Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters from Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon, X-men Evolution or the X-Men movies.

Author's Note: As I have said before, and I doubtlessly will have to say many times again, all of the senshi will be in this story. That includes the following: the Outers, the Starlights, Galaxia, Chibi-Chibi, and Kakyuu. So please don't worry about any of them showing up – believe me, I love them all and they will show up.

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"Minako," complained Usagi, wiggling in protest as her friend squirted the cold lotion on her back. "That's cold!"

"I think that's the point," responded the other blonde, smirking as she began to rub in the sun block. Although it was late afternoon and the worst of the sun's rays had come and gone, Usagi hadn't wanted to take any chances in getting a sunburn. She had important plans for the night, and a painful, itchy burn wasn't part of them.

"Hold still," Minako scolded, pressing the tips of her fingers into Usagi's shoulders. Pouting a bit, Usagi shifted just enough so that she could see Michiru out of the corner of her eye. The beautiful, aqua-haired woman was stretched out on a lawn chair, wearing a pale green bikini that had more than just a few men gawking at her. The only reason said men weren't getting their eyes poked out was because Chibi-Usa and Hotaru had sweet-talked Haruka into building a sandcastle with them.

"Michiru-san," said Usagi, muffling a yawn as the older girl glanced at her questioningly. "What time is your concert again? I don't want to be late."

Beep. Beep. Beep.

Michiru smiled slowly, her entire face glowing. Her eyes glittered like two jewels stolen from the depths of the ocean as she spoke. "It's at seven, Usagi-chan," she replied. "And I already told you, you don't have to come. I'm not the only one performing. You'll get bored."

"But I want to come," Usagi murmured, making a soft sound of contentment as Minako massaged the lotion into her thighs. "I like to hear you play. It's like the breezes from the ocean... It's pretty. It's worth sitting through those other people to hear it."

Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep.

Before the older woman could respond, the other senshi arrived, many soaked from a dip in the sea. Usagi stretched and opened her eyes, looking around with a satisfied look. All of the people that she loved most were sitting around her. Ami, Rei, Makoto, Minako, Hotaru, Michiru, Haruka, Setsuna, Chibi-Usa, Luna, Artemis, Diana, Yaten, Taiki, Sei – ... A small frown came over her face. Where was Seiya?

Beep. Beep. Beep. BEEP.

Before the silvery-haired girl could ask where her missing friend was, the other senshi suddenly grinned at her. She blinked at them for a minute in bewilderment, then yelped as she was scooped up without warning. "Seiya, stop!" she yelled, laughing, when the mischevious Starlight began to race towards the ocean.

BEEP. BEEP.

"Seiya! I said stop!"

BEEP.

"I mean it, Kou Seiya! Don't you dare throw me in!"

BEEP.

"SEIYA!" Usagi howled as she was unceremoniously deposited into a waist-high wave. The cool water was actually refreshing against her hot skin, but that was the last thing on her mind. First and foremost was tracking down that rambunctious Starlight!

BEEP. BEEP. BEEP. BEEP.

"What on earth is that – "

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"Noise?"

Tsukino Usagi opened her eyes and looked up at the wooden ceiling above her. A sense of longing and wistfulness settled around her as the remnants of her dream faded away. She had been so happy being with her friends, even if it was just for a minute. It was so hard to return to real life again.

Her heart felt heavy within her as she sat up, careful not to strike her head on the ceiling, and climbed down the ladder. She crossed the room and picked up the bright orange, plastic digital alarm clock that was currently going wild. She snapped it off and looked at the bright green numbers. It was only seven minutes after four in the morning. Right on time.

Returning to the bed, Usagi leaned against the ladder for a minute and yawned. They had only returned to the camp at around eleven the night before. The place had been totally silent, all of its occupants sound asleep, so Makoto and Ami had taken Usagi's bed for the night while Usagi bunked with Chibi-Usa.

A gleeful, if slightly wicked, smile crossed the princess's face as she pictured the look on one Seargent Slater's face if she and her friends could pull off what Usagi had planned for the morning. It would take a bit of work, of course, but she was confident that they could do it.

The first step was to get dressed. Usagi felt her way over to where the dressers were. She had laid her clothes out on top the night before. Swiftly, she stripped herself out of her nightgown and pulled on her bathing suit. Over it, she pulled on a pair of cotton pink shorts and a purple tank top, then stuffed her feet into her sneakers. The nice thing about having her hair in odango all the time was that it stayed relatively neat even when she slept, so she didn't have to waste time on it when she was in a hurry.

This done, she crept back towards the beds. Or at least, that was the general area she was aiming for. Instead, when she had put on her left sneaker, she hadn't realized that her foot had gotten tangled up in the strap. Usagi tripped with a squeal, landing with a yelp on the person in the nearest bed.

"What – who – " The girl whom she had fallen on woke with a shout, awakening the rest of the group. Usagi cringed internally as cries and questions were called out, confusion reigning until the lights flickered on, revealing Jean standing beside the light switch. Everyone looked accusingly at the bed that had the blonde-haired girl.

Laughing nervously, Usagi pushed herself up off of Rogue, who seemed to be frozen in place. "Sorry," she apologized, patting the girl on the bare shoulder as she scrambled off of the bed. "I tripped."

Rogue simply stared at her. Usagi blinked at her, a little surprised by the silence, but shrugged it off, figuring the other girl wasn't a morning person. Hell, Usagi herself usually didn't like to admit that mornings existed, but this was one occasion where she didn't mind getting up in the least.

"Okay, girls," she said loudly, spreading her legs and propping her hands on her waist for effect. "We're going to get that meanie if it kills us. You guys get dressed while I go wake up the boys. Meet me at the lake in ten minutes. Chop chop!"

As the blonde bounced out of the room, she heard the girls grumbling as they slowly got ready and smiled to herself. She knew that even though it sucked to get up so early, it would be worth it if she could carry out her plan. Much to her surprise, she wasn't even that tired as she slipped through the woods to the boy's cabin. Maybe there was something to be said for getting up early after all!

"Or not," the girl said under her breath, slapping the mosquito on her arm as she climbed over the railing on the boy's deck. She pounded on the door, waited, pounded some more, waited some more, and then started yelling.

"What the hell are you doing?" Scott demanded, yanking the door open. He stared at her as if she were possessed. "It's four thirty in the morning!"

"And since you're up already, come and meet me at the lake. All of you," the bunny added, rolling her eyes when his jaw twisted. "You've got five minutes. I'd hurry if I were you!"

Before he could protest, she vaulted off the porch and disappeared down the trail to the lake. It felt odd to be awake when it was still dark outside, when the sun hadn't even though about rising yet, but it felt nice at the same time. Usagi realized that she was enjoying the unusual peacefulness. She wasn't used to having silence, but it was something she could learn to like.

All too soon, her silence was disrupted by the arrival of her very unimpressed friends. She received more glares mixed with yawns in those two minutes than she had on any other occasion. The thought made her want to laugh, but she held it in. Barely. It was only the realization that Rei might strangle her for real that made her restrain herself.

"I know you're wondering why you're here," she began, linking her hands in front of her. "When Slater realizes that her jeep has been… borrowed, she will immediately turn to us, even without proof. It will annoy the hell out of her if we're acting like perfect little angels. That's why I woke you all up so early – so we could get what seems like a head start on that ridiculous schedule she set up yesterday. Since no one actually wants to follow it, it will take time to make us look like we are."

"That... makes sense," Rei said slowly, drumming her fingers against her arm. "That might actually work, Odango Atama. It seems you have your intelligent moments after all, despite how idiotic you really seem."

Usagi stuck her tongue out in reply before she continued. "Here's what I've come up with. Slater isn't awake yet, so we don't actually have to run all those miles. All we have to do is run until we're out of sight of the camp, and then we can just walk. She'll be so preoccupied with her car that she won't bother to check up on us and make sure that we're running. Jean can sense anyone who would tattle on us, and if anyone does come by, we'll just run until that person goes away.

"Once we come back, we'll go for our swim. Before we leave, Rei can use her powers to create a fireball in the middle and bottom of the lake. Ami and Bobby can surround the fireball with a shield of ice. While we're on our run, the ice will slowly be melted by the heat of the fire. At the same time, the water will get warmer. The shield will prevent the water from putting the fire out until it melts, and it will also prevent the lake from getting way too hot. There won't be any evidence behind at all.

"If Scott will lend me his cellphone, I can call the restaurant we were at yesterday. They deliver, so by the time that we are done our run and our swim, a real breakfast will be waiting for us. If anyone gets suspicious, well, I don't think they'll blame us for not wanting to eat that awful breakfast. I bet a lot of people won't show up. I've seen a lot of people snacking off candy and chips from the camp's little shop.

"Finally, once we've finished eating, we can avoid even pretending to do the rest of that crap by introducing Makoto and Ami to Professor Xavier. That's much more important than any of this so-called training, don't you think? At the same time, if he brings it up, we can plead our case for yesterday. I don't know if he'll say anything, but I imagine he'll be way more lenient with two new recruits," Usagi finished and looked around nervously. "What do you think?"

Her friends were peering at her with stunned expressions. It was clear that the details of her plan hadn't occurred to them. After a moment of thought, Jean nodded slowly, her red hair bobbing around her shoulders. "That might actually work," she said hesitantly. "If we can pull it off."

"Well, what are we waiting for?" Minako said, holding her hands up in the air. "It's getting late! ... I can't believe the sun isn't up and I just said that..."

Biting on her lip to keep from smiling, Usagi accepted Scott's cellphone and dialed the number to the hotel. Her friends passed, heading down towards where the waves were breaking against the beach. A grin spread across Usagi's face, her eyes sparkling silver for a minute as she released the breath she had been holding. Even though she was an intelligent girl, even if she was lazy, she had a tendency to act more silly than she really was. Part of her had feared that her plan would be rejected outright.

The ringing in her ear stopped, replaced by a chirpy female voice. Usagi ordered several different kinds of food, as she was unsure of what her friends liked the best. She was also hoping that there would be enough left over to have lunch and perhaps even dinner. As an afterthought, she also requested several kinds of dessert, as well as plates, utensils and drinks.

"Okay, done," she announced, turning around. Her mouth dropped open as her eyes grew wide. Ami and Bobby were standing a short distance apart, their hands outstretched towards each other, the tips of their fingers just brushing. Rei held her hands above theirs, a red ball of fire shimmering in her hands. Ami and Bobby shut their eyes in concentration – a shining globe of pale blue and white ice began to emerge around the fire. At the last second, Rei drew her hands back, allowing the globe to fully encase the fire.

Jean stepped forward, one hand to her forehead and one hand pointed towards the globe. She raised it into the air using her powers, then directed it out towards the middle of the lake. Her hand lowered as the globe did, forcefully shoving the water out of the way. After several minutes, her hands dropped to her sides and she nodded to show that the globe had reached the bottom of the lake.

"Great job," Usagi said, approaching the small group. She looked very carefully at Rei and Ami, and then she hurtled herself at them without any warning. Both girls gave startled cries as the blonde crashed into them and threw an arm around each one.

"What are you doing?" Rei exclaimed, stumbling to catch her balance. She stared down at Usagi as if the girl had lost it.

"Sorry," whispered the blonde, and squeezed her eyes shut as she held on. She felt Ami hug her back, and after a moment, so did Rei. Seeing the powers of fire and ice come alive in her friends had been more than she could bear. Hugging them had been the only thing that she could think of doing.

"Are you okay?" Ami questioned as the girl drew back. Her warm blue eyes were filled with surprise and concern.

"I'm fine," Usagi said quietly, and sucked in a deep breath before she tossed her hair back. Her eyes, when she looked up, were determined. "You guys start running. I'll catch up."

After a moment of hesitation, Bobby and Scott led the majority of the group up the hill to the trail. Minako and Chibi-Usa remained behind, staring at Usagi. The blonde had her hands clutched to her chest, her back turned towards them as she looked out over the lake. Minako sighed slightly, feeling unsettled, and took Chibi-Usa by the hand. They walked slowly after their friends.

Alone, Usagi lowered her head. Her eyes filled with tears as she shut them. The pain snuck up on her at the oddest times. She could be fine one minute and sick with longing the next. Her heart was in constant turmoil, and although she had thought it would be better with her friends around, it was worse. All she wanted was a hug – it didn't matter who it was from, as long as the person who gave it to her could hug her with the force of over a thousand years of memories.

"All I wanted was for them to be happy," she cried without warning, feeling her grief become anger. She stooped and dug her nails into the sand, scrabbling for a rock. One of her fingers pricked a sharp edge but she ignored it, scooping up the offending rock. "I wanted for them not to suffer! Why does it hurt so much?"

Crooking her arm, she threw the rock out towards the lake. "Why?" she screamed, stamping her foot, watching as the water exploded around the projectile through her tears. "I hate this! I want my friends back! I want my friends back!"

As quickly as her rage had come, it left. Usagi collapsed in the surf and dissolved into tears. "I want my friends back," she whimpered, holding her injured hand to her mouth. She licked at the small stream of blood, sucking on the wound as still more tears streamed down her cheeks. "I want my friends back."

For several seconds, she remained kneeling alone. The waves became higher and more forceful, and when one washed over her knees and soaked her shorts, she opened her eyes and looked down at the water as if seeing it for the first time. New tears glistened in her shining eyes, but this time, they weren't from grief.

"Michiru-san," she whispered, trailing several fingers through the cresting waves. Her hand came back glistening as the wind blew, brushing the droplets from her skin. "Haruka-san... You're right. I'm not alone. I'm being silly again."

Usagi gathered the remainder of her strength and turned her back on the rising sun. She began to jog up the path, leaving her sorrow behind for the moment. 'Everyone... I love you. I want you to be happy, so I will wait for you in silence. Just be happy for me. That's all I need.'

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The sound of cracking bark echoed through the small clearing as Logan landed neatly on the ground. His shirt and pants were stained with sweat and he was breathing heavily. The tree he had been practicing on was bent slightly, the trunk no longer straight, with little to no bark left where he had been striking. He had been training for several hours, heedless of the rising sun. His mind had been preoccupied with a blonde vixen ever since yesterday morning.

When news of the missing students had spread around camp, it had taken a lot for him not to laugh. He was normally a gruff man, but the picture of the enraged Slater storming around her office breaking things had been a lot for even him. Ororo and Charles had decided against searching for the students until the next moring, since it would have been all over the news had there been any trouble, and everyone had been certain that the team would have returned by the new dawn.

Logan sighed and released his metallic claws, distantly noting the familiar sound as they slipped out of his skin. His mind had been going over his last encounter with Usagi since the girl had stalked away. On the one hand, he knew that she was right and that he was being a vindictive bastard. On the other hand, he didn't take lightly to being pushed around by anyone and he knew that she knew it.

The girl was only fourteen, and yet he felt more diferently about her than anyone he could recall meeting. She was beautiful on the inside and out, perfection in its most elegant of times. Her attitude was primarily accepting, even to those who at first sight would be frightening to most, and she was kind, sweet and gentle on top of that. Added to that the sorrow that the small girl seemed to carry within her soul, and she was an enigma that he simply could not figure out.

Of course, common sense (and the cold lake water) told him that she was not perfect. She had the tendency to act silly, klutzy and ditzy, and her temper was something fierce, especially when she was standing up for someone who had been wronged in some way. She also had a dislike for rules and obviously, no qualms about breaking the ones she thought unfair.

But... even through her faults, Tsukino Usagi drew people to her like a moth to a flame. She already had the majority of the X-Men team wrapped around her little finger. She was a natural leader, but she didn't feel like a leader. Even though he did not know it at the time, Logan was experiencing the first person he had ever met who was literally born to rule.

Footsteps approaching him broke him out of his thoughts. He glanced up sharply, one hand half-raised in case of danger, and breathed in. The sweet scent of the sea intermingled with strawberries swirled around him, and his stomach sank to his feet. Of all the people he did not want to see...

And there she was, coming along towards him at a slow clip. The bottom half of her tank top and hair, as well as her shorts, were soaked, with water literally dribbling down her legs. Her sneakers made a squishing sound with every step that she took. As she approached, he could see that her face was streaked with tears. She had been crying, and fiercely at that.

Sensing someone was close, Usagi looked up. She slowed to a walk when she saw him and stopped a short distance away. "I'm sorry," she said softly. "For pushing you in the lake. It was wrong of me."

He looked at her, startled, having not expected her apology. Some part of him felt like apologing as well, but he beat it down. Logan did not apologize unless he absolutely had to. "Yeah," he muttered, because she seemed to be expecting him to say something.

To his surprise, her face brightened. She smiled at him, tossed him a sunny good-bye, and ran past into the forest. He watched her go, too shocked to protest. She was nearly out of sight before he regained the ability to think, and she was out of sight before he regained the ability to walk.

Shaking away any and all of his earlier thoughts, he decided to return to the camp and began walking back the way Usagi had come. He wanted a shower and a short nap before the kids returned and fireworks started… and he needed to find a way to remove the tear-stained, beaming face of one Tsukino Usagi from his mind.

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God, I almost made myself cry with this one. Please review!