favoredheir:

Nicolai made sure that a message was send to the Wild Pack letting them know that they had a conference call meeting at 11 about a potential mission. He wanted them all there and on their best behaviors. There were a lot of zeroes attached to this.

When the others got there they would find Nicolai seated a cup of coffee in front of him on the table going over the latest reports and numbers. The conference room itself was fairly nice looking with a modern feel to it.

lady_hood:

Melissa likes her teammates, her sorta-sister-in-law and she loves her girlfriend, but she'd had to obtain some of this information on her own. Unlike a lot of other people, she couldn't just go asking Doctor Strange for help. She also had to check on Bree from time to time, even though she was still under care at Xavier's. Melissa thought she saw a glimmer of recognition in her sister's eyes the last time she showed up, but she hadn't been able to confirm it: someone had come into her room just then, causing Melissa to teleport out.

Meanwhile, she was pretty sure May was pissed at her for hooking her up with a psycho killer. Who knew that that guy was batshit crazy?

All in all, Melissa returns from a few weeks away on "personal business" to Silver Sable International to see her people. She opens the door and calls out in her best Desi Arnaz impersonation...at six a.m.

"Lucy! I'm home!" 

nextgen_holiday:

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

lady_hood:

The moment Melissa saw the grenade launcher, she knew she had to get it for Kelly. Her lady love enjoyed guns of all types, but she loved things that exploded even more. There was always a childlike (some would mistake it for /manic/) glee in Kelly's eyes whenever they went to the Wild Pack armory to check out weapons. Kelly's eyes had been undressing a rocket launcher, too, so Mel got in contact with a few old friends and found one much like the apple of Kelly's eye.

Melissa can't think of too many other ways to say I love you that don't involve hot sex, jumper cables and bloodletting, or some comb of the three, so she sits and waits for her baby to wake up, both cases on the floor to either side of the chair she's sitting in within their bedroom at SSI.

Right now, though, she just watches Kelly sleep a bit, just because its the most still that she ever sees her on a daily basis.

lady_hood:

Melissa Frost-Robbins will be the first person to tell you she's not crazy. Okay, maybe not /completely/ crazy. She knows some screwed up things have happened to her in her life, and that those things have colored her ideas of right and wrong, appropriate and inappropriate, moral and immoral. She'll also tell you that she takes care of the people she loves, both friends and family. If Melissa is your friend, she will do anything she can to see you happy.

Even if said happiness rests on expensive food and first-degree kidnapping.

( Did she really go there? Yes, she did.  )

lady_hood:

Melissa appears inside of her (well, it's May's now) apartment, and helps herself to a drink in the fridge. She doesn't see May about and tries to remember her class schedule. Wait, around now...she's at practice for the Gymnastics Team. Melissa knows that her friend is really graceful for being so tall, kind of like Kelly. In fact, Mel can't remember ever seeing either of her two favorite women ever tripping over something or bumping into a wall, like, ever.

Melissa envied them for that, but decided to sit down on the couch and flip on the TV. Less than thirty seconds in, she's flipping the channels aimless, which Spelling Bea greatly dislikes. It's worth sometimes just to see her grumpy, though.

"Anytime now, Pretty Parker. We're on Genuine People Time right now." she says, toying with the idea of fixing up the wards on the apartment while May isn't here. 

She decides to do just that.

anyastark:

Word about certain things spread fast in the cape community and Anya learned that Vernique and Svalin were getting married, in Asgard, and Svalin was expecting a baby. This of course meant one thing. There had to be a party to celebrate both things and Anya was the perfect one to throw it. Anya had known Vernique since forever and there had been many marathon shopping trips.

She sent invitations out to the female members of the X-Men, Champions, Avengers, West Coast Avengers, Defenders, X-Force, Alpha Flight, Excalibur, Fantastic Four, Sammy and Alice in SHIELD, Kelly and Melissa. It was also the first get together the Thunderbolts would be hosting.

The renovated firehouse in Cambridge was cleaned from top to bottom and supplies were laid in. Stephanie was given cart blanch on the menu and snacks. Anya and Molly went shopping for the drinks and for gifts for Vernique and Svalin. Since the crowd was very varied they got a wide selection of sodas, juices, beer and also picked up a lot of water. Anya even booked rooms at a nearby hotel just in case people didn't want to make the trip home that night. Anya had spoken to Irina and arranged for pick up of the various team members around the world.

Saturday rolled around and Anya was up at the crack of dawn double checking everything. Then she headed down to the lab until the first ladies arrived.

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
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Anonymous entries accepted.

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.

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.

lady_hood:

Melissa calls May and leaves her a voice-mail.

"It's my birthday, Pretty Parker! Come down to Big Nick's once you're out of class and Gymnastics and see me! Oh, Kelly's going to be there, too! Time for you guys to meet. Love you!"

She picks out her slinkiest Little Black Dress and heels and puts her guns in her purse. She doesn't expect to have to kill anyone tonight, but the first drunk guy that tries to grab Kelly's, May's, or her ass tonight is probably going to the Emergency Room.

"Baby, are you ready? I'm nearly dressed." Mel says, actually dolling herself up a bit. Such is rare, but looking good for two of her three favorite girls is pretty important to her.

She'll go over the teleportation spell in her mind as she waits for Kelly to be ready.

charmedlife:

Definitely needed to distract Nicolai before they all went mad on the news. Until he got clearance to go home, they needed something to get their minds off of This.

So she came in carrying the file someone else had just prepared. "They finished the background check on my sister's girlfriend. And...there's a little insight into her Upsetting Family Issues, at least. She's the orphan of criminals."

nextgen_media:

Staggered and vague reports are coming that Dr. Doom has now followed his unprovoked aggression against neighboring Symkaria with attacks against Atlantis and Wakanda. As both of these nations are insular and isolated, these reports have been difficult to confirm, and no public announcements have been made by any of the governments involved.  There are even rumors that the respective kings of Atlantis and Wakanda are missing in action.

Even though all the reported victims so far have been isolated or marginalized nations, the U.N. and various governments around the world are reported to be in an uproar trying to decide what action to take.

anyastark:

The Masters of Evil had attacked the Thunderbolts headquarters and had made off with Victor's body and with it a way to eventually access Ultron's files on the Avengers. It was a situation where a collaboration of the Thunderbolts with another team was needed. They needed to get Victor's body back as soon as possible.

The Thunderbolts made the trip to New York and were gathered in the conference room at Avengers Mansion along with the Avengers. They needed to discuss strategy and form a plan to retrieve Victor's body.

Anya sat back in her chair and let her brother take the lead. James was more experienced with leading a team and if anyone could get them to all work together as one big team, he could.

charmedlife:

Not long after her arrival in New York, Beatrice Dayspring was walking down the street to her hotel after handling some business at the local SSI office.

Sometimes she hated 'conveniently' knowing all kinds of things about the people who passed through her Personal Space. That cutie over there had some unfortunate medical conditions, for instance. And the guy who just passed was on heroin, and -- and the two women over there were carrying a total of seven guns, four knives, and not a single permit.

Beatrice couldn't help but slow down to give them a second look.

lady_hood:

Despite the garbage that went down earlier in the week, Melissa found herself a happier camper today. The Boss Man's check cleared; she and Kelly were now much more financially solvent. After a call to her lawyer, Diane, to get bills and things paid, Mel goes downstairs to have herself a victory dance, or as they're called, a beer. Never mind that it's early in the morning and that she hasn't hand breakfast, which also sounds like a good idea, Mel just wants to enjoy having her money, her girl, her magic and her guns.

Kelly was right about this whole mercenary gig; it paid dividends, even if being shot at and nearly killed by life-draining nutjobs was part of the job. They'd also done the world a favor by removing Benedict Kine's sorry self from it, and Mel figured they deserved medal for that. Instead, they got hefty-paychecks. Maybe she'd /buy/ herself a medal.

She walks into the kitchen, going through the cupboards to see if there's any eggs to make an omelet. If there is bacon, it's left untouched.

Bacon is against her personal religion.

brit_sorcerer:

Quinn had been thinking about the leprechaun incident and had a feeling it wouldn't be the last time he saw the little annoy creatures. Quinn's magic hadn't been effective and he had to know what to do the next time they came around. Maybe there was a spell or something that would work against them and their magic.

Quinn had to go to the one person who would know about this kind of stuff.

He teleported to 177A Bleecker Street in New York only to find it empty. He wondered where Dr. Strange was.

There was one person who may know. Quinn teleported out to the West Coast and arrived at the front gate of the Defenders.

lady_hood:

Melissa wasn't sure if she could like Boston; the city was nice enough, but it just didn't feel as alive as New York City. She rolled the black hose up her leg, then strapped her combat knife to her thigh. She really didn't like going into a job without her guns on, but she'd at least worked out a way to get those and her hood to her at a moment's notice.

Once she's dressed, she stands up and goes over to the small table where the map of Benedict Kine's estate is laid out, along with a few pieces of Kelly's guns, some markers, and a a white chocolate mocha.

"Okay, babe. So, let's go over this plan one more time..." 

lady_hood:

Melissa Frost knew she'd been a Bad Friend. Both she and May had been so busy since before the end of the semester that they hadn't gone out to do anything or keep up with each other's lives. Melissa felt bad about that, even though her reasons had to do with a hot girlfriend and killing people, two things she greatly enjoyed.

However, it was now time to put on her "normal" face and rebuild the bridge with her BFF, May "Pretty" Parker.

She shifts the bag of Big Nick's burgers in her hand knocks on the door, thinking about how funny it would be to disturb May while she's "gettin' her groove on" with a guy.

lady_hood:

It's been a week already, and Melissa can't take it anymore. It's just too much for anyone person to deal with.

The crying. The moping. The mood swings. The freaking out every time a certain DVD gets moved. She's starting to feel like her apartment is a funeral parlor, and she's really close to chucking a certain bowling ball out of the window. However, she knows this would upset her girlfriend, and Melissa is very cognizant of Kelly's feelings.

So this is why she's sure Kelly will be all over the idea she got this morning while watching <i>Saturday Night Live</i>.

She puts down her gun and turns to face Kelly's back while Kelly is cleaning her own weapons.

"Baby. We need to cheer your dad up, and I don't think a Golden Girls Marathon will do it."

We need to kidnap Betty White." Melissa demands.

mercwithamouth:

Wade sits watching the noon-time news in horror. There is nothing he could do, nothing he could say that would change the display on the television. The last time something this terrible had happened, it had been over a year ago and he wasn't been anywhere near a news reel at the time. It had been a shock to find out about that time when he was freed from his shipping container.. but this is so much worse.

By the time Kelly or her lovely girlfriend can find him, he is a weeping soggy mess with his face pressed to the bottom of his bowling ball. In fact, he is so upset that he can't even speak at first, and instead sits there making big, hiccups as he tries to catch his breath.

Rue McClanahan, the actress who played Blanche on the Golden Girls, has died this day.

rose_red:

Rose Red met with each group individually to tell them what she expected of them for their upcoming attack. The point of these attacks was not to win them and destroy everything though they could if they wanted she didn’t care as long as civilians were kept out of it. The point was too implicit the Kingpin in these attacks and that was all that they really needed to accomplish. The other thing she instructed them to do was if the fight got bad and it looked like they were to lose they were to make a retreat as fast as they could and if they got caught she would have them killed.

nextgen_holiday:

Mothers are the place that we call home.
On them we rest our heads and close our eyes.
There's no one else who grants the same soft peace,
Happiness, contentment, sweet release,
Erasing nighttime tears with lullabies,
Restoring the bright sun that makes us bloom. - Anonymous

goesbothways:

Ok, so the trip to Somalia was weird. But she did the job, and found her long lost father. Family reunion done, time for things to get a little more back to what passes for normal in the surreal place Kelly lives.

She calls the only other person outside of 'work' she has all that much contact with.

goesbothways:

A girl needs to eat. After that whole Weapon X thing went belly up, it took her a while to tap into Daddy's contacts to find a job, but Rose Red, whoever she is, pays awfully well. Right now Crosshairs is being paid awfully well to keep track of a meeting between some people working for the Kingpin. Dangerous business, but what does she care?
Sure, odds she'll get to play with her babies on this one are limited, but c'est la vie... that'll come once she proves herself on recon.

And hey, as long as she has to keep an eye out for a particular couple of thugs, she might as well wander across the street to some burger place. Big Nick's - smells good, but she doesn't know the place. Plenty of window seating, anyway. After all, now that she has a source of income, and needs to do stakeout duty anyway, a girl's gotta eat.

bornlucky:

About a week ago Casey had made a passing mention of how in Ireland on the day before Ash Wednesday they would celebrate Pancake Tuesday. Well apparently one of the higher up though it was neat and would be a good event to have at Finnegans.  The bar had done some mild advertising for it and they were hoping for some increase in business which is why Casey found himself working a longer shift than usual he barely had time to get to work after teaching his recitation but at least he was certain to make a lot of money today.

When he got there the place was already hopping and the waitresses looked busy. Apparently they were giving out free pancakes and were hoping to use that to make people buy more drinks. By the time Casey got behind the bar he could tell their plan was working with the amount of drinks he had to get. He was definitely making a lot of money today which made him very happy with how crazy it was going to be this afternoon.

lady_hood:

"Melissa, you have the makings of a great student, if you'd just apply yourself to this course. To that end, I'm going to suggest a tutor for you. She's the daughter of an old student of mine, and she's picked up this subject as easily as her father did. If anyone can help you understand this class, it's her."  Doc Connors said.

That was three days ago.

Melissa Frost sighed just as loudly now as she did then, sitting in the study hall waiting for May Parker. The first name lost points, but the last name made up for it. Melissa didn't want to fail Chemistry, but she also didn't want these tutoring sessions taking up too much of her time. John King was still out there, and the Boss could call at any time with a job for her; she needed to be ready to move.

But she also had to keep her promise to her father.

She sat at the table, staring down into the Chemistry book, waiting for the symbols inside to mystically make sense. This was nothing like spellcrafting; she understood that with no problems.

Any day now, Parker. I still have a life to lead after this. she thought to herself.