Who: Alex, Emma, and Scott Where: Emma and Scott’s place What: Dinner When: 2/11 evening Warnings/Rating: PG for silliness and mild language Status complete
Emma was actually a little nervous about this dinner, but she didn’t exactly know why. Maybe it was the fact that the last time she’d seen Alex she’d been nearly delirious with lack of sleep and had tackled him to the ground. Maybe she was just nervous about anything to do with the wedding. She couldn’t sit still, so she checked the dining room over and over to make sure they had all the places set right, her heels clicking on the hard floor of the kitchen as the cats scurried to get in her way.
Alex was early, as was a habit of his on days off. He liked to do things, get things done, and go for it, full bore. So he was here, this day, with a bottle of white wine in one hand and just holding a pan of homemade brownies with the other as he stepped to the door, and knocked, hoping both would be there and ready. He was starved.
Scott was relaxed, wearing something nice but casual as he opened the door. He smiled at his brother, and took the brownies. "Alex, hey."
The only thing that he had any trepidation about was the wedding invite. He'd wanted to tell him in person.
“Hey, Scott.” Alex smiled at his brother and clapped a hand to one shoulder of his brother. Over one shoulder he had the bag containing Emma’s ball and he grinned as he stepped in. “How’s tricks, and where’s that wild woman of yours?” He grinned.
“I’m not wild.” Emma noted with a laugh, stepping forward. “You’re looking better than the last time we spoke.” She moved to take the wine.
“She’s not wild, she says.” Scott gave his brother an exaggerated ‘uh huh don’t believe that’ sort of look, and grinned. That stick did indeed appear to be missing, at least today.
“I try. You look remarkably awake.” Alex handed over the wine, showing an exaggerated nod and smile to her, then an equally exaggerated shake of his head and ‘no’ face to his brother. He liked the way his brother looked and sounded. It was that moment that Emma won Alex’s loyalty. She had made his brother happy.
Emma snorted at Scott’s response. “You’re both terrible people. I think dinner will be here soon.” She moved so Alex could actually step into the house. “Have a seat, but check it for cats first. I think we keep getting more, somehow.”
"The biggest problem in this relationship is that neither of us know how to cook," Scott said. He glanced at Emma and smirked. "We have three, and they love her, so they're always there when she doesn't want them."
Alex stepped in, grinning. ”Thanks. And I’ll keep an eye out. They multiply, you know, like tribbles.” He nodded, grinning at her, then at Scott. “You two can’t cook? You should learn. Seriously, cooking is fun.” He chuckled.
“It’s on the list of things to do.” But the list was somewhat longer now. She led the way to the living room, still feeling a little nervous, but mostly recovered. The wedding, she decided, was the thing that was making her jumpy. “Would either of you like a drink?”
Not as bad as tribbles. Which they'd had to deal with once. That had been a fun week, really. Scott shook his head. "No thank you." He took a seat, putting the brownies on the table. "And we'll take your word for it."
Alex followed, and listened, and smiled a little. “I’ll be okay, for now.” he smiled at them both. “How are you both?”
Relieved of hosting duties, Emma sat down, checking for felines. As soon as she sat, one appeared, as if by magic, and jumped into her lap. She was wearing a black dress, so of course it was the mostly white one. She sighed and accepted her fate. At least she’d looked good at the start of the night. “We’re doing really well, now that neither of us is dying.” She smiled brightly.
Scott nodded his head, sure that his brother could spot the differences in Emma's body. He just hoped he wouldn't ask. "Very well, in face, there's something I wanted to ask you." Scott smirked, then launched into it. "When we elope in Paris, do you want to be there?"
Alex was doing his best not to check Emma out, and had, in fact, done his best since he arrived. Her sitting like that, well, it made him rub his face. “Good. Not dying is good.” Yes, keep talking, and not think of why she suddenly had all of that.
Alex choked for a moment, on air, then blinked, then grinned. “You bastard... hell yes.” Then he threw a punch at Scott’s shoulder, gently.
Emma snickered, then laughed when Alex tried to punch his brother. They were so adorable! “Good, because we already booked a hotel room for you, and I’d hate to waste that effort.”
Alex laughed. “Well, then. Can I bring a plus one?”
Laughing, Scott nodded his head. "Of course you can bring someone." He glanced at Emma, then back at Alex. "Is it bad I'm looking forward to some peoples' heads exploding?"
“I think that’s half the appeal of eloping in the first place.” Emma noted, stroking Scott’s arm lightly. She was grinning widely, so pleased with how well this was going she could hardly stand it. This was so much better than a traditional wedding. “I’m sure the other teachers will think I’ve been replaced by a pod person.”
Alex snerked. “Maybe so, but it’s a lovely pod, and it suits you, so damn the torpedoes, and full speed ahead.” He smirked. “How do we get to Paris?”
“Blackbird,” Scott replied, his smile turning into a devious grin. “Complete with cloaking. We can fly in style, and avoid security all at the same time.”
Emma couldn’t help but chuckled when he mentioned torpedoes. In this circumstance, she felt she was allowed to be a little immature. The doorbell rang and Emma got up. “I’ll get the food while you brag about your plane.”
Alex blinked. “Holy crap! That thing is here?” Whoah...” He stared, then grinned. “I gotta see this!” He smiled at Scott, then glanced at Emma, chuckling. “Then come back here so I can give you your ball.’
“It’s may or may not be under the tennis courts at the Ranch,” Scott said, scratching the back of his head. “And there may or may not be underground facilities for discrete practice of powers.”
Emma took the food into the kitchen. “I keep wondering if you made that meteor story up to accommodate that construction.” She noted as she walked by. “When you’re ready to eat, the food will be waiting.”
“The meteor actually happened. You can ask Captain America, he was there as part of the search and rescue,” Scott replied, smirking. He didn’t seem offended. “So was Shepard.”
Alex rose then and nodded. “Huhn. I’ll ask Shepard. Don’t know why, but I don’t trust Captain America.” He glanced at Emma. “What’s to eat?”
“Isn’t he your boss?” Emma asked as she unpacked the food. “We ordered Chinese, there’s a little bit of everything.”
“This is a different Cap,” Scott said, as if that made all the sense in the world. He grabbed one of the eggrolls.
“Sort of, but not really.” Alex grabbed a plate then started to pile stuff on. “Good choices.” Alex glanced at Scott then sighed. “More alternate universe stuff?”
Scott nodded. “Stark isn’t the same as the one we know either. Or Black Widow. I know there’s a Hulk too, but he’s been pretty quiet lately, so I’m hoping he’s been able to work through his anger issues better.”
“Or he’s being kept in a very strong room somewhere deep underground.” Emma made a face. Even though she had no dreams which directly dealt with the Hulk, his destructive capabilities were still something she knew about, which meant they were vast. “Anyway, enough of that. You owe me a story, now that you’ve brought my volleyball back.” She gave Alex a curious look, while pushing the rice toward him.
Alex sighed. “I haven’t dreamt of them yet, but somehow I know I don’t trust them. I’ll try to keep an open mind. “ He waved a hand. “Information about crazy people later.” He started eating, then chuckled at Emma.
“A story huh? Well... it began that same night. I went looking for your ball. I set out, at first, in a boat, one I borrowed from a local lifeguard. I didn’t find it, so then I had to actually do some thinking. I tracked the water tidal patterns and located the most likely way the ball would go and set out again, this time finding my direction intersected a couple of really big tidal patterns and not finding the ball. I figured it was lost, but by then, I had put the word out online for help. I asked some people, just for the heck of it, to keep an eye out and, ah, well, it made it’s way pretty far.”
He grinned as he pulled the ball out of the bag. It gleamed, white and looking new, but also had scrawls of signatures on it all over. He pointed to each as he spoke. “Here, this is the signature of the girl who found it, while on a fishing trip with her father, down the coast in Mexico. She held onto it until a local school needed balls and then donated it. This one here, is the signature of the nun who got the ball after the school accidentally deflated it. She restored it to new condition, and donated it in turn to an overseas fund, in China. This one, over here, is the signature of the man who was the leader of his team and led the team to a championship win with this ball. He kept the ball until his son, turning 18 a month later, asked to use it while on a trip to the United states. So this signature is the son’s, who used it to play with members of six nations, and these are their signatures here. And this one, here, is the name of the man who found it, who knew me, and sent it to me, after the kids lost it while playing a pick up game. Finally, this is my signature, after I got it back, and had it restored yet again. So here you go, Emma, here is your ball, that has traveled around the world, and back again.”
He finished and stood and handed the ball over.
Scott tilted his head, looking at his brother with an expression of pride and a little bit of ‘sometimes you’re crazier than I am.’
Emma stared the whole time, completely not believing what he was saying. She did accept the ball at the end, laughing. “You’re insane. But thank you for going to all that trouble.”
He handed over eight letters as well, then. “When I told people on the internet what I was doing, a lot of word passing happened, and well, here you go. Letters from people who owned or whose lives were touched by the ball.”
He smirked. “You are known the world over now.”
Shaking his head, Scott said, “That’s really utterly amazing. And she’s right, you’re completely insane. I love you for that.”
Emma took the letters, laughing even harder. “I’ll have to write them back. Good Lord.” She set the ball and letters aside and began eating again. “So who are you bringing along to the wedding?”
Alex chuckled. “I love you too, Scott.” Then he grinned at Emma. “Lorna Dane.” He deliberately did not look at Scott.
Scott smirked.
The name didn’t mean anything to Emma, so she continued eating. “I’m sure she’s nice.”
Alex nodded. “She is. She’s one of us from the dreams as well. She and I know each other in both worlds.” He shook his head. “Yet she likes me anyway.”
“Just try not to leave her at the altar, this time,” Scott suggested, a little gently.
Emma blinked. “Is that something that happened?” Alex was an ass, but he didn’t seem that bad.
Alex blinked.
“Wait... what? I leave her at the altar? Really?” He stared, mouth open. Wow, that sucked.
Scott nodded his head. He didn’t add it, but Lorna kind of sort of lost her mind for awhile after that. “Yeah. It was kind of shitty.”
Emma poked at her food a little. “Well, that certainly brought the mood down.” She looked at her plate, wondering for the hundredth time if Scott would be happier with someone else, and he’d thought of that anecdote because he was considering doing the same.
Alex swallowed. “Well, then. Fun times in the dream universe. Say, if you ever turn out to have a brother named Gabriel, fair warning, I’m shooting first.” He nodded. “At least if he starts glowing.” Then he shook his head.
“So, ah... Will you be honeymooning in Paris?”
"There's no telling how he might have turned out. It might be better to ask first, then shoot. All of our lives were quite different,” Scott pointed out.
Alex grumbled., “You ruin all my fun. Fine.” He nodded. He’d mostly been joking anyway.
Emma knew they were talking about something from the dreams, but she had no clue what. So she let them talk, then answered Alex’s question. “We won’t be taking our honeymoon until later. I don’t want to miss anymore class time.”
“I’m holding her to something in the summer. I don’t want it to turn into us having to keep push it back,” Scott said, seriously. It was a genuine worry, especially with sentinels and things.
“Have you thought about a part-time honeymoon? Like, some people are doing it these days since they can’t afford to be offwork, Go to work by day and by night and weekend stay at this spa and hotel, together. Get pampered and fed awesome food, and taken care of, and stretch it out for a few weeks.”
Alex nodded.
“Honestly that sounds like more trouble than it’s worth.” Emma shrugged. “We both have a lot of work, and I’d rather spend the time we have together instead of traveling.”
Scott nodded. "I'm a bit of a traditionalist." Okay he was still a stick in the mud.
Alex opened his mouth, closed it, and then nodded. “Whatever works for you two.” He grinned at them.
“Although traveling isn’t an issue,” Scott added.
“It is a little. There’s still packing to do, even if the traveling’s cheap and fast.” Emma pointed out. “It will just be easier over the summer, or during spring break.”
Alex nodded. “You know there are day spa hotels in the area too. But you should do whatever feels right for both of you.” He wanted them to be happy.
Scott nodded his head. “I think I’d rather escape from everything for a week. The ranch, the dreams, the city...”
“Though escaping the dreams is a feat we have yet to accomplish.” Emma noted with a sigh. “Hopefully nothing traumatic will happen.” Even as she said them, she knew she’d be regretting saying those words somewhere down the line.
Alex nodded. “Must be a way, somehow.” He nodded, and eyed them both. “Stop saying things like that.” He was mostly joking, but something inside him felt a sickening certainty that their lives here would take on a growing sense of the other world, as time went on.
And that just made him depressed.
“So, ah, what’s for dessert?”
“We got a fudge cake,” Scott said. He’d been hoping the decadence would distract them from what he’d expected to be heavy conversation. These days, most conversations turned heavy.
“It looks amazing.” Emma chimed in, as eager to get onto lighter subjects as the rest of them. “If you two clean up I’ll grab that and get us all something to drink. No way we’ll get through a piece without a glass of milk or something.”
“Sounds perfect. I can do that.” Alex rose and moved to clean up, grinning. “Milk sounds good with that. Maybe we can just settle and not talk about dreams, at all.”
Enough dream talk for the day.
“Sounds good to me.” Scott got up to help. “Maybe you two can tell me more about this volleyball thing you have in common.”
Emma got up and went to the fridge, pulling out the cake they’d bought. “There’s not much to it. I was playing for a recreational team, Alex was ogling. I invited him for a friendly game after practice, and he lost my ball in the ocean with an overzealous spike.” She chuckled a little. “The wind was really to blame, but I was furious with him.”
“She was wearing a two piece that made the minds and eyes of every guy on the beach boggle.” A pause. “And half the girls, too. I gave her a real game, but she made it a challenge and when I went to give a stroke that might have won, the wind snatched the ball and sent it out to sea.” He shook his head.
“She yelled a lot and threw things and I never saw her again until you were in the hospital.”
“Emma, yelling a lot and throwing things?” Scott started to laugh, turning to look at her, his face full of merriment.
Emma crossed her arms over her chest. “Well, how would you feel if some pervert was ogling you all day and then lost your ball? Beside, he was an ass and deserved everything he got.” She gave Alex a stern look, daring him to contradict her.
“As I recall, I was far from the worst ogler and you did your share of ogling. Everyone did. It’s what beaches are for.” He nodded. “I was an asshole. I’ve never made any ifs ands or butts about that.” He grinned.
“Can’t say I ever spent much time at the beach, but now I’m wishing I had,” Scott said, shaking his head in disbelief.
Emma huffed at Alex. "It's amazing you have a girlfriend with that kind of attitude." She put a piece of cake and a glass of milk in front of everyone's seat and sat down. "You'll probably see the beach enough to get sick of it this year." She was much nicer when she spoke to Scott.
Alex snerked then smiled warmly at Emma. “I have one because when I need to be I can be there for people, something you know.” The hospital had been one example of what Alex, working to help people and be nice to them, could be like. “I am an asshole, but I’m hardly unlikeable.” He grinned at her, then at Scott.
“There are several private ones too, along the coast. Lemme know if you want to go to one. I get like, discounts for being a firefighter.”
“Me, take advantage of a public service officer to get discounts into private beaches? What do you take me for?” Scott’s tone was severe, but his expression was anything but!
“Well, being the spoiled heiress, I suppose I’ll have to use my feminine wiles to make you forget your scruples.” Emma grinned at Scott. “It’ll be fun, we’ll kick their butts at volleyball.” Because obviously Alex would bringing his date.
Alex grinned. “Dream on. And it’ll be fun.” He nodded, and then sipped his water. “One thing for sure, you sure know how to throw a dinner party.” His grin was warm.
No one had ever told him something like that before. Scott laughed. "I guess we can throw a dinner party. Does that make us domestic?"
“God, do you want me to start drinking?” Emma said with an exaggerated dryness. “We’re not scheduled for domesticity until May.”
“Too late. You jumped the shark. Time to break out the engraved silverware and enameled doilies.” He paused. “Possibly that was meant to be vice versa.”
“We’re not domestic until we have the dog and the kids,” Scott said, with determination in his voice.
“Wait, we’re getting a dog?” Emma laughed. “What about all your damn cats? They’ll eat the poor thing.”
Scott laughed. “They used to have a dog. She left with the previous owner. I just agreed to take the cats.”
Alex snerked. “The way you two talk, it won’t be long.” He chuckled.
“I think this will be interesting.”
Emma understood what Alex was getting at, but the only response she gave him was to stick her tongue out. They would have to wait to start their family until she manifested and gained control of her powers. She wouldn’t risk the life of their theoretical child by being impatient.