Mommy Mystique (cont.)

"Ah don't feel so good." Rogue groaned, showing signs of a splitting headache.

This was not what Mystique needed to hear right now. She shook her head . . . .

Then she started feeling nauseous. She ran to the bathroom, cursing whoever had named this "morning sickness". Probably a man. No, definitely a man.
"Mama? You all right?" Rogue called out.

Mystique felt her stomach jolt . . . Today seemed to be her day to tell everyone. "I have some good news," she said. "You're going to have a baby brother or sister."
Rogue didn't take it as well as Kurt had.

"Excuse me?"

"You don't have to take that tone!" Mystique snapped. "It's not like I did it just to spite you!"

"It sure feels that way." Rogue sighed.

Rogue, as it turned out, wasn't the only one home early. Pietro had come home right behind Rogue and heard the tail end of the conversation. "What did you do to spite us?"

"I didn't do anything to spite you." Mystique insisted somewhat defensively.

"She's pregnant," Rogue told Pietro.
"Yeah, I know," he said.
"You know? Why doesn't anyone ever tell me anythin'?"
"Maybe if you didn't hide up in the attic all the time--"
"Maybe if ya weren't such a JERK!"
"That's enough!" Mystique shouted at both of them.

That evening, things did not improve. Nobody was happy about the prospect of a baby in the household.

 Toad winced at all the arguing.

"Oh, man!" Fred groaned. "Now there won't be enough food for me to eat."

Lance started packing his stuff. He knew from years of shuffling around between foster homes that a new baby in the house meant that someone would have to make room. Since he was the oldest, that someone was usually him.

"Hey, Lance, what's the rush?" asked Pietro.

"I'm not gonna wait around for someone to tell me to go."

"Nobody's going anywhere." Mystique sighed.

"Can't you do something?" Toad protested. "Go have the kid somewhere else, or something?"

"Oh, really, Toad," Mystique grumbled, "you're being melodramatic!"

"Yeah? Well, I'm not the one who went and got--you know."

Mystique gave Toad a dirty look....

"Okay, I'm gonna go find something else to do."

"I would strongly recommend it."

He slunk away.
"Well," Mystique said to herself, "this went well."