Now Cyclops' stare [i]had[/i] transitioned into a glare, as evidenced by the increased tenseness of his brow and jaw lines.
He had been shifting his attention between Jean and Ryder while they spoke, and though he still could only hear one side of the conversation, he could tell Jean had -for the second time- expressed remorse.

Jean's open heart. One of the defining characteristics of the woman who forever held his, and it was being looked at as nothing more than a deception tactic.

Fine -that was the sole interaction Ryder knew all her years.
Still -to count Jean in with those Umbra scientists? Surely even Ryder could perceive some difference.


This time, Jean met Ryder with a level stare throughout Ryder's entire speech. True, the DNA testing hadn't [i]had[/i] to be done, but as blood already drawn had been used, it was deemed a harmless and in fact valuable additional measure. Jean could admit certain other considerations, the ones Ryder was elucidating, had gone overlooked. 

But it was made just as clear Ryder wasn't going to take anything as anything other than a [i]spin[/i].

While Jean had started this derailed conversation from a desire to make peace with Ryder for Ryder's sake, there was another reason that was underlined now.

Every part of Jean wanted to state, clearly and unmistakably, that Ryder would [i]not[/i] harm anyone here. 
But something about the vibe Ryder gave off made Jean hold this back; lest Ryder take it as an invitation to show these "dumb fucks" exactly how serious she was.

[color=#DAA06D]"I'll keep that in mind,"[/color] Jean stated instead, eying Ryder a moment longer before breaking eye contact to cast Xavier a departing glance; [color=#DAA06D]"excuse me."[/color] 

She decided to go see if she could make any progress with the others they'd brought back from Umbra -rather, with tracking down their families. While records seemed to indicate some parental consent, so far they proved either either out of date or manufactured, as the X-Men hadn't been able to locate any such family from the recorded details.

The lack of mutant presence in the area otherwise had them considering a few situations: the children came from non-mutant families who wanted no ties to them either for the children's own safety, or because they despised them; the families felt they were leaving their children in a safe environment, and had gone to find one of their own; their families were killed. . .Or some mix of all of the above.

Still, the X-Men tried. A few weeks wasn't a long enough time to consider concluding such a search.

Before Jean walked away, she also made eye contact with Scott; an acknowledging / 'see you later' kind of exchange.

Unfortunately -or to be seen what it was- the mix of strong language and "crack someone open and strangle" had managed to do what such unappealing things tend to -catch the ears of innocent youth. The two teenagers and pre-teen just behind Cyclops now had their eyes this way as well, trying to figure out the context.

Air-jet Teen: "I think Dr. Grey just got chewed out."
Static Teen: "Who is that kid?"

Stretchy-Kid just watched quietly.

Scott shifted his attention their way. [color=#0096FF]"Someone new, but nevermind right now. She's still [i]settling in[/i]. . .Why don't you lob me a shot, after all?"[/color]