Xmen is the trademarked property of Marvel, all Marvel Characters are copyrighted to Marvel, their characters are borrowed, for the purposes of the story.
This is a work of Gay fiction, containing adult situations between consenting males. If you are under the legal age in your country, DO NOT CONTINUE, otherwise, I hope you enjoy.
Alex stared out of the window at the large grounds, watching the crowd of students mingling and interacting with each other, and sighed. He'd never really been a part of that kind of interaction, at home or anywhere else. Taking a deep breath, he turned back in to his room, given to him by the mysterious Professor Xavier last night.
The two mutants, Beast and Wolverine, had turned out to have some kind of futuristic jet. It was only an hour or two of flying before they were across the country to New York state. Alex hadn't been paying too much attention to what was going on, but he found himself amused when the one called Wolverine began carrying soldiers like they were so much cordwood, out of the plane and into a hangar. He hadn't even noticed them landing.
A knock at the door jerked Alex back to the present. "Come in."
Alex stood as Professor Xavier entered his room. "Good morning." Xavier smiled at him warmly. "Would you like to join us for breakfast?"
Alex paused, then nodded. "If you wouldn't mind."
Xavier nodded and reversed out of the room. "Not in the least. In fact, I'd like you to give some thought to joining us here."
Alex listened as he followed the older man down the corridor to an elevator. "I'm flattered Professor, but to be honest, I don't even know where here is, let alone anything else about this place."
Xavier laughed wryly and pressed the elevator call button. "Forgive me, for a moment; I forgot you didn't come to us in the customary fashion." He thought for a moment. "I run a school here, for people like us, for mutants. Many of these people have nowhere else to go, and I offer a place of safety, of teaching. A place where they can learn how to use their marvellous gifts and live without fear."
Alex followed the Professor into the elevator. "What's the catch?" He asked dryly.
Xavier looked up at him, startled. "To stay with us? You would have to go to lessons, to learn how to control your power, aside from that, there are always the risks from other mutants, the government and people like your friends from last night, whom I will need you to release after breakfast."
Alex was deep in thought as he followed the Professor out of the elevator and into a large kitchen/dining room. "Are there always this many people here?" He asked quietly.
"It gets a little quieter at term break." The Professor smiled at him wryly. "Please, help yourself." He took his own advice, manoeuvring himself to the table and joining the general clamour and chaos.
Alex hesitated for a moment, finding a place at the crowded table, full of people enjoying the sort of easy camaraderie that only close families have. It made him wonder what bound these people together. Shaking his head slightly, he made his way to a seat between two girls and sat down.
"Hi." The girl on his left smiled at him briefly, her southern accent clear as the white streaks running through her hair. "I'm Rogue."
"Alex." He reached for a plate of toast and transferred two pieces to his plate.
"Kitti." The girl on his left introduced herself between bites of an apple. "You new?"
"Something like that." Alex smiled nervously, and transferred some scrambled eggs to his plate.
"He came with Wolverine and Beast last night." Rogue's accent was shaded with nuances of suggestion.
"Cool." Kitti looked impressed. "So you're the guy who iced the government types?"
Alex hesitated, confused, he wasn't sure how to react. He'd never really had any friends, and there had always just been himself and his mum. "I don't know if I'm supposed to talk about that."
Rogue smiled lazily. "He's new." She smiled softly at him. "I wouldn't worry about it too much, this place is a rumour factory."
Alex nodded and took a mouthful of toast and eggs. Chewing thoughtfully, he watched the people interact. They really were like a big family. People arguing, ignoring each other, sat right alongside others talking like there was no tomorrow and others that whispered secrets to each other. It really was like a large family. "Do either of you know where Dimitri is?" He asked, swallowing his eggs.
Kitti looked at him questioningly as Rogue answered. "You mean the big guy you came with last night?" She glanced over at him for confirmation and continued. "He's downstairs with Beast going over some scientist stuff, he keeps wanting to get back to his house, like it isn't too dangerous."
Alex nodded slowly. It sounded like Dimitri, rushing in where angels feared to tread. Quickly he finished off his breakfast and felt in his pockets. Dimitri had given him back his wallet, complete with the remains of his money. "Where's the nearest shop?" He asked, directing the question to both girls.
Rogue rolled her eyes. "The mall isn't far." Kitti replied happily.
"I was thinking more along the lines of a petrol station kind of shop." Alex explained cautiously.
"What's a petrol station?" Kitti asked, confused.
"It's a gas station," Rogue told her friend absently. "Straight out the gates, take the first left, you can't miss it." Shaking her head, she fixed him with a smile. "On second thoughts, I'll take you."
Alex raised his eyebrows in surprise. "If you don't mind." He stood expectantly.
Rogue looked at the remains of her breakfast and sighed, then stood. "Just give me a minute, I need my jacket."
Alex followed her into the foyer of the main building and waited as she darted up the stairs. As he waited, he wandered around, off to one side, there was a grand piano, apart from that, there seemed to be a great heap of ornamental nothing. Drawn to it, against his will, Alex dragged his fingers lightly across the enameled surface of the piano. Sighing and surrendering to his own desire, he pulled out the chair and flipped up the lid.
Exercises came back to him far more easily than he'd expected, but then again, his mother had put him in lessons as soon as he knew enough not to slobber on the keys. Exercises quickly turned to a piece by Chopin. Alex had always loved the wild frenetic key pounding rhythms of the master, interspersed with soft, almost delicate movements, seemed almost the rhythm of life. Eyes closed and leaning into the music, the world faded away and the music ran through him like water through a sieve.
Abruptly, as the sense of others impinged on his awareness, he stopped. Standing quickly and closing the lid he turned to face Rogue and a group of others staring at him in shock. "Are you ready?" He asked Rogue, ignoring the others completely.
"Yeah, sure." She said softly, looking at him strangely, she lead the way out of the door. They walked out of the gates in strained silence. "So, do you play often?" She finally asked as they turned onto the main road.
"I haven't played for almost a year." Alex said, surprised at the bitterness in his tone. "Actually, I'm a bit surprised that I didn't make more mistakes than I did."
Rogue glanced at him, surprise written on her face. "If you made a mistake, I didn't hear it." She observed dryly. "That thing's sat there for ages, but no-one at the mansion knows, or admits to knowing how to play it."
Alex shrugged. "My mum made me play since almost before I was able to walk. I didn't mean to disturb anyone."
Rogue gave him a sidelong stare. "I don't think you disturbed anyone, anyone with a sense of taste would have felt privileged. Why aren't you playing in concerts and stuff?"
Alex gave her a blank look. He'd perfected hiding his expression on the streets. "A lot of reasons, I guess." He smiled slightly to take the sting out of his flat tone, a mere curving of the lips.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to intrude." Rogue apologised, leading him across the road, to the petrol station.
"Don't worry about it." Alex waved a hand dismissively. "I'll be out in a second." True to his word, Alex walked out to meet Rogue moments later, a packet of cigarettes in his hand.
Rogue eyed the packet with disdain for a moment, then crossed the road. "You didn't tell me you wanted a packet of cigarettes."
"No, I didn't, does it really matter?" Alex asked rhetorically, opening the pack, he took one out and checking to see they weren't being watched, lit it with a flow of fire.
"I guess not." Rogue sighed. "Just don't let Scott see you, he's death on smoking of any sort. He and Logan have had screaming matches about it." She started walking back towards the mansion.
Alex stared at her for a moment, wondering what the hell she was talking about, and caught up with her. "Who the hell are Logan and Scott? And what does either of them have to do with me smoking?" Alex's tone was confused.
Rogue smiled. "Sorry, I forgot you don't know everyone. Scott is one of the teachers and Logan, you already know him," her voice lowered slightly, "As Wolverine. He smokes cigars."
Alex nodded in confused, but partial understanding. "There's just too much about this place I don't know." He muttered darkly, taking a draw of his cigarette.
"Just give it some time sugar, this place grows on you." Rogue laughed lightly.
Alex sat in the Professor's office and waited. The summons had come as soon as he and Rogue had gotten back in the gates. It had been a summons, the blonde boy, Bobby, had made that incredibly clear. Alex frowned, he'd arrived to find an empty office and he'd waited inside, refusing to wait outside like a student waiting for discipline. In fact he'd been waiting for quite long enough, Alex stood and walked to the door, pulling it open he was surprised to see the Professor reaching for the door.
"Ah, Alex, just the person I wanted to see." The Professor waited until Alex moved aside, then crossed the room and took position behind his desk.
Alex rolled his eyes in resignation and closed the door. "What do you want Professor?" He didn't bother to conceal the impatience in his voice as he sat down.
The Professor looked at him sharply for the tone in his voice, but his own tone was considerably more even. "Firstly I wished to discuss what you are going to do with your life and talents, and then I was going to ask you to release your captives, they won't cause us any trouble now."
Alex wondered just what had been done to them to make them 'safe'. "What do you mean?"
Professor Xavier took a deep breath and steepled his hands in front of him on the desk. "I was referring to the fact that you are an incredibly powerful mutant, with little to no training, not to mention the illegality of your, shall we say, immigration?" Xavier looked at him gravely. "That fact alone would make your continued existence here in the USA quite difficult."
Alex felt his mask of calm sliding over his features. It happened automatically. But, powerful mutant? Alex seriously doubted that, but the rest of it sounded like a threat. "Are you going somewhere with this useless display of scare tactics, Professor?" Alex's voice was like liquid ice.
Xavier looked surprised. "Scare tactics? Quite the contrary, I was merely attempting to point out the situation you are in." He squinted at Alex and sighed. "I was going to offer my help with it, should you wish it."
Alex's eyes narrowed ever so slightly. "Help in what way?" And with what price? Alex thought quietly.
"We've long assisted mutants in gaining new identities, among other things, arranging for you to become an immigrant, clear and legal wouldn't be terribly difficult under the circumstances." Xavier leant back in his wheelchair. "All I would ask of you is to stay here at the school and learn how to use your abilities to the best of your capability."
"What about Dimitri? What's going to happen to him?" Alex asked, stalling for time to think, as much as genuine interest in the man's fate.
"Dimitri has expressed his interest in returning to Europe for the present." The Professor smiled. "He does want to retrieve his things from his house first, which could present a problem, but we will assist him and the mutants with him in any way we can."
Alex nodded absently, his face still a mask of utter calm. "What's the catch? To all of it, I mean." He waved a hand in the general direction of the school.
"Believe it or not, I actually wish to help you, and nothing more. If you become a student of this school, you will be expected to follow the rules like all the other students, but that is all."
Alex thought furiously. "What am I supposed to do to support myself?" He demanded, money and the lack of it had occupied the larger part of his awareness for the larger part of a year, since long before he'd arrived in the States.
"We take care of all of that." The Professor waved an expressive hand. "We make sure that all the students who need it are given access to everything that they need. Many of our students are runaways, or have been thrown out of their own homes. We take care of them as best we can."
Alex stared at the Professor for a long moment, thoughts racing through his head. "I don't know." He admitted at last. "It all seems too good to be true." He sighed. "And something that seems too good to be true, usually is."
The Professor sighed and leant forwards. "It will take time to understand everything, but I promise you, should you ever wish to leave, you may, at any time." He hesitated briefly. "I know that you haven't had a life conducive to trust, Alex, but I'm asking you to trust me now." He watched Alex patiently.
Alex drew a deep breath. A life not conducive to trust, Alex internally rolled his eyes, that wasn't saying the half of it, but if the Professor was actually being up front with everything. "I suppose I could give it a trial run." He spoke reluctantly, the words almost dragged from his lips.
The Professor smiled gently. "Thank you for trusting me, Alex." He leant back in his chair. "You are a little older than our normal student, so certain rules can be relaxed, such as curfew and you can keep the room you're presently in."
Alex caught himself staring, the Professor had to have figured out that he was staying in order to have thought this out. "Thank you." He said half questioningly.
The Professor gave him a wry grin. "We will have to speak more, however, I believe that Hank is ready to return your soldiers to San Francisco, so we must break things off for the moment."
Alex nodded vaguely. Perhaps it was the strain of the last few days that made him place his trust in the Professor's hands. "You want me to release them?" He looked at the Professor calmly.
"If you wouldn't mind." The Professor nodded. "I'll ask one of the students to show you the way down to the hangar." At Alex's look of surprise he smiled. "I have to take a class momentarily."
"Oh." Alex nodded. Of course the Professor had classes to teach, he wasn't called 'Professor' for nothing. "Thank you." He stood and walked out of the room, still in a daze that he'd agreed to trust the Professor's integrity, trust hadn't figured as a large part in his life for a very long time.
AUTHORS NOTE.
This is my first flirt with submitting anything I've written, so please be nice and give me lots of feedback! Thanks