A/N: PLEASE DON'T KILL ME HERE'S CHAPTER 5!!!! *cowers in corner* I'm sorry, my evil English teacher gave us about 10 million assignments and I had NO time to write…please please please don't kill me! Actually it's time to vote…I received some reviews that didn't really like Kurt's little breakdown so all y'all get to review again and tell me if it needs changing.  If no one votes it stays cuz I have to post new chapters before I'm murdered…so VOTE!

Ch 5

A/N the 2nd: oh yeah, = represents telepathic communication. Ooh, that was fancy. Heehee

            = Sami, if you're done unpacking, I would like to see you for a moment.=

            Sami looked up in shock, trying to figure out where this voice was coming from.

            = It's Xavier, dear.  Storm and I wanted to try to figure out your gifts.=

            "Um – okay," she answered aloud, feeling very foolish.  She felt Xavier's amusement in her mind.

            = I am a telepath, dear, I can hear your thoughts.  Whenever you're ready, you can come down to my office.=

            "Um-" =okay,= she thought uncertainly.  Xavier "chuckled" again and Sami felt his presence vanish.  She stuffed a last shirt in the stark white dresser, thinking glumly that the room was in desperate need of paint, and left the room to find Xavier's office.

            A senior in college, and one incident makes me a mutant with a new life to learn, she thought unhappily.  She reflected on what Nightcrawler had told her – missions, jets, and telekinetic rescues.  How would she fit in here?  What sort of "gifts" was she supposed to have? Her only memories of that fateful night were car keys flying towards her, and leaves stirring on a windless night.

            Sami reached the staircase that would lead her to Xavier's office, and looking around to make sure no one was coming, she slid down the ornate banister and leaped off the end.  She had done that in her dorm every day, and it felt good to have some semblance of routine now.

            Now that all the bridges have been burned, including those going forward –

            – unless a new bridge was being built here.  Sami knocked on the door to Xavier's office and went in.  Xavier was sitting behind his desk, and a white-haired but still young black woman stood next to him.

            "Ah, Sami, excellent.  I don't believe you've met Ororo; she goes by Storm, and I believe your rooms are nearby."

            "Good to meet you," Sami said, shaking hands yet again.  "Judging by your name, I assume you can mess up the weather with your powers." Now that would be a sweet talent.

            "That's right," Storm replied, smiling.  "And not just tempests – you'd be surprised how much good a little breeze can do on a mission."

            "And now we get to see what you are capable of."  Xavier rolled his wheelchair around the desk.  "Lie down, if you would."  He gestured to something that looked suspiciously like a psychiatrist's chair, and she stretched out on it uncertainly.  Xavier positioned himself behind her head and held his hands about two inches away from her ears.  "This might feel a bit odd."

            It did feel odd – like there were thousands of papers in the file cabinet of her mind, and he was searching through them for something.  She saw brief flashes of floating objects – a pale blue glow surrounding a horribly wounded person – someone dodging a bullet as it flew towards her –

            Abruptly the images ended, and Sami looked up at Xavier's smiling face.

            "Very impressive," he announced.  "You have three major talents, and one is quite unique – the first time I've seen it manifested in this form."

            "That must not be a bad thing, judging by the look on your face."

            "No, it will actually be incredibly useful – but for all the wrong reasons."

            Sami and Storm both looked at him expectantly.

            "First of all, you are a telekine."

            "Which is why I stole everyone's car keys…"

            "Exactly.  Your second gift is amazingly fast reflexes that seem to border on premonitions."

            Then why didn't I see the accident before it happened?

            "And your third gift, the wild card, is a healing factor."

            "That's not exactly unique," Storm interrupted.  "After all, that's what Logan has."

            "Yes, but Sami can heal others, unlike Logan.  It seems to be an extraordinarily powerful gift – you can heal anything short of a mortal wound.  You can heal yourself as well, but it will take more energy."

            All the wrong reasons…Sami finally asked the question that had been stirring since she had first heard about her healing factor.

            "Could…could I have saved Andy?"

            Xavier looked gravely down at her.  "No.  A mutation, when it first manifests, is completely out of control.  Even if you had been able to focus your thoughts enough to concentrate on healing, the gift most likely would not have obeyed."

            Smai nodded sadly and sat up, but before she could leave, Xavier grinned and motioned for her to stay put.

            "I know it's not exactly healthy, but to keep you out of depression we're going to start training right away.  You may find yourself caught up in our business sooner than any of us expect.  Let me see…telekinetic lessons with me; Storm, you can work on honing this healing trait; and…" He paused, gazing out the window and tapping his chin thoughtfully.  "I would suggest combat training with Logan, as he is our best fighter, but…I don't think his style is quite right for you, judging by your powers."

            "Meaning Logan likes to kick ass and get it over with, because he can take a beating better than anyone else," Storm put in, laughing.  "He's more than a little belligerent.  That would be the wrong attitude to start out with, especially if he urges you out into open fire when your healing factor isn't reflexive like his."

            "True.  In that case, I believe Kurt would be the best choice.  From what I've seen, his martial arts are superb and his weapons of choice are matched knives – an altogether elegant and fluid style of combat."

            Sami took all this in with amazement and doubt.  Nightcrawler?  Combat training?

            "I think you'll be surprised at his skills.  Give him a chance." Xavier answered her thoughts, making Sami seriously wonder if he would be in her mind constantly.

            "I won't, trust me.  This extended contact is just residue from the mind-reading."

            Now truly alarmed, Sami hurried out of the room with a laughing Storm following.

            "Oh, Sami, if anyone asks, you're an intern from Union College," Xavier called after them.

            "Why?"

            "Unless you'd rather tell them you're a late-blooming mutant who's about to learn how to make books levitate…"

            "Point taken.  Thanks for the help, Professor."

            "No thanks needed.  Welcome to Mutant High."