Welcome to Mutant High

"I'm here, act as you normally would," I could hear the Professor's voice from somewhere within the room. I had learned in eighteen or so hours that I'd been here at the X-Mansion the difference between the Professor speaking to me or speaking to me within my mind. This was definitely outside of my mind...somewhere.

But I could no longer see him. Everything before my eyes had changed into what I would refer to as a virtual reality. I was no longer in the X-Mansion or at least not in this simulation...I was back home and I honestly didn't want to be. The Professor had seen enough through my eyes, through Jean's, Scott's, and Storm's, that it was like he could recreate a perfect version of my house... but it wasn't going to stay perfect long. I knew it wouldn't. The term life-threatening situation kept ringing in my ears.

As I walked through my house, everything seemed... in place. Nothing seemed to be wrong at all. I was upstairs though, so the hell that may be waiting for me downstairs, was a mystery. I slowly rounded the corner and started down the stairs. Nothing so far. I almost started to wonder if the last day had just been a dream I'd woken up from because this felt so real. But, Professor said 'life threatening' situations...and nothing seemed dangerous about this just yet. As I walked from the living room into the kitchen, my eyes widened in horror.

It was every teenage girls' worst nightmare--or at least I would believe it is. Although in conversation I would tell you that I disliked my parents so much after what they did to me yesterday--almost hated... I still loved them so dearly. They are my parents, after all. In this simulation, when I walked into the kitchen, I saw my Mother and Father both...dead and lifeless on the kitchen floor.

My eyes looked around the room and immediately I saw the culprit that did it. An intruder in the house, standing by the back kitchen door, pointing a gun right at me, slowly cocking it. I started to scream in horror and my eyes tightly shut, I dropped to my knees and that's when everything went still, quiet. I could no longer hear the birds chirping outside of my 'house.' I didn't hear the dishwasher going anymore. Nothing.

My eyes slowly opened and everything was frozen. Everything except for myself. "Professor?" My voice was kind of shaky.. I was afraid, what if he was wrong? What if I was strong enough to freeze him too?

"I'm here, Winter. You needn't to worry. Let's try to see if you can unfreeze time on your own. After you correct the danger of the situation." I grasped what the Professor was saying.. for the most part at least.

My parents were dead...there was nothing I could do to save them, aside from calling 911. But first I had to get the actual danger out of the situation. I walked...very slowly across the kitchen floor and removed the cold, stiff gun from the intruder's hand.. It was cocked to go off at any moment so I immediately aimed it at a safer target; the floor.

I walked back over to my parents, a safe distance from the intruder. On the counter laid the phone, where I guessed in the simulation my 'Mother' had tried to dial 911 and failed when she was shot.. so I picked up the phone that was turned 'on' but had no number dialed and waited.. I looked back over to the intruder and slowly breathed a breath of 'I'm alright, it's going to be okay' and everything unfroze.

When the intruder came back to and realized he had the gun no longer and the phone was in my hands, he took off out the back door. I jumped up and followed him out to the back porch as he ran off through our large backyard.

"Now Winter, see if you can freeze one lone being. I don't expect you can do this on your first try. It is quite advanced." The Professor was beside me with how close his voice was... but I could not see him. I closed my eyes and focused on what I wanted froze...who I wanted froze... but it did not work and when I opened my eyes, the simulation was gone.

"It's time for your science class with Storm. We'll have to continue this tomorrow, Winter." The Professor looked up at me from his wheelchair and I smiled. I lent in and hugged him.

"Thank you for this, Professor. I promise I'll get better with my power. I'll try my very best." My voice was soft, not nervous anymore. He had shown me that although I couldn't freeze time at my own will... I could at least unfreeze it now as long as I calmed myself enough.

"I know you will, and you are. I can tell you are giving this your all and I am very proud of you. Now get a move on, or you're going to be late!" The Professor joked and led me to the elevator that would take me back up to the main level of the school. I quickly found Rogue once on the main level and we walked to our class together.

When we arrived, only a few students were inside and no Storm as of yet so we sat and talked about how my training went. "The Professor plans to start yours really soon, or so he said. He took me down to a room that.. simulates like.. illusions. They're very very real though. Almost like a virtual reality. It was a life-threatening situation...that heightened my emotions and made me freeze time. It froze against my own will... but I could unfreeze it on my own."

"That's just... that's so baffling. You have the neatest gift." Rogue said quietly, almost in awe it seemed to me. I just smiled and shook my head.

"I'm sure once you get in control of yours.. yours will be the coolest gift ever." I tried to make her feel a little bit better. I still wasn't for sure what Rogue's power necessarily was exactly.. but I'm sure we'd find out sooner rather than later especially if the Professor intended to start her training very soon.

As we took our seats, about the fourth row from the front side by side, more students started piling in including Bobby and Pyro. Pyro sat in front of myself and Bobby in front of Rogue. Science had never really fascinated me before, nor had it truly held my attention...or got the best grades in my report-card. In fact, I detested science. Math as well.

I had to admit, as soon as Storm began to teach... I was interested in science. Since her powers involved the weather she could show such a 'hands-on' approach to what she was teaching...it happened to be about weather. I noticed in front of me, Pyro was trying to show off to not only myself but to Rogue as well by making a fireball with his lighter.

It started to grow a little larger and I could feel my heart start to panic...but before I panicked to much, Bobby pointed his finger behind his back and the fire started to turn to ice. When it was completely solid, Pyro dropped it causing Storm to look back at him and narrow her eyes... knowing he must be the 'bad seed' of the class.

"Is he always that way?" I lent forward to ask Bobby and he simply nodded in reply. I kind of figured Pyro was the... 'hot headed' one. As I sat back in my seat--the rest of the lesson went by fairly quickly.

The bell rung before I knew it. I noticed as I gathered my books up that Bobby had taken quite a shine to Rogue and left her a little heart made out of ice on her desk, causing her to blush extremely heavily. I smiled and lent towards her whispering, 'I'm definitely jealous! You should go for it. He seems super nice!'

Rogue and I left together, talking about Bobby and John...or Pyro as he preferred. I myself kind of had a thing about falling for bad boys...and apparently Rogue did as well, as she shared to me that she already had eyes for somebody... Logan.