Chapter 11. Knowing Your Friends.

"Guys get this! Pietro stole the X-Van and came back with the rest of the Brotherhood and Logan! They said they had to see the Professor, but then Logan chased us out before we could hear anything good," Evan ran into the rec room where Kitty, Rogue, Ray, Roberto, Jubilee, and Bobby were.

Kitty and Rogue looked at Evan like he was crazy. Ray and Roberto stopped arguing, shocked at the news. Jubilee and Bobby stopped their videogame and stared.

"It's true," Sam confirmed as he walked in.

"It was totally weird," Amara commented.

"But really cool," Jamie added after Amara.

The new recruits looked at each other, and then flocked over to Sam, Amara, Jamie, and Evan to get the details.

"Whoa, seriously?"

"I can't believe this!"

"Awesome!"

Rogue groaned at the noise and walked out the room.

Kitty sat still, disbelief written all over her. She saw Jean walk in with Scott and looked at the older girl. "Is it true? Pietro stole the X-Van?"

"Yeah, he just ran in and started rambling about something, then ran off and took the X-Van. Then he was back with Logan and the other Brotherhood members," Jean said, shaking her head. "This is one strange Saturday morning," she sat down next to Kitty.

"I didn't see Alvers there though," Scott said, sitting down next to Jean.

Kitty's expression suddenly changed from surprise to anger. "Well good, because after what he did, I don't want to see him! Ever!" she abruptly got up and stormed out.

"Did I say something wrong?" Scott looked at Jean.

"Lance stood her up again last night. And Kitty was really looking forward to the date. She's furious."

"That low-down..."

"Scott, I understand you. I totally agree with you. I think Lance is just going to hurt Kitty too. But you have got to stop getting so over- protective."

"I am not over-protective."

"Does this sound familiar? 'Kitty where are you going; who are you going with; do you need anything for your date; is that creep Alvers bothering you; don't be out too late...'"

Scott raised his hands up. "I get it Jean. I'll try to be less... annoying."

Jean smiled. "That's better."


Hank gasped when he pulled Lance's shirt off him to examine the bruises and cuts.

'Charles, Logan, I think you'd better come in. Ororo too,' he said through the mental link Xavier had set up between Hank, Logan, Ororo, and himself.

Moments later Charles wheeled in, followed by Storm. Logan was last, roughly pushing Pietro and Tabitha out.
"We'll let you in later!" he growled as he shut the door.

"I can't believe they went in without us! We shouldn't have left Lance alone in there!" Pietro kicked a fallen cushion to the wall.

"I know! It's not like they're Lance's friends!" Tabitha agreed, angrily throwing a few bombs at the cushion, which promptly blew up.

"Calm down guys, Lance's okay, right? We don't have to worry," Fred said, but his voice was uncertain and nearly pleading. He was sitting on the couch next to a quiet Todd.

Tabitha turned to the two andit was only then that she fully realizedupset they were. She looked over at Pietro in case he hadn't heard. He had, and was looking back at her guiltily.

They all relied on Lance for support, he was the solid one of the group, the one everyone turned to for help and advice. Lance was their friend and leader, the responsible one that everyone trusted to make everything all right. In fact, after Mystique's disappearance and Magneto's no-show, Lance had taken up several jobs to pay the bills and buy food for all of them.

The Brotherhood was the family that none of the members had ever really had before, and Lance was like an older brother to all of them, especially to Todd, who was only fifteen and younger than all of them.

Pietro relied on Lance as much as the others, but his pride allowed him a little more distance and he was a little more secure than both Todd or Fred in that his social relationships were more on the positive side, especially his popularity among girls. Nonetheless he was just as dependent on Lance as were the two boys: he strived for attention; people had to show him they cared constantly. And so they did, sometimes more directly, other times through the Brotherhood way of teasing and jokes. Humor was one thing you needed to have if you were going to survive; they had found that out long ago. Even Lance, the most serious out of the group, made jokes when someone was hurt or sick. Pietro had often marveled at the older boy's ability to calm everyone down, to make them feel safe, including Pietro himself. He wasn't able to comfort others as Lance did, and at first he had even been jealous of the quality. Even now he found himself wondering how the older teen managed to make things right for everyone in the toughest times. He himself had come close to breaking down a couple times before, but he had managed to get through that. Pietro seriously doubted he would have been able to had Lance not been there, had the Brotherhood not been there.

Tabitha was more independent than the boys and at times it wasn't as clear if she considered Lance to be the leader. But everyone understood that she did, even if she didn't show it sometimes. And as her respect for him was unspoken but acknowledged, so was her protectiveness for the boys. She was an intense defender, even though she did not show it as obviously as Lance did. Sometimes she helped him out with the bills, even, but she was too careless to keep a job for more than a few days, especially with her powers. So she, like the rest of her friends, looked to Lance when someone was sick, trusted him to take care of things when there was trouble. It was Lance who took it upon himself to take care of the others, and she respected that and accepted him as the leader. He was solid, always there for them. Even in the middle of an argument he'd stop if one of them got hurt, checking to see if they were all right. Of course, when he was mad you really couldn't do anything about it, his temper was as strong as he was. But even at his angriest moments, he would never hurt them, not for real. They all knew that.

Todd and Fred were the least stable in outside relationships out of the Brotherhood. Todd was always bullied around and beat up when not with one of the others, and would get in a worried fit whenever one of the family was late coming home or got hurt. He was afraid of being alone, and though the Brotherhood would never tell anyone, he slept with a nightlight. Deep in his mind he was always afraid of being left alone, being abandoned. If the Brotherhood were ever to fall apart, Lance would survive; he was used to being on his own. Tabitha would be able to find another place to live; she was good at social relationships in her own weird way. Pietro would make do, one way or another. He wasn't one to be kicked down and accept it. Fred might be able to manage, he had a better chance than Todd; no one would bully him thanks to his size. At least out of emotional and physical torment, he'd only have one to worry about. But Todd was different. If they were ever to split up, he'd be lost. He wouldn't know what to do; it would break him. The Brotherhood knew this and treated Todd a little differently than each other; he was the youngest, the little brother of the family. And they would protect him.

Fred showed his concern in a silent manner; sometimes things would just get better on their own, and he could just stand aside and let them get better. Other times, he stood back and let the others figure out a solution, he wasn't secure in having decisions thrust upon him. He didn't trust himself to make the right choices. He saw Todd as a younger brother and protected him almost as often as Lance did, but other than that he relied on Lance, Tabitha, and Pietro for answers and support. He was, in a way, younger than Tabitha or Pietro because he was afraid to disagree with anything, fearing rejection. Fred and Todd had created a special bond between themselves; both were the outcasts of society. Lance was too, but he was different- some people actually respected him, outside the Brotherhood, though he probably didn't know it and they would never admit it. In Lance Fred saw what he wanted to become: someone others could trust to make all the decisions, someone whom people respected. Fred was at times the most vulnerable, maybe even more so than Todd, because he so desperately needed to be accepted, and to know that.

Tabitha and Pietro walked over to the couch and Tabitha laid a hand on Fred's shoulders while Pietro sat down next to Todd.

"It'll be all right," Tabitha said gently.