Chapter 4:

Andel sat in the garden playing with a rose she had just picked off a bush. She twiddled the stem in her hands careful not to get stuck with the thorns, not that it would hurt her much. Her upper epidermis had become something of an organic metallic compound that if she concentrated enough could produce an Electrical Magnetic Pulse. Unlike first generation mutants, she had been born with her skin that way. She had been lucky in two regards, the first that she wasn't really as silver as she could have been, she still looked human, and second she had a mother that could teach her to control her EMP. However like all mutants, her second mutation kicked in during puberty.

"I thought I'd find you here."

Andel looked up to see Xavier wheeling his chair into the garden. "I knew you'd come find me here. It must be something of a shock, huh?"

"Finding out that Jacob was my son? Maybe a little." He smiled. "When I first found out she had left, I was devastated. She was the only woman to ever understand me; the only woman who understood my work, who I could share my work with. I never had that with Moira."

"She really didn't want to leave. But Erik and you were making it difficult. Then she found out about the little quark in her mutation. And voila! She has twins belonging to two different fathers, neither of which she actually slept with. Each who would claim the twins as his own, and would probably kill the other one in order to be the father." Andel looked up from her rose. "Better to have neither, than loose them both."

"But she didn't keep your parentage a secret?"

"She knew we always we suspected it. I mean we inherited gifts from someone. And she told us we were special in that we both had different fathers, even though we were twins. We both understood genetics at a very young age, especially Jack. But when he lost his vision at seven, she thought introducing us to you would help us get over his loss."

"She thought Jack and I would have a connection since he was my son." He knew the rest of the story as well as she did.

"Yeah, but he didn't. He didn't like the pacifist way of thinking. He liked being able to use his powers to do something." She smiled. "Funny thing, he can pass for normal and I've got metallic skin. I'd rather there be co-existence and he'd rather have homo superior the superior."

"Angel, you've never struck me as a pacifist."

"Probably because I'm not." She grinned. "I just see the wisdom in going with your plan first. I never said that Erik's wouldn't work, it's just better as Plan B or Plan C then Plan A."

"You've grown up a great deal since the last time I saw you."

"David's funeral."

"I am glad you could be there."

"Same here, Prof." There seemed to be an uncomfortable silence to any prying eyes, yet the two were really communicating what they felt without words. It was more of feelings than actual thoughts. "Even though Erik is my biological father, I, um, I want you to know I always thought of you as my father."

"I know. I always had hoped you were my daughter." It was rare to see Xavier open up so much verbally to anyone, yet Andel was not just anyone. And both of them knew it.

XxX

Scott wandered down to the lake on the school's property. He needed to get away from the mansion for a while. Get away from the students who accidentally got into his head, and where Jean was prying into his thoughts accidentally any time she worried about him. They both knew their relationship had changed when she had become the Phoenix and tried to kill him. Some of the things Phoenix had said made sense.

She was the perfect person; the perfect daughter of a perfect family who lived a perfect life. She had always had what she needed. She had always been the star pupil. He was a good leader, but he was nothing near what she had grown up as. They had worked hard to make it appear to work. But all of the telepathic arguments and verbal fights were taking its toll on him. He didn't think he could make it work any more. NO, he told himself, it's that I don't want to make it work.

"You're Scott Summers right?" The voice shattered his thought process and concentration, while simultaneously startling him enough that he jumped slightly. She giggled a bit. "Sorry. I didn't mean to startle you. I was just sitting here and you walked up and just kinda stood there."

"Na, it's alright. I really should have been paying attention." He stared at the woman through his ruby quartz glasses. He had learned to define colors through the way he saw them before he lost his sight to his mutation and now through his ruby tented sight. He could see the silver underneath the raven hair. Her expressive onyx eyes seemed shadowed by events that had come to pass. He couldn't help but admire her sleek physical form. She was slender with perfectly muscular arms and legs, and gorgeous abs to boot. There was not a single sign of her pregnancy. Scott assumed she would probably be one of those women who didn't show until the very end. "So you're really Magneto's kid?"

She arched an eyebrow. "I wouldn't say kid, per say, but yes I am his genetic descendent. Please don't judge me upon my breeding. I believe more in the nurture aspect than nature."

"That was a joke right?" Scott teased. Something about the girl was assuring. He felt comfortable in her presence, even if he didn't quite get her sense of humor.

"Um… yeah I guess I'm something of a dork."

He smiled. "Dorks don't get hit on, geeks do."

"Are you hitting on me Scott Summers?"

They both knew the answer before he even thought to say it. His heart would be Jean's until she turned away from him. Yet he was so drawn to this woman, not a few years his junior, and just as brilliant as Jean. But this woman had a spark within her that Jean never had, even as the rather provocative Phoenix.

"It was nice meeting you Scott. I hope I will see you again." She got up and left, her black skirt swirling around her in the gentle breeze as she carefully climbed the embankment to the school grounds.

I hoped you enjoyed this little bit… I'm good at writing things in twos: two pages, two chapters. What else comes in twos? Twins, couples, lovers? Huh. Well now I'm rambling. I really would like some reviews but I won't hate you people if you don't. I will TRY to return the favor… but I really don't have a lot of time right now. Plus if I get reviews I feel guilty about not writing more… I mean I feel real guilty about the fiction that I'm writing on and I plan on putting up two more stories there. So it's up to you guys to guilt me/ remind me about you people. Wellllllll tootles…

Ayce