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Relax? Have You Said Relax?: Chapter One

Author's note: The events of "Overwhelmed" have taken place; the mutants' existence and their aftermaths have been revealed like in the "X-Men: Evolution" episodes. Jean and Scott are almost twenty years old. Only Sara and Jean's father have totally accepted Jean's mutation.

Kurt, Bobby, you are the last ones missing, we're waiting for you sent Jean by telepathy to the two young mutants.

It was a particular July Sunday. One week ago, Jean's sister, Sara, had purposed to her by phone to spend a day at the beach, seeing that this will be near Bayville and if each of them drove part of the way this project seemed workable. Sara intended to bring some friends of her, Jean had made the same and Amara, Tabitha, Ororo, Kurt, Kitty and Bobby had accepted the invitation with delight.

The most part of the group was already in the garage. Jean was helping Scott to load the beach-bags into the X-Van.

"Are you sure to have well specified that it's a simple day at the beach and not a week trekking in the bush?" asked Scott after having moved back in order to have a better view at the accumulation of bags which he has achieved to fill the trunk.

"Mmmh, I know what you'll say, you'll say that the women don't know how to travel lightly," Said Jean in a falsely reproachful tone, letting herself being taken into Scott's arms. "But, if you look well, you'll notice that what takes place are the provisions for the picnic and they're only here for the way there...I trust our friends for not leaving much..."

"But I wasn't insinuating anything," said the young leader, giving to her one of this smile she was the only one to provoke.

"I know it, I was teasing you," she answered, letting strike her hand against his cheek.

She briefly pressed her lips against his before coming back near of the girls who began to get impatient.

This day wasn't promised to be absolutely safe, but Jean had made it clear to them that she and Scott intended to spend time together without having to hear the chuckles of the ones or being spied by the other. This going out have to be spent out of powers in order to merge themselves into the tourists-mass and not to attract attention on them. The three 'adults' of the expedition had overall made the things clear to Kurt, Kitty and Bobby; Tabitha seeming to be usually wiser when she was with Amara...well, in principle...

This day of relaxation was welcomed, overall in a show of anonymity. Since the revelation of their existence, they've had enough of being looked askance and pointed at like criminals. And besides there had been the institute's destruction which had required longer weeks of work, fortunately accelerated by the mutants' gifts. Moreover, like Jean had feared, even the ones who liked them in the past, when they thought they were 'normal', were now avoiding them and only seeing them as 'mutants' or worse: 'freaks'. Of course, each of them had all been prepared since the day they have discovered theirs capacities; but at twenty years old or less, it was hard to be rejected by everybody only because of an irrational fear. The unknown fear, that's the worst dread of humanity; what Man fears, he destroys, we cannot escape from the human being, only raised by some people with a opener-mind.

Jean sighed but the sound was muffled by a characteristic BAMF! Kurt and Bobby have just appeared in a cloud of smoke. None of the people already in the garage were startled, they were too accustomed to this sort of untimely appearance.

"The professor was checking the water-resistance of my image inducer," explained Nigthcrawler "And I had to change the hologram in order to have something decent for the beach."

"It's a pity," said Tabitha in a detached tone. "If you appear in you fuzzy form on the beach or in the sea, we'd have more space in less than five minutes..."

Storm raised her eyebrows. "I hope that I don't need to remind you about what we’ve said..." she declared. "No apparent powers except in extreme-necessity cases"

"If it rains or some clouds hide the sun?" asked Bobby

"We've a beautiful weather and this will be the same all the day," answered Scott after having closed the trunk. "Moreover, I’d have you to know that Storm's intervention it justly the king of powers' use to avoid in public. So, Kurt, no teleportations and, Bobby, icebergs or snowballs in the middle of July risks not to go unnoticed if you see what I mean..." implied the young man before adding by precaution, "that the same for the others"

"Yes Fearless Leader!"

"Good, now everybody in the car!"

***

Meanwhile, almost 60 kilometres from here:

"Hurry up! I wouldn't like have been late!" said Sara a dark-haired young woman of 26 years old, burying a beach towel in a straw bag.

"Will your sister bring a lot of friends with her?" Asked Bryan.

"I don't know; she said to me that she was going to invite the ones who would want to come, and seeing that they are like a sort of family..."

"I admit that I'm also looking forward to meet them in person, she and the others," said Samantha, putting her 18 month old little daughter in her buggy. "Overall your sister, she seems to be so powerful! And also the one with the beams or whatever it is."

"Scott," rectified Sara, "But they’re all particularly, each in their own way. Having said that, don't forget that in public they usually don't use theirs powers so they'll seem to be just like you and me."

Two of her closest friends a young couple of Canada extraction, were particularly impressed by one of the flash-info which had been broadcasted a few day after 'the sentinel story'. It were pictures showing the X-Men in action against the Juggernaut when he was playing the tightrope walker on the dam.

Like the most part of the citizens, they were afraid at the beginning to learn the existence of the mutants -- overall discovering that this was also concerning their friend’s sister -- but later on, Sara had spoken to them about the mutants with full knowledge of the facts which had been more valuable than the ignorant journalists' speculations.

chap 2

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