Updated Author Note (6/13/12)
I've gone through and found a few things that needed some tweaking and adding. If this keeps going smoothly, then chapter 6 will be easier for me to write.
Old responses to previous reviews:
BlAcKpUp40 - I'm really glad you like it, there's still more to come!
Mizuki99 - I'm glad you like it! I try to keep it close to the original storyline as much as possible, while adding a few things for my story. Thank you; you're probably the first person to actually compliment my writing. You have my eternal gratitude!
Rogue stared back at the icy blue orbs that were carefully studying her with mild interest. She gave him a small once over, while he did the same to her and Jamie. It was then that she noticed his pale complexion. His pale white skin tone seem to complement his pale blonde hair and icy blue eyes. To the southern belle, he almost appeared to be sickly and fragile, except his eyes told her an entirely different story. It was just a mask for his true self.
Maybe it was just her imagination, but didn't most European have some color to their skin? ...Wait where did that come from? She quickly shook her head to clear her head of the thought.
Great, I'm starting to sound like that annoying valley girl. Rogue thought with a grimace.
Although, now that she thought about it, this guy had a rather interesting choice in clothes. He wore a black and gray plaid button up with the sleeved rolled up to his elbows, and a slim white tie around his neck. Over the button up was a black waistcoat vest that was buttoned up all the way. For pants, the blonde wore a pair of black corduroys that kept with the rest of his dark shaded clothes. Finally on his feet, the pale teen wore a pair of black and white checkered slip on vans.
Charles's gaze moved from the blonde to the three newcomers standing near the door, a small smile came to his face.
"Ah, you three are just in time to meet our newest student. Please allow me to introduce you to Michael Soletta." Charles stated, motioning for them to come met the blonde. The mentioned blonde merely raised a hand, waving half-heartedly at them.
"It's an honor, and pleasure to meet you." He retorted stiffly.
Rogue cocked an eyebrow in surprise. She almost had to strain her ears just to hear him. He spoke in a quiet and calm voice that seemed to almost border on apathetic and boredom. She noted the way his eyes held a faint aura of indifference to them.
"Hi, I'm J-Jamie. Jamie Madrox." Jamie said, offering the blonde a smile. The blonde merely nodded his head in acknowledgement at the small preteen.
"Nice to meet you." He returned civilly. Turning his sights back to Rogue, he cocked an eyebrow at her. "And you are?"
"...Rogue." She retorted curtly.
Rogue knew that she was being kind of rude to the new guy, but there was something about him that she didn't like. The blonde simply nodded, then turned to the wolf sitting on the other side of Jamie.
"Is this another student, Professor?" Mike asked, eyeing the wolf carefully.
"Yes, her name is Rahne Sinclair." Charles answered, having sensed the pale teen's uneasiness. "Rahne, if you wouldn't mind returning to your original form, please. I believe your current form is making our guest feel quite uncomfortable."
The reddish brown wolf let out a small whine, but nodded its head. The blonde's icy blue orbs widened in surprise as the wolf slowly turned into a girl that was about the same size as Jamie. Her hair was reddish brown color that was put up in two pigtails. She wore a green long sleeved shirt and a pair of beige colored jeans. She smiled at the blonde, holding out a hand to him.
"Pleased to meet ya." Rahne said simply.
Mike slowly reached out and shook hands with her. "...Uhh, yeah likewise."
"I take it you aren't used to being around animals, am I right?" She inquired, cocking an eyebrow at him.
"You could say that. My mother has serious allergies. So it's kind of hard to have animals around, without her sneezing up a storm." Mike admitted matter-of-factly. The Scottish girl seemed to buy that, and nodded her in understanding.
Charles took this moment to regain control of the conversation. He looked to the three teens before him. "Now that introductions have been, would you three be so kind as to show Michael around the mansion?"
Rogue mentally groaned to herself. She knew that tone, it meant there was no room for objection or argument. She didn't want to play tour guide for the new guy, especially after just having a stress filled day at school.
"Actually professor, I was wondering if we could post pone the tour for now." The blonde spoke up suddenly. This caught Rogue's attention, was he trying to help her get out of playing tour guide? Not that she was complaining though. "I have a lot of things that need to be unpacked, and maybe get to bed early tonight."
Charles nodded, noting the weary look of fatigue in his eyes. "Perhaps that would be for the best, I suppose we could save the tour for tomorrow after you get some rest."
"I believe that would be best." Mike agreed. He looked at the three teens, giving them a slight nod. "It was really nice meeting you three."
The telepath smiled, turning his attention to his eldest student in the corner. "Scott, could you please show Michael the way to his room? Most of his belongings should be up there already."
"Yeah sure, no problem."
Motioning for the blonde to follow him, Scott walked with him to the door and into the hall. Mike slipped out the door silently behind him, leaving the room in silence. The southern teen stared at the door for a brief moment.
Charles turned to address the remaining teens in the room. "While Scott helps Michael find his room, I need to go and take care of a few things in my office. I'll see you all later tonight at dinner."
With that, he wheeled himself over to the door and out into the hallway. The two young preteens quickly left the room to enjoy the rest of their afternoon before dinner. Rogue waited for the door close behind them, before taking a seat on the arm of the nearest couch.
Rogue snorted. "Well, ain't he a bundle of sunshine?"
"I don't know Rogue, you two seem to have that in common." Jean teased lightly.
Rogue shot the red head a glare. "...Shut it, red."
(-)
The blonde fell onto his new bed with a tired sigh. Scott had just left a few minutes ago, saying that he needed to go and check on something important. Mike let his gaze wander to the boxes in the corner of the room that Scott helped him move earlier.
It wasn't much really, just a few things he took from his room back home. He could unpack them later on, when he had a bit more energy.
Place reminds me of home. He thought, glancing around the room.
The room was a little bit smaller than his room back home, but it was still a good size. It had one bed, a dresser, with a good size closet and a glass door leading to a balcony that provided him with a view of the backyard.
Just needs some white paint, a white rug and it'll look just like a prison in no time. The blonde snorted.
Lolling his head to the side, he spotted one of his suitcases in the farthest corner of the room. He really didn't feel like moving from his current position, but he needed to get some unpacking done. With a tired groan, he pushed himself up with his elbows and slowly swung his legs off the mattress. He sat on the edge of the bed, rubbing at his tired eyes.
"I don't suppose you could magically fly over here." The blonde muttered, glaring at the suitcase. He stared at it for a moment, thinking back to what happened at in the auditorium. "...If I can send that stool flying, maybe I can move this too."
He reached out to the suitcase with his hand. "Well, only one way to find out."
Mike tried to focus on the black and gray leather case, hoping to at least move it towards him without it going airborne. He patiently waited for the surge of energy that he felt earlier to rush into his fingers. ...But it never came.
"Are you friggin kidding me?" Mike scoffed, glaring daggers at the case. "It never works when I want it to, but does when I don't want it to."
The blonde huffed angrily, jumping to his feet to grab it himself. His previous fatigue evaporated instantly as he crossed the room to snatch up the suitcase's handle. As his pale fingers wrapped around the leather handle, a sharp burning sensation shot through his fingers.
"For god's sake, make up your friggin mind!" The blonde snapped, ripping his hands off the handle. The burning sensation stopped as soon as it started, leaving his fingers completely numb.
Calm down Soletta. He thought, gingerly rubbing his fingers. Take deep breaths, just stay calm.
He took a few deep breaths, just letting it in and out, until he felt himself regain his composure. Picking up the suitcase with his left hand, Mike made the short walk to the bed and gently placing it on the bedcovers.
"See? There's no reason to get mad over something you can't control." He mused, reaching for silver zipper.
He slowly unzipped it, but before he could get any farther it snagged on a corner. Mike sighed and pulled the zipper back, before trying another attempt only for it snag again.
"Are you freaking kidding me?" The blonde sneered, trying to force the zipper open. After a few failed attempts, the pale teen started shouting curse words in Italian at the leather case. He gave up after a while, glaring angrily at the stupid zipper.
"Annoying piece of sh-"
Without warning, a bolt of black energy shot off the blonde's palm and struck his suitcase causing the zipper to burst open. The blonde watched in horror as his clothes went flying everywhere around the room. When everything settled, it looked like a tornado went through the room.
"...That's one way to unpack." Mike muttered, reaching down to pick up the purple plaid button up by his foot.
He folded the long sleeve shirt half-heartedly, before putting it on his dresser. Mike proceeded to pick up and fold his clothes, either placing them on his dresser or in the closet.
The pale teen took one last look around for any clothes that he might have missed. He didn't exactly bring that much with him. The half Italian half Japanese teen only packed what he thought was absolutely necessary for him to bring along. If he needed to go buy something, maybe he could ask Scott or Jean to take him to the nearest store or mall.
He spotted a black long sleeve shirt with thin gray stripes in the corner, laying on one of the boxes. He moved to go and pick it up, but stopped short after realizing something.
No, he said I'm here to learn to control this. He thought, remembering the Professor's words from earlier. This is my chance to learn and experiment at my own pace.
The blonde focused his attention on the shirt, taking in the detail of black material. He reached out a hand at his chosen object, clearing his mind of everything else. Unlike the last few times, the rush of energy seemed to come almost instantaneously.
"Oh, now you start working when I need you to." Mike said, smirking at the wisps of black energy that outlined his pale hand. His smirk grew wider when he noticed that the shirt was outline with the same black energy.
With a small flick of his wrist, the shirt levitated off the box and moved towards him. It stopped a few inches in front of him. He reached out to grab it, the black glow faded from the fabric as it fell limp in his hand.
This is beyond weird. He thought, turning his head to the closet. Looking between to shirt in his hand the open closet, an idea popped in his head.
Holding his left hand out to the closet, the blonde eyed a hanger on the rack. It rattled faintly, then slowly lifted itself off the rack and moved towards him. When it got close enough, he made a stop motion to leave it floating in front of him.
He slid the shirt on the wire hanger, and then made a pushing motion with his hand. The hanger moved back into the closet, taking its place back on the metal rack. With a smirk, Mike turned his attention to the door of the closet, using his powers to close it quietly.
That was rather easy. He thought, moving back to take a seat on his bed. He plopped down onto the soft mattress, bouncing slightly. The blonde reached down to remove his vans, lightly tossing them to the foot of his bed. "Alright, clothes are done. Now what should I work on nex-"
The blonde groaned loudly at the boxes in the corner. Why in god's name, did he have to bring so much stuff with him?
Mike fell back onto the bed with another groan, his head bounced lightly against the soft mattress. As he lay there looking up at the ceiling, he could feel the iron weight of fatigue slowly pressing down on him. The feeling had come on without warning.
Jet lag's a bitch. A voice in his head supplied. The blonde teen snorted, before gazing lazily at the digital clock on the nightstand.
It read 5:30 pm in large angry red numbers.
"Should be 10:30 back home, I would be in bed right now." Mike uttered, rolling his head body to the side.
He winced at the sunlight that shined through his uncovered window, and was currently blinding him with it warm rays. Mike was too tired to get up and pull the shades shut, so he simply rolled his body away from the offending sunlight.
The pale teen let a small sigh of content, slowly letting his eyes drift closed. He could hear the faint chirps of birds as they flew by his window. It wasn't long before the blonde teen fell into a dreamless sleep.
(-)
It was well into the night when Mike finally stirred from his deep sleep. He groaned tiredly to himself, cracking his tired eyes open slowly. If he listened closely, he could hear the very faint sound of rain lightly hitting against his window.
Mike sighed as he listened to the rain, it was almost soothing to listen to. Rubbing the sleep from his tired eyes, the blonde cranked his head to check his alarm clock. Only to regret it seconds later when pain shot up his neck. The blonde let out a pained hiss, slowly turn his head back to lessen the pain. He must have sleep wrong, if it was hurting this much. Mike glanced at the clock out of the corner of his right eye.
2:30am.
Perché diavolo sono io sveglio? He thought bitterly.
With another tired groan, the blonde sluggishly pushed himself into a sitting position. He sat there for a few minutes, while trying to resist the urge to lie down and fall back asleep. Mike shook his head trying to shake off the drowsy feeling, then swung his legs over the side of the bed.
He propped his elbows on his knees, so he could hold his pounding head in his hands. Gently massaging his pounding temple, Mike glanced around the darken room to allow his eyes to adjust to the dark room. When they finally did, he reached over to the lamp on the nightstand and felt around it for the light switch.
After a few seconds of fumbling around, he found it and flipped it on without thinking. He was rewarded for his troubles with a flood of bright yellow light. Mike hissed as the change in lighting burned at his icy blue orbs.
"For fu-" The blonde growled, falling back onto the bed.
Without warning the light bulb glowed with black energy and exploded violently, sending glass shards all over the nightstand. Mike jumped feeling tiny stray shards of broken light bulb land on his lap.
Oookay, that didn't go as planned. He thought, carefully picking up the shards that he could still make out in the darkness.
Being extremely careful not to cut his fingers or let the small shards fall onto the carpet, Mike gently placed the shards he managed to find on the nightstand. The blonde saw a particularly long, thin shard by his right foot and bent down to carefully pick it up. The pale teen hissed in pain as he missed the shard by a few inches, and sliced the tip of his right index finger.
"Merda!" Mike growled painfully. Quickly placing his bleeding finger to his mouth, hoping to prevent it from dripping on anything.
Pushing himself to stand up on wobbly legs, Mike moved across the room to turn on the overhead light. Luckily there weren't any glass shards on the carpet where he was currently walking. He felt around the wall for light switch, his fingers slowly gliding along the wall. It took about a minute or two, until he finally found the light switch.
Just as he flipped the switch, the pale teen instinctively closed his eyes as the lights flickered to life. He didn't need a repeat performance, and have a carpet full of broken light bulb shards. After waiting a few minutes, Mike opened his eyes and let them adjust on their own.
"Alright, quick recap. Emotionally driven powers + a light bulb = bad." The blonde sighed tiredly. "Light bulb, One. Cranky teenager, Zero."
Leaning against his bedroom door, the half Italian half Japanese teen winced as his hand accidentally hit up against the oak door. He let out a pained hiss, glancing down at the cut. It wasn't deep and was relatively small, but it still stung like hell. For the moment, it had stopped bleeding.
Pushing himself off against the dark wood, Mike opened the door and slipped out into the darkened hallways. He left the door open a crack so he could find his way back to his room. For a moment, he felt along the wall while his eyes adjusted from going a brightly lit room to a darkened hallway.
Wonder where the bathroom is in this place? He mused, passing by a nearby window. The stinging feeling was starting to turn into a very dull throbbing. I really should wash this out, before it gets infected. Maybe skipping that tour earlier was a bad idea.
Mike wandered the halls aimlessly for a few minutes, until he arrived at the stairwell leading down into the foyer. The room was illuminated faintly by the pale moonlight shining through the large glass windows. The blonde slowly descended the stairs; the moonlight bathed him in its silver rays.
After reaching the bottom of the stairs, the blonde looked towards the front door. Most of the moonlight was from the front doors. Before he knew it, his body was moving on its own to the glass doors. It was as if the moonlight was enticing him to come closer. As he stopped in front of the door, he was suddenly filled with a sense of peace.
What is this feeling? He thought, staring up at the moon through the glass.
He reached out and placed a hand on the smooth glass of the door. The blonde teen gazed at the dark clouds, as they covered the moon behind their seemingly opaque tresses. As the moonlight faded, so did the sense of peace that filled his body. Slowly dropping his hand from the glass, the pale teen turned his gaze away from the glass.
He had felt this way so many times before, but he couldn't explain it. For as long as he could remember, he had always felt so at ease at night. But never felt this way during the daytime.
I must be more tired, than I thought. He sighed mentally.
"What are you doing up?"
The startled teen quickly turned, his back was pressed up against the glass. A dark haired man dressed in a sleeveless white tank top and dark blue jeans was standing by the stairs. He had a scowl on his face, and his arms were crossed over his chest.
"I'll ask you again, bub. What're you doing up?" He asked, again.
"I-I was just looking for the bathroom." Mike stammered nervously. The pale teen hated how nervous and scared his voice sounded.
The dark haired man's scowl seemed to deepen. "Maybe ya didn't notice, but there was a bathroom just two doors down from your room."
"...Oh." Was the blonde's lame response.
The newcomer rolled his dark brown eyes, wordlessly making his way to the blonde teen. The said teen took a step back unconsciously, till his back was flush up against the glass. When he got close enough, the older male reached out and took Mike's right wrist in a firm, but gently grip. Mike winced slightly at the physical contact.
A frown appeared on the man's lips.
"...Uh, excuse me, Mr.-?"
"...Logan." He retorted curtly.
The blonde teen suppressed a weak chuckle at the curt retort. Simply, and short. Not a lot of people jump straight to the point.
"How'd you get that cut?" He asked gruffly.
"I-I was picking up some glass shards, and just sort of cut myself by accident." Mike retorted simply.
Without a word, Logan released the blonde's wrist and motioned for the teen to follow. Logan led the teen down a hallway by the stairs, and stopped at the second door on the right. The dark haired man opened the door wordlessly, and reached inside to flip the light switch on.
Mike winced at the bright light pouring out into the hall. He squinted his eyes to block out the offending light, and give them time to adjust. It took a few seconds, but they finally did adjust. The room was a moderate sized half-bathroom.
"You'll find a bottle of peroxide in the medicine cabinet, and a few band-aids in the second drawer." Logan stated, pointing to where he would find the supplies. "After you're done here, go straight back to your room."
And with that, he turned and walked out without another word. Mike waited until he couldn't hear Logan's footsteps anymore, and then went about grabbing the supplies.
Turning the faucet on low, he waited for the water to reach the right temperature before putting his finger under the running water. Mike watched the dried blood around the cut wash away. He reached over for the brown peroxide bottle, titling it to pour a small amount on his cut.
Mike hissed when it poured into the broken skin, cleaning it of any bacteria that might have got in. The stinging only lasted for a few seconds. He turned the faucet off with his left hand, and dried the other with a hand towel. After making sure it was completely dry, he picked up the band-aid that he left on the counter and wrapped it around his finger.
Quickly cleaning up his mess, the blonde placed the peroxide bottle back and flipped the light switch off on his way out. Making his way back to the stairs, he stopped for a moment. The pale moonlight was shining through the doors again. It was as if the pale light was calling for him.
The blonde stared at it longingly, wanting nothing more than to be under the moon's pale silver light. He felt one foot step forward on its own accord towards the door. That's when he came back to his senses, and shook his head violently to clear his mind.
No. Remember what Logan told you, go straight back to bed. He thought, taking in a sharp breath.
Mike turned on his heel and all, but ran to the stairs to get away from the alluring moonlight. After quickly rushing up the stairs, the blonde avoided any and all windows on the trek back to his room. Lucky for him, the clouds had chosen that moment to block out the moon again. The rest of the time walking back to his room was spent in silence, aside from the occasional sound of the wind outside.
Turning the corner, he could see the faint light emitting from his bedroom door. The pale teen, unconsciously, picked up the pace to return his room. Quickly opening the door and stepping inside, Mike closed it softly behind him.
I think I've had enough adventures for one day, thank you very much! Mike sighed, pressing his back against the closed door.
With another heavy sigh, Mike went to get a pair of pajamas from his dresser. Settling on a white long sleeve shirt and pair of black pajama pants, the blonde stripped off his wrinkled clothes. Tossing them on the clothes hamper, Mike silently slipped into his sleep wear and turned off the lights.
He moved to his bed, and promptly collapsing onto the soft mattress. Rolling onto his side, the pale teen glanced at the clock again.
2:50am.
With a tired sigh, Mike crawled under the covers and laid his head onto the soft pillow. He just laid there for a minute then closed his eyes, and immediately felt the tug of sleep pulling at him.
I'll just close my eyes for a little while, yeah just for a little bit. He told himself.
(-)
The alarm blared loudly, bringing the slumbering blonde back into the waking world. With an aggravated growl, Mike slammed his palm on the infernal device and silenced its annoying ringing. Letting out a relieved sigh, Mike burrowed back into the warm blankets to get a few more minutes of sleep.
Just as he was on the verge of falling back into sleep's sweet embrace, a loud rapping came from his bedroom door. Mike groaned tiredly into his pillow. What was with this place? Didn't anyone believe in sleeping in around here?
The knocking started up again, but a lot louder this time. Mike kicked off the covers with a scoff. Glaring at the door with a wither look, the blonde spared a quick glance at the clock.
9:32 am.
Normally on the weekends, he would sleep in until ten. Guess I don't have that luxury anymore.
He forced his body into a sitting position, rubbing the sleep from his tired eyes. Swinging his legs off the bed, Mike stretched his tired limbs and went over to open the door. Putting on his iciest glare, he twisted the knob and almost yanked the door off its hinges. It was the same kid from yesterday, oh what was his name again? Jimmy? James? Jamie? Jamie, that's it!
"What?" The blonde snapped tiredly. He immediately winced at the unintentional snap in his voice. Luckily, Jamie didn't pick up on his angry tone.
"Morning, Mike!" Jamie smiled warmly.
Are you friggin kidding me? How can he be so cheery this early in the morning? Mike thought, allowing the young brunette entrance to his room. Jamie gave him a brilliant smile, and walked into the blonde's room. "...Yeah, morning. What can I do for you?"
The young brunette merely smiled and reached out to grab the blonde's hand, pulling it eagerly. "The Professor asked me to come get you. He wants to meet with you, before your big Danger Room session!"
My Danger what? Mike thought, letting Jamie pull him to the door. The two teens quickly made their way down the hall. Mike looked at the young boy currently pulling on his hand.
The preteen was smiling like a little kid in a candy store. Now that he thought about it, there was something about this kid. He reminded him of himself when he was younger.
"Say, Jamie where are we going?" Mike asked, keeping the nervousness out of his voice. He nearly got lost in these hallways a few hours ago, now Jamie was taking him somewhere completely new.
"We're heading for the sub-basement, of course!"
"...Sub-basement?" The blonde rolled his eyes. This place just gets weirder and weirder.
The two teens stopped in front of an elevator. Mike watched Jamie press a few buttons, the doors open up with a small hiss. How had he missed this last night?
The two stepped into the small elevator, the doors closed behind them with another hiss. The blonde teen leaned against the railing, feeling the elevator begin its descent.
"So, I heard from the Professor that you're from Italy, right?" Jamie asked suddenly, breaking the silence.
"...Uh, yeah." The blonde answered, shifting his feet nervously.
The small brunette smiled. "So, what part of Italy exactly?"
He sure is a talkative one. Mike thought, suppressing a smile. "Well, I was born and raised in Rome." He wasn't really used to talking to people, aside from his family and the staff that works for his mother.
Jamie paused to think of another question. "What's it like to live in Italy?"
"...Uh, it's nice. It's just a little on the hot side, though." The blonde said. He sighed, rubbing at his wrist tiredly. Was I this talkative at his age?
"I'm guessing you don't like the heat?" Jamie chuckled nervously. "Anyway, I hope you like it here at the Institute."
"Thanks, Jamie." Mike smiled.
The elevator jerked to a stop as it reached its destination. The doors opened again with a low hiss. Mike was the first one to step out of the elevator, but stopped to stare at the metallic blue hallways in surprise. Jamie watched the older teen look around him, the elevator doors hissed closed behind them. The blonde teen walked over to the nearest wall, running his finger along the smooth blue metal.
Jamie smirked at the blonde as he dropped his hand from the wall. "Pretty amazing, isn't it?"
Mike nodded in agreement, turning his gaze to look down the hall. His eyes caught sight of a circular door at the end of the hall. He stared at the door blankly, as if he was in a trace. He felt his body move on its own, moving down the hall at a slow pace.
Jamie stared nervously at the blonde's back. "H-Hey, Mike?"
Mike was walking towards a certain door. A door that was labeled as off-limits to most people at the Institute. The Professor had told him to avoid that room all together. He couldn't let the blonde get in trouble on his first day. Professor Xavier would be so mad at him if he let Mike get any closer to that door.
The blonde was about halfway to the door. Something about this door was calling to him, but he could explain why.
Where are you going? The blonde quickly snap out of his trance.
He felt something pulling on his arm. Mike jumped in surprise, turned his head to see Jamie holding his wrist. Did he really just space out for a moment?
"Mike? Are you alright?" The preteen asked, worried for the older teen.
"...Uh yeah." He answered, offering Jamie a small smile. "I just spaced out there for a minute, forgive me."
"That area of the sub-basement is off-limits to everyone, but the Professor and the instructors." Jamie explained, shifting nervously. "Professor Xavier told us to stay away from that particular door."
"I see, thanks for the warning." Mike muttered, turning to follow Jamie.
Jamie led him down the hallway again, stopping at another circular door with an X design on the other end of the hall. The door opened when the teens approached it, a large empty locker room greeted them. There were eight rows of long teal colored gym lockers. Jamie motioned for the blonde to follow him over to the third row, stopping at the last one on the left.
"This locker here is yours." Jamie reached for the metal tab, pulling it up then pulled the door open. "Inside is a standard training suit and towel, in case you want to shower after a long session."
Mike glanced at the locker next to his, then the one on the other side of the aisle. The one next to his read, Iceman on a small gray strip of metal, while the other one read, Multiple on it. Was this really standard for students at the Xavier Institute?
Jamie saw the blonde's confused look, and smiled happily. "Judging by the look on your face, the Professor never told you that we use codenames around here. Am I right?"
Codenames? Mike thought, looking at the gray tab on his own locker. Unlike the others, it didn't have anything on it. Why would we need codenames? I thought we were just here to learn about our powers?
Jamie laughed lightly to when the blonde raised an eyebrow. "We have codenames because of our unique powers. Mine for example is Multiple, in part because I can do this!"
Jamie reached over to his locker, gently hitting the back of his hand on the door. Mike jump when he saw an exact copy of the preteen standing in front of him. The two Jamies grinned brilliantly at the pale teen.
"So, what do you think?" They asked simultaneously.
Mike simply stared at them blankly.
"...You think it's dumb, don't you?" Jamie frowned, absorbing his clone without much trouble. He looked down at his feet sadly, thinking that the blonde was going to laugh at him.
The preteen jumped when he felt a hand gently placed on his shoulder. Looking up at the older teen, he saw the blonde teen was smiling at him.
"How can you even think that?" He asked, wrapping an arm around the brunette's shoulder. "Jamie, it's not dumb at all. Out of all the powers I've seen so far, I would rather have yours."
Jamie looked confused. He probably had the lamest power in the entire Institute. Everyone else had way better powers, like Bobby, Kurt and Ms. Monroe for example. "What? Why?"
Mike paused to think for a moment, pondering on what to say. "Well, think about it this way. With your powers, you can create your own personal army. Just think about what you can do with a power like that." Reaching out, the blonde gently ruffled the boy's hair. The preteen laughed at the gesture.
"Hey, what kind of powers do you have?" Jamie asked, curiously. Mike winced, immediately looking down at his feet.
"...Uh, about that. To be completely honest, I'm not exactly sure myself." Mike said, shifting nervously. "From what I can tell, I can manipulate some form of dark energy and something with gravity."
Jamie looked at him with confused look. "You can manipulate gravity? That's so amazing! I wish I could do that!"
Mike chuckled lightly, ruffling Jamie's hair affectionately. He like this kid already, and knew that they'd get along just fine. Reaching into his locker, Mike grabbed the training uniform, before making his way to the changing room. Closing the door behind him, Mike took off his pajamas and pulled on the uniform. Putting the gloves, belt and boots on last, the blonde stepped out of the stall to look at himself in a nearby mirror.
The uniform itself was mostly navy blue, while the gloves, belt and boots were a light blonde scoffed at his reflection. Seriously, navy blue and yellow? Can this look any stupider on me?
Mike heard a faint stifled giggle behind him. He saw Jamie's reflection in the mirror, trying hold in his laughter with his hand over his mouth. He shot the younger boy a look from his spot in front of the mirror.
"What's so darn funny, Madrox?" Mike asked, turning to face the brunette preteen.
"Oh, it's nothing." Jamie laughed nervously, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly.
Mike smirked at him, mischievously. "Sou ka?"
"Hey, what does that mean?" Jamie asked, raising an eyebrow.
Mike merely smiled and shook his head. Making his way back to the entrance of the locker room, he simply patted Jamie on the shoulder and walked passed him. Jamie watched him head for the exit, before running after him. The young brunette led him to the door adjacent to the locker room. The door itself was very similar to the elevator that they had used earlier.
"This leads to the Danger Room control room." Jamie explained, reaching over to press the down arrow. "The Professor should be waiting for us down there."
Mike simply nodded. It's now or never, you can do this.
7/17/12
This marks the end of chapter 4 revisions, and all that's left is to lightly touch up Chapter five, this chapter tops chapter three's previous status of having the most words. Chapter four now holds the most number of words at 6,703. I am aware that the revision process is taking a long time, but I simply want to improve the quality of the story. Please be patience.
Until next time,
-Cyprin-san.
Translations:
Italian:
Perché diavolosono iosveglio?/Why the hell am I awake?
Merda/Shit
Japanese:
Sou ka?
そうか?
(Is that so?)