Disclaimer:
I don't own X-Men Evolution, though I wish I did.
Summary:
The X-Men wake up one day to find themselves no longer mutants. How will they cope, and will they ultimately enjoy it? And worse, how will they deal with a new threat that arises when they are as normal as everyone else around them? This takes place right after X23 but prior to Dark Horizons.
It was a restless night at the Xavier Institute for Gifted Youngsters. Outside, the wind howled, the clouds swirling overhead. No rain fell, no lightning flash, no thunder roared. The storm itself made even Ororo, the resident weather witch, feel uneasy. Few students were asleep, most lay in their beds, their minds as jumbled and confused as the storm clouds outside.
It had been, admittedly, a trying day for everyone concerned.
Earlier in the week it had been a hard exams for those enrolled at Bayville High. That already put most of the older students on edge. Then there'd been a skirmish with the Brotherhood and some of the hot-headed New Recruits at a downtown deli, though thankfully Wolverine had been nearby and he'd broken it up before anyone got hurt. But then they'd been caught up in a peaceful mutant's rights protest that had been overtaken by anti-mutant bigots. Though there were no serious injuries on either side, it had not been a pleasant fight. They had not been fighting dangerous mutants, or giant robots, or even the military, but civilians. The very people they were trying to protect and fit in with.
The future of the X-Men, and indeed all mutants, looked bleak indeed.
It was not surprising that the most prominent question on the students minds was: Why me?
Why had they been chosen, by whatever force they believed in (and the beliefs of the students were diverse) to be what they were? To be different, to be outcasts, to be mutants. Why couldn't they just be normal, live normal lives.
The storm howled outside, as the mutants, young and old, eventually drifted off to the world of dreams. Logan, restless, continued to prowl the institutes hallways, his senses active, his animal instincts alerting him to danger, but ultimately he too turned in to rest himself.
The last to fall asleep was, curiously enough, Jamie. He lay huddled in his covers, very, very scared. Normally on a stormy night like this, when he couldn't sleep, he'd sneak downstairs and usually find Rahne. He felt comforted by the presence of the wolf-girl, she was one of the best friends he'd ever had. But now she was gone, and all he could do was try and fall asleep, alone in the dark.
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Morning came and the storm still swirled overhead, dark and foreboding, though a little light poured through here and there to light the day. The institute grounds were damp with morning dew, but few of the students noticed, they were far too relieved.
It was, after all, a Friday.
One by one they started to wake up, shower, dress and make their way downstairs. Logan was already up and in his customary seat in the kitchen on the window ledge, drinking his coffee and reading the morning paper. The other students filed in quietly. It was an unspoken rule. Whenever Logan was around, you were quiet as a mouse. Best to avoid his attention in a negative manner, or even a positive manner, unless you wanted a "pop" danger room session. Strangely enough, neither Kurt nor Beast were spotted at breakfast.
Ororo traveled from her room up to the loft, to visit her plants. Smiling, she stretched out her hand to summon a miniature rain cloud to water them for the day.
Only nothing happened.
No rain cloud, no rain, nothing. Ororo frowned, concentrating harder, her fingers trembling as she tried to force her power out via them, but nothing happened.
"Strange…" she remarked quietly, looking down at her hands as if they were the cause of the problem. In her time in Africa, she knew her power could diminish, or grow, in very short periods of time for unpredictable reasons, much like nature itself. But this was the first time it had completely failed her. She would have to speak to Professor Xavier about this.
Breakfast finished, and those students enrolled at Bayville High started to pack their things and head down to the garage, where Scott and Jean were waiting to transport them.
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Kurt grumbled, rubbing his eyes as he stumbled into Jean's SUV alongside Kitty, still half-asleep. He'd barely had time to wake up before he'd noticed the time, and rushed downstairs to get to school on time. Principle Kelly had seen the record his mother left behind, he would've killed him if he was late AGAIN.
"Rough morning Kurt?" asked Kitty.
"Ja," he replied, doing his best to smooth out his rumpled blue hair, trying to smooth out the locks as best he could, to look good for the ladies, of course. "I feel horrible… like I woke up on the wrong side of the bed. Can't even remember where I left my math book."
"Least you remember your wa…" Kitty's voice suddenly trailed off, and Kurt glanced up. She was as pale as a ghost, and her finger jittered as she pointed to his wrist.
His bare wrist.
No holo-watch.
"What happened to your watch, Kurt?" she asked, one hand over her mouth. Her mind could barely wrap around what had just happened to her best friend.
Kurt instinctively clapped a hand down over his wrist, but he looked at his hands… four fingers… smooth, pink skin, no fur… slowly, he lifted his hands, felt his features. Gone were his pointed ears, his furry features… even his fangs had vanished.
He… was normal… truly normal. No hologram. It was a lifelong dream come true.
So he wondered why his gut suddenly twisted fearfully.
"Its… its okay guys," stated Jean, speaking with a sudden confidence she didn't feel. Much as she wanted to turn around immediately and speak with Professor Xavier, it was too late already, and being tardy would only give Principle Kelly more ammo to use against them in future. She wanted to graduate on a good note, at least. "After school we can just… contact the Professor and he'll know what to do."
Traffic was particularly bad that morning, due to a two-car pileup midway between the Institute and Bayville High. As such, Jean's SUV slid into a parking just as the warning bell sounded, and all the occupants jumped to their feet. Jean and Kurt both froze as they heard a bump though, and turned back to see Kitty rubbing her forehead, opening the door and sliding out.
"Kitty, are you okay?" asked Kurt, coming over to her side.
"Of course not, I just bumped my head… couldn't concentrate enough to phase," she muttered, before she and Kurt broke off in a dead run to their classes, leaving Jean standing their, frozen.
She couldn't hear anyone.
Jean normally praised herself on her control over her power, that she never peeked into another persons head without permission or if she had no other choice. But even still, after her powers had gone out of control, despite having them back under her control, she could still feel little half-whispers from people passing by, little surface thoughts. But now, she heard nothing. Fearfully, she raised her hand, glancing around. Most students had already gone in to class. She raised her hand, placing her other to her temple as she located a test subject… a small crumpled up piece of paper inches from a nearby trashcan. She concentrated then, using her TK to lift the piece of trash into the trashcan where it properly belonged…
But it would not work.
Jean was a smart person, smarter than most people gave her credit for, and it wasn't long before she managed to put two and two together and come up with four.
For some reason… mutants had become… normal.
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"Doctor, operations have begun… our operatives in the field report that everything is going according to plan."
"Excellent. Now it is time those freaks reign of terror is ended… at 1600 hours… begin phase two."
Authors Notes:
Finally, an original story. Okay so I borrowed the idea from Skolio, but still its for a good cause.