6614/Xavier's Welcome Party

Xavier's Welcome Party
Date of Scene:	22 June 2021
Location:	Recreation Room
Synopsis:	An excellent party turns dark, as both students and teachers learn a bit too much about Halal food. Oh, also Monet is welcomed. Details, details.
Cast of Characters:	Jubilation Lee, Monet St. Croix, Rogue, Jean Grey, Noriko Ashida, Henry McCoy, Remy LeBeau, James Proudstar, Rahne Sinclair, Gabby Kinney

---

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    The Rec Room is in rare form tonight. The normal assortment of chairs, couches, beanbags, and so on, have been pushed towards the walls to make ample space. A hodge-podge of decorations make it clear that this is no ordinary night and that a professional has prepared for an event! Space has been cleared for mingling and, should anyone wish, dancing. A table skirted with a black table cloth supports a laptop hooked up to DJ equipment -- speakers, amplifiers, etc. Scattered around are tall, bar-style tables for people to set drinks down and chat. Large, round tables with pristine white table cloths fill the space, each with ten identical settings, complete with plates, cloth napkins, and silverware. Each table has a small decorative candle in the center, pointlessly flickering among the room's bright lights. Each of these tables would be the perfect place for party-goers to bring the catered food they retrieve from the dining hall.

    There's a sign taped to the door leading to the Dining Hall -- handwritten with large, bubble letters with colorful markers: ONLY NORMAL KIDS ACTING NORMALLY MAY ENTER THE DINING HALL. NORMAL.

    Inside the Dining Hall, a team of caterers wearing white dress shirts, black dress pants, and black ties have set up serving tables with stacks of plates. Party-goers can grab a plate and have a number of different foods served to them! There's a table for fresh fruit. Another station is filled with hot and cold vegetables, along with the usual assortment of bric-a-brac that one might use to fancy up a salad. There are several 'main course' tables with various hot entries. Plenty of clearly labeled options exist for those with dietary restrictions, including halal and kosher! Finally, a long table with extravagant deserts completes the package. Just about the only thing missing is a place to eat -- all plates are taken back to the party in the Rec Room, while the caterers themselves have been sequestered in the Dining Hall. Anyone wishing for seconds will have to return!

    In stark contrast to the professionalism of the caterers, the food, the tablecloths, and so on, there's another hand at work here. A banner hangs loosely from the Recreation Room's ceiling -- in handwritten letters: WELCOME MONET! WE DON'T KNOW YOU BUT WE LOVE YOU! Jubilation Lee stands in the center of the Recreation Room wearing a pink party dress. She clutches a large bowl of chips and holds it against her chest, not looking too pleased about something.

    Students begin to trickle in as the sounds of a string quartet playing Alla Danza Tedesca of Beethoven's Opus 130 softly fill the room, each beautiful note ringing true from those giant DJ speakers.

    "Nice going, Jubilee!" "This is incredible!" "Wow!"

    Jubilation gives each classmate's compliment a meek smile before staring at the speakers playing the music, knowing she had nothing to do with any of this. She reaches into the bowl and takes a potato chip. CRUNCH.

Monet St. Croix has posed:
Hostess and nominal guest of honor, Monet is /not/ stylishly late for the party. Instead she arrives at the scheduled time dressed in loose slacks with a colorful flower pattern on a black background, a black lace top with long sleeves worn over a black strapless bra for decency's sake and flat leather sandals that buckle behind the heel as well as having a strap over the toes. Looking around she notices Jubilee's sign and smiles slightly, managing to do so with out any apparent hint of condescension as she says, "Hello everyone," in greeting to those already present.

Rogue has posed:
Rogue is in the rec room, she's been milling about observing the whole thing develop and helping where asked. She's wearing a yellow sungdress, but since they're inside now in the air conditioning she has a denim jacket over itthat has sleeves ending just below her elbows. She's wearing a pair of black fishnet-style gloves that go up to the denim sleeve cuffs and disappearing inside of it. Heeled shoes on her feet make her a bit taller than normal, and her hair is tied back in to a bun of dark brown locks on the crown of her head, white bangs framing her face loosely flowing around. She's got a drink in her gloved elft hand and is taking sip pulls from it as she smiles and speaks to others around her.

"This is all so lovely." She says to whomever is nearby her too!

Jean Grey has posed:
Standing off to the side in her usual designated adult fashion, Jean surveys the magic of controlled chaos that has come together into this particular welcome party. Since it's summer and classes are (mostly) out, the students at the school are entirely those that live there full time, and the atmosphere is definitely a bit less school and more summer camp. Which makes Jean more 'head counselor' and less 'headmistress'! Which is a bit of a break for her too. For instance, she's wearing a breezy green sundress, over the normal 'Authoriarian Librarian' getup.

That would be a good villain name.

It also means the students here are those who live at the school full time, which does skew the population a little more overt-mutant, which perhaps presented a challenge or two. Still, it looks like it's all been sorted and things are running in good fashion. And there's signs! Thus, somewhere in the midst of random students giving Jubilee random compliments, suddenly Jean's snuck up beside her, echoing the same, "You've done a really good job with this.'

After that, she picks out Monet, the guest of honor, turning her way. "So, how are you finding the school so far?"

Noriko Ashida has posed:
This is a party occasion, so clearly that means only one thing.  Noriko puts on more clothing.  Specifically, her dark grey jeans which allow the orange stripes on her kicks to pop and her black leather jacket hoodie.  Around her wrist she sports two loose thin flat leather bracelets and she's tried to style her hair for once, though as soon as she got free of the caterers' gazes, Noriko flitted through to settle just behind Jubilation's shoulder with the (only) two heaping plates she was able to bring back.

"Hey."  Noriko's mouth sounds slightly...occupied.  It's intended for Jubilee, though it is after Monet's general greeting.  "Sorry I didn't get here sooner.  See earlier there was this bug.  You don't want to know, but it set me back so I was running late.  Do you want something to drink?  I din't know what you wanted so I can get you whatever," Noriko says all rather quickly.  A short pause.  "Is that her?"  Nori is referring to Monet, of course, but that might not be obvious.

Henry McCoy has posed:
While not a student, currently Henry was a resident of the grounds. So when a party was to be had, he made sure he'd be in attendance! Dressed in a fine Aloha shirt and khaki shorts, Henry stepped into the rec room. Pausing just inside the door, he peered around at the work put into such a soiree. "Very nicely done." He offers over, to no one in particular. A nod and smile to Jean. "Evening, Jean - how are you?" He steps a bit closer.

The students present are given a wave and a smile in turn - greeting them warmly. "Quite the layout."

Monet St. Croix has posed:
As Jean approaches her, Monet's smile gets a bit warmer. "Tres bien," she says in her native French before continuing in French-accented English, "Everyone I've met has been very welcoming, Ms. Grey. Thank you for allowing me to have caterers help out, I didn't want of the students or staff to feel like they had to work tonight." As Henry approaches she inclines her head and says, "Bonsoir, Docteur McCoy," to him again switching to French for the formal greeting, adding, "Thank you," for the compliment she's obviously quite willing to accept from him.

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    To Jean, to Rogue, and perhaps even to Hank, Jubilation tries a smile. Her cheeks rise and her lips curl inward a little. It's technically a smile, though it resembles something that might be put on a flash card to teach children how to spell the word smile. It's unnatural and cartoonish. For the moment, Jubilee hugs the bowl of potato chips that were, most certainly, not supplied by the caterers. With a heavy breath, Jubilation walks with purpose towards a smaller, almost forgotten table near the corner of the Rec Room. She places the bowl of chips on the table, next to some other pathetic attempts at food -- cheese doodles, muffins, candy, and so on. The usual fare if you've been to one of these things in the past.

    Jubilee returns holding a beat up cardboard box -- Twister. She takes it out to the center of the room and stares at the picture on the front of it. The box is lowered so she can get a good look at the available space -- it's all taken up by the cocktail tables. With a huff, she sets the box on one of those cocktail tables and crosses her arms across her chest. "Yes, Noriko, I would like something to drink," she answers slowly, carefully, deliberately. It's kind of scary. "Anything will be fine as long as it comes from the Rec Room and not the Dining Hall." It's only loud enough for her to hear.

    Jubilee takes a deep breath, scoops up the game in her arms, and walks back towards Monet and those gathered around her. "Hey, so, I couldn't help but notice that we're all '8 and up' over here... How about some Twister?" she tries, raising the box so everyone can get a good look at it.

Remy LeBeau has posed:
    Halted at the main entrance to the recreation room, Remy stands there with a guffaw sort of laugh as he rolls his eyes and reaches up to tear the paper down and wad it up as he steps into the rec room and with a lift of his hand, the wadded up piece of paper is tossed into the air before it poofs into nothingness in a purple cloud quite casually.

    "Who put dat silly sign on de door. Ain't no one here know how t'be normal, or would know what normal looked like if dey tripped ovah it." Then a muttering in french under his breath as he shakes his head and looks around finally.

    "Oh."

    His eyes dart around, all mutated and such before he spots Jean and makes a face towards her.

    Then another face.

    Then ANOTHER face, each much more drastic than the last, expecting her to do her mind thingy on the guests.

    Before he can get a reply from her, or a reaction, he's walking deeper into the room, giving Anna Marie that rakish grin of his as he saunters past to find Money- Monet. "Ah, 'ear you're de newest girl 'ere, non mon cherie?"

    "Oh, Ah'm so sorry." He says, bowing and curtsying to Jubilee and Monet, "Where are my manners. Pardon." He says in a french accent, backing away from the game.

Rogue has posed:
Rogue offers a smile to Hank when he comes closer, her eyes going to Jean as they're basically wearing the same dress just in different colors! She sweeps her stare to Monet then and waits for a chance to smile toward her. She speaks up in perfect French toward the new student. "Bonjour, bienvenue à l'école. J'espère que vous l'aimez ici. Je suis Rogue, au fait." She welcomes her to the school.

Take that, Finer Things club...

The Belle raises her glass up for a sip from it before she lowers it once more and looks to Jubilee holding that game up. This has her grinning and then laughing softly. "I don't think I qualify for that." She idly mutters in good humor.

Remy's arrival has her smirking at his use of power instantly breaking the agreed upon rule of no powers today. She gives him a soft smile as he greets Monet too though and motions him toward the drinks where they are and that she might need another.

James Proudstar has posed:
James Proudstar ducks under the doorway slipping into the room in Remy's wake. The large man is surprisingly stealthy, or at least knows how to ride a distraction. James nods to a few others but keeps to himself, he scans the room, and makes his way to the small table in the corner, finding those muffins, the ones with the streusel topping and the real blueberries. He nods, and takes a couple munching happily.

Jean Grey has posed:
"Well we're very glad to have you, even if you're only joining us in your final year," Jean continues with Monet. "I think it's always exciting for people, considering the sort of unique group we are. While folks can be a little tight-knit, just the novelty of a new face, well-" Ultimately, she just grins. "I'm sure you'll fit in great." After this, she makes a sweeping gesture. "But why don't you go meet some of the other students. Wouldn't want to get branded the teacher's pet on your debut."

While her face lights up with the humor of the last part, the expression remains as Henry joins her and she turns back toward her old classmate. "Well, considering Jubilee and Monet did pretty much all of the work, I'm very well," she answers, still grinning. "It's really something they've put together. Always nice to have this kind of think to break up the schedule, get everyone enjoying themselves." Although as TWISTER is suddenly being discussed as a potential vehicle for said enjoyment, her look turns to one of, well, carefully controlled concern.

And for SOME reason, she picks out Remy to focus on, as she says what she says next. "I'm sure the students would have fun." And now Rogue has joined in on the French! "You know, you three might want to consider starting a language club." That's a serious suggestion! Schools need clubs!

Rahne Sinclair has posed:
One of the open windows sprouts a face. With a person attached, it seems that one attendee is trying to see inside without being seen in return. A lovely plan hindered quite a fair bit by the red hair that's visible even before the face. One wonders how she could forget that that's a thing.

Still, Rahne is looking in and eyes-shifting all about as she attempts to ascertain what's going on, what she's missed, and all of the things.

Monet St. Croix has posed:
"Bonjour, Ms. Rogue," Monet replies to the X-Woman and then addressing Remy, "Oui," and a quick, "Merci," to Jean as she glances in Jubilee's direction and says to the headmistress and the other X-Men around her, "It seems I may need to unruffle my RA's feathers," as a way to excuse herself for the moment.

Walking with natural grace, the Monegasques Mutant walks over to Jubilee and asks, "You don't want to try anything I brought in," in a consiliatory tone... but is this really how one should try to unruffle fathers?

Henry McCoy has posed:
The big blue doctor perks up, always happy to banter about with other languages. Henry gives a smile and a bow of his head to Monet. "Welcome to Xavier's, Miss St. Croix." His French is also very well spoken, a Parisian accent detected. He looks very pleased with himself, given the group of linguists in the room! Switching back to English, he nods to Jean. "If I do recall, Jubilee has a knack for setting up these wonderful events. The talent show, was after all, masterful. I still have my prize - framed in my office." Proud Hank is proud.

A smile to Rogue. "That is a lovely dress, Rogue. Enjoying the evening." A wave to Remy and James as well.
His eyes do follow Monet, as she approaches Jubilee.

Noriko Ashida has posed:
Noriko looks down at the plates of food in her hands, eyes wide.  They're full of food from the dining hall.  Cursed things.  Her stomach growls sharp and loud.  Sped up, it sounds like a snarly kitten.

"Um.  Okay.  I'll just go...get-I'll be back."  Noriko blurry walks over to the table in the corner of the rec room and quickly tries to scarf down the food she got while she stares at the choices of drinks untouched, since most people are on their first round of food and grabbed something from the dining hall.  Unaware that she's not perusing quickly, Noriko bunches on a roll absently.  How much time does Nori really waste on these decisions...relative to other things like figuring out what she wants to do with her life?...no one wants to know.

In the end, Noriko curiously (more like confusedly) has to abandon her dining hall food stash for later, leaving it behind at the drinks table behind some of the reserves.  She wipes a little at her mouth carelessly and zips back to the group.

"Oh.  Are we playing that?"

With Monet's sudden question, Noriko's eyes twitch from Jubilation to Monet, then back.  "Hi.  I'm Nori."

Remy LeBeau has posed:
    Remy's eyes catch the signals sent his way, and as he backs away from the newest member of the school, Remy clams up and seems like he's doing his best to quickly be forgotten, as he turns away.

    The simple outfit makes him look like a worship leader at a church. Muted earthy tones, a brown jacket over a cream shirt tucked into a pair of dark blue jeans with a brown leather belt and a pair of worn hiking shoes.

    The cajun slinks around through the middle of the room, to the walls, mainly, the drink station. On the way, Hank is given a wave and a nod, as he nears a window and smirks, "Heya, Rahne." He says to the girl poking through the window.

    A plate is loaded up with finger foods, mostly cut up fruit, and two bubbly fire drinks.

    "Here's ya drink Beauty." Remy says with a copy of the smile he fired towards Rogue earlier as he stands next to her side and holds out the plate in offering the drink on it. "Dis a fancy shindig... Ah feel stuffy already." He says tugging at his collar briefly.

Gabby Kinney has posed:
Fancy shindig indeed! It was the perfect excuse for Gabby to break out one of her old dresses that she had gotten back when she was dating someone of a higher class. Which is why she sweeps in, chin uplifted with all the attempted hoity-ness expected. Or at leas she was certainly playing it off that way. Beneath the skirt of her designer evening gown in a lovely shade of red she was wearing her usual boots. No need for heels here! Thick boot soles did the job just as well. Of course the rest of her looks the same as always--She likely just passed by, saw the fanciness, and then threw on the dress straight out of the closet. She did not look like someone that wore these often. Plus, there was food. "Ooh, everything looks great!"

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    Jubilation's enthusiastic expression, the one reserved for Twister, fades. She sets the box down on one of the cocktail tables and chews gently against her bottom lip. When Monet walks over, Jubilee stops biting her lip and shakes her head rapidly.

    "Oh... No, I just... I wanted to make sure that there were options for those who stick to a diet of..."

    Jubilee's eyes shift to take inventory of the tiny table of junk food she set up to, apparently, rival the finely curated selections available in the Dining Hall.

    "...sugar," Jubilee finishes, the enthusiasm drained from her tone. The explanation makes no sense whatsoever. She takes a deep breath and generates a smile before redirecting it at Monet. "I'm full from lunch," she explains before shrugging her shoulders in a 'what can be done?' sort of gesture.

    Upon Noriko's return, Jubilation smiles -- genuinely this time -- and reaches out to take the drink she's expecting. Wait. Noriko left with two plates from the caterers, to get her a drink, and came back with...zero plates and zero drinks. Jubilee narrows her eyes, squinting even, and takes a step towards the other girl. "Nori..." she begins, her voice taking on something of an ominous tone. Her index finger is brought up and a 'come here' motion is made. "Give me a kiss," she says simply, her eyebrows rising. Was Noriko Ashida eating the catered food? Jubilation is intent on finding out!

Rahne Sinclair has posed:
Remy's passing gets Rahne's eyes watching. If one wasn't aware of who it is, you might almost think that she was checking him out, but it's Rahne and nobody who's met her would think something of that sort. Would they? I'm not a mindreader.

Casting her gaze around she looks at the drinks, then starts to pull herself in through the window. Being a shrimp she fits, but it's unlikely that many others on campus would have made it through the gap available. At least she doesn't sprawl when she gets through, managing to avoid landing on her head this time.

Nose sniffing, she stands up to try and look normal, but she has big dirt patches on her knees and elbows, as if she's been crawling through a tunnel or through a rabbit patch.

She does, however, sidle toward the alcoholic drinks. Nobody looking. Totally allowed.

Monet St. Croix has posed:
Monet nods to Jubilee, accepting her lie out of courtesy and then says, "Hello Nori, I am Monet," to Noriko. Then, seeing Gabby's entrance out of the corner of her eye, Monet half turns and waves her over. "Jubilee's got snacks and Twister if you want to join in," she says to the bubbly Kinney girl who she has obviously already met. "I hope you enjoy the spread I had brought in. The school gets to keep the leftovers also," she explains to anyone who is within the sound of her voice.

Rogue has posed:
Rogue had given Hank a smile at his compliment. "Why thank ya, Mistah." She said back at him before she just gave a grin to Jean. "Only other language I know. Dunno if I should make a whole club about it. Bi-lingual Club? What happens when the Tri's want in, or god forbid the snooty Quad-langers out there..." She turns up her nose as she sips her drink.

Remy brings her a new one though and it makes her smile. She accepts it and pours the old one in to it, then sets the empty on the table behind her. "Yum." She takes another sip of the fresh drink before she pats Remy on the arm. "You look lovely tonight. Like a Math Teacher tryin' t'impress the French Teacher." She says with a grin toward him before her eyes roam around the room a little more.

Jean Grey has posed:
"You really earned it!" Jean enthuses at Hank. "...I think." Wait, she was a judge, shouldn't she remember? "You had that wonderful song! Oh and Bobby and Logan did a joint act didn't they?"

Narrator: They did not.

Obviously, Jean's memory of that evening isn't quite the best, given her own particular 'performance' as one of the judges. She was a bit hungover afterward, to say the least. But the important thing is... Uh... Jubilee and her great events! "You're right though, she really does a great job with this stuff. It's part of why we're making her an RA for her senior year."

Once he's headed off, she excuses herself toward the other half of the adult contingent, which is mostly just Remy and Rogue. "I don't know if I'd call this fancy, compared to that event Emma threw. But tell you what, you two can always put something together if you want. Hold it in the barn, for all I care." She is joking. Mostly.

As for the theoretical club, she gives a bit of a shrug. "Well, not just about being bi-lingual, but for any students who are studying the language too, and you could do cultural events or what have you. French cooking day. That kind of thing?"

Noriko Ashida has posed:
There was garlic in the rub.  Garlic in the rub.  Noriko's mind races and unfortunately does loop-dee-loops around that spread of food back in the dining hall.  Mind drool.  Her eyes glaze over.

Suddenly, Noriko hears a command and her eyes snap open a millimeter wider.  And suddenly, all she wants to do is go back to the land of food and...wait.  "Huh?"  ZIP!  Noriko slathers on some toothpaste back up in their bathroom and keeps trying to spit all of the liquid out.  Waiting for that liquid is what causes the noticeable hitch in how she appears.  ZIP! she gets closer to oblige, like some poor mosquito on its way to the pretty pretty light.

Let's just say Noriko comes in a minty variety with a garlicy aftertaste and a particular herb that gives a distinct tang not found in fast food.  She might have done a rush job.  Still no drinks.

Remy LeBeau has posed:
    Looking confused towards the approached Jean, Remy cants his eyebrows and says, "We already do hold it in the ba-OW!" Bending over at the waist and turning to put a hand on the table and groaning in pain as he's doubled over. "Owww." He mumers to no one. Thanks Rogue.

Gabby Kinney has posed:
Gabby Kinney waves toward Monet in greeting with a bright grin of her own. "Hey Monet! This all looks great!" She gushes only to hesitate at the gesture to come over. Why? Because her gaze flits toward Rahne, who was us sneaking in, and the food by Noriko, and then the FANCY SHMANCY catering. "... Okay I'm going to have to just..." Lifting she points toward the dining hall catering with a little gesture. "Back in a minute!" The apparent tension between the different foods completely goes over her head because there was NEW food she hasn't tried before! And she is getting a large, very large, plateful.

Henry McCoy has posed:
It's a social duel - it's evident to Henry. Still, he's going to let the two young adults sort things through. If they don't, then the doctor will offer sage advice. Or at least sound advice! A grin to Jean, and a nod. "She really took to it. Miss St. Croix has been working at meeting people - I think she was wanting to make an impression?" It's not said overly loud, but just to the Headmistress.

"Rogue, and heaven forbid if those enne-linguists show up!" He winks, amused at the play of clubs and exclusivity. "Such people must be dreadful and science teachers." He waggles his brows.

As more arrive, they get greeted by a wave from Hank. Then he moves over to the foodstuffs - both from the catered and the Jubilee provided. No favorites, here!

Rogue has posed:
Rogue looks over at Jean and just grins at her. "Now that ya describe it that way, it does sound a bit more fun. Though I"ve never been good at puttin' together parties... I mean... I'll admit, I've also never tried. It just seems t'come naturally t'some folks though, like Jubilee." She glances to the notorious girl in all her RA greatness, then looks over to Remy and smirks at him. "You misbehavin' already?" She asks the Cajun. She knows he's uncomfortable at the school, especially things like this, but she reaches out to pat him on the back.

"You get t'decide the next thing we do,Sugah." She assures him. "Within reason, a'course..." She states with a lingering smile given before she raises her drink up for another sip from its brim.

Rogue's eyes go to Hank then and she smiles sweetly at him. "Heaven forbid... ya see where I'm comin' with this then, don't cha?" She asks him playfully.

Remy LeBeau has posed:
    Coughing, Remy eventually rights himself so he's one of the adults and is banging his fist against his chest and then holding it before his mouth. "Goodness. Ya'lmost killed me." He says towards Rogue, his face turning read from the wind being nocked out of him.

    Recovering and holding onto the table for stability, Remy looks over to the potential feud and looks to Jean for follow up, "Ah'm moved out, dis is yo territory." And then a thumb is pointed towards Hank, "He's got the mindset Ah can agree wit'." The cajun reachs out and takes Rogue's drink and takes a sip for himself, but then gives it right back and pops in a grape to keep himself from having to speak further. So he says much with his eyes and eyebrows.

Rahne Sinclair has posed:
Rahne returns from the dining area, her face looking annoyed. She has a drink of some sort, but those pouring apparently gave her something not to her taste. She does see Gabby in passing, and gives the young lady an oddly distracted wave, but she sniffs whatever is in her glass with obvious distaste.

No date, no alcohol. She finds a seat and flops into it with the bonelessness that is only found in the young. And then slumps even lower.

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    Jubilation's initial reaction to Noriko's bouquet of mint and garlic is a slight recoil -- an instinct -- but then... her eyes lower a little, only for a moment, before rising to hyper focus a beam of anger in the other girl's direction. She spins on her heel and quickly walks towards the pathetic snack table and takes a breath. When Hank comes over, Jubilee is busy peeling the sweaty, messy paper from the cupcake bottom. "Hank?" she tries her best sing-songy sort of voice, looking up at him. "You want a cupcake?" Hank, of all people, should know that none of Jubilation Lee's powers include the ability to make her eyes browner...or larger... but, the imagination can play tricks, can't it? Jubilee holds the chocolate cupcake up for him to take. Take it. Take it, her eyes practically scream.

    Without even giving him a chance, Jubilee frowns again and stuffs the chocolate cupcake in her own mouth. With the whole thing crammed in there, Jubes walks back over to Monet and the others. Struggling to chew, Jubilee's eyes go wide. "Sofdbf you'reetfv frmomnf Frrnaancnee then tjhat's cfooffl," she tries, loudly, with chunks of chocolate cake and frosting splattering into the air.

    For those who speak cupcake, that roughly translates to 'So, you're from France then, that's cool!'

Monet St. Croix has posed:
Monet, on seeing Gabby depart, says, "Twister seems to be delayed for food," to Jubilee and Noriko. "I think I'll make the rounds and say hello to other people I have yet to meet," she adds before stepping away from the pair of girls.

The Monacan Mutant, a deca-linguist herself not even factoring in dialectical lingualism, steps over toward where Rahne has flopped and says, "Bonjour, we have yet to meet," to the red-head in greeting adding, "I am Monet St. Croix," she adds unnecessarially.

Jean Grey has posed:
As the Belle and the Beau go at it, what more can Jean do but roll her eyes at the perpetual antics of these two? Remy is not shown any particular sympathy when the cajun catches a bit of retribution for his remarks. He's earned it!

As for the little duel unfolding between the party hostesses, she doesn't seem especially concerned herself even if one assumes the general tension must be even MORE obvious to someone with her abilities. Still, this sort of socialization, whatever sparring and negotiation, is part of the school experience as much as any academic subject, and as long as no one is blowing each other up with super powers, she seems happy with the outcome. So there's no interference, though she does remark to Hank, "Yeah, I'm sure she wants to make a bit of a splash. Starting as a senior has some downsides, when everyone else is established in their friend groups. But it looks like she's managing things well enough."

Rahne Sinclair has posed:
Rahne looks up as someone addresses her. Sh almost looks startled, straightening up with reflexes and speed until her posture is acceptable. She looks tiny in the chair, but height is not something she's ever had control over. You know, without cheating.

"Rahne Sinclair, ma'am," she says. Responsive, malleable. Sober. She stands up as an afterthought, and tries to dust herself off. Almost as if she's only just realized that she's in a room with people. "Ma'am," she adds. Again, unnecessarily. Then she glances up at the statuesque Monet, and sighs internally. Another model.

Gabby Kinney has posed:
"Oh my gosh this is so good!" Gabby gushes as she comes back with a plate that was piled high. Halal and other are mixed together as she apparently decided to sample. Uh. Everything. Everything she didn't recognize and now it's all in front of her with fork held at the ready to stab whatever current item was there to monch on. This doesn't stop her from noticing Jubilee with cupcakes, so she calls out, "Save me a few cupcakes, Jubes!" For as tiny as she was, she either had a huge metabolism or her eyes were bigger than her stomach. That was quite the load of food she had on her plate. She does pause by Monet and Rahne to grin at the pair. "Rahne's awesome and she turns into this really cute wolf," she explains to Monet matter-of-fact before offering one of the sausage-like things that probably wasn't actually sausage toward the redhead in question. "Oh you should try this it's like... not meat but super tasty?" Probably lentils and spices.

Henry McCoy has posed:
There's a look of concern on Henry's face, the man watching as Jubilee practically inhales the cupcake. "Jubilee, I can't take it if you eat it..." He offers over, with a chuckle. He does take a /different/ cupcake from the lot that Jubilee has brought. "They do look delicious." He offers over to her, before she departs to speak in cupcake-ese to Monet.

He nods to Jean as she comments on the splash, smiling. "Seems to be the way of things. Were we so different when we arrived?" Hank comments, thinking back.

A wide grin at Gabby and her mountain of food - along with her complimenting of Rahne.

Monet St. Croix has posed:
Monet can't help that she's perfect. Reminding everyone about it at every opportunity, that's something she /could/ help, if she cared to.

Is Monet aware of Rahne's discomfort. Very much so. Does she let it bother her or take any action about it. Of course not.

Instead, after looking Rahne over, Monet says, "'Ma'am'?" in surprise and then replies with, "No, M or Monet, mademoiselle if you must but from you that would seem wrong I think. I'm still a student and I assume that you are not still one yourself, Miss Sinclair." Upon hearing Gabby's comment about the redhead she asks, "A metamorph?" and then says, "That sounds amazingly interesting."

Rogue has posed:
When the cupcakes are within grabbing range, Rogue reaches out to pick one up and peal off the paper part. She lifts it up and takes a bite from it while Remy has her drink. It makes her green eyes roll back in he rhead as sthe chocolate icing rolls over her tongue. "Mmmmm...."

The Belle looks down at it and mutters a very flavorful curseword... in French.... then takes another bite before she offers the rest to the Cajun beside her.

"Only half. The devil wants ya t'have more than that." She says with a grin to the man from Nah Leans.

Her eyes go over to Jean then and Rogue picks up another cupcake then floats it over toward the Headmistress. "The devil wants you t'eat a whole one, Mistress Green Dress>' She tells her friend with a big grin as she makes the cupcake dance around in the air.

Noriko Ashida has posed:
Noriko sees Jubilee's reaction in slow motion.  She knows the instant it is birthed as a micro expression...that is, the evidence of her failure.  She quickly tests her own breath, blowing in the air and directly sniffing it as the world 'slooooowly' unfolds.

"Damnit."  Noriko snaps back into the pacing of everyone else to catch that laser beam of fury coming off of Jubilation.  Her lips pulls back into what one might tentatively describe as a smile.  "Shit," she whispers to herself as she zips into her own world back to the drinks in the corner where she visits her secret stash and wolfs down the rest of the plates.  Do the time...enjoy the evidence.  More like feed the beast.  Not that Beast.

Like the Tasmanian Devil, Noriko tears right into the snacks table in a flurry of not so secret and kind of blurry eating that surely no one will notice.  Noriko re-uses her plates to stack up a small precarious pyramid of treats from the Rec Room fare and eventually has to concede that she can't stack anymore on there, that she'll have to turn around and actually look for a place to eat this blindly assembled mountain.  Still no drinks.

Rahne Sinclair has posed:
Gabby comes up, and Rahne's face offers a smile. Something about it is more gentle, perhaps with real feeling in it. But she'd never say, and as she's complimented her smile falters on the left side, just a little. Her eyes flicker to anyone who might be listening, and she clearly is noticing how many folks are listening in. That's when her right hand goes up into her shortish hair.

"Only stupid people stop learnin', ma'am. Oisel..ma'amsel. Madam. Oisle." She squinches her face a bit, then sighs and pulls that hand down over her eyes. "So, ah. Yes. Wolf can be, es a good runner an' all."

Shut up, she doesn't know french.

Remy LeBeau has posed:
    "Devil wants me to take a lotta thin's Anna." Remy says, and stares down the cupcake with as strong a look as he can muster while facing towards his favorite woman in the world. "Ah'll take dis cupcake and hold it in my hand." He says, and holds it, resting on his palm, right next to Rogue's face waiting for her to decide she wants the rest. "Ah saw dat face ya made, you're gonna want de rest o'it." He says with a smile and a wink towards Rogue.

    Then there's a whirlwind of devouring not too far and Remy recoils slightly and notes, "Ah'm... gonna make sure mah fingers an' toes don't get removed... Ah'll be down at de stables." Remy notes with a wink towards Rogue, or was that to Jean... or Rogue... Or Jean...

    Or Rogue?

    Or Jean?



    ... Or Hank?!

Jean Grey has posed:
At some point, the cupcake that Rogue is faux 'floating' through the air, dancing around in her hand in front of Jean's face... abruptly yanks itself free and begins floating for real.

Which is to say, Jean gives in to this demand that she partake, and soon has a cupcake flying its way toward her face of its own accord. Well, presumably she's doing it. Unless that cupcake just really wants to get itself eaten. However, there's a *certain* degree of decorum she needs to maintain, so she does actually raise a hand to catch and hold it before she actually takes a bite. Because manners!

"S'good," she manages around a half-mouthful of cupcake. Ok, so not THAT many manners.

As for Remy's trip to the stables, her look is rather flat in response, and then turns right back to Rogue. So not her job! "Don't scare the horses."

Henry McCoy has posed:
Munching on his cupcake, Henry peers over to where the floating cupcake was drifting across the room. No judgement from the Beast, not like he can turn his off! He's quite enjoying his dessert, when there's a wink from Remy. Is it for him. His response is ... a slow blink, before looking to Rogue. "I think you've been invited." Hopes, really. A glance to Jubliee - wondering if she's trying to work her Cupid magic.

Monet St. Croix has posed:
"Everyone, really, Monet is fine. M works too, especially in the field," the European-born young woman says to the room as a whole adding, "Thank you for the warm welcomes as well." To Jubilee, she says, "Thank you again for the help in getting this set up. I am now going to go participate in some aliments in the dinning hall." Yes, she's so French she chooses to not say 'food' in English even while otherwise speaking that language.

Rahne Sinclair has posed:
Rahne, finding food in her face, blinks. She leans back, then with a glance at Gabby, she bites not at the offered faux-sausage, but at the plate itself!

A moment later a large red wolf is streaking out of the room, bearing Gabby's plate of scarpered pastries and yummy foods. Without spilling more than one or two, she took it with the precision of a rapier-fighter, and the gentleness of a dancer.

And then she's four-footing it out of the room with her stolen goodies with the speed of a werewolf! Mine now, KTHXBai!

XD

Rogue has posed:
Rogue picks up her drink again and smiles at Remy not wanting to take the cupcake from her. She shakes her head at it. "Nope. I'll end up buyin' them and hidin' them in my room for the next three months worth'a grocery trips." She says before sipping the fruity beverage again.

When Remy departs, Rogue just grins at his winking toward everyone in the 'adult corner (?)' and she looks to Jean, then toward Hank. "Well. One'a you better go or he'll try stealin' one'a the horses again." She lowers the glass down to her othe rpalm and watches the doorway as Monet is making her way to the dining hall where the main feedin' is going down.

"Found him down on the train tracks, where I stopped that prisoner escape a few weeks ago, leadin' Strawberry down the side'a the tracks." Nevermind Cassie Sandsmark, she wasn't there or nothing during the train escape attempt!

Gabby Kinney has posed:
Gabby Kinney gasps. GASPS. Oh the horror! She breaks into a laugh when Rahne romps off with her plate though she still has that faux-sausage on her fork which she waves in the air like a saber as she charges after. "Get back here you! Food theif!" She laughs. Nevermind she has to hike up her skirt to run after properly, because she does just that. The flirting of the adults is bypassed, as are the snack table, as she disapears into the other room after Rahne.

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    "Ftthankf you," Jubilee replies in fluent cupcake to Hank. She grins a toothy smile, one caked in chocolate frosting and cake bits stuck between her teeth. Her gaze unglues itself from Hank and travels the room, noticing Rogue and Remy eating some of her treats, and then Gabby demanding some be saved. And then, there's Noriko with that mountain of treats piled high. The pretend smile she was giving Hank turns into something a bit more real. Jubilee begins to drag her tongue against her teeth, trying to clear away any of the cupcake evidence. This is when she meanders back to Monet. With a boost of confidence and a smug smile, Jubilee opens her mouth to say something... But Monet speaks first. She's going to go tend to her ailments in the Dining Hall? It's tough for Jubes to parse that, but... either way, Monet St. Croix is heading for the Dining Room and, therefore, away.

    "It seems that the cupcakes are a hit," she says with a self-satisfied smile, though no one is around to hear it.

Rahne Sinclair has posed:
Moments later, with the sound of Gabby retreating into the distance, the little imp herself walks back into the room. She pauses, dusts herself off, and without even a hint of explanation as to how she led Gabby off and got back without the girl noticing, buffs her fingernails and struts back to her seat.

She then flops back into it, sighing a little, and nibbles at a stolen cookie. She led Gabby off, circled round, and managed to keep some of the stolen goods, all without being caught. Yet she seems oddly alone, in a room with friends all over.

I mean, after all. It's not like there aren't others here. Cue the NPC's who're meandering a bit, nibbling foods. Chatting. One or two likely are even (gasp!) flirting with each other! Oh wait, this is a school. Make that making out.

Henry McCoy has posed:
The snack-getaway was watched, Henry amused at the situation. As Rogue suggests he or Jean tend to Remy in the stables, the older man shakes his head. "Oh no, that's not my circus, not my monkeys." He waggles his brows to Rogue. "I have enough trouble juggling all my students and keeping them focused. There's no way I am going to try to wrangle Remy." A genuine laugh from Henry.

A nod of approval to Rahne as she returns. "Quick feet indeed, Rahne." A grin. He looks over to Jubilee, offering yet another nod. "Yes, wonderful treats you provided, Jubilee."

Noriko Ashida has posed:
Noriko is /still/ standing there with her treats...thanks to watching Jubilee instead of finding a place to eat.  She just hovers there, oblivious to all of the subtext wooshing around her at speeds way faster than she's comprehending.  FOOOOOOOOOOD, her belly seems to scream out.

Jean Grey has posed:
"Stealing the horses?" Jean looks, well, as one might expect her to look considering such ridiculous shenanigans. What is this, the wild west, now? "Does he even have somewhere to keep one?" They're expenive!

Taking a few more bites of her cupcake (which do seem to be a hit), she glances around to survey the progress of the party, noticing some of the students running about and otherwise getting up to mischief. Rahne's thievery, escape, and subsequent return all earns a rather warm smile.

"So what's this about a train?" Looks like this impressive HEROIC TEAM UP that Rogue so humbly accepts all of the credit for somehow evaded Jean's attention. "Remy's not doing some sort of weird cowboy routine now, is he?"

Rahne Sinclair has posed:
Rahne's eyes flick upward when folks talk to her, or smile her way. As if she's paying attention, or is just super-paranoid. But she gives a gentle, heartwarming smile and lowers her eyes, taking the compliments well. For her, anyway.

But as she lowers them, her eyes alight on the nonalcoholic BS-drink she had forced on her by the damn legal-age-enforcing barkeep, and grumbles.

"Anyone willin' tae lend a Scot a real drink?" she says, out loud and in front of everyone. "M' family had me on wine b'fore ah was weaned, thes country be insane." She looks around, then glances at Remy hopefully. Then at Jean.

Well...she asked. She didn't go behind their backs.

Rogue has posed:
Rogue just laughs softly at Hank's resposne to her before she shakes her head side to side at him. "You know you can handle more than you let on, Doctah McCoy." She grins athim before her gaze goes to Jean then who gets a flicker to her grin but it comes back at the end of what she asks.

"Desperado." The Belle replies tothe Headmistress. "I think he wants t'be here t'help me, but he doesn't feel all that welcome here. The horses are... ya know, simple. Not complicated like." She landscape laid out before them. "A house filled with teenagers, who think he's a street grifter or somethin'."

She smiles softly and shrugs her shoulders. "People will do what they do though. I don't think he's plannin' on stealin' the horses though. Besides, not like I can't track'im down when I want to." She can't, he's really good at disapearing if he wants to!

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    Even Jean's eating one! No one is keeping score, but Jubilee counts it as a win. With her arms crossed over her chest, she smiles to herself, content to just let the party continue without any more of her nonsense. She gives each person a few moments of her attention --- Rahne's desperate attempts to find a bottle. Rogue holding her own against the real adults. Jean being, on the whole, a good sport about all of this. Remy and Hank playing ocular footsie. And then... Noriko.

    Without looking away, Jubes reaches into the front of her dress, just there in the shallow part of her cleavage, and squints. Her fingers come out holding a single, emergency tater tot. It gets tossed into her mouth, chewed up, and that's the end of that.

    Jubes tilts her head to the side, still watching Noriko, and then sways her ear towards a nearby table -- one of those that has the white table cloth going right down to the floor. Brow wiggle.

Noriko Ashida has posed:
Noriko blinks out of her emergency meeting with her stomach when she witnesses Jubes' emergency meeting with her tater tot.  "That's where she hides-" she mumbles before suddenly ripping her gaze away so she doesn't get caught.  Thank you super speed before she catches Jubilee's motion with quite natural surprise.

Defying anyone's notion of balance, Noriko somehow is waiting for Jubilee under the table with all of the food.  At the bottom of that food, there might be some remaining evidence of her crimes...some sinful sauces...

For her part?  Noriko can be found chomping down on a cupcake.

Jean Grey has posed:
"Sure, I think I get it," Jean answers Rogue after a moment, the previously jokey tone in her voice fading somewhat as Rogue reveals some of Remy's doubts, emotional vulnerabilities and other such meaningful character traits!

"I don't know if there's anything we can do to help him feel more comfortable. Probably not exactly the teaching type, hmm? Though I'm sure he'd do well with some of the more 'practical' coursework." Which is a way of saying all that future X-men stuff that doesn't go on the report card! "... we can try and figure something out, anyway."

Apart from this, she melts somewhat into the rhythm of the party, although she DOES take a particular moment to give Rahne a rather decisive, raised-eyebrow look. No telepathy requried! Helping students get drunk is one of those things that tends to get the State Board of Education a bit miffed!

Also it's Noriko's job!

Rahne Sinclair has posed:
Rahne Sinclair has always been the good girl. This one thing, something that her people think is normal, she asks for and nobody backs her up? She looks at Jean, then does something that she has never done in her entire life. She turns...and walks out, without apologizing, or acting like a kid.

People forget that in that tiny, undeveloped body is a twenty year old. And it seems, one that's getting just a little bit tired of being treated like an infant. But she doesn't say anything. Just....leaves.

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    Apparently Noriko eating the bush league snacks Jubes brought instead of the lavish catered food is enough to mend whatever tension was in the air between them. It's enough to get Jubilee to bend down and lift that white table cloth so she can crawl in there. Nori didn't eat the catered food, at all! Jubilee was so silly to even think that. It's ridiculous, Jubilee tells herself with a silent giggle. A faint clang of a plate being moved can be heard. The table cloth seems to part, just slightly, so the plate of snacks can be pushed out from under the table and a couple feet away.

    The table's long, white table cloth provides ample cover for whatever commotion is happening underneath. The sounds of clothing shifting as a result of motion can be heard along with the faint sounds of teenage lips. The table shifts slightly. The table cloth itself goes taut on one side as a corner gets caught in some of the under-table motion. Something's going on under there. Suddenly, the sounds come to an end.

    Without warning, a loud, angry scream comes from that otherwise normal table.

    "NORIKO! WHY DO YOU TASTE LIKE HALAL?!"