DISCLAIMER: Don't own the X-Men. But I do own a pair of Dr. Scholl's gel shoe inserts. I'm gellin'.

Kurt and Storm had just finished answering the numerous questions that the children had, and they were headed to the kitchen.

"So, Ororo, tell me. When did you become a thief?"

"Oh, wow. Let's see. Well, after my parents were killed by terrorists…"

"Your what were what!"

"I don't really like to talk about it. It was…the scariest thing in the world."

Kurt's face fell. He would have shared anything with her, but perhaps she didn't feel the same way. "It is alright. You don't have to tell me."

"Thank you. It's not that I don't…"

"It is alright."

"I was taken in by a man named Achmed El-Gibar. He gave me a place to stay, food to eat. In return, he taught me to steal. I was the best pickpocket in Cairo. But I left once I got my powers. When I was twelve."

"Why?"

"Whenever I was on the job, if I was the least bit nervous, it would thunder and lightning. It's hard to steal from a home when you've woken the owner up. I went back to my ancestral home, on the Serengeti Plain."

"Did you have family there?"

"The entire tribe was my family. My mother was a princess. I was born with the same features as those destined to be priestesses. By the time I rejoined with my tribe, I had developed the power enough to control it's instability. When the tribes found out about my ability, they began to worship me as a goddess."

"A goddess?"

Storm nodded. "I used my powers to ensure that they suffered neither drought nor famine. It was the least that I could do to repay them for taking me in."

"Ja, das stimmt. That...makes sense."

She nodded again. "I lived there until the Professor discovered me. I still go back from time to time. I'll take you with me sometime. It's really beautiful."

"I can imagine."

There was silence, and then Storm tried to move the conversation away from her own past.

"How about you? What was it like growing up in Bavaria?"

"Well, I too didn't really know my parents. My birth parents, that is. My adopted mother, Margali, found me in a river."

"A river?"

"Ja. I was floating downstream. Her band was camped by the shore, and she spotted me."

"That's incredible. Why...why would someone do that to a baby?"

Kurt looked at his hands. "Baby or not... when you look like this..."

"Oh, Kurt..." She gave him a hug. "There is nothing wrong with the way you look."

"It is a nice saying, but it is not true. Growing up like this, it is the first thing that you learn."

"Come with me. There's something that I should show you."

She led the way back down to the med lab, where they headed into a back room. She switched on the light, and Kurt's eyes grew wide as he took in the contents of the room. There were countless pieces of machinery covering what seemed like hundreds of stainless steel shelves. Ororo made her way to one of the far shelves and pulled out a large box.

"Come here."

He walked over and looked into the box. There were a large number of PDA-like devices. Storm picked one up and handed it to him.

"Press the red button twice and then the orange button."

"Why?"

She smiled at him. "Have faith, Kurt. Just do it."

He pressed the buttons and looked around. "It has done nothing."

"Look down."

He did, and to his surprise, his regular, feet were not there. Instead, a pair of "normal" feet, complete with five toes stood there. Similarly, his three-fingered hands were replaced with five-fingered hands. He teleported towards the nearest window and looked at his reflection. Staring back at him was not the blue face that he had known his entire life, but instead a pale, dark eyed man. He felt his face, the tattoos were still there. He could feel their raised bumps. Yet the face in the window was smooth.

"Was...!"

"We recovered them a few years ago, when we uncovered a hidden faction of Stark Industries that was targeting mutants."

"What is it?"

"An image inducer. A holographic projection."

"This is awesome!"

"Awesome?"

"...Is that not a word? I have heard the children use it."

Storm laughed. "No, no... It's a word, dude."

"Was?"

"Nothing. You don't need this, Kurt. But they are here if you choose to use them."

"Thank you for showing this to me."

"If it helps to make you feel more comfortable, fine. But I am telling you; you are beautiful. Anyone who does not see that is the one who is at fault, not you."

"You are too kind."

"It's not kindness."

Kurt smiled and turned back to the window.

On the other side of the window, the professor was fighting his way through the jumble that was Rogue's mind. He always felt bad delving so deep into people's minds, especially when the people in question were friends. But he felt even worse that he had allowed for the phoenix force to escape into the mind of another of his students. Luckily, there was little that it could do there other than simply hide, since Rogue had no telepathic or telekinetic abilities. Unfortunately, though, the phoenix force was very good at hiding. The last thing that the professor had wanted to do that day was sort through the thoughts of a teenager. He had already made his way through all of her memories of the institute, and put blocks on all of them, to prevent the phoenix force from hiding in them. He had tried to scan through them quickly, so that he didn't feel too much like he was trespassing. He leaned back into his wheelchair and rubbed his temples. He turned to the nearby door as Storm and Kurt walked out.

"Ororo?"

"Yes, Charles?"

"Were you aware that Jubilee referred to me as 'cueball'?"

"Well... she may have let it slip a few times..."

"I see."

"How's it going?"

"I have yet to enter into the part of her memories involving events before she came here. So far, though, I have found the moment where the force entered her..."

"When she knocked Jean out?"

The professor nodded. "I am also beginning to piece together what exactly it is. But I cannot be sure, until I speak again with Jean. Whatever part of it is inside of Rogue is weak compared to that which still dwells in Jean's body."

"Will they be alright?" Kurt peered behind the professor at the pale form on the bed.

Charles followed Kurt's gaze and sighed. "I hope so. It's getting late. You two should go make sure that all of the students are in their rooms. I'll be down here well into the night. And probably most of tomorrow as well."

"If you need anything..." Storm made her way to the door, as Charles nodded in appreciation of her offer.

About an hour later, Storm had just finished rounding up the last of the girls and getting them to stay in their rooms. She did one last sweep of the corridor before heading to Kitty, Jubilee, and Rogue's room. When she knocked on the door, it was opened almost instantaneously, and she found herself looking into the obviously distraught face of Jubilee.

"Ororo? Do you know anything?"

"No, not really."

Jubilee moved aside to let the older woman enter the room. Kitty was lying on her bed, sleeping. Gesturing for Storm to sit in the chair at their desk, Jubilee sat heavily on her own bed.

"Kitty fell asleep. She's so worried, she couldn't handle thinking about it."

"It's going to be ok. The Professor has assured me..."

"Yeah. It's gonna be ok. But it isn't ok right now. We don't know anything. Gambit can't even figure any information out."

Storm looked out at the balcony. She hadn't noticed Remy standing out there when she walked in.

"Has he been here all night?"

"Since Rogue left with the Professor. He left to get another pack of cigarettes from his room about half an hour ago, but other than that and some snooping downstairs, he's been pacing in and out of the room, chain-smoking."

"Maybe I should talk to him."

"Good luck. Unless you speak French, he's refusing to say anything."

Ororo sighed. "Alright." She stood up and put her hand on Jubilee's shoulder reassuringly. "If you need anything, I'll be in my room."

"Thanks."

Storm let herself out of the room and headed back to the adult wing. On the way, she ran into Bobby, who seemed to also be headed to the girls' room. She nodded to him sympathetically and continued on to her room. She paused outside of her door before turning and crossing the hallway, knocking on Kurt's door. It was answered by a handsome man, who smiled at her.

"Um..."

With a small beep, Kurt turned the image inducer off. "I have been playing with the controls. Come in."

She walked in and he closed the door behind her. "What is up?"

"I wanted to tell you something. My parents. Our home was bombed. My mother and I were in the basement; my father answered the door when the package was delivered. He opened it and the entire upper floors caved in. I was trapped in what used to be the basement. The rubble created a small cavern and I avoided being injured. My mother, however... She was struck in the head by a steel rod. I watched her as she suffered; I was trapped there with her body for almost a whole day. That's why I'm claustrophobic." She let it all out in one quick breath, worried that if she paused that her emotions would get the better of her.

Kurt tried to absorb the new revelation, but was unable to put into words exactly what he wanted to say.

"Wow."

Storm chuckled softly at his reaction. "Yes. Wow."

A/N: That might have taken awhile. Sorry. Reviews are good things -)