Awkward Reunions are Awkward [X-23]

There was a reason why Julian didn't get out very often. Weird crap always happened when he happened to set foot outside the Jean Grey School for Higher Learning.

Today was no exception, though it had started off normally enough. He had woken up surprisingly early, for whatever reason, and had been up and ready for the day before most of the school was awake. He'd even taken some time to simply sit in the kitchen and enjoy a cup of coffee whilst making random things float with his telekinesis.

After mulling it over with his cup of joe, Julian had decided that he really, really didn't want to go to physical therapy today. He had been attending sessions for God knows how long now, and at this point it was becoming a bore to both him and his therapist. He usually ended up snapping at the hapless person and exploding something by the end of said sessions, anyways.

But today, Julian didn't want to blow stuff up. He was truly relaxed for what felt like the first time in months, and he wasn't about to let that feeling go. So, after dumping the dregs of his coffee down the drain and leaving the mess for someone else to clean up (they'd never suspect it was him who was up this early anyways), he stuffed his sorry excuses for hands in his pockets and set out for a long walk to town. Or at least, he had thought it would be relaxing.

Hellion hadn't wandered more than a mile from the school when a sudden explosion nearly rocked him off his feet. Cursing profusely in his surprise, the startled telekinetic sighed bitterly as he felt that blessed relaxed sensation being swept away by a surge of adrenaline. Goodbye relaxing morning, hello strange and stress-filled coincidence.

Breaking into a run, it didn't take Julian wrong to find the cause of the disturbance. Just off the beaten path was a highly distraught young man--or mutant. He looked to be a few years Julian's junior, and appeared relatively human except for the fact that his skin wasn't black or white or something in between, but was rather a dark pigmented red. And he was also blowing stuff up willy-nilly. Wonderful.

Upon catching sight of Julian, the boy froze like a deer in headlights, and his eyes--which Julian just noticed were a stark, pupil-less white--stretched round with fear. "G-Get away. I don't want to hurt anyone," he whimpered, taking a small step back as an involuntary tremor wracked his body.

Taking a deep breath, Hellion replied, "I'm not going to hurt you, kid. It looks like you need some help. You're a mutant, I take it?" He began to slowly draw his hands out of his pockets as a sign he meant no harm. Unfortunately, it was interpreted in the exact opposite manner.

"No! Get away!" the boy screamed, automatically throwing up his hands in self-defense. As if on command, bits of pebble and rock around the frightened mutant took flight and shot themselves at Hellion like they were being thrown out of invisible slingshots.

"Ow! Hey!" Julian yelped, covering his face with his arms and wincing as the rocks struck him, some of them in very painful places. He was going to look like the equivalent of a spotted Dalmatian tomorrow, he just knew it.

His blue eyes were suddenly coated in green energy that began to expand to cover the rest of his body. "Enough!" he snapped, creating a telekinetic shield that caused the volley of rocks to bounce off of him harmlessly. The green in his eyes flashed bright as, in another swift movement, he took control of the rocks being aimed at him and pressed them back to the Earth. The red-skinned boy was an obvious telekinetic, but he was weaker than Julian and lacked control. And Julian knew from experience that an out of control telekinetic was a dangerous thing to have.

"See? I'm a mutant, just like you. Why would I hurt my own kind?" he retorted, struggling to keep his voice soft and soothing. The kid seemed to hesitate, white eyes narrowing as he studied Hellion.

Rubbing a particularly nasty bruise on his shoulder, Julian huffed, "That's better. Now, I can take you to a place for mutants. They can help you there."

That had been the wrong thing to say. No sooner had the words left Hellion's mouth than the kid reacted violently, spitting blood and vinegar. "I knew it! You're going to lock me up, you're going to take me away! Well, I'm not going!"

"Whoa, calm down kid! That's not what I meant at--" And then he was smacked with a broken fender that had been lying on the side of the road. Caught off guard by both the boy's reaction and the ferocity of the attack, Julian suddenly found himself on the ground, nursing what he dearly hoped wasn't a broken rib. Before he could defend himself in time, a storm of rocks swarmed around the panicking mutant, and one of them had the misfortune to veer off course and whack Julian straight in the temple. A pained cry rushed past his lips as spots swam before his eyes; he could barely think straight from the pain.

Oh, he was in trouble now.

The journey from California to the Jean Grey School for Higher Leaning was long, spanning across an entire night when Laura calculated the hours in total. Many who took the same flight as her indulged in rest; sleeping until the first light of morning cruised through their windows, Laura barely blinked - keeping her eyes and ears open for any suspicious goings on. Luckily, none of her senses picked up on talk of malicious intent so the majority of her trip was spent in peace, huddled comfortably in her black, over-sized hoodie while she watched the stars glimmer and drift by.

After the war between the Avengers and X-Men had blown over, Gambit had invited the teen to visit the School for a few days. She didn't see the practicality of the idea at first; neither of them were required to go on the same mission together and the traveling distance (coupled with the funds needed to fly from coast to coast) was too inconvenient for a simple visit. This train of thought was broken when Remy explained that families often 'made a thing' of meeting in light of recent events that were worthy of celebration. The two had remained in contact through infrequently exchanged e-mails; Laura's mainly consisted of brief sentences describing her day; Sunny. Sparring practice with various teammates. Tigra ordered pizza for everyone. We watched Finding Nemo. I like Dory.

Currently, Laura was drawing ever closer to the school, having hired a taxi cab in the early hours of morning. The driver wasn't particularly talkative, only sipping their coffee and letting the radio break most of the silence. There was a brief news story on a crimson-skinned mutant that had escaped from their home in North Salem, the reader encouraging their audience to be on their guard should they stumble into him. Laura's gaze flickered from the scenery of blurred foliage out her window to the speakers, her curiosity peaked as she wondered over the runaway's whereabouts. Then, once she realised the cab had reached the outskirts of Salem Center, she addressed the driver.

"Here is fine, thank you." She glanced at the taxi fare then retrieved enough dollar bills from her pocket to cover the price. The vehicle slowly came to a halt and the man behind the wheel received his payment with a warm smile obscured by his thick mustache. Remembering that it was common to leave a tip, she spoke once more in a curt tone, "I do not need any change," then climbed out of the car.

The cool, morning breeze caressed her cheeks - a welcome sensation compared to the stale air in the taxi. Laura inhaled; the fragrances of spiced bark, wet mud and cut grass harmonising with each other to grace the girl's senses. She stood still for a short number of seconds before taking her first steps; heavy, dark boots thudding against the tarmac of the road then trekking across grass jeweled with dew. The direction towards the Mansion was familiar, forever ingrained in her memory. The rumble of the cab's engine soon disappeared into the distance as she walked on but the chirping of birds and rustling of leaves was interrupted by a round of distressed bellows.

Laura quickened her pace, trusting her hearing to lead her to the source of the muffled yelling. It wasn't long before she found two figures on the horizon, one of which had their back turned to her. The other took on a tone of caution which Laura immediately recognised. Julian. Upon hearing the contents of his cut-off warning and seeing an array of specks being thrust his way, she broke into a sprint. She crossed the field in seconds, feet pounding one in front of the other with a speed rivaling a top-notch track champion. Her sight observed the ruby-red skin of Julian's opponent and she immediately linked the scenario to the mutant that everyone seemed to be searching for. Then, Julian emitted a cry and fell to the ground, causing X-23 to release her claws. She bounded on the attacker with bared teeth, sending them to the ground face-first with a swift and agile dexterity.

Keeping their back weighed down with her knee and a hand at their neck, she snarled with a ferocity reserved for a feral beast, "What do you hope to gain by attacking someone who is trying to help you?"