Picking Fruits

"We need strawberries," Jean told Rogue, and pointed in the direction of the berries.

"Alright," Rogue walked down the aisle Jean had motioned toward and stared at the selection. She hadn't ever gone grocery shopping before; she didn't understand why she and Jean were doing it together when Jean was fully capable of shopping alone, just as every other time.

Picking up a carton of strawberries, Rogue flipped it over and looked through the clear plastic. What made these berries any better or worse than their neighboring berries? Still strawberries, but a different brand. Rogue picked those up, too, getting a good look at them. They didn't appear any different.

Jean came up behind Rogue and pointed to a carton. "That one," she said.

Rogue turned around to look at her. "Why those ones?"

"They look better," she said with a shrug.

Letting out a sigh, Rogue picked up the carton of strawberries and set them gently in the cart. "Ah don't understand why y'all made me come with you. Ah obviously don't know what Ah'm lookin' for' t' go shoppin'. Ah'm just slowin' you down."

Jean waved Rogue's concern off. "Don't worry about it. Besides, we're going to Dick's and gettin' you a baseball glove on our way home."

"Yeah, 'cept Ah proved Ah was no good at the game. Ah lost it for my team."

"Did you see any of your teammates angry at you?" Jean questioned.

"Well, no..."

"You'll get better at it, Rogue. It's still only winter. We have all spring to get your skill levels up. You'll be fine."

Rogue shuffled her feet, looking down at her toes. "Ah guess. But Ah got trainin' an' Ah have t' learn sports? Ah also got school an' -"

Jean placed a friendly hand on Rogue's shoulder. "We'll get you through it, alright? Xavier's is a place to improve. It is a school after all. You'll learn to control your powers, learn to fight on our teams, learn English and science, and how to play sports and have fun." She added a friendly smile on top of her encouragement.

Despite not feeling wholly optimistic about the overall situation, Rogue gave Jean a tiny smile. It was more to get the other girl off her back than anything else. Rogue didn't need anyone smothering her.

"Alright, Ah guess. What else do we need then?"

Apparently satisfied, Jean took her hand away from Rogue's shoulder and contemplated her list of needed groceries. "I can't read this very well, but I think we're off to finding vegetables. Do you know how to pick up lettace?"

"Pick the greenest?" Rogue guessed.

Jean smiled. "Yeah, that'll work. I'll get the beans."

Rogue turned away to find the aisle with lettuce. At least she had Jean convinced she was fine. She didn't need anyone knowing her insecurities. It made things worse rather than better.

Horizon

"It's freezin' out here," Rogue hissed under her breath. She rubbed her hands up and down her arms, trying to create friction.

"Shh!" Banshee hushed quickly. "Your uniform should take care o' the cold."

"Well, it doesn't," Rogue argued. "An' Ah wasn't loud t' begin with."

"We shunnae be talkin' at all," Banshee explained. He held out a hand to grab Rogue by the shoulder, stopping their progress. "Jus' up ahead is where the kill switch should be. If they hear us, we're done for."

Rogue squinted to look ahead at what Banshee was talking about, but couldn't see anything new. "Here Ah thought, you were the loud one."

Banshee started forward again, masking his footsteps' crunches in the snow. "Don't mean I can't be quiet, lass. C'mon, follow."

Advancing forward as cautiously as she could, try as she might, she wasn't able to achieve the same quiet step her teammate was. While she knew it shouldn't bother her, she found herself a little frustrated she could be the reason their mission failed.

Banshee stopped again, holding out an arm despite the distance between him and Rogue. "Closer, lass."

Slowly, Rogue did as he told her. "What now?" she whispered.

"Sc - I mean, Cyclops's gotta know that we're gettin' close to accomplishin' the mission. He's gonna have his guard up."

"So?"

"Do you hear Storm or Dazzler?"

Rogue paused and listened. "No. Ah hear the branches, but nothin' else."

"Exactly. Either they're waiting t' attack Cyclops at the last moment, or he's already gotten t' them. We gotta be careful."

Rogue huffed. "So what we jus' standin' 'round talkin' for, Sugah?"

"The kill switch should be jus' on the other side o' that trail. I'm gonna double back and try drawin' his attention. You hear me sonic scream, you run forward an' win this match for all'a us."

Instead of saying anything, Rogue gave Banshee a firm nod. While she heard his footsteps, they were faint, and quickly disappeared until all she heard again was her breath and the slight wind through the skeleton trees. She waited patiently a few minutes, but when she heard nothing more, she began to get antsy again. The cold was seeping through her bones even through her supposedly "isolated" costume, and she had nothing to do. Even so, she waited for his scream.

"Ah don't like this," Rogue eventually muttered. She shifted in the snow, looking all around her. She didn't see any movement, she hadn't heard anyone, and she was fairly certain that something had happened to Banshee's plan. She decided it was up to her, and only her, to finish the simulation.

Stretching out her limbs, in case she'd need to move more quickly and athletically than she was accustomed to, Rogue measured out the distance she'd need to sprint in order to pull the kill switch Banshee had been talking about. With a deep breath, Rogue burst into motion.

And was immediately rejected.

Instead of darting forward across the trail, a beam of light battered her to the ground. The sudden change of momentum was enough to give her whiplash, but not enough for her to lose her spunk.

"What the hell was that?" Rogue shouted angrily. She gingerly picked herself off the ground and brushed snow off of her costume. As she did so, the scenery around the team gradually disappeared into the familiar landscape of the Danger Room.

"A lesson," Scott replied.

No longer feeling the need to brush herself off, Rogue stormed up in front of him. He was taller than her, but she was furious. "A lesson!? You realize this is a trainin' exercise for the team? Why -?"

"Rogue, stop." Something in Scott's steely voice caused Rogue to listen to him and clamp her jaws shut. "You can't win everything. You should rely on your teammates, but that won't always prevent you from getting hurt." He turned around to include the rest of her team. "You need to learn strategy and to utilize it." His gaze stopped on Storm, though no one could really see his eyes through his visor. "Go clean up and get ready for dinner."

When Scott turned his back, Sean walked up to Rogue's side. "For the record, lass, this lesson was rigged t' begin with."

"What happened to you, Storm, and Dazzler?" Rogue asked as if he hadn't said a thing.

"Took us out, same as you."

"No sound?"

"Lad's a master o' strategy."

Tagged

Rogue gathered her book, pencil, and binder in her arms while getting to her feet. "Thanks, Hank. Ah dunno what Ah'd do without ya."

"I'm sure you'd find a way to pass the class," he said kindly. "You're far too smart a young woman to fail."

Quickly, so as to hide the heat flushing to her cheeks, Rogue replied, "Ah think you might overestimate me."

"Au contraire, chere," a new voice butted in. Both Hank and Rogue quickly turned their heads to find Remy standing in the doorway. "You smarter, prettier, an' better comp'ny den you t'ink." Before Rogue get get a reply in, he completely switched gears. "We pullin' t'gether teams for baseball. You wanna play, meet in da Danger Room in ten." He then turned away and walked down the hallway, possibly grabbing more people to play.

Rogue turned to Hank and blinked. "Ah dunno -"

"Nonsense!" He held out a large hand. "Let me help you carry your things and we'll go down and play. I'm sure we can find a glove for you to play with."

"But Ah -"

"I don't want to hear it. I've made the decision on your behalf, and no is not the answer. Baseball is our favorite pastime."

"Ah can't touch no one!" Rogue shouted, preventing any interruptions.

"Sure you can. You have gloves, do you not? I'm not saying it's entirely practical, but they'll work for our purposes. You don't have to worry. We're all acutely aware of the situation." Without further ado, Hank gently grabbed Rogue's school items from her arms and began to lead the way down the hallway. He had managed to grab his mitt during their short conversation, and held that under his arm.

On their way down the hallway, they passed Betsy, also dressed for the game. Hank stopped her in the hallway. "Would you happen to have another glove for our newest friend?" he asked. Rogue shrunk against the wall, avoiding Betsy's eyes.

Betsy frowned. "No, I don't. You might ask Kurt. He's far too invested into these games, if you ask me."

"Unfortunately, our resident German appears to have already vacated his room and gone down to the match. We'll find something that works. Thank-you."

"Good luck," she called, resuming her walk through the hallways.

"Ah guess Ah just can't play."

"No. Contrarily, we have plenty of gloves from you to choose from. Only one team needs their field equipment at a time. You can trade gloves with someone from the opposite team. I'm sure no one would mind. In the future, someone will have to bring you to a sports store to find you your very own glove. In the summer, we usually pick a night every week to versus each other in one sport or another. Basketball is often another top pick." He turned down Rogue's hallway and opened her door. With careful moments, he put down the stack of her school items on her desk and turned back around to face her. "Anything else you might grab for a game? Perhaps a ponytail holder? Who knows what kind of weather will be programmed into the Danger Room."

"Ah thought the Danger Room was used for training only," Rogue commented. Taking Hank's advice, she fished out an elastic band from a desk drawer, and a brush from beside it. Pulling her hair up, she brushed it into shape.

Hank waved his hand in dismissal of the idea. "In theory, yes. But we get the whole school in on it, we sometimes use it for recreation as well. Kurt sometimes finds a partner to play cat-and-mouse.

"Ready?"

Pulling her hair one last time through the band, Rogue dropped her hands to her side. "Ah guess. What if Ah don't like these games?"

"Then I suppose you don't have to participate. Don't worry, though. You'll get the hang of it quickly enough, and you'll enjoy yourself. Come on. Remy didn't give us a lot of time to get down there."

When Hank and Rogue walked into the Danger Room, Rogue was surprised to find most of the team already there. Alison and Warren were the only two missing, but Warren eventually entered soon after.

"Ally decided not to show up?" Jean asked.

"I think she went out to the club with her friends tonight," Kurt provided. "I guess we're not good enough for her."

"No, we're just too good for her," Bobby scoffed. "I mean, look at us. We're quite the happy bunch."

Ororo smiled in reply to Bobby's uplifting comment. "Let's see how long that lasts. How are we breaking up into teams?" Her and Scott exchanged glances, as if they were capable of mentally sorting the mutants.

"This side of the room is on the field, and those closest to home plate is up first. Any objections?" he asked.

A devilish grin spread across Remy's face. "None. Le's settle dis once an' for all, non?"

"I don't see how this time will be any different," Scott shrugged.

Remy gestured toward Rogue and Hank. "Dis time, we got dese two an' you got Iceboy."

"Hey!" Bobby shouted.

Jean pulled at her boyfriend's shoulder, guiding him out onto the field. "Let's see how it plays out first, boys. Maybe Bobby will actually catch the ball without use of his powers this time."

Bobby threw his hands up in the air. "What is this? You're on my team!"

"Ja, that's what you think. Don't worry, I got your back," Kurt said.

"Thanks - wait! You're not on my team." Bobby scowled and walked out to his position at third.

Kurt grinned and took the bat in his hands, settling into a batting position. "Silly me. I must have forgotten."

"You better not forget on the field," Betsy warned.

"I wouldn't mind," Ororo commented from first. "Jean, how about we show these boys how it's done?"

Jean nodded and concentrated on the home plate. Piotr was settling in as catcher. "Right. Ready, Peter?"

"Da."

"Let's play ball!"

Eating Something You Don't Want To

"Hey Ally, have you see Hank?"

"No ... why?" she asked in response.

"Ah need his help on mah Biology homework. He ain't in his room like he usually is."

"He might be in the rec room with Bobby," Ally suggested with a shrug. She didn't give Rogue a chance to speak further and continued walking down the hallway toward her room.

Rogue sighed, but decided to take Ally's word and trudged down to the room she hardly knew at all. She peeked inside and knew instantly that Ally had been wrong. "Uh, hi guys. Any of ya know where Hank is?"

Bobby looked up from the television screen and gave Rogue a shake of his head. Remy and Scott paused their pool game.

"What do you need him for?" Scott asked.

"Biology homework," Rogue said. "He's usually the one t' give me a hand." Her eyes wandered from Scott to Remy, absently wondering if he would be able to help her as well as Hank. She doubted it, seeing as Remy wasn't in school, but she hadn't really hung out with Remy in a long time.

"Good luck, chere," Remy said unhelpfully. He turned back to the table, calculating his next move.

A little frustrated, Rogue turned back around and wandered slowly through the hallways. She couldn't figure out how such a big guy like Hank could disappear so thoroughly. Even those that knew him well didn't know where he could be.

Then, on her way past the kitchen, she heard noises that were certainly out of place for the time of night. Everyone had already had dinner, so why was someone rooting through pots and pans and other noisy items?

Rogue poked her head through the doorway, and then smiled when she saw exactly whom she had been looking for. "Hey! What ... are ya doin'?" She slowly walked up to Hank's side, peering at the object of his interest.

"Cooking," he replied cheerfully. "Or, more specifically, baking."

"Ah di'n't know you baked."

"I don't," Hank agreed. "Consider this an experiment."

"Cookies ... an experiment?"

"I thought I'd add a few extra ingredients for longer lasting freshness. Usually cookies get soggy when put away or hard and stale when left out. Either way you treat these cookies, they should taste just as good as if they came right out of the oven not even an hour ago."

Rogue swallowed. "And ... what are these ingredients?"

Hank leveled a serious stare at her. "If I told you, then I'd have to kill you."

She jumped back. "What?"

He smiled and chuckled. "No, it's my little secret for right now. Want one?"

Rogue held up her hand, rejecting his offer too quickly to think about his feelings. "Nah, Ah'm full. But thank -"

Hank cut her off, shoving a cookie in her face. "It tastes like the real thing, but it'll last longer."

"Yeah, but is it healthy?" Rogue shot back.

"Of course not! It's a cookie!"

"No, Ah'm good."

"I can't take no for an answer."

The look in his blue eyes was innocent enough, Rogue decided. A little afraid, she took the cookie from his oversized hand, and took a small bite out of the edge. Chewing it and swallowing it, she met his eyes.

"Well?"

"Unless you bake a mean cookie, this the best cookie I've ever had."

She was rewarded with a gleeful grin.

Fireworks

The loud bell rang over the students' heads, signalling it was time for the class to start. Rogue's English teacher was one of the teachers that had everyone sitting in their seats before the bell, expecting everyone to have their pencils out and writing the prompt without being told to. Such a thing rarely happened, but it didn't mean her demands were unwarranted. Rogue usually sat down right away, but took her time in pulling out her pen and notebook. She never really liked the prompts the teacher put up on the board, and she didn't see the point of writing a daily journal anyway.

Write about an important person in your life and why.

The teacher made the prompt sound so easy, with such few words. Yet Rogue hardly had anyone. Her mother and Irene dropped her off at Xavier's mansion as if she was a sack of potatoes, and before that, Rogue didn't have much either. Now she had the professor, Ororo, Kurt, and Remy, but Rogue couldn't allow herself to get too close to them, both physically and emotionally. Ororo and Kurt always put an effort into making her feel welcome, but with Remy it was a hit or a miss. Either he was in the mood, or he wasn't around at all.

Rogue twiddled the pencil between her fingers, staring at the board as she tried to think of what to write about. She wouldn't be surprised if most of everyone else was writing about their boyfriend, girlfriend, or best friend. Family members were something of the past; teenagers were too good for that now. Rogue had none of that. She didn't even have a family to take for granted.

"Getting close to other people has never been easy for me," Rogue began. She took her time in writing out each letter, each word. She had to make sure that what she wrote was true, even if the teacher wouldn't care. "but if I have to choose one important person in my life -"

"Put down your pencils," the teacher called out to the class.

Rogue jerked her head up, the white streaks in her bangs falling into her eyes. She didn't even have time to finish her sentence, let alone answer the prompt. Using her pencil to wipe her hair aside, she gently closed her notebook with her other hand. Some other prompt she'd have enough time to properly answer. This one might nag at her, but at least she didn't have to face it head-on any longer.

"Put your journals away and get out your books." She opened her mouth to say more, but instead of hearing words, Rogue heard an impressive explosion outside of the school. The class and teacher froze, unsure of how to react to such a sound. Rogue, on the other hand, jumped straight up from her seat, took one look out the window, and darted out into the hallway. "Get back in here!" she heard the teacher screech behind her. Rogue didn't listen.

Rogue sprinted down the hallway, then came to a skidding stop in front of another classroom door. Peering through the window, she saw Scott trying to tame a frightened classroom. Rogue motioned to him, grabbing his attention. He tossed an apologetic look toward his teacher, and met Rogue in the hallway.

"What was that?" Rogue demanded.

"Rogue, go back to your classroom."

"No. Ah'm an X-Man, an' Ah getta help you," she denied crossly.

"How?" Scott asked. He crossed his arms across his chest, looking down at her.

Rogue jutted her chin upwards to compensate for his height. "We're a team, ain't we? 'Bout time we acted like one."

"Spoken like a true hero," Hank commented from behind her. "Scott, the source of the explosion was another mutant. We don't know who, per say, but we know they're dangerous."

Jean stepped forward. "I think he needs to charge up a little in order to create another explosion like the one before, but he needs to be stopped before that can happen."

Scott sighed, glancing between his teammates, and then down at Rogue. "Alright. Hank, go find Peter. Jean, Rogue, you're with me. And Jean? See if you can get a hold of Warren." He turned on his heel and darted down the hallway, expecting the two women to keep up with him. "Do you know how he creates the explosions?"

Jean shook her head. "No. But I do know where he's at. I can't get a real telepathic fix on him, but he's heading for downtown."

"Great," Scott muttered. "How much time do we have?"

"Not a lot," Jean admitted.

"Okay, we're taking my car. Jean, can you get a hold of Ororo and tell her she's in charge of transportation for Hank and Peter?"

Jean nodded in silent reply. She continued running along with Scott and Rogue, but she stared off in concentration.

The small team eventually burst through the school's front doors and made a beeline to Scott's car. He dug the keys out of his pockets as he ran so that he could automatically open the doors before they reached the vehicle. Before he was even sitting, he jammed the key into the ignition, roughly turned the engine on, closed his door behind him, and threw the car into reverse. Tires squealed as he frantically kept control of the car, though it appeared as if it wasn't much of a problem at all. Within a minute, they were flying down the road as if they were some sort of emergency vehicle.

"Rogue, you don't have your costume on, do you?" Scott asked once he had a rhythm.

"Um ... no. It ain't all that inconspicuous, even in winter."

"Alright. I want you to stay to the side, out of sight, unless we absolutely need you. You're still untrained, and we can't risk anyone recognizing you with your civilian clothes on and making a connection to Xavier. Mutants aren't exactly held in high light right now."

Rogue wasn't too happy with his decision, but she begrudgingly agreed.

Scott pulled to an abrupt halt once they reached the city, guided by Jean's telepathy. He turned around in his seat and Jean clambered on, if only to get one last word in with Rogue. "Jean'll call you if we need help."

"Alright!" Rogue barked, staring after him as he, too, left. He still managed to find a way to bench her, even after she thought she'd be needed no matter what.

Planting

Rogue tentatively knocked on the door leading into Storm's room. Ororo had told Rogue to visit her after she had finished her schoolwork for the night. She didn't explain why, she didn't elaborate on her instructions, but had continued on to her next class. Mystified, Rogue couldn't concentrate for the rest of the day, wondering why her new team leader would be so vague. Now was the moment of truth.

"Come in," Ororo said from the other side.

Grabbing the door handle, Rogue pushed the door in. She stood still for a moment, shocked at the state of the room. It was more spacious than Rogue's own, and decorated much more nicely. Storm had forsaken most normal possessions and replaced them all with plants. Her room featured side-to-side windows on two walls, suggesting she had a corner room in the mansion. She needed the light in order to help her plants sustain life.

"Uh ... wow," Rogue commented, stupefied.

Ororo smiled gently. "I would like to discuss arrangements Kurt and I have been talking about. Please, take a seat." She gestured toward an empty space, a potted plant on the floor beside it. Rogue could only guess that Ororo had moved it in order to compensate for Rogue's presence.

"Been talkin' 'bout? We only had that meeting last night." Rogue gently pushed the door back in its jamb and took a seat on the vacant wooden surface.

Ororo's smile widened ever so slightly. "He doesn't have school like the rest of us and this is my senior year. I think I can put my duties as leader before my sleep schedule every now and again. Don't tell the professor; I won't make it a habit."

"Mmmhmm," Rogue hummed skeptically. "So what were ya two thinkin' over?"

"Professor Xavier didn't give my team a lot of muscle. Really, none of us junior X-Men have raw power. Remy and Kurt are our strongest fighters, but they're both on the blue team. Alison can compensate for our lack of brute force with her powers, but she lacks finesse. As does Sean. I tend to rely on subterfuge and my powers more than physical skill. What I'm saying is that none of the people on the red team have the skill set to teach you how to hold your own on a battle field. We can't have you going around and touching everyone to knock them out cold." Rogue dipped her chin down. "Kurt and I were talking, and he'd like to continue your training in that area. Even though we're separated on the blue and red teams, we can still work together."

"Okay? Ah don't mind that."

Ororo stroked one of her plants as gently as if it was a newborn child. "Yes. That does mean that you two will be working a little harder than the rest of us. You'll be with Kurt, taking lessons, but you'll also have to function as a part of my team so that we can learn team building techniques. We need to understand each other to have each other's backs. Are you alright with this?"

"Yeah, sure." Her fists closed tightly in resolution. "Ah want t' be a help t' the team."

"Good," Ororo sighed. "I'll set up a team schedule shortly. We'll make sure it's not too much for you to handle."

Water Lilies

"Hey, Rogue," Kurt called.

Rogue stopped on her way from the restroom. "S'up?"

"The professor wants us all in the debriefing room."

"Huh?"

Kurt smiled. "Are you busy?"

"Ah guess not."

"Komm mit! We're learning our new teams today. Right now."

"Oh!" Rogue gasped. "Ah forgot about that with school an' all."

Kurt grabbed Rogue's arm and excitedly pulled her after him. "I'm going to be a fraction leader!" he exclaimed. "I don't even know what I'm supposed to do... I hope I'll make a good leader."

"Don't worry, Sugah," Rogue consoled. "Ah think ya know more than ya think."

"Danke," he grinned. He slowed his pace as they came up to the elevator. Pushing the button, he waited impatiently, his tail waving through the air. "But as Ally said yesterday, what if I'm not willing to take responsibility for my team?"

"Why wouldn't you? Anyway, if we're a team, we should take the blame as a team?" Rogue wasn't sure if she was saying the right things to reassure the other mutant. It wasn't typical of her to have hung out with many people before coming to Xavier's mansion. A lot of these experiences the past couple weeks were brand new to her.

Kurt hesitated over an answer as the doors to the elevator slid open. "In theory. When it comes to reprimand, I have a feeling that I will take the frontal assault." He pressed a button on the control panel after Rogue followed him in. "Some of these missions are very dangerous, too. I don't want it to be me to ... to have the first casualty as a result of poor leadership."

"Now Ah know you're bein' too hard on yaself."

"You think so?" Kurt demanded softly. "You have not been on a mission. You don't know how bad it can get. I don't mean to scare you, to discredit you, but I have lived this reality for a while."

Rogue didn't know what to say, so she didn't say anything. The doors slid open to the elevator, letting the two mutants out of the little box room. Kurt took the lead, guiding her to the debriefing room. The doors were open, revealing that most of the junior team was already present. The only one missing was Gambit.

"Did you tell Remy to meet us here?" Xavier asked Kurt.

"Ja, he's on his way."

"Thank-you. Rogue, would you take a seat?"

Bobby waved her over to an empty chair beside him. Hesitating for a moment, Rogue walked over, nodded her thanks, and sat. She shifted to make herself comfortable, and then stared expectantly at the door for Remy to arrive. Bobby chatted animatedly with Rogue, but the conversation was more one-sided than not.

Remy entered quietly and leaned against a wall by the door rather than sit down. As soon as the professor saw him, he called silence, and began.

"Sean has already told you the news, that the junior team is splitting into two. Because of this fissure, you will no longer be called the junior and senior team, but the gold, red, and blue teams. The red team will be lead by Storm and the blue team by Nightcrawler."

"How are we supposed to grow as a team if we're separated?" Psylocke inquired. "It's bad enough that you've put the best on their own, now bigger, team."

"You will still train as one, but on missions, you'll be-"

"Segregated?" Psylocke supplied.

"Remember that you are still students. This way no one should be overwhelmed with schoolwork and your responsibilities to the team. Depending on the assignment, different arrangements can be made.

"This way, more will be expected of you on the field without overwhelming you. Once school is over, we may rethink the team assignments, unless this exceeds expectations."

"Who are the teams?" Ororo asked.

"Storm will have Dazzler, Banshee, and Rogue. Nightcrawler will lead Iceman, Gambit, and Psylocke. If these arrangements do not work out as expected, they may be switched around, but I do not want to move people based on personal preference. Your goal as a team is to understand each other better than you understand yourself. Learn each other's strengths and weaknesses. If you have any problems, first try working it out with each other, and if that doesn't work, you may come to me. I want to see effort. I know this will be challenging, but I feel like you, as a team, are ready to take that challenge on."

"Verstehen," Kurt said in response.

"We all ready t' go?" Remy asked. He pushed his body away from the wall in anticipation of leaving.

"One moment, Remy," Xavier declined. Remy spun on his heel and crossed his arms across the chest, staring the professor down. "Storm and Nightcrawler, you are in charge of the training schedules of your teams. You will come up with the exercises you need to run through to make sure that your team is ready for any call. However, you are not expected to carry the full weight of the team alone. You may talk to me, to the gold team, to each other, and amongst yourselves. I encourage it. This is something new for us, and I expect some errors. But we are the X-Men, and we will deal with those problems."

"Now we all good," Remy stated more than asked.

Rogue glanced over to him, her brows knitted together in confusion. She couldn't figure out why Remy would be in such a hurry to get out of the room. They had hardly been in the room for more than five minutes to begin with.

"Yes, you may continue your activities," Xavier dismissed.

Remy only managed to turn around before Ororo jumped from her seat to walk beside him. Rogue followed more slowly, trying not to make it obvious that she was interested in their interaction. Remy was acting strangely, and that made her more aware that she hardly knew this man. He had wormed his way into her life so well that she had forgotten how quickly he had done it. It hadn't been over the span of a few months; this was over the span of a couple weeks. Now mysteries were cropping up, and she couldn't help but be curious.

"Remy," Ororo said softly. He didn't turn his face to greet her, but he did walk more slowly than he had been preparing. "May I ask what is wrong?"

Remy shrugged, still not meeting her eyes. "Woul'n't say not'in' wrong. T'ings changin', not sure if I'm likin' dem."

Ororo placed a hand on his arm and pulled him to the side. Rogue had to force herself to keep walking down the hallway. Their quiet voices were quickly becoming harder to hear as she kept up her act. "Remy, think of it as ... rebirth. This isn't ..." Rogue lost her voice to Bobby's much louder one. Pretending not to be bothered, she waited as the rest of her teammates piled into the elevator to be carried up, Ororo and Remy staying behind.