Disclaimer: I am making no money from this, just enjoying a sense of escapism from an ordinary life
Scene Three"Alright, everybody out!" Blaze ordered the swarms of teenagers she was ferrying to school. Punching a button on the X-Jet console, she opened the hatch and lowered the gangway for them to leave by.
"Um, like we're still not quite on the roof Blaze?" Kitty was hesitant, peering down at the flat roof that hovered a distance below them.
"Oops, sorry." Blaze teased, manoeuvring the jet in closer. "I thought I was doing the High School run, not Kindergarten." She looked back over her shoulder as the kids started to take leaps down to the roof, helping each other and using their powers as necessary.
"Oh no!" Kurt exclaimed, slapping his forehead with his palm. "I forgot my lunch. Blaze could you…"
"Do I look like your mother?" Blaze cut him off, raising an eyebrow.
"No," Kurt acknowledged, "But I hear sometimes she looks like you."
"Fair point." Blaze gave in to Mystique's son and tossed him some money from her own pocket. "I want that back next allowance day. And next time you can 'borrow' from one of your classmates, just knock off that image inducer and scare it outta them."
"Danke!" Kurt exclaimed, porting out of the jet to join the others on the sunlit roof. The bell rang just as Kitty phased through the rooftop door and opened it from the inside. Blaze gave them all a cheery wave goodbye and raised the jet up into the air. The gangway shut as the English girl pointed the jet's nose skyward, launching away from Bayville High excitedly.
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The wind tugged at Rogue's clothes and she was buffeted by Gambit's trench coat as they raced along the open road on his motorbike. With nothing else to hold on to, Rogue was clinging like a limpet to Gambit's waist. The tinted visors on both their helmets kept the glare of the bright early morning sun out of their eyes. Gambit was leaning far over the handlebars, urging the bike to go faster and faster. Bayville whipped by as little more than a blur. Even knowing that she was still going to be late for school, Rogue had to admit she was enjoying herself.
Out of the clear blue and cloudless sky, a rumble of black thunder came hurtling towards them. The X-Jet dropped out of its flight path, coming down on the heads of the mutants on the bike. Blaze dipped the Blackbird's wings to show them she had seen them. As Rogue and Gambit looked up simultaneously, Blaze gave them a single-handed salute and a cheeky grin through the glass of the cockpit. Then she hit the throttle and flung the X-Jet past the bike, back towards the mansion. Rogue felt the suction as the jet tried to lift the bike off the road. Gambit compensated with another burst of speed, and Bayville High suddenly appeared over a crest in the road.
The bike skidded slightly sideways, producing a plume of dust from the ground as the X-Men reached the front of the school. Rogue leapt off the machine like she'd been caught red-handed trying on some of Jean's clothes. She tugged off her helmet, hoping she didn't have the helmet hair to match, and gave it back to Gambit. She was trying to think of a good way to say thank you without sounding pathetic, when someone spoke behind her.
"Just what time do you call this young lady? The tardy bell rang five minutes ago."
"Principle Kelly…" Rogue had no excuse the man would like, so she gave up and instead ran to class. The doors had barely flapped closed behind her when Kelly turned to Gambit.
"This is not a suitable way for one of my pupils to arrive at school, late and on the back of a motorbike like some kind of hoodlum. See that it doesn't happen again. Mutants or not, I will not have you leading my pupils astray."
Gambit took off his helmet and coolly looked Kelly over with his unique eyes. Kelly couldn't help himself. He balked as though physically struck.
"If I wanted to lead her astray, I wouldn't have brought her to school."
"Yes, well." Gambit's impeccable coolness only served to fluster Kelly more. "Just see that it continues."
The Principle smartly about-faced and went back into school. Gambit watched him go with a thin sneer on his face. Kelly hadn't even realised he'd contradicted himself. Helmet back on, Gambit peeled his bike away from the school and headed back towards the Xavier Institute. Only then did Rogue move away from the window where she had watched the dialogue and finally go to class. She passed a row of lockers, stopping briefly as she heard a strange noise in the otherwise silent corridor. It was a quiet beeping, its origin indistinguishable. Rogue squinted, listening, but she couldn't place the noise so she shrugged and carried on.
Inside the dark of a disused locker, a crimson LCD light blinked as something beeped, whilst a digital timer steady counted down to zero...