Mama Told Me There'd Be Days Like This

Back in the jungle the teams were resting outside the temple. "Some mission this has turned out to be," Bobby groaned as he sat on the ground. "It was supposed to be a simple fact finding mission! It turned into something out of Lord of the Rings!"

"Yeah and why do I have the feeling we're headed straight for Mt. Doom?" Ray groaned.

"Speaking of doom," Todd sighed. "Check out Lance's latest pathetic attempt to win Kitty's love!"

Lance was carrying a medium sized multi-colored rock. "Check it out Kitty!" He said. "I found this in the temple! I think it's some kind of gem or something!"

"Yeah it's nice, so?" Kitty looked at him.

"Look I want to make it up to you," He offered the rock to her and handed it to her. "Think of it as a peace offering."

"Oh he has got to be kidding!" Todd groaned.

"Dead man walking," Scott sighed.

"A rock?" Kitty looked at him. "You think that you can just make things right again by giving me a stupid rock?"

"It's like watching a train wreck," Remy said. "You want to look away but you can't."

"Well it's a pretty rock," Lance said sheepishly. "Look at all the colors! And it's shaped like an egg! Think of it as a memento of our adventure!"

"Oh yeah Lance I'm sure she wants to always cherish the day she was nearly killed by a rock monster and burned to a crisp by a dragon," Pietro quipped.

"Shut up Pietro!" Lance snapped.

"I'm pretty happy about this," Peter chuckled.

Just then the 'rock' started to crack. "Call me crazy, but I don't think that's a rock," Fred said.

"Okay Crazy, I think you're right," Pietro quipped.

Just then the egg cracked open. Out poked the head of a tiny grayish purple dragon with massive jaws. "That's a dragon egg you idiot!" Scott snapped.

"Uh…that was a dragon egg actually," Kurt gulped. "Now it's a dragon."

"Mah-ma?" The little creature blinked at Kitty.

"Man Lance when your plans backfire, they backfire big time!" Althea groaned.

"Oops," Lance gulped.

"A dragon?" Kitty yelled. "It's like…it's…it's so…Cute!"

"What?" Nearly everyone yelled.

"Well it is," Kitty held it up out of it's egg. "It reminds me of my old stuffed dragon I used to have. Aww…look at its wings!"

"Look at its teeth!" Kurt gulped as it yawned.

"Can I keep it?" Kitty held it up to Xavier. "Pleeeeeassee!"

"Are you out of your mind?" Scott yelped.

"Scott we can't like leave it here!" Kitty told him. "It's an orphan. We did kind of have a part in its mom getting killed. Besides I think dragons gotta be some kind of endangered species at least. It wouldn't be right to just leave it here to die!"

"Yeah but we can't just bring it back to the mansion either!" Scott told her. "I mean you saw how huge that other dragon was! It would never fit in the mansion!"

"Actually this species of dragon doesn't really get big for at least fifty years," Lifeline told Xavier. "So it should be fine."

"Okay is anyone else creeped out that the Joes know stuff about dragons or is it just me?" Ray moaned.

"You'd be amazed at the stuff we've seen over the years," Roadblock told him.

"Professor please!" Kitty pleaded. "It's all alone in the world."

"Uh Kitty…" Xavier tried to speak up.

"I think it would be fascinating to study it," Hank said.

"You are not going to stick my dragon with tons of needles!" Kitty held it away from him.

"I will do no such thing!" Hank protested.

"Uh…it doesn't eat people does it?" Ray gulped.

"Not unless it's trained to," Lifeline said.

"It is kind of cute," Amara tickled it's chin.

"Yeah we already have a 'demon' and a 'Bigfoot' at the mansion," Bobby shrugged. "What's a little dragon?"

"She should have a pet just like any other normal kid," The Blind Master told him.

"I'll call it Lockheed," Kitty said happily. "You are so precious Lockheed! Yes you are! Yes you are! Who's mommy's little angel?"

"Oh yeah," Jean groaned. "A pet dragon at the mansion. Yeah that's normal!"

"I still don't know…" Scott said.

"Keep it Kitty!" Lance said. "It's a great pet. Hi there little guy!"

When Lance tried to pet it, Lockheed snapped at him. "OWCH!"

"Well it doesn't like Avalanche," Peter snickered. "That proves it has good taste."

"I'm liking it already," Scott snickered.

"Hey!" Lance snapped. "Is that any way to talk to your father?"

"Look I don't think we should…" Xavier tried to say.

"All those in favor of keeping Lockheed say Aye!" Kurt said. Nearly all the X-Men said Aye.

"It is kinda cute," Rogue admitted grinning as Lockheed wagged it's long tail.

"I am telling you this right now, I am not going to take that thing for walkies!" Logan snapped.

"Why me God?" Xavier groaned. "Why?"