff about it.]
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Scott just has to always mentally take note that Cable's a fifty year old man who had experienced things he's unaware of. So he's giving him space to come to him instead.
With a slowly forming smile that he hopes would reassure Charles, Scott nods. ]
You're right, Professor. I just have to always remember we're coming from two different worlds. [ Literally and figuratively. ]
I do update him of my whereabouts from time to time. Let him know what I'm doing some days. And well, he replies. [ With a thumbs up emoji. Always. ]
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[ No one would have questioned Cable about his heritage. Charles knew that he was a future mutant, but didn't expect him to be that connected. Maybe he should have, given the small details he was given. But if Cable wanted to put firm boundaries between them, he would have just never said it. It's touching, in a way, that he wants to take this opportunity, slow as it may be. ]
You know, I don't know his real name, only his codename. I wonder if it's Summers, and perhaps he didn't introduce himself for that reason.
[ Charles does not believe his actual name is 'Cable.' No. And if he is Scott's son, than certainly not Cable in that case. Charles might have to ask him for details, because he'd love to know more about it. In their own time. He smiles at Scott.]
This could be good for both of you. More family typically is.
[ Charles has one exception, and that is Cassandra Nova who he hopes never shows up and he never meets. He has a lot of complicated feelings around an evil twin sister from another world, but in a way, he's curious too. He's already promised to handle her himself if she shows up. This is a far better way to unexpectedly have family.]
I think you would make an excellent father.
🎀 wrap soon?
[ Which, spoiler alert, he eventually did in the aforementioned get together. For now, though, Scott does believe 'Cable' is just his moniker like Cyclops to him is. He just hasn't had the opportunity of scrutinizing further, only because he's also respecting Cable's space. Which he thinks the other's also doing with regards to his own.
The compliment, though, earns a warm smile from Scott, genuine and bright. He hasn't really thought about it before, even when he and Jean skirted around the topic of settling down. They've probably talked about it once or twice during aftermaths of intimate episodes, but never seriously. So, while the compliment's appreciated, it also catches him a bit off guard. ]
Thanks for thinking, though, Professor. I do try.
[ Even if he really doesn't know where to begin most days. Then again, seated in front of him is the very man who inadvertently taught him how to be. ]
wrap!
[ Charles was an old man at a young age though. He's hardly representative of his true age, when he's acted like a parent since he was a teenager. Now he just happens to be one for real. He returns Scott's smile, pleased to see it. This may be a bit of good news for Scott, after he's had some terrible news. It will give him something special to experience while stuck here. Something he could not have back home. ]
Alright, let's go over the plans for the holiday party. Rogue has agreed to make the food, so we'll just need to get her the ingredients, but I found a few other things that might go well.