Meeting Warren

Danny was not amused. In fact, he was far less amused than he usually was. The reason was because he had decided to go visit Scott, and then he had discovered that Scott was not there. Well, he was there, but he was not answering the doorbell. Danny shrugged a little, and knocked once more. If he didn't get a reply soon, he was going to either phase through the door, or leave. At this point, he wasn't sure. He waited for several seconds longer before an idea occurred and he opened the door. Wow. They just left it open? Danny decided their security needed an upgrade. He looked at the hall in front of him, and, possibly so he could excuse his actions, he rung the bell one last time and stood there for five minutes. No one answered. He offered a little shrug and entered through the door, stealthily moving down the hall.

He was tempted to check all the doors, but successfully resisted, walking towards the kitchen. He arrived, but no one was in sight. He almost laughed at how easy it was to walk in like this and not be spotted. He had no idea why he didn't want to be spotted. He shrugged, and moved further down, down the stairs, several flights. He successfully avoided the elevator, and found himself in a large area, in what looked like a medical center. He sighed, cupped both hands around his mouth, and allowed his volume to rise slightly as he called for Scott, at this point rather confused, and wondering what had happened to him, because he could hear Scott's voice echoing off the walls of the area.

"Scott? You in there? It's Danny, just so you don't freak...And since when did you have a medical facility?" Danny's voice was slightly Wail enhanced so he wouldn't have to yell so much.

A moment later Scott popped out from behind a door, looking as if he were on high alert for something, what something, Danny hadn't figured out yet.

"Danny? I thought you weren't visiting today. Now really isn't a good time." Scott shifted in front of the door, almost as if he were hiding something.

Danny only felt confused, and asked, "Whatcha' doin'?" as he walked past him easily, and suddenly realized, too late, why Scott had been blocking his way. There appeared to be a large, walking ball of blue fur. The voice that followed was more familiar.

"Scott, you were supposed to keep visitors out. Not in." The voice was that of a Henry McCoy he'd met around the third visit, and came from the blue person. For a second, Danny felt a strong and ridiculous urge to sigh at the unfairness of the world.

Danny squinted slightly, and blinked. "Um..." Years of surprise after surprise had nearly made him incapable of feeling that particular emotion, so at the moment, his only reaction was one of confusion, and a bit of curiosity. "Dr. McCoy?" Danny was relieved to get a worried, but not hostile look from him.

"Yes. You recognize me?"

Danny rubbed the back of his neck subconsciously. "I...I just recognized your voice. Judging from the look I'm getting, I should probably be freaking out, right?" Danny found himself wondering what he was supposed to do.

"Oh, no need to feel terror, Daniel." Danny nearly flinched at the use of his full name. "I intend no harm, and neither do my comrades."

Danny's lips quirked upwards. "Comrades?...Who's the guy in the blanket?" He asked curiously.

"Warren." Danny decided that first names must really popular for introductions.

"Hello?" Warren was sitting on a metal table, wrapped in a blanket and drinking hot chocolate. He was blonde, and stared straight ahead, obviously in shock. He looked awful. Danny's curiosity lead him to add, "What happened to him?"

"He isn't talking. Ask him. You'll see what I mean." Scott commented from behind Danny.

Danny decided he wanted to talk to him. After all, why not? He moved carefully closer, noting the way Warren tensed a little, even if he wasn't paying attention. Danny moved forward until he was about five feet away. "Warren? That's your name, right? Are you alright? You look terrible. What happened to you, if you don't mind me asking?" Danny waited for a response. Warren appeared to be intent on ignoring him, but Danny wasn't going to let that happen. He waited a moment, and, almost as if drawn by gravity, Warren looked straight at him. It was almost eerie, the confusion in his eyes. Confusion, and the growing seed of anger, and despair. Danny held his gaze. Warren didn't respond at first, but slowly, he began to try to break eye contact. It appeared to be taking quite a bit of effort for him to avoid the contact, and Danny was unrelenting.

Warren shifted a bit, and Danny could feel the emotions beginning to flood him. Seconds later, Warren opened his mouth, and tried to say something. He finally succeeded.

"They cut them off." Danny could feel the shock wearing off, and anger rapidly growing. Warren's words were well controlled, but terrifying. "My father had them cut off my wings..." He appeared to almost be spitting the words out, and he was trembling all over. For an instant, RAGE overpowered Danny.

"Your...father? Who cut them off?" This was territory for other people, people who actually knew what he was talking about, so Danny left it to them.

Scott looked rather amazed at how easy it was for Danny to make someone talk. It was a talent he'd picked up, somewhere along the way. Warren was telling them the story. He'd been captured by the MRD, and his dad had had his wings cut off. He'd woken up with no wings, and had a panic attack. No surprises there. Danny could sympathize, almost. A father figure had finally crumbled to dust, falling beneath the weight of reality. Danny listened, and felt a surge of jealousy. A cold surge, that Danny fought off almost immediately. He wished he could have woken with no memory of the things his parents had done to him.

Danny grimaced as all of them flinched when a man, Mr. Sinister, was talked about. One, the name was terrible, and two, he sounded like Vlad, manipulative, rich, and constantly watching for new possibilities. Danny could still feel the conclusion coming, though, when Warren walked outside, and disappeared, into thin air. He had failed. Again. His failures were major, and had major consequences. He supposed this time it would be no different.

Somewhere along the day's time, he had admitted he could feel their emotions, and implied that he was a mutant. Scott looked rather as if he had suspected it all along. He had been offered a place to live, but he told them he was fine where he was. They had finally agreed, and Danny felt a strong sense of relief when they did.

Sorry about not updating, but I was debating as to whether I should use this as a one shot, or skip to meeting Jean after the Dark Phoenix timeline resolved itself. See ya in another update soon! Read, and Review!

-Miaulin