A/N: Sorry for wait on publishing chapters, I had a period filled with finals, moving, and flying to Iowa (where I am currently, with my fiance) + the holidays. Will still be a bit spacey with updates but I haven't forgotten :-)

( Volume: 4 Arc: "the new Hellions" 4 Issue: 2/4 )

Chapter 151 : name on the door

"Julian, are you busy?" Scott asked.

"Er—" Julian shook his head, no. He'd been coming out of the Debriefing Room, on his way to the men's lockers. They had just returned from a situation in Mutant Town, NY, where a young boy had been kidnapped for
Legacy purposes. They'd found him, in the warehouse used by this sect of the Sapien League—tied up to a wooden chair, with a large welt on his neck.

The boy was six years old.

Josh had healed him, and they'd returned him to his distraught parents. Julian felt tired; he was elated that they had saved the victim—for once—but still furious that anyone could be so monstrous as to kidnap a child for
genocide purposes in the first place. The anger made him weary, as he'd been angry so much lately.

"Good," Scott said. "I've got something to show you."

…

"Uh…" Julian blinked. "Why is my name on the door?"

Scott grinned. "Because it's your office," he said.

"…" Julian studied the nameplate for a while. 6B: Julian Keller, Hellions Counselor, it read. There was a plastic wall pocket for files, and a shiny doorknob. The door was made of a deep polished mahogany.

"Open it," Scott said.

Julian complied. The office inside was not large; it was about a quarter the size of the Headmaster's office, and much plainer. There were a few bookshelves, a small filing cabinet, an oak desk, and a leather ergonomic
chair. And a window, behind the chair, with a plane shutter blind.

"It's not much. All I had, at the moment. But it should do just fine…at least now you have somewhere the students can come talk to you in private, should they need to."

"I was planning to use the washrooms," Julian said. "I had a stall all picked out and everything. Might be a bit creepy, though."

Scott grinned. "There's connections for your laptop. It's up to you to set office hours. You should have at least two days a week, with minimum three hours each. Make sure they know when you're free. Some might be too shy to ask."

"Sure."

Scott patted Julian on the shoulder, then headed for the door. "Oh, and Keller?"

"Yeah?" Julian said, still gazing at the desk.

"How would you like to teach a class?"

"Er—" Julian looked at the headmaster questioningly.

"I thought you could teach Mind over Matter this term. It wouldn't be a very big class…and it's only once a week. Most of the students are from your Hellions group, so you could be more involved in their development."

"And less involved in what you're going to ask me to do?" Julian asked directly.

Silence.

Julian had known, for a while now, that Scott Summers had something in mind for him. The leader of the X-men hadn't been sitting idle while watching the attacks on his students, on his people. He was working out
militant plans, enlisting troops, marking maps.

And Julian had also noticed that several X-men disappeared for lengths of time, when he knew the actual team had not been sent out. When he asked questions, he was told they were 'doing something for Scott'.

Not only that…but he remembered the team he'd briefly been a part of: grey and black, when rescuing Laura. And what their purpose had been. And the way Scott had looked when he'd asked him to not breathe a
word of this to anyone.

You report to me now, Scott had said, when he'd first become an X-man. Do you understand?

"Yes," Scott said.

"I want no part in it," Julian said quickly. "I have a family, and I have friends. I don't want to cut myself off, which is what will happen if I'm suddenly keeping secrets and…" he didn't add the word killing. It was implied.

"I haven't asked you yet."

"Ask me then," Julian said.

"Not now. You're not ready."

"When do you think I'll be ready for that?"

"You'll know," Scott said, his tone clearly stating that it was time to stop asking questions. "Will you teach the class?"

"Okay."

…

"How much are you paying for it?" Laura demanded, upon receipt of the news 'I've got my own office'.

"Nothing," Julian said, annoyed. "I think it's a given that teachers' offices are provided by the institution. Is it like, eating your brain or something?"

"Just about." Laura was sitting on the couch. He peered over the edge, and saw that she was surrounded by empty bags of potato chips, various containers, wrappers, and a glass plate with a
sticky brown residue.

"Christ. Looks like someone had the munchies."

"It's making its presence known" Laura said. "I think I'm eating for twenty this time. Possibly forty."

"Don't even." Julian hit her with a pillow, then headed towards the kitchen, and the fridge (which was slightly open). Items were hanging out haphazardly, including a limp, half-eaten carrot. He wrinkled
his forehead and opened the door completely.

"Laura, where's the milk?"

Silence.

"And the fruit?"

More silence.

"The jam…"

"We're supposed to go shopping tomorrow. There wasn't much left of anything."

"Laura, I got that milk jug yesterday."

"I was thirsty."

"That was a gallon of milk!"

"And I said, 'I was thirsty'."

Julian closed the fridge door and headed for the counter, then pocketed the car keys resting on the surface. "You coming or lying there like a beached whale?"

Laura didn't move.

He rolled his eyes. "Anything you want?"

"…" Laura sat up, and began rattling off a list worthy of paper and pen. It ranged from fresh fish to salad materials to yogurt to moose tracks ice cream to grenadine and cookie dough. And it didn't stop
there. When she seemed to finish, the list contained forty six items.

"This is like a hundred and fifty bucks, at least," Julian said, staring at the list.

"Aren't you the guy that said you've got over five billion dollars in one bank account? This isn't the time to be stingy!" Laura hissed.

"Well, come with me. I don't feel like spending an hour in feminine hygiene picking out 'light pads, with wings, and a cottony pillow surface'!"

"It's not all that hard. And I know you use TK on that aisle. Don't lie. I've seen you snipe my tampons from a distance. You actually took a picture with your cell phone and circled the box so you know what shelf it's on."

"I so did not."

"It's your background."

"…" Julian tried not to grin, and failed. "Look, I hate that aisle. I don't see why I always have to shop it for you."

"You use it, you maintain it, Keller," Laura said. "It's just like a car. Except not."

"Whatever." Julian threw her jacket over her head. "Get up. If you don't come, I'll pick the opposite of everything on the list."

"You wouldn't."

"Let's see…I'd grab 2% milk, because I know you fucking hate anything heavier than skim." They had had a long and vicious argument about milk during their first grocery trip together, one neither had forgiven
the other for in all their time as a couple. Laura's eyes narrowed.

"You wouldn't."

"Push me and I'll bring whipping cream. Oh, and see where it says pixie stix?"

"…." Laura pushed garbage off of herself and began to pull on her jacket. "This is practically abuse, you know," she said loudly.

"Yeah, yeah," Julian said. "Go get the Shrimps, already."

…

Julian waited by the cart (which held a sleeping Rachel; Nate was on his feet, sucking his thumb and examining boxes of drinks on the junk food aisle). He was watching Laura as she stared intently
at a bag of chips on the shelf.

"C'mon. You've been doing that for five minutes. I know you want them."

"I refuse to pay four dollars for a bag of chips," Laura said sternly. She continued to stare at the product.

"Laura…I'm paying. Just take them."

Laura poked the bag viciously and made a face. "I wouldn't feel right inside."

"For godssakes." Julian made a motion with his hand, and the bag of chips shot into his palm. He put it in the cart, ignoring Laura's noises of protest, and began to wheel it away, Nate in tow.

Huffing, Laura finally followed her family members into the drinks section.

"Coke," Julian said, just as Laura said "Pepsi," in an evenly firm tone. He leaned on the handle bars and glared at her. "Look, we have this argument every freakin' time. Let's just get something
different for once, and agree on it."

"Fine," Laura said, wrinkling her nose.

"Sprite," Julian said, just as she said "Cream soda."

"Damnit, Laura!" he said.

"I can't help what I like, Keller!" Laura said. "Maybe we should just get beer. That's a universal love right there."

"Laura…pregnant."

"Effin babies!" she said, her tone full of frustration. Nate looked up at her with wide eyes. "Mum?" he asked.

"Never mind her," Julian said, patting Nate's head comfortingly. "She's just throwing a little tantrum of her own. Gee, wonder who you got it from."

…

"Just a report," Julian said, waving Laura away. She was nosing around, asking him questions as he tried to have a conversation with his lawyer on his cell phone. He realized this was possibly the worst thing
he could have said, as he saw Laura's eyes widen-in the same way that Nate's did when he prepared to release a barrage of questions.

Hellion! Emma's mental voice suddenly barked in his mind. There is a situation. Prepare at once, we are leaving in five minutes.

Julian closed his eyes and swore under his breath.

"What?" Laura asked, leaning with her elbows on the table top.

"Here." Julian handed his cell phone over to her. "Something's up. You can finish this." He paused. "You going to be okay? I think Jim's in his—"

"Keller, I'm fine, as always. I'm one part adamantium, one part healing factor, and two parts hormones right now."

"True," Julian agreed, getting up. "That does kind of count as arsenal."

Laura watched him leave and thought, silently, that it was him they had to be worried about.