Please forgive my spelling mistakes. I do reread and read over it & I do use spell checker.

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Ange moved to the couch in the TV room, sitting so that she could easily soak up the warm sunlight. She sat cross legged and studied her list carefully. Thirty-names were listed alphabetically with a number beside each name, indicating their appropriate grade level. The students compiled a wide range of ages, from second grade to 11th, or a Junior. The majority was overwhelmingly among the younger grades however.

She scanned over a few other notes, including shelving and tables for her art room; her own art room. Though it had been used as a study, the library was better for that, and the study had great, tall, wall windows over looking the back yard and the immense trees and beauty it beheld. She glanced outside, at the warmth and the glistening moisture that studded the grass and that was quickly evaporating from the basketball court. Considering that the art room wasn't organized yet- ha, she hadn't even a chance to see it, let alone organize it, and considering the beautiful weather, she hoped that she could move her class outside. She found nature more inspiring as well, as opposed to an old study which held the stigma of books, and papers, and grades.

All thoughts peacefully drained from her mind as she forget about everything and everyone around her, falling into a daze of the far way la-la land; she sat simply soaking up the warmth and the peace, the silence.

"Do you like it here so far?" Though Nightcrawler's voice was easy and friendly, his sudden speech ripped Ange from her gaze and day dreaming. He noticed he had startled her and smiled. She turned to face him as he sat down across from her.

"I didn't mean to startle you."

"Oh, don't worry about it." She laughed. "I'm easily distracted and easily startled." After a moments pause, waiting for him to speak again, she remembered that it was his question to her that startled her.

"I do like it here." She said quickly. "This house is just amazing. It's sophisticatedly rustic. And it's absolutely gorgeous!" She laughed. "And everyone is so friendly." Though she knew him to be as nice as the others, perhaps the most outgoing when it came to welcoming her, she felt the most uneasy around him. At least with the majority of the mutants, their mutations weren't physically noticeable. Even more so with Nightcrawler and his dark complexion, three fingers, pointed tail, and yellow eyes; to say the least, he quite reflected the media's persona of a demon. But she tried to keep her uneasiness from revealing itself to him.

"I'm glad you're comfortable." He smiled genuinely.

"Nightcrawler, right?"

"Yes. My real name is Kurt Wagner. But in the circus I was known as the Amazing Nightcrawler. And you are Angelina, right?"

"Oh, you can just call Ange."

"It's a beautiful name." Ange looked down at her papers for moment. She was unrightfully afraid that he might have been attracted to her.

"Ummm, thank you." She said quietly, hoping he would just leave now. Neither said anything for a moment or two, but Nightcrawler didn't leave.

"Nervous about your first day of class?"

"Yes, a little."

"You should do fine. They are all good children."

"Oh, I'm sure." She laughed slightly. "And just like all children, they enjoy figuring out how to push their new teacher's buttons."

"Children will be children." He smiled. "But I have no doubt that you'll do just fine."

"Nightcrawler, can you watch my class real fast?" Storm asked, peeking her head in the TV room from the hall way. "Lizie's sick." The little girl rushed into the bathroom, Storm following. Nightcrawler smiled at Ange and left to watch Storm's class. Storm came back out, looking to grab a glass of water.

"Oh Storm, where is the art room?"

"Let me take care of Lizie and I'll show you."

Ange nodded and turned back to papers. She finished sorting everything out and stacked it together. The bell would ring any minute now. Storm and Lizie came out of the bathroom and Cyclops took her back to her room with some crackers and ginger ale.

"It's this way. This is the main hall- leads to the Professor's office, the kitchen, the TV room, the bathrooms, the elevator, and to my room. I teach History, Math, and English. The Professor teaches Science. Wolverine has become our gym instructor. He teaches the kids different games and often joins in their games at recess. Though we each help train the children in their powers, Cyclops is the main instructor. There are a few of the children that only the Professor can help, such as Nightmare. Most of those children have some form of mind power. Jean used to help the Professor too, though we too are still honing our powers." She paused as they passed her room and she returned to the layout of the building. "At the end of the main hall," she paused and pointed the right and they rounded the corner, "is another hall. It's short. The door on the left we don't use. It's another door to my room, and we don't allow the children to use. The door on the right," she turned the knob and pushed it open, "is your room. Clubs will still be held here in the art room, but have all been instructed to leave all art supplies, projects, ect. alone. And back here, is the library." Stormed moved passed the desks and Ange followed from behind, instead of of nearly side by side with Storm. "The only way to the library is through the art room. Well, if you need anything else, just let us know."

"I have a question."

"Yes?"

"Well I had been hoping that since today is more of a day for me to meet my students and for them to meet me, that I could have class outside, as long as that's all right."

"Oh sure. I'd suggest working on the basketball court."

"Thank you." The bell rang and kids started pouring out of the library. Kids came and went, and finally, 31 students were sitting down, chattering away in the desks. You could hear Storm tell the children not to run in the halls. The last student came into the art room, books over flowing in his arms.

"Quiet please." It took a while, but finally the kids decided to cooperate. Now Ange's class wasn't separated by age or grade, like most of the other classes were.

"My name is Angelina, and I'm you're new art teacher as well as the official babysitter." 'What a job- 'official babysitter,' she teased herself. "Please call Ange. Now first, I would like to go around and have everyone tell me their name and what you would like me to call you. After that we're going to head outside to the basketball court." She jotted down some pronunciation annotations next to some names, nick names next to the others.

"Off to the basketball court- and please try to keep your voices down as we go through the halls. Oh, leave you're stuff here except for a pencil and a pen."

The ground was wet, but the basketball court was drying off nicely and quite fast. "Please everyone find a dry spot to sit down. Please fill out this sheet I'm passing around. If you don't want to fill out some of the questions, that's fine- but you need to fill out your birth date and what you would like to do in this class. When you're done, raise your hand and I'll come around and pick them up."

A few of the kids groaned at the hand outs and the curiously scanned over the small list of questions.

"Why do you want to know this stuff about us?"

"I'd like to get to know you all better. This is as good as a way as any, right?"

"Ya, whatever." Some of the older 'smart allics' didn't want to fill out the form. They were just taking the class because they figured it would be an easy grade and a chance to get other homework done- a study hall.

"I wasn't sure what to do first in this class, so I decided to ask what you all wanted to do. Hopefully we'll get around to doing all of it. Later today I'll be going out to get some supplies. But for now, I'd like you guys to draw whatever you want- your favorite things to draw. This will be your first assignment. Sign your name and date it before you hand it in. It will be due at the end of the class. If you finish drawing and would like to color it, I have some crayons and makers here. I'll be getting some colored pencils later today."

After a few moments of filling out the questionnaire and starting on their drawings, one of the older kids blurted out, "How are you going to grade us, huh? The ones who are good at art get A's?"

"Yes, everyone who is good at art will get A's." She paused. She had been very serious. She grinned when she saw their reactions and everyone quieted.

"That's not right, you can't do that."

"Well I'm afraid that I can. You see, everyone here is good at art. I will only grade you on effort and how well you follow instructions. For this assignment though, all you have to do is put your effort into drawing whatever you want."

The class settled down and they got to work. She didn't mind if they talked while drew- she was a social person herself and felt that art was incredibly social.

As they sketched away at landscapes, cartoons of the class, people, unicorns, airplanes- or jets, Ange sorted through their questionnaires. She wrote down how many students she had that were of the same age and wrote each of their birthdays on the calendar. She then wrote down all of the things the kids wanted to do. "Study hall ... draw ... paint ... make clay pots ... photography ... sketch ... draw ... charcoal ... metal sculptures ..."

"You have ten more minutes and then we're going to head back to the classroom so you all can get your stuff before the bell rings."

The ten minutes went by and they barely made it back to the classroom before the bell rang. "Don't forget to give me your art work before you leave! If I don't get it, you'll have a zero for the first assignment," she shouted over the loud chattering and bustling.

"Thank you, thank you- ohh, very nice. Thank you, thank you." Colossus was the last one to turn in his sketch. He left in a hurry out the door, but Ange stood there studying it. He certainly had talent. His passion seemed to be cartoons. He drew her class- kids throwing paper air planes across the room, a little boy sticking his tongue out at a girl, and one kid drawing all over the walls. She had to smile- as much as she hoped and prayed this would not be how her class would turn out, it was very imaginative and creative.

She sat down at her desk and sorted out where she would put things. She moved books that needed to be put back into the library. She cleared off old shelves that held some small figurines and she emptied cabinets that held dusty, cob webbed, dried out markers, faded construction paper, dried out and/or spilt glue, and dried up and spilt paint. She also washed the desks and rearranged them to give them more working space. She completely moved the desks against the back walls, where a few shelves of books were extended from the library.

"I'll have to talk to someone about getting a few tables put up in here. I could use some more cabinets as well. And suppose that does it for what I can do in here. Now, to figure out what I'll need to get and go shopping." Ange had a frequent habit of talking to herself- aloud and in her head.

She sat down at her desk- a nice cherry wood desk. It was different for her, having a desk. Her chair was comfortable- cushiony and it had wheels.

"Seems most of the kids are interested in drawing. Or maybe they just didn't know what else to put down. I'll definitely pick up sketchbooks, drawing pencils- oh," she paused and glanced around the room, looking a pencil sharpener attached to a wall. "We'll need a few pencil sharpeners. Water colors, colored pencils- someone mentioned charcoal. I'll pick up two sets. Scissors, definitely some more glue. We'll need rags and smocks. If we decide to do some sculpting and clay, then I can pick those supplies up later." She jotted everything down that they needed. Then she added orange juice, eggs, and grape fruit juice to the list. She decided she wanted some English muffins too.

"Mmmmmm, I could take a nap." The sun was shinning in through her windows. She could smell some food from the kitchen, and her energy finally had run out. She was definitely ready for a nap.

"AFTER I go shopping. I'll take a nap after I go shopping."