2012-09-26 Around the Campfire

It seemed like such a great idea at the time. To get away from the admittedly impressive confines of the Xavier Institute for a couple of days, to have a chance to get back to nature, to relax for a few days -- relatively speaking -- and help the students, new and old, to grow more accustomed to one another. That, of course, was before spending several hours on a bus full of kids. It is not impossible that being tortured by Magneto would be preferable.

After the painful ordeal came the next one -- the trek through the woods, hiking to the camp site. Let the whining and complaining insue. But finally -- finally! -- thr group has managed to make it to the clearing chosen out with much care. Without losing a single kid to boot. Not a bad start. Tall trees rising up all around them, the first hint of color change touching those leaves and Scott Summers lets his gaze sweep over the level ground with a small nod of satisfaction. "Before you all run off, I'd strongly suggest you get your tents set up. It'll be dark in a couple of hours and it is a lot easier to get that sort of thing taken care of while you can still see," he cautions. Ever the voice of reason.

The worst part about being an X-Man for Piotr? It's not the danger. It's the children. The inescapable students that give him a cover and a reason to be at the school and also pays the bills. Not that he dislikes children per se. Just not close up. Illyana was the only exception to that. And since he knows she needed something to distract her, he urged/persuaded her to come camping as well. As an alumni, she counts as one of Xavier's. "This will be fun." he tells Illyana. Again. Maybe he'll convince one of them if he says it enough. "The students will enjoy it." That's true enough.

Painful ordeal? Sam is having a great time. He's also immune to whining, that helps. As he tells the kids all the time, 'I don't speak whine, sorry.' He rounds up a few younger kids and gives them the task of clearing stones and sticks away from where the tents will go. Officiousness ensues, of course, as it does with kids. Someone's always got to be the very little boss of everyone else. That's the one to watch.

Sam's pretty sure every supervillain started out as that little bossypants. No, you can't play slave driver while we put up the tents, no, you are not overlord of anything. I think I should be holding the tent pegs, yeah. And the mallet. Let's just cut down on the chance of bloodshed, what with everyone being tired and sick of each other after the bus ride.

This is dangerous. Not in the sense that someone could be hurt. No. But Bobby mixed with boredom and a horde or potential accomplices just makes pranks that much more likely. So while he's setting his tent up, Bobby's plotting. He occasionally glances up, figuring out which students will be prank targets and which ones will be helpful in pulling them on the likes of Scott.

Why is Beast here? Far from his comfortable trappings of science and technology? Blame Frosty The No-Man. Bobby's been rather worried about Hank for some time. Well, everyone has... who hasn't been fooled by Hank's claims that everytime is fine. And he at least looks to be enjoying himself a bit. He's currently dressed in something Steve Irwin would have been comfortable in, including a large backpack and of course, oversized hiking boots. Hank's 'Outback Survival Master' doesn't mean he won't find an easy way out of things. As he watches everyone fuss with tent pegs and such, and pops up one of those fancy and rather expensive 'Insta-Tents', which of course has been modified to Hank's specifications. "Tent's up."

Illyana has swapped out her usual boots for hiking ones, wearing her NYU T-shirt under her Xavier's hoodie and jeans. Her hair has been pulled back into a loose braid and nods. "I'm sure they will. I just need to figure out what it is Stonewall did with my sword." She points out. Again. Her teammate is lying unconscious in Titans medbay and that's where she's spent a lot of time the past week. But lacking her magic to find out... well. It's been a lot of sleepless nights with little accomplished. And that not-sleeping thing she likes to do? Doesn't work so well when you're painfully human. She looks over to Sam and there's a glimmer of worry in blue eyes that are so much softer of late. Like Morning Glories instead of deep water frozen solid. She hasn't mentioned that she still has a spell to remove from Sam, if the whole incident hasn't done something wrong there.

"You sir, are a cheater. Having to work at this sort of thing and hope and pray that your tent doesn't collapse in the middle of the night because of a gentle rain shower is part of the experience," Scott says calmly as he watches Hank take his ingenious short cut and draw more then a few jealous stares from other groups that struggle away with their lines and pegs and mallets. Well, at least those that are taking Scott's advice at any rate. WHich not all the students are. It's not just the teachers who are relieved to be off that bus at last and spirits run high among more then a few of the mutant teens -- some of whom begin to creep off into the woods, leaving the 'work' until later. "Don't wander too far," Scott adds, not even turning around to look at the skulking students, just knowing exactly what they intend. "We'll start taking care of dinner in about an hour. And be careful around the river about a mile south of here. The current is a lot faster then you'd think," he cautions before turning to practice what he preaches, attending to his own tent. It is unrolled, the lines and pegs set aside neatly as he begins the task of setting up a place to sleep tonight like he attends to so many other things; methodically.

"Absorbed it, I would guess." Piotr answers. Again. They really don't have any answers or a way to go about fixing it. "Maybe the change of scenery will help in figuring things out." His own worry matches Illyana's though for different reasons. He doesn't bother with a tent himself. He'll either sleep under the stars or, if it rains, just shift to metal since he doesn't need sleep in that form. << We should have microchipped them. >> he murmurs in Russian. << I just know one is going to get lost. >>

Speaking of supervillains. Drake. Sam finishes helping one of the kids pound in the tent pegs - it is indeed tradition to have to deal with these dreadful tents, or Sam would just be in a hammock with a fly sheet - and puts his hands on his hips when he spots *that look* on Bobby's face. He's hoping that someone else gets the brunt of it.

Nothing to be done for it, though. Trying to stop Bobby from being himself is like trying to stop the weather - and Sam wouldn't want to anyway. Even if it means trying to work out how to get baby oil and talcum powder out of everything he owns. Drake. Because it's so cool to go heroing smelling like you're six months old. Instead, Sam heads for Illyana and offers her a hug.

"Snowflake, you're quiet. Can I get you anything?" Sam asks her.

Bobby may not have Hank's instatent but he's got one a tad more advanced than the mallet and pegs version. Who know IKEA made a tent. He glances at Hank when the Beast's tent goes up, nodding. Bobby's glad he got Hank to come with them even if it means he's got to make fried Twinkies for him when they get home. A few of the skulking teens get looks of 'I may be the fun teacher but I will still freeze your asses if you cause trouble' before grinning. "I'll head down to the river later and slow the current down," he offers, making a little ice-chair by his tent once its up and then smiling Sam's way.

Beast flashed Scott a playful grin, as he slipped his pack off and tossed it in his tent. "I believe a wise old man said it best, 'Work Smarter Not Harder'." Yes, he just quoted Scrooge McDuck... but he's not going to admit it. "Plus beware of the Hockey Mask sporting killer on the loose." Hank offers in addition to Scott's warnings. Beast glances around at the otehrs and offers a warm smile, it does feel kind of good to get away. And then eyes Bobby with his ice chair, snorting a bit... and snapping out a collapsable chair. Your move, Drake.

Illyana looks chidingly at her brother, whom she's close enough to overhear. << They're not dogs, Piotr. >> She chides. "And he shouldn't be able to absorb it it's not a thing. It's pure magic." And well, parts of her soul. There's more than one reason that the whole matter is disturbing! She smiles at Sam as he comes over and hugs him tightly. "I wish you could." She says a trace wistfully before eyeing him with some concern. "How are *you* doing? Not tired or feeling 'off' or anything?" Illyana didn't bring a tent she was too distracted to think about camping supplies and she's so used to everything being a step away. Since Piotr didn't bring one she'll just have to con her way into someone else's tent for the night.

"I thought he only showed up around lakes. I specifically chose a spot away from any of the lakes," Scott counters mildly as he goes about the much more time consuming task of setting up his tent. He, at least, appears to have something of a practiced hand as he doesn't have quite as many trials and tribulations as some of the other students, the lines quickly laid and the metal framework put together quickly and efficiently. In a couple of minutes it even resembles a tent and in short order it is actually upright. Lines are tightened, pegs hammered into the ground and while he can't quite match Hank or Bobby for speed, he is still done more then quick enough to lend a hand to some of the others. "Mmmmm, I'm not sure if it is such a good idea having you around the river. The mind shudders at what sort of mischief you'll come up with," Scott notes drily to Bobby's helpful offer.

"Then maybe his powers extend beyond the physical." Piotr suggests then gives Sam a smile when he comes over. A smile that fades as he glances over at Illyana. "Why would he be tired or feeling off?" That's not a question one asks unless one has a reason to. "Are you all right, Sam?"

"I'm fine, Piotr, I was just a little under the weather after I got my power blown back in my face. A hundred percent now, promise." Sam hugs Illyana, then steps back to look at her closely. "Where are you staying? You'll catch cold if we don't get you settled somewhere." He counts tents and places and it's not quite adding up for him. He can always find somewhere to sleep - after all, Pa used to drop him in the middle of nowhere for camping fun and he slept outside then.

"Oh, Scott," Bobby fakes a hurt expression. "I wouldn't cause mischief at the river," he says, leaving out 'yet' and 'unless there was a prank target down there'. Illyana and Sam get his attention quickly and the cryokinetic turns a concerned expression on Sam. Since Piotr and Illyana already asked the questions he had, he just gives Sam that worried look. Standing, he walks over. "Sam can share my tent and you can take his," he suggests to Illyana.

"Three words. Giant Ice Fortress. Or Monster. Take your pick. I'm sure the rangers won't even blink an eye at that." Hank snerks just a little bit, knowing how Iceman's midn works... which is in itself a dangerous thing. Hank clears his throat a bit at the mention of tent sharing. But he doesn't stick his nose into things otehrwise.

"It still shouldn't be possible." Illyana argues with her brother, though without her usual frown or scowl or even the slight cutting edge to her tone that never seems to go away. She looks around at Sam's question and huhs to herself. "I... didn't think to pack one. It's fine. Growing up I slept outside all the time." In Limbo. Which is a lot scarier than upstate New York. She pats Sam's arm. I'll be fine. Bobby's offer gets a chuckle from the blonde girl. "I just bet he can." She teases with a smile, no snark involved.

"There should be spares. I packed extras," Scott says as the dilemma of ust who will sleep where plays out a short distance away. Of course he packed extras. Was there every any doubt? Really, this is Scott afterall. Of course, packing them is one thing. Whether anyone bothered to haul them up from the bus is another thing. Preparation only goes so far. After that it's all about the perspiration. "Well there you go right there. Illyana can have Bobby's tent and he can go down to the river and make a giant ice fortress to sleep in. Everyone will be happy that way," Scott suggests without a hint of a smile. Though really, he should know better then to give any ideas.

"Well, for that reason alone, you shouldn't have to sleep outside. I'll find you one of the spares and you can stay with me if you want, I'm sure we can shuffle kids around so we all fit." Sam gives Illyana another little squeeze and then heads off to find her a sleeping bag and a place to put it.

"I'm sure that Bobby would love all that time alone to plot his revenge for making him sleep in an ice fort, Scott," Sam says dryly as he passes by to dig through the spare gear. "He'll be fine where he belongs. Worst case scenario, I make myself a hammock and sleep better than the rest of you."

Piotr studies Sam a moment then nods. He totally doesn't believe him since Illyana felt the need to ask. "If you start feeling otherwise, you will say something, da?" It's not really a question. "An igloo is not a bad idea." he notes, looking over at Bobby. "It is not as if we are incapable of fending for ourselves." They're X-Men!

"Actually I was just thinking some ice to slow the current for awhile to make the river safer for the kids, Hank," Bobby replies. Bobby can be responsible...sometimes. Hank gets a look at the throat clearing and then Scott gets the same look. Oh Scott, way to make yourself prime prank target. Since his generous offer is turned down, Bobby shrugs and then stretches. "If you want igloos, clear a space and I'll make ya one. Or blocks off ice to make your own."

"Scott..." Beast offers in warning. "Never ever encourage the Popsicle. You know what happens when you do that." Hank glances between Bobby and Scott, worried that the camping trip will end in tears and pain. And potentially not from the various students. "That's how Supervillains are born." Hank turns his focus to Sam and can't help but laugh. "Yes, cause Gilligan's Island proved just how comfortable sleeping in a hammock can be." Hank rubs his forehead a bit at Iceman. "How about we declare a 'No Powers' rule for our camping trip? After all, we can't always depend on our special abilities to survive." Big talk, from someone who's entire powerset is purely passive and don't have a 'On/Off Switch'.

Illyana leans over towards Sam. "He's so *bossy*." She observes of Piotr, though it's with affection. When he says she shouldn't have to sleep outside, she objections "I'm not..." But he's already walking off to find stuff. A shake of her head and she gives a long-suffering sigh. "That fragile."

Well, it would hardly be the first time that Scott has fallen victim to a prank or ten of Bobby's. He'll have his revenge. In a dark look and a stern lecture no doubt. THey may have grown up -- well, some of them at least -- but some things are unlikely to ever change. "I suspect that we would have a hard time managing to enforce that little rule," Scott notes blandly, briefly turning away from the small gathering of 'teachers' that has gathered together on the fringe of camp towards where many of the students still work on getting their tents into a standing position. More then a few displays of power are going on -- some of which are helping their efforts and more then a few that are hindering them judging by the tent that has managed to get tangled in the leafy boughs overhead thanks to one of the telekinetics. Arching a brow, Scott raises a hand to his mouth, covering a cough. And maybe even a smile. It's not outside the realm of possibility.

"Nyet." Piotr says simply. Not use their powers? When herding cats? Or worse, mutants children? "This is a trip not a training exercise. You should lead that one next month. Get Jean to help." he suggests. Hearing about how Jean and Hank managed to deal with all these kids without powers should be vastly amusing. 'Hear' about since he certainly won't be going along.

Really, Illyana. It's the principle of the thing. Have you met Sam? Fortunately, he's too distracted by the kids to realize that Piotr is planning on sleeping outside, otherwise he'd be looking for a really big sleeping bag as well.

"The only person I remember getting stuck with the no-powers rule is me," Sam notes mournfully as he gets out a sleeping bag for Illyana. "I mean, rightly so. Because. Trees are our friends." Yeah, that camping trip didn't go so well. He grabs a bag of marshmallows that are floating past of their own accord. "Nice try, guys. I'll go up and grab that tent, Scott."

You should know better too, Hank. That suggestion gets a snowball thrown Hank's way. Bobby is against the idea. "No way, Hank," he says right after Piotr. "I'll come with you, Sam. I forgot something on the bus."

"It's not that hard Scott, you just give them essays as punishment if they break the rules. Nothing like a few hundred word paper on 'Great Powers, Great Repsonibility' to keep them from running amuck and freezing people's underpants." A cough and a glance is tossed at Bobby, as he snaps his hand out and actually catches the snowball. "Don't get on my bad side Frosty. You're not above earning a little discipline as well. Scrubbing down the Danger Room after Logan's workouts." He smirks and whips it back at Iceman. He shrugs just a little bit at Piotr, offering a sheepish smile. "You can't blame me for trying."

Illyana chuckles at the argument being tossed back and forth and starts to gather wood for a fire, working her way out from the camp. It helps clear the campsite and gets wood all at the same time. Look! She's being helpful! Surely, a sign of the apocalypse.

"That would be appreciated Sam. Before he manages to tie it in a knot around that branch," Scott manages with a nod for the other man and just the slightest twitch of his lips. "I see that some of the finer points of control will have to be reviewed," he notes blandly before lowering those ruby-red glasses from the trees overhead and flipping a glance Hank's way. "Next trip," he says quietly before motioning to a few of the new students who are quite conspicuous in not using their abilities. Indeed, even look a little uncomfortable at the displays going on around them. "I think it might do more harm then good this one," he notes seriously. "Even if it means that my tent flap is frozen over tomorrow morning," he says with the slightest hint of a smile finally slipping over his expression. "I'm going to get a fire starting. If one of you wants to bring over the cooler. The big one. Once everyone is back from their roaming we'd better get food started."

A fire? "Keep the marshmallows out, Sam." Piotr calls. "I'll get us sticks to roast them on." He slings his pack off his shoulder and tosses it onto the ground under a tree before going to look for a downed branch or dead tree. There's been many thunder storms this season so it's easy to find.

Sam tosses the bag of marshmallows at Hank for safekeeping. ...maybe not so safe, since it's Hank. "Can you keep those away from the kids for me?" he asks as he takes off a few feet and whisks along. He smacks Bobby on the backside on the way past to where the tent has taken on a life of its own in the wind and is bumbling along, tugged from branch to branch. "You're it, Drake."

"Unless you plan on trying to bend me over your knee, Hank, save the punishments for the kids," Bobby remarks, ice-beaming the snowball out of the air and into the trees. He starts to say something to Scott only for the slap to turn it into a yelp of surprise. Cheeks faintly colored by a blush, Bobby grins and takes after Sam. "And you're mine, Guthrie."

"You might be right in this case Scott." Beast catches the bag of tossed marshmelllows, tossing them back into his tent and offering a light glower at one of the students eyeing the prize in his tent. "I packed skewers for the marshmallows. They're in one of the miscellanous packs that we dragged up here." Hank informs Piotr, as he starts trying to hunt for them. "Robert... I think the only person interested in doing that is Sam. And I wouldn't want to make him jealous." Hank flashes Sam a toothy grin as he kneels down to dig through packs.

Illyana drops off an armload of smaller wood, kindling and starter sorts. She'll let Piotr haul in larger type logs. She watches Sam and Bobby and Hank and just shakes her head in quiet bemusement and no snarky commentary.

"What? Packing skewers?" Piotr asks, feigning shock. "Next you will suggest we do not need to hunt our own food. But since I believe Scott has cheated, I will go find more wood instead." Which he does quite easily and brings a huge log back in metal form before breaking it into pieces as easily as one of the students could do to balsa wood.

Sam does, in fact, grab the tent first. He's fast enough that he's there in a flash to pluck it free, wrap it in a shield, and then bat it back at the students with a pulse of energy. His control is a cry from when he was a teenager out here and he took out a stand of perfectly innocent trees - and he wasn't even meaning to do anything.

Then he can dodge whatever Bobby throws at him and take off in the direction of the bus. Neener. He's far faster than certain slow, cold dudes.

Sam may be faster but Bobby isn't giving up. Ice slide twisting and turning around trees and branches, he's as much putting on a show for students as he is chasing Sam. "Get back hre, Sam!" he laughs, intending to tackle him when they get to the bus.

Beast facepalms and just shakes his head just a little bit. "Kids." Not that Iceman and Cannonball are that much younger than he is, but as everyone's likely noticed... Hank takes life far too seriously at times. "What's wrong with skewers? Be prepared and all that..." Hank even starts humming the 'Be Prepared' song from The Lion King to himself.

Illyana has apparently decided that she's done enough work after she adds another armful of wood, and finds a spot to sit next to Piotr as he works on disassembling what was once a tree. "I don't think he's much of a 'roughing it' kinda guy." She points out to Piotr, nodding at the insta-tent. "I bet he brought his computer too."

Piotr shifts back to flesh and adds a couple of the larger pieces of wood to the fire Scott's built once it gets going. Almost absently, he straightens and reaches up to grab the ankle of one of the kids. "Aaron, stay on the ground, da?" It's not a question. "You did not?" he asks Illyana. "I hope my wireless will work out here." He's not a fan of roughing it either. He did enough of that when he was a kid.

The tents have all been set up towards the outside of the clearing, for the most part looking in. The centre has been rather deliberately left open and unoccupied, the better to create a common sort of area where they can all gather. And it is in the middle of that that Scott begins to put together the fire, a circle of small rocks forming the basis of the 'pit'. Illyana's collection of small sticks is added, along with a collection of fallen, dried leaves -- kindling to spark the flames and when Piotr returns with his heavier burden he begins to array them as well, the wood piled high. Only then does he begin to make more modest fires off to the side -- the ones apparently to be used for cooking. At least for those who didn't bring some incredibly fancy device to do their cooking for them. Finally straightening, Scott wipes his hands on the front of his jeans and lets out a long breath. "That should do it. Now if we just drag some logs or large rocks over so we have some makeshift seating we should be almost set..." he says with a certain amount of satisfaction.

Sam's not foolhardy enough to assume that he's not about to be tackled when he lands at the bus. And, no, Bobby gets no breaks here. ...well, if he lands wrong, maybe his arm... but what's that between friends. Bobby's welcome to -try-, though. Sam slides to a halt at the bus but doesn't drop his shields.

Bobby's smart enough to expect Sam to not drop his shields. He knows the guy well enough. So he ices up as he chases Sam. The first 'Bobby' that comes at Sam is just an ice double while the real one tries to sneak over on top of the bus so he can get the guy when the shields do eventually go down.

Beast glances up to Illyana with a warm smile and a wink, gesturing towards the pack in his tent. "Of course I did. I also brought some work with me to finish that couldn't wait while I'm playing Camping Beast. And Peter, I'm sure we can get a signal. If not, I've got some equipment with me that'll help." A devious grin spreads across his features. "Campsite is looking good Scooter. Man.... remember when it used to be just the five of us doing this." You can imagine how much Warren likely loved camping.

Illyana rolls her eyes a bit, but her smile is soft. "Technogeeks." She teases, picking out sticks from the wood that Piotr's been tearing up for good marshmallow-skewering.

While there still might be a couple of hours of daylight left, out here in the shadow of the Adirondacks, with the tall trees looming upwards all around them -- already long shadows creep across the ground, dark tendrils creeping further and further. Summer is definitely coming to an end and a faint chill lingers in the shade promising a brisk evening. "Oh, I remember," Scott agrees with a quiet snort. "Still, it was a little less of a production back then," he points out wryly. Ahhhh, the innocence of youth. "So, does anyone want to volunteer to oversee the cooking?" he asks, glancing about. "Anyone who is not Hank that is?" he quickly adds.

"I will." Piotr says. While the school's staff does the cooking there, he often uses someone else's kitchen when he spends the weekend in the city. He goes over to see what supplies Scott brought with him. "Illyana can help me." That is a question and he glances over at her.

Sam would totally volunteer but he's being a ten-year old at the moment, if that. Ugh, Bobby. Up your game with the ice doubles. ...or maybe Sam was just going to smack Bobby with that shield, anyway. He heads round the side of the bus to see if Bobby's back there. "So, what did your forget in the bus? Your game?"

Bobby's busy being ten too. And he's back there going for something between a hug and a tackle the moment Sam comes around. He laughs a bit and shakes his head. "Naw, I forgot a cooler I brought for just us teachers."

"What? I'm not that bad a cook? But I concur... someone other than me." Henry offers a smile to Piotr when the Tin Man volunteers. "Thanks Piotr. I look forward to seeing what you whip up for us." Hank sits down in his chair again, pulling out his laptop and checking for a signal. "And everyone better get a good meal tonight. Because I believe wilderness survival is on the agenda for tomorrow." A devious smile srpeads over his features and Hank can't help but 'Mwahahahaha' a bit.

Illyana gives Piotr a sort of deer-in-the-headlights look. "Cook?" Illyana makes tea. And hot cocoa. And that... sort of concludes her cooking skills. Well, she *can* char meat over a fire. It's not particularly tasty but it's edibile. She and Cat had to eat during those years in Limbo. "Maybe I'll uh, just talk to Hank about that blood sample I wanted him to look at instead?" She footshuffles a bit closer to Beast.

"Uh huh. Should we start the wagering now on whether or not you're going to manage to catch your marshmellows on fire?" Scott asks with a faint smile. "Melted charr on a stick is surprisingly unappetizing. Who would have thought?" he adds nodding his thanks towards Piotr. "Looks like it's strike one on finding an assistant. If you get up to strike two or three, I'll pitch in," he promises before starting for the treeline. "In the meantime I'll start gathering up our little lost sheep and make sure no one has managed to get up to too much trouble out there. Back shortly," he says before muttering under his breath. "I hope."

"Beans. Of course." Piotr rolls his eyes and sets the cans to one side. Another good reason not to share a tent. "Franks." The logical supplement to beans. Can be cooked with them or toasted in the fire. Typical - stereotypical - camping food but the kids will love it. And... "Ahha. Everything needed for s'mores. You will enjoy dessert, da?" he asks the nearby kids who grin back and cheer.

Sam acks slightly and then gives Bobby a hug and a hair ruffle. "Oh, I see. I packed the snack bite and poison ivy kits, you pack the beer? We make an excellent team. Because I'm a gentleman, I'll help you carry it back." He is. Honest.

"Beer and a private stash of smore supplies in case the little pirannah eat the others," Bobby replies simply, grinning after he's hugged. "Oh, my hero," he mock-swoons. "Saving me from carrying such heavy things." Beast perks a brow and glances up to Illyana as she moves to his side. "Blood sample?" He wonders, cocking his head to the side. "What's the scoop?" He's worried for a moment... it's not every day that someone he knows comes calling for a blood sample analysis. Hank offers a worried look to Piotr, waving to Scott as he goes to gather the various X-Moppets.

Having gotten out of cooking detail, Illyana heads over to sit next to Beast. "Well, you can do all sort of techno-magic kinds of stuff. I was hoping you'd be able to give me some insight into someone's powerset and capabilities with a blood sample." She worries her lower lip a bit with her teeth and then draws a breath, letting it slowly. Her tone lowers to something more conversational between the pair of them. "Someone's managed to... absorb my Soulsword."

Piotr beckons to all those students nearby and sets them to helping. A couple open cans, a couple get out pots, some others get skewers for the franks. A couple others get hands swatted with a stern 'Nyet!' as they try to grab chocolate bars.

"You nerd," Sam says affectionately before he lightly cuffs Bobby. He gets out the cooler and then elbows Bobby. "Come on. We better get back before they start speculating about what we're up to out here." He rolls his eyes at that. "Seriously. There's -kids- around." He takes off at a leisurely pace.

Bobby laughs when cuffed and elbowed. He sneaks a quick kiss to Sam's cheek and then picks up the other things they went to the bus for since Sam took the cooler. "To be fair, some of those kids went off to do a lot worse," he points out. "But yeah. Prof will probably say something to them if it gets too bad."

"Well... blood samples won't really inform me of what powers someone has. If it's a mutant, the X-Gene tends to be pretty random. There's a few theories, but it's liek playing powers roulette for the most part." Hank does perk a brow though in regard though news about the soul sword absorbtion. "What style of absorbtion?" He's curious now.

"Well, you could at least let me know if he's a mutant I suppose." Illyana says, looking a bit dejected. She wanted technomagic from Uncle Hank! "I know he touches stuff and seems to become it. He touched Piotr and went all steel-y. He touches stone and goes all stone-y. But those are tangible things. I stabbed him with the sword to break an enchantment. It shouldn't have affected him at all. He certainly shouldn't have been able to absorb it."