Jean's hunch they had accidentally found the girl was spot on. Thanks to waking up before dawn and keeping quiet when she felt the odd spot stir, she was able to catch a glimpse of the illusive mutant child there were there to collect.
The girl was skinny, but not in an unhealthy way that couldn't be solved with a bit more food. Considering she must primarily live off what she caught and cooked, it wasn't surprising she was so thin. It was good to see she also had a backpack that was well used with a few pieces of school items sticking out, like a ruler and an odd pencil. If one of them stayed behind, the other two could go and see if they couldn't find her in town. That had to be easier than trying to track her in an area she knew very well, if what the Professor said was any indication.
"I'll stay behind. From the what you said of her description you could easily pass for her mother," said Ororo.
Jean had gotten a very good look at the girl. She had red hair almost the exact same shade as Jean's and while her clothes weren't very fancy or brand new, they were well kept.
The moment Ororo said that comment about Jean passing for the girl's mother, a stray thought occurred to her. One she hadn't considered, but would make bringing the girl legally back to America and making her a legal citizen much easier.
"Come to think of it, I think I have a few cousins over here in Europe. The Evans family, if I remember right. I just hope I don't have to go see Petunia again though," said Jean with a shudder. If she wasn't absolutely certain her cousin Lily wasn't a mutant like herself, she would have had yet another thing to share with her. It would certainly explain why Petunia hated her sister so much and called her a freak whenever Lily wasn't within earshot.
Jean had never liked Petunia, but she had adored Lily. It was a shame her cousin was killed.
She knew something was up when she overheard the teachers talking about her parents coming in. That was impossible, since she knew for a fact her parents were either dead or didn't care. If they did care, then why would anyone leave their daughter with that horse-faced hag and her walrus of a husband?
She still remembered the day the horse dumped her off in the camp grounds near the lake. At first it had been a nightmare...but once she quit listening to her human instincts, the animal side took over. Once that happened, she found it was easier. She could hear, smell, see and feel the movement of nature like it was nothing.
That was before she got her bow. Now she could hunt and feed herself more effectively than any other child her age.
However...she had no idea who these people were.
She carefully opened her mind, wincing slightly from the noise, before it dimmed down. Almost immediately she felt someone poke her gently.
Hello.
Who are you and why on earth are you claiming to be my mother? I know for a fact the horse said she died.
There was an open wince at her blunt question.
What do you know about mutants?
I know that those who claim they are monstrosities or abominations of god are complete idiots. I also know that they care about as much as their blood purity as a normal human, which is not at all. It's the person that matters, not the ability.
She could sense open approval.
Are you aware that the method we are currently using is part of your own mutation, and that there is a school where you can be with others that have similar talents in America?
...Xavier's School for the Gifted?
You knew about...
Anyone with half a brain could read between the lines to realize it's a school for mutants to learn and be trained. I take it that you want me to join that school instead of this one? Why now?
The forest you've been living in is scheduled to undergo a scheduled wildfire to cut down on the overgrowth. The Professor was worried you'd get caught in the blaze.
I was wondering what all the hubbub was about. Wait...does this 'Professor' like to go trolling through minds as well?
The Professor does not 'troll'.
He's a damn nuisance is what he is. He should know peeking in the heads of others like that is rude.
In the office, Jean choked. Scott gave her an odd look, but she managed to keep from laughing.
I'll play along for now, but if I don't like this place expect me to suddenly go missing with my two friends. I'm not leaving them behind.
Jean already knew they would have to transport the foxes, which was why they had brought the largest dog carrier they could find. Hopefully they could get along with each other long enough for them to reach the institute.
Artemis acted like she knew the two adults, not caring if she had to use a little bit of her power to make the teachers believe these were the same 'parents' they generally dealt with.
Ororo was very surprised when Scott and Jean returned with a girl not even ten. One who looked very much like a runaway, albeit one who kept better care of herself despite living in the wilds.
"Ororo, meet the little girl we were sent to retrieve. Artemis Fox," said Jean.
"Hello little one. My name is Ororo Monroe, though some call me Storm."
"Hello ma'am. I should probably get my things, if we're leaving."
To the collective shock of Scott and Ororo, the girl went to a section of the same tree they had used as cover and promptly slid down like it was a shoot. Less than ten minutes later she came back up, though for some reason she had her knuckles to the ground rather than use her hands.
She let out a series of strange bark-like sounds, and from out of the underbrush, the two foxes appeared.
One of the foxes had a white under belly and white tipped tail. Their fur was primarily a dark color that was so deep it was almost black. The male was larger than the female, but the female was faster and more adept at sniffing things out.
Jean noticed a large quiver and what appeared to be a very expensive and well used bow.
"Where on earth did you get that bow?"
"Some rich idiot who lives near the lake, roughly a mile from where my relatives originally dumped me because I'm and I'm quoting them on this 'too freakish to continue dirtying their home and air'," said Artemis without a hint of care. It was as if she had come to terms with being so callously abandoned at a young age, despite the fact she was almost too young to fend for herself.
"How long ago was that?" asked Ororo, keeping her powers tightly contained.
"About two or three years ago. I didn't exactly keep count of how long I've been living in the wilds of Ireland. Frankly I'm amazed the fat pigs and the stupid horse were able to stand so much fresh air long enough to dump me considering the little porker hates camping and couldn't bear to be away from his precious toys longer than an hour," said Artemis with a shrug.
Jean nearly growled.
"Who exactly are the 'fat pigs and stupid horse'?" she asked.
"My uncle, cousin and aunt respectively," said Artemis.
"Their names."
"Vernon and Petunia Dursley, and their son Dudley."
Jean's mind went completely cold.
"By any chance do they live in Surrey and does this Petunia have a sister named Lily?"
Artemis cocked her head.
"How'd you know my mom's name?"
"Jean?" said Scott, worried about the look on his girlfriend's face.
"It looks like we're going to have a detour. I need to remind my dear cousins about how they should treat family. Either way it makes getting Artemis here a green card that much easier. If her actions are any indication, Petunia should sign over custody without too much fuss."
"...Could you give that fat bastard Vernon a few kicks between the legs? Please?" asked Artemis, once she worked out this new information.
"If he shows up, I guarantee you I will," said Jean darkly. She was pissed. Lily had been her favorite cousin, and the only one who didn't treat her like a monster once she found out Jean was a mutant.
Petunia Dursley thought that after they dumped the freak brat in the Irish woods, that would be the end of it. Who knew, maybe the stupid brat had finally died and joined her freak parents.
Then her entire world came crashing down when she heard a knock at the door...revealing her even more freakish American cousin, Jean Grey.
It was bad enough Lily turned out to be a witch. Petunia preferred not to think of their mutual cousin who was an abomination against nature.
"You! What are you doing here?!" shrieked Petunia low enough the neighbors wouldn't hear.
Jean's eyes narrowed.
"Cleaning up after your mistakes apparently. Really Petunia, did you think we wouldn't find out what you did?" said Jean coldly. Petunia looked past her to the car that she had driven into the subdivision. It wasn't flashy, but it also wasn't very discreet. The second she saw those green eyes in the car glare at her, she realized why her monster cousin was there.
"If you want that damn brat, you can have her. We never wanted her in our home to begin with, but we couldn't get rid of her."
"Fortunately I can solve that problem. Sign this, and you'll never be responsible for that child again."
Petunia didn't even look at the papers, she signed them without any hesitation whatsoever.
In a stroke of monumentally bad luck (for Vernon) Petunia's husband came into the driveway. Once he was properly out of the car, Jean took three quick steps towards him and without a word or caring if the whole neighborhood saw her, kicked him as hard as she could between his fat legs twice.
Vernon collapsed on the ground in manly pain.
"That was for leaving my cousin out in the middle of the Irish woods, you fat piece of crap. Pray we never meet again or I'll make Magneto look like a saint," said Jean with a snarl.
With that, she left. Petunia dearly hoped she never saw her American cousin ever again.
"Ugh! I need a shower. Even being that close to her made my skin crawl," shuddered Jean.
"I know exactly what you mean. Give me the rugged nature of the forest any day of the week," grimaced Artemis in sympathy.
"Was that really necessary Jean?" asked Ororo. She wasn't happy about Jean practically assaulting that man.
"He makes Magneto look like a bigger advocate of the human/mutant coexistence than the Professor," said Jean, shaking her head.
Artemis snorted.
"The man thinks any who isn't a British citizen who works a 'normal' job as beneath him in every way. I'm pretty sure he'd call all mutants abominations of nature," said Artemis flatly. Jean nodded.
"Petunia was thinking pretty hard on how if Lily was a freak, then I was clearly a crime against nature. I wouldn't be surprised if they were American that they ended up joining the ranks of Stryker without any hesitation at all."
'Reverend' Stryker was a major problem. He was firmly against the existence of mutants and wouldn't hesitate to kill them all if he had the chance. To make matters worse, he had a 'church' of like minded people who went out of their way to spread their intolerant views to others, including innocent children. He was a thorn the X-Men would be thrilled to have out of their side, even if it meant siding with Magneto...so long as they didn't have to kill to do it.
Scott decided to change the subject. So he turned to Artemis and asked "So what powers have you seen manifest?"
"Aside from my psychic abilities, which I try to limit because crowds give me a headache like you wouldn't believe, I heal really fast and I adapt to poisons in mere days and snake venom doesn't even effect me anymore. Now why do you have to wear those weird sunglasses?"
Scott coughed.
"My eyes shoot lasers without them. The glasses provide a dampening effect, even I can only see in reds most of the time."
Artemis looked at Storm, who was driving.
"I control the weather," she said, without having been asked.
"And I," started Jean with a little amusement, "Am a class-ten Psychic. Most of the time I rank a class eight though."
"So you all have only one particular mutation?" asked Artemis. They nodded. "Wonder why I have these as well then..."
To the shock of the three older mutants, Artemis popped out three decent sized claws made of what appeared to be either bone or something similar. With a thought, they turned into some clear material that when the sun hit it sparkled like a gemstone.
"...Is that diamond?"
"I can't do metal...the last thing I want is to attract lightning or be vulnerable to magnets. But diamonds are essentially extremely compressed carbon, and that I can do with a little training. And I had a lot of free time to experiment. It's a good thing I can heal fast though. The first attempts were pretty nasty."
"You have bone claws," said Jean in disbelief. Artemis nodded. "You definitely didn't inherit that from our side of the family... maybe your father?"
"I've never met my father. According to the horse, he died with my mother the very night I was left on their doorstep," said Artemis with a frown. She suddenly sniffed. "You might want to go to a service station. I can smell burning plastic nearby."
Ten minutes later, Scott had to hurriedly drive into a gas station. The radiator hose had broken, or to be more precise it had melted. Fortunately the damage was easy to repair. However, that also raised the question of how Artemis had known there was a problem before he did with his experience with motors.
Finding out she had all the instincts of an animal (though it wasn't nearly the same, it was close enough to be more than quadruple a normal human's) was yet another indicator that she had a mutant parent, and not just some latent gene from Jean's side of the family.
Her gaining psychic powers wasn't any surprise...Jean mentioned Lily was a little strange even for a mutant. Apparently her best friend (before they had a falling before she turned sixteen) had a similar ability to know what people were thinking. But the enhanced senses, the ability to heal almost instantly and the bone claws were most definitely not from her family.
Which meant they had to come from her father, though why she got those they had no idea.
And it was a question that wouldn't be answered until Artemis herself turned twelve, when a very gruff mutant was rescued in Canada...