The dead were everywhere. Ms. Grey's hair was fire on the sunrise as she died in Logan's arms. As John opened his eyes, the sky was a crimson and orange. He inhaled, then rolled over, coughing and wheezing. Dust and ash covered his surroundings, and him, from head to toe.

Sitting up slightly onto his elbows, he blinked dirt away from his eyes, and looked around. A few small fires were still going. And the bodies. The bodies were everywhere. X-Men, members of the Brotherhood. All covered with the same layer of ash that he was coated with. He felt dizzy, and nausea rolled over him.

John swallowed it down. He was Pyro. He wouldn't puke at the sight of some dead people. He had killed before, at Magneto's side.

There were people he had known for years in this fight though. Logan. Storm. Jubilee, Colossus, and Bobby…he sneered at the last one. Bobby was the reason he had been out of commission for the majority of the fight.

As much as he hated to admit it, Bobby was most likely the reason he was currently alive instead of actually dead. John didn't want to think about that. He didn't want to be in Iceman's debt. He didn't owe the iceblock anything.

He had to get out of here. The humans would be here soon, to clean up the remains of Alcatraz Island and the ruined bridge. Magneto had certainly done a number on the city. Briefly he wondered why Magneto hadn't found him after the fight was over. Then he laughed out loud. It was Magneto. If it had been between his own survival and finding Pyro, the choice was obvious.

John rolled over onto his knees, carefully avoiding the many needles and capsules on the ground from the cure being shot into the fray by the humans. Most were empty, but he couldn't chance it.

There was one person he was desperate to know the fate of, but he refused to concentrate on it until he was out of this place. She was a survivor, like him. They had met two years before at Xavier's school, and had been nearly inseparable, despite having famous fights and arguments all over the school.

She had been in the fight. He didn't know why. She was too young, too fragile. It infuriated him that his old instructors had let her come along. He was sure that she would be okay, but then she had disappeared into the building, with Jauggernaut on her heels. He thought his heart might've stopped in that moment, but at that point Bobby had come up to him.

He had made it to his feet then, wiping dust off of his black pants, then rolling his eyes at his own idiocy. He was covered in the stuff. Now that he was up, he had to figure out where to go.

Back to the Brotherhood hideout? No. They had left him, and he honestly doubted that they had looked for him. Besides, he didn't know who was still left, and if something had happened to Magneto, and some other idiot was in charge, he couldn't handle staying there.

The Institute? John grimaced. Going back to his old life? He could never do that. He had blown up buildings, killed people, and done horrible things – not always just because of Magneto's orders. He wasn't particularly accepted when he was first at the school, as he was volatile, sarcastic, and angry, and he certainly wouldn't be if he came back.

He wanted to see her though. Needed to see her. He had spoken with her very momentarily during the battle. They had knocked into each other on the far side of a half crumbled down wall. She had immediately recognized him, but punched him across his jaw anyway, before taking a step back.

"J-Johnny?"

John regained his footing, and stared back at Kitty. He had seen her when she and the other X-Men had first landed, but they had been far away from each other, and he doubted she had seen him.

He drank her in, staring at her. For the first time in over three months, he was but a few feet away from her. Dried blood crusted on a slice across her left cheek, and her brown hair had halfway fallen out of what John suspected had been a pretty messy bun in the first place. She had the same brown eyes, although they were wide with nervousness and shock at the moment.

"Nice pink accent." He said, nodding to her official X-Men uniform.

She bit her lip. "What're you doing here John?"

John laughed, the sound coming out harsher than he had meant it to. Kitty didn't flinch. "I'm the bad guy now, remember? I abandoned all of you and joined Magneto." His eyes burned into hers. "I know you've seen it on the news Kitty."

She looked reproachful, and it reminded him of the way she used to look at him when he would respond sarcastically to a teacher in training, or refuse to do his math homework.

"You almost killed Rogue lighting that building afire, you know!"

John hadn't known, but he shrugged anyway. "You do realize I ended up in the hospital four times because of her when I was rooming with Bobby. I can only feel so bad about it."

Kitty's anger faded. "Johnny, what happened to you?" she asked quietly in between explosions in the background. She was trembling, John could see it.

He shook his head. "I never said I was a good person Kit. In fact, I told you I wasn't hero material. I don't know what to tell you."

A tear slipped down her cheek. "So you just had to go and prove it then?"

In one movement John glanced around, then pulled her into his arms. She fought him for a few seconds, then clung to him tightly. He could feel her shaking with tears in his embrace, and guilt flowed through him. He hadn't spoken to her to tell her he was leaving, and he didn't contact her afterwards. The first she had seen of him was on a wanted poster on TV, showing that he had joined the Brotherhood.

It didn't seem to be long enough, but John heard an explosion just a few yards from them, and pulled away slowly. She had calmed down, and when she looked up at him, her eyes were clear, although tears had tracked lines through the dirt and dust on her cheeks.

"John, after this is over, please come back to the Institute. It'll be hard, I know. But I know you're better than this. And I need you to come back."

He didn't want to lie to her, but he couldn't refuse her either. "I'll try Kitty." He replied. He leaned down and kissed her on the forehead. The sounds of fighting were growing closer. "Be safe. Go."

"Shadowcat! Where are you?" A male voice called out. Kitty looked up at John, and then she was gone. John turned, and blasted a wave of fire and heat onto the soldier who had come around the wall, gun full of cures pointed and ready.

It came down to two choices then. Keep his promise to Kitty Pryde and attempt to go back to the Institute…or pretend that he had been killed in the battle, and slip away into society.

But first he had to get off this damned island.

oOoOoOo

"When will she wake up? Shouldn't she be awake by now? It's been a week already." A frantic voice reached the girl's ears. She tried to raise her eyelids, only to find that she couldn't. It was too difficult. What she really wanted was to peacefully drift back off into the white blanket of sleep.

The voices continued, nearby and to the left of her. "Jubilee, we don't know how its affected her. Besides, she was injured getting Leech out. Give it time." That was Storm's voice, Kitty recognized it even through her sleepy blur.

"Storm, is it true that Rogue's going to come back?"

Storm sighed, and Kitty could almost imagine her second favorite teacher crossing her arms over her chest. But Kitty was confused. Rogue – no, Marie – had went and gotten the cure. She wasn't a mutant anymore.

"Yes, very soon. Her powers are coming back to her at an exceptional rate. Only two other mutants we've seen have regained their powers after being Cured. We're still not sure why it's working on some of us more permanently than others."

"But then there's hope that Kitty might get hers back!" Jubilee exclaimed.

"Yes, she may."

Kitty's blood froze over. Might get mine back? Does that mean? No. Oh no no no.

"Perhaps you'd like to include Miss Pryde in this conversation, since she's been awake for the past few minutes." This was a new voice, painfully familiar, one she never expected to hear again. It's impossible. He's dead. Kitty told herself, and she could feel her body stiffen. This was all too much.

Open your eyes Kitty. Her eyes opened slowly, without her even thinking about it. This were blurry for a moment, but quickly cleared up.

Jubilee stood in front of her, inky black hair streaked with the familiar bubble gum pink she liked best, worry across her normally excitable features. Storm stood next to her, arms crossed just as Kitty had imagined her. And then she took in Professor Xavier. Alive. In his wheelchair. Almost like none of it had ever happened.

Kitty did her best to swallow back tears. Xavier smiled at her reassuringly, then turned to the other two. "Would you mind leaving us for a moment or two?"

Storm nodded, and left the room, flashing a small smile at Kitty while Jubilee trailed mournfully behind her. Professor Xavier wheeled himself closer to Kitty's bedside.

"Kitty. How are you feeling?"

Kitty struggled to sit up fully, attempting to run a hand half heartedly through her tangled hair. "How are you even alive Professor?" There was a note of hysteria in her voice that she had unsuccessfully tried to swallow down.

They spoke for an hour or so, Xavier gently explaining to one of his brightest students what had happened.

Finally, Kitty spoke in a tiny voice. "Is what Jubilee says true? D-do I have the cure?"

Professor Xavier frowned, and patted Kitty's leg. "Bobby saw you get shot with one while you were down during the fight. So, for now, yes. The good news is that some mutants bodies are fighting off the cure, and their powers are returning. Don't lose hope."

Kitty was trembling now. She was nearing adulthood, she would be eighteen in five months. But she didn't want to go back to her parents, who had practically thrown her into Dr. Grey and Professor Xavier's arms when they realized they wouldn't have to deal with her powers themselves anymore.

"You won't have to leave Kitty." The Professor answered her fears before they could form sentences in her mouth. "You're still an X-Man, and you're strong. I have no doubt your powers will return in time."

Kitty nodded, numbly. Her powers were gone. Her escape mechanism, her protection from anything and everything, was completely gone. People could touch her now, and she could do nothing about it.

"You still have your senior year of classes to keep you occupied until your powers begin to resurface Kitty. Don't worry." Professor Xavier smiled kindly.

She nodded, and attempted to smile in return even though she knew the Professor could see into her mind, clear as day.

Her mind, without her permission, wandered to another subject, biting her sharply in the chest. Jubilee had said she'd been out for a week. "Has…has…Pyro shown up, Professor?"

She expected to be berated for "fraternizing with the enemy" or some such because of what had happened during the battle on Alcatraz. If it had been Storm reading her mind, she would have gotten an hour long lecture, if it had been Logan, he would have kicked her ass four times over. If it was Bobby…she didn't want to think about that.

But Professor wasn't any of those people. "He has not returned. But that doesn't mean he won't still." Xavier sighed. "Keep in mind Kitty, he won't have a warm reception from most when he arrives. I do still see the good in St. John, but most do not."

Kitty nodded mutely.

"Rest." Xavier added. "Storm will help you sign up for the classes you need tomorrow, as term starts next week. And if you need anything, you know you can always come to me." With that, Professor X spun his wheelchair around, and left the room.

Over the next few hours word spread around the school that Kitty was awake. Students, teachers, and X-Men came to see her. Bobby came to visit her, sitting and talking with her for hours, filling her in on every detail of the week she had missed, and trying to make her laugh. She did her best not to harbor any ill will towards him for knocking John out cold, and she succeeded. Kitty wasn't exactly the type to hold a grudge.

In the time between Pietro leaving and Jubilee coming back for a second visit, Kitty limped to the showers. She had to sit down twice under the hot spray of water, her body complaining and her legs turning to jelly. When she got out and wrapped herself in a fluffy beige towel, she noticed a folded pile on the sink. Clean clothes. Grateful, she slipped them on, taking her time and wincing whenever the cloth rubbed wrong on a cut or her muscles burned.

Dress in a pink shirt, dark wash jeans, and soft socks, Kitty left the bathroom, and made her way back to the bed, fully intending on having a nap. Jubilee however, had other ideas.

Her best friend perched herself on the end of Kitty's bed, and whispered dramatically, "I heard Rogue met someone."

Kitty snorted. "I'm sure she met lots of people, living with regular people for the time that she did."

"No! She met, met someone. She's apparently completely done with Bobby." Jubilee raised her eyebrows as she shared the gossip.

A small streak of surprise went through her, but all she asked was, "Well what's his name?"

"Remy. Weird, right? Anyway, once you're all better and stuff, we should all go to the mall. There's this dress that I…" Kitty half-listened to Jubilee ramble on and on, knowing that the girl could talk for hours on end.

Before she knew it, Kitty slipped back into sleep.