Chapter Eleven: Things Change
"How come ya'll don't hang out with that Rogue girl?" I asked Tabitha that night.
"What do you mean?" she asked.
"Well, she seems… dark… like you and Wanda."
Tabitha chuckled.
"She may be 'dark'," she said. "But she's not like us. She's what I used to be. She's one of them."
"Them?" I asked. "I don't follow."
"No doubt Miss Katherine Pryde told you all about the X-Men. I used to be one of them. They took me in with open arms."
"Why did you leave?" I asked.
"Things change," she replied simply.
"How did you find out about your powers?"
"I guess I have my dad to thank for that. He discovered 'em before I was even sure. It started with one little bomb. I remember it perfectly. I was makin' dinner for the old man and me and the microwave wasn't working right. So I got frustrated and the next thing I knew, it had exploded.
"I was a little scared. But it started to give my dad ideas. He started taking me places with him. To break into places and steal money. Eventually, I got fed up with it and ran away. That's when I met the X-Men. But all the do-goodness started to wear me out. Then I met Mystique who brought me here. This place is much more my style."
"Have you seen your dad since you left?"
"Yeah. He tried to get me to come back with him. Makin' up some nonsense about having changed or something. As soon as we were out of the county, he tried to get me to break into a bank. But I haven't seen him since then."
"I'm sorry," I said.
"There's nothin' to be sorry about," She said. "My dad was a jerk. And I'm glad he's rottin' in some jail somewhere."
"My dad was my best friend," I whispered.
"It's good not to get attached. Things change, ya know."
"Yeah," I replied. "I know."