Disclaimer: I do not own, nor am I making any money from, the X-Men
characters. Thank you to Corrinth for the loan of Ilehana Xavier. Blaze is,
always has been, and forever will be mine, so there!
A/N: Don't forget to review!
Scene 6
Magneto strode confidently through the Xavier Mansion as if he belonged there. Small children scampered out of the way of the tall white-haired master of metal, and a dark haired young man Eric didn't recognised glared at him as they passed in the hallway.
"L'assassin....."
"Excuse me?" Magneto raised an eyebrow at Gambit as the younger mutant gave him a look that could kill.
"You killed a friend of mine, Magneto. Someday I get revenge..." Memories of Electra's last wish, that Remy avenge her murder, filled Gambit's mind.
"You know," Magneto spoke pleasantly, un-phased by Gambit's threats. "I don't believe we've had the pleasure?"
"The name's Gambit." The Cajun snarled, "Remember it."
"Oh I'll try. No promises though I'm afraid, I am getting on in years..." And with a smile as pleasant as if they had been discussing the weather Magneto continued into Xavier's office. Gambit punched the pillar he stood by, annoyed.
"You think that's bad, try having him for a Godfather." Ilehana appeared from nowhere with a sympathetic grin. She tossed a cordless phone to Gambit. "Its Rogue for you." The Vixen disappeared again, leaving Gambit to answer the phone.
"Hey Rogue... What you mean, Avalanche gone?"
"I mean he's gone, disappeared, dropped out! How am I supposed to watch him if he's not at college to watch?" The girl on the end of the line shouted, making Gambit pull the handset away form his ear to protect his hearing.
"Alright, alright! Anyone know where he gone?"
"No, I checked. The only thing his roommate knows is that he was talkin' to an old guy with white hair before he disappeared."
"You thinkin' the same as Gambit? It be Magneto?" Remy asked, walking hastily away from Xavier's office lest the subject of the conversation overheard them.
"Maybe, I'm not sure." Rogue replied.
"Okay, I tell the Professor don't you worry Chere. Take care."
"Bye." Rogue listened as there was a click on the line, followed by the tone as Gambit hung up. She sighed and hung up at her end, sitting back down on her bed. Her roommate suddenly burst through the door baring a tray full if ice cream, soda and candy.
"I had a feeling you'd be homesick again when you got off the phone, so I brought treats." Rogue smiled, but inside she was increasingly depressed, university just wasn't what she was expecting. Now there was no X-men duties to keep her occupied, she admitted to herself that her own feet were itching as Avalanche's had apparently become. What was she going to do?
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"Well Charles, you really are becoming quite the home for strays, aren't you?" Magneto inquired as Xavier poured tea for them both. "This Gambit fellow seems very interesting..."
"He is a good man, Eric, even if he doesn't realise it himself yet..." Charles' tone was even and passive, but the double meaning was not lost on Magneto.
"Hum, perhaps for some of us it is a little late to be worrying if we are good men?"
"I have to believe it is never too late, Eric, for any of us." Charles passed his old friend the teacup, milk and sugar. Rather than re-cover old ground, Magneto changed the subject.
"What have you heard about a new craze called 'Ace', Charles?" He asked pointedly.
"Not very much, I will admit. Cyclops reported a mutant approaching him trying to sell it at the airport. But Scott is always a law-abiding citizen, and didn't think of obtaining any for testing. And now he's off duty with Tsunami visiting..."
"Ah, yes, we can't be ruining what little joy the young man has found since the tragic death of Jean Grey now, can we? Even if he is our only lead to finding the drug-dealing scum who pollute the minds of our new generation." Magneto added several spoonfuls of sugar to his tea with a twitch of his fingers at the silver spoon.
"What are you alluding to, Eric?" Xavier asked, "What do you know about this chemical?"
"What don't I know? Now now, Charles there is no need to start messing around in my head. I would have come better prepared if I had anything to hide from you." Eric smiled and added sugar to Xavier's cup as well. "This is a free exchange of information, you see my young charges are not so law conscious as yours. They tell me that ace is branded as a chemical to temporarily enhance mutant's powers, increase their DNA mutation rate, providing what the young people are terming a power-rush. Quite exhilarating by all accounts."
"It corrupts mutant's DNA?" Xavier repeated, quick mind working overtime. "We have seen this before in recent times old friend."
"Oh yes, it is just a new version of the chemicals exploited in the mutation accelerator machine." Magneto watched as Charles' face clouded over with worry. "Unfortunately as you know, the chemical's safely record leaves a little to be desired. I was hoping that your young charges away at university might be able to tell us more? Who is producing it, for example, and how?"
"Why those at university? Would not some of my adult X-Men, or any of your associates, be as able to answer our questions?"
"Oh no Charles, you see it is at universities the craze has really taken off, educated young people experiencing their first taste of independence, wanting to push themselves and their powers further than they ever had before..." Magneto met Xavier's eyes fully as he dropped the bombshell he had really come to deliver. "In fact I have been told that already one of your charges has suffered a bad reaction to the use of ace."
Quickly Xavier infiltrated Magneto's mind, why hadn't he spotted this before? Rather than protest, Eric let Charles in, pointing him directly to where the desired knowledge lay. A newspaper clipping showing a young mutant lying ill on a hospital bed. Bobby Drake.
A/N: Don't forget to review!
Scene 6
Magneto strode confidently through the Xavier Mansion as if he belonged there. Small children scampered out of the way of the tall white-haired master of metal, and a dark haired young man Eric didn't recognised glared at him as they passed in the hallway.
"L'assassin....."
"Excuse me?" Magneto raised an eyebrow at Gambit as the younger mutant gave him a look that could kill.
"You killed a friend of mine, Magneto. Someday I get revenge..." Memories of Electra's last wish, that Remy avenge her murder, filled Gambit's mind.
"You know," Magneto spoke pleasantly, un-phased by Gambit's threats. "I don't believe we've had the pleasure?"
"The name's Gambit." The Cajun snarled, "Remember it."
"Oh I'll try. No promises though I'm afraid, I am getting on in years..." And with a smile as pleasant as if they had been discussing the weather Magneto continued into Xavier's office. Gambit punched the pillar he stood by, annoyed.
"You think that's bad, try having him for a Godfather." Ilehana appeared from nowhere with a sympathetic grin. She tossed a cordless phone to Gambit. "Its Rogue for you." The Vixen disappeared again, leaving Gambit to answer the phone.
"Hey Rogue... What you mean, Avalanche gone?"
"I mean he's gone, disappeared, dropped out! How am I supposed to watch him if he's not at college to watch?" The girl on the end of the line shouted, making Gambit pull the handset away form his ear to protect his hearing.
"Alright, alright! Anyone know where he gone?"
"No, I checked. The only thing his roommate knows is that he was talkin' to an old guy with white hair before he disappeared."
"You thinkin' the same as Gambit? It be Magneto?" Remy asked, walking hastily away from Xavier's office lest the subject of the conversation overheard them.
"Maybe, I'm not sure." Rogue replied.
"Okay, I tell the Professor don't you worry Chere. Take care."
"Bye." Rogue listened as there was a click on the line, followed by the tone as Gambit hung up. She sighed and hung up at her end, sitting back down on her bed. Her roommate suddenly burst through the door baring a tray full if ice cream, soda and candy.
"I had a feeling you'd be homesick again when you got off the phone, so I brought treats." Rogue smiled, but inside she was increasingly depressed, university just wasn't what she was expecting. Now there was no X-men duties to keep her occupied, she admitted to herself that her own feet were itching as Avalanche's had apparently become. What was she going to do?
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
"Well Charles, you really are becoming quite the home for strays, aren't you?" Magneto inquired as Xavier poured tea for them both. "This Gambit fellow seems very interesting..."
"He is a good man, Eric, even if he doesn't realise it himself yet..." Charles' tone was even and passive, but the double meaning was not lost on Magneto.
"Hum, perhaps for some of us it is a little late to be worrying if we are good men?"
"I have to believe it is never too late, Eric, for any of us." Charles passed his old friend the teacup, milk and sugar. Rather than re-cover old ground, Magneto changed the subject.
"What have you heard about a new craze called 'Ace', Charles?" He asked pointedly.
"Not very much, I will admit. Cyclops reported a mutant approaching him trying to sell it at the airport. But Scott is always a law-abiding citizen, and didn't think of obtaining any for testing. And now he's off duty with Tsunami visiting..."
"Ah, yes, we can't be ruining what little joy the young man has found since the tragic death of Jean Grey now, can we? Even if he is our only lead to finding the drug-dealing scum who pollute the minds of our new generation." Magneto added several spoonfuls of sugar to his tea with a twitch of his fingers at the silver spoon.
"What are you alluding to, Eric?" Xavier asked, "What do you know about this chemical?"
"What don't I know? Now now, Charles there is no need to start messing around in my head. I would have come better prepared if I had anything to hide from you." Eric smiled and added sugar to Xavier's cup as well. "This is a free exchange of information, you see my young charges are not so law conscious as yours. They tell me that ace is branded as a chemical to temporarily enhance mutant's powers, increase their DNA mutation rate, providing what the young people are terming a power-rush. Quite exhilarating by all accounts."
"It corrupts mutant's DNA?" Xavier repeated, quick mind working overtime. "We have seen this before in recent times old friend."
"Oh yes, it is just a new version of the chemicals exploited in the mutation accelerator machine." Magneto watched as Charles' face clouded over with worry. "Unfortunately as you know, the chemical's safely record leaves a little to be desired. I was hoping that your young charges away at university might be able to tell us more? Who is producing it, for example, and how?"
"Why those at university? Would not some of my adult X-Men, or any of your associates, be as able to answer our questions?"
"Oh no Charles, you see it is at universities the craze has really taken off, educated young people experiencing their first taste of independence, wanting to push themselves and their powers further than they ever had before..." Magneto met Xavier's eyes fully as he dropped the bombshell he had really come to deliver. "In fact I have been told that already one of your charges has suffered a bad reaction to the use of ace."
Quickly Xavier infiltrated Magneto's mind, why hadn't he spotted this before? Rather than protest, Eric let Charles in, pointing him directly to where the desired knowledge lay. A newspaper clipping showing a young mutant lying ill on a hospital bed. Bobby Drake.