The ocean was calm, the sky clear, the city bright.
Heavy construction was taking place on the bridge, the only unpleasant sight in all of San Francisco. John wondered how he had come to be here, to have been involved in such events that had marked the world. He wasn't even twenty years old, but already his life had been threatened by the United States military and by his own former friends.
He wasn't the sort to go into long stretches of introspection; his nature was impulsive, his personality admittedly arrogant, living for a rush of adrenaline. John shrugged to himself as he watched the surf. He knew himself. Yes, he knew he was impulsive, but not to the point where he would get himself killed over nothing. When he fought, it was for good reason and he rarely instigated conflict.
He knew he was arrogant, but how could he stop himself? When a man can control fire with his mind, few things ever seem out of bounds. Arrogance was not his downfall, but a lack of guidance certainly was.
That was what the Professor, all-knowing as he seemed, couldn't understand.
John had known his own potential since he had discovered his abilities, but his was seen as a power with the potential for seduction. He thought back to that day on the Blackbird jet, and he wondered if Eric had, with a few choice words, seduced him. He shrugged again, admitting the possibility.
John didn't know if he could see the world as black and white anymore. Since he had left his friends, everything had seemed to blur into shades of gray. The Professor and his X-men saw Eric as a villain, and Eric saw most humans as enemies, and most humans just lumped all mutants together as the genetic scum of the earth.
They're jealous, John thought.
Arrogance again, but he was not wrong. What man wouldn't want to soar the sky on a pair of wings? What woman wouldn't want the power of complete transformation at her fingertips?
Thinking of Mystique hurt. A pang that lanced through his chest. Guilt at being too afraid to help her when Eric had made it clear that she was now beneath their notice. John shook his head and ran a hand through his hair.
She deserved better than that from him. And me...
When he had left with them in the helicopter that day at Alkali Lake, Eric had been quick to assure him that he wouldn't be hurt. He had offered to bring him back to the mansion, but John had refused. That life was over, as far as he was concerned. The mansion, the school, was no longer safe. The X-men wouldn't always be there to protect their charges. John had to learn how to protect himself, to master his power.
The Professor would refuse to help, especially once he learned what had happened at the Drakes' house. But he had known, even then, that Eric would not refuse to teach him. John had promised to be useful if only Eric could help him, and Eric had agreed. Mystique had been largely silent, and John had wondered if she was even able to speak when she wasn't in another form.
"I know what you're thinking," Erik had told him, "But I assure you, she is able to speak. She is simply a woman of few words. Shy around strangers when she hasn't changed; perhaps if you stay long enough she might open up a bit more."
John had been startled to have his thoughts read, or so it had seemed to him, but he nevertheless stayed with the mismatched pair, learning everything he could along the way. He wondered how history would see him, years from now, when either side won out over the other. If the humans prevailed, he knew that he would be seen as a junior terrorist; if the mutants triumphed, he might be seen as something of a hero...in either case, John had to admit the possibility that history might not remember him at all.
He shook off his deeper thoughts and kicked a stone out of his way as he moved further down the street. History had never been his favorite subject, so he didn't care if his name didn't end up in a textbook some several years in the future. The only thing that concerned him at the moment was something of a reunion. Three days ago he had gotten a phone call from the most unlikely source.
As far as he recalled, he had never even seen Eric near a phone; Mystique had told him that something about Eric's powers didn't agree with cellular transmition. John had understood then, why he hadn't been able to find Eric after the X-men had allowed Alcatraz to be destroyed. That Erik had suddenly reappeared, unbothered by his powers' side effects, left the truth to be unsaid.
He's still Eric. The closest thing to a father I've ever known. If he needs help, I won't abandon him the way that he abandoned Mystique. I'll do what he needs me to do.
Still, Eric actually needing the help of another was an alien concept to him. In his time with them, Eric- Magneto- had seemed invincible. That he was just as vulnerable as anyone else was a jarring revelation. Thankfully his loyalty was stronger than his hatred towards humans.
He thought of Mystique, and wondered where she was, what she was doing. In a strange way, he missed her cold, reptillian silence. Truly, he missed just being with his adopted family. They had all been separated for months. John had had some money, and after a fulfilling bank robbery, he had gained a great deal more. Money was not a problem, but existing on his own was. He felt displaced and slighly paranoid.
He wanted his family back.
John strode across crisp grass and approached a man sitting at a chess table. The man lifted his hat, revealing his face. It was Eric, just where he said he'd be.
His heart pounded, but John didn't let any emotion show on his face, he only smiled and took a seat across from him. "Didn't expect to see you here," John said. He hoped they weren't drawing any attention to themselves, but no one else in the park seemed to be interested. To outside eyes, they looked like a father and son.
Eric smirked slightly. "Well, what else am I to do with my empty hours?"
John shrugged. "I don't know. Find a cure for the cure? There has to be something."
The older man nodded. "And there is."
John leaned forward, his interest piqued. It had been too long since he'd had an adventure; Alcatraz was little more than a bad memory for him, he wanted to a real fight. "There is? How did you find out about it?"
Eric leaned back slightly. "I wasn't always Magneto, you know. I was a scientist at one point, and I still have a few ideas rattling around. Like every other chemical compound, this has an antithesis. I have a plan."
John smiled. "Now you've got my attention. How are we going to do it?"
"Mind if I sit in on the boys' club?" A voice interrupted.
John glanced over to see a pretty woman with short black hair standing just beside their chess table. He stared at her, struck dumb for a moment by her beauty, but he just as easily shook it off and began to refuse, when recognition hit him. "Are you...Mystique?"
"In the flesh," she answered, taking a seat on the ornate stone bench beside him. Her smiled was as bright at the sun.
"No hard feelings, I see." John said, feeling slightly dazed that, after so many months gone, she had returned to them without missing a beat.
The woman turned to him. "I'll let you in on a secret, Pyro. When your cells are constantly shifting, it's virtually impossible to be poinsoned, or cured. But, when the government thinks you are one of them, they tend to believe what you say, especially when you tell them what they believe to be priveleged information- such as, a false location for a mutant camp."
Erik leaned forward and took her hand. "You always were a clever one, my dear."
John looked at her, "So, you mean you're not...?"
Bright golden eyes flashed at him for just a moment. "No. I never was. Unlike some, I'm sorry to say."
Erik appeared unbothered by her words. "No risk, no reward, children. Besides, I won't be like this for long."
John smiled wryly. "I'm glad you called me. Robbing banks just doesn't have the same thrill as following you two into certain death."
Mystique actually laughed at his bad joke. "So nice to know we've never let you be bored. Are you saying you'll help us?"
"How can I refuse? This isn't for us, this is for all mutants. They turned the cure into a weapon, it's only a matter of time before they try using it on every mutant they come across. Someone has to stop them."
Eric stood from the table. "Glad to have you back, John. It really wouldn't be the same without you."
As he had from the beginning, John followed them.