[center][img]http://i275.photobucket.com/albums/jj306/Carnage27/kitty_zpsa7zkqre8.jpg[/img][/center] Kitty Pryde was deep in concentration. It had all come down to this, a moment she had clawed her way towards for weeks. Poking out between pearly white teeth, which were freed from braces a little over a year ago, and pink lips, the tip of her tongue hung out the corner of her mouth. It was a sign of just how much she wanted this. A bead of sweat rolled from her brow, just below her maine of dark, brown hair, before dripping off the tip of her nose. Kitty was ready to make her move, she just hoped it would be enough. With a flick of her wrist, it was done. The air hockey disk careened off the side of the table, before floating by the outstretched arm of Bobby Drake and into the goal. The assembled students of Xavier’s School for Gifted Youth erupted in cheers as Drake’s howl of defeat melded with their celebration. He looked up at Kitty, who was in mid victory dance, dabbing with some of the younger boys. She shrugged, a broad smile painted across her face, “And that, Bobby Drake, is how you do it.” The air hockey table itself was something of a pet project of hers. When she first moved to the mansion, she found it broken and wasting away in the basement. Professor Xavier let it slide that it was his as a child, and Kitty got to work fixing it. She was good with tinkering. Better when it came to computers than mechanical equipment, but she fixed the table up just the same. Once it was working, it became her in to making friends at her new home. Three years later, she was now the one the younger kids looked up to. Some of them had put together the tournament in their spare time. Of course, once word got out, everyone wanted in. It took weeks to get to the finals, but Kitty was ecstatic that she got to play her best friend. Beating him was the cherry on top of the delicious sundae. “Sometimes I hate you, Pryde,” Bobby shook his head. “No, no you don’t,” she stuck out her tongue at him. Bobby and Kitty were each other’s first real friend at the mansion. Being about the same age and background in a place where so many different ages were mixed made them easy pals. Since then they’ve trained together to be X-Men, both becoming part of the team in recent time after the unfortunate loss of Warren Worthington and the disappearance of Scott Summers. There was no one she’d rather fight alongside. That is, if they were ever sent out on a mission. So far Professor Xavier hadn’t sent them out. She was starting to get slightly annoyed at the waiting game, even though she knew the headmaster and leader of the X-Men was just looking out for her safety. “You wanna go grab some-” The two students winced as the Professor’s telepathic message meets them. Kitty had yet to get used to telepathic communication. She had practiced with it during her sessions with the X-Men, as using Jean’s telepathic abilities allowed them to communicate without tipping their enemies off. It was smart, but there was still the odd sensation of someone entering your mind. Kitty got weirded out when it was someone she allowed it, she couldn’t imagine what it was like if she didn’t want them there. The two teenagers made their way quickly to their summons. When they got to the main office, they found the feral-looking visage of Hank McCoy sitting with Xavier. Kitty beamed at the man who was her mentor and teacher at the school. Hank looked like the cross between a lion and a gorilla, but with blue fur. He’d be the kind of mutant you’d put on a propaganda poster to scare dumb humans into hating mutants even more than they did. The reality of the situation, however, was that Hank McCoy was probably the most gentle and thoughtful person you’d ever meet. “Hello, Katherine,” he smiled, showing his feline-like mouth’s sharp teeth. It’d set some to be uneasy, but to her it was one of the most welcomed sights there was. He had been teaching her college classes since she arrived. Kitty was always smart, but McCoy had managed to get her to work even harder. She was already a college level computer programmer, and was advancing in computer engineering as well. “Good afternoon, Professors,” she took a seat next to him, in front of Xavier, who sat behind his desk with hands folded over. Xavier was one of the most cerebral men Kitty had ever met. Even without reading your mind he could read what kind of person you were. He was a great mentor for the entire school, but there was an unmistakable sadness he tried to hide. The loss of one of his X-Men had done that to him. “Thank you for coming,” Xavier smiled at them. “As you know, we’ve had exceptional growth in the past few years. Still, some mutants that want to come to our safe haven cannot make it, whether due to external threat or inability to pay for travel. I’ve been sending some of the X-Men to pick them up. Peter is on such a mission as we speak.” Peter Rasputin, also known as Colossus, was the physical powerhouse of the X-Men. The gigantic looking mutant’s physique wasn’t the only impressive thing about him. He could turn his skin into living metal, making him virtually invincible. “I know you two have been chomping at the proverbial bit to get out in the field,” he smiled slightly as the two kids exchanged an excited glance. “I believe we have that time. You’ll be accompanying Hank to New York. A young mutant there by the name of Jubilation Lee has asked for our assistance in getting out of the city.” “She’s being threatened?” Bobby perked up. “We don’t know, Mr. Drake,” Beast, which was McCoy’s codename, answered. “Her mother seems to believe they are being watched. We’re there to ensure the girl is brought here safely.” Kitty smiled broadly. This was it. It was finally time to become a real X-Man. “So, when do we leave?” “Now, Ms. Pryde,” Xavier responded. “We want to get her out as quietly as possible. Keep that in mind.”