The Jean Grey School for Higher Learning, Weeks Ago

"Rogue", a voice called. Anna Marie turned away from the window, away from the throngs that had assembled to mourn the loss of Charles Xavier. It was just one more in a long string of tragedies. Moira, Jean, Warren, Sean, Kurt … the list went on.

The crowd continued to mingle outside. The X-Men had deemed that the school itself was still a tad too unpredictable to allow so many to enter. Hank still hadn't managed to completely stop the sporadic Danger Room activations that had plagued staff and students almost since day one and that was without mentioning the extradimensional gremlins known as Bamfs. She had figured this would mean she could count on being alone inside the school for a little while. She should have known.

"Bobby, this ain't really the time." she said brimming with annoyance.

Life had taken a frustrating turn as of late. The mutant race had once again sparked to life but human-mutant relations were back to square one, the Professor was dead, Scott Summers was a criminal and the Avengers were insisting on making Magneto a wanted fugitive.

Before M-Day, the event which had depowered all but a few hundred mutants, mutantkind had begun to find its feet. Despite the atrocities that had been committed against them there were signs that people were beginning to accept them. Now, law enforcement around the world attacked emerging mutants on sight and no one batted an eyelid. Their messiah had saved them but where was hope now?

"What? You don't even know why I'm here." Bobby Drake, the mutant known as Iceman replied, his face lighting up with a brief flash of mock innocence.

Rogue couldn't help but give him a weak smile. Here they were mourning the man who had meant so many different things to all of them and Bobby was still the same, loyal to a fault, always there for his friends no matter what he himself was going through because…because somebody had to keep it together on the outside even if on the inside they were falling apart. That was what Bobby did best.

"Then ah'll bite. Why are you here, Bobby? Why aren't you out there with Kitty?"

Bobby let out a sigh. "Kitty is… busy. She and Hank have their hands full with the students."

They both remained silent for a few moments. Rogue cursed herself, she had been so caught up in her own grief that she hadn't given a thought to the idea that maybe Bobby hadn't come here so she could cry on his shoulder but that it was the other way around.

"She always did think the Professor was a jerk anyways."

At this the two mutants couldn't help but laugh. Although neither of them had been on the team when Kitty had thrown a strop at being downgraded from the X-Men to the New Mutants, her tantrum had entered the annals of Xavier's.

"What do you think happens now?" Bobby asked and his voice seemed to quiver ever so slightly.

Rogue was taken aback by the question.

"What d'ya mean?" she asked him.

"I mean," Bobby began, quieter than before. "Last time we thought the Professor was dead we just up and went our separate ways."

"Yeah, but last time mutants was on the verge of dying out.," Rogue rebuffed. "We'd just sent Hope into the future and it didn't last long."

Bobby cast his eyes to the ground. "It's just hard you know? Scott just… killed him right in front of us." His voice trembled.

"I'm sorry", he said leaning against the wall, his expression pained, struggling to keep his tears back as he let himself slide to the ground.

Rogue moved towards him and placed her hand on his shoulder as she bent down.

"Bobby, you can't give up", she said.

"We've got more hope now than we've had for a long time."

Rogue was unsure that she believed the words herself but that wasn't the point. She wasn't the one she needed to convince right now.

"That's not really saying much is it?" Bobby said his features flickering with the hint of a smile.

"Guess not", Rogue replied. "But something's better than nothing."

"Thanks, Rogue," Bobby said as he got up and began to walk in the direction of the stairs, back out to the crowd.

"Bobby," she called.

He turned.

"Ah'm sorry ah snapped at you earlier. Solitude is a habit of mine. It didn't help havin' other people around when ah was trying to get away from voices in mah head."

"Old habits, die hard, huh?"

"Yeah, ah guess so."

The Gold Coast, Australia. Thursday.

Eva Bell was not having a good day. She couldn't believe that Steven had followed her here. He had always been protective of her, if you'd asked him, he would have told you that he was only looking out for her. Eva knew that already of course, she had tried to tell him gently that he was stifling her and that she didn't need him constantly looking over her shoulder for her. He hadn't listened, never had and probably never would. That tended to happen to Eva a lot. Now things were spiraling out of control.

"You hit me?" Steven yelled at David and his friends as they surrounded him, his anger growing with each passing second. "You hit me?!"

Eva could see that things were about to kick off in earnest if she didn't do something. Her friend Louise stood by her side; aghast at what was happening but seemingly incapable of doing anything about it.

"Stop it!" she yelled. But they didn't pay her any attention. Not her brother, not David and certainly not David's friends.

"STOP!" Eva screamed, louder than she had ever screamed. For a split second she had the feeling of being caught like a mouse in a trap and then something incredible happened.

Suddenly everyone did stop. Eerie quiet. No sound, no movement, no nothing. Everything froze surrounded by a blue haze of energy.

"What, uh what is this?" No reply.

Eva walked over to Steven and David. "What's wrong with you?"

Again Eva received no reply.

This was weird, really weird. Eva's mind flashed back. She remembered something vaguely similar happening in New York a while back. One of the superheroes had accidentally sent an entire terrorist cell into comas. Eva remembered the footage of him floating high in the air, blue energy very similar to that surrounding everyone flowing around him. She looked up but no such luck, no magic people in the sky freezing everyone to the spot like flies caught in amber. Everyone except her that was.

"What's happening?" Eva cried out hoping somebody could hear, that she wasn't alone and curb the rising panic within her.

"You're a mutant, sugah." Eva heard a voice from behind say.

She spun around to see a woman walking towards her garbed in a dark green costume and a hooded cloak of the same colour. White trimmings were visible on her tunic, boots and gloves and cloak, a small white X pinning the cloak to the tunic. She had long brown hair that fell past her shoulders and streaks of pure white made up her fringe.

Rogue could see the brown haired young woman's thoughts were racing at what she had just said, struggling to deny it. Rogue couldn't begrudge her, she'd cursed her own abilities often enough. Having been raised by two mutants, Rogue hadn't been uncomfortable with the idea of being one but she knew better than anyone that being a mutant wasn't always a gift.

"I-I'm not a mutant." the young woman replied.

"Don't worry ah'm here to help you. Mah name's Anna but most people know me as Rogue, ah'm one of the X-Men."

Rogue felt so out of practice. Despite being the one who chaperoned Hope as she activated the Five Lights, it had been a while since any of the X-Men had dealt with a new mutant activating and every time it happened now it seemed far more surreal. They had all felt like this part of their lives was a closed door that they were forced to leave behind them.

"You're an X-Man?" the young woman asked.

"You've heard of us." Rogue smiled. "Ah'm gonna help you through this, what's your name?"

The worry on the young woman's face seemed to drain away somewhat.

"Eva. I'm Eva. Eva Bell."

"Okay first thing's first we have to-" Rogue's eyes widened.

"Thank you, Rogue." announced Scott Summers, the erstwhile X-Man known as Cyclops as he strided purposefully towards them. On either side of him were Emma Frost, the telepathic White Queen and Erik Lehnsherr, the mutant master of magnetism, Magneto.

"We'll take it from here."

"Y'all must be outta your minds if- -" Rogue began as she raced towards her former teammates, letting one of her gloves fall to the pavement. Then she stopped, her muscles locking as she reached an outstretched hand towards Emma's face. Emma stiffened as if she too was unable to move.

Eva, Scott and Erik all faded from Rogue's vision as her perceptions shifted. The one constant was Emma, whose position did not change as their surroundings turned to formless black, although oddly both women were clearly able to make each other out. Emma glanced around as her freedom of movement was restored, followed by Rogue's a moment later.

"Strictly speaking, that's not really true," Emma said her back turned as she cast a glance in Rogue's direction, her voice taking on the echoing that often accompanied travel to mental planes. "We've just been dragged inside your mind. I must say Rogue, the décor is very minimal."

Rogue got up off the ground as Emma turned to face her. "As ah recall, the inside of your head ain't much better."

"That's true, and for what it's worth I approve. I didn't come here to trade barbs."

"Then, why did you come here?" Rogue asked, not bothering to hide the anger she was feeling.

"That girl's scared stiffless, Emma! Whatever the hell it is y'all are thinking, she shouldn't be dragged into this."

"Trust me, Rogue," Emma said. "I had no part in this... and you clearly didn't either. Someone else brought us here, God knows why."

"Get out of mah mind."

"I can't," Emma said softly.

"You were one of the X-Men's most powerful telepaths. Would it kill you to try?"

"Rogue-"

"No, Emma," Rogue said, cutting Emma off as figures began to emerge from the darkness that constituted her psyche and gradually took on solid shape. Iceman, Northstar, Shadowcat, Wolverine, Chamber, Frenzy, Gambit, Storm, even Toad and Doop…Emma was surrounded from all sides, a legion of imprinted minds coming at her from every direction.

"If ah'm being honest, ah'm not even sure if ah should trust you. Ah want to, ah really do but you better start doing your damnedest to get us out of here before ah make you do it."

"Rogue," Emma intoned calmly, her voice level even as the imprints came ever closer. "I'd be perfectly happy to get out of your mind even if it wasn't for the impressive number of your fellows you managed to imprint before coming here. But the simple fact is I can't."

"Cut the crap," Rogue announced dismissively. "Ah've got you beat."

"She's not lying." a trio of voices chorused.

Rogue and the imprints turned. Before them stood the Stepford Cuckoos, the teenage telepathic hive mind known as the Three-In-One. They began striding towards the crowd in unison, their identical movements creating an effect so mesmerising it caused everyone to stop in their tracks and simply stare.

Pheobe broke ranks with her sisters, launching an attack on the imprints that separated them from Rogue and Emma. She moved with unerring speed taking down several imprints before they had time to react, launching diamond shards into the ground below Iceman and Doop before watching them grow and encase the pair in sparkling cocoons. Irma and Celeste backed her up by creating a transparent cube to ensnare Wolverine.

The Storm imprint sent a sheet of lightning in Phoebe's direction but she transformed into her flawless diamond form and shrugged off the attack. Irma adopted a similar tactic as Shadowcat threw a punch, forcing Kitty to phase through her and right into the path of Chamber's energy blast before Celeste knocked him over with a well placed psi bolt of her own. Joining hands, the three sisters' eyes glowed ice blue before diamond spires rose from the fissures of possibility, the combined might of the Cuckoos' psionic gestalt quickly managing to encase Rogue's mental army within a glittering crystalline prison.

"Girls," Emma said. She was surprised yet at the same time her voice was filled with both joy at seeing her prize pupils again and disapproval of what they had just done.

"Y'all have five seconds to tell me what the hell is going on." Rogue said clenching her fists and readying for a fight.

"I'm sure there's no need to make demands, Rogue." Emma reassured as Celeste then piped up by her side.

"When Ms Frost was freed by Mr Summers, I managed to locate her via Cerebra before she disappeared again. I saw how unhappy she was about joining Mr. Summers' team and so we came. She would have contacted you herself but…"

"As I was about to say Rogue, before you interrupted," Emma cut in. "I've lost my telepathy. Despite the fact that I've hosted the Phoenix before, this time it had more of an effect on me and its other wielders. Our powers simply put, have been sent haywire. I don't know about Piotr, Hope or Namor but both Scott and I have been having problems and Illyana…her abilities have actually been enhanced."

"Ah've gotta be sure you're telling the truth and y'all know ah only have one way of doing that." Rogue said, tugging at one of her hands with the other.

"I don't pretend to understand it," Emma stated. "When the Phoenix Force left the girls for example it had no effect other than a brief coma."

"Before we send you both back to the physical world, there is something you should know," Irma announced. "Eva's time bubble collapsed. She left with Magneto and Mr Summers but we took control of your motor functions and managed to get you both back to the Blackbird."

With that both she and Phoebe turned around and began to walk away, a door materialising in front of them. Celeste hesitated for a moment and gave Emma a quick hug.

"Celeste!" the other two Cuckoos yelled. Celeste ran to her sisters and together they stepped through.

Emma awoke in the co-pilot's seat to the hum of the Blackbird already in flight. She sat up and tried to straighten out her cape which had bundled up underneath her. She regretted not wearing something more comfortable than her current all white ensemble consisting of the cape which made a very modest attempt to cover up the white corset she had on, along with white pants and white high heels.

"You're awake" Rogue remarked, her tone icy as she avoided taking her eyes off the controls.

"Rogue" Emma said. "If you have a problem with me I'm afraid you will actually have to specify what it is this time."

"Ah absorbed your memories Emma, some of your power too. Ah trust what you've said but Eva…She got taken into Scott's "revolution" because of the stunt the Cuckoos pulled."

"Rogue, even if we had joined forces, Erik all on his lonesome could have proven too powerful for us and we wouldn't be in a position to help Eva. As it stands, we are. I take it you've informed Logan of the location of Scott's base?"

The Blackbird came to a halt as it landed in the hangar of the Jean Grey School, its engines quieting as both Emma and Rogue unstrapped themselves from their seats.

"Turns out Scott doesn't trust you as much as you thought he did. I guess given what just happened he was right. They were gone by the time the others got there, Emma. We lost her and got you. Not sure if I'd call that a fair trade."

But as Rogue got up and turned to leave the plane something caused her to stop in her tracks.

"What is it?" Emma asked, experienced enough in telepathy to recognise the reading of an untoward thought.

"Hank."

The Jean Grey School for Higher Learning, Basement Level C, The Laboratory of Dr Henry McCoy a.k.a Beast

This wasn't fair thought Hank McCoy as he lay on the floor of his lab; the slightest movement sending shockwaves of searing pain through his system. Apparently it wasn't enough that he was blue, had fur and looked like a cat.

Well, if his body had anything to say about it he wouldn't survive this tertiary (or was it quadertiary?) mutation. He would lie here, his condition gradually worsening until his heart finally gave out and he would die. Alone.

"Ab-Abigail" he managed, his breathing laboured.

God, he wished she was here. If only so he could say goodbye. He wished they were all here. Even Scott. He'd die happy if he knew that his death could bring them all together again.

Hank cursed his pride. It was pride that had caused him to be permanently mutated in the first place and now it was that same stubborn pride that was going to kill him. He was the world's foremost expert on mutation but that didn't mean others didn't have insights that could have saved him. Instead he lay awaiting the end, watching as fluid from shattered test tubes dribbled towards each other, creating patterns and reactions that danced in front of his eyes.

Suddenly Rogue and (was he seeing things?) Emma Frost burst into the lab, quickly followed by Kitty and Bobby.

"Hank!" Kitty yelled, her mop of brown hair flying through Emma's face as she raced to Hank's side, the others crowding around her anxiously.

"He's still breathing," she said. "But we need to get him to a hospital."

"There's no time," Rogue said urgently. "He's going through another secondary mutation. It's killing him."

"What?" Bobby exclaimed. "Why didn't he tell anyone?"

"Rachel," Rogue called out telepathically. "Did you send word?"

"Yes," Rachel Grey, the school's premier telepath replied. "Nothing from the Future Foundation, David Alleyne or Horizon Labs."

"Damn, guess we're doing this the old fashioned way." Rogue said to herself. She removed one of her gloves then touched her palm to one of Hank's, closing her eyes as she let his knowledge bleed into her.

"Okay, I just absorbed him." she told the others. "Ah'm gonna use Emma's power to go into his head, see if the two of us can't figure it out. But in case that doesn't work…"

Bobby seemed to understand. "I'll get Rachel to contact Cecelia Reyes and Agent Brand."

"Tell her to have Pixie teleport Cecelia here." Emma said.

Bobby nodded as he ran out of the lab almost tripping over a wire as he went. Rogue got to work, slipping into a trance as she entered Hank's mind but Kitty wasn't content to let Emma's order go unnoticed.

"You've got no right -" she started but Emma interrupted her.

"I came here," she said. "Because you were right. I didn't know when to leave. Henry is dying, Kitty. I don't think this is the time to continue our spat, I don't think you do either or was what you said about our similarities just talk?"

Kitty was taken aback. Had the White Queen just admitted that she, Kitty Pryde, Shadowcat was right? She fell silent as Emma got down on her knees beside her and put her hands together.

"I've never prayed before." Emma said, seemingly to herself. They knelt, praying for just one more miracle.

The Mindscape of Hank McCoy,PhD

"Hank?" Rogue called out, her surroundings blurring and changing as she slipped into her teammate's head. Finally settling, Rogue stood in the middle of a football field. The sun was shining but something seemed off about the mindscape that Rogue couldn't quite place. Hank appeared in front of her, his feline features regarding her with a sad smile.

"Hello, Rogue." he said greeting her. "I suppose you've come in an attempt to save me?"

"Well, yes." Rogue said. "Hank, where are we?"

Hank chuckled, his laughter deep and booming. "Why in my mind, of course. The question you meant to ask, my dear is where are we meant to be?"

He gestured behind him. "I used to play here when I was a teenager. I suppose my impending doom has made me nostalgic." He gave another chuckle but he couldn't hide the sadness in his eyes.

"There's nothing to be done, Rogue. I've searched for an answer and I couldn't-" Hank was cut off for a moment as the mindscape flickered. "It appears I'm running out of time."

"You were working on a way to fix this, Hank. Show me." Rogue pleaded.

"I take it you've used your absorption talent to gain a portion of my knowledge? Let me think…" Hank muttered.

"Ahh… here we are." Equations popped into existence around the pair, a seemingly chaotic mix of symbols, numbers and letters.

"As you know, years ago I tampered with my mutation, causing myself to mutate into a more ape-like form. Now that tampering is again causing me to mutate even further but my body is unable to withstand the pressure. I've been-"

"Hank," said Rogue interrupting him. "Look at this."

She pointed at one of the equations. "It's wrong."

Hank stared for a moment as Rogue corrected the mistake, causing a ripple effect as all subsequent equations changed to reflect the new outcome.

"Oh my stars and garters." He whispered.

Rogue smiled and let her mind drift back to her body.

"She's back," Rachel called out telepathically as Rogue blinked, her eyes readjusting to the harsh florescent lighting of the lab. She was aware that Bobby had returned, accompanied by Dr Cecelia Reyes who knelt beside Hank, trying to keep his condition stable. Emma, Kitty and Bobby stood at the other end of the room trying to stay out of Cecelia's way, their concern for Hank evident.

"So?" Bobby asked as Rogue made her way over to them. She couldn't help grinning.

"He's going to make it, but if y'all will excuse us," Rogue said pointing at her head. "Me and Hank have some work to do."

Some Time Later

"So, the furball's gonna be okay?" Logan a.k.a the Wolverine and headmaster of the school enquired, as Rogue exited the lab.

"You're calling him a furball?" she retorted.

"Cute," he replied.

"Yeah, Hank is gonna be fine." Rogue said, finally answering Logan's question. "Ah managed to stabilise his mutation, stop him from mutating anymore than he has. Hopefully, it'll mean this won't happen again."

"Agent Brand is upstairs." Logan said.

"Thanks for the warning," Rogue said as she passed him. "Ah'll be sure to tell her she can see Hank in a bit, once we've got him moved to the Med Bay."

"There's somethin' else she wanted to talk to me about. Somethin' she needs the X-Men's help with."

"What?"

Rogue almost regretted asking the question once she heard the answer. In all her years as an X-Man, Anna Marie had fought many terrifying foes. She'd been through hell and always made it out the other side. But as Logan gave her his reply she felt a chill go up her spine and fear clutch her heart.

"The Brood."

The Jean Grey School for Higher Learning, Friday

"The Brood," Agent Brand began, the lights dimming as she gestured to the hologram of the hideous creature that was being projected in the middle of the X-Men's war room.

"An insect-like alien race of imperialistic parasites that reproduce by forcibly implanting their eggs within other sentient organisms. As of now, they're our problem."

"As of now?" asked Logan, seated across from Brand. "When did they ever fucking stop?"

"What Logan meant to say, Agent Brand, is that we know what the Brood are." Rogue cut in.

"An' what Rogue meant to say, Brand, is get to the point an' tell her what ya told me." Logan snarled.

"The short version?" Brand asked. "After we sent the Brood back to their home system they began to expand again. What's surprising is how fast they did it. They've taken a world on the borders of Kree space and now the Kree are asking for our help to take it back."

"Wait a minute," said Rogue "Don't the Kree rule the Shi'ar now? Why not ask them for help?"

"As I understand it, the Kree are happy to let the Shi'ar Empire remain largely independent, probably in an attempt to mitigate any resentment the Shi'ar might harbour towards them." Brand explained frankly. "Which means bringing in the Shi'ar Imperial Guard isn't an option."

"So what exactly is it you're asking for?" Rogue asked.

"A team of X-Men heading to the Peak within the week," Brand stated plainly.

"What's the catch?" Rogue asked as she eyed the director of S.W.O.R.D.

"There's no catch." Brand said, deactivating the hologram and rising to her feet. "I'm asking for your help. The X-Men have one of the best track records in the galaxy when it comes to the Brood and this mission requires that sort of experience. "

Brand left the room and Rogue began to ponder the situation. Abigail Brand had a tumultuous relationship with the X-Men. She had spied on them and manipulated them. She alternated between requesting their aid and forcing their hand. She was a difficult woman to read, not surprising since she ran a covert counter-terrorism and intelligence agency. It was clear as day however, that she didn't like asking them for help. She had come to them because she had no other choice in the matter and despite themselves the X-Men had struck up a working relationship with the green garbed mutant due in no small part to her relationship with Beast.

"So," she said, breaking the silence. "Who've ah got, Logan?"

"That's the problem." Logan said rubbing his temples. "We're overstretched. Between the school, Scott and every other damn thing under the sun, we ain't got a lot to work with. We can't afford to go waltzin' off into space just because Hydra-hair asked nicely."

"Ah thought you wanted me on this." Rogue said, the surprise in her voice palpable.

"I do," Logan said "I'm just tellin' ya that I can't give you more than two of the faculty. Every other X-Man is off the cards. The rest's up to you."

"Do you remember what happened last time ah handpicked a team?" Rogue asked.

"No," he said. "But I'm damn sure you haven't either. Not like Cyke ever let you forget it."

Rogue was grateful for Logan's vote of confidence. They hadn't always seen eye to eye as of late but Rogue saw this as her chance. She'd been talking about standing on her own two feet and what Logan was offering her was a perfect vehicle for that.

"Ah'll need a telepath." she told him.

"Figured as much." Logan replied. "Let's go tell her the good news…"

The Jean Grey School for Higher Learning, Room 317, Psychic Self-Defence

Substitute Instructor: Elizabeth Braddock a.k.a Psylocke

Betsy Braddock concentrated as her head was bathed in the pink-purple glow of the butterfly aura that appeared whenever she made use of her mutant power of telepathy. Focusing on the task at hand, she pressed her mind against those of her students.

Both stayed perfectly still as Betsy probed their defences for any sign of weakness. Of course staying still wasn't difficult for the living brain known as Martha Johannson, encased as she was within a glass dome attached to a gravity sled. It gave her a degree of movement when she wasn't so intently concentrated on keeping her teacher out of her mind.

By Martha's side stood Quentin Quire, the self professed "Kid Omega". Betsy regarded him quizzically as she noticed that he was smirking. What did he have to be so smug about? Then she felt it. Quire was attempting to barge through her own psychic defences. Once she thought about it Betsy realised that she really shouldn't have been surprised. Quire always looked for any opportunity to undermine any of the school's teachers or rebel against their authority. But there were disadvantages to skipping classes and not doing one's homework. If Quire had studied up on her, he would have learned of her immunity when it came to straight up telepathic attacks such as his.

Once upon a time, when her brother Jamie had brought her back from the dead she had been immune to any form of telepathy. This ability had waned somewhat since her resurrection, especially after Jamie's death but it still granted her a degree of protection and Betsy knew that Quire wasn't a fan of subtlety. His smile faded as he bounced off Betsy's barrier.

Betsy seized the opportunity and wormed her way into the little twat's brain, simultaneously activating all of Quire's pain receptors. He shrieked and fell to the ground as he was overwhelmed by sheer agony. Betsy couldn't help but smile. She knew that it was wrong but her frustrations had been getting the worst of her ever since she had come to the Jean Grey School.

Many of the others seemed to take to teaching far more naturally than she did. They never seemed to resort to taking their problems out on the students. Well perhaps with the exceptions of Logan and Rachel, the latter of whom took a sadistic glee in exposing the student body's deepest darkest secrets.

She felt out of place. Being a teacher just wasn't in her nature, she knew that. She had always wanted to be a warrior, capable of defending those she loved and when Spiral transferred her mind into the body of the asian ninja Kwannon that was exactly what she became. She needed to be out there doing something, not stuck in Westchester having to deal with Quire.

Finally, she released her control over Quire's nervous system. He continued to writhe on the floor for a minute or two for dramatic effect. When Quire finally made an attempt to rise to his feet, Martha psychically jabbed him causing him to fall down again.

"Class dismissed," Betsy said as she made for the stairs that lead out of the psi-shielded classroom. She was glad to see that she wasn't the only one who was sick at the sight of Quentin Quire.

"Betsy," Rachel broadcasted to her from the Cerebra Chamber, where she had been stationed ever since the Cuckoos had manipulated events to bring Emma Frost to the school. "Logan just asked me to tell you that he needs to see you in his office right away."

She thanked Rachel and began to make her way to Logan's office. She wondered what this was about. He couldn't know what had just happened could he? Would Betsy truly care? If it wasn't for the fact that the school was providing her with a roof over her head she probably would have left by now.

She had been away for a while and Betsy reminded herself that it hadn't worked out well. That was the reason she was here. If that hadn't worked out and this wasn't either what was she going to go?

She turned the door knob and let herself in. Logan was there of course and to Betsy's surprise as was Rogue. Intrigued, Betsy sat down in one of the chairs opposite Logan.

"How do you feel about leaving the school?" Logan asked her.

Betsy jumped to what seemed like the only possible conclusion and as much as she wouldn't mind leaving, being fired would hurt. It was one thing, after all, for her to acknowledge that teaching wasn't for her. It was another thing entirely to be fired.

"You're firing me?" she replied furiously. "Is this about Quire?"

"What?" Logan exclaimed. "No! What did you do to Quire?"

"Forget about that Logan," Rogue said as she attempted to diffuse the situation. "He didn't mean permanently Betsy. Ah'm putting together a team to take on the Brood and we were wondering if you'd want to be a part of it."

Betsy felt her cheeks flush. Well Logan would certainly know about Quire now. He would never be able to write him off as a lost cause and despite her feelings Betsy couldn't allow herself to write him off either. They had both seen where those thoughts led.

"I know you've had trouble acclimatising to the school," Logan explained. "I figured this would be good for you."

"I see," Betsy said as she mulled things over.

"I'll get ready." she said, betraying no emotion as she left the room.

"She didn't seem over the moon about it, Logan." Rogue said apprehensively as Betsy began to close the door. "Not that ah blame her."

"Don't let her fool you." Logan said. "She's been itching for a fight ever since she got here."

Betsy smiled. Logan knew her too well. She sensed however that that the meeting next door wasn't going half as well as her own had.

The Jean Grey School for Higher Learning, Headmistress' Office

"Kitty?" Bobby Drake asked as he entered. "Can we talk?"

Her head rested on the desk and she appeared to have fallen asleep, the desk cluttered with several files, books and folders. She'd left the drawers of several of the filling cabinets open, probably so that she didn't have to bother opening them again later. Bobby had figured that Kitty would have less on her plate towards the end of the day but that didn't seem to be the case.

Without warning, a crazed purple blur lunged at Bobby, clawing at his face. Bobby stumbled sideways, blinded as Lockheed's talons gave the dragon a firm grip on his head and sent him crashing into a filling cabinet with a loud bang.

Kitty's eyes shot open and she yelped, her computer beginning to smoke as she phased through her desk. "Lockheed, stop it!" she yelled, scrambling to her feet.

Lockheed paused from ripping Bobby's face to shreds to look imploringly at Kitty before warbling a question.

"No!" Kitty answered horrified. Lockheed muttered something else and flew into a drawer marked 'Lockheed: Sulking'. It slammed shut.

Ignoring the smoking computer, Kitty helped Bobby up and examined his face which was now riddled with scratches.

"I'll be fine." Bobby said. "Watch."

With that, the temperature in the room lowered by several degrees as Bobby transformed into his ice form using the ambient moisture in the air to replenish the skin he had lost. He returned to normal, good as new.

"Sorry about that. Lockheed's always been…protective of me." Kitty decided. Is there something you wanted?"

"It's okay. It's not important." Bobby said a little bit too quickly, subconsciously touching the back of his head.

"Then I'll talk to you later?" Kitty asked, the slightest hint of disappointment present in her voice.

"Sure," Bobby said. "I'll leave you to it."

Bobby quickly turned and left, letting another chance to arrange his agreed upon date with Kitty on a date to slip through his fingers. Bobby couldn't help it, he felt nervous, scared even and it certainly didn't help that every time he so much as glanced in Kitty's direction he had to worry about a small fire-breathing dragon melting him into a puddle. He didn't even know the last time he'd had a date let alone a good one. He figured Mystique didn't count.

Bobby was shaken out of his reverie as he rounded a corner and found Rogue standing at the door to his room.

"Hey, Rogue," Bobby said.

"You alright, Bobby? You seem kind of out of it."

"Yeah, just working through some stuff."

"Kitty?"

"No…"

"You wanna talk about it?"

"Okay," Bobby acquiesced. "But's let's not talk out in the hallway. I know that ship already sailed but I don't want to feed the rumour mill anymore than I already have."

"Ah don't get the problem." Rogue said as she entered Bobby's room. "She likes you, Drake. I thought you guys already arranged a date."

"Yeah, but it hasn't gone any further than that and I think after Lorna and Annie…I've been the rebound guy before, Rogue. It's not fun. I don't want to go through that again especially after…Jeez, this is awkward…"

Bobby's cheeks began to redden.

"Yeah, I'm gonna stop you there Bobby," Rogue said.

"I'll figure it out," Bobby sighed. "Anyways, was there something you wanted?"

"Yeah, ah was going to ask to ask you how you'd feel about beating up some aliens."

"You always know just what to say." Bobby teased.

"Shut up." Rogue snorted, hitting him with a pillow. "So, what do you say?"

"That sounds perfect."

"Problem is we're short on manpower. You're a good guy, Bobby and ah thought if anyone had any favours they could call in…"

"It would be me." Bobby said, finishing Rogue's sentence for her. "I'll see what I can do."

The Grounds of the Jean Grey School for Higher Learning, Sunday

Laynia Petranova shielded her eyes as she stepped forward into the early morning light and felt the shadows around her scatter. Her eyes widened as she took in the sight before her. When Bobby had asked her to come to the school this hadn't been what she had been expecting.

The main building was a bizarre mishmash, a marriage of the traditional and the futuristic, brownstone flowing seamlessly into metal. Whoever had designed the school seemed to have been unable to decide what the building should look like and so had merely thrown all their ideas at it and hoped for the best. Bobby had put his own stamp on it, with the entire east wing of the school having been covered in ice which glistened and reflected the sunlight. The result was odd to say the least but strangely aesthetically pleasing. Two towers floated overhead, kept aloft God knows how and before her stood a statue of the deceased Jean Grey.

She paused for a moment to read the inscription on the statue but before she got a chance the ground began to give way beeath her feet. Instinctively she teleported, the shadows curling around her before she reappeared twenty feet away. She saw a giant hand and then an arm composed of soil and dirt rise out of the ground where she had stood, accompanied by a loud roar that shattered the calm that had pervaded the grounds mere moments before.

Vines crept forward bringing her feet out from under her. Laynia panicked, haphazardly flinging shadows in an effort to free herself. She eventually landed a hit as she was dragged across the damp grass. With the vines weakened Laynia managed to pull herself free from their grip, hastily erecting a barrier to block an incoming mountain of dirt.

Accessing her link to the Darkforce Dimension, Laynia pushed off the ground and steered herself upwards. The soil followed, reaching out to grab her. She created another barrier and grimaced. Pain blossomed from her brain as the earth collided with her shield.

Laynia let darkness engulf her once more, reappearing just outside the main entrance. She darted inside, slamming the door behind her. The lobby was empty. Laynia paused for a moment to catch her breath, leaning against a wall while keeping an eye on the door.

"ATTENTION: YOUR DANGER ROOM EXAMINATION HAS BEGUN."

Laynia sprinted for the front desk as several rockets streaked towards her, seemingly out of nowhere. She jumped over it just as metal spikes protruded the floor, missing her by nanoseconds. Was this meant to be a school or a death trap?

She peered over the desk, coming face to face with a strange array of various armaments all aimed squarely at her. Ducking again, she thought the situation through. She remembered what Bobby had told her the day before; the grounds were inhabited by the sentient grandchild of the mutant island known as Krakoa. That had been what had attacked her outside. She had teleported straight into the grounds and not given this Krakoa ample time to judge her intentions as she approached

Now, the voice over the speaker had mentioned the Danger Room, where the X-Men trained in the use of their mutant gifts. It utilised Shi'ar hard-light technology, creating solid holograms and enviroments for the X-Men to fight against. It appeared that when they rebuilt the school they had integrated that technology throughout the entire structure allowing it to be used for several training sessions at once.

This gave Laynia some confidence. She was Darkstar of the Winter Guard and a newly minted X-Man. The situation was well within her grasp. Instead she pressed herself against the desk. What was wrong with her? What was she afraid of? She knew the answer of course.

She had died before as a mind controlled slave of a tool of the Weapon Plus Program and she wasn't keen on reliving the experience. She'd spent years languishing in limbo, her corpse rotting in Paris while her consciousness stayed tethered to the world via her connection to the Darkforce and her amulet. Her government using her image and abilities while her body was briefly used as a puppet for yet another, the mutant sorceress known as Selene. Eventually she had managed to will herself back to life, just in time to save the lives of her friends and teammates.

She could not go back so she hid instead. Every time she thought she had dealt with the problem it all came crashing down again, making her more of a slave than she had ever been before. Nicolai had wanted her to see a psychologist but she had refused, vowing to conquer her fear alone for all the good that had done.

She hid for several more minutes, paralysed as her fear engulfed her and spread through her like a disease. She gulped air but couldn't seem to get enough. She filled her lungs but found herself breathless. She couldn't breathe, she couldn't move, she shut her eyes as she curled into a ball in an effort to shut it all out but all it did was make her feel she was in a coffin again. This was all down to her and she could- No she couldn't! She felt the tears rush down her cheeks as her hopelessness closed in on her and she began to sob. She couldn't believe how pathetic she was.

"Laynia?"

It was Bobby. He always made such an effort to get the pronunciation of her name correct. It brought her back to her time spent among the Champions when she had spent an afternoon trying to teach him rudimentary Russian. She had failed but that had been a good day, one filled with laughter. She focused and using the memory as an anchor she opened her eyes. Her breathing slowed and she wiped away the tears rushing down her face.

"Behind the desk." she called out.

"ATTENTION: YOUR DANGER ROOM EXAMINATION HAS CONCLUDED. GRADE C-"

"Whoa!" Bobby exclaimed as the weaponry faded away. "Are you okay? Hank said he'd worked out the kinks but I guess not…"

"I am fine, Bobby." she said having regained her composure. She could still feel the dampness of her tears as the remaining remnants were soaked into her skin but judging from Bobby's expression as she turned to face him, she had managed not to tip him off.

"That's not what I meant. The Danger Room gave you a C minus?" Bobby mocked. "Definitely have to check the diagnostics."

"I wasn't aware that the school would attempt to murder me." she said, giving him a smile. She was happy to see him; well at this point she reasoned she probably would have been happy to see anyone.

"Next time, you'll be prepared." Bobby assured her as he steered her down the hall. "C'mon, I'll introduce you to the others. You've already met Rogue haven't you?"

"Years ago," Laynia recalled as she entered the war room. "She was punching my brother in the face."

"If it's any consolation," Rogue began as she shook Laynia's hand. "Ah felt those punches just as much as he did."

"Is this the entire team?" Laynia asked.

"Not exactly," Rogue said. "We still have one more name on the list…'

Avengers Mansion, New York City, Tuesday

When it came to the Avengers, Rogue couldn't help but feel nervous. Not because of the animosity that had so recently boiled over between the Avengers and the X-Men. More so over the guilt that still twinged now and again over her time in her mother's first iteration of the Brotherhood of Mutants. Her very first official mission as part of that group had brought her face to face with the Avengers. She'd very nearly cost one of them their life that day and had almost stolen any chance she herself had had of having one of her own.

These were the thoughts that ran through the mind of Anna Marie as she approached the gates of the Avengers Mansion. Since Luke Cage had disbanded his group of Avengers and sold the mansion back to Tony Stark, it had been reconverted into a place to stay for reserve and inactive members of the team should they have need of it. Currently residing within was the final mutant on Rogue's list and truth be told he was one of the reasons she felt so apprehensive about ringing on that doorbell.

She had made use an image inducer as she made her way there, only dropping her disguise as the mansion came into full view. It might have been a mistake to wear a costume so close to the one she had worn on her first time here, the only difference being that the outlines and the stripe running down her tunic were now white instead of lime green but Rogue chose to ignore that. Many of the Avengers didn't have perfect track records either. It wasn't that Rogue was afraid of facing what she had done but when it came to her sometimes people tended to put the bad before the good.

Gingerly, Rogue pressed a gloved finger to the doorbell. After a few moments, the intercom buzzed to life.

"Edwin Jarvis, at your service. How may I help you?"

"Hi, it's Rogue. Of the X-Men. Can ah come in?"

"Ah yes!" the Avengers' butler spoke in warm and pleasant tones. "Master Logan had informed me that you would be arriving sometime this afternoon."

"Sorry if ah'm a bit early." Rogue said.

"Not at all, just one moment. I'm afraid Mr. Stark has once again updated the mansion security protocols and that always takes a bit of getting used to."

The gates to the mansion grounds soon swung open and Rogue strolled in to be greeted by Jarvis, who smiled at Rogue as she entered the mansion itself.

"I'd venture as far as to say, Miss Rogue, that your arrival is quite timely. Master Pietro never was one to sit still. He's waiting for you in the dining room. This way, please."

With that, Jarvis was off. Though the balding butler was now in his seventies, he walked at a brisk pace, turning down into a corridor to the entrance of the dining room. The long table was bare, the tablecloth's pristine white matching Pietro Maximoff's hair as he sat at the other end, arms crossed.

"I'll leave you to it," Jarvis said.

Pietro nodded to Jarvis before returning his gaze to Rogue, his blue grey eyes narrowing as she approached.

"Have a seat," he offered, gesturing lazily to one of the empty chairs. Rogue continued to stand.

"You know why ah'm here don't you? You had Wolverine arrange this meeting, made me come all this way."

"Would that perhaps be the same Wolverine who threatened to murder my sister? We may have fought on the same side during the X-Men's war against the Avengers but don't mistake that for any kind of respect for him or any of his lackeys."

"Don't be stupid Pietro. You know ah defended Wanda when the Young Avengers tracked her down."

"Yes," Quicksilver replied dryly. "Forgive me if I fail to take seriously a woman who for years pined after my father and after several of his lapses into mania subsequently entered into a relationship with him. I wonder how much your supposed mercy of Wanda is based on your feelings for a genocidal terrorist?"

"Please!" Rogue scoffed. "You act like you never took Magnus' side. Ah ain't got time for tantrums over me being your daddy's ex Pietro, ah got things to do. Ah need a speedster and you're the only one available."

"If I refuse?"

Quick as a flash, Rogue whipped out a gloveless hand and slapped Pietro right across the face, maintaining the contact as white highlights raced through her hair to reach her fringe before the weakened Pietro managed to loosen her grip and shake her off.

"How did you do that?" Pietro snarled, his Transian accent coming to the fore as he knocked his chair over and sped right into Rogue's face.

"It's called telepathy, sugah," Rogue said as she began to dissolve, the particles that consisted her being returning to the ether. But her lips weren't moving and her voice was echoing from the other side of the room. Quicksilver whirred around and sure enough there she was standing next to the window. "Ah took some along before I came. You're not gonna say no, Pietro. You keep sitting here, waiting for someone else to call you back in and say that they need you, you're gonna be waiting a long time. So you're gonna to get your head out of your ass and help us."

The wind whipped Rogue's lightened locks as Quicksilver became a blur, creating a gust strong enough to send the tablecloth clear across the room. He whizzed back in a moment later in full costume which was a similar green to Rogue's own except for a circular area below the rounded neck which was darker and the gloves and boots which were lighter. His trademark silver lightning bolt motif jutted down his chest in a near straight line before meeting a narrow band around his waist.

"Hmm…" he pondered as he looked Rogue up and down. "I may have to make some changes."

"You'll have plenty of time for that when we get to the school, we've got another day before we head to the Peak and from what ah'm feeling that's a pretty long time in your book."

"The perils of possessing an accelerated metabolism, thought processes and reflexes." Pietro explained. "I hadn't given you an answer yet but your haste could be forgiven. I'll aid you on this mission and we'll see how it goes from there."

"To be honest with you, Pietro," Rogue remarked. "Ah wouldn't have it any other way…

The Grounds of the Jean Grey School For Higher Learning, Thursday

"Alright folks," Rogue announced, attempting to ignore the group of students conspicuously pressed against the window to her right. "Ride's here."

It was one sweet ride. Beast Force One definitely wasn't going to cut it for this mission, especially considering that that was a one man ship. This one hovered majestically over the school grounds, causing even Krakoa to awaken from his afternoon nap to have a look. A soft blue pulse rippled from its trio of thrusters, a low hum emanating from the craft as it became stationary.

"Is that a Kree ship?" Quicksilver asked, as dust particles and bits of grass swirled around the five of them.

Betsy's butterfly aura briefly flashed in front of her as she scanned the ship.

"There's no one onboard. It's likely been preprogrammed with the coordinates we'll need," she stated, glancing over to Rogue.

"Right. We have a briefing with Agent Brand at the Peak before we leave and ah'm guessing from the paint job…" Rogue gestured to the S.W.O.R.D emblazoned side of the ship. "…that Abby'll keep us on schedule. Laynia?"

"Of course." The Russian mutant replied as she created a Darkforce disk beneath their feet, swooping them up into the air.

"Then let's get this show on the road."

Next issue: Rogue's team gets ready to take on the Brood but is everything as it seems?!

Meanwhile, back at the school the remaining X-Men are divided as they decide the fate of Emma Frost!

X-Pressions

Hi there! This is the first chapter of a story I first published on ( A site I'd recommend to anyone interested in reading/writing/drawing comic fanfiction or fan art). In fact, I'm still publishing it over there, but I thought try my hand a posting it here and seeing what other people think of it.

The story diverges from Marvel Canon during the events of All New X-Men #1(vol1) written by Brian Michael Bendis and drawn by Stuart Immomen. In fact, Eva Bell's scene takes it's cues from her introductory scene in that issue, up until the point that Rogue shows up, and the plot takes a sharp right turn. Beast's problems with his secondary mutation were also a nod to that issue. My team for the most part, however is set to be completely different. Rogue's team are set to be the leads of the story, but the rest of the X-Men will have their parts to play, not to mention the students, who will be making their first collective appearance in the next chapter. And that's without even mentioning the villains...

I hope this first chapter was entertaining, and I look forward to any and all critique and reviews. Let me know what you think!

Until next time,

Wings