Claire felt her stomach turn, her body stiffen. Her natural reaction was ignorance.
"I don't know what you're talking about." she pulled on her bag but Samantha tightened her grip. The horrible grin grew until she was near ecstatic.
"You're one of those freaks from that mutant school, aren't you?"
"How dare you even accuse me of such a thing!" yelled Claire, looking appalled at the idea.
"What're you doing out so late monster? You looking for someone like me to feed off of?"
"That's disgusting-"
"What's in the bag, torture devices? You going to dissect me?"
"You're insane!" Claire yelled.
"Oh?" she said. "Then what's in the bag?"
"None of your business!" Claire said a little to loudly, yanking the bag to no avail.
"Well we just see when I take this to the police." Samantha wrenched the backpack out of Claire's hands.
"Give it back!" Claaire yelled, getting louder.
"Come and get it, freak." And with that, Samantha turned around and ran down the street.
"No! Come back here!" The girl screamed, charging after the thief.
The two of them raced down the deserted streets, cutting through alleys and dashing around corners. Soon the two came to the edge of a forest but instead of turning or stopping Samantha plunged into the trees, ducking branches like she had the forest memorized. Claire followed, trying to ignore the little voice in her head.
What if this is a trap? What if she was running straight into the arms of mutant haters?
She forgot all of this as she ducked her first branch, focussing all of her energy into her burning legs and aching lungs. She had to get that backpack back. It was all she had. All she'd ever had. The only constant things in her life.
The trees seemed to never end. Claire was wondering how long her out of shape body could hold out in this chase when suddenly the trees parted into a clearing full of people.
No, no no. Claire thought, sure she was about to be experimented on. She hated using her powers, refused to use them but she was sure these people wouldn't let her go if she didn't get away right away.
Samantha stopped running when she got to the group of people and turned to Claire who had stopped on the edge of the clearing out of reach of anyone in the group.
All of them were silent, staring at the newcomer to their glade. Claire couldn't see many faces, just endless people dressed in a lot of dark colors. She gulped out of nervousness. Any sign of danger and she would run back to the town and find the police station.
Finally, someone spoke. "Who do we have here?" said a deep male voice.
"Another mutant. I think she is running from the school." said Samantha's voice.
Claire took a step back towards the trees, then another, and another. She reached her arm outstretched in search of the first tree.
"Where do you think you're going?" said the male voice. "Callisto?"
There was a rush of wind and suddenly Claire was face down on the ground, arm pinned behind her back.
"Yes Magneto?"said the person holding onto her.
"Wasshe correct in her assumptions?"
"She's looks like a class 3, maybe 4." said the woman.
A class what? thought Claire.
"And?" said the man's voice, irritated.
"Nothing else, but she's definitely a mutant."
There was a moment of silence. "Now, now Callisto, let our guest stand ."
Claire was pulled to her feet but the grip on her arm did not loosen. She faced the group of people once again, terrified. She started tapping her toes gently on the ground, out of habit. She watched as Samantha stepped towards her with a grey haired man who she guessed had been commanding this Callisto person.
As Claire watched the dirt from Samantha's face melted away, as did her messy hair and weathered clothes. Her skin dissinigrated to blue and her hair turned red and slicked back. Claire stared in horror as she realised who these people were. That was Mystique. The Mystique. Mystique and Magneto. They had disappeared off of the X men's radar but all of the pupils at the school knew about them and their powers. Suddenly being experimented on didn't seem like anything compared to what they might so to her.
Next Chapter: "Well then I guess I have just one question for you." the gun's hammer was drawn back with a click. "Will you join us?
