Pyro woke up with a start. He was used to nightmares, but this one had been bad. It was made worse by waking up in an unfamiliar place. Pyro got out of bed to get a glass of water. He would have preferred something better, but he figured water was the only thing he could get. Things were pretty minimalistic at Magneto's base. He still was evaluating his decision to leave the X-Men, but he had to admit he missed Xavier's mansion. He had learned the hard way not to complain about the lack of amenities at Magneto's base. He had made that mistake his first morning there by complaining about breakfast. Magneto had made a remark about young people nowadays scoffing at free food, which Pyro had to admit did make him look ungrateful. He was thankful Magneto had seen that he could be a good ally and accepted him into his ranks. He didn't get respect like that from Xavier. Magneto viewed all mutants, regardless of age, as powerful. He decided it would be best not to complain about the uncomfortable cot.
When Pyro entered the kitchen, he was startled to see Magneto there.
"You're up late, Pyro. I know teenagers often stay up late, but I thought you would be tired."
"Couldn't sleep. I was just grabbing some water."
"Why not have some tea. That's what I'm making for myself."
"We have more than just water here? That would have been nice to know."
"We're not as rich as Charles here. But I do like to keep some extra things for when they're needed. Would you like a cup? It will help you fall asleep again. We have a hard day tomorrow."
"Yes. Thanks."
"You miss things at the mansion, don't you?"
"No. Not at all." Pyro was lying. But he didn't want to give the impression of disloyalty. He felt a little excluded being the newest, and youngest, member of Magneto's Brotherhood. He didn't think Mystique liked him, but then again, she only seemed to like Magneto. Magneto didn't have a great love of young people. Sabertooth and Toad seemed indifferent to him.
"Don't lie, Pyro. It's understandable. You had friends there. You spent so much time rooting for their cause and against mine."
"No! That's not it at all. I just miss the mansion." That was a bit of a lie. He did miss his friends. He wished Bobby had come with him.
Magneto was pleased. He was wary of taking in mutants from Charles' school. He appreciated what Charles had done for mutantkind, and of course still valued his friendship, but the children that came out of there were often still at least a little dedicated to his precious X-Men.
"Is that why you couldn't sleep?"
Pyro didn't like where this conversation was headed. One thing he has always hated about Xavier's school was how touchy-feely everyone could be, especially Xavier. He knew it was likely a function of his telepathy, but it didn't make it any less annoying. So far no one in the Brotherhood had bothered to ask him anything personal, which he liked. He figured he should get this over with.
"No. Nightmare."
"Are you alright?"
"You wouldn't understand."
"Are you sure I wouldn't? Why do you think I'm awake right now?"
This struck Pyro weirdly. It was hard for him to picture the powerful mutant and charismatic leader having a nightmare. It seemed out of character.
"I didn't think about it."
"I had them nearly every night when I was your age. They do lessen with time."
"What's your excuse?"
Pyro immediately regretted his comment when he saw the look on Magneto's face. It wasn't really a look of anger, so much as a look that implied he thought Pyro was stupid for asking. He didn't quite understand why. Then Magneto rolled up his left sleeve and showed Pyro his left forearm. Pyro was stunned for a moment. He had studied the Holocaust in school. Xavier's history lessons always had a special focus on it as an example of why tolerance is important. But Pyro had never met anyone who had been there before. He had no idea Magneto had been in those camps. He started calculating how young Magneto must have been when he was sent there. He realized he must have only been a boy then.
"What's yours?" Magneto had replied. Pyro couldn't tell what Magneto's intention with that remark was, but he felt ashamed. His "excuse" (a word he now realized was harsh, given the circumstances) had been from his childhood too. Pyro's parents had been unkind, especially the day they found out was a mutant, which was what his nightmare had been about. They kicked him out. He had always thought his life had been so miserable. He had always compared himself with Bobby and Kitty who had kind parents. But, though his parents weren't kind, Pyro had always had three meals a day. He had friends. He always had a roof over his head, shoes on his feet, and a lot of other good conditions that he had been able to take for granted. He never had to fear for his life or do without anything he had needed. Compared to what Magneto had probably gone through in the camps, he didn't feel like he had a right to complain.
"Doesn't matter."
The two fell into silence. Magneto seemed content to sip his tea, but Pyro didn't like uncomfortable silences.
"What was it like?"
"Excuse me?"
"You know." Pyro pointed at the number on Magneto's arm. "In the camps. We studied it in school. Was it really that bad?"
Once again, Pyro regretted the words as soon as they came out of his mouth. He knew it was probably a stupid question. He expected Magneto's face to reflect disappointment in his stupidity again, but what he really saw was pain.
"I don't know what you studied in school, but I can tell you it was worse. You may have studied the conditions of the camps, but you can't study fear like that, or grief, or the sheer hatred those madmen had for us. I have no doubt Charles taught you as well as he could, but there are some things a history lesson can't teach."
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean it like that. I'm sorry for what those creeps put you through." Pyro didn't really know what to say.
"It's alright, Pyro. That's why I do this, you know. Charles thinks my methods are too extreme, but he doesn't know what it's like. That's my goal: that mutantkind will never have to understand what that's like. Mutants should never have to suffer the way my people suffered then. I was too young to use my gift to save myself and my family then. I couldn't do anything to stop them then. But I will stop anyone who tries to do the same to mutants now. You were there when we had to stop Stryker. He would have done the same to us. Our methods must be extreme because theirs are too. I'm glad you don't have to understand what that suffering is like. It means I've done my job. That makes sense, doesn't it, Pyro?"
Pyro thought about it. He had been with Charles' school for so long, hearing that Magneto was the bad guy and how they had to stop him. But everything Magneto had said made sense. Maybe Magneto really was the true good guy.
"Yes."
"I'm glad. But now you need to go back to bed. Sleep well tonight, Pyro. Tomorrow won't be an easy day without sleep."
Pyro went back to bed. He didn't completely know how he felt about being in the Brotherhood or being away from his friends, or being one of the defenders of mutants. But for the first time since he moved in, he did know he wasn't going to leave. He also knew for a fact he shouldn't complain about his cot. Those may have been the only two things Pyro knew for sure, but he could live with that for now.