Disclaimer: I own nothing. Big Surprise

A/N: Okay here's part 2. Just so anyone whose reading this knows, this isn't going to be a wildly exciting story. It's more a character piece and somthing I wrote to satisfy my own curiosity on how Pyro/John would react if he was put in a situation where he was back together with the X-men.

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Previously on Flicker: She looked into the man's face and saw him in there, beneath the ravages of time, weather, hunger and care was still the same face, the same fire though it had no anger now just sadness. Rogue put her hand on her stomach "Pyro?" she gasped.

HE shook his head, she felt relieved, she'd been mistaken "No" the man said "my name is John." The bottom fell out of her stomach again.

She leaned on the door. "What are you doing back here? it's been ten years but we haven't forgotten"SHe was in a bit of a protective posture.

"I know, I wanted to come back right away, but I figured someone would kill me long range before I was in the gate." was John's reply.

Rogue nodded, staring at him in stunned silence. She'd last seen him walking away from the jet that fateful day at Alkali.

John cleared his throat obviously finding the silence awkward. "So are you married to Bobby now?" he said gesturing at her stomach.

She looked down like she'd forgotten about that, she laughed "No, we broke up years ago, back when everyone was still living here."

John nodded, "I hadn't thought about everyone moving away, somehow I thought everyone I knew would stay the way Storm, Jean and Scott did. OF course I realize how ridiculous that sounds." was his comment.

"Well it will seem that way, everyone will be descending on the place, actually when you rang the bell I was expecting Logan."

John looked horrified "Oh god, tell me all those rumors about you two weren't true!"

Rogue looked really annoyed, "What!?" She realized John was staring at her stomach in horror. She looked down, had she spilled some food on her shirt? No... "OH GOD!"she screamed "People THOUGHT THAT!!GOD ewwww noooo!!!!"

John let out a sigh, then Rogue thought of something "Who told you that?" her voice was calm and full of malice. John took a step back, "Now listen, I just met up with an old chum who was at this school briefly, she said there might be something goin' on between you two." Rogue's face was still a mask of anger. "B-but I know she was wrong..." he added hastily.

Rogue still hadn't opened the door all the way. John was still standing on the stoop sopping wet.

"The thing is I'd like to crash her for a few months, stay in one place a while..."

Rogue nodded "You've been doing a modern day Wolverine thing huh? Tell me what have you been doing to substitute cage fighting? How have you wasted the last ten years?!!" Rogue was getting angry again.

John sighed and rubbed the back of his neck "I spent the two years after Alcatraz being a violent demonstrator for mutants, you know setting government buildings on fire that sort of thing, then I spent a year in jail. Than another three just traveling round, I never stayed longer than six months in one place, I ended up following some of these crazy carnivals around, I did some bogus stuff, then I joined up with one of them, that's where I spent the last four years," he smiled ruefully "As a carny. And now that I have informed you of my whereabouts for the last ten years will you let me in Rogue?" He was sounding sort of huffy at the last bit probably because it has just started to rain even harder.

Rogue nodded and opened the door for him, then realized that hardly anyone called her Rogue, actually she'd probably only been called Rogue a handful of times in the last ten years.

"You know since I got the cure, everyone calls me Marie."

John nodded and shrugged "Right you got the cure, why are you still here?"

It was a harsh question and Marie realized maybe she shouldn't have pissed off the self confessed Pyromaniac and arsonist.

" I got a teachers degree, actually it's sort of funny, I'm the only one of the group who still lives here."

John was looking around the huge entry hall, it was exactly the same except for a large portrait of Professor Xavier hanging on one wall. John made a face at the man in the portrait and Marie mentally sighed, some things never change.

Then she heard a door open and saw Storm heading down the stairs,

"Hey Storm, look who just arrived. He wants to stay here"

Marie was trying to display the whole concept to Storm through facial expressions since John was standing right behind her. Storm just looked confused, she gathered from the expressions that Marie was making that this person was someone significant, Storm frowned trying to place that face,

"Is he a former student? Cause if he is of course he's welcome to stay here. I'm sorry" This was directed at john . "But I can't remember your name."

The man in the foyer opened his mouth to answer but Marie jumped in "It's John, John Allerdyce, but we know him better as Pyro don't we Storm?"

Storms face froze and she turned back to John, looking closely she saw the fiery and obnoxious kid from all those years ago. She sighed, closed her eyes and rubbed her temples. "Listen John, under normal circumstances you'd be welcome to stay, I mean you were once a student here and you haven't made the news for blowing something up for at least 8 years but you just are here at the wrong time, see most of the people who were X-men 8 years ago will be descending on the place cause" Storm sighed again " Kitty and Bobby will be getting married a week from now."

John shrugged, " I do know how to keep a low profile." was all John said to that.

Storm sighed again and rubbed her forehead. "Fine if you need somewhere to stay I guess you can stay here." John nodded "Thanks" he sneered. And started walking to the right.

"Umm... John? Adults sleep in the west wing" John chuckled and headed to the left. Storm hissed "You keep an eye on him Marie." Marie nodded and head after Pyro who had dissapeared.

She looked in several doorways, catching a glimpse of a completely unconscious Angel sprawled out on his bed, wings extended and drooling, she smiled and continued down the hall. Finally she found Pyro, he was unpacking his pack. She noticed that though most of the stuff was worn and patched it had almost all been expensive and high end when first bought. She leaned against the doorway, he was pretending he didn't realize she was there.

" What did you do in the carnival?" she asked trying to bridge the gap.

"I was a welder to start with, but then one day the metal struts were going to break and I used some fire to fix it real quick, people noticed and thought I could be useful in other aspects of the show. But I always liked being a welder the best."

Marie nodded. "Can I ask a question?"

He didn't turn. "You just did."

Marie sighed maybe he hadn't changed as much as it looked at first glance. "Do you regret leaving the jet that day at Alkali?"

He turned glared her in the eye and said. "No, we wouldn't be where we are if it wasn't for Magneto, sure he may have been a little extreme but, if the government hadn't thought we were a threat they wouldn't have tried to please us, now get out I came here for a rest and you aren't giving it to me." He snarled, pushing her out and slamming the door.

Outside Marie groaned and put her head against the wall. Why had she asked that question? She knew the answer, he'd had a million and one chances to come back over the last twelve years but he'd ignored them all.

Marie sighed and straightened turning to go towards the staff room. Warren was there yawning and drinking coffee sprawled on the couch without a shirt.

"Do you think you and Logan could've kept the fight down for another hour?" He asked disgruntled " Your yelling woke me up."

Marie sighed and sat down on the couch next to him. "That wasn't Logan" She sighed again and told him who it was.

Warren stretched nearly pushing her off the couch as his wings extended. "So?" was all he said.

Marie gaped at him from the arm of the chair which she had perched on to avoid being hit by his wings. "so? So? SO? How can you say that? this ...person was at Alkatraz he was one of Magneto's closest supporters, he betrayed the X-men and everything we stand for," she lowered her voice "they even say that he wanted to kill the professor."

Warren looked at her "And?"

Maries eyes bulged "and? And? AND? And what?!" she shrieked.

Warren looked at her his feathers ruffled "And did he?"

Marie just stared at him. Warren tried again "I mean he was one of Magneto's closest supporters one could say that he was even Magneto's right hand man, he did leave the X-men but did he really betray you and everything we stand for? And also we know he didn't kill the professor, Phoenix did. Actually, we don't know whether he ever killed anyone."

Marie glared at him she'd forgotten that Warren had never even met John, That he hadn't had to console his own betrayal while also consoling Bobby's double whammy. Now that she thought about it Warren was probably the next to worst person to go to to complain about Pyro, second only to Colossus who had a very good range of indifference and forgiveness that made him a great friend but completely maddening to be around when you were angry, he somehow worked as a neutralizer, calm, loyal yet objective. Warren was too soft spoken to be someone good to rant to.

Marie sighed and sunk back onto the couch, "When I first saw him, he looked like someone completely different from who he was."

Angel put his arm around her "And is he?"

Marie shrugged the arm off, " No, he's not so different, he's less self righteous but he's still Pyro, he's not angry but he still has fire in his eyes. Any other month, any other week, any other day, I'd be able to deal with this but just not today."

Angel squeezed her shoulders and stood up, "Guess I'd better meet him."

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Okay I tried a different format for this chapter then a normally use. It's meant to be easier to read. Let me know if it isn't. Also let me know if the dialogue is confusing, I'm not a huge fan of "he said she said"'s so I don't use them very much. Review if you like, don't if you don't want to .