Chapter Twenty-Eight: Separate Ways

A/N: Only two more chapters to go after this one! Hope you enjoy :)

Tobi's knees gave way and she staggered. Alex lunged forward and caught her around the waist, staring in horror at the blood oozing ominously from the wound on her chest. The girl's green eyes filled with tears as Alex slowly lowered her to the ground. There was a lump in his throat, and try as he might, he couldn't swallow it.

"Tobi," he whispered, his voice hoarse as he stroked her bronze hair back from her face, "You can't die on me. We're in this together. Hotshot and baby, remember? After all we've been through, you have to hold on."

"I'm sorry," Tobi responded, her eyes riddled with pain as her hand almost instinctively found the bullet wound. "I didn't want it to be like this…I didn't want…I'm so sorry, Alex. I love you."

Alex's eyes filled with tears and he just couldn't handle it. He didn't care whether crying made him less of a man. He didn't care about anything at all. Tobi was dying, and right now, that was the only thing that mattered. It was like his world was crashing down around him.

"Where's Meth?" Alex demanded, unsure if he was talking to himself or to the dying girl in his arms. "Where is he? He can fix you…"

Tobi smiled through her tears and agony. Brave until the end. He stared down at her. No, he couldn't lose her. He didn't think he could stand it.

"I think Bishop killed him. He didn't want Meth to swap sides and save lives."

Alex froze, unable to believe Bishop's sheer ruthlessness. Bishop didn't care about Meth. He only cared about causing as much damage as he could.

"Hey, Alex…"

Alex looked up. Elliott had stumbled into the bunker, closely followed by Zelda. Both of them stopped in their tracks when they saw Tobi struggling to hold on, stained with her own blood. Zelda cried out, immediately clapping a hand over her mouth. Elliott's eyes widened, but then he stalked determinedly towards the pair of them.

"Put her down, Alex."

"What the fuck?" Alex demanded ferociously, his eyes burning as he clutched Tobi closer to him, "You're mad! I know you're with Bishop…"

"No I'm not!" Elliott snapped, folding his arms across his chest, "Look, I can help Tobi, I can save her…the last person I touched was Meth! Don't you get it, Alex? I can heal her!"

Alex saw reason immediately and gently set Tobi aside. He remained close beside her, eyes huge with concern as Elliott kneeled by the girl's side.

"Won't you just absorb her power?" Alex asked, a little confused.

Elliott shook his head slowly, placing a hand on Tobi's collarbone. He closed his eyes and concentrated.

"Nope. If I start using the last mutant's power immediately, it counters the absorption."

They remained in silence, Alex and Elliott kneeling over Tobi's prone form, Zelda standing across the bunker looking terrified. Alex could only pray that this would work and from the fear in Elliott's eyes, he wasn't sure what he was doing either. Only when some colour started to return to Tobi face and the bullet dropped out with a metallic chink did Alex feel his hopes rising.

"You know what?" Her voice was stronger now, much stronger. "I think I just might live."

Alex laughed out of sheer relief, the tense knots that had been tied in his stomach loosening. Despite the blood that still stained Tobi's body, she was clearly fully healed, as she leapt to her feet like nothing had been wrong. She glanced dispassionately across at where Bishop's lay face-down on the bunker floor.

"It's going to be alright, Tobi," Alex convinced her, putting an arm around her shoulders, "He's dead now. There's nothing you've got to be afraid of."

"I know." Tobi replied, her voice quiet. "I'm only sorry that I wasn't the one to kill him."

Max's funeral was a sombre affair. Everyone was dressed in black and they gathered around in the garden for the procession. Tobi felt her heart break as she saw Max's pale white face, remembered the boy who had been so friendly to her when they'd first met. Lucie was sobbing uncontrollably, held by a mournful Danni.

"Max was everything a mutant should be," Charles's tone was solemn and a tear slipped down his cheek as he stared down at Max, who looked as though he was sleeping peacefully. "He was a good friend. He was brave. All I can say is that his death will be remembered forever in our hearts, and we will remember him as someone who fought for what he believed in, right until the very end."

Lucie howled in anguish as Alex and Hank used the pulleys to lower her brother into the ground. She strained against Danni, and Tobi turned away, thinking that she had never heard a sound of such grief. Lucie continued to scream, until she sagged in Danni's grasp and sobbed into her friend's shoulder.

Charles glanced across at Magneto, his expression grim.

"You will stay, won't you? You know that you're welcome here – all of you."

Magneto's expression was grave as he watched the earth being piled over Max's coffin. He had not known the boy, yet the reaction of his sister had been enough to evoke the sorrow Magneto hadn't even known he'd felt.

"You once told me that we were different. That hasn't changed, Charles. You want peace – and I will always be a man of vengeance. I could never accept humanity as you have. I'm sorry, but my place isn't with you. I think you know that."

Charles inclined his head, his lips pressed into a firm line. Mystique moved forward, her eyes averted. When she reached her foster brother, Charles managed the hint of a smile as he wrapped her in a warm embrace.

"I don't blame you for going with him," Charles murmured in her ear, "It's where you belong."

Mystique risked a nod. "I'm sorry I left so suddenly. I should have been with you after you'd been shot…"

"There's nothing to forgive," Charles replied, leaning in and kissing her on the cheek.

"I want to go with you."

Everyone turned to face Lucie, who had wrenched herself free of Danni's grasp and now walked up to Magneto, her chin held high. There was a light burning in her eyes and Charles could see that her brother's death had changed her.

"There's no place for me here," Lucie continued, her hands balling into fists. "I want to join you, Magneto. I need a fresh start and I'm sorry, Charles, but I just can't do that here. There's still too much anger inside me…and I need to vent it."

Charles inclined his head. It was, after all, Lucie's decision. Mystique held out her hand to the young mutant girl and as the Brotherhood joined hands and Azazel teleported them away, only Alex noticed that Tobi had started to walk back towards Charles's mansion.

When Alex opened the door to Tobi's room, he noticed that she was sitting on the windowsill and watching as Perry, Sean and Zelda shot hoops down on the basketball court. There was an impassive expression on her face, yet Alex knew exactly what she was thinking. He knew why she'd left Max's funeral.

"Finally, things can get back to normal," Tobi muttered, watching as Perry slapped the ball from Zelda's hands and she gave him a playful shove. Despite the fact that she couldn't hear them, she knew they were laughing. How she wished she could laugh.

"I wish you'd stop blaming yourself," Alex sighed, crossing over and placing a hand on Tobi's shoulder, "Max's death wasn't your fault, and you know it."

"How would you know?" Tobi snapped at him, brushing off his hand and clambering to her feet. "You weren't there. You wouldn't know! I was the one who put the first bullet in him. Bishop just finished off the job."

Alex was struck by the bitterness in her tone, yet he knew what it was like to feel guilty. To him, this event seemed eerily similar to when Shaw had used Alex's power to destroy Darwin. He hadn't accepted that it wasn't his fault then, but he did now. Perhaps it was only through seeing Tobi blaming herself that he'd realized.

"You didn't kill Max any more than I killed Darwin," Alex responded firmly, grabbing Tobi by the arms and forcing her to look at him. "You've got to acknowledge that. I know it's hard, but you'll get there. You only shot him to give you all a fighting chance. If Bishop hadn't deflected that bullet, he'd still be alive…and you know it."

Tobi was silent. She was beginning to really consider Alex's words, to let them sink in. After a moment she gripped Alex's wrists so tight that he winced. Before he could say anything, she leaned in and pressed her lips to his. Alex slid his hands from his arms and linked them around her waist pulling her closer. As she deepened the kiss, he could feel something wet on his face. When he jerked back, tears were sliding down Tobi's face.

"I wish I could change things," she sobbed, pressing her face into Alex's shoulder as he wrapped his arms around her and held her close. In this moment, Tobi didn't need to be strong. She could be as vulnerable as she wanted, because Alex was there and he wasn't letting go. So she let him hold her as she cried her heart out.

"I'll never leave you," Alex whispered, resting his chin on top of Tobi's hair, "I promise."

"So, let me get this straight." Perry's eyes narrowed as he chomped on a Crunchie, pointing the wrapper first at Danni and then at Sean. "You two are going out now? That's crazy!"

Hank shrugged. "Not really, Perry. The likelihood of Sean and Danni dating…"

Alex couldn't help but smirk from across the table. Finally, another couple was in the limelight. Sean couldn't tease him and Tobi and anymore, not unless he wanted his butt kicked. It had been pretty obvious what was going on when Perry had sprung the pair in the kitchen, Danni squealing as Sean tickled her.

Elliott winked across at Alex. "Looks like you're not the only one getting action, then."

Alex's cheeks burned. "Dude, shut up. Zelda's too young to hear about this."

Zelda looked rather offended, and she glowered at Alex across her cereal. He grimaced inwardly, hoping that she wasn't going to hypnotize him into doing gymnastics on the basketball court or something equally as embarrassing.

"Well, it's the truth." Elliott looked back in his chair, shrugging as he rocked back so that the chair was only on two legs. He sniggered. "I mean, we're teenagers, and teenagers have needs…"

Suddenly, Elliott's chair slipped and crashed to the ground. He yelped as he hit the tiles and the others cracked up as Tobi looked down at Elliott with her hands on her hips and her eyebrows raised.

"You might want to be more careful, Elliott. You shouldn't swing on your chair like that. You never know when you could slip."

Elliott muttered curses under his breath, rubbing his sore leg and clambering back onto his chair as Tobi shrugged nonchalantly and joined the group at the table, nudging Danni aside so that she could squeeze in.

"What have we got up first today?" she inquired, referring to the lessons which had recommenced.

Hank ticked off on his fingers. "Well, I believe that you and Danni are doing Ancient History, Sean and I are doing Physics, Alex and Perry are doing Geography, and Zelda and Elliott are doing Biology."

Everyone groaned. Charles had decided to introduce mainstream subjects like normal high schools and universities would have, much to the chagrin of the young mutants. Danni glanced across at Sean in astonishment.

"I didn't know you were any good at Physics, Sean."

Sean looked a little embarrassed, scratching at his head.

"Umm, well, I guess it's a learning curve." Sean then recovered himself, offering his girlfriend a sleazy little smile. "But, you know, I'm excellent at Human Biology. Perhaps I could give you a practical lesson…"

Zelda clamped her hands over her ears and Tobi took the chance to lean across and swat Sean around the back of the head. Elliott snorted into his toast, clearly trying unsuccessfully to disguise his amusement.

"Please," Alex indicated his empty bowl. "I just ate, Sean."