Hello everyone! Whew, man I did this one fast! Unbelievable! Anyway, I just wanna give you all my apologies in advance if this chapter is below standard, because I wrote the middle of this fic before I wrote the start, so I really had no idea what I was doing! Usually I would've planned it and stuff, but you all seemed so smitten I wanted to post quickly just to please you (aren't I sweet?). So, um, any complaints, tell me about it and I'll try to fix it for you! Anyway, big thanks to everyone who reviewed, that's my favourite part! Keep it coming, keep it coming!

UnknownSource: You got it! Clever old you! I don't like Bobby much either, but his insertion in that scene seemed necessary. I didn't use to like Pyro, but he's growing on me…

Starfire: Romy will be a little bit in this chappie, more to come, but it's just lighthearted fun stuff, not too fluffy. Sorry :)

Forgotten Memory1: No I don't speak german, I have a friend who does! That and I find it in other fics…

Everyone else: Thanks heaps for your kind words and encouragement! I'm getting all emotional!

Now, on with the show!

Disclaimer: Yeah, yeah, you all know the drill. I don't own X-men evolution. tear If I did, it would definitely be airing in N.Z by now…

Kurt Wagner had never had to make such a hard decision in his life. The pressure was overwhelming. His sister was to his right, looking stricken. A man with a white three-cornered hat was staring at him.

"This is cruel," Rogue said in a hushed voice. "How can they do this to us?"

Kurt shook his head, unable to answer her with words.

Finally, Rogue spoke again, her voice trembling slightly.

"I-I guess I'll have a double scoop cookies and cream with, uh, maple and walnut please."

The white-hat man began scooping her choices onto a waffle cone.

"Do you want free hot fudge and cream with that?" he enquired, holding up her frozen splendor.

"Uh yeah, caramel fudge please, hold the cream."

"Vat should I choose?" Kurt whined at her as she slapped some money on the counter. "I don't know vether to have Caramel swirl, Caramel fudge, Double chocolate or Cookies and Cream!"

Rogue shrugged and stuck the tip of her pointed tongue into the hot fudge topping her ice cream.

"Um, I dunno, it was bad enough having to choose for myself, how can I make more decisions for you?"

Kurt gave her a pained look before commencing staring at the numerous choices of ice cream situated below the glass cover.

"You're leaving a breath cloud on the window," Rogue pointed out. "Just hurry up and choose so we can sit down, won't you?"

"Sir, I can recommend the caramel fudge if you need assistance," said the white-hat man helpfully.

"There, see?" Rogue said. "You can have the caramel fudge, he even recommends it. Get a double scoop if you really can't choose."

Kurt sighed in a defeated sort of way and dragged his eyes away from the ice cream to look at the patiently waiting assistant.

"Oh, alright then, I'll have a triple scoop of double chocolate, caramel fudge and cookies and cream," he told him. "No fudge or cream please."

Rogue stared at him incredulously. "Triple scoop? I didn't think even you could go that far!"

"Triple scoops were invented with the fuzzy one in mind, sis," Kurt told her cheerily, having overcome his dilemma and the prospect of ice cream to cheer him up.

"Watch what you say around here," Rogue reminded him fiercely. "And that includes the 'sis' thing."

Kurt paid, and they went to find a table.

"So hey, vat was up with Kitty today?" Kurt asked, after having made a reasonable impression on his large ice cream. "She vas looking furious when the two of you got home."

"Oh, she was mad cos someone had managed to melt her locker shut and burn half of her books," the auburn-haired girl replied carelessly. Kurt chuckled. "Who?"

"Dunno," Rogue said unhelpfully. She was putting most of her energy into eating her own ice cream. "We thought Pyro maybe, cos I found a card in one of my books, you know like that other lackey of Mags' carries round. But it seems a bit far fetched now, to be honest."

Kurt nodded thoughtfully. He let his eyes wander around the store as he continued to lick. Hidden behind his image-inducer, he didn't mind catching peoples' eyes nearly so much.

He enjoyed watching people, observing them. It was always fascinating for to see how other people lived their lives. He looked at an old couple, drinking cups of tea or something, smiling at each other fondly.

'How amazing it must be to have spent your whole life with someone,' Kurt thought.

He then turned to look at a teenage couple. A girl with dirty-blonde hair was snuggled into the chest of a guy with dark-brown hair. They were taking turns sipping a milkshake. Every now and then they would kiss. Kurt shook his head and moved his gaze instead to some other siblings, much younger than himself and Rogue. A girl with shiny jet-black hair that tumbled past her shoulders was stealing pebbles from her brother's ice cream. The little boy's hair was much scruffier and he was enthralled in pushing a toy car back and forth across the table.

Suddenly, the girl turned and looked right at Kurt, who for a moment was shocked. Her eyes were a dazzling acid green colour, and her pupils were slits, like a cats'. She smiled wickedly and popped another pebble in her mouth. This time, though, her brother caught her and promptly leapt at her, squealing. The girl fell off her chair, giggling madly, and the two of them rolled around on the floor. The parents simply smiled calmly, as if this happened every day, as it very well could. Kurt grinned too, but his own sister's hushed voice caught his attention.

"Great. Look who's here."

Kurt glanced at the door, and saw none other than Pyro and Gambit walking through it. They looked quite strange in their casual clothes.

"Heylookit'sRogueyandherbrotherhavingsomequalitybondingtimehowsweet!"

The two X-men whirled around, hearing an abnormally fast and rather cocky voice speak from behind them.

Pietro was sitting on the table opposite theirs, grinning. He had obviously sped over there when they'd been looking at Pyro and Gambit, or something else anyway. Pyro bounded over too. Gambit rolled his red-on-black eyes before sauntering towards them also, in no hurry himself.

"Hey, isn't that the elfy one? Why does he look normal now? Is the furry thing just to scare us, mate?"

Kurt glared at the psychotic Aussie, who was now peering at him as if trying to make out a dust mite on his face. Pietro laughed in a girly sort of way. But the Cajun's attention was firmly fixed on something else.

"Bon soir, chere. What a wonderful surprise t' see you here."

"Wish I could say the same about you," Rogue spat.

"Vat are you doing here?" added Kurt accusingly.

"Just some business we need to take care of, mon ami, nothin t' concern yourself over."

"We're all concerned about you, swamp rat," Rogue told him viciously. "And I don't mean that in a good way."

Pyro laughed maniacally.

"Good one, sheila, very nice indeed."

He took out a lighter and flicked it, watching the flame with fascination.

"Aaw, so hostile, chere. Remy mean you no harm."

"Oh, Remy now is it? Well that'd be like you meant me no harm with that charged card you gave me, wouldn't it?"

She glared at him, refusing to look away as he met her eyes. He just smiled, undaunted.

"Dat weren't nothin but a lil gift, chere. Remy never do anyt'ing t' hurt you."

Rogue opened her mouth to snap back at him, but not surprisingly, Pietro got in first.

"C'monGambitwe'vegottakeepmovingleaveRogueyandlet'sdothis!"

Gambit nodded. He turned back to Rogue, still smiling.

"I'm afraid duty calls, chere. Till we meet again."

He took her gloved hand and kissed it before she could do a thing to stop him. She snatched it away, infuriated.

"That…!"

She never got a chance to finish. Pyro, an insane grin lighting his features, flicked his lighter again and made the flame grow into an almost life-size lion. It advanced on the parents of the kids Kurt had been watching earlier.

Screams rang throughout the ice cream parlour. The parents backed away, yelling at their kids to escape.

Pyro sent more flames to chase the rest of the customers out of the store in the shape of creepy, knarled hands.

Rogue and Kurt stared, aghast, frozen to their seats.

Pietro zipped over to the kids and grabbed them both. They each screamed and started struggling as hard as they could. Their parents screamed too as Pietro took off, holding each kid by the arm.

Rogue leapt to her feet and ran forward, Kurt ported in Pietro's general direction.

Pyro was just out the door. He waved at them, grinning in that rather scary, deranged way he had.

"Buh bye X-men! It's been great fun!"

He laughed and ran after Pietro. Gambit, too, stopped in the doorway. He blew Rogue a kiss before igniting a card and throwing it slightly forward of the doorframe and running off himself. Rogue and Kurt dove for cover as it exploded.

Once the dust had settled, the siblings looked around in a kind of chilled awe at the rubble, then at each other, their eyes wide in horror. The flaming lion had disappeared with Pyro, and the mother of the kidnapped kids was in tears while her husband hugged her. They stared at Kurt and Rogue with terrified eyes.

Rogue, Kurt. Assist anyone still inside the building, and then return to the manor immediately. If the parents of the two children will come, bring them.

Rogue and Kurt nodded, even though Professor Xavier couldn't see them. Their brains were currently on autopilot.

"Why vould they do that?" Kurt asked quietly, not really expecting an answer.

"I don't know, but Kurt, we have to get those kids back. We have to."

Rogue stood up and walked purposefully towards the parents. Kurt followed her, head hung sorrowfully.

And that's it for now, but chapter 4 will be out soon so never fear! Once again, sorry if I sabotaged the characters in any way! Most of the Acolytes I really don't know at all and am writing by means of guesswork and you guys' fics!

I'd be grateful for any tips! Please review, otherwise I might be discouraged and never write again!