School and Home: Part Eight

"We won huh?" Ororo said as they elevator took her, Scott and Remy up to their rooms. "We've got some freakin' psycho claiming killing mutants isn't murder because we're not human and he's got a support group. We've got four dead kids. And how long is it going to be before the police put all the stories together and charge Remy with arson?"

"Like to have seen yo' handle t'ings bettah chere," Remy said irritably.

"I wouldn't have burned a building down when we were trying to stay on the cops' good side," Ororo said.

"I don' well wid de police," Remy said with a shrug. "Dey always end up wantin' to 'rrest me for somet'ing."

"Big surprise!"

"Leas' I don' get caught, dat be more dan yo' can say!"

"Shut up! Both of you!" Scott shouted. "Ororo, no matter how we'd gotten proof on Cardie and his nephew the reaction would have been the same and frankly, I'm glad Remy destroyed the FOH's weapons, illegal methods or not. We'll deal with the arson issue if it come up, until then don't borrow trouble. Remy what exactly were you thinking, going after them without even bothering to ask for back-up?"

"Like yo' would have offered it. Yo' would have jus' tried to send me to bed if I'd given yo' de option," Remy snorted.

Scott winced. "All right, I admit defeat. You handled things pretty well out there."

"Yo' could sound happier 'bout that," Remy replied.

"I'm not happy about it," Scott said frankly. "I don't have any reason to keep you out of the X-Men now. But it doesn't matter how good you are Remy, someone out there is better, or they just get a lucky break. Then you're dead and chances are it'll be me who sent you into whatever killed you. Maybe it's selfish of me, but I liked the thought of having one friend who wasn't under my command."

"Don' try no guilt trip on me," Remy said. "Besides yo' know none of us be dat easy to kill."

"Don't be cocky, we've had two serious injuries in just over a year," Scott said as the elevator doors opened.

Rachael was in the hall waiting looking worried. When she saw Remy she broke into a huge smile and pulled the startled boy into a hug. "I'm so glad you're all right," She exclaimed. "When Storm called and you'd disappeared..."

Remy stiffened pulling away, "M' sorry Rachael," he said softly, not looking at her.

For a moment she just stood there then in a dazed voice she asked. "Kevin?"

"M' sorry," Remy repeated.

"We'll drive you home," Scott offered as Rachael's eyes filled with tears.

"He was dead for we evah got involved, dere wasn't rien we could of done to save him?" Remy asked unhappily as they left the Denaras' after giving Rachael a ride home and collecting Remy's stuff.

"We couldn't have saved him," Scott confirmed grimly. "Come on, lets get back to the hotel, you ought to get a few hours of sleep before flying back to Westchester."

"Hien?" Remy asked. "I thought it take a couple of days for de Professor could use dis brouhaha to convince dem I be more trouble den I worth."

"They found your folks, well your mom and an uncle anyways." Ororo said. "They wanted to talk with you and the Professor before deciding anything..."

"So you're going back post-haste. Ororo and I catch up in a few days, after we see how things settle out here," Scott said.

"I hate Josette and I don' know no onlce," Remy protested. "Why dey get to have a say in m' life! I don' want dem! Dey nevah wanted me 'fore now!"

"Maybe they had a change of heart," Scott said. "You should still talk to them. If they care explain the school's the best place for you. If they don't, well, like you said you don't want them anyways and they should still be willing to leave you with us."

A quiet knocking drew Scott into the hall.

Ororo stood there looking uncomfortable. "I shouldn't have gone off at Remy like that earlier," She said softly glancing toward the bathroom where she could hear the shower running. "I can't help but think maybe Hank was right. Maybe I only noticed how much of a scared, lonely kid Remy was because Xavier made me and now that I'm away from the Professor I'm reverting to type."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Scott asked.

"Maybe I really am nothing but a nasty, little witch," Ororo said. "Maybe all of the changes I was so proud of were just Xavier screwing with my head. I'm no hero Scott, I'm a car thief."

"No, I can't buy that," Scott said. "We had a rotten night, that's all. You shouldn't have taken it out on Remy but it doesn't make you a bad person. I wanted to shake the little idiot till his teeth rattled for taking off on his own like that."

"But you didn't," Ororo said.

"Mostly because I figured that kind of thing would only make it certain that he'd keep doing things like that. Eventually he would have gotten in over his head," Scott said. "This way he'll be getting into trouble with us instead of on his own. The Professor must be delighted, I can't keep Remy off the team anymore."

Remy found himself trapped in an endless maze made up of huge glass tubes, each one holding a person writing in agony; A small girl with bones protruding through her skin, a man with angel's wings, so many people. People he'd sent to Essex believing he was helping them only to learn, much too late, that he'd consigned them to hell.

He turned a corner and found himself staring into strikingly vibrant green eyes set in a dead and rotting face.

"Non! Yo' don' belong here," Remy protested.

"You came to help and brought misery to my family," Kevin said accusingly. "You destroy hope, ruin lives..."

"Remy wake up," Scott mumbled sleepily, shaking the younger boy awake.

" 'M sorry. I tried," Remy cried as he woke.

"Bad dream?" Scott asked sympathetically. "I'm not surprised after what we saw."

"Don' want to talk 'bout it," Remy stated pulling his knees to his chest and staring miserably into the darkness.

"Fine," Scott signed, having learned better than to push when Remy didn't want to share. "We might as well get up, no reason waiting till the last moment to take you to the airport."