Yeash, no matter how hard I try. I can't completely rip myself away from the X-movie universe and write. Anyway... continuing on...

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Warren ran his hand through Betsy's hair as he continued to kiss her passionately. The Japanese telepath moaned and moved her hands up Warren's back to the base of his great white wings, where she began to work her fingers through his feathers. Warren groaned and Betsy's tongue moved deeper into his mouth. Neither was aware of Jean and Marie walking into the kitchen and catching them as they began to undress each other on the dining table.

Jean cleared her throat loudly. Both mutants were recent recruits and from what Jean gathered from their clothing, had recently returned from a long night out on the down. The Japanese girl, Elizabeth, Betsy for short, was also a telepath, and Jean found a fairly well developed one at that. Jean realized that Betsy had managed to mentally shield her and Warren's presences from telepathic minds, but obviously became too preoccupied to notice when people were coming into the kitchen.

"Ms. Grey!" Warren stammered as he hopelessly tried to pull his turtleneck back over his body.

"Not here." Jean said sternly. When she caught Betsy's telepathic suggestion to Warren, she glared and telepathically replied to all in the room.

Not there either. Back to your rooms. Your separate rooms. You have class in six hours.

Betsy pouted for a second at Warren, but left the kitchen under the icy glare of Jean. Jean didn't care much about the personal lives of the students in this school, but sometimes people need to be discreet. Jean stood firmly as she waited for Warren to leave the kitchen. Before he left, Warren winked at Jean flashing his playboy features at the telepath. Jean looked at him coldly through her emerald eyes and telekinetically tightened the boy's boxer's shorts. Warren squawked and hobbled out, his wings flapping unattractively behind him.

Behind Jean, Marie had wrapped her arms around herself. She had removed her elbow high gloves. Marie needed to know what skin on skin felt like, even if it was only her own.

When Jean caught Marie's eyes, the teenager spoke, her voice a little ragged.

"It's not like I want that right now," She said of Warren and Betsy. "I just… I'll never have anything like that.

Jean stepped forward and rubbed the girl's back, wishing she didn't have to be careful of where she touched. Jean opened her mouth to speak, but Bobby walked in yawning. The telepath let out a small sigh of exasperation.

"It's a school night and most of you guys have an exam in Storm's class. Doesn't anyone sleep anymore?"

Bobby looked at her and blinked in confusion.

"I just wanted something to drink." He pointed at the water cooler and wondered what made his biology teacher testy.

"Sorry Bobby, I wasn't frustrated at you." Jean gestured towards the cooler and used her power to fill a glass full of water and give it to the mutant in training.

Bobby thanked his teacher and noticed that Marie was in the kitchen as well.

"Rogue," he said happily. "I didn't know you would be awake."

Marie smiled sadly at him. By his reaction, she guessed he just thought she was just really tired.

"Hey Bobby. Sorry I haven't been in Storm's class. Professor's been helping me a bit more with my powers."

Bobby sipped his water. It was a bit lukewarm, and when he blew on it to chill it down Bobby was quite pleased he managed to chill it without turning it into a block of ice, which he usually did.

"That's okay. You can have a copy of my notes." Bobby glanced at Jean from the corner of his eye. She had turned and was looking through the various cabinets for food. He knew she was completely aware of what he was going to do, but was thankful for her attempt to be uninvolved. He looked back at Marie. "I was meaning to ask you sooner, but you weren't in class. Anyway, I was wondering if you wanted to go out with Warren, Betts, John and me to the movies this Wednesday."

Jean suddenly dropped a box of crackers. She had a rather unwelcome image of what Warren and Betsy would be doing in a dark theater. It wasn't that long ago when she was young and hormonally driven.

Marie shrugged.

"I'm busy that day. I've got a…" Marie fumbled for an excuse and her eyes fell onto the back of Jean's head. "Doctor's appointment. Professor Xavier wants me to check in with Dr. Grey."

Bobby nodded slightly. He missed the lie.

"Another time then. Well, I'm going back to sleep. Night Rogue. Good night, Ms. Grey."

When Bobby left, Jean turned and looked at Marie.

"Marie…"

"Why bother?" The girl interjected as she rummaged through the fridge for yogurt. "I can't get close to people Jean, why should I tempt myself and others? I'll only get hurt more."

"It doesn't mean you can't have friends."

Marie looked down at the tub of yogurt she held in her hands.

"You don't have to be a telepath to know that Bobby likes me more than a friend. I just can't handle that right now."

Marie suddenly lost her appetite and she returned the yogurt back into the fridge.

"I better get to sleep. I need to catch up on homework that I've missed in the past week." Marie looked up a Jean. For a second, her breath caught in her throat as she stared into the other woman's concerned green eyes. They were beautiful. Deep, dark green, like the forests that Logan had found her in. Logan's influence again. "Thanks for talking to me." She managed to say as she walked out.

"Sleep tight. I'll see you in the morning." Jean called after her.

-----

Marie stifled a yawn. Jean had woken her up at eight, telling her that the Professor wanted to do some tests with her powers. By eight-twenty, Marie was already in the mutant scanner in the infirmary.

"Just lay still. You'll feel a buzzing feeling on your skin, but that's normal." Came Jean's voice over the built in intercom.

Marie closed her eyes and let the scanners do their work. Various bars of light traveled up and down her body. She felt the buzzing and giggled a bit as it ticked her.

"All done." Jean said as Marie slid out of the scanner and sat up. Charles Xavier was there too, and he smiled warmly at her. "The Professor is going to probe your mind." Jean stood aside as Xavier moved closer to Marie.

"Not to pry; I just want to get a better idea of the nature of your gift."

Marie nodded and sat on a stool that put her eye level with the Professor. She glanced up at Jean. The doctor was wore a sleeveless red turtleneck and a long black skirt underneath her lab coat. Her hair was neatly done up French braid and she wore all sorts of jewelry on her wrists and neck. Marie marveled at how this woman could look so awake after getting only a couple hours of sleep.

"Clear your mind." Xavier said to her. "Focus on the moment your power first manifested."

Marie winced. That wasn't a moment of her life she liked remembering, but she did as requested. For five minutes Xavier probed her mind and scanned over her memory of her power's manifestation. When he broke the link, he showed no sign of the mental exertion that a telepath like Jean would have shown after scanning someone's mind.

"Jean? Could you send those lab tests up to my office and meet me up there in an hour? I'd like to take a look at everything we've learned today."

"Of course Professor." Jean tapped on her computer and sent the files over to Xavier's computer in his office.

Xavier turned back to Marie.

"As for you, I apologize for waking you so early. Especially after the late night you had. Go get some breakfast; I hear Scott is making waffles. After, can we meet in my office in an hour?"

Marie nodded and left the infirmary. Jean looked down at the Professor.

"Are you sure you don't want to rest? You only woke up from coma two hours ago."

Charles smiled at her as he moved his wheel chair towards the exit.

"Helping these children recognize their gift is the only rest I need."

Jean watched her mentor leave and then turned back to her other patient, Logan. Jean needed to change his bandages again.

----

"Marie, the test confirms what we first believed about your power. It's a physical one and not one brought on by mental capacities. This said I cannot just put a mental block in your mind to stop your power."

"But why not? You said that mutant brainwaves are different from humans. Can't you isolate the ones that are different and block them?" Marie asked.

Xavier shook his head.

"Only those who are, for example, telepaths, tele, hydro or pyrokinetic, can have mental blocks. The rest, like Scott, need outside sources to stop their powers." Xavier caught the growing dismay in Marie and quickly added, "But your abilities are incredibly new. In time I think your body will develop to control your power."

Marie sighed.

"How long with that be?"

"I don't know." Xavier said truthfully.

Marie nodded and stood. She thanked the Professor and Jean, who was present yet silent throughout the meeting, for helping her and left. Marie heard Jean follow her out of the office and turned to look at her.

"Do you really think I'll grow to control my power?" She asked the woman.

Jean nodded. She wasn't completely sure, but Charles was right. Marie's powers were probably still developing.

"Of course. All of us have, even me." She reached over and patted Marie's arm. "Look, I've got some things I need to take care of in the lab. Go try to have some fun in the game room okay?"

Marie looked down over the railings into the game room. Bobby was there playing foosball and from the looks like it, he was loosing badly. Maybe just one game…