Issue Date: August 2009

Story Title: Homeschooling - Part one

Staff: Kathryn Immonen (writer), Sara Pichelli (artist), Christina Strain (colorist), Virtual Calligraphy’s Audra Eliopoulos (letterer), David Lafuente and Christina Strain (cover), Daniel Ketchum (assistant editor), Nick Lowe (editor), Joe Quesada (editor in chief), Dan Buckley (publisher), Alan Fine (executive producer)

Runaways created by Vaughan & Alphona

Brief Description:
The runaways are relaxing at home. Karolina is missing Xavin, whilst Chase daydreams about how important people in his life tend to think of him as an under-achiever. Victor is on the roof hacking some music, and Klara vegges out in front of daytime soap operas. Nico is in the kitchen preparing some fruit whilst Molly builds a huge sandcastle on the beach. She's loving the Malibu life. She then heads inside. There, Nico asks her to have a word with Klara who seems to enjoy watching television a little too much. She appears a little subdued and almost anti-social. The older runaways have organized a prom night, which Molly and Klara decide to sit out. Karolina dances very closeley with Chase, and Nico asks Vic to step in before Karolina does something she might regret. Victor cuts in and dances with Chase, leaving Nico to take Karolina to the basement for a heart-to-heart. As the music plays upstairs, little do they know but the music Victor hacked contains some kind of hidden code, and a drone plane on its way to its target changes direction and follows the signal to Malibu instead. The runaways get almost no warning before the plane hits the house and causes a massive explosion. Old Lace takes the brunt of the blast with Klara being protected by Old Lace's tough hide. The rest run upstairs to check on them, only to find the place in ruins. They manage to retrieve Klara alive and well, but Old Lace isn't so lucky. Her heartbeat flatlines, and the empathic link between her and Chase causes him to fall as well. Klara freaks out and her powers take over. She causes the plants to grow wildly, smashing their way through the house creating a kind of prison for those inside.

Full Synopsis:
(Malibu, California)
Karolina Dean is reclining in a bubble-filled bath. She's not happy about having to shave her legs again, but she's even more unhappy about the fact that her lover, Xavin, isn't there to share the bath with her. She warms up the water using her own power and thinks about Xavin.

Chase Stein is outside on a sun lounger, soaking up some California sunshine. He daydreams about coming off a lacrosse pitch into the welcoming arms of his adoring female fans. Unfortunately, in his dream, Old Lace and Nico Minoru appear and she tackles him to the ground. He cries foul, but Nico orders him to man up. She won't allow slackers on her team. An image of his father then appears and, with a frown, informs him that he knew Chase would never land on his feet. After everything he and his mother did for him. He's a damned liability, and that's all he's ever been. "Look at me when I'm talking to you!" he shouts. Chase wakes with a start.

Inside the house, Klara Prast watches some dreary daytime soap, leaning against a sleepy Old Lace. Nico, eating from a large stack of fruit in the kitchen, calls in to Klara and asks her to turn down the volume. She complains to herself that at least in the 19th century, Klara could identify the garbage. She was drowning in it. That's the trouble with brain-rot, she thinks. It doesn't actually smell. The dirty plates which are stacked high begin to shake as an airplane flies low overhead. Up on the roof, Victor Mancha watches the plane pass by, complaining that it's lucky the whole coast is quiet, although he wonders where people who actually live in Malibu go for their holidays. He tinkers with a laptop computer which is linked to several cables. He wonders which of the bicoastal citizens of the world doesn't know how to secure a network. or save electricity. He hacks his way into a Russian site and connects a cable to a socket in his forearm. He then hears Molly calling him.

She wants him to come look at something, but he replies that he's quite busy finding Nico some new music. And she knows what Nico's like. Vic simply wishes he knew what she liked. Molly tells him that it's super important. "Like life and death?" he asks. "Better," she smiles. He turns to see her standing, in her swimming costume, on top of a giant sandcastle, nicely decorated with fish , crenulations and a staircase. "I love living in Malibu!" she cries. "I gotta go pee." She gets dressed and heads back inside singing a children's song about fudge. She enters the kitchen and Nico asks if she wiped her feet. No, she answers, and asks if she can have some of whatever Nico's making. No, replies Nico, before asking if Molly's changed her mind about hanging out with them tonight. She reckons it'll be fun. Karolina's done a great job with the decorating. "No way, " replies Mol. She asks Nico if she knows what 'prom' is short for. Nico tells her yes, but she used to think it was 'promiscuous.' Molly tells her she's wrong. It stands for 'prom-ise not to barf.' She and Klara are staying far away. She asks where Klara is, anyway. Nico directs her to the living room, asking Mol to go talk to her about the dangers of Vitamin D deficiency. "Okie doke," replies Molly.

She finds Klara vegging out watching tv, and tells her that Nico called her deficient. Klara asks her to shush, but a simple prompt like that never stopped Molly Hayes. She plops herself down beside Klara and says she guesses it's just them tonight. She wanted a bouncy castle but Karolina suggested a senior prom. Karolina's suggestion won. Klara tries to shush her again, but Molly continues to add that she thought she'd never have to do school again. Dead parents equals no school. That was the deal! She hugs Old Lace's huge neck and mentions how Victor gets all faraway-looking. He's probably thinking about slow dancing... and tongues. She pretends that Old Lace is Nico and smooches. "Oh Nico, you're so beautiful. Oh Chase! Smooch, smooch, smooch. Klara doesn't think it's like that, but Molly tells her that she has no idea what's going on around here. "Neither do you," replies Klara. Molly then play-wrestles with Old Lace leaving Klara to stare helplessly at the tv.

(later)
Nico, Chase, Victor and Karolina attend their impromptu prom night. A disco ball hangs from the ceiling and a large banner reads 'Welcome class of Never.' There is music and fruit punch, and Nico chats with Victor as Karolina dances with Chase... very closely. Nico asks Vic what the hell Karolina is doing. Vic has an idea, but Nico says she's practically on the other side of Chase. One of them has to do something before she does something she regrets. That means Victor. She realizes now why Gert used to boycott school dances. Victor reckons Gert thought everything was a symptom of capitalist decadence, but Nico says she just thought they were stupid. She shoves him in Karolina's direction, and Victor asks if he can cut in on their dance. "Sure," replies Karolina before stepping back, allowing Victor to take up his dance position with Chase.

He tells Chase, or 'Queer-Eye' that he's looking particularly beautiful tonight. Chase asks him to just keep his hands where he can see 'em. He compliments his tux. Did his mom buy that for him? Vic replies that his mom had class. He found the tux upstairs in his parents' old room. As Vic leans back, he tells Karolina that Nico wants a word. She's over in the corner, all by herself. He thinks she's lonely and possibly desperate. "And you know what that makes girls..." he asks. "Dangerous," replies Karolina. The two guys reply in unison, "Easy!" and high five each other.

Karolina walks away, and Chase asks Vic where he found this crap music, anyway. Vic explains that it's vintage Cold War pop direct from their comrades in Kablamastan. Post-party, pre-Glasnost, Right-on-the-blini-edgski! He says that it was packed onto some weird digital/radio hybrid signal from up the coast. It look him forever to separate it out but that's totally his thing, right? "Whatever turns you on," replies Chase. Nico, meanwhile, takes Karolina's hand and asks her to go with her. Vic adds that some shell-eared Powerpoint Ranger waiting in his waterproof bunker for the go-code probably got bored with the muzak. Chase tells him it's the classic recipe for armageddon, and Vic asks if pessimism has always run in his family. "Since the day I was born," sighs Chase.

(San Francisco, Track integrated Construction and Containment)
In a swish building overlooking the city, a guy and his secretary are discussing matters. She takes notes. He asks her to say yes to Branson and to tell Vitali that when he stops getting written up in the American Journal of Mob Bosses, then he'll take on his containment problems. He asks what else she has. She informs him that all targets for the next twenty-four hours are on schedule and stable. Also, there are four mind readers in firm stasis who need to get to Vegas. He asks how old they are. She thinks the youngest is fourteen and the oldest around seventeen. She wouldn't bet on it, though. He pours himself a drink and asks her to say no. Does she remember those interdimensional contortionists? Or the zombie propogators? Absolutely not. He's not dealing with any more teenage girls.

Back in Malibu, Nico asks Karolina to sit down and spill. Karolina puts her head in her hands and replies that she's lonely. She just keeps thinking about how she lost everything when Xavin left. She can't help it. Nico issues some worldly advice. She sits herself beside Karolina and tells her that she'd better help it before someone gets injured. They've all lost someone and she's not just talking about their parents. Chase lost Gert. Klara lost everyone she ever knew, but they're all dealing with it. Karolina sits back and says that at least Gert left Chase the psychic link with Old Lace. Xavin left her with nothing. "After everything Xavin did to prove himself..." replies Nico. "Herself, " says Karolina.

Nico tells Karolina that she was always more a teacher than a partner, and she knows it. After fighting every monster, every Skrull... the best Xavin could do was to become her. That's why she took her place on trial. Karolina rests her head on Nico's lap and sighs that this is why Xavin died for her. Nico says she doesn't know that. It might not be the last thing Xavin ever does, but it might be the last thing she did for Karolina. She should honor it, and herself. "Okay," replies Karolina. Nico is pleased, because Karolina was gonna give Chase a freakin' heart attack.

Molly appears and Nico asks how it's going upstairs. She informs her that they can't hear the tv, and Old Lace is hiding under the sofa... sorta. Nico tells her to ask Victor to turn it down, but Molly says she's not going in there. She doesn't want to get corroded. "Corrupted," replies Nico, and gets up herself to go talk to him.

(Pacific Coast, Naval Air Weapons Station)
The same music that was playing in the Malibu house plays in the office in the Sub 2 Supply Storage office. An operator speaks to someone over the radio and asks if they can hear him. They ask what he's doing, and the operator explains that he's just passing the time. he explains that the package is incoming in twenty-four minutes, but corrects that to just two. They are still secure, he adds. "T-minus 10 to the left turn to hook onto the radio signal. 4...3...2... oh, shiatsu!" the operator exclaims, as he realizes that their drone plane has veered to the right instead of the left.

Inside the house, Old Lace picks up the drone of the plane's engine and looks up. The sound gets louder and all the runaways pause, wondering what it could be. Before they know it, a huge explosion rocks the side of the house as the plane crashes into it. The Leapfrog is hit as the plane crashes through the walls and right into the lounge. Old Lace get the full brunt of the blast, with Klara being fortunate to be protected by Old Lace's bulk. The plane then comes to a halt amidst the wreckage.

The runaways immediately dash upstairs, with Nico shouting Klara's name. "What the hell was that?" cries Victor. Molly sees the rubble and wants to move it, but Nico advises against it. They don't want to make it worse and bring the whole place down. They don't know what's back there. "It can't be worse," says Chase, who enters slowly, clutching his stomach. Molly shouts for Klara as Karolina takes a look. She catches sight of Klara and asks the others to join her. She asks Molly to do her stuff as Nico wonders where the thing came from. Unseen by them, small plants begin to circle their way around the rubble. Karolina asks where Chase is as they need all hands on deck, but Chase is struggling. He clutches his forehead as his empathic link with Old Lace becomes weaker and weaker. He cries, saying he's sorry over and over and asking for Gert to please come back.

Meanwhile, the others finally reach Klara and pull her out. She's almost unscathed, save for a nosebleed. Nico cradles her, asking her to open her eyes. Molly asks her to just magic her back. What's she waiting for? Klara slowly opens her eyes. "For that," replies Nico, "Thank goodness." Unfortunately, Old Lace isn't so lucky. Victor and Karolina hold onto her. There is blood around her mouth and her eyes are glazed over. "She's, she's not... she's not with us anymore," cries Karolina as tears begin to stream down her cheeks. Chase lies on the ground, not moving, as Old Lace's heartbeat flatlines. Klara begins to panic and she tells them to get 'that dead thing' away from her. Huge plants emerge from the ground and one grabs Nico, lifting her high off the floor. Molly asks her to think happy thoughts, and Karolina gently reaches out to her, but Klara is lost and screams, "Nooooo!" Plants thrust through the walls of the building, all the way down the beach as far as Molly's sand castle and the house is quickly enveloped in plant life.

Characters:
Klara Prast, Karolina Dean, Molly Hayes, Victor Mancha, Nico Minoru and Chase Stein (all runaways)
Old Lace

Hunter Stein and his secretary, Violet
Walton

(in Chase's dream)
Chase Stein
Nico Minoru
Old Lace
Victor Stein

Notes:
It was mentioned in the very first issue of Runaways that Chase played lacrosse.

It was stated by Gertrude in Runaways (2nd series) #7, that if Old Lace got stung, then due to her deadly allergy to bee stings, they were both as good as dead. If Old Lace really is dead, then shouldn't Chase be also? Presumably, the empathic link only stretches so far, and not to the point of death.

Queer Eye (formerly Queer Eye for the Straight Guy) is an American television show which has been running for several seasons now.

The same week this issue hit the shelves, Marvel released a Runaways theme song.

'Prom' is short for Promenade - a ball held at the end of the senior year. Other countries have them now, but they're predominantly associated with North America. Junior proms are held at some schools.

Richard Branson is a business entrepenuer and creator of the Virgin brand.

Hunter Stein and Violet are named in the following issue.

Molly sings a song, I Like Fudge. This is a children's song, the lyrics of which go something like this: -

I like Fudge!
I like Fudge!
I like Fudge!
If you ask me what I like
I say...
I like Fudge!
(repeat over and over until you get bored)