A Force Unleashed
Written by Darkstorm5000
Disclaimer: The X-Men and related characters in their various incarnations are the property of Marvel Entertainment.
--------------------------------------------
Chapter 6- Well, It Had to Happen Sooner or Later
While the weather outside on this cloudy and overcast day did not portend any chance of rain, a tempest of another kind was already brewing within the halls of the United States Congress. The day following their arrival into Washington D.C. found Professor Charles Xavier, Katherine Pryde and Robert Drake currently making their way into the U.S. Capitol building. His students were definitely dressed for their destination, as they wore their nicest outfits to make a good first impression on anyone that they might run into that knew the Professor.
"Looks like we're going to be standing in line for awhile." Bobby said, as he, the Professor, and Kitty had just entered the Capitol building, and now waited in a rather long line to proceed through a security checkpoint within.
"It's not like you should be surprised. We had to wait in line to go through them a bunch of times already, when we were sight-seeing around the city yesterday." Kitty replied, "Besides it could be worse, we could be with Logan. From what Rogue told me when they were traveling, trying to explain to security why every square inch of his body sets off their metal detectors is an adventure all on its own."
"It appears that we shouldn't be very much longer." Professor Xavier stated, as the line slowly continued to move forward.
A short time later, as the trio finally went through the checkpoint, one of the guards pulled the small group to the side.
"We need to inspect your wheelchair again, it'll be just one moment." One of the guards said to Professor Xavier, after his chair had set off one of the metal detectors.
"This is the first time anyone's had to make a big deal about his wheelchair, and we've been all over Washington." Kitty said to the guard, with more than a fair amount of annoyance in her voice.
"Young lady, in this day and age we can't afford to take any chances." Another guard at the checkpoint solemnly said to her.
"It's quite alright Kitty, these men are just doing their jobs. Let's not make it any more difficult for them." Professor Xavier said to her, as one of the guards went to help him into a metal folding chair while they examined his wheelchair. But, it became quickly apparent that the guard's assistance wouldn't be necessary.
"I've got it." Bobby protectively said to the security guard, as he quickly went over to help the Professor up and over into the side-chair, "Here you go, Professor."
"Thank you, Bobby." Professor Xavier said, as Bobby carefully helped his mentor into the temporary seat.
"Anytime, Sir." Bobby smiled as he looked at the Professor, while the guards thoroughly looked the wheelchair over, and then scanned the trio with hand-held metal detectors.
Once the guards were satisfied that everything was in order, Bobby, Kitty and the Professor took an elevator up to the second floor of the Capitol building. They made their way down to one of the Senate auxiliary chambers, where a debate regarding mutants and possible national security measures was being held. When he had learned about the hearing, Professor Xavier had called and asked to be allowed to speak before the committee, hoping to make sure that the Senators kept in mind that not all mutants had designs towards global domination.
"Professor Xavier, we're running slightly behind schedule." An aide in charge of greeting the speakers said from behind a small desk, located outside of the door to the conference room, "It'll be a little while before it's your turn."
Professor Xavier then turned to look at Kitty and Bobby.
"Since we are here, perhaps you would enjoy a first hand look at how the government of this fine nation functions?" Professor Xavier suggested.
"Sure, it'll beat trying to entertain ourselves in the waiting room." Kitty answered, as the three of them started back down the corridor to the elevator that would take them up to the third floor of the Capitol building.
------------------------------
On the third floor, the trio was surprised when they unexpectedly ran into one particular individual there. But, given that they were now in the halls of the upper-house of Congress, it was a meeting that they should have been anticipating.
"Professor Xavier, what a pleasant surprise." Senator Robert Kelly said, as he was coming down the corridor from his office at the other end. He stopped to chat for a moment with the group, in the immense hallway outside of the observation area above the Senate floor, "And, these must be your students. I must say, they are two excellent examples of today's youth."
"I certainly seem to think so." Professor Xavier replied in an unusually serious voice, even for him. It had nothing at all to do with his feelings about his students, and everything to do with the individual he was talking to.
"You know what they say, the children are our future." Senator Kelly stated, as he started to continue on to his destination, "I wish that we could continue our discussion, but duty calls. I will, however, give your best regards to our mutual friend."
After Senator Kelly had left to go take his place down below on the floor of the Senate, Kitty, Bobby and the Professor went to the observation area to watch from above.
"I'd love to knock that smug look off of her face." Bobby said, as he unbuttoned the jacket of his light gray suit, "I don't understand why we don't just expose what Mystique is doing?"
As they talked, Bobby, Kitty, and the Professor were the only ones in their section of the observation area.
"With tensions between mutants and normal humans at an already heightened and agitated state, I fear that such a disclosure would be catastrophic." Professor Xavier replied, as he referred to a similar discussion that he, Scott, Ororo, and Jean had regarding Mystique's impersonation, not too long after they first saw what she was doing following the incident at Liberty Island.
"Well, it still sucks." Kitty commented.
"Indeed, it does." Professor Xavier agreed.
Meanwhile on the floor of the Senate, its elected officials were busily debating where funding from the next year's budget should be allocated in regards to military spending and strengthening the nation's overall defensive capabilities. But, as seemed to be the case so often recently, the debate soon swung over to the mutant question and how best to protect the general populace from super-powered beings who wanted to go to war with humanity.
"If we had passed the Registration Act that was defeated in this very Senate last year, we wouldn't need to discuss new options to protect us from mutants hell-bent on destroying the democratic principles that this country was founded on." Senator Kenwood said, as he addressed his fellow Senators, "There is no greater threat or concern to this nation's security than the powers that many of these individuals are able to wield, and we owe it to the good voters back home that elected us to ensure that their interests, that their very lives, are being protected by their government."
Once Senator Kenwood's time at the podium had expired, Senator Kelly was the next to address the Senate.
"Today's agenda was set to discuss military spending, but it appears that the inevitable 'What do we do about the mutants?' issue has once again been brought up." Senator Kelly started, "I was once the most avid supporter of passing the Mutant Registration Act, until my eyes were opened. I came to realize that I don't just represent one specific group of people back home, but constituents of every background, including those that may be mutants. If they believe that their own government is taking measures that threatens their freedom, such as building Sentinels as part of a national defense force that another colleague of mine previously suggested, then even those mutants that merely desire peace with humans, will be forced to side with pro-mutant forces that intend to protect their own from such tyranny."
"Then, the question needs to be asked, what other measures should we take? Perhaps these mutants should be screened before they're allowed to register to vote, or we may end up with some mutant terrorist elected into public office?" Senator Carwell said, as he had taken the floor following Senator Kelly.
"On top of being illegal, that has to be the most obscene thing that I have heard in many years on this Hill." Senator Thomas stated, as the older Senator took the podium next, "The very notion of attempting to obstruct the right of a citizen in these United States to cast their vote in the electoral process goes against the very principles that this republic was founded on. Although, we have a history of not always living up to those ideals, we've made strides in recent decades to correct those inequities, and we should continue to move forward in that regard, not backwards."
As the Senators continued to argue their various viewpoints on the floor of the immense chamber, up above, those who had been observing the proceedings vocalized their opinion of what they were witnessing.
"Now they're debating whether we should have the right to vote. What next, whether we should be allowed to breathe the same air as everyone else?" Kitty sharply commented, as she removed her glasses and stood with her arms folded across the front of her white long-sleeved blouse, looking down at the Senators below.
"No kidding. It sure makes you proud to be an American." Bobby commented, as he sat in a seat nearby.
"In spite of what some individuals may think, we mustn't lose hope in the belief that it is possible for a mutual understanding to be reached between mutants and humans, which will allow us to co-exist together peacefully." Professor Xavier said to both of his students.
"I know, but it keeps getting harder and harder to believe that's ever going to happen, Sir." Bobby responded.
"The way some of those Senators are talking, they're not going to be happy until they pass that Registration law, and lock all of us 'dangerous' mutants up. It's the same kind of talk that my Grandpa said went on before World War II, before they rounded everyone up and put them into those camps." Kitty revealed, "All I know is that I'll die first, before I let them do that to me."
With those words, Professor Xavier couldn't help but think back to a conversation that he and an old friend had, regarding those very same atrocities from the past. Erik Lensherr had once told Charles, many years ago and in graphic detail, about the horror that he bore witness to first-hand.
He also said, in no uncertain terms, that he would never allow anything like that to happen to mutant-kind, as long as there was still breath in his body…
----------------------------------
Back at the school located in Westchester County, one of the more recent additions to its ranks was currently getting better acclimated to her new surroundings. Although Rahne Sinclair had been in the state of New York for the better part of a week, today was the first day that she was fully conscious of that fact. Currently, she was standing silently and patiently outside of the school's rather extensive library, early in the afternoon.
"It is still fascinating to hear that the native population of this vast country may have first settled it, by migrating across a land area that is as small as the one that once linked Russia with the United States at the Bering Strait." Peter Rasputin said, as the door to the library opened, "And to think that they went across my homeland of Siberia to do so."
"That they would eventually make their way into what is present-day South America, without the aid of modern modes of transportation, makes the feat sound all the more incredible." Kurt Wagner replied, as he had been giving a tutorial session in the library, following his morning classes.
"You couldn't get me to walk that far, even if it involved checkin' out the latest mall opening." Jubilation Lee stated, as she followed behind her fellow classmate and her tutor.
As soon as the three individuals entered the hallway outside of the library, which was located on the ground floor of the mansion, they immediately saw the young red-head standing and leaning against the wall out there.
"Rahne, is everything okay?" Peter immediately asked her, as he had been informed of her awakening following his return from the X-Men's mission the day before.
"So, you're Rahne." Jubilee said, as this was the first time that she had met Rahne, "My name's Jubilee, and the guy next to me is the school's history buff, 'Mr. Jeopardy', I mean, Mr. Wagner."
As Jubilee put her hand out to shake Rahne's and greet her, Rahne was somewhat startled by Kurt's appearance.
"Och, tis the devil himself." Rahne silently thought to herself, as the description that Reverend Craig had drilled into her mind from an early age, seemed to have now manifested itself right before her very eyes.
"Guten Tag, Liebchen." Kurt greeted her, "That means good afternoon."
"Uh, Hello." Rahne managed to nervously get out in response.
"We were just on our way to the cafeteria, why don't you come with?" Jubilee offered Rahne.
"Maybe in a bit, but I need t'talk to Peter first." Rahne responded.
"We will be along shortly." Peter said, as he motioned for Kurt and Jubilee to continue on without him.
"Okay, just don't make me have to report you to Kitty or anything." Jubilee sarcastically said to Peter.
"Jubilee!" Peter quickly retorted to her insinuation.
"Oh, don't spaz out, I'm just kiddin'. Besides Tin-Man, I so owe you for that crack about how I only use my books for a pillow." Jubilee said, as she referred to Peter's comment from the previous week.
After Jubilee and Kurt soon disappeared around the corner at the end of the hallway, Peter and Rahne were left alone in the corridor.
"You said that you needed to talk to me?" Peter looked down, as he asked Rahne.
"Yes, well I just wanted t'say that I'm sorry for what happened on Muir Island. Terry told me about how I attacked ye." Rahne started, as she looked down at the floor and fidgeted a little, "I din'na know what came over me. Well, actually I do, but I'm still sorry for it. I just hope that ye can find it in yuir heart to forgive me someday."
With Rahne's sincere apology made, Peter looked down at her with a very serious look on his face, before he spoke.
"There is no need for apologies, little one. If anything, you helped to show me that I had not forgotten skills taught to me as a young boy by my older brother, back home in Siberia. Perhaps, one day you would like to have a rematch with me in the school's Danger Room." Peter said to her, with a huge smile on his face.
"I'm not sure about that. But, ye're sure ye're not mad at me?" Rahne asked him.
"Positive." Peter replied, "Come, let's go join Kurt and Jubilee."
With that, Peter motioned for Rahne to walk down the hallway to the school's dining hall with him. But, before Peter could take one step, Rahne quickly ran up and put her arms around his waist. She gave Peter a brief hug to show her gratitude at his understanding of her momentary loss of control, and then gleefully took off down the corridor ahead of him. All Peter could do was marvel, as he walked behind Rahne, at how naturally kind and caring she was, despite having to deal with so many heartaches in her life.
-----------------------------------------------
In a different part of the mansion, another new addition to the school, who had already become familiar with his surroundings, was now getting better acquainted with some of its other younger residents.
"Say little man, stop here and let's see what dis is about." Remy Lebeau said, as he was seated on a sofa in front of the big screen T.V. in the mansion's main rec-room.
"It's the historical channel. This is a documentary about the 100 Years War." Jones Davidson replied, as he sat next to Remy. He had been using his mutant power that allowed him to affect and control electrical and electronic devices, a power which had earned him the codename Circuit, to change the channels on the television by simply blinking his eyes.
"I don't know, sounds like it's 'bout a hundred years more time than we got." Remy remarked, "What's everybody else's vote?"
"You can keep going, maybe there's a decent action-movie on somewhere." James Proudstar, the young man codenamed Warpath said, as he was the first to reply from another sofa in the rec-room.
"Check the sports channel, Soccer might be on. I'd like to at least know if Brazil won their World Cup qualifying match?" Roberto DaCosta, the young mutant known as Sunspot for the solar-charged abilities that he possessed wondered, as he sat next to James.
"I'm surprised you didn't ask Jones to put it on the Rerun channel, so you could watch that old T.V. show that you're obsessed with." Jaime Madrox, the self-replicating Multiple Kid remarked, from a chair opposite of James and Roberto.
"Liking and obsessing are two different things. I like Magnum P.I., but I'm not obsessed with it." Roberto told him, "The guy just seems pretty cool, and it's one of the few shows from way back in the '80's that I can get into."
"So, we got a vote for an action flick, soccer, and classic programmin'. Looks like you gonna have to settle t'ings wit' those blinkin' T.V. control powers of yours." Remy said aloud, as he then looked over at Jones.
"Actually, my powers control more than the T.V., I can affect just about anything electronic. But so far, I'm only good with simpler machines." Jones explained.
"Well then, what other t'ings can you do, Mon Ami?" Remy asked him.
"I can start a car from about 100 feet." Jones revealed, as he looked over at Remy, "And I don't have to blink to do it."
"Now I know de man t'come to when I lose my car keys." Remy jokingly replied, as Jones proceeded to change the channel, now by snapping his fingers.
As the T.V flipped from one station to the next, a new entrant to the room quickly made the currently all-male environment, much more co-ed.
"Y'all look pretty cozy sitting in here." Rogue said, as she stood in the area where the hallway met the foyer.
"Just watchin' a little T.V. wit' de fellas is all." Remy replied, as he looked over at her from the sofa.
"Well, don't let me interrupt. Ah just came to ask you what time we're leavin' tonight?" Rogue queried Remy, as she pushed the sleeves on her lightweight sweater up.
"Huh?" Remy said in response.
"Don't tell me you've forgotten about the date you asked me out on already. Ah figured since Cyclops gave us the rest of the day off, and it is a Friday night, that we could go check out an art and historical museum that's not too far from here in Westchester. That is, unless you're not interested anymore?" Rogue reminded him, with a slight smirk.
"'Course I'm still interested, Chere. How's seven sound?" Remy suggested.
"Sounds perfect!" Rogue exclaimed, as she turned to head upstairs to start getting ready, all the while trying to hide the tremendous amount of excitement that she was currently feeling.
After Rogue was well upstairs and out of listening range, Jaime decided to point out something to Remy.
"You know you can't kiss her, or you'll end up in a coma?" Jaime stated.
"Yeah, Gambit know all 'bout dat." Remy replied, as he now looked with the rest of the group at a movie on basic cable.
"Then it sounds like it'll be a pretty boring date." Jaime continued with his observation.
"I doubt it. A beautiful evenin' wit' a beautiful girl, I t'ink I'll be plenty occupied." Remy remarked.
"There's more to dating than trying to cop a cheap feel from a girl without her slapping you, Jaime." Roberto said to his classmate.
"Now don't you boys get me wrong, the touch of a beautiful woman can be well worth de risk sometimes." Remy said with a grin.
"Yeah, but it's like I said, you can't actually touch her." Jaime reiterated.
"Homme, there're ways around everyt'ing. All it takes is a little imagination." Remy said to his young friend.
Jaime looked at Remy for a moment before he responded, confused about what the more experienced New Orleans native was talking about.
"What do you mean?"
With that, Remy let out a small laugh, as he stood up so he himself could go and start getting ready for his date.
"When you're old enough t'get into a PG-13 movie without an adult accompanyin' you little man, then Gambit'll explain everyt'ing." Remy told his young friend, as he left the room to go upstairs.
As Remy departed, the three remaining boys busted out laughing at Jaime, none louder than Roberto.
"Looks like Multiple Kid just got Multiple shut-down!" Roberto told him, as he still laughed loudly.
"Now I know who I'm going to go to for advice when it comes to girls." James commented.
"We also know who not to go to." Jones added, "With Jaime, all he'll have to keep you company with is his dupes."
"Geez guys, stop raggin' on me already." Jaime said to the rest of the group, as they eventually stopped their ribbing, turning their attention back to what was on the television.
----------------------------------
While Rogue and Gambit went to prepare for a relaxing night out, Scott Summers on the other hand was hard at work in the War Room below the mansion. It was a fact that did not escape the notice of one Ororo Munroe, as she now entered the War Room herself.
"I came to check on you, you've been down here by yourself for most of the day, Scott." Ororo pointed out, as she walked over and stood next to Scott, who was looking up at the large monitor in the War Room. On it, he had several different images cued up and was intensely studying each one.
"After the search of Bolivar Trask's old base didn't turn up much in useful information, we're back to square one. I'm just trying to figure out what our next move will be." Scott said, as he punched the buttons on a remote keypad in his hand and enlarged one of the images on the screen, "I came across a vague claim on the Internet that says there was a Sentinel sighting about a year ago at this place, a beach-front area named Thunder Shore. But, there are no other details mentioned about it, and no one else seems to be able to corroborate or even confirm seeing it."
Scott then used the handheld control to enlarge another one of the various images on the monitor screen.
"This is an archive from air traffic control records over the general vicinity of Muir Island, Scotland on the night that it was attacked. Despite the size of the Sentinels, radar picked up absolutely nothing, which confirms what Forge told us about their cloaking abilities. Luckily, he's at least figured out their secret, and has given the Blackbird its own ability to hide itself from the Sentinels."
Then, Scott hit a button on the remote keypad, and brought up another series of images on the monitor.
"Before you walked in, I was just about to go through these satellite images from that night, to see if they picked up anything that--" Scott started to say, when Ororo interrupted him.
"Scott, you're pushing yourself to hard. No one expects you to solve everything on your own." Ororo said, as she sat down in a chair in the War Room.
"Well, I can't just sit around and not do anything. Every minute that we don't find the Sentinels, is another minute that Moira is in their clutches, having God knows what done to her, by God knows who." Scott replied, as he went and sat against the edge of one of the tables in there.
"I feel the same way that you do, such a thought is disturbing to say the least." Ororo told him, "When the Professor returns from Washington, we will just have to put our heads together and come up with a new course of action."
"And what if that's too late? You know, this is the very type of threat that we've been training all of these years to fight, the kind of danger that the Professor's been preparing me to lead the team against, and so far I just haven't gotten the job done." Scott said, as he revealed his feelings about letting down the man who had took him in, and helped mold him into the person that he was today.
"Scott, it's like you said, we are a team. Win, lose, or draw, we will do it, together." Ororo told him, as she walked over and put her hand on his shoulder, "And as your teammate, I think the most important thing that you could do right now is just get away from this for a little while. I can go through the data currently at hand."
"I guess a small break couldn't hurt, it might help me discover something that I may have overlooked before." Scott said, as he decided to heed Ororo's advice, "I'm going to go upstairs for some coffee, do you want me to bring you some back?"
"No, but perhaps later." Ororo replied, as she started to study the photos on the large screen, while Scott left the War Room and headed outside into the sub-level corridor.
--------------------------------
After the elevator had brought Scott up to the ground level of the mansion, he proceeded to make his way towards the kitchen. As he did, he realized that it was now well into the evening hours. Passing by the main rec-room, he looked in to see that Alison Blaire was sitting on the sofa alone, and was carefully taking notes from various large and small books that were sprawled across the coffee table in front of her.
"You look like you're pretty busy." Scott commented, as he walked up behind the sofa where Alison was seated, with her legs tucked underneath her.
"Oh, hey you." Alison replied, as she had been so engrossed by what she was reading that she hadn't noticed Scott's entry. She looked up from the book currently in her hands, and turned around to peer into eyes hidden behind two small windows of Ruby-quartz.
"So, are you cramming for some major exam?" Scott jokingly asked, which was a change of pace, since jokes were something rarely heard from him.
"I wish, that'd be way less stressful." Alison responded, "I'm just trying to get ready for this music class that Hank suggested I teach. When the Professor called yesterday from D.C., Hank ran the idea by him. The Professor gave his approval and said that he wished that he had thought of it sooner, which you know went straight to Hank's head. He was excited at the idea that, for once, he was one step ahead of the most powerful mind on the planet."
"Well, I think it's a good idea too." Scott told her.
"Yeah, you'll change your mind when I get in front of my class on Monday, and crash and burn." Alison replied, as she was not quite as confident as Scott, Hank and the Professor were of her teaching anyone, anything.
"You'll do fine. The song I heard you playing the other morning showed me, without a doubt, that the person who wrote it knew everything they needed to about music, and how to express their very soul through it." Scott stated unequivocally, which caught Alison slightly off-guard as he complimented her.
"You know, despite the stick-in-the-mud that every claims you are, your little motivational speech isn't half bad." Alison sarcastically said, as she thanked him.
"I do occasionally have my moments." Scott said with a small smile.
"Yeah, you do." Alison happily replied, as she then went back to studying the book on her lap. As she did, something even more noteworthy than Scott's encouraging words now occurred.
When Scott looked down at her on the sofa, Alison appeared as though she was, literally, sparkling in front of him as she read the text in hand. It was much like that morning when he first came across her playing the piano, located in a small study in the mansion. When he saw it, Scott thought the way that the study seemed to glow was just an effect of the sun's rays beaming through the fairly sheer curtains within. But now, he understood that it was actually Alison's mutant powers causing the phenomenon, her ability to channel sound waves and sonic vibrations into light energy. Scott also realized that her powers were most likely influenced to a degree by her emotional state, similarly to how Storm's mood very much affected the weather around her.
"With a little training, Alison shouldn't have any trouble learning how to better control her light effect." Scott silently thought to himself as Alison continued reading, oblivious to the illumination that she was projecting, "But, she does look very beautiful doing it."
Instantly, Scott was startled by his last observation. Alison was the first person that he had even remotely thought about in that manner, since he had lost his first true-love Jean Grey nearly a year before at Alkali Lake. But inside, it still felt wrong to Scott for him to look at any other woman like that. Just then, somebody caught Scott's attention from the corner of his eye, as he passed by over in the foyer area and opened the front door.
"Hey, I'm going to leave you alone so you can work. I'll talk to you a little bit later." Scott said to Alison.
"Okay." Alison replied, as she looked back up at him from the book. Scott then started towards the door, when Alison spoke to him again.
"Scott…"
"Yes?" Scott responded, as he partially turned back towards her.
"Thanks, again." Alison said sincerely.
"Sure." Scott warmly told her, as he now went to grab his lightweight jacket from the large hallway closet, and continue out of the front door.
------------------------------------
Once outside, Scott hurried along to catch up with him, and he finally did halfway between the house and the garage. He had been intending on keeping a promise that he had made, when he and Hank talked following his arrival back at the mansion. It was to be more to the X-Men than their usually uptight leader, to also try to relate to them on a more personal level. But, he unexpectedly became preoccupied with the events related to the attack on Muir Island. Now, Scott figured tonight was the perfect night to keep that pledge.
"Hold up just a minute." Scott called out, as he walked briskly behind.
"What's the matter, Cyke?" Logan asked, as he stopped and turned around, "Some rampagin' big-bad need the X-Men to put their collective foots where the sun don't shine?"
"No, I just wanted to see where you were off to." Scott said, as day was quickly becoming night on the late spring evening, while they stood out on the estate grounds.
"Out." Logan replied simply, "Don't worry, I've got my communicator on me in case something goes down."
"Well, why don't I join you?" Scott suggested, which nearly floored Logan.
"No thanks, my plans didn't include attendin' a P.T.A. meeting." Logan said, as he was about to turn around and start towards the garage.
"Then, how about a beer? On me." Scott offered.
"Never thought I'd ever refuse free brew, but no thanks." Logan once again answered.
"I insist." Scott told him, which caused Logan to turn and take a few steps back towards Scott.
"You ready to back that insistin' up?" Logan said, as he popped his claws from one of his hands.
"Look Logan, I didn't come out here to pick a fight with you." Scott responded.
"Then, why exactly did you come out here, bub?" Logan asked him, as he now retracted his claws.
"I'm just trying to reach out here, which isn't an easy thing for me to do." Scott explained to Logan.
"Well, you can quit strainin' your hemorrhoids." Logan sharply replied, "And you don't have to keep on with this kinder, gentler Cyclops routine. We can continue to play nice for Chuck and the kids' sake, but you ain't gotta pretend when it's just the two of us. You've made your feelings pretty clear."
"I don't think I have, which is part of the problem. Let's go someplace where we can talk and finally clear the air between us." Scott again suggested.
Logan took the cigar he was smoking out of his mouth for a moment, as he stood and considered Scott's request.
"Alright, Boy-Scout. We can go somewhere and get more in touch with our feelings, but I get to pick the place." Logan said, as he put his cigar back into his mouth and the two men then walked to the garage.
A few minutes later, Scott flipped the light switch on in the garage, where most of the vehicles at the school were kept.
"We can take this one." Scott said, as he went over to the driver's side of a black and brown jeep, opening the door to get in. As he did, Scott stopped for a short moment and looked at an empty space close by in the garage.
"I guess you're still sore about your car endin' up on a police impound lot in Boston." Logan said to Scott, with a small grin.
"I'm coping." Scott said sarcastically, as he briefly looked over at Logan. The two of them then got into the jeep and quickly departed.
-----------------------------------
"Jube, have you seen my black boots?" Rogue asked her roommate, as they were both getting ready for their dates this night.
"I'm sure they're with your collection of other black boots." Jubilee remarked, as she stood and examined the gold-colored blouse and black jeans that she was wearing in the mirror.
"No, Ah mean the nice ones with the sharp-toe." Rogue clarified.
"Oh those, they're over here." Jubilee said, as she went over to her side of the room and found the aforementioned boots under her bed, "I borrowed them the last time me and Doug went out, they went so great with that pink and white outfit of mine."
"Ah'm sure you looked lovely." Rogue giggled, as Jubilee tossed each of the boots to her one at a time, "So, how are things going between you two anyways?"
"Great!" Jubilee told Rogue, "He's totally dealin' with the 'My girlfriend is a mutant' thing."
"In that case, he must've really been impressed when you tried to manhandle the Blob all on your own." Rogue said, referring to Jubilee's face-off with the Blob a few weeks ago when she and Doug Ramsey were on a date.
"I don't know if impressed is the word for it." Jubilee replied, "More like silent confusion. He knows I'm a mutant, but he doesn't know about the super-hero stuff we do here. One time, he even asked me about those news reports about the army showin' up here last year. I told him they were just doin' a routine search, because they got some kind of tip that this was a school for mutants. I couldn't tell him the truth about Stryker kidnapping some of us and then trying to use that copycat Cerebro to kill mutants everywhere, without spilling the whole pot of beans about the X-Men. And, I so hated lying to him about it."
"Why don't you just tell him the truth then? If you two are gettin' so close and he's handled what you've told him so far, Ah'm sure the rest'll be fine with him too." Rogue suggested.
"Probably, but after I got into that fist-fight with 'Big Boy' at MSG, I was shocked that Doug even wanted to have anything else to do with me. Maybe I'm being selfish, but it's nice having a pretty normal relationship for once in my life, and I don't want to screw that up." Jubilee revealed.
As soon as Jubilee finished her revelation, Rogue stood up from the floor now that she had finished lacing her boots up.
"How do Ah look?" Rogue said, as she slowly turned around to model her powder blue blouse, matching sheer gloves, and dark blue pants for Jubilee.
"I guess you're dressed perfectly for a night of looking at…whatever it is they keep at that museum." Jubilee surmised, "And, I seriously doubt a dress-code'll be in effect."
"Remy said he wanted to take me there, to broaden his horizon, and Ah decided to call his bluff. But, Ah don't think it'll be as bad be as you're makin' it out to be." Rogue told her.
"I wonder what Bobby would think about it?" Jubilee said abruptly out of the blue, as she unexpectedly brought up Rogue's ex-boyfriend.
"Bobby? Probably nothin'." Rogue replied, "Things're over between us."
"Is that what he told you?" Jubilee asked her.
"Not in so many words, but he didn't have to. Ah think that's pretty much the idea you're supposed to get when someone dumps you. Plus, the whole vibe that Ah got from him before we broke up was that he had just lost interest." Rogue told her, as she put on her earrings in the mirror.
"Sure he did." Jubilee said, without realizing that she had vocalized her thoughts.
"Huh?" Rogue asked, as she turned back around from the mirror on the wall.
"Nothin', I was just ramblin'." Jubilee told Rogue.
Jubilee recalled what Bobby had told her about the depression that he had been long suffering with, because of his family problems back home. He also revealed to her that he had sought out a professional therapist to help him as a result. Jubilee wanted to tell Rogue about it, but remembered that Bobby had only told her because she had promised to keep it confidential, and Jubilee knew that it wasn't her place to reveal those personal details about him.
"So, where're you and Doug going tonight?" Rogue asked Jubilee.
"He's pickin' me up a little later. We'll probably just go out to a movie or somethin'." Jubilee assumed.
"You know, the four of us should go on a double date, or maybe even a triple date with Peter and Kitty sometime." Rogue suggested, as she grabbed her purse off of her bed.
"Okay, I'll ask Doug. I'm sure he'd love to." Jubilee replied.
"Ah'll ask Remy and see what he thinks. Speakin' of which, Ah'm sure he's waitin', so Ah'll see you later tonight." Rogue said, as she now headed for their bedroom door.
Rogue quickly made her way to the stair case and went downstairs, where she saw Remy sitting in a chair down there. He was decked out in a beautifully tailored maroon dress shirt from his wardrobe, which he was wearing with the top button undone.
"Now, if you ain't a vision of beauty, Chere, I don't know what is." Remy complimented Rogue, as she reached the bottom of the large staircase.
"We ain't even out the door yet, and you've already started with the smooth talk." Rogue commented, as Remy opened the front door for her.
"What can I say, somethin' comes over me when I'm around you, and I can't help but tell de truth." Remy said to her.
"Well, we'll see if that holds up when your nose starts sprouting a few extra inches." Rogue smirked, as they continued on to the garage area.
Once inside, Remy and Rogue went in to decide which vehicle to take.
"Well, which one?" Rogue said, as she asked Remy's opinion.
"I'm partial t'dis one." Remy answered, as he went and got on a blue motorcycle, "Ain't no sense in lettin' a fine piece of machinery like dis go to waste."
"But, that's Logan's bike." Rogue pointed out, "If he comes out here lookin' for it, you're gonna have one angry Canadian on your tail."
"I doubt it, I saw him walk by my room on his way out earlier. Plus de jeep is gone, so he prob'bly took it, for a change." Remy guessed.
"Alright then, here." Rogue finally agreed, as she put on a bike helmet and handed another one to Remy, from a hook over on the wall.
As they sat down on the bike together, something else caught Rogue's attention.
"Um, you don't have the keys for the bike. Logan must still have them with him." Rogue pointed out.
"Don't you worry none, you wit' Kid Creole. Tonight, I got everyt'ing under control." Remy boasted, as he proceeded to hot-wire the motorcycle. He revved the engine loudly so that everyone within earshot could hear it, then he and Rogue were off. Rogue sat behind Remy with her arms around his waist, and held herself very closely to him as they began their night out together.
------------------------------
Meanwhile at the Auger Inn, which was one of the more unsavory establishments in the local region, Scott and Logan were seated inside at a booth in the back, where they could at last converse.
"Well?" Logan asked, as a waitress brought two domestic longnecks for him and Scott to their table, "You said you wanted to talk?"
"I know our relationship hasn't been that great from the start, but I think it's time we got past all of this animosity between us." Scott said, as he took a sip from his beer, "I thought just the two of us going somewhere to discuss things might help."
"Hell, you've taken a giant leap in that direction, by lowerin' yourself and parkin' your derrière in a place like this to swig the drink of the common man." Logan replied, as they sat in the mostly full bar, which was normal for a Friday night.
"Where did you get this idea that I think that I'm better than everyone else?" Scott inquired.
"I didn't say you think you are, but a lot of the time you sure act like it." Logan answered, "And why wouldn't you, you're Xavier's perfect little X-Man."
"Just because I take my responsibilities seriously, doesn't mean I have some sort of superiority complex over everyone else." Scott told him, "Look, I'm not the type of person that wears his emotions on his sleeve, and as a good friend pointed out to me recently, that does give the impression that I'm inaccessible. That's the main reason that I asked to join you here tonight, to try and change that image a little."
While Scott had now only drank a third of his beer, Logan was finished with his and was already ordering another one from the waitress, as she once again passed by their table.
"You know, we can sit here talkin' about who's accessible to who, but let's get right down to the heart of it." Logan said, as he awaited the waitress's return, "We've been all 'Jerry Springer' ever since I first made a play for Jean."
With that statement, Scott just stared at Logan for a moment, before taking another large sip of his drink.
"Logan, it's like I told you that first night after you and Rogue were brought back to the mansion. If I had to tell you to stay away from Jean to keep her, then she and I had problems that went far beyond you." Scott stated, as he took Logan's assertion into careful consideration, "But, I could see the effect that you had on her. It was like some part of her, a wild, dangerous part of her came alive after she met you. It was a side that seemed to stay hidden from everyone else, including me. Jean and I loved each other with no question, but I guess I was a little jealous that I could never reach that part of her."
"That's just the point. Whatever feelin's she may or may not have had for me, it was you she chose in the end." Logan responded, as his second beer now arrived, "When it comes down to it, that's what really counts."
"Maybe, but to be honest that's the last thing that comes to mind when I think about Jean now." Scott told him.
"Really?" Logan remarked.
"Yeah, the thing that I remember the most is the moment when I first realized that I loved her." Scott continued, "It was after one of the first missions that the original X-Men ever went on. We had just stopped Magneto and his Brotherhood from an attempted secret coup of a small nation in Central America. We had won, but I was so busy beating myself up because they had managed to escape, that I couldn't stop to enjoy our victory. So, Jean came up to me and straightened me out."
"What'd she tell you?" Logan asked, as his second beer now arrived.
"She," Scott replied, as he started to chuckle slightly, "told me if stopping the most powerful mutant that we had ever faced (well, at least up to that point) and helping to prevent the toppling of a Democratic society wasn't enough for me, then I should go wait on our plane until I got my head out of my rear. Although, those really weren't her exact words."
"Sounds like 'Red' had your number pretty early on." Logan said, as he laughed a little too.
"Obviously. Which is why I knew I loved her from that point on. What else could make a man actually not be bothered by someone telling them off like that, if it isn't love?" Scott said, as he finished.
"I don't know, maybe someone with a self-deprecatin' sense of--" Logan started to reply, before a loud beeping noise interrupted him.
"Where's that coming from?" Scott asked.
"This." Logan said, as he pulled a phone from his leather jacket, "I went to go buy me a new hat last week, and I saw that they were sellin' these new video phones in a shop nearby. I got it so me and Mariko, the lady I've been seein' over in Japan, can keep in touch."
"So, is she trying to call you now?" Scott asked him.
"Hell no. Whenever I turn on the damned thing, it goes off once every hour, on the hour." Logan explained, "Short-stuff helped set it up for me, and I'm gonna have her show me how to turn this alarm off when she, the Professor, and Drake get back."
"You're talking about Kitty?" Scott replied, as he was unfamiliar with Logan's nickname for her.
"Yeah, she even pointed out if I take this phone and use it down in the War Room, I get better reception from that multi-purpose, super antenna you've got hooked up down there." Logan revealed, "Which reminds me of something I've been wonderin' about. Maybe we should adapt our hand-held communicators to have a video screen, like the one on this video phone I'm holdin'?"
"That's…actually a good idea." Scott said, as he complimented him, "I'll run it by Hank and Forge, to see how feasible it is."
"Looks like I found a new use for this head of mine, other than havin' someone punch me in it." Logan said, as he also complimented himself.
"I don't know, maybe I'd like to test that theory out hairball?" A voice said, as Logan and Scott looked up from their conversation to see a very large individual now standing at their table. From the bandana, to the long beard, to the sleeveless denim jacket, the big guy looked like your stereotypical member of a biker gang.
"Can we help you?" Scott asked him, although it wasn't in a very friendly tone.
"You can't do a thing for me four eyes, it's your friend that I came over here for." The big guy nicknamed Roadkill replied as he looked over at Logan, "I been comin' in here lookin' for you every night for the last month."
"I've been outta the country, and I just got back recently." Logan told him.
"Before your little vacation, did you come in here about a month ago and pick up a really hot red-head?" Roadkill wanted to know.
"Maybe, what's it to ya 'Pork Chop'?" Logan answered.
"What is it? That's my wife, you son of a bitch!" Roadkill shouted.
"She sure wasn't actin' like it that night." Logan responded, in his most smart-assed tone, "Besides, I didn't see her wearin' any rings on her fingers, and she never mentioned havin' a better half at home waitin' for her. Anyways, it was just one night and I'm involved with someone else now, so give my regards to the Mrs."
"No, this isn't over, until I say it's over." Roadkill stated, as he looked back at Scott "Maybe I should make an example out of your new boyfriend over here first, and then you?"
"Boyfriend? I'm sorry, but neither of us have even discussed that kind of commitment yet." Scott said very mockingly, as he looked up at Roadkill.
"So, you're some kinda comedian, huh?" Roadkill remarked.
"You don't have any idea how off the mark you are." Scott replied.
"Well, let's see how far off this is, punk?" Roadkill said, as he swung at Scott, a man that had a black belt in martial arts, who ran two grueling sessions a day in the Danger Room, sometimes more, and a man who could spot a sloppy punch aimed at him from a mile away, all in spite of the Ruby-quartz glasses that he was forced to wear every day of his life.
"Mister, you really didn't want to do that." Scott said, as he dodged the blow and grabbed Roadkill by the arm that he had use to throw the punch with. Scott then jumped to his feet and violently slammed Roadkill down on the table extremely hard, while Logan quickly stood up as well.
"Damn, Cyke! Get a couple drinks in you, and you start actin' like me." Logan smirked.
Roadkill hit the table with such a powerful thud, that the entire bar heard it and immediately knew that something had been broken in half, either the table or Roadkill himself. Then, a number of other men started towards Logan and Scott, most likely friends of the now unconscious Roadkill.
"I hope you left your dancin' shoes at the door, because it looks like these boys are aimin' for some serious action." Logan said to Scott as roughly about a dozen men, all dressed in attire similar to Roadkill's, started towards them in a hostile manner.
"You know, this hardly seems fair." Scott said, as he and Logan moved closer towards each other.
"Figures you'd be readin' out of a rule book when things get thick." Logan sarcastically remarked, as he got into a fighting stance.
"Maybe we should tell them to wait, and see if they want to round up some more of their friends before we get started?" Scott said, as he looked at Logan, who was surprised at Scott's sentiment.
"I thought I was gonna regret comin' here, but it looks like I'm gonna like hangin' around with you after all, Boy-Scout." Logan said, as he couldn't help but smile, while at the same time dodging a broken bottle now being swung at him.
-----------------------------------
Not too far from the bar where Scott and Logan were in the middle of handing out a free clinic in the fine art of bar-room brawling, Remy and Rogue were just now coming out of the Plain Hills Museum and Art Gallery.
"Ah must say, Ah'm very impressed with you." Rogue said to Remy, as they walked down the steps of the museum, each of them holding their motorcycle helmets that they had just picked up from the front desk.
"Not that you don't have a million reasons t'be impressed with Moi, but which of those did you pick?" Remy asked her, as he removed the darkly tinted sunglasses that he wore around strangers out in public. He put them on to prevent the inevitable stares that he received because of his unusual looking eyes.
"It was the fact that you walked around most of the museum with me and listened to the tour guide, as she explained each exhibit to our tour group." Rogue revealed, "Although, Ah'm sure you were bored out of your mind."
"You make it sound like I was just actin' de part. I was very much interested, and your non-belief in dat wounds me greatly." Remy responded, in a voice feigning pain from her comment.
"Well, Ah'm sorry." Rogue giggled, as she put her arms around his and walked next to him through the parking lot to the bike, "You have my sincerest apologies."
"'Sides, I couldn't help but pay attention. What, wit' all of those very rare and extremely valuable artifacts in there." Remy pointed out to her, which made Rogue take notice of those last words for some reason.
"Very rare and extremely valuable artifacts? If Ah didn't know better, Ah'd have half a mind to think you were planning your next big heist. " Rogue smiled, as she ran her hand up and down the sleeve of his arm.
"C'mon now, I told you before I done left dat old life behind me, it's de main reason I come back here wit' you and Logan." Remy said to her, "I wanna change, and you make a man feel like he can change. I wanna be somethin', someone, better."
"You make it sound like this gal's been a good, rehabilitatin' influence on you." Rogue told him, as she looked up into his handsome face. Then from up above, something overhead abruptly caught her attention.
"Ah wonder what that is?" Rogue said, pointing to the sky.
"Dat? Must be de Scorpio's Comet they been talkin' 'bout." Remy explained, as they finished their journey across the parking lot to where the bike was, and then they both looked up at the night sky again.
"What's Scorpio's Comet?" Rogue questioned him.
"I heard it on de news, before you came into de room earlier today." Remy continued, "They say it's some sort of huge meteor dat orbits around all de planets, and comes 'round these parts once every 103 years."
"Wow, it sounds like a once in a lifetime event." Rogue remarked, as they both stood holding hands, watching the comet slowly pass by on its voyage through the heavens.
"Yeah, lots of t'ings only come 'round once in a lifetime." Remy said in a much more serious tone, as he looked down into Rogue's eyes.
Then suddenly, Remy moved in close to kiss her.
This time Rogue was absolutely sure that she wasn't being influenced by some outside source, and she was just as sure that she wanted to feel the sensation of Remy's lips next to hers.
"You know we can't." Rogue said, as she fought back the temptation within and finally did stop Remy. They stood together with their faces mere inches apart, as she put her gloved hand against the side of his face.
"I know, but you can't blame a man for wantin' to." Remy said, as he now held Rogue securely in his embrace.
"Trust me, Ah know the feelin'." Rogue replied, "But, Ah got enough people swimmin' around in my head as it is."
"What do you mean, Chere?" Remy asked, unsure of what she was talking about.
"Every time Ah make skin to skin contact with anyone, I absorb their memories, their life force, and in the case of other mutants, their powers." Rogue answered.
"Yeah, you tol' me all 'bout dat." Remy recalled.
"Well, after the effect wears off, Ah'm still left with a small permanent piece of that person inside of my mind." Rogue elaborated, as she looked back up at the comet, "Ah can still feel Cody, Bobby, Logan, Amara, John and Magneto floating around in there somewhere."
"Must be some party dat you got goin' on upstairs?" Remy remarked, as he embraced her once again, while Rogue put her head against his chest.
"Not really." Rogue started, "After awhile, Ah don't remember much when it comes to details about their memories, and eventually they start to feel like a book that you only thumbed through a long time ago. The Professor's shown me techniques to help keep them in the background of my mind, and most of the time Ah don't notice them in there."
"Well, I say it's probably time I got you and de gang home." Remy said, as he hopped onto the blue bike, "But, let them know we gonna take de scenic route."
"Ah don't think tonight was too bad, especially as first dates go." Rogue asserted, as she got on it behind Remy, with her helmet in both of her hands.
"Yeah, but for our second one let me pick de destination." Remy said, as he turned around to look at her with his helmet in his right hand.
"You sure are confident. Ah mean, assumin' that Ah even want to go on a second date with you." Rogue said, as she played coy with him.
"Gambit knows you can't wait t'go and paint de town three different shades wit' him." Remy boasted, "And dat's exactly what we gonna do."
With that final statement, Remy started the bike up, revving the engine loudly a few times, and then began his and Rogue's journey home.
-------------------------------------
While Rogue and Remy would make the most of their night out, stopping at a long-time favorite haunt of the students at Xavier's school known as Harry's Hideaway, Logan and Scott's night would end much earlier than their younger teammates.
"And how high exactly does tonight rate on your scale of 'Wild Nights Out'?" Scott asked, as the front door to the mansion opened, late enough that most of its younger residents were in bed or at least in their bedrooms.
"Not bad, but I've seen a whole lot wilder." Logan cheerfully said, as he walked in behind Scott and closed the door behind himself.
"I'm sure that you have." Scott said, as the two men stopped in the foyer by the front door.
"All I know is that the highlight for me ain't gonna be the fact that tonight was the best throwdown I've been in since returnin' stateside. It's gonna be what I heard come outta your mouth, 'We haven't discussed that kind of commitment yet'." Logan said as he shook his head, "I swear Summers, I didn't think you had enough personality in that rigid body of yours to even throw out a comeback like that."
"Ahem…"
…Was the voice that the two men heard from the main rec-room that was nearby, as they turned to see Ororo standing in the room's doorway.
"That must mean it's past my bedtime. I'll be seein' you two later." Logan jokingly said to Ororo, as he walked by her to head upstairs to his bedroom. Although, he was sure tonight wouldn't be any different than the previous ones, when it came to him actually getting any sleep.
"Good Night, Logan." Ororo warmly replied, as she turned back towards Scott.
"Is everything alright?" Scott asked Ororo, as she kept staring at him.
"I suppose I should ask you that very same question, considering the way you and Logan came in here like two sailors in from a night out on the town." Ororo amiably answered, "I'm glad to see the two of you finally getting along, but what in the world happened to bring about that change?"
"We just had a little boy's night out together. Logan and I were able to put some of our differences to rest, and even got into a fight. Surprisingly, it wasn't with each other." Scott replied, as they walked into the rec-room together, "So, what are you doing up so late?"
"After I left the War Room to come up here and check on you, Alison informed me that you had left the mansion in a hurry. So, we sat and talked about her new teaching responsibilities, and I gave her a few pointers." Ororo answered, "That, and we also talked for awhile about her life on tour as one of the world's top entertainers."
"Did you find out anything new regarding the Sentinels while you were in the War Room?" Scott asked, as they sat down in the rec-room together.
"Not much more than when you left, I'm afraid." Ororo informed him.
"Then, tomorrow morning we'll just have to find a new stone to turn over." Scott said, as he sat back in his chair, contemplating what that new stone would be…
----------------------------------
Prologue-
"I am so wiped after a day like today." Kitty said, as she, Professor Xavier, and Bobby entered the lobby to their hotel in Washignton D.C., following an evening spent at one of the finer restaurants in the city.
"Me too, but we were just spectators. I can only imagine how you feel, Professor." Bobby said, as he looked down at his teacher, as they moved through the lobby towards the hotel's elevators.
Bobby and Kitty's comments came on the heels of a day that had seen Professor Charles Xavier speak before a Congressional Committee. He warned them about the dangers of allowing anti-mutant fanaticism to blindly label any individual born with an accelerated genetic structure as a danger to society.
"The exhaustion I may feel as a result of my time spent in front of those Congressmen and women, is tempered by my hope that I might have opened a few eyes to the consequences of persecuting individuals, merely because they are different." Professor Xavier said, as they stopped and waited for the elevator that would take them to their rooms upstairs.
"Well, after a good night's rest, at least we'll be on a plane back home to Salem Center tomorrow morning." Kitty said to them.
"We will be returning home tomorrow, but there is one brief stop that I would like to make on the way. It is to a place that has held my curiosity for some time now, and that I had been intending on paying a visit to." Professor Xavier revealed.
"What's this mystery place?" Bobby asked him.
"Actually, it should be familiar territory for you, Robert. It appears that there is another school that specializes in helping young mutants to control their powers, located in Snow Valley, Massachusetts."
"Snow Valley? I know where that is." Bobby confirmed, as the elevator finally arrived, and the three individuals boarded it.
"I assumed that you would. Who knows, you may even run into a familiar face there?" Professor Xavier said to Bobby, just as the elevator door came to a close in front of the trio…
-----------------------------------
Next Chapter: That's right, Professor Xavier, Shadowcat, and Iceman take a look around Mutant Prep…
-----------------------------------
A/N: Special thanks to everyone that reviewed the last chapter.
ishandahalf- Glad you like the way things are unfolding, and I hope you enjoyed Rogue and Remy's date. Hopefully whenever they go out on their next one, it'll live up to your expectations as well.
TheDreamerLady- Glad you liked the last chapter Amanda (and Lanco too). As far as Forge's modifications, he did upgrade their Blackbird and build/upgrade a second Blackbird for the team, during their initial Blue/Gold team era. But given the alien technology at his disposal, those planes were probably far more advanced than what the movie-verse team would be working with. I do plan on having Illyana pop up again down the road, her last appearance was when Peter went home following his brother's death. But, I don't think she'll be going through her Magik phase just yet. As far as Dazzler, it looks like you two might have something in common when it comes to doubts about her teaching ability, but I'm sure things'll work out for her. And as you read, Rahne isn't the only who'd like to get her hands on Stephen Lang right about now. But, Rahne may find some help dealing with the rough time she's been going through, from an unexpected source.
Episodic- Hope you enjoyed this update as much as the last one. Yep, as you can see Logan and Scott did work through some of their personal issues, albeit, in an interesting environment. As far as the group in D.C., you can see Mystique is very well house trained. And here's a few more pokes in the shoulder, if that helps any…
plutospawn- Glad you loved Jubilee in here, I've been disappointed by her lack of inclusion too. Two whole movies, and she's only had like two or three sentences. They could've at least let one of them be some trademark wise crack out of her. That's the main reason I included her in this fic, and given how old the actress' they've had portraying her appear to be, I decided to write her a little more maturely than she's normally seen. Hopefully these plotlines won't explode, else it'll take me months to scrape them off all of the walls…
Lucas'sgirl- Glad you like how all of the character's relate to one another. Yeah, as we've seen with Bobby, holding things in usually only makes them worse. But, a lot of people do that, instead of going to others for help when things in their life get to be too much. Normally, the Professor would easily sense something wrong with one of his students, but following his injuries on Muir Island and his own issues regarding that, things aren't quite back to normal just yet when it comes to his telepathic powers. And, it looks like Lang is going to give Stryker a run for his money in the 'crazed, mutant-hating maniac department'.
Blacknight369- Well, I hope you enjoyed the major Romyness in this chapter!
Independent Fire- I hope you liked how everything in this last chapter moved along for Rahne, Logan/Scott, and Rogue/Remy.
B- Hope you liked this chapter too.
And to show that Istill read reviews of my previous stories, I'd like to thank the next reviewer for giving her recent opinion on Land of the Silver Sun.
Racetrack's Goil- Glad you loved this fic, the X-men's adventures in Japan really had an impact on me and I hope that this story lived up to those tales.