After living at the Xavier Mansion for a while, new recruits quickly learn all the quirks of the members of the community. For example if Rogue was sitting by herself in the gardens, you approached her on pain of death. Rogue valued her lone-time highly, as any intruder promptly found out. Similarly, while most of the X-men wandered freely into each other's rooms, they'd never knock on Logan's bedroom door asking if he had "any paper because Amara accidentally burnt all mine". Never. In this way, the whole mansion knew when Kitty had an argument with Lance.

On this particular day, it was Rogue who noticed first that something was up. On the way home from school, rather than chatting inanely about how so-and-so was dating this-or-that, Kitty had shoved the headphones of her MP3 in her ears and stalked off, without a word to her room-mate. Rogue prepared herself for a long night.

The other students were given an even less friendly clue to the state of Miss Pryde's love life. The new mutants were, as always, breaking things. Today, they were breaking the entry hall. As Kitty, closely followed by Rogue (who was trying to warn the others with looks of increasing desperation) entered the Mansion, Bobby was icing the stairway, while Amara was simultaneously trying to melt it. Jubilee and Cannonball were play-fighting; at this moment in time Cannonball was head first in the wall, while the Chinese girl laughed heartily at him. Jamies were running everywhere. And then they froze. For, too late, they noticed Kitty.

"Will you guys, like, for once grow up? You're X-men, not, like, stupid babies!" Kitty wasn't angry very often, and wasn't very good at expressing it. However, everyone caught her meaning and stopped what they were doing. Kitty glared at them, and threw her heavy school bag at Bobby, running up the stairs (carefully phasing through the ice). Everyone stared at each other.

Once she was out of earshot Bobby muttered "She's had another argument with Lance? This is the third time in two weeks!"

"Shuddup Bobby" growled Rogue. She followed her friend up stairs, cautiously placing her feet on the parts of the steps which weren't slippery.

Kitty was sitting on her bed, a mournful look on her face. She glanced up as Rogue entered.

"What was it this time?" asked Rogue, as gently as she could.

"I don't know," sighed Kitty "I went over to say hi, like I always do, and he just like, totally ignored me." A small tear ran down her cheek. Rogue went over and put her arm around the valley girl's shoulders.

"Don't worry sugah, tomorrow it'll be like nothing happened." Inwardly she added it always is.

"No," murmured Kitty "I don't think it will be." She looked so sad that Rogue didn't chastise her for her pessimism.

"And why d'ya think that?"

"It's like that song." Rogue blinked.

"What song?"

"You know. That song. The one I like, always used to sing. It went like-" Kitty suddenly stopped. "Rogue, I totally can't remember how it went!" The valley girl looked up at Rogue in despair.

Rogue sighed. It was going to be a long night.