Hello good people. It is my pleasure to bring to you, the next installment of 24 Hours. Hope you enjoy it.
DISCLAIMER Oh how funny you are! The very idea of somebody like me actually owning X-men Evolution? Do you do stand up comedy? You'd be great at it.DISCLAIMER
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Pietro hated this whole arrangement. He was restless and miserable and weak. Everyone kept staring at him, varying degrees of pity and fear in their gaze. All he wanted right now was to sulk on his own, but he was beginning to feel like a fish in a bowl.
"Would everyone just go away!" He snapped angrily. "Leave me alone!"
The pity increased and he closed his eyes.
"Do you wish to talk about what you saw?" Xavier asked tentatively.
"No." Pietro scowled. "I just want to be left alone."
Xavier sighed. "Very well. I expect all my X-men to return to their normal activities. There will be a danger room simulation for anybody who feels prepared for it, in approximately ten minutes." The kids groaned and filed out of the infirmary. Tabitha seemed prepared to stay but a stern look from Moira Mactaggart got her moving. She gave Pietro one last glance before being the last of Xavier's students to exit the room, closely following Spyke who shook his head sadly at his former pal's stubbornness and murmured a quick good bye as he said he needed to go check on the Morlocks.
But the brotherhood held their ground. "We aren't leaving." Lance said firmly. "Pietro, you're our brother, maybe not in blood for any of us except Wanda, but we won't leave you."
Pietro clenched his hands into weak fists. "Damn it Lance!" He swore bitterly. "I don't want you guys here! Just leave me alone! Please! Get lost!"
Lance shook his head. "No, we aren't going to let you go through this alone."
"We only want to help." Wanda mumbled softly.
"You call it helping! I don't want to see any of you!" He scowled angrily. "Get out of my face!"
Wanda looked for a moment as if he'd smacked her across the face. "We aren't going anywhere, Pietro."
He narrowed his eyes. "You don't understand. I don't ever want to see any of you again! Get it through your fat head!"
She stared at him for a few seconds before steeling her nerve. She walked over to him, kissed him on the forehead and turned to the door silently, majestically. She maintained her dignity even though sad tears gathered behind her eyes.
"Fine. Be that way. I'll come back when you've realized that we really do care about what happens to you, Pietro. When that gets through your fat head maybe you'll realize that we'd all do anything for you because we love you that much, and me most of all."
With her head held high, she exited the infirmary without a single glance back. Lance nodded grimly. "She's right you know." He clapped a hand gently on his friend's shoulder. Then he sighed and gestured for the others to follow him. Toad and Fred said nothing as they followed Lance out of the room.
The doctors and adults went back to the segment of the room surrounded by computer consoles and monitors of readout screens. Pietro sighed in relief. He had always hated pity and he felt that his friends were making this whole thing worse by just sitting around and waiting for him to die. He didn't know how he could handle it if somebody asked him for his stereo like they often did in cartoons and movies.
He stared at the ceiling in accusation. "Why is this happening to me?"
He sat up and felt slightly dizzy at the head rush. "I gotta get outta here." He frowned. This restlessness was killing him, faster than whatever damage to his cells that was causing his body to shut down.
He massaged his temples and grumbled irritably. Wasn't it bad enough he was dying at seventeen? Why did it have to hurt so damn much?
He clenched his eyes, groaning as the now familiar sensation of an unwelcome vision or dream or whatever hit him.
He grinned at her confidently. She was very pretty. Her strawberry blond hair was tied up in some sort of fancy style that probably cost half a fortune, though it was no problem for her to pay. And her blue eyes sparkled magnificently. Though he definitely noticed she had gone a bit heavy on the eye makeup his sister was worse so he didn't mention it. But as amazing as her head and face were, they paled in comparison to what she was wearing.
She had chosen a shimmering azure blue dress. It had a silk bodice, embroidered with cornflower blue satin thread and the skirt was lacy and full. The thin straps were made of strands of what he presumed to be synthetic sapphires. The neck line was very low and left little to the imagination.
"You look amazing, Crystal." He complimented her.
"Thanks Pietro." She smiled coyly. "You clean up pretty good yourself." She playfully hit his arm.
He leaned down slightly to kiss her. Even her stiletto heels couldn't completely bring her up to his height, but that was fine. As he pulled away for air he smiled. She made him feel warm and fuzzy.
Though Pietro was lost in the swirling tornado of emotions he'd never felt, the dance continued around them. It wasn't an event such as one would expect. This dance was thrown for mutants by Charles Xavier. He felt for his pupils and decided a social mixer was perfect. He invited all the mutants and super-powered beings he could think of. This list had extended to the stars and even to the inhumans. Several of them had come in acceptance and Pietro Maximoff had boldy asked their princess to be his date. She had accepted and shown up this evening looking quite stunning.
But they weren't the only awestruck couple on the dance floor. Jean and Scott Summers were slowly revolving around, lost in another world. Jean held their four year old son Nathan in her arms and Scott swayed 2 year old Rachel to the tune of the song. Kitty Pryde looked quite elegant in her pink gown, with her arms around Lance's neck and her head leaned peacefully on his chest. Wanda was looking like she wasn't comfortable with the crowd , but she danced slowly, her content smile only slipping off her face as she occasionally winced when Toad accidentally stepped on her delicate red shoes which matched her glittery gown perfectly.
Rogue had been standing to the side, fidgeting in her jade green gown. She was wearing elegant white gloves, and just a hint of her black combat boots peeked out from under her dress. All of a sudden, a very handsome Cajun appeared at her side, offering a cup of sparkling pink gingerale punch. She smiled and accepted it gratefully.
"How y' feelin' Chère?" He murmured softly as he planted a soft kiss on her nose.
She shrugged. "Hones'ly? Ah feel lahke a bloated beach ball. An' a fish way outta wata, sugah."
He shook his head with a knowing smile. "Y' ain' neit'er o' dose, amour. Y' de mos' belle femme here." He pulled her into a hug as he gently nudged a thin silver strap back up onto her shoulder. A new song started and he gazed into her eyes.
"Can Remy have dis dance, Chère?"
She took his hand. "Alright. Ah guess." She smiled and let herself be dragged onto the dance floor. The twin white gold bands on their left hands caught a beam of light and twinkled merrily as he securely wrapped his arms around her middle, which was slightly rounder than usual, indicating that Nathan and Rachel would have a playmate in a few months, adding to the roster of future x-men, and also that Rogue's gloves were now just worn for habit and decoration.
Rogue smiled softly and found her arms snaking around her husband's neck. She was lost in her joy and his gaze. A few years back she'd been moody and nearly suicidal with sensitivity over her powers. Now here she was, married and starting a family. It was as if everything that had been wrong had been replaced with this joyous perfection.
Countless other couples were enjoying the rare peaceful moment. Everyone was having what seemed like a great time. Bobby Drake stole a kiss with Jubilee, causing her to smile and practically melt into his arms. Warren Worthington and his new fiance, a girl with Asian features, a British accent, and flaming purple hair, danced in silence. While Pyro was acting the fool, and causing his date Amara to flush with embarrassment, the couple was having a blast. Many other couples, danced and chatted animatedly. The one exception however seemed to be one young blond girl with a hot pink and black gown, who sat by the punch bowl seemingly emanating loneliness.
It wasn't as though she hadn't had offers. Cannonball had shyly approached her, Berserker had been much less tactful with his request. Sunspot had made it clear that she was his last shot at a decent looking date. A bunch of younger girls had offered to let her join their group and even big bodied and bigger hearted Freddy had asked if she wanted to go with him. She'd refused them all politely. She really was only interested in going with one person.
However, he was currently locked at the lip with the inhuman princess and her stupid barely there blue dress. The lonely girl sighed. She'd spent hours getting ready. She'd tried to look perfect, to catch his eyes and find that maybe he'd been steeling up nerve to come ask her since the dance had been announced. She had practically floated down the stairs to the lobby until she saw him with Crystal. His gorgeous eyes, the blue of the sea after a storm, had not strayed from his date for even a moment. Well, more from her overly pronounced bust line, the girl thought bitterly. The bodice of the gown acted effectively like a corset in making her look slender and busty at the same time.
The girl sat in horrible reminiscence of the Sadie Hawkins dance back at Bayville high. She had wanted so desperately to ask him, but found out four others had beat her to it. She hugged her arms around her body and bit back the tears that threatened to fall.
Suddenly a shrill chirp of a phone rang across the room. Charles Xavier answered curiously and held a brief conversation.
"Really? Well that is wonderful. Thank you for calling." He hung up and called to the gathering.
"Ladies and Gentlemen, If I may? I have some most important news to share." His voice was exited like a kid on Christmas. The room fell silent in curiousity.
"My X-men, and of course my friends and guests. This is indeed a day you shall not soon be forgetting." He called joyously. "I have just spoken with the President of the United States, and he has just personally informed me that the Mutant Registration Act has failed. The FOH have been disbanded for their crimes against the very humanity they swore to protect." The professor allowed that to sink in to the occupants of the room.
"Oh mah God!" Rogue cried happily, throwing herself at her husband. "This baby ain' gonna be born inta a registration numba!" She broke into sobs of pure joy.
Scott and Jean were equally happy. They cuddled their own children and the kids didnt know why their parents were so happy and kissy but they accepted it as normal parental weirdness.
Toad had pulled Wanda to the center of the room. "I love you Cuddle bumps. And now we have no barriers." He grinned and dropped to his knees. "Would you marry me?" He produced a pretty diamond ring from his pocket and her jaw dropped.
Actions spoke louder than words as the ring glowed blue and levitated itself up and onto Wanda's ring finger. Then Toad himself glowed blue as he was raised to his feet and found her smiling and nodding. "Yes." The only word she could mutter, was the most beautiful word he'd ever heard. She pulled him into a tight hug and kiss.
"What the...What the hell just happened?" Pietro asked in confusion. His entire world and everything he knew had been turned on its head, he was certain of it.
"Hey c'mon." Crystal tugged his arm. "This is the happiest day for your people in a long time. You should all be celebrating." She batted her eyelashes coyly. "And I think I have the perfect method of celebration, if you're interested, that is."
He grinned wolfishly at her. "I think I like the way you think."
He winked at her and the two headed quickly off toward the dormitory wing. The blond girl in the corner dropped her head and sighed sadly. Her hope was now gone.
All of a sudden Pietro found himself staring at the girl he'd been at the dance with. Her eyes were red rimmed, apparently from crying, and she was glaring something fierce.
"Crystal..." He sighed and reached to touch her arms.
"Don't you touch me. I want nothing to do with you right now."
He dropped his arm, shocked. "I'm sorry, I was just trying to-"
"I don't care alright?" She snapped. "There's still two minutes and twenty seven seconds until I find out if you completely screwed up my life!"
He bit his lip, uncertain of what he could say if anything to make this easier. But he was drawing a blank.
She had stormed angrily into the mansion and demanded to speak with him. Xavier had been startled but allowed her entry. She had come into his room and he'd been pleasantly surprised to see her. At least until he went to greet her with a kiss and she'd attempted to beat him senseless before telling him something that scared the crap out of him: she hadn't gotten her period since the dance. If the problem was what she thought it was, he was going to be in so much trouble.
She crossed her arms scowling. "I can't believe this. How could you be so stupid to let this happen!"
He gaped at her for a moment. "What do you mean?"
"You know exactly what I mean." She snapped, narrowing her eyes. "This whole mess is all your fault."
He stared. "But we both agreed to-"
"Shut up. Just shut up!" She cried. "We still don't know if...it's true. And either way, I am the inhuman princess. My people feel I can do no wrong. It was you who should have been using some form of protection!"
He bowed his head. "Okay so I screwed up there, but it isn't like you gave me any chance to get something! You just dragged me up here."
"Don't you dare accuse me of anything, human!" She sneered. "It's the word of a womanizing earth boy, over an Inhuman royal. You have no credence with my people!"
A beep cut his retort. The test was complete. Both of them turned to the small white contraption on his nightstand at breakneak speed. They stared at the tiny electronic result in horror. A pink p blinked continually on the device. P for positive. P for problem. P for parents. P for pregnancy.
She threw herself to Pietro's bed and sobbed. He sat down beside her somberly. "I hate you! You just ruined my life!" She screamed at him, though part of the effect was lost as she was screaming it into his mattress.
He collapsed back and stared at the ceiling. This was seriously not something he wanted to deal with. After a while she ceased her sobs and pulled herself up.
"There's only one choice." She murmured quietly. He looked at her curiously. "I can't have this child. I am not in a position to waste time on an infant. And you won't be able to either, living on Earth." He raised a confused eyebrow as she continued explaining herself. "It's only been a month and a half, two months tops. That's plenty of time. The physicians on my planet are sworn against such things, but Earth is different. Somebody will do it."
Suddenly it clicked in Pietro's mind what she was talking about. He felt himself recoil in shock. "Wait a minute!" He cried. "You can't be thinking about..." He stopped short unable to bring himself to say the word.
"It's the only way." Crystal frowned. "You can't disillusion yourself into thinking this could work out." She pointed out. "Long distance relationships very seldom last."
He closed his eyes before continuing pleadingly. "I feel responsible for this. And I don't want to be a deadbeat dad like mine was. Something in me can't stand the thought of just letting my own baby die."
"I've already decided." Crystal crossed her arms. "I'll go find a clinic tomorrow."
"This isn't just your choice!" He reminded angrily. "It's my kid too."
"Yes, but you aren't the ruler of a race of people, now are you? It's my body, my choice and I say, the sooner it is gone, the better off my life will be."
He glowered at her angrily. Then a suggestion popped into his head. "Marry me." He wasn't asking. He was simply stating.
"I beg your pardon?" She asked, apalled that he suggested such a solution.
"Marry me. If your politics work like ours do here, your people will be happy if you marry. Like you said, its still pretty early. Early enough to cover up that this happened. We could pass it as legit."
"That's simply not done." Crystal gasped. "Inhumans and earthlings have never intermarried!"
He ignored her scandalized tone. "First time for everything, Cryssie."
Her face froze over. "If you ever utter that filthy word again I will be able to rest fully assured that you will not be able to ruin any other woman's life as you did mine." She warned.
He gulped but held his ground. "That way the kid gets a fair chance at life, and neither of us have murder of an infant on our conscience." He explained. She pondered for a moment then snorted.
"Yes, but there is still this minor problem, even if we did that." She frowned cynically. "You live on this pit stop of the universe called Earth. I live in the gorgeous imperial capitol city on the Inhuman planet. You have...those beings that you acknowlege to be blood related to you, and those wretched freaks you call friends. I am a princess, with a fine family and the most popular and lovely of companions. We are from different worlds figuratively and literally. This is one long distance relationship that has less than satisfactory odds of survival."
He shrugged. "So then I'll go with you. No problem. Come on, you can't tell me that you really want to kill a baby."
"Fine, but you have to sign a prenuptial agreement. My money is mine. My position of royalty is mine."
He bit his lip and nodded hesitantly. "Sure." He had no intention of taking her money or her place on the throne. He wasn't really that into spending his life with her, but felt he had to for the sake of the tiny unseen life they had created together. Besides, he could imagine worse fates. She was pretty, wealthy, and a lot of fun.
Then suddenly he was in what appeared to be a hospital. He quickly figured he wasn't on earth, and guessed this to be Crystal's home world. Crystal herself was situated in a bed screaming her head off about how Pietro was a filthy evil person, and she was using words strong enough to embarrass a sailor. Eventually Pietro's finger bones were crushed beyond repair, and a tiny whimpering cry of their baby girl joined the noises of the room.
Once the doctor had given the baby a clean bill of health and a nice washing, he handed her to her parents with a smile. Crystal looked relatively unimpressed as she inspected the little girl, before passing her to her father. Pietro was much more enthralled than his wife however. He couldn't take his eyes off of the little girl.
He held her and just watched her. He was paralyzed with wonder at her tiny flailing arms and her dainty little cry. He couldn't help but smile as he counted ten itty-bitty fingers and ten itty-bitty toes. As far as he figured, his daughter was perfect. And he didn't know if he'd ever get over the awe that he helped create her and make her this way.
"Do you know what you want to call her?" The doctor smiled warmly, pleased at seeing such a loving father.
"Luna after my mother." Crystal said nonchalantly at the same time as Pietro said "Magda after my mother."
Crystal glared at Pietro. "She will be named after my mother, Pietro."
"But what about my mother? Yours is still alive!" He protested.
"And yours wasn't a queen. Her name is Luna. End of story." Crystal scowled.
"Crystal, please..." Pietro sighed, knowing he was fighting a battle already lost. He'd discovered in the months of marriage to her that Crystal's way was the law-literally. "Fine." He resigned partially. "Luna it is. But as her father I want to use my right to choose her name." He sighed. "Her middle name is Magda. Luna Magda Maximoff."
"Fair enough." The doctor quickly wrote the name down. His brow was furled in concern. Many people would ignore the exchange. But as the married Royal heir couple to the throne, this couple had plenty of time to discuss names for a child. It appeared to be an argument the couple had repetitively squabbled over.
One minute Pietro was gazing at the tiny marvel that was his newborn daughter and the next it seemed like months had passed. He was staring at Crystal again, but this time in absolute and utter horror. He felt as if she'd torn out his heart and spat on it before dropping it into poison.
He held the much bigger, but still tiny infant and just stared.
"Aren't you going to say anything?" Crystal scowled, the look he'd begun to associate with her.
"Why?" He managed weakly. "Why are you leaving?"
"I told you, Johnny's better for me. He understands me. And he's a lot hotter." She frowned. "He can offer me what you can't, so I've decided that our little sham marriage is over."
"But..." Pietro stammered blankly as he held his daughter. "Luna needs you...I need you!"
"No you don't." Crystal scoffed. "There are plenty of other single parents out there. Obviously it can be done."
Pietro gaped. "Are you seriously leaving me with our baby?"
"Of course not." Crystal snapped. Pietro sighed in relief. "I'm leaving you with YOUR little brat. I have nothing to do with that human infant from the moment I walk out this door."
Pietro's eyes widened. "How can you say that about your own daughter! Besides being cruel it isn't true. She's got to be at least a third generation mutant on my side. And you're powers too."
Crystal sneered. "Well aparantly your DNA corrupted it. I've had tests done. She'll never have powers. She's a genetic dud. A defect. A flatscan. Whatever you call her, I'm ashamed to share so much as biological material with her."
Pietro frowned. "I'm sorry she won't have powers but...she's still our daughter." He tried weakly.
"Maybe humans look at things differently. But here on my world, she's useless. She's nothing. And now, if you get out of my way, I shall leave and go off with Johnny."
"What's Johnny Storm of the Fantastic Four got that I don't?"
"I'm not going to dignify that with a response." Crystal said coldly. "But for now, I'm leaving. You are free to go back to that pathetic planet you called home before you tricked me into marrying you."
She exited the room in her royal dignity with her nose in the air. As the door slammed, the baby in his arms whimpered and let out a soul seering cry.
"What are we going to do now?" He asked her.
He yelped and shook his head like a dog shaking water. The vision thing slipped away leaving him breathing heavily and clenching the sheet in his fists. He looked around and realized that he was still alone. There would be nobody fawning over him for this little nightmare.
"I gotta get outta here." He ran a shaking hand through his platinum hair. He determined the institute was making matters worse. And who wants to sit idle while the last day of their life is drained from their body?
He looked around surrupticiously before stepping cautiously onto the floor. Hm, so this was how Xavier treated life and death situations in the infirmary. Pietro was sure no barefooted patient would try escaping if it meant walking on the cold metal floor.
"Going somewhere, Pietro?" A calm voice asked in amusement. Pietro frowned as Charles Xavier wheeled up to him.
"I need to get out." Pietro shrugged evasively. "And you can't stop me."
"Oh I wouldn't think of it." Xavier said calmly. "I can understand the need to escape sad reality, perfectly well as a matter of fact. Though I don't think it advisable in your condition to be running free so to speak."
Pietro frowned. "Look here old man, if you had just one day left to live, not even, actually a little less than that-"
"Currently you have twenty-three hours and 55 minutes remaining on the clock." Xavier sighed.
"Yeah. But if you only had a little under one day left to live, would YOU want to spend it trapped like a rat here in an infirmary just waiting around for death to take you?"
"Fair point." Xavier agreed. "Though there is no guarantee that you will die, Pietro. We have found something that will definitely help, we just need to synthesize the result. Don't give up hope just yet."
"Look, it's not like I don't believe you and all. Cause, I really want to. But even if I don't die, I can't stand being here any more! I'm gonna go crazy!"
"Pietro, I understand this whole thing is an awkward situation but you mustn't over do anything."
Pietro's shoulders slumped. He sighed. "I just want to have a little fun and get away from all the wierd looks and pity."
Professor Xavier smiled and put a hand on the boy's shoulder. "Well then perhaps a few hours out is exactly what you need. I see no harm as long as you stay nearby in case of any problems."
The younger mutant gaped at the man in the wheelchair. "What are you saying?" He asked dumbly.
"I'm saying, Pietro, if you want to take off for a little while, I fully understand. But you must stay nearby the mansion in case of any emerging problems. I believe a bit of fresh air and scenery will do some to help the disturbing visions you've been having. From what I can tell, your mind is creating them out of boredom so you have something to do, like watching television. Whether Hank's theory is correct or not remains to be seen."
Pietro nodded mutely, amazed. He had been expecting an order back into the bed or a discussion that he shouldn't even be standing up with how sick he was. But Xavier, his fathers friend from years past and nemesis on the battlefield, was telling him that he could go out for a few hours.
"And your clothes have been cleaned, if you would like to change out of Evan's outfit." The professor had a twinkle of amusement in his eye as he held out a bundle of clothes that were still warm from the dryer.
Pietro's face lit up in a smile such as one would expect on a child presented with a favorite toy as he reached to grab his outfit. He took them and headed to the bathroom. He turned at the door.
"Thanks sir."
"You are welcome Pietro. And remember, don't over exert yourself. I am trusting that you will call or return immediately, should anything cause the least bit of discomfort. The others and I shall monitor your vitals and statistics while you are gone."
Pietro nodded and entered the bathroom. A few minutes later he exited to find the professor no where in sight. He headed to the door and crept out into the hall, cursing the power collar around his neck. He wanted his superspeed, and felt heavy and awkward walking like everyone else.
He wanted to zip away unnoticed. He wanted to avoid any of the members of the institute. He couldn't take the pity anymore, it was drowning him. But as things were, he couldn't run at real speeds. So he settled for walking as quietly as he could.
He proved to be pretty lucky actually. The only encounter he came close to having was in the rec. room. Kitty had decided she wanted to watch A Walk to Remember after all the talk about it. She somehow talked Rogue into it, and needless to say, Remy joined in too, mainly for the chance to sit close to Rogue on the couch. Kitty could hardly believe it when she heard Wanda hadn't ever seen it. So she persuaded the goth to join in.
As Pietro was creeping by the door to the room, Rogue must have heard his footsteps because she looked up.
"Did y'all hear somethin'?"
Wanda looked up too. "Yeah."
"Ah'll go check it out." Rogue grinned, taking the excuse to climb off the couch and away from Remy's arm, which had been slowly attempting to sneak around her shoulders. "An' then maybe Ah'll go get drinks or somethin', any requests?"
"Yeah, could you, like, grab a couple bags of popcorn?" Kitty asked as she searched through the dvds for the movie of choice. "Oh and a Sprite too?"
Rogue nodded. "Anyone else?"
"Surprise us." Wanda shrugged.
"Remy go t' help y' carry de stuff, oui Chère?" Remy grinned.
Rogue rolled her eyes. "Whateva Swamp rat."
Rogue rose to go and would have seen Pietro. He panicked and walked a bit faster. Just as Rogue approached that entrance, Pyro barreled into the room from another door, knocking into Rogue.
"Oops, Sorry Sheila." He grinned. "Didn't mean nothin' by it. But Oy heard you guys were watching-You are!" His eyes lit up as he saw Kitty holding the dvd.
"Pyro, what are ya doin' here?" Rogue asked, exasparated.
"Oy heard you're watchin' ona moy favorite movies."
"Ya like A walk ta Rememba?" Rogue raised an eyebrow.
"Croikey, it's a great love story, that one. Moyty sad, but beautiful none the less."
"Aw, de homme prolly jus' be doin' 'research'. Remy said mischievously, like he knew a tantalizing secret.
"Now Remy, don' ya say nothin' now..." Pyro sounded nervous.
"Ah Johnny boy, y' wen' an' used a double negative dere. So dat mean's Remy gotta say somet'in'."
"Now really Rem, be a nice little Cajun bloke an' don't be telling secrets now." Pyro laughed nervously. "Specially none of mine."
Remy smirked wickedly. "But Remy sure de filles'd love t' hear 'bout yo' lil contract wit' de publishin' company. Or mebe Remy tell dem bout Sara Jane Allfire."
Pyro paled. "An' Oy'm certain they'd die laughing about the you-know-what in yer pillow."
"Y' wouldn' dare." Remy smirked confidently.
"Try me mate." Pyro snapped.
"Wait a minute..." Rogue frowned. "What do you know about Sara Allfire?"
"Hey, isn't that, like, one of those authors who writes for that book company you like, Rogue?" Kitty asked curiously.
"Allfire, Allfire, hey I think I've got a few of her books back home." Wanda spoke up thoughtfully.
"You, like, read romance novels?" Kitty raised an eyebrow.
"They're Gothic Romances Kitty." Rogue sniffed. "They aren't like that trash you read."
Kitty giggled. "Its just that, well, I never expected either of you to be the type to read stuff like that."
"What do you mean by type?" Wanda asked threateningly.
Pietro paused to listen in for a moment, curiously. This was a new development, and he agreed with Pryde.
"Nothing, its just unexpected, that's all."
Rogue huffed. "They're good story lines and plots."
"Right." Kitty giggled.
"You Sheila's read Sara Jane Allfire?" Pyro buried his face in his hands.
"Yeah, she's pretty good." Rogue admitted.
"Aw ain' dat sweet, Johnny boy? De femme say she like Sara Jane Allfire. Too bad it ain' who dey t'ink she is non?"
"What do you know about her anyway?" Rogue asked suspiciously. "Do ya know her or somethin'?"
"Oui, y' could say dat." Remy grinned wickedly. "John-boy here know de writer very well. On better'n a first nom basis."
"Really?" Wanda asked.
"Oy'm gonna kill ya." Pyro groaned into his hands. "Yer a dead bloke walking, mate."
"Actually, Remy daresay dat Sara ain' really a Sara aft' all." He smirked. " Sara Jane Allfire really ain' de femme y' filles be t'inkin'." He chuckled.
"What are ya talkin' about Swamp Rat?" Rogue frowned and headed to the bookshelf and grabbed a book. She flipped to the back cover and showed the picture of the author. "She looks like a woman ta me."
Remy chuckled. Pyro looked like he wanted nothing more than to curl into a hole and die. "Peti'e, y' eve' use Photoshop?"
"Yeah, so what's the point."
"The point is 'Sara' never did, so Remy helped. If y' were t' cut de hair, an' put de eyes t' dey nat'ral color which be a greenish blue..." He gave Pyro a sidelong glance. "An' if ya adjust some o de name...Sarah Jane Allfire becomes Sain' John Allerdyce."
Pyro groaned. "Oy'm ruined..." His eyes flashed. "Well, least Oy don' sleep with a stuffed bear!" He smirked at Remy who paled.
"No, you probably sleep with a lighter." Rogue raised an eyebrow, missing the point.
"Yes, actually, but thats not the point an' moy loyter ain' named after you, Sheila." Pyro chuckled.
"De homme crazy, don' lissen t' him, chère." Remy said dismissively.
"Yeah so oym crazy, big deal." Pyro chuckled. "Least oy didn' paint white stripes in the bear oy had since Oy was a kid an' name it Roguey." He taunted.
"You did what!" Wanda laughed looking at Remy.
He ignored her. "Dat was a low blow, John even fo' y'."
"And what you did was so over the belt?" Pyro challenged.
Pietro wanted to stick around and hear the rest of the argument but he realized that if he did want to get out, this was his chance. So chuckling silently he continued to the door.
Once outside he realized he was somewhat stuck in the middle of nowhere. He could walk somewhere but why should he do that? He whipped his cell phone out of his pants pocket and dialed for a taxi.
About twenty minutes later a yellow cab pulled up alongside Pietro. "Ya called for a ride?"
"Yeah. That's me." Pietro climbed into the back seat.
"Where to pal?"
"New York City." He paused before giving the address of the foster home he had lived in before Magneto had taken him out of the jail cell Spyke had landed him in. "And could you hurry? I really don't have a lot of time."
The cabbie rolled his eyes and drove off. Pietro stared at the scenery as they drove past it. He'd never taken the time to notice before, but the trees were very pretty with snow in their branches. And though the sun had set a couple hours ago
"So you heading home for the holidays?" The cab driver asked curiously.
"Something like that." Pietro mumbled. He knew his foster family hadn't missed him at all, but there was something he needed to do.
"Well, here we are. Have a nice holiday."
Pietro nodded and stepped out of the cab before paying the fare. He turned and took a deep breath. He headed up to the door of his old apartment building. He was going to ring the designated bell but hesitated. These people had never been family, and this place was never home. He bit his lip and headed around to the side of the building.
He carefully climbed the fire escape to the fifth floor and peered through the window. He sucked in a breath as he found himself looking into what had previously been his old bedroom.
The formerly blue walls were painted pink, and his posters had been taken down. In the place of girls, videogames, and sports heroes were unicorns and Disney Princesses. A canopy bed rested where his own bed had once been. It looked like his foster parents had finally had the daughter they had been dreaming about since they got married. He supposed he should be bitter that he'd been replaced by a little girl, but found himself remorseless.
Suddenly he saw that the closet door was open. Inside was a relatively small box labeled in sloppy black Sharpie 'Pietro's junk'. He was intrigued by that. His entire existance with this family fit into a small cardboard box. Without thinking he slid the window open and stepped inside quietly. The lights were out, implying the family wasn't home. He grinned and headed to the closet.
He knelt beside the box and opened it. On the top was the basketball uniform he hadn't worn to the game that fateful night a little over two years ago. He dug through the box finding his old posters, some old things that intrigued him and his report cards from school. At the bottom were three old trinkets that made tears prick his eyes.
He picked up his old stuffed bear. It was patched and ancient with a blue ribbon around its neck that he had used to rub to help him sleep when he was little. He hugged it close for a moment, remembering when his mother had given it to him. Then he set it aside and gently cradled Wanda's old doll in his arms.
It was just as old as the bear, and missing an eye. It's black hair was a lot shorter than when their mother had given it to Wanda. If Pietro recalled correctly Wanda had gone through a scissor faze when she was about 3. She had decided she wanted to be a barber when she grew up and got in her practice on everything she could get to sit still long enough; Pietro, the next door neighbor's poodle, the newspaper, Pietro, her shoelaces, her own hair, the doll and Pietro had been her favorite victims of choice. He lay that aside and gently picked up the last item in his box.
Tears flooded his eyes. He found himself looking at a picture of his father and mother and sister and himself. It was a copy of the same picture Wanda had broken. He had kept it with him since his mother had died. He stared at it for a few minutes. His mother looked so serene, so happy. It gave him comfort.
Pietro slid the picture into his pocket and repacked the box, leaving out only his bear and Wanda's doll. The night his father had ditched Wanda in that asylum Pietro found the only comfort was to keep the doll close by him. That was how he supposed it ended up in the orphanage with him.
He realized that most of the stuff in that box wasn't him anymore. He could leave it and not worry, but this bear, this doll, and that picture...well he figured Wanda might like them. After all, she was loosing the last bit of family she loved.
He slid the box back into the closet and headed out the window. When he climed down the fire escape he stood for a minute to decide what to do. He tucked the two toys into the coat that Xavier had given along with his other clothes. He was all alone in the city, and he had no supervision, adult or otherwise.
He grinned as he had a fun thought. He walked a block or two and found himself standing in front of a loud club. He grinned impishly. Underage-smunderage. He felt he was entitled to at least one night doing what he wanted as it was likely his last ever. So he put on a cocky grin and headed inside.
"Name?" A burly bouncer asked with a raised eye brow.
Pietro froze for a second. "Evan Daniels."
The bouncer looked down his list. "Well pal you ain't on the invite list. Who you here to see?"
"Just wanna have some fun." He smiled innocently.
"Well alright, just gimme yer ID then." The bouncer held out his hand expectantly.
Pietro winced, wishing he'd thought this through better. He coulda gotten a fake ID done. "I-er think I left it home." He stammered.
"Really?" The bouncer growled, oddly resembling Wolverine. "Well you seem a little scrawny to get into a 21 an' up club there buddy. White hair or not, no ID no entrance." With that he tossed Pietro roughly out the door.
Pietro sighed and sat down on the curb, fresh out of ideas. A light snow started to fall and he groaned. Could things get any worse for him?
Suddenly a red convertible with two white stripes down the front pulled up alongside him. "You, Pietro Maximoff, are so busted!"
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We seem to have a pattern going don't we? This story somehow got out of my control and became pretty dark. And these cliffhangers...they keep gnawing away at my ankles...I can't resist them. Well looks like Pietro's got some splainin' to do. So while he thinks of how to get out of this one, Allow me to respond to the sweet nectar that is reviews.
howlerdrode- Oops ya just missed my update. Seriously you hit like just minutes after I clicked update. Oh well, better late than never I suppose. Yeah but honestly what do you say to somebody in this case? Don't worry, it will happen. Thanks for the review.
xmengirlzrule- Sorry, I didn't mean to depress you! Yes it was sad, as I'm afraid this one has been as well. Glad you liked it. Sorry your vacation wasn't too great. Big groups are hard to deal with on vacay, no? Thanks for reviewing.
howlerdrode- Yeah that particular future is a scary place indeed. And that is true, there is too much terrorism. But the FOH did/does happen in the X-men. Miracles, yea they can happen. But I won't say much on that just now. Well look at the visions in context and then check out what Ishandahalf suggested for the answer to that question. Thanks for reviewing.
Sweety8587- Would you believe that was originally supposed to be a lighthearted and happy chapter? It just kinda...mutated for lack of better word. Aw thanks for the compliment. I'm trying to put people into Pie's head at this time. Glad you liked it. Thanks for reviewing!
JediTwitch- Yeah, dark it was. Ah, a Spyke hater are ya? Welcome to the club. We have jackets with Spyke's face in one of those no smoking signs. LOL. Um can't say anything much bout the vision things...that's a huge plot key for later. Yeah he is a bit tardy on that count. And it is sad how things like that only turn important on one's deathbed. Glad you liked the chapter and thanks muchly for reviewing. Oh! checks out BID Well, seems like you've won the death to Carmen competition. You now have my official permission to kill her off any way you deem worthy. Oh and by the way again Dobby-Bigglesworth says, and I quote "bring it on, buddy! Ain't had a chance to use my claws in ages...Oh look! A butterfly...life is good!". Eh sorry, he's a bit demented, ya know?
AC-Yup another chapter...and the world looks scary, doesn't it. Um...well um...will you stop reading if I say it's very likely he will? Thanks for reviewing...Please don't leave me!
Dis Chick Digs Da Fuzzy Dude- You're name is long, girl! Hey that was a scary futurelet thingie. I don't even like Spyke and I was crying. Glad you liked it, thanks for reviewing!
ishandahalf- You know, you are the first person to catch on that little detail. I was hoping it wouldn't go unnoticed. You're right, they can't all happen in the same time. Now the only question is are they different possibilities or are these dreams simply dreams and nothing more. For that answer I guess you'll just have to wait and see. Thanks for reviewing and bringing up an awesome point!
waterlily- Yeah Ok. Glad you like it, thanks for reviewing.
warriorwolf- LOL glad you like it. Thanks for the compliment and the review.
MagCat- Glad you liked it, yea that weirded me out too. Poor little Sarah, only Scott and Jean's kids as company...Hm guess you'll just have to keep on reading for that answer, lol. Thanks for the review.
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