Toad woke with a start, groaning at the rock that was poking him under the left shoulder blade. The camp was stirring, must be getting ready to move out. He tried to stretch, surprised at how stiff he was. He could hear Wolverine shouting orders from the front of the line, and got to his feet. No place to go but travel with them for awhile, though Toad vowed to take the first possible side tunnel out of this love-parade.
He loped along a few paces behind the others, not wanting to share in their joy or their grief. He had his own worries. Despite his desire to remain aloof Magneto and the Brotherhood still plagued his thoughts. Would they be fighting? Already captured? Dead? He couldn't' see Erik put into another concentration camp. It would kill him.
Absorbed in his own thoughts Toad didn't notice the girl fall back to walk with him.
"So, I hear you're one of the bad guys."
Toad blinked, looking up at her. It was the leggy blonde. Her pink shirt much the worse for wear, but she was obviously unharmed. He grinned.
"Yeh that's me," he made a dark face intending to scare her off. She laughed.
"Name's Tabitha, they call me Boom Boom," she stuck out a hand, which Toad ignored, "bet you can't guess why?"
"They call me Toad, and I'm sure you can."
The girl didn't seem to get the hint.
"C'mon Toady, I I figured for better manners from a -."
"From a member of the Brotherhood?" Storm had appeared out of nowhere and was looking over the blonde, "I'm sorry to have to tell you this, but you have poor taste in new friends."
Toad grumbled to himself. It was getting entirely too social, but he hated letting Storm get the last word in.
"Well luv, it's nice to have witty banter an all, but I'm a bit busy, and you'rea little lacking in wit," he gave her a smug look that elicited a scowl from the weather-witch, and then to his shock as much as anyone else's, he put an arm around the blonde.
Storm stalked on ahead and he removed it quickly.
"Sorry"
"About what?" Tabitha grinned at him wickedly.
If Toad didn't know better he might like this girl. But as much as Toad might find her physically attractive, he'd learned long ago, pretty girls meant trouble.
"That beastly…woman," he jerked his thumb after her.
"Don't worry about her Toady baby, I waaas gonna say I expected better manners from a Brit. But the Brotherhood sounds way more entertaiing"
Toad glared at her. He was shot, tired and angry, and she wanted to talk about the only thing important in his life that he'd been kicked out of.
"What's to hear? Bloody weather-whore electrocuted me and now I'm on the injured list." He pushed past her, wanting for once to get lost in the crowd. He got a look at her face as he passed her and she looked disappointed. He wondered what she wanted really. A chance to interview with the Great Magneto? He almost wanted to tell her all she had to do was sign up, they didn't' have bloody tryouts. Cor, women were crazy.