Drops of Crimson: Searching

[ladydeathfaerie]

Title: Drops of Crimson: Searching

Chapter Seven: Bombshells
Fandoms: a mash up of the Mutant Sues, the movie Sues, the Supervillainesses, and probably anyone else i can think of tossing in for good measure
Characters: various from the different universes
Rating: going with a pretty strong NC-17 here. seriously.
Warning: violence, sex, language, possibly other things. we'll know when we get there
Disclaimer: i do not own anyone from the Marvel universe. nor do i own anyone from other universe. Dare is mine, but you don't want her. honestly. girl's a mess. oh, Mystery is mine, too. you don't want her, either. she's moody. Rose belongs to nanaeanaven i swear i'm not making any money from this. i just do what the sick voices inside my head tell me to. i write purely for my enjoyment. and possibly the comments. please don't sue, harass, or bother me. i have no money to pay you, but i do have a really nasty temper. and i know some good cuss words.

Author's Note: so, its like this. Drops of Crimson: Hunted was only supposed to be a one shot type thing. but i started writing and the bunnies kept twitching their noses and suddenly i was staring down the snout of a plot dragon. and... welp! here we are! is anyone really surprised by this? nobody? didn't think so. hopefully this won't be super long. you know. by my standards...

Summary: "Armed, she says. Didn't you know, woman, that I'm always armed?"

Drops of Crimson - The Index

The hotel bar was curiously empty save for the bartender. The man stood behind the bar, cleaning glasses absently. He was seemingly unaware that their small group had just entered the room, which put the hair on the back of her neck up. She was fairly certain that he absolutely knew they were there. She guessed someone had paid the man a good deal of money to act like no one was in the bar.

She didn't like the implications.

"Are you sure this is a good idea, Dare?" she asked, inching closer to the other woman in order to whisper the question near her ear.

"Its the worst idea in the history of the world, Rose," Dare insisted, hands shoved into the front pockets of her well-worn jeans. They'd been washed so many times that the black had faded to that odd shade of blue-ish grey. The woman's leather jacket creaked as she shifted from one foot to the other, the sole of her boot thumping solidly against the floor. Her hair hung loose around her face and it only served to enhance the paleness of her complexion. Not that the all black ensemble she wore helped. "Every fucking vampire on this planet should die and I want to burn them all to ash."

"Dare. Don't make trouble. We were assured that this meeting would bring no harm," Clint said gently, his hip bumping Dare's in a silent plea for the woman to behave. She leaned into him, tipping her head to the side so it came to rest against his shoulder.

"I won't make trouble," she assured him. Clint relaxed, some of the worry on his face sliding away. Then Dare frowned. "I am trouble."

"Behave or I'll have Rose tranquilize you," Stark interjected. There was a smile on his face that extended to his voice, so Rose couldn't be sure if he was serious or if he was kidding. Dare shot him a look that suggested he keep his mouth shut or she'd set his perfectly coifed hair on fire.

Rose almost shifted her attention to Dare, but stopped when she realized what she'd just been thinking. She did not think Tony Stark had perfectly coifed hair or perfect anything. Damn the man for invading her thoughts when he most certainly wasn't welcome. She forced her brain away from the subject of Tony Stark and tuned back in to what was going on around her.

"Quit antagonizing her, Tony," Clint said, a touch of pleading in his voice.

"I can't help it if she's got no sense of humor," Tony returned. Dare's lips thinned and one of her hands came out of her pocket. There were flames engulfing it like a glove. She showed the hand to Stark and offered him what could only be called a feral smile.

"Oh, I've got a sense of humor. The idea of setting your ass on fire is fucking hilarious," she told the man. Clint reached up and put a hand on her arm, gently urging her arm down. The flames disappeared as if they'd never been, but Dare's hair still floated lazily about her face. Her temper was up and she was in fine form. It did not suggest a pleasant, easy meeting.

Mystery ambled away from the group and headed for the bar. When she took a stool, the bartender finally gave his attention to her. "Give me single malt. Neat. A double." The woman's voice was low and sultry, as if she was trying to lure the man into her pants. That was just how Mystery was. She treated everyone like she wanted to have sex with them. Unless she was mad. Then she treated everyone like she wanted to kill them. Rose shook her head and shifted her attention back to the others in time to see Clint take hold of Dare's arm in order to prevent her from following Mystery to the bar.

"No fair, old man. I need a drink if I have to sit through this farce of a meeting," Dare said, perhaps just a bit of a whine in her voice.

Clint gave her a look that saw her inching closer to him. "I'll make it up to you later, babe."

"That's... I didn't need to know that," Stark said, the laughter draining out of his face. Rose held back a smile at his discomfort and made a point of studying the layout of the bar. If things went south, she wanted to know where the best spots to fight were. And she wanted to know what direction people could be coming from. Knowing where the exits were would come in handy, too.

"Kiss my ass, Stark," Dare responded, only a hint of temper in her voice. Rose's gaze slid over the woman as she continued her study of the room, so she saw Dare tense against Clint a moment before pulling from the man's hold and take a single step forward. "They're here," she said quietly.

Rose thought it was odd that she made the announcement, because there hadn't been any indication that anyone had arrived. How had Dare known? Before she could chase that rabbit down its hole, though, she saw the people with her gearing up for the evening's coming events.

As a group, they all turned to the entryway. The blonde from the night before was just coming through, blue stare sliding around the room slowly and methodically. It looked as if he was studying the layout, but Rose got the impression he already knew where every single exit and trouble spot was located. It was more likely that he was checking to make sure he and his party weren't walking into a trap. His study of the room didn't take long and, as soon as he was finished, he turned to lean out the door. No doubt to give his party the all clear. Then the man was moving into the room and, while there was nothing telling in the way he moved, she couldn't shake the notion that he was a predator on the hunt.

That notion stopped what it was doing and stared in some mix of disbelief and awe when a couple came through the door after him. The woman was seemingly at ease, but there was no missing the way her hand slid under her suit coat. It was likely she had a gun under that coat and she wanted it close at hand on the off chance she needed it She was of average height, and a fall of deep red hair framed her face. It hung around her shoulders, then continued on down her back. She looked like she was barely old enough to be out of school. Until Rose got a look at the woman's eyes. There was so much in them that there was weight to the woman's stare. Even if she was physically young, she'd seen enough shit in her lifetime to make her feel old.

The man at her side was... the most unearthly attractive man she'd ever seen in her life. Which was probably the point, seeing as he was a vampire. Where the woman was wearing jeans and a simple button up under her suit coat, the man was wearing skin tight leather and a pale blue shirt that came equipped with a froth of lace at the throat and the wrists. His skin was as pale as a marble statue and his hair blacker than night. And his eyes, when she got a brief glimpse of them, were so blue that they looked like the sky as night fell.

And then she was distracted by the sight of two more vampires following them into the bar. One was blonde and one was a brunette. But she could tell, despite that one difference, they were brothers. They moved in perfect unison and their attention was complete. Rose had to wonder why they were there, then decided it didn't matter. They were nice to look at, whatever their reason for being there.

"Fuck me," Dare whispered.

"Damn. That was going to be my line," Mystery said. She'd moved closer to the group and stood next to Stark, scotch in hand, watching their party come toward them. And it was such a pleasure to watch them come.

"Nice to see you showed up, "Edward said, stopping in front of Dare. His words were meant for her specifically, but he'd spoken them the way he had in order to include everyone in the statement. Dare's gaze flicked from him to the little group behind him, then back again.

"You said a vampire. You didn't say anything about three," she said softly. A few strands of hair drifted upward away from her face.

"Dare, stop," Clint warned.

"Forgive Edward the oversight," the dark-headed vampire said, a smile playing at the corners of his mouth. It did not soothe Dare's temper and more hair lifted in response. "He was unaware that the Wicked Truth would be with us."

The woman at the man's side snorted. "He knew. He just didn't give a shit." The woman's gaze slid from one face to the next before coming back to where Dare stood. She stepped forward and offered Dare a hand. "My name is Aedan Kinkade. Licensed vampire executioner. Federal marshal. And human servant to the Master of the City of St. Louis."

Dare stared at the redhead so long that Rose was afraid she wouldn't shake. But she lifted her hand and slipped it into the other woman's waiting one. "Dare Scott." Dare's gaze flicked to the vampires before coming back again. "Human servant? What's that? Anything like a blood whore?"

"Dear gods, no," Aedan shook her head. "It means I'm bound to him, but he doesn't own me. I don't drink his blood, I don't crave it, I've got free will."

"Too much free will, if you ask me," Edward muttered. Aedan's gaze flicked his way and she shot him a look that bounced right off the man, then brought her attention back to Dare.

"Ignore him. He's cranky when he can't control what I'm doing."

Edward muttered something under his breath that Rose was sure was very much not polite or complimentary. It gave her the impression that Edward was always cranky around Aedan. "You should have stayed in St. Louis. I told you I had things handled here. You're just making a target of yourself. And you've left the rest of the kiss unprotected."

"I made sure everyone in the area knew what would happen if they attempted any shenanigans while I was gone," Aedan said, absolutely not bothered by the man's tone. Something in the way she said that saw Edward shifting his gaze her way. It must have been a questioning look because Aedan only smiled and nodded her head. It didn't look like a nice smile, which meant whatever she'd done, it had not been very nice at all. She shifted her attention back to Dare. "Shall we sit? I promise you, we're not here to create any problems. Edward explained your situation and we'd like to prove to you that not all vampires are like the one you're hunting."

Dare let her eyes slide from Aedan to each of the vampires with her. Then to Edward. She finally turned to her friends. Clint offered her a smile meant to tell her things were okay. Mystery inclined her head, her way of saying it was Dare's call. Rose noted Dare didn't look to Stark for any sign. At least, she turned Rose's way. Rose smiled and nodded. There was no time like the present.

And, if anyone wanted to start shit, Dare could burn them.

"Okay," Dare said, then heaved a sigh and glanced around the empty bar. "I guess we have our choice of seats. The table in the middle of the room will be good. Big enough for all of us." She let her gaze flick Edward's way. "Your doing?" Then she shifted them toward the dark headed vampire. "Or yours?"

"It was nothing to buy out the bar for the evening," he confirmed. Dare shook her head.

"Should have known. The boots alone are worth a couple hundred. What's an entire bar?" The comments were mostly muttered under her breath, but everyone heard them all the same. Rose caught the vampire smiling at that. But he said nothing. They watched as Dare turned and led the way toward the table she'd indicated.

It was, indeed, in the middle of the room. And it was big enough to hold a party of ten. Dare took a seat on the far side, her back to the wall behind her. Clint took the seat on her right, while Mystery grabbed the seat on her left. Rose chose to sit beside Mystery. And Tony ended up next to Clint. Only three of the other party sat, with the vampire in the middle while Edward was on his right and Aedan was on his left. Rose figured it had to do with dominant hands. The vampire brothers stood to either side behind the... What was it Aedan had called him? Master of the City? Rose wondered at the title and exactly what it meant.

"Allow me to make introductions," Edward began when it became apparent that no one was going to speak. One hand motioned across the vampire to the redhead on his other side. "You've met Aedan, the idiot who couldn't stay home. This is Jean-Claude. He's Master of the City of St. Louis. It means he runs the whole city. He controls the vampires. He controls the wolves. He controls nearly the entire preternatural community in St. Louis."

"It is a pleasure to meet you," the man said. His voice was almost melodious, and touches of French clung to it. A glance Dare's way suggested she was not impressed at all.

"Aedan, Jean-Claude, this is Dare Scott. On her right is Clint Barton. The Avenger known as Hawkeye. On his right is Tony Stark. Iron Man. On Dare's left is Mystery and Rose is beside her. They've been hunting vampires here in New York."

Aedan glanced at the seemingly odd group of people. "You don't look like vampire hunters. No offense meant. Not a one of you is armed. All the hunters I know these days go around armed. All the time."

Rose could have kicked the redhead, if only her foot would reach across the space under the table. She'd just opened a can of worms. She looked to her right to find that Dare was grinning. And it looked unhinged. "Armed, she says," Dare quipped.

"Dare. Don't," Clint warned.

"I'm not going to hurt anyone. I'll even go stand all the way over there," Dare said, pushing her chair back from the table. Clint made a grab for her, but she slipped away from him easily and crossed the room, putting distance between herself and everyone else. Rose noted she kept a solid wall to her back. And then Dare was bathed in flames. There was so much heat coming from her flames that she was floating a few inches off the ground. The look in her eye was even more unhinged than her smile. "Armed, she says. Didn't you know, woman, that I'm always armed?"

Rose turned to gauge the reactions of their guests. Edward had seen it before and he didn't seem too bothered by the flames. Aedan's eyes were wide as she tried to make sense of what she was seeing. The man at her side was still, and there was nothing on his face to suggest he was uncomfortable. But Rose got the impression that he was uncomfortable. The vampires at his back hadn't moved an inch, save to draw bladed weapons, which they held at the ready. Holy shit. Who the hell used swords anymore?

"What the shit?" Aedan demanded. One hand was back under her coat, confirming to Rose that she was definitely carrying a gun.

"Dare. Turn off the flames," Clint ordered. The tone of his voice said he was extremely put upon by Dare's actions. Rose wasn't sure Dare was going to listen because it looked like Dare was seriously buzzed by the power use. But the flames disappeared and Dare dropped to the carpet with a gentle thud.

"Did I forgot to mention that Dare is a pyrokinetic?" Edward asked. He almost sounded like he'd enjoyed that.

"Yeah. I think you may have," Aedan snapped. Her hand hadn't come out from under her jacket, but she turned an unhappy look Edward's way.

"My bad," Edward replied.

"You are the source of all the fires that have been in the news recently," Jean-Claude said matter-of-factly.

Dare nodded her head, returning to her place at the table. "I am. I'm looking for a former friend and teammate. He needs his ass kicked." She gave the trio across the table a look. "I'm the one who's going to kick it. While my foot is on fire."

"What has he done to merit such anger?"

"He took what was mine. He took it from me. And now he's got some twisted ass idea that he needs me. Seeing as I don't want to be undead, I have issues with that. I need to let him know that I'm not a bitch to trifle with," she said.

Rose could see that the vampire wanted to know more. It was there in the look in the man's eyes. And he even opened his mouth to ask another question. But Aedan frowned and turned to look over her shoulder. "What the fuck is that?" she asked, strong emphasis on the f-word.

Dare blinked, then looked at the entry to the bar. "Shit," she spat, then launched herself from her seat. Instead of standing from it to move around the table, the thick sole of her boot thumped as it hit the surface of the table, Three strides saw her across the table, then she was literally leaping over Jean-Claude's head to land with a heavy thud on the table behind him. "Stay behind me!" she snarled.

Edward and Aedan were out of their seats, guns drawn. The vampire brothers had turned and stood with their swords up. Mystery had moved up to stand beside Aedan, her hair changing colors with the power she was funneling into herself. Stark's armor was just suddenly there and Clint had produced a goddamn bow and arrow from somewhere.

"Dis a private party or can anyone join?" The voice came through the doorway a moment before the man it belonged to did. Remy LeBeau looked much as he had in the pictures Rose had seen of him from before he'd been turned. But the tan had faded and a smile revealed his fangs. His gaze slid around the room, landing on everyone before he focused all his attention on Dare. "Dare, cher. It good to see you. You look good."

"You look good for a walking corpse," she shot back. A line of flames rose up, cutting Remy off from the rest of them. "Give me a second and I'll fix that for you."

"Now, Dare. Dat any way to speak to a lover?" A smile hovered on the man's lips. Rose could see why Dare had fallen for him. Even now, undead and menace shining in his eyes, he was damned easy on the eyes. And smooth. The man had such a smooth voice.

"You stopped being a lover a long time ago. I picked Logan. Remember?" she said. There was malice in her voice, a barb meant to dig deep under the man's skin. It must have done just that, because the smile faltered. And before he could bring it back, Dare pressed her advantage. "How's it feel to know you sent Logan to his death? It wasn't bad enough that you turned him. But then you sent him after me. And you forced me to kill him. I'm going to make you pay for that. Then I'm going to make you pay for what you did to Clint."

"You not gon' kill dis old Cajun," Remy said, sounding very sure of himself. It made Dare laugh, an ugly sound without amusement in it. "You gon' come to me, Dare. You gon' give youself to me. And when you do, I gon' turn you."

"Go to hell, Rem," Dare snarled. Rose watched as Dare motioned to the wall of flame. One section rose up higher than the rest. It swirled around itself, reminding her of a ball of snakes, until the flames formed into a long, narrow cone with a sharpened point. Rose realized that it was meant to be a stake, that Dare was going to use it to kill the man across from her.

"I'm hurt, cher. You have dis nice party and no one t'ink to invite me? Don' you love me?" Remy asked, smile returning. This time, it was wider. And it held secrets in it that made Rose nervous. The spike of fire started forward, aimed straight at Remy's heart. And then it stopped, simply hung in mid-air. For a moment, Rose couldn't figure out what was going on. But when she looked at Dare, she understood. Remy had done something using his vampire powers because Dare's expression was slack and her eyes were fluttering as if she fought the urge to close them.

A prickling sensation climbed up Rose's spine, one she hadn't felt in a long time. She muttered a curse under her breath. Mother fucker! She knew who had turned Remy. She knew as surely as she knew her name. She was not going to let Remy get his hands on Dare. Or Clint. Not if she could help it.

Rose made a motion with one hand, a sweeping arc that sent her power out. It filled the tiny seeds she'd dropped when they'd first arrived, filled them with energy and her will so that they exploded into a nest of garlic. The stems shot up all round Remy, the plants blooming almost immediately. And then the bulbs erupted from the roots. Erupted and then exploded, sending a spray of garlic pulp across the room. It flew straight at Remy, hit him in the face and broke his connection with Dare. She dropped to the floor like a marionette whose strings had been cut. Quicker than her eye could track, one of the brothers darted forward to collect her and bring her back to the table.

"No! She mine!" Remy snarled. His face was covered in patchy red spots, some of them accompanied by blisters. It looked painful. It was nice to know her garlic seed bombs had worked the way they were supposed to.

One hand came out of LeBeau's pocket and a careless motion of it sent cards flying toward them. They covered half the distance before they stopped and hovered in mid-air. A glance out of the corner of her eye showed Rose that Dare had a hand held out, fingers splayed, a look of deep concentration on her face. A moment later, she saw the cards change direction and flew toward Remy. He dove out of the way, leaving the cards to slam into the wall. The explosion was loud and it sent people to the floor in a search for cover.

When the dust and debris settled, it was to show them that Remy stood in the doorway. His eyes glowed with power and hate as he stared at all of them. "Dis not de end, Dare. I gon' catch you when you not lookin'. I gon' make you mine. And I gon' take Barton back. Finish makin' him my bitch."

He disappeared through the doorway without another word.

The vampire who had grabbed Dare set her on her feet and took a step back. She wobbled. A moment later, Clint was there to take hold of her arm. She offered him a smile and leaned against him.

"Thank you," Clint offered to the vampire. The man inclined his head and returned to his brother's side. Clint shifted his attention to Dare, hands coming up to cup her cheeks so that he could make her look at him. She was paler than when they'd arrived and she looked like she wanted to fall over. "Dare. You okay, baby? What did he do to you?"

"I'm okay," she whispered, but Rose wasn't convinced. Something had happened. She was sure of it. And, based on the look Clint is giving her, he thought the same. But he didn't press, simply hugged her closer to him.

The room fell silent for a few moments as everyone attempted to process what had just occurred. Rose was just thinking she should suggest they call the evening a bust and go home when Aedan broke the strained silence, her voice cutting across it like a knife. "So. That was your ex, huh? Cute, but a little evil. I can see why you broke it off."

Dare huffed out what sounded like a laugh. "I like her, She's funny.

"We should go home," Rose suggested. She made sure that her tone was steady and even, filled with the appropriate amount of concern and not much of anything else. "You look rattled, Dare. You need food and sleep. And I think we might need to increase the dose Clint's getting. As a precaution."

"You're right, Rose," Clint agreed. His shifted his attention to Edward and the group that had come with him. "I'm so sorry to cut this short, but I need to get Dare home. She's been pushing herself too hard lately. The hunt for Remy is taking its toll."

"Of course. We understand completely. We'll be in town for a while. Call us if you want to try and do this again. We'll pick someplace where he can't just barge in on us," Aedan said, her gaze sliding toward Dare. She shot a look of worry toward Clint.

"Edward knows how to get in touch with us," Clint replied. He turned away from the others without another word and started escorting Dare toward the door. Mystery joined him and went before them, obviously acting as a body guard. Tony stepped over to Rose's side and gave her a look.

"Shall we, Rose?"

"Yes," she nodded. She was eager to get out of there. She had work to do. A formula to tweak. Plans to make.

A vampire to kill once and for all.

~*~*~*~*~

The wind was chill against her cheeks as he led her out the back door of the small home. It was near dawn, just a hint of crimson staining the thin line of the horizon. She took it to be a portent, a bad omen of what was to come, and she had to fight the shiver that tried to climb up her spine. Of course, the shiver could also be because she was stripped down to the bare minimum. The long, thin t-shirt she wore was little protection from the wind. The panties under it were no better. The soft moccasins on her feet were the only concession to the temperature.

Grandfather had said nothing since they'd finished their brief chat in his living room. His last words had been to instruct her to strip down to next to nothing and follow him. She still had no idea where they were going, or even why they were going. She just knew she was cold and tired, exhausted mentally and physically from the constant stream of nightmares and dreams that interrupted her sleep. That left her feeling like she was missing so much.

Grandfather's home was out in the middle of nowhere, set off by itself away from any kind of civilization as if he had no desire to meet up with any other human being. She'd wondered, more than once, why he'd taken her in if he wanted to be alone. There was a line of trees in the distance, and she swore she felt them calling to her. Anytime she stepped outside the house, she had the urge to run wild through the forest. There were a few short trees near his home, but they didn't evoke the same kind of reaction as that distant line did.

The soft soles of her moccasins crunched over the dried grass, reminding her that the seasons were starting to turn. It would be winter soon. She knew that without the press of the wind against her skin. The dried grass spread out before her as far as her eye could see. It even ran over the low hills that dotted the landscape behind the house. There was little else to see out here. Just the brown grass and the beckoning trees and the lumpy hills. And yet, it was hardly boring. She found she enjoyed the solitude more than she thought she should.

They rounded one of the hills and she saw that there was a faded piece of woven tapestry hanging over an opening that had been dug into the mound. Grandfather held the tapestry aside and motioned to the darkened interior with one hand. She stared at him hesitantly for a moment or two, then stepped into the darkness.

She barely heard his footsteps as he followed in after her. The flap lowered and took away what little light had snuck in when it had been lifted. There was the faint hiss of a match striking, then golden light spilled into the darkness. It highlighted Grandfather's face and she realized that it was not as lined and aged as she remembered it to be. Some of the wrinkles had smoothed out to make him look younger. She had a second to consider it before he touched the match to a candle nestled in a lantern. More light spilled into their enclosure and she forgot all about Grandfather's face.

She was surrounded by earthen walls. Someone had hollowed the hill out. Or maybe, based on the wooden beams she saw, someone had built the hill around the supports. There was a circle of old pillows on the floor surrounding a central pit dug into the center of the room. Someone had piled wood into the pit as if in preparation of a fire. Some kind of table-like structure stood over the wood, with a metal basin sitting on top. She could see rocks piled into the basin. Grandfather motioned toward the cushions on the floor even as he moved toward the pit. "Sit, Daughter."

"That's the second time you've called me Daughter. Not Granddaughter. Why the change? What's going on?" she asked. Even as she did so, she settled on the pillows and watched him.

"We are here so that you may walk through the winds of time and discover what happened to you," Grandfather intoned as he knelt and started lighting little bits of kindling at the base of the wood pile.

She frowned at the answer. "I don't understand. Walk through the winds of time? Are you... Are you talking about a vision quest?"

"I am talking about helping you find what you've lost," he said. His hands now those of a young man, coaxed flames from the kindling so that they raced up the length of the dry wood to eat at it. She was assaulted, if only for a second, with the image of bodies burning and death, then she was back in the sweat lodge with Grandfather, who was still working on bringing the flames to a roar. When he was assured that the hungry tongues would feast eagerly on the wood, he turned to look at her. "You have been here for months, Daughter, with no memory of who you are. Of what you are. We will rectify that."

The way he spoke, the things he said, left a kernel of fear deep inside and she gave serious consideration to running. But she wanted to know what had happened to her. She knew something had happened, that there were things in her past that were hidden from her. And then there were the dreams. She was sure she knew what they meant, but those meanings kept eluding her. Maybe, if she took this quest, she'd find out what it was she needed to know. Maybe things wouldn't be so frightening if she understood them.

"I thought vision quests were for young men becoming adults," she said softly.

"In older days, they were used by young men seeking to become something more. But these are not the old days any longer. The old ways must adapt and change as the times do, as people do, or they will be lost to memory for all eternity. So you will go on a vision quest, Daughter. To rediscover what it is you have lost."

By then, the fire was roaring under the metal pan. Grandfather stood, no longer stooped at the shoulder, and moved with the stride of a man in his prime to the far wall. He lingered only for a few moments, then returned to the center of the lodge. He carried a jug in one hand and a small pouch in the other. She watched him as he set his possessions down. He lifted the pouch and drew it open, then reached inside with one hand. When he pulled that hand out, he had something pinched between his fingers. She couldn't tell what it was, but she had a feeling it was possibly peyote or something similar. Grandfather murmured something in a tongue she'd never heard before, eyes closed as if in prayer, then he tossed the pinch of whatever into the flames.

Another pinch followed the first and smoke began to rise up out of the fire, thick and cloying and laden with some odor that made her feel light headed. By the time he closed the pouch again, Grandfather had thrown four more pinches into the fire. The lodge was filled with smoke and she had to lower her head into her hands to keep from falling over.

There was a sizzle of noise and she realized that he was pouring water over the rocks in the basin. Once he'd emptied the jug of its liquid contents, he lifted the pouch once more. She was certain that anymore of that stuff would leave her dizzy and ill. He murmured over the pinch he brought out this time, then threw it into the basin with the water. "Do not be afraid, Daughter. Let the visions take you where they will. You will be safe here in the lodge. I will wait for you outside."

She nodded, not sure she liked the way this was going. The only thing keeping her in place was the fact that she wanted to know what had happened more than she was afraid of the steam and smoke. Grandfather moved to stand near the tapestry door, where he lifted a drum that rested against the wall there. She hadn't seen it before, and she watched as he began beating out a low, pounding rhythm against the skin with what she thought might be a bone drumstick. After several moments of the drumming, he began chanting in that same tongue she'd heard before. She realized that it sounded familiar, but she didn't know why or where she'd have heard it.

The drum soon beat in time with her heart, throbbing in her chest with intent. Smoke built in the lodge, clung to her skin and invaded her nostrils until she could smell nothing but that peculiar scent. Until she was so dizzy she thought she might fall over. His voice chanted on and on, a soothing anchor in the chaos of her mind. Images were already starting to whirl behind her eyes, only adding to the dizziness.

She tried to call out, tried to ask him to make it stop, but nothing came out of her mouth. Her throat was dry and parched and words had abandoned her. Darkness was crawling over her.

"What the hell is going on?" Jehnna demands as the team spills out of the elevator from the lower levels into the main floor of the school. There is a flurry of activity, as people move to and fro with hurried, focused steps. There are a mix of students and teachers. None of them looks happy.

"How the hell should I know, Jehnna?" Morgan snaps, exhaustion in her voice. They're all exhausted. The mission to Canada had been physically draining and they wanted nothing more than to climb into their beds and sleep for a week. "In case you missed it, I haven't been here in a week. I've been in Canada, dealing with a group of idiots who think its fun to fuck around with mutants."

"Morgan, don't be so mean," Haley chides, though it sounds like its barely a token effort. Jehnna doesn't seem hurt by Morgan's outburst, and they watch as people rush back and forth like ants striving to fill their stores before winter sets in. She watches as Haley spies a familiar face and moves toward it. The rest of them trail after her. "Logan!"

The short man stops at the sound of Haley's voice and there's a brief look of relief on his face as he spies them. Then its gone in an instant and the gruff look he always wears returns. "Ain't got time, Stone. We're movin' out in a few."

"What's going on?" Haley asks, ignoring the man's terse words.

"Where's Dare?" he asks in return, something in his voice leaving her with an unsettled feeling. It slips deep into her bones and tries to bury itself in her brain. She has to fight to keep that from happening.

"She's still in Canada. The authorities asked her to help them with a wild fire. She was supposed to call you and let you know," Haley replies. Some of the tension leaks out of Logan, but not all of it. He gives a grunt that she takes to be approval, then turns to heft up a bag he dropped to the floor earlier. "Logan. What is all this?"

"Chuck and Jeannie have gone missing. Me an' Scott are organizing parties to go lookin' fer 'em," he tells her. The unsettled feeling moves deeper into her chest.

"Remy?" Morgan asks, a touch of worry in her voice.

"Yep. And Warren, too," Logan responds, shooting a look Jehnna's way. "We're leavin' soon, so if you wanna say yer goodbyes, now's the time."

"What about Henry?" she asks, though she's sure she knows the answer already.

"Hank's goin' with. Storm, too. Don't worry. They can take care of themselves," Logan responds. The words are meant to make them feel better but something makes them ring hollow. She has a very bad feeling about all of this.

"Logan!" Summers' voice echoes up the hall, bringing the shorter man's head around to spy the man heading toward them.

"Gotta go," Logan says. There's something in his voice, something that sends a shiver down her spine. "Tell Dare I love her when she gets back. An' I'll see her when we find our missing teammates and bring 'em home."

He turns and strides toward Scott without another word. His action sees them dispersing, each of them scrambling to find their loved ones before the teams leave.

She barely had time to catch her breath and make sense of it all when her head spun and she felt the world tilting off its axis once again. The smoke and the smell seemed thicker than before, bringing a cough up her throat. It was the only warning she got. This time, though, she was better prepared for the darkness. This time, she didn't fight and simply let herself fall into it.

"Mister Drake!" Derick Tanner yells as he comes barreling into the kitchen. The boy's face is nearly white and his eyes are wide as saucers.

"I'm right here, Derick. You don't need to shout," Bobby says, turning from the counter where he's working on the evening meal. "What's going on? Why are you yelling?"

"There are people on the lawn, Mister Drake," Derick huffs, trying hard to get his breath back.

"People?" Bobby asks, a curious look settling on his face. "What people? Why does that have you so excited?"

She feels that sense of foreboding that she'd gotten from the chat with Logan the other day as it shifts in her chest, as it blossoms open like a poisonous bloom. Something bad is going to happen. She just knows.

"A whole big group of people. On the lawn. They're just standing there. Waiting. They look weird," Derick informs them. She thinks there is a little bit of fear in his voice. The blossom of foreboding opens wider, attempting to consume her. Instinct says that it cannot be coincidence that there is something happening at the school when so many of the teachers, when so many members of the X-Men, are gone.

Bobby exchanges a look with Haley, who is apparently as apprehensive about this development as she is. He then turns to where Kurt stands, tail twisting behind him in a sign that he feels the same as the other adults do. "I will go see what is happening, mein freund," Kurt tells Bobby, then disappears in a cloud of sulfurous purple smoke.

"I think we should get ready for an attack, Haley," she says softly to her friend. While she doesn't try to hide her words from the students lingering in the kitchen, she doesn't raise her voice, either. She doesn't want to create panic if it isn't necessary. But she also wants to be prepared in case things go bad.

"Let's wait to see what Kurt has to say," Haley responds, her eyes shifting restlessly around the room. As if she's looking for an attacker to come out of the shadows.

She lets her attention slide to the other people in the room. Jehnna is standing there, staring, hands fisted and arms crossed over her chest as if to protect herself. Morgan is as motionless as she ever gets, face almost empty as she stares ahead. Maybe she knows something. Maybe she doesn't. Bobby is no longer chopping vegetables for the evening meal. But his hand is curled tightly around the knife he was using, and hints of ice are creeping up the length of the blade.

Derick and the handful of children currently in the kitchen with them are nervous. They shift and move restlessly, hands fluttering at their sides and eyes constantly moving this way and that. Absolute silence rules the kitchen, with only faint strains of laughter and chatter filtering in from the next room through the closed door. She apparently isn't the only one who thinks that an attack is imminent.

The kitchen is unearthly silent as they all simply stand there and stare. As they wait. So it is that when Kurt returns to the kitchen, the BAMF that marks his arrival is terribly loud and everyone jumps. Its hard to read his face because he has it schooled, but his indigo fur looks ruffled. And his tail twists around itself in agitation. It is a sure sign that something is amiss.

"What did you see, Kurt?" Bobby asks, hand still curled tightly around the handle of the knife.

"Derick is correct. There is a large group of people on the lawn," Kurt tells them. He draws a breath and its shaky, telling them he's very flustered. Upset. Silence settles around them once more, uncomfortable and strained, while Kurt gathers his courage to him. His gaze slides to the children for a moment, considering, then returns to Bobby. "Nosferatu."

She knows that word, knows what it means. She and the rest of the team know it because they've seen the movie. The one made in the Twenties starring Max Schreck. Dare made them watch it once on movie night, and they'd all laughed at the ridiculousness of the film. No one is laughing now. Not even the children. She has no doubt that they know what that word means, too. She has just a moment to wonder what vampires are doing on the school grounds. Then Bobby is taking charge, orders issuing forth at a rapid pace.

"Derick, I want you and some of the older students to start corralling the younger kids. Get them downstairs into one of the sub-basement rooms. One that you can lock from the inside. Do what you can to keep them quiet. Keep them calm." He barely finishes his orders before Derick is running at full tilt from the room. Bobby turns to Kurt next. "Alert any of the adults left on the property that they need to be ready to fight. Make sure they understand what they're up against."

Kurt gives a nod of his head and, with another loud BAMF and another cloud of purple, he's gone to do as he's been instructed.

Bobby turns to the team. "Suit up. Protect the house. Protect the students. This is our home. They shouldn't be able to enter unless someone lets them," Bobby says quietly.

"Assuming those legends and myths hold true," Morgan returns. Bobby sends her a not very nice look, then shifts his focus back to Haley.

"Powers on at all times. Do not trust anything or anyone," Bobby tells them, voice low and careful. Its obvious he expects something to go terribly wrong. "Watch your backs. Of all the times for Dare to be somewhere else."

"If she was here, she could set fire to the lawn and keep them at bay," Jehnna says softly.

"She'd do it. And, as an added bonus, she'd piss the Professor off. She's hard on that lawn," Morgan says, a faint touch of humor in her voice. But there is also a tremor of fear there that no one misses. She's as scared as the rest of them.

Haley ignores Morgan's comments, turning to look at the rest of them with solemn eyes. "Right. Purple team. Suit up. We have some vampires to slay!"

Her head was pounding, her throat dry and scratchy. Her skin was coated in so much sweat that her t-shirt clung to her body mercilessly. Still the rocks steamed and still the smoke fogged the interior of the lodge so that she could do little else but breathe it in. Little else but let it pull her back under its spell. She felt the darkness coming for her this time, felt it rising up like a great tidal wave that stood dozens of feet over her head. She felt it coming and welcomed it. Because despite the smoke that hung heavy in the air, her head was starting to clear and things were starting to make sense.

She took a breath, closed her eyes, and threw herself back into the darkness.

The school grounds are in chaos. They've gone outside to try and meet the threat head on, to try and keep it from the school's door. But the screams from inside tell her that they've failed. She slashes a menacing paw at one of the undead as it tries to lunge at her, the wicked claws on the end forcing it to jump back before she rips flesh from bone. To her left, she can see Haley going toe to toe with a vampire, and the vampire is clearly losing.

A hum of sound on her right lets her know where Jehnna stands and fights. The subsonics are hell on her sensitive hearing, but she imagines that the same can be said for their invaders. She's lost sight of Morgan, and while there's a tiny kernel of fear trying to grow and become something more, she knows that Morgan never stays in one place for very long. So she tries not to worry too much and lets herself wonder what the flesh of a vampire tastes like.

"We're being overrun!" Morgan wails as she pops into view. She's sweaty and her uniform is torn in several places. Her hair, caught up in a pony tail, is limp against the back of her head. There is dirt and blood streaked on her face. Her hands are curled around a metal baseball bat that shines red in the dim light of the moon.

"We will stand and fight until we can't fight anymore," Haley snarls, one stone fist slamming mercilessly into the face of her latest opponent. A sickening crunch fills the air. When Haley's fist pulls back, she can see that the vampire's face has been flattened inward with the force of Icon's punch. The vampire staggers back, then lands on their ass on the ground. One swift kick from one of Haley's feet takes the creature's head off its shoulders. She watches from the corner of her eye as the severed head goes flying toward their advancing enemy.

Another swipe of her paw sends her opponent stumbling back in fear. Of course, the sight of her fangs, long and sharp and pointed, likely helps contribute to their quick retreat. She growls and hisses, urging the next undead to try and attack.

The grounds have been churned up by numerous feet, by paws and claws and hands that have left gaping scars in the soil. Someone was smart enough to start fires somewhere, and the scent of burning wood drifts across the clearing. Thick clouds of smoke drift with the scent, at times making it hard to see what's coming. Her nose helps there, but the others are without sensitive senses, which she rectifies by vocalizing with faint grunts and other sounds to let them know that the enemy is making a push forward.

She's still taunting a frightened vampire when another scent catches in her nostrils, one that she recognizes over the sharp tang of the wood smoke. Her head turns left and right to see if she can see where the scent comes from, but the smoke is too thick and obscures her vision. She chuffs out a warning, tail twitching violently behind her. Suddenly, Morgan's doppleganger is there, looking much the same as Morgan. But her face is white under its mask of blood and dirt and there's something in her eyes.

"We need to retreat, Haley!" Faye says, her voice filled with urgency. And fear.

"We cannot leave the children to these monsters!" Haley returns, fist swinging as another vampire rushes her.

"We need to retreat," Faye insists, the bo staff she holds swinging down from in an overhead arc to smash into the head of a vampire trying to sneak up on them. Then the twin's hand grasps Morgan's arm and she stares at the other woman intently. "Morgan, he's with them! We have to go."

"He?" Morgan asks, obviously confused by Faye's declaration.

The answer arrives in the form of a spray of cards, the kinetic energy poured into them turning the smoke electric pink as they cut through to land at Haley's feet. The blast sends Haley to the ground on her back. A beam of red throws Jehnna several feet away. She slams into a tree and drops limply to the grass.

She ducks away from a spray of cards before they can land, ducking into the cloud of smoke as a pair of figures steps out of it. She recognizes Remy and Scott by sight. But their smell is different. Filled with death and dirt and blood. And she knows. She bellows out a roar of challenge that goes unanswered.

"Remy?" Morgan asks, voice faint with shock and disbelief.

"It me, petit," he assures her.

"Morgan, we have to go!" Faye hisses, tugging at the other woman's arm uselessly. Morgan is frozen. Scott fires an optic blast Faye's way, but the ghost simply disappears to avoid it. She reappears on Morgan's other side and resumes tugging at her arm. "Morgan! Let's go! It isn't him!"

"She don' know what she sayin', petit," Remy croons gently. There is persuasion and perhaps a touch of charm in his words.

"Morgan," Faye whispers, her gaze sliding from her twin to the vampire standing before her and then back.

"You can trust me, Morgan," Remy says, holding a hand out toward her. Morgan takes a single step toward Remy before Faye grabs her arm and drags her back. Scott lifts a hand, preparing to aim a blast at Faye, but Remy lifts his other hand to stop Summers' actions. "Come to me, Morgan

"Morgan! Don't do it!" Haley shouts, climbing to her feet. The smoke is starting to clear and they can see that there are bodies scattered all over the grounds. Behind them, screams and cries start to pour out of the school. The vampires have breeched the main building. She snarls at the vampires standing before her teammates and slinks further into the thinning smoke. "He's one of them, Morgan. Don't trust him. Don't touch him."

"Shut up, Stone," Summers orders. The optic blast he'd prepared for Faye is instead directed at Haley. She's ready for it this time, side steps the blast and makes ready to charge the two men. Another spray of Remy's cards sends her down once again.

"Come on, Morgan. You know dis ol' Cajun," Remy coaxes gently. There's warmth and memory in his voice this time. Morgan takes another step forward.

The scent of blood is strong in her nose. Too strong. She lifts her head and sniffs. She knows that there are more dead bodies than they can see. The vampires are slaughtering their friends. Former X-Men are slaughtering their friends. She cocks her head and listens to the plaintive sobs of one of the younger students from inside the house. It makes her decision for her. She takes a moment to offer up a silent prayer to any spirits that are listening, then starts stalking forward on silent paws.

She is death on four feet, moving swiftly and without sound across the crisp grass. She can hear more screams rising from the house, can hear the moans of the dying all around her. She can even hear the sound of flesh tearing, of slurping and sucking. She pushes those noises out, focuses only on her goal. She will save her friends and those who are still alive. She will end this mess here and now. She only need to take two men down...

She works her way into position and makes ready to pounce. Its then that everything goes to hell in a handbasket. Screams start anew from the house, louder than before. Haley is back on her feet, shouting at Remy and Scott in an effort to draw their attention her way. Jehnna is gone, not even a low hum of subsonics with which to pinpoint her position. She thinks she hears the faint rustle of feathers, but her focus is so intent that she can't be sure. Morgan has put her hand completely in Remy's and Faye is begging her to stop. Begging her to flee. Begging her to survive. And Summers turns then, as a warning bell rings ominously in her head and a strange sensation slips down her spine.

She sees the danger and attempts to twist away, but she doesn't do so in time. The blast catches her in the chest and throws her across the grounds. She can hear the wind rushing around her. She can smell the death, heavy and thick and cloying on the air. And she can feel something... shifting inside of her. Then pain spears up her back, into her skull, and bark bites into her skin. For a moment, she makes note of the fact that her fur is gone. "Scott. Get Roxxy," Remy's voice commands.

She hears the order, hears Scott's feet as he stalks through the grass toward her. Panic lances through her, screams at her to get up and shift. To leave. To flee and get away. She tries. She really does. But the cat won't answer her call. And Summers is so close now. She tries again, reaches for the lion coiled somewhere inside of her. But it refuses to budge. Then pain blossoms in her head, in her breast, and she thinks that Scott's hit her with another optic blast.

Only the pain subsides and her vision has changed, sharpened, and she's staring at the world from high above and her wings beat the air as she lifts higher and higher until she's too high to see and...

She staggered out of the lodge, limbs shaky and week after sitting in one position for so long. Her mind was still clouded with the fragrant smoke that had sent her on the quest in search of her memories, leaving her terribly disoriented. Her hair hung in limp clumps around her sweaty face. Her t-shirt was molded to her skin, drenched with sweat and the steam from the lodge. Grandfather was waiting for her, a blanket held open in his hands. She stepped into it and allowed him to wrap it around her nearly naked form, her hands taking hold of the edges to keep it closed. To pull it tighter around her.

It was dark out, the sky dotted with twinkling stars and the barest sliver of a moon. Flickering torches stood on either side of the tapestry covered doorway, casting their light over the man standing there in stoic silence. More torches marked the path back to the house. She wasn't sure if he'd know when she'd come out of the lodge or if he'd lit the torches as a just in case. She didn't care, really. She was just glad she didn't have to stagger back to the house in the dark.

She looked at Grandfather, not at all surprised to see that time and age had washed off him like dirt being rinsed away under the spray of a shower. The young man standing before her looked tall and strong. But she saw the same twinkle of knowledge in his eye that Grandfather had always had. He put his arm around her and steered her toward the small house, not a word passing his lips as he did so. Maybe he knew she needed time to process and put everything back together. Maybe he wanted to get her inside where it was warm. Maybe he just wasn't ready to ask questions yet. His reasons didn't matter. She was thankful to him for the help and the company.

The inside of his house hadn't changed in any way she could see, but she was sure that it had changed somehow. He helped her over to the couch and settled her on it, then left her to head into the kitchen. She only listened with half an ear while he puttered in the kitchen. She could tell that he was brewing tea and she welcomed it. She needed something to settle her nerves and she needed the time it would take him to brew the tea to gather thoughts. She knew, when the tea was done, Grandfather was going to ask questions.

The sound of the cup coming to rest on the table brought her awake with a jerk. She flushed, unaware of having fallen asleep. She didn't think that the lodge had taken so much out of her but now, sitting on Grandfather's worn and cushy sofa, she could feel exhaustion trying to eat away at her. Apparently the vision quest had been far more draining than she'd believed.

She offered a smile to Grandfather as she reached for her tea. He gave one back, a ghost of his older self in that look, and took his seat. She felt self-conscious under his considering stare. Because when he'd been an old man, it had been easy to ignore the look. But now he was a young man, fine and strong and tall. A handsome warrior with ebony black hair and an angular face. It was disconcerting to call him Grandfather when he looked more like a runway model. "Tell me, Daughter. What did you see?" he asked.

She took a fortifying sip of her tea, breathing deeply of the pleasant aroma that rose from the surface. The heat filled her belly and helped to warm her chilled skin. When she was done, she gave him a considering look. "I saw what happened. I saw what brought me here to this place."

"What was that?" There was curiosity in his tone, which she felt was odd because she got the sense that he already knew everything. She got the sense that he knew more than he would ever let on.

"Death," she whispered, the screams of the dying students echoing loudly in her head.

"How did Death bring you here? To me?"

"A part of me died that night," she whispered. It wasn't the answer he was seeking, but it was the first thing that fell from her lips and she couldn't be certain why she'd said it. "Vampires attacked the school where I lived. There were people who had been friends among them. They went after children. They went after everyone."

"You fought them." It wasn't a question. She found herself nodding in response anyway.

"My friends and I. But there were so many of them. They were stronger. Faster. Deadlier. We didn't have the right tools," she said. Gave a shake of her head. "Maybe, if Dare had been there... That's just speculation now, and it won't do me any good."

"Tell me how you died, Daughter," he instructed.

"I was in my cat form," she began, then stopped and gave him a look. He didn't seem to find the statement odd, but she felt she should clarify it. "I'm a mutant. My mutation allows me to assume the shape of a mountain lion. When needed, I slip into that form and fight. I was using it to fight the vampires. But it wasn't enough. They were trying to take a friend. Me and Haley were trying to stop them. I thought I could sneak up on them from behind. But they sensed me coming. And one of them used his powers to send me flying. He has the ability to use an optic blast. He turned it on me and sent me right into a tree."

"What happened next?"

She took a drink of her tea, welcoming the warmth that eased its way into her. Some of the cold that had settled into her bones slipped away. Some, but not all. "Remy ordered Scott to come get me. I tried to take my cat form, but it wouldn't come to me. Panic raced through me and I worried that they'd take me. Pain speared me, filled my head and my chest. I thought Scott had hit me with another blast. But that wasn't what happened."

"What did happpen, Daughter?"

"I changed forms. But I wasn't a cat. I was a large bird, soaring high over head. I don't really recall how it happened. One minute, I was on the ground with my back against a tree. The next, I was high in the sky. I remember thinking that I needed to go somewhere safe. And its like instinct took over. I don't remember much of the flight. What I do remember is waking up in that field, with you standing over me. But everything before then had become distant and unreal. I couldn't find any of it."

"And now?"

"Now everything is there. I understand what my dreams have meant. I know why I'm having them."

Grandfather nodded his head as if this was expected. Then he pinned her with a stare that was filled with dark knowledge and deep intelligence. "Why are you having the dreams, Daughter?"

"They're a warning. One of the vampires from that night, Remy... He's going to do something terrible. But he can't do it until he captures my friend Dare and turns her. He needs her power to do this terrible thing. So he's trying to hunt her down. Wear her defenses down. Bring her to his side."

"And Dare?"

"She's hunting him. For things he's done to her. She wants to kill him. She plans on roasting him to death."

"She is the fire you have seen," he suggested.

"Yes. And no. That's Dare's mutant power. She can call fire. She can control it. She can burn the whole world with it, I think. No one has ever gotten a good read on just how powerful a pyrokinetic she is. I know, while we were at school, her power levels spiked at least one noticeable time. There could have been more. Remy needs her on his side because she can bring the world to its knees without breaking a sweat." She paused, letting herself really think about what would happen if Remy managed to take Dare and turn her. The things that tumbled through her brain left her shivering in fear.

"Can you stop this event from coming to pass?" he asked her, voice even and steady. As if he wasn't at all worried about what might happen in the future.

It was on the tip of her tongue to simply say yes, but she quelled the urge and gave his question some serious thought. Could she stop Remy from carrying out his plans? Could she get to Dare before he did and warn her? Could she save the world one last time? She looked at him and frowned. "I don't know. I think so. But I can't say for certain. I'll need help. I'm only one person, after all."

"You are more than one person, Rosemary," Grandfather replied. There was weight to his voice that had never been there before, a presence that sent shivers down her spine. She'd long suspected that Grandfather was anything but normal. Now she was sure of it. "You are Catseye. And you are now Thunderbird."

The name fell off his tongue like a stone being dropped into a lake. Ripples formed and spread out from the point of impact, so strong that they rocked her to the core. And then that name took flight, rising up and over her head to soar like an eagle on a thermal. The importance of the name, of what it meant, was not lost on her. The night of the attack came to her again. This time, she saw more than just the ground from a great height. She saw feathered wings, dark and long and strong, when she looked out of the corner of her eye. She saw the gentle press of her wing as she flapped it in order to push herself higher. She felt the wind rustling her feathers and blowing through them.

The magnitude of it all, of the position and the title that had been thrust upon her, was absolutely frightening.

She stared at him a moment. "Why me?" she questioned.

"Because you called for my aid in your time of need, Daughter. You called. I answered," he replied, his tone suggesting it should make sense to her.

"Can there be two Thunderbirds in the world?" she wondered softly.

Grandfather looked at her for a few seconds, then smiled. He showed her even, strong, bright white teeth. "We will find out." He stood and moved toward her, reaching for the hand that she had outside of the blanket. His hand was warm and smooth and strong as it curled around her own, and he used it to pull her to her feet. "Your time here is done, Daughter. Take your regained memories and your newly gained knowledge and go save your friend. Go save the world."

Roxxy stared up into his face and felt a peculiar sense of longing. "You won't be here when I come back, will you?"

His smile turned sad and he gave his head a faint shake. "I will not, Daughter. I have duties to tend to. But there is no need to be sad. We will find one another again. And we will talk at great length of how you saved your friend and changed the world."

She wanted to cry. For more than a year, this place had been her life. And now, she had to give the quiet simplicity of it up. She had to give Grandfather up. Oh, she knew he wasn't really her grandfather. Not in the way most people would think. He wasn't kin. But he was blood. Going up on tiptoes, Roxxy pressed a chaste kiss to his cheek, just as she had done so many times before. This time, though, it was bittersweet. "Thank you. For everything."

"You have no need to thank me, Daughter. It is I who should be thanking you. You have given me purpose again. You have shown me that there are still people in this world that need me and others like me." He leaned in and pressed a kiss to her forehead, a goodbye and a blessing all rolled up into one. When he pulled back, he spoke in that same language he'd used before. They were words she didn't know. But her heart understood them. She smiled and pulled away, moving to the cramped little room that had been hers in order to gather up her stuff. She had a world to save. She had a friend to save.

But first, she had to find help.