Boredom killed the cat

Cat chuckled and poked at Gambit with her toe again.
"You wanna see yourself get beaten up? If you want we can take a turn in the danger room laten when we've both healed and I can woop your ass and record it so you can watch it over and over again"
She grinned at him and ignored Hank as he rolled his eyes at them both.
"You two will take it easy now. Especially you, Remy. No exertion for about a week. If you experience dizzyness you will come see me at once."
Hank gave Gambit a stern look before cleaning up the medical supplies.
"I'll go get you two something to eat. It'll help Catalina heal faster and it won't hurt you either Remy. Stay. And no turning into stuff Catalina. It's bad for your ribs."
He said the last bit while pointing at them both and his voice was stern though his eyes were laughing. Cat stuck her tounge out at him and leaned back into the cushions.
She had to admit to herself that she was very tired. One look at the big clock on the wall told her it was past 4 in the morning. She didn't think she could sleep yet though.

"Mon douce petite, Cat" he replied amused and challengingly raised an eyebrow at her while an teasing smile played over his lips. "If memory serves me right, it was not Gambit ending up naked on the floor." Hank didn't pay much attention to their banter, instead he cleaned the skin around the cut and then gathered the tools and put them away.
"Gambit wouldn't even need his powers to take you down, cheri", Gambit tantalized and looked at her with a nonchalant look before turning his head toward Hank.
"Of course I will", he responded, when Hank urged him to seek him up if he were to feel dizzy, but with an sarcastic undertone. Gambit chuckled a bit at Beast's attempt at being stern.
"Thank you, Hank" he said and smiled gratefully after Hank as he disappeared out into the corridor. When Beast was gone, Gambit got up from the bed and went over to a mirror to check out the wound for himself. Hank had made a good job of cleaning and stitching it up so it would probably not scar if he just left it alone. Some dried blood still remained on his face and part of his hair was sticky from coagulating blood. He turned on the faucet and leaned his head over the sink before filling his hands with water and then kneading them over the areas were the blood still clinged to him, but he was careful not to get the wound wet. To the best of his effort he tried to entangle the mess from his hair and then got a hold of a towel which he used to dab off the residual moist from his face and hair. He turned off the faucet and then leaned against the sink for a moment just feeling the need to rest his throbbing head.

Cat huffed and pouted playfully and said sarcastically,
"Yeah, how could I end up any other way with you than naked on the floor?"
She followed him with her eyes as he went over to the sink. As he was washing she pulled her hands through her hair and realised how tangled it was. She started to untangle it as best as she could with her fingers, watching Gambit from the corner of her eye.
Her brow furrowed as he leaned on the sink and she quickly went over to him and placed a hand on his arm.
"Come on, hun. It's better if you lay down for a bit. Stop playing the tough guy for once."
She gently pulled him towards the bed and pointed sternly at it. She wolked over to a cupboard and started rooting around. She muttered something unintelligible bofore she found what she was looking for; some paracetamol.
She found a clean paper cup and filled it with water and handed it to Gambit together with two pills.
"Drink up, sweetness."

Gambit looked up at her hand resting against his arm and noticed the cut there from when the bar-stool had hit him, the skin was starting to turn a light purple. He sighed to himself but then looked up at her smiling.
"Gambit isn't playing.. he is the though guy", he joked and followed her toward the bed as she lead him to it. When she pointed sternly at it he obediently sat down and then watched her as she went over the cupboard.
"You know, cheri.. all this talk about being naked, you leading me to your room and now this bed. Isn't it easier to just come right out and say what you want?" he teased and gave her an amused look. When she handed him the cup of water and the two pills he gratefully received them.
"Merci, mon ami" he said before tossing the pills into his mouth and then washing them down with the water. Hopefully the pills would ease the aching in his head and do so quickly. At least the head-wound didn't hurt now thanks to the anesthesia that Hank had given him. He glanced up at the wall clock and was surprised to see that it was nearly 5 in the morning. The students would be waking up soon.

Cat gave him a playfully condescending look.
"Oh, sweetie. Don't kid yourself. You could never handle me."
Hank came in just as she was sitting down on her own bed. He was carrying a tray with sliced bread and several different spreads.
"Now now, kids" Hank said, placing the tray on a low table between the beds. "No bickering"
Cat blinked innocently and looked hungrily at the tray.
"Score! Peanut butter!"
She immediatly picked up a slice and spread a generous amount of peanut butter on it. She looked curiously at Hank and settled against the pillows.
"So, have you heard anything from Sara yet or is it too early yet? I don't know about you Gambit, but I would like to avoid paying fines for public disturbance and.. you know.. general demolition"
She grinned and took a big bit of the sandwich.

"I could handle you in many ways, cheri" he retorted smugly och winked. He looked up at Hank as he entered with the tray and smiled innocently.
"Gambit and Cat bickering? Non, never." Hank scuffed at this but smiled and shook his head.
Gambit looked down at the tray and studied the different slices of bread and spreads and felt a felt a sudden lurch in his stomach. He did not have an appetite at the moment so he turned his eyes away from the tray. Instead he looked up at Cat and smiled to himself as she got excited over the peanut-butter.
"I haven't heard anything yet" Hank answered Cat. "I think Jean is speaking with her at the moment" he mused and glanced at Gambit, noting that he didn't pay any interest in the food he had brought. Gambit looked unconcerned and smiled at Cat.
"Well it wasn't Gambit who rolled around among the chairs and tables" he teased. He felt tired and his head hurt but the pills was slowly starting to kick in by now.

Cat kept munching on her sandwich, pointedly ignoring Gambit, though she kept glancing at him from the corner of her eye. She couldn't help being a little worried.
"Oh, right, I almost forgot. Hank, I'm gonna need help getting a new suit. I want to be aple to wear something under my normal clothes. Something bathing suit-like with a low back. Than I will only be almost naked"
She grinned and ate the rest of the sandwich.
Han looked thoughtful but nodded.
"It shouldn't be a problem. I have some of your blood stored so I can infuse your DNA into some memory-fabric. Just need to get my hands on some of that."
Cat sighed and rolled ocer to her side, grunting softly at the pain. Hank gave her a meaningful look and Cat solled her eyes at him again, then smiled.
"I know, I know."
"You two get some sleep. The Professor wants to talk to you both when you're rested. He also sent a greeting that he will come and put you to sleep if you won't do it by yourselves."
Cat just blinked wearily and pulled a cover over herself as Hank walked out and closed the door behind him. She smiled tiredly at Gambit before closing her eyes. She had planned on at least saying "Good night", but she was asleep in seconds, exhausted..

Gambit looked from Cat to Hank in silence, suddenly feeling a bit weary. He watched as Hank walked over to the door and then disappeared out into the corridor, leaving them both left in the dark. He sighed to himself and turned his gaze toward Cat who seemed to be falling asleep already then returning her smile as she fell asleep. For a moment he just sat there watching her, making sure she was sleeping before he got up and walked over to the window. It was still quite dark out but the sun was slowly rising in the horizon. Not feeling comfortable in the hospital wing he went over to the door and carefully opened it, not accidentally making any sounds that would wake Cat up. When the gap was big enough he silently squeezed through and then closed the door behind him. Standing in the lit corridor he felt weirdly disoriented for a moment but soon remembered the way back to his room. The school was still quiet, not many students were up at this hour and he preferred it that way, especially now with his throbbing head. Soon he was standing outside his own door roaming after the key in his jeans pocket. After locating it he opened the door and went inside and made sure to lock the door after himself. He kicked off his shoes before falling into bed. Closing his eyes he tried to recall the event at the club but his thought got scattered as he fell asleep.

Cat healed quickly as anticipated. She was up and about the next day meeting up with Sara to go over the security footage. She was called to the Professor's office and had to give an account of the incident at the club. She acted properly chastened but could see something was on his mind but opted not to ask. If it concerned her she would find out eventually.
She went about her business as usual the rest of the week. She practiced in the danger room, meditated and tried to stay busy.

Just about a week later she got the summons. Kurt was waiting for her outside her room as she came by to change after a work-out.
"Ze Professor wants to see you. Meet him in hiz office, ja?"
"Um.. sure." Cat looked perplexed as she tried to figure out what she had done this time. "Do you know what it's about?"
Kurt just shrugged, grinned and walked away with a smug look as he called over his shoulder: "And bring Gambit!"
Cat rolled her eyes and quickly went into her room and changed form her sweats to her blue suit, the one with full arms and legs. As she left her room she deftly changed into a wolf. She put her sensitive nose in the air. The school was filled with scents but her canine nose and brain recognized them all. Soon she found the scent she was looking for and took off down the hallways, looking for a french man with, what her wolf-nose thought was, way too much cologne.

Gambit's head-wound healed as it should but he still felt a bit dizzy at times, but being his usual self he kept it to himself, even though Hank had been harassing him about it. He wanted the stitches gone but Hank felt it best to leave them for a couple of more days, to Gambits dismay. Xavier had questioned him about the event at the club and he had done his best to recall and describe it to the professor. After that he hadn't heard anything more about it so he figured the professor didn't find it urgent or he had put somebody else on the job. Either way, Gambit felt that he didn't really care.

Despite Hank's strict orders not to exercise, boredom drove him to the school gym. He grabbed one of the ropes and started climbing to the top of it, using only his arms. The exertion he felt in his muscles was somewhat comforting, briefly taking his mind of the boredom. Reaching the top he looked down toward the floor and then let go of the rope. In mid air he loosened the staff from his belt and precipitated it. He calmly turned and let the bottom of the staff hit the floor, springing slightly and therefor dampening his speed and the force he was falling with. Pole vaulting over the staff he gracefully landed on one foot on a high wooden horse standing nearby. Balancing on the beam he twirled the staff in one hand and then jumped off, landing in a half crouch on the floor below. He straightened himself and then rolled his shoulders to get the tension out of them. There were nothing wrong with his balance or strength but he could feel that it had been a while since he last trained, making his muscles sore and tense.

Cat startled several students as she ran through the school. She followed the scent from the third floor down to the kitchen, past the danger room and finally stopped outside the gym. She had to stand on her hind legs to open the door.
As she looked inside she could see Gambit climbing the rope. She entered quietly and sat down, watching him until he settled. She wuffed and beat her tail against the floor a couple of times before standing up and changing back to herself.
She gave him her usual playful smile.
"Hello, darling."
She put her hands on her hips and cocked her head, her black hair falling like liquid velvet over her shoulders. Her yellowish eyes glinted as she blinked at him.
"The Professor is calling. We're to meet him in is office"

Gambit turned his head when he heard the low wuff and raised an eyebrow when he noticed the dog, no, wolf, he corrected himself.When she turned into her human form again he smirked. Should have known..
"Hello, cheri" he greeted. He eyed her for a moment but then turned away and grabbed a towel hanging on a nearby chair.
"The professor?" he questioned and wiped away the sweat from his forehead with the towel. "What does he want?" Considering the professor wanted to meet them both Gambit deduced that it had something to do with the happening at the bar a week before. He collapsed the staff and reattached it to the belt.

She shrugged at his question.
"I have no idea. Kurt told me and he looked more smug than usual. He also told me to find you. Something is going on."
She looked around the gym and realized it was quite some time since she had been there. I should work on my acrobatics, she thought and looked at Gambit again.
Cat was a little concerned about what the professor wanted.
"We won't find out unless we go there. Come one."
She changed shape again, this time to a long-legged maned wolf. Cat liked exotic species. She preferred changing into unusual species unless she tried being inconspicuous.
She trotted off towards the door and stopped to look over her shoulder to make sure he followed before disappearing through the door.

"Hmm.." Gambit furrowed his brow at her answer and lay the towel over his shoulders, resting against his neck. He sighed at her eagerness to get to the professor's office, a feeling he did not share. It was never a good sign for him to be called to Xavier's office. He wondered what the bald guy wanted with him this time.
"No shower then.." he commented and followed the long-legged wolf out into the corridor. Luckily he hadn't been in the gym long enough to work up a real sweat so he didn't really need a shower anyway. He stopped in the doorway for a moment and looked back at the equipment that was still out. He would have to come back later and clean up he thought before continuing on after Cat.

Her canine ears easily heard his comment and she snickered, at least as well as any canine can snicker.
If she really concentrated she could change only her voice box but it was still hard to speak properly without lips. Her voice would sound distorted and muffled. Monkeys were easier as they could move their lips but it was still a bit of a struggle.
She led Gambit through the corridors and didn't change back to human shape until she stood outside Xavier's door.
She glanced at Gambit and raised her hand to knock, but the door swung open bu itself. She lowered her hand and sighed quietly and muttered to herself.
"I hate it when he does that.."
She stepped into the office and nodded at Xavier. He sat behind his desk observing them as they stepped inside.
Cat resisted changing shape again as she was wont to do when she was nervous or anxious. She squared her shoulders and sat down in one of the chairs.

Xavier sat watching them quietly for a second before mentally lighting up a screen behind him. It showed pictures of a man, snowcapped mountains and what seemed to be the silhouette of a huge building in the mountain wall.
"I believe you both recognize this man. He is one of the man form the... club-incident."
Cat recognized him as the man with super-human strenght. Xavier looked at them both before continuing.
"We have been tracking the men you encountered and this one disappeared a couple of days ago. We tracked him all the way to the Alaskan mountains. The drone couldn't get any closer than this. That mountain has so much interference around it that it burns any electric circuits that gets closer. I can't even check it with cerebro. I'm getting blocked."
As he spoke the screen showed blurred and snowy pictures of the mountain in different angles.
"We believe the building barely seen in one of the pictures is a facility held by The Brotherhood and I'm sending a team. Logan will lead the team and I'm also sending Kurt and Hank.I would like you two to accompany them, unless your injuries are troubling you still."
She looked at them both sharply.

Gambit followed her in silence and stopped next to her as she changed back into a human in front of the door. He smiled faintly at her comment when the door swung open. It was something to be expected but you never got used to it happening. Gambit wondered if the professor just felted their presence or if he picked up on their thoughts as well. Either way, Gambit preferred to keep his mind clear whenever he interacted with Xavier. Who new what he might pick up otherwise.

He went inside and slid down into the chair next to Cat's without a sound. As the screen lit up behind the professor, Gambit looked up and studied the pictures that flashed by on the screen. He recognized the man from the pub and he wondered fleetingly if the man suffered any lasting damage from the glass he had exploded in his face. Logan, Hank and Kurt.. and Logan will lead? he mused and glanced at Cat. The professor must be expecting violent resistance since he wanted to send them all and put Wolverine in charge to boot. He studied the blurry photos of the building, trying to make a mental image of the place.
"Oh, Gambit is fine" he smiled and turned his eyes toward the elderly man who watched him intently. Gambit catched him glancing at the stitches but he didn't say anything about them.
"What would our objective be?" Gambit wondered curiously, not yet having accepted or decliened the mission. He was intrigued though, it would be an interesting interruption of the dull everyday.

Cat furrowed her brow and sat in silent thought.
Xavier held Gambit's eyes for a moment before shutting down the screen.
"Your primary mission will be to find out what kind of facility it is and what's happening here. Cat and Kurt can probably enter stealthily. Both Hank and you, Cat, can handle any kind of comuper and technical issue you might encounter. The terrain his hostile and we're assuming the people there as well, that is why Logan is in charge."
That, and Scott is away on a mission of his own, Xavier thought to himself.
"Logan is waiting for you in the mission room a couple of doors away. He will brief you about the rest."

Cat nodded and got up.
"That seems pretty straight forward. I'm in. I've been waiting to try out some arctic species."
She grinned and looked at Gambit.
"What about you? Or did that guy knock all the adventure from your system?"
Cat felt excited. She had been waiting to be sent on a mission and had been afraid that the incident in town had crossed her off any such list.

Gambit nodded pensively, thinking the scenario over. He didn't really object to the mission, he liked adventures and it wasn't a daily occurrence when he got to break in to places with the professors permission. He turned his head toward Cat and smirked, amused.
"If you're going, cheri. I'll have to go as well. Who else will look after you? he teased and stood up. Gambit turned to the professor again.
"Gambit will accompany the young lady on the mission" he declared. Xavier smiled faintly and nodded at this.
"Then I suggest you hurry to Logan. You know how he doesn't like to wait" he said calmly and smiled a bit amused. Gambit knew all too well about Logan's short temper. He bowed his head slightly at the professor before turning to Cat.
"What are you waiting for then?" he said and smirked before leaving the room.

He went down the corridor and stopped in front of a open door and peeked in. Inside Hank and Kurt sat in respective chairs and Logan leaned against a table, scrutinizing what appeared to be different maps over a snowy area.
"About time" the shorter man grunted as he looked up from the table. Gambit smiled innocently and glanced toward Hank, who was reading a book, not paying much attention to his surrounding, and to Kurt who watched them intently with a grin.

Cat trotted happily after Gambit and stepped into the mission room with a big grin. She stuck out her tongue at Kurt och smiled prettily at Logan before settling in a chair.
She glanced at Hank who winked at her before continuing to read.
"Don't blame me. Gambit just can't keep up."
She grinned and raked over the maps with her eyes.
"So, Logan, oh starlight of my heart. You wanna tell us the details? I assume we're taking the plane at least halfway up the mountain."
Actic animal-shape or not, she didn't relish the thought of trudging through snow over extended periods of time.
Cat tossed her head to get he hair out of her eyes and took one of the maps to look closer at.
"Mount Hayes.. great. You do know it's a particulary bad time of year to travel the Alaska mountain range, don't you?"
Her voice was acerbic but her eyes smiled.

Gambit raised an eyebrow at Cat but then smiled and took a seat next to Kurt, who was almost bouncing in his chair out of excitement.
"Haven't been out for a while, elf?" Gambit noted and smiled crookedly at Kurt who stuck out his tongue at him and did not answer. Gambit grinned and leaned back in the chair while turning his gaze toward Logan and Cat.

Ignoring Cat's comment, Logan reached for a map and pointed at a disclosed area approximately 3 km from the place where the pictures were taken from.
"This is our landing site" he explained. "and this is the area we are supposed to explore" he said as he circled on the map with a red pen. Drawing a line between the landing site and the red circle he continued explaining. "From here, to here. There is approximately 3 km of wilderness and the terrain is hard" he said bluntly, not feeling the need to sugarcoat it. "And as Cat says, it is not a good time of the year to go camping in this region." Hank looked unmoved, still reading his book, but Kurt had started to turn in his seat. Gambit eyed the map, taking note of the steep mountain sides and rocky terrain.
"This is as close as we can land without drawing attention to ourselfs" Hank filled in, answering an unasked question from Kurt who just was about to say something. Logan nodded in agreement.

Cat studied the map and nodded thoughtfully.
"Xavier said something about the mountain interfering with electrical equipment as well."
She glanced toward Hank who closed his book and adjusted his glasses before taking a look at the map himself.
"Yes, our plane can handle a lot but I think we should not tempt fate here. Better to make sure the servo doesn't fry. The drone that came back had fried several circuits. If we notice anything electrical malfunctioning, we will land."
He thoughtfully tugged his fur and smiled crookedly.
"Me, Logan and Cat can probably handle the cold better than you two but I prefer to be able to return to a working plane. The closest settlement is miles away."

Cat looked questioningly at Logan and raised an eyebrow.
"So, fly in as close as we can, take a brisk walk, climb straight up a mountain wall and then infiltrate a building. Easy as pie. When do we leave?"
She stretched leisurely and went over in her head all the arctic species she could come up with. She decided she would do a quick internet search before leaving.

"Pretty straight-forward, eh?" Logan grinned and jotted down some notes on the map. "Most preparations are already done so we can leave within the hour" he answered and looked up at Cat.
"So soon", Gambit commented and stifled a yawn. “Gambit better go change then" he got up from the chair and stretched before he trotted toward the door.
"Make sure to dress for the climate, bub" Logan said before turning his gaze down to the map again. Gambit halted in the doorway and glanced back at them.
“If not, I’m sure Cat will keep me warm” he grinned teasingly and then disappeared out into the hallway. Hank and Kurt chuckled at this and looked at Cat but then turned their gazes down to the notes Logan was writing on the map.
“I’ll have to talk with the professor before we leave” Hank remembered and stood up, putting his book aside. Logan nodded at this and looked up at them.
“Everybody get ready and then we’ll meet down in the hangar.”

Cat pointedly ignored Gambit as she got up from the chair and stretched.
"I'll se you guys there, then."
She gave a lazy wave of her hand before turning into a regular house cat. She disappeared through the door and raced down the hallway, back up to the third floor.
She didn't need to bring much. She had her tight, blue full suit on, any other kind of clothing would only get destroyed or discarded. She decided to take her long winter coat none the less and told herself she could always leave it in the plane.
She rummaged through a drawer nad fished ut a small book on arctic animals and climate and stuffed it into the coat pocket. She hummed happily to herself as she hung the coat over her arm and started off down the hallway again.
She stopped by the kitched to pick up a box of cookies, some water and a sandwich, all which she stuffed into different coat pockets.
Cat continued to hum to herself as she made her way down to the hangar.

The hanglar looked empty with only one plane parked. Cat deftly climbed in through the stern bay doors and looked around searching for the others.
She shrugged when she couldn't find anyone and sat down in one of the chairs and pulled her knees up to her chin. She sighed impatiently as she took a swig from the water bottle.

Gambit got to his room, took a quick shower and then dug out an old x-men uniform from the wardrobe. He put the black sleek uniform on and then studied himself in the mirror. It was a weird feeling being in the uniform again after all this time. The fabric was produced to withstand different climates and to reserve body heat so it would be an good insulator against the cold weather in Alaska. He clipped a belt around his waist before taking out his characteristic long coat and putting it on. He fastened his staff to the belt and made sure he had two new decks of cards with him in the outer coat pockets. Before leaving the room he looked around and mused over if there were anything else he would need but he figured the others had already thought of any supplies they might need for the mission. For good measure he also brought with him a pair of thin leather gloves that he shoved in one of the inner pockets then he left the room, closing and locking the door behind him.

A little while later he was down in the hangar looking around. The bay doors of the plane stood open so he trotted over and had a look inside. He got in and soon found Cat in one of the passenger chairs.
"'Ello cheri. Sitting here all alone?" he grinned and dropped down in the chair next to hers. As soon as he had said it, he could hear voices outside. Logan and Kurt joined them inside, they were also wearing the black x-men uniform.
"Good, you're here" commented Logan and put down a bag on the floor. "Then we're only waiting for the big guy." he said before continuing in to the cockpit. Kurt sat down in one of the chairs, his tail twitching nervously.
"Isn't this exciting?" he said with a big grin and looked at them both.

Cat raised her eyebrow at Gambit without commenting and grinned happily as the others climbed in.
"Man, you guys are slow. I've ben waiting forever."
She took on a dramatic air and put her nose in the air.
"I'm sure Gambit had to fill in his eyebrows or something."
She broke the drama queen act and smiled evilly at him.

Hank took a more leisurely pace. He wandered back to Xavier's office and didn't even blink when the door swung open by itself. Her shuffled inside and gave Xavier an inquiring look.
"You wanted to see me, professor?"
"Yes. I want you to keep an extra eye on things. I fear that the facility is used for recruiting.. or worse. If it's possible you should try to find what's blocking my powers. I only hope it's not another telepath."
Xavier sighed and shook his head.
"I am worried. I would have liked to send more of you but Scott and his team is in Russia and aren't scheduled to return for another week. If this facility is used by the Brotherhood, we need to know now. There is no telling how long it's been there and what has been done there already. Take care, and good luck."
Hank had been listening quietly, only nodding now and then. He got up and nodded before turning away.
"We'll be back soon. professor."
He closed the door behind him and slowly made his way down to the hangar. He already had everything he required; his book and his reading glasses.
He climbed about the plane and looked at the others with a serene smile before walking over to the cockpit and taking his place in the pilot's seat.
"Shall we be off then?"