Present Day

New York

Their first week at the Institute passed without incident. Logan made a point of spending most of his time in the Danger Room or locked up in Xavier's office, and Kitty learned to ignore the hushed conversations that ended abruptly whenever she entered a room. Classes resumed and the new recruits started destroying the backyard with an assortment of obstacle courses and target practice, as they did every fall.

Kitty assisted in a handful of courses, each one an opportunity for her older teammates to provide some sage words of wisdom. Either in reassurance of Victor's short attention span, or warning of his track record as a killing machine. She listened attentively, nodded and gave them each her most winsome smile.

Late friday afternoon Xavier and Logan called a meeting for ten o'clock that night.

"Does he always do that?" Victor demanded.

Kitty's eyes widened at him from across the room, "You heard him too?"

"Don't look so surprised," he grumbled, running both hands through his short hair. He was sitting at her desk, looking out of place amongst the school supplies and assortment of romance novels scattered across the desk top.

She moved across the room, running both palms over his shoulders and down the front of his flannel. Mouth close to his ear when she replied, "That's how the Professor has always called us to meetings."

Victor grumbled something along the lines of fucking telepaths and Kitty nipped the lobe of his ear, "Play nice, Mr. Creed."

"I don't like people in my head."

"Think of it as a telepathic text-message."

"I don't text."

Kitty rolled her eyes, "An email?"

"Fine."

"What's gotten in to you?" She asked.

"I should be the one running this meeting."

Kitty shook her head, "Don't forget who's in charge around here."

"Besides you?"

"You know what I mean," she replied, rolling her eyes as reached over his shoulder for her computer and a history text book.

Victor patted the curve of her butt, "If I'm going to take orders from anybody, it might as well be you, baby."

"I've never seen you take orders from anybody, Victor."

He watched her move across the room, "I'm better at giving them."

"Regardless, I want you to behave tonight at the meeting."

"Behave?" He repeated, grinning wickedly. "You going to discipline me if I don't?"

Kitty narrowed her eyes at him, "I'm serious."

"And I'm not?"

"Victor Creed, I mean it."

Victor, with herculean effort, managed to wipe the grin off his face to reply, "Alright, Katherine."

"Thank you."

"On one condition."

Kitty's expression remained wary, "What condition?"

"You'll discuss moving into the cabin with me."

"I told you-"

"All I said was discuss it," Victor interrupted.

Kitty released a long sigh, tracing her eyes over and over every line of Victor's body, still seated at her cluttered desk. He was becoming harder and harder to refuse.

"Fine, I'll discuss it."

Victor's expression was victorious as he amended, "We'll discuss it."

By ten to ten most of the team had gathered in the conference room. Kitty's laptop was open and humming away in front of her, her fingers already flying across the keys. Victor was beside her, one arm slung loosely across the back of her chair, irregardless of Logan and Scott's stares. Xavier arrived with Jean just in time to start the meeting at exactly ten o'clock.

The combined efforts of Xavier and a surprised-to-be-included Victor introduced both Stryker and his experiments. Kitty took diligent notes, while Jean flashed photographs of Stryker, his facility, mutants gone missing and finally the paperwork Victor and Kitty had procured.

"So you're telling us that Logan has not just been there, but been experimented on?" Scott demanded, rubbing his temples.

"Yes," Xavier replied. Jean handed out copies of Logan's history as per Stryker. The room fell into a lengthy silence as everyone read, and then reread the documents.

"And Victor and Logan are..."

Kurt's voice trailed off, his eyes bouncing between the two men.

"Yes," Victor and Logan replied in almost perfect unison. Kitty couldn't hold back a snort, which won her twin looks of thinly concealed fury.

"I've read enough," Scott said, mouth set in grim line. "When do we go after this bastard?"

Blueprints of the facility were shown, and plans of entry, attack and damage control were discussed by all.

"What about the mutants we find once we're inside?" Kitty asked.

"We'll bring supplies, medication, anything that we could use to start healing them," Jean offered.

"I think it's best to prepare for the worst," Xavier nodded. "We'll bring what we can and make every attempt to save who we can on site."

"The priority needs to be Stryker," Victor said. "That's the only way we'll get him."

"Victor's right," Logan begrudgingly nodded. "We go for Stryker first and damage control second."

Jean and Rogue voiced further concerns about saving the mutants inside but ultimately the Professor sided with Victor's initial prognosis.

"We need to decide which of the new recruits are coming with us," Kitty said. "I think less is more where this mission is concerned."

"The facility is heavily guarded," Scott said. "More bodies on the premises may work in our favor."

The minute details were further discussed by the team and documented by Kitty. Close to twelve o'clock Rogue made coffee for everyone, and finally around two a.m. Xavier opted to end the discussion for the time being.

As Kitty changed into her cottony pajamas the Professor's voice drifted through her mind.

Tomorrow night, same time.

She couldn't help but crack a smile at Victor's response, barely audible through the bathroom door, "Fucking telepaths."

Victor slept poorly, and disappeared to exercise early saturday morning. When Kitty finally rolled out of bed around nine she decided to tidy up her room in his absence. Balancing her worn out laundry basket on her hip she started pulling an assortment of her and Victor's clothes off her bedroom floor. Out of the back pocket of a pair of Victor's Levi's came a small, dark flash drive. Kitty abandoned the laundry basket on the bed and plugged the drive into her computer.

"Son of a bitch."

Flash drive in hand Kitty left the room, in search of Victor. She found him out back, watching new recruits making a mess of the lawn under Scott's supervision.

"Victor."

Turning at the sound of her voice, he was halfway through a smile when he caught sight of the expression on her face. Kitty lifted the flash drive into view and the smile completely disappeared.

"What is this?"

Victor reached up, hand closing over both the flash drive and her smaller fist.

"You didn't think I'd hand everything over without making copies first?"

"Why do you need copies?"

"In case your Professor decides to cut me out of this whole mission."

"Why would he do that?" Kitty demanded.

"He's not my biggest fan, sweetheart."

She made a face, "Regardless, we had an agreement."

Victor shook his head, "I'm not breaking it."

"What would you need these files for anyway?" She demanded.

When he didn't reply right away she let out a noise of exasperation, "You made copies so that you have a fallback plan, didn't you."

Victor opened his mouth but Kitty cut him off, continuing, "If I send you packing, if the Professor or Logan decide your time here is up, you'll still have all the information you need to get your injections from Stryker."

"Katherine-"

"Don't fucking deny it," Kitty snapped. His hand tightened around her fist but she phased through his grip. Victor let out a growl of protest, his opposite hand shooting out to catch her just above the elbow, drawing her flush against him. She had to tip her head back to meet his gaze.

"Those files were mine first-"

"They were Stryker's and then yours."

Victor's eyes narrowed, "You know what I mean."

Kitty's expression remained mutinous.

"There's nothing wrong with me keeping copies for myself."

"You're not holding up your end of the agreement."

"Bullshit," Victor snapped. "Having copies doesn't mean I'm going to do a damn thing with them."

"I don't trust you."

His grip tightened on her arm, "What did you say?"

"I said, I don't trust you," Kitty repeated. "You've wanted these injections for a long time, went as far as breaking into government facilities and kidnapping me to get the necessary paperwork on Stryker. You gave up too easily."

Victor gave her a pointed look, his voice softening, "Maybe I just found something I wanted more."

"Prove it."

When he bent to kiss her Kitty turned her cheek. Victor growled, "What are you doing?"

"You're going to have to do better than that."

Phasing out of his grip just as his free hand was closing over her ass, Kitty hitched both hands to her hips.

"You can't treat me like your mate while you've got a foolproof back-up plan ready and waiting in the wings if we don't work out."

"Katherine," he ground out, jaw clenched, expression quickly darkening. "We discussed this."

"I know," she nodded. "But we also discussed what happens if I don't want you around anymore."

Victor ran a hand through his hair, if he'd learned one thing in the past week it was how serious Kitty's prior threat had been.

The Professor and Logan won't let you anywhere near me if that's what I want.

"What are you trying to say?" He finally demanded, trying to keep his voice calm.

"You're going to have to convince me."

"Convince you?"

Kitty couldn't help the impish smirk that tipped the corners of her mouth, "Show me what it means to be Victor Creed's mate."

Victor's expression was starting to border on homicidal.

"I'll fucking show you what it means-"

He reached for her but Kitty phased, leaving him grasping at air.

"You've broken my trust," Kitty said calmly. Lifting her hand she measured a thin chunk of space between her thumb and pointer finger, "You're about this close to getting yourself kicked out of here."

"Jesus Christ, woman."

"And this," she lifted the flash drive and tossing it into his chest. "Isn't helping your case."

"You're playing games with the wrong man, kitten," Victor warned as she disappeared into the house.

"And you've pissed off the wrong woman, Mr. Creed."

She left Victor on the porch, eyes on the flash drive in his palm.