Getting to Know Xi
"Well this was a fun day," Pietro grumbled as he went upstairs after supper. "A hostile teammate as well as KP duty!"
"Well maybe if you weren't so much of a jerk it wouldn't have been as bad!" Fred snapped.
"Come on guys let's get ready for bed," Lance sighed. "I'm beat."
"Hey where is Xi going to sleep?" Pietro asked. "I mean he's not really a he or a she…"
"With us guys," Todd said. "I mean just cause he ain't got a…well you know. Just think of him as a he. It's easier."
"Oh that's gonna be fun," Wanda snickered. "Pleasant dreams boys!" She and Althea went to the girl's section of the bedrooms.
"Well let's hit the sack," Lance grumbled.
Xi seemed slightly uneasy. "You okay Xi?" Todd asked him quietly.
"I do not know where my place is with this new unit," Xi admitted.
"Don't worry," Todd patted him on the shoulder. "You'll get used to it."
"Hey I just remembered something," Lance said. "We never did find out what Xi's power is."
"Actually I have more than one ability," Xi told him. "Would you care for a demonstration?"
"Why not?" Lance shrugged.
"Sit down," Xi motioned. Lance did so. "This will not hurt."
Xi gently touched Lance's hair. "What's he doing?" Lance blinked as Xi's hands moved to his face.
"He's figuring you out," Todd said. "It's okay."
"Your powers are in a state of flux," Xi said. "Not only are you capable of geographic manipulation and shockwaves, you are now able to sculpt stone as well as communicate with the earth."
"How do you …?" Lance asked.
"One of my abilities is that I can tell what a mutant's power is by touching them," Xi explained.
"Really?" Pietro blinked. "Cool! What else do you do?"
Xi looked at Todd. "Go on," Todd smiled. "Show 'em."
Xi stood up and stepped back. And then he vanished. "Where'd he go?' Pietro asked.
"Behind you," Xi's voice whispered. Pietro whirled around and saw Xi appear. "I can turn invisible."
"Wow," Fred said. "That's neat!"
"It was a skill Cobra put in to its assassins to make them better at hunting," Xi explained.
"So you were born in a lab?" Lance asked.
"Yes, I lived in one nearly all my life," Xi told him.
"Man that's rough," Pietro said. "No wonder you don't trust people too much."
"I do not dwell on my hardships," Xi shrugged. "It was all I knew, that's all."
"He's also a ninja like me!" Todd said.
"Toad you are not a ninja!" Lance groaned.
"Yes I am!" Todd snapped. "Tell him Xi!"
"Well you do have ninja training," Xi said.
"See!" Todd snapped.
"What I see is someone who just doesn't want to argue with you," Lance said as he started to undress for bed.
"And why would you want to argue with Todd?" Xi asked.
"He's got a point Lance," Pietro snickered sneaking a furtive glance at Xi.
Todd however noticed it. "What are you doing?" Todd asked.
"Nothing," Pietro said defensively.
"You were trying to look at Xi weren't you?" Todd said hotly.
"Well I just…" Pietro blinked. "No I wasn't!"
"Yes you were you pervert!" Todd snapped.
"I am not a pervert!" Pietro said hotly. "I just can't see how anyone could be…without…you know. Stuff."
"And you make fun of my vocabulary?" Fred grumbled.
"I don't understand what the problem is," Xi said. "If you wanted to see my anatomy why didn't you just ask? I don't mind," Xi started to disrobe.
"No!" Lance blurted. "No! No! Don't do that!"
"Why not?" Xi asked. "I'm not embarrassed. I have nothing to hide." Xi let the last stitch of clothing drop to the floor.
"Well you don't now," Pietro blinked.
"Oh geeze Xi," Todd covered his eyes. "I wish you wouldn't do that!"
"I will never understand your behavior when it concerns nudity," Xi shook his head. "You want to look at other's bodies but when you do you're ashamed to do it. Why?"
"You just don't do that okay!" Todd groaned. "Guys don't stare at him!"
"It's kind of hard not to," Lance gulped. "You really don't have any…anything!"
"It's like looking at those dolls you used to play with as a kid," Pietro said.
"You played with dolls?" Todd asked.
"How do you go to the bathroom?" Fred asked Xi.
"I do have an opening for waste disposal," Xi said.
"Don't show him!" Todd snapped. "Will you please put some clothes on?" He handed him his pajamas.
"Oh all right," Xi sighed dressing again. "I still don't understand the fuss you make."
"You just don't do it, okay Xi?" Todd sighed. "It's not polite."
"But it's okay to sneak a peek?" Xi asked.
"No!" They all shouted.
"That's what Pietro did," Xi pointed out.
"Pietro's a nut!" Lance grumbled as he resumed getting ready for bed. Suddenly he felt very self-conscious.
"Don't worry," Xi turned around, sensing this. "I will not look at you. I understand you are embarrassed about your bodies. Even though you shouldn't be. Besides I know what males look like. I have seen Todd before you know."
"Xi!" Todd slapped his head. "You did not have to tell them that!"
"How…?" Fred started to ask.
"Don't ask!" Todd grumbled. "Please don't!"
"Well I'm not embarrassed," Pietro huffed. "My body is perfect!"
"Pietro no!" Lance snapped. "The last thing we need around here is you putting on one of your exhibitions!"
They got ready for bed. Xi's cot was next to Todd's. However Xi sat on the edge of Todd's bed. "Whatsa matter Xi?" Todd asked as he settled in.
"Can I sleep with you tonight?" Xi asked.
"WHAT?" Todd blinked.
"I just really don't feel like being alone right now," Xi explained.
"Xi you ain't alone!" Todd groaned. "We're all in the same room!"
"It's just…" Xi looked uncomfortable. "You know my powers and how I can sense things through touching? That's how my old unit stayed centered. By huddling together as we slept that's how we stayed focused. It's not very comfortable for me to sleep alone."
"It's not comfortable for anyone to sleep alone," Pietro snickered.
"Shut up Speedy!" Todd snapped. "Xi I know you're a little nervous and stuff but you just can't sleep in the same bed as me. That's all."
"Why?" Xi asked. "Is it bad?"
"It's not bad," Todd grumbled. "It's just…inappropriate."
"Why?" Xi asked. "I am not initiating any mating ritual. I merely want to sleep next to you. What's wrong with that?"
"Oh god," Lance groaned. "You really don't know anything but fighting do you?"
"Stormshadow let me sleep next to him sometimes," Xi said.
"Okay way too much information here!" Fred balked.
"Did you ever think that Althea might get jealous?" Pietro snickered.
"Why would she?" Xi asked.
"Is he serious?" Lance asked.
"Well Althea is Todd's girlfriend," Pietro spoke as if he was speaking to a small child. "And girlfriends usually don't like their boyfriends sleeping with other people. In any sense of the word."
"So she might get mad if we stay in the same bed?" Xi asked.
"Yes!" Pietro groaned.
"Even if she knew about it?" Xi asked.
"What? You gonna go ask her?" Lance asked sarcastically.
"Okay I'll ask her," Xi got up.
"Oh for crying out loud!" Lance groaned. "He really isn't going to do that is he?"
"He is," Todd groaned. "Xi! No! Get back here!"
Too late. Xi left. "You're friend is really weird," Lance grumbled.
"Well that's what happens when you live in a lab all your life," Todd snapped.
"Yeah I can see how that wouldn't help his social skills," Pietro grumbled.
Xi came back in. "She says it's okay. She said I could stay in her room but Wanda wasn't very happy with that for some reason."
"I wonder why?" Pietro said sarcastically.
"Look Xi if you're going to live with us guys you have to understand something!" Todd snapped. "Guys just don't sleep in the same bed with other guys!"
"Why?"
"They just don't okay?" Todd said exasperated. "It's…It's just not what guys do!"
"Why?"
"Why are you keep asking me why?" Todd groaned. "Please Xi stop asking me these questions and go to sleep?"
"Why is it bothering you that I'm asking questions?" Xi asked.
"AAAGGGGHHH!" Todd held his head in his hands. "Will somebody please explain it to him before I lose my mind?"
Xi patted him on the head. "I don't mean to upset you. I just want to stay with you. I just don't understand why it's considered wrong."
"It's gonna be a looooooonnnngggg night," Fred rolled his eyes.
"Okay!" Lance got up. "That's it! Here's what we are going to do!" He started to move the beds together. "We are all going to sleep next to each other! Okay? Just so we can get some sleep around here!"
"Lance you don't have to…" Todd said.
"Yes we do!" Lance snapped. "If we ever want to get any sleep around here! We'll have one of the adults explain it to him in the morning!"
"Fine with me," Fred complied. "Personally I think Xi isn't completely wrong. I mean we did used to all huddle together for warmth back on the farm during the winter."
"Oh god no Blob not another demented farm story," Pietro groaned. "Besides Xi's already confused enough as it is!"
They finally pushed together all the beds and went into them. Pietro was on the outside left followed by Lance, Todd, Xi and Fred. While the other guys tried not to get too close to each other, Xi innocently snuggled next to Todd. "Oh man," Todd groaned. "This is so weird."
"Look," Lance said. "We're just doing this once. You hear me Xi? Just once! Got it?"
"Okay," Xi sighed contentedly closing his eyes.
"The things I do for this group," Lance grumbled as he looked over.
"It's not all his fault," Todd explained. "He just don't know no better! He does get scared just like anybody else you know. He's just trying to fit in ya know?"
"Funny way of doing that," Lance muttered.
"Todd's the only thing I have close to family," Xi said. "I just want to stay close to my family. It feels safe."
"Oh man," Pietro grumbled. "Half psycho, half little kid!"
"Give him an ego the size of Montana and he'd be just like you Pietro," Fred snickered.
"Shut up!" Pietro threw a pillow at him.
"You shut up!" Fred threw a pillow back at him. It hit Lance instead. This caused a retaliatory strike that soon escalated into a full-blown pillow fight.
"WHAT IS ALL THE NOISE?" Roadblock ran into the room and saw the scene. "What is going on here?"
"Well Xi wanted to sleep with Toad and even though Al told him it was okay to he still felt funny about it," Fred said. "So we all decided to sleep together and…"
"Never mind," Roadblock did an about face and went out. "I don't wanna know!"