Obligatory warnings and disclaimers:
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If reading this is in any way illegal where you are or at your age, or you don't want to read about male/male relationships, go away. You shouldn't be here.
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The X-Men and any related characters are property of Marvel Comics, trademarked and registered and copyrighted and all that. I'm using them without permission.
For those who read the comics and worry about such things, this story takes place in the (much simpler and easier to follow) Ultimate X-Men universe, right around issue 54. If you don't want to dig out your copy, the team at that time is Jean Grey, Cyclops, Iceman, Kitty Pryde, Nightcrawler, Colossus, Angel, and Dazzler.
Comments can be sent to "dustyh75@hotmail.com"
Thanks.
"And you say he was completely asleep?" the Professor asked again, eyeing Scott carefully.
"Yes," Scott repeated. He could feel the Professor tapping at the edge of his mind, using his telepathy, and he was trying very hard to keep Professor Xavier from figuring out that he was leaving out a piece of the story. Dating Jean for so long, he'd become very sensitive to that little mental tickle that even the best telepaths caused, so soft that most people didn't feel it at all.
He didn't like keeping things from the Professor, but what had happened in the infirmary was very private. He'd no sooner discuss it with Charles than he would talk it over with Jean. Besides, there was nothing to discuss, really. It wasn't like he'd cheated on her. It had been an accidental manifestation of Seth's powers, and Scott's body didn't really have a choice but to respond. The stimulation had been impossible to resist with Seth's power running completely rampant through his nervous system, and Scott had assured himself over and over that any guy would have responded the same way he did. It could have just as easily been Bobby, or Logan (Scott had to stifle a snicker at that thought, wondering how Mr. Macho would have dealt with that), or even the Professor. Anyone would have, you know, would have climaxed.
"Scott?" the Professor asked, his brows knit together. Scott wasn't sharing something, but it didn't seem to be something dangerous. There was an undercurrent of awkwardness and confusion to Scott's thoughts, but he had promised not to violate his students' minds. While he may break that promise for emergencies, whatever Scott was hiding didn't seem quite that urgent.
"I'm sorry?" Scott asked, shaking his head a little. Of all people to drift out on. Why didn't he just hold up a sign that said, "I have a secret."
"I asked if you could describe what happened one more time, please," the Professor repeated. Maybe if Scott ran through the story again, it would offer a clue to whatever he was leaving out.
Scott sighed. He knew what Professor X was trying to do, and the professor probably knew he knew. Maybe he could just run through it and get out of here. Maybe the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants would attack the mansion while he was talking, or the Hellfire Club. At this point, he might pay for agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. to come swooping down from black helicopters and start shooting up the lawn if it would give him an excuse to get the hell out of this office.
"I couldn't sleep, so I was walking the halls, and Jean or you must have left the infirmary door open. I leaned in to kind of check on the new kid, and I heard him make a noise. I went in to check on him, because I thought he might be hurt or something, and when I went in there he was dreaming or something, because he was mumbling in his sleep a little. The sheet was kind of falling off, so I grabbed it to pull it back up, and when I did I accidentally touched his side with my hand, and he used his power on me in his sleep."
"But it didn't affect you in the same way as Kurt or Bobby," Professor X finished, having already heard this twice. This was the part that they needed to understand, but it also seemed to be the part that Scott was leaving something out of. "You did not feel any pain or discomfort?"
"No," Scott said, answering honestly. He wanted to give the Professor as much information as he could without getting into the specifics, but he could feel himself blushing a little. "I wasn't in control of myself for a second, but it didn't hurt. It was kind of like, um, like being hugged. I felt someone touching me, but it wasn't painful or, um, inappropriate or anything like that, and then it was over. I looked at the clock above the bed, and it had only been a second, but it felt like several minutes to me."
"Interesting," Professor Xavier said, steepling his fingers under his chin. "Seth is apparently capable not only of affecting physical sensation and distorting your sense of time, but there was also an emotional component?"
"Kind of," Scott said, getting redder. He felt sudden pressure to just blurt it out, and gritted his teeth, wondering if the Professor was exerting mental pressure on him or if he was just so freaked out about the whole thing that he needed to tell someone. "It felt good to me, you know, like, I didn't feel threatened or anything."
He shrugged and jammed his hands into his pockets, hoping this would be the last time they had to go through it.
"Very interesting," the Professor said softly, his eyes drifting off as he considered. "We will have to explore the parameters of such an ability, in order to help him control it, of course. It would seem, though, to offer a wealth of possibilities."
The two of them were quiet for a minute, Professor Xavier staring off into space as he considered the potential for a mutant who could insert entire fictitious experiences into a subject's mind with just a touch. With proper training, Seth Rand could be a covert agent of the highest magnitude, especially if he could reverse the process as well. By holding someone's hand, it was possible that he could remove one memory and rewrite it with an entirely different one, but they wouldn't know for sure until they could get Seth the proper training. Even if it was only one way, as Seth had already demonstrated, there were still ample uses for such a gift.
"Sir?" Scott asked, glancing toward the door. He knew that the Professor could sometimes be dispassionately intellectual, but that didn't mean it was fun to watch, especially not after the last twenty or so awkward minutes. Professor Xavier blinked and looked up, smiling quickly.
"Oh, of course, Scott. You're dismissed, and thank you for your assistance."
"No problem," Scott said, bolting for the door. He paused at the doorframe, mentally kicking himself for not taking the chance to get out while it was right in front of him. "Sir? One more thing."
"Yes, Scott?" the Professor asked, looking up.
"Could you leave this between us?" Scott asked, blushing again and trying to will himself not to. "I mean, he's already off on the wrong foot with Bobby, and I don't want the others to think it's not safe to be around him. If they hear that he can do that whenever, even unconscious, they might be a little standoffish, and I want him to fit in. Jean said he's skittish enough as it is."
"Of course, Scott. That's an excellent point, one that I would expect from a proper field leader. We will leave this incident quiet, for now."
"Thank you, sir," Scott said, getting out of the office quickly. He realized that sweat had actually broken out on his forehead, and hoped the Professor was distracted enough not to wonder why.
Now that he'd straightened things out with the Professor, though, he just had to straighten them out with Seth.
"Where did these clothes come from?" Seth asked. "I don't want to just borrow someone's stuff."
"You're not," Jean said, rolling her eyes. "We have extra stuff around, and you only had one outfit that we couldn't keep anyway. No offense, but where have you been sleeping? Your clothes smelled like Allison after a weekend bender in the city."
"Allison?" Seth asked, looking around.
This house was beautiful inside. He knew that it was a school, too, but it was more like being inside a museum or castle or something. Everything was wooden and antique and stuffed and a lot more expensive than anything he'd ever owned or lived around, and they all seemed to take it in stride. Jean was showing him where the important parts of the house were, so that he would know his way around, and she didn't seem the slightest bit concerned about taking off her shoes or shutting off lights or anything. When they'd stopped by the recreation room Kitty, who seemed nice enough, had actually had her feet up on one of the couches and a can of soda on the end table without a coaster. It was hard to believe that all of this came free of charge.
"Ali, Allison, Dazzler," Jean said, shrugging. "She kind of comes and goes.
She's in a band, some kind of metal punk thing, and the Professor lets her crash here whenever she wants. You'll meet her eventually."
"And she smells?" Seth asked, trying not to giggle. Jean laughed.
"She likes to party," she answered simply. "I swear, a week or so ago she came rolling in here right when we were in the middle of a Danger Room scenario, piss drunk, and she smelled like she used herself to wipe down the bar counter all night. I thought it was pretty funny, but everyone else was a little uptight about it. She has a good heart, though, and she means well. You'll like her."
They were stopped in a long hallway, and Seth realized that he had no idea where he was. They'd already toured the lower levels, and she'd explained the Danger Room, the infirmary, and even how to reach the emergency transport systems. They'd walked past the hanger door but hadn't gone inside, and past a few classrooms, the laundry room, the rec room, the study, the library, and a bunch of other rooms he couldn't remember. He felt like Jean should be drawing him a map instead of showing him around. The hallway was lined on one side by tall windows, sunlight streaming through them like a scene from a movie.
"So, where have you been sleeping?" Jean asked again, her voice a little more direct. "I'm not trying to pry or anything, but is there someone we should call? Anyone we should tell where you are or someplace we could send for the rest of your stuff from?"
Seth swallowed, hard. Would they kick him out if they found out that he was a runaway? Or, worse, a castaway? And would it matter why his parents had told him to leave, kicked him out of the house in the middle of the night and then moved away? He wouldn't even know where to call to tell them how he was. He had no idea what they were doing, where they were living, or even if they were still alive. They'd told him that he wasn't their son, told him to leave, and when he'd finally worked up the courage a few weeks later to go back to his house to confront them the house was empty. There was a real estate agent sign on the lawn and none of the neighbors would answer their doors.
"Never mind," Jean said quickly, seeing how pale he got. She watched him swallow hard again, and waves of pain were radiating out of his thoughts. She couldn't help but pick them up, even if she didn't know the particulars.
"It doesn't matter now, anyway. Come on, I'll show you where the kitchen is and we can grab a drink or something."
She started walking quickly down the hall, beaming a smile to try to lighten the moment, but Seth wasn't moving. When she turned back Seth was staring at the floor, his shoulders slumped and his chest hitching a little.
"Seth?"
"There's no one to call," he said quietly, still looking down. They were going to find out someday, so it might as well be now. When he looked up, Jean saw that his dark green eyes were glistening. "I don't have anyone, not anymore."
"Correction," she said, taking his arm. The t-shirt she and the Professor had brought him this morning had long sleeves, for which he was grateful. "You have us now."
"Jean, I have to tell you," he began, but she shook her head.
"Nope, not right now you don't," she said, cutting him off. "Right now we want you to get comfortable, and get settled in. We want you to make yourself at home. And whatever you're going to tell us, it won't matter. `Ro used to steal cars, Peter used to work for mobsters, and Logan, well, that's a whole other story. Magneto sent him here to kill the Professor, and he decided to switch sides, and then after that he decided to try to murder Scott, too. Whatever you're going to tell us, when you're ready to tell us, you'll fit right in around here."
She smiled at him again, and he wondered if she knew how pretty she really was, with her big green eyes and pixie cut red hair. Yeah, she probably did. Before either of them could say anything else, though, they were distracted by a black shadow flickering across them. Something had streaked past the windows, something big, and they both turned to see what it was. Jean, still smiling, walked quickly to a French door in the middle of the windows.
"Come on," she called back, opening the door. "Come outside and meet Warren. Hey! Hey, Warren!"
Jean was yelling straight up into the sky, and Seth looked up, shading his eyes with his hand just in time to see someone swoop toward them and land on the lawn.
"Oh," Seth said, his eyes wide. "Oh, wow."
It was hard to say what part caught his eyes first. The giant white wings were a start, folding up behind Warren's shoulders and gleaming in the sunlight. When you saw winged people in a movie or a Victoria's Secret catalogue, the wings were big, but not nearly as big as these, and Seth realized that they would kind of have to be huge to lift a human being off the ground. Beyond the wings, though, was the fact that Warren was only wearing a pair of jeans, so you could see his abs, chest, and all of the fantastic musculature that propelled him through the sky. Even though he was thin, not stocky, it didn't look like there was an ounce of fat on him. Above the chest (after Seth managed to pull his eyes off of it, anyway), there was long, blond, romance novel hair, and bright blue eyes in the middle of a perfect face with the mouth twisted into a friendly smirk.
Seth realized he was staring and jerked his eyes to the ground, blushing. Oh, God, even Warren's bare feet somehow managed to look attractive.
"I'm sorry," Seth stammered, feeling his face get even redder.
"It's ok," Warren said, shrugging. "A lot of people stare."
He managed to say it without sounding conceited. Actually, Seth realized, he sounded a little defeated, like he'd wished people wouldn't stare so many times that he'd given up and resigned himself to it.
"You wish," Jean said, rolling her eyes. "Seth, this is Warren Worthington the third, codenamed Angel even though he's not supposed to be in the field."
"Neither is Kitty!" Warren said quickly. Jean rolled her eyes again.
"Anyway, Warren, this is Seth Rand, new kid," she said. "He doesn't have a codename yet."
"Hi," Warren said, holding out his hand for a shake. Seth hesitated for a moment, and then held out his gloved hand. The Professor had brought a pair of gloves this morning, explaining that it might make Seth more comfortable if he didn't have to worry about accidentally unleashing his ability. He'd agreed, but now that he saw Warren glancing down and pausing for just a second before he shook his hand, Seth felt more alone than ever. Even here, shaking hands with the giant bird guy, he was still a freak. "Gloves?"
"It's, I," Seth began, pulling his hand away. "It's not safe to touch me. I'm dangerous."
Warren looked at Jean, at a loss for words.
"Seth's ability is touch activated, and he's not sure of his control yet," Jean said quickly.
"Oh, you're the one Bobby was bitching about!" Warren blurted. Jean could have thrown him across the lawn. As it was, the look she threw him made him wonder how many states away he needed to be for safety and whether or not he'd need the Heimlich to get his foot out of his mouth. "I mean, he said, you know..."
Warren's voice trailed off as they watched Seth turn and hurry away toward the house.
"Seth, wait!" Jean called, starting after him. Seth pretended not to hear her, walking even faster, and vanished into the house. Jean turned back to Warren, eyes narrowed, as Warren held up his hands.
"It slipped out!"
"You dumbass."
Both of them sighed, looking at the empty doorway.
"Should I apologize?" Warren asked sheepishly.
"For being a dumbass? You can't help the way you were born," Jean said, shaking her head. She started walking toward the mansion.
"No, I meant," Warren began, but Jean cut him off with another loud sigh.
"I know what you meant," she said, smiling, thinking of how sad it was that all that pretty wasn't exactly smart. "Come on. I'm thirsty."
Warren started to follow her into the house, and she couldn't resist throwing out another "dumbass" as they went inside.
Hours later, Scott stood outside of Seth's door. No one had seen him for hours, and Jean had told Scott after dinner what had happened earlier.
"It's not just what Warren said," Jean added, chewing her bottom lip thoughtfully. "He's just, he's not in a good place right now. He needs a lot of work, and not just on his powers."
"Well, if we're going to help him with that, he needs to feel safe here," Scott said. "And that's not going to happen if he feels like the whole team thinks he's a menace of some kind. He needs to make some friends."
"Well, Kitty and I are going to take him out shopping tomorrow," Jean said, shrugging. "I only found two outfits in the laundry room, and they probably belong to one of you guys, so we have to go get him some stuff of his own."
"That's a start," Scott said, nodding.
The girls reaching out to him wouldn't be enough, though. Seth needed to feel like the whole team welcomed him, which meant that the field leader needed to go talk to him. The problem with that was that Scott also wanted to talk to him a little bit about what had happened last night. The Professor had talked to Seth about his powers earlier, explaining that he could affect people positively, but his agreement with Scott meant that he couldn't give Seth an actual example. Scott would be able to help him with that.
"Seth?" he asked, knocking on the door.
"Who is it?" Seth asked quietly.
"Scott. Can I come in? I wanted to talk to you."
Seth eyed the door warily, drawing his knees up to his chest. He'd been in his new room since he'd left Jean and Warren earlier, afraid to explore the mansion. He could run into Bobby, or some area that he wasn't allowed in but didn't know about because he'd never finished the tour. For all he knew, there was even a curfew that no one had mentioned, but he couldn't stay in his room forever. Besides, Cyclops was the leader of the team. If he was going to stay here, Seth would need to at least talk to him.
"Sure," Seth answered, flicking on the bedside lamp so they wouldn't be sitting in the dark. "Come on in."
Scott opened the door, taking in the whole room at once like they'd been trained to do. Their combat training was such an instinct at this point that he couldn't ignore it even when he was supposed to be relaxing. The room was pretty standard for the mansion, although Seth had lucked out with a single instead of having to share. There was a bed, desk, dresser, nightstand, and a desk chair, like the kind of furniture you would find at any boarding school, except that everything here was older than dirt and managed to stay polished even though none of them had ever seen any housekeepers. A laptop computer sat closed on the desk, and Seth sat on the bed, on top of the covers, with his knees drawn up and his arms wrapped around him.
Looking at him, Scott understood what Jean had meant earlier about him being in a bad place. His green eyes looked huge as he watched Scott enter and close the door behind him, and his posture, hunched and curled in on himself, reminded Scott of a kicked puppy, waiting for the next blow but hoping for something better. Scott also noticed that Seth, even though he was in his own room, was still completely clothed. He'd taken off his shoes, but still had on his socks, the long sleeved shirt, and even his gloves. The only part of his skin exposed was his head, and he kept that hunched down. Even though he was close to six feet tall, Seth managed to look small, an effect that was amplified by the spartan, empty room.
"You mind if I sit?" Scott asked, waving his hand at the desk chair. That was probably safer than crowding onto the bed with him. Seth shook his head, watching as Scott pulled the chair out and sat down. Scott looked uncomfortable, his body kind of rigid, and Seth realized immediately that Scott wasn't good with people, at least not socially. It made him feel a little better. "You didn't come down for dinner. Are you ok?"
"I'm not really hungry," Seth lied.
"Oh, ok," Scott said, trying to figure out how to approach this. It had seemed so easy on his way up the stairs, but now that he was here with Seth looking at him, there didn't really seem to be any way to say, "Hey, I know you're super uncomfortable already, and I'd like to make it worse by telling you that not only do I know you're gay, but last night you psychically jerked me off in your sleep before we even met." He realized that Seth was still waiting for him to speak, which just made it worse. "You know you can go down and eat anytime. There's no rule about dinner or anything, but we'd kind of like it if you ate with us, you know?"
"I don't think all of you would," Seth said, looking away for a second. Scott raised an eyebrow. Everything Seth felt was telegraphed right across his face.
"Look, Jean told me about what happened earlier, and Warren is really sorry," Scott said sincerely. Seth turned back to him, studying his face. Scott had a good face, all chiseled and attractive, but it was hard to read with those glasses on. The red was opaque, at least from this side. "He wanted to come apologize, but he was worried that you were mad at him, and then Ali came back from her gig and he got a little distracted. I know he didn't mean anything by it, though."
Seth nodded, but still didn't say anything, and Scott wondered what he was doing wrong.
"That was really nice of you to come say," Seth said finally, swallowing. "I'm not mad at Warren, or Jean, or anybody. I just, I guess I got off on the wrong foot with everybody. I mean, you guys came to help me and I took out half the team. Bobby should be pissed at me."
"Bobby's being an immature little baby about it," Scott said, shaking his head. "He and Kurt should both have known better than to just grab an unknown mutant, and Kurt, at least, recognizes that. I mean, seriously, what if your power was acid death touch or something?"
He'd been trying to lighten the mood, but he realized immediately it was the wrong thing to say. Impossibly, Seth seemed to deflate even further, turning away.
"It might as well be," Seth said quietly, his face hidden by his arm. Scott stood, reaching for his shoulder, but Seth's voice jerked him to a stop. "Don't!"
"Seth."
"Don't! Please, just please, don't," Seth said, not pleading. His voice was sharp, but also tired, and when he finally looked up at Scott again, his eyes looked defeated again. "None of you understand. You all have powers, too. You all get to be freaks and muties and outcasts, too, but it's not the same."
"You don't think so?" Scott asked, sitting on the end of the bed. "You see these glasses? I can't take them off. Ever. You know why they call me Cyclops, but I can't control my power. If I take these glasses off, I will destroy everything I look at. I can make the beams stronger or weaker, but they're going to hurt people either way."
"It's still not the same," Seth said. "I mean, I feel bad for you, but your power only hurts other people. It doesn't hurt you, too."
"You're right," Scott said quietly, trying to sound supportive. The Professor hadn't mentioned anything about Seth's power hurting him. Was it dangerous? He knew that some people's mutant gifts could end up killing them, like a pyrokinetic who burned himself alive. Was Seth's ability somehow like that? "I don't understand, but maybe you could tell me?"
Seth sighed.
"Did Jean tell you that I passed out after I knocked Kurt and Bobby out?"
Scott nodded. "We figured you were just exhausted from the, you know, the beating and the overexerting yourself. Hell, with that black eye we kind of thought you might have a concussion."
"It wasn't that. When I use my power on someone, when they grab me and they feel something bad, I feel a little bit of it, too. It's not as bad as what they feel, not as strong, but the contact is a two way link. I get feedback from the other person."
"So they get knocked out, and it's like you got punched in the stomach or something?" Scott asked, and Seth nodded.
"With one person, it's not so bad," Seth said. "But yesterday I knocked four people out in about twenty minutes. The waitress, the guy who hit me, Kurt, and then Bobby. On top of actually getting hit, that was just too much."
"So if you touch someone without hurting them, if you, like, touch them to make them feel good," Scott stammered, blushing. Seth had started to relax now that he was opening up a little, and Scott didn't want to ruin that, but he didn't want to let this go, either. "Then would you feel good, too?"
Seth shrugged.
"I don't know," he answered. "My powers don't work that way. I only hurt people."
"That's not true," Scott said. "The Professor said-"
"I know what the Professor said," Seth blurted, holding up his hands. "He said I could make people feel anything, and Jean said the same thing, but it doesn't work that way. It never has."
"Yes it has," Scott said quickly, rushing to get all the words out before he lost his nerve. "Last night, it happened when I touched you in the infirmary."
To be continued.
Just as a note, there won't be sex in every chapter. I might take time instead to focus on gasp plot.