A/N: I meant to get this out for the holiday, but I was too busy celebrating. Please enjoy these in the spirit of Irish Day, as my friend calls it. May the road rise up to meet you, and may the wind at your back not be the result of the corned beef and cabbage you had for dinner. Slainte!
(And please be advised, all accents are simply my way of trying to phonetically create the sounds in my head. If they seem inconsistent, that's because the characters have more of an accent on some words than others, at least when I imagine it. Let me know if they seem distracting, and I'll stop. I need to know before I attempt my Romy chapter.)
Disclaimer: Not mine.
Brogue
"Hey Rahne! Happy Saint Patrick's Day!"
The resident lycanthrope looked over at her friend. "Oh. Thanks, Jubilee. Happy Saint Patty's Day to ye as well."
Jubilee gave her the once over. "Um, Rahne, where's your green, girl? I thought you'd be doing it up today."
"Why would ye think that?"
"I dunno. Isn't this like you national holiday or something? I thought all Irish people made a big deal out of Saint Patrick's Day."
"Umm, Jubes? A'm not Irish. A'm Scottish."
Jubilee looked confused. "Oh, well, same diff, right?"
"What? Not, 'tis not the 'same diff!' How could ye even think that?"
"Well, they both talk funny like you do. And, you know, the men wear funny looking skirts and play bagpipes to send the leprechauns to sleep so they can steal their gold, and stuff, right?"
Rahne gaped at her. Her lips moved, but she couldn't seem to make a sound. Finally, she took a big breath and tried again. "No! No, that's not right! Where on earth did ye – don't ye – how could ye possibly think that…"
"Hey girls! Dude, Rahne, what's up with you? You're all red and gaspy. What's wrong with her, Jubes?" Bobby asked his friend.
"I dunno. She's like all ticked off because I thought she was Irish or something."
"Oh. Wait, you're not Irish?"
"No!" the younger girl yelled. "A'm Scottish!"
"Oh," Bobby said again. "Aren't they practically the same thing?"
Rahne snarled and pulled at her pigtails. "You two are bloody idiots! Haven't ye ever seen a Sean Connery movie?"
"Oh yeah!" said Jubes. "Darby O'Gill and the Little People! I loved that movie when I was a kid!"
"Yeah," Bobby joined in. "Me too!"
"That's it! If ye know what's good ye, ye'll get out of my way." She pushed past them and stalked towards the grounds.
"But Rahne…" Bobby started.
"Bugger off!" Although Bobby and Jubilee weren't familiar with that particular term, they got the impression that it wasn't a very nice one. The strange purple color spreading across Rahne's face was a clue.
Wisely, they let her go.
Rahne was still seeing read, which, combined with her fast pace and the fact that she was turning a corner, probably explains why she ran headlong into Jean Grey.
"Woah, careful! Oh, hey there, Rahne. Happy Saint Patrick's Day!"
"Grrraaaaahhhhhhh!"
Threefold
The early spring sunshine filtered through the trees on the perimeter of the lawn. Most of the inhabitants of Xavier's School for the Gifted had turned out to enjoy the unusually balmy weather, spread throughout the mansion's extensive grounds in various states of repose or entertainment. From tea on the veranda to napping in the shade to a pick-up game of touch football, the tenants of the mansion seemed to have come to a unanimous decision to relax before the rowdy party planned for later that night.
Rogue sat with her brother in the dappled shade at the edge of the lawn. Since the two had faced their mother together, she had made the effort to spend more time with him. It was obvious that he took their connection very seriously, and she found to her surprise that she enjoyed having a sibling. These peaceful moments were that much more powerful for being shared.
"What are they doing?" she wondered aloud, as she watched a group of the younger students on their hands and knees searching through the grass.
"Trying to find four-leaf clovers," Kurt answered her. "Zey are supposed to be lucky, ya?"
"Ah guess. And they're the official mascot of Saint Patrick's Day, or something, aren't they?"
Kurt smiled. "Actually, zat would be the shamrock. The three-leaf clover. The fourth leaf is supposed to stand for luck, but not many people know vhat the first three stand for." He looked over at his sister. "Do you know?" She shook her head. "Would you like me to tell you?"
Rogue looked at her brother. He was smiling, but unlike his normal joking demeanor, he seemed suddenly serious. Mature, she thought suddenly. He seemed very mature. Wondering what it was about him that had wrought the sudden change, she slowly nodded her head. She really wanted to hear was he was about to say, she realized with some surprise.
"Saint Patrick used the shamrock to teach the Irish about the Trinity. How three separate beings can make up one entity, even as three leaves make up one plant. So the shamrock stands for the Trinity. But it also came to stand for the theological virtues as well." He gazed at his hand, and she saw that he held a clover between two fingers. "You see, the first leaf is for faith. The second stands for hope, and the third stands for the greatest virtue of all." He looked up from the little plant and met her eyes. "Love."
Rogue stared at him for a moment, wondering where this serious young man had come from and what he had done with her little brother.
"So," he continued, "people came to believe that if the three leaves of the shamrock stood for faith, hope, and love, zen a fourth leaf would stand for luck. But I believe that if you have enough of the first three, you can make your own luck, ya?" He smiled at her, and she found herself hard pressed to look at his happy face and disagree.
"And do you know vhat the best part is? Four-leaf clovers are rare. But zere are shamrocks everywhere, just waiting to be picked!" He gestured, and Rogue looked down to see that they were sitting in a patch of clover. She reached down, pulling out one of the small stalks. She brought it up to eye level and considered the little plant for a moment. Then she tucked it into the back of her glove, and quirked a little half smile at her brother.
Kurt grinned back, and they turned to resume watching their friends in a comfortable silence.
Tradition
Scott darted his eyes from side to side. From his hiding place, he could see most of the corridor. Reassuring himself that the coast was clear, he darted down the hallway to his next safe zone. The sound of voices warned him of approaching company, and he ducked into a side room.
He waited until the voices passed, trying to control his breathing. Panting would give him away. He nearly strangled himself, but he managed to steady his breath before opening the door cautiously, scouting down the hallway, and plotting his course. It looked like he had a clear shot at his objective, provided his luck held and nobody else came down the corridor for the next five seconds.
Just like the obstacle course in the Danger Room. Easy. Don't even think about it. Just go. Go! With that, he yanked the door open and ran full tilt down the hall. He slid to a stop at his destination, opened the heavy door, jumped inside, and slammed it shut behind him.
"Scott? What on earth..."
"Professor, I need your help!" Scott interrupted as Xavier wheeled his chair over to him. "They've been at it all day. I can't take it! I thought I could handle it at first, but it's driving me crazy! I should have asked Jean for her help before she left, but I didn't think of it, and now it's too late. I know I have a green shirt somewhere, but I can't remember which one it is, and they all look red and brown, and I don't know who else I can trust, they're all out to get me, even Storm, and I can't…"
He broke off and stared in disbelief at the arm where the professor had just pinched him.
A/N: I love when people get Irish and Scottish mixed up. It makes me want to hit them. Both are totally cool and completely different. I felt the need to explore Rogue and Kurt's post-Apocalyptic relationship, since the show hinted at a real solidarity there. And I have a friend at work who is red-green colorblind, which sucks for Saint Patrick's Day. I'm one of those people who pinches the people with no green on. Poor Scott. Reviews encourage me, and I've got some good ideas on the back burner. So let me know your thoughts.