The tension was getting to Hank McCoy, evident in his humming the "Flight of the Bumblebee." On a good night, he sang Italian love songs or treated the group to show tunes. Tonight, he shuffled through his cards, carefully weighing the potential usage of each. Sean and Moira exchanged a half smile, knowing that the problem with playing with a man who had eight doctorates was that he would either think too much or too little. Finally, Cece Reyes-McCoy ordered him to "Lay down a card—any of them."

He turned to Sharon, who was standing in the doorway. "Which one would you advise?" he asked her.

Sharon blinked at his blue hair, trying to figure out what he had done to himself this time. Hank McCoy was the Tim Taylor of the scientific set. If there was a way to cut, burn, or maim himself or blow up the lab, Dr. McCoy had done it—more than once if it had proven to be an enjoyable experience. She reached over and tapped a card, not really caring about the suit. He threw out the ace of hearts with a relieved smile.

"You done studying?" Moira asked her. "Need one of us to look over your chemistry?"

Sharon sighed. "Taking a breather... and since Rahne and Terry have a couple of guests downstairs, I thought I'd make some more to eat. Football players eat a lot, I've heard."

Sean picked up on that with alarm. His daughter and stepdaughter were downstairs with a football player? The X-Men, as the football team was known, typically didn't have the best reputation with the townie cops. "Who are they?" he asked, half-afraid to find out. Moira used Sean's momentary distraction to force Hank to get a point, which would severely penalize the men's team.

Sharon poured some water in a pan as she answered, "James Proudstar and Sam Guthrie."

Sean looked at Hank, waiting for information. Even though his daughter was too old to have dad coming down to check out her dates, Rahne was by far too innocent, too fragile, not to be checked up on. "James Proudstar--- one of the football players I approve of. He's always on time for class, always works hard. Sam Guthrie... to be cliched, he's the living embodiment of an Eagle Scout." Hank taught a lot of classes at the college and, at one point or another, had had just about every student in his classroom.

Sean relaxed for a split second—until he noticed what Moira had done. "Hey!" he objected. Moira just smiled at him.

Cecilia took that moment to ask something she had been dying to find out. "How did the two of you meet?" Sharon, from the kitchen, strained her ears to hear the answer.

Moira smiled at Sean. "Back when he was in Interpol, someone broke into the lab that A worked at and stole some highly sensitive information. Since the police thought it was part of an international ring, he was assigned to the case."

Sean smiled back at his bride. "It was a case of love at first sight."

Doing her math, Cecilia realized that had to have been at least five years ago. "And it took you that long to get married?" she asked with typical, razor sharp bluntness.

Moira's face held traces of regret now. "My research was at a crucial point—and A had just taken in Rahne—and movin' was out of the question." They didn't know about her title or island or other parts of her past. And Sean had agreed with her reason to keep them in the dark.

Hank, used to the frustrations and limitations of scientific research, nodded. Funding, even for a project as groundbreaking as Moira's research into the genetic causes of schizophrenia, was hard to find and harder to keep. And the team she had been working with was worth their weight in gold. Judging from the papers Hank had seen, Moira had been wise in her decision to stay in Scotland. Head smart but heart hard, if the looks the other couple shot each other was any indication. "So what's the new project?" he asked.

Moira held up her finger, indicating that she was to keep the information to herself. "I'm devoting myself to teaching the next generation," she said out loud, with a grin that added to the impression that she was involved with more. Hank sighed, feeling the stigma of being on the outs with the school's headmaster/president, Charles Xavier. There was a reason that this school had such good science programs, recruiting the "big name" scientist to the small community.

Knowing the way he felt, his wife touched his arm. The simple act conveyed more than words ever could. Cecilia told him that she was on his side, she agreed with him, and she was there for him. He smiled back at her.

Sharon had tossed a couple of steaks on the express grill and transferred them to the grill outside during the conversation. "Supper's about ready," she offered.

Sean smiled as he quickly collected the cards and pocketed the score sheet. If the game was never finished, nobody could claim victory—or assign defeat.

**

Rahne felt like her whole body was tingling as she sat across from Sam. He smiled at her and all her thoughts flew out the window. She focused on his dimple and returned the grin. It was instant attraction, puppy love, and a crush rolled into one giant, previously undiscovered emotion. She crossed and uncrossed her legs and tried to focus on the conversation her stepsister was having with the football player.

"What's really bad is, in the south, Kudzu can grow about a foot a day." Terry was going over her class on non-native plants to an interested Jimmy.

Sam nodded, "I used ta have ta cut the grass at home... Ah'd believe it. We'd let the goats eat it up when we could." He smiled back at Rahne, glad to have been able to sound intelligent. But then, he realized that talking about weeds wasn't the best way to impress a woman. What would Paige tell him to do in a situation like this, he wondered. Growing up in a tightknit community of about five hundred where not only did he know the eight women his age that were datable, he was kin to six, best friends with one, and plain not interested in the one that was left.

Jimmy, on the other hand, sensing Terry's interest in that weed, informed her, "I know women back on the Rez who would order that stuff dried so that they could weave it into baskets."

"Rez?" Rahne asked, "What's that?"

Jimmy smiled at her innocence and tried to wrap a hard truth in gentle words for the woman from Scotland. "Reservation... I'm an Apache, and my family lives on one." At Rahne's puzzled glance, he elaborated, "The US government traded land with my people a long time ago. They got the good land, and we got the pitiful places they sent us to live."

Rahne had had lived a very sheltered life, and her understanding of American history involved a few wars. "Why?" she asked with pursed lips. "That seems unfair."

Terry tried to explain. "Back when the country was founded, the settlers thought that the Native Americans were dangerous--- they didn't understand the culture--- and had land that they wanted-- so they tried to remove them."

Clearly puzzled, Rahne frowned. It seemed so wrong to her but, from the expression on Jimmy's face, she wasn't going to understand the subject that night. "What else can you do with Kudzu?" she changed the subject.

Sam smiled at the change. "When things really got bad, Momma would fry some up for us ta eat. It tasted pretty good with some pepper and lemon juice."

Terry, taking the hint to drop the topic, looked at him crossed-eyed. "What?" she asked incredulously.

Sam shrugged. "Ah'm the eldest of eight and a farm boy... crops didn't sell, cattle take a plunge, or things got tight at the mine, things got tough in a pinch."

"Eight?" Rahne repeated, awe-struck. She bit back the urge to ask if he was Catholic, knowing that impulse was part of her upbringing under Craig.

Sam nodded. "Me, Joelle, Josh, Izzy, Paige, Oliver, and the twins."

"Man... your dad must love your mother a lot!" The words spilled out without Terry meaning them to.

Sam smiled. "There's like a five year difference between me and Paige." He paused, considered the audience, and told a joke he had heard. "My folks remind me of the man that when on 'What's My Line—Rahne, that's an old show with Groucho Marx hosting it--- who, when a woman said that she had eleven kids because she and her husband loved each other so much, he said that he loved his cigar too, but sometimes he took it out." Jim had heard the remark before, Terry started laughing while Rahne sat there stumped. Sam waited until an 'Oh... I get it' expression crossed her face. "I've learned to joke about it."

"Do you want a big family?" Rahne asked without weighing the implications. Terry shot her sister a warning glance.

Sam just shrugged. "I had great parents... but I couldn't see more than three kids myself." A look of relief crossed Rahne's face, as if he had passed some important test.

The intercom buzzed, letting them know that it was suppertime.

**

The two Irish wolfhound puppies, Banshee and Siren, sat at Jimmy's feet as he ate. "They think you're the weakest one," Sean explained as Jimmy looked at their begging eyes. "They know I'll send them away if I catch them begging."

"Nice dogs," Sam said as he took another bite of the rice. "Unusual." Rahne pointed at the dogs and then to their beds. The animals quickly followed her command.

"Brian and Meggan got them for us as a wedding gift," Moira explained. "Rahne has such a gift for communicating with them, A'd swear she was part wolf at times." Rahne blushed at the compliment.

At the other end of the table, Tabitha and Jimmy were busy talking. "The only way I'll go to a movie with you," she whispered to him, "is if Rahne has a date." She was trying to turn over a new leaf but she didn't trust herself enough to allow herself to go out with a handsome guy alone. Making a total break from her old crowd was hard enough—having no real friends to ask to double with her made the task even harder. Sharon was sometimes hostile towards men, and she didn't feel comfortable asking someone from AA to go with her.

They both stared at the couple at the head of the table with a knowing glance. "Sam doesn't date," Jimmy explained.

"Neither does Rahne." Hank McCoy pointed out as he overheard the conversation. The Cassidys' and Sam and Rahne were engrossed in debating the different breeds of dogs. "So convincing her to double with you is out." Terry blushed for a second as she realized how blunt she was being in trying to set up her stepsister.

Cecilia frowned at her husband. "But she does like going to movies, doesn't she?" A solid thump under the table was evidence that her foot had come in contact with his shin. "And I'm sure that Sam goes to movies, so if the two of them just happened to be at the same place at the same time, and were tricked into going to the same movie, then it wouldn't be a date, because dates are prearranged." She had learned to be that literal with her husband over the years they had been married.

Jimmy nodded. "Sound of a Heartbeat is opening tomorrow, and it's got—"

"Antonio Great Ass and Kevin Bacon," Terry smiled wickedly. "Perfect movie."

"I was going to say Nicole Kidman and Sandra Bullock," Jimmy pointed out. "And it's a chick flick."

"All the easier for me to talk Rahne into. I'll tell her after my audition tomorrow that I need a break." She and Jimmy shared a quick smile.