Chapter Four – agreements and explanations
Upstairs, the group was congregated in the room they had been in before, but the atmosphere was completely different. Instead of the lighthearted, shallow conversation the room had been enveloped in before, the mood was dark and foreboding with weighted silences and furtive glances. Terry sat nervously in an armchair looking worriedly at Logan's back, making sure the painfully strong man wouldn't 'attack' again.
"So, Terry, it seems you have quite a bit of explaining to do." As Professor Xavier spoke, everyone looked up at him except for Terry. "Well?"
"Well what? I told you what happened. I got lost, I heard screams, and I found Evan. You guys should be thankful unless, by some odd twist of fate you don't care about this kid," Terry said, his tone quite bitter.
"That's a very unpleasant thing to say, Terry. We are grateful for your intervention, but we want to know how this got into the room. You mentioned Batarangs?" Professor Xavier said, indicating the object in his hands. Terry's face paled.
"I-I don't know!" Terry said weakly.
"Terry, how did you end up with these?" Xavier said, concentrating on the teenage boy in front of him. Terry mumbled something incoherently. "What?" Xavier asked.
"They're leftovers," he said louder. "Whatever you're thinking, you're wrong. I'm not Batman. I stopped that awhile back, before I left. I didn't mean to have the Batarangs or the explosives, but they were left over and it was pure habit that I put them on, I swear." He could hear the audible gasps of everyone around him, except from maybe the professor and, of course, Logan. That guy never seemed to show emotion unless it was rage.
"I see," Professor Xavier said, almost patronizingly. It was humiliating for Terry to sit there and tell his best-guarded secret to nine people all at once. He couldn't believe how forthcoming he actually was with the information. He tried to avoid making eye contact with the people around him. The Professor spoke up again. "Well, because you have been kind enough to grace us with your explanation, I think we owe you one. Unfortunately, this is neither the time nor the place. Good evening, I hope you have a safe trip home." There was a certain degree of finality in the professor's voice that Terry didn't argue. Instead, he just gave a contemptuous glare to the group and left.
Terry closed the door behind him and stared out into the night. It was chillier than it had been before, but Terry couldn't quite figure out why until he heard something drop on the ground behind him. Whipping around, the boy saw what appeared to be…fingers going into the door? He played it off as a trick of the light as he picked up the jacket strewn on the ground.
Inside the mansion, the group stood around, quite in awe at what just passed. It took a moment, but Rogue spoke up.
"Well that was rude," she said.
"I'm sorry if it appeared that way, Rogue, but I tried to dismiss him as politely as possible. You see, it wasn't time to explain us to him," Professor Xavier said.
"Yeah, but he just totally spilled his secrets to us, so why didn't we tell him? I have a feeling that he doesn't tell just everyone," Kitty pointed out.
"You have a point Kitty, but it's getting late and I think everyone's had enough excitement for awhile. Evan, you'll be exempt from school tomorrow, but you should get to bed soon as well. Good evening." With the final words, Professor Xavier went into the other room. On his way out, he gave a subtle nod to Logan and Ororo and they followed him.
In the other room, which happened to be the professor's study, Xavier placed the videotape he had been holding into the VCR. Ororo sat down on the couch, but Logan remained standing. After a moment of wondering what they were actually watching, Xavier spoke.
"This is the security tape for the Danger Room's control room. Before the alarm went off, I felt another presence in the house, but I couldn't place it. Perhaps this tape will provide some answers." The other two adults didn't speak because, at the moment the professor stopped talking, the security tape began. Through the black and white they could make out a black person-like form until…
"What in the world…?" Ororo managed. "Was that a mutant?"
"I don't know, Ororo, but it definitely had intentions. Perhaps we were wrong to send that boy out so early. We may need a new mind about all of this." Logan could feel the unease coming from Professor Xavier's voice and he became wary as well.
Inside the McGinnis' new house, Mary was watching the evening news. She heard the sound of a door closing and she turned around to see Terry standing in the doorway.
"Hey sweetie, how was-" she was cut off by her son.
"I'm going to bed. Night," he said shortly as he lumbered into his room. Not bothering to turn on the light, Terry took off his shirt. He flopped down onto the bed and tried to order his thoughts of all of the confusion that had taken place. Unfortunately, Terry didn't progress very far into his thoughts, as he was soon asleep.
The next morning, Terry lumbered out of bed. He went through his paces in a zombie-like manner, wishing with all his might that he were back in Gotham. He'd rather be dealing with Mad Stan or be locked in a room with Nelson for a day than go to school. Well, okay, so maybe the Nelson thing was taking it a little too far, but the point is understood.
The entire way to school, Terry thought of ways to avoid the "freaks". Okay, so maybe that was a little harsh, but seriously, how was he supposed to deal with this? Entirely too soon, Terry reached the high school. Sluggishly, he climbed up the stairs and into the building. Dreading every moment of it, Terry went to his first class and sat down, noticing Scott but not acknowledging him. Tensions were too high. The youth tried not to notice as Scott approached him, but it was hard seeing as he didn't have anyone to distract him. The glasses-wearing boy approached, standing a fair distance away from Terry.
"Terry," he began. He was cut off.
"Trying to find more ways to make me feel unwelcome?" Terry asked spitefully. Scott was offended, but Terry didn't notice.
"Not at all. Actually, I need to talk to you about two things. One, everyone is extremely apologetic about what happened last night. We did not try to appear rude; it's just…unusual we need to face that situation. Secondly, we need your help. It seems like something is more troublesome than we thought. We need a new consultant, someone who might be a little more…worldly. Do you still have it?" Terry was about to answer Scott's queries, but the school bell rang, cutting Terry off. On the way back to his seat, Scott spoke.
"Eat with us today. I'll buy your lunch." Terry nodded, not really knowing what to do. Everything was so weird. What kind of people threw you out of their crazy house and then offered to buy you food the next day? Terry barely had time to collect his thoughts before the teacher started speaking.
Lunch approached sooner than Terry would have hoped. He languidly got out of his seat and took his time going to lunch. In his mind, Terry was running through all of the incredibly horrible things that could happen. Oh, and the fact that everyone probably hated him didn't help. But, for some unknown reason, Terry was giving them a second chance. Terry went through the lunch line and tried to locate where the other kids were sitting. He noticed Scott approaching and walked towards him.
"How much was your lunch?" Scott asked, fishing in his pocket for some money. Terry was almost disgusted; he was giving them a second chance, there was no way he would take their charity.
"I covered it," Terry said. Scott was persistent.
"Oh, come on, I told you I'd pay for it, so I will."
"What did you want to talk to me about?" Terry asked, blatantly avoiding the subject.
"Oh, that. Let's sit down to talk," Scott said, offering a table full of his friends. Conversation ceased for a minute, and after everyone – minus Evan – saw who was at the table, they continued on whatever tangent they had been on. Scott sat down and motioned Terry to do the same.
"First of all, I want to apologize profusely about what happened. I don't think we realized how rude we were bei-" Scott was cut off for the second time.
"Cut to the chase." Terry was ready to combat rudeness with rudeness if he had to. One real, sincere apology would've been enough, but he was getting sick of Scott's ramblings.
"Okay then," Scott said, a little perturbed. Then he lowered his voice. "We have the security tape of what happened, and we want you to look at it; maybe it's something you're familiar with, because we've never seen it before and it's not technically registering as a mutant. So if you could come check the tape out and just say you know or you don't know what's going on, that would be greatly appreciated," Scott finished. Terry had noticed that as Scott lowered his voice, all conversation ceased. Terry took a moment to contemplate his answer and he finally grasped the one he wanted.
"Okay, I'll do it," Terry said slowly.
"Really?" Kitty apparently couldn't help saying.
"Yeah, sure. Under one condition, though," Terry said, leaning back into his chair.
"What's that?" Scott said in a very business-like behavior.
"I want you to tell me what the hell is going on with you people, and show me what you can do. If you can't do that, then no deal," Terry finished almost smugly. Scott took a moment to glance around at his peers. Jean gave a small nod and the glasses sporting youth turned back to the black-haired one.
"Deal. We'll take you home after school," Scott offered. Terry looked up at him.
"I'm not a pet, you know," he said. Before Scott could respond, the bell rang, signifying the end of their lunch period. As the group cleaned up their area, Jean came up to Terry.
"Um, Terry?" she asked, kind of shyly.
"Yeah, what," he said in return.
"Well, the professor was wondering if you still had it. You know, the outfit," Jean asked, throwing away the uneaten part of her meal.
"Do all memories run short here? I said I quit, so why would I have it?" Terry said, not looking at Jean.
"I don't know, it was just an innocent question!" Jean defended, obviously not liking Terry's tone. The boy just strode off, leaving a fuming Jean behind. As he walked away, he could feel the hair on the back of his neck raise for no apparent reason.
After school, Terry waited on the steps of the school for Scott to drive him to the mansion and a thought crossed his mind. He promptly pulled out his cell phone and left a message on his home answering machine. Not that his mother would really notice he was gone anyway, but it was always nice to check. Terry saw Scott pull up in a *very* nice looking convertible. Kurt, Kitty and Rogue were squeezed in the back seat so the shotgun was left for Terry. During the skeet conversation in the car, Terry learned that Jean was getting another ride home, but she would be there in a little bit. The black-haired boy noticed with a smirk that the tone of voice used to reply Terry's inquiries was a 'hands off' tone.
They reached the mansion and Terry got out of the car. The five students went up to the house and walked in the large oaken doors. When Kitty offered to take Terry's jacket, he refused, claiming he was more comfortable with it on. He knew it was bordering rude, but if he had to make another hasty farewell Terry preferred to have his coat with him. Kitty invited Terry to sit in a chair while Kurt went to get some soda for the rest of the kids. Rogue sat apart, Terry noticed, and she always seemed to be removed from the group. Scott sat down on the couch and, after a minute, spoke up.
"So, when do you want to see this tape?" he asked.
"When I get a good explanation of what's going on. I prefer not to work with people I know nothing about," Terry said, taking a sip from the can in his hands.
"Well, we should probably wait for Jean. Oh, and the professor should be joining us soon," Scot said in reply. The silence continued until Terry spoke up.
"How's…Evan doing?" he asked, taking a minute to recall his name. This time Kurt – who had long since come in and was seated on the floor – answered.
"He is doing fine. He just got to sleep today because it vas emotionally and physically draining last night." Terry nodded in acknowledgement. As soon as Kurt finished, Jean walked in the door.
"Sorry it took me so long. Duncan…again," she said, apparently directing it at Kitty. The ponytailed girl giggled and motioned for Jean to sit down.
"So," Kitty said, "When are we going to start this?"
"I know," Terry said, "How about now? Someone tells me what the hell is going on, and then you can show off whatever powers you all possess. Unless, of course, I am wrong in assuming that Evan is not the only one with freakish powers."
"No, no, you're right," Scott said. "It's like this: we are what you might consider "mutants". Our genetic makeup is slightly different than a normal person's and as a result we have quote-unquote "super powers". It's nothing too special; we just use them to keep the other mutants in the world from getting out of hand, like it's our duty. Does that fill in some gaps?"
"Schway," Terry said. "Yeah, that clears up some stuff. Now, what are your powers?"
"Well, I guess we'll start with me and go around the circle ending with…Rogue?" Scott offered. Everyone seemed to agree. "So, yesterday you were wondering about the glasses. Well, give me a target." Terry was taken aback. Scott was an odd one and if anyone could follow his thoughts they were either very intelligent or very simple.
"Um…well, aim for this can," Terry said, placing the empty soda can on the end table next to his chair. Scott agreed and lowered his glasses. It was just for a moment, but Terry could see some sort of red light radiate from Scott's optical area and hit the can. The aluminum hit the ground with a hole burned through it. When Terry looked up again, the sunglasses were back to their original position and Scott was look at Kitty, who was closest to his left.
"Um, okay, I guess it's my turn. Try not to get too freaked out, okay?" she said kind of nervously. Terry watched in amazement as she picked up on of the pillows on the couch and promptly put her arm through it. The spectator was disbelieving at first.
"That has to be some kind of magic trick," he said. Kitty gave him an "is it?" look and walked over to him. She placed her arm through his body and tucked the tag into the back of his shirt.
"Sorry," she said. "That was really bothering me." Terry didn't know what to think. He wasn't sure if he was going to throw up or jump up with the amount of excitement coursing through his veins. He looked over to Jean, who was next in line.
"And you?" he asked, thirsting for more. Jean looked at him for a moment and then over to the can Scott shot down. Her eyes followed it as it floated into the air and onto Terry's head. The boy sat there in shock (again) for another moment and then the can fell off his head. Then Terry looked at Kurt, who was sitting on the floor. Kurt glanced at Terry and then switched his focus to Scott.
"Do I have to? He'll just think I'm a freak," Kurt said in a tone comparable to shy kitten. Scott didn't have time to answer before Terry jumped in.
"Hey, you know what? I've dealt with radioactive CEOs, fathers who have possessed their daughters for youth, speaking gorillas and much more. You can't be that freakish," positive that his speech had given the confidence needed to show the powers, Terry leaned back.
"Vell, all right, but just don't say I didn't varn you," Kurt said. He fiddled with his watch and before Terry's eyes turned into a hunched over, fuzzy blue…thing. Terry was taken aback.
"Is that your power? You get to change like that?" he said presumptuously.
"Vell, actually, no. I'm normally like this but the professor just made a modifier so that I could fit into school. My power is teleportation," Kurt explained. With a puff of smoke, Kurt disappeared and, before Terry could jump up out of his seat or make a fool of himself, a fuzzy blue Kurt walked in the door.
"Way schway! So that's how we got out of the mess!" Terry said excitedly. He then turned to Rogue. "What about you?"
"No. I won't do it."
"Come on Rogue. Please?" Scott said, almost begging.
"Do * you * want to show him how my power works?" she said sharply.
"Well…no, but…" Scot managed before Terry cut in.
"Maybe, if you are that reluctant, an explanation will do?"
"Well, okay," Rogue started in her slow, Louisiana drawl. "When someone touches my skin, I inherit their powers and memories. It's something like a absorb their life force, and if I'm not careful…" Rogue trailed off.
"I understand," Terry said solemnly. "I have an idea of what having that kind of power is like." The thick silence raged on until Professor Xavier came into the room.
"I believe you all have the formalities finished? Good. Terry, will you follow me?" Terry did as he was told. The two went into what looked like a study and Terry sat down. He looked at the monitor as the tape started playing. Looking closely, he saw the exact opposite to what he wanted.
"Oh shit…" he trailed. Xavier looked up at him with a questioningly glance.
"What is it?" the bald man asked.
"A lot worse than I could've imagined." Terry looked up gravely. "Inque."
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Hey you all! This is the longest one yet! I hope it's not getting too dry for everyone. Oh, and I want to apologize for the looooong time between chapters. I'm usre everyone has that time of anti-inspiration, and school was getting pretty heavy. So, if you like, review please!
Upstairs, the group was congregated in the room they had been in before, but the atmosphere was completely different. Instead of the lighthearted, shallow conversation the room had been enveloped in before, the mood was dark and foreboding with weighted silences and furtive glances. Terry sat nervously in an armchair looking worriedly at Logan's back, making sure the painfully strong man wouldn't 'attack' again.
"So, Terry, it seems you have quite a bit of explaining to do." As Professor Xavier spoke, everyone looked up at him except for Terry. "Well?"
"Well what? I told you what happened. I got lost, I heard screams, and I found Evan. You guys should be thankful unless, by some odd twist of fate you don't care about this kid," Terry said, his tone quite bitter.
"That's a very unpleasant thing to say, Terry. We are grateful for your intervention, but we want to know how this got into the room. You mentioned Batarangs?" Professor Xavier said, indicating the object in his hands. Terry's face paled.
"I-I don't know!" Terry said weakly.
"Terry, how did you end up with these?" Xavier said, concentrating on the teenage boy in front of him. Terry mumbled something incoherently. "What?" Xavier asked.
"They're leftovers," he said louder. "Whatever you're thinking, you're wrong. I'm not Batman. I stopped that awhile back, before I left. I didn't mean to have the Batarangs or the explosives, but they were left over and it was pure habit that I put them on, I swear." He could hear the audible gasps of everyone around him, except from maybe the professor and, of course, Logan. That guy never seemed to show emotion unless it was rage.
"I see," Professor Xavier said, almost patronizingly. It was humiliating for Terry to sit there and tell his best-guarded secret to nine people all at once. He couldn't believe how forthcoming he actually was with the information. He tried to avoid making eye contact with the people around him. The Professor spoke up again. "Well, because you have been kind enough to grace us with your explanation, I think we owe you one. Unfortunately, this is neither the time nor the place. Good evening, I hope you have a safe trip home." There was a certain degree of finality in the professor's voice that Terry didn't argue. Instead, he just gave a contemptuous glare to the group and left.
Terry closed the door behind him and stared out into the night. It was chillier than it had been before, but Terry couldn't quite figure out why until he heard something drop on the ground behind him. Whipping around, the boy saw what appeared to be…fingers going into the door? He played it off as a trick of the light as he picked up the jacket strewn on the ground.
Inside the mansion, the group stood around, quite in awe at what just passed. It took a moment, but Rogue spoke up.
"Well that was rude," she said.
"I'm sorry if it appeared that way, Rogue, but I tried to dismiss him as politely as possible. You see, it wasn't time to explain us to him," Professor Xavier said.
"Yeah, but he just totally spilled his secrets to us, so why didn't we tell him? I have a feeling that he doesn't tell just everyone," Kitty pointed out.
"You have a point Kitty, but it's getting late and I think everyone's had enough excitement for awhile. Evan, you'll be exempt from school tomorrow, but you should get to bed soon as well. Good evening." With the final words, Professor Xavier went into the other room. On his way out, he gave a subtle nod to Logan and Ororo and they followed him.
In the other room, which happened to be the professor's study, Xavier placed the videotape he had been holding into the VCR. Ororo sat down on the couch, but Logan remained standing. After a moment of wondering what they were actually watching, Xavier spoke.
"This is the security tape for the Danger Room's control room. Before the alarm went off, I felt another presence in the house, but I couldn't place it. Perhaps this tape will provide some answers." The other two adults didn't speak because, at the moment the professor stopped talking, the security tape began. Through the black and white they could make out a black person-like form until…
"What in the world…?" Ororo managed. "Was that a mutant?"
"I don't know, Ororo, but it definitely had intentions. Perhaps we were wrong to send that boy out so early. We may need a new mind about all of this." Logan could feel the unease coming from Professor Xavier's voice and he became wary as well.
Inside the McGinnis' new house, Mary was watching the evening news. She heard the sound of a door closing and she turned around to see Terry standing in the doorway.
"Hey sweetie, how was-" she was cut off by her son.
"I'm going to bed. Night," he said shortly as he lumbered into his room. Not bothering to turn on the light, Terry took off his shirt. He flopped down onto the bed and tried to order his thoughts of all of the confusion that had taken place. Unfortunately, Terry didn't progress very far into his thoughts, as he was soon asleep.
The next morning, Terry lumbered out of bed. He went through his paces in a zombie-like manner, wishing with all his might that he were back in Gotham. He'd rather be dealing with Mad Stan or be locked in a room with Nelson for a day than go to school. Well, okay, so maybe the Nelson thing was taking it a little too far, but the point is understood.
The entire way to school, Terry thought of ways to avoid the "freaks". Okay, so maybe that was a little harsh, but seriously, how was he supposed to deal with this? Entirely too soon, Terry reached the high school. Sluggishly, he climbed up the stairs and into the building. Dreading every moment of it, Terry went to his first class and sat down, noticing Scott but not acknowledging him. Tensions were too high. The youth tried not to notice as Scott approached him, but it was hard seeing as he didn't have anyone to distract him. The glasses-wearing boy approached, standing a fair distance away from Terry.
"Terry," he began. He was cut off.
"Trying to find more ways to make me feel unwelcome?" Terry asked spitefully. Scott was offended, but Terry didn't notice.
"Not at all. Actually, I need to talk to you about two things. One, everyone is extremely apologetic about what happened last night. We did not try to appear rude; it's just…unusual we need to face that situation. Secondly, we need your help. It seems like something is more troublesome than we thought. We need a new consultant, someone who might be a little more…worldly. Do you still have it?" Terry was about to answer Scott's queries, but the school bell rang, cutting Terry off. On the way back to his seat, Scott spoke.
"Eat with us today. I'll buy your lunch." Terry nodded, not really knowing what to do. Everything was so weird. What kind of people threw you out of their crazy house and then offered to buy you food the next day? Terry barely had time to collect his thoughts before the teacher started speaking.
Lunch approached sooner than Terry would have hoped. He languidly got out of his seat and took his time going to lunch. In his mind, Terry was running through all of the incredibly horrible things that could happen. Oh, and the fact that everyone probably hated him didn't help. But, for some unknown reason, Terry was giving them a second chance. Terry went through the lunch line and tried to locate where the other kids were sitting. He noticed Scott approaching and walked towards him.
"How much was your lunch?" Scott asked, fishing in his pocket for some money. Terry was almost disgusted; he was giving them a second chance, there was no way he would take their charity.
"I covered it," Terry said. Scott was persistent.
"Oh, come on, I told you I'd pay for it, so I will."
"What did you want to talk to me about?" Terry asked, blatantly avoiding the subject.
"Oh, that. Let's sit down to talk," Scott said, offering a table full of his friends. Conversation ceased for a minute, and after everyone – minus Evan – saw who was at the table, they continued on whatever tangent they had been on. Scott sat down and motioned Terry to do the same.
"First of all, I want to apologize profusely about what happened. I don't think we realized how rude we were bei-" Scott was cut off for the second time.
"Cut to the chase." Terry was ready to combat rudeness with rudeness if he had to. One real, sincere apology would've been enough, but he was getting sick of Scott's ramblings.
"Okay then," Scott said, a little perturbed. Then he lowered his voice. "We have the security tape of what happened, and we want you to look at it; maybe it's something you're familiar with, because we've never seen it before and it's not technically registering as a mutant. So if you could come check the tape out and just say you know or you don't know what's going on, that would be greatly appreciated," Scott finished. Terry had noticed that as Scott lowered his voice, all conversation ceased. Terry took a moment to contemplate his answer and he finally grasped the one he wanted.
"Okay, I'll do it," Terry said slowly.
"Really?" Kitty apparently couldn't help saying.
"Yeah, sure. Under one condition, though," Terry said, leaning back into his chair.
"What's that?" Scott said in a very business-like behavior.
"I want you to tell me what the hell is going on with you people, and show me what you can do. If you can't do that, then no deal," Terry finished almost smugly. Scott took a moment to glance around at his peers. Jean gave a small nod and the glasses sporting youth turned back to the black-haired one.
"Deal. We'll take you home after school," Scott offered. Terry looked up at him.
"I'm not a pet, you know," he said. Before Scott could respond, the bell rang, signifying the end of their lunch period. As the group cleaned up their area, Jean came up to Terry.
"Um, Terry?" she asked, kind of shyly.
"Yeah, what," he said in return.
"Well, the professor was wondering if you still had it. You know, the outfit," Jean asked, throwing away the uneaten part of her meal.
"Do all memories run short here? I said I quit, so why would I have it?" Terry said, not looking at Jean.
"I don't know, it was just an innocent question!" Jean defended, obviously not liking Terry's tone. The boy just strode off, leaving a fuming Jean behind. As he walked away, he could feel the hair on the back of his neck raise for no apparent reason.
After school, Terry waited on the steps of the school for Scott to drive him to the mansion and a thought crossed his mind. He promptly pulled out his cell phone and left a message on his home answering machine. Not that his mother would really notice he was gone anyway, but it was always nice to check. Terry saw Scott pull up in a *very* nice looking convertible. Kurt, Kitty and Rogue were squeezed in the back seat so the shotgun was left for Terry. During the skeet conversation in the car, Terry learned that Jean was getting another ride home, but she would be there in a little bit. The black-haired boy noticed with a smirk that the tone of voice used to reply Terry's inquiries was a 'hands off' tone.
They reached the mansion and Terry got out of the car. The five students went up to the house and walked in the large oaken doors. When Kitty offered to take Terry's jacket, he refused, claiming he was more comfortable with it on. He knew it was bordering rude, but if he had to make another hasty farewell Terry preferred to have his coat with him. Kitty invited Terry to sit in a chair while Kurt went to get some soda for the rest of the kids. Rogue sat apart, Terry noticed, and she always seemed to be removed from the group. Scott sat down on the couch and, after a minute, spoke up.
"So, when do you want to see this tape?" he asked.
"When I get a good explanation of what's going on. I prefer not to work with people I know nothing about," Terry said, taking a sip from the can in his hands.
"Well, we should probably wait for Jean. Oh, and the professor should be joining us soon," Scot said in reply. The silence continued until Terry spoke up.
"How's…Evan doing?" he asked, taking a minute to recall his name. This time Kurt – who had long since come in and was seated on the floor – answered.
"He is doing fine. He just got to sleep today because it vas emotionally and physically draining last night." Terry nodded in acknowledgement. As soon as Kurt finished, Jean walked in the door.
"Sorry it took me so long. Duncan…again," she said, apparently directing it at Kitty. The ponytailed girl giggled and motioned for Jean to sit down.
"So," Kitty said, "When are we going to start this?"
"I know," Terry said, "How about now? Someone tells me what the hell is going on, and then you can show off whatever powers you all possess. Unless, of course, I am wrong in assuming that Evan is not the only one with freakish powers."
"No, no, you're right," Scott said. "It's like this: we are what you might consider "mutants". Our genetic makeup is slightly different than a normal person's and as a result we have quote-unquote "super powers". It's nothing too special; we just use them to keep the other mutants in the world from getting out of hand, like it's our duty. Does that fill in some gaps?"
"Schway," Terry said. "Yeah, that clears up some stuff. Now, what are your powers?"
"Well, I guess we'll start with me and go around the circle ending with…Rogue?" Scott offered. Everyone seemed to agree. "So, yesterday you were wondering about the glasses. Well, give me a target." Terry was taken aback. Scott was an odd one and if anyone could follow his thoughts they were either very intelligent or very simple.
"Um…well, aim for this can," Terry said, placing the empty soda can on the end table next to his chair. Scott agreed and lowered his glasses. It was just for a moment, but Terry could see some sort of red light radiate from Scott's optical area and hit the can. The aluminum hit the ground with a hole burned through it. When Terry looked up again, the sunglasses were back to their original position and Scott was look at Kitty, who was closest to his left.
"Um, okay, I guess it's my turn. Try not to get too freaked out, okay?" she said kind of nervously. Terry watched in amazement as she picked up on of the pillows on the couch and promptly put her arm through it. The spectator was disbelieving at first.
"That has to be some kind of magic trick," he said. Kitty gave him an "is it?" look and walked over to him. She placed her arm through his body and tucked the tag into the back of his shirt.
"Sorry," she said. "That was really bothering me." Terry didn't know what to think. He wasn't sure if he was going to throw up or jump up with the amount of excitement coursing through his veins. He looked over to Jean, who was next in line.
"And you?" he asked, thirsting for more. Jean looked at him for a moment and then over to the can Scott shot down. Her eyes followed it as it floated into the air and onto Terry's head. The boy sat there in shock (again) for another moment and then the can fell off his head. Then Terry looked at Kurt, who was sitting on the floor. Kurt glanced at Terry and then switched his focus to Scott.
"Do I have to? He'll just think I'm a freak," Kurt said in a tone comparable to shy kitten. Scott didn't have time to answer before Terry jumped in.
"Hey, you know what? I've dealt with radioactive CEOs, fathers who have possessed their daughters for youth, speaking gorillas and much more. You can't be that freakish," positive that his speech had given the confidence needed to show the powers, Terry leaned back.
"Vell, all right, but just don't say I didn't varn you," Kurt said. He fiddled with his watch and before Terry's eyes turned into a hunched over, fuzzy blue…thing. Terry was taken aback.
"Is that your power? You get to change like that?" he said presumptuously.
"Vell, actually, no. I'm normally like this but the professor just made a modifier so that I could fit into school. My power is teleportation," Kurt explained. With a puff of smoke, Kurt disappeared and, before Terry could jump up out of his seat or make a fool of himself, a fuzzy blue Kurt walked in the door.
"Way schway! So that's how we got out of the mess!" Terry said excitedly. He then turned to Rogue. "What about you?"
"No. I won't do it."
"Come on Rogue. Please?" Scott said, almost begging.
"Do * you * want to show him how my power works?" she said sharply.
"Well…no, but…" Scot managed before Terry cut in.
"Maybe, if you are that reluctant, an explanation will do?"
"Well, okay," Rogue started in her slow, Louisiana drawl. "When someone touches my skin, I inherit their powers and memories. It's something like a absorb their life force, and if I'm not careful…" Rogue trailed off.
"I understand," Terry said solemnly. "I have an idea of what having that kind of power is like." The thick silence raged on until Professor Xavier came into the room.
"I believe you all have the formalities finished? Good. Terry, will you follow me?" Terry did as he was told. The two went into what looked like a study and Terry sat down. He looked at the monitor as the tape started playing. Looking closely, he saw the exact opposite to what he wanted.
"Oh shit…" he trailed. Xavier looked up at him with a questioningly glance.
"What is it?" the bald man asked.
"A lot worse than I could've imagined." Terry looked up gravely. "Inque."
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Hey you all! This is the longest one yet! I hope it's not getting too dry for everyone. Oh, and I want to apologize for the looooong time between chapters. I'm usre everyone has that time of anti-inspiration, and school was getting pretty heavy. So, if you like, review please!