Birds of a Feather Chapter Two
Title: Birds of a Feather Chapter 2: Surprising Insight
Summary: Jubilee and Warren discuss her future now that she is no longer on Utopia
Rating: T for language.
Spoilers: Anything up to Curse of the Mutants.
AN: Thanks to those of you who added me to your author alert. It makes me feel good to know people like my writing enough to want to know what happens next. Please review. It’s addictive.
~~
She woke up in an unfamiliar bed. Not that that was all that unusual anymore, but still, after having been on the island for a few weeks, any bed that didn’t have hospital corners was welcome. Taking a moment to get her bearings Jubilee remembers Warren busting her out of her Utopia and smiles to herself.
Who would have thought, Warren Worthington III master of prison breaks? No one would suspect the billionaire playboy of having been the one to orchestrate the breakout of Jubilee. And while Scott was constantly telling her she wasn’t a prisoner, he wasn’t exactly giving her shore leave.
She would have to think of some way to sufficiently thank Wings. She didn’t think she would ever be able to repay the debt she owed him for releasing her from her glass prison, but she sure as hell was going to try.
She rolled onto her back and proceeded to do a very cat-like stretch. As she lay there she realized she wasn’t wearing her white scrubs anymore. As she looked at herself, she realized she was wearing a men’s dress shirt with her panties. Huh, that’s right. War said something about not wanting me to have to wear what amounted to a prison jumpsuit. She smirked at that thought, then her attention was grabbed by the sound of movement outside the bedroom door. A moment later there was a quiet knock on the door before it opened.
“Morning Wings, or I guess Evening. What time is it?” she asked him. “By the way, thanks again for getting me off that suffocating island.”
Just then she noticed he was carrying what looked like a breakfast tray. On it there was a glass, a pitcher and a small velvet box. She looked at the man who had resumed his ordinary Angel appearance and took in the slight smile he had on his face.
“I took the liberty of getting you a few things while you slept. The least of which is breakfast,” he told her. “Please don’t ask how I got it, you don’t want to know, but you need to keep your strength up,” he said as he set the tray down on the nightstand next to her.
She looked skeptically at the pitcher, then shrugged. What’s the worst it could be? OJ? Coffee? Can’t hurt. At least it didn’t smell bad, after being turned she noticed her heightened senses and wondered if this is what Logan had to deal with day in and day out.
As she poured the contents of the pitcher into the glass her face broke out into a genuine grin. There was blood in the pitcher, and if her nose was working right, it was just the way she liked it, warm with a splash of lemon. She raised her eyebrows at Warren. Where did he manage to get fresh blood? She disregarded her unasked question since he told her not to worry about it.
She took a tentative sip and hummed in pleasure as the blood raced through her system giving her an almost instant pick-me-up. How could Warren have known that I like lemon in my blood? Mmmmm, it reminds me of sunshine.
“War! How did you know how I like my blood? Nobody ever took the effort to make my meals anything other than nutritious. Plain pig’s blood was all I ever got. You not only got me HUMAN blood, but you flavored it just the way I like it. Thank you,” she exclaimed.
He just shrugged and smiled that enigmatic smile that she thinks all billionaires must cultivate. He is unwilling to admit to her that he has been watching the security vids of her since she got to the island. At meal times she was always grumbling to herself about the quality of her food. Instead of telling her about that, he changed the subject.
“I deactivated the security grid before I came to see you yesterday, so nobody on Utopia has any idea how you left your room. They seem to be running around like chickens with their heads cut off,” he told her with a chuckle.
“All they know is you are gone and they can’t seem to locate you. Not by Cerebra, or telepathically. Without a strong scent to follow, they are unable to trace your whereabouts. It appears to them as if you jumped off the Tower. Since they can’t track you, we should be able to do anything, or go anywhere you like.”
She stood up from the bed and walked over to where he was standing across the room. “Thank you Warren. You have no idea just how much this means to me,” she whispered. She reached up and hugged him with a desperate strength. I’m free. No more stifling walls. She pulled back from the hug slightly and looked up into his face. She saw the blank look of surprise there and decided he needed a little shock. So she reached up to his face and pulled it down to her level and dropped a feather light kiss on his lips before saying, “Thank you,” again.
She removed herself from his embrace and walked towards the bed again. Since she had finished her breakfast while he was updating her on her fugitive status, she went to the tray and picked up the velvet box. She looked questioningly at Warren and quirked an eyebrow.
“Open it and find out,” he told her.
Never one to be shy about accepting presents she pulled the lid off the small box and gasped. Inside was a smaller version of the sunlight amulet. He cleared his throat and chuckled at her.
“I had this made for you when you first came back to the island once you were free of Xarus’ thrall. Illyana made it for me,” he told her. “Well, try it on,” he said.
Jubilee pulled the chain out of the box and held it up in front of her. The central stone was a blood red ruby with topaz embedded in the surrounding gold. It was smaller and more feminine than the original amulet, but definitely more her style.
“Wow, Worthington. Thanks. I thought I would go the rest of my unnatural life without seeing the sun again.” She smiled thinking about all the sunsets she would be able to see now. “It seems like all I’m doing is thanking you this evening.”
“Not to sound ungrateful, but I have a question. Why are you doing all of this for me? We weren’t exactly super tight when I lived at the mansion. You were always gone, running your company, or running after Betsy. Why are you taking such an interest in me now?” She asked him.
“Well…I feel like I know what you’re going through to an extent. During my time with X-Force, I reverted to Archangel and he seems to be a personification of the darkness on my soul that Apocalypse put there. I’ll never be free of it. And I’m not sure I want to be. That side of me is more honest. Lately I don’t feel like this normal looking version of me is the real me. Like it’s a mask to hide the true me from people who don’t want to admit that maybe Archangel is the real me.” He told her all this without looking at her, instead choosing to pace in front of the draped windows.
She looked at him curiously and considered his words. Nobody on the island wanted to accept the fact that she was now one of the undead. That she would never be the happy-go-lucky child that had saved Logan in the Australian outback. Never be the carefree teen from Generation X. She had lost too much to ever be able to go back to that person.
She looked at Warren, really looked, and could see the sadness this revelation caused him.
“I think I know how you feel. No matter what anybody wants, you’re no longer the person they knew. And no matter how badly they want to change that, they need to just accept who you are now. Not try to change you back to who THEY want you to be.” She looked at him with understanding and compassion.
“But enough of the boring depressing stuff! If I’m not gonna go around every day in your dress shirts and my undies, you are going to take me shopping.”
“Whenever you’re ready Lee, but I’m not buying you anything black. It makes you look dead.” He said. He smirked slightly while she absorbed what he had said to her.
“Oh my god, was that a joke War?” Jubilee replied. “Since when did you grow a sense of humor?”
He just smiled and left the room so she could get dressed in peace. I wonder just how high his credit limit is? And if he realized just who he was talking to when he offered to go shopping. He’s gonna be in for one HELL of a surprise. This former mallrat doesn’t do anything by halves!
tbc...
Summary: Jubilee and Warren discuss her future now that she is no longer on Utopia
Rating: T for language.
Spoilers: Anything up to Curse of the Mutants.
AN: Thanks to those of you who added me to your author alert. It makes me feel good to know people like my writing enough to want to know what happens next. Please review. It’s addictive.
~~
She woke up in an unfamiliar bed. Not that that was all that unusual anymore, but still, after having been on the island for a few weeks, any bed that didn’t have hospital corners was welcome. Taking a moment to get her bearings Jubilee remembers Warren busting her out of her Utopia and smiles to herself.
Who would have thought, Warren Worthington III master of prison breaks? No one would suspect the billionaire playboy of having been the one to orchestrate the breakout of Jubilee. And while Scott was constantly telling her she wasn’t a prisoner, he wasn’t exactly giving her shore leave.
She would have to think of some way to sufficiently thank Wings. She didn’t think she would ever be able to repay the debt she owed him for releasing her from her glass prison, but she sure as hell was going to try.
She rolled onto her back and proceeded to do a very cat-like stretch. As she lay there she realized she wasn’t wearing her white scrubs anymore. As she looked at herself, she realized she was wearing a men’s dress shirt with her panties. Huh, that’s right. War said something about not wanting me to have to wear what amounted to a prison jumpsuit. She smirked at that thought, then her attention was grabbed by the sound of movement outside the bedroom door. A moment later there was a quiet knock on the door before it opened.
“Morning Wings, or I guess Evening. What time is it?” she asked him. “By the way, thanks again for getting me off that suffocating island.”
Just then she noticed he was carrying what looked like a breakfast tray. On it there was a glass, a pitcher and a small velvet box. She looked at the man who had resumed his ordinary Angel appearance and took in the slight smile he had on his face.
“I took the liberty of getting you a few things while you slept. The least of which is breakfast,” he told her. “Please don’t ask how I got it, you don’t want to know, but you need to keep your strength up,” he said as he set the tray down on the nightstand next to her.
She looked skeptically at the pitcher, then shrugged. What’s the worst it could be? OJ? Coffee? Can’t hurt. At least it didn’t smell bad, after being turned she noticed her heightened senses and wondered if this is what Logan had to deal with day in and day out.
As she poured the contents of the pitcher into the glass her face broke out into a genuine grin. There was blood in the pitcher, and if her nose was working right, it was just the way she liked it, warm with a splash of lemon. She raised her eyebrows at Warren. Where did he manage to get fresh blood? She disregarded her unasked question since he told her not to worry about it.
She took a tentative sip and hummed in pleasure as the blood raced through her system giving her an almost instant pick-me-up. How could Warren have known that I like lemon in my blood? Mmmmm, it reminds me of sunshine.
“War! How did you know how I like my blood? Nobody ever took the effort to make my meals anything other than nutritious. Plain pig’s blood was all I ever got. You not only got me HUMAN blood, but you flavored it just the way I like it. Thank you,” she exclaimed.
He just shrugged and smiled that enigmatic smile that she thinks all billionaires must cultivate. He is unwilling to admit to her that he has been watching the security vids of her since she got to the island. At meal times she was always grumbling to herself about the quality of her food. Instead of telling her about that, he changed the subject.
“I deactivated the security grid before I came to see you yesterday, so nobody on Utopia has any idea how you left your room. They seem to be running around like chickens with their heads cut off,” he told her with a chuckle.
“All they know is you are gone and they can’t seem to locate you. Not by Cerebra, or telepathically. Without a strong scent to follow, they are unable to trace your whereabouts. It appears to them as if you jumped off the Tower. Since they can’t track you, we should be able to do anything, or go anywhere you like.”
She stood up from the bed and walked over to where he was standing across the room. “Thank you Warren. You have no idea just how much this means to me,” she whispered. She reached up and hugged him with a desperate strength. I’m free. No more stifling walls. She pulled back from the hug slightly and looked up into his face. She saw the blank look of surprise there and decided he needed a little shock. So she reached up to his face and pulled it down to her level and dropped a feather light kiss on his lips before saying, “Thank you,” again.
She removed herself from his embrace and walked towards the bed again. Since she had finished her breakfast while he was updating her on her fugitive status, she went to the tray and picked up the velvet box. She looked questioningly at Warren and quirked an eyebrow.
“Open it and find out,” he told her.
Never one to be shy about accepting presents she pulled the lid off the small box and gasped. Inside was a smaller version of the sunlight amulet. He cleared his throat and chuckled at her.
“I had this made for you when you first came back to the island once you were free of Xarus’ thrall. Illyana made it for me,” he told her. “Well, try it on,” he said.
Jubilee pulled the chain out of the box and held it up in front of her. The central stone was a blood red ruby with topaz embedded in the surrounding gold. It was smaller and more feminine than the original amulet, but definitely more her style.
“Wow, Worthington. Thanks. I thought I would go the rest of my unnatural life without seeing the sun again.” She smiled thinking about all the sunsets she would be able to see now. “It seems like all I’m doing is thanking you this evening.”
“Not to sound ungrateful, but I have a question. Why are you doing all of this for me? We weren’t exactly super tight when I lived at the mansion. You were always gone, running your company, or running after Betsy. Why are you taking such an interest in me now?” She asked him.
“Well…I feel like I know what you’re going through to an extent. During my time with X-Force, I reverted to Archangel and he seems to be a personification of the darkness on my soul that Apocalypse put there. I’ll never be free of it. And I’m not sure I want to be. That side of me is more honest. Lately I don’t feel like this normal looking version of me is the real me. Like it’s a mask to hide the true me from people who don’t want to admit that maybe Archangel is the real me.” He told her all this without looking at her, instead choosing to pace in front of the draped windows.
She looked at him curiously and considered his words. Nobody on the island wanted to accept the fact that she was now one of the undead. That she would never be the happy-go-lucky child that had saved Logan in the Australian outback. Never be the carefree teen from Generation X. She had lost too much to ever be able to go back to that person.
She looked at Warren, really looked, and could see the sadness this revelation caused him.
“I think I know how you feel. No matter what anybody wants, you’re no longer the person they knew. And no matter how badly they want to change that, they need to just accept who you are now. Not try to change you back to who THEY want you to be.” She looked at him with understanding and compassion.
“But enough of the boring depressing stuff! If I’m not gonna go around every day in your dress shirts and my undies, you are going to take me shopping.”
“Whenever you’re ready Lee, but I’m not buying you anything black. It makes you look dead.” He said. He smirked slightly while she absorbed what he had said to her.
“Oh my god, was that a joke War?” Jubilee replied. “Since when did you grow a sense of humor?”
He just smiled and left the room so she could get dressed in peace. I wonder just how high his credit limit is? And if he realized just who he was talking to when he offered to go shopping. He’s gonna be in for one HELL of a surprise. This former mallrat doesn’t do anything by halves!
tbc...