01

Did Hitler have a big sister?

May 2nd was a sort of multifaceted anniversary for Elliot and Kyle. The sister and brother were separated by six years and it wasn't until a good 14 years after the brother was born that they actually got along. The two were different. Kyle was the mama's boy, the good, obedient little boy with the large pale blue eyes and the smile that would charm a snake out of it's skin. Elliot was the little blonde princess who liked to wear dresses, play with dolls and muck around in the near by creek looking for those aforementioned snakes.

Back to May 2nd...

It marked the first time Kyle ever used his mutant powers, the second time he ever got Elliot so mad that she broke his leg--the left femur sustained a slight break from when she shoved him down a flight stairs--and the last time he ever got the idea in his head to hacked off a good amount of hair from Elliot's treasured My Little Pony collection. She was twelve and he was six.

Later on their confrontations were more adult and consisted mainly of Kyle hiding Elliot's make up when she wouldn't let him use the computer and Elliot threatening to put him straight back into the leg brace unless he returned her eyeliner and lip gloss NOW! She was 18 and getting ready to graduate. He was 12 and hiding his mutant powers from the bullies at school. It was the second of May and Kyle bought Elliot a purple My Little Pony with that sported a home-done mohawk for a graduation present.

Their parents (well meaning, but normal-ish suburbanites who didn't know how to handle a withdrawn mutant boy much less a teenaged one) sent Kyle to live with Elliot when he was 13 and she was 19. The herpetology major rolled her eyes and grumbled a little, but welcomed her younger brother into her small (if not cheap and in the middle of nowhere) condo with a sarcastic remark that was quickly returned. They lived in relative peace, developing more of a Comedy Central roomates relationship and forsaking their outmoded sibling war.

It was May 2nd when Elliot and Kyle first learned about Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters via a freaking three ring mutant circus appearing on their doorstep. Elliot was 22 and Kyle was 16.

xXxXxXx

It happened to be a late Monday evening. Elliot had dragged herself home after a long day of classes and work and was sitting with a cup of coffee and a shot glass full of Scotch, trying to remember what it was like to be human ('No pun intended,' she thought though she considered her brother to be a lot more human than most of humanity). She could see Kyle answer the door from where she sat and saw him stiffen slightly. Somewhere in the flat, a lightbulb flickered on and off the way it always did whenever Kyle got worked up about something.

Elliot came to an instant alert. There had been a lot of reports about anti-mutant violence recently. Kyle had been suspended the day before after he had used his powers on a bunch of bullies. It wouldn't be that hard to find out where they lived, especially since Kyle's dick head principle was also a dick head anti-mutant sympathizer. Though apparently not so much of one as to not ask the mutant's older sister out to coffee, fucking dick head. She had her handgun out, the safety off and trained on one of the males before they even took a step into the house.

Kyle was sufficiently embarrassed. "Jesus, El, calm down. These guys aren't dick head anti's."

"Oh, excellent," muttered Elliot, tossing the handgun over her shoulder and listening to it discharge into the living room ceiling, "Wonderful, splendiferous, why don't you invite them in and we'll have a fucking party."

"I hope you will excuse the intrusion..." began the oldest, a cripple with a bald head and a sophisticated voice, "We were hoping to have a word with you about young Kyle's powers."

"Yeah sure whatever," Elliot muttered again, wandering back into the kitchen to dump the coffee down the drain and pour herself another shot. It had been a really, really long day.

Kyle was a lot more cordial. He was quick on his feet in most social situations, always the one to make peace with the bullies (in most cases anyway) instead of getting into fights like his older sister, who had ruled her elementary school playground with an iron fist. He invited the trio on their door step in and led them into the living room. Besides the bald crip, as Elliot had begun referring to him in her head, there was an attractive red haired couple that Elliot immediately disliked for the fairly petty reason that in her youth she had become sick of the dumb blonde jokes and began to yearn for natural red hair.

But that might have been the booze talking.

Kyle had finished his required part as the host, offering their less-than-welcome guests drinks, and sat down on the stiff wood chair that faced the comfortably stuffed couch where two of the three were seated. "So," he began, slowly, not entirely sure what to do, "What can I do for you folks?"

"My name is Charles Xaiver, Kyle," began Baldy, "This is Scott Summers and Jean Grey. We have come today to offer you something that may just save the life of you and your sister and give you something you've never had before."

'If he says a sober guardian, I'm gonna have to do something wildly politically incorrect,' thought Elliot, taking another shot. It had been a reeeeeeeeeeeeally long day. She didn't notice the two looks that the red haired woman and Baldy (Xavier, whatever) shot her.

Kyle did.

"I'm not sure I entirely understand," Kyle said slowly, "Are you saying you want to take me away from my sister? Like she's not doing a good job taking care of me?"

"Of course not, Kyle,"said Scott Summers, in a friendly tone, "The Professor was just suggesting that you might be better suited living with kids like yourself who are going through the same things that you are."

It probably wasn't meant as an insult, but Elliot was two drinks away from taking it as one and she had moved from Scotch to whiskey.

"The Institute is designed to help kids like Kyle," said Jean Grey, this time addressing Elliot, "He'll be able to learn how to control his powers there, away from bullies and anti-mutant sympathizers."

"Yeah, see, here's what I don't get," said Elliot getting up and sauntering over to stand between the intruders and her brother, "Where were y'all nine years ago when ikle Kyle's powers or abilities or what-the-fuck-ever first manifested? Or how 'bout two years ago when dear ol' mummy and daddy were ready to dump the little shit on his ass in some alley?" All the built of anger that Elliot had gathered over the past 15 years of watching other people treat her little brother like shit had just found a very suitable outlet.

There had been bullies. Bullies he never told her about until he came home with a bloody nose, with a black eye, with a bloodied lip. Bullies she couldn't get to because she was one step away from expulsion, from not being allowed to graduate, from going to jail. And all that time he had been practicing with his powers, learning to control them. And now these yahoos wanted to take him away from her after 15 years of putting up with the little fuck so he could learn how to use something he already controlled and could get away from something that had dogged him his entire life when the charming smile had failed.

Elliot glanced down at her younger brother. He grinned and shrugged. He was no psychic, but he was her little bro. He knew she was pissed off and was enjoying every moment of it. That settled it. "The kid can go, but I'm coming too."

Whatever the three had been expecting, it hadn't been that. Maybe Red and Blady weren't psychic after all she thought, but then, she hadn't really had the thought in her head that long before she said it.

"Hey no fair!" yelped Kyle, jumping to his feet, "This is a school for mutants! Not freaks like you!"

"Nyaaaa, watchya gonna do about it, twerp!" scoffed Elliot, pulling a face at her brother. As if in reply, all of the light bulbs in the house blazed bright before simultaneously shattering. There was a deep boom from Elliot's bedroom, informing her that her brand new PC had just gone off to the Great Mother Board in the Sky. "Oh that's it, you're dead!"

"Catch me if you can, loser!" mocked her little brother, jumping to the ceiling and clinging to it by way of static. He spider-crawled across the high ceiling while his sister chased after him, throwing whatever she could lay her hands on at him.

Their guests were left behind in the living room.

Xavier suddenly gave a soft laugh. Scott and Jean stared at the out of character display. "Professor, you can't be seriously considering letting that..." Words failed Jean for the first time in a long while.

"Why not," chuckled Xavier, more to himself than his two students, "You're as mentally adept as I am, Jean. While their relationship on the outside may appear something both would wish to end, they are deeply devoted to each other."

"But she's not a mutant!" blurted out Scott, "She'll be completely defenseless if Magneto or Sinister decides to attack!"

A loud thump accompanied by a lot of swearing and scuffling came from somewhere in the depths of the condo. Elliot, dragging her brother who was hogtied with duct tape, reentered the room. "Sooooo, we leavin' tonight or are y'all gonna send a car around?"

TBC

Okay first of all, I don't have anything against Jean. In fact, I like the gal. She's really strong and a good role model, but I, myself, am a big sister and she just screams "easy pickings." Also, I'm a terrible authoress who's crap when it comes to remembering what universe is where, so...yeah, I'm making things up as I go. Primarily it's based in the old cartoon, because that's what I grew up watching and I'm more familiar with the characters from that one.

IN THE NEXT CHAPTER: 99 Members-of-a-Crazed-Mob on the Wall!