High above the Atlantic Ocean, Kitty Pryde expertly turned the X-Jet in order to catch a rising thermal. She slid over into a jet stream and set the auto-pilot. Leaning back in her captain's chair, she sighed to herself and looked back at her dozing passenger, Pete Wisdom. He was snoring loudly, a sure sign that it was an act. She shrugged, letting her mind wander back to her friends at the institute.
Rogue was still glowing, days after giving birth to her and Remy's daughter, Rebeca. The three of them were so happy, Kitty felt good giving them some time to themselves, even though she already missed her friends and their beautiful little girl.
Jean was also expecting, though things were not going quite as well for her. Most people in the mansion were sure that she had gotten pregnant in an attempt to hold on to Scott, but it had backfired. Now the two of them were barely on speaking terms. Kitty was worried about Jean, but she had plenty of support and love from everyone in the institute.
For the most part, Kitty and Pete had left the institute as it was in an upswing. There was so much good energy there, especially since the arrival of Rebeca. Kurt and Amanda spent all of their time together, taking long walks and equally long showers together. They smiled and blushed and whispered together in a way that made most of the younger students gag. It was infectious, though. There had been more than one occasion of two students not being accounted for at night and then not being able to meet each other's eyes at the breakfast table without burning a deep crimson. Even Logan had gotten into the act, finally getting together with Ororo.
Kitty smiled to herself, pleased at how things were going for her friends. Now here shes was, winging her way back to her favorite city with the man she loved. It was actually a bit shocking for an X-Man to take in all of this good fortune.
For his part, Pete was feeling a bit more uneasy about everything. As soon as things got comfortable, he got worried. He was really happy with Kitty, and it scared him. Ever since he saw Kitty holding Rebeca in her arms, he had been shocked to find himself imagining the two of them having a family together. It seemed so natural, so perfect, and so dangerous. They had already been attacked once while out together, what was to stop that from happening again? He couldn't shelter her forever, though. Kitty would hate it, she would fight him. That's what he loved about her.
Pete gave a confused grunt and rolled over, determined this time to get some actual sleep. Kitty looked back, startled at the snorting and shuffling. She heard Pete's breathing grow deeper and steadier, and she breathed a sigh of relief. Maybe now he would finally get some sleep. He had been tossing and turning for days now, but he always blamed it on something like her icy feet or being nervous about meeting Romany's boyfriend. 'Bollocks,' Kitty thought.
There was a series of sharp screeches as the jet touched down outside of London. Pete shot up with a start, amazed to realize that he had actually been enjoying a deep, dreamless sleep. Kitty eased the plane to a stop unbuckled herself.
"Hey, sleepyhead," she said, walking back into the bay area, "Are you OK?" She squatted down in front of Pete as he rubbed his face roughly with his right hand. After a few moments of this, he looked down into her concerned eyes and smiled half-heartily. "'M fine, luv," he said, covering half of her face with his hand. Kitty stared up into his eyes, trying to puzzle out what was bothering him so much. It hurt Pete to see the worry in her eyes. He sighed heavily and pulled her up onto his lap.
Despite herself, Kitty giggled. She was happy to once again be in Pete's warm embrace. It had been a long flight, giving her plenty of time to mull over stressful thoughts. Her frazzled mind relaxed as she sank into Pete, absentmindedly fingering his ever-present black tie. She sighed, laying her head on his shoulder. Pete savoured the small victory against worry.
Suddenly, there was a loud banging against the side of the plane. The two of them instantly sprang into fighting positions, Pete automatically standing in front of Kitty. The noise continued and Pete edged backwards to get closer to Kitty. She looked up at him, about to whisper something, when a voice cut though the tension.
"If you two aren't done joinin' tha mile 'igh club yet, I can circle the airfield once or twice!" The sound of Romany's voice made them relax like a couple of puppets whose strings have been cut. Pete turned and hugged Kitty to himself, an uncomfortable weakness overcoming him. A deep fear had enveloped him, one that he had only felt once before. He hated it. "Done in a minute, luv!" Pete yelled out at his sister, still holding Kitty in his arms.
Once they were outside and loading luggage into Romany's car, things had calmed down a bit. Pete was still brooding, and chose to sit alone in the back-seat on the drive in to town. He stretched out resting his head on his arms and his feet behind Romany's seat. She tried to ignore the frequent kicks he gave as she drove by chatting with Kitty.
"It's good to see you again, Kitty. I 'ope my brother 'asn't been too annoying for you." kickkickkick. Kitty laughed loudly, making Pete wince a bit. He quickly glanced ahead and saw that she was happily watching the landscape fly past, her eyes sparkling. He turned now to look at Romany again.
"So," he started, "where is this bloke of yours? Chicken out at the last second, decide to 'ide 'im away again?" With the deft skills of someone used to having Pete Wisdom as a brother, Romany was able to give his leg a sharp pinch without Kitty noticing. Pete yelped, making Kitty whip her head around the check on him. Pete was rubbing his leg where his sister's iron grip had gotten him, his face growing red. Kitty reached out and placed her small hand on his, and mouthed, 'Are you OK?' Pete nodded, lacing his fingers in hers.
"Actually," Romany said, "he's meeting us at the pub."
"A man after my own 'art." Pete said, laughing with Kitty.
"That's why I was getting so impatient with the two of you back there. Don't want to keep him waiting too long."
"Think 'e's gonna run off, do ya?" Pete couldn't resist throwing in another jab at his sister.
"Not every guy is like you, dear brother."
There was near silence for the rest of the drive. Kitty went back to looking out the window, waiting for the first sighting of London. Pete still held a hand over his shin even though the pain was long gone. Romany was feeling a bit fed up, so she switched on the radio.
"Protests today ended violently," the announcer began, making the trio prick up their ears. "Dozens of people turned up today outside of the corporate headquarters of D.N. inc., a company suspected of many things but with no definitive proof. The participants, who were sporting Guy Fawkes masks to hide their identity from the notorious security system of the building, were carrying signs depicting what they say are photos taken inside of the facility. The images depicted horrible human rights violations and gruesome experiments too horrible to imagine. The police called in seemed to respond with in inordinate amount of aggression towards the non-violent group. Reports say that whoever called them may have intimated that the group was armed and militant. Several people have been taken to hospital and are in varying conditions, but most were jailed.
"In other news, a team of chefs in Glastonbury have made the world's largest-" Romany shut off the radio, unable to hide her anger at the story.
"What's all that about?" Kitty asked, "What's D.N. inc.?"
"Dream Nails," Romany hissed, tightening her grip on the wheel. "There's no secret what's going on there, most people are just too afraid to do anything about it. The things those people get away with-" Romany took a deep gulp and rubbed a stray tear from her eye. Kitty put her arm around her in a sideways hug, and Romany continued. "They go after folks like you two, trying to find out what makes you tick. There are cages..." Once again the three of them rode in silence, Kitty glancing around at Pete.
Romany waited downstairs as Kitty and Pete took their bags up to Pete's apartment. She had warned to two love birds not to take too long, trying to feign high spirits. Upstairs, Pete dropped the luggage on the floor and turned to Kitty. "I wouldn't blame you if you wanted to stay in tonight, Kit. After a long flight, and news like that, we could just stay in and get some rest." Kitty shook her head.
"I think a drink is exactly what I need right now, Pete," she said. Smiling, Pete put an arm around her and led the way out.
The pub was crowded, but Romany's boyfriend had managed to save a table for the group. He waved over to them, giving Kitty and Pete their first look at him. He was tall, maybe 6'5", muscular, and fairly handsome; not remarkable, but not shabby. He had short brown hair and very dark eyes. From far away, they could have been black, but when seen up close, they were a very deep chocolaty brown.
"Joey," Romany cried out, seemingly relieved. They embraced immediately, a hug of comrades as well as lovers. As they parted, Romany whispered something to the man. He shook his head gravely and answered in a stately voice, "No news, yet." Romany gritted her teeth and nodded, squeezing his hand. She then turned to make introductions.
"Kitty, Pete, I would like for both of you to meet Joey Chapman. Joey, this is Kitty Pryde, and this is my brother Pete." Joey took Kitty's hand gently, bending at the waist to kiss the back of it, then the men shook hands in greeting.
"I've heard so much about both of you. It is a pleasure to finally meet you." Joey gestured for everyone to take a seat.
"Wish I could say the same, but we 'aven't 'eard a bloody thing about you yet," Pete said, earning a sharp look from Kitty.
"Of course," Joey said, bristling a bit, "Allow me to buy a round and let you catch up." Pete shrugged, pulling out a chair for Kitty and then sitting beside her. Joey did the same for Romany and then headed to the bar. As she sat, Romany seemed to deflate, her head sinking into her shoulders and her back slumping over. Kitty was worried and looked to Pete to do something, but all he did was shrug. Kitty crossed her arms, assuming the posture of an angry girlfriend.
When Joey returned with the drinks, Kitty took her pint and downed half of it in one gulp. Pete and Romany were both a bit shocked, but Joey was impressed and said as much. Conversation was a bit stilted after this; Joey's history seemed about as cookie cutter as his looks. Romany receded more and more as the night went on, periodically squeezing Joey's hand for support. Kitty got more and more in the bag, glaring at Pete.
The four of them parted ways outside of the pub, Joey leading Romany down the block with his arm around her shoulders.
"Seems like a nice enough bloke, eh, luv?" Pete shrugged at Kitty and received a blank stare in return. He gave yet another dismissive shrug, blaming her mood on jet lag and booze. He tried putting his hand on her hips, copping a feel of her ass as they started walking. Kitty pulled away a bit and crossed her arms. Hurt, Pete asked her what was wrong. He was answered with the icy-coldness of the silent treatment. For the rest of the walk home, Pete was constantly pestering Kitty, trying to needle a laugh out of her or at least get her to speak to him.
Back home, at Pete's apartment, she finally turned on him. She pointed a finger, jabbing him in the chest. She stared up at him, her face ruddy and her nose wrinkled in a snarl. All of her frustration at him for not opening up lately was poured into one word, "You...," she snarled pulling back a bit and waggling her finger at him. Her whole body teetered dangerously behind it as well.
"Me?" Pete asked, genuinely confused. He tried to help steady her shoulders, but she pushed his hands away. The speech that followed was almost completely incoherent, but there were a few points that Pete was able to grasp from it. Apparently, he had been acting like an ass lately, especially to his sister. She was sure that Romany was sad tonight because of how mean he was being, Kitty was very upset, and she insisted that she would sleep on the couch tonight.
"I really, hic, think that you should apologize to her, Pete." He nodded, trying his best to keep Kitty on her feet as she threw her arms around his neck. "Could you do that for me, Pete? I'm, like, really worried about her." She looked up at him with her lower lip poking out, pouting at him.
"Okay, Kitty," he said, "I'll go and talk with her." Kitty smiled widely, stepping back from him. She bowed her head in thanks and sat down on the couch.
"I'll, like, wait right here, hic," she said, spreading her arms open across the couch.
Exasperated, Pete sighed and headed for the door. He pulled the collar of his coat up and looked back once more at Kitty. She was already beginning to nod off, her head swinging wildly from side to side. Finally, as he opened the door and headed out into the night, Kitty lay down and began to snore loudly.