Author's Note – I don't own anything that Marvel and DC created.

Several chapters that I have planned are being created as plot anchors for future use. For a better explanation, look in TVTropes for the phrase "Chekov's Gun". I hope to use a few of them, but I may end up with "Chekov's Armoury".

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Chapter Five

Encounters

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The moon illuminated a green-clad figure clad in home-made armour leaping over the fence. The shadow cast in the moonlight resembled a frog or toad and pale green eyes scanned the area.

"So, let's have a look round this institute, hm?" Todd Polanski muttered to himself, unaware that every move he made was being tracked with newly-installed sensors. "Shades said they welcomed mutants, let's see what they're like, and if there's anything worth taking."

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The hidden control room far below the mansion showed Todd's progress, while other screens displayed diagnostic data of him gathered by the scanners. Charles tilted his head slightly as he scanned the flowing text.

"Interesting, super-strength and enhanced reflexes, but primarily in the lower torso and legs. Boosted acceleration resistance, slightly increased damage resistance… a definite prospect for recruitment."

"Shame about his hygeine." Scott said from behind him.

"Storm to Professor X." a voice said over the communicator. "I am almost in position."

"Excellent. It looks like he's entering the front door now… is that Kurt?"

"Looks like it." Scott agreed, leaning closer to the screen. "I wonder where he's headed?"

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"Woah! Elf!"

"Elf?" Kurt repeated, shocked and insulted by the new arrival. "Vhat do you mean, elf?"

"Blue elf!" Todd yelped, pointing.

"Zhe name iz Nightcvawler." Kurt growled. "Who are you, unt vhy do you ztink so bad?"

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Scott shook his head. "This isn't going to go well. If only Clark was here."

"He's currently dealing with a sinking ferry in Australia." Xavier sighed. "And with Jean still out with Duncan Matthews and Martha not having any powers… Scott, you'd better head up and try to calm things down."

"On it." Scott said, heading for the lift.

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Todd slammed into the wall, barely missing his irritating opponant but dislodging a picture that dropped to the ground.

"Hold still so I can clobber you!"

"Vhat, you zhink I'm stupid?" Kurt retorted, somersaulting over Todd's head and landing on the balcony. "All I vhanted vas a cookie or two, but vith your reek, I don't zhink I could stand to face any food soon. You reek vorse zan unvashed lederhosen!"

Todd growled and leapt at Kurt again, only for Kurt to drop off the balcony and leap down the hallway. Snarling with rage, Todd sprang after him, not caring how much damage he did just so long as he managed to hurt the blue-skinned elf who was taunting him. As the duo re-emerged into the hallway, Todd found himself crashing into the wall as Kurt vanished in a cloud of black, sulphurous smoke.

"Aarg!" Todd shouted, his frustration evident. "That's it, I'm outta here! This place is too freaky!"

Kurt dropped down from the chandelier as Todd vanished out the doors, then he turned as someone walked up behind him.

"Scott! I'm in trouble now, ja?"

"No." Scott said. "I don't think Todd would have fitted in, his temper's far too short. Where were you going?"

"Kitchen." Kurt grinned. "Fraulein Martha let me help her make zome cookies earlier!"

Scott grinned in understanding.

"Well then, I see no problem with a late-night snack." Scott said. "Let's go."

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"Freaks! Flippin' freaks!" Todd panted as he raced towards the fence. A moment later, he froze, staring first at the shadow in front of him, then up at the white-haired black-clad lady floating in the air, illuminated by the moonlight.

"Ah man, this isn't my day." He winged, then he turned and leapt into the underbrush. Spotting the gate, he sprinted through it and collided with what felt like a brick wall. Shaking his head to clear it, he opened his eyes and his gaze was transfixed by the trio of blades extending from the knuckles of the growling man stood before him.

"Logan, let him go."

Logan growled, then stepped to one side. Moving lowly, so as to not antagonise him, Todd moved away from him, then turned and scampered down the road.

"Storm, who was that… and why did he stink so bad?"

"That was Todd Polanski." Ororo replied, landing softly beside him. "Currently homeless student at Bayville High and a mutant. Welcome back, Logan. Martha made cookies."

Logan grinned as he clambered onto his bike and kicked it into life.

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"Milk?"

"Milk unt cookies? Fraulein, you are amazhing!"

"I second that motion." Scott said with a smile. "I swear, these taste better each time."

"You'd better have left some for me." A familiar voice growled from the kitchen door. "Martha."

"Logan." Martha smiled. "Milk and cookies?"

Logan accepted the proffered cookie and bit into it, ignoring Scott's gobsmacked expression. Opening his eyes, he glared at the younger man. "What ya starin' at, bub?"

"Logan, you know the rules." Martha said firmly and Logan sighed.

"Sorry, Martha."

Scott and Kurt both turned in an move so synchronised that it couldn't have been rehearsed, their astounded gazes coming to rest on Martha, who shrugged.

"What?"

"How… Logan… you… wha?" Scott finally managed as Logan bit into his second cookie.

"Simple, kid." Logan said. "The kitchen is Martha's domain, and if I don't show respect, I don't get no cookies."

Scott and Kurt stared at Logan, their minds almost unable to process the information. Logan took a sip of his milk and snagged a third cookie, taking a bite and closing his eyes as he savoured the taste.

"Welcome back, Logan." Charles said from behind them.

"Chuck." Logan said. "Who's the elf?"

"It's been an interesting couple of days." Charles said, accepting a cookie with a grateful nod. "First, let me introduce you to our newest student…"

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"Todd Polanski."

Todd tripped and sprawled on the ground, almost hyperventilating as the cold voice spoke from the shadows.

"Todd Polanski, you have potential." The looming figure said. As it stepped into the light, Todd's throat seemed to dry and his vocal cords refused to respond. The yellow-eyed, blue-skinned lady gave a cold smile.

"Yes, you have potential, Todd Polanski. I am Mystique and you shall be the first member of the Brotherhood. Come with me and I shall show you to your new home."

Swallowing nervously, Todd rose to his feet and followed her.

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"Kurt? Kurt!"

"Vive more minutes?" Kurt moaned, batting weakly at the hand shaking his shoulder.

"Wake up, Kurt. It's your first day of school, remember?"

Kurt's eyes slammed open and he almost hurled himself out ofbed, only to be snagged out of the air and gently lowered to the ground.

"Here are some towels, go get a shower." Clark smiled. "I've got a few things to pick up in town, so I'll be driving you in."

"School!" Kurt exhulted, then he froze. "But… vhat if zhey don't like me?"

"You'll do fine." Clark said reassuringly. "Now, I'd advise getting a shower now, then breakfast."

"Ah! Ja!" Kurt half-shouted. "A Martha Kent breakfast! Gone!"

Clark waved his hand to help dissipate the cloud of smoke, then sighed and walked out of the room and down the corridor. Pausing briefly, he knocked on a door.

"Ja?"

"No teleporting inside the mansion except for emergencies, remember?"

"Mizzing Fraulein Martha's cooking iz an emergency!" Kurt shot back and Clark grinned.

"I'll let it slide this time, but next time, just run."

"Ja."

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"How do I look?"

Clark gave Kurt a quick up-and-down glance. "Looks good, the inducer seems to be working correctly and I see you've figured out the mirror controls to get new looks."

Kurt nodded and climbed into the passenger seat of the black van. As Clark started the engine, Kurt spoke.

"I'm zcared, Clark. Zis is ze first time…"

"You'll be fine." Clark said reassuringly as they pulled out of the garage. "You performed in the circus, yes? Think of this as just another type of performance."

"Anozzer performance." Kurt repeated. "Yes, I zhink I can do zat."

"And you'll do it well." Clark added. "Can't be worse than playing to a full tent, can it?"

"Zhank you." Kurt said softly.

"It's what I'm here for, remember?" Clark gently teased. "Calm down, I know it's a big deal for you, but it'll be easier if you don't panic."

"But what if my inducer…"

"Your inducer is made from Kryptonian technology. It has five separate backup systems should something happen. It won't fail. As long as you refrain from teleporting, you'll be fine."

Kurt nodded, his gaze fixed on the landscape passing by.

"If you need me, tap the watch face four times quickly and I'll be there as soon as I can." Clark added.

"Zhank you. Zhat makes me feel lots better." Kurt said gratefully. "Zho, do you know vhat zhis school iz like?"

"Not a clue." Clark admitted, "Although I have memorised its maps and schematics. I'll escort you to the principles office, then to your first class. If you want, I'll even pick you up afterwards, although Scott and Jean are more than happy to give you a lift back."

"Zhank you." Kurt said gratefully. "I appreciate it."

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"Welcome to Bayville High school." Said the dark-haired woman, a professional smile on her face as she shook Clark's hand. "I am Principle Darkholme, may I assume that this is Kurt Wagner?"

"Yes, ma'am." Clark smiled as he released her hand. "I'm Clark Kent, a mentor at the Xavier Institute."

"I see."Darkholme said, one eyebrow slightly raised quizzically. "Anyway, thank you for forwarding the test results so promptly, it made it easy to assign classes."

"Anything to help, ma'am." Clark smiled back, and Kurt hid a frown. Something was… off.

"Here is your timetable, Mr Wagner." Darkholme said, handing Kurt a folded sheet of paper. Kurt opened it and scanned the timetable, then looked up as a second piece of paper was passed to him.

"And here is a map of the school. Your assigned locker and its combination are on the map."

"Tank you again." Clark smiled. "I know that you are very busy, so with your permission, I'll help Kurt put his stuff away and escort him to the first class."

"As you wish." Darkholme sid. "Mr Wagner, I hope that you enjoy it here and that you do well in your lessons."

"Zhank you, ma'am." Kurt managed and Darkholme nodded and walked off. Kurt watched her go, then glanced up at Clark.

"Vhat iz it?"

"She's a mutant." Clark said slowly. Her heartbeat is… strange."

"Zhe's a mutant as vhell?" Kurt asked. "Voah, Bayville is zhe bezt!"

Clark shrugged and scooped up the bag of books and school equipment from by his feet.

"Come on, Kurt. Let's get your locker filled and you to your first class."

"Zhank you."

"You're welcome."

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Clark knocked on the door and the noise behind it dropped. A moment later, the door opened and a man looked out.

"Mr Snyder?" Clark asked politely. At the man's nod, Clark continued. "I'm Clark Kent and this is Kurt Wagner, he's new to Bayville and according to his timetable, this is his first class. Kurt?"

"Hello, sir." Kurt said quietly as Clark gently but firmly pushed him forwards. Snyder nodded and motioned for him to enter. Kurt nervously stepped forwards and swallowed as everyone stared at him.

"Class." Mr Snyder said, "This is your newest classmate, Kurt Wagner."

"An honour to meet you all." Kurt managed to say and the class seemed to explode with shouted greetings and questions. After a moment, Snyder held up his hand for silence. "Since this is Kurt's first day…"

"I'll help, sir!" a dark-skinned girl said, her hand raised. Snyder nodded.

"Alright. Mr Wagner, please take a seat and unpack your books."

"Yes sir." Kurt managed and he made his way to the empty desk by the girl. As he sat down, she smiled at him.

"Welcome to Bayville. I'm Amanda Sefton. You have a really cute accent, you know?"

Kurt felt his cheeks heat, but he couldn't hold his smile back. "Zhank you."

Clark grinned and retreated from the doorway, closing it quietly as he left so as to not interrupt the class any further.

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"Are you certain?"

"Completely." Clark said, staring out of the window. "I don't think you quite understand how good my senses are, sir. I can hear the heartbeats of everyone in the institute, I can even identify them by how they sound."

"And Darkholme's heartbeat…"

"She didn't have one." Clark sighed. "Her entire body was… undefined. I used my x-ray vision and my microscopic vision on her… she's definitely a mutant. I'm not entirely sure what her power is. Assuming of course that she is really a she."

"Odd that Cerebro hasn't picked her up." Xavier mused, nodding his thanks as Martha placed a cup of tea in front of him. "Undefined…"

"Almost like it wasn't entirely fixed." Clark mused.

"Mystique." Charles realised.

"Who?"

"She's a shapeshifter, and one who has learned to shield her thoughts." Xavier said. "She's allied to Magneto, although what she is doing here…"

"Magneto knows about this place, yes?" Storm asked from her chair and Xavier nodded slowly.

"Yes, she's a perfect infiltration specialist, but now that we know she's in Bayville…"

"I got a set of bio-readings from her." Clark said, pulling a small device out of his shirt pocket. "With your permission, I'll set the alarms to warn us if she ever sets foot into the mansion grounds. Heck, I might be able to set it up to track her, find out who she meets with."

"Bio-readings?" Logan asked, one brow raised and Clark nodded.

"Kryptonian med-tech is very advanced."

Logan froze, then lowered his bottle of beer.

"Kid… we need to talk. Now."