Notes: It's important to realize that Nate doesn't get along with girls so easily simply because I want to live through him vicariously.  He is, in fact (apparently, though I wouldn't know), quite handsome, and has always had a talent for drawing women to him, whether he means to or not.  Combined with a general desire to help people, it's no wonder so many women find him attractive…even the underage ones.

Chapter 10: Adjustment Problems

The morning had started off pretty well, all things considered.

At breakfast, Nate had left Marrow with Jubilee & Illyana, figuring she would be happiest with other girls.  Jubilee had shooed him away with promises that yes, Marrow would be perfectly fine, and no, nothing bad would happen.  And since Jubilee had never actually gotten HIM in trouble, Nate saw no reason to doubt her word.

Yet, for some reason, during the middle Dr. Grey's lecture on the finer points of disarming an enemy psi, he felt a tentative poke at the back of his mind, the kind that could only come from a young someone who was in deep doo-doo.

~"Um.  Nate?"~

Trying not to look at all distracted, he replied, ~"What's wrong, Yana?"~

~"Um.  We're in trouble."~

~ "What happened?"~ he asked, trying to sound soothing, as if he were there to pat her hand.

~"See, me and Marrow were trying to figure out this math problem Professor X gave us, and then…" ~

~"Yes?"~

~"Some mean boy at the next table asked what was wrong with her face and made her cry."~

Nate was instantly alarmed.  ~"She didn't…shoot, did she?"~

~"No.  We got in trouble cuz Jubilee slugged him."~

He couldn't help grinning, which, unfortunately, gave Jean the impression that he was fascinated by her lesson.  ~"I see.  But you two didn't really do anything wrong?"~

~"No.  But when Professor X made her leave the room, we went, too.  So now we're all waiting in his office for class to end."~

~"Then be sure to tell Jubilee I'm very proud of her.  How's Marrow?"~

~"She's still kinda mad about it.  I told her she looks fine, but she won't listen to me."~

~"I think I know how to make her feel better.  Tell her I should have a surprise for her after dinner."~

* * * * *

It was common practice for every student at Xavier's, either just before or after their enrollment, to undergo some sort of physical examination.  Nate's exam had been, by far, the easiest in the school's history, since he had been asleep the whole time. 

Sometimes, though she was ashamed of herself for thinking so, Jean wished she could put ALL the students to sleep for the examinations.

Wanda and Remy had been perfectly cooperative, although Remy had given her more than a few stares she could only classify as lewd.

Musty, however, was definitely not a good patient.  The instant he set foot into the infirmary, he transformed into his Wendigo form (according to Wanda, he did that whenever he felt insecure, since very few people wanted to mess with a Wendigo).  Storm had even gone through the trouble of lowering the temperature several degrees to make him comfortable.

Not that it helped.  Musty did not like needles, and let Jean know so whenever he saw her anywhere near one.  In the end, all she was able to collect from him was an x-ray.  But, since the Wendigo was obviously not his true form, even that was mostly pointless.

By the time she was done, Jean had a considerable headache, and the beginnings of a very ill timed cold.

Perhaps the only good news was that Professor Xavier decided Storm and Logan should be Musty's exclusive teachers, since they were the only ones who didn't mind forever having classes outside.

* * * * *

Piotr sometimes skipped lunch in order to concentrate on his latest projects.  In rare cases, he even stumbled upon a subject that he couldn't help but be inspired by.  Just a month ago, he had managed to capture Storm as she flew around the school.  He secretly considered it one of his greatest works, and was slowly working up enough courage to ask her opinion of it.

It was all a matter of finding just the right spot to focus, and Piotr had a gift for hunting them down.  Today, he was perched (very carefully) in an oak tree overlooking the school.  It provided a great view, while giving him enough privacy to work…or so he thought.

Piotr was just about to start sketching when he realized that he wasn't alone.  "You realize this could be considered stalking, my friend?"

"Sorry," Nate apologized, dropping onto a branch near Piotr's.  "But I have a favor to ask.  That is, unless I'm interrupting a really important piece?"

"No."  Piotr nodded toward where Marie and Kitty were having lunch in the gazebo.  "I have already drawn them both."

"Ah, well…do you take requests?"

"Hmm."  Piotr stroked his chin thoughtfully.  "Who is it you would like me to draw?"

"The new girl, Marrow.  But, there's a catch.  I need you to draw her…like you would Illyana." 

"I am not certain what you mean, Nate.  I always draw my sister as I see her."

"Look, Marrow's really sensitive about her…bone growths, I guess is a good phrase.  I just thought that maybe if she could see herself without them, she might feel better."

Piotr frowned.  "Are you absolutely certain that such a picture would not just make her feel worse?"

"No.  But I'm willing to bet that once she sees it, she'll start trying to control her powers.  Maybe one day she can look like that again."

"Why this interest in her, Nate?"

"Well, if there's nothing visible to make fun of, we'd at least be keeping Jubilee out of some trouble.  She's grounded as it is for that Marie incident."

"Very well.  If you can get Marrow to sit still for a few minutes, you will have your picture."

* * * * *

"Don't pick at it," Illyana fussed, lightly swatting Marrow's hand away from her forehead.

Marrow scowled at her.  "Why not?" she challenged.

"Cuz Dr. Grey says that always makes scabs worse."

"It's not scabs," Marrow snapped.  "It's bone."  As if to prove it, she broke a chunk off her elbow and dropped it in Illyana's lap.  "See?  Bone.  Picking won't change anything."

"Know what?" Jubilee said suddenly, staring closely at her.

"What?"  Marrow was decidedly uncomfortable with people who stared, and had to remind herself that she liked Jubilee…so far.

"I've been watching you.  You only grow those bones out when you're pissed."

"Language!" Illyana cried, and then, after a moment's thought, "I think…"

Jubilee rolled her eyes.  "Example.  When Nate gave you all that milk last night, you had maybe three tiny bumps on your nose.  Today, you've practically got antlers.  And you were fine this morning, too."

"So how do I make them go back in?" Marrow asked.

"Well…have you EVER made them go in?"

"…no."

"Then maybe they can only go out?  Same thing goes for my pafs, anyway.  Maybe you just have to break them off once they're out and stay happy."

"But won't that hurt?" Illyana asked, looking worried.

"I can't even feel it," Marrow replied as she began to snap off the rest of her protrusions.  "I've never been able to."

"Just don't leave them lying around," Jubilee warned.  "The last thing we need is the Prof finding that stuff in his office…"

* * * * *

There were very few times when Logan found a woman special enough that she was worthy of his attention.  For some reason, he had discovered two under the same roof.  He had not exactly given up on Jean, but until Scott was out of the picture, it was all but hopeless.

And then there was Storm, who had suddenly taken to wearing more dresses that revealed flashes of her lovely brown legs.  Logan had nearly choked when he'd seen her flying overhead one day, wearing little more than what seemed to be a bathrobe.

The truly attractive thing, though, aside from her obvious beauty, was that Storm was clearly interested in him, to a certain extent.  She always had time to share a breathtaking smile or a friendly word with him, even on the days when he felt like gutting the nearest person. 

Little did he know, there was a rather large problem.  Or there would be soon.

He got his first hint the day he'd "stumbled" upon her having lunch in the gardens.  He'd given up smoking all week for the moment, and was determined it would go well.  For the first few minutes, it actually did.

But suddenly, Logan's hair began to stand on end, and he felt like he was back in the Canadian wilds again.  Storm noticed the change in him, but before she could ask, something huge, white, and furry emerged from the bushes.

It was, of course, only Musty, parading around as the Wendigo again.  Logan thought it nothing short of a crime himself, as he'd met a real Wendigo before, and it acted nothing like Musty. 

The really sad thing was that Storm didn't mind Musty's being there at all.  She even invited him to have some of her lunch (which soon resulted in her having no lunch at all).  Which only added to the things Logan didn't like about Musty, and there were a lot of them. 

To make matters worse, Musty began to follow Storm everywhere when she was outside, which was quite often.  It was getting to the point where Logan could never find her alone for very long.  He began to wonder if maybe Musty was pursuing Storm for the same reason he was.  If their guess was correct, Musty was around Wanda's age, but it was a wild guess at best, and for all they knew, he might even be older than Logan.  He enjoyed a little competition as much as the next man, but this was not what he'd had in mind.

* * * * *

Unfortunately, Marrow was not all that impressed with Piotr's sketch of her.  Whether it was because she didn't like art, or because she now looked exactly like the picture, no one could be sure.  It was only at Illyana's coaxing that she grudgingly agreed to hang onto it.

Piotr didn't seem to mind Marrow's lack of interest in his work.  "I have faced tougher criticism than that," he told Nate.  "Some people simply do not appreciate seeing themselves as others see them."

"But I feel like I wasted your time, asking you to draw that for her."

"I have never considered my work a waste, Nate.  With each sketch, I expand my abilities further.  You need not apologize for this one."

"You don't ever get mad, do you, Piotr?"

"I have found that anger leads to violence and solves precious few things.  After all, I must set an example for Illyana."

"She's a good kid," Nate replied.  "I think she'll do just fine."

Piotr said nothing, but the look on his face said otherwise.

* * * * *

Jubilee knew something was wrong the instant she woke up.  It was too quiet, for one thing.  Usually, she could hear Illyana bustling around the room, getting ready for breakfast.  But there was a strange, lonely silence today.

She sat up quickly, and a few glances around the room proved what she'd feared: Illyana was gone.

Jubilee didn't overreact just then, though.  A check of Illyana's bed proved that she had slept in it.  But the bed itself wasn't made, which was odd.  Illyana always made her bed once she was up.  Either she'd left in a hurry, or someone had taken her.

But she forced that thought from her mind.  Illyana was probably somewhere on the grounds, playing with Marrow.  All she needed to do was grab one of the three psychics.  Naturally, Nate was her first choice.

~"Nate, it's Jubes.  Listen…I can't find Yana anywhere.  Have you seen her?"~

~"No.  You keep looking,  I'll do an in-depth search.  Don't worry, we'll find her."~

But ten minutes later, Jubilee had still found no further clues and was really starting to worry.

~"She's…not on the grounds, Jubes.  More than that, I can't sense her at all.  It's like she's dropped off the face of the Earth."~

~"You don't think she's…I mean…"~

~"No.  No matter where she is, I'd know if that happened.  She's alive, Jubes.  We just have to find out where she's living.  I'll talk to Professor X.  He'll have to use Cerebro for this."~

Jubilee sank onto Illyana's bed and hugged Miko desperately.  "Where are you, Yana?" she whispered, tears streaming down her face.  She pressed her face into Miko's back, unaware that she was closer to answering her question than she knew.

* * * * *

Xavier emerged from Cerebro slowly, only to find himself cornered by Piotr, Nate, Jubilee, Storm, and Marrow.  "I'm sorry.  There's no trace of her.  I…I don't know what else we can do."

"Can't we send out a search party?" Jubilee asked.

"Yes, but…chances are, if she's being shielded from us so thoroughly, a visual search wouldn't be successful, either.  Aside from that, we'd have no idea where to start.  Illyana could very literally be anywhere."

"But she must be somewhere," Nate said.  "We HAVE to find her!"

"How do you propose we do that, Nate?  Even Cerebro has failed."

"If Nate knows a way to find my sister," Piotr chimed in, "I think we should listen to him."

Nate nodded.  "We already know psychic searches won't help.  Maybe Wanda and I can come up with something.  With her powers, the possibilities are endless.  We'll find a way to bring Illyana home…somehow."

* * * * *

The two guards watched the slim, pretty woman walk into the plastic corridor.

"So tell me something," the first said.  "You get locked up for crimes against humanity.  Are you really at all concerned about your garden?"

The second shrugged.  "Dunno.  Was one of the crimes growing giant tomatoes to take over the world?"

"Real funny, Carl.  I'm trying to be serious here."

"Okay, okay.  I guess I wouldn't be worried about some flowers."

"So why do you think this mutie's gardener comes to see him once a month?"

Carl grunted suggestively.  "You really think a man would keep a woman like that around just to kill some weeds?  I bet she's never even seen a garden."

"Probably a masseuse or something."

"We could have her checked out."

"Seriously?  We can do that, Carl?"

"I can.  You're new, but I know some people.  Stick with me, I'll show you who to know, when to pay, and how to get any woman at any time.  It's all about connections, kid."

A few minutes later, the woman emerged.

"Good visit?" Carl asked as they went through the mandatory search again.

"Not really," she replied.  "I had bad news for him."

"Oh?"

"A…friend's adopted daughter…has gone missing."

"It's a crying shame, the things some freaks will do to a kid these days.  Hope they find her fast and unharmed."

"Thank you, Carl," she said with a smile as she left.  "I'm sure he'll appreciate your concern."

* * * * *

Illyana was not afraid when she woke up and discovered she was no longer in her room.  She was more confused than anything else.

There were strangely dressed people standing around, and all of them were staring at her with both fear and excitement in their eyes.  She couldn't shake the feeling that somehow, they would do anything she asked of them, no matter what it was.  She soon figured out why.

Illyana had thought she was sitting on her bed, since it felt so nice and safe and familiar.  It turned out, however, to be something else nice and safe and familiar.  Distantly familiar, but ultimately comforting all the same.  Then she saw the arm holding her, not as large as Piotr's, but clearly just as powerful, if not more.

"You have nothing to fear," said a strong voice just above her head.  It was so like Piotr's, yet different.

Illyana finally looked up, and her eyes widened in disbelief and happiness.  "Miko…?" she whispered.

Mikhail Rasputin smiled down at his little sister, his gray eyes flashing.  "Hello, snowflake.  Welcome to my world…our world…your new home."