(Continuing my little snippets of fiction imagining Beast settling in at the Jean Grey School, because the news from Marvel coming out of Comic-Con sounded really really bad for our merry band of mutants. While the X-Men line has…maybe seven titles out right now, many of them will be taking a hiatus once Civil War II is over. Then we’ll get the ominously-titled Death of X, which then spins right into Inhumans vs. X-Men. The promotional material tips the scales pretty heavily against the X-Men, though this could all be a swerve seeded by Marvel to get X-fans riled up. It’s working.
The worst part, of course, is that Beast doesn’t actually feature in ANY of the promos. He’s working with the Inhumans right now to find a cure for the Terrigen Mists, but it looks like that won’t lead anywhere. He doesn’t show up in any of the Death of X variants, Inhumans vs. X-Men, or any of the X-Men OR Inhuman titles for the rest of the year.
Someone has to write about Dr. McCoy. Might as well be me, right?)
Henry mumbled to himself as he squeezed beneath one of the computer panels of his shiny new basement laboratory. Something about the electronics just wasn’t flowing right, and while he had narrowed it down to the tremendous and chaotic bundle of wires beneath the main monitor, that still left literally hundreds of tiny insulated cables that had to be checked by hand. It would have been a chore for anyone, but with thick and brutish paws like his the work went twice as slowly as it should have. Not for the first time, Dr. McCoy regretted relying on Shi’ar tech so heavily. It allowed him to do so much, but it was an absolute nightmare to troubleshoot.
He held a dozen or so of these impossibly thin wires, feeling them roll through the leathery pads of his fingertips. He used his other paw to adjust his glasses, squinting in the dim light to see the colors of each one. He felt the wrench he was holding brush against the fur above his brow, and was certain that there was now a thin sheen of synthetic oil sinking into it. Another mutter under his breath, this one just quiet enough for him to hear. He was going to take a long, hot bath after this, drying time be damned.
It was hard work, of course, building the tools that would go on to build the Jean Grey School for Higher Learning — but then, he knew it would be. That was part of what drew him to seek out the position in the first place. It had been far too long since he had been able to put his considerable talents to use for a cause he believed in unreservedly, and now he had his chance. He had a hand — paw — in rebuilding Xavier’s dream from the ground up, in shepherding a new generation of young mutants towards the ideal that one day human and mutantkind could live in peace. That thought was what propelled him through countless long nights, several hours of poring over manuals of alien technology and navigating his own physical difficulties with performing fine detail work. Most of the time, it was enough. Today, though…
The fur on the back of his neck stood up. There was someone in the lab.
He bumped his head and broad back under the console as he tried to slip out, rubbing the back of his head with a grumble. He tilted his nose up, sniffing the air — nothing but metal, coolant, the lubricant he was rubbing into his fur again…
He tossed the wrench down with a frustrated “Bah!” and looked around the lab, his goggles glinting as they caught the much brighter fluorescents beaming from the high ceiling. There was no movement, just the chaos of his dream lab being put together. Still, something didn’t feel right…
He felt a breeze ruffle the whiskers on his right side, and his ear flicked as he heard the barest whisper of fabric rubbing against fabric. Someone was behind him. He turned his head slightly in that direction and caught the scent he was looking for.
He leaped before the arm had even lifted, flipping a twisted somersault in the air to land on his feet (and one hand) while facing the spot he had been just a few seconds ago. Henry snarled instinctively, ears flattened, mane lifted; it embarrassed him to show his teeth that way, so he followed up quickly with witty banter.
“I don’t know who you are…” He looked up then, and saw Katherine Pryde phasing into sight, eyes wide and clearly startled.
“Well,” he said, “Kitty Pryde, as I live and breathe…” Henry straightened, grateful for his fur for once. As uncomfortable as it was, it did a wonderful job of hiding it when he blushed. He threw out his arms and rushed into a hug before she had a chance to recover.
Beast felt her stiffen for a split-second before she relaxed, letting her arms drop around his neck. His heart skipped a beat when she laughed; he spun her around and gave her the briefest squeeze before setting her down. For a moment, it was just like old times. All was right with the world.
“Hey, Hank!” She bounced on her feet as she landed, pushing a lock of her hair behind an ear. “Logan told me you were down here, so I thought I’d surprise you…probably wasn’t the best idea.”
Henry smiled, but not too wide. He knew how off-putting his fangs could be. “Ahhh, my dearest Kitty, a thousand apologies! It’s…been an eventful few months. I’m afraid my fight reflexes have gotten a bit too good.”
“You don’t have to explain that to me!” She smiled back. “When you live the life we do, you learn to hate surprises.” She turned around, looking at the enormous space that was only now just taking shape. “Look at all this, though! I’m impressed! You’ve really outdone yourself.”
Beast took her hand in his when she turned around, unable to keep himself from smiling wider. “Ahh, you’re too kind! It’s easy to do something impressive when you have access to alien technology and unlimited resources. Would you like for me to give you a tour?”
“I’d like nothing better.” Kitty squeezed one of his fingers and stepped to the side, letting him lead her. “I thought I recognized Shi’ar tech in this place. It has this really distinct feeling when you phase through it.”
Hank’s eyebrows lifted. “So that’s why I haven’t been able to get the main monitor working. I knew the design would be quite touchy, but I figured it wouldn’t be so bad once I had safely ensconced them behind the safety paneling.”
“Oh, no! I didn’t think you had turned anything on. I’m so sorry Henry…here, I’m not doing anything this afternoon, why don’t we order in a pizza and I’ll help you fix it?”
Henry paused as he walked along with Shadowcat, clapping his other massive paw over her hand. He looked into her eyes, his whiskers practically bristling with contentment. He had his doubts about the Jean Grey School — it was quite a risk, after all — but this was the first moment he was certain he had made the right decision.
“Nothing would make me happier. Let me show you the Warbird Fusion Reactor, and then I’ll tell you about this marvelous place I’ve found. They’ll even take custom toppings! I had an extra-large steak tartare pizza that was just delightful.”
Kitty laughed, “Oh Hank, that sounds awful!”
“My dear, don’t knock it until you’ve tried it.” Beast smiled, then lead Pryde through a narrow passage and behind a panel that hadn’t been affixed to the wall yet. This place would be really something, once it all came together.
From the Desk of Jakebe T. Rabbit 