This is a short introduction Chapter to start off a new arc.

The cab driver let out a little whistle of awe as he stopped the cab in front of the massive mansion that was Xavier’s school for Gifted Youngsters.

Hearing his whistle, I lifted my head from where I spent the last hour killing polar bears using penguins as projectiles on my phone.

Looking out the taxi window, I could not help but let out an impressed whistle of my own. The X-Mansion was quite the sight to behold, after all.

"This is your school?" the cabbie asked in a surprised voice as he looked the mansion over.

The mansion was 3 stories high and had two wings connected with the main section. It was huge, and that is, without mentioning the substantial amount of private ground we drove through to get here in the first place.

Money is clearly not something Xavier lacked.

"Yep!" I paid the cabbie for the long ride from New York City to the X-mansion and got out with my duffel bag.

While I was planning to live at the X-Mansion, I wasn't about to take all my stuff with me or give up my room in New York. If I needed something I didn't think to bring with me, I could always just buy it later.

Laura followed me out the cab with her own duffel bag, her face impassive, having killed rich and influential people all over the country, and in some rare occasions out of it, she had seen her fair share of mansions and castles.

Standing in front of the mansion waiting on us was Storm in all her chocolaty goodness.

"Follow me," Storm said in a clipped voice before turning and walking inside, expecting us to follow after her, which we did after a second.

Someone was clearly not over me throwing her and Logan around as easy as I did the last time we met.

"I don't think Miss Munroe likes us," I mock-whispered to Laura, who nodded back seriously, "I just hope that she doesn't spank us for being bad."

Storm paused her fast-paced gait and turned around to glare at me, her eyes stormy.

"I am kidding!" I raised my hands up to ward off any lightning bolts she may throw my way, "as long as I get to return the favor, I have no problems with getting spanked," I winked.

The foyer was completely silent as what I said registered to Ororo's mind. A deep, rich laugh left Ororo's mouth before she could stop herself.

I had a feeling that she was laughing more about the ridiculousness of a 16-year-old kid trying to flirt with her using lame pick-up lines rather than my irresistible charm, but either way, it was a win for me.

A teacher with a grudge against me from the get-go would make this huge ass mansion feel a great deal smaller than it truly was.

"Ah," I said victoriously, "so you do have a sense of humor!"

Ororo turned back around and continued walking without saying another word, but it was easy to notice that her walking pace had slowed down, and her shoulders had relaxed somewhat.

Objective achieved.

As we walked through the mansion, we encountered a few teenagers walking around and talking with their friends. Some who looked more normal than others.

With today being Sunday, there were no classes, and everyone was free to do what they wanted. And most had chosen to sleep in.

Some I recognized like, Colossus. He looked just like his comic and movie counterpart. A giant Russian guy made entirely out of metal.

Others, like a boy with porcupine spines coming out of every inch of his body, I had never seen or heard about before. Which wasn't all that surprising this was a school with tens of students, after all. Not every one of them could be famous.

There are going to be tons of Mutants I never heard about before.

It was surreal to see people I previously only thought existed inside pages of a comic book going about their day like normal.

I already saw a few Heroes and Villains since my arrival in this world, but those were mostly normal humans with superpowers. Not, pardon my language, inhuman looking humanoids.

There is a difference between seeing metal claws come out of a person's hand and seeing a person made entirely out of metal breathing and walking around like he wasn’t breaking a ton of rules of physics.

This world was further along than I expected. With the first Iron Man movie just starting, I thought that only Jean, Scott, and maybe a few of the others like Kitty were already recruited.

But it seems like I was wrong. Like the Fantastic Four, the X-Men already had their own adventures.

Storm took us to an office on the top floor of the main building, "the Professor is waiting for you inside," Storm said as she turned back around and started walking away.

"Wait, aren't you going in with us?"

"I have more things to do today than hold your hand, Mr. Shade," Storm answered sharply before turning a corner and walking out of sight.

I looked at Laura in confusion, "what was that about?"

Laura shrugged back, just as confused as me.

I thought that Ororo and I had buried the hatchet so to say on our way to Xavier's office. We certainly weren't the best of friends or anything, but I didn't expect her to snap at me like that.

Maybe I'm just thinking too much, and her behavior had nothing to do with me.

Putting Storm's borderline schizophrenic behavior out of my mind, I knocked on Xavier's office door before opening it.

"Ah, Mr. Shade, Miss Kinney," Charles Xavier said as he looked at us from behind his desk where he was doing paperwork, "please, come in!"

"I am glad you decided to give my school a chance," he continued as Laura and I took a seat in front of his desk.

"With how much you were talking it up, we would be fools for not at least giving it a try," I replied casually, "We can always leave if we don't like it."

Xavier frowned slightly at my casual mention of leaving, but he didn't argue. This was a school and not a prison. All the students were free to leave whenever they wanted to.

Xavier then went on to give a speech about what his school stood for, peace between Mutants and Humans, helping both Mutants and humans to a better tomorrow, bla bla bla.

If he really was that determined to have us all sing kumbaya in a circle together, he should start by changing the term Mutant. I know that it is the scientific correct term for us. But when people think of the name Mutant, they picture an inhuman monstrosity that had been mutated by radiation. Not someone they could live in peace with.

As long as we are called Mutants, I could guarantee that there would be no peace between humans and Mutants and that is without mentioning all the other shit, like human greed, jealousy and irrational hate and fear that humans feel towards beings different than themselves.

I zoned out for the rest of Xavier's speech and instead began thinking about what I'm going to do now that I have achieved my most basic goals.

I hadn't really set a goal for myself other than getting strong enough to survive and thrive in this crazy-ass universe and having enough money to live a cozy life without having to worry about money ever again for the rest of my life.

Other than that, well, we will see where life takes me.

I was always a go with the flow kind of guy anyway.

"I will have someone show you around the school and the grounds," Xavier said, pulling me out of my thoughts, "get a feel of the place and give me an answer when you are ready. This isn't a decision you should rush."

"If you have any questions, don't be afraid to ask them to your guide. She has been here as long as most of the teachers and knows just as much if not more than them," someone knocked on the door just as he finished talking.

"There she is," Xavier said as we all turned to the closed office door, "please come in, Jean!"

I have no doubt that Xavier had called for her telepathically so that she arrived just as he finished his speech. The timing of it all was simply too perfect to be anything else.

The office door opens, and in walked perfection. I kid you not, the movies and comics simply don't do Jean Grey justice. She was inhumanly beautiful. I doubt even one hair on her head was out of place.

She had a fit body with c-cups, long magnificent legs, bright red hair that reminded me of a blazing fire, and striking intelligent green eyes. But most of all, her presence filled the room like an avalanche.

Now I understand why everyone was constantly fighting over her.

Scott cheated on this?!

What a fucking moron!

"You called for me, Professor?" Jean asked, her eyes flickering over Laura and me for a second before going back to Xavier.

"Yes, I did," Xavier replied calmly, "these are Damien Shade and Laura Kinney. The two of them may be joining us as new students. I would like you to show them around and answer any questions they may have about the school."

"Of course, Professor," Jean agreed courteously. She turned to Laura and me, "are you guys ready for the grand tour?"

I looked at Laura to see if she had any questions she wanted to ask before turning to Xavier when she stayed quiet, who nodded that we could go.

"I guess we are done here," I answered, standing up, "lead the way."

Jean tried to start a conversation with both of us, but Laura wasn't really the sort for small talk. I, on the other hand, was busy trying to see if my shield would hold against the budding Phoenix currently walking in front of me.

I had been feeling a constant pressure against my shield ever since Jean had arrived. The force was so even and steady that it became obvious in no time that it was something she did automatically without any control. I don’t even think she was aware that she was doing it.

Fortunately, the shield around my mind seems to be holding. Heck, there was not even a ripple on its surface.

"So, what is your deal?" I asked Jean after a moment, "the Professor said that you have been here for the longest."

"My powers surfaced at an early age, and as you would guess, I had difficulty controlling them," Jean explained easily, "the Professor found me and offered to help me with them. I have been here ever since."

“Here Mutants can train their powers without having to hide or fear for their lives,” She continued.

"This is the best place for people like us."

I felt a shudder pass over me. That last part sounded like it was said by a machine rather than a human being. Like there was no thought behind those words just that they were simply the truth.

My smile strained slightly, becoming fake. My good mood evaporated just like that. With all that had been going on when I left Xavier's mind, I almost forgot what I had seen in one of his hidden cubby holes.

I had learned that when Xavier had sealed the Phoenix force in Jean's mind, he had also made it so that she couldn't even consider the option of leaving the X-Men without outside interference.

At the time, he had convinced himself that he was doing it for her own good and the good of the world. That it was too dangerous to let her out of his sight.

I honestly didn't know what to do with this information. I believed that every human should have their own choices, whether they be good or bad. Knowing that Xavier had taken Jean's choice away from her irked me, but I also wasn't a knight in shining armor that went around solving everyone's problems for them.

Being a student at Xavier school was the right choice for me with how weak I was at the moment. It was a good place to train my powers and learn more about them. Ruining that by telling Jean the truth and risking her becoming the Dark Phoenix would be stupid and not to mention borderline suicidal.

"Is it true that you two fought Storm and Wolverine to a draw?" Jean asked, changing the subject. A little bit of awe creeping into her voice.

"We would have won!" Laura said confidently at the same time as I asked, "Where did you hear that?"

Jean looked weirdly at Laura, not really believing that two of her teachers would lose against two teenagers her own age.

She chose to answer my question instead, "Ororo and Logan told us while training yesterday. There is another Mutant that can become intangible like you. Her name is Kitty Pryde, Logan mentioned you when he was teaching her."

I hmmed at that little tidbit of information. Not that Kitty Pryde could become intangible, I already knew that. But that Storm and Wolverine were confiding in them like that. It means that they didn't see them as kids but as equals.

As we were talking, Jean didn't forget to show us the important locations inside the mansion, like the dorms, classrooms, cafeteria, and other places the students liked to hang out between classes.

Jean didn't show us the danger room or any of the other rooms connected to the X-Men, however. Only the rooms that had to do with the school itself.

After that, we just talked about the school, the lessons, and the other students. She told us who to look out for, who liked pulling pranks, who we could go to for help, and everything else we needed to know when going to a new school.

At the end of the tour, Jean left us at Xavier's door with a promise to introduce us to her friends another time if we decided to stay, that is. Almost all the students were still sleeping in on their free day, especially the X-Men members who had a late-night training session in the Danger room last night, or already out in town.

"And?" Xavier asked when we walked back inside his office.

"We are in," I grinned.