I don't own Wolverine and the X-men or any associated characters.

Chapter 7: X-Calibre

"I can't believe you guys talked me into this," Bobby whined pathetically as we walked down the street. Kitty and I exchanged amused looks while Fang trotted on ahead, sniffing at everything he came across. His leash was slack against his collar; somehow he knew just how far he could move ahead of us without straining his restraints.

"You're far too lazy for your own good," I said with a teasing smirk. "Besides, it wasn't as if you were doing something productive."

"Productivity is relative!"

"Somehow I don't think playing Halo counts as anyone's idea of being productive," Kitty said. "Taking your dog to the vet, on the other hand, is."

"But why does it take three of us to take one dog to the vet?" Kitty and I gave him a look and he raised his hands in surrender. "Ok, fine! I'll stop arguing now!"

"Good," I said smugly. "Then you won't argue when I volunteer you to pay the bill."

Bobby gaped and my, looking remarkably like a cod fish. "B-b-but, that's not fair!" he wailed.

"No one ever said life was fair."

Bobby turned to Kitty for support, pouting outrageously. "You won't make me pay, will you?"

She looked at him, and I sighed heavily. I knew that look. That was the kind of look I got when I caved under Fang's demands. The kind of look where your will just crumbles and you can't help but give in.

"Of course not, Bobby," Kitty said with a small blush. "We're just having fun with you."

"You make playing with your head too easy," I interjected. Bobby opened his mouth to argue, but I quickly interrupted. "So, anyways, this is your last chance to place your bets. Want to rethink your decision?"

Bobby shook his head stubbornly. "No way. Fang is definitely mostly German Shepherd."

Kitty rolled her eyes. "You're just saying that because your neighbor owned a German Shepherd."

"He looks like one too!"

"What breed do you think Fang is, Kitty?" I said quickly, hoping to forestall an argument.

"Well, Hank said he was likely some sort of sheepdog, and by the way he's been herding things I'm inclined to agree. So maybe an Australian Kelpie?"

I quickly pulled out my notepad where I keeping track of all the bets and nodded appreciatively. Whoever won was going to be a lot richer.

"What's your bet, Taylor?" Bobby asked curiously.

I shrugged. "I'm not betting. I'm acting as the unbiased overseer. I make sure everyone plays nice."

He eyed me hopefully. "I don't suppose you take bribes, huh?"

"Nope. And we're here!" We stopped in front of a decently sized building with a nice and neat exterior and cheerful writing and pictures of happy looking animals on the windows. Fang stared up at the place, looking almost apprehensive. I suppose he liked going to the vet as much as much as I enjoyed going to the doctor. Oh well, he'll survive.

I marched forward and pushed open the door. Fang reluctantly followed on his leash and Bobby and Kitty trailed in afterward. Quickly I walked up to the desk and smiled politely at the curly haired receptionist. She smiled back in a friendly manner, her eyes crinkling at the corners and giving her that motherly look.

"Hi, I'm Taylor Adams. I have appointment booked for my dog, Fang."

"Of course, just wait over there and Dr. Carter will be with you in a moment."

I nodded and joined Kitty and Bobby where they were still arguing over their breed choices. I tuned them out and watched Fang absentmindedly. He was eyeing a naked mole rat with curiosity and the owner—a young girl—looked back at Fang apprehensively, as if he was going to leap up and swallow the thing whole. As if; he had way better taste than that.

"Taylor Adams and Fang?"

I was pulled abruptly from my thoughts and I looked at a rather attractive blond man with a bright smile and a white coat. I stood quickly and tugged lightly on the leash. Fang sighed heavily but climbed to his feet and followed my lead as I trailed after the doctor. He led us to a smaller room with a table in the center of the room.

"I'll be right with you," the man said with a friendly grin before walking out the door. Fang looked at the table then looked at me hopefully.

"Don't look at me," I retorted. "I'm not lifting you up there. Climb up yourself." Fang woofed softly then leapt onto the stool then onto the table. He then settled on his haunches and looked around the room with sad brown eyes. I scoffed at him.

"Oh come on, it's not as if I'm getting you neutered."

"I would certainly hope you're not planning on neutering me," a smooth voice replied behind me. I jumped in surprise and whirled to face with the blond man from before. He grinned wickedly at me and I blushed furiously.

"That wasn't very nice," I admonished.

"I'm terribly sorry," he said smoothly. "Next time I'll be sure to knock. Now, what can I do for you today?"

"I just wanted to get Fang vaccinated. I picked him up off the streets—well actually he followed me home—but that's beside the point. I just want to make sure he's healthy and not carrying some disease that we should be aware about."

He nodded. "Alright, I'll just give him a full check up then."

I nodded. "Sounds good."

The doctor was an extremely cheerful person. He chatted to me about different things, music, movies, the weather, even some things to know about how to look after a dog. It was interesting and it didn't take long for him to finish Fang's check up. He gave Fang a shots and then announced him as fit as a fiddle.

"That should about do it. Is there anything else you need?"

"Well, you could settle a bet for me."

He laughed. "I'll do what I can. What is it?"

"We had a bet to see who could guess Fang's breed. Do you know what his breed is?"

Dr. Carter looked at me. "You had a bet to see what breed he is? You guys must have been really bored."

I shrugged. "That's what happens at a boarding school. There are just too many hours that you just don't know how to fill. So, what do you think?" I passed him the list of breeds people had chosen and he read it over quickly. He snorted at one entry and I arched an eyebrow.

"What?"

"Someone guessed a German Shepherd? I'm…" he trailed off.

"Amused?" I suggested.

He laughed. "Yeah, pretty much. But anyways, if I had to guess, I would say he's mostly a Groenendael."

"A what?"

"A Groenendael. It's one of four types of Belgian Shepherd Dogs. They're almost always black, and he just as the physical characteristics of one, though he's a bit large to be a pure breed. So I would say whoever guessed Belgian Shepherd is the closest."

I nodded thoughtfully. "Ok, thank you very much."

"Not a problem. Stop by if you have any problems."

"Ok, thanks, I will. Bye, Dr. Carter." I whistled and Fang jumped off the table and trotted out the door. I followed him and we reached the main lobby quickly. Together Bobby, Kitty and I paid the expenses then walked out.

"So, who won?" Bobby asked excitedly.

"Not saying until we reach the institute."

"Aw, come on!"

"Leave her alone, Bobby, she's right. This way the answer is announced once and it's fair for everyone," Kitty scolded him.

I tuned out their arguing and just enjoyed the sunshine on my face. The warmth felt remarkably good, almost as good as Remy's fingers on my face had felt. I felt the heat rise to my face when I thought about Remy. I hadn't heard from him since that letter I got from Hank a couple weeks ago, but I thought about him frequently. Every night praying that he would come back soon so I could breathe in his intoxicating scent, looking into his gorgeous eyes and—

"Earth to Taylor!" I was jerked out of my thoughts and whipped my head around to face my two amused looking friends. I smiled sheepishly at them, hoping my faint flush could be attributed to the heat.

"Sorry guys, I kinda spaced out for a moment there."

Kitty smirked. "You were thinking about Gambit again, weren't you?"

My blush deepened. "No!"

She laughed. "You so were! I don't blame you though, he's hot." She nodded approvingly. "You have good taste."

"Hey, what about me?" Bobby exclaimed with a pout, a jealous glint in his eye when he looked at Kitty. Oh yeah, he had it bad. Strangely enough, that didn't make me feel sad anymore.

Kitty rolled her eyes. "You're pretty cute too," she said sounding extremely exasperated.

"What! I get 'pretty cute' and Romeo shows up once then ditches and he gets 'hot'? How is that fair?"

"Chill out, Bobby. It's not that big of a deal. Besides, Gambit will be back."

I looked at her curiously. "How do you know?"

She smiled at me. "You should have seen him when he brought you in. He was an absolute mess, refused to leave your side until the day he left. You two looked so cute together!"

I gave her a skeptical glance and looked away. My eye caught sight of a grocery store sign and I halted abruptly.

"Oh crap!"

"What?" Bobby and Kitty asked in unison. They tensed and rolled subtly onto the balls of the feet, looking around them carefully. Looking for any sign of danger.

"I forgot I had to get groceries! You guys go on, I'll meet you there when I'm done." They relaxed and nodded agreeably.

"Alright, See you later, Taylor."

I waved over my shoulder and hurried away down the street, Fang trotting along by my side. A couple blocks later I stopped in front of a modest little grocery store with ads painted to the windows boasting of their sales. I debated for a moment then decided I might as well go in. I tied Fang's leash to a fire hydrant and gave him a stern look.

"Stay here, don't hurt anybody," I ordered. He huffed and lay down on the grey concrete, looking up at me with big brown eyes. I quickly turned away before I could give in to that look and marched into the store.

Ok, I thought to myself as I wandered down the aisles, pushing the metal cart in front of me. What do we need? As I walked I picked up the things I knew we needed. Milk, eggs, cereal, flour, bread, pasta, meat, yogurt, cheese, peanut butter and apples were all placed in the cart, and soon it began to overflow. I nibbled on my lip as I eyed the cart critically.

There was no way I could carry that much food all the way back to the mansion. I would have to call for a ride. I reached into my purse for my cell, and froze when it wasn't in its usual pocket. Frantically I felt around for it, but it wasn't to be found. Clenching and unclenching my fists I tried to remember where it was. I had put it in the charger last night, took it out this morning…and left it on my bedside table.

Damn.

Now what?

I sighed heavily and pinched the bridge of my nose. Ok, I could either borrow some Good Samaritan's cell or try and find a payphone. I looked around me carefully, but there wasn't a payphone to be found, and the people around me were giving me strange looks. It didn't seem likely I would get any help from them.

"Shit," I mumbled.

"Are you ok?"

My head snapped up to find one of the employees looking at me with concern. His shaggy dark brown hair hung into his crystal clear blue eyes. His hands were stuffed into the pockets of his black dress pants and his bright orange sneakers stuck out like a sore thumb in his otherwise professional attire. His name tag with the word 'Ryan' was on upside down. Clearly he had issues with authority, but I thought it was a good testament to his personality.

"Um, not really," I admitted.

His frowned deepened and he took a step closer. He wasn't close enough to be invading my bubble, but it was close enough to be friendly. "What can I do for you?"

I bit my lip. "I don't suppose I could borrow your cell for a moment, could I?" I asked sheepishly. "I walked here and I didn't quite expect to be getting so much stuff so I need a ride." His eyes shifted to my cart as I gestured towards it and his eyebrows shot up.

"Wow, feeding an army?" he joked.

My mouth twisted wryly. "Something like that."

He chuckled and pulled a slim black cell out of his pocket, passing it over easily. "Here you go."

"Thank you so much." I quickly punched in to the number for Bobby's cell and pressed the talk button. It rang agonizingly slowly for my taste and I fidgeted in the silence between the grocery guy and me. Finally the ringing stopped and I heard Bobby's voice.

"Hey?"

"Hey Bobby, it's Taylor. I need a ride. Can you send Logan or Hank with the van to pick me up?"

"How much did you buy?" he asked incredulously.

"A lot."

He laughed. "Yeah, sure. Where are you?"

"I'm at…" I paused as I struggled to remember the name of the store.

"Matthew's Market," Ryan supplied with a helpful grin. I couldn't help but notice his dimple. "1057, 25th Ave."

"Matthew's Market, 1057, 25th Ave," I quickly repeated.

"All right. Hang tight, Taylor."

"Ok, thanks. Bye."

"Bye."

I pressed the end button and snapped the phone shut before passing it back to its owner. "Thank you again."

"Not a problem. So are you ready to get things checked out, or is there anything else you need?"

I snickered. "No, I think I got everything."

"Alright, come on. I'll open this till."

My eyebrows shot up, followed him to the till. "Are you always so accommodating to your customers?" I asked mildly.

"Nope," he admitted easily. "Only to the real pretty ladies." He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively and I laughed.

"Down, Romeo."

He laughed and started checking and bagging my things as I placed them on the conveyer belt. We were both silent for a while, but then he spoke up again.

"So, do you have a super huge family or something? Because I seriously can't remember anyone buying this much food at once. Ever."

"Kind of. I live at a boarding school. We're all really close over there and have specific areas of expertise. I got elected as the chef and so I'm responsibly for the cooking and grocery shopping."

He whistled. "Sweet. What school is it?"

"Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters."

He gaped at me. "You mean that huge mansion with the iron gate and crazy cameras everywhere?"

I blinked in surprise. "Um…yes?"

He shook his head in amazement. "Wow. Your family must be rich."

"I got in on a scholarship, actually," I fibbed lightly.

"Then you're crazy smart. Wow. I always wondered who lived there, we never see anyone when my buddies and I drive past."

"There aren't a lot of us, and we tend to be very busy."

"Yeah, it must have a very intense program."

I smirked, remembering some of my bouts with Logan and in the danger room. "You have no idea."

The cash register beeped and Ryan looked at it. "That will be $243.73."

I quickly fished a shiny silver credit card that Hank and given me specifically for these purposes and paid for it all.

"Receipt in the bag?"

I nodded as I stuffed the card back in its place. "Yeah, please."

Ryan kindly helped me load everything back in the cart and actually walked me out of the store. It felt kind of odd hanging out with a complete stranger, but I didn't mind. I actually welcomed the company. I didn't know when I was going to be picked up and Ryan's sense of humour lay along the same lines as mine.

It wasn't until Fang barked at me that I remember he was still tied up to the fire hydrant.

"Crap, I'm sorry Fang!" I wailed as I hurried over to his side. He huffed sourly and seemed to glare at me while I untied his leash.

"Who's this?" Ryan asked with amusement as he walked over, dragging along the cart I had abandoned.

"Fang, Ryan; Ryan, Fang," I introduced quickly. Fang sniffed Ryan warily then allowed Ryan to scratch him behind the ears. I figured that was good enough for me. Ryan was officially now good people.

"Nice dog."

I grinned. "Yeah, he followed me home one night and Logan actually let me keep him."

Ryan smirked. "If I followed you home would Logan let you keep me?"

Chuckling, I punched him lightly on the arm. "Get real."

He laughed and opened his mouth to say something, but was interrupted by a very loud and obnoxious honk. I turned and much to my chagrin saw Forge waving eagerly at me from the X-van.

"Who's that?" Ryan asked.

"That's Forge, he's…um…my computer tech professor."

His eyebrows rose. "He looked kinda young."

"He's a genius. Can do anything he wants with technology. A lot of the stuff at the school he invented himself."

"Wow."

I nodded. "Like I said, he's a genius."

"Hey Taylor!" Forge greeted cheerfully as he strode over to us. "Logan sent me to get you because the others went out on a m—" He paused and glanced at Ryan. "Er…business trip. They should be back by tomorrow though."

"Should I be worried that you're driving?" I asked hesitantly as the three of us loaded the groceries in the vehicle.

Forge rolled his eyes. "Aw, come on. I crash Logan's bike once and no one ever lets me forget it!"

Ryan looked between the two of us with amusement. "You goona be ok, Taylor?"

I laughed. "Yeah, of course. See you around."

"Yeah, bye!" He turned and walked back to the store and Forge looked at me speculatively.

"What?" I demanded.

"Forgetting Gambit already?"

I snorted. "Hardly. I just met Ryan. He's little more than an acquaintance, and I don't have any plans to move it any further than the friend stage."

Forge looked at me skeptically as we all piled into the van. "I'm sure he's planning on being more than friends."

I frowned at him. "What makes you think that? He was just being nice and helping me out."

Forge snorted. "Trust me, Taylor. Teenage boys hardly ever help out just to help out. He's probably trying to figure out the best way to worm his way into your heart right now."

I shook my head. "You're dillusional."

He sighed. "Just be careful, ok Taylor? I don't want you getting hurt, and you can't play with people's emotions. You need to decide what and who you want."

I nodded grudgingly. "I know."

"Lovely. Now, where did I put the keys?"

I groaned and slapped my hand against my forehead. It was going to be a long drive.

Another chapter for you all to enjoy. I hope you like it and please review! Even if you think it's crap I want to know! Reviewers = Good People!

Someone mentioned in one of they're reviews that they think that it's highly unlikely that Taylor would have fallen for Remy so fast. And they are absolutely right. So I made Ryan for some competition, because who isn't amused by conflict and male pride and ego?

And let's not forget, Remy did leave and do some pretty mean thins to Taylor. Though she may have been pretty swept up in the moment when she met Remy, she'll likely become more level headed once she gets some perspective.

Cheers!