Emery kept walking until she found a road with cars passing by. She used her mind to convince a driver that he wanted to pull over and see her more closely. She then used her powers to knock him unconscious and put him in the backseat of the car.

She wasn't utterly heartless.

She took the driver's seat and programmed the GPS in the car to Chet's home address. It told her the trip would take about two hours. That was fine by her.

Kurt had returned to the vehicle empty handed and sullen.

"Where's the kitten?" Wolverine asked from the driver's seat.

"Gone."

"What do you mean gone?" Wolverine asked with a slight growl to his voice.

"I mean, she's gone. She walked away and might never come back."

'Shit,' Wolverine thought. 'The Professor ain't going to be happy to hear this bit of news.'

They drove back to the mansion in silence. Multiple and Bio-hazard watching Marcus. Sure enough, Emery's restraints had faded away. It was a good thing they had tied him up with rope too. Wolverine didn't speed for once, and Nightcrawler just stared solemnly out the window. They had completed their mission. Emery was free. But they hadn't accounted for the possibility that Emery didn't want to go back to the mansion. A.J. had been right, Kurt realized, as an emotional pain shot through him. Emery hadn't needed to be rescued. She hadn't wanted to be rescued.

They arrived back at their home two hours and fifteen minutes later. Logan heaved Marcus over his shoulder and said he was heading off to see the Professor. A.J. and Jamie climbed out of the car after Kurt, unsure of what to say since there wasn't anything they could do. A.J. took Kurt's hand to get his attention.

"She'll come back," A.J. told him. Kurt just stared at her blankly. "She will," she insisted before letting Jamie coax her away and into the mansion.

"Ich bin mir nicht sicher," he whispered to himself before teleporting to his bedroom.

Emery parked the car in the school parking lot. The guy would wake up later to find himself fine, and all of his possessions still there.

Emery headed off in the direction of Chet's house. It was about a ten minute walk from their old high school, and she had walked there enough times to have the path memorized. It was even ingrained into her muscle memory; she didn't need to think much about where she was headed.

His house was white panels, with a grey tin roof. The flower beds held a multitude of colorful blossoms. Emery walked around back and cast her mind up into Chet's bedroom.

'Die, die, die, die, die, die, die,' she heard Chet's mind. So he was playing video games. She figured he would still be at home. She climbed up the tree in the backyard. This is how she'd snuck into Chet's room in high school. She was at Chet's window within a minute, her powers aiding the movements of her hands and feet through their familiar processes. She eased the window open and gracefully swung herself into the room, landing in a crouch with a soft thump. Chet looked up in surprise as she rose to a standing position.

"Emery!" he gasped in surprise.

"Hello Chet," she said, anger ever so lightly slipping into her voice.

The controller in his hand fell to the floor as he stood up to face her. Emery used her powers to lock his bedroom door.

"What are you doing here?"

"Are your parents home?"

"Y... yes. Why?"

She cast her mind out around the house. "You're lying. Why would you lie to me Chet? Are you afraid of me?"

"I'm not scared."

"Of me."

"Of you."

"Then why would you lie to me. I thought you trusted me completely, you know, before your betrayal."

Chet looked down. "I shouldn't have said those things to you."

"But you did."

"I was scared. You grew a tail and ears right in front of me!"

"And fangs," she opened her mouth to point. "And claws," she extended them so he could see.

"I've thought a lot about it... and I'm fine with it now. It's kinda cute in a kinky kind of way," he said softly. Emery's ears twitched. Chet had always been more interested in the physical side of the relationship. He wasn't a player or solely focused, but it had been important to him.

"Thought I was just a mutie and not worth your time anymore."

"Em, I didn't mean it."

"You meant it all senior year."

"I didn't know what to do."

"So you fell into step with everyone else that hated me?"

"They were my friends."

"And you said you loved me. That I meant more to you than anything. Obviously that didn't apply if I was a mutant."

"Em..."

"No. Shut up. You can't act like we're familiar with each other anymore. I'm completely different. You don't know me."

"I can get to know you again... if you'll give me the chance."

She turned her head away so she wouldn't have to look at him. Unfortunately, this brought her gaze to his bed. She'd spent many, many nights there, pressed beneath him. She blushed a little at the thought. He was actually a very attentive lover. She closed her eyes. What was she thinking? This was not why she came here.

"Emery," Chet called softly.

"What," she snapped angry at herself for letting her thoughts stray to that part of her past.

"Why did you come here?"

"To straighten things out."

"What?"

"You said something to me in the hospital..."

"I did?"

"You said... that you really did love me."

"Because I do."

"But then you continued to act like I didn't exist! And I didn't really have much control over the mind reading thing! So I couldn't just hop into your mind and tell if you're telling the truth, like I've been doing tonight. So it's been nagging me. I actually believed you when you said you loved me, the entire time we were dating! And then you went and said something so unbelievably harsh to me, hateful words towards a mutant who just went through becoming one and didn't know what the fuck happened to her, and you just spat out all those painful words! Then you confused me with your half-conscious words of love and..." Chet cut her frantic rant off with a kiss. Her body responded to his familiar-ness before she had a chance to react. It relaxed as he wrapped his arms around her, and deepened the kiss. His hands stroked her back, something that she'd always enjoyed. She started to get lost in the feeling.

One of his hands strayed down to the base of her spine, where her tail protruded from her, and he rubbed the spot gently. She moaned softly, her head starting to spin in pleasure, and pressed closer to him. He moved his mouth down to her neck and continued kissing. She was waiting for him to bite her. She wanted his little fangs piercing into her skin, claiming her as his, like he had several times before. He didn't bite her; he returned to her lips. She opened her eyes and probed her mind out to find out why Kurt wasn't really acting like Kurt. Her body froze and her mind pushed him away, hard.

She looked down at Chet sprawled on the floor. He sat up on his elbows.

"Since when could you do that?"

"I have some mental mutations along with my physical ones," she said flatly and turned to leave.

"Why are you leaving?"

"This isn't what I wanted to happen."

"What did you want to happen?"

She turned back to look at him. "I came to end things for good. I don't like unfinished business."

"What?"

"I'm falling in love with someone else, someone... better. Than you. I just wanted to make sure things were done between us, so I can move on."

"So you're not going to give me a chance to make up for the things I said and did?"

"No. Goodbye Chet."

"Am I ever going to see you again?"

"I don't know Chet, but I'm going back to my mutant friends who accepted me from the start." 'Even if I've been a bit crazy towards them...' she added mentally.

"And this guy you're falling for... he's a mutant too?"

"Yup."

"And I can't change your mind?"

"Nope."

"I really am sorry."

"I know. Goodbye Chet."

"Bye..."

She turned and climbed out the window, swung down and dropped to the ground. Then she headed to the park.

Ich bin mir nicht sicher = I'm not sure