Remy sat, his knees drawn up to his chin as he stared forward, barely breathing, only seeing Steph lying on the med-table ten feet away.

He saw right through Hank, who was running back and forth, trying to save Steph's life, the faintest glimmer that the professor said she was holding onto. Outside he could hear Ororo crying, leaning on Logan, who was barely able to stand himself, but still able to hold his oldest daughter and his children's adopted mother while silent tears poured down his own face.

Remy could hear Kurt praying, and Bobby, Kitty, Piotr, and Jubilee huddled together outside against the wall. A small part of Remy's mind knew that Bobby wanted desperately to try and comfort Rogue, but it was a job for Logan right now, so instead he and Piotr tried to help Kitty and Jubilee, who were both sobbing softly. It was the only way the boys could try to help themselves.

Danial was also sitting, but apart from the others. He, like Remy, was staring off into space, though he was looking at the wall. For a moment he looked over at Remy, but the teen didn't respond and Danial looked away, still frozen with shock for coming downstairs and finding one of his best friends seemingly dead and the other changed into a werewolf.

Ellen was down the hall in tiger form, laying stretched out in front of the door of the holding cell where Mattel, Alora, and Ink waited calmly for the X Men to do something with them. Salla had woken and attacked Ellen, and Logan, being on the edge, grabbed the teen and put his claws to her throat, which was exactly what the savage wanted. After, Ink commented in a mutual voice "she was always the type to die before surrendering."

Remy Sr. and Scott were upstairs, Scott was keeping himself busy checking out the damage done to the mansion, while Remy Sr. contacted his wife and Jean to give them an update, and to ask that they keep the children in the boarding house for a while. Naturally both mothers, after getting over their shock about what happened to Steph and looking equally startled when they saw Remy's changed face wanted to return, but after a little while both agreed that the children not seeing the ripped apart mansion, Steph, and Remy all at once would be for the best.

But Remy didn't pay attention to any of this, it was too meaningless while Steph lay only ten feet away, nearly dead.

---

The days went by, Hank and Xavier and the others when they could working on Steph tirelessly, no one leaving except Scott and Remy, to bring down food for the teens that was always left untouched and the many pots of coffee for Hank, who barely needed or had time for them.

Remy just sat, staring at Steph, not moving or blinking, still in his blood-stained clothes. After a few days Remy Sr. came and sat by him while Hank was running some tests at the computers.

"Your mama says she misses you," the man said softly. Remy didn't reply and Remy Sr. put his arm around his son's shoulders. "I don't t'ink dis look will be permanent, I t'ink when Steph wakes up it'll go 'way, n' maybe you'll smile again, or breathe?" His father looked for any reaction, but Remy gave none, so Remy Sr. just sighed, squeezed his shoulder, and then stood up to visit Ellen and talk with her, like he had been doing for the last day or two. He was also talking with the prisoners, who seemed to loose all will to fight after they'd been captured and their leader killed.

Remy heard none of this. It didn't matter.

---(A Week Later)---

"How is she Hank?" Logan said, sitting by his daughter's bed and looking more tired than anyone besides Hank himself, his unshaven face and sunken eyes making him look almost like a corpse as he blinked in the bright lights, one large hand enveloping Steph's slender hand. Before the doctor could speak he whispered "truth", and Hank paused, looking just as hassled as Logan.

"You know that five ribs broke, as far as I can tell they are healing fine," he said. "Blood... I have replaced it, but she may need another transplant, but her stitches seem to be healing as they're supposed to. Still no sign of her waking...." Logan's eyes traveled over to Remy, who was still sitting in the same place, the only one besides him and Hank who had not left the medbay, the only one who hadn't moved or spoken at all since he took his position on the chair.

"Will... will she make it?" he managed to ask the unthinkable question up until then. Hank looked at Steph's face for a long time.

"She may, I think she will," he said in an even voice. "Yes, sweet Stephanie will pull through this, she is a warrior with more than a pretty profile."

"Logan! Hank!" The two men looked up as Jean walked through the doors, looking worried and stopping for a moment when she saw Steph and the two men. "You look terrible," she said.

"Welcome back Jean," Hank said wearily. Jean quickly examined Steph, then put her hand on Logan's shoulder, looking at him and Hank.

"Have you two slept at all?" she asked, then shook her head. "Both of you need rest, now." Hank and Logan started to protest but Jean gave them a withering look.

"No," she said simply. "I'll look after Steph for a while, I'm fine after the trip. If you too stay up any longer however, you might get seriously ill."

"She's right," Hank said, looking at Logan, who looked at Steph.

"Yeh said she'd pull through?" he said. Hank nodded and Logan got up, kissing his daughter softly on the forehead.

"Remy?" Jean said suddenly, spotting the teen. She looked at Hank worriedly. "How long has he been like that?"

"Since the eve of the battle," Hank said. "We've tried to move him, to no avail. It seems our young friend will only wake with his companion."

"Oh no," Jean said, looking worried.

"What is it Red?" Logan demanded. Jean looked at them.

"He's barely moved?" she said.

"He hasn't moved, he barely breathes," Logan grumbled.

"Then we may have more than one life on the line," Jean said grimly. Both men looked at her and then from Remy to Steph.

"Steph," Logan whispered. "Wake up, for yer sake, everyone's sakes, if no one else's, Remy's."