Author's note: Also those of you that are not members here can leave a review. So please do it! ; ) Thanks to those who have reviewed the last chapter! : )

I take my time to write this for you, so be so fair and leave a review! Even if it's a short one! ;)


ATTENTION PLEASE: From here on there won't be monthly updates anymore! I've all my final exams from February-November this year and to study a lot. So I don't have the time to update monthly anymore. Sorry! My goal is to update every two months, meaning: the NEXT chapter will be up MID APRIL! So R&R to get my motivation up! lol


What do you think about the First Class trailer? I'm still not convinced at all. I dislike their lack of following continuity but speaking of a prequel… I like that Magneto though.


Changes Sequel – III. War + Epilogue Part 10

Beams could be seen that indicated something was soaring through the sky that was still pitch black. The sun hadn't been shining, the sky not been seen since Apocalypse had taken the reigns and was living his dictatorship of fortissimus quisque tantum superset, survival of the fittest. The single Sentinel flew past others of his kind that were either patrolling the air or hunting down people and mutants alike. His goal was different. He needed to get back to base for debriefing. In the end, he was the only one left after they had chased down the fugitives and needed repair. When the hidden facility came up he descended and flew through the gate, past thousands of others like him, which stood dormant and waited for their deployment. Oblivious to the hidden, blinking device on his neck, right under his helmet, he landed in his usual place and waited for machines to connect him to the main computer.

"Why is it only one?" one of the workers asked and looked at his colleague, who was typing on his keyboard and waited for the Sentinel to send his data.

"Who knows what those things are up to…," his co-worker mumbled and pressed ENTER with a sigh. "I'm in need for a coffee. Want one?" he asked and got up, received a nod and was out of the door, leaving it to his colleague to run the damage analysis.

The man sat down on the empty stool and stared at the screen, watching the data being passed back and forth in boredom until he noticed something. "What the hell is this?" he asked and typed in a command to zoom in on the back of the Sentinel's head. His eyes grew wide as a red digital clock counted from 0:03 backwards and he had barely said "OH FUCK!" as the Sentinel exploded and took the whole facility with it.


"So…," Fury said and, while he made sure his arm was covered with his leather coat. "What's the plan?" He stopped at the table and gave Scott an expectant look, who looked back at him in utter confusion and turned to Logan for an explanation. But Logan chose to shrug only.

"We are currently trying to locate Tony," Scott therefore said and looked once more back at Logan, when Fury's eye still gave him an odd look.

"You are trying to locate him?" Fury said matter-of-factly and received a nod. "So you plan to storm into an area, an area up there in the mountains and try to find someone, who was shot down by Sentinels? All of that while our enemies are probably patrolling that area and try to find us?"

"We ain't leavin' Tony there!" Logan finally growled and got up.

"Yes, right, Wolverine," Fury nodded and wanted to cross his arms but figured that this wasn't such a good idea. "You'll endanger us!"

"Tony might be injured 'n needs help! We ain't gonna leave him there 'n ya don't have a say in it, Nick!" Logan roared, obviously pissed off and slammed the door shut behind him.

Scott looked from the door to Fury and pointed at the first. "What he said," he told the latter and followed him, hearing Fury sigh and mumble something about being stupid.

"Is the jet ready?" Logan barked into the huge hangar and watched how Peter and Kurt were still working on the front, while Reed was literally working with his hands and feet on the back.

"No, the damage was greater than we thought," Reed told him and extended his neck so that he didn't have to bark that much. "Your old jet is fine. Just the stealth is broken. I didn't have the time to fix that, yet."

"Then we'll use it," Logan nodded and looked past him. "Elf, I need ya on the team!" he barked and Kurt teleported over to him. Together they walked down the corridor to find more people suitable for a search party.

"Do you think he's still alive?" Kurt dared to ask the question that no one wanted to speak out loud.

"I hope so…," Logan mumbled and they had barely passed the dormitories as a loud BANG echoed through the corridor. He heard glass shattering to pieces, people shouting and an angry roar that definitely sounded like a huge angry wolf or bear. Before he could go and check it out, a door was opened and Rictor, dressed in black PJ pants that he was half falling over while trying to pull them up, stormed towards the backdoor in the kitchen, cursing in Spanish. "Something's up…"

"I think so…," Kurt nodded and followed Logan. They had barely reached the room, when they heard Rictor barking for someone to stop and let go, while some others were gathered at the window and watching the brawl on the outside.

"What the hell's goin' on?" Logan asked into the round, not feeling like being distracted from the actual task.

"Ehm… Some…really giant wolf in clothing is biting into this guy's arm and…the other one is barking at them," Bobby told him without taking his eyes of the fight.

"What?" Logan asked, since he didn't understand what was going on and joined them at the window. He cocked an eyebrow as he saw a giant wolf in clothing biting into a half-naked, red-haired man's arm. He didn't even have to concentrate hard on what was being said on the outside, Rictor was barking loud enough for anyone to hear.

"Dios, stop biting into his arm, Rahne!" the brown haired man shouted, arms hugging himself due to the freezing cold on the outside and considered what to do. She had her teeth in Shatterstar's arm, her claws in his skin and he was trying to throw her off him. "Damn it, stop it!" he barked as she went on clawing at the redhead and he could already see the smear of blood on the pale man's skin. Due to his anger, the ground began to shake heavily and he ran a frustrated hand through his messed up hair. He had no idea where that woman was suddenly coming from.

"Should we…I don't know…," Bobby began and looked at Logan, but he shook his head and pointed behind him.

"What's the matter?" Jean asked, had followed his call and came closer.

"I ain't gonna go between them when she's that pissed off. Could ya?" Logan asked and Jean had barely nodded when she tore the furious Rahne off Shatterstar and slammed her into the snow.

Surprised about it, Rictor stared at the angry mutant before he knelt down next to the redhead, who was still glaring at the wolf and wished for his two swords. "Dios, are you all right, amigo?" Rictor asked concerned and took the bloody arm into his hands, heard how Rahne began to growl angrily once more.

"Ah'll tear ye throat out, ya hear me?" she snarled and her brown fur was standing up due to her fury. "Ah'll kill ye, ye son of a…" She heaved deep breaths and got back on her feet, eyes narrowed to slits while she watched how Rictor simply ignored her and tended to Shatterstar.

"You need a bandage."

"I'm fine," Shatterstar said and got up, eyes making sure the wolf was standing where she was before he reached out to touch Rictor's shoulder. "You're cold."

"No shit, Sherlock," this one huffed and took him by the arm to lead him back to the back door, noticing how Rahne began growling again. "Don't…you dare!"

"Ye mind-controllin' bastard!" she threw the next insult at the redhead, who still gave her a confused look. "Ah'll slice ye open like a…"

"No!" Rictor snapped at her after he was halfway back in the kitchen. "No, you won't touch him! Understood? He is neither mind-controlling me nor doing anything else. So leave him the hell alone! Thanks to you we don't have a window anymore and can switch rooms!" Angrily, he slammed the door shut and groaned when Shatterstar was shamelessly flirting with Jean, who was bandaging his arm; much to Logan's dismay. "Star…"

"Tell yer boyfriend t'keep his hands off my wife!" the feral warned him and then nodded at Rahne, who was looking like her human self now, when she entered the room. "Long time no see, kid," he greeted her and remembered how she had apparently died after Sabretooth's attack, while trying to protect his children, and then been the only survivor of the junior team.

"Hi…," she greeted him back and watched how Rictor was thanking Jean and trying to push Shatterstar away from the woman.

"Stop it!" he hissed and received a confused look from the redhead.

"I was only connecting…," Shatterstar began to apologize but was silenced by a glare.

"Thanks for patching him up," Rictor said and Jean nodded, still confused about what's going on. When he turned to leave, his arm dragging the male redhead with him, he heard someone speaking up.

"What did ye do to him, ye…," Rahne began.

"Nothing, yet. But five minutes later and…," Shatterstar replied and was surprised when she began to roar once more and shoved Rictor quickly behind him, but Logan had already wrapped both arms around the woman and held her close.

"Let's go," Rictor hissed and pulled the confused man with him.

"She asked. I just…"

"I know. But she won't understand. So let's just go and find a new room for tonight," the heard the brown-haired man saying and they were gone.

Only shaking his head, Logan let go of Rahne, who still heaved deep and angry breaths and was about to ask Jean something when Domino entered. Her eyes instantly fell on Rahne and she chuckled.

"I figure you caused havoc that late?" she asked and helped herself to a coke. She took a gulp and looked at the woman's upset face. "Rahne dear, you must have been blind to not notice. Really."

"He isn't like that!" Rahne snapped at her and began walking over to the door, still angry and shocked as hell.

"I hate to bust the news to you but yeah, he is like that and he has always been. It was always Shatty for him and Ric for Shatty," Domino called after her and went on sipping on her coke.

"Did ya have t'be so straightforward? She's already upset enough," Logan grunted and crossed his arms.

"She'll survive," Domino shrugged and threw the empty bottle away. "Besides…I have no idea in hell how she couldn't have noticed all those years. Right, Jamie?" she asked and looked at Madrox, who nodded. "Speaking of the devil…"

"Thanks…," Rictor growled at her and tended to Madrox. "Can we sleep on our mattress on the floor in your room?"

Jamie gave him an unreadable look. "Uhm…no?"

"C'mon, Pietro said there's no free room and it's only for tonight!" Rictor said but Madrox shook his head. "I don't want to sleep on the couch! Star will watch TV all night long and I really, really wanna sleep," he cried and made a begging gesture.

"As if…," Jamie commented and received a look for that comment. "I need my sleep!"

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"Probably that with the two of you in the same room…," Domino began and received a warning glare. "You can sleep in my room, okay? But really just for tonight," she offered and began to frown when he had to think about it. "What? I thought it was so urgent?"

"Do you…sleep in your underwear only?" Rictor asked her skeptically.

"No, naked!" she replied sarcastically. "Of course, you moron!"

He sighed heavily and walked back over to the door. "We'll take the couch then. Goodnight!"

Completely confused, she gave Madrox a questioning look. "What the hell was that?"

He sighed. "Star recently discovered that he has emotional and sexual potential and now acts like a kid in the candy store."

"Good for him but what does this have to do with me?" Domino asked and he shrugged in an ironic way.

"You're the candy…"

"Oh…"

"Yeah… But don't worry. At the moment everything with a pulse is candy, so…" Madrox shrugged.

"Explains Ric's bad mood…," she nodded in understanding. "So what about the search party, Logan?" she changed the topic and gave the feral a look, who had watched the whole exchange in silence and couldn't believe he had ended up in a bigger nuthouse than the old mansion.

"Yeah… We'll take our old jet," he grunted and looked into the group, considering who else besides Kurt, Parker, Clint and Scott he could take with him. "Could ya come with us?" he asked Jean in the end.

"Of course," she nodded and left to change back into her casual clothes since she was already in her PJ pants and one of his sweatshirts.

"What about me?" Domino asked and crossed her arms.

"Yer hurt…," he waved off and frowned when she came over to him, swaying her hips lasciviously. When she rested her hands on his chest, he cocked an eyebrow at them.

"You know me very well and I think you can need my luck. So when do we leave?" she asked him sweetly and was surprised when he stepped back.

His eyes fell on the door where Jean reappeared, dressed up in warm clothes. "Now. Kurt, c'mon," he said and led the way. "Tell Parker, Clint'n Scott t'meet us at the hangar," he said but the redhead was already smiling.

"Already done."

Smiling back, he chuckled. "Right…"

When they reached the hangar he waited for the team to buckle in and started the engines. Jean was his co-pilot and he knew that she was scanning the jet mentally to make sure it was fine. When they set off he typed in the coordinates that Reed had been able to extract from the other jet. They knew Tony had come down somewhere in the mountains, also that his suit wasn't sending any signals or that the Professor couldn't reach him. Pepper was already close to having a mental breakdown and was being taken care of by Elektra and MJ. He hoped they would find him and especially that he was still alive. Logan looked aside when Jean glanced over to him and wondered if he had been sending his thoughts. When he looked behind him and noticed Domino winking at him, he sighed. He should have known that he wouldn't be left off the hook by her that easily… Concentrating back on the front, he realized that they were coming up on the area and nodded at his wife, who nodded back. It didn't take long for her eyes to glow like fire and she began scanning the area. At the same time he was keeping an eye on the monitors, Clint and Parker looking out of the windows whereas Kurt was keeping an eye out for any threats coming up. It would take a while, he was aware of that. He just hoped the whole task would have a good ending…


Back at Genosha Bucky was observing Hank, who was treating Cap's wounds and was bandaging the man's messed up chest. "You were lucky," the furry mutant told the Avenger and made him hiss as he pulled on the dressing. "Those things could have gotten straight through to your heart. You're really lucky that no organs were hurt." He finished with his task and grabbed the tray in which the remains of the metallic feathers lay. Most of the still had blood on them. He still couldn't believe what Logan had told him, that one of their friends was now their enemy and a monster. "Warren…," he sighed and shook his head, disposed of the feathers, washed his hands and went over to the cupboard to take a bottle with pills out of it. "Here. If the pain gets too strong take one of those."

"Thank you," Cap said and pulled an unbuttoned shirt carefully over his shoulders, not caring to button it. He was happy the less he had to move. Getting up, he left the med bay and noticed that Bucky was still scowling. "I'm telling you again, it's not making sense!"

"Not making sense?" Bucky asked and scoffed. "Think about it, Steve! We were fine in Canada, he comes to the house and we're being attacked. Then he is back here and we're being attacked. Maybe this whole going back to New York thing was only a way to lure us into a trap. He knew Logan would come for him! And before you ask, yes, I think he is that fucked up!" Bucky began his rant. "That guy can control emotions! He can make anyone believe that he is the sweetest angel and in fact he's a wolf in sheep's clothing!"

"I'm telling you that it doesn't make any sense!" Cap insisted and came to a halt at the room they shared. Inside, he let himself fall on the bed and held his aching chest. "I think that there's a mole, yes… A while ago I would have agreed on it being Daken… But that doesn't make sense…"

"Why?" Bucky demanded to know and Cap sighed.

"Back then in Canada it was him who was being attacked. They came for Daken and injured him," Cap began. "He left us in New York because we intervened with his mission and were rude to him, he broke himself and Northstar out of the prison, knowing full well that Northstar would slow him down due to his injuries. Why would he do that? If my goal was to hurt the group, I would have left Northstar at the prison and told the group that he was dead and that I had barely escaped. I wouldn't endanger myself. The same goes for him saving Jubilee and the children. Why would he do that, if he wanted to hurt us? He could have killed them and told us that they had died in the blast. No one would have found out the truth, Bucky! So him being the mole doesn't fit. It's not making sense to endanger himself and getting nearly killed twice in that process just to make us believe that he's on our side. As you said, he can control emotions. He could easily lie us straight in the face and we wouldn't notice!"

"And what makes you believe that he doesn't do exactly that? What proof do we have that he got really tortured? Maybe they knew we were nearly there when he got hanged, knew that we would be there in time. He's fucked up, Steve! He's a complete nutcase!" Bucky insisted. "I swear that guy will get us killed!"

Cap heaved a tired breath and ran a hand over his face. "Listen… You don't like him. I don't really like him either…"

"Then let's grab and question him!" Bucky said and received a frown. "Logan is looking for Tony. So we have some time."

"And what do you intend to do? Beat him up?"

"He'll heal." Bucky shrugged and crossed his arms.

"The mole is not him. If I wasn't sure of this, I'd say fine, go ahead. But I'm convinced that it's not him, Bucky. Besides I doubt he would talk no matter what you do to him," Cap replied and didn't like the gleam in Bucky's eyes. He shook his head. "No!"

"Why not? He cares for him! Or pretends he does so…" Looking outside, Bucky was checking on the grounds that were empty, the waves of the ocean softly pushing ice and snow around. He really missed living in the city… "I could do it in secret. No one would know!" he suggested but Cap shook his head.

"Logan will easily smell you on him. And I doubt that Daken wouldn't tell him about it," Cap disagreed and Bucky helped him to pull off the shirt. "Let's wait for Logan to call. I'm really getting tired." He lay carefully down and heaved a deep breath before he closed his eyes.

Bucky waited a moment and left the room in the end. After he had helped himself to a drink and had checked up on Reed, who was still working on the damaged jet, he walked through the dark and empty corridors thinking about what to do. As he was still not tired and his mind too occupied with the whole situation, he went to the gym and was surprised to hear the shower running. Curiously, he went inside and his eyes narrowed almost instantly as he realized who was having a shower after a late night's workout. When his eyes met dark hazel ones, he couldn't help but head over to Daken and push him against the tiles.

"Always knew you liked it rough," Daken mocked him and smirked when he was pulled around, his back hitting the tiles this time and an arm being pressed against his throat. "Aww, Bucky, you're so cute being all worked up. Didn't Cap feel like it today?"

"Shut up, you fucking asshole!" Bucky roared and slammed Daken into the tiles to his left, only earning a laugh from the man.

"Really, you could have just told me, you know? I mean…I don't like it as rough as you obviously do, but I'm sure we could have worked something out," the feral mocked further, still amused about the man's violent reaction and feeling not a bit intimidated by him. He began spreading his pheromones to pull the man into the direction he wanted, confused him, toyed with him and turned the tables to his liking. Still smirking, he quickly grabbed Bucky's arms and pushed him against the tiles next, keeping the man's arms trapped above his head with one hand. Smiling, he leant in and kept his gleaming eyes on Bucky's shocked ones. He knew he had him exactly where he wanted him to be. "You're so calm all of a sudden," he scolded him playfully. "Are you suddenly getting shy?"

"L…let go…," Bucky demanded, confused about why he was feeling what he was feeling and with his heart hammering in his chest. He knew he was flushing since his cheeks were burning like fire.

"Aww, so you're really getting shy?" Daken cooed and moved in closer, not caring that he was completely naked. "Used to being the top, hm? And now little Bucky doesn't know what to do and is unsure of himself?" he mocked and cupped the man's cheek with his free hand, leaning in as if to kiss him just to come to a halt close to his opposite's lips. "You're cute being worked up so much…," he whispered and let go of Bucky's hands, laughing as the man fell to his knees first and couldn't get up fast enough to storm out of the showers.

Back in his room, he slammed the door quickly shut and locked it. He was shaking like a leaf, cold shivers running down his spine and he couldn't get as much air into his lungs as fast as they demanded it. His mind was still trying to process what the hell had happened in there and why he had reacted the way his body had.

"What the hell happened to you, you're soaking wet?" Cap suddenly said and Bucky startled.

He hadn't noticed that the other man had switched on the lamp and was staring at him, tiredly and completely confused.

"N…nothing," was all Bucky could stutter and pointed at the bathroom into which he quickly disappeared and wanted to stay locked in forever. He ran a hand over his sweaty face and looked down his body, his heart racing. He just hoped Cap hadn't seen it or he would have a hell lot to explain as soon as he came out of the bathroom again…


Logan squinted as cold wind blew straight into his sensitive eyes. They had landed the jet close to where Tony had come down and had since then been walking through the snow. He was leading, taking care of the front, while Jean was behind him, scanning the area and the rest followed suit. Up to know he couldn't sense any danger, only snow, rocks and he hoped Jean had chosen warm enough clothes. Worriedly, he looked at her.

"Don't worry, I block the cold with my teke," she assured him mentally and smiled, but suddenly came to a halt.

"What…?" Logan asked and she pointed to their right.

"I pick up on something…," Jean told him and led the group over to an edge that led down.

Logan held her back and gave her a sign that he would take a look, so he moved as close to the edge as he could, looked down and at another ledge far down below. He didn't have to squint to see the red and golden armor. "Kurt, he's there. Get'im up here!"

"Sure," Kurt nodded, teleported down, took hold of the armor and reappeared next to Logan again. He made room for Jean to let her examine Tony.

"Is he all right?" Clint asked and noticed that the armor was pretty damaged. He watched how Jean pulled the helmet carefully off with her powers.

"Was about damn time, sweetheart…," Tony whispered and coughed.

"You're alive?" Parker asked surprised and ran a hand through his hair. "Damn, we expected the worst."

"Are you in pain, Tony?" Jean asked and tried to feel his pulse but the armor was in the way.

"Headache…," he replied and closed his eyes for a moment.

"We need to get back to the jet. He's in the cold already for too long," Jean told Logan, who nodded and pulled Tony up.

"Yer heavy…," he grunted and had trouble walking in the high snow with the extra weight in his arms. When it was suddenly lifted off him, he knew whose doing it was and winked at his wife.

"How did he even survive? I thought you couldn't reach him?" Domino asked and joined Logan's side.

"I switched Jarvis off so that the battery lives long enough to heat the interior…," Tony mumbled. "I knew you couldn't live without me…."

"Don't get your hopes up too much!" Clint teased him and gave the armor a gentle double pat. "Glad you're still alive, man."

In the jet, Logan put Tony carefully down and moved over to the pilot's seat, while Clint and Parker began to try to peel Tony out of the damaged armor. When they were nearly back at Genosha, they gave up. "I think you've got to wait. The screws are too damaged…"

"Don't worry. I'm comfy…," Tony smiled tiredly. He felt the soft motion of the jet's landing and opened his eyes a bit just to see how Logan pulled him back up. "No…"

"No what?" the feral grunted.

"I don't want you to carry me over the threshold…," Tony muttered and closed his eyes again. His head felt like exploding.

"Well, live with it!" Logan shrugged and followed Jean to the next best room. "Reed should be able to open that thing…," he suggested after he had dropped Tony on a table.

"Already told him," the redhead said. "I get changed and prepare the med bay," she announced and left the room.

It didn't take long for Reed to enter and tend to Tony. "I'm glad to see you're still alive," he said while working on the suit. "But I think I'll have to hurt you some…"

Tony snorted and coughed. "As if you won't enjoy that…," he whispered and gritted his teeth, a long groan escaping him each time Reed pulled pieces of the armor off.

"Done. How about less screws for the next suit?" Reed asked and threw the last screws into the bin next to him. He gave the man a quick look over, saw bruises but nothing that would have concerned him. He just hoped that he was right.

About an hour later and several checkups, Hank came to a halt next to Tony's bed and gave the papers in his hand a quick look over. "You really had all guardian angels on your side, Tony…"

"Well, they love me…," Tony shrugged and smiled at Jean when she adjusted the bandage on his shoulder. "Isn't that right, beautiful?"

"Whatever you say, Tony," the redhead replied and went over to the basin to wash her hands.

"Nevertheless, I want you to stay in bed for the rest of the week. A concussion is not funny. Besides, it will give your right leg and shoulder time to heal," Hank told him and put the papers aside.

"One week?" Tony gasped and groaned.

"Yes, one week. If I catch you getting up, I'll restrain you!" Hank warned him and Tony could tell that the man meant it. "Besides, someone specific will spank you anyway," he added and gave Jean a nod to let Pepper inside.

The woman instantly went over to the bed and gave the rather pale man in it a look over. She had wanted to stay strong, had wanted to keep a straight face but seeing him again after believing that he was gone made her just cry.

"Pepper…," Tony sighed and pulled on her arm with his good one to pull her down to him. "Please stop!"

"We thought you were dead!" she sobbed into his chest and both didn't notice how Jean and Hank left the room.

"I'm not, see? I'm not that easy to kill," he tried to cheer her up but received a sad glare. "I'm okay. Flying on cloud 10 thanks to all those drugs, but I'm okay!" he assured her and reached out to wipe her tears away, a move that made her utter another sob. "Pepper…"

"Would you mind keeping it down? People are trying to sleep her!" a deep voice grumbled from his left and he realized he hadn't noticed the man in the second bed nor the two eyes of the third man glaring at him.

"I'm sorry we interrupted your beauty sleep!" he mocked Daken, who shot him another glare and tried to get comfortable in the stool again.

"It's not funny, Tony. You could have died!" Pepper suddenly said in a very small voice and he looked back at her. She was now sitting on the bed and looking at their entwined hands. "They said you tried to protect the jet…"

"I'd rather call it a…failed distraction…," he replied and sank back into the covers, eyes staring at her. He would never admit it but he had been scared like never before. After coming by and realizing that he was lying in the snow somewhere in the mountains, alone, not knowing if they had already come looking for him or not… He had switched of the battery after waiting for a call to save the energy, knew that heating the interior was more important than anything else at that moment… Hell, he had even eaten snow after getting thirsty… But waiting and watching how a day went by and no one was coming for him didn't help to push his fear away. He had become delusional for a moment due to his headache, had believed that Pepper was there, thought that he was dying and whoever that angel was that had come to claim him had taken her face. It was then that he realized that he had wasted so much time, so much precious time with her… "Pepper?" he heard himself asking and his eyes were still gluing on hers when she looked back up, eyes still glistening of unshed tears and relief. "I'm done wasting time…"

She frowned at that. "What do you mean, Tony?"

"What I said… That I'm done wasting time," he repeated. "I already wasted too much of it…"

"Good for you…," he heard Daken grumbling, who was still unhappy of his sleep being interrupted, but chose to ignore him.

Instead he took Pepper's hand into both of his, the heart rate monitor speeding up significantly. "Pepper…"

"Tony, are you not feeling well? I can get Jean or…," she began after being startled by the beeping, but he shook his head.

"I'm fine, listen…," he said and made her look at him. "As soon as I'm patched up… I want us to go to the next best…"

"Are you sure?" she asked since even she could tell that the heart rate was way too fast to be normal and pointed at the screen to his left.

"Potts, would you let me finish my sentence before I lose the courage?" Tony asked more demanding and she gave him a surprised look. "Pepper, will you…"

"You really don't look well, Tony!" she interrupted him once more and touched his face. "You've got a fever! I'll go and get Jean!"

He tried stopping her but failed to grab her arm and watched her heading for the door; knowing that it was now or never, he heard himself blurting out. "Will you marry me?"

Raising his head, Daken frowned at Tony first, then his eyes darted to Pepper, who had frozen on the spot. What was so hard in letting him sleep? Since she wasn't moving and had only turned to stare at Tony in complete shock and the man himself wasn't moving an inch, he heaved a deep breath and squeezed the back of his nose. , was all his mind demanded. In the end, it was roughly 3 something at night. "Say yes, go over kiss, hug, make out, be happy, sleep!" he instructed her and yawned.

"Would the back row finally shut up?" Tony asked him sourly and, after turning back, he noticed that Pepper still stared at him like a deer caught up in headlights. "Pepper…" He was about to crack a joke and tell her to forget it, when she came over, eyes and face completely serious.

"Why all of a sudden?" was all she could ask and he would have shrugged, if it wasn't for Jean's phenomenal way of restraining an injured shoulder.

"As I said… Done wasting time…," he replied and swallowed hard, the heart rate completely forgotten.

"Why?"

He sighed and gave Daken another annoyed look. "Could you go outside for a minute?"

"No," came the reply he had reckoned with. "I can still hear you from the outside anyway and I was here first."

"Prissy little princess!" Tony mocked him.

"Well, I like being daddy's little princess," Daken mocked back in a childish voice.

"I'm sure you do!"

"Tony?" Pepper sighed and brought him back to their topic. "Why?"

"Because…," he began and was at a loss of words. He knew Daken would never let him hear the end of it. "…because I thought I was dying… And I realized that…I had nothing and…" He was nervously chewing on his bottom lip and couldn't look at her. "…and I…said to myself that…if I survive this, I'd stop wasting time…" He looked up when there was no reply and knew he had shocked her. "I know I screwed up last time, Pepper. I know that I am the most unreliable person…"

"You're not unreliable, Tony, you just have serious problems to stick to set dates…," she corrected him.

"Whatever you want to call it, Potts," he said. "But lying there, thinking that's it… I realize that…I don't really have anything," he added and went quickly on before she was able to interrupt him. "I'm a genius, I can build any weapon I want, I have more money than I could ever spend… But take that away and I don't have shit. The others have a family, I don't. Because I wasted time, because I thought that there's enough time to establish one, but there isn't! Not with what's going on. It can be over every day and I want you to be taken care of in case something happens to me."

She sighed and nodded. "So you want to marry me only because…"

"No!" Tony quickly said. "I want to marry you because I love you! Because I want to be with you and you to be with me. And I want us to stop wasting so much time on pretending that we are just friends, because we aren't!" He looked at her hopefully.

"Could you finally say yes, please?" Daken sighed and his head nearly rested on the bed after his arm had supported it the whole time though. "I don't feel like drowning in a lake of drool…"

"Could you finally shut up?" Tony snapped at him, ignoring his pounding head for a moment and was surprised when he was suddenly pulled into a kiss and careful hug from the redhead. "Is that a yes?" he mumbled into her shoulder after a moment and wondered why she was sniffing. "Potts?"

"If you screw this up, Mr. Stark!" she warned him after sitting back up straight and poking into his chest, "Then I swear…"

Chuckling, he pulled her back against him and held her close as good as he could. "Then you can kill me with your bare hands," he promised and heaved a happy sigh.

"I must be crazy…," Pepper mumbled into his chest and listened to his steady heartbeat.

"Me, too…," Tony agreed and began to realize what he had actually said. "Did I really ask you to marry me?"

"You won't back out now!" she warned him and noticed the playful, but tired gleam in his eyes.

"Well, I hope the soon-to-be-Mrs-Stark knows that I want a genius baby, too!" he teased her and pulled her into another gentle kiss. "You know…those genius genes have to be passed on! It's not fair that Logan has one of those…"

"You look tired, Tony. You should sleep," Pepper said in concern and cupped his cheek.

"Stay here."

"You sure?"

"Hey, I have to make sure you won't run off, right?" he teased her and smiled when she slipped off her shoes and went under the sheets with him.

"I won't run off," she assured him and took his hand.

"Good to know that…"

"God, I can't believe I'm about to do this…," Pepper cried after a moment of silence and covered her face with her hands. "Marrying you… I must be insane…"

"To cut it short, yes, you are, great that we discussed it, now shut…the hell….up!" Daken sighed completely annoyed by now. When there was no reply, he looked up and realized both of them had fallen asleep. "Finally…," he huffed and shifted on the stool once more.


He was awoken by someone's babbling and someone else poking constantly into his arm. He swore it was going to leave a bruise… "Dios… What…?" he mumbled and turned his head just to bury it back into something warm.

"Julio? You should see this!"

"No, Star, I should sleep…," Rictor muttered but raised his head anyway, his hair a complete mess. "Why are you watching TV again?" he cried since he'd been happy that he had been able to distract his friend from the TV up to now. That man was married to it to a point where Rictor was convinced it was some kind of compulsive behavior. "Star…," he groaned and sat up, his hand running through his hair.

"Look!" Shatterstar said and pointed at the screen where a reporter was talking about some explosion.

"Yeah, a Sentinel facility was blown up, so what?" Rictor asked, rubbing his eyes but froze in his movements as realization set in. "Madre de Dios!" he gasped and grabbed the remote to raise the volume. He didn't look up as some of the other groups entered the room, nor as he was pulled into a warming hug by his friend.

"This cunning devil…," Reed huffed and crossed his arms.

"Who do you mean?" Sue asked him while hugging his waist.

"Tony did this. He planted a bomb on that Sentinel, knowing that it would fly back to base… That guy really is completely nuts!" Reed shook his head.

"You don't need to tell us…," Hawkeye mumbled while his eyes were glued on the television. According to the reporter no one knew how the facility has been blown up. "They'll take revenge…"

"They don't know where we are!" Parker disagreed and frowned when his team mate gave him a grim look.

"Not on us, Pete! On innocent people," Clint explained and sighed. "Well…at least one facility down…"

"And lots more to go…" Johnny Storm reminded him sarcastically. He turned his head when his stomach grumbled. "Is breakfast ready? Who's on duty? I'm starving!"

"I think it's us…," Rictor cursed and tried to entangle his limbs from Shatterstar's, who had pulled him between his legs at some point. "C'mon, amigo."

In their room, Logan was cuddling with Jean and occupied kissing and nuzzling her neck when he picked up on the television in the living room. He tilted his head a bit in order to be able to listen in.

"What's the matter?" the redhead asked and stroked through his hair, placing a kiss to the side of his lips.

"A Sentinel facility was blown up. Reed said it was Tony's doin'…," he told her and earned a surprised look. Waiting a moment, he shrugged in the end and rolled them over, kissing her again. "Hm…"

"What?" Jean smiled and embraced him.

"I think we really need t'use that secret room again…," he grumbled into her neck, nibbling on it.

"I agree," she nodded and looked back at him when he raised his head. "May I make a suggestion?" she asked and stroked down his chest.

He chuckled and cocked an eyebrow at her. "Which is?"

"Shower!"

"Shower?" he smirked and pointed behind him at the door behind which the children were still sleeping. He chuckled when she bit her lip lasciviously.

"Locked door, drowned out noises…," Jean said and returned the grin he was giving her. "Thank God I'm a teke and telepath, hm?"

"Oh, yeah," Logan agreed and pulled her with him to the bathroom, where she locked the door with her powers while he got quickly rid of her clothes and his briefs. Still grinning, he entered the shower after her and immediately began to kiss her hungrily. By now he missed their old rooms, the opportunities they had always had, the alone time… But his thoughts were forgotten the moment she pressed against him and he lifted her up.


Xavier narrowed his eyes when Erik chuckled and sipped on his tea with a shake of his head. "Mind to explain what it so funny, Erik?" he asked rather sourly and the master of magnetism waved off.

"You ad our continuing search for hope," Erik replied and his face became serious. "You see it everywhere, don't you? No matter how messed up a situation is…"

"It would be sad, if I hadn't any," Charles countered and made his opposite huff.

"One of your former students is a killer now. The only thing you should consider is how to take him out!" Magneto seethed. "Before he'll endanger us all!"

"This is out of question, Erik!" Charles disagreed. "Apocalypse did the same to Logan way back and we managed to free him from the control. I will try the same with Warren."

"Of course… How foolish of me to assume you would ever get your hands dirty," Magneto said and crossed his arms. "Well, at least Summers finally understood it, am I right?" he asked and got up to leave the room, knowing full well that Charles would follow him.

"Scott is going through a difficult time. He lost everything in that attack!"

"And he knows what it takes to make himself feel better about it," Erik mocked. "Unlike you and your holy path of no violence." He came to a halt and smirked. "But this is so you, Charles. Always hope, always making things better by talking… Then why don't you fly over to our enemies, sit down and have a tea with them while talking about world peace? I'm sure they would listen, aren't you?" With another glare, he was about to turn around as he noticed who was already standing behind him, glaring back in return.

"Need help, Professor?"

"It's all right, Logan!" Charles tried to soothe the man and earned another smirk from Erik.

"Where is his collar that's attached to your invisible leash?" the man mocked and jostled Logan out of his way by using his powers.

"Fuckin' son of a…," this one growled and clenched his fists.

Charles sighed. "He is just frustrated with the whole situation."

"Well we all are!" Logan replied and put his hands to his pockets. "Especially with bein' here…," he added grumbling and watched the Professor wheeling down the corridor, telling him that he still had work to do. "Whatever…," he shrugged and stretched just to feel two arms being wrapped around his middle. He sighed. "Dom…"

"You showered? Without me?" she smiled and traced his stomach with one finger, surprised that he stepped back. "Back then you would have asked me to join."

"Yeah…back then," he nodded and buried his hand in his jean's pockets again, then trotted to the kitchen.

"So, when do we hook up now that we finally met each other again? You made yourself scarce in the past years. Been busy?" she asked and he glanced at her briefly.

"Ya can say that…"

"And?"

"'n what?" Logan grunted, cocking an eyebrow at her.

"Us, hooking up, when?" Dominio repeated.

"Dom, listen…," Logan began as something caught her attention behind him. Before he could ask, she had pushed him aside and stomped into the kitchen, eyes furious. Not knowing what was going on, he followed her and one look was enough to figure it out. "Dom…"

"What is this son of a bitch doing here?" she demanded to know, pointing at no other than Daken, who was giving her an ice cold glare in return.

"I'd be careful in what kind of way you address my mother, bitch!" he seethed.

"Oh shut up, you lying piece of shit!" she snapped at him and pointed at him in front of everyone before she addressed Logan. "Do you have any idea who that bastard is?"

"Actually…," Logan began but she went on with her rant.

"What's he doing here?"

"Having breakfast. Something you should be able to figure out your own," Daken replied in an icy voice and cleaned his mouth with a napkin. "Considering your limited brain capacities…I'm not surprised you didn't."

"Watch your mouth, you psychotic piece of…," she began as Jean entered the room.

"What's going on this time?" she asked and wondered if they could ever have a meal without people being on each other's throats. She looked to and fro between Daken and Domino, both still seizing each other up for coffins. "I assume they have met before?"

"So it seems…," Logan sighed.

"Are all of you completely insane to have him here?" the black haired woman asked into the round. "Do you have any idea what kind of psycho he is?" she added and her eyes came to a halt on Logan. "Do you?"

"I don't know whether or not you are capable of noticing…," Daken began in his always present mocking tone, got up and never took his eyes of her. "…but you are annoying the hell out of everyone here. At least you ruined my morning with your mere existence."

"Come over here and I gladly put you down," Dom snapped and made him huff.

"You need to get laid, seriously," Daken replied. "I'd offer but I'm afraid of catching something. Besides….I don't do brainless cunts and you weren't that good anway!"

"Akihiro, it's enough!" Logan intervened and got between the two of them. "Both of you!" he quickly added when he heard Domino taking a deep breath.

"Do you even know who this psycho is?" she demanded to know of him.

"He's my son, so yeah, I do!" Logan snapped but calmed down when Jean touched his shoulder.

"He's…," Domino began in a mocking way until she noticed Logan's serious look and Daken's winner-smirk, this shit-eating douchbag smirk of his she absolutely couldn't stand. "You are kidding, right?"

"No, he's not," Daken sing-songed and his smirk widened. "Surprised? Well, of course you are."

"Please, tell me you are kidding, Logan…," Domino pleaded but Logan's face remained the same. "Oh my God…," she made and had to support herself. Her eyes looked to and fro between both men, looked for any resemblance but couldn't find any. "Are you sure?"

"Very…," Daken said, hugging Logan with one arm and rested his chin on his father's shoulder. He enjoyed every bit of this moment. "Would you rather sit down? You look kind of…pale," he mocked her and chuckled when she actually did it.

"You were drunk that day, right? Or on drugs?" she asked hopefully.

"Hate to disappoint you, splodge-eye, but I am a pure lovechild. Unlike you, as I assume," Daken smirked arrogantly and let go of Logan. "If you'll excuse me, I would like to keep breakfast inside and seeing you doesn't really help." He shrugged when Logan gave him a warning look and frowned when Jean gave him a mental message next. Surprise became evident in his eyes for less than a second and he turned around to leave for good.

"Logan… Do you have an idea, any idea who he is?" Domino asked, still not believing what she had just learned. "That guy is a psycho! Of the worst kind!"

Sighing, the feral sat down and grabbed a pancake. "He's changed!" was all he had to say before he began to eat, fully aware of her eyes being on him.

"He will never change. He the best actor that would even put DeNiro to shame," she told him and crossed her arms, looking sour. "Why don't you ask Fury what he has on him? I bet you'll be surprised…"

Logan sighed and dropped his fork. "Look," he began and his eyes made clear that he was sick of hearing it, "I've met his darker side, I know what he's capable of, alright? When was the last time ya actually saw him? Two years ago? Three years ago?"

"A year ago," Dom said.

"Fine, a year ago then," Logan shrugged. "He's with us since last summer 'n he's changed t'a great deal."

That made her laugh. "Of course. He does everything to make you believe whatever he wants. He can be such a sweet angel and in the next moment he stabs you in the back. If I were you, I'd be careful!" she warned him but he huffed. "As I said…he's such a great actor," she added and minded her own breakfast.

In the meantime, Daken had reached the med bay again and heaved a deep breath b head before he entered the room. He came to a brief halt when a head turned and two blue, but tired looking eyes met him, a weak, barely noticeable smile becoming visible on the man's face.

"I see that Jean told you?" Hank said without looking up from the chart in his hand, his other one scribbling notes on it.

Moving forward, the feral came to a halt next to the bed and gave the speedster a look over. "Finally up?" he asked, making his voice sound as neutral as he could.

"Hm…," Jean-Paul made and reached out to take his hand. He hissed as Hank used a lamp to check on his eyes and closed them, as if he was in pain. "Too bright…"

"I'm sorry but I need to check up on your reflexes," the furry mutant said and began to draw blood next, then disappeared in the next room.

"What happened?" Jean-Paul asked Daken after minutes of uncomfortable silence.

"What do you mean?" the feral asked and sat down on the edge of the bed.

Sighing, the speedster closed his eyes for a moment. "How did I end up here? Why are you here?" he asked, voice weak.

Frowning, Daken just looked at him for a moment. "You don't remember?" he noticed and the question came out as a fact.

"No…"

"What's the last thing you remember?"

Thinking hard, Jean-Paul kept his eyes on the white sheets, his mind hurting. "I don't know… They said…you were gone… I tried to call you…" He paused and gave Daken a look. "Obviously, this worked out…," he noticed just to stare at the sheets again. "I don't know… Why are you here?" he asked once more and gave him a look. "What happened?"

Unsure of what to tell him, Daken reached out to tuck him further in. "You should rest."

"What date is today?" Jean-Paul asked instead and stared at Daken in shock as he told him. "March 18?" he asked, completely shocked and narrowed his eyes while thinking hard. "That's four and a half weeks… I'm lacking more than four weeks…," he muttered and gave his bandaged body another look, then touched his head and suddenly feeling angry. It wasn't before a hand touched his cheek that he looked up.

"You'll figure out. You need to rest," Daken said and pushed him gently back into the sheets. "I'll come back later," he added and was about to get up when a hand touched his wrists.

"Stay here, please," Jean-Paul muttered and gave the door behind which Hank had disappeared a look. "Being alone with him makes me feel….edgy…"

Furrowing his brows, Daken shrugged in the end and sat back down on the edge, his back leaning against the pillow behind him. "Sleep," he ordered and wasn't surprised when he found the speedster's head in his lap in the next moment.


The next days he spent his time watching the speedster. Something was off, that was neither a secret to him or the others. The moment he was finally allowed to rest in his own room, he stayed in it, refused to go out alone, refused to be alone at the same time. Somehow he was always on edge, scared of whatever demon was with the in the room and Daken didn't understand, couldn't understand. The first time they wanted to attend breakfast in the kitchen had him at the fridge and the speedster glued to the door, eyes constantly looking to and fro between the group. When he had finally asked what was wrong, Jean-Paul had wanted to eat somewhere else, 'alone', as he had put, which meant 'where no one else can sneak up behind me'. Because that's, as Daken figured, was one problem. When Narya had found out that her best friend was back in his old room, she had visited and instantly hugged and kissed him. But unlike the old times, the speedster had pushed her away, startled and had backed off next, had brushed it off as being in thoughts and hadn't heard her coming. The next encounter had happened in the bathroom. Since Hank wanted Jean-Paul to wear the knee and shoulder brace for at least another week, Daken needed to help him with getting dressed and cleaned up. Sitting down in the bath was out of option, so they had entered the shower, Daken with one arm wrapped around the speedster until this one had found a steady position. Nevertheless, as soon as the water had begun to drip on the Jean-Paul's face, the man had freaked out.

So when Daken returned with a cup of warm tea and found the speedster still wrapped in towels curled up on the bed, he sighed and sat down next to him. Of course the man was staring off into nothingness again and only mildly reacting when he touched his hand. With a nod at the steaming cup, the feral suggested he drank some tea, not feeling like talking either. In the end, he didn't know what to say anyway. So he remained next to the speedster and watched him, waiting for another unpredictable outburst…


Confused, Logan watched how his eldest left the room without another word. Up to now everything had been rather normal. Under the current circumstances that is. He had woken up, had a shower with Jean, played for a while with the kids in the snow, had a training session with some of the others, had actually talked to his son for a while and he had appeared to be in a rather good mood. Now this. Sometimes he really wanted to know how his son's mind worked. The Professor had told him that Daken's mind was complex and difficult to read, that he was suffering from a disorder didn't make the situation any easier for him, but he really wished that he could get through to him somehow. Looking at Northstar, he figured that the speedster, despite looking extremely tired, was worried, too. "What's wrong with him today?" he asked more to himself that anything.

"I was out cold for nearly five weeks, Logan, how am I supposed to know?" Jean-Paul snapped and turned back around after he had stared at the door. "Did something happen that I should know about? I mean besides all of the things no one wants to tell me?" he asked into the round but didn't receive a reply. Not that it surprised him. No one was telling him anything… "Did anyone talk to him while I was out cold or was he by himself in the past three weeks?"

"He was mostly sitting next to you and reading a book," Hank informed him. "He wasn't really talkative in the past weeks and mostly stuck to himself. And if he was asked something, he was his usual bitchy self." He began to frown when the speedster gave him a rather dark look. "We can't force him to spend time with us, Jean-Paul!"

"Did anyone of you even bother to ask him to spend time with you? He's getting depressed when he doesn't get attention, Hank. He can cause havoc if it's getting too bad and he feels mistreated," the Canadian told him and was about to retrieve his crutches from his right when Daken reappeared to wordlessly dispose of his plate and glass. When he was on his way back to the door the speedster quickly grabbed his hand and made him stop. One look into the feral's eyes was enough for him to understand what was going on and he pulled him gently between his legs, one hand stroking through the feral's soft hair. "Bad day?" Jean-Paul asked him in a calm and tired voice and received a barely noticeable nod. "Figured that much… Me, too," he said and caressed Daken's cheek for a moment. "You look damn tired, baby. Let's go to bed, okay?" he suggested and let go of the feral's hand. He watched him leaving and waited a moment before he took his crutches, got up and turned to look at Logan. "Is it still okay that Kazu stays with you?"

"Sure," Logan said and watched how Jean-Paul explained the situation to the boy before he wished him a good night and told him to listen to his grandpa. "Will ya be fine?" he asked and received a shrug.

"I know what he's like on his bad days, but… We'll see…," Jean-Paul muttered.

"You should really try to convince him to talk to Charles," Jean suggested.

"He can't stand people, Jean. He doesn't care about them," he replied and limped over to the door. "And as long as that's the case he won't talk about anything."

"Maybe he'll talk to you…"

"He won't. That's part of his disorder. He is never wrong, he doesn't need help, it's other people that do. The Professor already told me that even if he agrees on a therapy, changes to help him are so low that it's practically useless. And besides…I'm not a therapist. I can't help him. Only try to do damage control," he said regretfully before he gave them a rather sour look. "Besides…no one is telling me anything either, right?"

"What kinda disorder is he talkin' about 'n why don't I know about it?" Logan grunted after the speedster had left and looked at Jean first, who shook her head, before his eyes met Charles. "Chuck?"

"I'm not one hundred percent sure, yet, Logan," the bald man replied and sighed. "I told you that I am analyzing your son constantly because I want to find a way to help him. And I was sure that there was no way he didn't take any mental damage from what has been done to him." He saw how Logan cocked an impatient eyebrow at him. "I'm sorry to say this but I am convinced that he has narcissistic personality disorder."

"Which means?" Logan demanded to know and could tell that it didn't mean anything good when Jean, Hank and Moira nearly sighed in sync.

"It's one of the three most difficult personality disorders to treat, Logan. And nearly impossible to cure it. Those who suffer from it take even the slightest critique personally and see it as humiliation. They are incapable to understand that the problem lies with them and not with all others around them", Charles explained. "They are incapable to feel, lack empathy completely and think they are without any faults. They see themselves as absolutely flawless and need attention and approval. Anyone else is below them and no matter what the narcissist does wrong, it's never his fault. His universe consists of him alone, others don't matter because he isn't capable to understand that others have needs, too," Charles went on. "The sad aspect is that those persons are mostly empty shells. They have no real self, only a reflection which is an act."

"What do you mean with that?" Kitty asked, frowning.

"I mean that…they see themselves as this great, flawless, lovable person. They created a shadow and think they are this shadow. But in fact they don't have a self. They were never able to create a self that they can love, don't know who they are or think of themselves as loathsome. They are so terrible afraid of being rejected and excluded from others that they act as their shadow. Because people can love their shadow since it's perfect. Their occupation is to project this loveable reflection of themselves on others. The more successful they are with it, the more they become this shadow," he explained to her and could tell that everyone was listening intently. "So basically, Daken's arrogance and superior behavior is him dealing with the feeling that we reject him. To a narcissist being not loved and accepted is depressing and humiliating. So as a reaction they either lash out or sulk. It's also common that they attack others verbally to inflict hurt in them. He is not capable to understand that we are beings with feelings, that we also have needs or problems. He regards himself as more important and is not interested in us."

"But how do you want to integrate someone like him?" Cap asked. "We can't always focus on him as soon as he feels the need for attention."

Charles looked into the round for a while and kept silent. He hadn't noticed that Logan has gotten up and was now standing at the window, arms crossed and eyes full of fury. "That's the problem, Steven," he went on. "Despite his reflection, the way he sees himself, he has a completely submissive, depressed and empty interior. If it was possible to strip his vicious and fake nature away, there would be nothing left. He'd be completely lost because he doesn't know who he is. That's why he needs this shadow of himself to be able to function." He sighed and shook his head. "Emotionally, he's on the level of a toddler. Only he is important, no one else. It's his needs only that need to be tended to and even when this is being done, he's extremely depressed and fundamentally dissatisfied."

"And he's like that because of the abuse?" Kitty asked.

Charles shook his head. "I think not only the abuse he suffered plays a role in this, Kitty," he replied. "It started way before Romulus got his hands on him, but still he also plays a significant role in Akihiro's development. A narcissist concentrates on himself only because he is the only person he can rely on. He will never leave, he will never stop loving himself. He gave up on trusting others and believing that others could ever love him for who he really is. My guess is that Akihiro's foster parents never or rarely showed affection and he felt unloved or abandoned. Maybe they only rewarded him with affection when he did something right and punished him with ignorance when this was not the case. I don't know. But a child needs an adult for guidance. If a child is not able to have this important connection, this safe-house and is left alone in this world, it can not develop in a healthy way. The child learns to side-step relationships in order to prevent being hurt and abandoned. It's a mean of protecting itself from pain. So they grow up learning that the only person reliable is themselves. They stop trusting people. They love themselves because this love can not hurt them or abandon them."

"But how come he sticks to JP so much then? I mean he is rarely ever seen without him," Scott said and crossed his arms.

Charles smiled. "Usually, a narcissist needs people to be able to feel that he exists. He charms them into doing things for him, he needs them for attention, for his own entertainment. People are only instruments for him that he uses until they bore him. To him everyone is disposable and he takes from his partners only, since he can't give. No matter if the partner loves him, he can't love back. If he's not getting attention he does everything to get it, even if it means humiliating and hurting the partner."

"Sounds to me as if you use JP as bait, Charles. Bait to keep Daken calm," Scott said but Charles shook his head.

"I said usually, Scott. Usually, a narcissist doesn't feel anything for the partner. He only uses him as an object, like a leech. But when it comes to Akihiro's relationship to Jean-Paul, I'm confused. His behavior to him often is completely unusual for someone who suffers from this disorder. Akihiro knows that he can easily find someone else. He knows he can manipulate anyone of us into taking Jean-Paul's place. So the fact that he protects him, rescues him and cares for him… It just doesn't fit."

"It's the sex. Definitely," Tony shrugged but the Professor shook his head.

"Trust me, Tony, it's not. I talked to Jean-Paul because I had the same impression and he told me that Akihiro is not interested in sex at all."

Bobby and the Thing nearly choked on their drinks. "Are you kidding, Professor?" Bobby asked. "He always flirts with anyone and acts as if he wants to get into our pants!"

"Yes, he does this to get attention and a rise out of you. It's his way to entertain himself and to get confirmation that people notice him," Charles said. "Or to punish you for annoying and ignoring him. Because ignorance and critique is unacceptable for someone with this disorder. Some of them can even become homicidal just to get back at someone, who has hurt their feelings. I think we can consider ourselves lucky that the only things he does are either ignoring us, trying to get a rise out of us or humiliating us. It could be far, far worse! But personally, Akihiro doesn't feel any attraction to other people. Neither to women or men. He doesn't care about them and only gets close to them when he needs something."

"But how can he not be interested in it? I mean Jean-Paul is someone who needs to be close to people so much. He craves it," Narya said. "He'd be never able to be with someone that can't give him that!"

"That's the point that confuses me, Narya," Charles replied. "That is the only point that doesn't make sense when it comes to his disorder. He should see Jean-Paul as a tool, an object that gives him what he needs, something that he can get rid off whenever he gets bored and has enough. The fact that he protects him, that he allows him to be that close to him and even cares for him, gives me hope that I can help him somehow even though this disorder can't be cured. I don't know what Jean-Paul does but he somehow manages to keep Akihiro controlled. And the fact that this one allows him to do it… It actually gives me hope," Charles said and heaved a deep breath before he looked back into the round. "So as you see…he can't help being the way he is. He doesn't understand us and on an emotional level, he lacks what is needed to grasp our feelings for real. When he acts like a child it is because of his disorder and because it's normal for him to react this way."

Suddenly, Logan turned around and gave him a grim look, the fury still visible in his eyes. "This doesn't add up!"

"What, Logan?"

"He broke completely down twice! 'n we have enhanced senses. We can read all of you easily!" Logan grunted and cocked an eyebrow when Charles nodded.

"And he uses this knowledge to manipulate people into what suits him best. Just because he can categorize what others feel doesn't mean he understands those feelings or cares. Because he doesn't," the bald man explained. "And his breakdown back then can either mean that it was a narcissistic rage, which is very common for this disorder, or that there are by now far more chunks in his armor than he can take. As I said, I don't know what Jean-Paul does to get through to him so much, but that fact that he can and that your son listens to him and allows him to reason with him…" He shook his head. "Usually, narcissists don't do it because they think of themselves as always right, as perfect. What saddens me in all of this is that Akihiro is in fact his shadow. He's highly intelligent, he can be so charming and could easily make real friends anywhere. But deep down inside, Logan, your son is so traumatized and terrified of being left again...and thinks that people could never love him… His behavior is his way of protecting himself and curing him is just not possible."

"Ya could alter his mind… Ya could make him forget all the shit he went through and give him a blank state t's start over… Ya could give him a chance…"

"I told you that his mind has been broken and put back together so many times that it's nearly impossible to do any altering without risking to fry his brain. I could easily kill him," Charles said sourly. "And besides…he would live a lie. There's no guarantee, Logan, that your son will feel any better afterwards, that he would be…normal… He would still carry his fears inside and he would try to find out where those fears come from. You know best, Logan! It's a huge difference to alter the mind of a child like Laura or to do this with a 42 year old man. The risks are too great!" he explained. "Besides…I'm having an eye on both of them anyway. I'm afraid Jean-Paul suffered from a psychological trauma and I don't think your son knows how to handle this."

"So does that actually mean we have two traumatized time bombs here that can go off any moment?" Bucky asked and huffed. "Fabolous…"

In their room Daken was busy to get out of his shirt which he folded neatly and put it over the backrest of the stool to his right. His eyes darted to the door and he watched how the speedster dropped the crutches next to the bed, then tried to get out of his shirt with the use of his good arm. Not thinking twice about it, Daken went over and helped him. "Need help in the bathroom?" he asked.

Jean-Paul gave it a brief look. "I'll try… But I'll leave the door open," he replied and gave him a weak smile while his hand touched Daken's bare chest.

When he heard the water running, Daken turned back and noticed the paper on the bedside table. He frowned and took it into his hands. "Is that your paper, precious?" he called.

"No," came the reply and Daken's frown deepened.

He gave the front a look, figured that it was one of those Utopia papers he had seen in New York, then turn towards the back and his eyes came to a halt at a specific picture, then switched to the headline. WANTED James Buchanan Barnes aka Winter Soldier. His eyes looked back at the man on the picture and he thought his heart would stop. The whole time through, the whole time through he had been right under his nose, here with him… The paper fell out of his hands and landed on the floor. If Bucky was Winter Soldier, Daken thought, then… He slammed the door shut behind him as this uncontrollable fury led him right to the kitchen. His eyes zoomed instantly in on the man that was busy looking for a drink in the fridge and he went over.

Bucky had barely looked up as a set of claws suddenly rammed right through his shoulder and made him howl in pain. He barely registered how Hawkeye, Parker and Colossus tried to get the furious feral off him, only saw how a pair of claws barely missed his chest next. When Logan had finally restrained his son, he came to his senses. "What the fuck is wrong with you?" Bucky barked at Daken, whose eyes were still fixed on him in rage. He looked up when Hank put a cloth against his bleeding shoulder and still tried to figure out what the hell was going on.

"You're dead, you hear me?" Daken hissed and fought against his father's iron grip on him. "I'll make you suffer as you made her. I'll cut your fucking skin off and make you eat it, you son of a bitch!" he seethed.

"Akihiro…," Charles tried to get through to the furious man. "What happened?"

"Let go off me, you fucking asshole!" Daken barked and moved so quickly that Logan had to let go.

"Are you fuckin' mental?" the older feral snapped and frowned when his son glared at him full of hatred all of a sudden. "What's gotten into ya?" he asked in a more controlled voice.

Daken gave a bitter laugh. "Still putting up this show, aren't you, Logan?" he mocked and earned an even more confused frown.

"What show?" Logan demanded to know and looked aside when Jean-Paul entered.

"I'm done with you. I'm done with your lies, with your fucking acts!" Daken snapped and Jean stepped forward to create a psychic wall between Logan and his son when the latter's eyes darkened significantly. "You knew. You fucking knew it was him, all the time…"

Logan gave Bucky, who was still being treated and who was watching the whole scene from the back, a confused look. "What are ya talkin' about?" he asked but his son huffed, a distorted, almost demonic grin becoming visible on his face.

"Yes, go on playing innocent, go on giving me the if-would-shit that you are so perfect in," Daken nodded and his muscles shook with fury. "You are a fucking piece of shit, Logan! But what else to expect from an animal like you, right?"

Confused, Jean-Paul looked at him and then Logan. "What's wrong?" he asked Daken in a calm voice and considered reaching out. To his surprise Daken actually looked at him.

"Why don't you asked this asshole here?" he said with a nod at his father, who could only shrug. He then turned to Bucky again. "If I were you, I'd watch my back."

"Or what?" Bucky snapped at him. "You're mental!"

Smirking, Daken licked his lips. "Oh, I have never seen so clear in my life," he said and looked at the Avengers that were standing like bodyguards next to their teammate. "Hiding behind them won't do. I'll kill each one of them until I reach you," he promised Bucky in a voice that made the man's hair stand up. "And then you'll wish you were never born. I'm excellent at torture, you know? I can keep you alive for days…and cause you pain you've never experienced before. And I will…I can assure you that. You'll suffer as much as she did…" With a last murderous glare at him, he left the room again, leaving the rest of the group to stare at each other.

"Your son is mental!" Bucky said, even though his heart was racing in every inch of his body. The look, the voice, the threats…the feral had meant them, every tiny bit…

"I told you, Logan…," Domino spoke up. "That was your son's true face. He's a sadist, a complete psycho!"

"What has gotten into him?" Kitty asked and looked at her husband and friends. "I have never seen him like this before…"

"Get used to it, kiddo. That's who he truly is," Domino smiled sarcastically.

Logan, who had stared at Jean for a while and still tried to figure out what the hell had just happened, gave Northstar a look who was still focusing on Bucky. "What the hell happened in yer room?" he demanded to know.

"I was in the bathroom, he was in the bedroom," the speedster shrugged and supported himself on the table, his mind still working. "He …found some paper…" He frowned at you. "It mentioned you."

"Me?" Bucky asked, confused.

"Winter Soldier… That's you, isn't it?" Northstar asked as Logan suddenly let out strangled noise.

"What's the matter?" Jean asked him and picked easily up on the change of mood in him. "Logan?" she asked and pulled the hands from his face.

"He knows…," was everything he said and he didn't even hear himself saying it.

"He knows what?" Scott asked and looked at Bucky, who seemed to be as confused as all of them.

Logan's piercing eyes came to a halt on Bucky. "He knows it was ya who shot his mother when she was still pregnant with him…"

I'm sorry for the long wait but as I said, it's my final year of college and I have 4 written and 4 oral exams coming up. I will still stick to my promised schedule. ; ) This chapter was another b**ch to write and I had a major writer's block, so I am not really satisfied with it. I will try to put up a better chapter next time. Thanks to all of you, who left a review! I hope you had great Christmas and New Year's holidays! : ) I was lucky enough to get sick on New Year's Eve. Lol Anyway, the next update will be mid April! Take care!