The digital display on the clock read 2:34 AM when Scott woke from a nightmare, sweat streaming down his neck and chest, his heart pounding. He glanced around him, reassuring himself of where he was and also where he wasn't. He was in his safe room. Not somewhere hot and dark and wet.
He sighed and put his unbandaged hand to his forehead, still getting used to the feeling of not hitting his glasses in the action. While he was glad not to have the restriction of his visor anymore, every time he thought about it, he thought about whom he owed it to and how it had come about. Then he would get the powerful urge to puke his guts out.
He shivered and sat up, pushing the covers away from him. He felt so hot and the sheets were stifling him. He swung his legs carefully over the side of the bed and got up, swaying a little bit. His wounds didn't hurt nearly as much anymore, but they were incredibly sore to the touch. He walked unsteadily to the balcony, rubbing his arms. He was bare-chested and the sweat clung to him, making him feel sticky and dirty. He hugged himself tighter, feeling sick and shaky and he just wanted to get these thoughts out of his head. He went on the balcony and stood in the cold night air, breathing deeply, trying to calm himself.
As he stood there, he saw a shadow flit over the wall, approaching the Institute. He was instantly suspicious but then realized with a jolt that it was Kurt. What on earth had he been doing out so late? Scott shivered when he realized that he really didn't want to know. He gulped hard as Kurt disappeared from sight. The German may have saved their lives, but he was also destroying others. He had to be stopped, but how was the question. Scott knew that if they tried to attack him, they'd end up a few inches tall and at the mercy of a fanged mutant who didn't frown upon cannibalism. But at the same time, he knew that Kurt was one of the X-Men, and thus, under his protection. He sighed again.
What were they going to do?
"Evening."
Scott jerked backwards with a cry. Kurt had appeared out of thin air on the railing of his balcony, golden eyes bright in the night. Scott fell over backwards, lying panting on the ground, the smell of brimstone harsh in his nostrils. Kurt frowned a little as he got down, saying, "Oh, sorry, Scott. I didn't mean to scare you."
He held out his hand to help Scott up, but the teen ignored it, turning away from him. He sat there a while, trying to control his heart before he whispered softly, "How do you do it?"
"Do what?" Kurt asked, confused, watching as Scott stood up, still not facing him.
"Pretend like nothing's wrong?!" Scott barked, his muscles all tense. He didn't like the idea of having his back to Kurt, but at the same time, he didn't want to face him. "How can you go about your every day life, acting normal and not like you killed people?!"
Kurt's golden eyes hardened a bit as he growled in response, "I'm just evening the score, Scott. Humans have been on top for far too long." He then gave a fanged grin. "Besides, they brought it on themselves. They killed the professor first, and I just treated them as they treated others like us."
"But, Kurt, that's not right!" Scott protested.
"Not right?" Kurt repeated softly. He then came closer to Scott, and while he didn't touch him, Scott could sense him being closer and all his muscles grew tense, ready to run. Kurt stood there, saying coldly, "Scott, let me tell you what's not right. Being abandoned, being abused, being rejected, being hurt daily, being shunned for being different, being exiled for saving another's life…" Scott peeked over his shoulder and saw that the eyes were glowing as Kurt all but hissed, "That's what not right." He turned away from Scott and stared out at the town in the distance, saying quietly, "We mutants have always been the submissive race. We hide ourselves, we suffer to try and blend in. We are willing to hide who we are, to cower, in order to avoid persecution." He turned back to Scott, smiling. "No more."
Scott turned around, saying, "That's not the way it should be, Kurt!"
If Kurt noticed his lack of sunglasses, he hid it well, replying icily, "Then how should it be, Scott?" He came closer and Scott found himself withdrawing a step. Kurt was shorter than him, but he'd never felt so scared as he saw those golden eyes so close to him, the teleporter whispering angrily, "Should we hide? Conceal ourselves only to be hurt anyway?"
"T-That's what the professor would have us do." Scott replied.
Kurt scoffed. "And for all his troubles, he was killed." While Scott fumbled for a reply, the teleporter sauntered past Scott into his room, to the nightstand, picking up his red sunglasses in his three-fingered hand. He leaned back against the dresser and crooned in an almost mocking sort of way, "By the way, I love your new look."
Scott stammered for a response, and finally choked out, "I hate it."
"Do you?" Kurt asked, a blue eyebrow cocked, a smug grin on his face.
Scott was unable to understand how Kurt could manage to look so innocent when he had the blood of countless others on his furry hands. He finally whispered, "Y-yeah. I hate it."
Kurt placed the glasses back on the dresser and walked up to Scott, asking politely, "And why, may I ask?" his hands behind his back.
Scott gritted his teeth, saying scathingly, "Because you did this to me."
Kurt froze and for a minute had no expression on his face. But then his eyes hardened and his lips drew back, revealing his fangs. "You just don't get it, do you, Scott?" he said softly, standing fully upright, surprising Scott by looking him dead in the eyes now.
Scott gulped hard and asked, "Get what?"
The gold eyes were smoldering angrily as Kurt said with a tone of forced patience, "Scott. What I did was a last measure. And yes, because of it, you got hurt. And that is something I'll never forgive myself for." He reached down and gently took Scott's right hand, rubbing his blue thumb over the bandage while the teen remained stiff as a board, too afraid to move. Kurt then said, "I never meant to hurt you. It's the very last thing I wanted to do." He released the limp hand and then looked Scott in the eye, golden orbs staring hard at emerald irises as he said softly, "But if hadn't, you would have been killed. I saved your life! Twice!" he added sharply, as an afterthought. He stepped away from Scott and turned his back to him, hugging himself. He then muttered bitterly, "And never mind the fact I hurt myself to try and save you."
"H-Hurt?" Scott gasped. But then he remembered and murmured, "Blood. You vomited blood." Kurt hugged himself tighter, and Scott had this sudden memory flash of Alex when they were younger, after being hurt. His brotherly instincts rose up and he felt the sudden urge to comfort Kurt, realizing suddenly that they hadn't tended to any of the teleporter's injuries. What other hurts was Kurt hiding? He was a member of the X-Men and deserved to be taken care of just like the rest of them.
He nearly stepped towards him, but then froze. What the hell was he doing?! Kurt got those injuries by trying to kill them! No, wait… To help them?
Scott moaned softly, falling to his knees, holding his aching head. What was wrong with him?! Nothing was making sense anymore! Right and wrong, once so easy to separate, once so black and white, pulled at him, tearing him apart. He felt furry hands on his shoulders and while a part of him flinched at the contact, another greater part of him longed for the touch. He whimpered, "Why isn't anything making any sense?"
Kurt was gently rubbing his back, crooning softly, his voice a soft purr in the darkness, "It's because you're thinking too hard about it, Scott. You need to relax, just like I'm always telling you." The voice was so soft and tempting and Scott held himself tighter, trying to resist, choking out words with no meaning to them. Shapeless and meaningless protests formed in his mind, bordering right on the edge of his senses. If only he could speak properly!
He heard the purr in his ear, so gentle and perfect-sounding, "Just relax and trust me, Scott. It'll be much easier on you…"
Scott struggled, trying to push the body from him. NO! He was the leader of the X-Men! He was the one they looked up to for what was right and what was wrong. If he couldn't tell them apart, they were doomed!
He felt his control slipping away as Kurt kept talking to him. He tried to grab at it, tried to retain some of the rapidly vanishing control… But then, causing tears to stream from his new eyes, he stopped fighting.
Kurt smiled and gently helped Scott back into bed, and when he was back to sleep, went back down to the kitchen, where Remy stood, sipping a coffee. Seeing the blue mutant smiling so hugely, Remy asked, "What are you so happy about?"
"Scott." Kurt answered simply.
Remy didn't look shocked, but he kinda frowned as he asked, "You ate him?"
Kurt was confused, but then laughed, saying, "No, no, don't worry." He pointed upstairs, to the teen leader, saying, "See, he's so confused right now! He's happy to have his eyes back, but he hates me for doing it, but he's happy to be able to see, but he's scared of me. He can barely think straight and it's perfect!"
"Why?" Remy asked, not getting it.
"He's the person that the others listen to. Without him, they won't know how to act! And here he is, too confused to push me away!" Kurt chuckled.
Remy frowned a little, saying as he put his coffee down, "You sure of that, Bleu? Because from what I've seen, Xavier trained all of you to think and plan for yourselves." He then looked at Kurt, his eyes glowing in the darkness. "You SURE they won't turn on you?"
"Of course they won't!" Kurt snapped at the Cajun. "Not when I have this power! They're too scared to come within ten feet of me!"
Remy just sipped at his coffee. If he was surprised at how power-hungry and dangerously confident Kurt had become, he made no show of it.
Kurt then growled and stalked out of the kitchen, muttering to himself, "There's no way they'd want to rebel against me! Not when they know I could have them shrunk and powerless in the blink of an eye!" He stalked past the medical bay, pausing upon hearing a clatter. He peered inside, blessing his night-vision, but saw nothing.
Grumbling about mice, he went up to his room, shutting the door and locking it. Once inside, he took his jacket off and hung it on the edge of his bed, reaching into the pocket and withdrawing the unconscious teen he'd picked up earlier. He put him on the bed as he stripped off his shirt, stretching and flexing.
This one had annoyed him greatly. After being shrunk the little thing had bolted into a nearby drain and if it weren't for the blockage of leaves and sticks, Kurt was sure he would have lost him. Threats had done nothing to move the little thing but he hadn't counted on the prehensile tail, which had dragged him out kicking and screaming.
Kurt crawled on the bed, purring as he waited for the kid to wake up, thinking about what Gambit had said. Was he REALLY sure that they wouldn't turn on him? He poked at the little body, muttering aloud, "Now that I think of it, Remy's right. They can think for themselves. And if they DID decide to mount and attack on me…"
He sighed a little as the body finally started to stir awake. "If they do attack me, some could distract me while others attack me from behind, or above or below." He sighed a little, hardly paying attention to his prey as it cried out in alarm.
He had never really entertained the idea of having the other mutants fight him. But honestly, what could they do? Kurt smiled, relishing again in his power at seeing the little human bolt, tripping on the bed sheet. He reached and pinched the back of the man's shirt, crooning to his horror-stricken face, "What can they do to me?"
The little teenager struggled and screamed, trying to break free. Kurt dropped him on the bed and got to his hands and knees, purring, "Run." The teen did run, but shouted in pain as Kurt's tail came and slapped down on top of him like a fly-swatter. "Not fast enough…" Kurt purred and removed his tail. The teen lay on the sheets, screaming as he felt his broken leg. The blue mutant grinned and lay down, his head right over the tiny human, saying with sympathy, "Ohh, did I hurt you?" Kurt bent his head down and licked tenderly at the broken, leg, ignoring the shriek of pain he caused. With an evil grin, Kurt quickly scooped the little body into his hand, and with a sharp snap, bit off the broken leg at the knee.
As he chewed the bit of meat, hearing the kid cry and sob in agony, he smiled. This was power! Sheer power! No one could EVER take this away from him! He would never let them. This was his gift and he would defend it to the death.
He gently eased the rest of the human into his mouth and leaning his head back, held him there for a while, delighting in the primal struggles. He focused on the blood pooling in the back of his mouth, longing to drink, but waiting for more to fill his mouth. But his impatience overcame this and he gulped, swallowing the blood and the small human, quickly reaching up to massage his neck, purring thickly at the sensations. When the squirming lump finally worked its way down, Kurt began to rub his stomach, purring softer now as he enjoyed the feeling of something trapped inside him.
But his feelings were interrupted by a small sound outside his door.
Kurt immediately teleported outside his room, his eyes glowing angrily. No one. But he sniffed the air and his fangs were revealed as he recognized that scent. "Pietro…" he whispered, taking off after the scent. He followed it down the hall, where he lost it in the large space of the front hall.
He stood there for a while, and finally with a frustrated growl, turned and marched back to his room, shutting the door and locking it again.
Pietro panted softly as Kurt walked back up the stairs. He waited until he heard the teleporter's door close before he collapsed to his knees, breathing hard.
He had been in the medical bay, looking for a sleeping pill when he had heard Kurt talking to himself. He had instantly crouched, hoping to remain undiscovered by that murderer when the cap of the bottle slipped from his numb fingers and hit the floor. Pietro had sped himself behind the bed, shaking and shivering as he heard Kurt stop speaking and then sheer, heart-stopping silence. Pietro didn't dare move until Kurt had left, mumbling something about 'mice'. Pietro wanted to run to the room he'd been provided, lock the door and hide under the covers of the bed, but he felt strangely compelled to follow Kurt. The teleporter had sounded angry and anything that bothered Kurt was a good thing for Pietro.
Pietro felt a little miffed when Kurt shut the door, the soft 'click' echoing in the dark corridor. So, softly as he could, Pietro crept to the door and kneeled, putting his ear to the cold wood, listening. He heard the concerns Kurt expressed and for the first time in a LONG time, Pietro felt hope. They still had a chance to stop this murderer!
Then he heard Kurt talking and knew that he must have snatched another innocent from the world outside. When he heard a soft crack, he barely repressed his urge to vomit. He managed until he heard Kurt swallow, then his whimper made it out past his horrified lips. He heard the bed springs creak and bolted, using his speed to flee from that monster, lest he be discovered. He ran down to the entrance hall, where the large space combined with the windows would help hide his scent. He hid behind the couch, biting his lip to keep from moving. He heard Kurt come into the area and shut his eyes. Hopefully, Kurt would just chew him and make it fast.
But thankfully, Kurt left him alone, stomping back to his room. Pietro peeked over the couch before getting up, wary of a trick. But when he was still breathing a few minutes later, he deemed it safe enough to walk. He sat on the couch a while, and then realized that there was only one person he could divulge this information too.
Quickly, he sped up the stairs and avoiding Kurt's room, ran to Scott's, rushing inside and closing the door.
Scott mumbled in surprise from the bed and Pietro ran over quickly telling Scott everything he had heard. The teenage leader stared at him for a while, and then shook his head. "No, Pietro. I can't."
"What?! Why not?!" Pietro asked in shock.
Scott rubbed his forehead, using his good hand, saying quietly, "He's still an X-Man."
Pietro sped in front of him and held up a couple fingers, asking quickly, "How many fingers am I holding up?"
"Three." Scott answered.
"Oh good! Your eyes DO work!" the speed demon snapped. Scott was confused and Pietro hissed, "Goddammit, Summers, LOOK at the fuzzball! He KILLS people, Scott. KILLS them, and not in self-defense. He goes out and hunts them out and then EATS them! For pleasure!" He allowed this to sink in before adding, "I'm not familiar with your rules, but I'm sure cannibalism isn't in your handbook." He paused a moment and then added, "Look, can't you tell this is WRONG?! The way he thinks, acts and talks… I'm not buddy-buddy with him like you are, but even I know that that's not HIM!"
Scott was silent a while before he stood up, wincing as he put weight on his injured foot. After a time, he mumbled quietly, "I can't. I just can't. He's still one of us and I can't just…"
"Scott." Pietro said softly.
But the teen ignored him, as if he hadn't spoken.
Angry, Pietro snapped, "Scott, look at me!"
Slowly, Scott obeyed, his green eyes soft and hazy and confused.
"That creature in the bedroom down there isn't your friend! He's not the fuzzy-goof you know! He's been changed! That chemical thing that doctor guy talked about, back at the base, it DID something to him! It changed him!"
Scott looked at him, his green eyes clear and bright. "So…" Scott started, but then both mutants froze as the door opened silently.
Silhouetted in the dim light of the hall was Kurt, his tail swishing a little. "I heard voices." he said softly to the two mutants.
Pietro was frozen, unable to move, staring at the golden eyes, his heart feeling like it was going to go still. "Uhh…"
He nearly screamed when Scott gently put his arm around him, saying softly, "It's no problem, Kurt. Pietro just had a nightmare."
"A nightmare?" Kurt questioned softly.
Pietro nodded, huddling into Scott's embrace while Scott answered easily, "Yeah. He wanted someone to talk to and I was already up anyway. Had to use the bathroom."
Kurt was silent for a while and both mutants wondered if he saw through the lies.
But then Kurt smiled, his fangs bared, and he said, "Well, Pietro, I hope you sleep well after this. Good night, Scott."
"Night, Kurt." Scott said.
Kurt left and both mutants collapsed onto the bed, both feeling the other shaking at the nearness of the encounter. Pietro was gasping hard now, nearly passing out from not breathing for those few minutes. Scott helped him calm down and then whispered softly, "We'll need the others to help us."