No-One But You (The Zephyr Endeavor)

Chapter 8: Quiet Coyote (Part 8)

Wade Wilson was very familiar with something called the X-Mansion, or Charles Xavier's school for "gifted youngsters"…

Gifted youngsters was code for mutants, and the thought of being a "mutant" was currently on the mercenary's mind. He wasn't sure if Ezekiel Stane was a mutant, but obviously… the young man was gifted. He was extremely intelligent, and Wade had developed a soft spot for him somewhere along the way.

He thought about that as he waited outside Xavier's fancy office. Ezekiel was speaking to him, but Wade wasn't allowed in the room. He paced around for a long while, then he eventually took a seat on a large red sofa.

He was normally hyperactive, so getting bored usually got him in trouble. The mercenary tried to control himself, because there were a million things around him that he wanted to look at and touch.

He wondered what the quiet coyote was saying to the freak-shrink, and Wade's thoughts wandered back to their conversation at the motel. Ezekiel's rooftop confession definitely pissed him off, and the mercenary's anger hadn't simmered down at all…

They weren't "fighting" as Victor Strange proclaimed that morning, but Wade felt a shift going on that he couldn't quite shake. It felt like the "Jackal" was taking a backward step, and everything about that had to do with his identity. Ezekiel seemed different from how he was a short while ago, back when he was staying with Wade.

It felt like he was reverting back to his old self, and that shit was no joke.

So, Wade challenged himself with the notion of remaining calm and being patient. Being patient was tormenting him, so he looked over at the brown door that led into Xavier's fancy office. He wanted to barge in or eavesdrop, so his pacing picked up again.

Inside the room, Ezekiel was sitting on a brown chair that faced Xavier's desk. He told the mutant that he caught onto what was happening with his mind, and he only asked for an explanation. The "Jackal" wanted to understand why Xavier was filtering how he felt, and what he said around Wade Wilson.

There's always a reason, and Xavier gave it to him. The mutant explained that the decision to keep Wade Wilson "at a distance" was made by a vote by the Surveillant Council. The majority vote ruled in Xavier's favor, because blocking Deadpool was his idea.

Ezekiel didn't outwardly react to the information he was given, but he did take some time to process what was said. He stared at something on Xavier's desk for a long while, because he wasn't sure how Wade would take what the Surveillant Council decided to do. The White Jackal accepted it and he didn't challenge that decision. He had other things to discuss with Charles, so he moved on from the subject.

"On another note, I've decided to alter my normal appearance. Thankfully, S.H.I.E.L.D. has kept my identity confidential, but I can't have anyone connecting Ezekiel Stane to what I'm doing as the White Jackal…"

Long story short, Ezekiel needed advice from Charles about a decision that he had been stewing on for a long while. The mutant had consulted with him about it for months, and Ezekiel finally felt ready to go through with the change. Xavier gave Ezekiel a gentle smile, and he told him that altering his everyday appearance would have its pros and cons.

"Now is a good time, if you plan to commit. Your mind is strong enough to adjust to that, but only if we continue suppressing your emotions."

"So, you mean I won't snap.."

The Jackal was only concerned about "snapping" or falling back into a dangerously low mental state. Ezekiel feared that happening the most, because there was a ton of trauma going on and a lifetime of dangerous information looming around within his head. He recognized and recalled being in a very low state back when he was identified and arrested. All of that changed thanks to Charles Xavier…

"That means you won't snap. We won't let that happen."

Ok. Ezekiel felt better about a number of things. His intrusive thoughts eased up, and he glanced down at the clothing that covered his skin. He did that because he made plans to change them, and the anxiety around that had finally subsided. He looked up at Charles after a moment, and he made a gesture with his hand to activate his technology.

"I borrowed something from Tony Stark. He created a device that forms a life-like illusion that corrects what happened to Wade Wilson's skin."

Well, Ezekiel stole Tony's work and he used the design to make something for himself. The Jackal altered his everyday appearance right there in that moment, and Charles Xavier was the first person to see his altered state. The mutant thought over the pros and cons as he watched Ezekiel's appearance change.

The "White Jackal" took on the appearance of a young woman, so Xavier also thought about the exchange he was about to have with the man pacing around outside his office. He already knew that Wade Wilson was not going to like the change to Ezekiel's appearance, but there was nothing the mercenary could do.

Xavier approved the change, and he spoke with Ezekiel about it for only a moment longer. The "Jackal" eventually stood from his chair, and he opened the office door up for Wade.

Deadpool wasn't sure who opened the door to Xavier's office. He stopped his pacing as soon as he saw someone step out of the room. It clearly wasn't Ezekiel, or Charles, so he figured some cute mutant was already in the room?

Wade just blankly stared, cuz something was up. He was speechless for the first time in his life, and he focused a bit more on the person's eyes. That focus sharpened pretty quickly, because something was said about returning to S.H.I. . after Wade had his "conversation" with Xavier.

"We'll head back after, and Xavier says you can come in now Wade."

Wait, I'm sorry. Hold up. Clearly something was wrong, because the person who opened the door and spoke to him had the vibe of Ezekiel, but the vibe didn't match the image.

Wade was looking at someone else, and he was looking at someone who looked VERYyyy different, so a river of confusion suddenly struck his damaged soul. The mercenary almost had to remove his mask, because he suddenly gasped in a shit ton of air and he kinda forgot how to breathe.

He had to loudly deflate all of the air out of his face first, because suddenly Ezekiel Stane looked like a… cute, girl? Wait, lady? Or… young woman? What the fuck was happening? Wade was in a gooey puddle of shock and disbelief.

Chapter: END

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