AN: It has been ages. A really really really really long time. I kinda fell out of Evo for awhile and got into other sorts of fandoms, all until I went to a poetry class and this guy was there humming the old-style X-Men theme song, so I come crawling back. Wonder if anyone still remembers this...

Some Normal Discomfort

"How could you do that?" Kurt demanded as soon as Kitty, Evan and himself exited their English class.

Kitty shrugged and fiddled with her necklace. "Like, I felt I had to. There was no way I was going to let you struggle through this alone. It's, like, not fair."

Evan nodded enthusiastically. "Man it felt so good to let it out. Now I don't feel as if I am hiding something!" he declared pumping a fist into the air. He hadn't dropped his grin since the trio had left their room.

Kurt felt as if he had just signed their death warrant. "Nein." he whispered. "This isn't a game Evan. People hate us. People want us dead. This is serious."

Kitty smiled, but it was a slightly unsure smile. "We know Kurt, but like I said. We aren't going to let you go through this alone. Okay?" she cocked her head, her ponytail bouncing. "'Sides, did you see what was happening? Those kids were like totally interested in our skills. That girl wanted me to help her. Like there were some in there that didn't hate us. That is the side that we need to focus on."

Kurt still felt troubled as they made their way to their next class. If some could over come their hate, that was a step forward, right? Then why didn't it feel that way? He still felt as if someone or something was laying in wait to spring on him. Either hurt him or throw another curve ball and destroy his world a little bit more.

But for the moment all he could do was wait.

xxx

Scott had watched Lance's departure in shock; there had been no time for him to stop the other mutant.

In the back of his mind, however, he felt the nagging voice say that he didn't really want to stop Lance from saying his bit. Lance really had shot down their teacher and revealed him for the hypocrite that he was.

But it still seemed as if the other kids sided with their humiliated teacher. And then there was that frightening aspect of the blood seeping from Lance's ears, proof that his earthquakes were damaging the other boy physically.

As it were now, there was nothing he could do but sit with Jean through a boring history lesson. At the moment he didn't really care about learning about the American Revolution. Not when he knew that the guy behind him hated his guts simply because he was alive.

Jean, in the seat next to him, flashed him a small encouraging smile. It made him feel a bit better, knowing that she was still safe behind her mask. No one knew about the others. As long as he was in the front line, he could protect everyone. No sense in dragging others into this mess, other innocent kids that didn't need this burden.

But at the moment, the burden felt too much for him to bear. It felt like a physical force, weighing his head down, so that he touched his forehead to the desk. As White continued his lesson on Concord and Lexington, Scott tried to sort out all of the feelings that were rushing through him.

There was that burning need to make sure everyone, human and mutant alike, didn't get hurt in any conflicts. He didn't want some sort of war declared, humans would die if that were the case.

Yet another part of him wanted to step to the side and watch the humans run head on to their deaths against the mutants. He had seen the powers that some possessed. Professor X and Magneto were just a couple of them. The teens themselves held a destructive force in their hands, and many would lose their lives if it came to blows. But there was that nagging part of him that simply asked, "why do I care?" Because to be honest with himself, he didn't want to care.

But raising his head once, and stealing a look over at Jean, that voice was squashed back down, but also being honest with himself, helping others, like Jean, made the struggle all worth it.

xxx

Lance was idly slamming lockers as he stormed down the school hallway. After all that fanfare, the satisfaction had begun to fade away. The pain in his head hadn't bothered to lessen, but the blood had dried. As the tremors he produced grew stronger more rapidly, the more damaged he seemed to be doing to himself.

Lance sighed and slumped against the cool metal of the locker bank. Couldn't things get even more screwed up? Lets throw in a self-destructive x-gene.

"Fan-fucking-tastic." He deadpanned.

Doors to various classrooms were beginning to open to allow the flow students out into the hallway. Lance wanted to pretend that he didn't see the glares and looks of disgust thrown his way. They were all pathetic; they'd get their due.

Shoving his hands into his jean pockets, Lance pushed out into the crowd, into the groups of people who stepped up the pace just to avoid being near him. He needed to find a bathroom to wash off the blood.

"Alvers!"

Oh shit. Summers. Lance turned to meet the red sunglasses. "Are we back to last names already Summers? I thought we had something." His voice dripped with saccharine sarcasm.

Scott looked as nonplussed as he possibly could with the cover over his eyes. "What went down back there? White was livid."

Lance crossed his arms in front of him in a subtle form of self-defense that wasn't lost on Scott. "I just told the bastard what needed to be said, I'm tired of taking their crap. We're better than them and you know it."

Scott tensed. "You're beginning to sound like Magneto."

"So?" Lance snorted. "Maybe the bucket head has some good points." He thrust a finger in Scott's face, "You can't deny that it felt good to shove that guy's stupidity in his face, right?"

Lance stared hard at Scott, trying to gage his reaction. His whole posture was rigid, and his mouth was drawn tight. Scott was fighting some internal battle.

Maybe Cyclops the Good-Doer was going to admit that there was no hope in peaceful coexistence anymore. Spending time at the Xavier Institute may have brought about some form of a hesitant truce between the X-Men and Brotherhood, but one class back in school was enough evidence to prove that maybe the Brotherhood was right along.

Well maybe not the Brotherhood per se, but Magneto.

"What are you trying to say, Alvers?" Scott's voice was hardening to a resolution. And it wasn't the resolution that Lance wanted.

"I'm saying, if Matthews wants his own little happy hate tribe, we need to counter it! Show them which side is the superior one!"

"You really believe that you're better?"

"I know it."

"Then why do your oh so superior powers make you bleed?"