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Doug, Illyana, Kitty, Peter, River, and Vance - NYE
The party at Kitty's on New Year's Eve!
Illyana and Kitty decide dancing (and messing with the guys) is in order.
“It was a good party. Illyana had no clue just what Kitty and Doug had been up to with the lights earlier, but she really didn't care - there was music playing, she'd drank...actually, she wasn't entirely sure how much she'd drank, but enough to put her in a really good mood and make her want to dance more. The only thing bumming out the party was that Vance was playing designated driver despite the fact that a) he didn't know how to drive, and b) they didn't have a car here to drive anyway.
The song changed, and she grinned impishly at Kitty, reaching out to take her hand. Maybe all he needed was a little incentive. And...well, if it didn't work? It'd still be really fun. Hopefully River'd snap a few pictures so she could torture Cal with them later.
Kitty rolllled her eyes, because yeah, she'd had some to drink too, though not as much, but she loved the song, and she loved to dance, and she was having a great time, so she grabbed Illyana's hand and hopped to her feet, swinging her friend out into the open space behind the couch.
Laughing, Illyana raised her arm and spun Kitty, hips swaying with the music, then leaned in and whispered, "You game?" eyes darting towards the guys to make it clear they were going for show value.
Kitty hrumphed, laughing off of the breath that left her lips and shook her head wryly, leaning close again. "How game are we talking?"
Illyana grinned and let go of Kitty's hand, and walked around her, fingers trailing lightly over her friend's back. "Brittany and Santana on Glee?" she whispered back, leaning in to whisper in Kitty's ear and trying to look as if she was doing something else entirely as her fingers drifted down the other girl's arm.
For a moment, Kitty actually looked a little wicked, even blushing, and smirked, playfully pressing her lips to Illyana's ear as they danced. Her hand ghosted around Illyana's waist, and she murmured, "No kissing - if that's happening tonight, it better be Peter!"
"Deal," Illyana agreed without reservation, smirking back as her hand brushed down Kitty's side, just barely not touching.
Kitty knew enough style, play-acting and dancing from her classes to get into it, swaying slinkily alongside her friend, suggestive, but not doing more than teasing. It was fun, with the music tickling along her spine, down into her toes, leaving her eyes bright and happy beneath lowered lashes.
Getting into it wasn't exactly a problem for Illyana, either - there was music player, a good partner, and knowing it was all a game just made it that much easier. The only problem she was having was forcing herself not to peek at the guys' reaction, but that would have totally ruined the act. Besides, they looked hot, she was sure of it, and they'd find out soon enough. She shifted behind Kitty finally, draped one arm around her waist, and leaned in over her shoulder to whisper, "Think they've had enough by now?"
And no, still not peeking. Not at all.
Kitty laughed, rolling her eyes, but giving her friend a squeeze of a hug. "Probably. You're such a tease." Then she pulled away, giving Illyana one final twirl before letting go, eyes twinkling, a grin on her lips. It was a good night.
Doug decides he needs a beer. And that Vance does, too.
Vance hadn't expected anything in particular when he'd come out of the restroom. Still, it was kind of a surprise to see Yana taking Kitty Pryde by the hand as he reentered the living room.
It was more of a surprise when they started dancing. If, uh, if what that was could really just be called...dancing. Right.
He was...not seeing this, Doug decided as his face warmed and he pulled his eyes away from the sight of Kitty and Illyana dancing. Not seeing it. Obviously, he'd had more to drink than he'd thought he had, because...right. Brain broken, did not compute. At least River wasn't...oh god, he needed to stop thinking that right now, because telepathic girlfriend, and honestly, he probably just needed to stop thinking completely. Safer. His eyes fell on Vance, who was looking pretty dumbstruck himself, and walked over to hand the other guy the beer he'd just opened.
"All yours," he said. Because if that was River out there? He knew he'd want one.
He didn't even look down at the bottle, before he brought it to his lips and....that was beer, wasn't it? Vance swallowed the large gulp he'd taken, and managed to make himself look down at it and yep. That was beer. And he was underage. And on parole.
Oops. "Uh....you know, I uh, I'm okay. I could go get s-some water?" Vance felt his eyes drawn back towards the floor.
Huh? Doug blinked, eyes drifting towards the bottle. Hadn't Vance been drinking before? He really hadn't been paying any attention. "I just opened it," he reassured the other guy. "Guaranteed germ free, and I'll go grab myself a new one." He grinned a little. "Besides, your girlfriend is out there dancing with my best friend. I think if anyone ever deserved a beer right now, it's us." Or possibly Peter. Maybe he should grab him one, too.
"Oh, that's not it," Vance said, sounding distracted as he watched Kitty and Illyana, and prayed that River wasn't listening in too much. "It's just...it's a violation of my parole."
Oh. Right. Doug made a face as he tried to consider that, then shrugged. "Pretty sure no one's going to bust a party at Tony Stark's building, and JARVIS would give us a heads up if they were," Doug pointed out, glancing back towards the girls. Who...yeah, they were still dancing. Right. He clamped his hand on Vance's shoulder and grinned crookedly. "Drink up. I'm getting myself another one."
Vance wasn't real sure a heads up from JARVIS would keep him from testing positive for alcohol. Doug was gone, though, and he sat on the couch, bottle in hand, as he watched Yana's dancing some more. Yana, who had this look on her face that said she knew exactly what she was doing.
River demonstrates to Doug there are way better distractions than beer.
River followed Doug into the kitchen, amused by his motivations for fleeing the scene of the dancing. Katy Perry was still singing, and the girls were having fun, but River would rather be with him than focus on their light-hearted tease.
"I can help you think of something else," she offered, a quiet, barefooted shadow that stepped into the light, and closer to him.
Doug startled a little, but grinned crookedly as he closed the refrigerator door, abandoning his quest for beer. "I'd appreciate that," he replied with full honesty, then cocked his head and smiled. "Not interested in breaking my brain?" he added, referring to the other two.
"Not with anybody else's help," River replied with an echoing smile, affection and happiness. She glanced back towards the living room, then looked back at Doug. "I don't know how to dance like that."
"Neither do I," he admitted with a crooked shrug. Somehow, he had a feeling he'd just end up looking ridiculous if he tried. "And I'm pretty sure you break my brain every time you smile at me like that. No dancing required." Which, okay, wasn't something he'd normally blurt out, but...yeah, blaming the beer. It wasn't as if she didn't know, anyway.
"I know," she echoed his thought, smiling again as she stepped in close to slide her fingers along his hand. She liked the way they tingled along his palm when she kept the pressure feather-light, and she threaded them with his.
Doug hummed very softly, eyes locking on hers as he squeezed her hand gently, then reached up to brush his fingertips just as lightly down her cheek. "What do I do to yours?" he asked, suddenly curious. Hopefully, she'd have words to describe it. He wasn't sure he really did.
River turned her face softly into the touch, not wanting to change its intent. "We run loops," River replied, eyes sparkling clear and warm. "You're feeling good that I'm feeling good that you're feeling good that I'm feeling good..." She stepped in close, right into his space, and pressed a soft kiss to his cheek. "Emotional and tactile feedback. Loops. It's amazing."
Feedback. Loops. Something in that struck a chord, though Doug wasn't entirely sure what or how, and couldn't seem to concentrate enough to figure it out. Because she was right...it was amazing, and he was perfectly content to just focus in on the way her lips felt against his cheek, soft and warm. Still... "I'm not a telepath," he pointed out, turning his face to brush his lips over hers. So, how exactly were they looping? And why had he never realized it before?
Her free hand came to trail light fingertips along his cheek on the heels of that kiss. "You don't need to be a psi to taste somebody else's pleasure, or joy."
"True," he acknowledged, though he wasn't sure that was all there was to it. On the other hand? Just now, he wasn't worried about it, either, because she was right. He was very definitely feeling good, and he didn't have any doubt at all that she was, too.
"There," she agreed, leaning into him and focusing on his warmth and solidity against her.
Yana goes to check on her experiment (aka Vance), and is satisfied with the results
Still grinning mischievously, Illyana broke off from Kitty and headed over to where Vance was sitting on the couch with - Ha! - beer bottle in hand, looking more than a little stunned. Or shell shocked. Or something - she wasn't sure what, but the sight made her grin that much more.
"What's up?" she asked as she plopped down in his lap, careful to avoid the beer.
"N-not, uh, not much," he offered. Vance gave her a slight smile, and held up the bottle. "Want some beer?"
"Sure," she said, reaching for the bottle and taking a drink before handing it back, even though it was pretty obvious, given where she was sitting, that something else was very definitely "up". "You liked? I'm thinking we should do it for our dance recital at the end of the year." Or not, but she couldn't resist saying it, anyway.
Vance swallowed a little nervously. "I don't know about all that. Even if you are real good."
Illyana laughed. "I'm kidding," she assured him, then leaned in to whisper in his ear. "Private show only."
He felt his face heating up a little, and he really wanted something to drink but all he had was beer. Dang. "G-good to know."
Oooh, blushing! Illyana grinned. "You're really, really cute when you blush," she pointed out, still whispering in his ear though she doubted anyone else was paying attention. And maybe shifted her position on his lap. Just a little. "Have a drink and pass it back?" Hey, if it meant getting him buzzed, she could switch to beer. It wasn't as if she had anywhere she needed to be in the morning.
Her breath against his ear, and God that shift, he could hardly keep track of what was going on. Vance took a swallow of his beer, and then passed her the bottle.
Illyana raised the bottle to her lips and pretended to drink before passing it back to him. She was already buzzed anyway; it wasn't like she needed any more right now. "We could dance..." she pointed out. And grinned, impishly, as she leaned in to kiss along his jaw.
"Uuuuuuuh..." Vance had no idea how to even respond, somewhat aware of the fact that other people were there, including one that was telepathic and might accidentally get some feedback while very aware of Illyana.
Brain broken, it was official. Illyana grinned against him. "Or we could get a room. After you finish your beer."
"I, uh, I dunno....w-wouldn't that be rude?" Vance took another drink distractedly.
"You're asking me?" Illyana asked incredulously. He was the expert on that stuff, not her. "But it's not like we wouldn't come back."
His eyes went a little wide, and he took another sip before offering her the bottle. "If you wanna."
"I wanna," she assured him, waving aside his offer of the beer as she slid off his lap and got to her feet. "You finish that one up. I'll grab us a couple more, okay?"
"I....I'm alright," he called after her, as she moved towards the kitchen. Vance let his head fall back a little, and took lots of deep breaths to calm down.
Ignoring that (because hey, he was drinking, he'd keep going - she always did), Illyana just grinned and slipped into the kitchen, careful not to interrupt Doug and River who'd apparently found some semi-privacy of their own (though she sent River a mental thumbs-up, in case she wasn't too busy to notice it). She returned a few moments later with her hand wrapped around the necks of a beer and a wine cooler, noting that Vance was apparently trying to not hyperventilate. "Ready?" she asked, reaching out her free hand towards him.
He reached out to take her hand, and stood up. Vance glanced around and, realizing that everyone else seemed kind of occupied, felt a little less weird about leaving for a little while. To make-out with Illyana, who was smiling at him in a way that made him smile back. "Yeah."
Doug and Peter discuss their dates.
"So, how's it going?" Doug asked as he dropped into a seat next to Peter. He was...okay, he wasn't entirely sober, he was prepared to admit. Not drunk, no, but definitely feeling the effects of the alcohol. Somehow, his unanticipated makeout session with River in the kitchen hadn't exactly done much to keep his head from spinning, either, but he wasn't complaining.
Honestly, he wasn't entirely sure he could manage to think of anything to complain about if he'd tried, and he'd lost track of his mental To Do list a couple of hours ago. It was a great party.
Peter looked over at Doug as he sat and offered him a friendly smile. “Hey,” he said and nodded. “It’s going good. It’s a nice party.” And he hadn’t been just standing off to the side for a change. He could be a bit of a wallflower sometimes, something it turned out Harry was good at drawing him out of, but tonight he’d managed it all on his own. “You?”
"Not complaining," Doug replied, smiling back. "What's Harry up to tonight, the big party on the boat?"
“Yeah,” Peter confirmed with a nod. “I had been thinking about going too, but then Kitty invited me here.”
"Yeah?" Doug grinned crookedly. "What made you decide on here instead?" He was hoping he knew the answer to that question, but it definitely didn't hurt to check. It was Kitty, after all.
Peter’s smile was as awkward and shy as the shrug that came with it, “Kitty invited me.” Which was more than enough reason for him. Whatever was going on between them was new and tentative and they hadn’t really named it, but he liked figuring it out with her.
"Sounds like a good reason to me," Doug acknowledged, fighting an urge to grin. Honestly, that was exactly the response he'd been hoping for, but he wasn't about to stick his nose in further and risk screwing things up. Or not much further, anyway. "She's something, huh?"
This time Peter’s smile was all giddy shyness. “Yeah, she’s awesome,” he agreed and looked out on the party, spotting her talking to another girl. Speaking of... “River’s pretty awesome too.” He smiled at Doug.
Doug followed Peter's gaze over to where Kitty and River were talking, and smiled. "Yeah, she is." More than awesome, actually. Gorgeous, and brilliant, and...he turned back to Peter, a slightly bemused expression on his face. "How'd we end up with the two most amazing girls at Xavier's interested in us?" Granted, Peter was Spiderman - but he knew Kitty well enough to know that wouldn't be why she was interested.
Peter laugh, “Uh, I don’t know?” He’d wondered the same thing when he’d started dating Gwen, and when Harry had kissed him back. And he was still wondering it about Kitty. She was... Really, awesome didn’t even begin to cover it. “Sheer dumb luck?” He laughed again and grinned at Doug, joking for the most part. “That’s all I can come up with.”
Doug laughed and grinned back at Peter. "You and me both," he agreed. He held up his bottle as a toast, then looked over at River and smiled. Yeah. That pretty much summed it up, didn't it?
Peter lifted up his bottle and clinked it against Doug’s, “Yup.”
Midnight, with Kitty and Peter.
Kitty was still a little buzzed, the energy running over her skin and making her bounce on her toes, grinning as the lights started to dim and strobe just a bit. She'd had a great evening. Pizza, wine coolers, maybe something else she probably shouldn't have had either. There'd been dancing with Illyana, and giggling with River. Programming with Doug and yeah, grinning a lot at Peter. She hadn't known what to think about him accepting her invitation to New Year's. She would have thought that he would have been somewhere else in the city - somewhere more fun, louder and shinier. But nope. Here he was. Close enough that her fingertips barely brushed his, and the countdown was starting on the TV, fireworks already going off outside the windows of the mansion.
She glanced sideways at him, a blush heating her skin from her collar to the roots of her hair, eyes shining maybe a little hopefully. The alcohol helped. She had a lot less inhibition and a lot more hope. And heck, she was going to be sixteen in a few months, and she really, really wanted to get the awkward first kiss thing out of the way. Even if it wasn't going to be a big deal for him.
Peter glanced out of the corner of his eye at Kitty. Again. He hadn’t been able to stop looking at her all night. His thoughts ping-ponged between worrying about getting caught staring and wanting to curl his fingers just so they brushed against her’s. She was so beautiful and he couldn’t believe he got to be here with her.
The clock struck midnight and the people on TV and around them cheered as fireworks exploded outside the window. That nervous feeling in Peter’s chest tripled, but that didn’t stop him from turning to Kitty and giving her a small, shy smile, “Happy New Year.” He stuffed his hands into the pockets of his hoodie, all awkward nervousness. “Can I--Would it be okay if I, um...? I think--” He tapped his templed, “I think I heard somewhere it’s bad luck to not get kissed at midnight on New Year’s.”
"Oh my gosh, you dork," she said fondly, and in a rush. Her fingers brushed at his, then closed their fingers together, tangling in a warm grip as she turned toward him. "If you don't kiss me right now, I'm gonna punch you."
Peter laughed and gave Kitty’s hand a squeeze. “Well, when you put it like that...” he teased and then leaned in to give her a kiss.
Too slow for her, she met him halfway, brushing her lips against his, trying not to do something stupid like bump noses or be too sloppy the first time. Just fitting their mouths together at first, tingles prickling warmly at her arms as she squeezed his hand and reached out with her other to ghost along his side.
Peter cupped Kitty’s cheek, smiling into the kiss. It was a sweet kiss, soft and gentle, and it had his heart pounding in an excited and nervous rush. His arm went around her waist to draw her closer, and when the kissed closed off, he smiled at her, “Happy New Year.”
Kitty warmed all the way to her toes when he pulled her against him and tucked her nose against the curve of his jaw, hiding the way she grinned so big that her cheeks hurt. "Happy New Year, web-head."
Second arm joining the first, Peter hugged Kitty a little tighter, turning his face in against the top of her head, smiling. “Someone’s been reading articles about Spiderman,” he teased.
Grasping his sides and pushing up on her toes, she brushed her lips to his ear. "Surely you're not complaining."
Peter laughed as the intimacy of the gesture made a blush spread across his cheeks. “Nah. It’s your time to waste,” he joked.
Kitty kissed his cheek, then drew back and punched his arm a little with a grin. "It's a perfectly acceptable use of my time, Peter Parker. I gotta help him upgrade his armor, right?"
Laughing, Peter rubbed his arm where Kitty had hit him, “You win this time, Shadowcat.”
"I always win," Kitty grinned, then reached out to thread her fingers with his, tugging his hand a little. "So...you wanna see my room?"
“Yeah, sure. Sure,” Peter said, the reply awkward but the smile that came with it genuine, butterflies looping about in his stomach. “You said it yourself--You always, uh, you always win.”
"Get your mind out of the gutter, Peter," she tugged him into the bedroom and closed the door. "I just want to lay down before I'm too dizzy to notice the floor rushing up at me. I don't know what Illyana gave me earlier but I think I'm coming down from it."
Kitty paused as she sat on the bed and smiled shyly at him. "But maybe you wanna lay with me?"
Peter’s mouth worked soundlessly for a moment, a blush spreading across his cheeks. “I wasn’t--My mind wasn’t in the gutter. There was no gutter,” he stammered, shaking his head and waving his hands. “Absolutely gutterless.”
"Maybe a tiny gutter?" she grinned, curling up on her side on the bed, waiting for him to join her. If he decided to join her.
“Why? Is your mind lonely?” Peter joked in his usual way, the blush still there, but subsiding. Awkward moment (mostly) passed, he went over to the bed and got on, stretching out beside Kitty. He smiled at her, “Hey.” Okay, so he was still a little bit awkward.
"Well, your mind is good company," Kitty stuck her tongue out, then scooted closer to him, curling up against his body.
Peter put his arm around Kitty, tilting his head so it rested against hers, and smiled, “So’s yours.”
Illyana and Kitty decide dancing (and messing with the guys) is in order.
“It was a good party. Illyana had no clue just what Kitty and Doug had been up to with the lights earlier, but she really didn't care - there was music playing, she'd drank...actually, she wasn't entirely sure how much she'd drank, but enough to put her in a really good mood and make her want to dance more. The only thing bumming out the party was that Vance was playing designated driver despite the fact that a) he didn't know how to drive, and b) they didn't have a car here to drive anyway.
The song changed, and she grinned impishly at Kitty, reaching out to take her hand. Maybe all he needed was a little incentive. And...well, if it didn't work? It'd still be really fun. Hopefully River'd snap a few pictures so she could torture Cal with them later.
Kitty rolllled her eyes, because yeah, she'd had some to drink too, though not as much, but she loved the song, and she loved to dance, and she was having a great time, so she grabbed Illyana's hand and hopped to her feet, swinging her friend out into the open space behind the couch.
Laughing, Illyana raised her arm and spun Kitty, hips swaying with the music, then leaned in and whispered, "You game?" eyes darting towards the guys to make it clear they were going for show value.
Kitty hrumphed, laughing off of the breath that left her lips and shook her head wryly, leaning close again. "How game are we talking?"
Illyana grinned and let go of Kitty's hand, and walked around her, fingers trailing lightly over her friend's back. "Brittany and Santana on Glee?" she whispered back, leaning in to whisper in Kitty's ear and trying to look as if she was doing something else entirely as her fingers drifted down the other girl's arm.
For a moment, Kitty actually looked a little wicked, even blushing, and smirked, playfully pressing her lips to Illyana's ear as they danced. Her hand ghosted around Illyana's waist, and she murmured, "No kissing - if that's happening tonight, it better be Peter!"
"Deal," Illyana agreed without reservation, smirking back as her hand brushed down Kitty's side, just barely not touching.
Kitty knew enough style, play-acting and dancing from her classes to get into it, swaying slinkily alongside her friend, suggestive, but not doing more than teasing. It was fun, with the music tickling along her spine, down into her toes, leaving her eyes bright and happy beneath lowered lashes.
Getting into it wasn't exactly a problem for Illyana, either - there was music player, a good partner, and knowing it was all a game just made it that much easier. The only problem she was having was forcing herself not to peek at the guys' reaction, but that would have totally ruined the act. Besides, they looked hot, she was sure of it, and they'd find out soon enough. She shifted behind Kitty finally, draped one arm around her waist, and leaned in over her shoulder to whisper, "Think they've had enough by now?"
And no, still not peeking. Not at all.
Kitty laughed, rolling her eyes, but giving her friend a squeeze of a hug. "Probably. You're such a tease." Then she pulled away, giving Illyana one final twirl before letting go, eyes twinkling, a grin on her lips. It was a good night.
Doug decides he needs a beer. And that Vance does, too.
Vance hadn't expected anything in particular when he'd come out of the restroom. Still, it was kind of a surprise to see Yana taking Kitty Pryde by the hand as he reentered the living room.
It was more of a surprise when they started dancing. If, uh, if what that was could really just be called...dancing. Right.
He was...not seeing this, Doug decided as his face warmed and he pulled his eyes away from the sight of Kitty and Illyana dancing. Not seeing it. Obviously, he'd had more to drink than he'd thought he had, because...right. Brain broken, did not compute. At least River wasn't...oh god, he needed to stop thinking that right now, because telepathic girlfriend, and honestly, he probably just needed to stop thinking completely. Safer. His eyes fell on Vance, who was looking pretty dumbstruck himself, and walked over to hand the other guy the beer he'd just opened.
"All yours," he said. Because if that was River out there? He knew he'd want one.
He didn't even look down at the bottle, before he brought it to his lips and....that was beer, wasn't it? Vance swallowed the large gulp he'd taken, and managed to make himself look down at it and yep. That was beer. And he was underage. And on parole.
Oops. "Uh....you know, I uh, I'm okay. I could go get s-some water?" Vance felt his eyes drawn back towards the floor.
Huh? Doug blinked, eyes drifting towards the bottle. Hadn't Vance been drinking before? He really hadn't been paying any attention. "I just opened it," he reassured the other guy. "Guaranteed germ free, and I'll go grab myself a new one." He grinned a little. "Besides, your girlfriend is out there dancing with my best friend. I think if anyone ever deserved a beer right now, it's us." Or possibly Peter. Maybe he should grab him one, too.
"Oh, that's not it," Vance said, sounding distracted as he watched Kitty and Illyana, and prayed that River wasn't listening in too much. "It's just...it's a violation of my parole."
Oh. Right. Doug made a face as he tried to consider that, then shrugged. "Pretty sure no one's going to bust a party at Tony Stark's building, and JARVIS would give us a heads up if they were," Doug pointed out, glancing back towards the girls. Who...yeah, they were still dancing. Right. He clamped his hand on Vance's shoulder and grinned crookedly. "Drink up. I'm getting myself another one."
Vance wasn't real sure a heads up from JARVIS would keep him from testing positive for alcohol. Doug was gone, though, and he sat on the couch, bottle in hand, as he watched Yana's dancing some more. Yana, who had this look on her face that said she knew exactly what she was doing.
River demonstrates to Doug there are way better distractions than beer.
River followed Doug into the kitchen, amused by his motivations for fleeing the scene of the dancing. Katy Perry was still singing, and the girls were having fun, but River would rather be with him than focus on their light-hearted tease.
"I can help you think of something else," she offered, a quiet, barefooted shadow that stepped into the light, and closer to him.
Doug startled a little, but grinned crookedly as he closed the refrigerator door, abandoning his quest for beer. "I'd appreciate that," he replied with full honesty, then cocked his head and smiled. "Not interested in breaking my brain?" he added, referring to the other two.
"Not with anybody else's help," River replied with an echoing smile, affection and happiness. She glanced back towards the living room, then looked back at Doug. "I don't know how to dance like that."
"Neither do I," he admitted with a crooked shrug. Somehow, he had a feeling he'd just end up looking ridiculous if he tried. "And I'm pretty sure you break my brain every time you smile at me like that. No dancing required." Which, okay, wasn't something he'd normally blurt out, but...yeah, blaming the beer. It wasn't as if she didn't know, anyway.
"I know," she echoed his thought, smiling again as she stepped in close to slide her fingers along his hand. She liked the way they tingled along his palm when she kept the pressure feather-light, and she threaded them with his.
Doug hummed very softly, eyes locking on hers as he squeezed her hand gently, then reached up to brush his fingertips just as lightly down her cheek. "What do I do to yours?" he asked, suddenly curious. Hopefully, she'd have words to describe it. He wasn't sure he really did.
River turned her face softly into the touch, not wanting to change its intent. "We run loops," River replied, eyes sparkling clear and warm. "You're feeling good that I'm feeling good that you're feeling good that I'm feeling good..." She stepped in close, right into his space, and pressed a soft kiss to his cheek. "Emotional and tactile feedback. Loops. It's amazing."
Feedback. Loops. Something in that struck a chord, though Doug wasn't entirely sure what or how, and couldn't seem to concentrate enough to figure it out. Because she was right...it was amazing, and he was perfectly content to just focus in on the way her lips felt against his cheek, soft and warm. Still... "I'm not a telepath," he pointed out, turning his face to brush his lips over hers. So, how exactly were they looping? And why had he never realized it before?
Her free hand came to trail light fingertips along his cheek on the heels of that kiss. "You don't need to be a psi to taste somebody else's pleasure, or joy."
"True," he acknowledged, though he wasn't sure that was all there was to it. On the other hand? Just now, he wasn't worried about it, either, because she was right. He was very definitely feeling good, and he didn't have any doubt at all that she was, too.
"There," she agreed, leaning into him and focusing on his warmth and solidity against her.
Yana goes to check on her experiment (aka Vance), and is satisfied with the results
Still grinning mischievously, Illyana broke off from Kitty and headed over to where Vance was sitting on the couch with - Ha! - beer bottle in hand, looking more than a little stunned. Or shell shocked. Or something - she wasn't sure what, but the sight made her grin that much more.
"What's up?" she asked as she plopped down in his lap, careful to avoid the beer.
"N-not, uh, not much," he offered. Vance gave her a slight smile, and held up the bottle. "Want some beer?"
"Sure," she said, reaching for the bottle and taking a drink before handing it back, even though it was pretty obvious, given where she was sitting, that something else was very definitely "up". "You liked? I'm thinking we should do it for our dance recital at the end of the year." Or not, but she couldn't resist saying it, anyway.
Vance swallowed a little nervously. "I don't know about all that. Even if you are real good."
Illyana laughed. "I'm kidding," she assured him, then leaned in to whisper in his ear. "Private show only."
He felt his face heating up a little, and he really wanted something to drink but all he had was beer. Dang. "G-good to know."
Oooh, blushing! Illyana grinned. "You're really, really cute when you blush," she pointed out, still whispering in his ear though she doubted anyone else was paying attention. And maybe shifted her position on his lap. Just a little. "Have a drink and pass it back?" Hey, if it meant getting him buzzed, she could switch to beer. It wasn't as if she had anywhere she needed to be in the morning.
Her breath against his ear, and God that shift, he could hardly keep track of what was going on. Vance took a swallow of his beer, and then passed her the bottle.
Illyana raised the bottle to her lips and pretended to drink before passing it back to him. She was already buzzed anyway; it wasn't like she needed any more right now. "We could dance..." she pointed out. And grinned, impishly, as she leaned in to kiss along his jaw.
"Uuuuuuuh..." Vance had no idea how to even respond, somewhat aware of the fact that other people were there, including one that was telepathic and might accidentally get some feedback while very aware of Illyana.
Brain broken, it was official. Illyana grinned against him. "Or we could get a room. After you finish your beer."
"I, uh, I dunno....w-wouldn't that be rude?" Vance took another drink distractedly.
"You're asking me?" Illyana asked incredulously. He was the expert on that stuff, not her. "But it's not like we wouldn't come back."
His eyes went a little wide, and he took another sip before offering her the bottle. "If you wanna."
"I wanna," she assured him, waving aside his offer of the beer as she slid off his lap and got to her feet. "You finish that one up. I'll grab us a couple more, okay?"
"I....I'm alright," he called after her, as she moved towards the kitchen. Vance let his head fall back a little, and took lots of deep breaths to calm down.
Ignoring that (because hey, he was drinking, he'd keep going - she always did), Illyana just grinned and slipped into the kitchen, careful not to interrupt Doug and River who'd apparently found some semi-privacy of their own (though she sent River a mental thumbs-up, in case she wasn't too busy to notice it). She returned a few moments later with her hand wrapped around the necks of a beer and a wine cooler, noting that Vance was apparently trying to not hyperventilate. "Ready?" she asked, reaching out her free hand towards him.
He reached out to take her hand, and stood up. Vance glanced around and, realizing that everyone else seemed kind of occupied, felt a little less weird about leaving for a little while. To make-out with Illyana, who was smiling at him in a way that made him smile back. "Yeah."
Doug and Peter discuss their dates.
"So, how's it going?" Doug asked as he dropped into a seat next to Peter. He was...okay, he wasn't entirely sober, he was prepared to admit. Not drunk, no, but definitely feeling the effects of the alcohol. Somehow, his unanticipated makeout session with River in the kitchen hadn't exactly done much to keep his head from spinning, either, but he wasn't complaining.
Honestly, he wasn't entirely sure he could manage to think of anything to complain about if he'd tried, and he'd lost track of his mental To Do list a couple of hours ago. It was a great party.
Peter looked over at Doug as he sat and offered him a friendly smile. “Hey,” he said and nodded. “It’s going good. It’s a nice party.” And he hadn’t been just standing off to the side for a change. He could be a bit of a wallflower sometimes, something it turned out Harry was good at drawing him out of, but tonight he’d managed it all on his own. “You?”
"Not complaining," Doug replied, smiling back. "What's Harry up to tonight, the big party on the boat?"
“Yeah,” Peter confirmed with a nod. “I had been thinking about going too, but then Kitty invited me here.”
"Yeah?" Doug grinned crookedly. "What made you decide on here instead?" He was hoping he knew the answer to that question, but it definitely didn't hurt to check. It was Kitty, after all.
Peter’s smile was as awkward and shy as the shrug that came with it, “Kitty invited me.” Which was more than enough reason for him. Whatever was going on between them was new and tentative and they hadn’t really named it, but he liked figuring it out with her.
"Sounds like a good reason to me," Doug acknowledged, fighting an urge to grin. Honestly, that was exactly the response he'd been hoping for, but he wasn't about to stick his nose in further and risk screwing things up. Or not much further, anyway. "She's something, huh?"
This time Peter’s smile was all giddy shyness. “Yeah, she’s awesome,” he agreed and looked out on the party, spotting her talking to another girl. Speaking of... “River’s pretty awesome too.” He smiled at Doug.
Doug followed Peter's gaze over to where Kitty and River were talking, and smiled. "Yeah, she is." More than awesome, actually. Gorgeous, and brilliant, and...he turned back to Peter, a slightly bemused expression on his face. "How'd we end up with the two most amazing girls at Xavier's interested in us?" Granted, Peter was Spiderman - but he knew Kitty well enough to know that wouldn't be why she was interested.
Peter laugh, “Uh, I don’t know?” He’d wondered the same thing when he’d started dating Gwen, and when Harry had kissed him back. And he was still wondering it about Kitty. She was... Really, awesome didn’t even begin to cover it. “Sheer dumb luck?” He laughed again and grinned at Doug, joking for the most part. “That’s all I can come up with.”
Doug laughed and grinned back at Peter. "You and me both," he agreed. He held up his bottle as a toast, then looked over at River and smiled. Yeah. That pretty much summed it up, didn't it?
Peter lifted up his bottle and clinked it against Doug’s, “Yup.”
Midnight, with Kitty and Peter.
Kitty was still a little buzzed, the energy running over her skin and making her bounce on her toes, grinning as the lights started to dim and strobe just a bit. She'd had a great evening. Pizza, wine coolers, maybe something else she probably shouldn't have had either. There'd been dancing with Illyana, and giggling with River. Programming with Doug and yeah, grinning a lot at Peter. She hadn't known what to think about him accepting her invitation to New Year's. She would have thought that he would have been somewhere else in the city - somewhere more fun, louder and shinier. But nope. Here he was. Close enough that her fingertips barely brushed his, and the countdown was starting on the TV, fireworks already going off outside the windows of the mansion.
She glanced sideways at him, a blush heating her skin from her collar to the roots of her hair, eyes shining maybe a little hopefully. The alcohol helped. She had a lot less inhibition and a lot more hope. And heck, she was going to be sixteen in a few months, and she really, really wanted to get the awkward first kiss thing out of the way. Even if it wasn't going to be a big deal for him.
Peter glanced out of the corner of his eye at Kitty. Again. He hadn’t been able to stop looking at her all night. His thoughts ping-ponged between worrying about getting caught staring and wanting to curl his fingers just so they brushed against her’s. She was so beautiful and he couldn’t believe he got to be here with her.
The clock struck midnight and the people on TV and around them cheered as fireworks exploded outside the window. That nervous feeling in Peter’s chest tripled, but that didn’t stop him from turning to Kitty and giving her a small, shy smile, “Happy New Year.” He stuffed his hands into the pockets of his hoodie, all awkward nervousness. “Can I--Would it be okay if I, um...? I think--” He tapped his templed, “I think I heard somewhere it’s bad luck to not get kissed at midnight on New Year’s.”
"Oh my gosh, you dork," she said fondly, and in a rush. Her fingers brushed at his, then closed their fingers together, tangling in a warm grip as she turned toward him. "If you don't kiss me right now, I'm gonna punch you."
Peter laughed and gave Kitty’s hand a squeeze. “Well, when you put it like that...” he teased and then leaned in to give her a kiss.
Too slow for her, she met him halfway, brushing her lips against his, trying not to do something stupid like bump noses or be too sloppy the first time. Just fitting their mouths together at first, tingles prickling warmly at her arms as she squeezed his hand and reached out with her other to ghost along his side.
Peter cupped Kitty’s cheek, smiling into the kiss. It was a sweet kiss, soft and gentle, and it had his heart pounding in an excited and nervous rush. His arm went around her waist to draw her closer, and when the kissed closed off, he smiled at her, “Happy New Year.”
Kitty warmed all the way to her toes when he pulled her against him and tucked her nose against the curve of his jaw, hiding the way she grinned so big that her cheeks hurt. "Happy New Year, web-head."
Second arm joining the first, Peter hugged Kitty a little tighter, turning his face in against the top of her head, smiling. “Someone’s been reading articles about Spiderman,” he teased.
Grasping his sides and pushing up on her toes, she brushed her lips to his ear. "Surely you're not complaining."
Peter laughed as the intimacy of the gesture made a blush spread across his cheeks. “Nah. It’s your time to waste,” he joked.
Kitty kissed his cheek, then drew back and punched his arm a little with a grin. "It's a perfectly acceptable use of my time, Peter Parker. I gotta help him upgrade his armor, right?"
Laughing, Peter rubbed his arm where Kitty had hit him, “You win this time, Shadowcat.”
"I always win," Kitty grinned, then reached out to thread her fingers with his, tugging his hand a little. "So...you wanna see my room?"
“Yeah, sure. Sure,” Peter said, the reply awkward but the smile that came with it genuine, butterflies looping about in his stomach. “You said it yourself--You always, uh, you always win.”
"Get your mind out of the gutter, Peter," she tugged him into the bedroom and closed the door. "I just want to lay down before I'm too dizzy to notice the floor rushing up at me. I don't know what Illyana gave me earlier but I think I'm coming down from it."
Kitty paused as she sat on the bed and smiled shyly at him. "But maybe you wanna lay with me?"
Peter’s mouth worked soundlessly for a moment, a blush spreading across his cheeks. “I wasn’t--My mind wasn’t in the gutter. There was no gutter,” he stammered, shaking his head and waving his hands. “Absolutely gutterless.”
"Maybe a tiny gutter?" she grinned, curling up on her side on the bed, waiting for him to join her. If he decided to join her.
“Why? Is your mind lonely?” Peter joked in his usual way, the blush still there, but subsiding. Awkward moment (mostly) passed, he went over to the bed and got on, stretching out beside Kitty. He smiled at her, “Hey.” Okay, so he was still a little bit awkward.
"Well, your mind is good company," Kitty stuck her tongue out, then scooted closer to him, curling up against his body.
Peter put his arm around Kitty, tilting his head so it rested against hers, and smiled, “So’s yours.”
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I agree, though - Kitty and Peter were awesome! <3 (Also, Yana applauds Kitty dragging Pete off to the bedroom, because...yeah. Applause are obviously in order!)
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