DISCLAIMER:
Pryde and Wisdom, the X-men and Excalibur all are trademarks of Marvel Comics. This story is an unauthorized work done purely for my personal enjoyment, and is not intended to infringe on any of their rights in or profits from these characters. But this story is copyright to me.

WARNING:
THERE WILL BE EXPLICIT SEX IN THIS STORY. I will mark those sections clearly in the individual section headers. If reading sex scenes would offend you, please don't read this story.

If you want to comment, send email to <luba@lubakmetyk.net>

Part 1 Dinner Scenes

Dinner that first evening was to be a slightly more formal affair than usual at the mansion, in honor of the visitors from across the Pond. Normally, any meal with the X-men would be more of a catchall affair, with the large number of people the household always seemed to have around.

Most of the mansion's residents were in attendance that evening, gathering early for pre-dinner drinks and refreshments and conversation, although the members of X-Force had decided to go out instead to miss the expected flood of catching up from the old-timers, taking Rahne and Douglock with them, and with Cannonball dragged along by Tabitha. Cable and Domino had tagged along to keep an eye on the boisterous crowd, which several observers privately characterized as a disaster waiting to happen.

The women had seized eagerly upon the excuse to dress up for dinner, while the various men had been reluctantly persuaded by the ladies to abandon their usual comfortable jeans and sweats for button-down shirts with ties, slacks and sports jackets or, for a few unfortunates, suits.

As dinnertime approached, everyone stood around in small groups, talking, munching on various hors d'oeuvres laid out on plates in several convenient locations, and drinking from a wide selection of nonalcoholic beverages laid out next to a fully-stocked bar. Small groups shifted, forming and reforming as conversations began and ended, allowing more varied contact that would be possible later while seated at the table.

Pete Wisdom was nursing his drink, taking slow, deliberate sips, giving the liquor time to roll around his mouth and tongue. Kitty had been quite graphic about what she intended to do to him if he had the audacity to become drunk and disorderly, or even drunk or disorderly. He regarded the gathering with a jaundiced eye, trailing along dutifully behind Kitty as she flitted from one old friend to another.

Kitty had on a new dress, a royal blue crepe with a short skirt that was tight at the waist and flared out at the hips, sleeveless, with a halter neckline that left much of her back and shoulders bare, and dressy gold sandals. Her only jewelry was the Star of David she always wore on a chain around her neck. Pete wore his usual black suit, white shirt and black tie, but somehow still didn't look dressed up, probably because the numerous wrinkles, stains and worn spots ingrained in the very fabric clearly indicated it was not anything saved only for special occasions.

Shortly before dinnertime, Betsy and Warren came down. They were both dressed up to the nines, with plans to go out for the evening with Brian and Meggan, who were already waiting for them.

Warren wore his tuxedo with an air of elegance and finesse none of the other X-men could have matched, part of his natural inheritance as a wealthy socialite from a prominent family. Brian wore a tuxedo also, but had had to be bullied into it by Betsy and Meggan. His suit was just as elegant, fitted just as well as Warren's, but Brian lacked that ineffable sense of comfort that Warren had. It was just too apparent to any observer that he couldn't wait to get the monkey suit off again.

Meggan however adored dressing up, but seldom got the opportunity, as Betsy knew. Meggan and Betsy had spent an enjoyable hour earlier that afternoon fixing each other's hair in elaborate styles, with giggly help from Jean and Rogue and Kitty. Meggan, of course, wore her favorite color and her rich green brocade dress had long sleeves and a long skirt, the heavy fabric draping and trailing the floor so that casual passerbys couldn't see that she went barefoot beneath it. She glowed when Pete tossed out a casual "Looking great, Meggan." She had accepted Pete more quickly than some of the others in Excalibur, her instinctive empathy subtly reassuring her as to his true nature, and he had opened up in turn to her friendship, her generous spirit, almost without realizing.

Betsy had on an Oriental-style shot silk evening gown, in a shade of mauve carefully selected to compliment her unusual hair color, with large cutouts showing most of her upper chest and back, and with high side slits showing a lot of shapely leg, the curve of ankle and calf accentuated by thin-strapped, high-heeled sandals. Her purple hair was piled atop her head, with some artistically arranged tendrils escaping the arrangement and trailing along her cheeks and neck. Heavy evening makeup, more than most women would dare try wearing, emphasized her slanted eyes and high cheekbones dramatically.

She'd been out shopping for that outfit earlier that day, when the visitors had arrived in the Midnight Runner. Now, when Kitty introduced Betsy to Pete, he did a double-take, saying "You're Brian's sister? You sure don't look anything like him..." as he glanced over at the blond, blue-eyed Brian.

As Kitty dragged him away with a deathgrip on his arm, they could hear him muttering to her "Looks like the Braddocks' mum may have had some interestin' adventures 'erself..." followed immediately by a muffled yelp as Kitty kicked him in the shin, hard.

Betsy glared at their retreating backs imperiously while Brian started after them, fully intending to throttle Wisdom, only to be stopped by Meggan hanging onto his arm and pleading with him anxiously, "Please, Brian, I'm sure he didn't mean anything, really. He just makes these awful jokes..."

"He is an awful joke..." Brian growled, then looked at Meggan's woebegone face and smiled at her. "But you're right, love, he's not worth ruining our evening. I'll have many more excuses to kill him later..."

Wolverine had been out also, when the overseas contingent had first arrived. He had ignored all strictures from Jean and Rogue earlier, and now showed up comfortable in his customary jeans, western shirt and boots, although he had honored this reunion by adding a bolo tie and an elegant silver-chased belt buckle.

A hush fell over the room as he came in, ignored everyone else, even his best friend Kurt, and headed straight for Kitty. She squealed in delight at seeing him and rushed forward to throw herself into his arms, hugging him and kissing him. Both the hug and the kiss were returned enthusiastically, literally lifting her off her feet, although some of the interested bystanders thought they could detect a hint of an embarassed blush on Logan's face. Pete stood still where Kitty had left him to greet Wolverine, an inscrutable look on his face.

After a brief moment, however, Kitty drew back a little, disengaging herself from Logan's embrace. Very obviously steeling herself and taking a deep breath, she reached back to take Pete's hand and pull him forward, saying "Logan, this is Pete Wisdom, my... umm... boyfriend. Pete, this is Logan, Wolverine, one of my dearest friends. I've told you about him..."

Her voice trailed off uncertainly as the two men just stood there, staring at each other with equally indecipherable expressions. They were almost equal in height, neither being particularly tall, and they could easily look each other in the eye without either having to incline his head. However, you could easily make two of the thin, wiry Wisdom from the bulky, muscular Wolverine.

The silence in the room deepened as Logan extended one arm slowly, his left arm. As it came up near Pete's chin, Kitty gasped audibly and Nightcrawler and Cyclops belatedly began to move, to try to interrupt the confrontation. Before either of them could cover any distance, however, Logan abruptly shifted his arm to roughly ruffle Pete's already unruly hair, as they clasped right hands tightly.

"Been a while, mate..." Pete grinned cockily at him. "Last time was fighting off Coy's goons in that bar in Madripoor, remember?"

"Figured you might grow up into a decent human being someday, kid..." There was a hint of approval in Logan's deep, raspy voice. "Glad to see I was right. So you finally managed to end up on the side of the angels?"

Kitty was glaring at both of them, fists clenched in inarticulate rage that her momentary alarm had proved entirely unnecessary, and Pete couldn't resist the opening Logan had provided him. "One angel, anyway, if she don't kill me dead any minute 'ere..."

"You noticed she's a feisty little thing?" Logan chuckled, enjoying the stunned expression on Kitty's face.

"Yeah, I noticed that... I try an' make sure she takes it out on the other guy..." Now they were both snickering at her, a joint male conspiracy in the last place she had expected such an alliance.

"Heard you were comin', I went out and stocked up on booze and fresh cards." That explained Wolverine's absence when they had first arrived. "Thought we could have some of those all-night card games, catch up on th' happenin's..."

"Sure, if I don't get a better offer." Pete leered as he glanced sideways at Kitty. "I may need somethin' else to do nights, if somebody 'ere can't learn to take a joke."

Everyone in the room began to shift and stir again as the realization gradually sank in that, not only was the expected confrontation averted, but another reunion of sorts was underway. Interrupted conversations picked up, and new conversations began, more than one of which involved creative speculation on the past history between Wisdom and Logan.

Colossus unconsciously relaxed, where he was standing partly hidden in a corner talking to Kurt and Storm. He'd had a forlorn little hope that Logan would be on his side, and could help him get Kitty back by convincing her she was making the biggest mistake of her life. A deeply buried wish that Logan would help him more directly, by simply eliminating Wisdom somehow, rose briefly to the surface of his mind, before returning again to the depths of his subconscious. But that wasn't to be, at least not here and now, and he didn't want to think about what might have been.

Logan and Pete were both talking now, quietly enough that the others had trouble hearing, almost tripping over each other in their mutual rush to explain their previous contacts on various of Pete's missions to the still furious Kitty. They had both had enough experience with her temper to not want to be on the receiving end.

"So that's why you didn't freeze Wolverine telekinetically?" Scott whispered to Jean. "I wondered why I didn't feel any warning from you..." She nodded back, saying quietly "I could tell Logan wasn't really mad or upset, wasn't going to attack. And I certainly wasn't worried about him getting attacked."

Meanwhile, Logan was taking advantage of being out of the center of attention to issue the inevitable challenge that the others had expected from him earlier, but now in at least partial privacy. "You do realize, don'cha, kid, that even though you're a pal o' mine, if I ever hear you doing anything to hurt Kitty, anything at all, you're dead meat?" he growled at Pete. "I'll rip your heart out and feed it to a pack o' wolves I know..." He was tempted to flex his claws to emphasize his point, but opted not to, to avoid drawing attention back to their threesome.

"Then you're gonna have to wait in the bleedin' line." Pete snapped back. "Wagner and Braddock already got dibs on tearin' off me head."

"Oh, I think they'll agree I get first shot." Wolverine smirked.

"Yeah, well, I tell you, mate, if I do anything to hurt Pryde, you're all welcome to any piece of me you want. I couldn't go on without her..." Pete stopped talking suddenly as he realized he'd just said too much, then realized he'd said just enough as Kitty reached out to him, her pique at their little deception forgotten, her eyes shining brightly with a hint of unshed tears at that unromantic but heartfelt declaration.

Wisdom breathed a sigh of relief that Kitty didn't seem too mad any longer about the little scam he and Logan had played on her. Considering that they hadn't discussed it ahead of time, or had any chance to rehearse the encounter, it had gone very smoothly, obviously a perfect example of great, albeit evil, minds thinking alike, he thought to himself smugly.

Although he'd made his scotch last far longer than he would have thought possible before tonight, he'd finished it at last and now decided to indulge in a cigarette before getting another drink. Ignoring Kitty's disapproving frown, Pete pulled out a battered pack from his pocket and lit up. He then started putting the pack away, but paused in mid-motion and offered it to Logan, looking over to Kitty, expecting to be rewarded with a pat on the back for remembering his manners.

Wolverine shook his head at the silent offer, eliciting a surprised look from Pete. Before Logan had a chance to say anything to explain his refusal, a large mass of blue fur materialized next to them. "Your pardon, honored and esteemed visitor," Dr. Henry McCoy said politely. "Perhaps no one has yet had the opportunity to inform you that the entire interior expanse of this mansion has been declared a smoke-free zone for some time now, in the interests of personal health and hygiene, not to mention air quality improvement and overall household cleanliness.

"Oh, God, not another bloody body fascist..." Wisdom looked up at the looming bulk, and blew out another cloud of smoke. However, being dutifully mindful of Kitty's earlier threats and entreaties for good behavior, he did manage to refrain from sending it directly into Hank's face, which would otherwise have been his normal reaction. "Y'know, that friggin' Scots sadist MacTaggart keeps tellin' me the same thing about her soddin' lab, an' I keep tellin' 'er, get some extractor fans..."

A suppressed snigger could be heard in the growing silence in the room at this new disputation. It came from Kurt, covering his mouth with his hand, trying to hold down his laughter at the recollection of some of the more memorable battles between Wisdom and Moira, stifling himself into a coughing fit while Rogue held him up and pounded helpfully on his back.

Hank was accustomed to a somewhat more respectful reception of his pronouncements, especially on medical matters. "I crave your indulgence, kind sir. However, perhaps you can finally satisfy a lingering curiosity on the part of this humble student of human behavior, psychiatrist though I do not claim to be... How can a supposedly otherwise rational and intelligent adult human being continue to deliberately indulge in an obviously counterproductive activity which has been conclusively shown to be hazardous to the health of both the individual and the environment, resulting in a greater than twentyfold increase in the likelihood of dying from lung cancer?"

A long-suffering groan could be heard from someone in his captive audience, as McCoy gamely plowed on with his harangue. "A disease which, while amenable to treatment in the early stages, I note in passing that said treatment would primarily consist of eliminating intake of further carcinogens before precancerous changes resulting in abnormal bronchial cell growth accumulate sufficiently to produce symptoms such as persistent cough, bloodstained sputum and persistent chest pain, symptoms which do not appear until too late to allow intervention by other than radical means such as surgery, radiation therapy or chemotherapy..."

Wisdom was just looking up at Beast impassively, not saying anything, having heard it all before from other interfering dogooders. It was Bobby Drake who interrupted his best friend's diatribe with the heartfelt plea, "Please, Hankster, that's so disgusting, not right before dinner..." Bobby was miserable enough in his old brown "CPA-in-training" suit that Jean had bullied him into wearing, he didn't need his meal spoiled also, and Hank's graphic medical expositions were one of the few things that could ruin his appetite for any length of time. Sighing, Beast reluctantly abandoned his sermon on the horrors of smoking, realizing it was having no palpable effect on its intended beneficiary anyway.

Pete had finished his cigarette during Beast's lecture, and now deliberately started to light another one. McCoy took a deep breath just before he lit up, and tried again, a different approach scaled to his target's apparent intellectual level. "One simple question then, if you will allow. Do you feel you alone are immune, that it cannot happen to you? And what if you are wrong, and it does?"

"That's two," Wisdom smirked up at him. "But, ok, if you really wanna know. Sure, it can happen to me, it happened to a mate of mine not too long ago. And if it does happen to me, well, I'll go look 'im up and see if 'e can get me fixed up the same way..."

Hank shook his head in perplexity, having no idea whatsoever what Pete might be referring to. Kitty knew because she had already heard the story and interrupted to say casually, "I don't think a world-renowned scientist like Dr. McCoy would automatically think of making a deal with the devil as an approved cancer treatment, Pete, even if it did work out fine in one special case..."

Jean Grey-Summers had been observing Beast's intervention attempt from the sidelines, as was everyone else by this time, waiting for an opening to join the debate. Now, as Hank stayed silent, not sure how to cope with the total illogicality of that last exchange, Jean came up to join the group, with her husband Scott accompanying her. Her cascade of gloriously fiery hair glowed against the midnight blue satin of her gown, dress and hair and flawless skin accented with pearls at neck and ears. At her insistent persuasion, Scott was dressed up also, in a brown Harris tweed jacket with a faint maroon line in the weave, with a blue Oxford button-down shirt, a maroon knit tie, charcoal slacks and a maroon silk handkerchief in his breast pocket.

The spectacular redhead graced Pete and Kitty with a brilliant smile. "If our Dr. McCoy cannot convince you to stop smoking for your own sake, Mr. Wisdom, then perhaps you wouldn't mind obeying the house rule out of simple, common courtesy, instead?" Kurt had to choke down another snigger at that, this time joined by Logan, and by Kitty in spite of herself. Jean ignored them loftily. She had seen Hank get nowhere with logical medical arguments, and was determined to try charm and gentility instead. She continued, "Among others here, I find the odor of tobacco clinging to my hair and clothes, and even the furniture, to be quite nauseating."

"I dunno, I find it a bit of a turnon, meself..." Pete reached over to wrap an arm around Kitty and pull her close to his side. "The smell of booze and fags... reminds me of some of the best times of me life..."

Jean was rapidly discovering that any effort to charm Wisdom was doomed to get absolutely nowhere. She switched gears smoothly to an air of brisk practicality instead. "And it is a very persistent odor, hard to get out even after significant washing and airing-out..."

All the response that approach elicited was an indifferent shrug. "From the looks o' this place, you can afford to have it fumigated after we leave, several times over if you want." Trapped at his side, Kitty squirmed in embarrassment at that crass observation, rolling her eyes heavenward.

"My wife made a polite request of you, Mr. Wisdom," Scott drew himself up stiffly, coming to his spouse's defense. "While we do try to make allowances for different customs on the part of our visitors, it would be only polite of you to agree."

"Your old lady can't speak for herself, then?" The longer this discussion went on, the more cantankerous Pete felt. He desperately needed to go get himself another drink, but excusing himself to do so would have seemed like backing down in front of Kitty's stuffy friends. "At least my woman can fight 'er own battles." There was an unmistakable note of pride in Pete's voice mingling with the equally undisguised note of put-upon aggravation as he stared up at Cyclops, unintimidated by either Scott's fearless-leader persona or by the opaque ruby-red lenses which made it impossible to see his eyes.

Kitty sighed. It never failed. Every single time, whenever she began wondering yet again why on earth she kept putting up with Pete's boorish behavior, he reminded her with some little gesture or comment, all the more affecting because they weren't consciously directed at her, at seducing or beguiling her, but completely unpremeditated on his part.

She decided that this particular discussion had gone on long enough. Wisdom was just digging himself in deeper and deeper, and she knew such concepts as peaceful coexistence, graceful acceptance of defeat and seeing the other side of the argument didn't exist in his idiosyncratic worldview. "Yes, I can," she said forcefully, reaching up and yanking the cigarette out of Pete's mouth, ignoring his protesting squall. "And I've told you before, Wisdom, I'll be perfectly happy to stub your cigarettes out on you, if I have to..." She might be willing to occasionally tolerate his smoking around her, even though she disapproved on general principle, because she believed any successful relationship required some compromise on both sides, but she normally drew the line at his insistence on smoking in small or crowded, forbidden places, and smoking just to aggravate her friends went way over the line.

Wolverine stood quietly to one side. A huge grin had been gradually spreading across his face as he watched the whole debacle. He'd given in to Hank and Jeannie and the others on the indoor smoking issue after a brief tussle, first smoking his treasured cigars outside or in his room, more recently having quit while his healing factor had been acting up. He couldn't really become addicted to nicotine or be damaged by it as long as his healing factor functioned as expected, but he missed the smell, the feel of burning tobacco in his lungs, and had been happily inhaling Pete's secondhand smoke while enjoying his losing battle. Logan had tensed up a little when Jean challenged Wisdom and Pete had snapped back, but he'd decided to let Jean and Scott handle it, and he was impressed with how adroitly Kitty had diffused the situation.

With the sudden release of tension in general laughter as Kitty put an emphatic stop to Pete's smoking, the small group that had formed around them broke up, Hank and Jean and Scott moving off together. Wisdom seized the opportunity to go find himself another drink, figuring he deserved it for surviving the gathering so far and would need it to get through the rest of the evening. Kitty followed along after him.

"You gonna take my drink away, too, Pryde?" he snarled.

"Actually, I was going to join you..." She smiled up at him, too used to his rudeness and moodiness to take it seriously, or personally. "I think I may need a drink to help me get through the rest of the evening." Pete's scowl disappeared as he smiled involuntarily at how the same thought had run through both their minds at the same time.

Gambit was at the bar, and he offered to fix their drinks for them. Remy was quite the dandy tonight in ash grey slacks and a navy blue corduroy jacket with leather buttons and a tattersall shirt, with a dark blue knit tie that picked up the blue in the tattersall.

He'd been watching the earlier exchange with distinct sympathy for Wisdom. Another smoker who'd been forbidden to indulge his vice except in the great outdoors, which was definitely not Remy's preferred habitat, he'd heard the argument about stinking up her hair and clothes frequently from Rogue whenever he started a cigarette anywhere near her. And he was still occasionally treated like an outsider, an interloper, by many of the others, even though he'd been an X-man for some time now.

"Don' worry, mon ami, it not be jus' you," he said to Wisdom as he handed over a large amber-colored scotch. "Dey don' wan' Gambit 'roun' much, either, an' it been a while now..." Pete worked on puzzling out Remy's Cajun patois as Gambit fixed Kitty a gin-and-tonic at her request, eyebrow lifted at her choice but not questioning her further as he handed it to her with a murmured "'ere, p'tite..." He continued, in an amicable manner, "You an' Logan, you get up dat card game, you call ol' Gambit, too, neh?"

Pete looked interested. Kitty laughed at him as she thanked Remy for her drink. "But, remember, you said only if you didn't get a better offer..." She exchanged a meaningful look with Wisdom as Gambit smiled down at them, touched by their obvious affection for each other.

Logan had stayed near Kitty and Pete, and now commented, "You gotta watch 'im 'round cards, kid, like a hawk. He's too sharp to be honest."

Gambit was torn between preening at the compliment and bridling at the insult. "Jus' b'cause a man be a t'ief, mon ami, it don' mean he can' be trusted."

Wisdom put the accent together with that last comment, and guessed "Guild?" A surprised look crossed Gambit's face, until Pete explained briefly, "Black Air did business with 'em sometimes... and with the Assassins' guild too..." Remy nodded at that.

Before Wisdom and LeBeau could get into shoptalk on some mutually fascinating subject such as comparing preferred methods of breaking and entering, Kitty turned to Gambit, struck by his earlier comment. "But you've been a member of the team for a long time now." She didn't know Remy well, but she would have liked to think of some way to show him her appreciation for his friendly overtures, as she began to relax and enjoy this nonconfrontational conversation.

He nodded at that, explaining "But only b'cause Stormy want'd me..."

"So why don't the others want you?" Pete asked Remy bluntly.

Rogue answered for him. "Lord, sugah, X-men always been slow to accept new blood, 'specially anyone not handpicked by th' Professor." She threw Kitty a mischievous glance. "Y'know, Kit, Ah mind when Ah first come ta the X-men, ya were one a' the wors', ya wanted me thrown out, or thrown in a jail cell." Rogue had easily overheard their discussion where she stood at the end of the bar, lovely in a wine-red dress with a high neck, long sleeves and a calf-length skirt, delicate black lace covering the bodice and sleeves, sheer black stockings and red heeled pumps, an antique cameo on a choker around her neck and short black silk gloves covering her hands. She might be ignoring Gambit blatantly most of the time, but she still tended to hover around within his vicinity whenever possible.

Kitty flushed, uncomfortable at that reminder. Pete glanced at her, lifting an eyebrow in silent enquiry, and she nodded back, acknowledging Rogue's not-so-subtle jibe. "Yes, and I also remember how everyone else told me at the time how childish and unfair I was being, that everyone deserved a fair chance."

Rogue smiled at her. "But Ah'd been runnin' with th' Brotherhood some time before, an' fought wi' th' X-men more'n once." She went on to try to reassure Pete, "But ya face a few monsters together, couple o' aliens, some Sentinels, y'all get t'be good buddies pretty fast."

Wisdom looked over at Kitty for an explanation, and she reminded him "Remember, I told you, Rogue used to be in the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants before coming to the Professor for help controlling her powers."

"Oh, yeah, how could I forget a classy name like that?" he guffawed, earning himself a punch in the side, while Logan and Remy joined in the laughter. Rogue herself had to chuckle, as she shook her head at Kitty to leave Pete alone, she wasn't insulted, she'd enjoyed his little dig too.

As the laughter died away, Pete said sarcastically, "So, I should feel better that they treat me lower 'n spit? Because they didn't want an evil mutant or a thief either, right?"

Kitty protested "But Rogue isn't an evil mutant, and Gambit isn't bad because he was a thief..."

Rogue shook her head at Kitty again, and told Pete "It's a trust thing. Dey think people from th' wrong side like us, from th' outside like you, can't be trusted..."

Gambit nodded in agreement, and repeated his earlier comment. "An' jus' b'cause a man be a t'ief, or a spy, it don' mean he can' be trusted."

That particular interjection proved to be a mistake. Rogue gave LeBeau a dirty look, then turned her back on him ostentatiously, as she continued, to Kitty and Pete and to Logan, who had been listening also, "Jus' so long as y'aint got a wife hid away someplace y'aint got 'round to tellin' Kit about yet, sugah..."

Pete gave her a dumbfounded look. He hadn't been sure what to expect from Kitty's friends, most likely not a welcome with open arms, but this was certainly not anything he'd thought to be accused of. Kitty and Logan both snickered, a little unkindly, as Remy tried to wheedle Rogue in a saccharine tone, "C'mon, chere, I 'splain dat t'ya..." Pete looked over to Kitty yet again for an interpretation, and she mouthed at him quietly "Long story. Later..."

Still ignoring Gambit, Rogue continued talking. "...or you ain't hidin' secret ties t'any of our worst enemies..."

"Like you an' Mystique, chere?" Gambit snapped in aggravation, to her back.

Rogue didn't respond to LeBeau directly, but did say to the others, "At least Ah didn't try hard ta keep that a secret..."

As the initially amicable conversation threatened to degenerate into a series of mutual accusations between Rogue and Gambit, Kitty interrupted to pick up on one of Rogue's comments. "But everybody knows about Pete and Black Air, he hasn't tried to hide his association with them."

"S'long as that's all there is, don' fret, Kit, it'll work out fine." Even while trying hard to be friendly because she remembered how she'd been ostracized on her arrival, Rogue still couldn't help showing a hint of the paranoia usually pervading the X-men.

"I ain't playin' true confessions for the telly 'ere." Wisdom was normally a private person, not accustomed to open up to anyone. He could force himself to share with Kitty, he wanted to share with Kitty, but he wasn't sure he wanted to be accepted into her extended family if this were the price. "There's lots of other stuff, an' it ain't anyone's business, except Pryde's."

"S'long as Kit knows ev'rythin', it's fine by th' rest of us," Rogue assured him breezily, as Kitty reached over to take Pete's hand and give it a squeeze.

Bishop had been standing alone and silent nearby, watching Wisdom and Gambit getting along reasonably well, which just made him more, rather than less, suspicious. Bishop had talked to Peter Rasputin already that evening, and Colossus had told him he didn't trust Wisdom. Bishop had no particular reason to value Rasputin's judgement, but he did know him better than he knew Kitty, since they'd been teammates for a while before Illyana died and Peter left. Bishop didn't know Kitty well enough yet to trust her judgement. He was concerned that she could be taken advantage of, unconsciously equating her youth to inexperience. And Bishop didn't really trust anyone's judgement but his own, anyway.

He'd already made the mistake earlier today of consulting Beast and Iceman on appropriate attire for the evening, and had been gulled into wearing a tuxedo. Discomfort warred with resentment in his soul every time he saw Hank and Bobby glance over at him and hide snickers, even though Storm had assured him it was a most elegant and suitable outfit, and he did have to privately admit that his formal dress provided an excellent backdrop for Ororo's striking white hair and brightly-colored, red and green and gold, cotton dashiki. His main complaint, however, was not being overdressed or fooled by those two champion practical jokers, but that he hadn't been allowed to bring his favorite gun along, and he felt quite naked and vulnerable without it.

Bishop could no longer refrain from entering the discussion, once he'd heard Rogue's last offhand remark. "You are wrong, Rogue. It is not acceptable or sufficient for any one person to be the only one informed of matters which could potentially affect the well-being of the group, it is essential for everyone to be fully informed, in the interests of security." Bishop took his position as security officer very seriously, as seriously as he took his self-appointed crusade to identify and thwart the internal traitor who'd destroyed the X-men in his past, their future. "And it is equally incumbent for anyone else aware of such undisclosed matters to report them to the group, or to responsible individuals therein..."

Bishop's interfering officiousness reminded Wisdom of everything he had hated most about working for Black Air, even back when he'd believed the job needed doing. "You expect Pryde to turn nark on me, you wanker? Well, bollocks to you..." Pete's hand tightened convulsively on Kitty's. He loosened his grip immediately when he heard her gasp in pain, but she kept hold of him, stepping in closer to his side so they could face down Bishop together.

Bishop could not be easily intimidated, or deflected. He might not have understood Pete's exact terminology, but the overall hostility and defensiveness were unmistakable. "You have demonstrably already betrayed one organization, your erstwhile employers in Black Air, to Excalibur. Why then should we trust that you will not betray us in turn?"

Wisdom had no intention of attempting to defend himself to Bishop. As he remained silent, Kitty leaped to his support. "Pete didn't betray Black Air, not the way you mean, they betrayed him, they killed his friend Culley..." She was outraged at Bishop's interpretation of recent events, as was Logan, who growled "Kid's ok, Bish, he got in with the wrong crowd, he was smart enough to get out again."

Nightcrawler had also been drawn to the conversation, having heard snatches of it where he stood still talking to Peter and Storm. He might not like the man personally, but he knew Wisdom deserved better than this. "You are being unfair, Bishop. Black Air tried to take over Britain, together with the London Hellfire Club, first covertly, then overtly, attacking Excalibur several times in the process. We were fortunate to have Herr Wisdom join with us before that, to have the advantage of his insider knowledge, his professional contacts, in the recent conflict." As Kurt looked over to Colossus, Peter gave a small grudging nod in confirmation.

Wisdom didn't welcome Wagner's support much, and strongly resented Kurt attempting to get Rasputin to defend him. He decided to end the discussion. "What I did was no different than anything Logan's done. Sure, I killed for my country, my government, my people, until I found out that they had their own agenda, they killed my mate, then I tried to do the right thing and take them out. And I'd do the same to you gits if I found any of you was doubledealing."

Pete was suddenly sick and tired of continually justifying his very existence to the X-men. He turned abruptly and walked away, letting go of Kitty's hand so as not oblige her to go with him. Throwing one last dirty look at Bishop, she followed after Pete immediately, catching up to him to slip her arm around him and walk by his side as she murmured comfortingly to him in an inaudible, crooning voice. They ended up by themselves in a window embrasure, the others leaving them alone for the moment.

Eventually, everyone sat down to dinner. Professor Xavier was in his accustomed place at the head of the long table, and Kitty and Pete had been directed to seats on one side of him in places of honor, with Kurt and Ororo directly across from them, allowing the Professor to talk to the visitors easily. Logan sat just past Kitty and Pete, having grabbed the seat next to them for himself, with Peter across the table next to Storm, who had been working hard all evening to help him feel welcome and accepted.

The seating continued with Jean and Scott on the other side of Logan, and Rogue and Gambit next to Peter. The table was completed by Beast at its foot, where there was more elbow room for his massive frame and he was in less danger of jostling any neighbors, with Bishop and Iceman on either side of him. Bishop had automatically selected the seat next to Gambit, of course, from which he could also watch Wisdom across the table while occasionally glaring at Drake and McCoy for their earlier sartorial advice.

The long, wide table itself was covered with a custom-made lace tablecloth, with candles burning in wrought silver holders and small floral arrangements spaced along its middle, each place laid with heirloom china and crystal and heavy antique silver flatware. The food had been arranged buffet-style on a long credenza at the side of the room. There were no appetizers, those had been set out and eaten earlier, but several soups were set out, a large freshly-tossed salad with various dressings and garnishings, beef and chicken and pork entrees with assorted vegetables and pasta selections for the vegetarians, bread and rolls, and a variety of desserts waiting on a separate, small cabinet.

Talk mixed with dining, but the large expanse of table required for this big a group made conversation difficult except with near neighbors, one of the reasons for the predinner gathering.

Professor Xavier had not come down early for drinks and snacks, eschewing such casual mingling, but instead made his appearance at the dinner itself. He felt no strong need to speak with the X-men whom he saw regularly, and knew the visitors would be within his easy reach during the meal. He held court at the table in a three-piece suit custom-tailored in dark blue with a faint white pinstripe, with a white broadcloth shirt with a pin collar and French cuffs, a dark red silk tie with tiny white dots, and a white silk show hankie.

After questioning Kurt and Kitty at length about the contretemps with Black Air, a discussion into which he endeavored to draw Pete Wisdom and Peter Rasputin also, both with equally limited success, the Professor turned to other topics.

"Since you are here, Mr. Wisdom, we will take advantage of this opportunity to set up an evaluation and training test series for you, to judge both your current physical conditioning and the extent of your mutant powers, as well as your proficiency in using them. The danger room will of course be made available as required. I would suggest beginning early tomorrow morning." Looking at Wisdom's thin frame doubtfully, the Professor continued, "We have a variety of training uniforms on hand. I am sure we can find one for you to use..."

Pete gave the Professor an unbelieving stare. "Not bloody likely," he said. "I didn't come over 'ere to play silly buggers. Especially not first thing in the friggin' morning."

There were several indrawn breaths from around the table at that blatant defiance. Sitting between Xavier and Wisdom, Kitty winced at the prospect of yet another confrontation.

Storm spoke up where she sat across the table from Wisdom, in support of the Professor's suggestion. "But we must be able to see you in action, to see whether and how you could fit into our team, to determine if, in fact, you are qualified to join. Without such direct observation within simulated combat scenarios, we will be unable to determine whether you might not jeopardize the others by some unrevealed weakness or some unanticipated error in judgement in an actual combat situation."

"I don't see as it's any of your soddin' business." Pete snapped back bluntly. "I joined Excalibur. It's Wagner's place to judge me, not yours. I can see where he might want to consult with that tosser Braddock, mebbe even with that Scots harridan who wants my guts for garters. An' Pryde I'll take orders from anytime. But it's all naught to do with any o' you. I never said I wanted any part o' you X-men. And I don't."

"I ain't goin' to dress up in some bloody fool Guy Fawkes costume, and call myself some stupid friggin' code name, and make a soddin' idiot of myself going out like that in public." Wisdom thought about explaining how the X-men's in-your-face penchant for leaving mayhem and disruption in their wake didn't exactly suit his own personal preference for a peaceful low-profile existence but, looking around the table at his audience, he decided to save his breath for someone who cared about his opinions.

Much like Beast's reaction earlier, Storm also was not accustomed to having her pronouncements questioned at all, much less challenged so forcefully. She gave Wisdom a look eloquent of outraged dignity, then looked over at Kitty with an air of sweet reasonableness rudely rebuffed, tacitly inviting Kitty to join her in denigrating Wisdom's crude, boorish behavior. Kitty shrugged. She recognized Ororo's little game, and had no intention of cooperating.

Smiling at Storm in a vain attempt to head off further head-butting, Kitty said "Well, Ororo, he does have a valid point. We didn't come here to make Pete into an X-man. And you really don't have to worry about him, we work out together quite a bit on Muir, and I can vouch for his physical condition." An instant later, she blushed at stifled chuckles from Kurt and Logan and Rogue and Gambit at her unintended double-entendre. Jean and Bobby also joined in that not unkind laughter, and even Scott couldn't help smiling. Professor Xavier, however, frowned at both her comment and the resulting levity in disapproval, as did Storm and Bishop and Colossus.

Red-cheeked, Kitty plowed ahead gamely. "Are you thinking of running Kurt and Peter and me through your test simulations, also, Ororo, Scott, to see if we're all still in shape? And what about Rahne, and Douglock?" She deliberately ignored the Professor's own part in introducing this particular issue, hoping not to antagonize Xavier into attempting to give a direct order.

Scott responded before Ororo could say anything. "Of course not, Kitty, only if any or all of you decide you want to work out with us for exercise or for fun, for old times' sake. There's no question of our doubting any of your abilities, your training or preparedness, for any member of your team..." He frowned at the Professor and Storm, worried at how Kurt would take their usurpation of his position as team leader.

Beast contradicted him from his position at the foot of the table, "However, oh great and fearless leader mine, I would be most definitely interested and highly appreciative at being permitted to run an extensive physical examination and other experimental evaluations on the visiting Douglock, to augment any extant data transmitted by Moira and to have an opportunity to observe for myself the functioning of a most likely new and unique intelligent lifeform, as I have been desirous of doing ever since our erstwhile encounter with the Phalanx entity, to compare his various current readings to archived recordings of similar test data for both his apparent deceased antecedents, to wit, Douglas Ramsey and Warlock, taken during their tenure with the New Mutants before each's untimely demise..."

"Douglock is not a laboratory specimen brought here for your study, mein freund, and neither is Herr Wisdom. I expect neither of them to be subjected to any tests during their stay here, especially not without their consent." Nightcrawler felt it was past time to assert himself. He had stayed quiet when the Professor and Storm had first brought up the question of testing Wisdom, and of his potential rejection, but Cyclops' instinctive fellow feeling had been correct, Kurt did feel his leadership of Excalibur being ignored, if not being actively challenged, as often seemed to happen when the teams worked together. And he'd been surprised, but pleased and touched also, at Pete's acknowledgement of his judgement and authority just now, especially publicly in front of this group.

Kurt wondered fleetingly if the X-men treated Cable's leadership of X-Force in the same off-hand manner, as he continued "You are correct, Cyclops, you should all indeed trust me, and Brian and Moira, also, to ensure that all members of our team are held to the highest standards. And do not mistake me, we have all agreed that Herr Wisdom is a full member of our team. That decision is not open for question or debate."

"We're not questioning your leadership or your decisions, both of which have been exemplary, Kurt." Scott replied, while the Professor and Storm both remained silent. Jean nodded vigorously in agreement. She could easily sense Kurt's discomfort at having his old friends and former colleagues seem to challenge his position and, implicitly, his judgement. Kurt looked at them gratefully, while Kitty smiled warmly at Kurt and Pete nodded at him brusquely, both acknowledging and appreciating his fairness.

Bishop again could not remain silent. "You cannot mean to agree, Cyclops, to accept a completely unknown quantity without ensuring adequate testing and evaluation, merely upon someone else's unsupported word," he blustered, returning the argument directly to its starting point as he reiterated Xavier's and Storm's initial stance. Beast and Iceman nodded their agreement with them and with Bishop, Hank driven by his scientist's curiosity and Bobby simply taking advantage of someone else being the center of the X-men's critical attention for a change.

"P'haps, mes amis, jus' a li'l challenge match 'mong friends, wit' a few bets on th' side?" Gambit offered a compromise approach, promptly ignored by the warring parties, although he felt adequately recompensed when Rogue threw him an approving look for at least trying to diffuse the situation.

"Told you already, Bish, the kid's ok," Logan launched himself into the fray. "Trust me on this, if you don't wanna trust the elf, Pete can handle himself just fine when the goin' gets tough, better'n you might think t'look at him. Black Air training wasn't any cakewalk, I know some o' the guys set it up, an' their missions were no picnic, either."

He gave Wisdom a feral grin as he continued, "Lots worse things than a guy doesn't go looking for trouble, would rather try to sneak off or bullshit his way out of a fight than jump in an' mix it up right off the bat, s'long as he's got what it takes to get the job done in the end run. Lots less people get hurt that way, long term."

Kitty couldn't help snickering at Logan's assertion that Pete didn't go around looking for trouble since, in her experience, every time she'd accompanied Wisdom anywhere away from Muir all kinds of oddly assorted people kept showing up trying to kill them.

Ignoring her reaction, Ororo commented sardonically, "It seems most peculiar, Wolverine, hearing you praise such a minimalist battle style, when one would think such an approach to be completely at odds with your own usual preferred tactics of taking the battle to the enemy."

"Ain't talkin' about me, darlin', talking 'bout the kid here." Logan wasn't backing down any. "Seems t'me, best thing is to know what works for you and stick with it, rather than be a cheap copy of somebody else..."

Kitty and Pete exchanged exasperated looks, accompanied by a pair of long-suffering sighs. She reached over under cover of the tablecloth to give his thigh a surreptitious squeeze, and he reached down to cover her hand with his, both giving and taking comfort with that simple, warm touch. It was shaping up to be a very long evening.

Continued in Part 2... Lectures
Kitty talks to Xavier after dinner, then to Pete late into the night.