mad_skills:

Dante was enjoying winter break along with his parents being out of town. When they were home he had a curfew and didn't get go to out much. When they were away, well his curfew disappeared and he was able to go out quite a bit more. His older sister Rachel was quite a bit more lenient than their parents.

Tonight was open mic night in a club and it was all ages. He had his guitar with him and was scheduled to go on in about an hour.

ablaze:

Rufus was playing very close attention to his Saturday morning cartoons when the smell of fresh cookies started to waft through the air. That was definitely something worth checking out when the next commercial started to play.

nextgen_holiday:

All Hallow's Eve, or Halloween as it has been come to be called, is a popular holiday with children and adults alike. It is a holiday that had its roots in the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain or Summer's End. Samhain celebrated the end of the "lighter half" of the year and the beginning of the "darker half".

On this evening the barriers between this world and the Otherworld were believed to be thin and the spirits, good and bad, of the dead could pass through. The spirits of the family's ancestors were welcomed in while evil and bad spirits were warded off by the wearing of masks and costumes. The costumes and masks disguised one as a harmful spirit and avoided harm from others.

It was also a harvest celebration and time to take stock of food stores for the winter. Livestock were slaughtered and the meat prepared for storage. It was the final harvest of the year and the crops were then stored for the winter. Celebrations included bonfires and tales of the family's ancestors.

It was a celebration of the dead and of the harvest.

Today we dress up in scary and not so scary costumes and masks and go door to door for candy or attend costume parties. It is a night for revelry, pranks and fun.

gingeroracle:

The shift from Lexie being around in the capacity of adoring hanger-on to that of actual team member (even in a "novice-capacity" - her father's words) had a lot of build up only to find that when it happened...it wasn't a whole lot different than before. Still...she felt pretty damn cool with her cup of coffee, hanging out in the kitchen, just being one of the guys.

under_the_skin:

(Backdated to the 22nd)

For this birthday, Vlad and Dmitri had teamed up for the present. Ellie would get tickets and Vlad taking her to a One Direction concert on their American Tour. Sure his ears would hate him for it, but there were things you'd do for little sisters. There might have been glitter on the card just to tease her a bit.

anyastark:

Anya sent Corey two pounds of shade grown chocolate. Along with the chocolate there was a card that said there was a donation of five thousand to the Rainforest Foundation.

nextgen_misc:

It was Open Mic Night at the Screaming Banshee, a nightclub in new York, and open to all ages. Bands, singers and poets from all over the city were in attendance. The place was crowded, loud and the people were having fun.

_tsunami_:

It had been a few weeks past Valentine's day and Cait was starting to feel like the walls were closing in. She needed to get out and see something other than the walls inside the mansion. A text was sent to Vlad to be ready to go out tonight at 7:30.

At 7:29 Cait was at the front door waiting for Vlad.

ablaze:

Rufus had finished his driving course to get his Learner's permit and hadn't had much luck using it. Most people didn't seem to want to be in the car with him to help him learn to drive. So he hadn't had much chance to learn to drive better than he currently could. But there still was someone he could try and get to drive with him, Cait. Family was great for getting to do things no one else seemed to want to do and he really did want to learn how to drive and get off the stupid learner's permit as soon as he could.

He was looking around the mansion to find her and probably going to use the excuse of holiday shopping for doing some driving.

_tsunami_:

Sylvie was the sister Cait never had. The two had known each other since they were in diapers and Cait wasn't about to let Sylvie's birthday pass without some fanfare. Cait had the gifts ready well in advance and had put her sewing skills to work to make Sylvie a new blouse and a matching long skirt. She had also got Corey's help in creating a necklace of polished colored stones.

Cait of course made a batch of Sylvie's favorite cookies along with cupcakes. She made sure the one for Sylvie had a candle on it and gave the rest out to the other X-ers.

nextgen_holiday:

"A father is a guy who has snapshots in his wallet where his money used to be." -- Unknown

_tsunami_:

Cait had made two dozen of Rachel's favorite cookies and had put them in a small basket. She also made Rachel a new emerald green dress that would go well with her hair and eyes. The last thing Cait got one of her oldest and closest friends was a $25 gift card to iTunes. She put the items and a card in Rachel's room.

fireball:

Rufus was in the kitchen eating breakfast when he realized he had not pulled off any major mischief recently. This could not be tolerated in Rufus’s expert opinion.

After finishing up breakfast Rufus when up to his room and pulled out his planning chalkboard. He had to scrap the first plan he came up with because he wasn’t sure where he could get a backhoe on such short notice.

After going through several more plans like that it finally hit him what he should do. Uncle Scott was always telling him to think creatively and in ways that wouldn’t cause trouble.

After gathering the supplies he needed which wasn’t that hard Rufus made his way to the boy’s bathroom. It had taken him sometime to do it but with a little ingenuity he had done it. He turned the boys bathroom into a sauna. To celebrate his achievement he sat down in his bathing suit to relax.

nextgen_holiday:

Mother love is the fuel that enables a normal human being to do the impossible. ~Marion C. Garretty, quoted in A Little Spoonful of Chicken Soup for the Mother's Soul

perenawska:

Corey's birthday was easy to remember. Fittingly, it was on Earth Day and Irina and Lyta had been /planning/. Corey was like a little brother to them and they were going to make sure that his birthday was celebrated with a big fuss.

Irina left the catering and party supply part to Lyta. Organization was not one of Irina's strong points, it almost wasn't a point at all. Irina took care of the guests. She had delivered invitations to all of Corey's friends in Westchester and his family in Nova Roma last week with a promise to transport them if they wanted to go. She didn't mind playing taxi for events like this.

Corey wasn't hard to get a gift for, but the kid didn't think much about new clothes or shoes for himself, so in addition to an Ark Irina got him some clothes and shoes. She also got him some shade-grown chocolate bars.

When it was time, she went to fetch the invited guests.

nextgen_asgard:

Eir and Astrid led Ellie through the halls of Odin's Hall. The royal treasury lay beyond the Great Hall and always guarded. However, Eir and Astrid grew up in this building and thanks to their resourceful brother Skari, they knew how to get into the Royal Treasury. There were double doors guarded by two guards, but it wasn't the only way into the room. Not when one had a teleporter on hand.

Eir and Astrid led Ellie through the building without being seen and as close to the treasury room as they could get. They described the inside of the room to Ellie as they went so when they arrived they could teleport in and out in almost no time.

"Art we ready?" Eir asked Ellie and Astrid.

nextgen_misc:

Daniel, Zoey, Scotty, Ellie and Rufus had told Thor and Sif about what happened in Hel while Einmyria made sure they ate and rested. The Thunder God's face wore a scowl as the children told the tale and Sif's expression mirrored his. They left the kids with Eimyria and returned to Odin's great hall. A dark cloud loomed on the horizon and Asgard would prepare to face it.

The host of Asgard started preparations for a battle and the sons and daughters of Asgard on Migard would be called back.

quadrimanial:

Sylvie and Corey had called each other about this. He was there that afternoon with a cake and a stone bracelet. Sylvie had a book full of pictures of ice sculpture.

Cait wasn't getting away without some celebrating.

nextgen_asgard:

Hela ruled Hel and there was nothing that she didn't know about. Her latest amusement was leading a bunch of kids around. She wasn't sure exactly what her father's plan was, but dealing with the kids was entertaining her. It had been some time since she had entertainment such as this. She let them wander around her realm, tricking them with illusions and occasionally sending a minion after them. The kids were proving to be quite resourceful. The two little ones weren't scared and it intrigued her. The other three weren't either, but they were older. She eventually led them to the ice where the Destroyer was encased and put up an illusion to make it look like the two little ones were in the ice.

team_mascot:

Zoey /loved/ visiting New York because it meant seeing Scotty. It was Valentine's Day and Mom and Dad had some auction thing to go to and that meant Mr. and Mrs. Vernard would be babysitting the two of them. Zoey had a card that she made for Scotty and the Super Buddies DVDs for him.

Mr. Vernard had given both of them a very specific set of rules about what they were allowed and not allowed to do. They didn't mean to cause trouble the last few times, but it just seemed like trouble found them. They didn't plan on all those things happening.

As it was they were in the living room playing with Scotty's Super Buddies DVDs and playing with his Super Buddies toys.

aintseenalot:

Apparently, the traditional food was roasted goat.

Lulu had no idea how to barbecue a goat, so she'd bribed Sally Guiles to go to that Lebanese restaurant a ways away for her. Then she'd made lemonade and chilicocoa. The collective smells will waft when she knocks on Rufus's door.

aintseenalot:

She'd called Corey to check about the recipe. She'd made puppy-eyes at the right people to get the ingredients on the grocery list. And she'd spent a while in the kitchen.

She's not going to ask why Nova Roman boys like to combine chili and chocolate. It was easier to do than that fish sauce stuff.

She knocked on Rufus's door.

nextgen_holiday:

There were certain traditions that were kept around the holidays and then there were traditions. The annual New Year's Day snowball fight was a long standing tradition at Xavier's Institude For Higher Learning. For the past six years the girls have won the fight, but this year the boys have a new player on their side and he's one that may tip the scales in their favor.

Dawn broke over the grounds and the sun climbed into the sky. It would be a warm bright day and perfect for a snowball fight.

At high noon the players on each side gathered on opposite ends of the grounds.

nextgen_holiday:

There's a piece of paper and a pen attached to a bulletin board. Across the top is written:

New Year's Resolutions
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
+

Anonymous entries accepted.

nextgen_misc:

"George"'s time on Earth exposed him to a lot of different things of Earth culture. One of these things was Santa Claus. The idea of some man giving out presents to all the kids on one night a year was an interesting concept. There was no such thing on George's planet.

When George returned to his planet he told them all about Earth culture and Santa Claus. The fascination with Santa and getting presents prompted a small group of aliens to leave their planet and head to Earth. They arrived at the North Pole and promptly brought Santa aboard their ship.

Things were going well as they headed home with Santa, but trouble found them half way home. A ship of Symbiotes attacked and took their precious cargo. George managed to turn the ship around and headed back to Earth. There were people that could help.

Those people were Team Awesome.

nextgen_holiday:

Christmas. Yule. Saturnalia. Dies Natalis Solis Invicti. Many cultures have celebrated and still celebrate a winter festival. There have been many names for it over the millennia. No matter the name it is a time to come together and celebrate with feasts and gifts with friends and loved ones.

Each culture has a legendary figure who would deliver gifts to children during this time. In Russia and some Slavic cultures he is known as Ded Moroz, Grandfather Frost, and comes not on Christmas but on New Year’s along with his granddaughter Snegurochka, or ‘”Snow Maiden”. In the United Kingdom and other parts of Europe he is known as Father Christmas. In the Netherlands and Belgium he is known as Saint Nicholas or “Sinterklaas” and in France he is known as Père Noël. In the United States we know him as Santa Claus.

No matter the name or who is delivering gifts, it is the season of peace, joy and togetherness. It is the season for thinking about loved ones, friends and those less fortunate. It is a time to witness the goodness and generosity the human race is capable of. It is a time for peace on Earth and goodwill toward man.

_tsunami_:

Mid to late December was a busy time of the year and not just for the Christians. Saturnalia for Cait, Corey and Rufus started on the 17th of December and unlike Christmas that lasted one day, Saturnalia lasted for seven days. Tradition was to make and give out small gifts. Each year Cait hit the kitchen and baked favorite treats of the residents of Xavier's.

This year she hit the kitchen in the middle of the night. It was the only time of the day where there wouldn't be people going in and out all of the time and she could concentrate on what she needed to do. The hours slipped by and Cait worked quickly and efficiently. She made enough to give to Rufus to hand out as well. She knew her brother and knew enough to cover his back.

Morning came and Cait finished up and then cleaned up after herself. She didn't want to leave a messy kitchen behind her.

She went to deliver the Saturnalia goodies.

aintseenalot:

The Stark Foundation event was one of the big gossip topics around the school. Who was going and who was coming up for it and that Rachel had three dates -- everything lovely happened to Rachel.

Lulu contemplated for a while, and then went and knocked on Cait's door.

next_avenger:

With Charlie gone and as a male member of the Avengers, in addition to being the leader, it was up to James to uphold a few traditions that didn't have to deal with battling bad guys. Though he had to admit that he would rather be fighting bad guys than doing this. It just wasn't his thing.

He wasn't as industrious as Anya, but James had managed to collect the necessary photos. It hadn't been easy and a part of him felt like he was cheating on Val.

Invitations were sent to the Avengers, Thunderbolts, Fantastic Four, Champions, Excalibur the X-Men and the Defenders guys.

With the help of Jarvis food and drink was laid in. James made sure they had a wide variety of pizza, chips, pretzels and drinks.

He loaded the photos in and took care of the security systems. The girls were not allowed to watch. Now all that was left was people showing up.

_tsunami_:

Rufus was impossible to get gifts for. He had always been difficult to get things for, but now everything had to be fireproof, or as close to it. Cait had put some thought into this and with the help of Uncle Scott had managed to make him a new leather jacket. He set his other one on fire last week.

Cait left the wrapped jacket along with a card on Rufus' bed. She also made him his favorite cookies.

team_mascot:

Zoey finally got to visit Scotty at /his/ house. Before Scotty had visited Zoey in California, but Zoey hadn't had the chance to visit Scotty's house until now. Mom had business in New York and Zoey had begged to go along. She liked New York (despite the broken arm she got the last time she was here) and wanted to see more of the city and more importantly see Scotty. Scotty even had a new little sister and Zoey wanted to meet her. Though it was a little disappointing that Miranda couldn't really play with them. Miranda was still cute and Zoey giggled every time she made little spit bubbles and cooed.

Zoey and Scotty had just finished watching Super Buddies again. Scotty loved the recent Fantastic Four episode and they had watched it twice. Scotty even had the super limited edition M.O.D.O.K. toy. Zoey would admit that the M.O.D.O.K. toy was cool. He talked and said silly things when you pushed the button on the back.

Zoey and Scotty were currently playing with the M.O.D.O.K. toy when the members of the Fantastic Four said they had to go out on a mission. Cassie was still here with Miranda and Daniel would be coming over to watch the two of them.

"That's a cool toy," Zoey said with giggles. "I'm going to ask my mom for one when I get home."

sandcastlegod:

It was a big day. Corey had made some tiny sculpture offerings for Diana in accordance with the day. It was also the festival of Vertumnus, god of gardens and stupid but inexplicably effective ways of picking up women. Hercules Invictus was also honored around this time, which....dovetailed reasonably well with that last bit, when one thought about it.

In addition to offering his little sculptures on a makeshift altar out behind the club, Corey made sure to leave flowers for all the girl Champions before proceeding to start making burgers. Beef for Hercules, after all. And he'd managed to get a nice big amount of beef from certified reforestation-encouraging suppliers.

It was important to let the smell of cooked meat really get out. Tradition.

Damn. He'd need garlic for the moon offering tonight. There'd have to be a grocery run.

nextgen_cosmic:

Galactus was a cosmic being who needed to feed on the life forces of planets. Currently he was about to feast on a planet which was also the home of George, a small alien who had been residing on Earth. A small ship docked with Galactus' world ship, the crew intent on stopping Galactus from feeding on the planet.

_tsunami_:

Cait had yet to meet Arthur, but there were other things that needed to be done first. Namely call Twerp Major and inform him of the good news. Cait assumed the Professor would contact her parents, or at least she hoped he would. She didn't want to have to be the one to tell them that a dimensionally challenged kid showed up. Who was also the kid of Lorna and her Dad. That would go over really well.

Cait stuck to calling Twerp Major.

She sighed and picked up her cell.

nextgen_parent:

Lady Sif placed the two new swords for Aridis and Svalin on the table with the other items that were bound for Migard. Four new daggers, one for each, were also placed on the table. A new war hammer for Halbjorn was added along with a pouch containing common spell items. Added to the weapons were new clothes made by Einmyria and also various baked goods.

It was mid-summer and the kids, though they weren't really kids anymore, would receive gifts from their parents. Sif wasn't exactly the most maternal of women, but she did love her children and worried about them as any mother would. Even if she didn't bear some of them.

Now it was time to deliver the gifts.

"Skari!" she called.