It started as something simple, as super-heroing goes.
       It usually does.
       Katherine "Kitty" Pryde was strolling down a nondescript London avenue,
on a day trip to do some shopping. Her 17th birthday was tomorrow, and she 
needed something special to wear for the surprise party her friends were 
planning her.
       She hadn't meant to overhear. Really. She had just been slipping down 
for a cup of tea, when she, um, accidentally leaned through the wall into the 
room where her friends were planning. Was it her fault she was intangible?
       Well, yes and no. She was a mutant; Homo Sapiens Superior. Through some 
quirk in her DNA, she could phase through solid objects. But she had lost 
control of those powers when battling the Marauders, and her healing process was 
slow and painful, emotionally if not physically.
       None of her friends, fortunately, had commented about her not practicing
her control for the past few weeks. Sliding through floors--conveniently 
crossing both sides of a wall as she did--when the stairs would have done just 
as well, for example.
       Oh, well, she thought. The damage is done. I may as well--
       An alarm started ringing down the street.
       "Oh, poo," Kitty said quietly. "It's probably nothing. I really should 
let the bobbies earn their pay--"
       Yeah, right, Shadowcat.
       Glancing around, she saw that no one was looking, so she took a step to 
the side. Into a wall. A minute later she stepped out, clothing and bag stashed
inside a closet on the other side of the wall, costume in place. She sprinted 
down the street, and before long was quite literally walking on air.
       The source of the alarm was a branch of Fraiser's bank. Kitty winced, 
the old pain washing over her. She wasn't sure why. After all, she'd never 
known the real Courtney Ross.
       "Excuse me, Officer. Could I be of some assistance?"
       "I dinna think so lass," the man said without turning around. "Run along
now."
       "Really, officer--"
       "Lass, I'm gonna have to ask--" The officer turned and reached for her 
shoulder, then jerked his hand back as it passed through her. "Oh, it's you," 
he said, stepping back. "Well, I suppose you could be of some help then. This 
'ere's a busted robbery. The would be thieves are 'olding about ten 'ostages 
inside, but we canna get 'em to talk to us yet, to find out what's going on."
       "Thanks officer," Kitty said, dropping down into the ground before the 
man could say anything else. She "swam" towards the bank, her molecules 
slipping around the molecules of the earth and rock. A moment later she stepped
through a solid metal wall which could only be the vault wall of the bank.
       "Bingo," she said. Eight people sat clustered together near the far 
wall. Walking up behind them, she tapped one young man on the shoulder.
       "Bloody Hell!" he snapped. "Where did you come from?"
       "Quiet! They'll hear," said another.
       Kitty looked around, but saw no sign of the bank robbers. "Where are the
thieves?"
       "Upstairs," said the first person. He was about her age, tall, brown 
haired. His British accent had disappeared, replaced by a midwestern United 
States accent similar to her own, but Kitty didn't have time to wonder about 
it.
       "How many?"
       "Three. They check on us every few minutes."
       "Are they armed?"
       "Like the guy in the last Terminator flick. And they brought a bomb big 
enough to level this block."
       "So much for the busted bank robbery theory," Kitty said. "I suppose the
bomb is electronically triggered?"
       "Looked like it."
       "Just great. That means I can't phase it, 'cause I'm as likely to set it
off as disable it. And I can't take you all out, 'cause if they see any of you
missing, they'll go ballistic. How do I get myself into these things?"
       "Comes with the costume, Miss Shadowcat."
       "Too true." She paused for a minute. "I'm going to head upstairs and 
look around and then go back outside to tell the police what the situation is. 
I'll be back, I promise."
       A woman stepped forward, holding a small infant in her arms. "Please 
miss, take me daughter with ya. I dinna want her ta come ta any 'arm."
       Kitty looked at the girl, who couldn't be more than 9 months old. "I 
can't," she said quietly. "If they notice anyone missing, there's no telling 
what they'll do."
       "Please, miss--"
       "I'll come straight back, and if nothing's changed, I'll take her out. 
Please trust me, ma'am. My friends are already on their way here."
       Kitty didn't like lying to the woman, but it seemed to calm her. Turning
away, she walked up the stairs to the bank lobby, phasing through the gate and
into the bank wall. A moment later she leaned out into the bank lobby just long
enough to confirm what she had been told downstairs. Three men with what looked
like military issue weapons were sitting in the lobby, and a large bomb was 
attached to the vault.  The guy downstairs was right. It was big enough to 
level the block.  Taking a deep breath, she dropped back underground.

       Dai Thomas climbed out of his car and slammed the door. "Who's in charge
here?!" he called. An officer stepped forward but before he could say anything
Dai snapped "You're wrong. I am. What's going on?"
       "Dai, thank God your here!"
       Dai turned to see Shadowcat climbing up from the ground. "Just when you
thought things couldn't get any worse..."
       "Get on the phone and call the others. This is no simple bank robbery. 
Do you still have that doll you use with kids in the boot? Here it is," Kitty 
said, pulling a life sized plastic baby from the trunk of Dai's car. "Try and 
find out what these people want. I'll be right back."
       "...they get worse," Dai finished, watching Kitty disappear.
       "Oh, and be careful," she said, her head appearing in front of his feet.
"There are a lot of explosives and ammunition in there."
       Dai just shook his head.
       Kitty rushed back to the vault, carrying the doll in her arms. When she
got there, she handed the doll to the young woman and told her to wrap it in 
the baby's blanket. "Don't let them see it," she said, "or everything's blown."
       The woman nodded. "Thank ye miss. I'll never forget this, I won't."
       "Its OK. I'm just sorry I couldn't take her out before."
       "You made the right decision," said the brown-haired young man. "They 
checked us while you were gone."
       "Thanks," Kitty said, pulling him aside. "You seem to be handling this 
a little better than the others," she said, glancing at the seven other 
hostages sitting huddled near the far wall.
       "Oh, I'm as scared as they are, I'm just better at dealing with it," he 
joked, laughing nervously.
       "What's your name?"
       "Mark Writhson. I'm from the States. My father is over here with the US 
Army."
       Kitty nodded, letting him talk so he'd stay calm. She was sure now that 
he was from the Illinois area, just like her. "I want you to try and keep every
one calm. Cooperate as much as you can with the terrorists."
       "You figured that part out too, huh?" Mark said. "They're too well armed
to be anything else. But who are they, and what do they want?"
       "I was hoping you could tell me. Have they said anything about why 
they're here, even indirectly?" He shook his head. "Oh well."
       "I don't know when I'll come back," she said, speaking louder so 
everyone would hear, "but we'll be getting all of you out of here as soon as 
we can. Just stay calm and everything will be all right."
       The woman came over and handed Kitty the baby girl. "Take good care of 
her, miss."
       "I will," Kitty promised as the woman went to sit with the other six 
hostages. She turned to Mark, who was still standing next to her. "Be careful",
she said, waiting for the baby to finish taking a breath before she stepped 
into the wall.
       "You bet I will, Kitty Pryde," Mark said quietly.

       Kitty pulled herself frantically through the earth and rock. It was a 
race to get far enough away from the bank before the baby needed another 
breath. Surface too close, the terrorists might see her. Wait too long, and the
infant in her arms could suffocate.
       Finally she felt she couldn't wait any longer--she wasn't sure if she 
had covered enough distance, but she knew the child needed to breath. She 
pushed herself upwards, rolling forward as she cleared the ground. Kitty smiled
as the little girl let loose with a reassuring wail. Bending over she darted 
back to the police line. Handing the child to a medic, she turned to Dai. "Did 
you get Kurt?"
       "They're on their way. What's going on in there?"
       Kitty filled him in on what she had seen and deduced. "But I still don't
know why they're doing this. Have you been able to talk to them?"
       Dai shook his head as the phone in his car started ringing. "We've got a
direct tap into the phone line, but their not answering." He reached through 
the window and lifted the phone "What Kurt--Yes, I'm Dai Thomas. Who the hell 
are you. What! How did you get this number?" Kitty looked at him questioningly.
His only response was to jerk his head towards the bank.
       "Yes, I understand. I assume you have some demands?" His eyes grew wider
and he sputtered into the phone. "What! You can't be serious! That's out of the
question and you know it! No, it's not possible, I tell you! Don'tQ" Snarling,
he slammed the phone into its cradle. "Those damned fools are going to get 
everyone killed! Call Headquarters," he snapped to another officer. Looks like 
this is an IRA job."
       "What did they say?"
       "They saw you leaving with the baby. There's a guard in the vault now. 
If you try to go back in, they'll kill everyone."
       "Damn! I knew I shouldn't have tried it."
       "Quiet, Katherine. You did the right thing."
       "I know. I just shouldn't have been caught."
       "Can't be helped. But if that wasn't bad enough, they want the master 
codes for the Fraiser's computer system."
       "They what!" You can't be serious!"
       "That's what I said to them, Mr. Glassey. Shadowcat, Jake Glassey, the 
new President of Fraiser's."
       "Mr. Glassey. Is their anything unusual about this branch? Any special 
accounts or items in storage that would cause them to rob this bank?"
       "None that I know of. But there was a special security system added 
during the term of my. . .predecessor. An electrified mesh covering the 
interior wall of the vault. Any disruption in the mesh causes an alarm to 
sound."
       "Fascinating," Kitty said wryly. "An alarm system that even Kurt and I 
couldn't avoid tripping. She must have hid something in there, Dai. Something 
important."
       "Why request the computer codes, then?"
       "An added bonus, perhaps. Or a diversion?"
       "Both, I think, Mr. Glassey. And if they're after something that 
specific, the bomb is probably little more than a shaped charge, designed to 
scare us, but only blow the safe open if it comes to that."
       _Kiddo, you out there?_
       "Hold on a second, Dai." _Yeah Rae. Where are you?_
       _'Bout five minutes due north. How you holding up?_
       _Kitty snorted. Been better. Tell Kurt to land a distance away and bring
everyone in quietly. It's bad enough that the bad guys have been able to figure
out that I'm here, we don't need to tip our hand any further._
       There was a brief pause. _Done, Kitty. Fuzzy wants to know if you've got
any ideas._
       _Maybe. Listen in._ "Five minutes, Dai. Which should be just about 
enough time. Mr. Glassey, I assume that you have a computer that we can connect
to the bank system with?" He nodded. "Good. Get it, and bring the access codes 
with you."
       "Your not going to give them to those brigands, I presume."
       "Actually, I am. After I've had a little talk with the computer system 
myself, that is."

       Dai stood at the front of the police lines and waved towards the bank. 
Almost immediately, the phone in his car started ringing.
       "We were beginnin' ta wonder," the voice at the other end said when he 
snatched it up.
       "Well, if you have any pressing appointments elsewhere, you'd best 
reschedule them," Dai said. "I don't expect you're going to have much free time
for the next thirty to fifty years."
       Very funny, inspector. 1, of course, disagree, but we'll see. I do hope
you're ready to deal?"
       "Deal being the operative word, yes," he said. "We have the codes ready 
for you, but you have to release the hostages to get them."
       "My dear Inspector Thomas, surely you don't think I'm that stupid. We 
will release one hostage."
       "Can we cut straight to the chase then and say half?"
       "Done. But with one added demand. Young Shadowcat must deliver the 
codes, and chose the prisoners to be released."
       "Choose! You can't expect her to " Dai cut his tirade off as Kitty 
started shaking her head. "All right, she'll do it."
       "Very good. She should meet us in the vault. And I warn you, any sign of
treachery or her Excalibur mates and they all die."
       "Understood. She will bring an unarmed police officer and a radio in 
with her. The officer will lead the hostages out. When they are confirmed safe,
she will deliver the codes to you."
       "Very well."
       Dai hung up and turned to Kitty. "We're all set."
       "Good. Now let's just hope that this works."

       There was a crackle of static in the guards headsets, and they all 
tensed up. Mark, who had been on edge since the four extra guards had come 
down, knew that it was time. For what, he wasn't sure, but he'd been running 
on instinct for the last half-hour. No reason to stop now.
       Still, Kitty stepping calmly from the wall with a bobby in tow was one 
of the last things he expected. The guards calmly turning towards them, their 
guns silent, was even less expected.
       "Boss says you're to pick four."
       "The agreement was half. By my count, that should be five."
       Sorry, we're rounding down, not up. Unless of course, you'd rather have 
four and a half? Didn't think so. Four."
       "Can I have a moment?"
       "Sure. And a half."
       The five terrorists laughed at the crude joke as Kitty turned and 
glanced at each hostage in turn, her gaze finally settling on Mark.
       Suddenly, he couldn't move.
       He tried to look away, then to gasp, and found that he couldn't do 
either. _Relax, Mark,_ came a voice, not from the room, but inside his head. 
_It's me, Shadowcat. Our telepath is keeping you from tipping off the 
terrorists. I want you to think about what everyone has been acting like since 
this started. Phoenix will read your mind and tell Feron who to pick._
       _Feron?_ Mark thought to himself. _Who the hell is Feron?_
       _There's no time to explain. Just relax, and then be ready to get 
everyone down when the trouble starts._
       _OK, I'll try._
       In an instant the days events flashed through his brain. _Good,_ said 
another voice. _Now just relax. Don't strain to move, or you'll jerk when I cut
you loose. There we go._ Mark felt his body slump slightly as his mind was 
released. _Hold on, kid,_ said the second voice. _We'll have you out of here 
in no time. Good luck,_ thought the rapidly fading presence.
       _You too!_
       "You, you, you, and you," Kitty said, pointing at four of the hostages.
       "You sure, kid?" asked another guard. "The way you were staring at that 
one guy, I f1gured you were falling' in love or something." Again the guards 
laughed as Kitty shot them a withering glare. "Take them out, officer," she 
said to the man who had come in with her. Mark watched as they climbed the 
stairs, wondering what would happen next.

       _It's dark in here._
       _Are you OK, Kylun?_
       _I'm fine Micromax. It's Kitty I'm worried about. Keeping both of us and
the air tanks phased like this, for this long, has too be a real strain for 
her._
       _I' ve been trying not to think about that._
       _Oh. Sorry_
       _Quiet, both of you!_
       _Hang on guys,_ Rachel sent through the link. _It's almost time._

       Above ground, Dai watched as the officer led his charges back to the 
police line. When they reached it, he pulled the radio mike from his car. 
"Everything's clear up here. Go ahead."
       The two figures on the other side of the car nodded.

       "You heard the copper, girl. Give us the codes."
       Shadowcat drew an envelope from her sleeve, and dropped it on the table.
       "Step back, mutant," the guard said, then snatched the envelope and tore
it open. "We got 'em boss." He listened to the voice at the other end of the 
headset and then nodded. "I'll be right up. You know what to do," he said to 
the other guards as he climbed the stairs.
       _I don't like the sound of that,_ Rachel thought.
       _Nor do I_, Kurt replied. _We may not be able to wait and see what 
they're after. Everyone be ready._
       Suddenly, the guards snapped their rifles up. But even as the first 
bullets flew from the barrels, the air in front of Kitty and the hostages was 
shimmering. The rounds fell to the ground.
       BAMF
       With the stench of brimstone and the rush of displaced air, Nightcrawler
appeared behind the gunmen, knocking one guard out as the other three let loose
with another burst. Though the barrier held, Kitty herself wavered, and then 
disappeared, leaving a young man dressed in a pale green robe. By the time 
Feron recovered from the strain of maintaining the shield, Kylun and Micromax 
had flattened the other three guards. The sound of shattering glass was heard 
upstairs.
       "That would be the others," Kurt said. "Kylun, with me. Shadowcat, 
Feron, Micromax, stay here."
       "No argument here, boss," Kitty said, slumping to the floor as the 
others ran up the stairs. "Can someone get me an aspirin?"

       Kurt bounded out of the stairwell, Kylun only a few steps behind. "Hey, 
Fuzzy," Rachel said. Captain Britain, Cerise, Meggan and Phoenix had made short
work of the 10 guards in the main lobby. "I've got a teke' shield around the 
bomb, but I don't know enough about explosives to remove it safely."
       "A couple of the brigands came out of the rear of fice," Brian said. 
"Seems a safe bet that whoever is behind this is in there."
       "After you then, Captain.."
       The door shattered easily under Captain Britain's' blow. The others 
rushed in behind himQbut the other hero hadn't moved. Clustered behind him, 
they stared into the room.
       "YOU?!?" they said.

       "The lady requested an aspirin, I believe?"
       "Thank's Mark."
       "You're welcome, Katherine," he said quietly.
       Kitty gagged on the two small pills. "What?!"
       "Sorry. I just had to do it. You obviously have no idea who I am."
       Mark Writhson? she thought. "Your name does sound familiar", she lied, 
"but--"
       "Deerfield Public School. Eighth grade. You were in Miss Alice's class, 
I was next door in Mrs. Mary's."
       "I know I was. You were?"
       He nodded. "We said hi in the hall a lot."
       'We did?" He nodded again. "Sorry, I don't remember."
       "That's OK. It was a rough time for you."
       "Yeah, that was right before I. . .before my parents broke up."
       "And right before you joined the X-Men, Sprite."
       "You've really followed my career, huh."
       "Nah. But once I figured out that Shadowcat of Excalibur was actually 
Kitty Pryde of Deeffield, Illinois, it was pretty easy to trace back."
       _This guy knows all about me, but I'm still not sure he's legit. I 
should test him out._ "So how are folks back in Deerfi--uh oh. Come on." She 
got up and ran back to where the other hostages were clustered. "Feron, 
Micromax, you ready? It seems we underestimated the level of the opposition."

       "Kurt, me boyo! Seen me bruther lately?"
       "Black Tom."
       "I'm surprised you recognized me. I'm not exactly my old self, you know.
But then, my associate here is rather tough to misidentify." Tom Cassidy and 
Cain Marko, better known as Black Tom and the Juggernaut, were standing behind 
the desk.
       "Give it up, Cassidy", Phoenix said. "Ask your friend about the last 
time we took him down."
       "I'm looking forward to paying you back for that one."
       "Calm down, both of ye. Cain here ain't made a hostile move yet, and 
without a staff to conjure my mutant energies through, well--" Energy blasts 
flew from the outstretched fingers of his wooden hand, striking all of the 
heros but Phoenix.
       "I make do," he finished, heading for the rear office. "Cain, the 
psi-witch is yours. Enjoy."
       "Try it big guy." The Phoenix aura flared around her as she floated in 
front of her friends. "You were no trouble last time."
       "Yeah," the Juggernaut said, "but last time I didn't have my helmet to 
break your mind raping. And you're not strong enough to stop telekinetically 
me and enclose the safe."
       The punch threw Phoenix through the wall. _I hate it when the bad guys 
are right.
       "Meggan!" Brian's cry made Kurt shake off the last of Black Tom's blast.
Meggan was writhing on the floor, Brian leaning over her.
       "Her system must be more sensitive to that bastard's bio-energy blasts. 
Cerise, stay with her. Brian, Kylun, help Phoenix with the Juggernaut. I'm 
going after Cassidy."

       "There. This virus will transfer every penny of Fraiser's money to my 
accounts. Now it's time to get out of here."
       "Leaving so soon?"
       "Being a new billionaire, I'm a little anxious to enjoy my money. Now 
come out of the shadows, Nightcrawler, so I can kill you."
       "I'm afraid I can't do that. Besides, if I let you go, you'll just die 
of disappointment. Those were fake codes. We were hoping to stall you long 
enough to see what you wanted in that safe."
       _I hate it when they make sense._ "Then I'm afraid I'll have to 
disappoint you as well. You see, we weren't here to recover the contents of the
safe. We're here to destroy it."
       Suddenly, he held a small detonator in his hand. _Oh, God,_ Kurt 
thought, as he leapt.

       "Guys, we cant hurt him until his helmet is off. But I'm afraid the 
Crystal of Cyttorak is a little beyond Feron's power."
       "Do not fear, Rachel. Cyttorak's power is known on EErath as well, and 
the blades of Zzariath have never found it a problem before." Kylun vaulted 
into the air, his blades arcing for the Juggernaut's neck as he landed on the 
giant's shoulders. As they slipped through the mystical bonds, Kylun twisted 
the blades, sending the helmet flipping into the air. Again the blades flashed.
In their wake, a neatly bisected helmet fell to to floor."
       "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"
       Kylun leapt from the giant's shoulders even as a huge fist swatted at 
him. "Your turn, Phoenix!"
       Rachel reached out, grinning slightly as she formed the first tentative 
connections with the Juggernaut's brain.
       KABOOM!
       The explosion overwhelmed the simple telekinetic shield easily, and the 
resulting psychic backlash hit Rachel's mind like a sledgehammer. With a moan, 
she collapsed.
       'Well, look at that," Juggernaut said. "Looks like I'm going to get to 
do a little brain surgery of my own!"
       "You'll have to go through me, villain."
       "That doesn't look too hard, Cap."
       "CAIN! We're leaving!"
       "Can't it wait a second?"
       "NO!"
       "Tom, they broke my helmet!"
       'We'll get it fixed. Now let's go!"
       "Grumble, mutter, grumble. Get out of my, way, furball." A casual swipe 
sent Kylun flying back into the charging Brian, knocking both to the floor. 
Scooping up the halves of his helmet, Juggernaut walked to his friend's side.
       "Goodbye, Excalibur," Cassidy said. A strange hum filled the air for a 
moment, and with a pop, they disappeared.
       "Joy," Brian said, disentangling himself from his teammate. "Why does 
everyone else have a combat teleporter these days?"
       "And what am I,mein freund, chopped liver?" Kurt appeared in the 
doorway, rubbing his jaw. "Well, whatever happened to Black Tom, it's improved 
his ability to take a punch, and to give one."

Fill here. Scene with Mark, Kitty, Rachel. Another Jugg/BT scene/issue?, more 
hints toward Sat-ur-9. 

       Kurt Winced with every step as he walked into the kitchen, his body 
still sore from the blows he had taken from Black Tom a few days ago. These 
bruises still haven't healed. _Ah well, at least Meggan is better. Thirty 
minutes in the bay and her system was back to normal. Drawing your energy from 
Mother Earth does have it's advantages. Well, it seems that someone is up,_ he 
thought, looking at the fresh pot of coffee. _What's this?_ Under his mug lay a
piece of paper. _A note from Kitty._
       **Hi Kurt. Figured you would need this when you got up.  Mark came over 
so I took him out for his piloting lesson. Take it easy. Fuzzy. Kitty.**
       _Mark again. He's all she talks about these days. I wonder if she's 
becoming infatuated with the boy._
       "What if she is?" Rachel asked, walking through the door. "She's got 
good taste if so. And before you ask your next question, we've accepted others into our circle of friends faster than we did Mark. The first thing Kylun did 
when he saw you was try to cut your head off."
       "True. Very well, Rachel, I shall cease my meddling. Besides, aside from
her infatuation with Alistaire--thank God she's gotten over that--she hasn't 
been in a romantic relationship since...Peter. Mein Gott!"
       **P. S . Jean called. She said Colossus had been detected in Scotland. 
Thought-you-should- know, maybe-you-can-talk-some-sense-into-him sort of thing.
So I figured. what the heck? Yes. I'll be careful. Bye.**

       "Please tell me this wasn't your idea, Jean."
       "Of course not, Kurt." Jean was obviously upset. "In fact, I 
specifically told her not to go alone, and in doing so, probably gave her the 
idea."
       "Or maybe she just thought of t herself. Just like you did."
       Even through the telecom, Jean locked eyes with her 
daughter/not-daughter. "Yes, I did, Rachel. But I decided it was too 
dangerous."
       "Rachel, can you find her?"
       "Of course. But I don't think we should go in."
       "Why not?"
       "For the same reason I originally considered her going in alone, Kurt," 
Jean said. "If you all approach him, he' 11 all be on the defensive. But a lone
friend may be able to get through to him."
       "And if any of us has a chance to get through to him, it's Kitty."
       "Ja. You are right, of course, but still..."

       "...I have a bad feeling about this."
       "Oh, stop worrying, Mark"
       "No, Kitty, I won't. From what I've heard, this man is at best, 
unstable. At worst, he's dedicated himself to one of the most evil men our 
world has known."
       "Magneto isn't evil. He's just wrong."
       "He preaches the violent separation of mutants from humanity. In the 
past, he's even said that non-mutants should be exterminated to protect his 
superior race, and apparently, he's doing that again. That sounds like a 
strange position for a man who's lived through the Holocaust. And it is evil."
       "He also led the X-Men and the New Mutants for a while. He tried to work
with us. But he thinks mutants face the same future that the Jews and Gypsies 
did in Nazi Germany, and he thinks that his way is the only way to prevent
that."
       "I don't know, Kitty. I can't understand anyone that bitter."
       "Neither can I, or any of the X-Men. That's why I'm so worried about 
Peter. He went through a lot, but..."
       "He's important to you, isn't he?"
       "Of course he is. He's been my friend for a long time. For a while. . .
well, you never rally forget your first real love."
       _LOVE. . .!_ "I know." No wonder she's so obsessive about this. _I was 
hoping to talk her out of it, but I guess I can count that out. Geeze. She 
loved him. Past tense. Calm down. Besides, I'm over her. Completely._
       _But those eyes. Oh, those eyes._
       "I hope the fact that he's here means that he's having second thoughts,"
Kitty said.
       "Why? Was Scotland important to him?"
       "In a way. This was the first place Peter ever had to kill someone."
       _Great. Just great._
       "Start the landing cycle. Cerebro says he's just over the hill."

       "Hello, Peter."
       _Katherine. I should have known._ "Go home, Shadowcat. We have nothing 
to discuss."
       "I disagree. And you're not going anywhere until I say so." Suddenly the
armored giant found himself waist deep in the earth. "I'm keeping you so phased
that you cant even pull yourself out of the ground."
       "I can still touch you." The threat was implicit, even automatic.
       "Yes. You could even kill me. But you'd kill yourself. Phasing into a 
solid object could even cause a nuclear explosion. Considering your mass, that 
would destroy most of Scotland and Northern Britain. I don't think you'll do 
that."
       "Do not be so sure. I will not betray Avalon, or Magnus."
       "I'm not asking you to. I'm only asking you to leave them."
       "Is that all. You ask me to leave my refuge, the only place I have been 
happy--"
       "Are you happy, Peter? Truly? Just look me in the eye and say that, and 
I'll leave. But if you are happy, why has Cerebro picked you up here twice, in 
Russia, and even in Westchester--" _at her grave_ "--when you knew no one was 
there. Why haven't you started painting again?"
       "There is nothing left in me that cares to paint."
       "Bull, Colossus. I know you too well for that. Just like I know you 
haven't given up on the Professors' dream."
       "Charles is a fool, as is any mutant who believes we can live in peace 
with the humans."
       "LISTEN to yourself. The Mutants. The Humans. Are the lines that clearly
drawn? Have you forgotten that your parents were human. That you, ultimately, 
are human."
       "There was a time when you were the strongest believer in the Professors
dream. What changed your mind? The death of your family? Your brother killed 
himself because he couldn't deal with his grief. Your parents were killed by 
an army faction that saw them as little more than an obstacle in their path. 
Illyana was killed by Stryfe! Now if you can't find it within yourself to be an
X-Man anymore, fine. If you blame Charles Xavier for bringing you into this 
life, fine."
       "I can't say I'd blame you."
       "But if you think that would have changed anything, Peter--Proteus 
dying, your brother, your parents, even Illyana--you're wrong. And if your 
family--especially your sister--knew that you had given up on the dream not 
only as a cause to fight for, but as an ideal to hope for, I think they would
 be ashamed of you."
       "I know I am."
       The silence hung between them. Though nothing was said, Colossus felt 
the ground around him thicken ever so slightly. He waited for a moment, then 
stepped clear.
       "Jean was telling me about when you were reunited with your brother. He 
chided you for being a dreamer. 'I will always cling to the dream' you said, 
'if the alternative is cowardice. You wish to speak of pain and suffering? You 
think because you cry, because you yield to the sorrows which envelop you, that
you are more man than I? I struggle for a cause greater than myself, and I have
more than once saved the lives of others. And though it shames me, I, too, have
taken lives."'
       "'The true difference between you and I, is that I keep going, and you 
have given up."'
       Again, she fell silent. Their eyes met, for a moment, for an eternity. 
Then slowly but purposefully, he turned away.
       "I came here looking for the man who said those words," Kitty said, her 
voice cracking. "I see now that he's not here. If you should...find him...tell 
him that there will be a wedding at the end of next month, for Scott Summers 
and Jean Grey. He's invited, if he's crawled out of whatever hole he's hiding 
in."
       "Goodbye, Colossus."
       She ran away, back the way she had come. 
       Colossus stood there, as the jet rose into the air, followed closely by 
the red flame of the Phoenix. Rachel hovered in the air for a moment, and 
Colossus could feel her presence ever so slightly on the edge of his mind, like
a beacon, leading home.
       He ignored it.
       But inside of him, some small part of Peter Nicolavich Rasputin, wailed.
       He stood there for a long time after both jet and phoenix-fire and faded
on the horizon. Finally, knowing that Exodus would soon be coming to return him
to Avalon, he stirred. That was when he saw the bag.
       Colossus considered leaving it there. But only for a moment. His armored
hands reached out for the sack, and opened it's mouth
       Inside lay a small easel, a palette, paints and brushes, all nearly new.
There was also as canvas, stretched tight on a simple wooden frame.
       The painting on it--well, it wasn't that bad. It showed a young man, and
his teenaged sister, smiling and laughing as they cut wood in the New York 
winter. _It never came out as well as it could have,_ the note read, _but I had
to keep trying._
       "Oh, Katya," he breathed. He thought about the remarkable young woman, 
who he had once loved more than his own life. A young woman he had earlier 
threatened to kill without even a second thought. She too, was separated from 
her parents, almost as permanently as he was. She too, had been separated from 
friends and adopted family for a time, thinking them dead. She had grieved, and
went on, fighting for Charles Xaviers' dream all the harder. She had never 
betrayed that dream, or the friends she fought alongside.
       Not even the ones that had betrayed her.
       "Thank you, Katya." If his armored form would have allowed it, he would 
have cried.

       I'm glad Kitty was able to get this thing into the air, Mark thought. I 
don't think I can really fly this thing solo yet. But then, I'm not actually
alone. He glanced out at Rachel, flying alongside. She nodded as he switched 
on the autopilot and headed for the rear compartment, where Kitty had been ever
since they got into the air.
       She was curled up against the side wall, crying quietly. Mark tried to 
come up with something to say, but couldn't Instead, he sat next to her and 
pulled her to him.
       _Come on Kitty. Let it out._
       As if she had heard his thought, she burst out into a full sob. "I 
didn't do anything," she cried. "He didn't even listen!"
       "He listened, Kitty. Whether or not he understood, only time will tell."
       "You know what scares me the most? He was always the one who believed 
the strongest. If he can give up, how can the rest of us keep going? I don't 
want to lose my hope, Mark. That scares me to death."
       "As long as you're scared of the possibility, you haven't lost your 
hope. You can't. It's when your not scared of losing it that it's really gone."
       She collapsed back into his arms, and they sat there, together, on the 
long flight home.