O' Brother…

Nate Grey floated high above the Xavier Institute. He looked down on the place from his birds-eye view, and sighed. It wasn't that he didn't like the place, or the people in it, but ever since he first crash-landed on this world, Nate couldn't quite bring himself to trust these X-Men. He trusted a few of them, most notably, his "parents", Scott and Jean, as well as Rogue, but especially after Onslaught, Nate felt it was best he kept his distance. But that begged the question, why was he here now?

It wasn't more than a few weeks ago that he ran into Cable. Nate was staying at one of his "brother's" safe houses, when Cable decided he needed to lay low for a bit. They didn't talk much, they never do, but Cable suggested that Nate swing by here and say hi to his folks. Though Nate had been out of the loop for more than a few months, and he was meaning to catch up, there was a certain… something… a wicked gleam in Cable's eye when he made that suggestion (and Nate was relatively sure that Cable wasn't using his telepathy), that the curiosity of the younger man got the better of him.

Grinning at sensing a familiar mind, Nate floated down and landed outside the boathouse, landing soundlessly behind the man sitting on a bench out front. The man had brown hair, and wore glasses with bright red lenses, giving no mistake about who it was sitting there. Scott Summers, Nate's father, sat quietly, reading a novel, but Nate couldn't catch the name from where he stood. With a sly grin, Nate leaned down slightly and said "Don't you know that reading too much is bad for your eyes?" Scott didn't flinch in the slightest, disappointing Nate just a little bit. But then again, Nate remembered that this was Scott Summers he was trying to startle. If the man could face down the likes of Magneto, Sinister, and Apocalypse without so much as blinking (at least Nate thought… he couldn't exactly tell with the visor in place), then Scott wouldn't be rattled by someone sneaking up on him. 'Next time,' Nate thought to himself 'Ice-cold water balloons.'

Scott let a small grin creep across his lips. Out of all of his children that came from an alternate reality, Nate was the only one who kept his sense of humour intact. Stryfe was… evil… to put it simply, Nathan, or rather Cable, was too serious, and Rachel was also more than a little hardened around the edges, though she was definitely more light hearted than either of her older brothers ('Or is that younger, now?' Scott thought). Nate Grey, though, had a certain good-natured and charming sense of humour about him, much like Kurt, and he managed to retain that throughout all that he'd been through. Closing his book after marking his page, Scott turned in his seat and faced Nate. "I can think of a few more things that aren't exactly good for my eyes, so I'll risk it.", he said, then stood and turned fully to see Nate. Scott extended his hand towards Nate.

Nate took Scott's hand and shook it firmly for a moment, then surprising Scott, he pulled him closer, and hugged him with his free arm. Scott had sacrificed his life for Nate, and for the world too, without so much as a second thought. The very least he owed the man was a hug. Scott returned the embrace without hesitation and whispered "It's good to see you". He was often at a loss on how to greet any of his children, especially his son's, given that neither Cable nor Stryfe, nor Nate for that matter, seemed inclined to hug him… especially in public.

Releasing each other, Scott and Nate looked each other over. Scott noticed that Nate was a bit taller than the last time he saw him, but he looked well. Nate, though, furrowed his brows upon seeing his father's full attire. "Are you actually wearing leather pants?" Nate asked while scratching his head. In the relatively short time he had gotten to know Scott, he certainly didn't strike him as a "leather pants" kind of guy.

Cyclops grinned sheepishly and shrugged. "New uniforms." That was the best, simplest, and most honest answer he could come up with. Deciding to change the subject, Scott asked "So this is a rare visit. What brings you around?"

Nate shrugged, not entirely sure why he was here him self. "Well, I haven't seen you and Red in a while, and I was in the neighbourhood… and I'm hungry." Nate started to walk towards the main house as he continued to speak, "It seemed as good as time as ever to say hi." Nate grinned "I hope you got the place well stocked. You know how I like to eat."

Scott looked at Nate as he walked with him, a small bit of concern hanging over his head at Nate's last comment. "I thought that tattoo you got, your 'genetic brand', prevented your powers from burning you out." Scott stopped and put a hand on Nate's shoulder, halting him. "It's still working, isn't it?"

Nate looked at Scott, and gave him a small smile. "Don't worry. The brand is still there, and perfectly intact. But even with it, I'm still processing a lot of energy. It takes it toll, but no more than I'd imagine what a lengthy session in the Danger Room would do to anyone else. Besides…" Nate grinned as he started to walk again "I'm still a growing boy." Nate began to scan the Institute grounds to look for Jean, but was unable to locate her. "So where's Red? Or any of the women, in fact?"

Once again walking in stride with his son, Scott spoke "They're out shopping." His son looked back at him as if to ask 'Why not go too?' but the look that Scott gave him told the young man that everything he heard about women and malls is true. With a nod, Nate conveyed his understanding, and the two walked together in comfortable silence.

When they reached the main house, one would have expected a mad house with it being just they 'boys' home alone, but much to Scott's relief, things were relatively quiet. Beast was sitting on the back porch, reading a Hemmingway novel, and Nate visibly tensed at his presence. Sure, Nate knew that the Hank McCoy of this world was vastly different than the amoral gene-junkie that hopped over from his universe, but given the similarities between the two, Nate decided that it would just be best to keep his distance. Hank, knowing of Nate's apprehension, and his tendency to lash out immaturely at times, merely waved at the two and cheerfully uttered "Greetings, gentlemen," before returning to his reading. Inside, in the living room, yet another Halo tournament was taking place, featuring Gambit, Bobby, Kurt, and of all people, Bishop. Scott himself had taken part in a few of these every once in a while, but how Bishop got suckered in is something he may never be able to figure out. At the very least, Scott felt better about seeing Remy in a more cheerful mood. He had been rather sullen when Rogue left him to be with Jenny, and disappeared for a while, but it looked like he was putting that behind him. Warren, most likely, was upstairs with Tom, given that Betsy had decided to go out with the rest of the girls. Wolverine was… being Wolverine, meaning he was somewhere on his bike, and no one knew where he was or when he'd be back.

Entering the kitchen with Nate in tow, Scott pulled out a can of soda, then turned to look at Nate. "Help your self" was all Scott needed to say. Almost like an excited three year old in a candy store, Nate looked through the fridge, cabinets, and cupboards, looking for something to satisfy his appetite, and Nate found plenty. Scott made a mental note to have the delivery of groceries moved up a few days. Once Nate settled on the many things that he wanted to eat, and began to chow down with an enthusiasm all his own, Scott asked "So what have you been up to lately? Rachel told me you visited her, but that was a while ago."

Nate didn't bother slowing down, or stop eating to answer. He was still a telepath, so talking with his mouth full wasn't as much of a problem for him as it was for others. Since they last talked, which was when they both came back from the "dead", so to speak, Nate had been through quite a bit, and he relayed that information to Scott. Nate told him about how he crashed with Rachel for a while, and how that relationship started off with massive arguments everyday, but eventually once they stopped yelling at each other, and actually listened to one another, things smoothed itself out. Nate also told Scott the unusual experience of being held hostage by Stryfe, and how the two had sort of bonded, much to Scott's surprise. Nate also told of his other adventures, and his bizarre meeting with Cable that prompted him to come here. Nate's train of thought was interrupted from the sound of a crying baby, which Scott explained belonged to Warren and Betsy. Nate felt a little bad, knowing that he had been gone for a while… so long that he missed the announcement of a new member of the X-Family.

"And long enough that Sinister created an addition to our family…"

Nate began to choke when Scott said that, and Scott gave his son a hard thwack on the back to help clear his throat. Nate looked at Scott, and without a telepathic exchange, Scott knew Nate wanted a further explanation. Scott looked at his now empty can of soda and sighed. "Her name is Rebecca. Much like yourself, she was made in a lab of Sinister's, in this universe, where he combined my DNA… with Betsy's… and then aged the girl."

Nate paused as he took all of this information in. Once his head settled, three distinct thoughts floated to the top of his mind. First, he made a note to find the Sinister of this world, and get rid of him, once and for all. His second thought he muttered out loud with a slight grin "So I'm not the baby anymore, eh?" That question got a light chuckle out of Scott. Finally, Nate asked "So where is she? She's not still with him… is she?"

Scott shook his head, "No. She's at the mall with the rest of the girls, but she lives here." Scott paused, then said "But her clone is still with him…" Scott didn't want to add that part, but he figured that Nate deserved to know the truth. Scott only hoped that whatever insane attempt Nate made at rescuing "Becca 2.0", that he would have just enough sense to ask for some help. "We lost them in New Jersey. We haven't been able to track them since." Nate easily picked up on the slight trace of… something in Scott's voice. Guilt perhaps? Nate didn't probe Scott's mind for the answer, but knowing how Scott was always conflicted regarding his abilities as a father, he assumed that Scott was upset with himself. "I've been meaning to talk to you about this sooner, but you're rather hard to keep track of."

Nate brushed that last comment off "Don't worry about it. Cerebro can't keep track of me, and I don't think the post office delivers to alternate realities." Nate smiled at Scott, but still noticed the guilt the older man tried to hide. Nate sighed and moved his chair a little closer to Scott's. "Listen, Scott, I just have to say… I really don't think anyone can handle being in your situation better. I mean, if some teenager came up to me and said 'Hi Dad', I'd probably freak out. For you to have six kids, two of which are older than you, by three different women, only one of whom you have had the pleasure of knocking up… well, for you to not be locked up in a mental ward is one huge testament to your character." Scott looked at Nate with an expression that was priceless. Nate chuckled, and continued. "Look, I know you worry about me, and about Cable, and Rachel, and both of these Rebecca's, and you even worry about Stryfe. I know we're not exactly the greatest bunch of kids, but a lot of that is out of your hands. You can't control the Phoenix Force, or psycho amoral geneticists, or what happens in another reality. You have to stop beating yourself up over these things." Nate placed his hand on Scott's shoulder. "For what it's worth, you have one kid in college, two who fighting to save the world, and I'm guessing the Rebecca who lives here isn't all that bad a person either. As for Stryfe and Rebecca's clone…" Nate thought for a moment "Well, once you sit them down and have a heart to heart and give them a dose of that Cyclops charm… well, I'm sure they'll be right as rain in no time… or at least not in so much of a hurry to kill people. But in the mean time, four out of six isn't too shabby."

Scott stared in disbelief at Nate for a moment, who looked back at his father with both his eyebrows raised as if to say "I really can't think of anything better to say right now." Scott eventually broke out into a wide grin, and chuckled a little as he put his head in his hands and muttered "Cyclops charm…". He looked back up at Nate with a look of fatherly pride. "I see you've learned a lot while being out and about." Scott's face settled into a warm smile "Thanks… I think I needed to hear that from one of you."

Nate nodded his head "Well, I'm glad it got to be me." Both Nate and Scott stood and embraced in a warm hug.

Scott let go of Nate, and wasn't sure what to say next. Luckily, a loud cheer from the living room broke the silence. Scott turned his head in that direction. "You want to join them? I don't play games much, but I've gotten a fair amount of practice at Tekken Tag." Scott grinned at his somewhat surprised son.

Nate stared back, then uttered "Leather pants, and video games… man, Scott, I'm not sure if I even recognize you anymore…" Nate grinned back, just to let his father know he was kidding. The younger man peeked his head into the living room, and noticed that the Beast had joined the others as well. In addition, he heard the sound of Tom airing out his lungs, loudly, and decided it was best to steer clear of the chaos for the time being. "Uh… how about a quiet game of chess instead?" Scott nodded his head, and inwardly, he sighed with relief. The two returned to the boathouse.

Nate looked down at the chessboard. So far, Scott had beaten him six times in a row. Nate figured that Scott was a good battlefield strategist, but he didn't think that would translate over into chess as well as it did. Even when Nate had the advantage, Scott still found a way to win. Nate had to admire that in his father, but right now, he just needed something to save him from the humiliation for a seventh defeat. Luckily, someone upstairs heard his plea, and that something came in the form of Jean Grey, telekinetically carrying several shopping bags, several of which now obscured them both from view. "What say we call this a draw?" Scott whispered. Nate readily agreed.

Scott got up from the table, and went to help carry some of the bags that Jean had acquired on her shopping excursion. Jean moved the bags out of the way, and wrapped her arms around Scott and gave him a warm kiss hello. She pulled back and smiled at him "So how's my favourite man?"

"Oh, me? I'm just fine." Nate stood off to the side with his arms folded and a smirk on his face. Jean grinned, and walked over to him, and gave him a warm hug as well. Nate couldn't help but notice that Jean was wearing leather pants as well. "Hey Red!" he excitedly greeted her. He took as step back to look at her "You're looking well… and I see you're wearing leather pants as well… Did this place turn into some sort of S&M playground while I've been gone?" Jean laughed a bit, and slapped him playfully on the arm. Nate suddenly had a weird vision that nearly made him gag. "Xavier… he isn't wheeling around in leather pants too… is he?" Scott and Jean both exchanged a look at each other, and Nate visibly cringed. "Dear… Lord… No…." Nate looked like he was going to be ill. "See? This is exactly why I don't live with you." Nate got up and paced around dramatically "I can live with being kidnapped by Sinister, new family members popping up, old ones being evil or turning evil… but Xavier wheeling around in leather pants is just too sick for words. Absolutely intolerable!"

Nate stood there for a moment, then Scott and Jean looked at each other, and burst out laughing. After a good while, they both managed to regain themselves long enough for Jean inform Nate that Xavier can walk again, and that she thought that Scott looked "yummy" in leather pants. Nate once again looked sick for a moment, which brought another bout of giggles out of Jean. Scott rolled his eyes at her antics.

Once things calmed down, and Jean and Nate chatted for a bit, she informed both Nate and Scott that the girls had decided that everyone should enjoy a nice dinner out, and that Nate was, of course, invited, even if she didn't know he was here earlier. When Nate inquired about Rebecca, she told him that she decided to baby-sit Tom, since Sam was out of town assisting X-Factor. Seeing this as a good time to get to know his new sister, since he hadn't even met her yet, Nate elected to pass up a free meal, but requested that they bring him back a plate… or five. Nate also asked that they not tell anyone else that he was visiting. Not that he wasn't sure who else Beast told, or who tore their eyes away from the TV when he and Scott passed through the living room, but he wanted to keep a relatively low profile this visit.

Rebecca stared at her little brother in a great deal of frustration. For a while now, Tom would just not stop crying. He wasn't hungry, as he was fed not too long ago. He wasn't in a dirty diaper, she checked for that. She burped him too. But he still insisted on crying. She tried rocking him to sleep, but that didn't work. She was very tempted to use her telepathy, but she didn't want to risk hurting him at all. She placed hum back in his carrier, and started to rock it softly while singing, hoping he would calm down.

Having the entire place to herself, she had chosen to keep Tom in the living room, where she would have plenty of space, and could watch the big screen… or have plenty of room to walk in a circle, if need be. Her pacing stopped when she noticed a figure standing between the doorway between the kitchen and the living room. She stared at the figure, not sure what to expect. He was half in the shadows so she couldn't see his face, and no matter what she tried, he seemed not to register on her telepathy. He took a step forward, and lifted his hands up into plain sight "Relax, I'm not going to hurt either of you… or kidnap you… or anything of the sort." The voice of the stranger sounded oddly familiar, but she couldn't place it. She took a step back from him. The stranger let out an audible sigh. "Look, would just relax for a second?"

"Who are you? What do you want!?" she yelled back, and that didn't help calm Tom in the least. The figure put a hand to his forehead. "I just wanted to say hi. I am your older brother, so I'm allowed to do that sort of thing."

Nate stepped fully into the light, allowing Rebecca to take a good look at him. He was almost grateful for the presence of Tom at that moment, or else this could have become like the first meetings between his other siblings. Cable tried to kill him, and Stryfe tried to kill him too. Rachel didn't try to kill him, but the pair certainly had one hellacious argument, and with their tempers and powers flaring, they stared each other down with such intensity, that they literally ripped a hole through time and space.

Nate didn't mean to startle Rebecca like he did, but watching her attempt to get Tom to quiet down was just too amusing for him to interrupt right then. Nate took another slow step forward. "I didn't mean to scare you."

Rebecca stood up, still holding onto the crying infant. "You didn't scare me." She stood and huff indignantly. Nate smirked at her, not believing a word of it. "What makes you think that I was in any way scared of you?"

Nate shrugged "Well, maybe because your heart was beating so fast it was threatening to explode? Or because you went so pale? Or because you were creeping away." Nate grinned at her, then walked around to the couch and plopped down, still looking at Rebecca. "I'm actually quite surprised you didn't just wet yourself, then run into a corner and hide."

Rebecca rolled her eyes, not at all impressed with his antics. "You must be Nate Grey." She paused, then tapped her chin in thought "Or you're Stryfe. I heard that one was an evil, heartless jerk. The other was a young, dumb jerk. I'm trying to figure out which one you are?"

Nate put his hand over his chest acting offended "They say such things about me? I'm hurt." Nate chuckled a bit "And by the way, you forgot sexy. I'm the young, dumb, sexy jerk named Nate Grey. But seeing as how we're related, I'll forgive you for missing the sexy part. Actually, I think I'd be happier if you never noticed it. Our family is complicated enough as is, ya know?" Nate motioned to the space on the couch next to him.

Rebecca looked at Nate, and tried to hide her smile. "So I've found out." She intended for that response to come out dryly, but couldn't help but crack a small smile that Nate noticed. Shaking her head, she carried the still screaming Tom with her to the couch. She placed the baby between her and Nate. "I don't suppose you could maybe get him to stop screaming his head off, oh great and mighty Shaman of the earth?"

Nate, with a grin, responded "Of course, nothing is beyond my eternal power!" Nate laughed a bit "Man, now I sound like Thor." Nate stood up a struck a heroic pose "Chilleth out, yon maiden of Midgard, for I, The Mighty Nate, shall use mine vast powers to quiet thy minuscule bundle of loudness!" Nate looked at Rebecca "Preferably without killing him, I assume." Rebecca merely nodded her head, not really believing that he could ask such a stupid question. "Yes, that's what I thought." Nate leaned over little Tom, and Nate's left eye began to glow, as soon as it did, Rebecca punched him in the arm. He looked at Rebecca, who glared at him "Something up?"

"You idiot! You could've hurt him!" came her loud angry reply. Nate merely shook his head, but she continued on "Don't you know that trying to use telepathy on an infant could seriously mess up his brain!?"

Nate nodded his head "Of course I do. But I wasn't trying to mess with his brain, only read it." Nate looked over at Becca "It's perfectly safe for him. Besides, if you want to know why he's crying, you have to know what he's thinking and feeling." Rebecca looked at him as if to say "That's impossible", but Nate shook his head "It's not. I know his thoughts aren't exactly… fluid at this stage of his life, but he still see, hears, and feels things. It's just a matter of sorting through the jumble of instincts." Nate smiled at her reassuringly before she could protest more "Don't worry, I won't hurt him." Nate's left eye began to glow once again, and he stared down at the baby boy. Nate frowned a little "His nose… something is irritating his nose…" Nate stopped with his telepathy, and looked at Rebecca "Did you use a new kind of soap, detergent, perfume, or something?"

Rebecca shrugged, then thought back during the day. She hadn't used anything she hadn't used before, but she suddenly recalled being sprayed with perfume by an annoying employee in one of the many department stores that she visited that day. She growled in annoyance. She wanted to give that clerk a psi-blade to the head, but she restrained herself, not wanting to make a scene. She looked up at Nate, who had been staring at her the whole time. "I'll be right back… watch him" she pointed towards Tom, then got up and headed upstairs to wash off the perfume.

When she returned sometime later, deciding to simply shower, she came down the stairs in a pair of sweats, and saw a rather quiet Tom sitting happily, while Nate leaning forward, staring at Tom, whose seat was moved from the couch to the coffee table. As she got closer, she could see the soft glow from Nate's left eye. She poked Nate gently in the shoulder. "What are you doing?" she whispered to him, for some reason. Nate stopped and looked back at her.

"I was just looking at his head." Nate shrugged. "It's something I do sometimes." Nate spoke in his normal tone of voice.

Rebecca regarded him curiously "Why?"

"Just to see what it's like… to be a child." Nate whispered the last words, and most others may have missed them entirely. However, Rebecca's enhanced hearing picked it up loud and clear. She stared at Nate, who had sat back on the couch, and seemed content to stare at the ceiling for the moment. Even without her telepathy, she knew what he was thinking, and she knew exactly how he felt. She sat next to him, and leaned back as well, but kept peeking at Tom, who was seemingly fighting off sleep.

Unconsciously, Rebecca curled up against Nate, and rested her head on his chest. They sat in silence, save for the occasional gurgle from Tom. Finally, Rebecca broke the silence. "Does it get any easier?" She sat up some and moved a strand of hair out of her face as she looked up at Nate "I mean… do you ever… get used to… it?"

Nate sighed, and thought hard before answering. He had never really talked about this before, except to Stryfe, mostly because no one else could understand. Nate looked down at Rebecca. "Well… that really depends on how much you let it get to you. It can get easier, and you can get used to it, but there will always be little things that will constantly remind you." Nate sat up a bit more as Becca shifted to give him more room to move. "It's like… some days, I'll wake up and I'll look at myself as the pinnacle of genetic engineering. Other days, I'll feel like some lab experiment gone horribly awry. And then, every once and a while, I'll completely forget that I was… made… and think that I was just like every other mutant…. And then something would remind me." Nate looked back at the ceiling for a moment. "It wouldn't even be big things either. I could just see a kid who's just walking around and being a kid, and know that I was his age for, what, a few days? A week? Who knows?" Nate sighed and looked down "I even once threw out one of Rachel's calendars because I remembered that I don't have a real birthday…" Nate glanced over at Rebecca, who was looking down. Nate put his arm around her. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to bring you down like that."

Rebecca looked up at Nate, then shook her head "No! Uh… no. It's nothing like that. It's just that… I feel the same way. I just didn't know how to say it, though. It's like I was searching for the right words, but I didn't finally find them until you said them. Now that I know at least some of what I feel, maybe I can really move past it." Becca smiled at him, and he smiled back at her. "I've been meaning to talk to you, you know… to have this conversation. It's like you're the only person who could understand."

Nate made a bit of a face "Well, there's always Stryfe. He understands. He's just not as talkative as I am… nor as nice… and he smells bad too." Becca giggled and playfully hit him on the chest "He can cook, though." Nate shrugged at the last statement. After a brief pause he said "It has gotten easier, though. But then, I'm a special case."

Rebecca looked at him, slightly puzzled. "Special case? How so?" Well, aside from the fact that he is from an alternate reality, she didn't know exactly how they were any different from each other. Nate sighed, and started to unbutton his shirt. Rebecca moved back a little, unsure of where this one going. Nate opened his shirt, revealing his inverted 'X' tattoo. Rebecca looked at it and smiled "You got a tattoo? Cool!"

Nate shook his head. "No, it's more than a tattoo. It's a 'genetic brand'… it caps off the amount of my power I can use." Rebecca looked at it, and frowned. Nate chuckled slightly "Don't feel bad. This thing is going to keep me alive for a long time to come." Nate closed his shirt back "You see, when Sinister created me, he knew I'd be powerful… so he inserted a small flaw in my DNA. He basically gave me an expiration date. My flaw was that I was too powerful, so much so that my powers would have just burned through my body and killed me before I turned '21'. The brand…" Nate tapped his chest "… prevents that from happening. But before I got this, it was difficult to really see myself as anything more than a glorified lab rat. It was always in the back of my mind… but I just buried it under the thought of 'I'm here now, and I got these powers. Might as well try and do something good for this planet.'" Nate shrugged "It wasn't much, but it was all I had, so I just plowed ahead with it and did my own thing." Rebecca stared at Nate for a while. She felt bad for him, and the idea of having an expiration date of her own frightened her, though she was sure that if she had one, someone would have told her… right? Almost sensing her concerns, Nate put her at ease "Knowing the people here, they've probably run a thousand scans on you. If they haven't found anything by now, then you're in the clear. They wouldn't hide something like that from you. Scott wouldn't let them."

She looked down, and thought about it for a moment, and agreed that he was right. If she did have something like that, someone would have told her by now. Relaxing, she found herself cuddling against Nate again, but this time, she was fully aware of it, and didn't mind at all, which in it's own little way, bothered her. She was becoming such a… ugh… girl. But in a lot of ways, she now felt closer to him than to any of the other X-Men that she met so far. Comfortable that she could be totally honest with him, she let all her thoughts and feelings swirl in her head, and absorbed everything that he had said. Finally, she opened her mouth and three words came out "I hate him." Nate looked down at her, since he wasn't paying full attention when she had spoke. She looked up, and repeated I for him "I hate him." His own mind had echoed that thought a million times over, so there was no need to ask who was "him". Nate already knew she meant Sinister. "I hate him…" she repeated again "…and I hate her too!"

"Don't hate her…" was Nate's immediate response. Rebecca looked at him wondering if she had heard him right. Nate looked her dead in the eyes and said "I hate him too… but don't hate her."

She stared in complete disbelief, then wondered how he could possibly say something so… wrong as to not hate her. Was he insane? Anger began to well up inside her as her stare turned into a menacing glare, one that would make most others flinch, though Nate was totally unfazed. "Don't… hate… her?" she spit out through gritted teeth. "Don't… hate… her!?" She wanted to throttle him at that moment, and she really didn't know how she managed to stop herself from doing so. "How can I not hate her!? She's a clone of me. A copy of me! And even worse… she's better at it!" She stood up and began to pace around, while Nate looked at Tom, who was happily oblivious to all of this, since he had fallen asleep. Rebecca marched in front of Nate, and with her arms crossed over her chest, she glared down at him and asked "How can you sit there and tell me to not hate her too?"

"Because it's not her fault," was Nate's simple response. "None of us have much of a choice, if any, on how we came to be in the first place. Sinister created her too. It's not her fault that she has the same DNA that you do." He pointed to space next to him, wanting her to sit there. "Also, and take it from someone who knows, but having the same DNA as someone else, does not make you the same person." Rebecca huffed for a moment, then sat back down next to Nate. She thought about what he said for a moment, then looked at him, but before she could say anything he cut her off "I you want to hw I know, it's because Stryfe, Cable, and myself all share the same DNA." She knew that Stryfe was Nathan's clone, but she was unaware that Nate Grey and Nathan were alike genetically… which only helped to prove his point. "Aside from a few tweaks here and there, thanks to genetic flaws, and techno-organic viruses, our DNA is exactly alike, but we're all as different as night and day and… uh…" Nate furrowed his brows, then looked at Rebecca "Ok, I really should've picked something that came in threes. But you get the point. She's off somewhere, being a slave, while you're here, free from Sinister. Already your lives have taken two wildly different paths. So no matter what happens, you're you and she's her, genetic similarities or not. So don't hate her… it's not her fault." Rebecca looked at her hands for a moment, not wanting to listen, but doing so anyway. She sighed audibly, but then Nate continued "or if you do hate her, let it be because she beat the crap out of you, but not for who or what she is."

That last remark reminding her about the injuries suffered at the hands of her clone brought a scornful look to her face. It didn't stay there for long, because as much as didn't want to admit it, he was right… about all of this. She looked at Nate studied him for a while. He seemed like such an enigma. On the one hand, he was a bit childish, and immature, and self-centered… but he seemed to carry a certain wisdom with him that even if he had lived 19 years, would still be far beyond his years. Maybe he could just help her with one more thing. "About Scott…" Nate looked at her and nodded his head for her to continue "Uh… why is he so…" She looked up, trying to find the right words. She wracked her brain for a moment, then continued "It's not that I don't think he cares, because I know he does, but… he's always so…"

"Distant?" Rebecca nodded as Nate finished the sentence for her. Nate thought about that one for a moment, because he didn't want to say anything to make Scott look bad, but in truth, Scott did keep people at arms length most of the time. "Well, yeah, Scott is distant, but he actually has to be that way, I think. It's something that I've learned to not take personally, but if I were in his place, with the job that he has…" Nate sighed "Scott's not only responsible for the lives of the X-Men, but, at times, he's the start of the last line of defense for life as we know it." Nate thought a bit more, feeling that he wasn't being adequate enough in his explanation. "But if you look at it from his perspective… going from being a normal kid, with a normal family, to being totally isolated and orphaned in the blink of an eye… having uncontrollable, powerful eye beams, so he always has to wear visors or glasses… an amoral scientist with a hard-on for what's in his genes…" The double meaning wasn't lost on Rebecca, who started to giggle. Nate paused for a moment, grinned, then continued "… he's also see his first love die, and come back… his first wife died, and came back, and tried to kill him, his son, and his first love… his first son got sent to future, or he would have died, then he came back, older than Scott, and transformed into an evil homicidal psycho killer named Stryfe, and a not so evil homicidal killer called Cable… his brother is constantly flipping back and forth between good and evil, and he died and came back too… and not to mention myself and Rachel, two teenage kids of his, though he's not even thirty, who come from worlds where the X-men were, for lack of a better word, failures… and now you and your clone pop up…" Nate took a moment to catch his breath "Quite frankly, if you throw in the responsibility if being leader of the X-Men on top of all of that, he has to keep people at a distance, or his mind would probably implode under all of that pressure. Just thinking about it makes me dizzy."

Rebecca sat quietly in awe. She always knew Uncle Scott was under a lot of pressure, and had a difficult past, but having it all spelled out in front of her like that made her wonder how Scott managed to stay sane thus far. Once she really managed to wrap her head around it, all she could do was mutter "yeah… I see."

They sat in mutual, but comfortable silence, as Tom quietly slept before them. Deciding to switch gears into a subject that wasn't as heavy, Rebecca happily told Nate all about her budding relationship with Sam. She gushed about Sam for a while, and Nate told her stories of his previous relationships. Finding out that he was still single, Rebecca offered to set him up with Paige, Sam's little sister, but Nate replied "Uh… thanks, but no thanks. I mean, she's cute and all, but our family tree is screwed up enough as it is. Just look at Cable. I'm his younger, hotter, nicer twin half brother-cousin, and Jean is his Aunt Step-Mother. I'd rather not risk adding to the mess by dating my little sister's boyfriend's little sister, you know?"

Rebecca stared at Nate for a second, then shook her head. "You don't think before speaking too often, do you?"

Nate shrugged a little bit "Not really… no." His face then turned into a broad grin "But that's what makes me so incredibly charming."

This brought about a giggle from Rebecca, and for the remainder of the night, the two laughed, and talked, and Nate told her stories about where he had been, including all the alternate realities that he had visited. Nate was also kind enough to teach her a few tricks and tips regarding her telepathy. They also fed, changed, and played with Tom, and didn't notice how late it was when the others returned.

Betsy was the first to greet them, as Nate was showing Rebecca and Tom how he could use dust and his telekinesis to create hard illusions, this time, in the form of multi-colored balls that floated over Tom's head, and he giggled happily while swiping and kicking at them. "Evening Rebecca, Nathan…"

"Nate!" was the quick response that had come from both Nate and Rebecca. Ever since his first run in with Cable, whose real name is Nathan Summers, Nate Grey had developed a serious aversion to being called "Nathan". Nate had prattled on about that for several minutes after Becca called him "Nathan". Both were now certain that she wouldn't make that same mistake again. "It's just Nate, Mum… He has a 'thing' about being called Nathan" Rebecca explained.

"I see…" was Betsy's mildly annoyed response. She walked over to Tom and picked him up, and cradled him gently. "Well you look to be in good health." She looked up at Rebecca and Nate, the latter of whom noticed that by now, most of the other team members had walked into the room, including Warren, Rogue, and he assumed the girl she was holding hands with is Jenny, and the recent arrival, Wolverine. "So did you three have fun?"

Rebecca nodded enthusiastically "We certainly did Mum. Tom is always a pleasure, and Nate is loads of fun to hang out with, and he taught me a few new tricks too." Rebecca smiled almost wickedly, while Betsy stared at Nate, who for once seemed nervous about being the center of attention.

Nate grinned "It was nothing." Nate noticed the clock on the far side of the room. "Man, it's late. I should get going." Nate walked over to Becca, and gave her a hug. "You behave yourself, ok?" She hugged him back, but rolled her eyes at him. Nate walked over to Scott and Jean, and hugged them both, then said his goodbyes to everyone else.

As he walked towards the back door, Rebecca shouted out "And when you ask out Jubilee, tell me how everything goes!" Nate looked back at Becca, then down at Wolverine, whom he just happened to be walking past at that very moment. Logan grinned, and Nate backed away slowly. Nate shot another look at Rebecca, who, in her most innocent look, said "What? It's like I told him that you drank the last of his beer… oops!" She placed her hand over her mouth in mock innocence.

Logan growled and advanced on Nate, who laughed a little then said "I'll see you guys around", before bolting out the back door.