Tulio Fury's Story

“Why...Wha...Where are my clothes?”

Cataleia's voice was weak as her eyes finally fluttered open for the first time in three weeks. Fuck! Everything was so bright and vivid! It was fucking annoying! She growled under her breath as she took a few moments to get herself oriented. Her head was pounding with the sounds all around her; She wondered if this was Jim Carrey felt like in Bruce Almighty when he first started to hear prayers. She blinked rapidly a million and one times, waiting for everything to...sort of fade away. She watched as the radio waves, microwaves, infrared, ultraviolet, and gamma rays of light all...faded. She was left seeing only what was visible to the human eye.

Plus the sound waves. But, those didn't bother her.

The roaring in her ears died down as she finally began to think somewhat clearly, filtering out everything that wasn't within ten feet of her. She groaned and turned over to her side. What the hell...happened? She swallowed hard and tried to remember...She remembered Erik. Dead. With...a woman and a child...And Wanda was about to do something stupid....Then...blackout. It was then that she realized that Erik was dead. The glowing light that came from every pore of her body seemed to dim slightly as a single tear rolled down her face. She pulled the silk sheet up more around her neck and curled into them, closing her eyes. This was not good...

Tulio had never truly left Cat's side, even though he had been 'shooed' as the layman term went, by oddball Ulric. It wasn't fair of him to judge Ulric in such a manner, as Tulio knew himself to be quite the odd one, but Tulio did so anyway: the man was nice and all, but not very good at speaking his mind. In fact, Tulio was never sure if the man wanted to speak up but refrained from doing so (he was quite shy after all) or simply because he hadn't anything to say. Needless to say, Tulio didn't care much. After being pushed out the door, he did a little sulking in the library: in the past, it had always been the place where he found his mind was most at peace. However, just like when he was 8, Tulio's mind was working itself into a hole deeper than a well. He couldn't stand the sight of his strong, sturdy sister in a coma: this was only her second that he had ever seen in. It made the poor man feel helpless and useless all over again, just like he had all those years ago. The worst? How empty he felt. During the day, he could catch feelings of joy, annoyance, arrogance, pride. When in a coma? Tulio felt nothing: a hollow ache that just kept itself occupied within his chest. Something he couldn't fill without those extra emotions.

Afterwards though, he felt a little defiant: after all, what good were the powers of shadows if he couldn't use them? After mulling for a few seconds, he calculated the amount of energy he would need to get back into the room via the shadows, along with the allotted time it would take. Without sounding like a broken record, he showed up precisely the time and with the fatigue he had anticipated. Midway through transport, he finally felt something: Annoyance and pain.

When he arrived, he saw that Cat had just curled herself into a ball, and he ran over to her. Cat... His voice was always soft with her, rarely sounding stern or even harsh. With many people his voice was soft as well, but there was a certain tone he added for Cat. He said nothing though as he knelt down in front of her head, a tear rolling down her cheek. He continued to say nothing as he wiped away her tear, as he knew that nothing he could say at the moment would make much sense to a lady who just emerged from a coma. Instead, he gave her a pause of silence before finally speaking. You remember. He meant it in no harsh tone, but as a statement: a fact that he could tell was correct. Tulio continued to kneel there, his face barely a foot from hers, his soft hazel eyes watching her every movement.

She felt the relief that washed over him the minute she had curled up. She herself had felt some sense of relief come to her as soon as she was able to feel him again. Not being able to sense her twin was a scary thing for her, giving her the feeling of being all alone. “Tutu...Where are my clothes?”, she grunted out, blinking rapidly as she made out the form of her brother coming near her, ignoring his question. Her vision was still going in and out, but she maintained control enough to see simply what was visible to the naked human eye. She felt her stomach turn and growl at the same time, causing another groan to emit from her mouth. She felt like she was going to throw up, but she did her best to try and stomach it.

But that didn't work – She felt a weight on her chest and gasped for air. “I can't breathe!” She cried out, her arm lashing out and grabbing onto his shoulder. The feeling of lost air was soon relieved as she found her mouth filled with the flavor of vomit. She sat for a minute after throwing up, staring at the rainbow of contents that was now all over her brother's pants and shoes. “I'm...so sorry.”, she whispered softly, rolling onto her back and frowning. He should have known better than to get so close to her with her just coming out of the comatose state. But, she knew he probably didn't care so long as he could verify that she was safe and sound. “I'm hungry....Could you...Get my emergency box?” You would think that her emergency box was a cardboard box filled with perishables.

No.

It was a medium-sized cardboard box filled with candy, cookies, and chips. It was in a safe that was behind the family portrait she had hanging over her desk. The only person that knew was Tulio – She never told anybody else because she had a legitimate fear that someone would steal her beloved sweets. This fear had been brought on by her addiction to candy and the incident in which her childhood roommate for three years was stealing her candy. Her mother, being a mom, thought she was just lying to get more candy and cut her off. That was the worst two months of her childhood and her behavior during that time was much similar to Zalika's behavior on a daily basis. So, she resorted to hiding her candy in a safe.

Tulio gave Cat a helpless shrug on the topic of clothing. He wasn't much help when it came to clothes, especially ones that somebody had previously worn. He was going to go find her clothes in her closet when she groaned. Tulio looked at her, once again feeling worried while also having a small, sick feeling at the bottom of his gut. He didn't know what was going on until she gasped from breath and grabbed his shoulder, his eyes wide as she... well, threw up all over him. To precise, it was over his good dress pants and shoes, which did cause a small sigh to escape his lips during her apology, but he shook his head anyway, smiling. Dress pants were something he kept in abundance, and shoes could be easily cleaned - well, he knew how to anyway. Tulio was just happy to know she was alright - albeit naked and tangled in sheets. Tulio began to stand up and look over her when she spoke out her need for her emergency box.

Once again, a sigh escaped from Tulio's lips, and once again a soft smile accompanied it. He knew about her box - how couldn't he? His sister had a freaky obsession for candy, and on some days he would toy with her by finding her candy and hiding it somewhere else. It was his only way of really teasing her, as he didn't know any other way to do so without coming off rude or mean. He nodded his understanding of what she wanted, and stood up completely before walking towards her desk. Before he reached the desk, he walked through a simple shadow, and after returning there was no remnants of anything that had gotten onto his pants. In reality, he had just used some shadows to cover it up, since he could clean it later - however, he did need to look presentable if he was going to leave her room anytime soon. Finding the stash behind the portrait, he walked over casually before sitting on the bed next to her and handing the box over. "You should really get something else to eat besides candy." His tone was soft, but still matter of fact like in a way as if to say that while he understands, she really shouldn't. Needless to say, there wasn't much else he could do, since she would get her candy eventually.

Tulio ruffled her hair before speaking again, hoping to return everything back to its original state without creating any more problems then there already was. However, he knew that it would turn up eventually, so he waited for her to stop eating before talking. "So what do you remember? Tulio made a practice of staring straight at her, to make sure she didn't think he was uncomfortable talking about two weeks ago. It did somewhat, but it was much more uncomfortable having to constantly watch and wait for his sister while fighting off Caelan.

“True, but I don't want you to leave.” She gave a weak smile as he fretted over her diet. As the box was handed to her, she sat up with a disgruntled expression. She was sore, starving, and thirsty. She knew that they had been tube-feeding her while she was out of it, but she had a big appetite and three square meals a day didn't cut it. She was definitely going to have Julio whip her up something whenever she regained her strength to be up and about – Luckily, it wouldn't take more than a few hours.

She didn't really make a point to blush and cover herself with the sheets when they fell away from her body as she sat up. Why should she? Tulio was her brother and they used to take baths together when they were kids. Not to mention he had walked in on her several times in the act of fornication. Long story short: There wasn't anything that he hadn't already seen. She sighed as he asked what she remembered, grabbing a Lucky Charms cereal bar from the box to shove in her mouth. “I remember leaving with Uncle Tony to go and meet with dad and the Avengers on the UNN Alpha. They were asking if we had room for more people here – They found an underground superhuman-UFC-death match sort of thing going on and they needed somewhere safe to put the victims.”

She mumbled, chewing precariously on the sweet and sticky cereal bar. “We were all headed back here. They were going to help with building small...housing units. I told them we had a huge influx of superhumans this year. And...Then there was Erik...on the cross. And a child...and a pregnant mermaid. I remember...Wanda. She was about to do something stupid. So her hit her...Is she alright?” She refused to use the word “mutant” as she saw it as something that labeled someone in a degrading way. She more often used the word “Superhuman”, though it seemed as though mutants were taking pride in the word, not allowing humans to berate them with it. She may join the crowd...later.

She looked at her brother with big, round, brown eyes as she inquired about Wanda's health. She didn't know about the depowered mutants, nor was she aware of the reality warp Wanda had done before depowering most of the mutant population as her friends were aware of. Which obviously meant she had no idea that Wanda was dead. She didn't even know what day it was. She felt like she had just woken up from a really long and somewhat unpleasant nap.

“Shit! You're awake!”

Cat's eyes flicked towards the door to see tall, muscular, and roguishly handsome Caelan.

Caelan had been shooed off by Ulric along with Tulio, but like her brother, he wasn't going to stay away forever. He had just come from downstairs where he saw the doctor caught up in conversation with the Lensherrs. Thinking it was the perfect opportunity to go see Cataleia, he took off upstairs, though he wasn't particularly pleased to see Tulio. It wasn't that he disliked Tulio – The boy was fine enough by his standards. He just didn't like that Tulio tried to keep him from his sister.

Caelan would never hurt her – Never has, never will. Not even after she hooked up with that mafia kid, ending their budding relationship. He just wanted her to be happy and he wasn't going to stop seeing her because her brother said so. He didn't judge Tulio because he was the exact same way with his little sister, Orfelina. He especially wasn't going to stay away after he and the others had been made aware of the previous reality in which he had married and impregnated her. To him, that was a sign that they were meant to be.

He moved towards Cat, not bothering to avert his eyes despite her clearly naked condition. He smiled lightly, running his hands through his hair. “You feelin' alright, babe? You want me to go get you something to eat?” He moved towards the other side of her bed, kneeling down next to her, cupping her cheek with one of his massive hands. Small rivulets of tears were already falling from his eyes as she covered his hand with one of her own, smiling weakly. Her glow was as weak as her smile, worrying him.

Tulio gave a knowing smirk when she didn't bother covering herself up: in all honesty, Tulio had seen enough of his sister to not be bothered by it anymore. However, that didn't help those annoying rumors that had started a while back about the two of them getting a little too close. Tulio had made it his personal mission to find out who had started the rumor, but just as rumors went, their source disappears. Regardless, he focused as she began to answer his question. Tulio listened as she talked about the Avengers, UFC death matches (seriously, the way she described some things was absolutely hilarious) and her attacking Wanda to halt what she was doing. Tulio smiled sadly as he watched her chew her thoughtfully, knowing that she was missing some extremely important, depressing details.

Not like Tulio to withhold information from her - as she could probably sense it already - Tulio was about to begin to fill in the gaps for her. "You missed much. See-" It was then that he was rudely interrupted by the one, the only... Caelan Howlett. Instantly, Tulio's body language changed. Gone was his soft, relaxed posture - it was replaced with a tense, rigid structure of both the mind and the body. To be truthful to himself, Tulio didn't entirely dislike Caelan at all. They both shared a mutual dislike for Tommy boy, and Caelan could relate to Tulio's reasoning for being overprotective. However, Tulio often mused that Caelan hadn't gotten the idea through his thick head yet that, regardless of whether or not Caelan held his sister in the highest regards, unless he somehow earned Tulio's respect, Caelan would get nothing from him. Simple as that.

So when he thought he could simply waltz in on his basically naked sister - regardless of the fact that in some lunatic's dream, they were coupled - and simply show affection, Tulio was having none of it. "Splendid idea, Caelan - after all, she has barely eaten anything healthy recently." While Tulio's voice was still quiet and soft, there was an edge to it, such as a subtle dagger would be concealed. Tulio knew that sooner or later, he would have to come to gripes that maybe, just maybe, Caelan and Cat would hook up - which drove him over the wall with anxiety and annoyance - but at least he wasn't out of moves. As it was with all things Tulio Fury, he had a card he was saving, hoping never to use - one so similar to the situation in front of him that it nearly made him sick. He shoved all thoughts of these plans from his mind, keeping just his bitterness towards Caelan present.

So, Tulio reverted back to his annoyed, frustrated look as he waited for Caelan to either reject his proposal for him to go get some food, or for him to actually go get some damned food. Regardless, Tulio's expression would not change: cold, heartless, and frigid. If confrontation were to arise, so be it - Tulio wouldn't back down from such a petty fight, even if he would hate himself later for making Cat watch a useless fight against two people she cared about.

Caelan bit his tongue, quite literally. Sometimes, Tulio's attitudes made him want to knock the boy through a wall. But he wasn't going to fight him. Not here – Not now. He wasn't going to put Kitty through that. Sighing, he stood up and leaned over her, kissing her lips gently. “I'm not much of a chef, but I'll see if I can find Julio and have him whip something together for you...I'll bring back Ulric, too.” He smiled before regarding her brother with the same cold stare. He then left, taking off to the kitchen, literally shoving people on the stairs out of his way. “Hey Lina – Hey Alex. Y'all see Julio lately?”

Cataleia almost whined when Caelan left from the kiss, watching him run out the door to hurriedly get her something “more nutritious”, as her twin put it. She could feel her glow brighten just a little bit as she inhaled his lingering scent; he had been out in the garage earlier. He smelled like oil and gasoline. Smiling, she gave her brother a playful push on the shoulder. “You don't have to be so mean to him. He cares for me. But, whenever you're done cock blocking, maybe you'd like to help me get dressed?”

She smelled pretty fresh; More specifically, like roses and candy apples. Lina and Tulio probably took turns bathing her in her comatose state – She assumed Ulric was too bashful to do that. She giggled inwardly at the thought of him blushing when asked to do something like that.

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“Oh my God, Tutu. Its like you don't even know me!”, she dramatically exclaimed as he tossed the clothes at her. She chose to ignore his previous statement, as she knew nothing she could say would make him change her mind. She sighed and pushed the clothes away from her – They were fabulous, of course. They just didn't match. She took a deep breath and slid out of her bed with a grunt after putting her box down, taking a few moments to estimate her strength.

Alright...Yeah. I got this.”, she told herself.

She could move herself around her room, she just felt a bit weak in the knees. The feeling would soon pass, though. She snapped her fingers and watched as five pairs of glowing, gloved hands appeared. She listened to her brother with as much of a straight face as she could manage, though she couldn't stop a few tears from falling, streaking down her cheek.

Though, she couldn't help but to smile inwardly at the thought of being married and with child. And in a world where mutants were at the top...? She shook her head vigorously. No! Equality for everyone. She chastised herself. Though, she couldn't help but to think that such a dream would not happen and that it would end up being mutants or humans. That it would not be possible for equality. She was still unable to process how she felt about such a thought.

If it did come to an all out war...It wouldn't just be America. There were hundreds of other countries where mutants needed liberation. If it came to that, would she have to lead the “army” to victory? Could she do that?

As her brain overloaded with thoughts of the future, she moved her limbs accordingly as her “helping hands” dressed her. She was a vision of pink. She held her breath and closed her eyes as cans of pink and blue-purple hair dye were emptied into her locks, leaning her head back some so that it didn't stain on her neck. She was going for a “Don't worry, I'm okay. You're okay. Let's be happy and be chill.” sort of look. She wanted to appear as normal as she usually did, not liking when people fretted over her.

The dye dried almost instantly, allowing her to lean her head back up straight into an application of lipstick and lip gloss along with an orchid that was nestled behind her ear. Seriously – Who needed hairstylists and a makeup team when you had Helping Hands? Cat said it was efficient. Some people said she was just being lazy. Pfft. They were just jealous.

She was finally dressed and ready, adjusting her bracelet some before putting her headphones around her neck and stuffing her iphone in her back pocket. Normally she didn't wear bracelets, but this one was special to her, a gift from Professor Xavier when she was nine. It was the only one she ever wore, even wearing it when it didn't match her outfit. Though, it matched perfectly in this case.

She was in the process of adjusting her unbuttoned shirt, planning to leave it that way, for she proudly bore the scars that marred her body, when she noticed Tulio's stillness. He had cut off mid-sentence, which was odd for him. She paused along with him, feeling within her his rising suspicions and a familiar intensity. She then felt what he felt – Not feeling-wise. Though, she felt that as well. But, she felt a pull on the light around her. She felt...Some of it disappearing as though someone had turned out the lights...Or something was sucking it all up.

Her jaw was tense as she left her bedroom, greeted by a number of tenants that were waiting all around. “Thank you all for the flowers and stuff -” She remarked, motioning towards the plenty of them that were stored in her window. Everyone smiled at her, some gave her hugs. But she kept moving, edging down the stairs. Her heart was pounding in her chest and her mouth went dry as she gripped the rail. She didn't try to listen for a particular voice; She was too frightened of what she might hear.

It was when she reached the bottom of the stairs that she gripped the rail so tight that her knuckles went white. She faltered, unable to say anything, instead stepping backwards. She could feel tears well up in her eyes, though she couldn't tell why. Happiness...? Fear? Relief?“Wha-What're you doing here?” She finally rasped out, her knees buckling under her. She fell to the steps in a sitting position, her head spinning wildly. When was the last time she saw Tommy? She was seventeen...It was eight years ago.

Eight years ago...

Cataleia rolled over in the bed, a sigh escaping her lips. Tommy wasn't there – He hardly ever was anymore. She rolled out of the bed and threw on a robe, wrapping it about her body carefully before exiting the room. She was on her way to the kitchen for another lonely breakfast, but she heard screams coming from one of the rooms. It wasn't the usual pleasured scream that came from one of the rooms – People around the compound weren't exactly secretive about their sex lives.

She decided to investigate the pained screams, taking off through the halls until the screams were louder and louder. She could hear a few guys laughing and Tommy's labored breathing as he cussed. “I got half the fuckin' Armenians sayin' you was the last person pop was with! You know who fuckin' killed 'im, Tito?” The man was weeping, saying he didn't know anything. His cries were answered with what sounded like a fist in his face.

Cataleia wanted to say something...anything. But she couldn't. Instead, she ran. The past few months were hell. She thought it'd be great with Tommy, but she could only sit back and watch as a darker side came out. He was ruthless when it came to anyone that denied him or cheated him. She couldn't count on one hand or even two the number of fights they had; Both verbal and physical. No. She couldn't do this anymore.

After she packed her things and took off, she headed for college and never looked back. That was eight years ago. She never called or visited. He didn't either. She never thought she'd see him again...But here he was.

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“Não! Parfait.”

Julio LeBeau gave a wide grin as he stood on he lawn of the estate, examining the newly repaired grounds. “Merci, rapazes!” He waved as two young women and an older man went inside, waving softly at him. The young man had enlisted the aid of them to help smooth out the ground, as his power over nature was limited to only plants and animals. Luckily, there were a few people with the ability to control earth.

The large mansion itself had already been repaired a few days ago – Just needed some window replacements, work on the roof, and some new bricks. He would have asked Markus to simply focus his power on the lawn and house to reverse the damage from the past two weeks, but that boy was just plain creepy nowadays. Plus he was mean.

The Cajun-Brazilian opted instead for simply finding his own little fix-it-up crew. After finishing with basking in the glory of his work, taking in the scent of all the beautiful little flowers that were growing everywhere, he turned to head inside. He caught a glimpse of Thomas Castellano heading through the doors and immediately his stomach dropped. He knew the guy from when he was about nine. The guy only stayed a few months and Jules thought he was an alright guy.

But mostly because Kitty thought he was an alright guy. Tommy was never mean to him, but when drugs were popping up around the school, Tommy was suspect number one. Julio remembered they eventually found the guy that did it and before they could apologize to Tommy for being suspicious, they found out he and Cataleia were gone and the guy was dead. They didn't hear from Cataleia for months, but she finally showed up around Spring Break and let them know what happened.

She never talked about him after that, always seeming on the verge of tears whenever anyone did dare to speak about him.

He didn't know whether he should go inside and make sure the man kept away from his cousin or whether he should just stay outside and avoid confrontation. Tulio and Caelan had been doing some heavy hovering over Cat and if they saw Tommy, things were not going to end well and he didn't really want to be in the middle of that fight. He bit his lip as he thought, closing his two-colored eyes before deciding to sneak inside.

He made the rather short jog towards the east side of the school and went for the window he knew would lead into the clinic. Nobody really called it the nurse's office because everyone looked at Ulric as a doctor rather than a nurse, some even calling him Doctor Worthington because of his ability to heal practically anything. Julio pushed up the window and heaved himself in, landing awkwardly on the floor – He could have landed rather gracefully, considering his expertise in the area of stealth, having learned from a master thief...But just thinking about Ulric gave him butterflies and made him rather stupid and clumsy.

He looked up to see Ulric and Erik Junior, his face growing a bit red. “Per-” He paused in his speech, trying to remember his English lessons from Tulio and Ulric and George. “Er...Sorry.” He spoke a bit slowly, taking care to sound out each word. Most people could pick up a foreign language in a matter of a few months, but he wasn't exactly a star pupil in any school subject. He wasn't stupid – He just had more street smarts. “Trouble gon' be brewin' in the front an' I ain't tryin' tah get mahself caught in no crossfire.”

When he actually took the time to speak English, his accent was a heavy mix of Cajun and Hispanic, though it seemed to tilt more towards the Cajun side. He rubbed the back of his head bashfully as he stood up and gave a distracted cough. “Don' really know if'n y'all remember Mistuh Tommy Castellano. Dat Mafia kid. But he here and probably askin' fer Jojo.” He warned them, though calling Cataleia by the nickname that only her family had the privilege of calling her.

Tulio didn't know what to make of what just happened, but he did know this: his stats, his previous facts, screw them. Tommy was a changed man, one that Tulio wasn't sure if he trusted.

For starters, Tulio could tell that Tommy was getting aggravated. All the signs of a previous aggressive man were there - if he wanted to practice seeing those signs, he just had to look at Caelan. Regardless, Tommy's personality shifted in a way Tulio hadn't been expecting, and it all started with the simple statement of agreement. Tulio's eyes instantly began to fade back to their dark brown coloring upon hearing that he was right. While his face gave away nothing, besides its cold, mysterious exterior, the man was baffled on the inside, and completely thrown for a loop. Good thing he could hide his emotions near perfectly, or else he would have swore that Tommy would have laughed at him internally - another thing Tulio needed for his self esteem.

However, Tulio's face slowly did begin to recede to show a bit more emotion after Tommy finished agreeing with him: fatigue. Tulio was tired of having to be vicious to Cat's suitors, even though that fire burned day and night. He was tired of harassing Caelan and now Tommy, only to find out that Thomas had changed (Caelan hadn't, but it was still like punching a wall). Most of all, Tulio was just tired in general - he hadn't slept a wink since Cat had been unconscious, something that Tulio knew was going to lead to a serious crash in his nervous system, along with a few other functions. He was usually not one to crash like his sister did, but it was inevitable: when one does not sleep for two weeks, one crashes.

There was a minute of silence, one where Tulio continually held his somewhat cold and quiet facade while he watched as Tommy reigned in his emotions once more. Once again, another indication that the man had grown up while Tulio had remained the same - another blow of uncertainty to his self esteem. However, Tulio felt his nerves seemingly pinch in his head at being called Tutu. Tulio's jaw clenched a little, and the original hardness in his eyes returned, but they remained their original colour. Thomas had no right calling Tulio by his pet name, something that Jojo had been calling him for years and hadn't let anyone else dare call him that. Calling Tulio Tutu was like if a student called Caelan 'Cubs'; it was a death sentence waiting to happen. While Thomas (Tulio didn't feel right calling him Tommy now - the man known as Tommy was an idiot, but this Thomas... proved a little more dangerous) had made a good point in stating that it was up to his sister on whether or not he stayed, Tulio had nearly bypassed all of that logical reasoning just because that man had the audacity to call him Tutu. Tulio wasn't even sure if the man was trying to annoy him, get under his skin, or whatever angle a man like Thomas Castellano could get at.


Upon seeing Thomas' head turn towards Cat, Tulio's remained sturdy and unreadable. It was easy for a guy like Tulio to remain unreadable to most the folk - a combination of constantly conflicting emotions and a degree in criminal psychology could do that for a man. Nevertheless, Tulio watched Thomas the entire time as he spoke to Cat, knowing that she had all the power. And yet... Tulio knew what the outcome was going to be even before Jojo said a word. He could feel her raging emotions, and he knew that both of them didn't really know what to think about for Thomas. Regardless, there were two things that Tulio knew that decided the outcome. One - Cat had lingering feelings for the mob boss, which seriously tired Tulio out. Two - with the number of mutants being so low, Cat wouldn't be able to refuse a mutant that had claimed to give up everything - while she may not know how her heart felt, she knew it was still there.

So Tulio merely stood there, facing Thomas Castellano as his eyes pleaded that Cat take him in. After a while, he turned to his sister, but his eyes remained clouded and murky as they seemingly always did: after all, the eyes were the gateway to the brain. If you could read one by their eyes, you can read their very being.

Cataleia couldn't really do anything but blink and listen. When he mentioned that he had given up everything and left for her, an unexpected rage flared up in her. She listened to Tulio speak to Tommy before finally finding the strength to stand on her own. She could feel the slack-jawed gaze of others as she grabbed tightly onto her brother's shoulder to steady herself before she spoke, her tone as controlled as she could manage.

“I was with you for five months and left you because you were consumed by an ungodly darkness and seemed to no longer care for me. What you are telling me now is that it took you eight years to realize that you were sorry. Eight years to leave behind everything when I left everything and everyone without a second thought after you killed someone. Eight years you never called, texted, or visited to say you were sorry or to check up on me. Nothing. For the first five of those eight years, I worried that I'd look on the news and see your death or see you were put in prison or see a Wanted advert for you. Thomas...I'm not going to turn you away. I'm not that heartless. Charles would have taken you in. Ororo would have taken you in. So I will take you in....Eight years...”

Her tone was firm and she could see from her peripheral vision that she had earned a few nods of approval. “And...Don't ever call him Tutu. That is my name for him.” She frowned, though a few people around her chuckled. “Joe, please show him to a room. Everyone else – Get some breakfast and stop gawking. Show's over. We have a lot to do today, so chop-chop. Julio, Caelan, Ulric, Erik, Alex, Lina, Ben, George, and Ana! Meet me in my office in half an hour!” She didn't yell. She never had to yell. But her voice would carry and be heard by everyone within a fifty foot radius as though she were standing right next to them and having a friendly chat.

She put her personal feelings aside and a gentle smile on her face before turning to Joe. “I'll need you there as well, hun.” She didn't give Tommy a single glance, knowing she would only break into tears if her gaze lingered on him for too long. No doubt she'd find herself drinking and smoking with her cousin later that evening when others had called it a night. For now, she snapped herself into a strictly business state of mind, unwilling to further show any signs of weakness in front of so many. No, they needed to see that she was strong and would be able to take care of everyone.

Sighing, she released her grip on her brother's shoulder.

Caelan glanced at his little sister's who's mouth was full of what her friend Alexandra always referred to as “The Death Sandwich”. He had tasted it and it wasn't...that bad. Anastasia McCoy had walked in just as Alex mentioned where Julio might be and Caelan gave all three of the ladies a light wave. He began to walk out, heading for Ulric's office when Alex made her last statement which inevitably earned her a nice middle finger from him.

He paused a moment outside of the kitchen, his keen sense of smell picking up a very distinct cologne and his hearing picking up an even more distinct voice. His lips literally curled back over his teeth as a rather animal-like growl rumbled in his chest. He was quick to push out of the way everyone that stood between him and the man that he was going to tear apart limb from limb. He paused his war march as Tulio started speaking. After the two men exchanged words, there was a silence as Cataleia brought herself to her feet.

Caelan was afraid of what she was going to say. He knew she wasn't going to turn him out. Him staying meant that he was going to try and get back on her good side. He was going to try to take her from him again. He wasn't going to let that happen – It would be a cold damn day in hell. He listened to her words, clenching his fists as she granted him permission to remain. His stomach knotted up as he saw the pain and hurt in her eyes. The sadness that made her radiant glow slowly grow dim. But, Cat being Cat perked back up quickly and got straight to business, doling out orders.

He took that brief moment to move towards her, blocking her view of the mobster. He towered over her quite a bit, reaching to her face with his hand. He felt a bit better as she tilted her head to the side, letting herself rest her head into his hand as she closed her eyes. “Couldn't find Jules. He's probably in Ulric's office again. Which you should probably be there right now, too. C'mon baby.” He leaned down and kissed her forehead before wrapping an arm about her waist protectively. He gave Tulio a curt, respectful nod and regarded Tommy only with a warning snarl before heading down the eastern hall.

When they approached the doctor's office, Zalika was sitting on a nearby shelf, speaking in low tones to her husband. Cat gave them both a cheery smile and a wave before being ushered into Ulric's office by Caelan, who's hand she had grabbed on the way there. Sure enough, Julio was there. Cat gave them both a smile and a wave before glancing at the boy with wings that was just waking, rubbing his face. She and Caelan moved to the side as he stumbled his way out of the room. He was met with a hiss and answered with a shriek. Cat giggled as he tore down the hallways. Oh, Zee. Caelan enjoyed a chuckle as well, picking up Cat and setting her on the cot where the boy once was.

“Strange – That's usually Zee's effect on people.” She gave a light giggle and ran her fingers through her colorful, yet mostly pink hair. “I'm fine. I feel great. Just a few aches here and there. Little case of the jelly legs. But its normal. Give me another hour or so and I'll be right as rain.” She spoke nonchalantly, almost cheery as she swung her feet back and forth. While this had only happened once before, she remembered the “quick” recovery and didn't think too much of it. The first time had done it was an attempt to make it from her S.H.I.E.L.D. training to her Microbiology class on time. She had traveled at the speed of light and was there before anyone even noticed she had left. But she materialized naked in her dorm room and didn't wake up for a whole week.

“Ah, shit. I need to call daddy. Sorry, Ric! You can check my pulse and stuff later, kay?” She nearly punched herself in the face for not making a call to her dad her first priority. He was probably having a heart attack right about now! She slid down from the cot and gave Ulric a tight hug before moving to Caelan, leaning up on her tiptoes and kissing his nose before dashing out the door. She gave several smiles and waves on her way down the halls to her office.

Closing the door behind her, she pulled out her phone and called up her father. She sat in her “Big Boss” chair and spun around, waiting for him to pick up. She didn't bother putting him on speaker phone as she sat down her iPhone in her lap. It took three rings before he picked up the phone. “Cat?! Is that you? Are you alright? Her father's voice was frantic – Jeez, he was worse than Tulio. She sighed and smiled softly. “Yeah, daddy. I'm alright. Just a headache and the jelly legs. That's it. I just wanted to call and let you know that I'm doing fine.” She could hear her father sighing in relief, but knew that he was still worried.

“Good. I'm sorry I couldn't be there to watch over you – But I had some business to take care of. The others are with me. Sweetheart...A Bill is being pushed. One that will require every mutant, every super human, every single person that seems just a little bit more than human to register with the United States Government. They will have to give up their names, addresses, information on their family, their capabilities, occupation. Just...everything. There's talk of using them for testing and...God. But its against Constitutional Rights, so it won't pass. Though, I want you guys to be extra safe just in case – These guys don't plan on playing fair.”

Cat had stopped spinning in her chair.

In the kitchen, Lina smiled as her friends filed in one after the other, offering waves and soft hellos. Seeing Tulio come in, she gave only a simple nod. There was absolutely nothing in her body language – not even a single, miniscule, out of place twitch – that would denote the secret she was harboring. She went about as she did every other time she saw him, though she admittedly had to force her heart not to race. It was then that her crappy phone finally received the text message that Benjamin had sent, a light smile crossing her lips as her thumbs moved slowly across the keys to reply.

\\Burn. Burn the house. On hands and knees. Coughing. Out we will crawl. Captured. Tagged and bagged. Chained. Pain. Thus marks the fall of all mutant kind. Our beacon of hope. Our light. Snuffed out. Taken away. Leaving us all alone. No hope. No life.//

Lina was about to hit send, but her phone clattered to the floor and her eyes began to glow. Her tone was dark, her face contorting into a look of grim disdain. The vision she saw was not a pretty one. Everyone seemed happy at first, but then men in black suits came. They surrounded their home and set it to fire. They threw grenades and shot most people that tried to run away. Crosses were being put up. More people nailed to them. Tulio and....Why were Tulio, Julio, and Cat leaving? No. They weren't leaving. They were being taken away. By...Thor? And a woman. She didn't know the woman. And...Fen. He was leaving, too. A grey Lycan walking alongside Loki. Why were they being taken away?! They were needed here! Lina called out after them, running across the lawn. But she cried out in pain as she felt a sharp pain in her chest. Then sticky warmth...Everything went blurry. Fire, people running, screaming. Her father and Caelan running for her. Captured. Then it all went dark.

As the glow in her eyes receded, she crumpled to the floor. “We have to go. Now...Before they come.” She had curled into the fetal position, shaking her head and grasping her hair as though she were about to pull it out. She could soon feel her brother's strong arms wrap around her. Caelan had left after speaking with Ulric, having asked him to check on Cat anyways. He didn't know what she saw, but he didn't like the way it sounded. “Tulio, I need you to get the rest of the team and have everyone pack up in a calm and collected manner. Tell them that we're moving out soon. To get the children away from the freaks at the gate.” He gave the man a nod before heading towards Cat's office. It could take a while to figure out where they were going and how they would get there unnoticed, but surely Cat had a few tricks up her sleeves.


All Tulio had heard was the sound of something hit the floor, and instantly some off feelings started to brew - somewhat like his tea (bad time for jokes, but he has to make a few sometime). Tulio turned around, his eyes widening as he realized it was Orfy that had dropped the phone. She looked in pain for a few seconds, and then literally fell to the floor. Tulio dropped the tea bag instantly and nearly ran to her when he heard her speak in a low tone and Caelan suddenly appeared. Tulio hadn't a clue where the man had come from, but was actually quite relieved: while Tulio could merely put off that he was just running to a friend, he didn't want to take any chances with their secrets coming loose. Tulio blinked once more, his eyes falling back to their original position as Caelan told him to collect the rest of the team and get everyone out of the mansion.

While Tulio normally didn't like taking orders from Caelan, he instantly relented and nodded: right now wasn't the time for petty emotional values to get in the way. Tulio walked towards them as Caelan raced out the door with his sister, with Tulio noticing that nobody had grabbed her phone. Feeling the need to make sure he returned it, he bent down to pick it up, and as luck would have it the screen was still bright with life and facing up, allowing Tulio to read what she was about to text to Benjamin. Burn the house? The.... fall of mutant kind? Tulio almost stopped reading right there, he was almost sick. Tulio, now having seen all of Orfy's memories and entirety, knew that she had this Chronovision mutation, which Tulio roughly guessed meant something to do with seeing into time. If that was the case, what was she talking about? Tulio's grip on the phone became taught, before shoving it into his pocket to stand.

He scanned the entire room, his dark eyes scanning each and every person in the room. Only instead of cloudy, distant thoughts that usually glittered his eyes, they were clear: still dark, but strict and a little authoritative. Now was the time for action, and Tulio was not going to let this place burn because some worthless humans were jealous. "You heard the man. Begin preparations for mass evacuation of the students and staff - keep the younger children under the pretense that this is a drill to avoid having panic spread amongst them. That is the last thing we need now." It was as if Tulio had become an entirely different man.

Gone was the distant thoughts, the wispy soft voice, the quiet mannerisms: when it came to game day, Tulio became a hardened, disciplined man. Sure he was serious most of the time, but when it came to missions and possible attacks? Tulio became uncaring for nonsense and excuses. "Julio, George, Alexandra, meet me in Cat's office in 5 minutes after establishing the protocol and procedures to the rest of the staff to execute. Any other X-Men you find, send them there." He scanned the rest, and without another word swiftly moved out the door towards where he had guessed where the rest of the team was: huddled around Ulric's office. He had a hunch that Caelan would be taking Orfy to see Cat, so he decided that it would be the most logical to send the X-men to the Head Mistresses office, as it would make things easier when everyone was together

Nearing the medical room where Ulric was usually found, Tulio spotted Zalika and Eric in some form of conversation. Hating to interrupt but knowing that he had to, Tulio spoke in the same straight, low voice and in Ulric's direction so he could hear it. "Ulric, set in motion the evacuation protocol for the sick - drill today." Tulio knew that Ulric would understand what he meant by stating it was a drill. In a lower voice, he spoke to the married duo. Probable attack on the Academy. Team's forming up in Cataleia's office in 5 - help Ulric if you so wish and inform him."

Knowing that Zalika wasn't really one for being all soft and stuff, he made it at least sound optional to help out Ulric so that Tulio didn't get his head bitten off. Tulio knew of Zalika's powers - and Eric's mutation was seriously no laughing matter - so he didn't like offending an asset of the team. Besides, offending people wasn't what he did.

With that, Tulio continued on towards the classrooms, assisting in the evacuation wherever he could. When those 5 minutes are to be up, he would move back to Cat's office, but for now, he acts.

Ulric smiles warmly at Cat's jest, certainly glad that the headmistress is up and about once more. It will save him plenty of trouble, as Zee tends to do a little bit less damage when Cat is there to take care of students that might otherwise turn towards the more vicious woman. Perhaps the difference is not too significant, but enough that he can expect to have a slightly more peaceful time than he has had for the past two weeks. Then again, with the escalating hostilities towards Mutants, something only increased within the past fortnight, this will be only a shred of respite from the tensions constantly weighing down on everyone.

Being a pacifist, he very much dislikes the idea of the pressure prompting actions which may lead to a full out war, and is optimistic enough to hope that such an outcome might be avoided. He was raised among humans just as much as mutants, after all, and knows that not all humans are as malicious as those who stand outside the institute gates, screaming dreadful profanities at frightened youths, who already have enough to deal with as they try to manage the development of their abilities.

Not all of them were born to mutant parents, as he was, or even to parents who are supportive of who they are. In fact, several of them have to keep their identities a secret from their own family members, or were cast out by those who they are bound to by blood, sneered at and viewed as freaks among their kin. The idea of such treatment mortifies Ulric, as though he is ashamed on behalf of a people that he doesn't actually belong to. That has always been his personality, though.

"I'm sure you will be, but I'm obligated to check over your vitals anyway. Humor me?" Ulric asks, turning towards his desk to get out a sphygmomanometer and a stethoscope. Of course, before he can so much as reach them, Cat releases a swear and a spoken realization of her need to call her father. "Well, can I just-" but before he can finish the sentence, Cat has given him a quick embrace, kissed Caelan on the nose, and disappeared down the hallway. Although he releases a sigh in response to all of this, Ulric can not grudge her a call to her father, being one himself. But now is not the time for him to dwell on his own daughter- those thoughts he generally tries to reserve for when he is alone, and no one can see him worry.

"Can you follow her and make sure that she doesn't collapse on the way there, please?" the doctor turns towards Caelan, crossing his mind and offering a gentle smile to pair with the request, though he knows that the man is unlikely to have any problems with chasing after Cat--he seems to be constantly doing it, after all. As expected, the elder Howlett sibling takes off almost immediately, following the woman down the hallway. Watching him go, Ulric rubs the back of his neck and releases a small yawn. There doesn't seem to be any business for him to deal with, and thus the man sits down in his chair and leans back, staring through the window and up at the infinite blue sky. He is fortunate to have a view of the back of the institute, and therefore doesn't have even the slightest view of the protestors.

All the same, he is not allowed even the smallest moment of peace. Although neither had intended for it to happen, Orfelina's sudden vision, with its great strength, glimmers through Ulric's mind. Of course, given that it hadn't been intentional, he feels the vision rather than sees it, and is suddenly overcome with an immense pain that makes him visibly flinch. What was that? he wonders, immediately concerned that someone near by is in pain. The doctor is already walking towards the door when Tulio comes into view and addresses him. Immediately understanding, Ulric nods and walks further into his office. There are two doors in his office; one door is to exit into the hallway, and the other is into the larger clinic. His own office has a cot for immediate treatment, but those who are terminally ill, don't want him to treat them (a case for some of the more stubborn patients), or have some other reason to stay longer than they otherwise would, are in the clinic through that door.

For the moment, there are only a few people in the room, and he is able to organize and evacuate them. One remains, a resting patient who had gone through a somewhat taxing treatment after being assualted and nearly killed by the mob. The patient has a mutation that is rather harmless, being a healer as Ulric is, though her mutation is peculiar in that she takes on the pain of other people, relieving others at her own cost. She is an empath on top of this, a skill that Ulric has always found to be rather lonely. The doctor goes and wakes her up instructing the young girl, for she is only ten years old, that there is a drill. "Come on, there's an evacuation drill," he tells her, but the girl only blinks at him drowsily and turns back over to fall asleep once more. He simply scoops her up in his arms, then, and walks out to where Zee and Eric are.

--

Roll back a few minutes and switch the scene to the kitchen, where Alex is smiling, not minding the growing number of people inside the kitchen, for it is large enough to fit them all with ease. When she sees her friend take out her archaic phone, the young woman grins teasingly. "You really should upgrade, Lina- that thing is practically a-" her sentence goes unfinished, for the light-hearted mood vanishes the moment that her friend drops the cellular device to the ground, causing it to slide away from her a few inches. The smile on her face fades until only a small remnant of it, forced into place, lingers. "Lina-" she begins again, extending a hand towards her friend to grab her on the shoulder. The hand misses as Orfelina shrinks down into a fetal position, pulling desperately at her vividly red hair as though trying to pull something out of her mind.

Alex falls onto her right knee beside the girl, but it is Caelan that wraps an arm around his younger sister, seeming to appear out of absolutely nowhere. He speaks with a clear and authoritative voice, his serious expression removing memories of the man who had only a while ago stuck his middle finger out at her for joking about him being kicked out from the sickroom. Needless to say, Alex is frightened, and she can feel goosebumps rising on her arms. The young woman rubs her right forearm to make them go away before turning her attention to Tulio.

The tone in his voice is equally as startling as Caelan had been, for it shifts from quiet and vague to clear cut and forceful. Giving him her attention seems natural, as he immediately steps into the position of giving orders. Alex nods in response, the smiles from earlier having left completely in order to make room for an expression to better reflect the sudden gravity of the situation. After he has left the room, she turns towards George and Julio, trying to offer a slight smile, though it seems completely out of place in this situation. "I'll get the kids from the younger classes," she informs them, knowing that she will be able to keep up the facade of a drill rather well. Besides, many of the younger students know her well, because she likes to tinker and make toys for them all. After speaking, she gives the reassuring smile once more before exiting the room as well.

It is a brisk walk to reach the younger wings, but feels like miles until she reaches the part of the school. The young woman stops in each class to inform the teachers of the situation and relay Tulio's instructions. Her next stop is the dormitories, in case any students are still in their rooms at the moment. Her thoughts dance between the children, Orfelina, and the situation in its entirety. Five minutes. . .just one more dorm to check, though, Alex tells herself, having gathered a duck line of younger students that follow behind her, some complaining and some deathly silent. Finding no one in the last rooms, she leads the group that she has built up, composed of perhaps six children, towards the other classrooms so that they can regroup with their schoolmates before she goes to Cat's office.

---

As the Headmistress was informed in detail of her beloved friend's vision, she had waited for her team to gather. Things seemed to be going rather smoothly at first. They had plans to head for the Avengers' Tower because it was nearby and they were allies and family with government pull and popularity amongst American citizens that they might never achieve. Everyone had packed what was most important to them. All that was left was the clearing of the house. Cataleia had found herself in full uniform for the first time in a while, thinking that her colorful hair went quite well with it. She cleared her throat before addressing the school.

“I know that you've all been told that this is a drill, but its not. I'm not going to lie to you. There are people coming for us.” She paused and rolled her eyes at the shouts of lying and betrayal and false hope before closing her eyes and shouting loud enough that every window rattled. “Enough! Not once did we ever say that our walls were impenetrable. Not once did we say that as long as you're here, nobody would ever bother you. We gave no false hope at all. What we gave was a promise. A promise that as long as a single one of us is breathing, we will still fight this war. A promise that as long as we can still fight, we will defend you. A promise that we would never abandon you.”

Some had piped down while others grumbled. There were a few children crying and many people left. They simply pushed their way rudely past the crowd, elbowed the X-Men out of their way, and left. Cataleia didn't stop them. If they didn't want to stay, she wasn't going to hold them prisoner. As soon as the door closed behind them, Lina fell to the floor. “They're here!” It was a blur of movement as the X-Men (plus one or two guests) put the house on lock down and stood their ground outside and watched as their exterminators rolled in. Tanks, SUVs, jets, and helicopters coming upon their lawn with men and women ready to gun them down.

---

That battle was their first since the war began.

---

But not their last.

---

---

The numbers have dwindled down to quite a pathetic number as compared to before. The battle was a short one, but hard fought. It was neither a win nor a loss that Cataleia lead to them, but perhaps a draw. Deadman would call it a win because none of their enemies walked away alive. But, the mutants that Xavier's once house...well. They were divided. As the battle began, many ran outside in hopes to help. They had no experience and were quickly gunned down. Then you had those who thought to escape from the back. They ran and nobody has heard from them. All in all, few mutants left Xavier's that morning. At least compared to the amount there was before.

Raver, Nexus, Prodigal, Hurricane, Tarot, Techna, Deadman, Red Son, Masquerade, Prism, Wonderland, Oz, Paragon, Wraith, Seraph, Fen, Druid, Rewind, Persuasion, Xerox, Yin, and Yang as well as about seven others. They were the ones that stuck together. They were the ones that made it out and had found themselves in the bayou country. Those without vehicles being shoved into the extras of Cataleia and Orfelina's. Cat thought they everyone who could drive should drive. She didn't want everyone piled into the “X-Calade” for fear of being caught. Everyone in their own individual vehicles would be easier for splitting up. They didn't travel completely together, everyone taking different routes so that they didn't appear suspicious.

The Avengers' Tower was out of the question. Nobody could know where they were. They played it safe and assumed that their lines were tapped as well as those of the Avengers and the Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. It was presumed by the public that they were all dead. But Stryker knew better – He investigated the scene himself and he saw that there were few bodies, none of them being who he wanted them to be. He saw many cars missing and many things from the house. Sad part for him is that he had no idea where they would head.

---

---

“Uncle Remy! Look!”

Lina hopped off of her Big Dog Pit Bull, pulling out of her pocket what looked to be a used .45 round. “Can you believe it?!” The gypsy girl looked as though they had just arrived at the Carnival – Not once had she ever shown this much joy in front of anyone at Xavier's. Why was she so happy as she parked her motorcycle and put it up on its kickstand? Maybe because she saved the life of one of her best friends who happened to be her secret lover. Maybe because she got shot in the face for him. Maybe because she got shot in the face saving him and the bullet was simply pushed out of her body and not even a scar was left. She had a headache, which her brother assure her that getting shot in the head anywhere was something you never get used to, but other than that she was perfectly fine.

She threw her arms around the neck of a rugged-looking man who had the same eyes as one of Julio's.

“Lookit dat, cherie! You gon' be like yo' pop and big brother after all, eh? Good fo' you. I'ma gon' go 'head and find somethin' to put a real small hole in it and we gon' string it up into a necklace like yo' daddy and brother got.” The man wrapped her up in a large hug and spun her around before looking around some.

“Oh! Don't worry – Everyone else is coming. They're fine.”

She had noticed the look of worry in his eyes and immediately knew he was looking to see where everyone else was. Fortunately, she would stop every now and again so that she could use her ability to check the present and check on her friends. They were all fine and on their way. She was still shivering with excitement, bouncing in her godfather's arms before noticing his house, her jaw dropping. Xavier's was larger, but she didn't think that he actually bought a mansion. She thought he was exaggerating. “Holy shit. You really did buy a mansion.” Remy only laughed, though he had a bit of a prideful gleam in his eyes.

Lina, strangely, could not bring herself to be worried or even a bit depressed over the battle at Xavier's. She was still focusing on the fact that she took a shot to the face and lived and also the fact that those closest to her were still alive. Even her father was on his way to Gambit's! She had caught him on the road on the way there and he said he just needed to make a pit stop first. She felt invincible. Unstoppable. She vowed that with her new power, she would make sure that she would never give up the fight. No more sitting on the sidelines!

She pulled out a cigarette and her father's lighter, taking a deep drag and exhaling with a faint smile. The humans wanted war? They got it.

Cataleia fought a fierce fight alongside her comrades. She made the battlefield her own as she created light constructs that would aid her. She quite literally dodged bullets as she focused her hearing solely on the enemies around her, listening to their every command and the sounds of their weapons being prepared for firing. These were not government sent agents – The bill had yet to be passed, there were no logos on them anywhere, and she highly doubted the government would be so stupid to go so far as to massacre an entire school. With children. As the numbers dwindled down, she found herself getting more hands on, running out to her targets and bathing in their blood.

The battle was soon over and every enemy they could see was dead. She did not speak as she walked back to her friends, dripping in blood. She was trembling and her eyes were cold as she looked to the ground and saw many from inside were dead after trying to aid them – Why?! Why couldn't they just stay put? She cleared her throat some before whispering softly. “We're taking whoever is left and we're leaving. We're going to Gambit's. Do not call anyone. Especially not any of the Avengers. Lina, use one of your gadgets and get a message to Gambit. Make it brief. We all ride solo. Take different paths. We don't need to look suspicious. I'll take the X-Calade and load up as many children as possible. Don't have a vehicle? Take one of mine or Lina's – Don't touch any buttons that you don't know what they're for.”

Gone was the usual kindness in her voice, replaced by a soft growl of irritation. So this is how they wanted to play it? Stryker wanted war. And she was thinking about giving him just that. Her mind grew dark as images of her destroying her enemies in an animalistic rage flickered vividly through her head. She shook the thoughts before pushing open the doors and walking inside. “Where...are...they?” The foyer was empty except for a few littered bodies. Dead bodies. A few heads peeked out of hiding spots and she breathed a sigh of relief. She grew more enraged and tense than she already was as those that were left came out of hiding and explained that there was an attack from the back and several had been gunned down if not captured. Her eyes scanned the ones before them and she recognized a few of them.

She almost choked as Tommy saw her bloodied and rushed to her, wrapping his arms around her and delivering to her the deepest kiss she imagined she ever had. Tulio wasn't going to be happy about that. And neither was Caelan. Dazed and taken aback, she only kissed back until he pulled away. Everyone stared and for a moment, the only sound was that of Caelan's growl. “Everyone find a vehicle and passengers and move the fuck out.” She quickly regained control of the situation and began to herd everyone out to the garage. Caelan didn't even look at her. She felt a twisting, sick feeling in her stomach because she couldn't admit to herself even that she loved that kiss. That she wouldn't resist if he tried again. But she had no time to think about that as she loaded ten people into the black escalade and peeled out of the garage, heading for Louisiana.

---

“Alright – Everyone out. Go inside and wash up. Make yourselves at home.”

Cataleia-Bibiana had pulled up into Remy's driveway shortly after her brother and Lina had. She stepped out of the large vehicle and was met with a heat wave that almost knocked her over. Grunting, she trudged slowly towards Lina and Remy, glad that the blood on her face somewhat hid her tears. Lina was unusually chipper considering their situation, but she had heard chatter from the others that she was shot in the head and survived. Good for her. But even now, she couldn't look her friend in the eye for what she had done to Caelan. “Going inside...”, she muttered. Before either of them could say anything, her clothes fell to the ground and she became but an orb of weak, flickering blue light.

She was slow as she bounced her way past her brother and into the house. She claimed the first room that she came to after floating through an open window. Hovering over the bed, she re-solidified and fell upon it, her naked body bloodying the sheets with whatever moist blood was left as she simply passed out. She wouldn't go comatose like last time, but she was just tired from the previous events. She hadn't taken time to wash up, she stopped for food and drinks just once, and her head was throbbing with too many thoughts. She just wanted peace and quiet.