Nick Meets Kurt

[x-wolfcub.livejournal.com]

Sneaking down to the dance studio for some practice, Nick meets Mr. Sefton. Also a cheap plug is made for a friend on a reality show :)



Despite the late hour at the mansion, there was still a great deal of activity throughout Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters. This was also true for the dance studio. Although quite and calm for most of the day, a small hand slowly appeared through the door, hitting the light switch and illuminating the many mirrors throughout the room. As they flickered to life, the door cracked even more to reveal the form of one of the mansion's new students, Nicholas Gleason slink into the room, wearing a pair of cut off sweatpants, and carrying a set of jazz shoes in his hands. He looked nervously around the room before he dropped to the floor, beginning to place the shoes on his bare feet.

There had been no one in the room when Nick arrived, but someone had been heading towards the studio from the opposite direction. The door creaked open again even before the boy had finished with his shoes.

Nick jumped up to his feet, in the process kicking one of his shoes halfway across the room. His body began to tremor instinctively out of surprise at the door opening. He closed his eyes and tried to calm himself. You'd think that being in the mansion for a month would have calmed him, but obviously, he still had some work to do. "Wh-wh-who's there?" He forced out as he still attempted to stay a boy instead of a werewolf.

"Kurt Sefton", came the quiet and reassuring answer. "The dance teacher here, for practice of my own. And you are Nick, yes?"

Nick was able to calm himself quickly. Despite still not quite comfortable around other mutants, the grace of the blue individual in front of him seemed to have a calming effect. "Yup, that's me." Nick let his eyes drop to the ground for a second. He still wasn't quite comfortable connecting with others, but he needed to make an effort. "Do you mind helping me out with something?"

"Since we are both here, of course." His own practicing could wait. "You had something particular in mind?"

The boy let his eyes fall to the floor, his face turning red as he couldn't believe what he was about to ask. "Do you watch that So You Think You Can Dance show by chance?"

"I have watched it from time to time." He tilted his head and hazarded, "You wish to audition?"

"No! No!" The boy quickly began waving his hands as the thoughts of a huge wolf in a tutu on national television jumped into his head. "Nothing like that." As he calmed himself, he again fell into his nervous gestures. "There's a kid named Evan on it this season, and they just did a Broadway number. I can't quite get it down..."

"Ah, you only want to learn their routines." Kurt nodded. "If you can show me, and tell me where you think you are going wrong, I will try to help."

Shaking slightly, Nick reached into his back pocket, and pulled a small DVD with a shrug. "I've got it right here." He offered the disk to the teacher in front of him as his other hand went to his hair. "I think I have the basics down, but the hand movements are to intricate for me to grasp."

"Then we will watch it together" - he pointed to a TV tucked neatly away in the corner - "and see if I cannot perform it more slowly so that you can learn."

With a smile, Nick shoved the DVD into the player, and began to hit play on the remote. As the bright blue graphic spread across the screen, his eyes locked onto the television, but his mind remained curious toward the man next to him. "So what got you interested in dance..." He trailed off for a second, afraid of being disrespectful to his elder. "Professor."

"Mr. Sefton will do", he said with a smile. "Mr. Xavier is the only true professor here. And I suppose you could say I was born to it - my mutations help and I have been an acrobat and dancer from a young age."

Pushing his hands into his pockets to combat his nerves, Nick continued to eye the routine as it started. "Do you mind if I ask you to explain you powers a bit?" He was starting to understand everyone's abilities in the mansion slightly, but the description he had heard about Kurt's were still a bit mystifying. Well mystifying and intriguing to the young boy.

"I was born as you see me", was the simple response. "I can move faster and more flexibly than many, the tail gives me balance, I can climb anything with the slightest handhold, and I can see in the dark. Also, which came later, I am a teleporter."

Nick blinked for a second, trying to let all of it sink in. "Wow!" Maybe it wasn't the most articulate, but it was certainly his first response. "What I wouldn't give to be able to have balance." A chuckle rumbled through his stomach. "But it seems like when I'm in my wolf form I have the style and grace of a sea sick hippopotamus."

"Would you show me your wolf form?" Kurt asked, trying to make it clear he'd take no for an answer and leave it at that. "It may be I can help you to at least improve your movement there."

"I... uh..." Normally Nick would answer this question with a flat out no, but after his talk with Shiro at Pride, he had committed himself to try to open up more and allow himself to be more himself. He raised an eyebrow towards the dance instructor. "Are you sure you wouldn't mind?"

"I am quite sure I have seen stranger things. If you do not mind, I would like to see it."

"Ok..." stepping back away from the teacher, he held his hand out in front of him for a second before beginning. "Stand back..." As soon as he finished the warning, Nick's body began to shake violently. As he did so, he began growing in size, his body nearly doubling in muscle mass while at the same time his entire body began to sprout matted brown fur. As the bottoms of his pants and sleeves of his shirt began to rip, Nick’s face began to change as well, his ear’s becoming long and pointed and his mouth shooting out into a long snout.

Kurt watched this completely calmly, guessing that the boy would have balked more - and warned him - if there was any danger. "Can you communicate in that form?"

"Somewhat." Nick's voice came out as a half-growl, half-speech. It was hard to keep his attention on the professor in front of him as his wolf brain was still very active looking around the room, trying to find an escape. The wolf version of Nick wasn't a fan of small spaces.

"I can see how you would find the wolf shape clumsier." He stepped around for a better look. "If only because you are not used to it yet. Would you like to work on that at all, or concentrate on dance in your human shape?"

The wolf's lips pulled back in what could unmistakably be the Gleason smirk. "Wolf." came out a lumbering growl. Even though he was doing a good job of keeping himself calm, Nick was excited that someone was actually willing to work on his wolf powers. He'd never admit it, but if someone threw a ball right now, he'd probably chase it down like an overgrown puppy. That's how excited he was.

"All right then." Kurt grinned, reaching out to turn off the DVD. "Later, we will work on the dancing, but for now, wolf. Are you all right to do it in this room?"

Nick quickly scanned around the room, before he let out another roaring speech from his gut. "Can we go somewhere bigger?" It was both a request from his wolf side and his human side. While his wolf wanted to run, Nick was afraid that he would come crashing through the mirrors.

"Hm." He considered. "There is a disused quarry on the school property. Do you think that might do? Or there are the woods."

His smile exploded as soon as he heard the mention of his second home. "The woods." Again it was hard for Nick to control the excitement of his wolf self, but it was still manageable.

Kurt couldn't help laughing at the boy's enthusiasm. "The woods it is, then. Now, if you like."

The wolf's head bobbed up and down as he excitedly bound towards the door. He quickly thought towards Catseye's mention of Forge. Maybe a leash for the wolf wouldn't be such a bad thing for situations like these.