Thicker Than Blood

Chapter 3: Don't Touch Rachel

Clint had been thinking about what had happened with Magneto for a few days. Not just about how he couldn't stick him with his pocketknife or about how the guy had tossed his mom... but about all the stuff he had said about humans and mutants and stuff.

Clint knew that there were bad guys who were really awful to mutants, because his mom had to run away from the department and was still a little bit worried about if they'd show up again. But that Magneto guy... he'd made it sound like it wasn't just bad guys and it wasn't just jerks like Clint's dad, and it left Clint feeling kind of... weird.

He didn't feel out of place in Westchester usually — not after he'd been there for so long — but for a few days after Magneto came, he started to notice more the fact that he was the youngest... that he was the only one there with no powers now that Barney was gone...

He wasn't going to say anything about it, but there was no way he was going to hide something like that from Jean, especially since he still wasn't really good at hiding his thoughts when he was really hung up on something. She called it projecting — which meant he was thinking really loud. And Clint realized he'd been doing it when he caught Jean frowning his way before they'd even set up for their lesson.

"Clint," Jean said gently, "no one here thinks any less of you because you're human. You know that, right?"

Clint shrugged quietly. "Yeah, well... I dunno. I've never beat up mutants or nothing, but that guy acted like I did and d'you think maybe other kids will?" he asked.

"No one thinks that of you, Clint," Jean promised.

"Barney said there's some mutants in his circus, and they have to hide sometimes," Clint said quietly. "And I don't think that's right either. That's like those idiot cowboys being mean to my mom 'cause she's a girl."

"There are a lot of people that really don't have any manners or sense," Jean told him. "But that's not what we teach here. And if we're going to follow what we teach our mutant students, then we have to practice that too." She took a breath and let it out slowly. "Did you know that what we're trying to do is to make it so that mutants and humans can live together in peace?"

Clint shook his head. "Kitty and Jubes said you guys have been making sure to save people from bullies and stuff like the people my mom's running from."

"Yes, and that's part of it," she said. "But the other part — and maybe the bigger part — is that we want everyone to be able to live around each other without all the hatred and stupidity. Magneto ... he doesn't believe that it's possible. We're determined to prove him wrong."

"Well, that's just stupid of him," Clint said with a sniff. "My mom's a mutant, and she doesn't care about if me and Barney are anything like her. And — and Jan likes shopping with you even if she's a human and you're not!"

"Then you already can see that we're right," Jean said. "It's just a matter of time before people like Magneto have to admit it." She took a moment to tip his chin up so he was looking her in the face. "Don't you think that a lot of these kids here want to be with their families? And for all of it to be alright?"

Clint nodded. "I wanna hit some of these kids' families, though, 'cause you shouldn't kick kids out."

"Not all of them are from parents that got rid of them," Jean said. "A lot of them, their parents sent them here to protect them. Just look at how many are gone during the summer or Christmas break."

Clint nodded, bouncing his chin on her hand a bit. "Yeah, I know," he said. "But I talk to the other kids sometimes 'cause they don't got anyone."

"And they probably love seeing someone that is proof that there's hope — you're just proving us right, Clint. Showing that humans don't have to hate mutants."