Chapter 10 - Gifted Youngsters

(Four years later)

The new Xavier Institute had only been up and running for a couple of years, but it was finally getting to a point where things had leveled out. Since there were no X-Men, and since they didn't teach the students anything more than how to control their abilities and then to hide them as much as possible, no one really bothered the residents at the school. Of course, there were some repercussions from it. Ororo herself barely caved to temptation to use her own abilities and tried to keep her flights and moments in the wind confined to storms that were already passing overhead. Yes, it was restrictive and more than a little sad, but … it kept the students safe and showed anyone that was paying attention that there really weren't any more X-Men in the world.

Thankfully, groups like the Friends of Humanity and their like had largely lost public support because things had been so quiet… and largely because of the Avengers' outlook, as well. The first time a sitting US senator had called for action against mutants, Ororo had actually seen the change that came over Captain Rogers' expression - since the school hadn't been built yet at the time, so she had seen the full response.

The next thing she knew, the good captain was all over international news, telling any reporter who would give him a microphone (and there were several) that the Avengers would destroy any groups that practiced hate, including and especially anti-mutant groups.

So while the X-Men were gone, the Avengers didn't let things get quite as bad as they had with the Friends of Humanity - though the anti-mutant fervor stayed under the surface all the same, in little things like graffiti on the fences or hate crimes in the cities. But nothing systematic, and that was something, at least.

As for Ororo herself, she'd finally gotten into what felt like a more normal routine, and as soon as she had begun to really move on, Forge had shown up to help with the school, and in no time, Mia as well.

Which was good, because it was clear that the older Mia got, the more she had her father's mischievous side - and that wasn't always good for a school that tried to stay out of the spotlight. She was all of five years old, but she was already telling everyone who would listen that she wanted to be a pirate - "or at least a X-Men!" which was hard to correct her on while also honoring the stories Ororo wanted to be sure she heard about Kurt.

At the moment, though, she was hanging off of Forge's arm by her tail and grinning up at him crookedly. "You gotta play," she told him. "You're supposed to be the bad guy!"

"I told you, I don't know how to be the bad guy," Forge teased.

"Well, you can be a dragon and just roar a lot," she reasoned. "And then I can vain-squish you!"

"Don't you think I can be a knight?" Forge asked, waving at her with his metal fingers before he scooped her up and started tickling her.

Mia burst into delighted laughter, squirming around until he stopped and she could throw her arms around his neck in a hug. "You're so silly!"

Forge smiled as he pulled her closer and kissed her cheek. "Only when I've got someone fun to play with."

"I love you," Mia said, grinning at him widely.

"I love you too, little goddess," Forge said before he tossed her in the air and let her climb onto his shoulders.

Mia was grinning as the two of them caught up to Ororo, who was in the gardens as usual. Those had taken the longest time to replace, but she had kept at it, and for the first time, they were starting to bloom in splendor much like she used to see in her gardens.

"Hi, Mom," Mia called out from Forge's shoulder. "My Forge is silly!"

"He certainly is," Ororo agreed before she leaned close enough to kiss his cheek. "And we like him silly, don't we?"

Mia giggled when Forge stole a proper kiss in response. "He's ours, huh, Mom?"

Ororo smiled at that. "For as long as he stays with us, yes."

"Oh, so forever," Mia said confidently, which had Forge laughing.

"Looks like you've trained the teachers well in who actually runs the place," called out a familiar voice - and Storm looked over in surprise to see that Scott was there with all three of his own kids. It was a rare occasion to see them there, after all. The boys were talking with their heads together, but Rachel was attached to her dad and wouldn't let go of his arm, looking distressed and overwhelmed and hiding her face as they got closer.

It was a surprise to see them there when Scott had made it a point never to come to the school. He'd invited Ororo and Mia to Christmas a few months prior, but for the most part, they kept to themselves, fishing and hunting and attending school in the small town a hundred miles north of Westchester. If not for the fact that Ororo knew better, she would have even said they looked the part of a small town family, in jeans and plain shirts; Scott even had a beard, and Rachel normally had her hair in braids, though it was down and she was using it to hide her face this time.

Mia grinned, faster to blink out of surprise than Ororo was, and bent over nearly backwards to wave Scott's way. "Hi, Scott!"

Scott smirked and waved right back. "Hi, Mia. Can I borrow your mom for a minute? You can play with Nate and James."

"Okay," Mia said happily, and Forge set her down so that she could rush over to her friends. It didn't take long before all three of the younger kids were chasing each other through the garden - and Forge went with them to give Scott some privacy to talk with Ororo.

Scott took a deep breath and let it out, one hand on the back of Rachel's head as the little redhead tried to disappear into his side - though she was getting old enough that it was harder for her to hide now that she was taller. "She's a telepath," Scott explained, getting right to the heart of the problem, as usual.

Ororo took just a moment to blink at the two of them before she couldn't stop the growing smile. "Well that's good news, isn't it?" Ororo said.

"Yeah, you could have gotten my powers and had to hide your eyes," Scott said Rachel's way, though she held on tighter, and he sighed. "It's overwhelming," he said.

"I'd imagine it would be easier where the four of you are," Ororo said before she gestured for them to take a seat.

"Yeah…" Scott trailed off and rubbed the back of his neck. "She's having a hard time with … with me, honestly," he said in a breath, and it was clear to hear in his tone how much the admission hurt.

Ororo straightened up at that. "Scott."

"I know. I don't let the kids see it, but every time she brushes my mind, it feels like Jean and-" Scott cut himself off.

"Betsy is here," Ororo said. "I know she'd be more than happy to help in any way she can."

Scott nodded, his shoulders relaxing. "Thank you."

Ororo offered Rachel her hand. "Do you remember Betsy?" she asked.

Rachel nodded quietly. "Yeah. I like her hair."

"She cut her hair since the last time you saw her," Ororo told her. "It's very short."

Rachel nodded shyly. "Okay."

Scott let out a breath and then simply picked Rachel up and gestured for Ororo to lead the way. "Come on, Rach. Betsy is one of the best."

"Not like Mom," Rachel said quietly - and Ororo could see the moment Scott almost lost a step before he shook his head.

"No, but she can still help you."

When they got to Betsy, she was sitting with Warren, quietly having tea, though to say that Warren looked ragged would have been a massive understatement. He simply didn't have much of a chance to stretch his wings anymore - and it showed. Both of them looked up when the three of them walked into the room, and both of them looked positively relieved to see Scott there. "We need to find you a razor," Warren said.

"You'd scare half the elementary school teachers. I'm a regular fixture, and they wouldn't recognize me," Scott said dryly.

"Maybe they need to be shaken up," Warren replied as he got to his feet and ruffled his feathers as he stretched. It was just an instant before Warren offered him his hand, and when Scott took it, he pulled him into a brief, tight hug. "It's been too long, stranger."

"You haven't noticed when you've got Betsy," Scott shot back with the beginnings of a smile.

"Are you kidding? I can hardly leave the house. I've noticed."

Scott shook his head as he looked over his old friend. "You do look worn down."

"No room to fly, don't want to draw attention," Warren explained.

Scott let out a sigh and nodded. "That's the one nice thing about ditching the shades. Seems like no one knew what I looked like under there. We're flying under the radar pretty well."

"Someone will notice you got a few good looking kids sooner or later," Warren laughed as he smiled at Rachel. "Even if they all aren't color coordinated to you."

Rachel smiled shyly up at him. "Hi, Warren."

"Hey gorgeous," Warren said. "You here to steal my Betsy?"

Rachel nodded. "Yes, please."

"Alright, but only because it's you," Warren said before he ruffled her hair and threw an arm around Scott's shoulders. "Why don't you have a little tea, Miss Rachel? I'll take care of your Dad for a little while, okay?"

"He needs it," Rachel said, and Scott scoffed.

"You're trouble, Rach," he told her, and she smiled lightly.

Once the others were gone, though, Rachel looked up at Betsy, and her lower lip started to quiver as she finally stopped trying to hold it in. "I don't wanna die," she whispered out as the first tear started to fall.

Betsy was shocked, but she pulled the little girl over to wrap her up in a hug all the same. "What in the world makes you think you're going to die?"

"Dad thinks it," Rachel blurted out as she latched onto Betsy and clung to her shirt. "All the time. He thinks about Mom and her fire and the Phoenix and I've got fire when I touch his mind and I don't want to die!"

Betsy was on the verge of losing it herself as she pulled Rachel tighter, wrapping herself around her. "He's worried, Rachel. But it's not your fault, and I think you'll be alright with some training. We can help you build up your psychic defenses, we can make sure you learn to control your powers, and I can help you to keep out of other people's minds. If you like."

"Mom couldn't stop, though," Rachel said, still scared and holding on tight. "I can feel it in my dreams and I don't want to!"

"Your mother couldn't stop because she was wrapped up in grief and rage," Betsy said. "You have to learn to not let the fear and bad feelings control you."

Rachel nodded and buried her face in Betsy's shoulder, crying hard in a way that Betsy could hear without even brushing her mind - since Rachel was projecting pretty loudly - Rachel had tried to hold back because she could hear how scared not only Scott was but her little brothers, who had picked up on that specific type of fear and were worried themselves.

When Rachel had finally finished crying, she finally looked up at Betsy, who was emotional herself. "You're scared too."

"I'm afraid for you," Betsy said before she cupped Rachel's face in her hands. "I know that you can be strong enough to control it, but I also know how hard it is to focus when you're scared and worried about the people you love."

Rachel nodded, her eyes wide as she met Betsy's gaze. "I wish I had Dad's powers," she said. "I don't want to be a telepath. And I really don't want to be the Phoenix."

"Sweetheart, we don't get to pick what we are," Betsy said.

"I know," she said. She let her shoulders drop. "Dad thinks you can help me. He was happy to hear you're teaching here."

Betsy smiled at her. "That's because I'm a telepath too. So I can not only tell you, but I can show you, and even help you to see what you need to do to control things."

Rachel nodded. "Yes, please."

And while Betsy and Rachel talked a little more about Rachel's powers, Scott was in the hallway talking with Warren, shaking his head as he looked around the school. "It doesn't feel the same," he said. "Or maybe I'm just not used to seeing it in color."

"It's a little bit of both," Warren said. "I'm pretty sure, anyhow. It doesn't feel quite the same. But the color … that's … it's pretty close to what it always was."

"I wouldn't know," Scott said. "I'm sorry you're grounded, Warren."

"It's still better than some of the alternatives," Warren replied.

"Believe me, I know," Scott said softly, then cleared his throat. "But Ororo's right. Kids still need this place. Rachel needs it, for one thing."

"A lot of them need it," Warren said seriously. "It's a good thing that Betsy and I are still around and kicking in, too. We get more kids every year. Some of them can't go anywhere else because of the physical mutations they've got. We're planning a new wing just to house them."

"I know Mia was complaining this Christmas about sticking to the school. She wants to see the world."

"It's just too dangerous right now, Scott," Warren admitted. "And the old image inducers don't cut it like they used to."

Scott frowned at that. "I haven't heard it was that bad."

"Components are hard to come by and some of the MRD guys have little devices that fry them. It's been driving Stark up the wall."

"I thought the MRD was mostly defunct after Captain America busted up their main headquarters."

Warren raised an eyebrow. "They're targeting mostly physically mutated people, but it's not defunct."

"I've been more out of touch than I thought, then." Scott ran a hand through his hair. "It's been really busy. James' teachers have been running him through a bunch of of tests. He's already skipped two grades like it was nothing. And then he came down with chickenpox and gave it to the other kids…"

"Wait," Warren said, holding one hand out. "He's skipped how many grades? And in how long?"

"Two grades this year," Scott said.

"How …" Warren let out a breath. "And with as sick as he is, that's … a little bit wild, isn't it?"

"Yeah, if he hadn't come down with chickenpox, we had a test lined up with some specialists, but then this thing with Rachel happened and we haven't had time to reschedule…" Scott looked honestly exhausted just talking about it.

"I'm sure if you're around for a few days, Storm could line something up for you. She's still pretty tight with the Avengers - if nothing else because they're still bending over backwards trying to make up for … everything."

"I'd appreciate it the help with him," Scott said, shaking his head. "He gets restless when he doesn't have anything to keep him engaged."

"Or, we could just call up Hank," Warren said, already offering Scott his phone.

Scott chuckled at that. "You never were patient," he said.

"I don't want to interrupt Storm and Forge," Warren corrected. "They're getting really serious."

"They were pretty close when they came for Christmas. I know Mia thinks the world of him."

"She calls him 'my Forge'," Warren told him as he hit the button to call Hank. He smiled at Scott for just a moment as Hank picked up the line. "I have someone here who has a question for you about placement tests." He didn't wait for a response from Hank before handing Scott the phone and waving him on.

Scott shook his head at his old friend. "Hey, Hank. Got a minute?"

"For you, I have all the time in the world," Hank replied.

Scott smiled lightly. "I need to meet up with you or have you come to Storm's school and run some tests for James."

"Is there a problem?" Hank asked, sounding concerned.

"No," Scott promised quickly, knowing that Hank had seen James through many illnesses. "No, it's not his health. He's skipped two grades already, and I need to know where to take him so he's getting the academic challenge he needs."

Hank was quiet for a long moment at that - simply not having expected that kind of news. "I shall consult with my peers and find a reasonable solution. How long are you in town?"

"A few days. Rachel's registering for classes."

"Already?" Hank asked, sounding surprised. "We can be there tomorrow, I'm sure. While Ororo is working out a schedule for Rachel."

"Thanks, Hank."

When Hank arrived along with Tony, Jan, and Bruce Banner, the four Avengers were surprised by just who greeted them first - as Nate Summers came tumbling over and positively latched onto Hank with a troublemaking grin.

Though before he could even say hello, James came running around the corner soaking wet and wielding a water pistol that he'd clearly stolen from Nate after the initial attack - and James didn't have any hesitation about hitting Hank along with Nate, either.

"Harboring a fugitive!" James called out. "Also Hi."

"Hi, Hank!" Nate said, grinning and wet and laughing.

Hank smirked and scooped Nate up - though he was sure to dramatize an 'oof' as he did so. "You're getting too big for this."

"I'm gonna be as big as my dad!" Nate agreed.

"Maybe bigger," Hank said with a laugh.

Nate nodded seriously and then waved at the other three Avengers. "Hi. You missed it. I totally nailed James."

"Sure looks like you did," Tony agreed, looking entirely amused at the whole situation.

"I'm a crack shot. Dad says so," Nate said proudly.

"And what about you, James?" Jan asked with a grin. "I see you got his gun."

"I fought him for it," James said as he set the water pistol down.

"He cheated," Nate said. "He licked my hand!"

"Not my fault you're squeamish."

"You bit me last time!"

"I'll bite you again if you stick your hand in my face, too."

"Is this typical?" Bruce asked Tony, though Bruce was smirking hard and obviously amused.

"Little boys," Tony said with a laugh.

"So typical," Jan laughed before she booped Nate on the nose. "Hey, do you want to show me around while your brother takes a test?"

"Okay," Nate said. "We can go play with my dad and Mia!"

Jan flashed a smile at the other Avengers. "Have fun, boys. I'm taking my sharpshooter," she said, letting Nate take her hand to lead her out to the gardens, where Scott was watching Mia very carefully and methodically put flower petals in a pattern on the rocks, singing a song to herself the whole time - at least until she saw Nate, and then she roped her friend into playing with her and it wasn't long before they were screaming and laughing and dragging the adults into a game of tag.

As for James, he was more than a little out of his comfort zone with the adults around him. He didn't care that he was dripping wet, but he didn't really spend much time with any of them anymore - and Bruce Banner was definitely a new addition.

"If you gentlemen wouldn't mind," Ororo said as she rested her hands on James' shoulders. "My office is open for you to set up, I'll get our little friend dried off."

James looked up at her, tipping his head back to do so, and as soon as they were away from the three Avengers, he blurted out "But I didn't do anything wrong."

Ororo shook her head and crouched down to his level. "You're not in trouble," she promised. "Your father told me about how you've skipped a few grades-"

"Only because they were boring," James said quickly. "And it wasn't my idea."

"Exactly." Ororo nodded and smiled gently before she rested her hand on his shoulder. "Your father wants to find you a class that won't be boring, so I asked three very smart people to come here and see just how clever you are. That way, your classes won't be boring."

James thought about it for a moment. "Will I have to go somewhere else like Rachel?"

"If you do, I know for a fact your father will go with you, though I don't know that it would be much of a challenge here for you," Ororo said. "Rachel is going to school here because she'll need to learn to control her abilities; maybe you'll move closer to the city to keep the family close."

James frowned at that, but didn't respond, instead remaining silent as he let Ororo lead him down the hall to get changed and dried off. When they got to her office - dry and ready to go, it was clear he was still mulling things over.

"Are you nervous?" Ororo asked kindly.

"No," James lied, shaking his head.

"I had to ask. You looked like you might be."

"I don't think I'm smart enough for this." He shrunk in on himself as he watched the three brainiacs manage a few final adjustments. "I can just stay in the class they put me in. I won't cause any trouble. I promise. It's fine."

Ororo let her shoulders drop before she turned James to face her and draw his attention away from three of the brightest minds on the planet. "I tell you what, my little friend. You can give it your best shot, and no one will be upset with you if you're not smarter than Albert Einstein," she teased him lightly. "I promise you, James, this is only to see what grade you should be in and if you should be in a different school. We all know you're smart, James; we just want to know how smart." She ran her hand though his hair with a sedate sort of smile as he watched her. "But you must promise me that you will try your very best."

"I don't want to leave," James whispered to her softly, and all at once, she took in how stressed out the little guy looked and pulled him into a hug.

"You don't have to, James, I promise you. You can stay with your dad and your brother and sister."

"But we'd have to move, you even said so - and we just got comfy where we are," James said as Ororo held on tighter, though she had to keep a fine handle on her self control when he continued in an even quieter whisper. "Dad doesn't sleep when we move."

"Does that mean you don't sleep too?" Ororo asked quietly, to which James glanced over to the Avengers and barely nodded. She forced a smile into place and kept one hand on the side of his face to make sure his attention was on her. "He's only watching out for you all. But you don't have to worry. And you're getting far ahead of yourself. Take the test first, then I'll make sure your voice is heard on whatever the next step is."

She could feel the tears prickling at the corners of her eyes as her next words bubbled up on their own. "Have a little faith, my sweet boy." James stopped what he was doing and glanced up at her with such a familiar expression … that was all the more striking when she could see Logan so clearly in his features.

James looked over at the three men in the room and bit his lip, missing the struggle Ororo was having with her emotions. It took a moment, but he turned their way and squeezed Ororo's hand as she joined him for the walk over so he could at least see what they wanted.

Ororo kept by his side as long as he wanted her there, too, though as James got more invested in the tests, she was able to step back slowly to observe.

And for James, though at first he was nervous, it all seemed like a bunch of stupid games that each one of the adults would play with him. Before long, the games were broken up with memory tests, reading and comprehension evaluations, and some math that was well above what they knew he already had down.

Ororo knew it was going well when Tony showed James how to work out an equation with a bubbling joy that she honestly hadn't seen from him in quite some time. When Tony gave him a new problem with a similar format, James hardly slowed down to solve it. It wasn't super high level for the adults in the room, but for a kid that wasn't even ten yet, it was pretty clear that he was picking things up as fast as they could put it in front of him.

Which honestly turned into a whole lot of fun for Tony, Hank, and Bruce as they decided to see exactly how far they could push the kid without prepping him properly. And once James was invested in the 'games', he barely noticed that the test had transitioned slightly - and he didn't notice Tony recording parts of it on his phone, either.