A Test for True Love
by Odeena Sabnach

It was a quiet Friday afternoon at the Xavier Institute.

Well, as quiet as it could be with a few mutants watching Ace Ventura II on TV.

Scott, Jean, Kurt, Evan, Bobby, Jamie and Amara were comfortably settled on/beneath/over the large bed in Scott's room, since it was the only room with a working TV. Sitting in an armchair next to the bed, Logan, the only adult in the room, was reading a magazine and pretending not to be interested in anything else. His official reason for being there had been that 'the Professor had sent him to watch over the kids', but everyone could see him making serious efforts not to burst out laughing whenever Ace said or did anything silly. Overall, everyone was having a great time.

"By the way, where's Kitty?" Jean asked as soon as the first commercial break came on and the insane laughter turned to more common giggles.

"Dunno", Kurt replied, munching some popcorn. "Want some?"

"Don't talk with your mouth full", Jean, Scott and Logan said automatically. The others started to giggle. Kurt pretended to be hurt and teleported to the other end of the room.

"I haven't seen Kitty since lunch", Amara said, answering to Jean's original question. "I think she went out with Lance", she continued, her voice a tiny whisper.

"What? But I thought-"

Just then, Kitty phased through the door. "Like, hello everyone! Has the movie, like, started yet?"

"It started half an hour ago", Kurt supplied, teleporting next to her. Kitty was taken by surprise and backed away a few steps; tripping on the carpet, she lost her ballance and ended up in Logan's lap.

"Well, if it ain't raining half-pints these days." Logan was faintly amused. "How'd you like it there, kid?"

"I..." Kitty quickly got up. "'Scuse me. As for you-"

Kurt chuckled and leaped on the ceiling. "As for me - what?"

"Oh, you!" Kitty waved her fist in a threatening gesture, then gave up and sat down on the bed. "Like, I hope I didn't miss, like, anything important."

"Neah, the good part starts now." Scott stuffed a fistful of popcorn in his mouth. "It's really cool, you'll see. Yeah, yeah, I know, don't talk with my mouth full", he added reluctantly when he saw the way Jean, Logan and the others were watching him. "Sorry."

Kurt chuckled and teleported back to his former place - which was now being occupied by Kitty. Apparently, Kurt hadn't considered that, and he ended up falling over Kitty and sending them both on the floor.

"Ew! Like, get offa me!" Kitty screamed, shoving him off.

"I... Sorry..."

This would've quickly become a fight, which would have probably ended up either with Kurt teleporting away or Kitty phasing through the floor. Fortunately for everyone, the commercial break (which in fact had lasted over fifteen minutes) ended and the movie resumed. In an instant, both Kurt and Kitty had forgotten all about it and were rolling on the floor with laughter.

~

"Where were you all afternoon?" Jean asked, when the next commercial break ensured.

"Well, like... Lance asked me to tell you all something", she said finally.

This immediately won everyone's attention. "Say what?" Amara asked. "Lance, as in, Avalanche? That guy in the Brotherhood?"

"Him." Kitty gave Amara a dirty look before continuing. "Lance is, like, throwing a party this week-end and he wanted me to ask you if you would, like, come to it."

"Party!" Kurt yelled. "Count me on!"

"Me too!" Jamie didn't undestand why all of a sudden everyone was glaring at him. "What?"

"Really? Like, all right!"

"Not so fast, bub."

Logan slowly set aside his magazine. "No-one's going anywhere."

"But Lance is, like-" Kitty started.

"Like, like, like, like, you're not going. Let's remember it's Magneto's bunch we're talking about here."

"But-"

"End of story", Logan said definately, and nobody said anything else. Only Kitty winked discretely at Kurt and Jamie, and the two grinned. They were going to go after all.

~

"I'm still not sure about this..."

Jamie looked around. "If we get caught-"

"Oh, like, relax, will you! Nobody's gonna catch us! Besides, there's nothing wrong in going to a party!"

"Then why are we sneaking out?" Kurt asked teasingly.

"Well, it's not like anyone invited you two. If you don't like it, you can, like, go back right now."

Kurt and Jamie exchanged a glare, then they both shrugged. "You invited us", Jamie said innocently.

"Oh, you-"

"Ssh!"

All three held their breath and hid deeper into the bush. Scott and Jean drove past in Scott's convertible, talking in a low voice. After that, things got quiet again.

"There twigs are, like, messing my hair!" Kitty complained.

"So, phase through them", Kurt suggested. "Come on, the gate's not far away."

Finally, after lots of grunting and arguing, the three made it to the gate. Kitty glared down disapprovingly at her pink outfit and quickly shoved off a bug that was climbing it. "I hate my life", she grumbled silently as she phased through the gate of the Institute and into the driveway.

~

Surprisingly enough, the house where the Brotherhood lived was full when the three X-Men arrived. Kitty immediately went to look for Lance, and Kurt saw Amanda talking to some friends next to the refreshments table and made his way towards her. Left alone, Jamie grabbed a comic book magazine, sat down on an armchair and proceeded to read it, sipping from a glas of lemonade from time to time.

~

"Have you seen Kitty?"

Jamie raised his eyes from the magazine and his gaze came upon a very nervous Kurt. "Um, no, why?"

"I can't find her anywhere, and it's getting late! If the others find out that we're missing, it's probation again!" Kurt flinched at the word. "Come on, we have to go look for her!"

Jamie reluctantly put aside the magazine and got up. "And it was just getting good", he grumbled to himself.

~

It was half an hour later, and Kurt and Jamie had no idea as to where Kitty was. Lance didn't know a thing either; after having a brief conversation with him, he too begun to look for her, and soon everyone was looking for Kitty. Finally, when Kurt and Jamie had all but lost their hope, a faint cry came out of nowhere, "Like, help me!"

It took Lance a while to realize where the sound was coming from, but he eventually found that it was coming from the bathroom. He tried the door; it was locked.

"Kitty? What's going on?" he shouted through the door.

"I don't know, I, like, can't get out!" Kitty's voice sounded panicked. I'm stuck! Please, like, get me out!"

"Can't you just phase through?"

"Like, I tried, but it won't work! There's some kind of gizmo here that, like, annihilates any mutant powers or something!"

"Say what?" Lance raised an eyebrow. "Mystique never-"

"Oh would you just do it!"

"Hold on, I'll... I'll get this door open..." Lance thought quickly. Crating an earthquake would have probably brought the house down, so he couldn't do that. All kinds of solutions raced through his mind: burning the door down, calling the firemen...

"I will open the door."

There was a general mutter of surprise when Colossus stepped forward. Lance looked at him puzzled. "How-"

The rest of the question was lost somewhere in all the crashing and rumbling that started when Colossus literaty went through the door. "Kitty? Are you all right?"

"Like, you're not Lance!"

Colossus nodded. "I am Colossus."

"Well, no matter." Kitty phased through what was left of the door and stopped in front of Lance. All he could do is look at her puzzled.

"But... I... thought..."

"It was, like, all a bluff. Or, more like a test. I wanted to see if you, like, truly love me."

Lance was more than puzzled. "What?"

"And guessed what, Lance." Kitty gave him a little kiss on the nose. "You - failed. Now I, like, totally know who loves me." Saying this, she put her hand around Colossus' shoulder, and they both phased outside.

Lance stared blankly ahead. "I... she couldn't..."

"It's all right, man", Pietro said, talking really fast as usual. "She ain't worth it."

Suddenly, there was a high-pitched scream. Everyone turned just in time to see Freddy fleeing upstairs, with two twin O's still smoking on his butt.

Pyro glanced down at the cattle-branding iron he was holding and smirked. "What could I do?" he asked quietly in an amused voice. "I just couldn't help myself!"

There was a general snicker among the others. Kurt and Jamie, who had been watching the whole scene numbly, finally snapped out of it.

"Let's go home", Jamie suggested in a tired voice.

"Let's." Nightcrawler put a hand on Jamie's shoulder, and they both teleported away.