Never Make That Mistake Again
An X-Men: Evolution Fanfic by Sandoz
Disclaimer: X-Men: Evolution belongs to Marvel and Kids' WB, not me.
Summary: Once, Avalanche and Shadowcat were enemies. Then one night he unexpectedly saved her life, and suddenly things are no longer black and white…
Girl afraid,
Where do his intentions lay?
--The Smiths
Rocks were falling.
No, that wasn't right—it was the Bayville Hawk, the flaming, gold-tinted school mascot that was crashing to earth from its perch high atop the gym's roof. Knee-deep in the wreckage of the soccer field's bleachers, Shadowcat pulled the unconscious body of one of her classmates to safety. She heard the threatening lurch overhead but thought nothing of it; there was a battle going on, and Cyclops' optic blasts must have hit something. Her internal alarm went off when she heard a voice urgently call her name.
"Kitty!"
What happened next went by in a flash. Looking up, Shadowcat saw Avalanche knocking Cyclops aside and running across the grass towards her. Then his hands were on her shoulders, forcefully shoving her back. Their eyes locked, and then there was a loud, terrible crash. Avalanche saw it coming but there was no time to move—he had pushed her out of the statue's way, and been crushed in her place.
Having landed roughly on the ground, Shadowcat's eyes grew wide in both shock and horror as she realized what had happened. The sight burned itself in her memory, but it was the sound, the ghastly thud of rubble toppling on a human body, that she would never forget. It was the second time the girl had heard such a thing; the first time, things had been very different.
---
"Ahhh!"
Rocks were falling. The roof collapsed when Lance threw up his arms like a child having a tantrum, and though Kitty tried to run she couldn't escape the heavy chunks of brick and concrete. She shrieked before disappearing under the dusty clouds and fallen rubble. Trying desperately not to panic, her heart threatening to explode in her chest, Kitty had managed to turn intangible at exactly the right moment. She breathed heavily and extended her right hand, watching it disappear through the stone that imprisoned her. Closing her eyes and praying, Kitty stepped forward and out of the rubble.
"Whoa."
She then phased her family to safety, a newfound confidence swelling inside her.
Professor X said to her, "Yes, Kitty, it is a gift. And you've used it well."
His words echoed in her ears. Her father's arm was heavy over her shoulder; she should have felt safe and protected, but instead there was an empty, hollow feeling inside her chest. She stole a glance at what was left of the administration building, and wondered if Lance Alvers was lying under it somewhere.
She shouldn't have believed him. Come on, one look at the guy could have told her he was bad news. Was she so silly and vulnerable, so desperate for a friend, that she'd fall for such an obvious con and endanger not only herself, but also her family?
No…how could she have known? The way he talked, it was like he really did know what she was going through. He was there for her.
A lie. All of it.
She trusted him, and he betrayed her.
Kitty realized that she really didn't care if Lance had been crushed by his own stupid quake. The thought disturbed her, and she forced it out of her mind to focus on what the good Professor had to say.
I'll never make that mistake again.
---
"I'd like you all to welcome our new student, Mr. Lance Alvers."
Kitty hadn't expected this. The Professor had talked to her personally before briefing the other young X-Men, holding her hand and telling her that he was now in Bayville, but could never hurt her again. It had been a shock, to say the least. But when she saw him again, she wouldn't hesitate to put him in his place. Her time with the X-Men, while brief, had given her strength. But still, she expected them to exchange glances on a battlefield, like one of those lifelike Danger Room simulations, not across a classroom where they at least pretended they were normal teenagers, where everything was safe and familiar.
He hadn't changed at all. Sure, it had been only two weeks, but she remembered the shaggy haircut and shabby clothes, the disinterested expression, the eyes that had carried an illusion of warmth, all so perfectly.
He stared ahead at no one in particular, not even trying to make eye contact with her, and grudgingly told the class a few things about himself at the chemistry teacher's prodding. "I hated my old school, but it got wrecked in a freak accident. Lucky me."
Emphasis on "freak," Kitty thought with a sour face.
His feet shuffling on the linoleum, Lance took one of the science lab's only empty seats, which happened to be right behind her, of course. Kitty thought she could feel his eyes on her, though it might have just been her nerves. Nevertheless, once Mr. Hawking started his lesson, the rock-tumbler leaned toward her and whispered near her ear.
"Hey."
She turned sharply before he could utter another word, her ponytail whipping behind her, and snapped, "I have absolutely nothing to say to you. Don't talk to me. Like, not now, not ever."
She turned around again, her cheeks burning with indignation. Lance made a disgusted sound under his breath and leaned back, mercifully leaving her alone. But, if Kitty had waited just a few moments longer after snapping at him, she might have found the expression on his face very interesting.
---
"You and me got a date, Pretty Kitty! How about a ride on the concrete coaster?"
Oh God, what kind of come on was that?
The Brotherhood had cornered the X-Men in a forgotten storage room that had once been a student's personal laboratory, determined on getting a strange machine that had trapped Kurt in another dimension. Lance Alvers, or Avalanche as he creatively called himself now, had sought her out, and he stomped forward as he delivered his line.
Shadowcat didn't have time to roll her eyes. The floor underneath her moved in one big seismic wave, rolling back to slam her against the wall. She phased through it and then reappeared with a leap, landing as skillfully on her feet as the animal she took her codename from.
"Lousy ride, loser!"
Before he could muster another cheesy pun Shadowcat was gone, having disappeared into the ground. Avalanche's head spun around the room, searching for her, fists tightly clenched. He was eager for a fight, but didn't get it. There was a tap on his shoulder and he turned with a "Huh?" only to slam against the floor, the recipient of a swift, well-placed kick in the chest. Shadowcat broke into a grin, hands on her hips.
In the end Kurt and his new friend Forge were saved from the Middleverse, the machine was destroyed, and the Brotherhood ran off with their tails between their legs. As the X-Men separated to change back into their civvies, Jean placed a hand on Kitty's shoulder.
"You handled yourself well," she said. Kitty knew what she meant; Jean was there, after all, when she and Lance had their last little spat. "Don't let that guy get to you."
He already has, Kitty didn't say.
---
"Mina! You're on!"
Mrs. Otma, the stage manager, referred to all the cast members by their parts. Kitty bit her lower lip, feeling uncertain and just a little scandalous in the tight black and purple getup she wore for Dracula: The Rock Opera. Rogue might be used to wearing a pound of makeup and dressing like a vampire, but this was something new for her.
All her doubts vanished when she stepped on stage, and she performed all the dance moves and lyrics to near perfection. In the end she and Rogue, Mina and Lucy to Jason Stiles' Dracula, stepped on stage for one final ovation. The applause made heat rise to her cheeks. Scanning the auditorium for the faces of her friends and teammates, Kitty found someone else instead.
Lance sat in the middle row, arms folded, looking out of place sandwiched between two sets of proud parents. His goony friends weren't anywhere near him. He was looking straight ahead—at her? No way. But she couldn't think of any other reason for Lance Alvers to be alone at a school play…her play.
If he had been wearing that creepy, lopsided "I'm gonna rock you" grin of his she would have been alarmed. As it was, she didn't notice any visible emotion on his face. He looked thoughtful ("Oh yeah, like he actually has thoughts!" Kitty's internal voice of reason piped up) and that made her curious. ("Oh no, K-Girl, you meant 'weirded out.' 'Curious' is not a place you want to go," it said again.) From her position she wasn't exactly afforded a first class view, but there didn't seem to be anything menacing in his eyes, like this wasn't the same person who exchanged threatening glances with Scott on a daily basis.
The curtains fell, forcibly removing him from her sight. Okay, shape up. Don't think about that loser anymore. She exhaled, and turned on her high heels to go put something else on. But as she exited stage left, none other than Dracula himself intercepted her. Jason had ditched the heavy cape, but he still had a sharp, toothy grin.
"You were great, Kitty, really! I knew you'd be an awesome Mina."
Again blushing, Kitty awkwardly brushed one of her long bangs behind an ear. She had been gushing over Jason since before tryouts, yet now standing face-to-face with him, hearing words of praise, she felt…what, exactly?
"You were totally awesome yourself, Jason," she replied.
He lowered his voice, like he was about to divulge a top-secret bit of information. "Well, you know, I told Mrs. Obi-Wan-Otma that you were the one. You just had this…sweetness."
She raised an eyebrow. "Sweetness?"
"Yeah. You're like this sweet, innocent, girl-next-door type. All that jazz. I totally made sure the part was yours." He hadn't taken his eyes off her since they started talking, and his spotlight didn't feel so great. His lips curled into a little self-assured smirk. "So, would you like to go get coffee sometime?"
Kitty met his gaze, and for a brief instant he wasn't the one she was looking at. A different set of brown eyes stared back, putting her off balance and stirring up something that had long been dead. But the warmth that had been there was missing in Jason's eyes.
"I-I'm sorry, but I'm going to be, like, really busy at the Institute." Walking past him, she waved goodbye and hurried down the steps to the girls' locker room, careful not to trip and fall when she glanced back. "But thanks for asking! And, like, you were great! Bye!"
It took about forty minutes for Kitty and Rogue to get out of costume and wash off all their theater makeup. When the two mutant roommates emerged from their hideaway the rest of the X-Men greeted them, and they had nothing but kind and congratulatory words. Kurt enveloped Kitty in a hug, which of course Evan got on tape with that stupid little spy cam of his. As they all exited the auditorium, Kitty stole a furtive glance back at the empty seats, and was relieved to see that no one else was waiting for her.
---
"Omigod, please don't tell me I lost it," Kitty murmured, biting her lip.
Her hands rummaged through her locker, books and papers spilled at her feet. When scouring the shelves proved fruitless she went through her backpack again, emptying its contents on the pile on the floor, pens, notebooks, and a bottle of hand lotion tumbling out. No sign of it; a gift from her grandmother, no less…
A familiar voice spoke from behind her. "Looking for this?"
Kitty's head shot up. Lance was standing not even a foot away, holding up a silver Star of David necklace by the chain. Her eyes widened and then narrowed, glaring at him accusingly.
"Don't look at me like that!" He scowled. "It fell out of your bag when you were walking outta chemistry."
"My knight in shining armor." Taking it from his hand, Kitty fastened the chain around her neck. Lance remained where he was, and folded his arms over his chest. He expected thanks. Despite herself, her voice lost its sarcastic edge. "Thank you," she said after a beat.
"Yeah, sure." He started to walk away, but she called after him. He stopped, surprised. While positive that this was some kind of mistake, Kitty nudged him in the direction of an empty stairwell right next to her locker. She wanted to talk away from prying eyes.
Fiddling with her fingers and unsure of what to say, Kitty asked him something that had been bothering her. "You came to the play, didn't you?"
Lance looked her over, pretending to be apathetic. "Maybe I did. So what?"
"Why? I mean, it's not like your gang was there with you to laugh at it or anything."
Their gazes locked.
He said to her, "You mean you don't know?"
"Leave her alone!"
Both heads spun around to see Kurt Wagner standing in the stairwell, Evan Daniels right behind him. If looks could kill, Lance would soon be carried away on a gurney.
"This dude bothering you, K-Girl?" asked Evan, ready to unsheathe his spikes at so much as a nod.
"No, no, he's not." Kitty turned away from Lance without a farewell and left quietly with her friends so as to not stir up any trouble. Unconsciously, she touched the Star of David that hung from her neck.
---
School assemblies had to be some of the most boring wastes of time ever, though Kitty was glad she had found Webber from her computer class to sit next to while the school was introduced to their new principal. Involved in a conversation about that new nighttime soap, she took no notice of Lance until he shoved a kid out of his seat right behind her.
"Oh hey, Kitty. Didn't see you there." He leaned over and grinned at her.
Kitty reacted to his presence the same way as if a fly was buzzing around her. "Oh look, it's the walking Richter scale," she greeted, "Shouldn't you be erupting somewhere?"
Lance scowled and sat back, the laughter of the nearby Brotherhood boys ringing in his ears. He seemed to take his frustrations on Mr. Kelly, who had just stepped up to the podium in front of the bleachers. The ground began to rumble, and Kelly had an embarrassing fall on his backside.
Kitty scowled at Lance, her eyes telling him to knock it off. But he was grinning at her again, and gave a silly little wave. It had all been to get her attention. Kitty allowed herself a small chuckle at his odd attempt at flirting.
But no, that wasn't enough for him. He whispered, "Want to see some real shakin'?" and let loose, causing the scoreboard to break free of the ceiling and nearly crush the new principal. A last minute save by Jean stopped the assembly from ending messily.
"Lance, get a clue, okay?!" Kitty snapped, unable to believe anyone could be so careless and stupid with his powers. When the assembly let out she was sure to get away from him, but he found her outside.
He tried to sound upbeat, like a near-crushing was no big deal. "Hey, Kitty, don't be mad. I said I was sorry for the scoreboard thing."
For some reason, she doubted his sincerity. Dismissing him with a wave, she remarked, "You can be such a jerk sometimes," to which he snatched her wrist to keep her from leaving.
She phased out of his grip, lips curled in disgust at the thought of them touching, but before she could snap a string of curses no one knew she knew, Scott was on the scene, ready to respond to Lance's challenges. Kitty was forced to step in before he could fall for his rival's bait and the two stormed off, but only after Kitty gave Lance one last angry glare.
He was such an unbelievable—arrogant—stupid jerk. Why had she bothered to give him one moment of her time? Why had she allowed herself to wonder about his reasons for ogling her at the play, or laughed at his crude flirting? Lance Alvers was a liar, a creep, and a hood, and would never be anything different.
Never.
---
"Lance!"
Sight and sound exploded all around her, but one thing was abundantly clear. She had to save him. She turned intangible and pulled his heavy, limp body from underneath the statue, careful not to move him too much for fear of a spinal injury. His funny looking costume was covered in plates of thin armor, and that along with his helmet seemed to have prevented any life-threatening damage.
On her knees, Shadowcat held Avalanche gently, more worried about what would happen to this boy than she ever thought she would be. One thought repeated itself over and over again: he risked his life for me.
Storm arrived on the scene, bringing with her a torrential downpour that doused the burning soccer field. Shadowcat wasn't even aware of the X-Men scattered about with the haggard Brotherhood, Rogue's curious gaze, or the fact that their secret had been blown. For a little while it seemed to her that the sheets of rain were washing away the past.
"You're making it yours, Kitty. Once you own it, nothing can own you."
"Forget them! You're with me now!"
"Hey."
"You mean you don't know?"
"Hey, don't be mad, Kitty. I said I was sorry."
Shadowcat stared down at his face. He stirred briefly, eyelids fluttering open, looking at her as if she were a dream. Then they closed again, and he slipped back into unconsciousness. Her heart suddenly ached.
"Why?" she whispered.
"You mean you don't know?"
A sigh escaped her lips as she continued to cradle him.
I'll never make that mistake again.
---
End.
---
Author's Notes: This little one-shot is intended to be a stand-alone prologue for a longer Lance/Kitty story I'm writing (see my bio for details) and give some insight into what it took for two enemies to become something more. I also wanted to show readers of my first Evo fic, Rock Your World, that I haven't dropped off the face of the earth. Hope you enjoyed it!
--Sandoz