"Unfortunately, I require more time to reconstruct the computer and reprogram it." Beast calmly sipped his coffee.

Gambit looked from Wolverine to Beast. "Wolverine, you wreck de Danger Room again?"

"Not me, Cajun." Wolverine took a huge bite out of a sausage. "The kid did it." Jasmine blushed as Gambit looked at her in disbelief.

"What dis foolishment you pull on Gambit? Petit, you? You de one who wreck the Danger Room?" Gambit asked, wearing an incredulous smile. Kid nodded and buried herself back into her bowl of corn flakes. "C'est impossible! She just a small girl."

"Indeed, for such a small child, she possesses a great deal of power. She beat Logan's record for destroying the Danger Room by a full seventeen seconds." Beast smiled over his mug at Jasmine.

"Ahh, beginner's luck," Logan griped, no real feeling in it.

"If dat de case, Gambit want to go one on one wit' de Kid. When she get done training, I want to see what she got. Dat okay wit' you, mon petit?"

"Uhhh, I guess." Jasmine quickly wolfed down the rest of her corn flakes and waited impatiently for Beast to finish his toast and coffee.

"Fraulein Jasmine, you seem.... apprehensive about something. Iz there anything I can do to help?" Nightcrawler spoke up for the first time since Kid sat down.

"I'm fine, Mr. Wagner. I'm just nervous. First day of school and all. And I still have to learn how to use my powers."

"I have complete confidence in you, Fraulein. Soon, you vill be as formiddable as Volverine. Vell, maybe not Volverine, but at least as formiddable as Gambit," Kurt said with a laugh.

"You tink Gambit no match for Wolverine?" Gambit began to fake outrage.

Beast picked up his dishes and stood up. "As entertaining as this promises to be, Miss Kydd and I have an appointment. If you'll excuse us.... Shall we, Miss Kydd?" Jasmine stood up and gathered her dishes too and wished her friends goodbye as she followed Beast, first to the kitchen to drop off their dishes, then to Beast's lab.

Once they were in the lab, Beast turned his chalk board over revealing the alphabet and numerals. "We'll be starting with the letters and numbers." He handed her two exercise books and some pencils. "We'll do lessons for two hours and afterwards you can choose an activity. If you're up to it, after lunch we can continue."

"Okay," Jasmine said quietly, unable to hide her anxiety. Dr. McCoy began naming the letters and having Kydd identify them out of order. Then he did the same with the numerals, having her trace each in her exercise book when they had finished. He could see the frustration in Jasmine's face as she struggled with the letters. "No matter what I do, I can't get my letters to look like yours," she lamented finally, throwing down her pencil in frustration at her squiggly letters.

"It takes practice, my dear. Time and patience. Rome wasn't built in a day, you know."

"Right now, telling me to rebuild Rome brick by brick would look a lot less pointless than this." She glared at the page as though it had personally offended her.

"I can see you're ready for a break. What would you like to do?" Beast asked, checking his watch.

"I hear people always talking about how there's all these worlds and places and people in books... Can you -- can you read me a story from one? I want to know what kind of stuff is in them."

Beast looked surprised but recovered quickly. "Why, certainly. Any book in particular?"

"Um, no. Just any story is fine." Jasmine looked at him wearily, rubbing her eye gingerly. Beast stood up and looked through a few of the books he kept in his lab to read while he was waiting for test results. He picked up a book of old ghost stories he particularly liked.

"Ah, here's one. I'm sure you'll enjoy it as much as I do. I hope you like ghost stories. They're best experienced in the dark." He set the mood by clipping a book light to the tome and turning it on before turning out the lights in the lab. Jasmine came and sat next to him, looking at the prints of wooden etchings on the pages of the old, leatherbound book.

Beast put on his glasses and began to read aloud in a somber, eerie voice. " 'In the bosom of one of those spacious coves which indent the eastern shore of the Hudson, at that broad expansion of the river denominated by the ancient Dutch navigators the Tappan Zee, and where they always prudently shortened sail, and implored the protection of St. Nicholas when they crossed, there lies a small market-town or rural port, which by some is called Greensburgh, but which is more generally and properly known by the name of Tarry Town. This name was given, we are told, in former days, by the good housewives of the adjacent country, from the inveterate propensity of their husbands to linger about the village tavern on market days.'..."

Jasmine was immediately absorbed in the story of "Sleepy Hollow", raptly listening to Beast reading it even though there were no pictures for her to look at. When he finished, she shuddered. "Whoa... that was really creepy. The Horseman and the head and the.... brrrrrrrrr." She shuddered again. "One day, I'm gonna read you a story."

"I shall certainly look forward to it," Beast said with a smile as he turned the lights back on. "But for now, I'll settle for you agreeing to accompany me for lunch." He offered her his arm and she took it with a giggle, walking back up to the kitchen with him. There, they met Logan, rummaging through the fridge.

Without turning from the contents of the refrigerator, Logan greeted them with a dismissive sort of wave. "So, Kid, how was your first day of class?"

"Uhhhh...." she began, stalling for time, waiting for an answer to pop into her head.

"Her lessons are going well, no less than you expected. I daresay her handwriting is nearly as good as yours." Wolverine unsheathed his middle claw at Beast then began to pull sandwich fixins and sodas out of the fridge. "I'll have the Diet Pepsi if there's any left."

"Sure, Hank." Logan tossed him the soda and began to make sandwiches.

"You know, as much as I like your sandwiches, Logan, sometimes I feel I would enjoy a little variety." Beast delicately took the sandwich Wolverine gave him.

"Well, you know the solution fer that? Next time, make yer own darn lunch." Jasmine giggled and Wolverine smirked at her. "What's so funny, squirt?"

"You." Wolverine pulled a face at her. She stuck her tongue out at him and took a bite out of her sandwich.

"You think I'm funny now, Kid, but yer not gonna like me much once you start trainin' in th' Danger Room fer real." Wolverine wolfed down two sandwiches and a bag of chips then washed it down with a bottle of root beer before leaving Beast and Kid alone in the kitchen.

"What did he mean by that?" Kid asked, completely forgetting her food, for once.

"Don't concern yourself with that just now. You have a long way to go before you'll be training with Wolverine. Until you have some mastery of your powers, I can't imagine you holding too much interest for Wolverine, at least as far as sparring goes." Beast glanced at the clock on the microwave. "So, would you like to continue with your lessons today? Or would you rather pick up where we left off tomorrow?"

"I want to get a jump on my homework. There's a lot of it to get through before tomorrow."

"Of course. Well, in that case, I'll get back to work on the Danger Room. Gambit and Wolverine are getting rather edgy without a place to vent their frustrations. I'll see you, in my lab, first thing in the morning."

"Won't you be at dinner tonight?" Jasmine asked, drinking the last of her soda.

"No, I have a great deal of work to catch up on, so I'll be taking dinner down in my lab. See you in the morning." Beast cleaned up his spot at the island and headed down to his lab again. Jasmine decided now was as good a time as any to do her homework and headed up to her room, sitting down at her little desk and working on as many of the exercises in the books as she could. Once she finished, she decorated her room with her purchases from the mall, putting her clothes and shoes away as well.

When she finished, she stood back to admire the effect. "I have my own room. Wow! I'm like everybody else now." Jubilee walked into the room through the open door.

"Hey, Jazz. I love what you've done with the place. The Danger Room's still down, so do you want to hang out outside? It's a great day to sit in the yard and boy watch." Without waiting for an answer, Jubilee dragged Jasmine out to the grounds, introducing her to other mutants as they passed in the hallway. Jubilee found them a spot in the shade and pulled her sunglasses down over her eyes. "So, how do you like it here so far?"

"Well, everybody's really nice. This is the first real home I ever had and my first time going to school like other kids, so it's scary but really cool at the same time."

"How did you meet Wolverine anyway?" After Jasmine told Jubilee the whole story, she whistled appreciatively. "Whoa, awesome! So your power is to control electricity?"

"I guess so. What's your power?"

"Well, I shoot colorful bursts of energy from my hands that I call fireworks. I can make them explode too. They're really bright though, so sometimes they can cause temporary blindness. That's why I wear the shades."

"That's cool. I wish I could control my powers. I can only use them when I'm mad or scared or something."

Jubilee looked at Jasmine and smiled wisely. "You just need practice. You'll get it in no time. Once you get used to it, I know you'll be really strong. You might even be as tough as Wolvie."

Jasmine laughed out loud at the thought. "No way I'll ever be that tough. I wish though." She looked serious for a moment. "I don't know how to feel about my powers. I mean, when I found out I was a mutant, I hated it. But now, with you guys being so nice and everything, I'm starting to think that if I have to have powers, it won't be so bad if I can stay here with you all. I mean, I would still be living in that dumpster if I wasn't a mutant."

"Yeah, I feel the same way. It's a blessing and a curse as some of us like to say. But, these guys are my family now and I can't imagine it being any other way." They sat in silence for a while, watching Logan as he came outside and began his daily practice and meditation.

Suddenly, Kid got up and stood some distance from Jubilee and the trees. "I wanna see somethin' real quick," she said when Jubilee opened her mouth to say something. Kid closed her eyes and took a deep breath. As she stood there, she began to picture the scene in the alley, trying to capture that fear and anger and pain. As she did, she found she could actually feel the energy building up inside of her. She opened her eyes to see small sparks crackling over her skin. Jasmine could hear pounding footsteps approaching as she exhaled, stopping the flow of electricity in her body slowly.

"What's goin' on?" Logan said, stopping between Jubilee and Jasmine. "Smells like a lightnin' strike or somethin'."

"You can smell lightning?" Jasmine asked, honestly curious.

"The ozone in the air durin' an electric storm. What happened?" Logan looked from Jubilee to Jasmine. He got a whiff of the air around Kid and understood. "What th' heck'd ya think ya were doin', Kid? Ya coulda been hurt playin' around with yer powers out here."

"I just thought of something. If I can only use my powers when I'm upset, if I upset myself a little, maybe I can use them a little and not get hurt. I can't explain it any better than that, but it worked. I thought about those guys who tried to beat you up the night you found me and I got mad, but this time I could control my powers a little bit and I didn't get all dizzy like I did the other times."

Logan stood there for a second staring at her, a mixture of emotions crossing his face at once. Without warning, he slapped her across the face. Jasmine looked at him, stunned. Logan grabbed her shoulder and shook her. "You listen and you listen good, Kid. You don't know what yer foolin' around with. Those thugs in that alley, the Danger Room. Do you have any idea how much damage you could do? How much you could hurt yerself or someone else?! You promise me right now that you won't use yer powers again without me or Beast or one of the other adults here watchin' ya until you get control over them."

"But, I..." Jasmine stammered.

"Promise me!"

Jasmine looked down, angry and ashamed. "Fine, I promise."

Wolverine's face softened as he knelt in front of her. "I'm only hard on ya, Kid, 'cause I care. I'm sorry I hit ya. I shouldn't have." He pulled her into a bear hug, scratching her face with his stubble. After a moment had passed he let her go. "Just so ya don't forget yer promise, yer grounded for three weeks. You only come outta yer room for classes, meals and training sessions unless I say otherwise. Now go."

Jasmine looked at Logan with disbelief then stalked off to her room angrily. She slammed the door behind her and flopped down on her bed. "God I hate him!" She grabbed a spare notebook and began making angry scrawls in it.

After spending three days in her room, grounded, Jasmine grew surlier, giving everyone the cold shoulder and glaring at anyone who spoke to her. Sensing danger in the matter, Professor Xavier and Storm decided to defuse the situation. Even working on the Danger Room overtime, Beast hadn't gotten it repaired yet so they needed to find another outlet for Kid's aggression. At a loss for what to do, they called Jubilee into Professor X's office.

"You wanted me, Professor? I'm not in trouble, am I?" Jubilee asked, nervously taking a seat across the desk from him and Storm.

"Should you be in trouble?" Xavier asked kindly. Jubilee looked at him blankly and he waved a hand at her dismissively. "No matter. We wished to see you because of Miss Kydd actually. You know Jasmine better than anyone here. We thought perhaps you had some insight into her present ill temper." Professor Xavier folded his hands and leaned forward in his seat. "Would you care to enlighten us?"

Jubilee fought to suppress a heavy sigh of relief. "I think Jazz has been having a problem with Wolverine. And it looks like he's just as frustrated with her."

"I have also noticed some signs of a strong mutual dislike between them," Storm said, her brow slightly furrowed with thought.

The Professor sighed in a mixture of exhaustion and resignation. "I had... suspected as much. Wolverine has a terrific temper and it seems that Jasmine's may be just as bad if not worse. Before this situation becomes any more volatile, we'll have to do something to quell their anger."

"No kidding. If the rumors are true, the last thing I want to do, right after stapling Wolverine's sweaty gym socks to my face, is to see Mount St. Jasmine when it finally erupts," Jubilee said with a small shiver.

"Well, thank you, Jubilee. You're excused. Storm and I will try to think of a way to help your young friend." Professor Xavier politely gestured for Jubilee to leave his office. As she left, Jubilee couldn't help but wonder what the Professor's solution would be. She didn't have long to wait, however, because her answer came later that afternoon.

Jasmine sat at the desk in her room studying the flash cards Beast gave her. "Cat, C-A-T, cat. Fish, G-O-L..." She was interrupted by a soft knock at her door. She gave an angry sort of grunt before returning to her cards. There was another, slightly louder knock. "Go away. Whatever you're selling, we don't want any." She focused on her flash cards and made it through two more before a third knock distracted her. The sound echoed through her room. "Who is that knocking on my door like they're NYPD?" Jasmine got up to answer the door, more to keep the person from smashing her door down than anything else. "WHO IS IT?!" she bellowed at the door gruffly.

"It's Gambit, petit. I come to check on you." The familiar Cajun accent was tinged with concern.

"Well, now you know I'm still alive. Go away. I'm busy."

"Come on, petit. You don't want to talk to ol' Gambit? I come all dis way to see you and you won't let me in?" Jasmine slapped her forehead and dragged her hand down over her face in frustration.

"Fine, you got ten minutes."

"Merci, mon petit." Jasmine unlocked the door and opened it slowly. She saw Gambit leaning against the door post wearing his usual brown trenchcoat and black pants. Next to him, standing with his arms crossed over his chest was Wolverine. Jasmine took one look at him and tried to slam the door. Unfortunately, Wolverine and Gambit reacted too quickly and pushed the door back open.

"You didn't tell me he was out there with you!" she said, fuming at Gambit.

Gambit smiled and winked. "Gambit didn't say Wolverine wasn't out here either."

Wolverine put a toothpick into his mouth and sneered. "Look, Princess, I ain't too happy about th' arrangements either. Th' Prof wants me t' put yeh through yer paces today." He threw a white karate gi at her. Jasmine barely had time to catch it before it hit her in the chest. "Get changed. We're goin' out on th' lawn fer some exercise."

Jasmine threw the clothes back at Logan. "I'm not goin'. I got better things to do than play with you." She went to her bed and flopped onto the mattress, resuming study of her flash cards. Logan ground his teeth together and crossed the room to her bed in three strides. With almost no effort, he grabbed the edge of the mattress and flipped it, hurling Jasmine to the floor. "Hey!" she yelled, rubbing her head where it hit the nightstand.

"I don't remember askin' yeh what you wanted to do. I told yeh t' get changed. Now, you can get changed or I can dress yeh myself. Trust me, you don't want me t' dress yeh. Now get off yer ass and get dressed." Jasmine locked eyes with him, each of them glaring at the other until Jazz finally dropped her gaze.

"Fine, you stupid bully. I'll get dressed. But you better not peek." Logan and Gambit made a show of covering their eyes while Kid got dressed.

"C'mon, squirt. It don't take that long t' get changed," Wolverine said after a few minutes.

"Oh, shut up. Okay, I'm ready." Jasmine pushed past him roughly and led the way down to the lawn. When she arrived, she saw Professor Xavier, Storm, Jubilee and Beast seated there already. Part of Jasmine was angry at the intrusion, but part of her was grateful that someone would be there to make sure Logan didn't get too carried away. After the way she talked to him in her room, she knew he was longing to pound some respect into her.

Logan stood in front of her in his own gi, his arms crossed. "All right, Kid, stand over there and face me." Kid complied quickly but with no great enthusiasm. "All right, now bow." Logan bowed first to demonstrate how it should look. Kid copied his bow satisfactorily. "Now we're gonna do some stretches." Logan led Jasmine through a series of stretching exercises, his expression making it more than clear that Jasmine's efforts were less than desirable. "Ugh, good enough. First drill's gonna involve a front stance. Your stance should be shoulder width across and two shoulder widths deep, your front knee bent, your back leg straight." Logan assumed a front stance with a smooth movement. "Yeh want one powerful, continuous motion. You try."

Jasmine laboriously measured her stance, trying to get it right. Her front knee wasn't bent nearly enough however. Logan examined her stance with a quick glance. Suddenly, with a motion so fast she could barely see it, Logan swept Kid's legs out from under her. "What the hell did you do that for?" Kid groaned, struggling to sit up. Ignoring the gasps of protest from the others watching, Logan ordered Kid back to her feet.

"If you don't have a decent stance, you can't maintain proper balance and it's easy for an opponent to knock you down. Now, try it again." Kid tried this stance again, with more success. When Logan shoved her firmly from a number of different angles, Kid was able to keep her balance. As the others watched, Logan drilled Kid in walking in her stance as well as turns in the front stance. Every time Kid forgot to adjust her stance, Logan would shove her to the ground. Logan then began to show her a series of blocks she could use in the front stance.

"If you don't mind my asking, what the heck is the point of all this?" Kid growled between her teeth, wincing as she got up from her umpteenth knockdown.

"First of all, as long as I'm teaching you, you'll refer to me as sensei or Logan-sensei. Second, when you learn something new, just like when yeh build a house, yeh gotta start with a strong foundation. These are yer basic drills you'll be buildin' on."

"Yes, sensei, but what's the point?"

"The point is if yeh don't learn t' block better, yeh're gonna get yer ass kicked." Logan threw a sudden punch at Jasmine, which she was able to block. He didn't let her relax though, because he threw a short barrage of punches at her. She was able to block most of them, but she hesitated towards the end and Logan turned his fist into an open palm at the last second and shoved her onto her butt again. "Good enough for today. Enough drillin'. Sit down and cross yer legs. We're gonna meditate." Logan turned his back on her and she threw a punch at the back of his head. Before it connected, he dropped under it and kicked her in the leg, knocking her to the ground. "I toldja t' sit down. Try that again, we'll see where you land."

Logan sat cross-legged on the lawn and Jasmine grudgingly sat down facing him. He talked her through her first meditation session. Despite herself, Jasmine began to relax as Logan's voice dropped to a soothing tone, the slow rhythm of his voice making it almost impossible for her to hold onto her burning fury. Her breathing slowed and the tension went out of her muscles as she sat, letting her mind drift freely. When Wolverine finally signalled the end of her first lesson, Jasmine found it hard to bring herself back to the real world.

"You'll meditate twice a day for fifteen to thirty minutes. You'll be having martial arts lessons with me every Monday, Wednesday and Friday at four-thirty. Until you hear otherwise, yer Saturdays are mine too. Today was just a warm up. On Monday, we'll get serious," Wolverine said. He instructed Jasmine to bow, then went up to his room.

"Oh man, I'm toast," Jasmine groaned, rubbing her already sore lower back.