Kyle and Ororo

[x-wildchild.livejournal.com]

Ororo calls Kyle to speak to him about the situation involving Logan and Crystal. Kyle takes the news as well as can be possibly expected, and manages to even crack a joke at his own expense, while still being upset with Logan.



Ororo hated calling students to her office, especially when they weren't there for reprimands or strictly school-related business. What she wanted to discuss with Kyle certainly wasn't a reprimand on his part, and so she had asked him to find her in the greenhouse at his earliest possible convenience. Not only was it a more informal setting, but she hoped that being surrounded by the plants and flowers that she loved would help her keep her head. The last thing Kyle needed was another authority figure who was unable to keep their cool.

On the way up to the greenhouse, Kyle was mentally going through the list of things he could have possibly done to warrant getting talked to by one of the teachers. It couldn't be the journal post, Sam had lectured him enough for that. All his homework was done, turned in, and for once, not at the last second, finishing something the morning it was due, he hadn't flunked anything quiz-like since last year, and he didn't remember doing anything stupid. Which left that he'd done something stupid that he didn't know was stupid, or someone else had done something stupid, and it somehow involved him.

That line of thought got him all the way to the greenhouse, and he tapped his knuckles on the open door carefully. "Hey, Ms. Munroe. You needed me?" He asked.

Ororo looked up from the aloe plant she had been hovering over, nodding at Kyle and giving him a smile. "Yes, Kyle, thank you for coming to see me. Do not worry, you are not in trouble for anything. There is a matter I would like to discuss with you, however, if you have the time."

Kyle looked down at his feet, embarrassed for a moment. "Geez. Am I that, like, obvious, that I have to be told I'm not in trouble?" He shook himself, hoping he didn't look too stupid for being embarrassed, and looked up. "I have time, um, I mean, I have homework, but it's an English paper. Those are cake, and it's not due tomorrow."

"You can only be headmistress so long before you start to realize that students dread seeing you." Ororo chuckled and moved to sit at a bench by one of the large paned windows along the side of the greenhouse. "And this will not take too long. I wanted to speak with you about Logan, as by now I am sure you have heard that something happened involving him last week in the gym."

Kyle moved to sit down as well, stopping halfway to the bench to cover his face with a hand. "I owe myself five bucks. I'd ruled out me being in trouble, and had it down to either, I did something dumb that I didn't know about, or that somebody did something dumb and it was gonna have something to do with me." He then sat down on the other side of the bench, resting his elbows on his knees. "I, uh, kinda guessed it was Logan related, because of the doors, and it smelled like Logan. Like, angry Logan. And I asked Forge, and he said Logan wasn't hurt or anything, and nobody was hurt, so I'm kinda confused." He then frowned, and added. "And I don't want Forge to get in trouble for anything, he didn't tell me anything that I didn't already guess, except that nobody was hurt."

"That is fine," Ororo said calmly, her expression pleasantly neutral. "It seems to be a recurring problem that the lines of communication here do not function as swiftly as might be hoped for. But in situations where discretion is key we really must wait until we are certain of the outcome before making them public." This... probably sounded like a rehearsed speech, and Ororo briefly made a face at herself before continuing. "What I mean to say is that our first priority is to sort things out when they happen, and then we will pass on the relevant information as soon as we can. As I am doing now, to you."

Kyle let that digest for a few seconds. "So, basically, you couldn't tell anyone until you'd made decisions and knew more, and now you have, so you can tell people? He shrugged, half-grinning. "Makes sense to me. I mean, okay, it'd have been cool to know, but a couple of days of trying to figure out what happened hasn't killed me. So, what, uh, did happen anyway?"

"Well." Ororo frowned briefly, still unsure of exactly how much to reveal to Kyle. "There was an altercation in the gym involving Logan and Crystal. Apparently the tensions had been building for quite some time between them, both in and out of class, and on Friday Crystal finally confronted him about something he had said to her sister. They both lost their tempers and the dispute grew physical - it ended with Logan injured and the gym doors destroyed."

Kyle stared at Ororo for a while, wondering if she was somehow going to add a "No, I am just kidding." to what she had said. She didn't sound like she was kidding, and while he'd known that Ms. Munroe had a sense of humor, that kind of thing didn't seem like her at all. "Hickory smoked what?" He muttered. "I'm kinda stuck on the part where Crystal and Logan had a fight. I mean, I'd expect like, Mr. Marko and Logan. They hate each other. Everyone knows that."

"Well. I am not saying anyone else expected this to happen, either," Ororo said, her tone slightly dry, though it was entirely self-directed. "But it did, unfortunately, and that was what we were left to deal with. It was an irresponsible decision on the part of both parties, and they are both receiving punishment for their involvement. Logan has been removed from his position as self-defense instructor, and he will not be teaching here any longer. I know this affects you, as he was acting as a mentor to you, but... I do not think it is wise that he continue to do that."

It was rare that Kyle was stunned to the point that he had nothing to say. That it happened twice in the same conversation, he wasn't sure that had actually ever happened before. "I.. uh.." he started to say, shaking his head a few times, and running one hand through his hair. "I got nothing. I mean, I understand why, and I'm not mad or anything." Not at Ms. Munroe, at least. "But other than that, I'm not sure what to say."

With a sigh, Ororo wished once again that there was an easy solution to all this. "I am sorry, Kyle. This is not fair to you, and if there was any other way, please know that I would take it. But I cannot trust Logan to keep his temper now, and I do not think that is the type of lesson you need to learn from him."

"Yeah, I have enough problems with my own temper." Kyle agreed. "I dunno, I just thought he was, you know, holding it together better with the temper thing. He's a bazillion years older than me and all."

She had to laugh at this, despite her distaste for the whole thing. "Yes, that is true. But sometimes age does not teach us everything we need to know. And sometimes we make mistakes. There is nothing wrong with that, as long as we are responsible for them and we do our best to learn from them. We are all in a position to learn here, even the teachers, and if we remember that I think we will be much enriched by our experiences."

Kyle nodded, still a little confused, but less then he was. "So, I mean, the mentor thing wasn't official, so should I just see if I'm okay without, or work with somebody else?" He looked down at his feet, and then his hands. "I mean, I feel pretty okay with the whole grr-argh thing. I haven't bitten the mailman in -ages-." He grinned as he finished speaking.

Ororo admired the young man's apparent ease in accepting this rather strange turn of events. He has been here too long if he can make jokes right now." That I will leave up to you. I have always found one-on-one mentoring to be beneficial to everyone involved, but it is in no way a necessity for being at the school. If you would like to have someone else to work with, I will do everything I can to find someone who will be able to help you with what you need. If not, then that is fine as well. And you should know that I and Mr. Summers are always here should you need an adult to talk to about anything at all. I may not have too much experience with your particular mutation, but I have had quite a bit with living here and dealing with the madness that ensues."

He didn't have any good idea who the heck he'd go to, but Kyle wasn't -too- bothered by that. "Can I think about it for a while? I mean, I don't know who I'd ask, and I dunno if I really need it right now." He snorted out a brief laugh. "And I mean, the last couple of times I screwed up, I got Sam or Mr. Marko on me, so it's not like I'm not being kept an eye on." He still wasn't sure what he preferred. Sam's "Ah am so disappointed in you." tone, or Mr. Marko's "I am going to drop kick you into next Tuesday.". Neither was a whole lot of fun.

Ororo grinned, knowing full well that Kyle had more than enough experience with the mansion's various authority figures. "Yes, of course, you may take as long as you like. There is no rush. I just do not want you to feel as if you are being abandoned because of what has happened with Logan."

"Nah." Kyle said. "I mean, whatever the heck Logan did, I figure it had to be pretty bad for you guys to tell him to take a hike from teaching, so I don't think I get to be mad at anybody but him." He stood up, unfolding his legs. "And I'm sometimes dumb, but I'm not dumb enough to tell Logan that I'm pissed off at him. That's like, extra super dumb. Like, get a special award for dumbness dumb."

A special award for dumbness dumb, Ororo thought, trying to keep a straight face as she stood as well. "That seems... smart," she managed finally, nodding. "If you have any more questions or ideas, please do not hesitate to come to me. Or Mr. Summers. We would be happy to hear them."

"I can do that." Kyle agreed, nodding. He looked around the greenhouse curiously. "You know, I don't think I've ever been up here? This is pretty neat." He waved a hand at a row of plants he couldn't identify, but were a vivid green. "Those smell like spring. All new green stuff and baby leaves." And then he shrugged sheepishly. "I, um, you know, if you need help or anything..."

Ororo's smiled widened. "I would welcome the help. Several students have volunteered to help already, like Amara and Kevin, but I would never say no to another pair of hands. They all seem to enjoy it well enough, and I find it to be quite soothing, myself."