A/N: Hey! I got this chapter up in a relatively short amount of time… I am so proud of myself. This chapter has some rather shocking revelations inside it (can you say blackmail pictures?)… do tell me if you liked them and what could maybe have gone better. Enjoy and Happy Thanksgiving to all those who celebrate this overstuffed day!
"…"- conversation
'…'- thoughts
(…)- extra facts/actions (some)
'blah…' -telepathy/what people say mentally
Chapter 4: Revelation2nd Floor Landing, 2nd Floor, Xavier Institute for the Gifted, Bayville, NY, USA—June 9, 10:10 AM
As Logan approached the landing he could hear that Scott and Jean's voices had joined the original seven adults who had set out to investigate the screams issuing from the second floor. Logan rounded the corner and was met with wide, shocked eyes and expressions. Scott stepped forward, clothed in nothing more than black sweatpants and his ruby glasses and asked, "Logan, what the hell happened?"
Logan glared at Scott; he was in no mood to deal with the field leader of his team considering he had just had to deal with three rooms with incompetent Brotherhood members inside each and every one of them. "Nothin's wrong with me, Slim. However, I would suggest puttin' on a shirt before one of the girls comes 'round the corner and catches sight of ya." Logan smirked when he got the desired effect; Scott's face flushed light red. Logan then turned to survey the rest of the instructors and on spotting Ororo he moved closer and asked, "'Ro, what the hell happened to you?"
Ororo looked at Logan and, raising an eyebrow at what he was covered in said, "Much the same thing that happened to you, Logan. Am I to assume that you tripped over an invisible wire and got a substance dumped on you?" Logan nodded yes and Ororo grimly smiled, appearing to be the epitome of peace but a large crack of thunder rumbled just outside, followed by a few small lightning bolts in the clouds signaled her real mood.
Xavier wheeled himself so that he was center stage and, folding his hands asked, "Alright, everyone, tell me what happened?" Amidst the damage reports Xavier could see that Jean was glaring at Logan and Ororo, seemingly upset that her plush white carpet was being ruined. "I'm sorry to interrupt you, Forge, but Jean: do tell me why you are glaring at Logan and Ororo? It is not their fault that they were caught in the midst of the prank."
Jean flushed and responded, "I'm sorry Professor; it's just that I worked forever to get this carpet down and now they're ruining it by just standing here! I demand that something be done about it this instant!" True to Jean's word something did happen; just not what she had wanted. Jean stepped backward and fell into Scott's chest, sending them both falling to the floor. This was apparently the signal to a trap above them and in an instant both Summers were covered in flour, water, and chocolate sauce, staining the white carpet black with spots of white; the opposite of a Dalmatian's coat. Jean screamed in absolute rage and shock; Scott remained silent. However, Jean soon shut her trap when she noticed two plastic bags floating down to them from above, and when she and Scott had each caught one both noticed that their names were on the front of the envelopes.
"Those are exactly like the bags that all the kids have," Forge said, kneeling to look at them closely to make sure they were the same. On seeing that they were Forge turned to Xavier and said, "Professor, I think someone's targeting everyone who came in last night, drunk beyond belief."
Xavier nodded his head and said, "I quite agree with you, Forge. The question is, however, why would Scott and Jean get pranked? They did not come in drunk last night with the younger students; in fact, Scott was with me when they came in late."
Scott had opened the bag and, consequently the envelope and on seeing its contents his face went pale. "God no…" he muttered, holding his head in his hands as he saw the picture. Jean had heard Scott and, her curiosity piqued opened her envelope and saw its contents. She didn't moan; she screamed.
"How the hell did this get on a picture!" Jean screamed, throwing the picture away from her and grabbing her hair in utter frustration. Too late she realized what she had done and reached out to get the picture but to her horror Logan had caught it and currently he, Ororo, Sean, Moira, Forge, Hank, and Xavier were all examining it, all with varying expressions on their faces. "Professor, it's not what it looks like!" Jean proclaimed, moving to get back her property but Logan looked up and, eyeing her shook his head as if he were ashamed of Jean.
Xavier looked at Jean and said, "Jean, Scott: I am horribly disappointed in you both. I would think that you both would have more common sense than this." Xavier then looked at Scott and, motioning to the picture in his hands said, "Am I to assume that you have the same photograph, Scott?" Scott numbly nodded yes and, getting to his feet, handed the photo along with what appeared to be a note to Xavier, ignoring his wife's screams of protest. Xavier's eyebrow rose on seeing the note. Looking at Scott he asked, "Do you recognize what this means, Scott?"
Scott shook his head yes and said, "Yes, Professor, I do: we have a serious case of blackmail in our midst."
Xavier nodded and said, "Exactly. I suggest that you, Jean, Logan and Ororo go and get cleaned up. Afterwards, we'll gather up all those who have received bags and review the contents and try to determine whose work this is." Everyone nodded and they all went their way, Scott dragging Jean to their room while Ororo told Logan that he could use her shower as his was broken and he hadn't had a chance to fix it yet.
Kitchen, Xavier Institute for the Gifted, Bayville, NY, USA—June 9, 12:00 PM
Nearly two hours later everyone was in the kitchen, meals untouched in front of them. Even Fred, who had heard what his teammates had gone through that morning, had decided to forego his fourth helping in honor of the fast that seemed to be going on. As he, Todd, Jamie, Kurt, and Amanda (the latter of whom had come over to spend a day with Kurt and Xavier honing her newly found magical powers) looked at the mutants at the table they were all sending up silent prayers of thanks that they hadn't been pranked as from the looks of the victims they would be scarred for life.
Roberto and Rahne were sitting at the extra table just to the right of the main one, which was used for extra seating when the kitchen was crowded; as it was now. They had opted to give up their seats at the main table for Fred and Todd and both had on sympathetic looks on their faces aimed at their teammates.
Bobby was wearing a pair of khaki shorts, a white muscle tank, and blue flip-flops. Bobby had himself planted in front of the freezer door, still suffering from the heat exhaustion he had gone through that morning. His skin was still hot to the touch and while others could stand immense heat he was unable to, hence the freezer idea. Bobby was sighing in relief as the ice cubes he had on his face were cooling down his skin.
Jubilee, who was sitting at the table, was in a pair of jeans, a yellow long-sleeved shirt, and what appeared to be black boots. She had her comforter wrapped tightly around her, still feeling the aftereffects of the cold wake-up she had experienced. Next to Jubilee sat Lorna, who like her had on jeans and what appeared to be black boots. She also had her comforter wrapped tightly around her but unlike Jubilee she had on a cream sweater instead of a long-sleeved shirt, still shivering. Both girls had mugs of hot chocolate in front of them, the steam rising to form a small cloud above the two freezing girls and both were wishing for a heat wave to hit at that moment to warm them back up to their regular body temperature.
To Lorna's right sat Alex, who was dressed in khaki shorts, a white tank top, and flip-flops. Alex, even after taking three showers and using a lot of soap—four bars, to be exact—still smelled like mayonnaise and his shoulder-length dark blond hair had small streaks of white in it, where the condiment had refused to come out. Alex's expression was dark as he thought up ways to torture whomever had placed the prank in his bedroom to begin with.
Across from Jubilee sat Sam, who was dressed in jean shorts, a dark blue tank, a sleeveless black vest, and white sneakers. Sam had managed to get most of the silly string off him but in its place jagged red lines remained on his skin, bruises from the amount of strength he'd had to use to get the silly string off him. However, small bits remained in his hair, which was in a ponytail to keep it out of his face while he tried to deal with the headache that was still with him; that last beer had really done him in, a focused and exhausted expression on his face.
Next to him sat his girlfriend Tabitha, dressed in a bright pink tee-shirt, jean cutoffs, and sandals, and who currently had her face buried in her arms, revealing her new crew-cut look, the result of not being able to get out a lot of the gum. Tabby had reluctantly agreed with Ororo that she had to cut her hair to ensure that the gum didn't stay and damage her remaining hair. Tabby had vowed that from now on she was done with gum; after all, she had had enough to last the rest of her life. Like Alex Tabby still smelled like mayonnaise, the smell permeating her clothing.
To Alex's right sat Ray, who was dressed in jean shorts, a dark orange tee shirt, and sandals. His hair was still neon green with hot pink streaks; Ororo had promised him that she'd deal with his hair after lunch and so Ray had to deal with all the wisecracks he was getting from his teammates about his hair. Ray had also taken a shower and despite using four bars of soap still managed to smell like chocolate sauce. Ray was currently staring daggers at the wall behind Tabitha, wishing he could burn a hole into the offending partition between the kitchen and the hallway.
Next to Ray sat his girlfriend Amara, who was dressed in jean shorts, a pale gray tee shirt, and sneakers. She had managed to get out most of the gum from her hair but like Tabitha had been forced to cut it; unlike her friend, however, Amara had gotten it cut to shoulder-length, a fact that embarrassed her to no end. Amara had managed to get rid of the smell of mayonnaise but now smelled like lilacs and roses, having used too much of her soap and shower gel to get rid of the condiment. Amara had her face buried in her hands, feeling embarrassed to be seen without her trademark waist length hair even though Ray had told her time and again that he liked the shorter haircut on her.
To Tabby's left sat Evan, who was dressed in black jean cutoffs, a black muscle shirt, and white sneakers, his bone armor forming a ridge along his back. It was along this ridge that Evan still had some dead, red leaves and dark brown glue stuck to it, even though he had managed to get most the concoction off when he took his shower. Evan had used five bars of soap to scrub at the glue and leaves and after he had exhausted the fifth bar he had been forced to leave the bathroom and go to his room by Kurt, who had been waiting for over an hour to get inside the bathroom. Evan had made due with what was still on him and so, according to Pietro, now looked like a half-dead tree branch, the red leaves the only sign of life on him; Pietro had gotten punched in the eye for this remark not by Evan but by Danielle. Evan was glaring at the table, his meal bearing the brunt of his anger as it seemed to melt under Evan's black eyes, his platinum blond hair falling around his head and not spiked up as he usually had it.
Dani, who was sitting next to Evan, was dressed in jean capris, a white tee shirt, and her brown moccasins. She had a set of earphones over her ears, blocking any loud sounds and making everyone stare at her. After explaining what had happened Hank had taken Dani to the infirmary, and after examining her ears told her that her ears would be fine after a day's rest. So, although Dani could listen to the conversations around her she couldn't deal with any screams or loud music. A bottle of aspirin was in front of her, and Dani took two to try and calm down the raging headache that was still in her head, a combination of the alcohol from the night before and the music she'd woken up to.
Next to Dani sat Kitty, who was dressed in a pale pink tank top, khaki shorts, and silver sandals. Kitty, like Sam had managed to get most of the silly string off and in its place jagged red lines were splattered across her face, arms, and legs. Kitty had her shoulder-length hair down and draped over her right shoulder, frowning as she picked out bits and pieces of the pink silly string from the brown strands.
To her left sat Lance, who was dressed in dark blue jean shorts to his knees, a black muscle tank, and his sleeveless brown vest. Lance didn't have his gloves on today as his hands still had traces of the chocolate sauce that had been dumped on him earlier; in fact, all his body did. Lance's brown hair had yellow and green feathers that he had missed when taking a shower and so it appeared that he had a feather headdress on, the chocolate sauce on his face and arms representing ceremonial markings. Lance was frowning, doing his best to not let his emotions get out of control as he thought about whom could have pranked him and why.
Across from Lance sat Rogue, who was dressed in black jeans, a black tank top covered by a dark green mesh, and her combat boots, her gloves on her hands. Like her roommate Rogue had managed to get most of the black silly string off her but still had some on her face, which, no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't get off. Her hair was fine except for the fact that her white streak contained bits and pieces of the silly string, giving it a salt-and-pepper appearance.
Next to her sat Remy, who was dressed in dark brown khakis, a dark red tee shirt, his duster on the back of his chair and gloves on the table, boots on his feet. Remy had had a hell of a time getting the concoction out of his hair and even now it still smelt like garlic, which even after five showers and seven bars of soap had refused to leave his being. So, Remy now reeked of garlic and cayenne pepper, the only remnants of what had been dumped on him, as the mixture itself wasn't on any part of him. Remy was staring at Lance and frowned on noting the lines of concentration that had appeared on the Brotherhood leader's face, and shaking his head knew that Lance was doing his best to not let his anger overcome him.
To Remy's right sat John, who was dressed in dark blue jeans, black sneakers, and a dark orange sweater, his hair still a vibrant blue although small bits of orange now shone through the hair dye. John was also wrapped in a black comforter he had stolen from the closet in the room he had slept in, shivering violently. Although John had taken ten hot showers he still complained he was cold and hence had dressed for the middle of January even though it was close to eighty-five degrees outside. Ororo had told John that she'd help him with his hair after lunch and, honestly, John couldn't wait to get his orange hair back; having blue hair just didn't feel right to him.
Next to John sat Wanda, who was dressed in black jeans, a red spaghetti tank top, and black sandals. She had pushed her way in front of the line of mutants with hair problems and had asked Ororo to help her with her hair first. Ororo had agreed, promising everyone else she'd help them with their hair problems later, which meant the guys as Ororo had managed to help Tabby and Amara as well as Wanda. Wanda's hair was now back to its normal colors—black with red tips—but Ororo hadn't gotten a chance to finish Wanda's hair so some hot, neon pink remained in her hair, just at the front where everyone could see it. Wanda had thanked her deity that the chocolate sauce that Ororo had gotten dropped on her hadn't fallen on her and so she didn't smell like a dessert.
Across from Remy sat Warren, who was dressed in khaki shorts, a dark blue tee shirt, and white sneakers. Warren had managed to get all of the chocolate sauce off his wings but still had some confetti on the back of the wings, resulting in getting teased by his girlfriend that they must have had one hell of a party the night before and they just didn't remember it. Warren, even after having taken six hot showers with ten bars of soap and a full bottle of what was once brand-new shampoo still had some engine oil in his hair, which was now blond with small black streaks in it. Warren was staring at the wall behind Remy, his sapphire eyes shooting fire at the wall.
To Warren's left sat Betsy, who was dressed in jean cutoffs, a dark purple halter top, and a very light white jacket, purple sandals on her feet. Betsy had taken five showers and used up at least eleven bars of soap yet she still smelled like Remy's gumbo, which irked her to no end. Along with dealing with Wanda's teasing Betsy had to deal with the small white feathers that had refused to come out of her hair, resulting in a streak of white feathers in her hair which she couldn't get rid of. Betsy was currently glaring at Remy, blaming him for the gumbo that had been dumped on her earlier that day.
Next to Betsy sat Pietro, who was dressed in light blue jeans, a white muscle tank, and white sneakers. Pietro had found his special loofah but no matter how hard he scrubbed he couldn't get the smell of the ketchup-mustard-peanut butter-jelly-relish concoction off him and so he now reeked of all the condiments used on sandwiches. Pietro also sported a black eye, the result of Evan's girlfriend punching him in the eye for teasing Evan. Pietro had had to deal with the smirks and laughter from his own team—Wanda especially—and right now he was in a sour mood. Pietro was currently glaring down the table at Danielle and Evan, planning to avenge the wound to his complexion.
To his left sat Lexie, who was dressed in black shorts, a dark blue halter top, and black sandals, her midnight hair in a braid down her back. Lexie had taken four showers and used six bars of soap and unlike her boyfriend had managed to get the smell of ketchup and mustard off her but now she smelled like mint and lilac, the scents of the soap she had used. Lexie was bothered by the smell; sometimes having acute senses sucked. Lexie was staring at her hands, wishing she knew who had pranked her so she could get her revenge.
Across from Lexie was Piotr, who unlike Lance had managed to get the chocolate sauce and feathers off him in three showers and three bars of soap. Piotr was thankful that he had managed to get the concoction off him and right now was staring at Kitty, his eyes focused on the frown on her face. He wished that he could find the culprit who had pranked his Katchya and punish him for daring to hurt her.
To Piotr's right sat Kurt and Amanda, who had chosen to not eat their lunch (a rare move on Kurt's part) in honor of their friends' horrible mornings but also because they were grossed out by what had been dumped on half their friends. Across from them sat Fred and Todd, who were doing the same thing that Kurt and Amanda were doing, although Fred had eaten three helpings of food from the buffet bar just outside the cooking area before deciding to forego a fourth in honor of his friends. Next to Amanda sat Jamie, who was staring wide-eyed at his teammates, thankful that he hadn't been pranked and all the while planning his next set of pranks, knowing that what had happened today was going to be inspiration for him in the future.
The instructors sat towards the end of the table, with Scott, Jean, Logan, and Ororo appearing normal again, although Jean still had some flour in her hair and Ororo had small spots of chocolate sauce in her hair. At the end of the table sat Charles Xavier, who had his head resting on his hands, eyes staring at all the students, noting all their angry and depressed looks.
After a few minutes Xavier cleared his throat and said, "Well, since it seems that no one here is going to eat their meal I suppose it is time to explain what went on this morning." On seeing that he had everyone's attention he continued, "What seems to have happened was that we are in the midst of a string of pranks aimed at everyone who came in this morning past the curfew I set for everyone intoxicated. Those who were here by curfew or did not leave the mansion last evening were not targeted, which leads me to believe that these pranks were deliberately set. Now, I have learned from the instructors that everyone who was targeted found an envelope inside a plastic bag in their rooms. I believe that you have all looked at them, I assume?" On getting glum and angry nods from the students he continued, "I would like you to give me the envelopes at this time, so that I may inspect them and see why this blackmail was initiated."
This comment was met with angry words and protests from the students, all of whom expressed to Xavier the fact that it was their property and that even though he ran the school he had no right to go through their personal things. Evan, the Brotherhood and the Acolytes stood up and demanded that Xavier take back his comment, as they weren't even X-Men and therefore didn't deserve to be subjugated to the same rules the others had to follow.
Logan got to his feet and, glaring at every mutant who had protested said, "Alright, listen up; I'll give ya two choices here: either give the Professor the envelopes with all their contents," Logan aimed this comment at Bobby. The ice mutant had been trying to remove his picture from the envelope without being seen, hide the incriminating photograph, and then slip the envelope back into the bag. Bobby, on seeing Logan's glare, promptly replaced the picture in the envelope and Logan continued, "or you all will have a Danger Room session at exactly three this afternoon for an hour and a half with Storm and me. So, what'll it be?" Logan glared at each mutant, knowing that they would rather do anything but a Danger Room session but to his utter surprise each and every mutant responded that they'd rather take their chances in the Danger Room than give Xavier their envelopes.
Logan glared at them one more time before sitting down again, muttering under his breath about how he was going to make them suffer. Xavier stared at the students for a moment and on seeing that they were resolute about their decisions said, "Very well; you may all keep your envelopes… for now. I would like to have them in my office with all their contents before noon tomorrow. You are all dismissed and I expect to see everyone who received an envelope—Evan, Brotherhood and Acolytes included—in the Danger Room at 2:55 PM, ready for your Danger Room session." Xavier then moved his wheelchair and left the kitchen, the instructors following him, leaving the kitchen full of teenage mutants. Roberto and Rahne came over and took seats near Jamie and Todd, wanting to be at the table for the conversation that ensued.
Jamie asked, "Guys, are you sure you want to go through with Wolverine and Storm's Danger Room session? I mean, you guys know that you'll get slaughtered, right?" Kurt nodded in agreement, his yellow eyes begging his friends to relinquish their possessions to avoid getting seriously hurt.
Bobby, who had by now taken himself away from the refrigerator and seated himself between Jubilee and Sam at the head of the table stood up and, looking at everyone in the kitchen said, "There is no way in hell that I'm going to give my picture to the Professor; Logan'll take one look at it and gut me in two!" Everyone nodded in agreement, knowing that Logan would do that to each and every one of them if he saw their pictures.
This time Amanda spoke up and, hesitatingly asked, "Guys, what is in these pictures, exactly? I mean, they can't be that bad; can they?"
Everyone who had gotten an envelope stared at Amanda and then each other, each debating whether or not to reveal the contents of their envelopes to the mutants who hadn't gotten pranked and with each other. After a few minutes during which the couples could be seen discussing their options Evan and Danielle stood up, causing all eyes to turn to them. Dani took off her earphones and picked up her bag.
Evan sighed and, looking at Dani for reassurance that she was okay with what he was going to do said, "Dani and I have decided to be the guinea pigs and we'll let you guys see the pictures that we got." Evan and Dani, with every eye in the room on them opened their envelopes. After taking out the pictures they sent them around the table, causing every mutant's eyes to widen in shock and disbelief; Roberto and Rahne acting the part before sending the pictures back to their respective owners.
Pietro was the first to speak, earning him a withering glare from Evan, "Damn, Daniels, didn't-know-you-had-it-in-you!" Evan began marching towards Pietro, fire burning in his eyes but stopped when he saw Wanda hex Pietro out of his chair and into the wall behind him, the speed demon pleading with his twin all the while to stop her attack. Wanda did stop her attack; this just left Pietro ten feet above the ground, and a loud "oomph" was heard as he made contact with the earth again. Evan grinned at Wanda, who nodded her head in return.
"Would you grow up, Pietro? Evan and Danielle's picture isn't that bad; I'm sure that yours is much worse," Wanda commented, pointing her index finger at Pietro's envelope, still in its bag.
Dani smiled at Wanda and said, "Thank you, Wanda." Dani then took her picture from Kitty's hands and looked at it, grimacing at the scene that had been captured in full color that she saw. She and Evan were making out on a leather couch in the dance club the group had been to the night before and Evan had his hand at the edge of Danielle's shirt, preparing to take it off. Meanwhile, Danielle had already taken off Evan's shirt and had her arms wrapped around his neck, nails digging into his back. Evan had worn an image-inducer most of the night and had retracted his bone armor underneath it, which had allowed Dani to do what she had done with no interference from her boyfriend's bone armor.
Dani slipped the picture back into its envelope and sat down, Evan doing the same. She looked around at the table and, eyes locking on Jubilee said, "So, who's next? Evan and I started so everyone has to show everyone else their photograph."
Jubilee squirmed under Dani's gaze and after a few minutes snapped and said, "Fine; Bobby and I'll go next." Ignoring her boyfriend's verbal protests Jubilee took out her picture and passed it around, Bobby's copy soon following. Once again everyone's eyes widened in shock and disbelief; Pietro opened his mouth to make a snide comment but Lexie put her hand on her boyfriend's mouth and glared at him, telling him to be quiet. Bobby and Jubilee's picture was of them at the first dance club they'd been at the night before. They were grinding against each other in a darkened corner. Bobby's hands were removing Jubilee's shirt—it was almost halfway up when the picture was taken—while Jubilee seemed intent on removing Bobby's pants, as the zipper was already down. Bobby was beet-red from embarrassment while Jubilee looked like she was going to break down; she almost did when she got back the picture and looked at it one more time before slipping it back into its envelope.
After Bobby and Jubilee's pictures had been passed around everyone else revealed their secrets and slowly and surely those who weren't going to be punished learned why everyone was so intent on not letting the Professor, much less Logan, see the pictures. Sam and Tabitha's pictures showed them making out in a darkened corner at the second dance club, which the group had decided to go to for thirty minutes before heading to the bar where they'd seen Logan and Ororo. Tabby was up against the wall with her legs wrapped around Sam's waist and her arms around Sam's neck. Sam held Tabby up against the wall, his hands at the hem of his girlfriend's shirt, preparing to remove it, and all while they were still kissing, eyes closed.
Alex and Lorna's showed them in the second dance club on a couch similar to the one that Evan and Danielle had been on. In the picture they were kissing intensely, with Lorna sitting on Alex's lap, their faces so close to each other that it appeared that they had been glued together. Alex had his hands wrapped around Lorna's waist, his hands reaching lower than they should have been while Lorna's fingers tangled up in Alex's dark blonde hair, their clothes rumpled and wrinkled.
Ray and Amara's showed them on a table in a darkened corner of one of the two bars they had been to the night before, making out like there was no tomorrow, with Ray pinning Amara to the table. Ray's hands were removing Amara's shirt—it was almost off when the picture was taken—while Amara had already removed Ray's shirt and had her hands around Ray's waist, pulling his belt out of the belt loops from the back, their faces interlocked in a kiss. When Amanda saw this she tried to keep it away from Jamie but he managed to grab it and when he saw it he cursed, earning him a dark glare from the couple in question. Then Jamie remembered who his roommate was and gulped, already making plans to try and switch with someone else for the night so he didn't have to be near Ray.
Next up were Warren and Betsy's, which showed them on the roof of one of the dance clubs they had gone to, the moon shining on their faces during the picture. All eyes widened when they saw that both of them had their shirts off and were actually making out in mid-air, Warren's wings keeping them afloat and not on the rooftop, as it had seemed on first glance. Betsy had her legs wrapped around Warren's waist, her hands making their way down his back while Warren's hands were playing with the top of her jeans, their lips interlocked and eyes closed.
The next photo had Rogue cursing in outright shock; it was of Lance and Kitty making out on what appeared to be a darkened and unused section of the bar counter of the first bar they'd hit after the dance clubs. Both of their shirts had been discarded, resting on the barstools just underneath the edge of the counter. Lance was on top of Kitty, his mouth on her ear, nibbling it, while Kitty's hands were on Lance's chest, her hands moving over it while his hands were entangled in Kitty's hair, which he had taken out of her customary ponytail earlier in the evening. Kitty appeared to be biting Lance's neck, leaving a mark that was soon seen when Pietro pulled Lance up onto the table and, pulling down the collar of the earthshaker's shirt and vest showed the mark for all to see. Both Lance and Kitty blushed furiously at this and Kitty retaliated by grabbing Pietro, phased him off Lance and threw him over her shoulder into the wall, where he made another dent beside the one where Wanda had sent him flying earlier. The other mutants watched with open mouths, not expecting the valley-girl to do something so unexpected; both in and out of the picture.
John and Wanda were the next couple to be unveiled, something that Wanda didn't appreciate at all. It showed them making out in what appeared to be the girl's bathroom of the first bar they'd hit. John had Wanda on one of the sinks, his lips up against her nose, laying a kiss on it, his arms wrapped around Wanda's waist, her shirt next to her. Wanda had her lips underneath John's chin, her arms wrapped around his neck, the nails digging into his neck just below a necklace that everyone had noticed Wanda wearing that day. John's shirt was resting behind him, on the floor, and in the sunlight it appeared that Wanda was leaving a mark on John's chin but when everyone looked at John they didn't see anything. They then looked at Wanda and Pietro's eyes just about flew out of their sockets when he saw a hickey near her collar.
"What's-that?!?!?!?" Pietro demanded, speeding over to where his sister was and trying to get a closer look to confirm his suspicions but the speed demon felt someone grab his arm and spinning around found himself staring into the burning eyes of John.
"If Wanda doesn' want to show you what's on her neck then you have no business with her, Quicksilver," John said seriously, his tone of voice causing Remy and Piotr to look at each other in astonishment; they couldn't remember a time when John had spoken like that. John bent Pietro's arm behind his back and threw him over the table so that he landed in his seat face-first. John then sat back down, amidst shocked looks from his teammates and a pleased look from Wanda, who gave him a peck on the cheek in thanks. Pietro had gotten back to a normal sitting position and was now muttering under his breath, coming up with numerous revenge plans in his head for all those who had wronged him that morning.
Next up was Remy and Rogue, with Rogue glaring at Pietro, daring him to say anything after he saw the picture. Having had enough of getting punished Pietro didn't say a word; however, his eyebrow rose when he saw the picture and he, along with everyone else looked at Rogue in absolute shock. The picture showed Remy and Rogue at the second dance club they'd hit, the two of them on the dance floor near a darkened corner, lips locked together. They all looked at Rogue in shock; how in the hell were they touching when Rogue couldn't control her powers? The only reason they could come up with was that she had control and just hadn't told anyone, shocking the hell out of those who thought that they had known every one of Rogue's secrets. This fact, along with the picture, was shocking to those who saw it; what got them even more was the fact that Rogue's shirt was off and Remy had his shirt off as well, his chest pressed up against Rogue's body, seemingly fitting together like they were two jigsaw pieces. Rogue's hands were entangled in Remy's auburn hair, her emerald eyes staring into his ruby-on-onyx ones as Remy's hands, without the gloves, were caressing her face, one on either side of her nose. They looked so happy that all those who saw the picture knew that Rogue was finally breaking free; however, this didn't stop Kurt from glaring at Remy after he had seen the picture, his yellow eyes faintly glowing.
"Gambit, if you hurt mein sister then you vill have to deal vith me," Kurt said darkly, his eyes glaring into Remy's, and Remy nodded, accepting all responsibility for his actions; past and present. Rogue switched her glare to Kurt, not surprised when he didn't flinch and Amanda placed a hand on his shoulder, calming down her boyfriend with just her touch.
The final set of pictures to make its way around the table had everyone almost choking on their own breath. It showed Pietro and Lexie standing on the stage of the first bar everyone had hit, lips locked together in the middle of what most everyone recognized as a very explicit dance. Pietro had his arms around Lexie's waist, his hands moving down below the level of safety while Lexie's hands were playing with Pietro's belt, which she had wrapped around his back to pull him closer to her. Their bodies were pressed together and their eyes were closed and the sunlight coming in from the patio doors darkened some of the color in the picture. However, the picture had been taken when a spotlight had been trained on the couple certainly didn't diminish the risk with which Pietro and Lexie had been doing on stage last night. Both their hair colors—her midnight blue and his silver—shone in the picture, along with the small beads of sweat that could be seen on their bodies if a person looked hard enough.
Roberto, playing along with the rest of the shocked mutants, whistled as he saw the picture and remarked, "Damn, guys, how in the hell did you not get caught?"
Lexie shrugged and after a few minutes she dragged up a memory of the night before. "I bribed the bartender to allow us the stage for thirty minutes; besides, the curtain was closed."
Pietro looked at Lexie and asked, "Lex, what'd you bribe the guy with?"
Lexie raised an eyebrow at her boyfriend and replied, "Your dad's platinum credit card." Pietro paled and whipped out his wallet, looking through it for the said card and on not finding it glared at Lexie. "Pie, you're the one who told me I could use the card as bribe material," Lexie added, her eyes daring Pietro to tell her otherwise.
Pietro remembered and, cursing, hit his head and buried his face in his arms, muttering under his breath about how stupid he was. Everyone else looked at them with sympathy, even Wanda, who knew that Magneto was going to harm Pietro severely for losing his platinum card, the one that Magneto had lent to Pietro in an attempt to get back on the speed demon's "A-list."
Once Pietro and Lexie had taken back their pictures silence reigned until Todd, who had been wondering about something turned to Roberto and Rahne and asked, "Umm, how come you guys don' have pictures, yo?" Everyone turned their heads to Roberto and Rahne, all having wondered that very same question but no one had dared ask the question.
Rahne shrugged and replied, "Ay don' rightly know, Todd. Ay guess it's just because we didnae come back after curfew and didnae have a drop of alcohol on our tongues." Everyone nodded, accepting this explanation, and the conversation turned back to the pictures and what everyone's next plan was going to be. No one had mentioned the notes that had arrived in their envelopes along with the pictures and when no one was looking their way Roberto and Rahne grinned at each other across the table; phase two was complete.