Episode 8.0: SpykeCAM
Installment 2 of 2
Responsibility of Change
Kurt spent majority of the morning running errands around the Institute for the Professor and Ms Monroe, as well as doing a few extra cleaning duties just because the 'adults' decided it would only be fair he'd have something productive to do while everyone else is busy with school. Under different circumstances he might complain, but he was in an exceptionally good mood and neither breaking his inducer nor the extra work were able to smother it.
Having finished everything that was assigned for him, he challenged Forge to a Mario Kart race that turned into an entire marathon with the two yelling, taunting each other and basically acting like 5-year-olds. At last the fun was broken by amused - if a little frustrated - Ororo informing them that they'd be taking over dinner cooking duties to put their enthusiasm to a good use. Then she disappeared out of sight leaving them to it.
"Man, I can never figure out what to make when it's my turn" Kurt ran his eyes over available food looking for inspiration that just wouldn't come. "And this time they took me by surprise! Can we just make some Sauerbraten Fleischklößchen?"
"I have no idea what you just said" Silvercloud stated. "But it didn't sound edible."
"...The meatball thing from my last cooking duty?" Wagner asked uncertainty.
"Well…" Forge rubbed on his chin briefly before pulling out a few cans from the pantry. "We could go with meatballs, but I'm thinking some more fancy ones."
"Sprinkle it with glitter or something?"
"Splendid idea, but no. We could make baked greek meatballs with feta and tomato" he started collecting ingredients on the counter. "Aaaand maybe some panzanella salad."
Kurt stared at him blankly. "Wait-... you can cook?"
Forge smiled awkwardly and shrugged.
"As in…" Wagner frowned in confusion. "Beyond scrambled eggs and just-heat-it straight-out-of-packet dishes?"
Silvercloud scoffed low. "Yeah. I actually can."
And he quickly proved that by organizing their working space and assigning Kurt specific tasks while he did the more specific things such as adding spices and figuring out proportions. At one point movement outside the window captured his attention and he looked up from the bowl.
"Hey, Kurt, look" he nodded towards the front yard. Although still in a fair distance they could see a tall, broad-shouldered man in a brown coat and with long blond hair. "Isn't this Sabretooth? The one they mentioned yesterday?"
Kurt moved to the window and looked out. "...Ja" he said with concern.
Just then the security cannons emerged nearby the man and attempted to capture him with nets that he caught mid-air. A mere moment later Storm approached through the air and hovered above the angry intruder. The two watched the sky darken as she summoned stormy clouds and allowed the man to be struck by lightning. He fell to his knees and now the net cannon managed to get him caught up in an iron web.
They watched him being sprayed with a large dose of sleeping gas before - clearly angry - Wolverine threw the much larger man over his back and carried him inside.
"...So much for the big threat?" Forge said with an arched brown. "That wasn't even exciting."
Kurt shrugged. "He's not going to be a problem for a little bit."
"He'll be back though, right? I remember him."
"Ja. Herr Professor refused to do anything about it. Because 'changing things is risky'" he signed quotation marks in the air.
"Knowing there will be trouble in the future but not knowing how to avoid it. Boomer, huh?"
"Ja..."
They worked quietly for a few minutes.
"Check, making a meal for eleven people is bloody lots of work" Forge said adding another ball on top of an already big mountain.
"You think this is hard?" Kurt smiled. "Wait until the Recruits move in over the summer. It's going to get crazy in here."
"Yeeeah, about that" Silvercloud took a deeper breath, his usual light mannerism slightly overshadowed by seriousness in his eyes. "I suppose it's going to be an all-hands-on-deck situation… And I think it's time I step in as an adult and start to- you know, do the adult thing?"
"Do the adult thing" Kurt repeated mockingly contemplating the 'complex' idea.
Forge grimaced. "Like Ororo and Logan, I mean. Be an instructor."
Kurt looked at him curiously. "No offense, man… But you can hardly hold your own in the simulation level 2."
"I don't mean it like that" Silvercloud rolled his eyes briefly. "Not the physical trainings. But I could train everyone to know how to use the systems around the Institute, teach them how to handle minor repairs, maybe educate on breaching security and programming. Things that could come in handy when well aimed fists and explosive powers won't do the job."
Wagner continued to peel the soft skin off of tomatoes as he absently nodded at the idea. "Ja, that makes sense… I think."
"Danger Room has a special program that completely suppresses powers" Forge stated firmly as he lifted his eyes to see Kurt's surprise. "Did you know? Do you know how to run it?"
"No, I- I genuinely had no idea it exists."well-aimed
"There's also an entire set of chambers dedicated to that. Did you know about the quick access lifts?"
"The elevators?"
"No, not exactly. There are three single-person capsules hidden in the walls, should anything happen these can be used to quickly make it to the main hangar."
Kurt shook his head with big, surprised eyes.
"Exactly my point" the man nodded. "There are many easter eggs to find in Institute's systems, things that could be crucial or at very least - extremely helpful to know in certain situations."
"How come you know all of this?"
"I'm actively working on the Institute's intestines. Security system, simulators, levels of the underground that maybe even you never set your foot it. The Professor wanted to keep a lot of things low profile until they are needed, but lately he seems to have a change of mind. Wants to be more proactive with his actions I guess. He said that by the time he takes in more students he wants the entire main crew trained to use the Institute to the full extent and I-... I offered to be in charge of that."
The naked tomato lay limp in Kurt's hand as the boy watched his older friend.
"I just thought that afterward I could carry this on and take in a few of you or the younger folk to come for training in mechanics or programming" Forge finished in a lower voice before shrugging. "It might not be much but at least I could be of use when nothing's broken and requiring my immediate attention. Pass on some skills or something."
"Dude, that's-... That's actually an amazing idea!" Kurt grinned.
Forge looked a little encouraged by his enthusiasm. "I already talked to the Professor too. He says that the more advanced systems we have and the more students live here, the more mechanics and programists will come in handy. Even if they only learn basics or just learn how to operate the systems we already have, it could be the thing that saves someone one day. All hands on deck, right?"
"Exactly!" Wagner jumped up and dropped the tomato in a big bowl. "So you're officially going to be one of our instructors now?"
"Yeah" Silvercloud chuckled awkwardly. "Just don't you dare call me 'teach' or anything along the lines."
"Got it, teach."
"Screw you, Kurt."
xXx
"Mm, it smells so good in here" Fallen said as she walked straight into the kitchen after arriving from school. "All that's lacking is a 'kiss the chef' apron" she smiled as she briefly embraced Kurt around the stomach to give him a kiss on the cheek before moving on to sit at the island counter.
Wagner smiled looking over his shoulder at her. "Danke, but I'm just the assistant."
Harris looked to Forge who shrugged his shoulders. "Well, well. You're a man of many talents, Johna. Anyway, while I'd love to discuss the benefits of having better cooking skills than me, I came here with a more pressing matter" her face turned more serious. "What's going on with the Sabretooth?"
The two young men looked at each other before shrugging and resuming their work.
"We saw him being captured. Professor has probably wiped his memory by now and they're either dumping or are soon going to dump him somewhere far away" Kurt said unenthusiastically.
Fallen narrowed her eyes absently. "That's what they did originally. Haven't they changed the plan?"
Kurt arched his brow at her briefly. "Why?"
"Evan overheard them saying something about doing it differently than before. I mean than in the other timeline."
Wagner lifted his eyes to the window. The driveway where Sabretooth was captured an hour ago was now empty. "I don't know. They got him in a different way, but Professor seemed reluctant to act on what he knows."
"Remember what I said about him wanting to be more proactive these days?" Forge looked between the couple. "He probably wanted to think about it, but he might want to switch things up after all."
Fallen's lips tightened like she worried but expected that was the case. "You don't know for sure?"
The two shook their heads hesitantly.
Harris nodded to herself and seemed to consider it for a short moment before she got up, rather abruptly, and grabbed her school bag. "I'll try to find out what's going on with that" she said under her breath as she strode out of the kitchen.
The two boys looked at each other when she disappeared out of sight. "She gets really worked up whenever there's a possibility of changing something from the original timeline" Forge noticed.
Kurt nodded slightly. "I think she just finds comfort in knowing exactly what to expect when it goes the same. When anything changes she can't be certain" he scoffed low with a small smile. "Fallen always wanted to know exactly where she's standing, but this chaos factor to all of this makes it difficult to be sure of anything. Especially if we interfere on purpose."
xXx
"Professor?" the girl peeked into the office after no one responded to her second knock. She frowned at finding the space empty. A little worried, she thought, 'Professor?', trying to project the thought at the man, wherever he is.
After a moment, she received a response. *Yes, Fallen. Go to the elevator and hit negative 2-1 in that order. I'll be waiting.*
It sounded to her like the man expected she would want to talk. A little confused at the instructions, she didn't question them, just made it to the elevator and punched in the buttons. It's taken her down, past the basement, underground facility and stopped at something displayed as Sublevel 4.
When the door slid open she was presented with a portion of the underground she was never to before and wasn't even aware of. It looked a not unlike the facility level, meaning everything being made vastly of metal panels illuminated with white led lights, however a dozen steps ahead to the right was an open space she couldn't quite see from here, whereas to the left were three separate rooms, each divided by plexiglass or some other see-through walls. A large, dark shape moved inside one of them.
Professor Xavier was stationed in the middle of the main walkway, looking towards her solemnly. She had almost opened her mouth to speak, but instead silently moved to his side. As she approached, the figure contained in the glass cell came fully into her view, revealing the prisoner's identity to her eyes, although she already knew whom he is.
Her eyes absorbed the large, raging man, his ragged coat and long, tangled hair trashing behind him as he attempted to break either of the glass walls, moving in an abrupt and animalistic feat of anger. When he noticed the new arrival he instantly moved to the front of the cell and pounded his clawed fists on the glass before grinning in a wild manner. His sharp, discolored fangs were exposed as he started saying something, possibly threatening them, but no sound penetrated the glass.
The girl's eyes slowly pulled away from Sabretooth's looming, panting form and met Professor Xavier's inadequately calm, brown eyes.
"What… do you plan to do about him?" she asked.
"Under regular circumstances I'd have wiped his memory and release him" the man responded in a similar, lowered voice. "But now we already know that it wouldn't turn out as well as we'd want it to."
"Whatever ya do, I need to know what the bub knows first" said a voice behind. Only then Fallen turned to peer into the open space at the opposite site of the aisle. Wolverine was sitting there, slumbed in one of the white chairs and looking as pissed off as one would expect. "We got a beef I know nothin' 'bout, knowin' where that came from 'll feel in some blanks."
The other two turned to look at the imprisoned man again, and as their did, for a brief moment their eyes met and brows twitched ever so slightly. Before Logan could notice that, their eyes were on Sabretooth again, but they both shared the same vague thought; the amount of blanks Sabretooths role in the man's past would fill, was perhaps more than Wolverine bargained for.
Fallen wasn't sure whether the Professor learned of their connection from Kurt, or if he already did some digging in Sabretooth's memory, but she could tell that he knew more than he was confident in telling Logan.
Her eyes followed the blond-haired man who now moved away from the glass pane and paced his confinement, occasionally muttering something in theri direction. They never heard a word of it on this side. The savage man, along with both - his threats and the truths he happened to hold - was safely locked away from them.
"So after you learn what he knows" she played into the Professor's narrative of remaining oblivious as of yet, "what happens?"
"I tell ya what happens" Wolverine growled as he got up abruptly and strode towards them. Fallen stepped away as he extended claws in one of his hands and threateningly flashed them at the glass. "I give this bub whatever he deserved in the first place!"
The man on the inside seemed merely amused with the threat.
"You know I will not support violence" Xavier reminded him with a slight frown.
Wolverine growled under his breath. "Yeah? Guess what, the bub doesn't know any better! Look at him, that's a walkin' talkin' violence!" he pointed his claws at the glass before stowing them away back in his forearm. The cuts on his skin healed before Xavier even opened his mouth to reply;
"But you can be better than that!" the man insisted.
"What if I don't want to be better? What if I just want to give him the beatin' he came here for?!" Logan shoved side of his fisted palm against the glass. "Are ya gonna read his mind already?!"
"I already said I only will when you stop insisting to fight him afterwards" Xavier stared up at him firmly.
Logan growled again and spun around to take a leave. "I'm not one of yer little students, Chuck, can't tell me what is wrong or right" he declared angrily before disappearing behind the elevator's door.
Fallen turned back around to see the Professor rich up to massage ne bridge of his nose with frustration. "Could as well be dealing with a ten-year-old, huh?" she muttered. "You know, he's correct in his own right. Sabretooth can't be dealt with by any peaceful measures for all I know."
"That's hardly where my concerns lay" Xavier inhaled deeply and lifted his eyes to the agitated mutant within the glass cell. "...For the last couple of years I've been trying to help Logan uncover his past, and now I'm afraid that learning too much about it could cause him to become… unhinged."
"More than now you mean?" the girl asked, almost finding humor in that. Almost, but not quite; her scoff was bitter. "So what happens to Sabretooth? You don't plan to release him with a memory wipe after all?"
"I don't think I am" the man absently watched the man move about his cell.
For a moment, so did Fallen.
"It can spiral out of control" she said just above a whisper. "There's so many ways it could affect the future if we just take one puzzle out of the equation."
"But maybe this puzzle will make more room for positive change" the man responded.
"Or maybe not."
"I'm willing to try" Xavier's gaze now shifted away from Sabretooth, commanding the girl's eyes to meet his again. "I'm aware of the danger that comes with interfering with the future. But for these nine months since your arrival I've concluded that perhaps I've been too quick to forbid you from trying to influence it. I'm sure you understand why" he exhaled low and absently turned his eyes to the silently moving form behind the glass again.
And she did understand, because the same fear of setting off a disaster was underlying her own decisions and actions from the moment she realized they were to relieve the show's events from scratch.
"However I've come to see that the three of you could be our greatest asset if we're just brave enough to utilize what you know" the Professor's lowered voice carried through the empty space and subtly crawled under her skin. "We-... I can't shy away from the responsibility of change."
xXx
When Fallen was headed to the dinner a dozen minutes later, Professor's words still echoed in her memory, and as she locked her eyes with him for a moment, on the way to her seat, she felt her stomach heave with a re-planted sense of responsibility. But this time, it was different. This time, she didn't feel responsible for not letting truth slip and limiting her influence on the story she already knew. This time it was the responsibility to make change where the change is due.
One could never tell if that will turn out for the better, but now she felt her hands being freed to make the call when that seems more reasonable than standing by and watching.
While still dazed with the new arrangement and slowly adjusting to the feeling of this different type of weight that rested on her shoulders, she also felt the tickle of freedom that remained stifled since she arrived in this dimension. For the same reason her boldness and persistence were returning to the surface to breathe again, and she couldn't help but feel relieved to know that she gets to retrieve that part of herself. Of course, major situations would still need to be discussed with the Professor beforehand, but otherwise - or when consulting wouldn't be possible - she, as well as Kurt and Forge, was granted green light to act.
The other two weren't directly informed about that new strategy as of yet, but she could imagine at least Kurt being rather pleased with this approach. After all, even while he wasn't supposed to, he still tried to interfere, of course having everyone's best interest in mind.
The two of them smiled as they presented everyone with the foods they made and joined the others at the table. In response to questions that immediately came up, Professor assured everyone that the Sabretooth has been dealt with and they can go about their day without worrying about him showing up. After that little disclaimer, the air was filled with the usual clatter and chatter, yet Fallen resigned to silence while her mind explored the new situation.
She wasn't the only one who remained quiet throughout the dinner; Logan didn't utter a word and just consumed his food quickly, before offensively leaving the table. Her eyes walked him out of the room before hesitantly returning to observe those who remained.
"I need to was my car while it's this warm outside" Scott was saying at Professor's right hand side. "Do you feel like giving a hand, Evan?"
"Nah, sorry, man. I need to work on my vid" Evan patted the camera that sat by his plate. "Maybe after I get a few shots."
"Kurt?" Scott shifted his eyes to the german who responded with thumbs up as his cheeks were too stuffed to speak. "Great."
Wagner swallowed before turning to Fallen. "Do you wanna come along?" he asked.
The girl blinked to rid of her thoughts. She shook her head. "Dishwashing duty."
"Ah. Right."
Conversations resumed without her and she let it be. She'd talk to Kurt and Forge about everything later.
At last the students proceeded to up and go one by one. She just said they can leave the plates behind as she and Rogue - who she was assigned this duty with - proceeded to go around the long table and collect them.
"Would you rather wash or dry?" she asked the other girl as they set the dishes down at the kitchen counter.
Rogue glanced at the dirty stacks. "Dry. Wet food remains 're disgustin'."
Fallen shrugged her shoulders and turned the water on, however when she held out the first clean plate, she was met with no response. She turned her gaze to see the southerner look at her expectantly. She noticed the older girl removed her gloves and set them aside.
"Put it down, Ah'll be pickin' stuff from th' counter" she said. "Wouldn't want t' soak mah gloves."
Harris exhaled low and placed the plate down beside the sink. "You could just take them from me carefully, you know" she said as if on a side note.
"Betta' safe than sorry" Rogue muttered.
Hearing a low, bitter scoff coming from the brunette, she looked at her simultaneously picking up the next wet plate from the counter.
"What's s' funny?"
"It just reminds me of the old days when Kurt avoided running risk of being touched in a near same manner" Fallen said low as a sad smirk played on her lips. "Like brother like sister I guess."
Rogue flinched slightly at that. "He's not mah brother" she muttered, before adding cleared; "Except Ah would literally knock yah unconscious an've yah in mah head, which Ah don't recon either of us'd want" she rolled her eyes. After a moment of consideration she picked up again, "Why'd Kurt avoid bein' touched tho'?"
Fallen took a slow breath before responding; "To put it in his words, he was scared of me feeling him. Fear of rejection, self-confidence issues, past trauma. Lots of reasons, really. Little to no good experience with proximity."
Rogue's eyes shifted out the window, where she could see the boy goof around as he and Scott cleaned the later's car. For the first time it occurred to her that because of Wagner's ever-positive attitude and contagiously good mood she never took a moment to think about what he must have been through before getting to this point in his life.
Noticing Fallen's eyes shifted from the dishes to her, Rogue met her gaze. Harris smirked in a very fleeting and joyless way. "It's probably not my story to tell" she whispered. "All I'm saying is that in some regards he probably understands how you feel better than any of us ever could. So don't be so quick to discard him as you family."
Fallen's eyes returned to the dishes as the two fell silent, however the southerner's gaze lingered on the boy outside for another moment.
They didn't say anything more until they were finished and parted ways. Rogue shrugged off the conversation and went to practice for the tonight's auditions for Dracula in which she was supposed to compete against Kitty.
Now, sharing a room with Pryde has been a rocky road from day one, within first 12 hours their personalities clashed like polar opposites shoved against one another only to never be able to make actual contact. They went to sleep and got up at different times, thus waking or not letting the other sleep; had different taste in music and both liked to blast their genre of choice on full volume; Kitty loved to chat on the phone with some girl names 'Tracy' while Rogue would rather spend that time in quiet, reading a book. Little arguments broke over items being left at the wrong side of the drawer, over too much perfume in the air, over a stolen sock. They couldn't go five minutes without either one rolling their eyes or muttering unflattering words under her breath.
And finally it went as far as to end up with both of them choosing to audition for the same role just to prove who can do better. Sure, Dracula was a classic she loved and a Rock Musical wasn't something she'd necessarily hate to partake in, but would she really audition if not in spite of Kitty? Unlikely. But since she was going to audition, she might as well nail it and show the petty little miss goody two shoes how to rock it.
The auditions were held on this very day, so she didn't have that much time to prepare beforehand, but that's alright since it was supposed to be mostly improvised, as she was informed. She did, however, take time to memorise one scene from the novel in case she could get to choose which one to perform. She doubted Kitty did the same, since she was extremely unlikely to own a copy of the Dracula.
When the time was closing in, she left the mansion and made it to Bayville High by foot while listening to one of her many CDs to get her in the mood. She arrived before anyone else, and Ms Tueselle briefly smiled and instructed her to wait for a few minutes as she and three permanent members of the school's Theatre Club settled down and brought out their notepads.
"Alrighty" said the woman. "I think we're good to go. Come on stage, please. Now, your name please?" she asked brightly as the goth made it to the center of the stage.
"Rogue Adler" she said and watched them scribble it down, only two exchanging a little uncertain looks upon hearing the unusual name.
"Very well" Ms Tueselle lifted her eyes from the notepad and flashed her another friendly smile. "On the table to your right there are scripts for each character. Please choose one you'd like to audition for the most, and read a few lines for us. Feel free to review them beforehand, you have two minutes to prepare."
The girl made it across the stage to the laminated sheets of paper just as she saw two other contestants emerge through the auditorium door, closely followed by Kitty who immediately frowned upon seeing her upstage. Rogue smirked with satisfaction as she started to browse the script for the scene she already had memorised.
xXx
Kitty swept past Rogue with her head held high and ponytail swinging violently behind her as she strode for the scheduled karate session. They hadn't exchanged so much as eye contact from the moment Ms Tueselle excused them and the others who showed up, telling them the final decisions will be revealed at the end of the week on the message board.
Both of them were convinced that their performance - both the lines and the dancing - was superior to the other's, and while neither of them said that out loud it was clear as day on their tight faces.
"You know, I don't think there's, like, any doubt who they're going to pick to play the part" Pryde was telling Kurt when they waited, already dressed in the white karategi robes. "I mean, like, that Sophomore blonde wasn't terrible, but everyone else simply sucked" she said loud enough for her voice to carry to Rogue who was adjusting the uniform a few big steps away.
The other girl frowned but had enough dignity not to give Pryde any recognition for the indirect insult.
"Who were you auditioning for anyway?" Wagner asked the brunette.
"Oh, I don't know. I would be totally down with either Lucy or Mina" she said. "They are giving each role their own spin, since it's supposed to be in, like, modern times and all, and the plot is quite different. But some people seemed stuck on the old version during the auditions, if you ask me."
Hearing the teasing edge to Katherine's voice, Rogue snapped and turned around on her heel. "Ms Tueselle happened to love mah reconstruction of th' original if ya hadn't noticed, bein' busy admiring the tip of yer own nose as ya always are" her voice rose as she approached Pryde in a fierce strut. "And Ah'm sure she appreciates th' source material more than ya eve' could."
Pryde looked her up and down utterly unimpressed as she crossed her arms. "I think you're just jealous of how well I did."
"Well mah ASS, Pryde!" Rogue snapped back. "Ya don't have what it takes to be in a rock musical an' ya never will."
"Can you two stop fighting already?" asked Kurt, who had been steadily shifting away from the two as their friendly little conversation progressed.
"So you agree that I was better than her?" Kitty looked at him proudly.
"What? I didn't even see the auditions-"
"Kurt!" Pryde gasped. "I've been telling you how well I did for the last ten minutes! And you're telling me you think I'm lying?"
"Of course I'm not, I just-"
"Ha!" Pryde pointed her finger at the taller girl. "He knows I totally owned you!"
"Wait, that's not-"
"Oh please!" Rogue rolled her eyes as she stepped closer to Kurt. "Anyone with least amount of common sense knows ya'd suck at that audition, Ah'm sure Kurt's aware of that and just doesn't want yer delicate little feelings hurt."
"Oh yeah?!"
With an exasperated expression, Wagner stepped back and teleported to Jean and Fallen who were watching the situation with growing concern.
"I want NOTHING to do with that!" the boy gesticulated fearfully towards the two females who continued to glare and try to get the last word.
Grey exhaled slowly before sending the two a brief look. "I'll handle this" she said before moving towards the arguing roommates,
The pair watched her try to reconcile them for a short moment, both wincing at the poor results, but then their attention was attracted by low, excited mutter somewhere down to the right. They saw Evan on one knee, a camera in his hands and lens pointed at the scene.
"Awesome shot, this film's gonna be better than anything Vandermeer ever expected!" Daniels cheered himself on as he bent down in his commitment to get the best angle. "Came in as a student, walked out as a champion!"
Harris and Wagner exchanged short looks.
"You know your voice's going to be too loud on the audio to even remotely hear what's going on over there?" the brunette asked looking down at him with critical amusement.
Daniels shot her a sideways glance, like he minded her input and wanted her to know, but all the while he just realized she's right. "Ah, I can cut it out."
"Oh really?" now it was Wagner who smirked at the self-appointed movie director. "And you know how to remove specific type of audio without muting the scene altogether?" he asked in a fakely impressed tone.
Evan's brow twitched and he pulled away from the camera, standing up straight. "...No" he admitted, trying - but failing - to sound unbothered by the 'small issue' it presented. "Where's Mr Logan anyway?" trying to change the subject, he looked towards the door. "I'm late. And if I'm late that means he's even late-er."
"All those years and I never realized that's how time works!" Fallen gasped turning to Kurt who tried to contain a chuckle and ended up snorting low at that. Harris addressed Daniels again with a yet-again, matter of fact tone; "Simply put, we have no idea."
"And Scott's late too" Wagner noted with a hint of concern in his voice.
"Big Scotty late?" Daniels looked around, only now realizing the absence of their leader. He lifted the camera again but this time pointed it on his face and reported in a greve tone; "May 1996… This might be my last report, as the world seems to be ending as we speak."
This earned him a chuckle from all two of his audience. He looked pretty pleased with himself for a brief moment before being thrown off guard by a hand on his shoulder.
"Alright, that's enough everyone, round up" said Ororo as she frowned slightly at the slowly cooling argument that went on further away from the door. "We're only doing meditation today" she said gesturing towards the yoga mats rolled up against the opposite wall.
Summers emerged from behind her and walked right for a mat. He walked straight but made it across the gym without quite meeting anyone's eyes, far as they could tell with his glasses.
"Wait, but- Auntie O., we were supposed to do karate afterwards! I was going to film a few clips" Daniels gestured to his camera with disappointment.
"I'm sorry, but I can't teach you proper karate and as you can see, Logan isn't here to do that either" she said, with suppressed bitterness to her voice that instead shone through in her bright eyes.
Jean opened her mouth to ask what everyone was thinking - but why didn't he show up to run the session - yet the way Monroe spun sharply around and regarder the students with a demanding look made her swallow the question. Reaching the same conclusion, everyone picked a mat and spread it out on the floor without so much as stalling for another moment.
xXx
"Man, it's not everyday you see Auntie O. pissed" Evan was saying in a hushed voice as he walked alongside Fallen, Kurt, Jean and Scott back towards their bedrooms. Kitty and Rogue already stormed ahead of them and disappeared out of sight. "Wonder if it's 'bout Wolverine not showing up to teach us."
"Bet it is" Summers muttered so low it barely reached the other teens' ears.
"Yeah, that was odd" Daniels agreed however his eyes shifted to Scott with slight arch of his brow. "But so was you being late. What's up with that?"
Now the other three also turned to look at the tallest boy intently and they didn't fail to notice a slight grimace on his lips. "I was talking to the Professor about the Sabretooth case" he responded without sparing a look for any of his teammates.
"What Sabretooth case, Scott?" Jean asked in her ever-gentle voice.
"The Professor captured him" Fallen responded when it became apparent that Scott's only answer was tightening of his face.
Now Jean's and Evan's faces turned to her instead.
"He's here?" Grey asked. "Still?" to which Harris responded with a small nodd.
"And we only find out now?" Daniels looked at everyone with wide eyes, looking to see the same disapproval on their faces. His expectations were quite met. "Where do they keep him though?"
"In the undergrounds" Summers spoke up again. "Wolverine insists that the Professor would read Sabretooth's mind for information about their past, and the Professor refuses. He says he can't access his memory so easily, it's blocked or something, and prying it open too fast could be damaging. Which doesn't seem like such a bad thing, that Sabretooth guy seems feral."
"Scott!" Jean frowned with disapproval. "He's still a person! Professor Xavier is right not to rush if it could hurt him."
"Yeah, well, he's Mr Logan's mortal enemy and that makes him pretty disposable if you ask me" Evan chimed in. Now Grey's eyes shifted to him with the same disapproval. "What? He clearly wants to kill our teach, I would say that means he doesn't get the usual benefit of the doubt."
Fallen fell behind the group while the conversation continued between Jean, Scott and Evan. Shortly after Kurt, who didn't want to have his input in this matter, dropped out too and waited a few steps ahead, looking back at the brunette who in turn - he now noticed - was looking towards the elevator at the far end of the corridor. Wolverine who emerged from the interconnected hallway seemed to be pushing two buttons consecutively right before the door slid closed obscuring the short from the view.
Harris shifted her eyes away from the elevator when Kurt slipped his palm around hers. She looked at him seriously before stealing another look towards the end of the corridor.
"Blockades in Sabretooth's mind are bullshit" she said in a lowered, firm tone. "Professor's buying himself time not to confront Wolverine about his past."
"Why do you think is that?" Wagner asked.
After a short moment she shrugged her shoulders with a grimace. "Maybe he thinks he's better off without it."
"Maybe he's right" Kurt suggested gently. "You know how unhinged he gets when he gets any flash of it.
"Thing is, Logan won't give up searching for the missing links. He's got nothing to lose."
xXx
You can't save someone from the truth.
Those words were on Fallen's mind for the following days when Logan continued to bail on the scheduled training sessions, refuse to show up for dinners, and was usually only seen storming about the mansion on his way to or from the kitchen or the elevator.
He became the tormented ghost who resided within the manion without interacting with anyone or anything; on the rare occasions when someone dared to approach him during his visit in the kitchen his only responses were angry grunts or muttered orders to stay out of his way. Whenever actually appearing for a training session he was irritable and without sign of his usual, underhand enjoyment of putting the teens through various obstacles.
Meanwhile they still needed their dosage of trainings and Ororo stepped in to take over those of their sessions that Wolverine failed to show up to. Much like the karate session at the beginning of the week, she would usually walk in with a dozen minute delay and appear equally dangerous as Logan usually would. Her mood was swinging from neutral to barely-concealed anger that - while directed at the man she was covering for - successfully stopped the younger X-Men from asking any questions about Logan's absence in the first place.
However they didn't need to address this out loud to be convinced that Wolverine is most likely to be found in the undergrounds, trying to stir his vague memory or otherwise get some information out of Sabretooth. Professor Xavier and Ororo would often be seen descending to the Containing Level to try and pry him back into life at hand, but the other residents knew better than to stick their nose anywhere near the cells and all information they got was from Professor Xavier himself, who was patient enough to assure them during every meal, that they're just handling the case slowly for Logan's sake.
Which felt like a white lie after some of them overheard Wolverine nearly shouting something about 'no progress at all' in the Professor's face.
A few days into this mess, after learning how to get there, Kitty chanced a visit in the containing area. After a brief examination of her surroundings her eyes laid on the short, muscular man sitting in a simple chair in front of one of the glass cells. His eyes seemed half dead as he stared at the much larger, long haired man circling the inside of his confinement.
"Go back to yer room, Half-Pint" he said in a hoarse, however strangely soft whisper. His eyes never even shifted one bit, fixed on the reminiscent of his lost past that strolled behind the pane. "It's past midnight."
Not willing to obey and feeling sympathetic of the man Pryde swayed nervously on her heels. "I thought you could, like, use some company" she said gently.
The man's blue eyes finally shifted her, and the endless tiredness she saw inside them made him look so much older than she'd ever thought he could be.
"Thanks, kid, but what I could use's some answers" as he said so his gaze shifted to Sabretooth yet again.
Pryde hovered behind his shoulder for a moment before asking; "He refuses to speak?"
"Ye" Logan grunted.
The man behind the glass sent him a sharp smirk, like he knew what they were talking about. Of course he refuses to give him the answers, because he knows it's a far better torture for a starved mind to not know, than to learn of things it'd rather forget later.
You can't save someone from the truth. The thought re-occurred when Kitty recounted that conversation with Wolverine to Fallen the following morning. It's better to know the truth, no matter how terrible or confusing it'd be, than to be stuck with unanswered questions. Especially when answers are laid out for you, tingling at the back of your head, and yet you can't seem to reach them.
Professor Xavier however didn't seem to agree with her on that, because he still refused to provide any information to Logan, and Fallen was still convinced beyond doubt that the blockades in the feral man's mind that he was supposedly working out slowly, weren't there to begin with. It made far more sense that the man was stalling, however she found it harder and harder to understand why.
You can't save someone from the truth.
She decided to confront the Professor about it, because the way things were going didn't seem like anything would change in the near future. If anything, they seemed to be losing touch with an important member of their team. It was a little disheartening to see everyone gather in the dining hall one evening and him not being there, with his unimpressed frown and grunts that were supposed to convince everyone he would rather not be here. Everyone knew those were just cold fronts most of the time, but his time he really wasn't present to secretly enjoy the gathering.
Yet everyone knew better than to let it influence their mood, since the man was well known for his grumpy personality and they learned to live with his moods. Thus the atmosphere was rather light and cheerful as everyone pulled up chairs from the long dining table or just settled for sitting down on the floor, all of the residents facing the black piano in front of the window.
After a short conversation, that mostly was a monologue from the Professor regarding their training schedule and progress made and expected, he urged Ororo to perform for everyone and the woman, already sitting at the stool behind the piano, complied. As her slender fingers ran across the keyboard her face finally softened as the concern regarding Wolverine finally eased away from her features, replaced by a soft smile.
Evan, of course, immediately whipped out his camera and started recording his aunt's performance, as well as pan around the room to capture the serenity it brought upon all who were listening to the piano tunes. A proud smile could be seen where his face peeked from behind the lens, however they barely paid any attention to him having camera in their faces anymore, though Kitty stopped absently phasing her hand in and out of the flower pot beside her hip, and Kurt punched the 'on' button on his inducer so Daniels can get clean, usable footage that could be presented in front of students at Bayville High.
Fallen half let herself succumb to the serenity of the moment, and half continued to hold on to the thought that she needs to ask the Professor about his intentions regarding Wolverine. Her fingers absently played with Kurt's hair as the boy was sitting cross-legged right in front of her chair, his beck rested against it. Sometimes she had little impulses to lean in and ask him if he thinks it's her place to even question Professor's decisions, or whether she's out of line to even think it's okay.
Each and every time she stopped herself, Evan's words coming back to hear vaguely. About how Professor's decision to capture Sabretooth like this is taking responsibility for knowing the future, and how she should take responsibility too. They already were meddling with their fate by keeping him locked down still, and it felt like a more risky decision than spilling the guts to Wolverine would.
Out of the corner of her eye she saw the man stand in the doorway of the dining room. His sort, wide-shouldered silhouette remained still, drawn against the light for a moment as he regarded the gathering. Then he decided not to join and instead, shuffled away.
Fallen's first instinct was to get up and follow him and end his frustration, but at the exact same moment as she twitched to move, Kurt rested back against her knees and smiled up at her with appreciation for her absent minded attention to his hair. She considered excusing him and going after Logan, but then she shifted back, deciding to stay and talk to the Professor first, after all.
The opportunity didn't present itself, however, as before she could approach Professor when they were to leave already, Scott engaged the man in a conversation about trainings. The girl shifted back against her chair with a small grimace, not wanting to have this conversation with anyone listening.
Meanwhile Evan congratulated his aunt on the performance. "This clip is the last I needed to tie this movie together" he beamed at everyone. "Except the footage from Dracula act. Oh, right, hey! Which one of you got the part?"
Kitty and Rogue looked at each other with slight smirks, that surprisingly weren't threatening. "Both" the older girl said.
"We got, like, the two lead female roles" Pryde nodded at the confused Daniels. The boy smiled.
"Cool. You don't mind if I include footage from the play in my project, will you?"
"From the play, nah" Rogue got up and stretched out her arms. "But beware if Ah find myself on it in any other way."
"Gotcha" Daniels smirked a bit nervously before moving along to put his video together on the library computer.
"Wait, everyone, wait" Kitty called out before he left through the door. The gathered bunch turned to look at her. "Um, for those of you who don't know yet, the play's premiere is tonight at eight" she smiled fidgeting with her necklace again.
"Yes, I've just discussed with Scott that we're going to reschedule tonight's training so that all of us can attend your play" Professor smiled at the two girls who smiled in response.
"Reschedule to when?" Daniels asked suspiciously.
"By reschedule we mean… call off" Summers said with a small smirk.
"And you're okay with that?" Forge raised his eyebrows. The leader gave a small nodd.
"I don't recognize you, Scott" Kurt said in fake bewilderment which caused small chuckling among the others.
"Don't worry, we'll work extra hard tomorrow" the boy said and everyone's faces fell again.
xXx
The audience was filling into the remaining empty seats as eight o'clock was closing in. The X-Men settled near the stairs, takich the two first seats in three different rows, with Professor remaining just beside the top row in his wheelchair. The man shook his head with an amused smile as Kurt was laying out his complaints to Evan, as to why the boy can't stick his camera in between his and Fallen's head to record the stage.
The play had started, a boy dressed in a long, flowing cape entered the stage to give a little backstory that ended in energetic, guitar music and introduction of the first act. The modern, gothic culture inspired take on the classical novel had the audience engaged from start to finish, and both Kitty and Rogue were doing justice to their roles, earning juicy applauses from their fellow X-Men.
It was near the end of act two when Evan stuck out his tongue at Kurt because he refused to accept camera being rested on top of his head, and left his chair saying he needs a better angle for the recording. Fallen watched Daniels descent towards the front rows before she looked back, at the empty seat he left beside the Professor.
After a short moment of consideration that Xavier didn't fail to notice, she whispered something briefly to Wagner and got up, only to squeeze herself back into the seat right next to the man.
"I think it's the first time we see Rogue this animated, isn't it?" he said, although knowing perfectly well that quality of the girls' performance wasn't what she came here to discuss.
She only gave a tiny, absent nodd in response to that, before urgently looking at the man, whose eyes remained on the stage. "What keeps Logan from opening Sabretooth's cell and fighting him, especially now that he's there alone with him?" she asked in a hushed voice.
The man's eyes didn't shift to meet hers even as he responded; "I forbid him from opening it and fighting him for answers, let alone within my Institute, wreaking havoc and reaching no conclusions."
"And he just listens to this order? Just like that?"
"I believe he realizes that they've already tried resolving this with violence and it hadn't given him any of the answers, so he knows following through at what I say is his best chance at learning anything. He deems I should excerpt what he's looking for straight from Sabretooth's mind" the man's already hushed voice lowered even further and his eyes narrowed slightly, still focused on the play below them.
The girl's eyes on the opposite, bore into what she could see of his face. "You clearly don't agree with him on that" she stated.
"Why do you think that?"
"You would have gotten him the answers long ago."
Xavier's eyes slightly shifted down this time resting upon Evan kneeling at foot of the stage with his camera.
"...I find I can't seem to make up my mind on whether and how to pass on information to Logan" the man's voice was now dead-serious and lowered. "It's even in something like this that I realize how limited my ability to predict consequences of such action is. It's certainly easier building a future that is yet fully unknown, than deciding whether or not to alter one you already expect to be a certain way."
"...I know" the girl whispered urgently. "But right now Logan's losing interest in any kind of future simply because he's unable to uncover a past that's already done."
At long last the man's brown eyes shifted to meet her own.
"The only thing I feel pretty confident about is that we can't make it a good future if we lose him from our ranks" she added low.
"But if he learns the truth the likelihood that he leaves to chase demons of his past is-"
"But he'll come back" she cut in. The man fell silent and watched her cautiously. "Once he's done. He'll come back eventually. But he'll walk away for good if you keep trying to save him from the truth."
"...I suppose maybe having once seen it from the outside does give you a better perspective" the man said as if justifying something to himself. And when he tipped his head ever so slightly she knew what it was.
xXx
Fallen's hair was still dripping from the shower and the final applause from Dracula: Rock Musical was still ringing in her head, despite it's been over an hour ago now. The conversation she had during the play with Professor Xavier was still rumbling in her head, its implications keeping her slightly anxious to act. But she figured she needs to cool off and think about it before making a final call.
Because the final call was hers to make now.
Her eyes were darting from left eye to right eye of her reflection as she brushed through the wet strands. She was looking for hesitance, but found little to none. She knew what her decision is.
The new situation, in which she was allowed to take action when action is due, made her want to change something else, something trivial, but at the same time…
She put away the hairbrush and instead tugged on the front strands of her hair with her hands. Then she turned on her heel and headed back towards the bathroom, only to find it still occupied by Kurt, who went in right after her twenty minutes ago. She knocked, but the water drowned out the sound.
She waited anxiously for another two or three minutes until the water stopped. Then she looked around the empty corridor before knocking again; "Hey, let me in?"
"Can I have a minute to get dressed?" Wagner's upbeat voice asked.
"Yeah, sure, because it's like I've never seen you naked anyway" she rolled her eyes with a smirk
She heard the german chuckle as he approached the door. "Ok, come in" he said with amusement and the lock on the door clicked. "You have truly angelic patience" the boy said as she slipped inside and locked the door again.
"Like you're any better" she shrugged and started rummaging through the drawers. "I at least knock before I come in."
"I dare to say it's only because you can't teleport" Wagner smirked at her reflection as he proceeded to towel himself.
"Or because I have some decency?" she arched her brown at his reflection briefly before diving back into the search.
"Says after demanding to come in when I'm still with one foot in the shower cabin" he said in between fake coughing, an amused edge to his voice still clear even if she hadn't spared the time to see his smirk.
"You'd rather I'd joined you in the cabin?" she sent him a daring smirk.
"I mean, that's obvious" he chuckled. What are you looking for any-"
"Ha!" she said clearly just finding it. "Ah, I was looking for these" she turned around waving a pair of hair scissors in her hand.
"Okay?"
"Okay" she spun back to the mirror with a smile and proceeded to brush the front of her hair down. Kurt watched her for a moment with confusion as she started to cut her bangs, before putting away the towel that hung limply in his hands and beginning to get dressed.
"Why did you all of sudden decide to cut your hair?" he asked stealing curious peaks at her.
"It's really difficult to explain. I just think… things are changing for us. Everyone on the team know our secret now, we're allowed to make more change… I wanted a little change too" she shrugged looking critically at the side bangs she created. "I feel more like myself like this" she concluded.
Wagner wrapped his arms around her from the back and smiled at her reflection. "You look gorgeous, Schatz. But the real question is, are you up for some horror movie? Original Dracula maybe?"
She smiled softly and reached back to rub on his neck. "Maybe later, Kurti. I have something else I need to do."
Before she decided whether to explain it in more detail, loud and angry knocking shook the door. "Come on! Ah've been waitin' for an hour!"
Wagner turned his face towards the door with an amused smile; "Sorry, sister! Will be right out!"
"Yeah, just let me clean up!" Fallen called beginning to flush down the train the hair she cut off into the sink.
"Eww, you two need to get a room, this sower is public!" they heard the girl's disgusted voice behind the door.
The two arched their brows at first confused, before Fallen bursted out with suppressed laughter which was enough for Kurt to get what his sister's about.
"That's not- Oh mein gott" he muttered in frustration. "When you're around I often come across as a pervert when I'm not being one" he whispered accusingly to Fallen.
The girl smirked at him. "Yeah, but then again look at how often you get away while actually being one" she blew him a sympathetically mocking kiss as she made it to the door.
xXx
Fallen punched in the negative 2 and 1 for the second time ever. The fact that she only recently learned that undergrounds level 4 exists made her tempted to try out different combinations and see what else is buried in the grounds beneath the Institute, but it wasn't the time. She was headed specifically for the Containment Level.
It came as no surprise to find Wolverine there, staring with arms crossed in front of the middle cell. In fact, she came here specifically because she expected him to be here.
The man's stare shifted to her, not losing the intensity with which he peered through the glass. Without saying a word, she closed in and her own gaze fell upon the large man sitting against the opposite wall of the cell. He stared back with spite.
She felt Wolverine's gaze on the side of her face.
"He didn't want it to mess with your head" she said at last, her tone itself admitting that she confirms the untruthfulness of the Professor's claim that she doesn't have the answers he seeks. And they both knew he wouldn't let her walk away without providing them, even if she wanted to. Yet she didn't.
"That damage is already done" the man muttered with irritably. "How much do ya know?"
She considered it for a moment. "...Enough that you'd be able to fill everything else in by doing a little reconnaissance" she admitted low. "Approximate dates, specific events, organizations, places, a few names… your name."
Wolverine's eyes bore into the side of her head, but she didn't want to meet his eyes, instead focusing her absent gaze at the feral man behind the glass.
"His role in all of this too" she whispered.
She winced when Logan suddenly started, his large hand turning her around by firm grip on her shoulder. As her back his the glass abruptly she saw the wild glisten in the man's eyes as his upper lip twitched with anger.
"Talk" he growled under his breath.
Her eyes scurrying around his threatening expression, the girl decided to take a deeper breath and release the sudden fear. "You're losing it at the sole concept of knowing" she said firmly, although that was followed by a nervous swallow when the man's hand clenched harder on her shoulder and his eyes narrowed more. "That's why the Professor advised me against talking to you directly about any of this. But I wanted to. And I will."
The man's grip eased. Human emotion yet again cleared the primal darkness from his eyes. He let her go and stepped back, resting one hand against the opposite wall while the other rubbed on his face.
"Chuck's right" he muttered. "Those memories trigger me in ways I can't control. I could hurt ya."
"...Not if you can't touch me" the girl said moving back a few steps. The man looked at her before shifting his eyes to the glass chamber she stopped by with a solemn expression.
xXx
The glass perhaps could stop a bullet, but it wasn't suited to deal with adamantium claws. However it could otherwise deal with lesser outbursts of anger, and - should bad come to worse - Fallen was instructed on how to release the Sabretooth who would well serve for a punching bag. Logan did not expect such measures to be necessary, but then again, he had little idea what he's about to hear or how it'll affect him.
"What do you actually know?" Fallen asked after they'd made sure the microphone was turned on and working alright.
"Nothin' further back than November 73" the man tapped his fingers against his muscular arm, clearly trying to relieve the anxiety and misdirected anger that this stalling caused. "I seem to have lived in Canada before that, don't know how long. I do remember some bits and pieces of Serving for the military during World War II, but far as S.H.I.E.L.D. figured I went in under a fake name so this information produced no fruit."
"Do you know about the Weapon X Project?" she asked watching the man with her arms crossed. He budged, clearly recognizing the name.
"All I know is, it's them who knocked the memory right otta me. I hear from Fury they knew 'bout mutants, tried to produce ultimate weapon by utilizing us."
Harris nodded ever so slightly as she listened. "Yes, and you ultimately were their best shot. They either stopped or went underground after you got out wreaking havoc on your way."
"That much I figured, kid" the man peered at her through the glass. "Now tell me whatever I don't know."
She bit her lip briefly as she breathed in. "You were actually born in Alberta, Canada, all the way back in early or mid 1840s, to a woman whose last name was Howlett, who happened to cheat with her groundskeeper- I don't remember their full names nor the actual town, but what I do know is that it all ended in a blood bath when you were ten or so. The night you first used your claws."
"How" Logan rasped under his breath. "How did that happen."
"Are you sure-"
"HOW" he repeated with more intensity.
She was thankful for the glass when the man's fist pressed against its surface. "...Your biological father shot your mother's husband for obvious reasons. You went feral, killed him without knowing he was your real father. All of this drove your mother to commiting suicide that same night."
Wolverine's heavy breath fogged the glass and his eyes darted madly across the lost memories that now - more than ever, upon hearing this - tingled at the back of his head.
"The only people to walk away alive that night were you and the groundskeeper's other son, your half brother. Victor Creed. He happens to be in the cell right next to this one" she added lower.
When the words registered, Logan's head shot around to look at the man behind the soundproof glass. His nostrils moved in sharp breaths. "He's my- brother?!" he roared lashing at the pane dividing the two cells. His claws extended.
"LOGAN!" Fallen yelled.
The man stopped before he attempted to cut through the glass. For a moment his fist shuddered in the mid-air before his posture slightly relaxed and he stepped back irritably. "Keep goin', kid."
xXx
Fallen punched the right buttons and the glass door eased open with a low pop.
"Why did you decide to spill the guts? Chuck didn't seem so eager to let it slip" Logan said as he emerged, looking like he aged due to the information he received.
"You'd find out eventually, might as well be from me" the girl responded softly. "It was time I took responsibility for making change."
Feeling like her mission here is done, she slowly headed back to the elevator. She was already waiting for the cabin to arrive when the man's voice sounded behind hear again;
"One last question, kid. My last name was Howlett, I get that. But what was my first name?"
The elevator door opened quietly behind her as she looked at him. Taking a small breath, she responded softly;
"...James. Your name is James."
Leaving those words to hang in the silence, she stepped into the elevator and let the door slide closed, breaking the eye contact between her and the man.
xXx
"Alright, everyone ready?" Evan looked around, excited and maybe a little bit nervous as he was about to present his final cut of the film to everyone at the Institute.
Professor Xavier and Aunt O smiled fondly at him from the side, Rogue and Kitty - no longer fighting - sat together on the sofa with Scott, for once relaxed, and Jean on the armrest beside him; Fallen and Kurt settled down cuddled on the floor against the sofa, Forge just a little separate of them slightly swaying in his cross-legged position; he even saw Logan join them and watch from the doorstep, as if not wanting to be spotted just yet.
He turned to the paused video and started it, beaming slightly sheepishly, at the title page that read; Evan Daniel's film, dedicated to my new family.
Scenes of everyone flashed and panned across the scene; of the town, of Evan's skateboard stunts, of Ororo playing the piano, of Scott and Kurt washing the first boy's red convertible, of everyone meditating, Jean sculpting Professor Xavier's bust, the Dracula play; all the while Evan's voice narrated;
Welcome to Bayville, my new home. It's really kinda laid back here, compared to New York, where I'm from, but I'm getting used to it. That's be, Evan Daniels, trashin' skater! This film's about what's important to m... and that's my family. I mean, these guys aren't my real family, but they've kind of taken me in, you know?
Like any family, we're all different. That's Scott - he's cool, but can be kinda stiff. Kurt usually takes care of that part and makes sure Scott doesn't take himself too seriously. And this is Fallen, she's with Kurt, and sometimes he needs to lighten her mood too. Now her and Scott both tend to get too serious about stuff, but they never seem to agree, which is funny to watch. The Prof's like my new dad, he's alright, and so is Jean - that girl's got looks and talent. That's Auntie Ororo at the piano, she's a real classy lady. And speaking of classy ladies check out Rogue and Kitty on the stage, man, they've got the moves!
We usually all get along pretty good, you know? But even when someone's mad at me, they're still there when I need help; That's what being a family is all about - hanging tight through the good times and the bad, and these guys always hang tight and try to do little things for each other's good.
After all, the smallest actions can be the key to the biggest changes in our future.
Next time in X-Men: Revolution:
Now that we chose to take a bolder approach to interfering with the future, it's time to put that mindset in action and see where it takes us in the battle against the Unstoppable Juggernaut. But while we do that, we don't want to forget about taking some time to spend it away from the town and usual bothers. Thus I present to you - a Survival Camp!
Episode 9.0: Survival of the Fittest