New Teams, Old Problems

Chapter 14: An Inside Scoop

The news team arrived at the gate the school, and Scott met them there, along with Storm. Neither of them looked happy, but this was the best way they had to turn down some of the heat and keep their students safe.

It was, of course, JJ who showed up looking positively gleeful at the chance to prove that the feral mutants were not in the school, and the first thing he said when he saw Scott was, "You can't expect me to just take your word for it that they're gone."

"And you can't expect me to allow a camera crew in here to record all of my students," Scott countered with his arms crossed. "You and you alone are allowed in. No cameras. No crew. No recording devices."

"We're not going to risk the privacy of minors over this," Storm added, matching Scott's body language with a spark of fury just behind her gaze.

JJ frowned and looked a bit disappointed, but the expression passed quickly. "Alright - but I get the full tour. I want to be sure any hidey-holes — anything at all — are covered." He clapped his hands together and rubbed them. "This is still a story, people. A big one — inside the elusive institute...."

"You'll remain with two staff members at all times," Scott said. "And you are not allowed to speak to the students. Break any rules — push any boundaries — and I'll kick you out myself."

"I'm not interested in your students," he said with a wave of his hand. "Not right now anyway — that's not where the story is."

"Seeing as the school has always been available for a tour — it's really not much of a story either."

"Tell the truth, Mr. Summers. Your tours don't nearly cover what goes on in this school."

"One thing I'm not going to tolerate is the insinuation that we don't tell the truth to begin with, John," Scott replied evenly. "No one gets to see the goings on of the classes except for the students — who are learning all the same things that every other school teaches."

"If that's true, then let's get this show on the road. If there's no story, there's no point in waiting. Time is money — so stop wasting mine."

Scott and Storm glanced at each other before they led JJ through the grounds and up to the school, and the reporter actually seemed genuinely interested in the school itself the closer they got to it.

"You rebuilt this whole thing in a matter of months?" he asked, a bit wide-eyed.

"We have excellent contractors," Scott replied dryly.

"If only the rest of us had the ability to bounce back so quickly," JJ muttered, shaking his head.

"As I recall, you said you sustained no damage," Storm said without turning her head his way. "I'm sure it's trying for you when you have so little to complain about."

He shook his head at her and glared, though he seemed content to push into the entryway and start nosing around a bit — with the rest of the staff watching. He didn't acknowledge them more than a short glare, though he did seem to pause when he saw several of the pictures in the hallway — all the different classes of students that had been through the school.

He stopped in front of one with Logan and a huge group of widely grinning kids. "What does he teach?" he asked Storm.

"History," Storm replied. "Or he did. It was one of our most popular classes. Some of the staff almost always sat in when they reached World War Two."

JJ nodded thoughtfully at that. "That makes sense, actually," he said. "I've seen the dates on his files." He didn't offer more of an explanation on that other than to nose his way down the next hallway.