Timelined on Sunday, April 2, 2023
Monet: Monet gave her driver a nod as she got out of the car, "Pick me up just before noon to take me to lunch. Au revoir." He mumbled the appropriate response and she made her way into the Hellfire Club, passing her coat to the man just inside the door after he gave her the obligatory bow.
Monet: "Where is Sebastian," she asked the event planner who was setting up for the themed evening set for that night. She was pointed back to her own office and smirked. I should have known you would beat me here, amant.
Shaw: Of course. Sebastian was pouring himself a scotch and grabbed another glass for her. One of us needed to ensure everything was prepared for the evening.
Monet: Monet opened the door to her office and arched an eyebrow at him. "It's barely ten a.m. There is still plenty of time for things to be prepared." She set her purse down and went to kiss his cheek and accept the glass. "Bonjour, Sebastian."
Shaw: "Bonjour, Monet." He returned the gesture and tilted his head. "Well, perhaps it was also an excellent excuse to get out of the office."
Monet: "Ah and there is the real reason." She moved to perch on the edge of her desk. "You missed me and cannot stand to live your life without me. Admit it and I will consider running away with you." Monet hid the twitch of her mouth with a sip of the scotch.
Shaw: Sebastian gave her a mild blink. "No, I thought it best if I not punch a shareholder for suggesting a partnership with Oscorp on a chemical engineering project."
Monet: Monet set her glass down and let the teasing glint fade from her eyes. "Who on earth would ever think that could be a good idea? They have met you, oui?"
Shaw: "It doesn't matter," he said, waving it away and taking a sip of the scotch. "He's new, and not long in the position... and will not have the opportunity to the same mistake again."
Monet: Monet shook her head at the thought of someone making that mistake even once. She took a breath and picked her glass back up, "Certainement. Bien." She put the glass to her lips but it slipped from her hand just before she was able to get any scotch.
Monet: Monet was instantly on the psychic plane through no will of her own and she whirled around until she saw him standing there, reaching out to her. She took a step towards him, reaching out her own hand and then she was forced back into the reality of her office, embarrassed to find that she had broken her crystalware and that her arm was physically reaching out just as she had been doing inside her mind.
Shaw: "Monet?" Sebastian started to set his glass down when a wave of dizziness washed over him. What sort of attack was this? His first and only thought was not again, and then it was over as suddenly as it began.
Shaw: He shook his head to clear it and reached for her, scotch sloshing before he dropped the glass onto the desk with a thud. "Ca c'était quoi?"
Monet: "Tu ne l’as pas vu?" Monet swallowed hard and finally looked up at him, putting her hand on his arm to steady him as much as herself.
Monet: ((French: You didn't see him?))
Shaw: "Who?" Sebastian braced himself with a hand on the desk and looked around the office. They were alone.
Monet: "Oh, that's right. Tu es horrible." She picked up his glass and took a larger swallow than usual, setting it back down with a shaking hand. "Charles Xavier." Monet put her hand back on him and projected everything she saw and felt.
Shaw: "Xavier?" Before he had the opportunity to question her further, she shoved the vision into his mind. "And what does that mean?"
Monet: "If I were to guess, his mind has recovered. It would have to have in order to be able to do something like that." She lifted her eyes to his, "But what does that mean?"
Shaw: Sebastian shook his head, at a loss. "How did he recover? The man has been in a coma for years!"
Monet: "Your guess is as good as my own as far as that goes." Monet rubbed her forehead and closed her eyes. "I do not like someone breaching my shields in such a manner. It is unpleasant to say the least."
Shaw: He shot her a look. "Indeed." Sebastian straightened up and picked up the glass, finishing it off.
Monet: Monet smirked at his pointed look then looked down at the glass around her feet with a sigh. She leaned back to the phone on her desk and pressed the button for her secretary's office. "Send someone in to clean up a broken glass. Rapidement, s'il vous plaît. And order another set of the crystal scotch glasses I keep here." She sat back up and frowned at Sebastian, "This is not how I anticipated my day to go."
Shaw: "Nor I." He sighed and flung himself into one of her plush office chairs, sliding down into it. "I felt something, but..." Sebastian shrugged and gave her a smirk. "Horrible, as you say. Although it seems more of an advantage at the moment."
Monet: Monet shrugged one shoulder, "You're not entirely awful, but it really is not your strongest power, mon cher. At all." She flew over to the chair beside him and was about to sit when a ringing sound came from his suit jacket hung on the coat tree by her door. Without asking, she went to retrieve it. "Elizabeth Braddock," she arched an eyebrow and held his phone out to him. "If she is bypassing her queen to talk to you, I will have issues."
Shaw: "But I am her lord," he said, baring teeth and accepting the phone. "Hello, my dear. How are you?" Sebastian didn't bother to sit up.
Beth: Beth was also reclining in a chair and examining her psychic defenses, "Some old bald dude just bypassed my shields so... not brilliant. You?"
Monet: But that completely ignores the hierarchy by going above my head. She took his glass over to her bar to refill it, took a drink, and brought it back, handing it to him while she waited.
Shaw: "Oh? You as well?" He accepted the glass and ignored Monet's mental nagging, instead giving her a look. "I felt a disturbance."
Beth: "Oh you did? I did wonder.... felt like it was coming from your neck of the woods..." she rubbed her forehead with her finger tips, "Do you know who it was? Should I be worried?"
Monet: Both of Monet's eyebrows went up at his words and she moved to sit. There was a soft knock at the door and Monet looked up, "Enter," she called and turned back to Sebastian. She waved in the direction of the mess as the custodian entered to take care of it, not looking away from her friend.
Shaw: "I believe so. It was Professor Charles Xavier." He watched the worker, then turned his gaze to Monet. "I don't believe it's anything to be alarmed about, although it is quite... unexpected?"
Monet: Monet scoffed at his word choice, "To say the least, darling." She sat back in her chair and took his glass for a sip before handing it back.
Beth: "That's one way to put it... rude is another," she replied, though the smile was audible, "Good that he's spelunking in brains again though, right?"
Shaw: "Well, perhaps." Sebastian raised a brow at Elizabeth's cheek. "You never met the founder of the school, but he's quite powerful."
Beth: "Yeah, I could tell. I have a headache that feels like I got hit with a bowling ball." She sighed, "As long as it's not some world ending drama I need to build a bunker for, I can relax and let you get back to whatever I interrupted."
Monet: Monet frowned at Sebastian's commentary and then arched an eyebrow of her own. "What is it, cher?"
Shaw: "I'm glad I missed that particular side effect," he chuckled, holding up a hand to Monet. Even if her skull was splitting, she'd likely never tell him. "You can relax. Do you plan to attend the club event tonight?"
Beth: "If my head stops hurting... think I might go sit in my box for a while when I can get off the sofa.... or if Brian walks by I'll make him carry me." That was an excellent idea! She gave Brian a mental prod to order her taxi service.
Monet: Monet made a frustrated noise and crossed her legs away from him, propping her elbow on the arm of the chair furthest from him. Once he could no longer see her face, she closed her eyes and slowly started the tender repairing of her shields.
Shaw: "Then give Brian my regards." Sebastian watched Monet's fit of pique and took a sip from his glass. "I do hope to see you if you are feeling better."
Beth: "I'll take some pills and have a nap and I'll be fine," she assumed anyway, "At least if I'm in my box I don't have to worry about any more unauthorised intruders in my brain." Ah her taxi had arrived!
Shaw: "Well then, we'll see you later." He said his farewell and tapped the end of the call, sitting up to regard Monet. "How is your head?"
Monet: Monet waved a hand in dismissal of the question. "Getting better by the second." Once her shields were fixed, she did let her head rest against the back of the chair. She watched the custodian leave through her lashes and turned her head to Sebastian once the door clicked shut. "I heal, remember?"
Shaw: "I do, but Elizabeth said she had a tremendous headache after her encounter with the good professor." He rested his head against the chair to give her a smirk. "Perhaps I was concerned for your welfare."
Monet: Monet let the ghost of a smile touch her lips as she looked at him. "Merci, Sebastian. It was indeed quite skull-shattering when it occurred but I will be back to rights shortly." She reached out to put her hand on top of his, "I do appreciate your care for me."
Shaw: Sebastian turned his hand palm up to take hers and gave it a squeeze. "Of course, ma cherie." He sighed. "Well now, do you think he is... physically present in his body once more? Or is his presence merely tangible on the astral plane?"
Monet: "I am unsure. Did Elizabeth say anything that would lead you to believe he was? Was her vision of him different than mine that I shared with you?" Monet frowned in thought, "I suppose, though, if he had the presence of mind enough to reach out to other telepaths on the psychic level of his being, then I would assume he would know to wake himself up. Non? Because what he did was indeed purposeful."
Shaw: "She did not know Xavier, so she simply described him as an old bald dude," he said with a chuckle. "Indeed," he said after a moment. "Perhaps you should call someone?"
Monet: That made her chuckle as well. "She was not inaccurate in her assessment." Then Monet arched an eyebrow at him, "Me? Why? Simply because I was his student and a teacher there, whereas you were merely a teacher? Or is it because you are simply an awful telepath and likely weren't meant to receive his message?"
Shaw: "Whichever of those reasons you like best." He gave her a toothy grin. "You have more ties to that school than I, ma cherie."
Monet: Monet laughed and then took a breath, closing her eyes as the last of her headache vanished. "Oui. I shall make a call to Doctor McCoy. Perhaps he knows something." She opened one eye to look at him, "Perhaps you could call Tony and feel him out for information while I do that and we can reconvene for lunch?"
Shaw: "Did you need to put it like that?" Sebastian laughed aloud at her suggestion and finished his scotch. "I have no wish to feel Tony, for information or otherwise."
Monet: Monet turned her head back to him, wearing a leer that she knew mocked his own, "And whyever not? I do believe that would be the highlight of my life to be in the middle of that."
Shaw: "I do believe the world would implode from the amassed ego of that unholy union." His tone was dry as he sat up, but he was smirking at her.
Monet: "But what a way to go," she smirked back. "Alright. Away with you, one-third of that aforementioned amassed ego. Call Tony, I will call Doctor McCoy. Meet me back here around eleven-thirty. I have a car set to pick me up shortly after that."
Shaw: Sebastian dragged himself to his feet and stretched. "Let me know what you discover and I'll also talk to Jessica and see if she has heard from any of her telepathic friends - or clients. As Elizabeth felt it, and I felt it, this does not seem to be targeted strictly toward his former students."
Monet: "Non, you may have a point there." She stood and walked to her coat tree, plucking his jacket and holding it up for him to slip on. "It may have been a controlled reach or it may have been entirely involuntary. Regardless, we will find out soon."
Shaw: "Of course I have a point." He arched a brow and accepted her assistance with the jacket, then turned to face her. Sebastian took her hand and raised it for a formal kiss. "Very soon."