"What is it Raven?" Her Father asked as she sat frozen in front of them both at dinner. She'd worked up the courage to go home just after three on her usual school schedule and now after saying she had something to tell them, she choked.

Doubt pooled over her mind, with all the things they'd taught her.

"These vile demons."

"...genetic freaks.."

"I have never met a successful mutant."

"When they become those monsters they change. They may try to act the same but they're not the same person anymore."

Her parents would hate her… she knew they would, or… maybe, just maybe they'd realize that not all mutants were bad if their own daughter was one. They could only hate her for so long right?

They did try after all, always made her food and called in to check on her. In their own twisted way, taking her to those protests were their way of trying to make her more like them, right? They didn't love her right, but they must at least love her - she just wasn't like them.

She had to try...

"I… I… love you two." She breathed out, not remembering the last time she'd told them that. Maybe she'd never told her Father, her Mother when she was little before she grew to despise them both lately. Deep down, though, she did. As angry as they made her, maybe she could be the one to change how they saw things. "You aren't always good at taking care of me but I know you try."

She rambled slightly, floundering for words as they started to look angry.

"How dare you say we don't-" Her mother's shrill voice started to ring.

"I'm a mutant!" She shouted over her Mother's rant. A sudden silence rushed over them, and Raven sat paralyzed with fear. None of them spoke, staring at each other for what felt like eons. No one said a word. "I… I was the one… that, that passed out in the crowd… in the alley. I real-realized when I came home…."

She blinked and tried to change her skin, but she couldn't make it happen. When she didn't need it… when she actually tried to show them, it didn't work. Maybe it was the pit of fear blooming in her chest. Raven could do nothing but sit staring at them.

"That's… that's not true Raven," Her Mother snapped suddenly out of the reviere.

"Mary," Her Father said, grabbing firmly on to her. "Stop."

"What makes you think that, Raven?"

"I… I saw it, I… in the mirror…" She stared at him, not sure whether she was more afraid of his reaction or dying with hope this would change them. "But… you see now, right? I'm your daughter… so not all mutants can be bad."

She waited for them to react, face wandering from the growing disgust on her mother's face to her Father's always impassive one. That meant he wasn't angry, right? Anger she could always see on his face.

"I think you'd better go to your room."

That was all he said, and her heart began to sink. Maybe… maybe he just needed to process it? She couldn't expect them to change their minds right away after all.

"Father?" She asked quietly.

"Now." She jumped at the rough bark and darted out of her chair. That voice usually lead to a beating and as she retreated she realized she had no idea how that had gone. She leaned against her bedroom door and pressed her hands over her face, trying to calm the panic growing.

She locked her door that night again, and exhausted by the days events, fell asleep quicker than usual. Maybe in the morning… they'd be ready to talk about it. There was no going back now. So did it really matter anymore?

Later that night, Raven startled awake with a loud crack. Disoriented she didn't know that it was her door breaking. The lock kicked out. As she started to push herself up on her elbows, she was able to perfectly see her Mother in the dark, standing by her vanity with a disgusted face. Raven started to ask her what she was doing in here, when she was shoved back down with a violent force, the soft fabric of her pillow crushing over her face.

Raven gasped, unable to pull any breath in through the fabric and frantically pushed against the force. She hardly picked up her shoulders, feeling her legs suddenly pinned and hearing her Father grunt as she thrashed her head around to no avail.

Panic enveloped her, knowing she was never going to be large enough to get her Father off of her, she threw her arms out, hoping to scratch him, distract him just enough to get a breath of air as she started gasping harder and harder, choking on nothing. Her nails felt useless, her body too small to affect her larger Father.

Raven felt a shift underneath her, her skin tingled and the heavy weight on her legs slid away. Her flailing arm made contact with a staggering amount of force. Raven grabbed the pillow and pushed the arms away, gasping with a cough as she sucked in as much air as her panicked brain could.

The lights flashed on suddenly and she saw her Father sprawled out on the floor, but when she glanced up she caught her reflection in the mirror… and stared back at her Father gasping in front of her. Her head whipped back and forth her Father was on the floor and standing in the mirror.

Wait… she raised her hand and touched his cheek… her cheek…

"You monster!"

Her head turned to her Mother, paralyzed on the floor next to her Father.

"YOU TRIED TO KILL ME!" She screamed, her Father's angry bellow; echoing from her mouth, around them. How… she knew she was risking that they'd… but she never imagined they'd… they'd try to murder her! How could they?

Raven choked again, feeling the pain inside her throat now and suddenly the world started to shrink and her skin peeled away as she lowered to her smaller stature.

Raven wasn't standing there, though, or she was… her Father's hairy arms peeled back to reveal her blue skin shining in the ceiling light. This… this was what she was, and she looked at the horror in her Mother's eyes and the hatred in her Father's… and she had to run.

Raven darted for the door, only to find her leg caught and she was thrown down on the floor. She kicked hard, her Mother being tossed back and she turned around onto her knees and pushed herself back up.

Her Father grabbed her by the throat and yanked her backwards, and Raven gasped at the sudden pain bursting in her side. She looked down to see her Father's pocket knife sliding into her side. Her Father….

Desperation and anger blew up inside her and she yanked herself away, her powers growing again as she Father soon starred himself down. She punched him in the side of his head for all she was worth and as he staggered back from the unexpected blow.

Raven turned and ran. She ran and ran, as fast as she could, throwing herself down the stairs. With unfamiliar hands she fumbled with the front door's lock and knob, before flinging herself out into the safety of the illuminated night.

As she ran, the weight and height slid away from her too, until she ran in her bare feet through the night.