Author's note: Thank you to ConstructiveCrit, IAmARebel22, Rasha007, ZabuzasGirl, NicoleR85, NotMarge, Luna von Rae, partygirl98, Kimberly Brooks, mpathy, kmj1989, and FutureOlympian for the reviews! Constructive, I'm sorry you didn't like the first chapter. I don't know if you continued on or not, but thanks for at least giving it a try. Rasha, right once again! Partygirl, have a good time! Kimberly, you gave me the coolest idea when you said that.

Wouldn't it be the biggest plot twist ever if Zoey turned out to be a bad guy? I've spent sixty chapters developing this love story and then wham! Sorry folks, she was playing Hank all along. She's even carrying his baby because she's that committed to her role. Of course Hank is devastated (I think it would devastate me to write that, my goodness). And then she either dies in some noble sacrifice a la Vesper Lynd, because she came to truly love him after all those years, or she runs away to give birth to the boy who would go on to be Pyro! Spoiler alert- that's not where I'm going, but it's still cool to think about. Thanks Kimberly!

But anyway, today Hank barely holds it together while Raven pushes his buttons. Rude.

On the Way

The question came from Alex.

He had never really got over the whole "Erik-put-a-bullet-in-Charles'-back" incident. Or the "Raven-left-her-brother-bleeding-on-a-Cuban-beach" thing.

Never mind the diametrically opposing philosophies on human-mutant relations, or the fact that we've had to go pick up after the messes their Brotherhood has made over the years. Minor details.

Needless to say, Erik and Raven weren't his favorite people.

They weren't mine, either, but I had bigger things to worry about than those two- things like saving my wife and unborn child from mutant-hating bigots.

Erik looked politely amused over Alex's abrupt greeting. "Hello to you too, Havok," he said blandly.

Sean and Alex rounded on Charles wordlessly, waiting for an explanation.

"Erik and Raven-"

Raven opened her mouth to correct him, but hurriedly closed it. Even after almost twelve years she still couldn't get Charles to accept the name she'd given herself.

"-have volunteered to help us rescue Zoey from the Friends of Humanity," Charles explained. "They heard about our predicament when Banshee radioed and want to assist us."

Sure, and I've got a bridge to sell you.

The other two looked at me, and then at Charles. We were all thinking the same thing: this was pure, classic Charles. Charles the redeemer, Charles the idealist, who believed there was good in everyone and even such a dark soul as Erik could still be saved.

"What's the catch?" Sean demanded suspiciously.

"No catch," Erik replied. "We're just here to save one of our own."

Erik was a master manipulator and my more conscious self warned me not to trust his seemingly altruistic motives. But my gut instinct was telling me I could believe him.

At least partially, anyway. He wouldn't risk his fragile friend/ sometimes-foe relationship with Charles by purposely allowing any harm to come to my wife. He knew better than that.

No, the trouble would stem from Erik's methods of "helping." His approach usually involved murder and widespread mayhem, and we X-Men weren't exactly fans of those things.

Alex let out a bitter, disbelieving laugh. "And you wouldn't be too upset if you ended up killing some FOH rednecks in the process," he sneered. "Which is just what they want, to give all of us mutants a bad name-"

"Havok-" Charles cut in, a warning in his tone. "Erik promised to use discretion-"

I don't have time for this. Zoey doesn't have time.

I interrupted him, striding past the others into the Blackbird without another word. I felt both weary and impatient of the bickering. Erik would do what he was going to do, arguments and promises or not. The only solution was to try to stop him when he inevitably did something crazy.

Until then, having a person who controlled metal on our side as we went after a bunch of gun-toting kooks would be an asset. And right now I wasn't picky about who helped us, as long as we got Zoey back.

Charles broke off and looked at the others expectantly, as if silently asking if they would follow my lead.

With a sigh that was more like a snarl, Alex followed me inside- probably throwing a dirty look at Erik and Raven as he passed. The rest trailed behind him slowly, taking their seats.

Hey look, it's almost a reunion. We just need Moira to come along, I thought glumly.

Somehow I felt much more anxiety and fear now, as opposed to that fateful day in Cuba over a decade ago. Back then I was trying to save the world- if we didn't succeed, we'd all be dead anyway. With my new second mutation I might not have even considered myself much of a loss. Today I was trying to save my wife. And if I failed her, my life might as well be over.

I couldn't see myself recovering from the loss of Zoey and our baby. It would be like someone extinguished the sun, leaving only darkness and hopeless despair behind. An empty shell of a life not worth living.

"What's with you, Beast?" Alex muttered to me as I sat in the pilot's chair. He looked like I'd betrayed him somehow. "You know we can't trust either of them to not cause trouble."

"I don't trust them," I admitted, meeting his gaze unwillingly. "But Charles does. And anyway, right now my priority is getting Zoey back, Brotherhood or no."

I sighed and gave my best attempt at a light-hearted expression, though I probably failed miserably. "Besides- I have a feeling that if Erik so much as blinks oddly, you'll blast him to kingdom come with relish," I tried to joke.

Alex nodded slowly, a grim smile coming to his face. "You know I will," he agreed.

He clapped me on the shoulder and went back to his jump seat, next to Sean. Everyone else was already settled except one person.

Imagine my surprise when Raven plopped herself in the co-pilot's chair as I started the Blackbird's engines.

Ugh. What do you want?

I stiffened, but said nothing. She would reveal her motives for sitting up here soon enough, and I was sure I wasn't going to like them- especially considering what happened the last time we spoke, over five years ago.

"So," Raven said finally, quietly so the others wouldn't hear. She waited until we were in the air and I couldn't escape or walk away from her. "You're married."

"Yes," I replied succinctly.

"When did that happen?"

"Almost five years ago."

"Why wasn't I invited to your wedding?" she asked, her blue lips pouting.

"I didn't think you warranted an invitation," I told her with stiff formality.

"Well that hurts," Raven retorted, though she didn't sound "hurt" at all. "I would've loved to see that happy day."

"Is this really the time to discuss such a thing?"

Wouldn't it be kinder to berate me for not inviting my ex-girlfriend to my wedding after I get my wife back? Like I need a reminder of that joyous occasion when I might be about to lose her?

Out of the corner of my eye I could see Raven bite back a smile. Like she was enjoying the current circumstances.

It made my hair stand on end, the fact that she was mocking me right now. Did she really have no pity at all? No sense of compassion?

"I have to ask- do you still hide from her? Can she stand to have you touch her when you're like this?" Raven gestured towards my blue form, her voice as sweet as poisoned honey.

Well I guess that answers that question. No, apparently not.

The unbidden image of Zoey underneath me, her face lit with euphoria and her green eyes glowing with passion and desire as she looked up at me while we made love flitted through my mind. Zoey had never flinched away from me, never given any sign that my claws and fangs trailing across her soft skin repulsed her.

Never. Not once.

"Not that it's any of your business, but Zoey loves me no matter what I look like."

"How nice," Raven mused, with feigned sentiment.

She was silent for a long moment. It gave me the hope that this uncomfortable conversation was over, that Raven would leave me alone to my anxiety and ruminations over Zoey.

But that would be too easy.

"Charles says the FOH took your pretty little wife hostage to get you to make a cure for being a mutant," Raven said suddenly.

Somehow she made the words "pretty little wife" sound like an insult. It immediately made me wary.

"Yes," I agreed uneasily.

"What made them think you could do it?" Raven pressed.

I sighed, because now I knew what she was getting at. And I really didn't want to talk about it, because I could guess where it would go.

"They did their research on me and realized I had a serum that suppressed my second mutation after some thugs caught us in an alley and I lost control," I muttered.

A pause.

"You realize this wouldn't have happened if you didn't insist on hiding all the time," Raven said. She had the air of someone saying "I told you so." "You say your wife accepts you. Well, if you'd just accepted yourself in the first place, she wouldn't be-"

"Yes, I know that," I snapped, though not loud enough for everyone in the jet to hear.

The words spilled out, my frustration with this situation boiling over. Usually I wasn't the kind of person who misdirected my anger at other people like that, but it was all just too much for me.

"I'm well aware that it's my fault my wife is being held hostage by a bunch of psychopathic degenerates who hate all of us just for existing," I hissed. "I had a woman who loved me and friends who didn't care what I looked like, but I selfishly wanted all of society to accept me. I didn't want to put Zoey through the stares and the comments from being married to a monster, and now she could die because of my ego."

I glowered at Raven, daring her to say anything further.

She seemed unperturbed by my outburst, though. Actually, she looked rather pleased with my disillusionment. Her yellow eyes began to burn with a fanatical glow- I think she sensed an easy convert to her cause.

"So now you see that hiding was never the answer," Raven told me. "Humans are always going to fear us, and we need to-"

"Save the proselytizing for a more receptive audience," I interjected coldly. "I have no interest listening to an ideology promulgated by a Holocaust survivor who believes in a 'superior race.' The irony would be laughable, were it not so shameful."

She scowled at me. "So you're going to go back to your worthless 'normal' facade when this is over? Give in to your petty desire to fit in?"

"No," I replied, shaking my head. "I'm going to be myself, because hiding from now on will be too dangerous for my family. But I also realize that wanting an entire society to accept me is just as foolish and preposterous as wanting to destroy it completely and building a new one to suit my own needs."

Sound familiar?

Raven fell into an angry silence, obviously thinking of some kind of retort. I'd struck her dumb with my declaration.

"Beast!" Charles suddenly called out. "Land in the clearing to the west of us. We're here."

Finally. My love, I'll be with you soon...