14370/It's Not Too Cold For The Crocoile Mile

It's Not Too Cold For The Crocoile Mile
Date of Scene:	10 March 2023
Location:	Back Yard
Synopsis:	Who says February's too cold for the Crocodile Mile? Tabitha, Noriko, and Jubilation set it up in the back yard and have some summertime fun. Jubilation accidentally turns into a bat for the first time but the experience knocks her on her butt -- literally. And Noriko's butt. And Tabby's butt. It's a Crocodile Mile Pile.
Cast of Characters:	Jubilation Lee, Tabitha Smith, Noriko Ashida

---

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    The moon hangs high in the inky, dark sky above Xavier's School For Gifted Youngsters. It's a crisp 36 degrees, typical for a night in the middle of winter. Most of the students and teachers are inside, enjoying their nice, cozy beds or maybe even a crackling fire in the Recreation Room. One resident, however, is not.

    The backyard area, normally forgotten this time of year, has some activity. Jubilation Lee is in the middle of laying out a long, thin tarp. It's bright blue, about thirty feet or so, and has a plastic curtain with a cartoon crocodile drawn on it, which separates the strip of tarp from a small splash pool. It's the CROCODILE MILE.

    Jubilation is dressed for splashy, backyard activities, at least partly. She wears a grey hoodie over, presumably, a bathing suit, as a black bathing suit bottom peeks out from the bottom of the hoodie. Her hair is pulled into a ponytail, right below a yellow and black trucker hat that says WET TO ACTIVATE in black, blocky letters on the front. Dark Ray Bans shield her eyes. She even has a beach recliner set up nearby, too. If there's a memo about it being winter, Jubilee did not read it.

Tabitha Smith has posed:
The crocodile mile is usually more a warmer weather thing. And while most folks are either inside. Where it would be sensible. Tabitha is not always.

In fact she might possibly just be outside enjoying the first blunt of herr night.

That and modifying the LED sign out by the front of the school. Currently changed to "Spring Break is coming. And we'll be going!"

The blonde herself wearing sensible shoes technically just old workboots to go with her old beat up and ripped faded bluejeans. An XAVIER'S hoodie in yelow with red text while her usuall accessories of spiky leather belts, collar and wrist cuffs are in red to match her red framed but yellow tinted glasses.

When she finally rounds the backyard to see Jubilee dressed way more scant, being the current lack of pants at least. She can't help but grin.

"Look. I'm pretty certain even a vampire can lose toes to the cold weather out here. And I could cut glass and adamantium right now." she states. her free hand not holding her joint hidden in a pocket in that hoodie. It's not a muff but it'll have to do. No mittens or scarf right now.

Noriko Ashida has posed:
Noriko is similarly dressed to Jubilee, that is, not enough clothing for the weather, but she also doesn't seem to mind it.  Instead of a hoodie though, she simply wears her bathing suit top, her gauntlets, and some cargo pants that hug low on her hips.

The speedster might have spotted Jubilation on her way out the door, or was it across the lawn?  Yeah probably across the lawn while Jubes was making her way out, and yet, here Nori is, catching up to the vampire.  "Hey," she says softly as she takes part of the tarp to help spread it out.

"What does a vampire need toes for?" she chirps with a little smirk before she spurts to locate whe-and it's setup!  Noriko stops her flurry of activity to rest her gauntlets on her hips.

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    "What... Did you go to Vampire Medical School?" Jubilation asks, raising her voice to account for the distance that has yet to be closed. She makes a face. No one can see it because Jubilee is bent forward, smoothing out the tarp. It's the face of someone who doesn't quite remember why she should be worried about her toes. Jubilee straightens up and turns just in time to have a speedster at her side. She grins, accidentally revealing those razor sharp fangs she forgot how to hide. Jubilation leans forward, lips puckered, but... too late. Such is life with a speedster.

    Jubilee puts her hand on her hip and pretends to be annoyed by it, hamming it up like she's an actress in a sitcom and there's a live studio audience. She looks over at Tabby and shrugs one shoulder, as if to say 'welp, what can I do?'.

    "What are you doing up past your bed-time, Tabby?" Jubes wonders, jokingly of course. "Up to no good, I assume? I hope."

Tabitha Smith has posed:
"I grew up in a mountain town and then homeless in the City. I've seen what frostbite looks like on a teenager. And well, toes are nice. And since you do have nice ones and a Fiance Jubilation." The blonde states and grins to Noriko. "It feels wrong to risk denying said fiance toesies." she states and nods sagely. She did at least respect that the two do make a good view while they were setting the tarp up.

The non hidden fangs don't seem to put Tabby off either. You kind of get desensitized to such things when your ex sometimes also has horns, hooves, and a tail prehensile tail.

"And wow, it's that late?" not that she's checking or aware of what time it is. Not like she has a curfew after all. "Just fixing the sign out front. Pondering the next trip, thinking Atlantic City. See how long it takes for the casino's to kick us out. But then I think, eww Jersey." she goes off rails a little as she takes another hit, offering Nori a puff is she wants.

"If you two gonna slide, might as well join ya and make sure no one loses useful and tasty bits." she give serious thought to the Crocodile Mile.

Last time she was on it was the July birthday party she threw for everyone. Luckily noone actually hit the wall of the school that time. She put up nets for catching people.

Noriko Ashida has posed:
Noriko's timings have been /off/ to say the least, as of late.  Normally she'd be right back there for the kiss in time, but this time?  There's a flash of minor despondence on her face but like most things with Nori, it passes quickly and she shrugs comically.

That's one moment, but the next she's all up in Jubes' business, as if something inside of her needed permission.  She leans against her back, resting her chin on Jubes' shoulder.  As much as Nori may want to wrap her arms around Jubes' waist, those gauntlets are just too bulky for her to consider them comfortable, and for Jubes' sake, she just keeps them at her hips.

"Casinos?  I'd have to have a strategy ready before I ever went there."  Of course the easiest is to outright steal from them.  Way harder to fool the pit bosses.  Noriko does not possess superhuman memory.  "Otherwise I might get bored," and who knows what that looks like in a casino.

"Did a friend of yours get frostbite or a brother or cousin or cousin who is also your brother brother or something?"

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    "New Jersey..." Jubilee mutters as she looks up, as though doing so might make it easier to access a distant memory. It's a bad idea to go there, she's sure of it, but those reasons feel so much smaller than they used to... She perks up suddenly, remembering what she needed. Mental itch scratch.

    "New Jersey's okay," she says with a shrug. "I mean... maybe I'm only saying that because I can't get sick anymore."

    Jubes grins, now leaning backwards into Noriko's hug, exaggerating the shift by raising one of her legs in the air. She's making herself slightly clumsy -- on purpose, of course -- so the moment can be properly enjoyed. Just two crazy kids on the highway of life.

    "Welp, there's plenty of Mile for everyone!" Jubes declares, sticking her index finger into the air like she's upgrading it to a proper proclamation. A little packet of colorful fireworks explode a few inches above her finger to really sell the idea.

    "I'm gonna go get the hose," Jubilee explains. She lowers herself and slinks out of Noriko's arms, rises easily, and then takes off towards where the hose is kept for the winter.

Tabitha Smith has posed:
"It was a friend. He lost toes because good shoes that keep the cold off and protect your feet are expensive and can be traded for food. At we both know that was like the least of what can happen to a kid on the streets." Tabby points out in answer to Nori's question.

"I was an only child. Dad never had kids with my stepmoms. For the best. Could you imagine two sexy blondes with explosive powers running around here. And I don't just mean me and Alison. She does like lasers instead. pew Pew"

"See at least you understand the eww. Also last time we did Vegas. There was probably some really good drugs and and alligator and... Never mind." she says and manages to blush. Fuzzy memories not yet regained.

"It puts the lotion in the basket!" she yells to the Vampire duchess while Tabitha sighs at the cold and starts working on matching the other girl's level of attire.

The weed she's smoking clearly leaning on her better judgment to strip in solidarity. Lacking a swimsuit she pauses while undoing her pants. "Did I remember to wear?" she asks herself and hmmms while bending herself in half to undo her boots first before she accidentally inevitably lands her ass in the still snowy ground.

Noriko Ashida has posed:
"I think I ran through New Jersey once," Noriko says with a shrug as if it wasn't worth slowing down at the time to take in the sights.  "Can't be sure."

Jubilation's comment about not being able to get sick anymore and it's connection to New Jersey cause Noriko to pause, to squint curiously, but not to say anything immediately because leaning against Jubes is way more fun and distracting.

"This is going to be freezing," Noriko says, shaking her head after Jubilation pulls away to go get the hose.  "Tabby you're the one who should worry the most.  I'm more worried about melting the Mile."  As for the explanation of the friend, it gets a solemn nod.  Her own background of the streets is no grand secret.

Noriko turns abruptly at Tabby's questioning of what she remembered to wear today.  "Juuuuubes," She shoots a bolt out of her finger, trying to keep it relatively stable as she engraves 'Nori Lee' in the snow.

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    "Or else it gets the hose again, I know, I know the rules..." Jubilee announces on her way to find the hose.

    ...Rummage rummage. Rummage rummage. Time passes.

    "Only child? Me too!" her voice can be heard, faintly rising above the noises of chaotic rummaging coming from a nearby storage shed. Predators generally have ears that are naturally attuned to the sounds of the prey that nature has selected for them, and so Jubilation has no problem hearing the conversation, even from inside the storage shed. "No offense, but you sorta seem like someone who'd have tons of brothers and sisters, like too many. Like, two of them accidentally have the same name!"

    "Well, Tabby, this isn't Vegas, there's no alligator... There's only..."

    Jubilation comes into view holding a coiled up hose above her head with both hands. "CROCODILE MILE!"

    Jubes skips back with the hose, sashaying her hips as though she's an adult woman pretending to be a child. Foot light and fancy free. It's July, after all! In spirit, anyway. No more teachers, no more books. She stops in front of Noriko's snow signature and lowers into a kneeling position next to the speedster. She rests her chin on Noriko's shoulder like its a shelf for her face. "Nori Lee," she reads. "So I guess you've warmed on that?" Jubilee wastes no time, though, and immediately stands so she can uncurl the hose. "That's good! I don't know if people would tolerate Jubilation Ashida. Jubilshida? No way, Jose." Hose has been uncurled and laid out on the grass. She stares at it.

    "Hose goes on the spigot..." Jubilee says. "DUH JUBES!" she jabs, lowering her voice as low as she can for a proper mocking.

    Jubilation takes off again, this time towards the nearest spigot, with one end of the hose held tightly in her fist.

Tabitha Smith has posed:
"Melting the tarp is the worry, but really. Having hot water out here. Any one of us can do that." she states and snaps a finger with a little pop of a miny firecracker sized bomb. No louder than a cap gun. "Dad can't keep a wife long enough to knock her up. Thank goodness. And the one he did, well, she's no longer with us." as far as Tabby knows the woman died while she was little. Dead to Marty Smith at least.

It's probably luckiker for Tabby that she does have underwear, clingy red shiny booty boishorts.

The girl's lower half mostly bared. The snow around her feet turning rapidly to steam. There was some nice red polish too but that seems to go up prety quickly, soon as bare and unpainted as her fingernails.

Nail art is too shortlived and expensive when your hands regularly are enggulfed in super heated plasma.

The hoodie is ditched too but that thankfully was only one of a few layers. All cropped to show that nigh shredded set of abs while arms and upper upper body have a pink tee with BOOM! printed in a bright yellow over a white thermal long sleeve top. Anything else other than highbeams through the top concealed under layers.

"You know you can hyphenate the surnames right. Ashida-Lee. Why should one of you give up a surname when you can both each get an extra!" she states and leaves melty footpriunts behind her ashe finds somewhere not snow and ice to place her clothes and boots to stay dry. "So, you set things up, you can go first Your Grace!" she points out right of first refusal with a deep bending hip bow more theatric royalty like usually given by servants.

Not that Tabby would ever cut it as a handmaiden.

Noriko Ashida has posed:
"I know you wouldn't," Noriko teases lightly about tolerating Jubilation Ashida.  "There's another Ashida out there," Nori hopes still, "To carry on that name.-Jubes.  People are always going to call you Jubilee no matter what.  You realize that right?"  But she doesn't really mean to pursue this line of questioning.  She just laughs a little at the thought of 'Jubilshida.'

"Jubilshida is a name for spawn," as if the spawn should have a nightmarish name.  "It sounds like a mega monster.  Kaiju!  Jubilshiiida!"  Noriko has flopped back on the lawn, waiting for Jubes to finish setting up, grinning at the musing.  Kindly, Noriko says nothing of Jubilation forgetting how the hose works.  The speedster knows this isn't some human faltering of the brain, an airhead moment, or anything like that, but she lets it pass off as one smoothly.

"Who says the water is going to be hot?-Oh she has reasons," Noriko explains to Tabby and just waits for Jubilation to give them on the hyphenation.

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    "Shut /UP/ shut /UP/ shut /UP/!" Jubilee shouts into the void while screwing the hose into the spigot, trying to intercept Tabby's suggestion of a hyphen. Anything to stop it from getting into Noriko's ears. It's hopeless. After a couple rounds of lefty-loosey-righty-tighty, ice cold water begins to flow from the end of the hose and lube up the Crocodile Mile.

    "Okay, we're gonna need to get some more water on there for regulation wetness," Jubes reminds as she trots across the lawn and returns. It's as though there's some kind of governing body that claims jurisdiction over the matters of the Crocodile Mile and there's a certain amount of water to make the thing street legal.

    Jubilation begins to slooooowly stomp towards Noriko, both arms held straight out, akimbo. "Jubilshiida Jubilshiiiidaaa!" she groans like a monster. When she gets arms-reach with Noriko, she wraps them around the speedster, pressing her cheek against Noriko's neck.

    "I want you to be a Lee," she says simply, perhaps referencing some previous conversation they had. She keeps her reasons to herself.

    After a few moments -- the precise amount of time to not be slighting Nori or making Tabby think she's getting a free show -- Jubes lets go and walks towards the start of the Crocodile Mile. "You know, people don't bow to me enough," she replies to Tabby, grinning a little as she walks past. "Okay..." Jubilee takes a readied, athletic stance about ten feet away from the Mile. "Ready, steady," she declares before running towards the tarp. It's a regular run, no vampiric speed or anything like that. No cheating.

    Jubes hurls herself forward, feet first instead of the usual head-first method -- what a rebel! -- and slides down the plastic tarp, spraying water from under her butt as she careens across the lawn. Both arms go into the air and a stream of fireworks trails behind her. "Yeeeeeeeeeeeeeaa---" she cheers, making absolutely every effort to wake people up.

    About halfway through the Mile, Jubilation begins moving her arms up and down. It's a non-specific gesture with no real motivation behind it. It's just more fun to do it, right? "Weeeeeeeeaaaaaaaa!!"

    After the fourth flap, something amazing happens.

    It's just a flash. Just a moment. A single drop in the bucket of time. Blink and you might miss it. For the briefest of moments, it's not Jubilation Lee sliding down the Crocodile Mile. Just for one second...

    It's a bat.

    For just a moment, Jubilation Lee, the only vampire in Westchester who doesn't know how to turn into a bat, turned into a bat. By the time Jubilee hits the splashpad, she's back to her normal self, now soaking wet and laughing. Another satisfied customer of the Crocodile Mile.

Tabitha Smith has posed:
Running water should at least normally not freeze as long as it's running but. "First Mutant Name usually sticks. And mine was schoolyard insult I ran with." she points out and nods her head. Another joint is claimedfrom a pocket in her jeans left safe and lit up. The blonde using a flick of her plasma flame to do the job without a lighter.

There's a grin to Jubes about bowing. "I know if you mandated it you'd have most of us facing away from you when we do it." she jokes and wiggles her own hips as the Chinese girl takes a run up and suddenly there's a bat moving down the tarp. "Uhh, okay. That's new! Nori!" can bats fly when it's cold and wet?

That gets Tabby rushing down and sliding down the mile as well to try and catch the winged primate shaped vampire.

That is already a human shaped Vampire again by the time Tabby is halfway. She might have pretty good reflexes, but she's not that fast that she could make it to scoop up a bat.

She starts on her feet and eventually loses balance as she finds herself following the woman shaped woman. Face and chest down.

Jubilee should have the reflexes though to avoid suddenly having a very wide eyed blonde's head about to ram into her backside.

Being undead doesn't mean you can't hurt yourself. And amazingly Tabitha is capable of caring about her friends.

She's just really bad at doing it as is possibly about to be demonstrated.

Noriko Ashida has posed:
Noriko grins at the sight of Jubilshiida stomping toward her.  She lifts her arms lazily at the last second to be easier prey for Jubes, but leans her head against Jubes' once captured.  "I know," perhaps not needing to have the conversation at all, given that one would have been ages for Noriko.  "You got me," she says, perhaps having multiple meanings.

Jubilation's wake leaves a smile on Nori's lips.  She lets Jubes walk ahead and take the lead, enjoy the fruits of her labor.  Plus it gives Nori a chance to shrug off her cargo pants, fold them, take off some jewelry, and yawn, all before Jubilation takes off in spectacular fashion.  "Go Jubes!" she even shouts as she fireworks her way down the Mile.

And then it happens.  Noriko is the special soul who gets to see it most of all.  In fact.  She runs up to go look at the little bat and give it two thumbs up with a big grin, racing alongside in that instant and thereafter as she shouts, "YOU-BATTED-YOU-BATTED-YOU-BATTED!" over and over as fast as a drumroll while grinning like a maniac and then careens to tackle Jubilation into the splash zone.

Which is oddly fortunate, pushing Jubes away from the trajectory of Tabitha at least.  Was that on purpose?  Sometimes it's hard to tell with Noriko.  She can make anything look purposeful or accidental.  Though Jubes now knows firsthand just some of what Noriko is capable of, so the curtain has been partially lifted for her at least.

Nori takes a little tumble and laughs as she catches part of Tabby biting it, or rather, sliding while biting it.  "Incoming-ish."

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    It all happens so quickly. Tabby saw what happened -- tried to intervene, even. Noriko certainly saw what happened. But, for Jubilee, it was over before it began. A tiny moment, just a whisper in time, where Jubilation got to be exactly what she is. But does she know?

    Who has time to think about it when her solo-trip down the Crocodile Mile ended up in the carpool lane?

    "Geez, can't you wait your turns?" Jubes mutters, staring up at the sky, lying still in the shallow pool of water, in the shallow pool of limbs and bodies. Her hoodie is totally soaked and clinging, hair matted against her face.

    "I don't feel so good," she adds quietly. Transforming twice in quick succession might be a tough one for the walk-it-off mentality.

Tabitha Smith has posed:
There would be a little pride at Jubilee finally managing to figure out how to become a bat. There is howvere a fair bit of uncomfortable and pained yelling "Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow!" all the way down to the splashpad at the end.

Sliding chest down after a stumble and sliding on a nigh frozen tarp with just and nearly frozen water while also demonstrating what looks like thimbles under her tops rather strained tops.

She's probably not really enjoying that.

Doubly when she finally stops skidding and splashing and makes her way to at least her knees. Thighs goosebumped from the cold.

The real miracle is Tabitha not being electrocuted while she and Noriko share splash zone from the whole mess. Odds are the effect is probably the beginning of a draining effect from Tabby's stores of energy to the electrical speedster.

"I think my highbeams are gonna get frostbitten." she pouts.

"So you turned into a bat. At least you can turn it off. Last time I swapped species SHIELD had to un-cow me. So I guess you got something to practice. Vampire Goals." she states while maybe subtly using her power to heat the water up to something less obtrusive.

"Need Nori to get you a juicebag and carry you home?" she ponders and hmms. Milestones deserve Fiance hugs and stuff after all.

Noriko Ashida has posed:
Noriko goes is really shocking her system one would think with how warm she runs, but she seems to tolerate the extremes just fine.  "Nope!  Can't wait-when you BAT!-Oh Tabs."  The girl doesn't even make fun of Tabby.  She just looks so cold.

"You were a cow?  Did you moo a lot?"  Noriko sounds downright fascinated.  "Did you still have your clot-"  But then she senses it, like some medical alert animal, just before Jubes announces feeling unwell.  Her head whips around toward Jubes, eyebrows knitted with concern.

"Yeah.  I think maybe it's time to call it.  We should send a raven to your court.  I can clean this stuff up...whenever," between a sentence?  As long as it's after everyone is off of it.  She isn't scooting people around.