Right, so this has been sitting as a draft for a very long time so I decided to polish it a bit and throw it out there. I probably won't continue this AU but I loved the X-Men cast when it came out and had to write about them somehow. Enjoy!
It had been much too long since I'd been on a mission, and this was the first in a long line of what I hoped would be successes.
"Why did you pick this one?"
Without turning to look at my companion I hummed, as I contemplated the question.
Why indeed?
We had a list of at least fifty mutants that we'd narrowed down from the hundreds Cerebro had found, just the beginning of what I hope our school would become. But this particular mutant, a young girl, had stood out to me for some reason. Which is why we were in a rather dirty looking part of Brooklyn.
We were still improving on how Cerebro worked so there wasn't much I could glean about the girl or her location, but I knew that this was the one to start with.
Smiling over my shoulder at Hank as he pushed my wheelchair, I shrugged.
"Just a feeling, there's something about this one."
He just smiled and shook his head.
"You're going to say that about all of them, but I trust you."
Hank McCoy was a true friend, we had been through hell and back. When the idea of creating a school for young mutants to come and learn to control their abilities and be around other kids like them, I knew Hank would make an excellent professor. And he was the one to invent Cerebro, I really couldn't do it without him.
Frowning slightly as the wheelchair bumped over the cracks in the sidewalk, I leaned forward when I saw that we had stopped. This certainly hadn't been what I was expecting.
"Should I double check the coordinates? This doesn't seem like the right place Charles."
The empty looking alleyway did indeed seem to be the wrong place for the person we were looking for.
Turning to look at the deceivingly mousey looking scientist behind me, I shook my head.
"No, I can feel her, she's just scared."
Stepping to the side Hank kept a lookout at the entrance of the alleyway while I wheeled myself further in.
A shuffling sound behind a dumpster caught my attention, so ever so slowly I inched towards the movement and leaned forward when I heard a small sharp intake of breath telling me she was right there.
"Hello there little one, I'm not going to hurt you."
I could hear Hank behind me, standing far enough away to give us some space but close enough to step in if the girl's mutation proved dangerous.
But that turned out to be nothing to worry about.
After a moment had passed a very small girl stepped out from behind the pile of trash that had overflowed from the dumpster and both of us gasped at the sight before us.
A tattered dress that must have once been yellow but was now a dirty ripped mess hung on a girl that was much too skinny and frail for her age. She couldn't have been more than eight or nine but she was so tiny that one could easily mistake her for much younger. Red hair was pulled up in a messy childlike looking knot on top of her head, something she had most likely done by herself. Wide scared golden eyes darted back and forth between the two of us and then back to the ground as she wrung her hands together.
But none of those things were what your eye was first drawn to.
She was covered in scars.
The most noticeable one was on her right arm, wrapping around her thin wrist and stretching up her arm. It almost looked like she'd gotten her hand stuck in some type of machinery and it had simply shredded her arm, angry red burns and jagged scar tissue a glaring reminder. But that wasn't the only one, there were multiple long thin slivers on both of her shins as if she'd skidded into a pile of broken glass, something that I was trying to convince myself weren't cigarette burns on her other arm, several slivery scratches on her face one running through her eyebrow and onto her nose, among many others.
The strangest thing was all of them looked old, almost completely healed just remnants of the past.
"Professor…"
The strangled voice of my companion behind me, brought me out of my trance and I met the eyes of the small thing standing there in front of me looking as if she wanted nothing more than to run away.
"W-what do you want?"
The timid soft tone in her voice was a bit heartbreaking.
Glancing back at Hank, I smiled at her as best I could.
"We just want to help you. I'm Professor Charles Xavier and this is my friend Dr. Hank McCoy."
If possible her eyes got wider as she realized there were two of us and she took a step back as if about to bolt in the other direction, quickly I put my fingertips to my temple and reached out to her frantic mind.
"It's okay, we are not here to hurt you."
She froze and looked at me in shock.
"You…you're in my head!"
I smiled and nodded. She was a smart little thing, spoke right back to me not everyone did that.
"That's right, this is one of the things my gift can do."
Switching back for Hank's sake I slowly leaned forward hopeful at the small spark of something I could see in her eyes.
"We are here because you have a gift too."
Shrinking into herself, she shook her head and looked down.
"Not for me, it's not a gift."
Just as Hank started to speak up, to say something to it not being a gift I'm sure, a figure coming from the other side of the alley caught her attention.
"Hey Damage Control! Get over here!"
It was apparent by her reaction that she knew him and that she wasn't glad to see him. Why he was calling her that was a mystery though.
There was nothing noteworthy about him other than the bloody gash on his upper arm that looked rather deep. Vaguely recognizing him as one of the many common thugs we'd passed on the way here, I narrowed my eyes at him as I could feel her distress, she was beginning to panic.
As he got closer it was easy to tell he was just a boy, still very young only eighteen at the oldest. He looked at me and scoffed.
"You're in the wrong part of town wheels, I'd suggest you leave if you know what's good for you. Your nerd bodyguard ain't gonna do much."
Oh if only he knew just what my 'bodyguard' could do, but Hank didn't need to show off not when this could be handled without that.
As I started to tell him we meant no trouble and just wanted to talk to the little girl whose name I still didn't know, he quickly strode towards her having grown tired of waiting on whatever it was he was here to do.
"Please don't, I fixed you yesterday!"
She had scrambled backwards, almost falling into the small pile of trash she'd been hiding behind in an attempt to get away.
Before either of us could do a thing he had lunged forward and grabbed her arm, placing her tiny hand on the still bleeding cut on his arm.
"And you'll do it tomorrow too, it's your job. Our little angel of trash, keeping us safe."
She let out an ear piercing scream and both of us watched in frozen horror as the cut on his arm seemed to get absorbed by her hand and appear on her arm right where it had been on his but faded as if weeks old.
This must be how she got all those scars, she couldn't control her mutation and now was being taken advantage of. If I was to guess without prying into either of their minds, I would say that he was in one of the gangs in the area and had been using her mutation against her along with who knows how many others.
He let go of her and she dropped to the ground clutching her arm silent tears streaming down her face as she whimpered in pain and curled in on herself.
It seemed as though time had slowed down but in reality it had only been a few seconds, and the cruel grin on his face was too much as he looked down on the crying girl. He was taking great pleasure in her suffering and a deep burning hatred sparked inside me.
Just as I was about to do something, Hank had come out from behind me where he'd been silently standing and in the blink of an eye had landed a solid hit to his temple instantly knocking him out.
Looking down at the now unconscious boy I couldn't find any sympathy in me for him.
Hank turned briefly to glance at me, his hands still shaking with anger and his pupils had narrowed to slits. Reaching out to his furious mind I gently reminded him that this was not the place.
"Calm yourself, my friend"
Taking a deep breath, he knelt down to check on the softly sobbing girl, gently laying a hand on her petite quivering shoulder. Her reaction was swift and violent, as she jerked away from his touch with a shriek.
"No, don't! Please, I can't…not again."
She was still holding her arm but now had moved to where she was hugging herself, dirty red hair now falling in her face as it had fallen from the knot she'd had it in.
I saw him tense up for a split second and then slowly settle down, sitting beside her but not touching her.
"It's okay now, he's not going to hurt you again."
She didn't move but I could see her peeking at him from behind her hair.
"If it's not him it'll be someone else."
The anger coming off of Hank crashed against me like waves, but he contained it.
"No. Never again, me and the Professor are going to make sure this never happens again."
I leaned forward so she could see me from where she lay.
"What is your name little one?"
Still holding her arm, she sat up just enough to lean against the dumpster behind her edging away from Hank.
"They call me damage con-"
Gently interrupting her I said, "No, not what anyone else calls you. What is your name?"
There was a horrifying moment where she seemed to think about it, how long had it been since someone called her by her actual name? I sighed in relief as she answered hesitantly.
"Anna…my parents used to call me Anna."
No longer hugging her arms to her I could see that the scar had faded even more and now looked old and healed; I wonder what it was that triggered her mutation, physical touch or the injury itself.
Shaking myself out of that thought pattern I looked at her questioningly.
"Used to? Did something happen to them Anna?"
She looked at me strangely, whether it was the use of her name or the question I wasn't sure.
"No…they just didn't want me anymore. I wasn't like them, so a while ago they dropped me off here and left."
The way she said it…like her parents not wanting her was to be expected. Hank inhaled sharply and looked back at me and I could hear the question in his mind without even looking because I was asking myself the same one.
How old was she? And how long had she been alone on the streets?
Even thought I hated to look in a person's memories unless I had permission this felt like an exception.
Quietly probing her memories as Hank started talking to her about the school, I quickly discovered she was about eight and a half and 'a while ago' was almost a year. There weren't so many memories, but fragmented images many of which she had repressed, one of when she was still with her parents and the inciting incident that spurred them into leaving her was particularly vivid.
Her father was a construction worker and she and her mother were visiting him on the site at lunch. But there had been an accident and one of the men had gotten his arm caught in a piece of machinery and in the ensuing panic, after they got the man free, Anna had gotten away from her mother and found him. She must have only just been seven when this happened, and not knowing any better she touched him and the reaction was instantaneous, the shattered arm and raw shredded skin was transferred to her in the form of the angry scarring that was still on her hand reaching almost up to her shoulder.
I had to force myself out of the memory because of how painful it was.
Most of the others were how the gang members who found her soon after she'd been abandoned by her parents, used her mutation for their gain against her will. The many times she'd been forced to heal broken bones and knife wounds were making me sick, she'd had blackouts due to the sheer amount of pain it put her in and I almost couldn't handle the thought of it much less imagine her experiencing it all alone.
Thankfully I was ripped out of her past by the sound of the thug Hank had knocked out stirring and Anna's terrified squeak as she also noticed.
With a barely contained calm fury, I reached into his mind and knocked him out again.
She didn't seem to realize he was out again and after a split-seconds deliberation leapt into Hank's arms, burying her face in his chest. The shock on his face was evident but he quickly wrapped his arms around her and shifted so if she looked she wouldn't be able to see the unconscious boy.
Just as he was about to say something, she looked up at him desperation her eyes, and her thin hands clutching his jacket like a lifeline.
"Don't let them hurt me again…"
Then she turned to look at me, the fear that we would leave her here and the hope that we wouldn't killed me a bit inside.
"Please."
The broken plea that escaped her was more than enough for Hank and he stood up still holding her, a resolute look on his face.
"I promise I, we won't let anyone hurt you again."
She didn't say anything but the myriad of emotions swirled in her eyes, hope and something that wasn't quite belief but could someday become that was most prominent.
Then breaking the tension of the moment, she let out a huge yawn, looking a bit embarrassed as she noticed my smile.
"I get really tired after, I'm sorry."
I widened my smile at the now increasingly sleepy little girl. She did in fact appear to be getting sleepier by the moment, drooping in Hank's arms.
"Don't be sorry, it's perfectly alright."
She didn't respond but closed her eyes.
Hank looked conflicted as he shifted, "Professor, we should go."
I nodded my agreement, we really should be getting back. I was not prepared though when he gently set the now almost asleep girl in my lap and she instantly latched onto my arm hugging it tightly.
Looking down at her, I slowly cradled her as she slept a feeling of warmth blossoming inside me. She was so broken and she…needed me, needed us. It was an amazing thing, while I hated how it came about I was so very glad we had found Anna.
"Time to go home little one."
And she had indeed found a home with us if she'd let us be that for her.
Nine years later
"Anna, why don't you go out with the others? I think we have a new student coming today."
I looked over and smiled before shaking my head and looking out the window at the other kids.
"That's alright, I'd rather be here with you."
I heard him sigh before coming over to where I was sitting and take the small gadget I'd been tinkering with out of my hands.
Looking up at him I felt bad at the sad look I saw on his face.
Hank McCoy had over the years been my closest friend and was somewhat like an uncle to me. I hated feeling like I was disappointing him. He understood to a point why I didn't want to be around the others but there were still some things he would never understand.
I had struggled with control over my mutation, even after years of Charles trying to help me. He said it was a mental block, that only when I could get past it would I be able to learn to control it. But even then that wouldn't make the scars go away, they would be a lasting reminder of my past. Hank had made me holographic bracelet that hid everything, even made my skin feel normal to anyone who touched me, not that I ever let anyone touch me for fear of what might happen. But I still knew even if no one else did, I wasn't worth the time and it was better this way.
"I'm sorry Uncle Hank…I just can't. Besides the others don't want me there anyways."
A hint of frustration and anger entered his deep brown eyes.
"That's not true Anna!"
He paused and his voice softened.
"You need to try at least."
Rolling my eyes, I snorted.
"If any of them ever knew they wouldn't want a thing to do with me and you know it! I'm fine, I have you and the professor and that's enough."
We had this discussion at least once a month, either with him or it was the professor. They always said I needed to make friends and interact with the other students but I just couldn't.
Just as he was about to tell me that it wasn't, like he did every time in this little song and dance, the sound of someone clearing their throat stopped him. We both turned to see Charles who had somehow rolled in the room without either of us noticing his approach.
"Hello Hank, ah and there you are Anna. I should have known you'd be in here."
I could hear the light scolding in his voice, and I knew I was about to be double teamed as they did every once in a while.
"Hello professor, I was just working on some modifications to Scott's glasses."
Practically growing up in the lab with Hank gave me a natural curiosity in science and inventing, so even though no one knew of it I worked on a lot of the gadgets that helped control or focus the various mutations we had in the school. As of late I had wondered if there was a way to help Scott Summers see things in color while still keeping the red tint to the glasses he had to wear, I hadn't had much success but I was still hopeful.
A warm smile crossed the wheelchair bound man's face and he leaned back looking at me fondly.
"You won't give up on that, will you?"
Shaking my head, I shrugged.
"I just want him to feel normal again I guess."
Feeling normal was hard for kids like us and I liked it when something I made gave a bit of it back.
The concerned look I knew all too well was back in both their eyes as Hank spoke up.
"It awful nice of you to do for someone you've not spoken to more than general formalities."
Just as I was about to say something, Charles stopped me.
"Anna, I have a favor to ask of you."
Surprised and a bit confused I nodded, "Anything professor, what do you need me to do?"
The gleam in his eyes made me wonder what I had just agreed to do and I didn't have to wait long to find out.
"Excellent, that is just what I hoped you would say! Follow me."
One look at Hank and I could tell he was in on whatever this was by the knowing smile on his face and I started to get worried.
But I dutifully followed the professor down the hall waiting for him to speak, as some of the younger kids raced by us.
It was only when we'd reached the end of the long hallway did he stop and turn to look at me, a strange look on his face.
"I'm at a loss with you Anna."
I frowned and asked, "What do you mean?"
He put his hand on my arm and smiled.
"You were the first you know, when all of this," he motioned to out the large bay window at the numerous students, "was just a dream and we didn't know if it would work. And look at you now, all grown up, a young woman practically."
I looked back at him, the sincerity in his voice making me smile and also serving to make me even more curious as to what this was all about.
"Professor, what's this about? Is something wrong?"
Shifting in his chair, he furrowed his brows.
"I just want to see you blossom as I've seen the school blossom, Anna darling you keep yourself locked away in the lab with Hank or secluded in the library away from everyone."
I frowned and fiddled with the bracelet that concealed my scars.
"You know why I ca-"
He sighed cutting me off.
"Yes, I know why you think you can't, but it's far past time for you to try at the very least. So, I've decided to help things along."
I narrowed my eyes at him, that didn't sound good.
"And how do you plan on doing that?"
He smiled and patted me on the shoulder.
"Nothing I know you can't handle. Now come along, time to meet Peter."
I frowned and followed him out of the hall and outside into the courtyard as he'd turned and left without another word.
Who was Peter?
Right as I intended to ask just this, I felt a whoosh of wind go past me making me jump.
What was that?!
The professor chuckled and shook his head.
"Now Peter we talked about doing that didn't we."
I snapped around at the sound of a not so chastened chuckle.
"But it's fun."
I found myself looking at a boy that seemed to be about my age, he was lanky – taller than me like everyone else – dressed in a flashy silver jacket that oddly matched his hair almost exactly, and had a smirk plastered on his face as he looked at me.
"And who might you be?"
He took a step closer, which prompted me to take a step back as he was getting too close.
The professor put his hand on my arm – he and Hank were the only ones I ever let touch me without flinching away – knowing I was uncomfortable with this as he said, "Peter, this is Anna. She's going to show you around the school, help you settle in."
I blinked and suddenly he was in a different spot than he'd been before, now holding a bag of chips that he munched on loudly.
Charles sighed and shook his head with a smile and looked at me.
"Peter's mutation is speed as I'm sure you've figured out." He looked at the silver haired boy reproachfully saying, "Which he is still learning to control and properly use."
There wasn't a hint of shame on his face but a grin that I knew said trouble.
"I think I'm doing pretty good."
Then I felt that rush of wind spiral around me, making my hair fly in my face and suddenly he was very close to me, curiosity in his dark brown eyes.
"What can you do? What's your mutation? Will you show m-"
I cut him off, starting to panic.
"No! Ah I mean, I don't really want to talk about it."
He stopped short, as if never considering that a person wouldn't want to show off. And instead of pestering as I thought he might, she just shrugged.
"Okay. So, you're supposed to show me around huh?"
I turned to looked at Charles only to find he wasn't there but disappearing into the distance.
That sneaky little….
He must have heard me because I heard a soft voice that I would recognize anywhere sound in my mind.
"You can do this Anna, just give this a try. Please, it'll turn out okay I promise."
I sighed and mentally nodded before turning back to Peter with a strained smile.
"I suppose so. Come on then, I'll start with the grounds."
A flash of confusion sparked on his face before the lazy smile returned and he began zipping around finally slowing down when he was walking backwards in front of me.
"Lead the way Red."
I couldn't help the tiny smile that crept onto my face, I hadn't been called that since the last time I'd seen Alex and it was kinda nice to hear again.
He caught it and beamed triumphantly at me.
"I knew you could smile! Now I just have to get you to laugh."
I glanced at him out of the corner of my eye and raised a brow.
"Well to do that you'd actually have to be funny."
His lips twisted into an incredulous smirk and he asked, "Are you saying I'm not funny?"
I shrugged innocently.
"From what I've seen? Yeah I think I am."
He narrowed his eyes at me and fell into step beside me.
"Well I'll just have to prove it to you then won't I?"
At this I snorted.
"Sure, you do that. Now come on, there's a lot to see."
As I started walking towards the basketball courts I could have sworn I heard him mutter "Challenge accepted Red," under his breath.
She was impossible!
Telling me I'm not funny and then not laughing at any of my jokes! I know she thought some of them were hilarious but wasn't laughing on purpose.
And I mean it wasn't like I hadn't already explored the campus completely, I didn't need a tour but she was cute so I stayed.
But now it was a matter of principal, I had to get her to laugh.
And she confused me.
A few times when I wasn't really listening, I would let things around me freeze so I could look at her better.
There was something off with her skin, like it was moving or there was something on it but I didn't know what it was. Like little particles of something moving very fast on top, maybe some type of projection?
Her eyes were unreal, this crazy gold color, like they had light inside of them almost. I wonder if it relates to her mutation?
Then how she shied away from anyone touching her, like there'd been a few times I had tried to grab her hand to stop her or say something but she always flinched away like she was afraid. Made me wonder if someone had hurt her in the past or if it also related to her mutation.
And why did she avoid all the other students? It was almost like she was scared of them and didn't want them to even see her.
She was all questions with no answers and it was infuriating!
Forcing myself to slow down to where she was moving again I only picked up on the end of what she'd been saying.
"…and that's why Astrid isn't allowed in the swimming pool anymore. Peter, are you even listening to me?"
She looked a bit irritated as I glanced at her, huh maybe I should have paid more attention, oh well.
"Yeah, sure thing, electricity powers plus pool is a bad idea, got it."
She sighed and was about to say something when she stopped suddenly almost causing me to run into her.
Of course I didn't, because I'm too quick for that.
Her face seemed to pale and she turned back to me with a strained expression as she said, "Alright I think that's enough for one day, I've just remembered that I need to get back to the lab and finish something. I'll finish the indoor part tomorrow okay?"
She didn't give me a chance to answer but turned on her heel and walked off back towards the school without giving me a chance to answer. And just as I was about to go stop her the voice of someone else caught my attention.
"It's Peter, right?"
I turned to see a group of kids that looked vaguely familiar. Two girls, one with red hair and a playful smirk, while the other had black hair and a yellow jacket that was almost more obnoxious than anything I'd ever seen; then two guys, one that had blue skin and a…tail okay yeah, a tail that's cool, and the other just had a jock like air about him and these red-tinted glasses that made it hard to see his eyes.
I think I'd seen them when I first got here, other students I'm guessing.
It had been the girl with the almost blinding jacket who had spoken, so I grinned lazily at her.
"That's me, who might you be?"
She smiled back and said, "I'm Jubilee," She motioned to the other three pointing to them in turn as she said, "this is Jean, Scott, and Kurt. I guess you're new here aren't you?"
Before I could answer her, Jean stepped forward, head tilted curiously and asked, "How did you get her to talk to you? She never talks to any of us."
I raised a brow.
"Who? You mean Anna? She was giving me a tour of the school."
All of them looked surprised at that, like it was something shocking to them.
Jubilee narrowed her eyes in confusion.
"That's not possible, she doesn't talk to anyone much less give tours. She's been here longer than anyone and only the professor and Dr. McCoy know what her mutation is."
Then she looked off in the direction that Anna had gone off in with a scoff.
"She refuses to let anyone get near her, like ever. I think she's just stuck up and thinks she's better than all of us, totally the Professor's pet. I mean why else would she avoid everyone like we weren't worth talking to?"
Kurt looked down and then back at Jubilee before saying, "I don't think that's completely true, she helped me once when I was lost in the mansion. But when I tried to invite her to come eat with us she found a reason not to. I'm not sure what to think of her but I don't believe she thinks that."
Scott clapped a hand on him nodding in agreement.
"Yeah, I remember one time when my glasses broke."
He paused at this and adjusted them before looking at me with a smirk.
"Believe me it's bad when I don't have them."
As I was about to ask just why it was so bad he motioned to a blackened tree that looked as if it had been struck by lightning or a laser of some kind. I raised my brows and whistled, he just kept on smirking as he continued.
"I was about to start panicking because I couldn't see when she just appeared and handed me another pair of glasses. But by the time I had them on she was walking away, I never caught up to her to thank her and she seemed to avoid me after that. So I agree with Kurt on this one, there's something off with her but it's not that she thinks she's better than us."
Jean pursed her lips – more confused and unsure than anything - and Jubilee crossed her arms – a look of irritation and a bit of hurt on her face - and then it broke out in an argument between them over who was right about her.
Seeing at this was something I was not about to get in the middle of, I zipped over to where Anna was just walking in the door and circled her.
I frowned, letting the world freeze so I could look at her once more.
She was fiddling with the odd looking bracelet watch thing on her wrist and she looked nervous and worried, but more than that she looked very lonely.
I knew what it felt like to be lonely, sometimes moving faster than everyone else was no fun at all.
There was a sadness in her eyes that had been hidden while she'd been showing me around. A gleam of not belonging that made her look smaller, as if she wanted to disappear.
I didn't like it.
She wasn't stuck up, she was scared.
Of what I didn't know but what I did know what that I was going to help her.
And maybe get to know the shy girl with sad golden eyes a bit better in the process.
Besides I still had to get her to laugh.
Zapping back over to the four I decided that I would change the opinion they had of Anna and make some friends while doing it.
Of course they hadn't noticed I'd moved at all.
"Maybe she's just shy, or there's something you don't know about her that makes it hard for her to talk to people."
They all fell silent, as if they'd forgotten I was there. The girls looked a bit skeptical while both guys seemed to agree with me but were still unsure.
Jean shifted her stance and looked away contemplatively.
"Maybe so, I've just never been able to get a read on her and it's weird. I think the professor shields her for some reason. It's like she's hiding something."
I tilted my head questioningly.
"Shields her?"
She grinned and nodded, then I heard her voice but in my head not out loud.
"I'm a telepath like the professor is, but I can move things too."
It was then I noticed Scott levitating a few inches off the ground, I grinned back at her.
Then she switched back to regular speech after setting him back down on the ground.
"But I've never been able to get anything, not even a hint of her emotions, so the only thing I can think is that the professor is keeping her mind protected. It's a bit unnerving, not that I'm trying to hear what she's thinking but to not have any kind of emotional sense at all well…"
She trailed off in thought and fell silent.
Deciding it was time to table the talk about Anna to another time, I looked at Kurt.
"Okay, dude, what can you do? I'm dying to know, you've got a freaking tail! That is like the coolest thing ever!"
He grinned and in a poof of black smoke he disappeared.
"Oh man, now that is awesome! The pranking possibilities are endless, you and I are gonna be buds!"
"What did you just say?"
I looked down, the incredulous but pleased look on Hank's face was unnerving.
"I said that I can't help in the lab today because I'm going to help someone with their homework."
It was a rather lame excuse and the likelihood of homework actually getting done was slim to none.
A curious expression grew on his face as he said, "I didn't realize you offered tutoring."
I bit my lip and looked away again, knowing I was going to be late if I didn't leave soon.
"Well he mentioned having trouble with an assignment and I thought it would be nice to help. Is that okay, I mean I guess I could tell him I'm busy if you ne-"
Cutting me off quickly he said, "No! Ah I mean that's not necessary, I've got things handled here just fine. You go and have a nice time. The same one you showed around campus, right?"
From the look on Hank's face it was clear he knew exactly who I was referring to. I'd been spending a lot more time with Peter than I would have guessed, and I really didn't mind it surprisingly.
Unbidden a slight smile crossed my face as I answered him.
"Peter Maximoff, the fast one remember? He's got silver hair, I'm not sure how one could forget."
An uncharacteristic smirk crept across Hank's face.
"Did you just call a boy unforgettable Anna?"
I shook my head vehemently and felt a blush coming to my face unbidden.
"No, absolutely not, I did no such thing! Ah, I just meant he was so obnoxious that I wouldn't easily forget him."
He just looked at me knowingly and set down the clipboard he was holding and crossed his arms.
"If he annoys you so much, why are you going?"
Why indeed? There was something about Peter, he got under my skin but not in a bad way. I guess over the past few weeks you could almost say we had become friends. From that first day he was so insistent that he was going to make me laugh one day, and it had been getting harder not to let him win. It was out of principal now and he knew it.
I suppose I rather enjoyed spending time with him, I felt almost normal around him. Peter just didn't care what anyone thought about anything and I could almost pretend I didn't either when we hung out.
I sighed and glanced out the window where the sun was winking through the glass. It looked really nice out today, maybe I could talk him into doing homework outside? Lost in my thoughts, I only looked up when Hank took the project I was fingering – the new glasses for Scott – out of my hands and set it down.
Smiling at me, he said, "Go, I've got things here today. Try to have some fun okay?"
Nodding shyly, I smiled at him.
"Okay, see you later Uncle Hank."
Getting up I made for the door, only to gasp in surprise as I opened it.
"Heya Red, ready to go?"
There stood Peter, grinning at me like it was his birthday and I'd just given him a present. Glancing back at Hank I took a breath before looking back at Peter with a hesitant smile.
"Ah, yeah let's be on our way."
Walking backwards like I had noticed he tended to do often, he waved at Hank saying, "See you round Doc, stealing your assistant for a while."
I didn't even want to see Hank's face as he said, "Feel free, she could do with getting out of this lab more often."
Beating down the flush that I knew was trying to color my face, I started heading away, anywhere to get away from my smug uncle.
"Right then, so come on. We've got a lot to cover, you said you have a test next week."
Chuckling Peter caught up to me as I blinked, right in front of me before I could say another word.
"You seem excited, missed me didn't you," he asked, a much too pleased smile on his face.
Shaking my head, I started down the hallway that led to the kitchen trying desperately not to be as flustered as I felt. Why was he getting to me so much? More so why had I promised Charles I would do this?
"I wouldn't say that, just want to cover as much ground as possible," seeing the look in his eye I hurried to continue before he could say anything else.
"So I figured we'd start with some food, you probably have to eat a lot with that high metabolism, it'll help you focus and I'm sure if you don't you'd tire out pretty fast."
A surprised spark entered his steely silver eyes as he nodded.
"Yeah, found that one out the hard way. If I don't eat things get bad."
Tilting my head, I looked at him, analyzing him, trying to see if there was a way for him to carry food with him in a more efficient way than the bags of chips I could clearly see in his jacket.
"You know, if you had some type of wristlet to carry high protein bars that could help, as I'm sure with how fast you move things would tend to fall out of pockets…hmm, maybe an aerodynamic type of bracer with small compartments…maybe some type of lightweight heat resistant alloy to keep from overheating," I said, ideas for designs I had been thinking about for the past few days now whirling in my head.
His eyes widened as I spoke.
"That's a great idea…you're really smart, aren't you? That's why you're in that lab all the time isn't it, you like helping people control their mutations don't you?"
I glanced down, a slight smile on my face as I nodded.
"Yeah, I do, sometimes control over the mutation comes easier with a bit of help. I can't help like the professor can but I try."
The most genuine look I'd seen on him crossed his face as if he'd been proved right.
"You're pretty rad, you know that right?"
Now I knew I was blushing, his praise was making me feel strange, but in a good way. Thankfully we reached the kitchen before he could say anything more.
But unfortunately, I had been so distracted by Peter I'd forgotten how close it was to lunch and who liked to congregate at the large bar in the kitchen around this time.
Stopping in the doorway, I froze at the sight of Scott, Kurt, and Jubilee.
Jean who was normally not far from Scott's side, I knew was with the professor for her private sessions. But I was still nervous, I knew that Jubilee didn't like me and I still had a lot of trouble talking to anyone for a long time.
Which led me to wonder why I didn't seem to have the same problem with Peter, why I felt okay talking to him, enjoyed it even. Tucking that away for further study later, I shot a look at Peter as I said, "You know why don't we come back lat-"
Cutting me off he raised a brow and looked at me with expectantly.
"Oh come on, you were just saying it would help me focus. What if I can't think about anything but food, or maybe I'll starve to death and my final moments are spent in a failed attempt to make you laugh? You can't let me go out like that Red," he said, a fake serious look on his face.
Looking at him incredulously I opened my mouth to tell him how idiotic I found that, but I didn't get the chance to as Kurt turned around and grinned at Peter as I ducked behind him as fast as I could.
"My friend! Peter come join us, we were just trying to decide what to…" he trailed off as Peter moved and his yellow eyes met mine, growing wide as they did.
Closing my eyes for a second, I opened them to find all three of them looking at me, the boys with curiosity and Jubilee with a displeased expression.
Trying not to look like I'd rather be anywhere but here, I slowly followed Peter as he went towards them knowing he'd just find me before I could get anywhere if I didn't.
They didn't like me, not that I blamed them.
When all of them first showed up the professor had been so hopeful that I could make friends and start to trust someone other than him and Hank, but I just couldn't. I was too scared of them finding out and seeing me for what I was.
But I still liked helping them however I could and that was best done in the lab, not at a lunch table that I felt out of place at.
"So, ah Anna…how are you?"
It was as awkward of a question as it sounded, and Scott seemed to know this as he pushed his glasses nervously up on his nose.
Ones that I was so incredibly close to improving.
Realizing I had zoned out thinking of my designs and everyone was now waiting for me to answer I quickly responded.
"Um, I've been fine. Just busy in the lab."
Before the table could fall back to an uncomfortable silence, Peter piped up.
"Yeah, Red here is a genius! She's going to make me some cuffs to hold protein bars, so I don't have to raid the kitchen as often," he said, another sandwich seeming to magically appear in his hands as he did.
While he still had a smile on his face, his grey eyes were serious in his compliment.
I just looked down, putting a halfhearted effort into not smiling.
"I just figured it might help."
Something about Peter being there gave me the confidence I'd not felt in a long time, so deciding to capitalize on that I looked at him and smiled.
"Wow, I was sure your face would break if you did that."
Hearing Jubilee's very obvious whisper my smile fell. She and I were very different, and my standoffishness hadn't helped things at all, so I just tried not to bother her as much as possible.
Glancing back at the others and then to Peter I started to make an excuse to leave but he just shook his head and then looked back at the raven-haired girl with concealed irritation as he said, "Oh I totally forgot to mention, I have a second mutation."
All attention off me and now on Peter, confused I waited to see what he would say and the other three looked at him with a mixture of curiosity and excitement.
"Really? Vat iz it Peter, you did not mention this," asked Kurt, leaning forward a bit.
Pausing for effect Peter looked around as if to be sure no one else was listening.
"Well…I can sense when someone is being an asshole," he said, looking right at Jubilee, eyes snapping even as he smirked. "So maybe tone it down Sparky, I'm not sure if I can handle it."
After a second the boys started laughing while she just glared at Peter before turning to me.
"Yeah that was kind of shitty, sorry I was just shocked. I don't think any of us have ever seen you do that before, that's all."
Surprised that she had actually apologized, I managed to twitch my lips up into a tiny smile.
"Thanks, ah I'm just usually thinking about a design or some modification," I said, hoping that perhaps we could be on civil terms, or at the very least I wouldn't irritate her.
Fiddling with his glasses once more, Scott look up from his plate and asked, "So you design stuff? What are you working on right now?"
As I started to answer him, I saw Peter smile out of the corner of my eye, making me wonder if this had been his plan all along. For all the times that Hank had tried, all the urging of the professor, it felt nice to be here and not be constantly worrying if someone could see me for what I was.
Somewhat encouraged I put real effort into smiling at the girl, I had always secretly envied her confidence and ability to make friends with everyone.
"Ah, well I've been working on a prototype for a new pair of glasses for you. It's so close, but I want to be sure it works before I have the Professor give them to you," I said, still thinking about the molecular structure of the glass that was giving me trouble.
He tilted his head in surprise.
"You're working on new glasses for me? Really?"
Nodding I said, "Yeah, I figure it would be nice to see a color other than red. I just need to perfect the filtering before it's ready for testing."
He let out a surprised sort of laugh.
"That would be amazing, I can't thank you enough for even trying!"
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Peter smiling at me. Not the cocky smile he always wore, but almost a soft one.
"I actually had an idea for you too Jubilee," I said, deciding to be brave.
Shock colored her face as she raised her brows.
"You did, I ah, what is it," she asked, both curious and suspicious.
Remembering my notes on her mutation I pursed my lips, not really caring that everyone was looking at me.
"Well, your energy blasts are normally a mix of colors, right?"
She just nodded.
Going on without giving her a chance to say anything I said, "Well I have a theory that if there was a way to separate the light frequencies they might have different applications, I've been studying the tests you did with the professor and I think you might be able to manipulate and then amplify the colors with a bit of help from some type of filter. The tentative design I was working on was some sort glove design, I noticed you like the fingerless ones. Maybe some type of palm recognition that merged with your heat signature as well as nerves, I'm not sure yet though."
All four of them were staring at me now, starting to feel uncomfortable I looked down realizing I had been rambling.
"Ah I mean it's just an idea, I'm not even sure it would work," I muttered, hoping I hadn't ticked her off.
"That's…that's an amazing idea. That could totally change what I could do if you're right," she said, an awed smile growing on her face as I looked back to her.
"Yeah? Ah I would need to do more research, but I could try if you wanted me to," I said hopefully.
She grinned at me and nodded, "Yeah I would love that, you've got to be getting tired of all these boys. I'd say you're long overdue for some girl time."
Just as I was about to respond, Peter threw his arm around me, having sped back to my side.
"Hey, I have dibs glowstick! She was my friend first, isn't that right Red? You and me against the world," he said, winking at me when I looked up at him.
Something about the way he said that made me feel really happy, like I hadn't felt in a long time. How could I even think about being lonely when Peter was around?
A devilish gleam sparked in Jubilee's eyes as she looked at him and then to me.
"Oh sure, I'm not about to steal your friend, don't you worry motormouth," she said, smirking at him.
I didn't quite understand what she meant, but Peter seemed to and to my great surprise his face colored. Faster than anyone could see he was over by the fridge, digging for more food as he grumbled about nosy girls and obnoxious neon jackets.
I couldn't help myself, I giggled at how funny it was to see him flustered. In fact, I couldn't stop laughing, not even when all of them stared at me.
"No freaking way! I've been trying to get you to laugh for weeks and Jubilee manages it in one afternoon? You've got to be kidding me!"
Fridge forgotten, Peter had zipped back over to us and was looking at me indignantly. His cheeks were still a bit red and I only giggled all the more.
"I've just never seen you get flustered at anything, guess you are funny after all," I said, laughter subsiding after a moment.
His mouth fell open and for the first time since I had met him, the boy was without words. Scott and Kurt were both laughing by now, and Jubilee was still giving Peter a smirk.
Sputtering he said, "This was not how I pictured this happening."
There was a word to describe him right now…what was it? Flustered? Yes, maybe bashful?
I felt my eyes grow a bit bigger as I realized exactly the word I was looking for.
Cute. Peter was really cute and I was just now seeing it. This could only mean trouble.
Startled out my sudden epiphany, Jubilee nudged Peter playfully as she said, "Oh, I'm sure you'll get plenty of chances because Anna is going to hang out with us all more often. Isn't that right?"
Seeing that she was looking at me expectantly, I looked at the group and found that I wouldn't mind doing this again at all.
"Ah, yeah. Yeah, I think that could be fun," I said, glancing at Peter with a smile.
To my great surprise, his face flushed, and he turned and grabbed Scott and Kurt by the arms, muttering some excuse about needing to do something as he fled with them in tow.
I just blinked after them.
"Was it something I said," I asked, looking back to Jubilee, confused as to what had just happened.
Laughing she shook her head.
"No, Peter is just an idiot. More so than normal around you though," she said, grinning at me.
I could feel my face getting hot, so before she could comment on it asked, "Did you mean it, that you want to hang out and…be friends?"
Her smile fell and she looked down.
"Honestly, I've been kinda nasty about you and that was really awful. I guess I started to believe you thought you were better than everyone because of how close you are to the professor, but that's not true at all is it," she asked, looking ashamed of herself.
Fiddling with my sleeve I said, "I don't blame you, really. I know how, standoffish I can be. I'm not good with people, actually I've always wished I could be confident like you, or funny like Jean. I suppose I've always been scared to get out of my comfort zone, and it comes off as snooty."
She looked at me kindly, a smile teasing at her lips.
"Us girls got to stick together, I know Jean would say the same. Trust comes with getting to know someone, I hope you can give us a chance to," she said, the sparkle coming back into her dark eyes.
Crazy how many things could change in one day, I wouldn't have believed anyone if they had told me this would happen but for the first time I wasn't itching to go back to the lab.
"It might take some time, but I'd like that" I said, smiling back at her.
"Good. Now don't think I'm dropping this thing with Peter, you totally have a crush on him and I'm going to help you. Now dish, I want to know everything," she exclaimed, pulling me over to the bench expectantly.
I looked down, face flushing.
"Crush? I don't know what you're talking about!"
From the look in her eyes I could tell she didn't believe me for a second.
But then again, I'm not sure I believed me either.
So this is a bit rough, but I thought you guys might enjoy this take of Anna. I've always loved the mutant crew and I can't wait to see them in the MCU one day. Would love to know what you think, feel free to let me know.
I'll be working on TTAD chapter 4 edits and then possibly a few new little one-shots next.