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[indent][indent][sub][color=#c9b142][B]Location:[/B][/color] [COLOR=gold][i]The Xavier Institute[/i] - [I]Westchester, New York[/I][/COLOR][/sub][sup][right][color=#c9b142][b]New Mutants #1.06[/b][/color][/right][/sup][/indent][/indent][sub][hr][/sub][sub][indent][indent][color=#c9b142][B]Interaction(s):[/B][/color] [@Bounce][/indent][/indent][/sub]

[indent]Left. Right. Another right. 

The paths twisted before her in perfectly geometrical angles, each branch presenting a possible route to success or failure. Kitty's sneakers seemed to barely connect with the ground as she darted from one alley of the hedge maze to the next. Each dead-end that greeted her was met with a growl of frustration. 

As she found herself facing yet another tall blockade, Kitty spun around on one heel and raced back toward the closest branching pathway. Her toe quickly swiped across the ground twice forming a rudimentary 'X' at the entrance to the failed route. 

She paused for the briefest of moments to glance at her watch. Barely two minutes remaining and she was at most halfway through the expansive maze. The young mutant mentally retraced her steps. Kitty knew at this point she was somewhere west of the center; she could tell that much by the sun's position overhead compared to when she had first run into the labyrinth. Which meant that, ideally, she needed to take a left from her current location to get back to moving in the right direction. 

The only problem with that, however, was the path immediately to her left was a dead end. As were the paths directly behind and ahead of her. Which left her only remaining option to go right. That path would only lead her further from the center, though, and Kitty knew that with her remaining time moving in that direction would only end futilely. 

This left the teenager with only one remaining choice. 

Kitty chewed her bottom lip. If she went through with the choice she wasn't confident it would lead her to an actual victory and not a disqualification, anyway, but at this point, she saw no reason to not give it a go. 

With just over one hundred seconds left on the clock, Kitty Pryde turned left and raced back down a pathway she already knew resulted in a dead-end. This time, however, instead of stopping in frustration she set herself to move past her obstacle.

The mutant reached out toward the thick, woody bushes that formed the barricade before her. She stuck her hand into the divider and gripped the yew and holly. If she was forbidden to use her powers to go [i]through[/i] the maze's walls, and she didn't have enough time to navigate the garden puzzle, then she would go [i]over[/i] it. After all, nothing in Mirage's instructions had said Kitty needed to reach the entrance by conventional means. 

Hoisting herself up, Kitty began climbing the nearly ten-foot hedge wall. She felt it give to her weight ever-so-slightly before holding firm, though the sound of several perfectly manicured plants and twigs within the boundary snapping made her grimace. 

She hoped the headmasters didn't mind some minor damage.

Coming over the top of the wall, Kitty paused to collect her surroundings. Just as she had thought, the center lay to the east of her current position. She could see from her bird's eye view that it was less than fifty feet from her, at most, with just a few more boundary dividers in her way. If she had tried to take the conventional path the entire way through, the twists and turns of the maze would have had her traveling in the opposite direction for quite a while before recorrecting. 

A smile touched her lips. She could do this. She could [i]win[/i].

Kitty leaped from the top of the wall, bending her knees before impact and tucking forward into a roll. She didn't even take note of the stinging in her ankles before she was once more booking it toward her goal. Moving in a straight line, Kitty came across another hedge wall. This one, too, she conquered, scrambling up and over before hopping down onto the other side. She did the same to the next and the one after. 

The mutant teen no longer knew how much time she had remaining, but she did know that there was only one more barrier in her way. She jumped at it, not bothering to take the time to find a proper handhold. Something dug deep into Kitty's palm as she clawed her way up, it felt sticky as her fingers closed around their next hold, and her foot kicked free twice before she reached the top. This wall, she knew, would need serious maintenance afterward. It was worth it, though, and she could always ask for forgiveness later.

Kitty practically tumbled right over the edge as she mounted the final wall. The center was there. A wide, clear circle adorned with wooden benches around the perimeter that faced inward toward a single, tall obelisk of stone. The teen knew it was marked with the names of mutants, those lost in the fight for equality. Today, though, it marked her victory. 

She hopped off of the wall, this time collapsing to her knees, her wrists burning with pain as they caught the full brunt of her fall. Her left palm stung as dirt met an open wound, but Kitty picked herself up as if she felt none of it. Now wasn't the time for weakness or hesitancy. Not when she was so close.

Just another fifteen feet. Ten feet. Just—

"Time!" 

The voice called out from somewhere outside of the maze, but it was unmistakenly belonging to Danielle Moonstar. 

No. [i]Nonono[/i]. It was right there. All she had to do was take another few steps and reach out...

Kitty's right foot moved, then her left. She was nearly there. 

Suddenly, a flash of orange light struck through her mind. Kitty reeled her outstretched hand back as the abrupt image of flames and the fear of being burned lashed across her. 

"I said [i]time[/i]," Mirage shouted again, this time almost sounding like she was right behind Kitty, though the younger mutant knew that couldn't be true. 

Kitty forced back the tears she felt threatening escape as she let her aching legs finally give out. She kneeled there, right fist balled, left hand staining the ground red, staring in disbelief at the obelisk that marked the very center of the hedge maze. 

Just five feet away. 

[i]It wasn't fair.[/i]

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