Thank you, all who reviewed.

I tried selling my clothes to buy the characters, but as formerly noted, all that they fetched was $23.99. Now all I own are two Siamese cats who are beginning to look veeerrry hungry...

Chapter 3

The drive back to the mansion was absolutely silent. Scott was furious with Logan, and Logan though feeling a bit uneasy wasn't about to admit that to a high school student. Cigar fumes were pouring out of Logan's mouth, engulfing his face in the gray tendrils, and hiding him from view. (The students kind of hoped that the windshield wouldn't be hidden from Logan's own view.)

The back seat had become quite a pileup, this unnamed girl lying across fours people's laps. Her head was resting on Kurt, and he was so disturbed by her head lolling back and forth at each bump in the road, that he freed his tail from behind him, and wrapped it around her neck so as to hold it still. Evan, sitting next to Kurt was looking at the bones protruding from the gaps between her fingers.

The silence was broken abruptly when the car jarred to a halt, and Logan hopped out, after extracting the key.

Scott, after watching Wolverine's retreating back for half a minute was the first to speak.

"Right then. Um…help me people…" he said, pointing to the midriff that was on his lap.

Kurt released the girl's neck from the grip that his tail had on it, and lifted upwards…

…giving the girl the extra momentum that she needed to clear the front seat and scramble through Logan's open door.

"Who the *HELL* are you people?" she yelled at the car after she was about fifty meters away.

"We're…" *BAMF* "…the x-men."

Kurt caught her around the wrist to stop her from running away again.

"Leave me *ALONE*!" she yelled, trying to break free of Kurt's grip, but to no avail. As this didn't work she thrashed out, missing his skin entirely, but delving a spike deep into the watch on his wrist. His image flickered, and died, revealing his frightened, wide open yellow eyes.

Her mouth opened, like a wide gash in her face, but quickly turned into a sneer.

"Ha! Afraid to show your face, eh? If you hide behind these electronic gismos, you're no better then the flatscans that despise you for your face."

A dark figure loomed up behind Kurt, while a brown shadow circled around the girl's ankles, teeth bared, and hackles raised.

"And if you run from these, 'flatscans,' then you are truly more cowardly then they."

The small girl drew herself up to her full height, only reaching up to Cyclops's shoulder. Her eyes were narrowed, and the words that she snarled were truly Rahne-worthy.

"I am nobody's coward."

Cyclops's eyebrows went up beyond his hairline at this.

"Follow me, and you can prove it."

She eyed him suspiciously, like a cat who doesn't quite trust that the mouse that it has caught is really dead. Cyclops turned around, and began to march back toward the mansion, followed by Rahne, still in wolf form, Spyke, who gave a furtive glance over his shoulder, and Kurt bounding ahead on all fours like a large blue dog. Maybe it was just being ignored, (for once) or maybe it was Cyclops' challenge, but whatever the reason, the girl followed the gang to the mansion, walking only a few steps behind.

Cyclops knocked, and when the door opened, the girl went swaggering in. Professor Xavier waited inside the door.

"Ah Scott, this is she?"

Scott started, but realization was quick to dawn.

"Yeah, this is her."

She stood uncomfortably squirming under the professor's penetrating gaze.

"What's your name, child."

"Marrow. I'm not a child…I'm sixteen."

"Your real name."

"Sarah. Sarah…of the morlocks."

Gambit started, but the rest of the gang looked confused. Logan and the professor both nodded.

"Do you need to…"

"I don't need anyone. I've been just FINE for my whole life, and I don't need any flatscan loving 'x-men' to help me."

A bone had been growing through the bridge of her nose as she talked. She reached to pull it out, and gave a silent gasp at the sudden pain. Blood flowed down her face, but within seconds, it was gone, no sign of any injury.

Spyke approached her, as one would approach a dog that has been caged up for weeks, and you're afraid that it will either bolt, or attack.

"I'm Evan. Do you, like, have control over your bone growth, or is it still pretty random?"

No answer.

"I thought so. You can't control it properly, can you? You never learned."

Her eyes began to seethe in fury.

"We can help you. The professor teaches all of us how to control our powers. If you stay, they'll develop; grow more powerful…"

She could see that he was trying to sucker her into staying.

"Listen here pal, I may not be as pretty as the girls YOU'RE surrounded by, but I damn sure know how to protect myself. I DON'T need anybody…ARGHHHHH!"

A bone was rapidly sprouting from her temple, evidently causing her a great deal of pain.

"Look, don't be such a bonehead. (no pun intended.)"

Without another word, he grabbed her arm, and pulled her up the stairs, she only partly resisting. Snickers arose from the rest of the girls.

"Did you see her hair? Like, total tomboy."

"Evan finally found SOMEONE who likes him."

"Hah…bonehead giggle"

Shaking his head at the lack of acceptance in this world, Kurt disappeared in a flash of smoke and brimstone. He appeared upstairs, and walked slowly down the hall, tail dragging on the ground behind him.

HIDING BEHIND GADGETS?

"This will be your room."

"Hmmm. Better than the sewers, I suppose." She absentmindedly began to scratch a space between her shoulder-blades.

"Here. Let me help…"

With a few long strides, he reached the bed, and raked his fingernails down her back. She fairly purred in pleasure, and for the next five minutes, even after the itch was long gone, he continued.

"Oh well, you scratch my back, I'll scratch yours," she commented.

Getting behind Evan, she ran her long fingernails up and down his back, until he was fairly shivering in pleasure. He was absolutely off-guard, and if Kurt had not burst in when he did, Evan would have been unconscious, or dead.

R&R please. (Makes puppy eyes, and lower lip trembles.) Please!

Casu Consulto,

Nightfan