Life Under A Magnifying Glass

[ngm_miscellaneous]

While some of the furor over the revelation that Xavier's was a school for mutants had died down, there were still reporters broadcasting from outside the school gates. There were daily reports on what they thought was going on in the school and more reports on what public officials were doing to calm fears. As reporters dug for soundbites to fill the air, little bits of "news" were put out for the public to see.

As the world looked in, the X-Men tried to keep doing their daily routines. Though as more news was reported it became more difficult to live there formerly anonymous lives.

Comments

[summersspawn]

Sara came out of the kitchen at the New Mutant's converted power station, carrying a Diet Coke and a small bag of pretzels. She passed through the living room, intending to go upstairs and study for a while.

The TV was on. She caught the words "mutant porno", and turned to look. The Diet Coke and pretzels hit the floor. Sara let out a wordless whimper-squeak.

[sonoflongshot]

Aiden had quite the timing. He had missed most of the report because he had been out walking Cedric. Or, more accurately, running around with Cedric chasing him with the leash flopping around behind the small dog.

He shrugged off his jacket and took the leash off Cedric and headed toward his bedroom. Except he got a bit distracted by Sara keening in the living room over spilled Diet Coke and pretzels.

"Uh, I'm sorry for your salty-soggy loss?"

[summersspawn]

Sara pointed at the TV screen, her eyes wide and horrified. She was still making that noise.

[sonoflongshot]

Aiden followed where Sara was pointing. His brow furrowed. "Why do we have lookalikes having sex on national news?"

He squinted more and stepped a little closer to inspect it.

[summersspawn]

"I think those pictures are from Mojoworld"

Still that noise, but something close to words.

"OhmigodIhadnoideatherewasvideo. OhmigodwhatwillBrucethink... Angel... Mom... Dad! OhmigodRacheleveryone... ohmigod..."

[sonoflongshot]

Aiden rubbed his eyes and turned around to look at his freaking out leader. He took a deep breath.

"It's Mojoworld, why wouldn't they have video? And that's not us. I've only had sex with one person. You also aren't as flexible as some of those pictures..."

He glanced around living room.

[summersspawn]

"How do you know I'm not... ohmigod!" Sara looked closer at the pictures scrolling by and blushed at the implications.

"They pasted me over Angel." She leaned closer. That wallpaper wasn't Aiden and Angel's room, it was...

"Oh. My. GOD!!! They have CAMERAS in OUR BEDROOMS!"

A few wisps of carbohydrate free steam rose from the puddle of Diet Coke at Sara's feet.

[crawler_kid]

Angel had been studying in her and Aiden's room, and had heard the noise, but not the specific words. She was mostly healed up, but it was going to take some pretty regular training to get herself back to where she was before being sidelined.

"What's all the hubbub out hear, y'all?"

[sonoflongshot]

"We've probably been entertainment back on Mojoworld for awhile." Aiden stopped squinting around the room. He glanced sideways at Sara. He took a step away from the wisps of steam. He was calm now. Sara was covering the freaking out portion. He could do that when he begged Angel not to watch the news anymore.

"I wish Val were here. She'd figure out a way to get purge all the Mojo-cameras."

And then there was Angel. Aiden dove at the TV to shut it off.

[summersspawn]

"We'veprobablybeenohmigodmylifeisovereveryoneatschoolhasseennowondertheykeptmakingthosecommentsinthecaf..."

She saw Aiden dive for the TV. Then she saw Angel in the doorway. Sara froze, eyes huge and showing way too much white. Then she grabbed the edge of the couch. Was it getting darker in here?

"Eep"

[crawler_kid]

Angel looked from Aiden to Sara and back again. "...Somethin' Ah need to know about?"

[sonoflongshot]

The belly flop in front of the television had not been Aiden's most graceful moment, but he had managed to turn the TV off. He rolled onto his back and blinked at Angel and then Sara in turn. He jumped up to his feet and ran toward the kitchen to get a paper bag for Sara.

"Mojo made a porno of Sara and me and put it on the internet," was his quick explanation before he disappeared into the kitchen.

[summersspawn]

"Ohmigodnoitwasn'tmeandAidenokwellitWASbutitwasn'tohmigodnotlikethatohmigodthereareCAMERASintheBEDROOMS..."

Sara grabbed on tighter to the edge of the couch.

"Isitreallyhotinhere?"

Her voice dwindled away. She collapsed into a heap on the floor, pulling the couch over with her.

[crawler_kid]

Angel didn't catch any of Sara's high speed babble, and Aiden's comments were quickly forgotten in favor of Sara's sudden collapse.

"SARA!" Angel screamed, rushing to her side.

[sonoflongshot]

Aiden wasn't gone long. He came right back into the living room with a paper bag and a bottle of water from the fridge in hand. His eyes widened at the collapsed Sara and couch combo.

He scurried over to shove the couch out of the way and kneel next to his friend.

It struck him that he had no idea what to do. "Uhhh..."

[summersspawn]

Sara's eyelids fluttered, but she did not wake up. However, she was muttering something. Something that sounded like:

"Mojo... smoking crater..."

[crawler_kid]

Angel, largely because her job has her working with kids, actually has a little bit of first aid training. She slipped a pillow under Sara's head.

"Stay with us, hon..."

[sonoflongshot]

Aiden set down the cold water bottle and the paper bag.

"We'll get Mojo back sometime, Sara. It'll be okay. See? No strangling right now."

[summersspawn]

"Strangle Mojo?"

Sara opened her eyes, and took in the fallen couch, then Angel and Aiden leaning over her.

"Ohmigod."

[crawler_kid]

"You gave is quite a scare, Sara."

She looked over at Aiden. "What's this 'bout Mojo now?"

[sonoflongshot]

Aiden carefully grabbed the paper bag to hand to Sara if necessary. He coughed and then cleared his throat.

"Mojo has made a porno and put it on the net. It looks like Sara and me. Except Sara isn't that flexible, and you and I have never had sex in Sara's room. Well, when it was Sara's room. I don't remember if we did it in there while we were remodeling..."

[summersspawn]

Sara started making that keening noise again, then she cut off abruptly.

"Wait. You guys did it in MY room?!?"

[crawler_kid]

"That low down no good sonnuva..." Angel started, but Sars's keening and question cut her off.

"Of course not! We got more class than that!"

[sonoflongshot]

"It wasn't your room at the time. Heck, there weren't even walls up to call it a room. Though I do remember a couple horses and some plywood..." Aiden shook his head to stop the distraction from pulling him too far away.

"Might not have been where your room currently is?" He added to be helpful. "But we should probably figure out how to get all the Mojo cameras out of the base. I don't think they looped into Val's security system because she didn't put those in our bedrooms."

[summersspawn]

Sara muttered under her breath.

"I'm flexible. I do yoga. Ohmigod, how would you know how flexible I am, anyways?"

She sat up.

"If all else fails, I could EMP the place. Or maybe EMP Mojoworld."