[ with diamondgirl ] "Bad case of loving you."

[cyclopticblasts]

It was about a two hour drive from the Westchester to the Hamptons, so they left well before dawn to be able to make the most of the two days and two nights they would be away. Warren assured them he would have it all in hand, and with no immediate impending doom (that they knew of, because contrary to rumours, they weren't in constant combat 24/7 and did actually take time off now and again to do things like date, fall in love, and relax), they headed off to the Worthington holiday house. They could have just gotten a hotel, but Warren's many pieces of property around the world were all super tight security and this particular beach house had direct satellite linking to the X-Mansion. They could be called on in case of any major dramas.

They pulled up in the drive and Scott got out of the car, stretching a little as he analysed the home appreciatively and stretched out his muscles before rounding the car to open the door for Emma. He had been trying to find a small window of opportunity to get her away from having his finger on the pulse at the school, so he had jumped at it as soon as he spotted the chance. Plus, he had been surprised when she agreed and didn't - as per a typical workaholic - have X, Y, Z of excuses why they couldn't get away (usually something along the lines of not being able to trust anyone not to blow the place up or set each other on fire and ruin her expensive couture drapes in her office).

He pushed his glasses up onto his head and closed his eyes when he pulled her in for a kiss. They flicked back down in place when it ended and he flashed her a mischievous grin. "I think sex on the beach is most definitely on the menu."

Comments

[diamondgirl]

It was no secret that both Emma and Scott poured their hearts and souls into training their crew of mutants. So much so that they often had nothing left to give for themselves and each other but comfort and strength. It was always going to be a serious thing for them to make sure that their students and friends were safe and trained to be able to use their powers in the best and safest ways possible, but there were times when they just had to face the music that they were mutants, but they still had the emotions and feelings of human beings. Especially when it came to each other. And as much as they both worked their asses off, neither of them could deny that sometimes, their relationship just needed a break from being house parents to a group of gifted people who needed them. Sometimes they just needed each other and some time alone.

Warren had been more than willing to take over for them, knowing full well that, for Emma and Scott to actually say they needed a break, they really, really needed a damn break. The drive over had already been wonderful, the two of them just enjoying each other's company, singing along to the radio and just being grateful to have some time alone. At home, the only time they got alone was usually when they went to bed at night, and even that ran the constant risk of being interrupted by whatever shenanigans the younger mutants got themselves into. But this was different. This was time away, and in a beautiful home in the Hamptons no less. Emma may have grown and changed as a mutant and become a better person for it, but there was no doubt that there was still a bit of a snobby rich bitch alive and well inside her, and this sort of vacation was right up her alley.

It may have been silly, but Emma loved that Scott almost always pushed his glasses up when he kissed her. For her, it was the equivalent of making love without a condom... an added level of intimacy that you could only share with a person that you truly loved and felt safe with. "You'll get no arguments from me," she said, grinning right back at him. "As long as there's a blanket, because I don't want sand in places sand wasn't meant to go." She looked at him for just a moment and wrapped her arms around his waist, holding him tightly with her head resting against his chest, the height difference more than obvious. "I hope some good, uninterrupted sleep can be on the menu, too. Superpowers or not, our job is exhausting."

[cyclopticblasts]

Scott trusted Warren with his life, and numerous times, he had actually saved it. Warren was one of the original members of the team, he knew the school better than he knew his own properties, and if anything went down in their absence, Warren wouldn't even need to round up the troops, because they would be on hand in a heartbeat. The team weren't a bunch of immature brats who needed to be babysat and spoonfed 24/7. They were highly capable with genius levels of intelligence. None of of them needed to be told what to do and have their hands held whilst doing it, and anyone who presumed they did were basically plain idiots. The world was full of idiots, unfortunately, and there were idiots who had a lot of power. Scott trusted the team to contact him immediately if there was even so much as a murmur of trouble. And at the end of the day, if there were two other people who could pull a wayward bunch of mutant kids in line, it was Warren and John.

But between now and whenever they had to leave and/or trouble might arise, Scott was going to relax, and he was going to take the well-earned break, put his feet up, hopefully get laid a lot, and whatever else might arise...

He knew both he and Emma had tumultuous pasts. He knew things had happened to threaten their relationship, and he knew that, even if he hadn't physically cheated on Jean with her, he had emotionally. It had been Emma who Scott had chosen and he had been going to tell Jean right before she was killed. But once all that happened, the choice didn't matter anymore. Emma gave him time to grieve Jean because he still cared for her when she died, but their relationship had fizzled out long before. Ever since, he and Emma had gotten closer and they were pretty much the epitome of an old married couple, though since all that pain, death and tragedy, Scott made a conscious choice to get the stick out of his ass and live a little. Not just for him, but for Emma and Alex too. He wanted to be a good partner, and he wanted to be a good big brother, not entwined in past misery he couldn't change. Life was too short and it could end for any of them at any moment. He just wanted to be happy, and he made no apologies for it either.

"Well, if what I have planned for today comes off, we're going to be really freaking exhausted by tonight," he teased, smirking. "Warren's probably got some off the scale price tag blankets in there somewhere we can thoroughly debauch. I'm still not entirely sure his toilet roll isn't gold-plated, the rich bastard he is."

[diamondgirl]

It was true that there were people who thought that the older members of the team, especially Scott and Emma, owed it to the younger mutants to literally spend every waking moment trying to train them, trying to make them into controlled weapons... Killing machines, but with consciences. The fact was, that was the last thing that Emma and Scott wanted for their students. They wanted them trained, of course. They wanted them to be able to defend themselves when they needed to, and to act when an innocent human or one of their own was in harm's way. But their mutants were all excellently trained. And the last thing that either Emma or Scott wanted was for them to lose their humanity in the process. Their humanity was what kept them from being animals, no better than any predator in the wild... or some sort of robotic killing machine. Emma was proud of what she and Scott had been able to do with their students, the lives they'd been able to create in the X-Mansion. But even as proud as they were of what they'd done, they still needed breaks once in a while.

Emma could remember when Scott was a different person altogether. She'd always cared for him very much, but there was an unbelievable amount of struggle in the process of getting this far as a couple. In the early days of their relationship, everything had been difficult, hard, twisted, and honestly just fucked up. Emma's past had been in opposition to the X-Men, having gone head to head with Professor X himself on more than one occasion, and Scott had been so serious... So focused on his work and doing what he felt was right for the team. But Emma had changed sides, become an ally to the team, and there had almost instantly been a connection between her and Scott. It had taken them a long time to get here, but they were a good couple, and they made each other happy. They carried each other through hard times, and it was just how things were supposed to be in a relationship. The struggles would always be part of what made them who they were, but there was no desire in either of them to dwell on those things. They both wanted to move forward and find happiness together, and for the most part, they had. They both knew that they'd never want to leave their team or do anything different with their lives from a career perspective. But they also knew that they didn't want their career to be the only part of their lives.

"Oh, really?" Emma responded, her interest genuinely piqued. "What have you got planned then, love? Fucking in every single room in this house? Because I'm afraid that might take longer than the time we have on this trip." She reached up to wrap her arms around Scott's neck, pulling him back down for another kiss. "I'm glad you wanted to take a vacation. I think I needed it more than I realized."

[cyclopticblasts]

Scott was determined to switch off these next few days, though the status of the mutant world could go from controlled and peaceful to volatile very quick. There was also the fact that Alex had gone and hooked up with - of all possible prospects - The Flash. Barry Allen had created a stir very recently, but it was only through Alex that Scott knew his real identity. The mutant world had most certainly heard of the sudden appearance of The Flash and his rapidly increasing CV of saving people from dire situations. There had been question about whether he was mutant, metahuman, genetically constructed, offspring of a well known Big Bad. Not to mention whether he could be trusted, so his actions were being closely monitored, but his identity had been extremely closely concealed.

Not to Alex, apparently. Scott knew what The Flash was capable of, even if only very early hints of his full ability, but he didn't know what Barry Allen's intentions towards his brother were and Scott had become extremely protective of his brother. He wanted to lock Barry in a room and interrogate him, or get any number of their telepaths to tap into his brain and reveal all his secrets. Scott knew if he did anything remotely like that, however, Emma would have his balls as Christmas Decorations. "Hmmm... maybe eventually. Though, I might just have another ulterior motive for whisking you away here. You'll just have to watch this space," he said with a wicked grin. "Although, I admit, part of the reason I wanted to get away was the sheer temptation to try to blackmail you into hooking up to Cerebro to get as much info about Barry Allen as you can."