Warren ended up being the one to lead Raven downstairs to the sick bay of the school. A lump rose in her throat at the strange déjà vu of returning to the underground world of the X-men. Charles had claimed he wished for peace and tolerance- but it had been he who'd assembled the X-men, hadn't it? Wasn't it he who had designed their training room and prepared the teachings of how best to use one's powers to fight? Hypocrite!

Raven forced the lump from her throat and glanced at the man who walked beside her. Warren was still without a shirt, but Raven was not bothered by the sight of his bare, golden skin. He was handsome and seemed a little shy; Raven wondered if he was only timid initially, she hoped that in time he would open up a bit more.

Warren was careful not to bump anything with his wings, or to drag the longer feathers over the floor. He found it hard to believe that here he was, walking through an underground tunnel with a woman that had been cured of her mutation. In his sheltered life, he had met very few other mutants outside of the X-men, and none of them had been a victim of his father's cure. He decided not to tell her that the cure had been designed because of him.

The woman beside him was beautiful, and there was also something beneath the surface that intrigued him; something fierce and violent. He cleared his throat. "Um, so John…I mean Pyro, he's your friend?"

Raven glanced over. "Yes. He's been with the Brotherhood for some time now…though I guess that's over with. Tell me what happened to him."

Warren shrugged. "Um, well I wasn't really around for the fight. I came in to rescue my father, and by the time I'd landed him somewhere safe, Jean, the Phoenix, was ripping the entire place apart. I caught up with Bobby and Kitty on the bridge, they were trying to escape with John and everyone else; he was unconscious and they were having a hard time getting anywhere, so I took him with me back here to the mansion."

Raven nodded. She didn't know what she had expected. "Thank you. John means a lot to me."

"Oh. Were you and he-?"

"No."

They came to the door and Warren had sense enough to let her go in by herself. Raven slid in through the door and locked it behind her. She didn't want any interruptions. John lay in the bed; he looked like he was just sleeping. Raven drew closer and felt her heart constrict at the sight of him.

A large knot was on his forehead, and dark purple bruising had spread over the left side of his face. Frankly, he looked awful, but Raven smiled and pulled a chair up to the bedside. "John," she whispered, "John, can you hear me?"

To her surprise, his eyes flew open, alert, and he looked right at her. "Of course I can hear you, you're not two feet away. I hit my head, I didn't go deaf."

Raven smiled, "Sarcastic as ever, huh? I'm glad you're all right. I had been worried that-"

"Don't worry about me, I'll be good as new in a while, back on my feet in a couple days." John yawned and stretched in the bed. He looked at her. "You look different. Not just your hair, it's something about you that's changed."

Ignoring the comment, Raven took hold of his hand. "I betrayed you. I told the feds everything, the meeting site…"

John didn't say anything for a moment. Then, "I know. He knew what was going to happen." John said. There was no need to clarify who "he" was. "He moved the meeting up a few days, and we left Jamie behind as a decoy. The feds thought they'd at least recaptured him, but it was one of his duplicates." John laughed, "They were halfway back to D.C. to interrogate him, when Jamie pulled off his duplicate disappearing act."

Raven couldn't help laughing at that- classic Jamie to tease the feds and then add to their frustration. John laughed too, but then he became serious. "Mystique, I'm sorry about what happened."

I am still Mystique

Show me…

Raven tensed. No one had called her Mystique since Eric. "It's not your fault. I'm just sorry that you were hurt,"

John sighed. "Oh…I didn't just get hurt, I got my ass handed to me by that damn Boy Scout. I think he evolved in his training sessions or something, because he iced over his entire body and then head-butted me. I always got the better of him in training- it's beentoo longsince I've really trained; when I'm back in fighting form, I'll burn him alive, just roast him till the skin melts off his bones! Have you ever been slammed in the head by a block of ice? Not so different than getting hit with a brick,"

Raven's green eyes widened at what John had told her. "That guy, Bobby, you mean? He did this to you?"

"Yeah, and he likes to come down here every once in awhile and be all smug about it when he brings me food. Punk! Next time I won't waste time, I'll just do a flash furnace on him." John said bitterly.

Raven squeezed his hand. "You want me to poison him for you?"

He laughed tiredly and lifted a hand to gingerly poke at his bruised cheek. Raven saw him wince a little at the tender flesh, but he didn't say anything. "If you could, yes please. Him and Rogue, if you have the time. I don't even know why they've let her stay,"

"The girl? What do you mean?"

"That striped hick took the cure!" John growled, "No one forced her like with you. I just know that she jumped at the chance, and they're actually going to let her stay here so she can finally make out with Bobby. How pathetic! Joke's on him though- Rogue hasn't been able to touch anyone in years, probably doesn't even know where anything goes," John laughed bitterly.

Raven leaned forward and kissed his cheek. "You cocky little playboy, when's the last time you even had a date?"

He mock-glared at her. "Would you believe me if I said that I'm saving myself for marriage?"

She laughed, "That'll be the day! I'll be here for you when they let you go. The feds gave me a new identity, a place to live, money. I want you to come stay with me when you're ready," Raven didn't see much of an alternative for either one of them- shelonged for his friendship, and John was without a place to live.

John looked up at her. "I might, on one condition,"

Raven raised a brow, "And that is?"

"You walk around naked like you used to,"

She laughed. "I think your pain meds have made you delusional. I'll be back in a few hours."

Raven rose from her chair and slipped out the door.