I don't own X-Men or Marvel, just the lovely Cora.

Cora smiled as the mansion came into view through the trees. Pushing the throttle of her motercycle, she sped down the drive, skidding to a stop by the garage. Remy followed close behind. As she pulled her helmet off, she noticed the look of awe on his face as he spotted the collection of Harleys in the corner of the spacious garage.

"Try not to steal one." She muttered as she led the way inside. The lower halls were quiet, but after a quick elevator ride, they were in the bustling atmosphere of the school.

"Cora! Good to see you again! We'll have to catch up later!" Storm called from the stairs, waving as she was swept away with the crowd. The students began to thin down, most of them heading into classrooms when Logan and Xavier appeared from around the corner.

"Cora, it's nice to see you again so soon, and with our guest." Xavier said, smiling at Remy. "I assume he knows what we are offering him?"

"Yes sir." Cora said. Did they think she had tied him up and drug him here against his will? Smirking, she had to remind herself that it wouldn't have been the first time she had done that to somebody.

"Good," he said, turning and leading the way towards his office. "Your schedule is in your room, Cora. Mr. Lebeau, you will need to come with me while I go over some rules about life in the mansion." Remy frowned slightly as Cora started towards the stairs.

"Cora!" a voice said excitedly. A guy had appeared at the end of the hallway. Remy couldn't help but be surprised by his appearance. He was shirtless with two huge wings protruding from his back.

"Warren!" she called out, running to meet him. Once she was a few steps away, she leaped into his arms, nearly knocking him to the ground. Laughing, the winged man kissed her. Swearing under his breath, Remy followed the Professor to his office.


After dropping her bags off at her room, Cora headed to one of the training rooms on the lower levels. Logan was leading a few of the older students to the Danger Room when he saw her.

"Hey kid." He said, causing some of the students to laugh.

"Logan, I'm not a kid." She couldn't help but laugh too. It seemed like he called everybody a kid if they weren't one of the older teachers. "Headin' to the Danger Room?" she asked, looking over the group following him. They looked too young to already be in training.

"Yeah, want to join?"

"Nah, I have some things I need to do." Shrugging, he led the X-men in training into the room, leaving Cora in the hallway.

Stepping into the training room, the silence settled around her like an old friend. She slid a keycard into the computer and headed towards the center of the room, her steps echoing off the walls. Gripping the handles of the blunt katana blades, she waited. A hollow sounding shot filled the air as the tennis ball flew at her at blinding speed. With an easy slash, she sliced it in two, preparing for the next one. Even with all the technology they had access to, the tennis ball setup worked best for Cora, and she didn't want to change. Soon, the balls were flying at her in pairs and triplets, trying to batter her from all sides. It felt good to focus on something this simple. Listen. Focus. Slice. Repeat. After a few rounds, she started shedding clothes until she was down to shorts and a tank top. Sweat slid down her temples as she prepared for the next wave of 'attack'.

"Cherie." The voice startled Cora, causing her to turn towards the source. Unfortunately, the program continued to run, pelting her with half a dozen balls. Scrambling to the controls, she shut the system down.

"What d'you want Remy?" Her voice was full of irritation, thanks to the bruises already forming on her stomach and back.

"When did you pick up this habit?" he asked, strolling around the room, kicking the remains of the tennis balls. She could feel his eyes roaming over her, making her wish she had left more clothes on.

"An ol' friend taught me b'fore we went our separate ways."

"You mean an old flame?" Gritting her teeth, she resisted the urge to turn the program on high and beat Remy with a thousand balls. He was right in his assumption; her last boyfriend had taught her.

"What d'you want?" she asked again, grabbing a broom to sweep the ball halves towards an opening in the floor.

"So who is de new one?" Of course, he would want to know.

"His name is Warren, a lot of people call'em Angel." Chuckling, he helped her herd the balls towards the hole.

"So, you go from Diablo to Angel. Big change, non?" She avoided his eyes. His voice was serious when he spoke again. "If I recall, it was you who said you gave up on lookin' for love, petit." It was true, though she hadn't just said that to Remy. She had screamed it at him when she left New Orleans.

"A girl gets lonely." She murmured as she walked out of the training room.


"Cora?" Rogue called out quietly, knocking on her bedroom door. Nothing but silence greeted her. Barely opening the door, she peeked inside. The bed was empty, the blankets bundled up to one side. The doors leading out to the balcony were open, the sun streaming into the room. "Cora? Are you here?"

"Out here sugah." Crossing the room, Rogue saw her perched on the ledge of the balcony, her legs dangling over the side.

"Am I interrupting anything?" Cora turned and smiled at her, her eyes still holding a sleepy look.

"Nah, just enjoyin' a sunrise." They stood in silence for a while until Cora spoke. "What's botherin' yah Sugah?" Rogue looked down at her hands, her cheeks blushing slightly as she answered.

"I feel silly asking, but none of the students know anything about you. Not even your power. We're all curious." Chuckling, Cora stretched her back out.

"So you're the brave soul who came to get my story?" After a quick nod from Rogue, she continued. "Well, you better get comft'able, it's a bit long dependin' on how many details I spill." The young girl immediately dropped into a chair beside the railing, excited to finally hear the new teacher's story.

I feel cruel, leaving a cliff hanger like this, but I can't help it! I wanted to get this chapter up before Thanksgiving craziness takes over. No worries though, I've already got her story planned out in my mind, getting ready to put in on paper…erm, computer screen! Lol. Hopefully, it will clear a few things up as far as Gambit and other things are concerned.