Deception

Title: Deception

Rated: NC-17

Summary: Alternate X-Men Universe: Ororo Munroe, assassin, is hired

to kill Logan, (a.k.a. Wolverine) a former assassin and current

member of the mutant team X-Men.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of these characters. Marvel does. :(

Though, I do like to have my fun with them. But it's just fun, so

don't sue...please.

Feedback: Yes, that would be lovely.







Stepping down the stairs, Logan groans inwardly as Scott suddenly

appears at the bottom, glaring up at him.



"What ya want now, Cyke?" he asks. "I'm hungry...I want some food."



"You can eat in a minute. First you're going to listen to me," he

says, a definite no bullshit voice. Logan raises an amused eyebrow at

him and shrugs his shoulders.



"If you're so bent on ventin`, then shoot," he says.



Scott sets his jaw and waits for Logan to reach the bottom of the

stairs before speaking, "I don't appreciate you arguing with me like

that in front of the rest of the team," he says.



Logan laughs and rolls his eyes, "Is that all?"



"I'm serious. You've been here long enough now to know that I lead

this team, not you. I don't care if you say your opinion, but don't

argue with me," Scott says, a deep frown set on his face. Logan

watches his red visor for a moment before shaking his head.



"I tell what`s what, Cyke, and I'm not gonna stop so you can have

your ego," he growls and turns around. Scott puts a strong hand on

his shoulder and Logan stops.



"I'm tired of you disrespecting me, Logan. Especially in front of the

team," Scott says. Logan frowns and slowly turns back around to face

him.

"You want me to show ya some respect," he asks. Scott nods and

squares his shoulders. "Then do somethin' that I might respect," he

growls, leaning close to the other man's face.



Scott doesn't flinch, just stands perfectly still. Then he says, "Are

you part of this team or not, Logan? Because lately you seem to be

trying to make yourself stand away from the rest of us. The X-Men

aren't about being rude to one another so we can feel better about

ourselves."



"That what you think?" Logan asks viscously. Scott nods again and his

eyebrows rise in some sort of challenge. "Well, live about 10 more

years and see if you give me this speech again. `Cause I guarantee by

then you won't be all that kind to people either. Actually, wait a

few more days and I bet you'll be reconsiderin' you're view on our

girl Stormy."



"Why are you so bent on thinking she's here to hurt us?" Scott asks.



"A feelin'," Logan says.



"A feeling?" Scott asks as if Logan's gone crazy.



"Yeah, a feelin'. And I'm not one to go against my feelin's," Logan

says, turning away from Scott again and heads for the dining room.

Stepping into the room he stops to take a deep breath, the wonderful

scents of steak drifting in the air and the strong scent of corn and

potatoes. His mouth is already watering.



Scott steps past Logan, sharing a sharp glance with him before

disappearing into the kitchen. Logan looks across the table, the

Professor, Jubilee and Bobby already seated there. Jubilee smiles at

him for a brief second before turning her attention to Bobby who is

muttering some rubbish about being great at something. Logan chuckles

to himself and shakes his head, heading for the kitchen, toward all

the smells. Before he gets there though, Xavier grabs his arm,

halting him.



"Logan, have you thought about talking to Storm?" he asks quietly.



Logan frowns. Why does every good thing in my day have to be ruined,

he grumbles in his head. "Yeah...I thought `bout it. Fine, I'll do

it," he says and the Professor smiles. "But, it's not gonna do any

goddamned good."



"Just try, Logan. We need to get information before Magneto decides

to strike," Xavier says.



"Yeah, yeah, yeah," Logan says, continuing his journey to the

kitchen. In the doorway, he's stopped again as Rogue steps in front

of him.



"Ah, ah, ah, sugah," she says sweetly, putting a silky green gloved

hand on his chest. "Ah know how much you like your steak, so you're

not allowed in there," she says with a glance to the kitchen. Logan

frowns even deeper and looks over her shoulder to see Jean watching

them, a hard look on her face. Then he sees Storm smiling and

laughing with Scott, snatching the silverware out of the drawer.



"Yeah," he says, eyes on Storm's back. "But all I want is a beer."

His eyes fall to Rogue's once again and she smiles at him.



"Ah'll get that for ya,' sugah," she says and turns him around by his

shoulders, shooing him away. Logan stands there frowning at Jubilee's

grin that's barely holding back the laughter.



Logan stalks back to the large table and slumps down in a chair,

glaring at the table and brooding in silence. A few moments later his

concentration is broken as Beast moves silently into the room and

sits down next to him, his large elbow bumping Logan.



"How are you doing, my friend?" Hank asks, thoughtful eyes turned

down to look at Logan.



"Doin' fine," Logan answers. Before Beast can say anything else Jean

comes stepping, happily now, out of the kitchen and places a large

bowl of mashed potatoes on the table. Rogue next with the corn and

thankfully his beer, smiling and taking a seat on the other side of

the table, leaning over to set his beer in front of him. Jubilee is

sitting on the other side of Logan with Bobby beside her. Then

Logan's eyes sharpen as Storm steps into the room carrying the steaks

on a large plate. Logan just tells himself he's hungry and it's the

steaks he's staring at. Scott directly behind her takes the plate

from her and places in the middle of the table then takes a seat at

the other end of the table, across from Xavier. Jean on the edge next

to him, leaving Storm sitting in the seat directly across from Logan.

His eyes turn hard as she glances at him in a dismissive way and he

can feel anger bubbling up to the surface.



"This looks lovely, Jean," Hank says and smiles at her. Xavier, Scott

and Jubilee all agree, Logan just nodding, eyes falling from Storm to

the steaks. He is starving and the smell is starting to get to him,

making his mouth water. He unconsciously takes a deep breath and all

the smells of the delicious food are there, but underneath he gets

the strong scent of a strong soap that Hank must have used to clean

himself and the soft perfume Jubilee's wearing. He picks up the

greasy gel in Bobby's hair. All the scents of everyone's needing,

that being the hunger. But the scent that sticks out the most is the

woman across from him.



His eyes turn up under his low eyebrows at her soft scent, a mixture

of a flowery soap, misty perfume and salty smell of her sweat from

being in the kitchen around the hot oven. He frowns, sometimes his

senses are more of a curse then anything.



Everyone is silent as the plates are passed around, the food

spreading to each person's plate. Logan quickly dodges for the

steaks, grabbing a nice juicy, almost rare one. One thing he can't

get in this place, a really good rare steak, but he's not going to

complain. Jean makes some of the juiciest steaks he's ever eaten.

Next to go to his plate is a large mountain of mashed potatoes that

Jubilee takes one look at him and shakes her head.



"Where do you fit all that?" she asks in disbelief.



"Metabolism," Logan mutters, grabbing the bowl of corn from Beast,

who barely gets to finish putting the spoon back in the bowl.



"Wish Ah could eat like that...eat all Ah want and never gain an

ounce," Rogue says. All the girls laugh and Logan just shrugs,

grinning down at the large mixture of food on his plate.



"You don't eat steak?" Bobby's voice sounds and Logan looks up to see

Storm shaking her head.



"No, I do not eat meat if I can help it," she says. Logan's eyebrows

rise in amusement and he lets out a gruff laugh. She'll gladly kill

someone but won't eat a cow? Logan muses in his head, laughing

quietly. "What's so funny?" Storm asks, frowning at him.



Jean lets her fork drop to the plate and gives Logan a sharp look. He

just shakes his head and says, "Nothin'," picking up his fork and

knife and going to work on the steak.



"Oh, I got the coolest jacket yesterday at the mall!" Jubilee blurts

out happily. Rogue looks up from her plate and smiles.



"Really?" she says. "Ah got some shoes and a really nice pair of

pants, ya have t' see them!"



Logan shakes his head and exchanges a "You've got to be kiddin' me"

look with Beast. The furry man sighs loudly and turns back to his

food and Logan tries his hardest to ignore the kids' chatter. They

may be old enough to drink, but they sure still act like 15 year olds

whenever they get the chance.



His attention is suddenly drawn away from the girls as something rubs

against the side of his leg. Logan looks up to find Storm's sharp

blue eyes watching him with a predatory light. The corner of her

mouth quirks up seductively and good thing everyone's either

engrossed in a conversation about fashion or trying to ignore it that

they aren't paying her any mind, or they would have caught that.



Logan frowns at her and moves his leg back, letting her foot fall to

the floor. Storm gives him a pouting look, biting her bottom lip

prettily and giving him big, sad, wanting eyes. He tries to ignore

the effect that look has on his body. He didn't need to deal with her

shitty games right now.



Storm leans down just a bit and Logan can feel the tips of her toes

slithering under the end of his jeans. He bares his teeth warningly

at her, but she continues with a playful smile on her lips. But he

notices something in her eyes, something...dark. His nose picks up a

twist in her emotions flowing off her in waves. Logan can smell the

musky scent of her slight arousal, but something else is there

too...a hardness...cold emotion.



Logan lifts his other leg and gives her a dark smile then brings his

booted foot down on top of hers. Storm yells out in pain loudly and

scoots back away from the table, eyes glaring at him angrily.

Everyone's conversations stop dead and they all stare at her in

surprise. Then their eyes turn to Logan as Storm nurses her injured

foot and scowls at him.



"What?" he shrugs. "She shouldn't spread her legs out. Other people

are sittin' here too," he says with a smile.



"Son of a bitch," Storm mutters and stands from the table and limps

out of the room, tempting Logan to just let go and laugh at the

idiotic look of it. Jean frowns darkly at Logan then follows after

the woman. Jubilee hides a smile behind her hand and Beast shakes his

head at Logan.



"I don't think that was very kind," he says.



"That was uncalled for, Logan!" the Professor says sharply. Logan

glares at him and growls.



"What's uncalled for is you lettin' her eat here like she's part of

the group," Logan says heatedly.



"She's acting more a part of the group then you, Logan!" Scott cuts

in, standing. "Right now she has more right to be at this table then

you do."



"Scott," the Professor warns. Rogue frowns and rubs her forehead.

Jubilee and Bobby watch in complete, uncomfortable silence. Beast

shakes his head and puts a calming hand on Logan's shoulder.



"No need for that kind of talk, Scott," he says but sighs as Logan

shrugs his hand off and stands also, eyes burning as he glares at

Scott.



"Don't want me here, that's all ya gotta say, Cyke," Logan

growls. "You wanna have that fuckin' Magneto groupie at your table

instead, that's you're deal." With that he stalks toward the door.



"Logan," the Professor calls but Logan doesn't pay it any mind.

Letting his legs carry him toward the front door he stops to grab his

jacket before stepping outside. He doesn't get any farther then the

porch though before he stops. Logan glares at the long lawn of grass

in front of him then he tosses his jacket on the porch bench,

grumbling under his breath. Then he follows the jacket and the wood

creaks under his weight but holds as he sits.



Reaching over, he pulls out a cigar from his jacket pocket and finds

his box of matches. He lights the cigar, eyes sharpening angrily at

the sudden bright light as he lights the match in front of his face.

Then he settles himself back and lets his anger slowly dwindle. He

hadn't really been in the mood for a drive anyway.



*********



Storm curses silently as she limps away from the kitchen. Stupid

asshole, she growls to herself. Who does he think he is!?! I flirt

with him and he kicks me?!?!



"Storm, wait," Jean says from behind her and Storm sighs, halting to

wait for the red-head. "What happened?"



"Nothing!" she snaps angrily, but not angry with the woman, at Logan

and his stupidity! "I swear, if he gets in my way I'm going to snap

his arrogant neck!" she says to the wall she's glaring at.



Jean shakes her head, "I wouldn't say things like that at a time like

this, Storm," she says.



Storm takes a deep breath and nods, "Yes, you're right. That is

definitely not the thing to be saying." Suddenly she smiles. "But one

can dream," she says jokingly.



Jean smiles shortly then frowns. "I know Logan is irritating, and

given the events between you two, I do not blame him for being so,

but I don't blame you for trying to reconcile with him. But he's not

the forgiving type," Jean says.



"He isn't?" Storm asks, standing straight, testing her foot and

sighing as the pain dims. The Ape had stepped directly on her toes.

They had felt like they had been thoroughly smashed and broken when

it happened, but they are fine. "Well, he needs to change his

attitude."



Jean laughs at this, "Good luck with that," she says. Then looks down

at Storm's foot, "Are you alright?" she asks.



"Oh, yes," Storm quickly says, smiling. "I'm fine...hurt for a few

minutes, but it's fine now."



"Alright, good, would you like to go finish dinner?" she asks,

stepping back toward the dining room.



Storm shakes her head, "No, I think I'll pass," she says. Not wanting

to have another encounter with Logan at the moment.



Jean nods then says, "Just stay out of his way, Storm. He'll stay out

of yours if you stay out of his, trust me," she says. Then turns

around and walks back to the dining room, leaving Storm in the

hallway alone.



Storm shakes her head, for a telepath Jean doesn't pick up on things

too quickly. Storm knew, the last thing Logan really wants is for her

to avoid him completely. She had seen him watching her, his eyes

during dinner. They held something he couldn't deny in them, even if

he hated her guts, he still wanted her around. She smiles, laughing

quietly, then walking softly down the hallway.



********



"Tonight?!" Sabertooth growls. Black eyes following Magneto as he

steps across the room, frowning. Psylocke pushes herself up on the

leather couch and frowns also, eyes on Magneto. Gambit grumbles

something irritably and Mystique sighs, her hands on her hips, giving

her an angry posture.



"But it isn't supposed to be until tomorrow," Toad points out,

sitting on a stool in front of a small, portable television that's

sitting on a little table.



Magneto nods, "Yes, isn't "Supposed" to be until tomorrow, but it is

tonight," he says. Gambit exchanges confused glances with Psylocke.

"What?" he asks, red eyes piercing and eerie, even in confusion.



Magneto sighs as if the answer is simple and lets his eyes glance to

each mutant present then he says, "Storm is with Charles, the

strongest telepath on this planet. Do you think I would allow her to

know exactly when we are coming if he can just get the information

from her so easily?!"



"But I thought you said before that you worked with Storm on those

walls...or whatever," Toad asks.



"Ororo can handle even Xavier," Sabertooth says, a casual voice even

sounding angry. Psylocke guesses that this Ororo is Storm, having

heard Sabertooth refer to her by this name a few times. Must be her

real name, she thinks. So far, Sabertooth is the only person she has

heard call her that though.



"She might be able to, but I'm not willing to take that chance. Here

is an opportunity to gain two of the strongest mutants alive, and I

will not pass it up or lose it by a minor detail overlooked such as

that!" Magneto says heatedly, glaring at Sabertooth as he snarls

angrily. Mystique gives a short laugh and shrugs in a casual manner.



"I'm sorry, Sabertooth," Magneto says, "But Wolverine is what he is,

you can't deny the fact. Goes for you too Mystique, any of Storm's

abilities can wipe you out easily. Do not underestimate," he says,

his voice taking on a lecturing quality. "Definitely never

underestimate...especially these two."



Psylocke frowns and cracks her knuckles, the pop sounding loudly in

the silence, then she asks, "So, when are we heading out?" she asks,

readying herself for action.



********



Logan drops his almost burnt out cigar to the cement porch and snuffs

it out under his boot. He sighs as he stands up from the bench and

grabs his jacket as he heads back inside. Stepping inside the door he

frowns as a familiar and now dreaded scent reaches his nose.



"What do ya want, Storm?" he growls into the dark room. Eyes roaming

the room in search of her. Even with his keen eyesight though he

can't pick her out.



"I was watching you," her voice is soft and he turns toward the

sound. She emerges from behind the mass of white curtains covering

the large windows. "Sitting on the porch smoking that cigar," Her

voice is smooth and she smiles sweetly at him. Moving quietly across

the floor.



Logan can't help but notice the sway of her hips, the outline of her

body accented by the bright moonlight shining through the window. Her

hair shining magnificently bright and eyes sparkling with light.

She's a fuckin' goddess, he thinks.



He gulps, trying to work the knot out of his throat. "When are ya

gonna leave me alone?" he asks, a little agitated. Storm smiles and

steps a little closer, up to the couch and lays a hand on it. He

notices that it's far enough away that she'll be able to move away if

he decides to attack her or something.



She shrugs, "I don't know, you're just so much fun to be around," she

says, eyes watching him.



"Ya know, Charlie wants me to talk to ya `bout the Brotherhood," he

says.



"Oh?" she asks, eyes looking innocent.



"Yeah," Logan growls. "So you gonna tell me anythin' or am I wastin'

my time?"



Storm tilts her head slightly, pouring the light of the moon along

the smooth skin of her neck and Logan forces his eyes up to her

eyes. "I don't know," she says. "That's your decision to make."



"Right," he says and turns around to leave, not wanting to be a part

of this little game.



"I owe you one," Storm says behind him. Logan stops and turns to

glare at her.



"What?"



"For your kick, I owe you one," she says.



"What?!" he growls.



"I'd watch your back," she says smiling prettily.



"You threatenin' me?" Logan asks, squaring his shoulders, eyes sharp

on her.



"No...no...no," she says. "Just warning you."



"Look, the kick was just pay back for the kick to the crotch earlier,

sweetheart, so don't take it personal. If I really wanted to hurt

you, trust me, it'll be worse then a scrape of your precious skin,"

he growls.



"And that kick was just pay back for these!" she snaps, pulling her

shirt up high enough to reveal three cuts along her side.



"And why'd you deserve those!? Oh yeah!! The goddamned knife you

stabbed through my neck!" Logan roars.



Storm frowns and drops her shirt, "Fine, we're even then," she says.

Logan glares at her then turns away, heading out of the room again.

Shaking his head angrily as he tries to discard thoughts of Storm out

of his head.



"Wait," she calls but he doesn't stop. "A few days," she says, and

something about her tone makes Logan stop. He slowly turns and sees

her standing in the doorway he had just exited.



"What?" he asks.



"About a week. Mystique got in here somehow, and they're coming for

me in a week," she says.



"Mystique got in here?! The mansion?" he growls.



"Yes, and she told me to be ready," she says. "They're planning an

attack on the mansion in a week's time."



Logan narrows his eyes at her and he sees her tense a bit. Something

about her scent is odd, but he can't sense any stress from her from

lying. Maybe she's tellin' the truth, he thinks.



"Why the hell are you part of all this," he asks suddenly, the

question just popping out of the many questions circling around in

his head. Storm's eyes widen a bit in surprise at the question.



"Magneto is like a father to me, Logan. I don't think you'll

understand. He's helped me so much--" she says.



"How?" Logan interrupts, stepping closer so he can see her eyes more

clearly.



Storm frowns at him, "Well, he saved my life. Got me off the

streets. Even took a bullet for me," she says, her voice going

quiet.



Logan huffs a laugh, "Took a bullet for you? Magneto?"



Storm straightens and nods, "Yes, he did. It luckily hit him in the

shoulder though, so he is fine now."



"Yeah," Logan says sarcastically. "Luckily."



"Just because you've had your difficulties with Magneto doesn't mean

he is a bad person," Storm says loyally.



Logan growls and leans closer, making Storm press against the

wall. "Magneto used me for his own twisted ideas. He didn't

care `bout me or anybody else who was with him. The only thing I was

good for was killin' and that's what he used me for. And that's the

only reason he's got you around."



"No, that isn't true," she says, shaking her head.



Logan smiles viscously down at her, pressing his body closer, his

chest pressing against hers. He can feel her heart beating rapidly

and smell a sudden fear radiating from her. "Not true, eh?" he asks,

leaning his face close to her ear and whispering. "Then why did

Magneto pick you up in the first place?"



"Because he wanted to help," she says. "He cares for our kind,

Logan." Logan brings his face back just far enough to look her in

the eyes and he sees a innocence there. A true innocence that she

hadn't lost in all her jobs to kill people.



"Magneto cares for himself. He knew what you were...who you

were...what you could do. That's why he picked you up off the

streets," Logan says sharply, close to her face he can see her eyes

twitch and glare at him hard.



"No!" she snaps and pushes him back. "I will not listen to you!"



"Well, I've been down this road before, darlin'," he says. "He's

only using you like he did me, you gotta see it sooner or later,"

Logan says truthfully, feeling an odd sadness tug at his heart at

seeing her like this. Young, innocent and denying his accusations

toward the one person she thought she could trust.



"I don't care what you say," she says. "I know Magneto, he is true

to the cause." Logan sighs and shakes his head, stepping closer to

her again. Storm pushes him back away from her.



"You don't like not bein' in control of the situation do ya?" he

asks.



"I'm in control," she says.



"No, you're not," Logan mutters then grabs her by the arms and pulls

her to him. She gives a cry of protest before he presses his lips

down on hers. Storm struggles for a moment then falls limp in his

arms, her mouth opening under his. Her body falls tight against his

and he smells the deep smell of her sudden arousal up close and it

sends any trace of rational thought he had been holding onto floating

off into the deep recesses of his mind.



********



Jubilee smiles at Bobby as she takes a seat on his bed. Bobby smiles

back and puts a c.d. in his stereo and comes to sit next to her on

the bed.



"Glad someone around her has a U2 album, thought I was the only one

that liked them around here," she says.



"Nah, they're cool. The Edge is great," Bobby says.



"Bono is freaking awesome! That is all I have to say. He's God!"

Jubilee says happily as the song Beautiful Day begins to play softly

on the stereo.



They both fall silent, listening to the music. Then their eyes find

each other and slowly Jubilee finds herself leaning closer to him.

Bobby's body moves closer too, until both of them are merely inches

from one another.



Jubilee feels herself getting a bit excited. Is Bobby finally going

to freaking kiss me, she asks herself. She had been trying to give

him the hint that she found him attractive and all that jazz, but of

course he had been acting like the normal brain dead man. Not

noticing a thing.



Bobby leans closer and she can feel his breath hot against her lips.

But the moment is ruined as unusual sounds come from out in the

hallway. Bobby pulls back and exchanges a questioningly look with

Jubilee. She just shrugs and turns the door.



"What's going on out there?" she asks and stands up. Bobby hurries

in front of her to the door. He opens it slightly then gasps in

shock. Jubilee, curious now, moves and pushes up on her tip toes to

look over his shoulder and she gasps herself.



"I thought they hated each other," Bobby says softly as to not gain

the attention the couple in the hallway.



"Well, looks can be deceiving," Jubilee mutters. She watches as

Logan opens the door to his room, a laughing Storm steps inside and

her hands come back out to grab Logan by the collar and pull him

inside after her. The last sound Jubilee hears is Logan's deep

chuckle mixed with the sweet laughter of Storm.



"Well, that's something you don't see everyday," Bobby says, stepping

back to shut the door.



"Got that right," Jubilee says and smiles at Bobby turns to face

her. "But they got the right idea."



********



Scott walks quietly down the dark hallway on his way to the kitchen

for a little midnight snack. He slips into the kitchen and flips on

the light. He frowns as he walks across the cool tile and wishes he

had put on some socks down here.



He mutters under his breath at the floor and opens the fridge,

bending to look at it's contents in contemplation. Scott's starving,

but he doesn't know what he wants to eat. Suddenly, he hears

something. Scott stands up and falls completely silent, listening. It

sounds like boots on the wood of the hallway. Scott frowns and

thinks, it has to be Logan. He's the only one that stomps around at

this hour with boots on.



But a bit curious, Scott moves slowly across the kitchen, toward the

hallway, his hand raised to the side of his visor. Something about

the noise giving him an odd feeling. Then he remembers, even in his

boots, Logan never makes much noise if any walking around. Scott's

frown deepens and his muscles tense, preparing for anything.



He reaches the doorway and stops, pressing his back against the wall

and listens. Footfalls, a few of them sound a little ways down the

hall. Something about it isn't right and he's sure that these

footfalls do not belong in the mansion. Scott calls out to the

Professor in his mind.



:::Yes, Scott?::: the Professor's voice sounds in his head.



:::There are people in the mansion::: he says back.



There's a slight moment of silence then, :::Yes...we need to wake

everyone, the Brotherhood is here.:::



:::What?!::: Scott screams loudly but the Professor is gone, most

likely waking everyone else from their sleep.



Scott takes a deep breath and prepares himself for a fight, but

before another thought occurs to him, a massive arm flies around the

corner and strong fingers grip around his neck.



Scott grunts and brings his hands up to try and pry at the hand, but

gets nowhere. His eyes widen as he feels the sharp claws then widen

even more as Sabertooth's body follows his arm. An evil smile planted

on his face, revealing a number of very sharp white teeth.



"Ahh...X-Men's Fearless Leader," Sabertooth growls and pushes Scott

up against the wall, his feet dangling a couple inches off of the

ground.



Scott glares behind his visor and growls as he kicks Sabertooth hard

in the gut. The large man grunts from the blow and it gives Scott

enough time to reach for his visor. Pulling the lens back, a red

blast fires from his eyes. The beam crashes into a snarling

Sabertooth, erupting in a red fire and sending him barreling back

into the kitchen counters. The sounds of the crash can be heard

throughout the mansion.



Scott turns from Sabertooth just in time to face Toad, who glances at

Sabertooth then glares up at Scott.



"Now, this wasn't part of the plan," Toad mutters, crouching on his

haunches, his hands resting palms on the tile, he watches for Scott

to make the first move. Gritting his teeth, Cyclops fires a smaller

beam at Toad, but curses as he bounds off, sticking onto the roof and

his tongue shoots out and wraps around Scott's leg. Toad yanks back

and Scott is pulled to ground with a crash as his feet are taken from

under him.



"Oh, stop this playing around, Toad," a woman's voice says from the

doorway. "We don't need this one."



Cyclops looks up just as Mystique shakes her head down at him and her

foot connects with him squarely in the side of the face, sending him

into a dizzy stupor. Another hard kick is strong enough to make his

neck snap loudly as it twists from the blow and his vision goes

black.