Shunned
Disclaimer: Characters and setting are the property of Marvel, I'm just borrowing them for a little non-profit fun.
Thanks for the feedback: LadyEvils, Jaina12, soulstress, IceBlueRose, Risty, Raniatlw, DemonRogue13, Riderazzo
Well this update wasn't quite as slow as last time. Still slow, but not as bad. I'm trying but RL can be very hectic sometimes.
At Bayville High Kitty's team continued their first day back. "I'll see you after class." Kitty said as she left Rahne at the gym door. "If anyone tries to hurt you, you come tell me."
Rahne gulped. "Do I really have to go?"
"We need two phys ed credits to graduate." Kitty replied. "Look everyone's being pretty non-violent this year, you probably don't have anything to worry about."
Rahne sighed and trudged into the locker room. The other girls made a point of moving away from her. The ones who didn't turn their backs on her glared at her suspiciously as if they expected her to attack them like some ravenous beast. Their stares made Rahne self-conscious about changing.
The door to the locker room opened and closed with a slam. Amanda ran in. "Geeze I'm late!" She exclaimed. "But you know how it is when your boyfriend walks you to class."
Amanda paused as she spotted Rahne standing alone in the center of the room. "Rahne, I didn't know you were in this class." Amanda urged Rahne over to the lockers and started pulling out her gym clothes.
Rahne took hers out of her bag then looked around for an empty locker to claim.
"We've got a new gym teacher this year." Amanda said conversationally. "Mr. Jackson, he a real hottie, half the girls in here have crushes."
Rahne smiled a little as Amanda's cheerful gossip relaxed her.
A few minutes later they were assembled in the gym with the rest of the class.
As advertised Mr. Jackson was classically handsome with dark blonde hair and shockingly blue eyes. He smiled at Rahne. "You must be Ms. Sinclair. I heard… Logan, was responsible for physical training at your other school. I'm sure you'll be an interesting addition to the class."
Even though his tone was friendly Rahne knew that her hackles would be standing on end if she were in her wolf-form. She wondered which of Mr. Logan's other names had been on the tip of this man's tongue.
"Wow, I didn't expect any of the teachers would break ranks." Amanda said quietly. "All of Kurt's have been giving him the silent treatment. They don't even call his name for roll call."
"I don't like him." Rahne said. "He smells like lies."
Kelly stepped into his office and started coughing as a cloud of cigarette smoke bellowed out.
"This is a no-smoking campus!" Kelly snapped as he glared at the young man in a rumpled white shirt and slacks. "And get your feet off my desk."
"You won't let me drink in this bleeding country, but you can't take away me cigs." The younger man protested with a scowl. His feet didn't move.
"Who are you and what are you doing in my office?" Kelly demanded.
"Didn't Jackson tell you? I'm the new football coach he promised to find."
"I told him I was looking for a soccer coach and you hardly look like an athlete." Kelly glared at the cigarette dangling from the dark haired young man's lips.
"That's what I told Jackson, but he said I must know something about football, soccer to you yanks, then he told me it was for a girls soccer team, so I said sure."
"You must be joking." Kelly said.
"Of course, the mercenary business has been slow lately so I decided to take up teaching. After what I've heard about your school I figured a background in armed conflict would be a plus on me resume."
Mr. Jackson, Bayville's new PE and health teacher arrived at Kelly's office before the Principal found a suitable reply. "I see you've met Wisdom." He said as he slipped past Kelly and stepped into the office. He grabbed the younger man's ankles and shoved his feet off the desk then grabbed the cigarette from his mouth and put it out. "Pete, we agreed you'd be using your company manners."
"You can't seriously expect me to hire this, this person." Kelly exclaimed. "He's worse than the mutants."
Pete Wisdom grinned smugly.
"It's not as if there are many people willing to work here." Jackson said. "Wisdom wasn't my first choice to coach the tem, he was the only one of my prospects who called back. Pete's an exchange student at a local college. He'll behave himself around the students…"
"Or you'll hand me my ass. Yeah, yeah, I remember." Wisdom said sardonically. "Wouldn't want to corrupt any impressionable young minds now would I?"
"Pete, do me a favor and shut up." Jackson remarked. "Principal Kelly, it was a damn shame about your former coach's legal problems. I'm sure it'll all get straightened out in court, but not in time for the season. On such short notice Pete's the best I could scare up. Either hire him or forget the year's soccer season which'd be a real shame considering Bayville's reputation in the sport."
"Alright, he's hired." Kelly surrendered. "But I'll fire you just as quickly if I catch the slightest hint of inappropriate behavior around the students. That includes smoking!"
Pete rolled his eyes. "Sure mate, I'll go post try out notices or something." He said with a casual wave as he walked out.
"It was like there was an invisible force field around them." Kitty thought as she and Todd walked toward the cafeteria. No matter how crowded the halls were the other students managed to pull away to leave them set apart from the rest of Bayville's student body.
No one spoke to them; made comments they were meant to over hear sure; but no one spoke to them directly, not even to insult them.
Kitty caught a few embarrassed, shame-filled looks but when she realized Amanda was being as pointedly ostracized as they were she understood why no one else was daring to cross the line.
Amanda had sided with them. As far as her classmates were concerned she was a mutant by association if not by genetics. Still Amanda's choice had actually been made the previous year when she'd continued to date Kurt after their secret came out. The closer Amanda became to Kurt and, by extension, to his friends the further she drifted away from the rest of Bayville. When she'd met Kurt at the school doors she hadn't stepped over the line drawn in the sand, she'd merely acknowledged which side of the gaping chasm her friends stood on.
The other students who might not approve of what was being done weren't going to risk their entire social existence for an ideal. Kitty couldn't quite bring herself to blame them.
An expectant silence filled the hall as the two mutants approached Todd's locker.
Kitty felt her blood boil as the meaning of the flyer posted there sunk into her brain. A grainy picture of Lance with the caption "The only good mutant "
After a moment Todd said. "Lance would think that's hilarious."
Kitty ripped the flyer down and yanked Todd into an empty classroom. "They think Lance is dead." She whispered, her voice taunt with fury. "Fill in the blanks, Toad!"
Todd rolled his eyes. "Yeah, I know what they meant. But Lance ain't dead. That's why he'd think it's funny. 'Sides, I didn't want to give those assholes the satisfaction."
Kitty took a deep breath. "You're right, I know you're right. But they're all so happy thinking that Duncan murdered Lance.
Todd glanced at the floor and shrugged. "I promised Moira and the Prof that I wouldn't do anything… creative." Todd said. When he looked up his golden eyes were unusually serious. "Lance is safe from all these creeps, no matter how much they want him dead. We get to go home to the Institute after just seven hours; there we're safe, we have friends and no one treats us like freaks. Them going to all that work to treat us like we're diseased or something; it's weak. No matter how much they don't like me I'm happier now then I've ever been in my life and they can't do anything to take that away from me. So I'm going to go out there, let 'em do their worst and laugh in their faces." Todd grinned. "Who'd of thought it? The police are good for something. I've been getting beat up at school for ten years, now they think they can bother me by staring? What a bunch of morons, yo."
Kitty watched him hop out into the hall. "Right now I don't know if I even want to co-existence with them." She said to herself.
"One whole school day and no 'mischief'." Todd said as he and Kurt joined the others on the front steps. "I need a reward."
"How about a mall trip?" Kitty suggested. "I ordered a couple of books, they're waiting for me at Walden's."
"That doesn't sound like much of a reward." Todd commented.
"I heard there's a sale." Amara said. The other girls' eyes lit up.
"My friend, ve are out numbered." Kurt laughed as he slapped Todd on the shoulder. "It's best to be graceful about it. Come, I vill let you beat me at Hydro-racer."
"Like you could do anything else."
"Boys." Amara said as she rolled her eyes.
That decided, the five mutants plus Amanda turned toward the mall.
Within the bowls of an entirely different school another meeting was taking place.
"You made me proud today." Emma said with a smile at her prize students. "You did very well against the X-Men, you've all earned mutant names. Feral has already made her preferred name known. I'd like the rest of you to select names of your own."
Theresa grinned. "I've been thinking about that. Call me Siren."
"Very appropriate." Emma replied. "You will be a siren luring men to their doom with your voice."
"I'll stick with Sunspot, thanks." Roberto said.
Emma frowned. "Are you sure you don't want something of your own choosing? Something grander perhaps?"
"Sunspot suits me."
"Xi'an, have you chosen as well?" Emma asked as she dismissed Roberto with her body language.
The demure girl glanced to the side, she didn't exactly look away from Emma but she avoided direct eye contact. "What is wrong with my name?"
"It is the name the human world recognizes you by. We do not recognize its authority over us. We are a species above them. You will be called Karma, you control the fates of those you touch."
"What about the new guy?" The recently dubbed Siren asked. "He's going to be one of us isn't he? That's why you wanted him."
"Yeah, he's not one of those should-be-preys upstairs." Feral said.
"It will take time but Chamber will be your teammate. He's proven himself against the enemy." Emma said. "When they came for him he protected himself even though he was alone and new to his powers."
"So when do the rest of us get the chance to sink our claws into someone?" Feral asked.
"Soon darling girl, soon."
Back at the Bayville mall Kurt and Todd stood outside of a store called "Excalibur" and stared longingly at the swords displayed inside.
"Ahh, that is so cool!" Kurt exclaimed. He eyed a slender rapier with visions of swashbuckling heroes dancing in his eyes.
Todd left fingerprints on the window blocking him from an ivory hilted katana. "I could lift 'em, wouldn't even need to use my powers."
"Todd!" Kurt hissed.
"Come on, don't you want to hold it, take a few swings?"
"No! Maybe, just to try them. I could pop us back after closing." Kurt suggested. "Ve could try them out, just borrow them for a bit. It's vouldn't be like really stealing."
Todd grinned. "I always knew that you X-ies weren't hopelessly dull."
"Ve'll put them back afterwards." Kurt stipulated.
"Right, we can come back any time we like, yo." Todd said. "Think the girls are done shopping?"
"Not likely." Kurt replied. "I've done this before."
Kitty smiled at Rahne. "Thanks for coming with me. I know you probably think the bookstore is boring and you'd rather be with Amara and Amanda."
"I don't mind." Rahne replied "Ye've been getting a lot of texts lately."
Kitty glanced around then whispered conspiratorially. "I'm stocking up. Lance and I do pretty well studying on our own when we work together. I've been making contacts at a couple of universities, people I can email when I've got questions. I've been collecting class notes, texts, old tests. I'll graduate High School at the end of this year because of all the extra studying I did this summer. I want to study engineering, I love seeing what makes things work, playing with machines, but I'm not waiting five years to see Lance again."
"So yer going?" Rahne asked.
"It's not hard to fight with my parents right now." Kitty said. "There really is this rift between us 'cause of how they're acting about Lance. By the end of the year no one will be surprised if I stop calling. No one will connect me with Lance's disappearance 'cause of the time lapse. I really miss him and I'm starting to hate everyone. I'm not the poster-child type. I don't want to forgive them or make nice anymore. I want to beat the next person who makes a crack about Lance until they're broken and bleeding."
"Oh…" Rahne responded awkwardly. "I wanted to check out the mystery section. I'll be back in a couple minutes, okay Kitty?"
"What do you think of this one?" Amanda asked as she did a model turn in the dressing room of another store.
"The v-neck was better." Amara replied. "I've been thinking about trying out for the soccer team. Kelly will have a fit but they registered my powers. They know I can't cheat at soccer unless I set the ball on fire or something. I'm almost as good a player as Jean was; we all know she got MVP fair and square. If they don't let me play I'm going to raise a stink. I don't like being ignored."
"I'll try out too." Amanda volunteered. "I'm not that good, but I can be moral support. Besides I heard the new coach was recruited by Mr. Jackson and he seems cool, maybe everything will work out."
"Rahne doesn't like him." Amara said.
"I can't imagine why, he was nice to her."
"Rahne has good instincts, it's the wolf in her." Amara shrugged. "I wouldn't trust him."
"We're not all against you, you know." Amanda said quietly. "Mr. Jackson's trying, you could give him the benefit of the doubt."
"I'm still taking classes at Bayville aren't I, despite how they treated us today." Amara replied irritably. "We should go find the guys. Todd's stay out of trouble quotient for the day is probably up and Pietro's last class at the college will be done in fifteen minutes. We've got a team practice scheduled as soon as he gets back to the Institute."
"I really think you should give Mr. Jackson a chance." Amanda insisted.