SCHOOLYARD BLUES.

Croaks and screeches never sounded so beautiful.The trilling crows perched on the spindly, tentacle-like tree flared out their haunting melody. It was oddly soothing and Isaiah lightly hummed it under his breath, moving to the beat, one step after the other, patches of darkness sifting beneath his feet and swirling around him, touching everything in the vast emptiness except for what lay in his line of sight.He shifted it from the tree, easily turning his attention forward, setting it firm on a worn-out red couch that stood unassumingly in front of a small, box-like television screen, static flaring across its surface, spreading out its colorful rainbow lights.Isaiah drew closer, the light hum of his song long forgotten, as he began to sway instead to the hissing of static, his lips eager to emulate it.There was a man perched on the couch, he belatedly began to notice.His knees were drawn in, hands clasped harshly onto them, head lowered, body shaking, cries flying from his lips and fiery red hair waving to the gentle tug of a dancing wind.Isaiah was perched on the couch.His legs drawn close, hands resting upon them, head stiff, eyes centered upon the screen. The static hissing, and his lips rushing to follow to copy.The crows sang again, their call echoing around him, the volume increasing by the minute.He covered his ears, clutching them so hard they began to ache, or perhaps it was the sound's doing, the loud, constant screeching, screaming so loud it made his ears hurt, made them bleed."ISAIAH!"His vision blurred.He opened his eyes.When had they been closed?Jean stood in his line of sight, her eyes wide, welling slightly with tears. A trail of snot leaked out her nose, her cheeks wet, she looked beyond disheveled...shaken.Her form was slightly blurry, glitchy as if she were a projection. Isaiah squinted, trying to center the image, to focus on her. It slightly worked."Isaiah!" she called, her voice desperate and urgent, the sheer panic in her every movement, in every word from her lips, had him straightening in his bed, reaching out to grasp her hand, eyes meeting her own. "What's wrong? What's going on?" She was breathing heavily, panting as she struggled to get her words out."Jean?""Isaiah... it's the professor. He..." She shoved something into his hands. "He wants to speak to you. Quickly, answer!" Spurred into action, her panic reaching into his heart, the tight warmth in his navel swirling outwards in a flurry, rising and falling to the beat of his heart, which at present was as aggressive as a rock drum. He reached out and took the... phone? from her hands, setting it on his ear.It felt weird, but he didn't have time to dwell on that."Professor? Professor?!" He clutched the device closer to his ear. It really, really felt odd.Wet, squelchy, the sensation was just off, something about it wasn't right.He pulled it back, eyes taking in what he held.It was bread. Pieces of toasted bread, to be specific, layered haphazardly into the passable shape of a small version of the huge brick phones common in the '80s. What smelled like copious amounts of grape jam, peanut butter, and whipped cream...Which... gross.He blinked... once, twice, before his eyes narrowed, swiftly turning as quick as a dagger toward his sister, who lost her valiant fight against the giggles set in her mouth. She wiped the tears and mucus trail off her face, erupting into a chortling fit of laughter with a couple of snorts and guffaws sprinkled in.Isaiah, of course, found the whole thing unamusing.Although despite himself, his lips did slightly quirk, so... not entirely unamusing."Okay, piggy," he hissed. "That's enough."He savored the offended gasp that forced its way from her lips, cutting off any laughter as she now turned a glare to him. "You're so funny." His sister drawled, hands on her hips as she watched him slowly wipe off the swirled array of condiments now staining his ear and some small parts of his ear."Won't argue with you there." He responded smirk stretching onto his lips. "And I didn't even need a juvenile prank to prove it." "Juvenile." Jean scoffed. "Who are you and what have you done with my brother?" She folded her arms. "You used to love pranks, you did them more than anyone in the house even now you just sound like mom." Isaiah rolled his arms. "He grew up." He muttered with a shrug."Oh right yeah, went to college and discovered new-" "That's quite enough." Isaiah cut in, throwing the bread her way, she easily dodged letting it splatter onto the ground, her brother's face scrunched up at the sight. In the blink of an eye the discarded food was gone, as if it had never been there in the first place. "She used to say apples would fall from the sky before I ever grew out of my...how did she put it...""Dry and unamusing pursuits of humor." Jean cut in a light chuckle falling from her lips. Isaiah bit his own, fiddling with his hands for a moment before meeting the light jade of her eyes. "How is she?" He questioned, clearing his throat a bit...It suddenly felt heavy, something having settled and expanded within it's depths, choking him up a bit. "How are they?" Jean paused, her face falling before she lowered her head. "I haven't..." She swallowed thickly. "I don't know." She whispered. "I haven't seen them in...It's been a while." She breathed out but said nothing further. Isaiah studied her before slowly nodding. "Oh okay that's...""I'm sorry..." She whispered, her words drawing in a tense silence, it's weight settling harshly over them. For a moment all they did was bare it, crouched under it's oppressive force before straightening, the female Grey cleared her throat, easily piercing holes through it's form. "You should go get ready, we'll be leaving for school in a couple minutes and you haven't eaten yet." Stiffly Isaiah tipped his head. "I will, thank you." He forced a smile onto his face. "Although I much prefer my alarm to be the one to wake me up not you and your Oscar worthy acting."​Jean fanned her face, a smile curling onto her lips. "Oscar worthy? Why thank you ever so kindly good sir." Bowing Isaiah grinned. "My pleasure madame..." Chuckling the twins tucked the taut topic deep into the back of their minds, sharing a smile before with a wave Jean stepped out of her brother's room.---------------------------------------------------------------------​​"Shotgun!" With a loud poof and the slight smell of sulfur and brimstone, Kurt materialized in the car's front seat, slightly startling Scott who jumped at his sudden appearance.Jean, whose hand had been on the handle, turned sharply and glared down at the blue-haired teen who merely smirked, waving towards her with mocking sweetness. "Better luck next time Liebe Jean." The boy sang sweetly as the red head with a huffed moved to the back seat, settling in beside her brother who with a small chuckle shot a wink towards her irate form."Kurt Jean was here first." Scott admonished turning his own glare towards the blue haired teen, Isaiah raising his brow looked from the boy to his sister, folding his arms a bit a small smile creeped onto his lips. "But I called shotgun." Kurt was quick to respond, pointing sharply to his chest which was puffed out a bit."Now I'm not well versed in the shotgun rules, but I don't think you can call shotgun when you're already in the car," Isaiah mused with a touch of amusement in his voice.Kurt turned to him with a mischievous glint in his eyes, lips quirking upwards before he shrugged nonchalantly. "Well, me being in the car already means I arrived here first, doesn't it? Finders keepers."Jean rolled her eyes, cutting in with a hint of exasperation, "You can't find a car seat that's—" She stopped herself with a huff of frustration. "Oh, forget it."Kurt and Isaiah's laughter followed her word, the sound echoing and easily melding with the click and clack of the car's blinkers as Scott inserted the key before starting the engine. With practiced ease, he maneuvered the vehicle out of the driveway, the tires briefly protesting with a screech before settling into a smooth rhythm under his control. "So...Jean.""No." The girl readily protested shaking her head and turning her attention to the window. Isaiah's brows furrowed his lips parting for a moment before he spluttered out his words, slightly rendered incredulous by his sister's own. "No? You didn't even hear what I had to say.""Yeah but I heard your tone, and it says enough." He scoffed, rolling his eyes and folding his arms. "What does it say oh great and mighty Jean.""Hi, I'm Isaiah, cartoonishly hideous demon forged from the darkest pits of hell ready to cause trouble and mischief just for the fun of it." "Look at this face and call it hideous again, keeping in mind that it's yours with just a bit a bit of stubble." Kurt and Scott laughed at that, only quieting when Jean shot them a glare through the rearview mirror. Placing a hand over his mouth and tugging his hair behind his ear (he really needed to cut it) Isaiah playfully wiggled his brows, light chuckles falling from his lips when Jean reached out to hit him."Ow." He hissed when the girl did it again, scooting a few paces away from her. ---------------------------------------------------------------------​"Welcome to Bayville High, Mr. Grey."She paced gracefully around the room, her heels tapping out a rhythmic echo. Isaiah watched her silently until she settled into a chair, a small smile playing on her lips.The woman was poised, a brunette with deep brown eyes framed by stylish cat-eye glasses that added an air of authority. Her hair was neatly pulled back, emphasizing her professional demeanor. She wore a tailored black blouse under a grey blazer, paired with a pencil skirt that fell just below her knees."Thank you," Isaiah finally replied, clearing his throat as he adjusted awkwardly in his seat."I hope you're settling in well so far," she continued, her gaze fixed on him with deep interest. He shrugged. "Today's my first day... I haven't really done much yet, but... I'm sure things will work out quite well."She nodded thoughtfully, her smile widening slightly. "That's the kind of can-do attitude we value greatly here at our school. You'll do well. Besides," she added almost casually, "you're related to Jean Grey, correct?" She paused here staring intently at him."She's my sister." Is all he said, her smile a bit sharp, she nodded. "She's quite the brilliant young girl. I'm certain she'll offer you guidance where needed. And if you find you need more, my office is always open."Isaiah offered a polite smile. "Thank you so much, Ms...""Mrs. Darkhölme," she offered gently, rummaging through her desk before handing him a sheet of paper. "Here's your schedule for the semester. You'll find everything you need—class times, room numbers, and any important announcements."Isaiah accepted the paper with another smile, his cheeks beginning to ache. "Thank you again, Mrs. Darkhölme." She nodded."It looks like you have Biology with Mr. Wyngarde," she continued suddenly. "He's quite the stickler for punctuality. I'd hurry if I were you."Isaiah blinked, then suddenly leapt from his chair and made his way out the door, her laughter trailing after him.He walked aimlessly for a while before stopping by a row of lockers, taking a deep breath and pulling out the schedule. His eyes scanned the page eagerly until they settled on their target.There it was in bold Times New Roman font: "Biology, Room B008, Mr. J. Wyngarde."He chuckled softly to himself. Of course, he'd end up in a school run by supervillains. It was almost comically predictable. He had to give Magneto and his crew credit for the strategic choice; it was brilliant in its execution. What better place to recruit mutants than a public high school full of emotional adolescents just discovering their powers? Their bodies were changing, their minds in flux, navigating a new world with nowhere to turn but to those set before them—the pillars of support, their teachers, ready to guide them at every turn, to be the calming voice in their ear and the shoulder they could cry on.Good plan aside though, Isaiah wished they had done this literally anywhere else. But he just wasn't that lucky was he?"FUCK!"