AN: I'm free! Free from school, my friends, and most importantly, English 2! Now if only I could get the nightmares to stop. Disclaimer: I don't own X-men Evolution or any of Marvel's products. I just abuse them with my literary masterpieces. They can't sue me for being sarcastic in that last statement, right?
Chapter 10
You got a Friend in Me
X-mansion - Xavier's Study
The X-men had long since touched down back home and had spent the night sleeping away their well-earned rest. The following morning would be the time set aside to clear up just what all had happened. Moreover, two people were getting a head start by collaborating what they knew.
"So how did you guys find me anyways? Being stuck out in the woods away from civilization usually makes it hard to find someone."
Charles looked into the eyes of his curious student, who quickly averted his gaze back to the window and night sky.
"We found you, once again, through Rebecca. Her powers have been reemerging and showed her glimpses of you, as well as all the other mutants in that lab. She called me and warned me about the situation. Kitty also had me try to track your location with Cerebro when you never came home from the party."
"Sorry about not asking for permission to go to that. I guess I'm still in a 'better to ask forgiveness than permission' mind state. This whole thing could've been avoided if I would've stayed at home."
"Could it? You were specifically captured by the Brotherhood under Mystique's orders to be delivered. I doubt that they wouldn't have tried something like this while you were at school or by yourself. However, the motive behind your capture is what concerns me. What did Mystique have to gain by delivering you to Dr. Gage? What could the doctor offer to a woman like Mystique?"
"You mean Mystique's boss. Thanks for not telling me that she was second in command or whatever. I appreciate being in the loop. Gage said something about paying Mystique's boss. I'm assuming she meant money."
Charles snorted in mild amusement. "Magneto has no need for mere currency. No, he wanted something more from all of this. I sensed him with DJ, the mutant we were looking into. Magneto may have simply done this to gain another mutant by his side."
"Magneto, huh? Everyone around here as codenames and secret pasts. How come I don't get some cool moniker?"
"There's a vote that all senior members at the school participate in to decide on younger students codename. So far, all we've managed to decide is what not to dub you. We'll get back to you on that."
The straight face on the wheelchair bound man almost had Luke going for a moment, and then he stopped and laughed.
"Oh, you're funny, wise guy. Is there anything else you want to grill me for? If not, then I do have some soda sipping to catch back up on. That and a bunch of homework. Why would a teacher give homework on the weekend when she knows that there's a party somewhere?"
"What all did Gage do to you? What can you recount? I know you were either unconscious or in a haze, but tell me the in betweens." Charles was still serious and his concern showed in his tone of voice.
"She gave me something in a syringe that supposedly sped up the messages being sent through my nervous system. All I knew is that it made everything hurt worse. I went unconscious after that, woke up, and then she gave me two pills. She didn't explain what they did, but from what I remember, I couldn't hardly move or talk. It was like being strung out, I guess. I'd never felt like that before."
Xavier sorted the information inside his bald noggin, his mind already making guesses as to what could've really happened. He then began to lay out everything he knew to Luke, to see if everything fit together right.
"We know that Magneto wanted DJ, but why did Mystique destroy the information? Magneto wouldn't have cared if mutants were revealed to the world. Unless he's planning something that he needs more time to prepare. So if we assume that, then he would've ordered Mystique to do Gage's job in order to get close to that information, as well as recruit DJ. That sounds logical. But what about the other mutant? What were they involved in the situation for?
"Those guys were definitely from the Network. Even as dopey as I was, I could still tell. The fact that they didn't kill me on the spot meant that they aren't trying to kill me for leaving. They killed Gage because she had leaked the identity of two Network members, me and Terrence, even though we've retired, so to speak. They killed the other people for being in the way. Other than that, they probably just didn't tolerate experiments on mutants. There's a big faction of Network goons who go around on missions to help other mutants in situations like that. Some of them are for good reasons, like to keep kid mutants out of forced service, but for others, it just gives them a 'righteous' reason to slaughter people."
Xavier nodded again. The Network was outside of his grasp of knowledge; he had no real source inside of it to keep him tied in with their mutants or their policies. Luke was doing a tremendous job clearing up the shady organization for him, unknowingly or not.
"So they would've carried you out of that lab and dumped you in the woods? Or would they want you to come back with them?"
Luke's face turned grim. "I would've been blackmailed back into service for that particular team. They had probably heard of me and wanted to check me out to see if I was a decent recruit. Chances are they would've looked for Terrence too. Fighting the X-men was a plus for them just in case they spotted a strong enough power to attempt recruiting. The more mutants they have on roster, the more jobs they can pull. The more jobs, the more money. You know how the rest goes."
"Is that what you wanted before you came here? A team of mutant to do jobs with you for the Network?"
"I wanted to make something of myself. Friends would've been nice. But I didn't need them, so I didn't go looking. I had something to prove and I still do. But I can do that here, where it's safer for everyone else."
"You've seen a lot of things for being 15 years old. When Gage died, you were hardly bothered, nor were you by the guards. Terrence mentioned other incidents, one where you left him to die, and the others where people died. Is there anything you want to talk about?"
Luke rubbed his temples, thinking of what he wanted to tell the man he felt he owed a little truth.
"Me and Terrence have fought a lot. It tends to happen with mutants who compete against each other in a local area. What he was talking about was Tampa, the messiest place we ever fought at. I was on vacation and at a steam room in a hotel. Terrence was there for a hit, which he did wind up getting. But somewhere along the way, we got into an argument over whether or not I was there to get the hit or if I was actually vacationing. So he picked a fight and eventually I wrapped him up in some towels, shoved him in a closet, filled the steam room to the max and left. Terrence can't use his strength without tensing his muscles. If they're always contracting, like they were when I wrapped him up, then he can't build his strength up and release it. I knew he would be fine in an hour or so. There were plenty of people to help him as soon as I got on the next bus to Virginia."
Xavier nodded silently once more, a common action for him during the conversation. It sounded like a nice story, almost to the point that Xavier doubted how much of it was exaggerated. He wouldn't pry, because it ultimately did not matter. As long as Luke felt comfortable talking, then things were good.
"Now what about the other time? It isn't good for you to bear guilt for such a long time, Luke. It whittles you into an old man faster than you'd think." Speaking from experience, maybe?
"You're right. The people who died in Briars died from an accident. It was something that didn't have to happen, but it did. Again, Terrence and me had meet up, this time with me on a job. I was escorting a delivery truck with high tech computer parts. Terrence was after those parts. He rammed into the delivery truck with his own truck and I pushed his truck away to get space to work with. His truck hit another car that had run a stop sign, causing a wreck. From there, a pile-up emerged that killed one 17 year old girl, a baby, and a group of 4 old men going on a fishing trip. If I hadn't pushed Terrence's truck and that man wouldn't have run the stop sign, then that baby would be starting pre-school now. I know it wasn't entirely my fault and I've moved on from that, but at the same time, I can't deny my role in their deaths. It's something I live with."
Tucking his hands together, Xavier sighed and told his student to go to bed. He needed the rest more than any of the others did. As the gravity manipulation gifted teen left, Xavier told him "Logan's asked for permission to get more one on one time with you. He didn't take no for an answer. I would suggest you start drinking healthier liquids from now on. Otherwise, you may lose your taste for them in an unpleasing manner."
Luke just groaned and meandered off to bed, collapsing into a deep sleep. Xavier, on the other hand, made his way to the Cerebro chamber. From there he began the silent work of creating files for the mysterious Network mutants he had met. Alongside that, he had to update Magneto's file. Just what was his old friend up to?
Luke heard the jarring sound of his alarm clock long before he could open his eyes to greet the morning. Even when he did, he was greeted with darkness quite uncommon for six in the morning. Normally the sun would be peaking in through his window by now. Maybe it was stormy out today? Luke rolled out of bed and proceeded to get ready, yawning every other 5 minutes, a testament to how little time he had to sleep after staying up talking with Xavier.
He made his way down to the kitchen and grabbed a granola bar out of the pantry, shoveling it down along with his pre-morning can of Dr. Pepper. Glancing around, he took note of how empty the kitchen was. Normally, there would be a little more activity going on. No one ate an actual breakfast until after the morning DR session. But everyone would meet down here and talk, eat a snack, and then trudge off to meet their doom together. It was the beautiful thing about teamwork and comradeship that the students had. Where were they now?
"You seem to be fairly awake for only having 3 hours worth of sleep. I may just make this your personal schedule from now on."
Closing the refrigerator door slowly and pretending he hadn't jumped at the sudden voice, Luke turned to see the ever bright and cheery face of Logan.
"What're you talking about? And where is everybody else? It's almost time for training, right?"
"Oh, it's time for training all right. Just not for everyone else. It's 4:30 in the morning, bub. And we've got until 6:30 to whip you in shape."
"For what? Are you saying that I've been getting fat, because I promise you that I've always had this gut."
Patting his belly for added measure, Luke began batting his eyes and put on his pout face. Logan just palmed his face and ordered Luke to report to the Danger Room. As the man turned to leave, Luke shouted, "That would've worked if I was Kitty!"
The man grunted and kept walking. Once Luke was completely sure that the Canadian was out of earshot, he muttered "Or if I was Storm."
Danger Room
The room had already been set when Luke arrived. Thanks to its astounding technology, it looked like a perfect dojo/gym environment. There were human-shaped targets, a few punching bags, weights, an empty space for sparring, and even a skeet launcher from the looks of it. Logan was standing in the middle of the sparring area, waiting with his arms crossed.
"Took your time getting here. Now hustle. We have a lot of work to do to get you whipped into shape. I've been making a few observations on you and how your powers work, so Charles has finally given me the green light to go ahead with my test. We're going to see just how much force you can generate with your powers."
With that, he walked over to the punching bag and gestured for Luke to do the same. "This here punching bag is going to record the force behind each hit you give it. So I want to see how big of a difference there is in using your physical strength and your pushes. Use your right arm first, then left, then do the same with your legs."
Luke nodded his heads at the orders, waiting until Logan had made it up to the control room before starting. A simple right forward punch connected with the bag, barely making it budge. Embarrassed, Luke took a step back and built up his strength before punching again, hitting the air. The bag made a much more noticeable budge, swaying like a pendulum for a few moments. His left side gave similar results, if a little weaker due to it being his recessive side. His legs were more inspiring, as his leg powered push gave a much large sway on the punching bag. When Luke finished, Logan had already returned back down to the main floor, looking satisfied.
"As I figured, your powers only allow you a certain boost of your own physical strength. That boost is determined in part by how much effort you use, or the amount of muscle tissue you shred. Your powers also have the benefit of being able to push in any direction you will it to. When you hit the punching bag with your fist, the force only spread from that one point of contact. With your push, the force spread from a much bigger point of contact. This generated more force being transferred, thus the bigger swings. With the right points of contact, you could move just about anything within human capabilities. But there is one more thing that I got out of this test. Your powers augment your own physical strength and direct the force generated by that strength outwards, as you will it to. So if your physical strength increases, so does your powers."
Hearing Wolverine of all people explain all of that was confusing enough. What he was actually saying was even more confusing to Luke.
"So you're saying that if I push from the right spots, I can push things better and that my actual strength is connected to the strength of my powers? I already knew all of that, pretty much. So what's the big deal?"
The man just grinned and grabbed Luke's shoulder, steering him over to the weights and exercise equipments.
"This will be your life before and after school for the next month or so. Since you can't be trusted to simply stay unoccupied when grounded and we can't let you wander around unattended without you getting in trouble, the Professor and I have decided to start you on a light workout and see how the results turn out. So enjoy."
Luke was then left to start exercising on the equipment, having his own pick of what he wanted to do first. Deciding to keep things simple, he took his position on a weight bench beneath a bar. He didn't bother to put any weights on either side of it, as he could make the bar his own custom weight. From there he did what he thought was right and began to push the bar up and away from his chest, before retracting and easing it back down. It wasn't like he could exercise wrong, right?
Continuing his exercise in rhythm, he complained aloud, hoping to catch Logan's ear. "You know, you could've at least let me grab some headphones or something if this is what I'm going to be doing. Or you could hook me up with a TV screen down here. Anything. This is gonna get boring real quick."
"Listening to you complain gets boring real quick too. So quit yapping or I'll go down there and give you some real motivation."
Luke chuckled at Logan's surliness. Then he focused his mind back on the effort at hand.
'This had better work. If my powers aren't any stronger by the end of the month, I'm going to paint Logan's motorcycle pink and put itching powder all in his suits. At least I'll be in better shape for the ladies.'
"Wolverine, what's Luke already doing down there this morning? And why is he playing around on that exercise equipment?"
Scott, the first to arrive at the Danger room for morning training, stood behind the glass looking down over the infamous room. Logan was standing by the computer console that controlled the room's setting, fiddling with certain knobs and buttons.
"He's here on special training. We're working on seeing just how strong he is and how strong he's gonna get. Don't worry, He's still gonna be playing with you guys for morning sessions."
"It's hardly playing. But why isn't he using more weight on that machine? I know he's scrawny, but only one bar is kinda weak."
Logan snorted before replying "You're talking about the one guy on your team who steamrolled over you and Jean at the same time. And did you forget he could add weight to anything that he touches? I've been thinking about letting him add weights to the uniforms."
Scott stayed silent after that, still a tad bitter over Luke's 'win'. It had been a bad underestimation on his and Jean's part. Obviously, Luke's powers were on a tier above his own and Jean shouldn't have played nice with him.
"He couldn't do it again, you know."
"I know. He knows. But are you really sure? Summers, if you let losing one time rattle you so bad then maybe you should be down there with him."
"Doing what? My eyes don't get any stronger than this. I can crack boulders for crying out loud. But he just walked through it all. How are you supposed to fight a mutant like that?"
"Be smart. I have to be 5 feet from a person to be a serious threat with these claws, but I don't let that stop me. Use your powers and environment creatively. Now quit complaining and get down there to lead. The rest of the students are here."
Scott headed down while the Wolverine altered his Danger room into the morning session. Grinning wildly, he used the intercom system while the Danger Room floor opened up. "I hope you guys are real strong swimmers."
The first bell had already rang as students began piling inside the school's main building and headed to class. Some were bright and fresh, eager to face the day. Others were not so lucky and were still sleepy and tired. Luke departed from his small group of friends he normally hung out with during the time before school and headed off to class, dragging behind due to his tired state.
'Logan and his big ideas. I understand that he doesn't get many of them, but why do I have to be his guinea pig for each one? Weighted clothes. Not very original, but I guess it'll work.'
Wolverine had pulled Luke aside after the morning session, which was a supposed simulation of a very dangerous river guarded by an army of turrets and robotic claw arms, and told him to weigh down his clothes with a few ounces of extra weight to help with his strength training. Normally, he would simply lie about it and not do anything of the sort. But his conscious was telling him to do it, if only for the fact that it would make him stronger.
Making it to class just as the bell rang and slumping down in his seat, Luke's head already had hit the desk before he noticed two things. Amanda was not in her desk. Some stranger covered from head to toe by clothing was. There was not an inch of skin showing on this person at all. Sunglasses and a scarf covered the face and ear, a high-collared sweater covered the torso, black gloves covered the hands, and then pants and shoes covered the person's lower half. The person was unidentifiable except for the hair. Blonde hair. Wait a second!
"Crystal? Is that you? What the hell are you doing wearing all that in the middle of September? It's still like 80 degrees outside; you'll suffocate wearing all of that stuff."
It was still indeed hot in Bayville, although it was time for things to cool off. But the more important problem was why Amanda was wearing something so ridiculous. It was something Luke was going to get to the bottom about.
Crystal, however, was not going to answer. She wasn't even going to respond at all to Luke talking. Was she pouting or sulking over something he did? Was she mad?
"What's up with the cold shoulder? Come on, I didn't do anything! What could possibly have happened so you can't talk to me and you having to dress like that?"
Still no answer. Before Luke could barrage the girl with questions again, a shadow descended over the two. Mrs. Barnes had had enough of these two students disrupting her class and she was going to put a stop to it.
"I hate to interrupt this conversation that is obviously more important than anything the class could be talking about, but I'm going to ask you two to take your discussion elsewhere if you refuse to stay quiet."
"Alright, we'll be back in five."
Grabbing the still silent girl's wrist, he tugged her out of her seat and dragging her out into the hallway, shutting the door firmly behind him. The girl slouched against the wall and remained silent, starring at the floor.
"Seriously? What the hell has gotten into you? You're dressed all funny, you won't say anything to me. What's up?"
Still nothing. Grabbing her wrist to jerk her a little bit trying to evoke a reaction, Luke noticed something.
"You're not wearing the watch disguiser thing. What happened to it? Did you break it or something because I can go get you another one?"
"Why are you trying to be a friend to me?"
Finally she spoke. But that question was out of the blue.
"I dunno. You were nice enough to me on the first day. You didn't get mad when I cracked jokes. You've driven me around twice without really knowing me. It seems fair to be nice to someone who was nice to me."
"I could've killed you! You could've died because of that doctor woman and it would've been my fault! I trapped you inside a rock and left you in a room with a crazy woman with a scalpel. And I did it all because I was told to. Why would you want to be friends with someone like that?"
"You didn't know most of that stuff would happen till after it happened. You didn't know what Dr. Gage was gonna do. And I'm fine. Look at me; I'm the perfect bill of health. You didn't put me in danger or risked my life. I put me in danger and risked my life. You work for Mystique and I'm Xavier's student. Whatever we do to each other as X-men and Brotherhood shouldn't affect us as Luke and Amanda. Or at least I don't think it should."
The girl was left dumbfounded. Was he really serious about this?
"You're crazy."
"Yeah, but it's the sexy kind. Can't you tell?"
He was joking with her. He really was serious.
She faked a wheeze and smiled cheekily back at him, saying, "I think there's too much bullcrap in the air, I can't breathe! Did you just say something about being sexy? That's the last thing anyone would ever use to describe you. You'll never get a girl like you are now."
"Coming from someone who practically invited me to her house while she was wearing nothing but a nightgown and had me sneak in through a window, I'm pretty sure that I don't have girl problems. Especially since you're older than I am. I'm also pretty sure that it does say a little bit more about you."
"That was Mystique's plan, not mine! I was asleep, so how was I supposed to know?"
"The fact that your face is redder than a stop sign is a pretty good indication to the contrary."
And man was her face red. Luke had seen tomatoes with less color than that. But he was pretty sure the cause for said redness was more to do with her anger than embarrassment.
Shoving the dolt on the shoulder, Crystal stomped back into class and sat back down, back to her normal self. Luke followed soon after, a grin etched on his face. Mission accomplished. Digging through his pockets, Luke pulled out a small rubber sphere, like the ones kids bounce around like crazy. He began rolling it back and forth across his desk in between his two hands with his powers, using the twitches of a finger. To the common observer, it would look like he was using his finger to roll the ball.
He would play this game against himself to see if one hand could get the ball past the other hand before it caught the ball and sent it back. It was frivolous, but it killed time. Back and forth the ball went, neither winning nor losing in the silly game. Eventually, Luke's timing slipped and both fingers twitched, compelling his gravitational pushes to act at the same time. The ball was caught directly in the middle and erupted in a loud pop. Startled, Luke barely had time to tuck the remains of the ball away in his pocket before Mrs. Barnes came storming back to his desk and demanded an answer.
"She popped her gum really really loud."
A thumb gesture pointing to Amanda was met in kind with a middle finger that was quickly tucked away when Ms, Barnes' head swiveled. She glared at the two, and then returned to her chalkboard. Amanda ducked her head over and whispered, "What was that? What did you do?"
Luke whispered back "I don't know. But when I get home to the Danger Room, I'm gonna find out."
Amanda nodded, filling in the blank that the Danger Room was probably where the X-dorks trained. Then the two settled their heads down and drifted off into a snooze and their teacher droned on.
"So how come me and Kurt don't get to go do recruiting missions? Heck, why weren't we even told that you were bringing a new kid in? He's been here all night and we haven't even met. How can I make him feel all warm and welcome here if I can't talk with him and show him how things are done around here?"
A snort from across the table by Logan interjected "The day we let you show the newbie's how to do things is the day I eat my boot. You don't even know how to do things yourself. You're like our damsel in distress waiting in the wings. Our bait, even."
"Oh, shut up, Butch. Has anyone ever told you that you look like a Butch? Besides, I'm more than qualified to at least show him what not to do, like replace sunglasses or hide watches. And it would be cool. I've always wanted an accomplice in crime or whatever. This kid's got jail time, so he's already got the proper credentials to fit the bill."
"He was framed, Luke. And I don't want to even think I heard of you polluting Evan's mind about how we do things here. He needs to take this seriously." Storm warned Luke from her end of the table by Charles.
"Yeah, yeah, Mrs. Ororo. I know. And out of the six times I've been in jail, at least two of them were framed. But as long as it's on his record and the word gets out, he's got all the street cred he needs to fill the side-kick roster."
"Wait, you've been in jail? Like, on your record and everything? Wow, like for what?" Kitty questioned, swirling her cereal with her spoon.
"Oh, you know. Stuff. Nothing bad. And the bail was never too big. The longest I ever stayed was that night I was 'mistaken' for someone else and had to spend the night with Mississippi's finest while they ran fingerprints. After 8 hours of listening to a 6'7 convict sing one country song over and over again, I left early. They still have a warrant for my arrest in Lee County, or whatever they call things like that nowadays. You'd think they would drop it since I'm innocent."
Kitty was dying to ask more questions and Kurt was jumping out of his seat to ask why he couldn't be considered the side-kick/accomplice, but the two quieted down to hear Xavier and Logan talk about Evan and his probable desire for revenge. Breakfast ended soon afterwards and Scott was burdened with putting Evan on the basketball team. One less thing for Luke not to worry about. But this whole revenge thing… Maybe he needed to listen up at the breakfast table more often to get the full story.
Finishing his food and getting ready for school, Luke grabbed his bike out of the garage and sped off, planning to show Amanda just what he had figured out last night. He'd already thought it out and brought three more of those rubber balls to use as examples. The only hard part would be finding her. Parking his bike in one of the few bike racks the school had, he turned and walked to the main grounds, which were littered with kids milling about.
'This place is packed even before school. Don't they have better things to do before school, like watching cartoons?'
The girl he was looking for wasn't in any of her normal spots and by the time Luke had looked through them all, the bell had rung for class to start. The teen got there early and took his seat in the back of class, waiting on his friend to show up. She did, wearing normal clothes and her watch this time, and sat next to him silently.
"So? Come on, you know you want to ask. I figured it out last night after Logan tried to chew my head off for slacking off. It's pretty cool."
"What? Huh, oh yeah! You popped that ball yesterday. Whoop dee doo."
Luke fixed her a mild glare and turned to face her directly. "Sarcasm is only appreciated around here when I'm using it. No one else. What's got you all bugged this morning you won't let me tell my story in a good mood?"
"Mystique's got this new guy she wants to bring in. It's got nothing to do with us, but she made us wait forever outside her office."
"Sorry. Get over it and get happy with me."
Wow. Not only was that last statement harsh, it also sounded completely dirty. And from the look on the girl beside him was giving, she knew it too. Good thing the two of them both knew the other was just joking with most of what they said.
"So what did you figure out in the Danger Room WonderBoy? Did you learn how to tie your shoes?"
"I learned how to leave the seat up, then weigh it down with an extra hundred pounds so the girls can't move it in our mansion. You can talk with them about what that's like, since the Brotherhood house bathroom doesn't even flush, let alone have a seat."
"I live with my dad. Me and Mystique got that cleared up from day one. I cannot live with scummy people in a run down shack like that. Rouge might be able to handle it, but I can't. So what did you really figure out before I get disinterested even more?"
Acting out his fake mortification dramatically, Luke hurried on saying "Well since I'm boring you, I'll just spit it out. I busted my balls yesterday."
Before a word could be said about what Luke had just said, the teen grabbed one from his pocket, placed it on his desk, and put his hands in position on each side of it.
"When I use my powers to push the ball, the force I generate is expelled and moves the air, which moves the ball. But when the two forces compete against each other, the air has no way to escape. Thus, it's pressurized and collapses the ball that's trapped in there with it. So, in other words, I figured out how to make things collapse in on themselves. Then I started thinking about it, and I reversed the process. I pulled at the ball from opposite directions. When the two forces were pulling on it, they were of equal strength so the ball couldn't be attracted to one more than the other. Thus, it pulled apart violently, so now I know how to make things explode too."
Rather than be impressed, the now secretly jealous girl simply took the ball out of Luke's palm, closed her fist, then opened it back up, revealing a shattered ball.
"You wasted all that time saying all of that when I can do the same thing. How it happens doesn't matter to me. As long as it's doable, that's what matters."
"So you can break your own crystals? Do you make some weaker than others or do they all do that when you touch them?"
Great. Now he was curious. She wasn't some show and tell project and if he kept talking louder and louder he was going to attract attention. He was so stupid when he got excited.
"Calm down, you look like you're about to wet your pants. And is that drool? I break these crystals because I want them broken. That's all I can really say about it. I want it to happen, put my hands on it, and it happens. So go figure that out in your so-called Danger Room. Sounds lame if you ask me. If all you do in there is play around, then I don't see how it got that name."
Luke dimmed at the slurry of insults he just received. Turning back and placing his face in the crook of his elbow for his customary nap, he mumbled something barely audible to his neighbor student "You're just as grouchy and crabby as Mystique. Maybe you are actually learning from her after all."
Amanda stared at the back of Luke's head in shock. Did he really think she was being bitchy? Sure, she had ragged on him and his training room, but still. Comparing her to Mystique was its own level of insult. He knew she was in a bad mood and tried to cheer her up with his own enthusiasm, but she just shot him down. Now he was in a pissy mood and she felt worse because of it. And he had been willing to stick it out and be friends with her in the first place, if yesterday was true.
'I'm a terrible friend to him. I gotta make it up to him somehow. But how?'
Watching the back of his head and the steady rise and fall of his breathing, the mutant girl was inspired. She would need some help from her team, but it would be perfect. He'd love it. Grinning, the girl looked up and saw the rest of the class listening to the teacher's lecture. Her grin dropped and she herself settled her head down. She still had school to deal with.
Luke had made it home in record time after school, eager to head to the danger room. His bad mood from the morning had only increased due to annoyances at school, so he was ready to vent on something. The angry teen headed to the kitchen, looking to grab a drink before he went to work out, only to find a man in a wheelchair waiting for him instead of a Dr. Pepper.
"I'm afraid that Evan has got the Danger Room occupied for the day. Logan will reschedule your session for some other time. You've got today off. Take a break and let your body rest. Or, if you're up for it, I can drag Storm out of the observation chamber and give her the thumbs up on your flying lessons."
Angry as Luke was, he still knew that learning something new would not be very positive in his current state.
"Nah, I'll pass on that. I'll just do my own stuff for today. See you later, Professor."
Leaving the kitchen and the bald man behind, Luke headed back outside, digging one of the rubber balls out of his pocket. Walking to garage, Luke shut the door to it from the outside and took a few steps back on the driveway. Cocking his arm back, he pitched the ball to land as close as it could in the right angle that the door created on the ground. The ball bounced off and went sky high, well over the mansion's roof.
Luke opened his palm up and pulled the ball back with his powers. He was playing a game he made when he had first started living on his own. It was once his favorite pastime, but now it was just making him madder and madder. With each throw the ball got consistently higher and harder to pull back, it got to the point where Luke would lose sight of the ball in the setting sunlight and would simply pull on a massive amount of space just to catch the ball.
Winding up for a throw, Luke stopped when he saw the garage door open up. Scott's car slipped out from its parking spot and onto the drive. Luke stepped out of the way just in time as Scott drove by. The new kid was with him, as well as Jean.
Sighing and rubbing his head, Luke shrugged and went inside to find Kitty or Kurt. He needed someone to talk to now. That and a therapist for his arm. He found the two mutants in the kitchen, conversing about the sudden basketball game that Evan was playing in.
"That explains why Scott nearly ran me over on the drive. Who're they playing against?"
"Evan's old school, I think. Pretty weird since they aren't on our schedule."
"Yeah. And Evan just joined the team today too. Now he's gotta play his old team. That's gonna be harsh on him, all his old teammates playing against him and all. That's all one big coincidence, I guess. So what does he do, anyways? I haven't seen his powers in action yet."
"Wolverine calls him Spyke because he grows these weird bone shards from his skin and he can shoot them out. He's already getting good at shooting them."
Luke nodded, before digging through the pantries for super. "So how come he got a name right off the bat? I've been waiting forever now on my codename. You guys all got yours quick too. How come I'm the only one that's getting hazed like this?"
Kitty stopped what she was doing at her seat and thought about it for a moment. "You know, you've got weird powers compared to the rest of us. There isn't really much you can't do, so that makes it hard to pin your powers down and name them. It's like Jean. She can do just about anything, so she doesn't have a codename. Or at least, I've never heard it."
"I guess. I just want a codename. It'd be so freakin' cool. I feel left out a little."
"Well don't worry about that, bub. You and me are fixin' to make up that time you missed earlier. I'd hate for you to feel 'left out'."
Wolverine had arrived, still in his uniform from his earlier supervision of Evan's session. The man plucked Luke from his seat and began hauling him away. The teen in mention began to squirm and try to free himself.
"Can this wait a few more minutes? I got food cookin' in the microwave! I haven't eaten in hours! Come on! You're just mad because I ate the last sausage link this morning, but it's not my fault! You're just to slow with those butter knives of yours!"
Kitty and Kurt laughed at their friend's upcoming torture, partially because of how he was adding on to it with his mouth. The two finished up meals of their own and were about to go their separate ways to their rooms, until Kurt stopped Kitty.
"Do you trust him?"
"Who, Luke? Well, yeah, I guess. He's been pretty open with us and friendly. It's kinda weird. We don't know a thing about him, but he always tries to be nice to us and talk to us."
"Yeah, I guess you're right. He hasn't said a word about where he comes from or his family, but he talks about being a mutant for hire as if it's nothing. I just feel like I should know him more by now."
"It's like Wolverine. We don't know him at all, but we still trust him with our lives. Don't worry too much about it Kurt. We'll figure him out eventually."
Kurt smiled and waved his tail good night, vanishing from sight inside a cloud of sulfur. Kitty rolled her eyes and went to bed herself, ignorant of the man who had just heard their conversation.
Xavier rolled into the room his two X-men had vacated. It seemed that even his teams had questions about Luke and whether or not he was a genuine part of the team. There was just something about how mysterious he still was to the rest of them. And if his team couldn't trust him fully, then how could he be an X-man?
AN: So yeah, all I can really fit from Spyke's episode is the breakfast table. Nothing much else I could do, with Luke being grounded and not one of Xavier's recruiters. Sorry bout that. I did like the episode, though. Pietro was given the proper emphasis and power that makes him a proper threat. He flipped cars just by running by them, so that's pretty cool. I think I may do a Brotherhood chapter here pretty soon, from Terrence and Amanda's views, simply because I love my OCs and I feel like I haven't given them any real fleshing out. Chapter Title came from that song off of Toy Story. You all know it. Anywho, I'm gonna bid you guys a happy whatever and go get some sleep. Big Willis, out.