Christmas 2012: Pietro

[Svartfreja]

Jules: Julie opened the door to the green house and stepped aside to let Michael in. "After you."

Michael: Michael walked into the greenhouse slowly using his staff to feel where things were. "Thanks..."

Jules: "The sprinkler system is really cool! It has spritz, rainstorm, mist, and rainforest setting! Wanna see?" She zipped over to the button, blowing past Michael.

Michael: "Uhmm it's a little cold outside to get wet." Michael moved closer to the door frame hoping to stay away from the sprinklers.

Jules: "Oh... okay." She shrugged. "So there's some venus fly traps in the back, I think someone here grows vegetables, and some jalapeços too... this guy Ben had a whole bunch of flowers and stuff. I don't grow marijuana here. Yet. I'm trying to find a way to hide it, and its obvious scent. I have yet to get my hands on a breed that doesn't smell like weed."

Jules: "However; I do know there is some out there, but no breeders or dealers seem to got it... none in this area at least."

Michael: "I wouldn't know, never ran across any of that." Michael walked past the plants slowly and felt the life force in them willing them to grow and move around a little.

Jules: "Hey... think if I brought some in... some seedlings that is, you could perhaps... uh... 'talk' to them?" She wanted to smile and bat her eyes, but she knew for sure now it was no use. "Uh... it would be really sweet of you. I can cut you some deal. 10% of sales if you convince them not to smell?"

Michael: "Uhmm I don't know if I can do that. I guess I could try. I've only ever tried making them grow or move." Michael moved closer to where her voice was comming from using the staff to feel where anything was.

Jules: "Neat-o! Well, feel free to reach around and make stuff grow flashier and fuller, or whatever. I know X has been moaning about some of his flowers failing him lately, especially the hanging pots."

Pietro: Pietro crunched across the snow covered lawn, careful to walk in snow that hadn't already been walked on to reduce the possibility of falling over. Sure, no one would probably see him fall over but snow was cold. He idly wondered if he could run fast enough to run on snow like he could on water or if it would just melt. Maybe he'd try it later. First he had to make it to the building and fetch his art supplies.

Jules: Julie looked through the tinted glass of the greenhouse and saw movement in the snow. Zipping to the counter, she peeked around the edge and smiled widely. She ran across the mounds of cold snow, melting it beneath her feet. She stopped short, a bunch of white slush splashing past Pietro. She saluted him and shouted, "Wanna join us in the Green House?!"

Pietro: Pietro blinked, watching the snow fly past him. He turned back to Julie, "Huh? Green house? Uh... why? I'm not being pressganged into a party again, am I?"

Jules: "Come onnnnn! It's the holidays, don't be silly! I wanna see a friend and I got a new one in the Green House already, it's two stones with one bird!"

Michael: "What?" Michael walked up behind her and bumped into her accidentally feeling up her butt again. "Oh uhmm s-sorry."

Pietro: Pietro raised an eyebrow, "Er I think you may have got that... never mind..." he patted her gently, looking over to the new guy, "Oh a new student? Hi... I'm Pietro Maximoff."

Jules: "Oh, jeez!" Julie laughed and snorted. "It's alright! Honestly, at this point, you may as well make it your handshake for me." She nudged him and began to lead Pietro and Michael back. "We should try to make the flowers all bloom, throw Xavier way off next time he comes in!"

Michael: "Uhmm... I think that'd be a little awkward." Michael turned to Pietro. "Uhmm hi I'm Michael."

Pietro: Pietro again looked confused at Julie, before he quickly came to a conclusion that maybe she wasn't crazy and changed his mind about what to say next, "What do you do?" he asked Michael.

Michael: "Huh? I uhmm do a lot of things, breathe, eat... what do ya mean?" Michael tried to gauge where Pietro was by his voice.

Pietro: "You're mutation," Pietro clarified, "I run and think stupidly fast," he added.

Michael: "Oh I can do a couple of things talk to plants and animals, make them do what I want, make plants grow. Uhmm some other stuff nothin big." Michael shrugged.

Jules: She tapped Pietro and whispered, "He's like Poison Ivy.... but a guy... and blind!"

Pietro: Pietro didn't know who Poison Ivy was but he'd noticed the other two already. He nodded, "Sounds... interesting..." he said.

Michael: "You know when you're blind and stuff your hearing and other senses get better. So, I heard that." Michael walked over to a patch of plants that weren't doing too well and started to gently inspect them with his hands.

Michael: As he ran his hands across them he urged them back to life. The plants slowly grew in response.

Jules: Julie's hands played "Wipe-Out" on Pietro's shoulder as her smile grew and an ear piercing 'eep' sound came from her.

Jules: "Isn't it so cooool!?!"

Pietro: Pietro nodded, he had to agree it kinda was though he did wince at the squeak of excitement so close to his ear, "Professor Munroe's gonna love you...."

Michael: "Well most of the problem is a lot of plants in here are too close to each other. They're strangling each other out. Maybe if we got them some more room that'd help this out a little." He attempted to motion across the green house.

Jules: "Well how would you spread them out?" Julie asked.

Michael: "They just need more room so their roots can grow better." He walked past a few plants and urged a small bush to grow slowly making little black berry clusters apear. "Mmm I love mullberries." He took a few off and ate them.

Jules: She looked at all the containers of plants and frowned. Oh! She looked over to where he was and realized, duh, he was talking about the stuff growing in the ground. "I was gonna say, I can't really picture the stuff in the containers getting too tangled."

Pietro: "All I know about plants is that they're good for food or looking nice... and I know which ones work best if you want to press them so I'm not sure I'm a good person to help with... that..." he gestured at the plants.

Michael: "Eh, It'll take some time but I could probably fix this place up pretty well." He took a few more berries and ate them.

Jules: "If you did? I am pretty sure X would be eternally grateful."

Michael: "It'd give me something to do too." He pulled off another berry and popped it in his mouth.

Pietro: "Well... you have fun doing that... I'll just get on with what I was doing..." Pietro backed towards the door, "Need to check supplies before I go shopping..."

Jules: Julie looked to Pietro, an eyebrow raised, completely perplexed. "H'okay? Well I'll see you around then Cap'n AntiSocial!" She waved and smiled, then turned to Micahel. "Is it true music helps them grow faster and fuller? And if so, should I play some LL Cool J? Or Billy Joel?"

Pietro: "Anti Social? No, I just don't like spending too much time around plants in an enclosed space... And you're welcome to join me shopping if you're still convinced I'm being anti social, I never said it was a closed trip." Though it would mean he'd have to go again another day to get her something.

Michael: "Uhmm I wouldn't know I don't really do much with music. I just talk to them and make them grow." Michael shrugged.

Jules: "You should try singing to them! Maybe some Bee Gee's! JIIIIVE TALKIN'!" She danced and shook her hips around as if she was hula hooping. "Hey Pietro, you can leave and go shopping, or you can stick around and boogey with the petunias!"

Pietro: Pietro raised an eyebrow, "Uh... you really think I'm the type to 'boogie'?" He shook his head, "You have fun, I'll be in my room for a while if you change your mind about joining me.... maybe you should ask the plants what they wanna listen to?" he suggested.

Michael: "Plants don't usually have much thought. And when they do it takes forever for them to get to the point." Michael picked some more berries and then walked over to a few plants and made them grow turning into beautiful flowers.

Jules: "Jeez Louise." Julie said, aghast once again at his ability. "You know like... you would win every County Fair in the North East, right?" Then it hit her. "Ohmygosh. We could turn such huge profit! We could win awards, use it as a front for traveling! And you can speed-grow my hemp! OHMIGOSH!"

Jules: "Would you!?" She looked to him pleadingly. Then she remembered he's blind. She got on her knees. "Oh please, oh please! I need money so bad, and I don't want that Mob Boss to kidnap me again!"

Pietro: Pietro sneezed then eyed Julie's grovelling, "Good God, Julie, if you need money that badly I could give you a legitimate job..." he rolled his eyes.

Michael: "Uhmm... I have no idea whats going on here..... I'm just gonna go tend to the plants a little." He edged away towards the more "in need" plants and started urging them to grow.

Jules: She sighed. "No, it's okay Pietro. I got a business plan. It's legit. Well... as legit as something this legit can get."

Pietro: Pietro frowned, "Well, okay.... but please be careful..." he sneezed again, "And that's my cue to get the hell out of here before I go blind..."

Michael: "If you want I can make them stop releasing pollen so you can stay and enjoy them?" Michael kept tending to a few flowers that were in dire need and for some reason had a tree growing out of the same plot as them.

Jules: "Not for good I hope! The poor guys!" Julie suddenly had a vision of Adriana's bees and Michael's flowers having a pollen war. "Whoaaaa..... crazy scenario...."

Pietro: Pietro blinked at Julie for a moment then looked back at Michael, "No, it's alright, I should be going anyway. Christmas presents won't buy themselves."

Jules: "Oh! I like tye-dye!" She called out.

Michael: "Uhmm Bye..." Michael found his way back over to Julie and whispered to her. "Who was that again?"

Jules: "Oh, that's Pietro! He's a quickie like me!" She realized how that sounded and shrugged. "He's fast paced. Jeez, is there any way to say that-HE'S A SPEEDSTER!" She got up to her feet and nodded repeatedly. "Very fast. Probably faster than me... until I trip him." She cackled.

Michael: "That wouldn't be nice. So uhmm... what do you wanna do now?" Michael ran his hand through some different herbs that would smell amazing if let to dry.

Jules: "I say we flee to the inside of the house and re-ripen all the old fruit that no one eats so I can get my proper amount of sugar fo the day!"

Michael: "Uhmm okay? I'll need to go feed my Sugar gliders soon though." He walked over to where his staff was and grabbed it. "Shall we?" He motioned outside.

Jules: She felt an urge to sceam. She went with it. "SUGAR GLIDERS!? Ohmiflippingosh!" She leapt to her feet, zoomed to the door, and swung it wide open. "Let's go find those darling little babies!"

Michael: "Uhmm.... I don't think you need any sugar... maybe some ritalin?" Michael cautiously walked past her.

Jules: "Sugaaaaaarr!" Julie shouted as she zipped across the lawn, her rainbow streak highlighting the snow pretty colors behind her as it reflected off the glassy white.

[Svartfreja]

Adriana: "Okay, here we are!" Adriana pointed at a hole in the ground, right next to a sign with a seemingly very angry smiley telling people to "Keep out!"

Adriana: "Here's your investment!" She nodded happily and the two big round baubles attached to her bright yellow cloth hat bobbed up and down. They were constantly rotating, which, due to the spiral muster on them, had an almost hypnotic effect.

Pietro: Pietro tried to ignore the baubles because they were making his eyes go funny. He shook himself then looked at the hole in the ground, "Er... funny looking factory..."

Adriana: "Well, you have to remember that the recipe is secret. We have to protect our investment." She stepped into the hole on the upper part of a wodden ladder. "Also, it's cheaper than renting."

Pietro: "You know there are things called patents, right? That's what they're for...." he looked down into the hole. It looked dirty. He sighed.

Adriana: "I don't believe in patents. If I patent stuff then Coca Cola comes along, adds an artificial colour, and sells it under a new name. And if we try to sue them, they have the bigger legal team and are richer in the long run." Her voice had gotten more and more dampened with each step she took into the darkness, until finally it looked as if the hat's eyes were saying the last few words.

Adriana: Then a light flickered on inside the hole. And then it got REALLY bright. "Moment, have to adjust the fireflies! They are always so happy to see me."

Pietro: "You do know who you're talking to?" He raised an eyebrow at the lights. Yep. This was going to get weird. He already knew this, of course, but having it confirmed wasn't as reassurring as usual confirmation was. "How long have you been working out here anyway?"

Adriana: "A while. You know, I think we can actually call our juice 'biologically valuable' or something like that. I mean, it's not like I'm using machines or anything like that." A humming started to ooze out of the hole.

Pietro: "Do you mean environmentally friendly?" Pietro hazarded, following her down the ladder, really still unsure if he could trust her with all these bugs.

Adriana: "Ah yes, that's it!" She snapped with her fingers. Long rows of fireflies and glowing beetles illuminated busy activity agsinst the backdrop of walls plastered with bee-hives. In one corner a living conveyer belt transported cans to and from a manual sealing machine.

Pietro: Pietro looked around, taking it all in, "Wow, Adriana... that's pretty amazing."

Adriana: She poked a few beetles out of the way towards the back of the cave. "Thanks! It's actually a bit hard to always dedicate a part of your concentration on all of this. It's like rubbing your belly and patting your head at the same time."

Pietro: Pietro decided not to point out that that was easy for him on account of his mutation, "Yeah, I can imagine," he said instead, "Really, I'm impressed," he smiled at her.

Adriana: "So, got any questions? I think I'll have to have them bury a bit further around soon." She held her hand against a wall. "At some point there might be visitors."

Pietro: "Yeah I meant to ask about that, this business plan of yours involves selling to stores, right? I'm not sure they'll like the idea of literally underground manufacture... especially with all the bugs..." he frowned a little, "If I found you a suitable location, would you be prepared to move it above ground? I'm sure I can find some good security." He already knew who he'd pick.

Adriana: "Mmmmaaaaaybe." She put a finger on her lip, as she was wont to do when thinking. "But we'd still use my beetles, right?"

Pietro: "Uh, sure... I guess it could be a selling point... if we did it properly and could prove it was hygenic..." He was fairly certain he had enough money to get that done too.

Adriana: "Cool! And the storage isn't in here anyway! It's in the mansion. Want to see it?"

Pietro: "Er... yeah okay..." anything to get back above ground again.... and not surrounded by bees.

Adriana: "Onwards then!" She walked ahead, the rotating eyes bobbing up and down eagerly, until she reached the ladder, starting to climb up it. "You better not be looking under my skirt!" She waggled a finger at him.

Pietro: Pietro shook his head, "Wouldn't dream of it," he gave her a grin, "I was brought up properly - I'd ask permission first."

Adriana: "Awww, crap. I was hoping you would." She poked her tongue out at him and got out of the hole, dusting her butt of any specks of dirt that might have been caught in the fabric of her dress.

Pietro: Pietro raised an eyebrow as he stepped out into the fresh air again, "You're a very strange woman..." he too brushed the loose dirt from his clothing.

Adriana: "And you are a very fast guy. Stop stating the obvious, darling, we women hate that." She waggled her finger at him again and made off for the mansion.

Pietro: "Stating the obvious is usually the best way to avoid insulting people...." Pietro followed her back through the trees, "And you just nailed the problem - if I didn't state the obvious I'd say something riddiculous because I think too fast. It really is the safest option."

Adriana: "It's also the most boring one. You have to take risks sometimes. Go and watch a movie you have never heard of. Dance in the streets in your underwear. Buy a crazy hat. Now that I think of it, I think I have one your size..."

Pietro: Pietro paused and considered these, "I'd do the first one but probably not the others... Any strange things get given to my sister - guarenteed instant hit." He frowned a little, "Occasionally I do forget to filter the random stuff but usually it's very badly timed."

Adriana: "So, what you basically are saying is, you are a man." She poked her tongue out at him again as they were approaching the mansion. "I got Xavier to give me an old, unused office for storage."

Pietro: "Well yeah, last time I checked," he laughed, "But how about we get off the subject of me and my tendancy to be boring and back onto the reason I'm out here in the snow... how's the marketing side of things going?"

Adriana: "We're going to have some convention appearances coming up soon. I even got us a stand on Comic Con International in San Diego. I've got Tigra as a booth babe, she'll be wearing a sexy bee costume I've designed. Now I only need a booth boy..." She gave him a VERY meaningful look.

Pietro: Pietro shook his head, "I already said you're not getting me dressed up or anything - I have an image to maintain... but I can loan you some people."

Adriana: "Sexy people?"

Pietro: "Being male, myself, I'm not really sure I can comment there," he replied carefully, an unrelated frown suddenly creasing his brow. He was thinking too fast, way too fast. He stopped walking.

Adriana: "Don't tell me you've never looked at another guy an admired his sexy ass. How firm it is. How nice it would feel to grab it. And other parts too. Mmmm..." She was lost in thought and didn't even notice that Pietro was left behind.

Pietro: He was dimly aware that Adriana was saying something but his mind was working so fast it was uninteligable. "Havetorunsomethingfeelswrong!" He got out before dashing off over the snow and leaving a nice trail of liberated grass in his wake. Maybe if he ran fast enough his brain would slow down again? It was worth a shot.

Pietro: But there was a building in the way. He had two options. Run around it or run over it. He took the second one. Or tried to.

Adriana: Adriana felt a sharp draft and looked around. And then she turned around and looked again. And then again. Then she put a finger on her chin and thought hard for a moment. "I guess he is not into gay porn after all..."

Pietro: Pietro lifted a foot to place it on the wall in front of him so that he could run up and onto the roof. But, much to his surprise, he suddenly found himself inside. He came to an abrupt stop and looked around. The wall was in one piece. He went to the nearest window and leaned out of it to look at the outside of the wall. Looked perfectly normal. He poked it. Felt pretty solid. So why was he on the wrong side of it?

Adriana: "You know, you just could have told me to stop, Pietro. It's not like I have to include you into my man-on-man-action fantasies!" she shouted out loud while walking towards the mansion again, unsure as to whether the boy was actually close enough to hear her.

Pietro: Climbing out of the window and still somewhat puzzled, Pietro made his way back to Adriana. "I just ran through a wall..."

Adriana: "AH!" She flailed at him. "Don't do that! I'll get a heart attack!" She punched him in the shoulder.

Adriana: "Also, Xavier doesn't like us breaking his walls!"

Pietro: "Sorry..." he ran a hand through his hair, shaking his head, "No, no... through a wall. The wall's still there..."

Adriana: She rose an eyebrow at him. And what a statement-pregnant eyebrow it was. I conveyed everything from "Stop fucking with me." towards "This guy is drunk." without one single word being uttered.

Pietro: "I know, it sounds crazy." He couldn't believe the words were coming out of his mouth himself, "I meant to run up the wall - something I've been able to do for nearly a year.... and then suddenly I was inside..."

Adriana: She folded her arms. "Maybe you ran through a window?"

Pietro: "No, it was definately a wall - I don't aim at windows when I'm running, the shock would break them." Really it was a miracle the walls could withstand the impact force. "I'd offer to show you but I'm not sure I can do it again..."

Adriana: "Well, then there is only one thing we can do!"

Pietro: "... What's that?" He asked, feeling a little apprehensive.

Adriana: "We let you run against walls until it works again! I wanna see!" She pulled him towards the mansion at his hand.

Pietro: "Oh great... thanks... so risk serious injury until it works again? It's lovely that you take such good care of your investors..."

Adriana: "Screw the investment, I want to see you do it again!"

[Svartfreja]

James: "This is the voice of the misterons..." The voice spoke from the intercom, "And they want to know if you'd like whipped cream on your hot chocolate."

Cessily: Cessily gave Pietro a puzzled look, hesitation for a moment before she said: "Sure?" She shifted in her seat, then leaned over. "Nothing terrible is going to happen now, right?"

Pietro: Pietro laughed, "No, that's just James." He assurred her.

James: "Howdy!" The voice spoke again in it's best cowboy impression, "Emma's on her way with yummies.... there's cake! Mmmm cake..."

Cessily: Cessily chuckled. "Well, at least I'm pretty sure that cake is a good thing," she said, grinning at Pietro. "Is he always like this?"

Pietro: "Oh yeah... actually this is pretty tame - I think because he already laughed at Harvey's expense earlier - he got shut outside this morning and nearly froze solid." Pietro got up to open the door for Emma, just in time, "Meant James actually had a good reason to blow him up."

James: "It was spectacular! You should have seen it - ice everywhere!" there was a 'fzzt' sound and a few sparks shot out of the nearest power outlet before shaping into a man. "Heather slipped and landed on her ass! Never laughed so much!"

Emma: "She's still mad at you for that you know... you should apologise..." Emma frowned disapprovingly at James as she set the tray down on the coffee table.

Cessily: "Thank you," Cessily said, giving the other two a friendly smile. "And yes, she's right. Pranks are only fun as long as they stay good-natured. That's just my two cents, anyway." She glanced at Pietro. "I bet the semester at Xavier's almost seems like vacation compared to this funhouse."

Pietro: "Oh you have no idea...." Pietro rolled his eyes a little then grinned, "It's okay though - it's not like I get tired or anything."

James: He laughed and raised an eyebrow at Emma, who blushed and hurried back to the kitchen to fetch the remaining plates of cake. "I didn't mean for Heather to slip over - it was just an added bonus.... we called her down to melt the bits of Harvey."

Cessily: "I'm not sure if that sounds gross or kinky," Cessily commented and chuckled, before she turned back to Pietro. "No worries, though. I won't blame you for inviting me over. In fact, I wanted to say thank you for having me over for a while."

Pietro: "You're welcome," Pietro smiled at her, "I like your company and I think it's far too depressing over at Xavier's right now, everyone's moping around and it's like a ghost town because most people went home. It may be a mad house here but at least it's festive."

James: "I can make it more festive? I'll put the music on..." he went over to the wall again.

Emma: "Oh please no, I only just got jingle bells out of my head..." She set the last plates down and took a seat, "Sit down and have some cake... maybe Sophie can find the nice music while she's decorating upstairs."

Cessily: "Thanks," Cessily shot Emma a grin and helped herself to a plate with cake. "Oh, yes, call me hopelessly romantic, but at least around the Christmas time I simply need my festive coziness. I just have a weak spot for decorations of all kinds."

Emma: "Oh I love Christmas - always have... and there's something about this place, even before when there was just me and Pietro's father here most of the time - it's such a nice house." She settled back into her chair with her hot chocolate, "We took good care of it, I think."

Pietro: Pietro smiled at her then ducked out of the way as James climbed over the back of the sofa he was sitting on to slide into the seat. "You know, there's a perfectly good floor to walk on..."

James: "Yeah... but this way was more fun.... I could have sat on your lap. Would you have prefered that?" He grinned.

Cessily: "Mmm," Cessily smiled contentedly as she tried a piece of cake. "That's really delicious, you know?" She briefly grinned at Pietro and James, before letting her gaze wander across the room. "Oh, yes, you definitely did. It's a lovely house. It has a very warm and welcoming atmosphere."

Pietro: "Emma's cakes are amazing." Pietro agreed, "Everyone says so."

Emma: She blushed a little, "Thank you..." she cleared her throat a little, "I'm glad you think so," she said to Cessily, "We tried to make it as welcoming as possible... trying to clear the air, as it were."

James: "I like it here - it's way fun... we can do stuff here we'd never get away with if we lived somewhere else - nice and tucked away." He grinned, "And huuuuuuuge."

Cessily: "Now that definitely sounds like something naughty," Cessily remarked and chuckled. "Which is totally alright, however. Seems like my kind of place." She had another bit of cake. "Don't get me wrong, I love big cities like New York, but I think I'll always stay a countryside girl at heart."

James: "Oh of course it's naughty! What's the point of being able to hide yourself in the electrics if you don't abuse the power a little?"

Emma: "Does Alicia know you abuse the power?" Emma raised an eyebrow and smirked a little, "I'm sure she'd be most upset."

James: ".... You're evil."

Cessily: Cessily chuckled at the two. "Remind me to invite you over to my grandparents' home sometime to make up for the hospitality," she told Pietro. "I'm afraid it's not quite as crazy as this place, but things can still get quite interesting when my Nana decides to light some of her special spices."

Pietro: "Hey I can do without the crazy sometimes.... though I dread to think the state poor Emma would be in when I got back." Pietro grinned, "I'm sure she could cope though." Emma didn't look as convinced, "But speaking of making up for things. I got you something."

Cessily: Cessily arched an eyebrow and smiled. "Are you sure you got the concept of making up for favours," she asked. "After all, wouldn't it be my turn to repay you for the kind invitation and the delicious food and drink I get here?"

Pietro: Pietro shook his head, "Nooo I'm repaying you for your good friendship," he stood up and went over to the tree, pulling out a box.

Cessily: "Oh my, you know I'll insist repaying you for so much kindness, right?" Cessily gave Pietro a grin as she took the box from him. "Besides, being a good friend usually is its own reward. After all, you get a nice person as a close friend in return." She put the box on her lap and set the plate aside, then carefully opened the wrapping.

Pietro: "You can repay me if you want, but your friendship is enough. You helped me out a lot." He gave her a smile and sat down again, "Not to mention listening to all my whining."

James: "You're not gonna get all mushy now are you? Because if you do I'm afraid I'm going to have to find Harvey just to relieve the tension."

Cessily: "Oh, no worries, I'm sure I know just what it takes to keep dear Pietro here from going all soft," Cessily remarked, putting on a smirk. She lifted he lid off the box and pulled out the finely crafted folder. "Wow, that's pretty heavy. And it feels really nice." She flipped it open to find some pristine photo paper. "Hee, that's fantastic!"

James: He snorted and nearly spewed his hot chocolate across the room. "I like you." He patted Cessily.

Emma: She giggled and shook her head, deciding to stay quiet and picking up a slice of cake.

Pietro: Pietro rolled his eyes at James and smiled at Cess again, "I thought you'd like it - I know how much you enjoy taking photos."

Cessily: "Yes, I've been told I'm pretty likable," Cessily said, flashing James a grin. "Why yes, it's my favourite hobby. And hopefully what I'll be doing for a living in the future." She carefully felt the precious paper, enjoying its soft texture. "And you stuffed even more for me in here? What did I do to deserve all this?" She dug deeper into the box.

Pietro: "I told you already," Pietro grinned at her, "I like to buy stuff for the people I like - it's nice to see the smiles."

Cessily: "Thank you so much for all of this," Cessily said, giving Pietro a kind smile. She then pulled out a small booklet and opened it, finding something that looked like business cards inside. "Hey, what's this?"

Pietro: "Oh I just called around a few places... told them I had a friend interested in a photography career - they were very interested." He leaned back in his chair, "I may have shown them a few pieces..."

Cessily: Cessily's eyebrows went even further up as she gave Pietro an astounded look. "Really," she asked. "You did all that for me? I... don't know what to say." She laughed. "That's so... incredibly awesome." She carefully set the box aside, then proceeded to crush Pietro in a tight hug. "Thanks so much!"

Pietro: Pietro laughed and hugged her back, "You're welcome... that's what friends do, right? They help each other... and I have all these phone numbers and no reason to use them so I figured I'd give them to the people that probably want them."

Cessily: "Oh, don't be so modest," Cessily told him, giving another laugh. "This is a wonderful gift." She hugged him tightly again and pressed a kiss to his lips, then put on a grin. "Should you ever need to have awesome portray pictures taken of you - or need awesome pictures in general - just ask me."

Pietro: "Oh I will - I can paint but I'm pretty useless with a camera," he grinned back, "Well when the pictures involve people anyway."

Cessily: "Hey, that gives me an idea," Cessily said, beaming a big grin. "I definitely should do a picture series of this house and all the people here. I think that would make for a lovely collage." She turned to smile at the other two. "As long as no one has any objections, of course."

Pietro: Pietro looked at the other two, "I don't have any objections..."

James: "My picture will only be used for a collage, right?"

Cessily: Cessily laughed. "Why yes, of course," she assured him, looking coy. "I wouldn't know what else it could be used for, anyway."

James: "Oh I can think of a few things!" He grinned and got to his feet, "I'll go ask the others what they think!" Moments later he was back inside the electrics.

Emma: "You know, Pietro, I really think we need to find him a job...."

Pietro: "Working on it, don't worry." Pietro waved a hand, "Going to see if I can convince him to be a security guard for a friend of mine."

Cessily: Cessily chuckled. "And you're not worried he might get distracted by something shiny while he's supposed to watch anything valuable," she asked, pushing Pietro back down on the couch, before she promptly lounged in his lap. "But yeah, I think the place would make for a nice setting for a picture series."

Pietro: "Maybe... but I figure if I send Alicia with him it'll be fine - really she's the only one he'll listen to properly." Pietro shrugged, looking up at Cessily's face for a moment in confusion before mentally shrugging that off as well and putting his arms around her. "As long as you're in some of the pictures too."

Cessily: "Heh, no worries, we'll definitely have to take some nice group pictures," Cessily said, nodding as she slowly kicked her legs. "So, since I don't have anything nearly as awesome to give you for Christmas, how about I just ask Emma to wrap me up in some nice red ribbons and leave me in your room for unwrapping?"

Emma: Her eyebrows went up, "I'm not sure I'd agree to that... unless you promised to do the same for me later." she grinned.

Cessily: Cessily giggled and showed Emma a grin. "Hey, why not? After all, I love giving gifts."

Pietro: Pietro looked between them both, quite unsure if they were messing with him or not. "Hooray for me?"

Cessily: Cessily arched an eyebrow and tousled Peitro's hair. "Now now, Emma hasn't said yet for whom that gift is supposed to be."

Emma: Emma grinned, "Oh he's perfectly fine to assume."

Pietro: Now he really was wondering if they were messing with him. Regardless however, this Christmas was certainly well up on the last.

[Svartfreja]

SinJin: Ginny woke up extra early. again. He slipped out of bed and got dressed, making sure he had all the appropriate clothing - thick socks, hat, scarf, mittens, boots, jeans, and jacket. He clomped as quietly as he could through the large, silent house and burst through a side door, falling face-first into the snow. He rolled around for a few minutes, still reveling in it. then he made a slushy snowball and threw it at Pietro's window.

Pietro: Pietro looked up from his book at the sound of the snow on the window then glanced at the clock. Not even Sophie got up this early. He leaned forwards and opened the window to see who it was.

SinJin: Ginny pegged him in the face with another snowball. "Morning, Pietro!" He grinned madly, waving.

Pietro: Pietro raised a hand to wipe his face. Cold! "Hi Ginny!" He grinned, "You're up early." He glanced behind him into his room, "Want some company?"

SinJin: "Yes! I was going to make another attempt at making a snowman. My last one turned out to be one of those misshapen ones like Calvin made in those comics. I want to make a classic pretty one."

Pietro: "Ah then let me help you!" a quick dash across the room saw him in a pair of shoes and moments later he was on the snow covered lawn beside Ginny (having exited his room via the window). "Building a snowman is something I think I can manage."

SinJin: Ginny once again felt jealous - Pietro didn't need to be so bundled. The last time he'd tried to keep warm, he'd burnt his old gloves to ash. He grinned. "Excellent. You can give me pointers." He gestured at a bag of odd and ends he'd collected to decorate the snowman with. "It's always the middle of summer when christmas rolls around at home - we're in tanks, shorts and having a barbie on the beach. Which is nice, but then here, it's all snow!"

Pietro: Pietro grinned, "Snow's fun! Only... you probably don't want to get in a snowball fight with me - I cheat." He looked around for the best patch of flat snow and headed over to it so they could make a start.

SinJin: "Oh, I just bet you do," he replied, laughing. "So.... how do we start? I sort of just piled up snow the last time." He kicked at the white snow making it fly everywhere.

Pietro: "You can do it that way...." Pietro told him, picking up a handful of snow and squashing it together, "But the best way is to start with a giant snowball and compact it as much as possible - then the snowman doesn't fall apart.... or melt particularly fast when the snow goes away."

SinJin: "Ah. That is where I went wrong, then." He pointed at a half-melted lump a few yards away. He scooped up some snow and started helping make a large snowball. "I didn't compress enough."

Pietro: "Compression is the key!" Pietro told him, "Also, so is not rushing - If I run around in all this I'll melt it and we'll have nothing to work with." The snowball was still getting rapidly bigger.

SinJin: "That would be very sad, indeed." Ginny got up and grabbed a bucket and returned with it filled with snow. "So, how many have you made? Snowmen, that is? I've done sandcastles occasionally, but nothing very ambitious."

Pietro: "Well considering I can run up to Canada whenever I feel like it, I've had plenty of time to practise... Hell I could run to Europe if I wanted... I get really bored, can you tell?" He squashed all the snow together and plonked it on the ground, starting to build up a base around the snowball.

SinJin: "Oh yeah, huh. I guess your powers do come in quite handy. I could flame throw my old one and make it melt into funny shapes." He squatted down and started packing on handfuls of snow.

Pietro: "Yeah they're great - couldn't be out here like this without them - really missed them before," he frowned and carried on packing in more snow. The less said about that the better.

SinJin: Ginny bit his lip. He had been away when the loss of powers had hit. He patted Pietro's arm gently, leaving a patch of snow. "It's all right - the good thing is you have them back." He dumped the next handful of snow over Pietro's head to make him laugh.

Pietro: "Gah! Cold!" Pietro flailed a little bit at the feeling of the snow and ice trickling down the back of his neck. In retaliation, he scooped up some extra snow and threw it at Ginny.

SinJin: He batted at it, but still got a face full of the white powder. "Eeek!" He laughed and tossed some more back at Pietro. "That is a white flag of snooow! I surrender!"

Pietro: "So you should," Pietro grinned, "I could cover you in snow in seconds - no one would find you." Because of his tone of voice it was hard to guage if he was serious or not.

SinJin: Ginny stuck his tongue out at him, opting to believe he was joking. "Anyway. I would make a lousy snowman base." He packed on more snow to the growing ball, singing a raunchy version of jingle bells.

Pietro: "Yeah you'd probably wriggle," Pietro conceeded with another grin, pilling on more snow and rounding off the top a bit to make it look more like shoulders. "But if I did that I'd have to use a lot of snow and I think Sophie would be upset if she wasn't able to use any to make her own snowman."

SinJin: Ginny nodded. "True." He gave Pietro a sideways glance. Well, any port in a storm and he wasn't jaded enough to Christmas alone. "So, what should we name our snowman? I was thinking 'The Cold Maker'."

Pietro: "Whatever you like, I'm not really given to naming inanimate objects." He made a start on another snowball for the head, "However I think if we're going to name it, we should at least dress it properly."

SinJin: "I think so too - but let's wait until it's done." He packed more snow on to make a less lumpy middle.

Pietro: Several more armfulls of snow later, the snowman was definately more man-shaped. "Okay... do we want it to have arms?" Pietro asked, standing back a bit to look at it.

SinJin: "I thought the tradition was tree branches, and I want the classic look, so yes. Arms." He flapped his and made out to fly around the grounds looking for said branches, kicking through the snow.

Pietro: "Well I was thinking we could cut the general arm shape into the snow and make more of a sculpture out of it but if you want sticks we can get sticks." He looked around at the snow covered grounds trying to think were their best hopes of arm sticks were.

SinJin: "Sticks," Ginny said, a ring of finality in his voice. He looked around and around and around. "It's a pity this place is so well-manicured." He scanned the horizon. There were trees over there, at the other end of the grounds. "Fancy a walk, or do you want to use your powers and go get some branches?" He turned puppy-dog eyes on Pietro.

Pietro: "I don't mind speeding up the process.... you have any particular kind of stick in mind?"

SinJin: "One that looks like a hand!" Ginny said. "Also - barring that it needs to have a lot of little twigs and bits coming off it!" He grinned triumphantly, and blew into cupped hands. It was getting chilly.

Pietro: Pietro saluted Ginny and dashed off to the nearest national park to find some suitable sticks. It didn't take him very long with his speed and he decided, to be on the safe side, that he'd bring back a selection for Ginny to choose from. It was easy to see where he'd been in all the snow - deep trails were left by his rapidly moving feet.

Pietro: A few minutes passed for Ginny and several hundred miles for Pietro, before he was back. "Found some sticks!" he announced, holding up the bundle.

SinJin: Ginny cheered and went to inspect the booty. He selected two good candidates and stuck them into the snow man. "Okay! Time to trick this most excellent snowman out!" He went and grabbed his bag and dumped it at Pietro's feet. "You can choose the first item as you heroically found some branches. Where were they, by the way?"

Pietro: "Franconia Notch State Park - lots of trees there." He grinned, peering into the bag of goodies, "Every good snowman needs a scarf and a hat... but first I think a face."

SinJin: "Where is that?" he asked as he picked up a moth-eaten bowler hat. He'd have to go back to the thrift store - it had some really cool items.

Pietro: "A hundred miles or so north of here..." Pietro replied, "Not that far really - it's quite a nice place even when it's covered in snow.... Actually, especially when it's covered in snow."

SinJin: "Ah." He put the hat down and handed Pietro some extra-large costume buttons he'd found. "I think these would be good eyes?"

Pietro: Pietro inspected the buttons to see the backs and try and figure out a way of getting them to stay in the snow, "Yeah I think these'd work." He squashed one into the 'head' to give it an eye, "... We should make a mutant snowman."

SinJin: "No. I want this one to be perfect - we can mutilate the other one I made after we make this one." Ginny nodded at the misshapen snow creature. He scooped up the hat and perched it on top of the snowman's head. "I couldn't find a top hat."

Pietro: Pietro laughed, "You know, I think I saw one somewhere in the house... I can go and look if you want?" He squashed another button onto the face so that the snowman could have some depth perception.

SinJin: "I like the bowler hat. It's different. Though, I"m not sure what to do about the mouth and nose. I got a pipe."

Pietro: "I believe the tradition for noses is a carrot - we definately have some of those in the kitchen." He checked his watch, "And Emma will be up so she can find it for me... as for the mouth, the pipe could be all we need or maybe I can find some string?"

SinJin: "No, the pipe itself should be fine." He put his hands on his hips, then quickly folded them close. He was getting cold now. "Let's go in and get the carrot and maybe some tea."

Pietro: Pietro eyed him briefly, "Yeah okay... you're looking pretty cold by now - sorry I forget that happens..." he grinned, heading for the door to the kitchen.

SinJin: "I just bet you do! But never fear, I'm bitchy enough to tell you." He jumped through the snow, trying to step where Pietro did. "Want to make more Snow Angels after breakfast?"

Pietro: "If you like - I'm sure we can convince some other people to join in and get just as cold as you do." He opened the door and waited for Ginny - Emma complained he was letting the draught in.

SinJin: He hopped in, shaking off snow. "Morning Emma! Please tell me you've put the kettle on." He unwound his scarf and pulled off his hat, showing his combo bed and hat hair. He bit off the mittens and shut the door quickly behind him.

Emma: "Morning you two, of course I put the kettle on - what self respecting house keeper would forget?" She smiled and pulled out some mugs to pour the tea into, "Playing in the snow were we?" She eyed them both over her shoulder.

SinJin: "Yes! I got Pietro to help me build a proper snowman! We're not done but I was cold. And we need a carrot for the nose!" He grinned and pulled out his preferred type of tea in a bag from the pocket of his jacket.

Emma: "The carrots live over there," she pointed to a cupboard then reached to put the sugar and a small jug of milk on the table in the middle of the kitchen.

Pietro: Pietro retrieved a carrot and set it on the table before going to look for something to eat.

SinJin: Ginny followed suit after pouring the hot water. He found a stash of pop-tarts and took out a package. He was on vacation, after all. He started munching, not bothering to warm them up.

Emma: Emma looked over at Ginny, "If you like I can make you some breakfast - if you're going back out there you should probably eat something hot and not loaded with sugar." She added the last bit while looking at Pietro who'd found a box of cereal.

Pietro: Pietro waved a hand, "I'm fine - you know I'm always riddiculously warm... but Ginny was whining about being cold so he might want something." He put the box on the counter and went to get a bowl.

SinJin: "I'll be fine. If I get cold I'll just come back in. We're almost done, anyway." He smiled sweetly, and got his tea. "Besides, tea is a panacea."

Emma: She laughed, "Alright, if you say so... but I honestly don't mind cooking something - it's sort of my unofficial job."

Pietro: "She's supposed to let the chef do it." Pietro told Ginny, "But aparently he puts everything back in the wrong places so..." he rolled his eyes a little and poured some milk into the bowl, dodging the swat from Emma.

SinJin: He laughed. "Poor chef..." He plopped down next to Pietro, letting out a contented sigh. It was much warmer in here. "Oh - I also wanted to go into town and go buy a few extra gifts. Did you want to come, Pietro?"

Pietro: "Sure, we can do that after we finish the snow man..." he looked at Emma, "And after you eat something more substantial than a poptart." He added, Emma nodded and set about pulling down pots and pans to start on everyone else's breakfast.

SinJin: "But my girlish figure! My perfectly lightly toned physique wherein none of my fat nor my muscles bulge too much! I cannot eat too much!" He put the back of a wrist to his forehead and pretended to faint.

Emma: She laughed and put a frying pan on the hob to heat up, "You'll waste away into nothing if you eat like a bird - especially in this weather!"

Pietro: Pietro leaned closer to Ginny and lowered his voice, "I'd agree if I were you, she gets scary when people refuse food."

SinJin: Ginny blinked. "But I suppose...if you were to just serve me a huge heaping plate of deliciousness, I would just happen to eat it all....and put the rest in my hollow leg." He winked at Pietro.

Emma: Emma laughed again, "Glad to hear it - no one's going hungry on my watch!"

SinJin: "Yeah...scary." He licked the last of the frosting stuff from his fingers. He put the wrapper int he trash then donned his outdoors clothes. "I am ready once again to face the bitter winter of New Hampshire!"

Pietro: Pietro finished off his cereal and drank his tea then got to his feet. "Okay then, let's go and finish our master piece! We'll be back in time for breakfast!" He waved at Emma and picked up the carrot before heading to the door again.