"Ah, here's the one you want." Desire handed Ruby a pair of black
pants in her size. Ruby had slimmed down so much that she absolutely had
to buy new clothing. She'd taken James at his word and made liberal use of
his credit card.
"Thanks." She draped the pants over her arm with three other pairs. "I think that's enough."
"I can't believe you fit into those," Desire said, following her back to the dressing room.
"I can't either." She found an empty stall. "I promise you I didn't a month ago."
"The way you've been training with Wolverine, I'm not surprised," Desire said through the dressing room door.
Ruby was still trying to get used to the codenames. She stepped out of the dressing room to show Desire the black pants. "I don't know when I'm going to wear these," she complained to her new friends. "I'm in workout clothes unless I'm asleep." She turned, admiring the pants in the full length mirror. "Sometimes even when I am asleep."
Desire laughed as Ruby went back into the dressing room to try on the next pair. "I certainly wouldn't want to be in your shoes. Or out of them, as the case may be."
"He puts me through the paces, all right," Ruby said, stepping out to show off a pair of jeans. "It's supposed to get a lot harder, soon."
"Those are cute," Desire said, then jumped back to the thread of the conversation. "Why?"
"Because so far," Ruby said from back inside the dressing room, "he's been teaching me moves, and we've been working on things like my flexibility and endurance." She came out of the dressing room in the second pair of jeans. "But he keeps threatening me that we're going to start actually sparring, and I'm sure I'll be covered with bruises once that starts."
"Better you than me," Desire said, shaking her head. "I like those, too."
"This last pair is my favorite." Ruby hurried back to change one last time. She'd picked out a pair of dark brown suede pants. She stepped out of the dressing room and turned this way and that in front of the mirror. "I even like them on me," she said a bit smugly.
"They look great," Desire said warmly.
The two women made their way to the cash register so Ruby could make her purchases. "Do you think I should get both pairs of jeans?" she asked hesitantly.
"Yeah. You don't want to have to do laundry all the time, do you?" Desire teased.
"I know...." The prices of things were appalling to Ruby, who realized that her idea of money was a little old fashioned. She resolved once more to try not to think of it and just hope that she wasn't paying way too much and just not knowing it. Besides, her clothing was not only too large, now, but also hopelessly out of date. The trouble was, she still liked her clothing. Maybe she could get some of it altered and just resign herself to being 'retro.'
"We'd better head back," Desire said, checking her watch while steering Ruby out of the store. "You may only be eating and going to bed, but I've got a hot date and I don't want to be late."
Ruby laughed ruefully. It was just getting dark as they got outside. Although Logan had given her the whole day off – something she hadn't had in five weeks of working out with him – Desire's evaluation of her evening plans wasn't far off the mark. The day off had been restful, even with Desire dragging her all over the mall, but she was looking forward to a nice long sleep before Logan came by to get her in the morning. She had a feeling that he was going to make up for the day off with a vengeance.
They drove back to the school with Desire gossiping about people Ruby didn't know or had met a handful of times. It was very pleasant. Logan was nice to be around, but not much of a talker. She had told him more about herself than she'd told anyone else, and now she enjoyed letting someone else keep the conversation up.
Desire drove. Ruby didn't have a license; these days she didn't even have an official identification, though James promised her they were working on that. It didn't take long to get back to the school. Ruby also wasn't sure she was comfortable with the speeds people drove at now.
There was a group of students and some teachers milling around the front of the school when Desire pulled up; among them, Desire's boyfriend, Heath. His curly golden hair stood out even at a distance – not that Desire would have trouble spotting him. She parked haphazardly to fling herself out of the car and into his arms. Ruby followed more sedately, grinning.
She spotted James and waved at him. He beckoned her over to where he was sitting with Professor Xavier and several other teachers she didn't know. When she reached them James gave her an affectionate sideways hug.
"You've met Professor Xavier, right, Ruby?" he asked.
"Yes, nice to see you again, Professor." She shook hands with him briefly.
"Likewise. Ruby, this is Dr. Jean Grey, and Sean Cassidy, who's visiting us from his own school."
"Nice to meet you." She found a spot to sit and leaned against one of the tall pillars framing the entrance.
She watched the kids organizing a game of flashlight tag. She smiled as one of the pirokinetics sent up a shower of sparks, illuminating the whole area for a moment. Playful yells grew farther away as the kids scattered.
Suddenly, like a blood rush, the yells grew louder in her ears. She gripped the stair on either side of her, keeping hold on reality with her touch on the cool stone. Then even that was gone, and she was standing in blazingly bright sunlight; it beat down hot on her skin. People crowded tight around her, laughing and calling to one another. Some of them held signs. iMutants For Peace/i, she read, and iPrivacy Rights For All/i. Jean Grey, Charles Xavier, and some other people she only vaguely recognized were standing on a raised platform at one end of the crowd.
Someone took her hand. She turned and saw Xavier standing calmly beside her.
"The rally. This Saturday," he told her. "Do you have any idea why you're seeing it?"
"Not yet," she said, a sick feeling in her stomach telling her it wouldn't be pleasant.
Someone bumped into her, and she stumbled, but Xavier kept her hand clasped firmly. A woman carrying a sign that read iI ♥ My Mutant Son/i was shouldering her way through the crowd. Ruby's eyes were drawn irresistibly to her.
"Do you recognize her?" Xavier asked.
"No," Ruby said, but she wasn't certain. "She seems familiar, but I don't know her."
She felt a jolt, and the sun was farther along its path in the sky. The noise was gone, and one of the people she didn't recognize was speaking at the podium.
"Our sons, our daughters, our brother and sister! Should we not welcome them? Should we antagonize those who should be closest to us? Should we live in fear, instead of love?"
A resounding "No!" met the query.
Ruby looked at Xavier, who met her gaze. They turned to scan the crowd as the speaker began again.
There was a shout, carried with a note of panic. An explosion rocked the ground, and the crowd erupted in screams. Ruby fell to her knees, one hand held tightly in Xavier's, the other clutching the arm of his wheelchair.
Gunshots exploded through the crowd in a deafening clatter. People tried to duck, and now were in danger of stampeding. Ruby glimpsed Jean with a hand thrown up in warding, keeping those on the platform safe from the deadly onslaught. She was unable to stop all the bullets that tore through the crowd. Blood, warm and wet, splattered across Ruby's cheek and shoulder. A man fell to the ground in front of her, hands pressed against his stomach even as his insides spilt.
"Ruby." Xavier drew her attention. "I think we've seen enough."
Abruptly she was back in the cool night air at the school. Xavier was on the stoop next to her, and he released the hand he'd taken.
Ruby drew in a shuddering breath and wiped convulsively at her cheek, although the blood had only been in her vision.
"Thank you," Xavier said kindly. "I believe we can prevent that particular disaster." His smile was gentle, reassuring, and Ruby nodded gratefully before he turned away. "Yeah, will you come with me? There are some calls we need to make."
"Of course, Professor."
Ruby didn't watch them go. She looked out across the grounds where lightning bugs flickered invitingly.
Desire touched her shoulder cautiously. "You okay, hon?"
Ruby nodded again. "Tired. I'm going to head home."
"Want company?" the other woman asked.
"Sure." Ruby accepted a hand up. "Night, James," she said with a wave over her shoulder.
Desire linked elbows with her and they walked back to the cottage, getting tagged by flashlights only twice.
"Thanks." She draped the pants over her arm with three other pairs. "I think that's enough."
"I can't believe you fit into those," Desire said, following her back to the dressing room.
"I can't either." She found an empty stall. "I promise you I didn't a month ago."
"The way you've been training with Wolverine, I'm not surprised," Desire said through the dressing room door.
Ruby was still trying to get used to the codenames. She stepped out of the dressing room to show Desire the black pants. "I don't know when I'm going to wear these," she complained to her new friends. "I'm in workout clothes unless I'm asleep." She turned, admiring the pants in the full length mirror. "Sometimes even when I am asleep."
Desire laughed as Ruby went back into the dressing room to try on the next pair. "I certainly wouldn't want to be in your shoes. Or out of them, as the case may be."
"He puts me through the paces, all right," Ruby said, stepping out to show off a pair of jeans. "It's supposed to get a lot harder, soon."
"Those are cute," Desire said, then jumped back to the thread of the conversation. "Why?"
"Because so far," Ruby said from back inside the dressing room, "he's been teaching me moves, and we've been working on things like my flexibility and endurance." She came out of the dressing room in the second pair of jeans. "But he keeps threatening me that we're going to start actually sparring, and I'm sure I'll be covered with bruises once that starts."
"Better you than me," Desire said, shaking her head. "I like those, too."
"This last pair is my favorite." Ruby hurried back to change one last time. She'd picked out a pair of dark brown suede pants. She stepped out of the dressing room and turned this way and that in front of the mirror. "I even like them on me," she said a bit smugly.
"They look great," Desire said warmly.
The two women made their way to the cash register so Ruby could make her purchases. "Do you think I should get both pairs of jeans?" she asked hesitantly.
"Yeah. You don't want to have to do laundry all the time, do you?" Desire teased.
"I know...." The prices of things were appalling to Ruby, who realized that her idea of money was a little old fashioned. She resolved once more to try not to think of it and just hope that she wasn't paying way too much and just not knowing it. Besides, her clothing was not only too large, now, but also hopelessly out of date. The trouble was, she still liked her clothing. Maybe she could get some of it altered and just resign herself to being 'retro.'
"We'd better head back," Desire said, checking her watch while steering Ruby out of the store. "You may only be eating and going to bed, but I've got a hot date and I don't want to be late."
Ruby laughed ruefully. It was just getting dark as they got outside. Although Logan had given her the whole day off – something she hadn't had in five weeks of working out with him – Desire's evaluation of her evening plans wasn't far off the mark. The day off had been restful, even with Desire dragging her all over the mall, but she was looking forward to a nice long sleep before Logan came by to get her in the morning. She had a feeling that he was going to make up for the day off with a vengeance.
They drove back to the school with Desire gossiping about people Ruby didn't know or had met a handful of times. It was very pleasant. Logan was nice to be around, but not much of a talker. She had told him more about herself than she'd told anyone else, and now she enjoyed letting someone else keep the conversation up.
Desire drove. Ruby didn't have a license; these days she didn't even have an official identification, though James promised her they were working on that. It didn't take long to get back to the school. Ruby also wasn't sure she was comfortable with the speeds people drove at now.
There was a group of students and some teachers milling around the front of the school when Desire pulled up; among them, Desire's boyfriend, Heath. His curly golden hair stood out even at a distance – not that Desire would have trouble spotting him. She parked haphazardly to fling herself out of the car and into his arms. Ruby followed more sedately, grinning.
She spotted James and waved at him. He beckoned her over to where he was sitting with Professor Xavier and several other teachers she didn't know. When she reached them James gave her an affectionate sideways hug.
"You've met Professor Xavier, right, Ruby?" he asked.
"Yes, nice to see you again, Professor." She shook hands with him briefly.
"Likewise. Ruby, this is Dr. Jean Grey, and Sean Cassidy, who's visiting us from his own school."
"Nice to meet you." She found a spot to sit and leaned against one of the tall pillars framing the entrance.
She watched the kids organizing a game of flashlight tag. She smiled as one of the pirokinetics sent up a shower of sparks, illuminating the whole area for a moment. Playful yells grew farther away as the kids scattered.
Suddenly, like a blood rush, the yells grew louder in her ears. She gripped the stair on either side of her, keeping hold on reality with her touch on the cool stone. Then even that was gone, and she was standing in blazingly bright sunlight; it beat down hot on her skin. People crowded tight around her, laughing and calling to one another. Some of them held signs. iMutants For Peace/i, she read, and iPrivacy Rights For All/i. Jean Grey, Charles Xavier, and some other people she only vaguely recognized were standing on a raised platform at one end of the crowd.
Someone took her hand. She turned and saw Xavier standing calmly beside her.
"The rally. This Saturday," he told her. "Do you have any idea why you're seeing it?"
"Not yet," she said, a sick feeling in her stomach telling her it wouldn't be pleasant.
Someone bumped into her, and she stumbled, but Xavier kept her hand clasped firmly. A woman carrying a sign that read iI ♥ My Mutant Son/i was shouldering her way through the crowd. Ruby's eyes were drawn irresistibly to her.
"Do you recognize her?" Xavier asked.
"No," Ruby said, but she wasn't certain. "She seems familiar, but I don't know her."
She felt a jolt, and the sun was farther along its path in the sky. The noise was gone, and one of the people she didn't recognize was speaking at the podium.
"Our sons, our daughters, our brother and sister! Should we not welcome them? Should we antagonize those who should be closest to us? Should we live in fear, instead of love?"
A resounding "No!" met the query.
Ruby looked at Xavier, who met her gaze. They turned to scan the crowd as the speaker began again.
There was a shout, carried with a note of panic. An explosion rocked the ground, and the crowd erupted in screams. Ruby fell to her knees, one hand held tightly in Xavier's, the other clutching the arm of his wheelchair.
Gunshots exploded through the crowd in a deafening clatter. People tried to duck, and now were in danger of stampeding. Ruby glimpsed Jean with a hand thrown up in warding, keeping those on the platform safe from the deadly onslaught. She was unable to stop all the bullets that tore through the crowd. Blood, warm and wet, splattered across Ruby's cheek and shoulder. A man fell to the ground in front of her, hands pressed against his stomach even as his insides spilt.
"Ruby." Xavier drew her attention. "I think we've seen enough."
Abruptly she was back in the cool night air at the school. Xavier was on the stoop next to her, and he released the hand he'd taken.
Ruby drew in a shuddering breath and wiped convulsively at her cheek, although the blood had only been in her vision.
"Thank you," Xavier said kindly. "I believe we can prevent that particular disaster." His smile was gentle, reassuring, and Ruby nodded gratefully before he turned away. "Yeah, will you come with me? There are some calls we need to make."
"Of course, Professor."
Ruby didn't watch them go. She looked out across the grounds where lightning bugs flickered invitingly.
Desire touched her shoulder cautiously. "You okay, hon?"
Ruby nodded again. "Tired. I'm going to head home."
"Want company?" the other woman asked.
"Sure." Ruby accepted a hand up. "Night, James," she said with a wave over her shoulder.
Desire linked elbows with her and they walked back to the cottage, getting tagged by flashlights only twice.