The two girls hurried as best they could until they joined the large mass of students filing down the stairs for the assembly. It was there where Bobby, pushing his way through the crowd, found them, smiling in relief. "There you are Nicole! I've been looking all over for you!" he smiled, immediately wrapping his arm around her shoulders and kissing her on the cheek affectionately.

Nicole flinched, pushing him away. "No don't! I... I'm getting a cold, I don't want you to catch it." she finished her panicked objection sweetly, offering a kind smile to Bobby and giving his arm a squeeze.

Katie felt a pang of guilt as she realized that Arch would not be running to greet her, though more at the relief she felt at this realization than anything.

The older students arraigned themselves at the tables, facing Scott and Storm who stood at the front of the room. Scott seemed more restless than usual, shifting from foot to foot. No one saw the way his eyes, behind the mirrored lenses, darted to Katie, the way they followed her to her seat, lingering on her face far longer than they should have.

When all of the students had entered the dining hall, Storm cleared her throat to silence the dull humming of the student's whispers. When all was silent, she began to speak. "Yes, well. We've called this assembly today to-" she faltered as Logan burst in, looked about for a split second, then shut the door none so quietly and settled himself into a chair at the back.

Storm glared at Logan for a few moments before continuing, "To discuss this year's Fall trip. The trip will be to Massachusetts, Salem in particular for its witch museums and history. Xavier feels that it is within the school's curriculum to discuss how many mutants in the past have been accused of witch craft and sorcery. We will also be visiting a few other places in Massachusetts, along the way for a few treats for shopping, and a few tourist attractions..." she finished, looking to Scott to continue where she left off.

There was utter silence in the hall. Storm cleared her throat. "Scott!" She hissed.

A few students laughed as Scott jerked, flushing slightly with embarrassment. His eyes and thoughts had been elsewhere... "Uhm yes, for accommodations... in all of the hotels that we are to stay at along the way, there will be three students assigned to a room. You get to pick your roommates but they all must be of the same sex." here Scott turned his head in Pyro's direction to make it pointedly obvious to everyone whom he thought would attempt to break the rules, he turned back to stare at the student body in general once more. "The doors will be taped shut every night and the tape will be checked every morning to see if any of the students had thought that they could get away with sneaking out at night... There's no need to worry about payment for the trip, the fee was added to the expense of sending you here already and your parents paid it in order to enroll you here. Though they didn't know the purpose of the fee... You need not bring money unless you are planning to buy souvenirs... and we will be checking what you buy. Naturally the purchase of any weapons, drugs et cetera is forbidden..."

There was a loud, mocking sigh of disappointment from several students. "But I like drugs," one particularly 'funny' boy stage-whispered.

Scott gave him a look, before getting back to business (though he still seemed slightly flustered, as though his thoughts continued to stray elsewhere). He picked up a sheaf of papers, handing it to the front row. "Here we have the tentative plans for the time we will be gone. Obviously, you do not have to attend the trip, and anyone caught breaking any serious rules will be barred from attending. Anyone caught sneaking out at night, in the room of someone of the opposite sex-" here Pyro groaned in frustration very loudly, and very disappointedly. "Or in trying to purchase any forbidden items will be sent back." There was a pause as Scott and Storm tried to think of anything they might have forgotten. "Any questions?" He asked at last, satisfied that they'd covered everything.

Naturally, there were many questions, all of them shouted at once. "Where are we to eat?"

"Are we allowed to go about Boston by ourselves?"

"How many teachers are coming?"

"Is this trip only for the older students? What will happen to the younger students?"

"Should we pack bathing suits for the hotel pools?"

"Are we allowed to use the hotel pools?"

"Are we going by bus? Can we sit with whomever we like?"

Scott sighed, stroking the bridge of his nose gingerly, he was getting one of his headaches again... and though he would have rathered leave the room and leave the questions unanswered, he answered them despite himself. "Meals will be taken in the hotel dinning room for breakfast and dinner, lunch will depend on where we are at the time and whether there is a restaurant or mall nearby. I suggest you bring snacks on the bus, but snacks that will not melt, or if you bring things like that please make sure to prevent them from getting on the floor. Uhm, there are approximately 6 teachers coming. Prof. Xavier, Storm, hank McCoy, Nightcrawler, Logan, and Myself. Each teacher is assigned to a certain amount of students and they will escort their students everywhere. You will not go anywhere without a chaperone. This trip is for the whole school, we have a few other voluntary friends of the school coming to help chaperone the younger students. Yes we are allowed to use the Hotel pool just like everyone else... so bring a bathing suit if you like. Buses, you can sit with whomever you like..." Scott sighed wearily. After his little explanation the questions were silenced.

"Any more questions? Anyone?" Storm inquired. The students shook their heads silently. "Very well then, See you all at dinner then! Assembly dismissed."

"Who are you rooming with?" was whispered over and over again, as students chattering about the trip tried to arrange themselves into neat threesomes.

"I don't know if I'm going to want to room with you, Colie," Katie commented dryly. "The way you're sniffling, I'd end up sick the second night..."

Nicole (not so very) lightly kicked her friend. "Its not like you don't already room with-" she was cut off by a particularly violent sneeze. She glowered into her tissue. "I hope this stupid cold clears up before then..."

But Katie already wasn't listening, mind already skipping ahead to the fact that Scott was going on the trip, might be on her bus, and to the distinct possibility that she might get to see him in a bathing suit.

Nicole sighed exasperatedly, there Katie went again. Not listening, again. For someone who had been upset less than an hour ago, she sure was one to bounce back from a bad break up...