TEST DRIVE ∞ May 2025

[thediadem]

Test Drive ∞ May 2025

The First Collision

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Jump ⇅ :: Arrival — Panorama — Fringes — Invite Request

The Diadem is an invite-only panfandom game set in a retro-futuristic world where uprooted souls find themselves deep within an eerie wasteland of roads and highways frequently assailed by cosmic storms. Three united strongholds keep the population. Its capital is Panorama, a large metropolis at the planet's center.

Soon, you realize you aren't alone. Calling themselves fluxdrifts, the "locals" have similar stories to you, either for themselves or their ancestry. You speak to an old woman who claims she hailed from another star. You meet a young man who says his great-great-grandfather knew a strange language everybody spoke "back home." As you explore, you stumble across a coin you recognize or your sister's locket. How did it get here? What does this mean? That's for you to discover.

But first, you need to find a ride.

No invites needed to play on the TDM. Everyone's welcome! Use the Invite Request thread below to request an invite from another player.

∞ Summary ∞

IC-wise, arrivals are scattered throughout the month. Events described on the TDM are also ongoing throughout the month. If you'd rather jump right into the action, you're free to begin in media res with your character having already been on the planet for several days.

Post-impact, characters will wake up in a med tent by the Scrapyard. From there, they must accept a vehicle on loan and make the 2-hour drive to the nearest city, Panorama. If they refuse the car because they don't want the loan, they'll be in debt for medical bills instead...so just take the car. It'll come in handy.

Some things to keep in mind when bringing in your character:

• Pick an injury. At minimum, they got knocked out; at most, whatever they can recover from. Medicine is decently advanced so they'll heal faster if not painlessly.
• Decide items kept. Reasonable items on their person only: photos, keys, clothes, costumes. No pets or animal companions. Wildly out-of-place tech and personal cell phones will be damaged beyond repair.
• Select a weapon. Do this only if eligible. Guidelines about weapons and powers are on the FAQ.
• Choose a vehicle. Decide whether your character gets 2-3 options or if they're stuck with something they hate. Players can pick directly from our collection or source their own images. Anything under a similar aesthetic will work. If your character needs accommodations for driving, they can have them. Ask us for details.
• Get a phone. Characters have to obtain a phone (and a SIM card) themselves. If they've got one from home, it's damaged beyond repair. Phones are cheap. It'll only take a couple of weeks to afford one. You need to know the number before you text or call anyone. Read about phones and the Forum before you hop on it.

TDM threads can be canon if characters are accepted. Top-levels made to the TDM should be open to all.

TDM Questions? Here — Game Questions? FAQ

Setting — Taken — Reserves — Applications ::: ⇅ Top

Fluxdrift

Arrival & Introduction

Date: Throughout May

You've tumbled over a cliff. You were fighting for your life. You're on the cusp of death. You slipped in the shower. Whatever the catalyst, you struggle to cling to consciousness. As darkness overtakes you, a swirling vortex warps light and shadow in a way that defies all physics. A dark wail etches into your very bones. You couldn't describe it if you tried. You can barely comprehend what it is.

Then you open your eyes.

Through the figure's mask ©, you swear the face is grinning down at you. The tent you're in smells of antiseptic, and scratchy blankets line your cot. Injuries you've sustained have been bandaged. In the corner, you spot a MedBot that's fixed you up. Depending on the extent of your injuries, the doctor on duty might give you some painkillers before you go. Thankfully, your belongings are by the exit. Sorry if anything's damaged. Your landing was pretty rough.

You follow the figure outside. They are Yom Crook, here to lend a hand to fellow fluxdrifts like yourself. Their car's parked beside them. Actually, there are lots of cars around, but Yom Crook's stands out with its painted shark mouth. They explain they found you, unconscious, in a diffusion zone and brought you here. The nearest city is a 2-hour drive northeast. Forget about walking. You'll never make it. Also, you owe the doctor a lot of money for patching you up. But you're in luck: they've got some wheels for you and if you accept the vehicle on loan, Yom Crook will cover your medical bills. That's a good deal, right? It's not the shiniest car or motorcycle, but it'll do. If fortune favors, you'll get to choose between two or three options. Plus, if you need accommodations to drive—like adjustments to your seat height or modified controls—you'll receive all that for free.

Take the vehicle. (And the loan.) Yom Crook assures you that you'll have six months before collectors come around. Any time you're ready to pay a part of it down, return here to the Scrapyard. You'll get a receipt and everything. Paying off the loan in six months isn't impossible, but it will take a lot of work. Just don't get too lax. There's a good chance you'll be juggling multiple loans as you try to get by.

You either know how to drive, or you'll have a bare-bones manual to get you started. Road rules are more a suggestion than enforced, so just hit the pedal and go. The car has some basic features. The built-in compass will help you navigate.

OPTIONAL PROMPTS: a flat tire; a body on the road (is it a trap?); a fender bender

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Panorama

Explore & Settle In

Conditions: Warm spring temperatures, light showers

After 2 hours on the road, you find civilization. The largest of the strongholds, Panorama is where the economy thrives. Massive power plants glowing red make it visible from a distance. The city is divided into three districts. For now, you can access the Pavilion and the Blocks. Don't worry about the Sanctum; they're not letting you in.

You only need to know two things about Panorama: 1) it's big, the size of a modern metropolis, and you'll need your car to get around; 2) anything goes as long as you don't pick a fight with the wrong person. Street smarts will get you far. Despite its geographical size, the population isn't huge. With roughly a million people in a city designed for over twice that number, Panorama is far from deserted, but nor is it overcrowded. It's a good thing. Resources are limited as it is.

The Pavilion: Free Samples

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Like any large city, Panorama features a couple of supermarkets. The stock's not as consistent as a proper supermarket. On occasion, shelves can remain cleaned out for a week or two. Regardless, the long tradition of free samples remains. If you're not already shopping, you'll notice the crowded parking lot and clusters of lines inside.

Try samples, push through the crowds as you shop, or give yourself a five-finger discount. If you're cautious, you can pocket a few small items without consequences. The Pavillion doesn't have the infrastructure for surveillance; unless someone sees you, you won't be caught. Steal from the store or pilfer someone's wallet. Maybe you even make a new friend if you bump into another fluxdrift. Or, start a fight with somebody who cut you off in the cheese line. Don't make too much of a ruckus, or you'll be thrown out.

As you look around, you'll see posters advertising temporary positions for the cash register or graveyard shifts in the warehouse. Seems they might've lost several employees recently (how'd that happen?), which is good for you! It's just a 6-week position, but it'll get you on your feet. The city has temporary positions like this all over. Permanent ones are harder to come by when you're new.

Samples include: steamed cabbage dumplings, synthetic cherry juice, cheddar cheese, and chocolate-covered alien eggs (it's crunchy and weirdly tasty). They're served in the usual throwaway paper cups with little toothpicks.

The Blocks: Power Outage

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Power's finicky in Panorama, especially in the Blocks. Saint Margery's Hospital, located in the same area, has priority for power so the first to go are the motels. Maybe you've been in your room for a couple of weeks, maybe you just got here—and by the way, every motel desk is happy to put the fee on your tab if you don't have the money upfront—but all the motels on the east side are in a blackout, leaving only the west side motels up and running.

What do you do? You have three choices:

• Risk leaving your room and head to the other side where there's power. Knock on some doors and negotiate with another to share the room. They might shut the door in your face, ask for a favor in return, or be nice enough to help you with no strings attached. There's no guarantee your unattended room will be untouched, though, and you'll be on the hook for any damages an intruder causes.
• Sit in the dark and deal. It's not the worst idea, but the TV's down, the vending machines are powered down, and with the entire place plunged into darkness, you risk getting robbed. If you struggle with defending yourself, you might want to find some trustworthy company. You can also sneak out of there and let them take your leftover pizza. It's not like you've got a ton of valuables, right? Plus, clobbering someone in the face with a frying pan sounds great until you realize you've gotta do something with the body. And what if this person's got a friend waiting?
• Get in your car and drive (or grab a friend for a road trip). If you scroll the Forum, you might notice reports on diffusion zones southward. Besides, these motels are hardly your forever home. The city can only provide so much. Why not go for a ride and see what you can find out there?

OPTIONAL PROMPTS: clean up on aisle 3 (what is that goo?); a knock at your door but no one's there; you hear screaming or a commotion down the hall

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The Fringes

Quad 3: Lockdown

Conditions: Stormy, with flooding roads

Felix Bjurstrom
> Date: 125-05-17
> Time: 02:15:57

> Emergency road lights have been reported in Quadrant 3! Please, can someone go see what's there? When last we chasers investigated emergency lights, a whole truck filled with sour candy had tipped over. Our stores were stocked for weeks! Oh, be careful - reception looks bad in that zone.

Whether you end up here on your own or you were following a tip on the Forum, the outcome is the same: you come to a stop in front of a 2-story office building that's flooded several inches deep. Emergency lights from a roadblock flicker through the stormy night. Stepping out of your car, you're soaked within seconds. When you check your phone, you don't have any bars. No calls in or out.

Through the open windows, a computer awakens and displays a cheerful smile. The lights inside switch on.

Pick your scenario role below. Your thread partner doesn't need to take the opposite role! They can join you in the same scenario (i.e. trapped together). Players are also free to create a generic NPC for the other side to facilitate the thread.

After characters escape, they'll find one bottle of antibiotics in their pocket or car, whether they remember taking it or not.

A: Sealed In
As you peer through the windows, you see crates of medicine floating around. Antibiotics in the diadem are valuable. Hospitals and doctors are always buying. You can keep it for yourself or make a quick buck. Or maybe you're compelled to help somebody back in the city who's in need. Whatever the reason, you decide to take the risk and step inside.

Water splashes around your ankles. The lock buzzes behind you. If you try to break the windows, you discover they're unnaturally resistant to shattering. With the whole place locked tight, the water begins to churn. Then the computer lights up again.

Warning, it flashes in large, bold text. Quarantine in progress. Release code required for exit.

• To find the code, you'll have to search. Duck under the water, go through sopping envelopes and sticky notes or pick the locks on the filing cabinets and desk drawers. You can also try hacking the computers. Use your computer knowledge or fall back on the age-old trick of seeing who wrote down their password.
• The files, notepads, and emails start innocuous, but as you look through them, disturbing phrases jump out at you—a dark thought you've had or a cruel taunt from someone in your past. The longer you're fixed on the terrible words, the higher the water begins to rise. Only another can break you out of your trance.
• With the rising water comes fear. And the more you're afraid, the more the water also rises. You begin to see faces in the water, bobbing like balloon heads. Do you recognize them? If you move to take a closer look, they will sink back beneath the surface as if never there.
• If you manage to swallow your panic, you can eventually find a triple-laminated binder with the release code and instructions. Bad news: you need someone on the outside to punch in the 6 strange symbols in order. The instructions explain that the code panel is located at the back of the building.

Let's hope a friendly face comes along.

B: Set Free
As you peer through the windows, you see not just the crates of medicine but someone trapped inside. They look like they might be in trouble, and from your vantage point, you notice that the water is bubbling strangely. It's definitely not normal rainwater. As you watch, the water rises unnaturally, stopping and starting. It's as if the water level is responding to an external stimulus.

• The glass is soundproof. You can't hear what the person inside is saying, so you'll have to communicate with each other another way. Try charades, typing on your phone, or whatever you think of. Eventually, you determine that they're stuck and that you need to enter some sort of code onto a pad located—according to your trapped partner—at the back of the building.
• Around the back, shadows swallow your surroundings. The panel must be pried open, but a slippery substance makes it hard to get a good grip. Each time the substance touches you, you grow uneasy. You swear you see eyes watching you, though when you turn around, nothing's there.
• You can't seem to keep the instructions in your mind. And those symbols...they burn into your retinas. Through them, you glimpse an incomprehensibly massive figure unfurling in the darkness, pulsing as if in a deep sleep. When you snap back to reality, you realize you've injured yourself, slicing your hand on a sharp edge or a bruise you can't remember getting.
• Once you manage to release the doors, the water inside the office drains upward into the sky as though sucked out by a giant hose. The darkness spreads. Get out of there fast before the shadows drag you or your partner into the void.

Of course, you don't have to help anyone. You can leave the individual there, make a deal, or outright extort them. But remember, you're not the only person on these roads. You might want to play your cards carefully, even if altruism isn't your first instinct.

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Comments

[opticular]

Good.

[ On both counts: Logan remembering he's an asshole and the other mutant not riding shotgun with him. (Scott does note the past tense, but figured Logan just doesn't know grammar.)

It's a slight relief returning to familiar banter with everything being so foreign lately, and while Logan's probably the last person he'd like to see here, he's probably actually on top of his list too. He wouldn't want Jean to be stuck here inasmuch as he misses her. Wouldn't want Storm or the Professor either. No one should be subjected to this place. Perhaps this is why even if he's been looking for the others since his arrival, he hasn't gotten much luck. At the back of his mind, he's relieved no one else is here.

He doesn't want them to be stuck here, but he also doesn't want to be stuck here alone with Logan out of everyone. It's complicated. Scott will learn to live with it.

But Logan, even with all the snark and unpleasantness in the world, is a reliable fighter. He knows the other would have his back, and Scott would return the favor. And this is why he's probably on top of Scott's list. He knows he can rely on Logan, as much as he hates to admit it.

Gaze wandering around the other's apartment again, Scott turns back to Logan. ] Anyway, I'll be staying here for the night. My unit doesn't have power. [ He nods towards where the couch is. ] The couch will do. Wouldn't wanna accidentally find out you like to cuddle.

[carcajous]

[ The couch. Logan glances at it. It's one step above something you'd find abandoned on the side of a road, stuffed into the cramped room between the bed and the wobbly round table. These rundown hotels and motels are mostly shit—yellowed wallpaper, a microwave on top of a dresser that barely works—but Scott's right: out of everybody, Logan's right at home. The Blocks' lined with the kinda places he drifted in and out of for years, if he bothered to look for a bed at all. His room at the school back in the day was the nicest he'd been in by a long shot.

Funny. He's almost never seen Scott away from the school, either. They didn't exactly take road trips together.

For a second, Logan's eyes narrow, one inch away from picking a fight to pick a fight. Then he sticks the still-burning cigar back between his lips. ]

Since when were you scared of the dark? [ Yeah, fine. He's not gonna kick Scott out. Once upon a time, he would've. Doesn't mean he's keen to hang around while Cyclops snores a foot away. He grabs his jacket. ] There's moldy bread somewhere around here. Help yourself.

[ He's out the door without another word, though he hasn't gone far. If Scott looks out the window, Logan's sat on the curb beneath it three floors down, finishing his cigar, one leg stretched out. He needs some goddamn air. So much for sleep. The hell is he supposed to do with the pain in his ass behind that door? A lot's happened. Trask, the Sentinels. And it's also, it's been a long time since he's—Jesus, since he's thought of Jean, okay? Really thought of her in that way that squeezes his chest. He buried her twice, buried dozens more after that. It never stopped hurting, but maybe—after all this time—it started to dull. Or he got used to ache in his heart.

Scott knocking on his door completely fucks that all up. Ain't that just like him.

Fifty-fifty chance, whether Scott goes down after him or if he just sets up on that lumpy couch and leaves things be. Logan knows which option he'd prefer. ]

[opticular]

[ Of course, Logan would leave. He has seen this coming a mile away once he dropped the bomb that he'd be staying the night. Record time, too, admittedly, because usually, he's the one walking out of Logan whenever they have any form of conversation. This is probably the longest they'd have to talk, and something tells Scott there'd be more occasions like this in the future. Great. Fun.

He left so fast, Scott wasn't even able to reply something snarky to that quip. Shame.

He does look out of the nearest window just to see where the other mutant ended up. Figures he'd be down there to finish his cigar. Typical Logan. There's a brief, gnawing part of him, the part where he feels responsible for all mutants in his team and within the umbrella of the Institute, that wants to follow the man downstairs to make sure he's alright.

But that part doesn't win, and instead, Scott just opts to examine the couch he's now going to spend the night on. Not too bad. Some misplaced springs but nothing too extreme. He leaves Logan's unit for a moment, though, to gather some of his things he left behind in his unit, and to also secure the place from potential robbery attempts.

Once he's back, he sets down some of the things on the wobbly round table, even fixing it a little by adding some folded paper underneath one of the legs so it won't wobble as much, before pulling out an old, used notebook he thrifted where he's jotting down some notes. He also has actual non-moldy bread with him.

He's in this position whenever Logan returns to his unit, busy writing down stuff, not even sparing the other a glance. ]

Back from your soul-searching? I have non-moldy bread here. Help yourself.

[carcajous]

[ Now why's he not surprised to find Scott scribbling in a little notebook?

Jesus. Somehow, it's starting to piss him off (actually, it kinda started about ten minutes ago, to be honest) that Scott's acting like nothing's wrong with him being here, as if he didn't die on everybody years ago. And yeah, listen. Even Logan knows that doesn't make any damn sense. Obviously, Scott's got no idea he died 'cause Logan is the only one who can tell him. And he hasn't. Yet. He will, he just—

There's no fuckin' way this room is big enough for the two of them.

Actually? He will help himself, thanks. He stuffs the corner of a slice into his mouth. ] Don't worry, I'll let you have private time with your diary.

[ Won't even peek. Except he does, in fact, blatantly eye the page Scott is writing on as he snags one of his two (2) books off the table. Then he makes his way to the bed, book and bread in hand. The mattress creaks under his weight, sinking unevenly. At this point, he's starting to think the floor might be less uncomfortable. Hell, he's slept in a trench, and he could swear that was still more plush than whatever's going on with the springs in this bed. ]

[opticular]

[ Logan will only receive a passing glance from Scott once he puts down that remark and helps himself with his bread. He continues writing and what Logan would've seen when he peeked where notes about this world, where he thought exit points are but they're scratched off, as well as a partial, albeit small, map of this place. Scott has spent most of his days ever since his arrival exploring, and while it hasn't yielded the results he wanted, everyone starts somewhere.

He furtively looks up again when he hears Logan's bed creak under his weight. The couch creaks, too, whenever Scott moves. Not really surprising considering how seedy this motel is. ]

Don't worry, you're not in it. [ Except Logan is. Probably the first name from home he jots down in his notebook because he is the first mutant he meets here.

After a few moments of silence - ] We should stick together, Logan. Whatever this is, wherever we are, it's better not to face it alone. There's strength in numbers. [ Trust Scott Summers to get down to business right away. And as much as it pains for him to admit, his personal feelings towards Logan takes backseat to figuring out this place + getting home. ]

[carcajous]

[ More silence follows. Yeah. They should. Annoying to hear it from Scott, anyway. I'm here, aren't I? He's been with the X-Men a hell of a lot longer than Summers could ever know. They are his family. And they are good for him. He'd seen that early in, sooner than he might've admitted back then.

He just wasn't always sure he was good for them.

It's different now. The Brotherhood, the X-Men—end of the day, they're all mutants on the same side of a losing war. It's not that he doesn't wanna find a way the fuck out of here. He's not about to sit on his ass for what's next. But he's got no goddamn idea what's waiting. Could be better. Could be worse. Could be they're just gonna dive back into the crumbling universe they were trying to fix. And as much as he's more than willing to take the plunge and find out if he were on his own, apparently he's not. Not anymore.

Shit. He rubs his knuckles over his temple and throws his hand vaguely in the air. What the hell. This can of worm's not gonna spill itself. ]

What do you remember?

[opticular]

[ The question catches him a little off guard, as he looks up at Logan while scribbling stuff on his little notebook. He heard people arrive here from different points in time, and since this is the first time he's meeting someone from back home, the idea that Logan might be from his past or future hasn't sunk in yet. Sure the other mutant has been here a few days earlier than him, but that's about it, right?

Brows furrowing a little, he sizes Logan up, giving the other a proper once-over again. He did note the other man looks a bit older, but again, what even is age for Logan? A mere number. ]

What do you mean? [ He arches a brow, eyes narrowing a little even if Logan can't see it. He returns to his scribbling. ]

I was made to fight Jean at Alkali Lake. She saved me and we were on our way to rescue the other students and the Professor before arriving here.

[ The way Scott says it is so matter-of-fact and nonchalant that he didn't even follow this up with How about you? because Logan's also from that point in time, right? ]

[carcajous]

[ Made to fight Jean actually takes him a second; they'd told him about it, after, but by then Jean was gone (except she wasn't), and he hadn't exactly been listening to any debriefings. Nobody's heart was in it, either.

Right. So pretty much what he was expecting to hear. His gaze lingers on Scott for a second longer, hand resting atop his open book. His thumb flicks the dog-eared pages, absent. Stryker, Alkali. All names he wishes he could say he hasn't thought about in years. Too bad that's not true. It's still there. The old memories. The shit he can't stop dreaming out.

Half the reason he's awake at the moment. ]

Yeah, well, I'm a bit further up. [ Just a bit. He makes a soft, wry noise. ] Actually—I've been a part of the Professor's little team for a while.

[ Things neither of them had on their bingo cards, maybe, but here they are. Here he is. Anyway, if Scott's worried about him running off, he doesn't gotta be. Logan's here to stay. For Charles, if for nobody else. ]

[opticular]

[ Huh, okay. Scott didn't expect there would be time differences from the point when they get dragged here. That's certainly going to his little notebook. He's in the middle of jotting that down when Logan admits he's on the Professor's team. That's surprising enough that he stops and gives Logan the highest arched eyebrow the other has seen so far. ]

You? In a team?

[ His brows furrow a bit, just letting that sink in. It sounds so foreign to his ears. Not that there's no part in him that's happy Logan has finally learned the meaning of the word teamwork, but still. ]

Guess the future sounds a little promising.

[ Scott takes that information in, and all of its implications, for a moment or two before he rightfully asks, ] Why were you in it? Was I not present? [ Because he doesn't see himself picking Logan, not unless the Professor insisted like he'd most likely do. ]

[carcajous]

[ You and him both, bub.

Logan shrugs. His eyes flick back to the thin pages while Scott makes more scribbles. He skirts over the real question (Was I not present?) and says casually, ] Things got kinda shit for mutants. Guess Charles made a good case for working together.

[ Not a lie; not the whole truth. Whatever. It's enough for what Logan needs, which is for Scott to stop assuming he's that Logan who showed up on the institute's doorstep a few months ago and was half a step from running off again. Mostly 'cause he's not interested in pretending. Pretending to be unattached, acting like he and Charles haven't been close for years. That he hasn't watched the kids grow up a hell of a lot faster than they should've had to. That he's still searching for answers. He is, but not like that.

Either way, Scott's right: Scott didn't pick him, and there was never a moment where Logan joined. He didn't shake anybody's hand, didn't get a welcome package. Hell, he can't pinpoint when it happened. When he stuck around to sub for all of Scott's damn classes? When he flew back to New York after years away? Truth is, he just kept returning more, kept leaving less, and one day, it was hard for even him to deny that he wasn't an X-Man. In some capacity. ]

[opticular]

[ Scott jots that down briefly - Logan in a future team. Promising. Have to lead him again. Then, he closes his little notebook and puts it down. Logan’s successful in making Scott sway slightly to the other side, to the realization that things change in the future, that while the other mutant mentioned it’s shit, this can be a small silver lining. Logan stays more in the future. That’s good. Scott makes a mental note to increase the other man’s hours in the Danger Room during sessions.

Above all, it’s a good thing for the Professor who believes in Logan. Might have been a little jealous of that, wounded his pride a bit as the leader of the X-Men, but Scott’s not a boy scout if he’s not looking for the greater good. And Logan not leaving is good. They need all the help they can get to help the Institute grow, to strengthen the community they’ve built. Still annoying how he looks at Jean sometimes but it’s not as if Scott will let that go.

Leaning back on the couch, Scott’s lips quirk up a little into a small, if not also a slightly proud, smile. Good job deflecting that one question, Logan. ]

Sad to hear things go shit for us, but look at you. Staying. Remind me to lead that small team, see how far you’ve gone.

No more middle claws, I take it? [ Scott doubts. Because he has to admit, that one was funny. ]

[carcajous]

[ Another wrinkle joins the others on Logan's forehead. He's not a bad liar, exactly, but he's not a good one, either, mostly 'cause he never bothers. If he's got something to say, he'll say it. He's rarely the guy holding all the cards, anyhow. It's usually everybody else who knows more than he does. Recognizing him when he can't place their faces. Knowing the places he's been when he barely knows himself.

This is different. Complicated.

He snorts, finally turning his full attention back to his book. Yeah, he caught that smile, and he doesn't know how it makes him feel, coming from Scott. Now, here, of all places, of all times. Easier to ignore it. ]

Wouldn't count on it. [ He stuffs the rest of the bread slice into his mouth. ] And don't count on moving in, either, you hear? The second those lights come back on, I'm putting your ass outside.

[ Could've at least brought a couple of beers. Just sayin'. But maybe it also says something that Logan's made no effort to get Scott to leave. ]

[opticular]

As if I want to be roommates with you.

[ It was said far too quick after Scott fights back a snort. As if he'd willingly stay in one unit with Logan. Hell here and back home have to freeze over first before that will ever happen. His slight happiness over Logan staying more in the future should never be misinterpreted to wanting both of them under one roof again. It was bad enough in the Institute with Logan's dumb loving stares at Jean and the other mutant stealing his bike occasionally (and often returning it without gas or a dent and a scratch he has to fix.)

Just thinking about all of that almost gives Scott a headache.

Scott does note that Logan's more pliant with letting him stay this time. The Logan he knows back home would've said no right away, so that's a small blessing. Character development, Logan went through it a bit. He's not going to discount that, but he's also not going to share a room with him. He sees Logan as an ally at best.

He returns to his notebook when he speaks up again. ]

Don't worry, you don't even have to put my ass outside when that happens. I'll be gone before you know it.