After a few minutes of contemplative silence Sarah finally spoke. "So, what about this school?"
"I'm not going without you mom," Caleb responded, immediately and forcefully.
"I can't just leave Caleb, I've got ..." Sarah started.
"Your job means nothing if these freaks turn up and kill you," Caleb cut her off, "I'm not going without you so before you even think about trying to pack me off make sure you're coming too."
"It won't be a problem for you to come too Sarah," Logan answered, "And if it's a job, money, your worried about you don't have to, there's places on the school staff open, the Prof financially supports most of the kids anyway, and I can help out that way too. Living expenses won't be an issue, Chuck's already given me the go ahead to offer you either a suite or a bedroom on the teachers wing if Caleb wants to bunk in the dorms, I wouldn't recommend that though kid, especially not if your senses are coming in."
"Yeah, gym class is bad enough," Caleb replied with a grin.
"The school offers all normal high school level classes and subjects, it also hosts quite a few college students who aren't able to go away to college due to their mutations, there's also extra curricula classes; martial arts, various sports, and a mandatory wilderness survival and self-defence classes. The school also hosts a vigilante team of lab-raiding mutant superheroes but I didn't tell you that part," Logan finished with a sly wink.
"So, are you a teacher or a superhero?" Caleb asked Logan.
"Neither but both," Logan replied, "I've only been affiliated with the school, via the superheroes, for about 7 months, I've been... working long distance since then but I've just picked up a contract to take over most of the extra curricula classes at the beginning of next term."
"Cool, what about you?" Caleb asked Rogue.
"I'm an assistant teacher and in training superhero, I'm also one of those 'hosted college students'," she answered.
"Why can't you go to college?" Caleb asked, looking confused.
"I know I don't look too out of place up here all covered up but my mutation is my skin, I basically suck the life out of anyone who touches me skin to skin, so dorm living and crowded college campuses are not my idea of a good time," Rogue admitted.
"You probably get this all the time but that's a really sucky mutation," Caleb replied cheekily.
"You sure he's your kid, he's actually got a sense of humour," Rogue commented to Logan, trying to smother her grin. Logan just snorted in amusement. "You've been quiet Sarah, anything you want to know?" Rogue asked, turning back to the older woman.
Sarah glanced concernedly between Caleb and Logan before asking, "What staff positions are available?" She didn't miss Caleb's relieved grin.
"What do you do at the moment?" Rogue asked, trying to remember what positions had been mentioned at the last staff meeting.
"I'm actually an art teacher - appreciation, history, and practical development," Sarah replied, "But I've done a bit of everything over the years."
"That would be perfect, our current art class is more just appreciation and a bit of history," Rogue replied, "It's on our list of positions to reallocate to a better qualified tutor we just didn't have one, I'm sure the Professor would be happy to offer you the position, and Ororo would appreciate having it off her timetable!"
"Well, in that case, how do we get this ball rolling, I guess you'll be wanting to get Caleb to New York as soon as possible?" Sarah queried.
"I don't go until she goes," Caleb stated again before anyone could respond.
Logan couldn't help the feeling of pride at the strong protective instinct his son was exhibiting towards his mother. "Don't worry kid, your mother comes down when you do, we won't leave her behind, but I do want to get you both out of here as soon as possible, Rogue can get everything sorted out with the Professor tonight employment and education-wise, and we can leave as soon as you're both packed."
"I'll make the call now," Rogue confirmed, pulling out the untraceable cell phone Kitty had given them before they left.
"There's one more thing," Caleb spoke up suddenly, he looked and smelled a little nervous. "This school is for any mutant, right?" Receiving an affirmative nod, he continued, "There's another mutant at school, she's being bullied pretty badly, can she come too, without someone here to watch her back..."
"She got anything to do with this fight you got in recently?" Logan asked, picking up on the boys’ protectiveness again. Caleb nodded hesitantly in response. "There's a place for her if her parents will let her go."
"Caleb, I know you want to watch out for her but Flora's parents can't afford a private school," Sarah added.
"That's not a problem," Logan replied, "School fees are more a suggestion than a requirement, even for the kids that have been placed there by their parents, whatever they can afford, and if that's nothing it's not the end of the world."
"I suppose it won't hurt to offer at least," Sarah conceded. "Why don't you invite Flora and her parents over for dinner and we can discuss with them?" she suggested to Caleb.
"Sure, I'll do it now," he jumped at the suggestion and took off out of the room, snagging the cordless phone off the side table in the hallway and legging it up the stairs.
"Girlfriend?" Logan asked Sarah.
"Definitely more than a crush," Sarah confirmed with a laugh, "She's fourteen though and her parents are trying to keep her focused on her studying rather than boys, so he takes his opportunities when he can get them. How'd you know that was what the fight was about, I still haven't been able to get that story out of him?"
"Lucky guess," Logan replied with a shrug.
"Well, I better go make a phone call too," Rogue spoke up. "I'll be in the living room," she said as she walked out, dialling the Professors direct dial as she went.
Sarah moved too, to begin putting away her groceries. "There's holes in those early months isn't there?" she asked, as Logan seated himself on a stool at the counter.
"Yeah," he replied, "The one that's bugging me the most is why I left, something happened but I don't remember. I didn't hurt you, did I?"
"No, no Logan you didn't hurt me, you protected me," Sarah answered with a smile. "All in all you lived with me for about two and a half months, we only got physical the last couple of weeks, I don't regret it but I don't think you were ready for it, well, you were definitely ready for the sex part but ... you couldn't trust, and that was definitely an issue for you. The reason you left was a guy named Raymond Hayward, my ex-boyfriend. He wanted me back after the woman he'd cheated on me with broke up with him, he was an asshole, and you'd shown me that even a growly forest man could treat me better than he had. He started stalking me and discovered you living at my house, according to his suicide note if he couldn't have me no one could. He broke in in the middle of the night, I woke up to find him stalking into my bedroom with a knife in hand, and you half a step behind him. Before I realised what was happening, he was dead and you were standing there covered in blood with shiny metal claws out. You were a little out of it, like the lights were on but no one was home but not... after a few minutes you came back to yourself, saw what you'd done and freaked out. You packed up and left then and there."
"I don't really remember any of that," Logan commented after a moment’s contemplation. "I'm sorry, sorry for leaving you to deal with a kid all alone at least, not sorry about killing that prick."
"It's alright, kind of hard to blame you when out of the two of us I had more awareness of the consequences. Besides, he's a good kid, wouldn't trade him for the world, I'm just sorry you both missed out on so much while he was growing up," she responded honestly.
A split-second later Caleb burst back into the room. "I talked to Flora's mom, the twins are at a friend’s house tonight so they can come around, just them and Flora, she said they'd come around at six when her dad gets home from work. Do you need help with dinner?"
"You know, seven's a bit of a crowd to cook for, why don't we just order something?" Sarah suggested, glancing at the clock that read four forty-five.
"Okay," Caleb answered, "Can we get Thai, from that new place?"
"You mean the one Flora likes?" Sarah asked with a grin.
"Uh, yeah," Caleb replied, looking embarrassed again, flushing when he caught Logan chuckling.
"Sure we can, go grab the menu and work out what you want," Sarah replied.
Rogue walked into the room a moment later, still on the phone, though Logan could hear a feminine voice on the other end so he knew she wasn't talking to Xavier. "Keys?" she asked Logan, holding out her hand. Logan fished the keys out of his pocket as Rogue continued her conversation.
"I said he should have come with us," Rogue was saying exasperatedly.
"Yeah he totally should have," Jubilee replied, "I don't know how you've done it the last week Rogue but the kid is turning me grey and I've only had him for six hours!"
"What's he doing with you!? Jean was supposed to be watching him today."
Logan heard Jubilee's laughter filter down the line. "Chica, seriously, Miss Perfection didn't even last two hours on her own before she'd pawned him off, on literally the entire occupancy of the Rec Room, she didn't assign him directly to anyone so everyone bolted when he started throwing shit and the last person left in the room, yours truly, got stuck with him..."
The conversation faded out as Rogue walked out the front door, closing it softly behind her. She returned a few minutes later, laptop in hand, phone call now concluded.
"What's the rug rat up to?" Logan asked, concerned.
"Making Jubilee's life hell, apparently Jean got sick of him getting in her way, after he drank her coffee, which was after he threw up his breakfast, which was after he had been up since three this morning. She dumped him on whoever wasn't fast enough to get away from him. Jubes hasn't been able to get him to sleep this afternoon and he is literally climbing the curtains, I gave her a few hints to counteract the caffeine and burn off some of his energy, then she's going to give him his dinner early and try to get him to fall asleep in front of a movie," Rogue replied, booting up the laptop while she was talking.
"Who's the trouble maker?" Sarah asked, sounding amused.
"James," Rogue replied with a grin, "We were going to bring him with us but someone-” she nodded at Logan- “Insisted that it was too dangerous so Jean and Scott offered to look after him for a couple of days, Scott got called out on a pick-up in Texas this morning. Now, the Professor has sent me through an employment agreement for you, and enrolment documents for Caleb, and a second set for Flora if her parents agree. They can all be filled out electronically and emailed back, do you want to read over it now?" Rogue asked, clicking the last few buttons to get the relevant documents opened.
Sarah took the computer and quickly skimmed through the documents. "Woah!" she commented a moment later, "Is this the salary?" she asked incredulously.
"Yep," Rogue replied, "I told you, we really need an art teacher."
"And accommodation is included?!" Sarah added, sounding even more shocked.
"It is, and meals, and Caleb gets a $50 a week student allowance for any extra's over and above those provided by the school," Rogue added.
"... Sold," Sarah said a moment later, she hurriedly signed the document with the stylus. "I'm just going to quit my old job," she added, grabbing the phone Caleb had left on the counter and excusing herself to call her now former boss.
Caleb wandered in then, a slip of paper in one hand. "Where's mom?" he asked, glancing around curiously.
"Quitting her job, what do you need?" Logan asked.
"Someone needs to go get dinner, I put the order in already, it needs to be picked up in thirty minutes, I wanted to stop and get something on the way," Caleb replied.
"If you can give me directions, we can go do that," Logan said, "Come on, you can tell me more about your girlfriend on the way."
"Don't tease, Logan," Rogue admonished, trying not to laugh, watching as the two of them gathered jackets and made their way out of the house.