Title: "Two Friends United Again"
Author: Pirate Turner
Rating: R
Spoilers: Jubilee's past and Operation: Zero Tolerance
Summary: Jubilee must confront her parents' murderers when they kidnap a face from her past. Slightly AU.
Disclaimer: Jubilation "Jubilee" Lee; Logan/Wolverine, Bishop, CinJen, Remo, Molokai, the X-Men, and all other characters used within are © & TM Marvel Comics and are used without permission. Everything else is © & TM Pirate Turner.

As I was rollerbladin' past Big B's room late one night, the phone started ringin'. I waited for somebody else to answer it. No such luck. I rollerbladed to the phone, picked it up, and mumbled into the receiver, "Xavier's."

"Jubilation Lee?"

Oh man, oh man! Not them, I thought, recognizin' the voice immediately. It was one of the dudes who killed my parents! The one called Remo. "Yeah it's me. What do ya want?" I growled into the phone.

"We have something ya might be interested in, girlie."

"Oh, really. What would that be?"

"Your little pal."

"I know better than to think that yer've got her just 'cause ya say ya do."

"Then hold on a sec, girlie."

I waited nervously. Do they really have CinJen?

"Jubes?" said a small voice in the phone.

"Ohno," I mumbled. "CinJen! Are ya OK?"

"Yeah," she sniffled.

Yeah, right, I thought.

"We're in Los Angeles," said the gruff voice of Molokai, the first dude's partner. "Ya wanna see yer pal alive, girlie, yer come to us."

I started to say sumtin, but, just then, the phone went dead. I took the phone away from my ear and stared at it. "Oh, man!"

"What's wrong, Litte Darlin'?" a gruff voice behind me asked in concern.

"Wolvie, they've got her."

"Her who?"

"CynJen," I answered, hangin' up the phone.

He put his hand on my shoulder and gently squeezed it. "I'm sorry, Little Darlin'."

"I'm goin' to Los Angeles."

"That where they got her?"

"Yeah."

"Ya know yer'll be runnin' face-first into a trap, don'tcha?"

I hit the wall angrily. "Yeah, but what choice do I have, Wolvie? If I don't, they're gonna kill her."

"And if ya do?"

"I might die, but I gotta try." I turned to face him, bitin' back the tears as best I could.

"Well, if yer goin' to Los Angeles, ya better get some sleep."

"Yer right, Wolvie." I smiled just a little bit. "Like usual."

He ruffled my hair. "Night, Little Darlin'."

"Night, Wolvie." I hugged him and left.

The next mornin', I got up early, for once, without complainin'. I got dressed in a hurry and ran downstairs, almost bumpin' into Ev.

"Wow! You're in a hurry! What's going on?"

"Some goons got my best bud and I'm gonna go and bash some heads in!" I snapped.

Ev wore a hurt expression on his face.

"Oops! Sorry, Ev! I'm just, like, totally p.o.ed at those creeps!"

"It's OK, Jubes. Where're ya goin'?

"To breakfast."

"No, not now. Later? To 'bash some heads in'?"

"Oh. Los Angeles."

"That's your hometown, ain't it?"

"Duh."

We went into the kitchen and took our seats. Prof. was already there and I got the money I'd need for the trip offa him. Over breakfast, I told the gang what was goin' on.

"Ah'll go with ya," offered Rogue.

I shook my head. "This is sumtin I gotta do by myself."

"Are ya sure, Jubes?"

"Yeah."

"OK."

I started searching for the creeps as soon as I arrived in Los Angeles. The first place I went was the mall. Everybody's gotta shop, even thugs. I mean, where else do they get their leather jackets and everything, huh? I was walking down the middle of the entrance when I saw - or thought I saw, at least - the top of what looked like Molokai's head. Acting normal, I headed toward the shop where I thought I'd seen his head. I paused, glanced around, and went in the shop next door. I stayed just inside the doorway so I could see when he left. Minutes later, I saw Molokai leave the shop. Yeah! This was, like, too good to be true! Molokai headed towards the big door at the front of the mall, and I followed at a steady pace, trying not to draw any attention to myself.

I'd brung my skateboard with me, and when I got outside, I hopped on it. I skated up and down the sidewalk, all the time really watching Molokai. I saw him get on a motorcycle, rev it up, and start outta the parking lot. I followed. Good thing I had alot practice skating 'cause if I hadn't I hadn't'd been able to keep him in my sights. I followed him until he turned into an alleyway. I skated up and down the street, watching the entrance to the alley.

When Molokai didn't come out again, I skated into the alley. He was gone, but he'd left his motorcycle behind. I looked at the wall of the building on my right. No door or window. No way he coulda gotten in there without going outta the alley, and I knew he hadn't went out the alley, so I looked at the old, shabby building on my left. I spotted a door knob but the rest was covered by a dumpster. I put my skateboard down on the ground, went over, and felt for the door. Turned out it only looked like it was covered by the dumpster. It'd been painted the same color as the building so that it blended in perfectly. All except for the doorknob.

I tried to open the door, but it was locked. No sweat. I felt in my pocket and pulled out a skeleton key. I knew this would come in handy, I thought as I slid it into the lock and used it to open the door. I slid it back out and dropped it back in my pocket. I went in, quietly pulling the door to behind me. I slid my pink sunglasses on top of my head, so I could see better. No sign of the thugs. There was two doors - one going to the front and the other heading for the back. I tried the one going to the back.

I went in, shut the door silently behind me, and looked around. For a sec, I thought I saw the wall move. Nah. Couldn't be. It moved again. Could it?

I heard a whisper. "Jubes? Is that you?"

"CinJen?" I whispered back.

"Yeah?" The part of the wall that I'd thought I saw moving moved again. This time away from the rest of the wall. It wasn't a wall at all. It was a grey-skinned grey-clothed CinJen! I ran to her and hugged her. "CinJen! You're OK!" I grinned at her.

"Of course, I am," she replied, grinning back at me. "I didn't spend hours on end escaping the Fuzz just to get killed off by a couplea thugs, like Remo and Molokai, just for being a -"

"Mutie?" I finished for her.

"Yeah. How'd ya guess?"

"Your skin."

"Oh. Yeah. Duh."

Just then, the door opened. CinJen and I turned around as one to face it. Remo stood just in front of it and Molokai right behind him. "Well, well, well," sneered Remo. "What do we have here? What do you think, Molokai?"

"I think we got us a couplea muties, Remo."

"That's just what I was thinking," agreed Remo, heading toward us.

"CinJen, is there a door behind ya?" I whispered.

She looked over her shoulder. "Yeah," CinJen whispered back.

"Go for it," I demanded, still whispering.

"But what about you?" she whispered back.

"I've got sumtin here to settle. Don't wait for me," I whispered to her, keeping my eyes fixed on the thugs, who were steadily moving toward us.

"But -"

"I'll be OK. Meet me at the mall. Now go," I hissed.

"You sure?"

"Go," I repeated.

She finally went. I heard the door open and shut.

"Don't worry," said Remo with a wicked grin. "Right, Molokai?"

"Right," Molokai nodded eagerly.

They continued heading toward me. I waited for them, examining them, seeing what weapons they had with them. Remo had a gun and a knife, while Molokai only had a club, which he kept hitting against his hand. I positioned my feet, balled my hands up into fists, gritted my teeth, and waited for the right time.

"If ya were smart, yer'd follow in yer little friend's tracks," Remo nodded towards the door CinJen had ran through.

"I ain't scared of scum like you, bub," I snapped back. "Bring it on."

"Molokai?" Remo moved aside and Molokai ran towards me, his club raised high in the air.

I waited 'til I could almost feel Molokai's breath before stepping to the side and sticking out my leg. Molokai couldn't stop himself in time. I grabbed his club as he fell, took it from him, and hit him on the head with it. That was all it took to knock him out. I dropped the club 'cause I didn't need it any more.

"Molokai's a wimp," Remo told me as he headed for me. He had his knife in his hand. "But now yer're facing a man."

"Puh-leaze! The only 'men' I know are X-Men and yer'd never make the cut." I shot fireworks from my right hand at Remo's left hand which was holding his knife.

Remo grimaced and dropped his knife. My left hand shot fireworks at his eyes, blinding him, while I ran toward him. He musta heard me running 'cause he started swinging at the air. Dodging his punches, I picked up the kife and threw it across the room. Remo swung at me, but I ducked. I grabbed the gun from his boot. I looked around for somewhere to get rid of it at. There was an open window to my left, and I ran over to it. I threw the gun out the window just as Remo got to where he could see again.

"Real smart, girlie," he snarled, inching toward me, "real smart."

He ran at me. I dodged. I elbowed him in the back. He grabbed my hair and snatched me back. I fireworked him in the butt, causing him to let go. I backed up to where I had a good shot at him. I shot him in the back with my fireworks.

"Why you little -" Remo said, turning around to face me.

Good. That's just what I wanted. I fireworked him in the groin.

"AAAAAAHHHHH!" Remo yelled, clutching his groin.

"That all was for this time, but this? THIS IS FOR MY PARENTS!" I yelled as I felt my power pumping up. I fireworked him so hard that it slung him out into the alley! I went over to check on him. He was out but still breathing. I put my sunglasses back over my eyes. "I might look like I'm just a teen, but I'm an X-Man," I told the unconscious jerk, fireworks still radiating from my fists.

I went over to my skateboard, hopped on it, and skated out of the alley, heading for the mall to meet up with CinJen and never realizin' that a certain Canadian had seen the entire fight.

CinJen was waiting for me just outside the mall. I stopped my skateboard and hopped off it as she ran at me and hugged me. "YOU MADE IT!"

"Of course, I did," I grinned at her.

"Ya probably figured it out, didn't ya?"

"Figured what out?"

"That I'm a mutant."

I noticed the unusual color of her skin again. I knew we'd already had this conversation before but couldn't blame her for havin' forgotten after everything she'd been through lately. Besides, I still had my own questions. "Yeah, buuuuuuuut what is it ya do?"

"Best I can tell, my skin changes color to blend in with the stuff around me."

"So that's why it's multi-colored now instead o' the gray it was back there."

"Yeah."

"Why didn't ya write me and tell me?"

"I did. Didn't ya get it?"

"Nope. What addy did ya send it to?"

"Xavier's School in New York, of course. Why?"

"Uh-oh."

"What?"

"Have ya heard 'bout Operation: Zero Tolerance?"

"Yeah. It's a major bummer."

"Well, they took over that school."

"Oh, man! How'd ya escape?"

I told CinJen how I'd left the X-Men to join Gen. X and how when the X-Men were stayin' with us at Xavier's School until they could find another place to live. Just as I was finishin' up, we heard some racket comin' from the other end of the mall. We looked down that way to see what was goin' on and saw some dudes in uniforms runnin' toward us. I recognized them almost immediately. "Mutant Registation Act!"

"What?"

"RUN!" Just as CinJen got out the door, the first guard was almost where I was at. "EAT FIREWORKS!" I yelled as I used my power to blind him and the rest of the goons that was following behind him. Then, I ran out the door.

CinJen and I met up at our old hideaway. "What was all that about?" asked a pantin' CinJen.

"They work for the government," I replied, after catchin' my breath. "If they'd've caught us, they woulda put us in a camp."

"Why were they after us?"

"Yer an unregistered mutant."

"Should I get registered?"

"Not their way."

"Then what way?"

"Come home with me."

"This is home."

"I meant, to my home. This was my home, and it'll always be my 1st home. But I'm talkin' 'bout my new home. The place that's my home now. Xavier's School for Gifted Children."

CinJen was stunned. "You're tryin' to talk me into goin' to school? But ya hate school!"

"I know, I know. But this isn't any ordinary school. It's a school for people like us, for mutants. My teaches - the teaches there - will teach ya how to control yer power if ya come."

"Are ya sure?"

"Yeah. Will ya come?"

She thought 'bout it for awhile. "OK, I'll come."

A thought crossed my mind. "What 'bout yer parents?"

"They've been wantin' to get me help ever since we found out I was a mutant. They'll be thrilled."

CinJen was right; her parents were thrilled to find out their daughter had a place she could go that'd help her learn 'bout her power and how to control it. The next day, we - CinJen, her parents, an' me - flew back out to Massachusetts. I'd called ahead, so we had a little welcome wagon. Wolvie, Ev, Rogue, Prof., an' my teaches - Frost an' Cassidy - were at the airport waitin' for us. Boy, did it feel good to be able to brag 'bout what I did! ;-) CinJen joined the team, so we're together again. This time, for keeps.

The End