The next day it seemed like everyone was showing up at the Institute. Quinn figured that a few showed up every hour starting at about seven in the morning but most left a little while after. Almost all of them seemed at home at the mansion and simply walked in without knocking. Quinn recognized several of them from the New Year's party so she wasn't too alarmed when they just walked in. She managed to occupy herself in the kitchen helping Caim who was cooking something that required a lot of ingredients and a lot of time. She had been there with him since about six-thirty after talking with Mr. Xavier around six when she woke up. He had promised that he'd talk with her when he talked with everyone else later and she'd left knowing that arguing would get her nowhere.
It was around noon and she was just sitting at the island watching Caim cook when the doorbell rang. She frowned and looked in the direction of the entrance way, wondering who was ringing since everyone generally just walked in.
She went to the door and opened it to reveal two people dressed in trench coats talking quietly. The man looked over and flashed Quinn a charming smile. "Bonjour," he greeted. Quinn stepped aside to let him pass, not fazed by his charm. "Mr. Xavier is in the danger room," she told him. He chuckled and walked in, following by a smirking Gwen. "I told him it wouldn't work," she told Quinn. "Thanks for getting me twenty bucks." Quinn shrugged and noted that, despite Gwen's joking and easy-going speech, she looked even more tense and on edge than she had the day before.
"So what are you doing here?" Quinn asked, closing the door.
"I came to talk to Professor Xavier," Gwen replied, sticking her hands in her pockets. "He's in the danger room right?"
"Yeah."
There was silence between the two girls until Gwen spoke: "Did you keep your friends safe?"
Quinn crossed her arms and looked away, leftover tears blurring her vision. She knew that there was nothing that she could have done to save them but she still felt terrible and wished that she had been at the mansion when they had been taken. She wouldn't let the older girl see her cry though, so she faked a yawn to give her an excuse to wipe them away. Gwen must have noticed though because she gave her a small friendly smile and ruffled her hair. Quinn drew back, not used to that kind of affection from anyone except from Mark.
"Sorry," Gwen said, drawing her hand back. "And don't worry, we will-"
"Get them back, I know."
Gwen nodded and ran a hand over her short cropped black hair. "I'll see you later then," she said. "Stay sane until we figure this out." She flashed her another smile before going to the hidden elevator that went down to the subbasement where the danger room was. Quinn watched her go and didn't understand why Gwen liked her the way she did, or why she herself felt a small tinge of a connection with the rougher girl. She guessed it was due to the fact that they were both mutants and both somewhat outcasts. Whatever the reason, she brushed the feeling off and went back to the kitchen, determined to keep herself busy and sane until that evening when Mr. Xavier would be addressed them all with, hopefully, a plan of action.
It was around seven when Mr. Xavier called out telepathically for everyone to meet up in the danger room. In a couple minutes everyone was gathered and Quinn spotted a few unfamiliar faces in the crowd including a tall brown haired boy who looked tough enough to hang with Gwen and a blond lady dressed all in white. Quinn didn't really care who they were as long as they were going to help get the others back.
She took a deep breath to steady herself and Caim rested a comforting hand on her shoulder. "We're getting them back," he said. Quinn gave him a small smile. "We are."
Mr. Xavier cleared his throat, drawing everyone's attention, and started to speak: "As you know, the Institute was attacked yesterday by a squad of people hired by the senator candidate Jane Kelley and four students and one teacher were abducted."
Quinn noticed Mr. McCoy at the side of the room shift restlessly.
"Miss Kelley then contacted me about the situation and explained that they were going to be mere collateral for my silence during her campaign. I have since been told other stories that suggest otherwise." He gestured to Gwen, who stood closer to the front of the group. "Gwen's friends Noah and Gabriel were also taken, but the three of them pose no threat to Miss Kelley.
"We all know of Miss Kelley's father's work with William Stryker and I must say that I have been considering the worst. With her acquaintances' and father's knowledge and ideas passed onto her, combined with these kidnappings, we must assume that friends will be used as more than bargaining chips."
An unsettled murmur swept through the crowd and it made Quinn shift uneasily where she stood. Caim's hand clenched onto her shoulder so hard it was sure to create a bruise and as she glanced up at him she realized that he looked like he was trying very hard to control himself; she didn't blame him for wanting something to hold onto. She turned back to Mr. Xavier, wondering if he would exaggerate a bit more because she seemed to be the only one who didn't understand the severity of the situation.
"I am not saying this to alarm you," Mr. Xavier called out. "I'm saying this to show you that we need to come up with a plan and move quickly."
Scott stepped up beside Mr. Xavier and addressed the crowd. "We have located the facility where Jane Kelley is holding our comrades and we have collected blueprints on the building." A monitor glowed to life behind him and an angled view of an old, waterside warehouse filled he screen.
"The building is set at the edge of the Pacific Ocean a few hours outside of Vancouver, Canada. It is two stories high with one floor above ground and a basement. It covers a hundred and twenty square feet, a space far too large for us to search entirely, and it probably has more rooms than we have people. We can fly over it with the Blackbird and get a scan of the top floor, but the basement will have to be manually searched."
"We will get everyone out," Mr. Xavier told the group.
Those seemed to be some sort of magic words because the crowd broke up into smaller groups, discussing the information. Quinn watched Gwen and the French guy step over to talk to Mr. Xavier. They spoke for a few moments before the French man walked off.
Quinn tugged on Caim's sleeve and started towards Mr. Xavier.
"-you know I can help."
Quinn caught the end of Gwen's sentence and crossed her arms when Mr. Xavier didn't respond.
"Come on Professor," Gwen pushed. "Your cyberpath is stuck with them and you need another person who can disarm their systems. Hell, I can do that and blast down the door for you guys."
"She's right Charles," Wolverine said, and Gwen smiled. "I won't let you guys down," she said. A small smile came to Mr. Xavier's lips and he nodded, then looked at Quinn and Caim. "I'm guessing that you two are here to persuade me into letting you come."
Quinn shook her head and he looked surprised. "I'm not here to persuade you," she told him firmly. "I'm here to tell you. Whether or not you let us, Caim and I are getting on that jet." Mr. Xavier nodded. "I know," he replied. "Go with Cyclops and the rest of the team, I will be with you momentarily."