X-Men: Revolution.

Chapter 3: Them.

The hour long ride to Bayville was quiet and lagging way too much. The hour seemed like it had been an entire day. Jean and Professor Xavier tried to make conversation, and she knew that it would probably help the trip go by faster, but Vinnie really was not in the mood. She was confused, nervous, and concerned, all at the same time. The restless butterflies in her stomach had not stopped since they left her apartment, and the closer they came to their destination, the worse they would become.

Vinnie just leaned back into the seat and closed her eyes. The vehicle really was comfortable, but the atmosphere inside of it was nerve-racking. Vinnie could not help but bounce her leg up and down. She opened her eyes and peered out of the window for a brief moment, but it did not take her long to look down at the bare skin on her arm. It was still ridiculously red, and she still felt ridiculously hot, even though the AC was on in the car. Every now and then a sweat droplet would escape her face and fall into her lap. This irritated her. She would huff in frustration, then reach up and wipe her forehead with her shirt, and slam her arms back down to her sides. She noticed Jean glance at her in the rearview mirror.

"You okay?" Jean would telepathically say.

Vinnie shut her eyes and grabbed her head. "YES!" She physically shouted. She folded her arms over her chest, and slumped down in her seat. Another drop of sweat ran down the side of her face and made her skin itch, but she ignored it. It just was not worth it anymore. It was just going to keep happening.

"We're almost there. It's just around the corner." The Professor exclaimed. Anyone could tell from the tone in his voice that he was excited.

Vinnie came to the conclusion that he really seemed to care about his students.

Vinnie's eyes grew wide just as soon as they rounded the corner. What she saw was nothing like she expected it to be. Before them was a gorgeous, cream colored mansion bigger than any house she had ever seen. The first thing noticeable were the twenty windows that decorated the front. There was a large circular sidewalk that stretched across the acres of front yard which led up to the front double glass doors as a stone statue of an angel sat in the center. Bushes and pine trees accented the mansion's border; all of this sat behind a tall, black, steel gate.

They pulled up to the gate and it let them in immediately. Vinnie turned around in her seat to look behind them. The gate closed automatically almost instantly after the car had passed. She turned back around; her eyes were glued to the surrounding atmosphere.

"This doesn't look like a school to me!" The inflection in her voice expressed pure excitement.

"To be quite honest, it really isn't a school. Although we teach the students here about their powers, it is nothing more than a home to all of us." The Professor answered. He turned his head and looked back at her with a smile.

"So, everyone here just has this entire mansion to themselves? You must have hundreds of students living there." Vinnie forced a chuckle.

"Actually, including myself, there are only twenty." The Professor answered.

"Twenty-one, Professor." Jean corrected, emphasizing "one." She must have been referring to Vinnie.

Vinnie did not notice that her butterflies had disappeared. "You mean to tell me that there are only twenty people living in the enormous place?"

The Professor nodded.

Vinnie shook her head in disbelief.

Jean drove the car up a long pathway and into a rather large garage that held several other cars: A hummer, a sporty red and white convertible, another SUV type vehicle that almost resembled a van, a motorcycle, and of course the car they were already in.