InsaneJournal

Tweak says, "I think so, Brain, but..."

Theresa O'Rourke Cassidy (shockingsoprano) wrote in no_good_deed,
@ 2010-12-20 16:49:00

Entry tags:

complete, old pc: colossus, old pc: siryn, shadowcat

Oh Tannenbaum...
Who: Terry, Kitty, Piotr ~~and Wade?~~
What: Time to get a Christmas tree!
When: 12/14 - Christmas is getting near!
Where: A nearby tree farm (~~located behind the mansion grounds?~~)
Rating: PG-13 (R if Wade gets involved.)

"Aah..." Terry's entire body clenched up, and her back arched as she caught her breath. She brought her mouth to her face, trying to cover her mouth before letting out a breathless outburst.

She threw her body forward, letting out a violent sneeze. She sniffed, and tried not to rub her nose too much...she knew that any friction against her pale Irish skin would result in her having a glowing red snout that would make Rudolph impersonators envious.

"Ugh...figures I'd come down with something just before the holidays..." She muttered to herself. She fastened her coat up to the top button, not allowing any cool air to sneak in and chill her throat. The last thing she needed was a sore throat or a head cold. Otherwise there'd be no progress reviving what abilities she ever had - and she knew her father would be subjecting her to "therapy"...

Which reminded her, she needed to stop by Miss Frost's office to see if they had New Year's plans...

Not one to be too easily distracted, Terry turned to her holiday cheer cohorts, and started to rub her gloved hands together. "Armed and ready?"

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shockingsoprano
2010-12-22 02:59 pm UTC (link)

Terry smiled at Kitty, and nodded, tugging lightly at her elbow. "Let's find a big one." She said below her breath. She wasn't going to admit it, but it was always impressive watching Pete carry impossibly large things - and it was half of the reason she came along. Was that so wrong?

"Spiced cider is definitely on the menu, then!" Terry called to Pete. "I think we still have the stuff to make it with in the kitchen, right?"

At the mention of planting trees on the school ground, Terry's imagination began to reel. "What sorts of things would grow well on the campus, I wonder?" She mused to Kitty, kicking snow out of their path as they wandered in through the trees. "...maybe it's juvenile of me, but fruit trees are always my favorite..." She sniffed a bit as her words started to sound a little stuffy.

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shadowenpointe
2010-12-22 05:18 pm UTC (link)

"One of the things I gave my mom last year was a scrapbook. Moms love them. If you want me to help you make one, Pete, I'd be more than happy to." It wasn't as though she had much else to do at the moment anyway. Maybe a project would help pass the time. And then the thought dawned on her to make one for Ororo as well. She'd appreciate a more tangible way to remember some of the best times at Xavier's.

She heard Terry's muttering since she was so close to her, but didn't quite make the connection between the words and the meaning. She grinned, though, looking over the trees. "I always loved going over to friends' during this time of year. At my house we never did the tree thing, but I could stare for hours at the trees in other people's houses. There's something about them that is just so pretty." Her eyes landed on a nice big blue spruce that was full and had a thick trunk. It was a little tall, but anything smaller wouldn't look right inside the mansion. She pointed and looked at Pete. "How about that one?"

Putting her hands back in her pockets, Kitty took a step back to get the full effect of the tree. It was beautiful and would smell amazing once it was inside. Somehow she knew as soon as the three was up, people would be coming out of the woodwork to help decorate it. She was looking forward to it.

"Um, Pete..." Kitty bit on a smirk as she looked up at her tall friend. "That's just a shed. When I said tree farm...I actually meant just the woods behind the mansion." There was an urge to pat his head like a cute little puppy, but she refrained. "If you want to pay someone, though, I'll take your money."

Terry's comment about fruit trees made her shrug her shoulders. "I don't see why not. Although it might be a little too rough for a fruit tree here."

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steelreserve
2010-12-22 08:07 pm UTC (link)

"I'm pretty sure we do." Pete looked thoughtful for a second, as if he was mentally going through the stock in the kitchen, but he really couldn't recall whether or not the cider supply had been depleted yet. It wasn't really something he paid much attention to. "If not I don't mind making a run to the store." There were a few other things he could nab while he was out and about anyway.

"Wait, what?" When it dawned on him exactly what was going he wasn't nearly as amused as apparently Kitty was, releasing a sigh as he turned to glance at the girls. "So, you tricked me for workhorse usage in your cheeky, illegal shenanigans?" That did explain why they hadn't bothered using the road, or a truck. Still, being ordered around by two girls he was fond of for his assets was expected. This wasn't. "I'm not okay with this, guys. If you want you can pick out the tree and I'll send someone up with a flatbed and you guys can haul it back that way, but this isn't what I was told we were doing."

He offered the axe back to Kitty. "While you're out here I'll see if we have cider left. I assume that I'll have time to run to the store before you guys get back."

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	shockingsoprano 2010-12-22 08:12 pm UTC (link)
	Theresa's eyes widened, and she turned to Kitty. "You mean this wasn't a tree farm?" She looked to Pete with wide eyes. "What happens if it isn't a tree farm?" She took a step away from Kitty apprehensively. She wasn't sure if she wanted to be in the line of fire if the girl chose to swing it at any nearby tree...it looked unwieldy. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

shadowenpointe
2010-12-22 08:41 pm UTC (link)

"Wait, illegal? What do you mean?" There's a saying that the most intelligent people can sometimes be the dumbest. Kitty hadn't even thought to check with laws or anything that Pete would be thorough enough to know about. She'd never been on any tree expeditions for the years previous, and she just assumed. Apparently she assumed the wrong thing. "I don't know," she answered Terry, eyes wide as well. "Pete, I seriously didn't know it was illegal. I just figured...sorry." She felt bad about tricking him, especially when she didn't know the trick was illegal.

She took the axe, letting the head rest on the ground while she held onto the handle. Why was this such a dilemma? She didn't have a desire to break the law, but there was something primal about cutting down a tree, dragging it through the snow and displaying your hard work. Standing there, Kitty pouted. "Well...that sucks. I mean, the mansion needs a tree, but breaking the law is kinda not in line with what we're supposed to believe in. Damn morals."

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steelreserve
2010-12-22 09:01 pm UTC (link)

"Five minutes ago we were talking about seeing if we could get permits to cut down a tree next year. Why tell us we were going to a tree farm in the first place?" Pete raised a hand, rubbing with his thumb and forefinger at the bridge of his nose, trying to not get any more annoyed than he was. He tried to trick his brain to just absorb the idea that it was a genuine mistake and sighed before replying. "Okay, we'll head back and just go to a farm. An actual farm. I'll pay, we'll bring the tree back, decorate it, and start looking into permits for next year so we don't run into this problem again."

He reached a hand out in a silent offer to take the axe again, knowing it had been too heavy for Kitty a few minutes earlier. "Most places don't cut their trees down until after they're picked out anyway, and a lot of them will let you do it yourself. We'll still get to lug an axe around and watch me drag giant foliage all over the place. I think I know one that has does apple picking some seasons too. They'll probably have fresh cider, caramel apples, that sort of thing."

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shockingsoprano
2010-12-22 09:17 pm UTC (link)

Terry looked to Kitty with raised eyebrows, and shrugged wordlessly. She had no idea where the closest 'tree farm' was - she thought they were going to one. The decongestants she had taken that morning were making her loopy enough as is.

"Look. Whatever we decide to do, we need to get a tree stat." Terry didn't quite understand why cutting down a tree amidst a place so plentiful - especially if it was Institute property - would be illegal, but she never looked into American law, and had no patience to learn now. "Cutting down the tree is - no offense, Pete - just a tip of the iceberg. Decorating is going to be a chore, and you know how the students like to put things off to the last minute."

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shadowenpointe
2010-12-23 03:54 pm UTC (link)

"I don't know," Kitty replied to Pete in a tone that could have been whining. She felt pretty dumb at the moment and wanted to make it so he wasn't annoyed with her. She didn't like people being unhappy with her at all. It just didn't sit right. "Okay, let's go to a real farm and get a tree. Legally. Then when we get back you guys can put it up and I'll make the spiced cider." She nodded at Terry's words about the students, then bit her lip in thought. "Maybe I better make a bunch of it."

It was a given that once people knew there was a tree that needed decorating there would be a flood of people wherever the three was put. She could make enough cider and maybe even some popcorn to go around. It would be fun. "I'll take pictures and add them to the scrapbook I decided to make for Ro. Whee, this will be fun!"

With the decision made, she happily handed over the axe, then grabbed pete's free arm to pull him down more to her level and kiss his cheek. "I really am sorry, pete. Despite my joy at teasing and pulling jokes on others, you know I'd never trick someone into doing something illegal on purpose, right?"

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steelreserve
2010-12-23 06:21 pm UTC (link)

Pete realized Kitty was trying and offered her a small smile, patting her shoulder lightly after he'd taken the axe. "It's alright. I'm sorry if I was harsh about it, but it would kind of look bad if we got into trouble. I know you meant well."

At the mention of all the kids that would likely drop by to decorate, he laughed a bit. "Yeah, we should definitely pick up more while we're out. Maybe doughnuts too. Cider and powdered doughnuts go well together." He looked thoughtful at that, his words turning into more of a mutter as he neared the end of his statement, as if the gears in his head were taking over. He seemed to realize he was zoning out and snapped back to reality a second later. "But yeah, I know a place we can go. And, like I said, I'm pretty sure they do the cider thing too."

He started to step back in the direction of the school, the axe hanging easily from the hand farthest from the girls. "I want to point out in advance that I'm horrible at decoration. If you guys want to order me around for planting the high stuff where you want it I'm absolutely game, but if we leave me in charge of any on my own it's going to be a disaster."

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