Chapter 2

"Are you sure that this is the right house?" Ellie asked her brother as she scanned the dreary, vine covered home in front of her.

"Yeah I'm sure. See, Auntie Mildred still has those awful gnomes by the front door," Eli replied as he pointed to the stout figurines.

The twins both pushed open the gate that was surrounding the perimeter of the house, flakes of rust falling to the ground as they did so. Ellie ran her palms down the side of her jeans while Eli clapped his hands together a few times. The two made their way to the front door. Eli twisted the knob only to find the door locked. He looked to his sister.

"Wanna bet where they hide the spare key?" Eli asked as he waggled his eyebrows at his sister. Ellie's blue eyes lit up slightly.

"In the porch light case," she guessed.

"Under the welcome mat." Eli flipped the mat to find that the key was not there. Ellie smirked.

Eli flipped open the glass that surrounded the unlit porch light and ran his fingers along the inside. He raised his eyebrows when he felt the cold key under his fingers and pulled it from its hiding spot. He frowned as Ellie smiled.

"Told you so," she gloated before swiping the key from his hand. She jammed the dusty key into the lock and the two entered the house.

The inside of the house matched the outside in the aspect that it had been abandoned for quite sometime. Cob webs were clinging to the high ceilings and dust covered the hardwood floors. Eli flipped a nearby switch and the room lit up, a dim cast of light illuminating the deep red walls.

"Well, it looks like we've found our new home!" Eli said in his usual upbeat tone. Ellie scrunched her nose up at her surroundings.

"I'm surprised our dear Auntie left this place in this condition. You know how much she hated filth," she pointed out.

"So the woman had a complex, big deal. It's kinda like you and your whole brooding thing."

"You're not funny, Eli. Now make sure you locked that door," Ellie ordered as she dropped the deep teal backpack that had been strapped to her back onto the floor. Eli did as he was told before walking through the house.

Ellie remained in the hallway while she waited for Eli to return. A few more lights turned on in the house before Eli groaned loudly. Ellie nervously made her way into the kitchen area where her brother was.

"No water," he informed her.

"Well, we can make do," she added before turning toward the refrigerator. She shoved the massive appliance forward and plugged it into the wall.

Eli watched his sister intently before grabbing a glass cup from a nearby cupboard. He placed it onto the shimmering, black counter top quietly and turned toward the counter, hiding the cup with his body. He held his hand over the cup and his arm began to turn into clear water. The water dripped from his now liquefied fingertips into the glass and he smiled.

"Eli!" Ellie screamed, causing him to release a large gush of water from his hand. Eli turned around quickly, his arm returning to its fleshy state.

"What are you doing? I told you not to use your powers! Especially that one," Ellie scolded.

"It's okay Ellie. Seriously, I just filled up a glass with some water. I don't see how that is going to cause any sort of problems," Eli explained. Ellie was not convinced.

"You know what happens when we use our powers. Have you forgotten that HYDRA is still looking for us? When you use that power they could locate you."

"Calm down, alright? They gave us these powers, El. We need to accept that and use them."

"You're wrong, Eli. They forced these powers on us. We were fine just they way we were. We were perfect with only one power but they refused to believe that. We were test subjects Eli."

Eli grabbed his sister and hugged her into his chest. He rested his squared chin upon her blonde hair and squeezed her tightly. Her small body was shaking with what he expected to be anger and possibly a bit of sadness as well. He smiled when he felt her small hands grip the back of his shirt.

"You act like I don't remember what happened to us. I was there right beside you the whole time we were in that lab, Ellie. I am just trying to embrace what I have become. I wish you were able to do the same," Eli told her softly.

"I'm only 16 years old. I have flamethrowers instead of arms, and you're a walking bag of water," Ellie replied. Eli snorted a small laugh.

"Don't forget that you can fly. You have complete control of the air and you can fly away anytime you want. Nobody is going to be able to cage you again because they won't be able to catch you." Ellie pushed away from her brother.

"But you can't, Eli. I'm never going to leave you behind. We have to pretend that these powers don't even exist, alright? I don't think that I can run anymore," she told him. Eli lifted Ellie's chin with his finger.

"Alright then. I'll stop using my powers." Ellie gave Eli a small smile before turning toward the now full glass of water. She lifted it to her lips and drank the entire thing.

"Thanks for that," she said to her brother with a wink before leaving the kitchen. Eli crossed his arms and laughed.

"No problem!" he called after her.

Meanwhile at the Xavier Institute…

Charles Xavier sat behind cerebro, a large computer that could find mutants, with his fingers pressed against his lips. Cerebro zoomed through a list of random faces and names, but nobody near the institute was showing signs of mutant abilities. Charles was about to remove cerebro's helmet from his head when cerebro showed him the face of a young boy.

Charles leaned forward in his wheelchair a bit more as he studied the boys face and age. He was a strong looking lad, with a big grin and short blonde hair. Charles smiled when he noticed the boys location was Bayville.

"Logan, can I see you for a moment?" Charles asked using his telepathy.

"On my way Charles," Logan replied. Moments passed by before the door to the room where Professor Xavier was opened.

"So, did ya find anything interesting?" Logan asked as he approached cerebro and the Professor.

"I believe I have, Logan. This young man seems to carry the X gene and he has been using his powers quite recently. The good news is that he has been located here in Bayville," Charles explained. Logan examined the boys information a bit.

"So you think he may be worth visitin'?"

"Yes, I believe so. I believe that I will see if Kitty will accompany me to meet with him."

"Shadowcat? But why?" Logan sounded concerned.

"This boy is only 16 years old. I think that Kitty will be able to connect with him."

"Well, whatever you think is best, then do it. I'll be here if you need me." Logan left the room and Charles looked back at Cerebro.

"I'll be seeing you soon, Eli Dingo."