Tails of Change [Revamping!]

32) Instructor: Kurt

[Author's Note:

X-Men Characters in this Chapter: Nightcrawler (Kurt), Professor X (Charles Xavier)

OC Characters in this Chapter: ______(Sorin)

*Italicized words are either German words or English words with a more Germanic spelling. Any words that are dissimilar to the English version (or a bit out of context) will have a translation appearing here:

Guten Tag [goo-en tahg] == Good Afternoon

fantastisch [fan-tas-tish] == fantastic

wunderbar [vrun-dah-bahr] == wonderful

{11.28.2020} Revamped! New material!]

 
Kurt woke up sore from the previous night's missions, grateful he'd had the sense to shower before flopping onto his bed. Running a load of bed-sheet laundry on the first day of summer was not Kurt's idea of fun. He shuffled over to his dresser and pulled out a shirt and a pair of shorts to wear. On his way past his mirror he glanced at himself, hair a mess, white tank-top clinging to his chest, baggy navy shorts almost blending with his skin tone. Eh, he'd looked worse. He pushed his feet into his favorite pair of fuzzy navy slippers and trudged down to the kitchen. Nobody was around and the Institute sounded quiet. He poured himself some cereal and shoveled a spoonful into his mouth, and only then did he notice it was one in the afternoon.

First day of summer meant getting an X-men training schedule from the Professor. Absently, Kurt wondered what Sorin's would look like. Depositing his empty bowl into the sink, he grabbed a handful of power bars from the pantry and went back to his room where he got ready for the day and made himself more presentable. Hair brushed, a t-shirt in place of his tank-top, a less wrinkled pair of shorts, deodorant and cologne improving his smell: Kurt was better groomed. Munching his third power bar, Kurt made his way to the Professor's office.

Empty.

Uncomfortable using the passageway in the Professor's office in his absence, Kurt made his way to the nearest lab entrance and descended into the underground portion of the Institute. He looked in each room as he passed. All of them were empty. At the end of the hall he turned left, to the Cerebro Room. Right would take him to the Danger Room, and he thought the chances of finding the Professor in the Danger Room were minimal. Kurt was right. Through the small, circular window Kurt could see the Professor tinkering with some electronics inside the Cerebro room. He knocked. Only Professor Xavier, and recently Jean, had access to the Cerebro room. Everyone else was invite only.

When the Professor looked up and saw Kurt waving through the window, he punched a few buttons on the Cerebro console and the door in front of Kurt hissed open.

"Good Afternoon, Kurt," the Professor called as Kurt approached.

"Guten Tag, Professor."

"What brings you to see me this fine afternoon?"

"Vell, I do nicht have de summer schedule."

"Ah, yes." The Professor continued to tinker with the device in his lap.

"Vhat ist that?"

"This is the upgrade module for Cerebro I've been working on. Parts of which you helped obtain. It is nearly operational."

"Vhat does it do?"

"If it works properly, I should be able to use relay points and locate people with mutant powers across the globe."

"That's fantastisch!"

"In addition to the new conglomerate of recording devices in Cerebro's visual database and the sensory detection upgrade I installed just a few weeks ago, Cerebro should now be able to detect people with mutations, powered or not, anywhere on the planet, show them on the screen utilizing GPS calculations and acquired footage of nearby cameras, and provide a basic analysis of their being such as their state of mind, health, and powers."

At the look of confusion on Kurt's face the Professor explained further.

"We should be able to find more mutants and not just the ones that are actively using their powers, through better detection methods and access to more cameras."

"Wunderbar!."

"Unfortunately, I'm not sure exactly when it will be up and running. I have a few more components to configure and test."

The Professor adjusted some components on the gadget in front of him. Kurt noted that it bore the general shape  of a bowling ball cut in half, with computer board components all around the edges.

"You will find your summer schedule on my desk upstairs. Please provide me a list of your fall university courses when they are finalized. Now, if you will excuse me, I shall return to my work. The sooner we get this up and running the more informed we can be about mutants world wide, and the more people we can help."

"Yes, Professor."

"Oh, Kurt! I've put you in charge of walking Sorin through the basic Danger Room controls and tutorials. Get started today, please," the Professor called as Kurt was leaving the room.

"Okay!" he called back before the door swished closed, locking him out of the Cerebro room once more.

Kurt's first stop was to swing by the Professor's office and browse through the papers on the Professor's desk until he found the one marked "Kurt Summer Schedule" with the year beneath the words. He scanned the schedule quickly. Hand-to-hand Combat III in the Danger Room: a continuation of what he was already doing, which was following simulations with one of whomever else was taking the third level. Teleportation training with Rogue weeks one and five of summer: more of the same. Those must be Rogue's weeks off from the summer camp, Kurt assumed. Medical II with Dr. McCoy weeks two and six of summer. Medical I had been basic everyday type care for things that were common occurrences. Kurt hadn't realized the last exam he'd taken was the last exam of Medical I. Dr. McCoy must have passed him. He skimmed the rest quickly and stopped at the last grouping at the bottom. The word "Instructor" was in bold and followed by his name. Him? An instructor? Had he read that correctly?

Instructor: Kurt Wagner
Student: Sorin Germoglio
Danger Room Exercises - course materials and instructions attached

Instructor: Kurt Wagner
Student: Sorin Germoglio
Hand-to-hand Combat I - course materials and instructions attached

Instructor: Kurt Wagner
Student: Sorin Germoglio
Basic Conditioning - course materials and instructions attached

Kurt stared at the sheet. The Professor had put him in charge of kick-starting Sorin's physical training. Kurt flipped through the pages in the back. Six days a week he'd be training Sorin. Three days a week for Danger Room, not to mention Kurt had four Danger Room sessions a week for his own training. Three days a week for the Hand-to-hand, whatever day wasn't a Danger Room basics day for Sorin. Sorin's Basic Conditioning was scheduled for an hour and a half every morning except Sundays and Wednesdays.

Kurt smiled to himself. He was guaranteed to see Sorin six days a week, all summer. He meandered through the hallways in search of Sorin. He might-as-well see if Sorin was up for a Danger Room tutorial now, while Kurt was feeling optimistic.

Kurt found Sorin sitting at the little desk in his room reading. He hesitated a moment, taking in how Sorin looked bathed in the warm, afternoon sunlight streaming in from the windows, mind immersed in whatever book was open before him. His hair, and the fur fuzz on his ears practically glowing in the light, his tail softly swishing against the floor. Kurt almost didn't dare disturb him, but the Professor had been clear. Danger Room. Today.

Sorin turned around when Kurt knocked.

"Oh, hey Kurt."

"De Professor wants me to show you the Danger Room."

"Right now?"

"Today. Now if you are ready."

"Yeah. Sure," Sorin said putting a piece of paper in the book to mark his place. "I've been curious as to what it's like."