X-Men 1st Redemptions

14: X-Pertise

"Jean, can I use the kitchen?" Shine asked, just the day after that.

Jean gave her a wary look. "Why?"

Shine shrugged. "I'm going back to the Morlock's tonight, if I can, and I was hoping to bring some food with me. Maybe have supper there. I can't carry too much, but Wally and I could at least bring a picnic's worth, right? If it's okay for me to use your ingredients..."

Jean blinked. "Well...I suppose for this it would be all right.... Do you want help?"

"I'd actually love help if you're not busy," Shine said. "Because...I'm not actually 100% sure how to use all of the appliances in here..." She looked nervous. "I was going to keep it simple, but then I thought, 'I could make cookies...' and then I thought, 'I have no idea if the brands I use are used widely yet, but I assume...' To be honest, I'm not sure."

Jean pictured Shine setting the kitchen on fire after hearing this.

"Well, of course I'll help," she said. "I'm not busy at all right now. In fact, I like cooking."

"Great," Shine said.

Wally looked in. "Shine, please tell me you have something for me to do."

"How do you feel about helping me make sandwiches?" Shine asked.

"If it's a job, I'll do it," Wally said. "But what do I get paid?"

Shine gave him a saucy look. "Maybe it depends how well you do."

Wally saluted. "At your service, ma'am."

[...They're married, okay?...]

Jean smiled. "You know, it's nice that you two do so much together. Scott and I usually only get to work together as X-men, and it's hard to find time to even date."

"Tell me about it." Shine began pulling ingredients out of the pantry.... She seemed to know where everything was already, to Jean's suspicion.

"Oh yeah." Wally was sneaking a snack behind her back. "It's really hard to carve out date night when you're this busy all the time.... Guess we don't have that problem here."

"Nope, and, Wally, we should totally go see Star Wars," Shine said. "It's just out." She gave him a look like that was a joke.

Wally blinked. "You mean...I could see the original, unedited version."

"No CGI," Shine said.

"Sign me up! Why didn't we do that already?!" Wally said. "I mean, I'm not a Star Trek guy, but give me that lightsaber stuff, and the Darth Vader and Han Solo, and it's a whole other story. And the wookie."

"Yeah," Shine said. "I'm sure it will be very special... Kind of might miss the CGI, though. I've never seen it without it. My mom swears it's better, though."

"Do you mean that new movie people keep talking about?" Jean said. "I think I've heard of it.... Of course, you know, outer space is nothing like that."

"Yeah, Wally's been to Space before, Jean," Shine said. "So've I, for that matter...on an alien warship...which was not the best way, but...what's wrong with imagining it a little differently?"

"Nothing I guess," Jean said.

"Hey, ladies," Wally said, "I'll race you. Say I make 100 sandwiches before you finish one batch of cookies."

"Mr. West, we don't have enough bread for that," Jean said.

"We only need about 60 anyway," Shine said. "And if we overdo it too much...they might get offended."