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  Living Legend Part Two
  
  Chapter Thirty Seven: Living Legend Part Two: Heroes In Need.
  
  The word "hopeless" was not in the dictionary of Harry Potter, especially after all that he was through during his entire life. The young magical mutant did not do hopeless, even if the word "hopeless" threatened to dog every step of the day that he had. Those who used the word hopeless liberally were also quitters and that was not something that Harry Potter would be. He was not a quitter, despite the fact that very few would fault him.
  
  Despite the fact that many would quit if they had the pressure that he did.
  
  "It always looks darkest before the new day."
  
  "It's been a long time, hasn't it?" Harry asked Captain America when he voiced these words before he amended. "The.....after everything that's happened in the world, you still being around in this modern world, I don't want to be the one to break it to you but things have changed."
  
  Captain America was not fazed by this; in fact he shook his head a little bit and a smile crossed his face. He suspected from the moment that he woke up he had a lot of adapting to do. "The world has changed, the world will always change but there is one thing that no matter what the world will always need and that is heroes. Even if there are moments that they do not appreciate what we do or don't understand what we do, people who will fight until their last breath no matter what the cost, they're always needed by the masses."
  
  "Nice to see you haven't lost your touch," Logan responded when he looked at his old friend before he shook his head and added with a ghost of a smile. "And it's damn good to see you back in action, Cap."
  
  "It's good to see you here as well, Logan," Captain America added without another word as he saw Jean, Rachel, Iron Man, Mockingbird, Ms. Marvel, Hawkeye, Black Widow, and Bruce Banner all ready. Yet for some reason, Arcane stood the tallest of them all with the most confidence on his face, yet he had the most to lose if they did not find a way to stop this plague.
  
  With a flash, the sorcerer supreme showed up in all of his glory and Harry inclined his head towards him with a smile. It was good to see him all things considered and Strange moved over to look at the plague victims.
  
  "It's far worse than I thought," Strange stated when he scanned them. A sad expression flickered through his eyes. "There are both scientific and mystical elements in this plague cocktail and whilst I can limit the effects from the mystical elements, there is a chance that it might cause the scientific elements to accelerate and kill your friends faster. It is uncertain what I can do without a sample of the plague virus. All we can do now is alleviate their misery as much as we can."
  
  Captain America shook his head and stood on his feet, to some a long time had passed but for him only mere months since he got put to sleep when the super soldier formula started to affect him. He gone to sleep with the hope that HYDRA was crippled and the Red Skull was destroyed. Neither was true when he thought about it and that caused him an insane amount of frustration. What was worse now HYDRA was more dangerous than ever before and Bucky died in vein.
  
  "So, I think we've traced the most likely location of HYDRA's base of operations but it could be a mask," Iron Man stated when he looked at the scanner and the several points.
  
  "HYDRA is aptly named, once you cut off one plan, two more grow in its place," Black Widow stated when she set her face to determination that could not be measured.
  
  "Then we will need to strike it hard at once," Harry responded when he looked at Kitty, Rogue, and Amara on the bed. Their sick faces flickered through his mind. Rachel shared his thoughts as well, it was not personal until now.
  
  Now it was personal and HYDRA would be ripped down, even if Harry had to do it brick by brick and there would be no one left standing. It was about time to see how dangerous Harry could get when he was pushed to a level beyond anything that he ever was inspired to reach before. He met the gaze of Jean, Rachel, and Logan, they were the only ones left standing, and even their leader Charles Xavier lapsed into a coma. Xavier was stabilized but there was no....there was no sign if he or any of the others would be making a full recovery.
  
  Of course, now was the time for them to put that out of their minds, no matter how hopeless everything might seem. Decisive action was needed for them to win the day and to put HYDRA into the ground once and forth all. Black Widow, Mockingbird, Hawkeye, Iron Man, Ms. Marvel, and Captain America were al capable enough to go in there or so Harry found out from what little he could find out about them .And if Banner got the right motivation, that being anger, he could be a force of nature.
  
  He knew what his team was capable of.
  
  "Well you're the leader of this X-Men, I believe you know them better than anyone else," Captain America stated when he looked at Harry, that was what Fury told him and no one bothered to correct him.
  
  The assigned leader was currently on the bed with a shuddering moan filling his body when he shivered a little bit but he remained rigid all things considered. That was the only signs of life his body made but the rest of the team was stabilized.
  
  "Yes, he is," Jean agreed without a thought against the matter, looking at Harry with a smile.
  
  Harry opened his mouth to protest but decided against it. Now was not the time to argue.
  
  "So are we ready to do this thing?" Iron Man asked in a calm voice. "So um, people, you know we should really have some kind of team name to refer to ourselves in. After all, if we have no name when we're avenging these wrongs by HYDRA, we're going to look kind of silly, aren't we?"
  
  Black Widow's eyes snapped towards Iron Man, flashing with a tiny bit of fury in them but she remained mostly calm all things considered. "We can worry about team names later, right now, we have to worry about decisive action and make sure that HYDRA does not spread this virus past this trial run. This merely may have been a test run, the next run could cause destruction throughout the world."
  
  "Are you all feeling alright still?" Harry asked towards Rachel, Jean, and Logan.
  
  "Yeah, I'd be better when they're all out of the woods," Logan responded when he inclined a finger to the team on the bed.
  
  "Yeah, likewise," Jean stated when she looked at Harry, admiring how he was not losing his head in a crisis and trying to take the easy way out. He was calm, cool, collected, and ready for action, that was what a leader should be as far as she was concerned.
  
  Mockingbird and Hawkeye walked forward to give them the news.
  
  "So the base, it's in Philadelphia," Mockingbird stated when she looked over the shoulder at her partner.
  
  "Yes, it is," Ms. Marvel added when she chimed into the conversation. She cupped a hand on her chin. "It is one of the twelve or thirteen locations that HYDRA is rumored to be holed up at all over the Eastern Half of the United States."
  
  "If that's what's rumored, I hate to see what they're hiding and no one has picked up on," Hawkeye remarked in a flat tone of voice.
  
  That was a statement that all of them would have to agree about but there was no time to throw around theories. It was the time for decisive action and the time for all of the members of the group to push themselves forward. Captain America stood up with his head up high, very little fazed the decorated soldier. Even if he was a fish out of water from a different time, he was not going to let that stop him defeating the HYDRA menace. It was war and they declared it with the first attack.
  
  It was making that final attack count that was prompt in a war but Captain America turned to them.
  
  "I must warn you that HYDRA is unlike any enemy you might have ever faced, especially Red Skull," Captain America responded when he looked at them. "I know we're going to have to break a few potential moral rules and take a bit more of a lethal stance against them but if it saves lives, then you can justify doing so."
  
  Captain America was a soldier and knew when it was time to kill and when it was time to show mercy. Going up against HYDRA, there would be no mercy shown, especially when he faced off against Red Skull. There were times where he paused and then that cost them big time. Bucky was the biggest example of this, his sacrifice would not be in vein.
  
  It was quiet, a bit too quiet at the HYDRA base when the group exited the SHIELD transport vehicle. Harry snuck ahead, using a combination of invisibility and stealth spells to make sure that there were no secret traps around the entrance. Whilst SHIELD made sure that there were no nasty surprises, the magical mutant never took the words of others at face value. Rather he believed what he saw with his own eyes.
  
  There was a guard around on the inside but before Harry could react, Captain America nailed him with a shield shot to the back of the head that echoed with a loud "ker-plunk". The guard's knees crumpled and Harry levitated him into a bush cover. Iron Man moved forward, followed by Ms. Marvel, Mockingbird, Hawkeye, Black Widow, Jean, Logan, and Rachel. Banner stuck to the side, not turning into his green alter ego unless they needed his assistance.
  
  'Okay, I've got us linked up mentally, so we shouldn't....we shouldn't have that much trouble communicating and we won't raise the alarm,' Rachel thought to the group at large.
  
  'Good, but don't go too deep into my mind,' Iron Man thought to them.
  
  'Trust me Stark, no one wants to know what goes on in your mind,' Logan thought through the mental link Rachel set up.
  
  'I'll have you know that only a quarter of those tabloid rumors had any sort of truth to them,' Iron Man thought to them all through the mental link that was set up and shook his head.
  
  Black Widow allowed a look of annoyance to cross her face, even though at another time she would have found some kind of amusement from the actions going on around her. Still now was neither the time nor the place. They were going to stay focused through everything that happened and they had to keep moving. If they faltered a little bit, then well it would be on their own heads to be honest.
  
  Jean put one of the guards to sleep, they were grunts, and she wondered if they even knew a bit of what HYDRA was doing. She did not delve into their minds too deeply, there was no time whatsoever. Curiosity was not a sin but Jean tried not to let it get the better of her.
  
  Harry paused and took a look at the blinking light.
  
  'Sensors,' Harry thought to them and he waved his wand, creating a reflective charm around the space one inch ahead of it.
  
  That did its job in numbing the sensors and allowed them to slip inside but they were not out of the woods yet.
  
  The loud thumping of the footsteps of the various HYDRA agents put the entire group on edge and sure enough they edged forward, looking at their adversaries. The HYDRA guards were on their feet.
  
  Until Black Widow dove in, using the skill sand reflexes that one would expect from a world class spy and shot a heavy jolt of her widow's sting at her enemies. They dove down with a screaming fury when the three of them were caught in the crossfire. An arrow from Hawkeye shot and blinded them with an explosion, allowing Captain America to dive in for an attack.
  
  "These guys, they're just low level grunts," Jean stated when she tapped into their minds through her telepathic abilities.
  
  Harry turned their weapons into glue which stuck their hands together and then this allowed Iron Man to launch them through the wall with a sadistic crash. The HYDRA agents dropped down to the ground, rolling over and wincing from the impact. They really took a hard shot all things considered but the fun was not over.
  
  Logan grabbed one of the larger goons and sent him flying, he slammed to the ground with bones cracking and snapping.
  
  "YOU THINK YOU'RE TOUGH!"
  
  "And they found Banner," Iron Man stated in a dull voice, when he heard the loud attacks from the outside.
  
  "So much for stealth," Harry stated, shaking his head but secretly he was amused when the heads got clonked together outside and the Hulk ran through. "So, clear a path, I guess."
  
  "You don't have to tell me twice," Hulk grunted when he made his way into the room, rushing forward step by step, when he ran over everything in his path and began to smash with his fists of fury. The HYDRA agents crumpled to the ground, folding up like tissue paper and there was no end in sight to the Hulk's fury.
  
  Black Widow snapped her eyes around before she exclaimed. "Clear the path, don't stop now!"
  
  Hulk grunted, he wished that people would stand back and allow him to do what he did.
  
  He reached down and scooped up Logan, before he hurled him several hundred feet towards an unsuspecting group of HYDRA soldiers with a super powered fastball special. The mutant flew through the air, claws bared when he sliced through the guns and then Harry caused the platform to turn into quicksand, which sank the guys through the moment Logan hopped into safely. They screamed before they drowned in the quicksand, suffering a most painful death.
  
  Ms. Marvel whistled when she looked at Harry, blasting three goons with her hands that were unfortunate enough to be close by. "Remind me not to get on your bad side, ever."
  
  Harry smiled at her before they pushed through. More goons went up and out, HYDRA had an infinite number of minions. "Noted."
  
  "None of these guys know anything," Jean responded when she shook her head.
  
  "Then this base is a bust," Harry answered when several of the HYDRA agents arrived.
  
  "Stand down, none of you are leaving."
  
  "They're joking, right?" Hawkeye asked but Hulk snorted.
  
  "Well they're not being very funny if they are."
  
  The Hulk stampeded forward and with a sadistic smash, knocked them all down, before Jean grabbed him and held him into place.
  
  "What did you do that for?" the Hulk demanded when he snorted but Jean carefully and calmly stood her ground.
  
  "Because, one of these guys knows something, all I need to do is read his mind," Jean responded when she looked at him, fire burning through her eyes. "Ah yes, your mind is conditioned but you know what, try not to think about the place where you have the plague."
  
  By telling the person not to think about the place with the plague, it caused him to think about it.
  
  "It's the next lab, right....it was right underneath Bayville," Jean stated when she shook her head.
  
  "Under our noses the entire time, that's about right," Logan growled as he cracked his knuckles.
  
  Harry knew that was how things went sometimes but now he had to keep going forward and lead them. The fate of the world and more importantly the fate of many close to him were on the line. Without a direct sample to the plague, any curing spell was only temporary at best and would only speed up the decaying of the bodies of the infected at worst.
  
  Sin folded her arms together, her eyes were almost swollen shut from the plague but she refused to be put down. Dying now would show weakness and that was something that her father taught her not to show. The woman inclined her head a little bit to try and remain on her feet, knees buckling and swaying slight. The young woman slid forward another inch, feeling the thump of her heart beating against her chest. The daughter of the Red Skull would not be denied her glory; she clutched her chest when her heart thumped heavily and stood up straight, eyes flashing with malicious fury. This would be her day and the one that she would win.
  
  Bayville was the place and she knew that there would be certain parties that would come here. HYDRA would create a suitable reception for them; that much was for sure. The young woman rolled her head back slightly and sighed deeply when she stood forward on the ground, her knees cracking and leaning forward a tiny bit. Sin thought over everything in her mind and closed her eyes tightly.
  
  The loud crash from outside could be heard and Sin backed off, to see the doors burst open and the not so jolly green giant known as the Hulk march in.
  
  "Back, creature," Sin stated in a snarl which filled the room but the Hulk stood, with a sadistic glint in his eye when he stared the young woman down.
  
  "I don't think you can make me," The Hulk responded when he crossed his arms a little bit and turned his head with a twist, a smile crossing his face when he looked forward. The rest of the team showed up.
  
  There was a moment where there was a pause before Harry broke it.
  
  "You," Harry remarked when he looked at Sin.
  
  "Yes, Arcane, it is me, my father decided to pull one over my eyes," Sin responded when she looked at him. "I suppose that it is only just, flesh and blood does not mean anything for him. All that matters is the survival of the fittest and the broken spirit that is my body."
  
  'Okay, time out for a second, the Red Skull is your father?" Iron Man asked when he looked at the team but the SHIELD representatives did not say anything, they already knew.
  
  "Yes but I wish to help you shut down my father's operation," Sin answered but Harry gazed at her.
  
  "And what makes you think we should trust you?" Hawkeye asked, stating what everyone was thinking.
  
  "She....does seem to want to help us," Rachel stated with disdain, but still that meant little.
  
  "The Red Skull has likely trained her in the art of deception," Black Widow stated when she folded her arms. Ms. Marvel, Hawkeye, and Mockingbird closed their eyes and tried to figure this out. "But she may be our only lead."
  
  "Jean, Rachel, one of you pick her mind, I don't have any time for her games right now," Harry responded but then Sin took a step back.
  
  "I'm willing to....to help you and this is what you're going to do," Sin responded in a harsh voice. "I expect that sort of thing for someone like Scott Summers but not....but not from someone like you."
  
  The slap stung the most was the one drilled right into the face of young Harry Potter and he was half tempted to hurl the woman across the room on sheer principle. Rachel looked about ready to kill her for what she did but Sin crossed her arms, she showed no fear in her eyes. The young woman crossed her arms over her chest before she pushed her foot down on the ground and the ground cracked a little bit underneath her foot.
  
  "You better not double cross me," Harry stated, he kept both eyes firmly on Sin.
  
  Captain America knew that this young man had been through a few wars to show such rigid reflexes and attentiveness. It was a behavior that he saw from men who had fought against some of the harshest armies in the world. People who saw death with their own two eyes and did not blink about it, not in the slightest, that was what this Arcane was showing now. They understood that there were a lot of sacrifices that were made to win the war.
  
  Sin's face crossed into a calculating smile. "I wouldn't dream about double crossing you. I know you're far too smart for that."
  
  'She better not be patronizing you,' Rachel projected through them, ready to take down Sin, just give her an excuse.
  
  'So what do we do?' Mockingbird asked, relaying the information through the rest of their team.
  
  'I'd suggest that we play her game for now but make sure that this is not some kind of trick,' Captain America stated, willing to give her the opportunity but at the same time he was not going to be stupid about it. When the Red Skull got his hooks into you, he tended to mess with someone's mind.
  
  Harry could tell that Sin was conditioned not to show any weakness whatsoever, he saw it in her eyes. He saw something that had been in his eyes when he was around the Dursleys, although to be fair her case was far more extreme. The young man stepped forward and made her lead the way, not wanting to put his back to her and the other members of the party agreed.
  
  The pitter patter of HYDRA feet could be heard and more agents showed up to face them.
  
  "Great, we got lead right into a trap, didn't we?" Ms. Marvel asked when she rolled her head back and prepared to fight.
  
  Hulk grunted and pounded his fist into his hand. "Depends on who is being trapped."
  
  Hulk stampeded forward with fury and swung his fist. Said fist smashed into the face of one of the HYDRA agents but they blinded the beast.
  
  Harry swooped in from behind then, flicking his wrist, and sending lassos of magical fire, burning into their protective armor. This allowed Black Widow and Hawkeye to get their shots in to put the HYDRA goons down and out for the count when they crashed on the ground with a thud. The group moved forward down the corridors where a never ending number of HYDRA goons popped up.
  
  "I don't think we're.....what was that?" Iron Man asked when he turned his head over his shoulder and he heard the cackle of thunder and lightning from above when he saw another individual show up for the battle.
  
  "I believe you will give me a challenge!"
  
  The man dressed in armor with golden hair arrived and swung a mighty hammer. Said mighty hammer slammed into the HYDRA goons and sent them flying into the wall which Harry transfigured the wires on into snakes. The snakes bit into the necks of the goons, causing them to collapse down to the ground, with dazed fury. The dark haired wizard shook his head when they went down.
  
  "Then again, perhaps I was mistaken," the man stated before he slammed a heavy shot forward and sent his enemies flying forward. "Perhaps you did not give me the challenge that I sought when I came through this realm. Never the less, you will be punished for your actions. FOR ASGARD!"
  
  Harry thought the man was a bit boisterous and over the top, but he did get some results as his hammer proved to be rather useful in knocking enemies down one at a time. Most of the HYDRA goons were down in no time, smashed and down for the count. This man was a warrior and he brought the fight to his enemies.
  
  When the dust cleared, Logan turned around and addressed the man.
  
  "Just who are you, bub."
  
  The man was only too happy to enlighten Logan on his identity. "I am Thor, God of Thunder."
  
  Iron Man's voice suddenly became skeptical before he shook his head. "Right, and I'm the Tin Man, and there's the Scarecrow."
  
  He pointed to Hawkeye.
  
  "And there's the Cowardly Lion."
  
  He pointed to Logan who growled at him.
  
  "And there's Dorothy."
  
  Iron Man pointed to the Hulk who crossed his arms with a snarling expression on his face but Iron Man paid this no mind.
  
  "Really, you're a billionaire playboy who joyrides in a suit of armor, and you're with someone who can pop claws and a mild mannered scientist who turns into a hulking green monster when he gets angry, and that's what you take offense to," Hawkeye stated before it added and he shook his head before he added as an afterthought. "Not to mention the army officer who got her powers from an alien ship and the kid who can warp time and space."
  
  "And you're perfectly normal," Mockingbird stated but Hawkeye shook his head.
  
  "More normal than them maybe," Hawkeye stated when he looked at them and he got a few cross looks. "Not that any of you are not normal but it's just that....you stand out in a crowd."
  
  "Watch what you say, cupid," Hulk stated when he crossed his arms and stared him down.
  
  "Hey, I'll go a few rounds with you any day, tiny," Hawkeye stated but Harry looked at them.
  
  "Gentlemen, enough," Black Widow stated when she threw her head back. "I believe our query may be beyond this door."
  
  The door opened and then a view screen popped up. Captain America's face contorted to one of fury when he saw the face of his greatest enemy appear on the screen to taunt him and taunt him he did.
  
  "Good evening, Captain America, welcome, welcome," the Red Skull stated when he looked at them. "No doubt my daughter has tried to undermine me, shows that she has ambition for once in her pathetic right. But the joke is on you, my friends, for the plague isn't even at this facility. Did you think that it would be that easy? Did you think that I would allow you to stop my plan? No this was merely a test run."
  
  "We'll stop you, no matter what," Captain America stated when he held his shield and it was at this point where Harry was trying to fine tune a signal but it bounced off of ghost routers and false IPs everywhere, the Red Skull had all of his bases together.
  
  "I do not have to defeat you, time already has, Captain America," Red Skull stated when he lit up a cigar and stared down the team. "You see in this day and age, you're nothing in this modern world. Where superiority always has a place, your good old fashioned idealism is nothing these days, the world has grown cynical."
  
  Captain America stood tall, despite there being certain truths for that statement, he refused to back down from his stance. The Red Skull stared back down at him.
  
  "Let's track him down and make him pay for this," Hulk growled when he cracked his knuckles, fierce and ready for a fight.
  
  "We need to find him first, big guy," Iron Man stated when he turned to the hulk who grunted.
  
  "I think....I think he might be somewhere on the West Coast," Harry responded when he shook his head.
  
  "Are you sure?" Black Widow asked, to be honest she had no leads but then an incoming transmission came in from SHIELD. "Yes....west coast....imagine that....yes Commander Fury, we'll check on it right away."
  
  Black Widow turned around to face Harry, a bit of a tense expression crossing her face but she shook her head. Her red hair framed her face when frustration reigned through her mind and she closed her eyes before she sighed a little bit.
  
  "So we're heading out west," Hawkeye stated and the group all nodded, they were heading out west.
  
  They all hoped that they were not being sent on a wild goose chase by the Red Skull.
  
  "I'm coming as well," Sin stated but Hawkeye turned to face her.
  
  "Of course you are, because we're not leaving you alone with your own devices," Hawkeye responded when he looked at Sin but she scoffed and sneered at him.
  
  "I wasn't talking to you," Sin stated when she turned around to face Harry.
  
  'And we're going to have to solve this soon, and hope that we can get over there,' Harry thought.
  
  'Maybe you can transport us over there?' Jean suggested through the mental link that had been established, putting her hand on Harry's. He did not retract it. 'I think you can do it.'
  
  'I know he can do it,' Rachel thought to them.
  
  'Okay, stand tight,' Harry thought to them and he concentrated as hard as he could before he transported them away to the location of the facility that he got from the Black Widow's mind that Fury relayed to her. Hopefully they would get there.
  
  The only problem was Sin knew of that particular abilities but they kind of needed her help because she had intimate knowledge of the HYDRA base and some natural immunity of mind reading abilities. Whether or not that was the case, they did need her assistance for now. The group hoped that it would not blow up in their faces.
  
  The Red Skull sat upon a throne high above the main chambers in one of his HYDRA bases. He knew that there were individuals that were on their way here, these heroes foolishly decided to engage him. Even if they did not have the slightest chance, they continued to go against him. The Red Skull's face twisted into a malicious grin, let the heroes come, they would serve as an example.
  
  "The second phase of our plan is ready, my liege."
  
  One of the chief HYDRA officers stepped up and looked up at the Red Skull who nodded, sadistic intentions going through his eyes.
  
  "Very good, make sure the plan goes on without a hitch, and make sure these heroes show up at the proper moment for their suitable reception," Red Skull responded in a crisp tone of voice, crossing his arms.
  
  The plan would go on without any of the issues that he knew would come with a scheme like this. Being the master tactical officer he was, the Red Skull understood the nature of having both a plan and a back up plan. The backup plan was currently being set up underneath a mountain up North.
  
  A figure showed up dressed in black with his hair slicked back and bent on his knee to face the Red Skull. His face was obscured slightly in the shadows and the leader of HYDRA turned to face the man on the ground.
  
  "All is ready for Captain America and his crew," the young man stated. "Forgive me for speaking but Captain America should have been taken out while he slept and you should have...."
  
  "Enough," Red Skull responded when he shook his head. "I must fight Captain America to the death and prove his inferiority over me. HYDRA will rule the day and with his last dying breath, the spirit of all that is weak with the United States of America will fall over due to the superior race."
  
  It was at that point where bits of metal began to contort in the Red Skull's base.
  
  "What is this?" Red Skull demanded before he dodged several jagged pieces of metal flying at him.
  
  "You have poisoned mutants, did you really think that I would allow you to get away with that?" a voice stated from the shadows, with a purple cape billowing in the breezed and a red helmet.
  
  "HYDRA, eliminate him!" Red Skull yelled but the Master of Magnetism was not going to be eliminated so easily.
  
  To Be Continued in Part Three.
  Living Legend Part Three
  
  Chapter 38: Living Legend Part 3: Wrath of the Red Skull.
  
  Magneto turned his attention to the Red Skull, sadistically staring at his enemy through a nasty expression that danced through his eyes. This was one of the reasons why he suffered as he did during his childhood. While Sinister was the other one, the Red Skull help masterminded a lot of the deaths around him. Friends, family, and strangers alike but Magneto felt their pain and now he had the metal wrapped around the Red Skull's neck.
  
  "It's been a long time coming," Magneto responded when he looked at him but the mysterious man attacked him from behind and knocked him back onto the ground. The Master of Magnetism ducked his head and did a roll, landing on the ground, before he bounced back and summoned several nails to try and shoot him. "Do you not know the hell that this man has put many through?"
  
  "Sorry, just following orders," the young man stand before he dodged the attack and pulled out a wooden weapon, before he shot the wooden arrows from it at Magneto. Magneto pulled over a large piece of metal to block the attacks.
  
  Magneto was not impressed by these words and he conveyed that much with a mighty bellow, his eyes glowing with the personification of power he showed.
  
  "I have suffered plenty because men just followed orders!"
  
  Magneto waved his hand and slammed the large chunks of metal down against his enemy, sending him spiraling back a little bit. His enemy was quick and resistant, Magneto would give him that. That was about all that he was giving.
  
  The Master of Magnetism when his eyes began to glow and then he sent large metal barriers that wrapped around his adversary, to hold him into place.
  
  Before he could do much more, he felt a stabbing pain in his chest. His face began to get flushed and suddenly, he became a magnet for the metal, all of it flying towards him and trying to impale his flesh, with sadistic fury.
  
  The Red Skull turned, a sadistic grin crossing over his face when he looked down at his prey with a malicious expression.
  
  "You were weak, the weaker man and...."
  
  The doors burst open and Red Skull looked up, before he motioned for his HYDRA agents to head in to shield him from the attacks.
  
  Jean was on the scene first and she got a pocket of HYDRA soldiers with a telekinetic attack, which blasted them off to the side and sent them flying hard to the ground. Their bones cracked and their necks snapped when they spiraled head over heels and smashed down to the ground hard with a sinister impact. They rolled over down, bones rattled and busted, in pain.
  
  Harry stood over, without another word, and he waved his hand, before he transfigured the weapons of his enemies into snakes which bit his enemies on the wrists. Then several spikes came up from the ground, impaling them.
  
  "Man there sure are a lot of these guys!" Iron Man stated when he blasted several of them into the wall with his attacks.
  
  "Stay focused!" Captain America stated, when he knew he needed to get to the Red Skull and he flung his shield around.
  
  Logan growled, there was something about this situation that brought back a few of his memories that were suppressed. He popped his claws and jabbed at his enemies, causing them to drop to the ground, blood spurting out of their wrists when they landed with a thud. His enemies rolled over with the pain.
  
  "Don't you think that we should leave some of these guys awake?" Mockingbird asked when she swung her staff and cracked the knee caps of the HYDRA agents.
  
  "Well if any of them stop shooting at us," Hawkeye stated when he fired at his enemies with a rapid fire barrage of arrows. They nailed his enemies with a ballistic fury, knocking them back and causing them a great deal of discomfort and discontent.
  
  The group knocked their enemies back and Hawkeye continued to pick up the pace with a series of rapid fire arrow shots.
  
  Harry caused the platform that two of the HYDRA guards stood to begin to vibrate and then explode underneath them.
  
  Hulk ran forward, growling, when he smashed through a gigantic robot that was firing on the team. It was surprising how much a gigantic figure like the Hulk could hide himself. A second gigantic robot was about to go against the Hulk but Thor dove down.
  
  "HAVE AT THEE VILLIAN!"
  
  Thor smashed the robot with a shot with his hammer, causing it to explode, along with the person inside. Being a warrior, Thor knew that when these people put the lives of civilians in peril, they put their own lives in peril.
  
  The Red Skull edged his way through the door, he knew that his men were going down fast. It was time for a strategic maneuver but naturally if they knew the truth. He saw Black Widow dive down in front of him.
  
  Red Skull flung a knife at her but she dodged it, rolling on the ground.
  
  The next thing he knew, he was shot in the back of the head, his head blowing completely off from the shot. He dropped to the ground, sparks flying out of the back of his neck and motor oil spurted out of his neck.
  
  "The Red Skull was a robot?" Iron Man asked when he walked over and looked down at him.
  
  "Of course he wasn't you fool, he's tricked us again," Sin stated when she held the gun in her hand.
  
  "You'd shoot your own father in the back of the head?" Hawkeye asked, not that he was complaining about it, since he was the Red Skull.
  
  "Of course she would. I must say Sinthea, you are finally showing some backbone. It's a pity that it won't matter in the end but I have to give you points for effort."
  
  Captain America heard the voice of his most hated enemy but he saw another figure on the catwalk. He stood and he blinked. It couldn't be, he thought he saw a ghost. He died during the final battle with the Red Skull, or what he thought was the final battle at the time. The star spangled avenger shook his head and walked over.
  
  "So you've won one minor battle, congratulations but the war continues."
  
  Harry walked forward to the next room after he pulled open the doors before he blinked and saw it. In a glass case he saw the red liquid flowing through it, and he smiled when he looked at it, tapping his fingers on the side of it. He managed to find it.
  
  "Is that it....is that the plague?"
  
  It was not Harry who answered Iron Man's question but it was Sin, who she turned to the armored hero with a sneer on her face.
  
  "Yes, it is, my father must have left it here for a reason, so I trust you'd be all on your guard," Sin responded when she looked at the entire party.
  
  "Yeah, I can tell she's his daughter."
  
  Harry ignored that comment from Logan, right now he squinted his eyes. He never saw anything like this before and his eyes flickered through the plague, when he continued to analyze every single bit of it. There were micro-organisms in it, which had body language, so Harry could study how it worked. Then he could understand their behavior to formulate the rest of the antidote, working through every single bit of it and he shook his head.
  
  He conjured a pad of paper and began to write out a formula, and with another motion he spun it around, handing it to Black Widow.
  
  "Check this out, to see if it works, I trust SHIELD has the resources to mass produce an antidote," Harry stated and Black Widow responded with a nod, SHIELD did very much have these resources to do so.
  
  "So what now?" Hulk asked, breaking the silence.
  
  "He actually had a good question, what now?" Hawkeye asked to the ground.
  
  Harry responded when he looked at them. "We figure out the antidote, before it's too late, and then we figure out where the Red Skull is."
  
  "The Red Skull is mine," Sin responded fiercely, she figured that if she took out her father, than HYDRA would be hers. It was time where the student became the teacher and she taught her father the same painful lesson that he had been teaching her. Yet she would go the extra mile and ensure his suffering was quite spectacular.
  
  Red Skull was someone who understood the need to have a contingency plan should things go south and very wrong rather quickly. Several contingency plans if he could manage it and believe him, he managed several of them. The average person would think that the plague plot would be something that many people would think to be foolproof.
  
  Those people would be proven to be a fool time and time again. He left nothing to chance.
  
  Red Skull clicked his pen to the side and his face twisted into a smile before his eyes closed and he thought about everything that was going to happen. The truth was that despite his best efforts, Captain America lived.
  
  He shook his head, his face twisted into a sadistic smirk.
  
  Captain America would not live for that much longer.
  
  He cracked his knuckles when he thought about but he remembered everything that happened. Years of careful planning to ensure that HYDRA would rule the world would not be flushed down the drain. Rather he would adapt and improve, no matter what. His droid kept his enemies distracted while he commenced with Plan B.
  
  Plan B did not offer the sweet sophistication and science that the original plan offered. Poisoning a bunch of super powered mutants where their powers would eventually kill them and other humans around them, thus causing fear and hatred to be spread would be a sound plan. However, he had neglected to focus too much on one unintended variable. Why would he? Why would one child be a problem to someone like the Red Skull?
  
  Yet this particular child was a problem, of course one would be a fool to think of someone like that as a child. He closed his hands together and imagined wrapping them around the throat of this one known as Arcane. He must suffer for meddling in his plans.
  
  Red Skull thought at first that he was a minor annoyance, someone who would give the lowest levels of HYDRA problems. He thought that the incident in the Weapon X facility was something that was a fluke, a shot in the dark. There would be no way whatsoever that something like that would happen again, and he would be killed. He sent his daughter to refine the Brotherhood into a fighting force, or at least someone who would know how to hold their own a fight.
  
  Yet there was something else and that was that Harry Potter, Arcane, whatever you wished to call him, he got stronger. And then there was a strength to him to say the very least that he would have perhaps respected. Yet Red Skull refused to respect anyone that meddled in his plans thus and cracked his fists when he thought about it.
  
  He knew that the plague would work but it also could not work. He never expected it to be defused this soon but perhaps the leader of HYDRA expected when he was going to do so. He grabbed the gun he held. So far, no one knew where he was, and that was what he was going to stay. He sat in his office or rather the office of Dell Rusk, unassuming politician in Washington, the Secretary of Defense.
  
  He had been in that position for many years and had been in the government for many more, he had been slowly breaking down the defenses of this country. Making everything weaker and weaker, so HYDRA could take them down easily but it seemed much to his distaste that there would always be heroes in the world.
  
  Red Skull pulled out the sheet of paper that he had in his paper, his face twisted into a sadistic smile when he saw the blueprints of his super weapon. He shook his head when he slapped the paper down on the edge of the table, when he looked up at it.
  
  Yes, it was going to work, the power of HYDRA would live on forever and a day. It would continue to reign supreme forever, his face continued to contort into a horrific grimace when he looked. If anyone had been in the office with him at this present moment, they would have been afraid and rather scared. The terror that they experienced would be second to none.
  
  The Red Skull waited for a moment and thought about what was going to happen. Arcane had gone up the ranks, next to Captain America and Nick Fury on the people that he would like to destroy most. He would do so, slowly, and painfully, where they would be begging for his demise.
  
  To kill them would not be enough, he would break them, he would break their spirit and destroy them all. They would beg for death and he would be merciful enough to grant it, in a fashion.
  
  Fingers get crossed when the X-Men were still down in the infirmary and the main lab at SHIELD mass produced the cure that Harry calculated. It was the first time Harry used his powers for such a thing. He hoped that this purpose would not blow up in his face, but he also knew that SHIELD had some of the foremost scientific minds in the world. So if anyone can check his math.
  
  He waited outside, with Jean on one side of him and Rachel on the other side of him. There were no words needed.
  
  'It will work,' Rachel projected to Harry, when she sensed her lover's thoughts and understood what he was going through. She did worry about her friends and fellow lovers as well, and she could tell Jean, as a senior member of the team, worried about most of them as well.
  
  The door slid open and the SHIELD doctor exited to look at them. The entire group was on pins and needles waiting for the news, whether it would be good or bad. They crossed their fingers and hoped for the best, even though they expected the worst. Moments ticked by before the SHIELD doctor gave them the news that they had been waiting for. The anticipation was much worse than the actual news.
  
  "The good news is that everyone is out of the woods and will make a full and clear recovery no matter what."
  
  Harry, Rachel, and Jean all smiled, with both redheads on either side of Harry. The three of them waited for as long as they could and hoped that this was going to be the case. There were some anxious moments between the three of them. Yet, they showed that patience and persistence would pay out in the end.
  
  Of course, Harry was always one to look at a problem from all sides of the equation, so his eyes turned to the SHIELD doctor. "You said there was both good news and bad news."
  
  Rachel offered a sardonic smile, leave it to Harry to look at the negative side of things, even though everyone was going to be right. Still she supposed that he would have a point, as she placed a hand on his and waited along with her lover to see what the SHIELD doctor would say.
  
  "The bad news is that they will be out of commission for a few days from all physical activities. Their bodies will be feeling the effect of what happened for a number of days but....within the next week they will be back to themselves."
  
  'So that means no sessions in the Danger Room for a while,' Jean thought to herself. 'Logan won't be happy.'
  
  'Or other activities in the case of some,' Rachel thought picking up on her thought sand Jean smiled when she looked at Rachel.
  
  For the longest time, she thought that there was some kind of connection between her and Rachel although damned if Jean could pinpoint it properly. It was fascinating in many different ways with what she had and Jean hoped to uncover the mysteries. Right now, she could focus on that later. She needed to follow the group inside and see what their next move would be.
  
  Harry led the way when he got the okay. He saw Kitty lying on the bed, with Rogue and Amara beside each other. Other X-Men were elsewhere and they looked to be in fairly decent shape for nearly dying but as of this moment, these were the three that Harry focused on.
  
  "Hey," Kitty managed when she looked at Harry, and Harry leaned forward and kissed her lightly on the forehead. He did the same to Amara and Rogue. "We...look like hell don't we?"
  
  "Feel like it too," Rogue grumbled, she would take ten Danger Room Sessions over feeling something like this again.
  
  "So are we out of the woods yet?" Amara asked when she looked at Harry.
  
  Harry looked at the entire group, a smile crossing his face before he cleared his throat and responded. "Well it does depend on what would constitute as being out of the woods. You're not nearly as bad off as you were, if that's what you're trying to say. Still, you might need to cut back on the physical activity for a week or so."
  
  Kurt grumbled something off to the side, he took it particularly hard. As did Scott and Bobby, among others but they would be rather fine to say the least. They would be back on their feet.
  
  "Commander Fury is trying to pinpoint the Red Skull," Black Widow stated when she showed up to relay the message. Until this current crisis faded, she acted as a go between from the X-Men and the rest of SHIELD. "Charles Xavier will make a full recovery and will return to you soon, he got hit particularly hard with the attack."
  
  Harry was not surprised; the barrier Xavier created in his mind to keep the thoughts out would break anyone's mind if that dam burst immediately. He closed his eyes to think about what happened.
  
  "They'll be fine, but I wonder about the rest of the world," Harry answered when he turned to the side. It was amazing how the events of today gave him more than enough time to think.
  
  "My father could be anywhere."
  
  Sin showed up and Kitty's eyes narrowed towards her, to the brunette mutant, she was not welcomed here.
  
  "You can't...."
  
  "You should get some rest," Sin responded, in almost a sarcastic manner when she stroked Kitty's hair in a condescending manner. She stopped at Harry giving her his most dangerous glare. "Then again, I suspect you do spend a lot of time on your back...."
  
  "ENOUGH!"
  
  Harry yelled this statement and Sin turned around, a smile crossing her face. She acted as if she did not do anything wrong, even though she did plenty wrong and she shifted her expression away from Kitty towards the dark haired wizard standing before her.
  
  "You know, my father could be hiding in any one of two hundred and twelve known HYDRA outposts around the world," Sin responded when she looked at both Harry and Black Widow, addressing them both. "However....there is one place where he would be above any others, where it might be right under your noses."
  
  Black Widow got the message immediately and had to relay it back to Fury.
  
  Sin hoped to get a front row seat when they found out that her father was playing them all for years as a member of their government. She neglected to tell them this however because she found amusement out of this. If there was....if they failed to manipulate the letters properly, that was their problem and not hers.
  
  Kitty glared at Sin and she tugged Harry on the sleeve. Harry spun around to look at his girlfriend.
  
  "I don't trust her," Kitty whispered when she looked at Harry and his look indicated that he did not trust Sin all that much either. This relaxed Kitty but only slightly, she knew that Harry would be able to allow himself to not be put in a situation where he would have problems.
  
  Harry placed his hand on Kitty's shoulder lightly. He did not trust Sin either and was keeping a close eye on her for any treachery.
  
  "She's....she has her own agenda," Harry whispered to Kitty, making sure that Sin was out of ear shot and the anti-eavesdropping charms were put up around them. "But I think that she's given us some valuable insight."
  
  "The X-Men really got hit bad," Kitty remarked when she looked at Harry, stretching and feeling a soreness in her. And it was not the good kind of soreness after Harry and her had her fun ever. This particular amount of soreness was going to lead to plenty of pain and no pleasure, no enjoyment out of it.
  
  Harry shook his head, the X-Men got hit pretty bad granted but that was something that was going to be expected. It was clear by now that they stumbled upon HYDRA's plans before now and the Red Skull was someone who did not let these things go. In fact, he gave into his worst parts of him, the vengeance and was more sadistic. He had fought enemies that might have been more powerful but very few enemies that were that much craftier.
  
  The hints that Sin gave him that the Red Skull was underneath his nose clicked in Harry's mind. He closed his eyes and thought about it, there was a pretty big hint and he had to do it.
  
  Then it hit him and there was something that Harry considered, before his face twisted into a grimace. He thought about something and then it hit him faster than anything else. He could really have smacked himself when he did not figure this out and he wondered if Fury was going to kick himself equally as much.
  
  "Dell Rusk," Harry breathed when he looked at Kitty.
  
  Kitty frowned, not quite sure what Harry was getting at. "He's the Secretary of Defense, isn't he?"
  
  Harry nodded with a smile crossing his face. "Yes, now you're getting it, he's the Secretary of Defense but rearrange the letters in his name."
  
  Kitty's eyes bugged out when she thought about it and she could hardly believe that any of them had been unable to connect such an obvious pair of dots together. It was one of those things where....it was hard to really say.
  
  Ms. Marvel popped in now, she crossed her arms. She missed out on the battle at HYDRA base due to the fact that she was rounding up the Brotherhood for Fury, making sure that they did not escape again.
  
  "The Brotherhood has been given the antidote," Ms. Marvel responded to the ground when they all smiled at her. "They're being kept in a SHIELD holding cell for the moment, none of them are going to get out any time soon."
  
  It was at this moment Magneto showed up and joined them.
  
  "I trust you're going to attempt to put me in such a cell as well," Magneto responded and there was a special emphasis on the word "attempt" because Magneto looked as if he doubted that any of them were going to succeed.
  
  Magneto and Harry looked each other, stared each other down. Harry realized that this was the man that put Wanda away. While Wanda's living conditions were much better thanks to Harry's intervention, she still was not completely out of that place. Although it was a fortunate thing that she was not here right now, otherwise there would be far more trouble than Harry could handle at this point.
  
  He had far bigger problems than some family feud.
  
  "So I have you to thank," Magneto remarked crisply when his eyes fixed on Harry's and the dark haired wizard nodded.
  
  "You do," Harry agreed when he looked at Magneto and the two of them locked eyes. "But I wasn't the only one who did this."
  
  "Of course, Charles would be wise if he appointed you as the leader to his team, unlike some who are not equipped to handle pressure," Magneto answered when he looked at Scott who rested on the bed and acted like he was asleep and did not hear this.
  
  Harry did not say anything.
  
  "I wish to assist you with taking down the Red Skull," Magneto offered when he continued to stay the course and stare down Harry. The two mutants locked eyes with each other. "And then...I will turn myself over to SHIELD for the day. But they may not be able to keep me."
  
  Harry thought that sounded fair and to be honest, he could tell that Magneto had a personal vendetta against the Red Skull. That personal vendetta and what it was, Harry had no idea whatsoever what it might be. All that he knew was that it was there and he looked at him, hoping to figure out what to do with this.
  
  "Do you accept my offer for an alliance?"
  
  Harry looked at Magneto, he could tell that there was a certain amount of sincerity to his voice but he was almost not sure. Yet there was an instance where a smile twisted across his face and the dark haired wizard inclined his head. The magical mutant decided that they needed all of the hands on deck.
  
  "Do you mind explaining how the antidote has helped you and has not completely healed the others?" Harry asked but Magneto paused before he swayed himself from one side to the next before he responded.
  
  "It is difficult to say to be honest."
  
  That was a statement that indicated that Harry was not going to get the answer that he wanted or the answer that he needed. That was more than fine for now, he suspected. He would also not take his eyes off of Magneto, no matter how long this took. He stepped forward a little bit and eyed his enemy and also his reluctant ally.
  
  Neither brought up the subject of Wanda, at least for the moment because there were far more pressing matters at hand and those matters dealt with regarding the Red Skull. All they needed to do was await for the word back from SHIELD.
  
  Widow appeared back, having popped in and out of the room. Harry turned over to her and his gaze met hers.
  
  "Does the name Dell Rusk mean anything to you?" Harry asked without any preamble.
  
  Black Widow's eyes widened and he could tell that she made the same connection that they did. They knew exactly where Red Skull was but the fact was that it might be too late given that he had resources and access to high level weapons and government secrets. That made the situation more dangerous and Red Skull was going to need to be killed, no question about it. Not that there were many questions about it before but the security of the United States of America hinged on him not living another day.
  
  Red Skull made his way down to a secret underground bunker underneath a mansion in Washington DC. He bought this place with the tax dollars of the American people and it was an excellent resource that would allow him to build his empire on top of everything else. The malicious leader of HYDRA stepped his way down into the basement area, before he pushed the door open.
  
  It looked like a simple bunker that stored food, medical supplies, and other essential elements that anyone living underneath there would need to survive. He bent at the knees, pulling a bag of clothes away.
  
  He saw a remote control device on the ground and he pressed one button, which caused the doors to blink up. The doors began to slide open to the side and the Red Skull took another step forward, to see the delights that was inside. His face spread into a malevolent grin, soon the entire world would be in the palm of his hand.
  
  He saw the remote control console before him and tapped on the side of it, waiting for everything to come to light. All of these controls would be confusing to anyone who was not a genius like the Red Skull. To Red Skull however, they were picture perfect perfection and he stepped forward. He could feel a tingling feeling in the pit of his stomach, the type that would twist the minds of most people if they understood what was happening.
  
  For the past several decades, he was working on creating doomsday weapons that would allow him to overrun the people who opposed him. And doomsday weapons were not a term that the Red Skull offered loosely as he had heard other would be world conquerors stating rather loosely as well. He drummed his fingers a little bit from one side to the next and then twisted his expression to study the controls.
  
  The outposts were set up in several population centers. If anyone found out and few did, Red Skull made them think that they were weapons that would be used in case any of their enemies decided to do something cut and attack the United States. All while he did this, the defenses whittled down to a nub and the Red Skull weakened them while strengthening HYDRA's weapons.
  
  Now he stood tall and ready, this would be a day that he would win, there was no question about it whatsoever that his success would be assured. Red Skull spoke to the agents in position in the loud speaker.
  
  "Sir, there's....they figured out your cover."
  
  Red Skull did not let this bother him, by the time they figured out his cover, it would be much too late. The best place to hide from an enemy was in plain sight, as no one would dare look underneath their noses. Dell Rusk met Nick Fury several times and even the eagle eyed agent of SHIELD was none the wiser of what happened.
  
  Fury would be the first to suffer, as the upgrades the government installed on the Hellicarrier would be launched.
  
  Red Skull smirked when he activated the first wave of droids and then prepared to cripple the satellite defenses around the country, and then the other countries around the world. He could bring the entire world to its knees and bend it to the will of HYDRA. If there was one thing that he knew, it was without their convenience, they were nothing if weak.
  
  The weakness of an enemy was something that one of true thing would understand and exploit when he shook his head. The twisted notions that went through the mind of Red Skull spelled out one thing and one thing along. The same concept drove every single motivation for the past sixty plus years, and would be the same motivation that would allow him to continue to push forward with everything that he had.
  
  "I will crush them."
  
  Control was the big thing that the Red Skull obsessed with and the ultimate motivator when he thought about everything. The dangerous leader of HYDRA gritted his teeth when he folded his arms together when he took a moment to think about everything that went on in his mind.
  
  The demons from the past echoed throughout the back of his mind.
  
  Red Skull crushed his fists together.
  
  The pain would be the supreme motivation, and he would crush them all underneath his foot.
  
  His daughter thought that she had some level of control and thought that she would be the one that would lead to his demise. Red Skull hoped so because her failure's reflected on his and the fact she was unable to kill him to this point, that insulted him personally. Red Skull twisted his head over to the side and peered over his shoulder when he activated a few more buttons.
  
  "The droids are marching on Washington."
  
  That was one population center.
  
  He also set the droids to explode in sixty minutes, taking anyone in the radius out with them. They would do plenty of damage and in the chaos, HYDRA would reign supreme, with all bowing before them.
  
  Captain America stood outside on the grass, in front of the Xavier Institute. His narrowed eyes looked forward when he thought about all of the battles that he found over the years. That was something that he could not forget, all of the dangerous enemies that he went up against. HYDRA might be his most prominent enemies but they were far from his only enemies.
  
  Despite all of that, there was something about today that made things far more dangerous. The Red Skull could have done far more than anyone than he thought to say the very least. Every single time he went up against HYDRA in the war, the stakes were high. However, there were no stakes that were higher than this and higher than what happened tonight. The dangerous expression flickered through the eyes.
  
  To understand the Red Skull, Captain America would have to match his intensity and his spirit, before he folded his arms. He barely heard Iron Man walk up from behind him. Hawkeye joined him, then Ms. Marvel, then Mockingbird, Black Widow, Arcane, Wolverine, and more followed him. Magneto hovered in the shadows, a cool expression spread over his eyes when he looked at them through narrowed fury.
  
  "So do we have a plan?"
  
  Iron Man voiced that statement and it was not the first time that someone voiced that question to Captain America. There were many instances where he could come up with an answer. A plan might be a good idea in theory but going up against someone like the Red Skull was never something that one could predict. The vicious nature of someone like this monster needed to be met with an equally ferocious attack.
  
  "We'll know when we go out there," Captain America responded when he turned to them. Figuring out what the Red Skull's end game was could be an exercise in frustration. Often times he did have a motive but there were other instances where the motive was lost.
  
  "So do we have a name for this little team or not?"
  
  Ms. Marvel decided to speak up. Thor and Hulk hovered in the background, not saying much of anything, just waiting for the battle but for different reasons. Still the blonde woman stated one question. "The Avengers...I mean we avenge."
  
  "I like it," Hawkeye stated and the others nodded.
  
  "It does have some potential yes," Thor agreed.
  
  "Not bad," Hulk grunted but he folded his arms all the same.
  
  Captain America offered two words that would live on in infamy.
  
  "Avengers Assemble."
  
  To Be Continued in the Next Chapter.
  Living Legend Part Four
  
  Chapter Thirty Nine: Living Legend Part Four: Avengers Assemble.
  
  Moments ran by quickly in some instances but time appeared to slow down at other times. The group stood around each other, they were ready for this action. The teams were divided up carefully, with each of them having a purpose with what they were doing. They plotted with everything that was happening and the group set themselves up what was going to happen, and what they hoped to be the fall of HYDRA. Confidence was something that they needed to hang onto because otherwise their aspirations would fold up like a house of cards.
  
  Team A made their way to one of the top HYDRA facilities where they would hopefully find more information about what the Red Skull was up to. They wanted to find information about the doomsday weapon that HYDRA constructed. Ms. Marvel, Iron Man, Hulk, and Hawkeye stepped forward, they all knew what was on the line. Everything was on their side, when they turned around.
  
  Team B moved forward to help coordinate the efforts on the ground, as there was no doubt that civilians were going to be caught in the crossfire. There was a dangerous precedent that civilians tended to be among the top priorities and also one of the things that put the mission in more danger. The group stood, waiting with bated breath. This group with Logan, Black Widow, Rachel, Mockingbird, and Thor stepped forward, ready for action. They all fought the robots on the ground and hopefully ushered the civilians away. They would be pushed out of the battle, out of the scene, and all hoped that everything would not come unraveled.
  
  Harry, Captain America, Sin, Magneto, and Jean were the weirdest team but they had one of the most important jobs of them all. They were going straight to the top against their enemy, they were going straight for the Red Skull.
  
  "Are you sure you know where he is?"
  
  Sin's expression turned to Jean. "Well you can read my mind, can't you? I know about where the Red Skull is, or at least where I assume that he will be. But naturally, I doubt that you want my assumptions to be based on anything. You need to trust me, you have no choice but to trust me."
  
  Harry looked at her and she could tell that he had pulled himself too far. "Trust is something that is not given out, it's earned. So far, you've built up a minor amount of political capital; don't blow it whatever you do."
  
  Sin smiled maliciously, when she held out a grenade and saw the HYDRA guards move around towards their vantage point. The fools were rather sloppy, her father got a bit soft, not much, but he was softer. He would have killed people just for the hell of it a few days ago but that was beside the point. Sin flicked the grenade and it landed on the ground, before it vibrated on the ground and caused a loud explosion.
  
  The explosion blew the HYDRA officers up. Magneto offered his input before everything set in completely before he magnetized the fence and wrapped it around them, wrapping them tight, and the barbs of the fence cut into them. They shook a little bit, a violent fury when the fence snaked around them and they tried to push their way out. They failed to get out, and blinked, trying to twist themselves out of it.
  
  Harry flicked his hand, and the rocks exploded to blind them with the dust. Then several flaming spikes shot out and took them down hard. The spikes propelled into them and slammed into them, cracking against his enemies. The spikes speared into them dangerously, and Harry summoned some of the weapons off of the HYDRA agents, before he decided to take a look at them later. Right now, he used the plant vines to wrap around them and strangle them until they pass out.
  
  Magento used his powers to take down the robots, ripping them apart with his abilities, and caused them to bust into several pieces. The Master of Magnetism's eyes glowed with power when he pushed everything into battle.
  
  Harry short circuited the machines with a jab of his hand. The explosions rang out in every which direction and sent them flying backwards. A loud explosion rang out in their ears and Jean dropped next to Harry. Both of them locked eyes and with an unspoken agreement, they summoned their powers and caused the robots to explode, blowing them to smithereens.
  
  "How are we doing?" Captain America asked through the communication link.
  
  "Just great, getting nearly killed but hey, just another day at the office for me," Iron Man stated through the communication link.
  
  "HAVE AT THEE!"
  
  "Thor seems to be having a blast," Iron Man remarked when he heard it over his link, chuckling.
  
  "You'd have to be on the moon not to hear that," Hawkeye stated when he shot several arrows at the robots. "We've got a bit of a problem, these things are set to blow up in twenty three minutes....and I'm not sure how many of them there are."
  
  Harry swore, if even one of them were left in tact, it could lead to an explosive end for many but he could not worry about that now. He had to keep fighting, his eyes glowed and a loud crash knocked them back a little bit. The robots smashed together, breaking apart, with the mage flying forward and ripping out the back of it, before he pulled back the panel and he pulled it out, before he started to relay the specs that he could figure out to Iron Man so they could form a counter attack.
  
  "Core's highly unstable, we've got to shut them down before they explode," Iron Man responded.
  
  Harry bit his lip before he responded and slowly spoke. "How unstable are we talking about?"
  
  "Oh, about three fourths of the country potentially being wiped out and the other fourth poisoned unstable," Iron Man responded and Harry was afraid of that, he really was afraid of that, and he smashed the silver robots, taking down most of them where he could. "Of course, that's the absolute worst case scenario but trust me, that's.....that's very likely."
  
  Harry knew that it was very likely but they could not worry that much about the worst, they had to keep hoping for the best. Even though the best could be among the very worst, with his heart thumping up and down his chest, the pressure was on and that's where Harry Potter excelled beyond anything else.
  
  
  
  Triumph flickered through the eyes of the Red Skull when he watched the pathetic efforts of the heroes that were sent out of him. He would admire them almost if their efforts had not be so fruitless and indeed futile. He turned his head a little bit to the side and thought about everything that happened. All of his plans came together, well calculated and well formulated; there was no question who the superior man was there. The heroes thought they had a plan that would lead to his defeat but they were fools. He turned off to the side, to monitor their efforts, they did fight a good fight which would make their demise that much more delicious.
  
  Red Skull's face twisted into a grin when he thought about the best part of today's events and the thing that gave him the most pride. His daughter finally showed something resembling a spine and had tried to lead some kind of coup against him. He would be a fool and deluded if he did not admit that brought some amount of pride to his spawn. It was a pity that all her efforts would amount to failure but her effort, while futile, was commendable.
  
  Failure made people weak and made them crushed underneath his feet, his eyes blinked with sadistic intentions dancing in them. He felt a tingling in his chest when he thought of the carnage that was going to happen. The clock ticked down, getting closer and closer to the edge ,he could feel this one, he could feel it. Fifteen minutes, actually much less at this point in time. Red Skull's hands shook when he prepared to grab the situation by the throat.
  
  Fourteen and a half minutes were left to be precise.
  
  'Those fools.'
  
  Red Skull prepared to lead the charge, when HYDRA would be built over the ashes of the United States and their broken bodies. He hoped that Captain America would understand how futile his actions were once the last bit of oxygen passed through his lungs. Crushed underneath the thumb of the Red Skull, like it was always meant to be, that their lot in life, that was what they were intended to do. Their efforts would be for nothing in nearly fourteen minutes.
  
  He saw them move in, get ever so closer to his operations but that mattered very little to him. His grin twisted, he almost welcomed the change. Their wicked twisted attempts to put him down had some amount of charm but they were much like a gerbil on a wheel. They kept going around and around, without any merit, any purpose, any hope to go anywhere beside the inevitable roll of propelling the wheel. They kept running around and around.
  
  Then when the wheel stopped, the Red Skull would shoot them down and bathe in their blood. That would be his night, the night of the Red Skull, and the fury that flickered through his eyes. He got even closer to the edge and he felt the tingling.
  
  Thirteen minutes and counting, a very interesting number given the superstition that it held but Skull would not deny that said number had merit. Merit he would twist, when he watched the robots, sixty percent of them were down but he allowed them to do so. Now he would plan.
  
  The plan was coming all together in the back of his mind and his face twisted into that malicious smile that was only bred by someone who knew what was on the line. The Skull stepped forward, dressed in a green uniform with the symbol on HYDRA, the multi-headed snake, sketched on it. His face was red and balled, with sunken in eyes. He appeared gaunt and corpse life and his body remained strong. He was the pinnacle of strength and the Red Skull would have his day.
  
  Twelve minutes and counting, time would pass but would the heroes?
  
  
  
  The droids were programmed to detonate after a certain amount of time, Harry and the rest of the crew was able to determine that. This lead to one of those good news/bad news scenarios that Harry was so fond of, with the events of this battle being able to go fifty-fifty depending on how certain things went. He held his breath and hoped for things to lean towards more of the good news end of the equation than the bad news end but he doubted that somehow.
  
  The good news was that between the three teams, they cut a pretty good pace on the robots and they were taking them down. There were far less robots coming out to attack them at any rate, which proved to be some rather encouraging news. Providing of course they could keep up that level when they attacked, they were going to win today's battle with time to spare.
  
  The fact of the matter was that with good news, there also came bad news.
  
  Actually, the bad news came in an abundant manner, to the point where Harry was not quite sure where he wanted to begin with it. There were instances where it was hard to tell if there was an actual head count, for lack of a better term, on the robots. Even if one was left by the time the automatic detonation went off, it could cause countless deaths. Harry could shield it but only if he was standing by it. Knowing his luck, the robot was all the way on the other end of the country, causing him problems.
  
  And the worst thing was that knowing the Red Skull, he could press the button on any whim. He was that twisted and he would do something like that, anything like this. The man was more bent than a damaged coat hanger.
  
  "They're programmed to detonate, so we got to find them all."
  
  'Nine minutes,' Harry thought to Jean who nodded, the pressure cooker was getting hotter.
  
  Sin looked forward and knew what she had to do. She saw what was in front of her, the fortress where her father was holed up in all of his sadistic glory. The woman's face contorted into a shifty grin when she prepared herself. This was going to be her ticket inside and she knew that there was only one thing that she would do. She was about to give her father what she want, the only thing he ever wanted.
  
  "Okay everyone...."
  
  No sooner did those words leave Captain America's mouth, Sin aimed her gun and with a sadistic shot, nailed Captain America in the back of the leg. He gave a pained grimace when his leg rolled slightly and he tried to get back to his feet. There was nothing to what happened, his knee twisted slightly and everything happened so fast that not even Harry and Jean did not see it coming. It was an impulse decision.
  
  "You...."
  
  Sin activated a force field generator, she knew it would only work for a minute but that minute was long enough to get Captain America behind enemy lines and deliver him to her father. She scooped him up on her shoulders and began to walk with him. Captain America grunted before he offered her one question.
  
  "Why?"
  
  That particular question resounded in her mind, to be honest it was a fair one to give but Sin refused to answer it straight away. She had to keep moving with Captain America on her shoulders, she did not have much time to stall. Stalling would get her in more trouble than anything if her plan was going to come off without a hitch.
  
  She managed to keep moving with Captain America, pulling him around like he was dead weight, and he slumped over her shoulders. Sin showed a great deal of strength, physical as well as mental when he continued to walk. His knees knocked together when he pushed forward and kept walking, unable to really stand on his feet. The young lady twisted him on her shoulders and continued to walk with him.
  
  "It is for the good of HYDRA."
  
  "You don't have to do this."
  
  Sin figured that such a statement was going to come out of his mouth; it was what a do gooder such as himself would say. He was full of statements like that and now her mouth maliciously twisted into a smirk. Everything was completely under her control, there was no problem whatsoever.
  
  "So did you expect her to do that?"
  
  Harry turned to Jean, an eyebrow raised, when he easily dismantled the force field.
  
  "I knew what she was doing, but I wonder if the plan was working as well as she thought it did," Harry stated when he grabbed Jean by the hand and the two of them continued to walk forward. They stopped and Harry defused the land mind that was set up. They could edge in closer to the HYDRA base that way, the two of them getting closer to entering.
  
  "I think the rest of team should get to my location as soon as possible, things could get ugly," Harry offered through the communication link, before he relayed the coordinates where he was standing and defused even more objects along the way. He continued to walk one step at a time, carefully defusing each and every trap along the way. He shifted his way through the land mines and began to step on the ground.
  
  He was getting closer, closer than he could ever imagine and Harry stood by Jean. He did not know where Magneto went off to, he disappeared in the confusion. Of course, given what he determined about the Red Skull, there was the chance that Magneto would also be finding his way to some kind of mission of vengeance. At least that's what Harry determined, he could be wrong, extremely wrong in fact.
  
  
  
  Red Skull heard the doors burst open and as always it depended on his mood whether or not he'd be inclined to shoot anyone who came through that door. He held his gun and watched his daughter walk in. The limp form of Captain America draped over his shoulders. It was something that he could not believe, to think that after all of the battles, Sin was the one that took out Captain America. His daughter actually was proving her worthiness after all of this time that caused a twisted smile to go around his face. He felt a rare feeling for his daughter and that feeling was pride.
  
  Sin turned her head to her father, a smile crossing her face at the expression that she was receiving. It was something that she could not believe that she received. It was a pity what would happen with her. She crossed her arms, eyes flicking with malice when she looked at the man before her. Her foot tapped on the floor with Captain America down at her face. The Spirit of America gave a shuddering breath.
  
  "So here you are, Captain America, down at my feet where he belongs?"
  
  The Red Skull punctuated that statement with a solid kick to the ribs of Captain America to cause him to roll over and spasm with pain. He twitched with the leader of HYDRA kicking Captain America hard into the ribs again. A third kick to the ribs drilled Captain America in the ribs, before he looked at him. A sadistic expression flickered through his eyes; he felt that his moment of triumph was at hand. There was nothing that could stop his joy.
  
  "It's quite interesting that after all of the times we've been around it ends like this," Red Skull stated when he held the gun at the head of Captain America. He hovered it over the back of the head of his enemy, taunting him but he didn't pull the trigger, not yet. "So tell me....tell me, are you going to beg for me?"
  
  Captain America's eyes turned towards Red Skull before he looked up at him and his eyes narrowed. "You should know the answer to that question."
  
  Red Skull stepped forward and stood on the back of the head of Captain America, standing on the back of his head. A malicious expression with even more malicious intentions moved through his eyes when he looked over his enemy. Captain America twitched on the ground, waiting for it. He would not beg for the Red Skull, he was stronger than that. He was not going to allow any weakness to rise in his being. As long as there was a breath in his body, he would be proud.
  
  Red Skull fell over with a loud bang and Sin stood there, with a smoking gun in her hand. Blood splattered down the chest of the Red Skull, while he was distracted by Captain America, his daughter took her shot at him. It was a plan worthy of the Red Skull and he could not help finding a small bit of pride within himself towards her. It would be something that he would do had the situation been reversed. In fact, he almost hoped that someone did this and was glad that it was his daughter.
  
  His eyes turned towards his daughter.
  
  "Well done."
  
  BANG!
  
  Red Skull fired a gun at his daughter when she let her guard down, but for a second. The gun hit her in the forehead and knocked her down to the ground. Blood splattered out from her head.
  
  "But you fail to learn the most valuable lesson that I've been teaching you," Red Skull stated, when he looked at his daughter on the ground. "Don't ever hunt anything without the intention of leaving them alive."
  
  He rolled her over onto her back and stomped her, before he prepared to put the gun in the back of her head. Red Skull vowed to blow his own daughter's head off when he was face down on the ground. She shuddered a little bit, trying to push herself out of the ground, trying to get herself out of the perilous predicament she was in.
  
  "Any last words, my daughter?"
  
  Captain America bounced up and tackled Red Skull, knocking him against the wall. The two exchanged punches with each other and began to strangle each other. The two stared each other down, their eyes bulging out. It was hard to see what face showed more hatred but it was a grudge that last a long time. The Living Legend and the Embodiment of America went toe to toe with the leader of HYDRA.
  
  Red Skull smashed against the wall where he connected with a sinister thud and Captain America continued to pummel him, but he was thrown off to the ground.
  
  "This ends now!" Red Skull stated when he made his way to the kill switch to activate the robots but a telekinetic shield blocked him.
  
  Harry became invisible once again and he snapped Red Skull back, causing his spine to shatter with a huge impact. He hid in the shadows this entire time, managing to stop the bullet from hitting Sin in a completely fatal area. He waited and watched everything and hoped that Red Skull would lead him to the control console.
  
  'Just about got it,' Harry thought when he hacked into the controls, trying to get in, he had forty seven seconds, talk about cutting in close.
  
  Talk about being put under a lot of pressure.
  
  What was life without a little pressure?
  
  Jean stood by Harry and Captain America watched as well. The Red Skull's spine went into the base of his brain, killing him instantly. Given the fact that the Red Skull often survived deaths that he should have not survived, Captain America kept an eye on him. While he heard the spine crack and snap, he still didn't want to leave anything to chance. It would be a foolish endeavor to say the very least.
  
  The rest of the group showed up, but just in time for Harry to deactivate the console with three seconds left to spare. Harry allowed the breath to leave his body, he nearly came all too close. He barely heard the HYDRA agents dropping down behind him.
  
  "Damn, we missed all of the action," Ms. Marvel stated but Harry offered a smile.
  
  "Don't worry, I'm sure some other crazed person will try and kill a bunch of people before too long."
  
  Iron Man turned around with an eyebrow raised but he had to agree, as cynical as that statement was in his mind. Still damned if it was not accurate.
  
  
  
  "Things could have gone much better."
  
  Nick Fury summarized this in his own way, but from what Harry heard, this was pretty good praise from Fury. Given what he fought against, what SHIELD stood again, he had to deal with a one hundred percent competence rate. And that was something that they all understood, the man looked at them all through one eye. Iron Man, Thor, Hulk, Captain America, Ms. Marvel, Mockingbird, Hawkeye, Black Widow, Phoenix, Wolverine, Rachel, and Arcane stood before him.
  
  "Yeah, we aim to please," Iron Man stated hoping to lighten the mood.
  
  Now that was out of the way, Nick Fury turned to them.
  
  "The group of yours does have some potential, these Avengers," Fury stated when he looked at them. "Perhaps we should look into making them a more permanent deal, perhaps we could officially sanction this group."
  
  Captain America looked at them all. "You know, I think that it would be a good idea, HYDRA might be weakened, the Red Skull might be done for the time being, but there are a lot of other people out there that could be problems."
  
  Harry noticed that Captain America believed that they did not see the last of the Red Skull even then he was dead. He suspected the man spoke from experience regarding that particular man.
  
  "I agree," Iron Man agreed, at another time he was able to do things one on one but now the rules of the game changed. The enemies were getting more dangerous and he tried to do it alone.
  
  "It would be useful to have some back up," Hawkeye stated when he looked at them. "Even if it's me backing you guys up."
  
  "Yeah right," Hulk grunted when he folded his arms over his green chest. "Count me in with this group, gives me more things to smash."
  
  Thor turned to them, he had been sent to Midgard to test him by his father, it would give him something worthwhile to pass his time. Perhaps one day he would be made to return home and he turned his head. The blond Asgardian turned to them, the man twisting his expression into a smile. He enjoyed the battle, and he saw them fighting beside him, he saw fellow warriors and equals that he could fight into battle. That made him able to open his eyes when he fought everyone.
  
  "Count me in with this group."
  
  Ms. Marvel chimed in with a few words of her own. "I might have not been at this long but sure why not? It could be fun."
  
  Black Widow responded with a nod but she did not say anything more than that. It went without saying that she was in this battle whether or not they agreed with her. The woman turned her attention away and crossed her arms, focusing on Fury.
  
  "Yeah I'm in," Mockingbird answered when a smile crossed her face when she blinked a little bit.
  
  Wolverine paused before a twisted grimace filled over his face.
  
  "The X-Men have got their plates full but...."
  
  Harry chimed in with a few words of his own. "If you need us, we'll be there, if we can."
  
  "That's all I needed to hear," Fury responded when he looked at Harry. "And if you need SHIELD's help...."
  
  "I don't worry, I know how deep in debt you are with me," Harry answered Fury, with a knowing smile. The money that Stark gave him was in his bank account, more zeroes than a Wizegamot meeting.
  
  Today's fun was not over yet, HYDRA still had to be rounded up. The Brotherhood was locked in holding cells and Sin was receiving medical attention right now. She would make a full recovery, at least physically, although she would need a whole lot of therapy to correct the damage that was done to her mind. She was put through the ringer that one, her mind really suffered a horrific beating and she might never be the same again.
  
  As for the X-Men, well they were on the mend. Harry hoped this Avengers thing would work out. It was funny how much he detested having to rely on someone and being part of a team, not to mention taking a role of leadership. Of course one did not have to like something to be the best in the world at what they did. Although Harry denied being the best at what he did because he was nothing like that.
  
  Plus that was more of a Logan thing.
  
  
  
  There was always some kind of satisfactory feeling about the battle that happened, at least that's what Harry would have to say. The young wizard shook his head, today could have gone a lot worse. The Red Skull was done and as for Sin....well she was on the mend after what happened. At least physically she was but mentally was another matter entirely. Harry felt sorry for her because of everything that happened. No one asked what the Red Skull did to her, and Harry offered a grimace when he thought about it.
  
  He walked down the hallway to his room, everyone was recovering from the battles and they still felt rather weakened from the plague. After the checkup they received, they would still be fine, except for the residual soreness that they felt. That would not be going away for days yet. Harry turned his head a little bit, before he made his way down to his room before he opened the door of his bedroom.
  
  Harry looked rather surprised but actually kind of happy to see Jean sitting on his bed. She was dressed in a thin white robe that wrapped around her body, and her bare legs were on full display. Her long bare legs displayed themselves, in all of their drool worthy glory and Harry felt a bit weak in the knees but he recovered. She moved a little bit, to allow her robe to flap a little bit, to show a hint of her sexy toned tummy and her delicious looking belly button. He also saw her lacy green panties, it did not stop Harry to think that the color of these panties matched the shade of his own eyes.
  
  "Hi Harry," Jean stated when she looked at Harry, running her tongue over her lips and licking it when she locked eyes with Harry. She saw his muscular arms in the tight pair of leather pants that he wore. She eyed him appreciatively and appreciated what the hours of Danger Room training gave to him. She undressed Harry a little bit with her eyes, imagining him naked and imagining what he could do to her.
  
  "Hi Jean," Harry responded when he looked at her, she was absolutely breath taking. "What can I do for you?"
  
  Jean smiled a mischievous smile when she looked at Harry, before a rather particular thought echoed through her mind.
  
  'Oh Harry, there's a lot you can do for me, believe me.'
  
  "I've been meaning to have a talk with you," Jean responded when she looked at Harry, her eyes locking hungrily onto his and her mouth curling into a smile. "It seems like there's one thing after another....where we've been missing out on getting to spend some quality time with each other."
  
  "Sorry, Jean..."
  
  "No, Harry, you're a busy man, I know you are, things come up," Jean responded to Harry when she got up and looked at him. "But after what happened today, I don't think we can delay what happened any more. There is a strong attraction between the two of us, we're two powerful and good looking people, so why wouldn't there be? I don't....I don't think that I want to settle for someone."
  
  Harry knew what Jean meant by "settling for someone" but he was not going to go there.
  
  "I mean, if I have to be with him because his mind is too fragile to hold himself together, that's not a strong basis for a relationship, isn't it?" Jean asked Harry when she invited Harry to sit down on his bed. Harry did so. "I don't want to be with someone that will flake out because he can't handle a high stress situation, where he can't handle someone who is more equipped to do his job. And likely more equipped in other ways."
  
  Harry was really not going to go there and Jean looked at him.
  
  "Harry, Scott's....his problems are his to figure out, I'm not going to hold his hand and be in some pity relationship," Jean responded when she looked at Harry. It was funny, before the Phoenix, she might have not thought some things but that situation caused her to grow up. "I know you're strong enough to handle anything that is sent your way. I know that you are strong enough to...handle me."
  
  Jean breathed huskily in Harry's ear when she moved forward and Harry wrapped his arm around her and pulled her body into his, feeling her curves press against him. The two of them locked eyes, with Harry half expecting some kind of interruption.
  
  Well if anyone interrupted this, there would be pain for the person who interrupted it, lots and lots of pain. Harry and Jean looked into each other's eyes, before their lips met each other, with the pair of them kissing each other with fury and passion. She straddled his lap, when she sank into the hot and passionate kiss.
  
  Shivers went down Jean's spine when the dark haired mage ran his hands down her body, teasing her flesh with his fingers and sending little jolts of pleasure down to her body, causing her to shudder. These were sensations that she never thought that she would feel before and Harry had her in the palm of his hands. The mage continued to run his hands over her body, feeling her body, running his hands over her bra covered breasts. She felt a heat rising between her legs and a desire to have her need filled when her body simmered with the passion that no man on Earth could give her.
  
  Harry grinned through the kiss before he slipped off her robe. Jean Grey was wearing nothing but a pair of lacy green bra and panties, and he slowly tilted her back on the bed. Her legs wrapped around him, when Harry kissed Jean on the bed, with her running his hands through her body. She moaned hungrily into his mouth, her tongue working into him, and their tongues meeting with each other, with her hand snaking into his shorts.
  
  The real fun was about to begin.
  
  Smut/Lemon Begins:
  
  Jean's hand clasped around Harry's throbbing cock, feeling the texture around his member, the throbbing, pulsing of his veins, when she wrapped her hand around him, and began to pump his throbbing erection. The redhead telepath could tell that Harry wanted this, the thoughts she picked up from his mind was nothing but desire. The simmering passion when she continued to work his cock, her hand wrapped tightly around him as she stroked him.
  
  Harry felt the softness of her hand on his cock, pumping it, and he grunted, he wanted to be free of his restraints and Jean picked up on that thought, pushing his pants down over his ankles, to reveal his boxers. Then his boxers pushed down, to reveal his throbbing cock, with Jean putting her fingers around it. This felt so good, her soft, delicate hand on him, and her red hair framing her face.
  
  She broke herself from Harry's mouth.
  
  "So big," Jean stated when she looked at him.
  
  "Just wait until you feel it in your mouth," Harry responded, when Jean slid down between Harry's legs and smiled. That sounded like one of the best ideas in the world and she gripped onto Harry's cock, with her clenching him tightly.
  
  The red haired woman stroked his cock, wrapped around him, and clenched him, before Jean went down on him. Harry hissed through his teeth when she took his cock down her throat. He felt it hit the back of her throat and her juicy lips wrapped around him. Her red hair whipped back and forth when Jean went down on him. Her nose hit his pelvis when she took him deeply into his throat, making sure she gave him the best experience that she did. She wrapped her throat muscles around his throbbing prick, before working him hard with her throat and Harry breathed heavily, when he grabbed her hair.
  
  Jean never did this before, she only made Duncan think she did with her abilities, that was one of the great things about being a telepath. The red haired woman ran her hands over Harry's thighs and continued her bobbing on him. She got exactly what he wanted out of his head, when she blew him, with her tongue working around him. She felt his shudders of pleasure and that meant she was doing a good job.
  
  Harry grunted, when he saw his dick in her mouth, this was a picture that he would take to him for a long time. Jean was so good at blowing him, the green eyes meeting his made him twitch in passion.
  
  "Feels so good," Harry grunted when he ran his hands through Jean's hair and she continued to work him over with her mouth, stimulating him with every part of her, and he felt his balls get more tightened.
  
  He slammed his cock down her throat and Jean took it, humming and rocking back and forth, while her hand wrapped around his balls and she worked him over, stroking and playing with his sac. She wanted his cum and needed it now, she looked up at Harry with a simmering passion and the red head speared his cock down her throat, wanting to drain every single drop of cum from his balls and down her throat.
  
  Jean titled her head back and offered one projected thought.
  
  'Cum for me Harry.'
  
  'Shit, you're so hot.'
  
  'I know, now cum for me. Give me your seed baby.'
  
  Harry's balls tightened and he lost it, with Jean planting dirty images of her naked body in various sexual acts with him, a couple of them while Scott was paralyzed against the wall and not able to do anything while Harry banged into Jean.
  
  Jean made lewd sounds when she continued to suck on Harry and the pleasure in his loins exploded, to send a flood of cum down her throat. She squeezed her throat together, when she drained Harry's cum down her throat. The red haired telepath continued to suck Harry, draining every single bit of seed down her throat and from his balls. She milked Harry completely dry with her throat muscles.
  
  "Delicious," Jean remarked when she licked her lips.
  
  Harry grabbed Jean and pushed her back on the bed, before he unhooked her bra to allow her nice, D-Cup breasts to bounce out. Her tit flesh was lovely, firm, with rosy red nipples and Harry pinched them, causing Jean to give a squeal of delight.
  
  The more Harry played with her breasts and her nipples, the wetter Jean go. She thought she was going to go nuts with desire, when Harry captured one of her breasts in his mouth and licked it, before he suckled her breast. The red head pushed Harry's head into her breasts, allowing him to suck her tits, and she ran her hands through Harry's hair, moaning heavily, while Harry worked her over.
  
  "Oh yes, Harry, more," Jean breathed heavily when she hugged him into her breasts and Harry sucked on them. The dark haired wizard continued to work over her supple tit flesh as his newest lover continued to pant heavily.
  
  Harry reached down and pulled her panties down to reveal her very wet sex. The obvious signs of arousal could be seen, Jean's juice's dripping down, sticking to the red hair on her cunt, and Harry watched her, a hungry expression on her when he saw her. He ran her hands down her inner thighs, causing her to shudder and thrash with pleasure, arching her hips up a little bit and she heavily breathed.
  
  "Harry....please....don't tease me."
  
  Harry brushed her clit with his fingers causing her to tingle and then his tongue dove into her tasty peach, licking her and bringing her juices onto his tongue. Jean grabbed his head and pushed him down into her pussy. He began to lick and taste her which caused her body to heat with the pleasure.
  
  "More....Harry....SHIT!"
  
  It was at that point when Harry rattled his tongue into her pussy and caused it to vibrate inside her core, licking back and forth into her, making circular motions went it continued to vibrate. Jean rocked her hips back and forth, with is tongue delving into her, tasting and lapping up the juices with his tongue, before she locked her legs around his head. Jean could not even articulate a word.
  
  'Do you like that?'
  
  Jean panted heavily, her eyes lidded over heavily in pleasure, when she cupped her breasts and ran her hands over her body.
  
  'Yes, Harry, love it, want more.'
  
  Harry dove his tongue in and out of her cunt, picking up the pace when he continued to work over her. The dark haired wizard continued to work over every single inch of her and used his tongue to stimulate her insides. He worked her insides and caused her to pant heavily, when he reached his hands behind her and grabbed a double handful of her supple ass, squeezing it in his hands and caused Jean to moan heavily.
  
  'More, cumming.'
  
  Harry sped up his actions and Jean's pussy clenched together, when the explosion of pleasure erupted inside her. Her pussy juices splashed her lover's face and continued to flood with each and every pulse of her pussy. Her body thrashed with the pleasure.
  
  Harry pulled back and saw her body in all of its glory. He could not believe he did not do this sooner, she was smoking hot. Her red hair framed her face, her beautiful green eyes simmered with desire and he saw the hint of power. Her juicy lips still had traces of Harry's cum on them, her elegant cheek bones rose high. Her large breasts topped off by a pair of rosy nipples. Her flat stomach was toned and she had a lovely ass, along with curved hips and sexy legs. Her pussy was absolutely beautiful and so wet with arousal for him, something that Harry did not miss completely.
  
  "Harry, I need you in me," Jean breathed when she looked up at him, biting down on her lip, with her red hair framing her face.
  
  Harry grabbed her hips as she parted her legs and he pushed his cock into her, parting her lips. Jean closed her eyes when she felt Harry penetrate her barrier. He paused a little bit, before he pushed through her, breaking her in and making her a woman. Jean screamed out loud when she felt Harry's throbbing prick entering her and pushing her barrier apart, breaking her in.
  
  He stopped for a minute. The pain was numbed and Jean breathed heavily one word, when her nipples stifled and her pussy burned for him.
  
  "Continue."
  
  And continue was what Harry did, feeling her tight box wrap around his fleshy pole when he plowed into her. Jean wrapped her legs around him and pushed him down into her. The red head moaned and raised her hips upwards, squeezing Harry tightly with her inner muscles and giving him the most pleasure that he had. He speared into her a little bit, picking up the pace when he plunged into her.
  
  Jean felt Harry pick up the pace; it felt so good to have his cock inside her. In fact, he touched spots that she did not even know that she had. Her body swam with pleasure, and his hands reached around to play with her breasts. This got Jean hot and bothered, when the dark haired wizard picked up his pace and thrust his dick into her hole, her tightness wrapping around him when he picked up the pace.
  
  Harry was in heaven; Jean's warm pussy wrapped around him hugged his member in a pleasurable way. His heart beat heavily when he plunged into her inviting and warm depths, picking up a steady pace when he continued to drill into her. Her wet core offered the proper lubrication when the silken insides caressed him and made him feel rather good, his heart beating steadier, and more wonderful with each stroke.
  
  "More, Harry, more," Jean begged him when his cock pushed inside her and made her feel so good. It was like a drug, only without the deadly side effects, his member pushing into her and lighting her up.
  
  Harry could see a subtle flame around Jean when she got into the moment and she had a spectacular orgasm, screaming and clawing at Harry's back. She arched her hips up, feeling the unbridled passions let out free. It was something that she held back for a long time but those shackles.....they really burst into pieces and his cock thrust deep into her, pleasuring her very center.
  
  "I love this, going to cum," Harry breathed after a time. She was so hot that he could barely hold himself back, his balls tightened but he waited for her to do so, because it was always so much more magical when two people came together. At least that's what he determined.
  
  "Do it Harry, please, I need it, fill me up!"
  
  Harry spurted his load into Jean, splashing her with several thick ropes of cum that went into her, and flooded her pussy. It was a never ending stream where he continued to pump his creamy essence into her while she hugged his walls tightly. She clenched around him when she milked him, draining every single drop of cum from him, and then she grabbed Harry, before flipping him over on the bed.
  
  Jean's lips smashed against Harry's, when she rubbed her pussy against his cock, feeling him grow against her once again. Her mind inflamed with desire when she breathed heavily, working her cunt around him.
  
  "I want to ride you," Jean breathed when she pulled away, running her hands across his chest.
  
  "Do it, my beautiful Phoenix," Harry responded when he looked at his lover, straddling his hips and took in her breath taking beauty, every single inch of her, the beauty that she had, and his cock throbbed for her.
  
  She pulled herself up and sank herself down onto his cock, with Jean giving a pleasurable moan when she threw her head back and gave a scream to the heavens. She hoped that Harry used some kind of silencing spells but the point was moot now, with his cock pushing into her pussy, pushing her walls apart in a pleasurable manner and she rocked herself back, before sinking him down, pushing her hot body down on her.
  
  "Fuck yeah," Harry groaned when he grabbed Jean's ass, when she sank down, rotating her hips onto him, pushing his throbbing member into her. Her wet pussy wrapped tightly around him when the sexy babe bounced up and down on his cock, riding it from all of its worth.
  
  Her lips met his for another hungry kiss, when she rocked back and forth on him, squeezing him and he thrust up into her, the red haired vixen worked her hips in circular motions around the base of his cock. He matched her strokes, and she felt him throb on the inside of her, making sure to touch her in the spots that drove her wildest. This was a vision of wonderfulness that she could not even begin to understand. It felt so right to have his cock buried between her lips and in her legs, working her over and pleasuring her, pushing into her pussy and she rode him even more, rocking back, working her hot hips around him.
  
  Harry's hands found her breasts again, and squeezed them, inciting a moan into his mouth when she continued to ride her. It was heavenly for her to feel his cock brush inside her, pushing her apart and making her feel the hot desire. The red head moaned when she gyrated her hips down onto him, and rocked back, riding it, their powerful organs clashing together, his cock thrusting up into her pussy.
  
  'Yes, more fuck me more.'
  
  Harry knew what to do, he continued to work his cock into her, feeling it wrap inside her, and grabbed her, running his hands all over her body. He simulated every single bit of her with his touch and also used telekinetic touches to bring the pleasure out of her, the areas that he could not touch. The red haired vixen rode him heavily all into the night, and continued to rock back a little bit.
  
  "That's it, stretch me out!" Jean screamed at the top of her lungs.
  
  "Hot, tight, love this," Harry grunted when he pushed into her.
  
  The two of them rocked back and forth making their love to each other, with Jean's pussy wrapped tightly around his throbbing prick. The two of them matched their movements, feeling their very souls combine with this love making. The pleasure coursed through them, it made Jean feel so good and the fact she felt good made Harry feel equally good as well, he rocked back against her on the bed.
  
  Jean squeezed him with her muscles, she needed his seed in her and she needed it now. She did not have to wait for too long when she bounced on Harry's prick, riding him, and she kept rocking back into his balls tightened.
  
  "Cumming," Harry breathed when he looked at her.
  
  "In me," Jean managed when Harry thrust up and spilled another load of his seed in her. Heavy spurts blasted into straight into Jean's womb, and she rocked back a little bit, the contraceptive charms working well when he blasted his thick load into her.
  
  The spunk dribbled from Jean's pussy and down her thighs when she pulled off. She scrapped the excess off of her and licked them with her fingers, locking contact with Harry's eyes.
  
  The fun just began for the two of them tonight. They continued to fuck each other in every position all through the night and into early next morning. It was long overdue.
  
  Smut/Lemon Ends.
  
  
  
  Scott recovered, aches and pains never the less but it was funny at how being on one's back tended to give them a lot of time to think. Once again a vital opportunity had been lost and he doubted that he would even get another chance. He turned his head from one side to the other and had to do some thinking, in fact he really wondered if he could even be part of the X-Men for much longer at its current rate.
  
  Harry could leave soon.
  
  Which would mean that he could get a chance to step up but he would be stepping up replacing someone that liked and respected as a leader. What galled Scott is that Harry was not maliciously doing anything against him, at least not what he thought. He often corrected him and his instructions which could be a tad bit annoying. However, Scott would be a complete idiot to deny that most of Harry's suggestions lacked merit.
  
  Harry's habit of picking up girls, Scott passed it off as a quirk at first, at least until Jean started to show some signs of being attracted to Harry. He could not help but think that he and Jean might be together now if it was not for Harry. At least this crisis of faith would not happen for him.
  
  Scott knocked on the door of Xavier's office.
  
  "Come in Scott."
  
  Scott entered the office, not knowing what to say. He opted for some small talk.
  
  "It's good to see you back on your feet, Professor."
  
  Scott realized what he said.
  
  "Or at least in good spirits."
  
  Xavier nodded. "I understand what you meant Scott."
  
  Xavier's eyes were hard to read and Scott could not even begin to figure out where his head was.
  
  "So...I was wondering about Harry....I'm not sure if he's....committed to this team."
  
  "I always suspected Harry's living here was a temporary arrangement at best until he found out what he wanted to do with himself, that will be the case for some of the students I'd imagine, nothing lasts forever," Xavier stated, thinking about the first squad of X-Men he sent in years before this current team and how that ended in disaster. It made him second guess this dream before he gave it a second chance. "I'm....willing to do what I can to persuade Harry to stay."
  
  "I think he's using his powers to influence Jean in some way," Scott responded.
  
  Xavier shook his head. "It's impossible Scott, once the Phoenix force broke out of the bindings and Jean fully embraced it like she had, it would take an act of god and years of conditioning for Jean to be turned into a puppet."
  
  "Are you sure?" Scott asked, grasping on anything.
  
  "Scott, you should worry about growing as a member of this team and not about whom other team members are sleeping with," Xavier answered crisply when he looked at Scott with a serious expression in his eyes. "I'm happy to have Jean back even if it is for a short time and I'm happy to have Harry remain here for a short time. They are valuable assets to this team and the growth of the X-Men, as we prepare everyone for what is to come."
  
  "And I'm not."
  
  Xavier turned to Scott, this was the first time that he really spoke in turn to him.
  
  "I hope you don't intend to start something for you won't find many members of this team watching your back, Scott," Xavier warned him when he looked at his favorite student. He did wonder sometimes where he went wrong but he supposed that Scott's growing pains were far greater than most people. "You may have your heart set up on a woman but sometimes things are not meant to be."
  
  Xavier refused to say more but he had stories to tell about his misadventures with women in his younger days.
  
  "Let Jean go, for your own good," Xavier answered when he looked at Scott.
  
  Scott thought about what Xavier said but he turned around, he needed to go for a walk to clear his head a little bit.
  
  To Be Continued in the Next Chapter "Mesmerizing."
  Mesmerizing
  
  Chapter Forty: Mesmerizing.
  
  "Interpretation is the key to achieving a mystical balance. There are many different ways to interpret a spell and not all of them are correct in some circumstances. What one sees with their eyes can be a front for a deeper attack to the mind. The mind can be both strong and weak. It is it's own area where the attacks are different that what is perceived with the eyes.
  
  Harry stopped and listened when Doctor Strange went over some of the flaws, albeit minor ones, in his illusion spells. Illusion spells were a tricky one to pull off, especially in the heat of the battle. It was not as easy someone who had no experience in combat would think to pull off some of these attacks. In fact, it was one of the hardest things in the world. Yet, Harry was able to take advantage of cues that were given off of the body, to work on the mind.
  
  The mind was the most important area of attack for a young sorcerer in training. Harry spent time, long periods of time mastering several important areas of magic. For the first couple of months of training, Harry tended to spend weeks inside of Strange's stronghold, even though it was merely hours on the outside world. That would account for the aging that he sustained, where he was now technically eighteen years of age.
  
  Of course, he did not really look it all that much. The lessened rate of how a wizard aged after the age of seventeen could hide for rapid mental spikes of aging. They had a greater level of maturity throughout their younger years but the aging process stopped when they reached their majority at age seventeen. They aged a third as quickly as normal humans, although some of the more powerful wizards aged even slower. Harry was a different case, there were indications based on testing that he may stop aging at all when he reached his mid-twenties. Period, not even one day, he would never get any gray hairs, other than from stress. Not one wrinkle on his body, there was a chance that he would be forever young.
  
  That might be a problem when his girlfriends aged and he did not but that would be a bridge that Harry crossed when the time came. The mutant aging process was something that was slightly slower than humans, but they still aged. Unless of course one had the abilities of Logan, who was old as dirt and did not show it, but still magical users didn't age as quickly. And Harry would eventually stop aging.
  
  Funnily enough, those who relied on their wands too much had a more accelerated aging process, with the cores of the wand eating up a great deal of their youth. Strange and Harry had an enlightening discussion about wand users.
  
  "It appears that while a wand, whilst useful as a training implement and a prudent spell enhancer in extreme circumstances, is not something that is prudent for long term use of magic or regular use. The materials made within the wand are powerful and even sentient. They must need life force to sustain and they draw the energy from wizards and witches and sorcerers alike. They are excellent temporary tools for training but I think those from your world may have grown too dependent on them."
  
  Harry took this to heart and he realized that Strange had a point. He wondered if that was by design, if Strange's theories that wands were sentient were correct. The core of the animal that the wand created siphoned life energy slowly off of the user. Perhaps the aging rate should have been a fourth or a fifth as quickly as a normal human, at least that's what Harry suspected.
  
  "Illusions are key for triggering certain responses within the minds of your opponents. If you trick the mind, then the body will fall soon after."
  
  Harry saw that the Doctor Strange that was talking was not the real thing. While his illusions were good, Harry's ability to catch certain tricks of the trade allowed him to pick these things apart. The young wizard took a moment to think about everything that was happening and thought about the cues of Strange that the man gave. The Sorcerer Supreme was good at creating solid hologram spells that both took damage and could give them, while the real deal hovered in the background. It fooled even Harry, at least for a little while.
  
  The young wizard turned around, bowing down and unmasking the real Strange.
  
  "Naturally, the illusions are no substitute for the real thing."
  
  Harry smiled.
  
  "What if I would tell you that I was an illusion and the real me is in the other room, having a soda with Rachel right now?"
  
  Strange's face twisted into an approving smile when he looked at Harry. "Then I would tell you that you have done a commendable job in fooling even my abilities. There are normally tell tale signs for these illusion spells, yet you exhibit none of them."
  
  Harry smiled before his illusion disappeared and Harry and Rachel entered the next room, the pair of them cracking smiles on their face when they looked up at them. The mage waited a while to test that particular illusion charm, it was a modified version of the powers he copied off of Multiple. If he could sustain that, he could dazzle his enemies and confuse them.
  
  There were other things that he could use those powers with but he still hadn't quite worked out all of the bugs yet.
  
  "Very well done, you have picked up every single bit of information at an extraordinary rate," Strange answered when he looked at Harry before he decided to impart one last bit of information upon him. "While one would be a fool to state that you are completely finished with your training, you have completed much more than I could have expected. While there is still much that I need to teach you, the real teachers is actually doing, against enemies that are willing to kill you and not a practice situation. That is where I learned the lion's share of my magic, adapting to what actually goes on around me."
  
  Harry thought that was likely where he learned a lot as well, by studying his opponents. He mentally went back over his past battles in his mind. There were some things that he did right and hundreds of little things that he did wrong. That was how things rolled for him. The young wizard clapped his hands together.
  
  "I do have a question for you if you do not mind," Rachel responded when she looked at the Sorcerer Supreme.
  
  "Of course, if you have a matter that needs clarification, I am here," Strange remarked when she looked at Rachel.
  
  Rachel drew in her breath before she asked the question she had.
  
  "I was wondering about the nature of time travel. When someone went back in time, would they not already be in danger with changing the time stream when they went back in time? Or would they create an entirely different time stream? Is there any chance that they could be erased?"
  
  "You ask questions that people have been asking for years, as they seek answers without any success."
  
  Harry and Rachel both figured as much. There was no use of hiding where she came from, although Harry was the only one that figured out the truth. Rachel held Harry's hand when she took a moment to think about what she heard.
  
  "Time is a fascinating thing."
  
  Strange offered the next statement in a careful manner, mulling it over in his mind.
  
  "Time is what it is, there is no telling how to measure it. We make dozens of decisions each day, if we could go back and make a different decision, it could change history. Even something as mundane as having a different breakfast or having breakfast earlier or later, could change all of history drastically. Every time we could make a different decision, the timeline splits off into different branches. Thus there is an infinite number of realities in existence."
  
  That was a better explanation and Rachel realized one thing. When she went back, she did not change her future but she created an entirely different time line. This made her future knowledge useless and therefore there was no need for a certain two people to ever get together. Which made Rachel very happy consider how miserable she became because of him.
  
  Providing he was her real father, which Rachel still had doubts on.
  
  Harry smiled, he could sense the joy filling the heart of his girlfriend.
  
  He had other things to think about. Over the last few days, he had some weird dreams but they were the merest of flickers, images from the distant past. He had no idea what they meant but he had a feeling that they were important jigsaw pieces of piercing together who or perhaps what he really was.
  
  The most recurring dream was Lily and James Potter finding him in a field.
  
  
  
  "I can't believe it, for someone who is so twisted, he is a genius."
  
  Gwen sat with the data that Harry liberated from Mister Sinister's lab a while ago. Given all that had happened, it had been a while since they actually got around to looking it over. Although with something like this, it was more than worth the wait and it allowed them to gain perspective on what they were reading. The blonde took a moment to read over everything that was on file and sat next to Harry. She got excited when she read every bit of information. Rachel sat with them as well; they swung by after Harry's lessons with Doctor Strange.
  
  "He's perfected cloning in a way that I don't think anyone could have imagined," Gwen stated in a breathless voice when she looked at the genetic sequences. "He's got hundreds, thousands of records of different genetic sequences. This information has been dating back since the 1800s and earlier. I could have sworn that mutants were a recent thing."
  
  "Well, that is the theory but given that Xavier and Magneto have powers, they would have to be around in certain instances but not as prolific as they are now," Harry responded when he looked at Gwen, who smiled and looked over all sequences of data. The blinking lights on her computer could be seen. "And the cloning thing, that would explain the Marauders. They were a bit more dangerous and that would also explain how Sinister is...how Sinister was able to block the Killing Curse."
  
  Harry figured that Sinister encountered a variety of different creatures throughout his time that he experimented on. Some of them were mutants and some of them were alien races of different types. Aliens would have a far different genetic structure where a curse that was intended for humans would not work against them. Even the so called unblockable Killing Curse. At least that's what Harry determined through his studies of everything. The young wizard felt that this could teach them a lot about blocking certain spells, perhaps forging some kind of armor.
  
  Of course, armor was a tricky thing as well, given that it hindered movement. While it may block spells and some physical attacks, it hindered a wizard in other ways. Harry needed to find a balance between strength, speed, and stealth. Armor was a flawed concept when dealing with the type that blocked magic. Wearing dragon hide mind seem like a sound idea in theory, until one realized how bulky the stupid stuff was. Not to mention, there was no way to safely armor the neck, without squeezing the breath out of the wizard.
  
  "This is...this is going to take more than one weekend to get through, this is several lifetimes worth of work...wow...just wow," Gwen stated in a breathless and excited voice. "So have you found any more of the...gems?"
  
  Harry shook his head, that search so far had turned up futile. There had to be some kind of alternate technology or magic that might help, although he was unable to find it. Rachel and Jean both stated that they detected no thought patterns within Sirius but Harry was too stubborn to admit that he was beyond saving.
  
  "The biggest piece left on Earth was used to revive Captain America, of course there was no telling it would have worked on Sirius," Harry answered when he looked back at Gwen. The blonde nodded, her jaw set when she looked at Harry. "Sirius is..."
  
  "If anyone can find a way, it's you."
  
  Harry hoped that Gwen's confidence was not misplaced. When Sirius went through the veil, he did not go willingly like Harry. Strange stated that there was a chance that this might not be the same Sirius that he knew. He might have been stripped of all of his memories and sense of being, it was hard to tell. While he knew this could potentially be, Harry was too stubborn to give up. He never even bothered the learn the meaning of "giving up."
  
  At least he had a nice vacation to any destination of his choosing, complements of Tony Stark and all of the money that he gave him. Of course, if Harry could ever pull himself away long enough for a vacation, that was the thing. Even if he would go on a vacation, he suspected that someone would follow him there and cause trouble.
  
  "All this DNA, but who does it belong to"
  
  Rachel grimaced when she gave the answer. "Mutants that Sinister harvested organs for likely. It isn't pretty business when Sinister is involved."
  
  Gwen cringed slightly as she thought about it. "The man's earned his name."
  
  "You have no idea."
  
  Gwen heard the police scanner she kept on the desk go off.
  
  "There has been a theft of an antique disc; I repeat there has been theft from an antique disc at the museum. The perp in question has the appearance of a blue elf with a tail and ears."
  
  "That sounds like..."
  
  "I know who it sounds like."
  
  Harry thought it was not possible but he grabbed Rachel by the hands and ported them back to the Institute.
  
  It was quiet, a little too quiet for his liking. Harry also heard eerie music fill the Mansion and that caused him to tense up. He slid inside when he walked inside. He saw the New Recruits standing before him in a trance. They were not moving, the lights were on but no one was home.
  
  'Okay, this is creepy.'
  
  That damn music would not stop playing and Harry continued to walk up towards the mansion. His cell phone rang and he saw that it was Gwen. He answered it and put the cell phone up to his ear, before he listened.
  
  "Hey Gwen."
  
  "I saw...well Kitty and Jean, they might have helped in the robbery," Gwen responded when she closed her eyes, not wanting to be the bearer of bad news.
  
  Logan was out on the floor, as was Ororo, Xavier, and Hank. Harry paused a little bit; he thought that everything was going to pieces but he was not sure how. That infernal music would not stop playing, Harry wondered where it came from and his heart beat against his chest, feverishly pumping against his chest. The young wizard continued to make his strides quicken up the steps. The young dark haired wizard kept walking, with Rachel beside him.
  
  She stopped and thought to Harry.
  
  'I sense a presence.'
  
  That was never a good thing. Harry entered the room and saw Scott down on the ground. He was still breathing and that was all that mattered. The two mutants stepped over his body and continued to walk towards the source of the infernal noise. They continued to move forward with determination and saw the music box. It kept running and Harry felt a tingle when he figured out what the game was.
  
  'Subliminal messages,' Harry thought to Rachel.
  
  'They've been hypnotized then,' Rachel thought to Harry.
  
  'And it has Scott's fingerprints over it, figures he would open up a package that mysteriously arrived at the mansion without considering the consequences,' Harry thought to himself, shaking his head.
  
  'It must have been here for a while, but why would Jean send him a gift?' Rachel thought to Harry. 'Unless she wouldn't.'
  
  'She wouldn't, there's more of a chance of Nick Fury wearing a tu-tu then Jean having any romantic feelings to Scott now,' Harry thought to Rachel who pulled a face and she shook her head.
  
  'That was an image that I didn't need to have,' Rachel thought with a grimace.
  
  Gwen once again talked to Harry.
  
  "I hacked into the Xavier Institute security system and tapped into the security camera, I want you to take a look at this guy, the guy who delivered the package to the Institute."
  
  Harry saw a bald man in a delivery uniform handing the package to Scott. He had tanned skin and weird symbols on his forehead. The young wizard found himself fixated on the symbols on the man's forehead, he was pretty sure they meant something. What those symbols meant, Harry had no idea whatsoever. All he knew was they meant something and he wanted to find out.
  
  "Gwen, could you run a search for those symbols?"
  
  "No problem, Harry."
  
  Harry and Rachel decided that if Gwen could find something on her end, they could go after their possessed team mates. The music box might have offered a key to break the conditioning and also a clue of what the final end game was. It came from a carnival that came to Bayville every year and it was amazing that they were in town this week.
  
  'I have a feeling we'll find our friends there.'
  
  Harry hoped Rachel was right because the pressure heated up.
  
  
  
  The X-Men were mostly under his control, although the man known as Mesmero found despair that he did not get the one he wanted. Their leader, the strongest of them all, the one known as Arcane, he was not under the control of Mesmero. He cracked his knuckles when he saw the disc that the one known as Nightcrawler handed him.
  
  'Got to fight it,' Jean thought when she walked forward but her connection to the Phoenix had been blocked somehow. She knew that someone like this man could not have done it without any help; the Phoenix was far more powerful than any mortal could ever dream. She knew this man had help and he focused on her.
  
  The Phoenix Force was powerful and it should be under the master's control, at least that's what Mesmero determined. He wanted the other one under his control, those two would be perfect Horsemen for the great one.
  
  Kitty, Rogue, and Kurt walked in, all of them standing rigid with dilated pupils, their minds completely blank. He had his perfect band of thieves to get the necessary components to open up the box. The fools thought that the key was going to be hidden from the master for long. But the master wanted him to grab the key. He had the help of the other party who had his own plans. Yet, Sinister made his own deal with the master and would be a fool if he went back on it.
  
  Little did Mesmero know that Harry and Rachel sat in the shadows, waiting to make their move and strike hard.
  
  'Rachel, this guy...he shouldn't be this powerful,' Harry thought to her and Rachel nodded. 'Do you...remember anything about him?'
  
  'His name is Mesmero, he's a master of illusion and...you're right, he shouldn't be this powerful to take down the entire X-Men,' Rachel thought to Harry when the two of them dropped down to the ground and turned to the side, creeping in the shadows.
  
  'We don't want to hurt them,' Harry though back to her and Rachel nodded.
  
  'Hopefully they adhere to the same thing,' Rachel thought when she looked at Harry, them creeping around and seeing three discs presented to Mesmero. 'I trust you've got a plan.'
  
  'I always have a plan,' Harry thought to Rachel before he paused and thought. 'Of course, it doesn't always mean it's a good plan.'
  
  Already, Rachel was loving this, at least that's what she thought, she grabbed Harry's hand and they walked around. The pair of them were ready for the battle whatever it would bring. They stepped around and waited, standing on their heels, when they rocked back and concentrated intently.
  
  It was all about timing.
  
  Mesmero waited; there was nothing that could stop him now. The power that flowed through him would make him strong, his illusions more real, his control far greater, and his abilities increased tenfold. He subdued the Phoenix Force, which would be considered impossible under his normal power rate. He clutched his heads together and held three discs in his hand, but those three discs were levitated out of his hand.
  
  "WHO DARES?"
  
  "I dare," Harry responded when he sent a flaming spear forward and plunged it into the chest of his enemy. The spear stuck in the chest of his enemy, causing him to fly backwards. Unfortunately, it was an illusion which was a shame as Harry thought it was a good spell.
  
  Harry was blasted with a light and he spontaneously combusted by the shot from Mesmero.
  
  "I can play this game too, you know."
  
  An army of Harry Potter illusions stood forward against an army of Mesmero illusions. They charged each other and clashed together with an explosive fire, bashing together with a huge impact that lead to explosions firing in every single direction. They blew up in a large combustion of golden light, flying backwards. The young wizard stepped back, shaking when he stood in the shadows.
  
  'Guys, wake up,' Harry thought when he saw his doubles continue to fight those brought forth by Mesmero.
  
  "I AM AWAKE!"
  
  The Phoenix woke up, breaking the bindings that Jean was put under and boy was she pissed, she was really pissed. It was hard to really measure how pissed Jean Grey or the Phoenix was. At this point both of them were pretty angry and they blasted forward, they wanted blood for being made vunerable.
  
  The Harry illusions got a boost from the Phoenix Force, causing their attacks to be more deadly. A crack echoed when the attacks rocketed through them. The Mesmero clones exploded into dust particles, they weren't able to maintain the combined attack by two of the most powerful forces on this world and any other. Even though Mesmero had increased abilities, he was no match for this double team assault.
  
  Mesmero flew backwards with a huge impact.
  
  Harry performed the detection spell on Mesmero and sure enough there was another problem, the real deal was not even anywhere near this place. This fact meant that he was actually intelligent, which was always a problem with villains as far as Harry was concerned. And the discs that he had in his hand, upon a further test faded away, crumbling to dust.
  
  'That was only check, Mesmero,' Harry thought, when he stood forward with a firm jaw.
  
  Mesmero left the building and Kurt, Kitty, and Rogue snapped out of their trances.
  
  "Will anyone tell me...what happened?" Kitty asked, biting her lip in frustration.
  
  Rachel offered a smirk before she put on her hand on Kitty's shoulder. "Other than being a future guest star on the New York's Most Wanted, not much. Harry and I will tell you about it when you about it later.
  
  
  
  Mesmero arrived, the key in his hand, gleeful that he actually defeated the X-Men. He may have used every dirty and underhanded tactic at his disposal but as far as he was concerned, he won.
  
  "Do you have it?"
  
  "Yes, I have it," Mesmero stated when he saw Mister Sinister and Mystique stood in the shadows.
  
  "Everything is going forward as planned, even though the Phoenix broke the master's control. He will still have it."
  
  Sinister paused, he had his own plans regarding the force behind that set of stone doors, he would control the power. Mesmero was devoted to his master to the point of sick obsession but Sinister indulged him on these thoughts. He would have what he wanted and have what he needed. His plans that had been set into motion a long time ago would come to pass and the battle would be his to win, that much was for certain.
  
  "This Potter, he's not human," Mesmero offered when he blinked.
  
  "Well naturally, given that he's a mutant," Mystique snapped back at him.
  
  "No there's something else," Mesmero stated, and he looked carefully towards Sinister who held the key and paused.
  
  "He's unlike anything I've ever seen yes, but that makes him all the more worthy of study," Sinister responded carefully. Whatever this Harry Potter was, he was not of anything humans or mutants ever knew. He was even beyond typical magical users, there was something different about him. "But we must delay no longer."
  
  The key inserted into the hole opened the first of three stone doors and behind that stone door, there would be a force beyond all imagining. Sinister tingled with anticipation, getting an excitement that most men would not receive, even with sexual gratification. An expression of ecstasy crossed his face.
  
  'I'm coming, great one.'
  
  
  
  "Well I think I found something."
  
  Harry reported back to Gwen's house, that next morning, when they were sure that everyone was out of the woods. There were no telltale signs of hypnosis left in their eyes, which was a good sign. Harry, Rachel, Jean, and Xavier spent the past six hours searching for any hypnotic backdoors that Mesmero could have placed for future use. They also looked for any clues of what he could have placed in the back of their minds. That was the ticket to uncovering this mysterious attack and who was behind it.
  
  So far there was nothing, they were unable to piece together more pieces of the puzzle. There was no sign of what Mesmero did although Harry got a good look at the discs he grabbed. Jean, Rachel, Kitty, and Rogue stood next to Harry, waiting beside him. Three of them were a bit out of it given the fact that they were put under the mind control of the powerful person that attacked them. Harry could not completely fault Scott for this one, although he could work at strengthening his mind and being less gullible.
  
  Kitty broke the silence, looking impatient. "So what do you have?"
  
  Harry waited for one of his girlfriends to be silent and Kitty offered a sheepish smile before she fell into line. Amara would be with them, if the New Mutants were not being put through the paces by Logan. It was his turn to oversee the training and Harry bid them the best of luck before he left them to their fate, he had pressing matters to attend to.
  
  "These symbols are Egyptian, or at least that's the closest match I can find for them," Gwen answered when she looked at them. "It's almost like it's some kind of language of its own, but I must have cross-referenced them with hundreds of different symbols before I found this closest match."
  
  Rogue piped in. "And that match is..."
  
  "Apocalypse," Gwen answered when she bit her lip as she nervously gave the translation.
  
  At those words, Rachel tensed up completely, something that was not missed by Harry. He turned to his third girlfriend and grabbed her around the hand. She blinked a little bit.
  
  'On one hand they defeated him,' Rachel thought to herself, trying to remain optimistic before the pessimistic thought reached her. Her heart skipped a beat and a half before she realized the problem with this. 'And here lies the problem, I can't rely on what happened in the old timeline, we're in a different time.'
  
  "Those discs were keys, for another key," Rachel chimed in which caused Jean, Rogue, and even Kitty to look at her strangely. Gwen looked unsurprised for some reason.
  
  "So sayeth my Google Search," Gwen answered when she looked at the group of them, a smile crossing her face. "It's amazing; a key to release some kind of indescribable horror was being kept as a sideshow attraction at a carnival."
  
  Harry shrugged. "I've seen far stranger."
  
  "I'm sure you have," Gwen quipped when she saw a news blip about Spider-Man's latest battle with the villain of the week. He teamed up with the Fantastic Four to take down Mole Man and his involvement was something that tilted the scales to victory. Peter had his blind date this weekend and she was surely happening.
  
  "Normally I have to go no further than the mirror," Harry responded which caused the group to laugh, breaking the very tense mood that they were in.
  
  Gwen shrugged before a slight smile crossed her face. "Being normal is overrated I supposed."
  
  "That's for sure," Harry added, with a smile.
  
  Gwen understood why girls tended to fall over themselves around Harry Potter, powers or not. He had an added amount of confidence that was endearing to girls, and the fact that he was not too bad on the eyes also made Gwen smile a little bit. That caused the butterflies to flap their wings in her stomach and stir up emotions that she could hardly believe were there. She had been spending a little bit of time with Harry.
  
  "Thanks for your help Gwen," Harry responded to her in an honest voice.
  
  "Yeah, you were amazing," Kitty chimed in, happier than anything that she was herself and was no longer possessed.
  
  Harry chimed in with a few more words of his own. "If you need anything from me at all, do not hesitate to ask."
  
  Gwen smiled when she looked at Harry, needless to say this statement spurred a few interesting scenarios in her mind.
  
  "A girl might get dangerous ideas with a statement like that," Gwen responded when she looked at him, while the other girls left, and Harry smiled back at her. It was the type of smile that sent girls into utter fits of passion, that much was for sure.
  
  She waited for him to leave and thought that after that look, she might be indulging in a cold shower and perhaps some alone time in her room with the door locked. She thought about calling him back, but she caught the looks in the other girl's eyes, they wanted their alone time with Harry.
  
  Gwen watched, her time might come sooner than she thought.
  
  Back at the Xavier Institute, Harry saw Amara standing there, getting fresh out of training. Her uniform top clung to her breasts tightly, showing the large round mounds. One could easily tell that she had quite the work out just by looking at her. Harry found himself drawn rather breathless at her but he shook his head when he stepped back.
  
  "Hi Harry," Amara stated when she looked at Harry, a smile crossing her face. "You missed an intense training session."
  
  Harry smirked at her, when he drank in her body. "One could say that I guess, Logan's making up for a lot of lost time."
  
  Amara's face crossed into a smirk and she nodded in agreement, before she bit down on her lower lip. "Would you care to join me in the shower?"
  
  That was a question that Harry thought over for about three seconds, there were very many positives and very few negatives. Actually there were never any negatives in having a shower with an extremely hot girl. Especially one who looked worked up and was about ready to jump in right then and there. He suspected the Danger Room Training Sessions would always be about working up a great sweat.
  
  Harry knew one thing though and he knew it was time to answer.
  
  "Of course Amara, it should be fun."
  
  Without another word, Harry followed her to the shower, feeling that he could use one for himself. Of course, he wondered how much getting clean in there was going to happen.
  
  Smut/Lemon Begins.
  
  Harry and Amara were in the shower. She slowly stripped her clothes off, revealing more and more tantalizing flesh with each passing motion. His gaze drank in every inch of her body when the shower water turned on. Her dark hair, her brown eyes, and her full lips were the first thing that he noticed, along with her brown skin and luscious breasts, along with dark nipples. Her flat toned stomach, beautiful pussy that was shaved bare, and lovely long legs, with a curved ass and hips. He felt himself throb at the thought of this beautiful princess and he could see her get wet with anticipation for him.
  
  Amara watched Harry, her mouth curled in a smile when she looked at him; she saw what he had between his legs and liked every single bit of it. His abs, chest, and arms were strong; she could run her hands over those muscles for days. His dark and messy hair made him drop dead sexy, along with his alluring green eyes.
  
  Harry soaped up her back, slowly making circles around it, washing her, and rubbing her, allowing the water to go off her. Amara breathed heavily when his magical fingers traced a pattern around her body, going down her back and cupping her buttock when he scrubbed her slowly and carefully. His hands moved around to her hips, before he brushed up against the edge of her entrance, scrapping his fingers against her dripping slit.
  
  "Yes," Amara breathed when she felt Harry's fingers work her over.
  
  Harry smiled, before he moved up, with her grinding her butt against his crotch, causing the friction. She had a hot ass, and Harry could not wait for move of it. Right now, he worshipped her breasts, slowly rubbing them in circles, making sure she was nice and soaped up.
  
  "That good," Harry breathed in her ear, licking behind it.
  
  Amara breathed heavily at the pleasure that filled her body. "Yes."
  
  "My turn," Harry answered, when she used her hands to rub the soap up and down his abs and chest, working him over with it. Amara smiled when she worked him over, it was like molding clay in her hands and she squeezed and pinched at his flesh, feeling more and more at ease with him.
  
  Harry closed his eyes and felt her work him over, rubbing the soap all over his body, until she stopped between his legs. She grasped his fleshy pole in her hand, before she began to stroke it up and down, with burning lust dancing in her eyes. Amara breathed heavily when she knelt down before Harry and popped his cock in her mouth. Her warm mouth wrapped around him, and she looked up at him with lustful eyes when she sucked him.
  
  Amara bobbed up and down on his member, feeling it grow in his mouth. She held onto her hips and a hand was playing with herself when she blew Harry. His cock tasted so good but she could not wait for his essence to spill down her throat. She pushed herself up and went down him.
  
  "So...yes," Harry breathed when he grabbed Amara, cupping her pretty little face when he looked in her eyes, before he pushed down her throat. She took his entire cock down her throat, deep throating him and feeling the pressure and the pressure.
  
  "Is this a private party or can anyone join?
  
  Jean, Rachel, Kitty, and Rogue popped up in the shower. Granted it was a tight fit, but all four girls were naked, so this proved to be promising.
  
  "No...all are...ah welcomed," Harry breathed when Amara continued to blow him and Kitty went down between Amara's legs and began to eat her out. Her tongue scrapped and licked Amara's pussy, working it over, with circular motions.
  
  Amara lost herself in the sensations, between Harry's cock and Kitty's tongue, she was about ready to lose her mind.
  
  Jean grabbed the bottle of shower gel from the shelf on the side and with a mischievous grin, sprayed it on her bare, D-Cup breasts. The shower gel rolled off her breasts and Harry used his hands to rub Jean's tits. She threw her head back and offered a moan of pleasure.
  
  "Oh yes Harry, that's it."
  
  Rachel and Rogue exchanged a passion filled kiss on the side. Rogue pressed Rachel against the wall, with her fingers pumping in and out of the girl's sopping wet cunt. The moans got louder and more intense when Rachel continued to be worked over.
  
  Jean's lips pressed against Harry's, when she reached down to play with his balls while Amara blew him. Harry grabbed his hands from behind her, squeezing her tight ass, and running his hands down her young, hot body. She moaned loudly into his mouth, and continued to rub onto him. The red head grabbed and groped him.
  
  'Oh, so hot, mmm, you're a god Harry,' Jean thought to him when she continued to kiss him, pressing her breasts against his bare and wet chest. The sensation of their bodies sliding together felt good. She continued to play with Harry's throbbing manhood.
  
  'You're hot too, my beautiful phoenix, and you're getting no less than what you deserve,' Harry moaned when he stuck a finger up her ass and began to pump into her.
  
  'Oh Rachel, so fucking hot,' Rogue thought to her, when she pumped in and out of her, feeling the moist juices that dribbled down Rachel's thighs.
  
  Rachel lost herself in the sensations.
  
  Kitty tasted the warm sensations dripping from Amara's pussy, they were causing her pussy to burn with desire. She pumped her fingers inside herself, when she continued to lick and taste the inner workings of Amara's core.
  
  'So close,' Harry thought.
  
  Amara's moans caused his cock to be stimulated, and his balls tightened before he spilled the essence down her throat. His balls spurted and sized up, with Jean groping and squeezing him when she continued to kiss him heavily.
  
  Amara slid back, her pussy was wet and she opened her legs, looking at Harry's already hardening cock.
  
  "Need you, so badly," Amara breathed, cupping and playing with her pussy.
  
  "Time to return the favor," Kitty responded, when she sat down on Amara's face, putting her pussy on her mouth. "Eat up."
  
  Amara ate up alright, tasting Kitty's tender pussy, licking her and indulging herself in the sensations. Her tight little body tasted delicious and bombarded her with sensations that she never thought that she would have. Her tongue continued to work up a pattern, licking and slurping the lovely juices from the tender core of the brunette mutant.
  
  Harry knew what to do next, he took his throbbing rod and slid it into Amara with ease. She moaned from beneath Kitty.
  
  Jean latched her mouth to Kitty's to stop her moans and then she placed Kitty's hands on her larger, more mature breasts. The brunette knew what to do, when she started to play with the red heads breasts and rubbed her hand around them.
  
  'Yes, Kitty, that's it, such a good girl,' Jean thought to her, feeling her pussy drip but Rachel immediately latched her mouth onto it, causing Jean to size up. Rogue found her way onto Rachel's pussy as well.
  
  Rachel tasted and sucked at the place where she came out of during her timeline, really using her tongue to work up the sensations of Jean. She could feel her own body heating up and watched when Jean violated Kitty's mouth with her tongue.
  
  "Oh, yes, hot, keep doing that ladies," Harry grunted when he thrust his member deep into Amara's pussy. His thrusts sped up more and more, to build up anticipation within her, not to mention the pleasure. He watched when Kitty got her pussy eaten, when she kissed with Jean, whilst also playing with her tits. Rachel ate Jean's pussy, licking and slurping at it, while Rogue tackled Rachel's.
  
  'So hot, love your tongue,' Jean thought when her eyes flicked over. 'Not as good...as Harry's, but still good.'
  
  Harry's cock wrapped around the super tight pussy that he speared and he felt her cum. She gave a shuddering orgasm.
  
  "Who's next," Harry answered and Amara whined at the loss of his cock, even though he kept his fingers in her.
  
  "Me," Kitty breathed when she pulled herself away from Jean.
  
  Kitty pushed Harry back, and kissed him madly, straddling his hips, before she sank down onto him. In one fluid motion, she began to ride him.
  
  "Oh yes, I missed this."
  
  "You have...ah...no idea," Harry grunted when Kitty rocked her slim hips back and forth, working him over with her lovely pussy. He reached up and grabbed her B-Cup breasts playing with them. They wre sensitive and responsive to his touch.
  
  Kitty felt the pleasure course through her, she was already worked up towards an orgasm but she tried to hold it back. She wanted to bring Harry to one, but he could go a long time and she knew when she finished, Harry would go onto the next girl.
  
  Jean pulled Amara into a tight embrace, kissing the younger girl, and roaming her hands over her body. Amara sucked on Jean's tongue at her encouragement, feeling more and more pleasure coursing through her body. The hands of the older girl ran over body and pleasure coursed over every inch of her.
  
  Rachel and Rogue laid in a sexually charged sixty nine position, munching on the pussies of each other. The two of them felt the rush that went through their bodies and continued to feel the pleasure.
  
  "More, please, Harry."
  
  Kitty could not take it anymore and her pussy clenched tightly around his cock. The brunette mutant bit down on Harry's shoulder to stifle the scream but he was not that done, even as she came down from the orgasm she was given.
  
  "My turn."
  
  Rogue grabbed Harry's cock, teasing it a little bit, before Harry kissed her back, teasing her opening with his fingers.
  
  Amara's body heated up, as did Jean's. The younger girl grabbed the breast of the older girl, twisting and pinching the nipples, gaining more confidence as she played with her.
  
  Kitty pouted at the loss, she was sure that she had Harry where she wanted him. She did not have much time to worry when Rachel dove between her legs. Her friend and lover munched on Kitty's center, eating and sucking at her, working her over.
  
  "Oh yes, Harry."
  
  Rogue groaned hotly when Harry speared his cock into her tender center. He leaned down and worshiped her breasts, squeezing the supple mounds in his hands. Her ass rose up off the ground and Harry pinched the lovely flesh, when he continued to lift himself up and spear himself down into her tight hole.
  
  "Like that," Harry breathed when he cupped her.
  
  "Yes, more, give me it all," Rogue breathed when she summoned her new found strength to her inner muscles, she knew that Harry could take it and he speared into her tight center, stretching her out with all he had.
  
  "Look, you're all wet, that's okay, let me take care of you," Jean stated when she plunged her finger into Amara and she breathed heavily, with Jean pushing her finger in and out of her. She added a second finger into Amara's dripping hole and a third, and continued to push into her. "You like that, don't you?"
  
  "Oh yes, yes," Amara breathed when she took a moment to feel the pleasure of Jean pumping her fingers into the sopping center and her eyes closed, with a smile crossing her face. She felt the pleasure course through her body when it heated up, in more ways than one. It caused steam to rise on the shower which added to the erotic atmosphere.
  
  Rogue reared her head back and screamed at the top of her lungs when Harry speared into her, his balls slapping against her thighs. She got closer and closer to the edge.
  
  "Cum for me Harry, c'mon, I want it in me," Rogue whispered when she nibbled seductively on Harry's ear.
  
  "You'll...have to earn it."
  
  Harry cupped Rogue's breasts when he picked up the face and she felt herself clench together, she knew the rush was here. She watched Harry lick and suck on her breasts, while he reached behind her and played with her ass. This was so very hot.
  
  She came hard and she saw stars when she did. She went down and breathed heavily, panting when she slid down to the ground, pinching her breast when she slid back.
  
  Jean saw Harry was done with Rogue, although rather Rogue had been fucked cross eyed. Knowing what she must do, she positioned herself where her face was buried in Amara's snatch and she was hungrily licking the juices from between her legs. Jean's hips arched up, when she was on her hands and knees.
  
  'Come and get it, lover.'
  
  Harry understood what she wanted immediately and he grabbed a handful of her hot, sexy ass and squeezed her. He explored her moist folds and knew that it would be a perfect fit for his throbbing member. He lined himself up, breathing heavily, before he sank down into her, fucking her from behind, doggy-style.
  
  Jean's eyes closed with pleasure but she kept her mind on the task between Amara's leg. Her tongue worked over, licking and slurping every inch of the pussy beneath her .She knew what was at stake and what was on the line. Amara rose her hips up a little bit, panting heavily. Harry's cock on the other head, pushed into her, plowing into her from behind. Jean could not describe how that felt, a thousand pleasurable touches moved through her body.
  
  "Tight, hot," Harry grunted when he pushed into her, his cock spearing Jean and he reached around, cupping her swinging breasts in his hand. He played with the lovely flesh in his hand, pinching them.
  
  'Oh yeah Harry, that's the spot.'
  
  The good thing about having sex with a telepath was that even when their mouths were occupied, they could give one mental cues about what they liked.
  
  "Fucking, tight," Harry grunted when he continued to spear his rod into the dripping hot pussy of the beautiful woman in front of him. She pushed back at, her center clenching around him tightly, showing superb muscle control.
  
  Jean was not going to go down without a fight and because of her Phoenix Force powers; she was the one with the most stamina. She was going to hold off her own orgasm for as long as she could and Harry appreciated that, he enjoyed a challenge. He saw Rogue against the wall, fingering herself and then tasting her own juices.
  
  Rogue fingered herself to the erotic sight of Harry pushing into Jean, while Jean ate Amara's sopping wet pussy. It felt so good, she was going to treat herself to another orgasm and she watched Harry push into Jean. She heard Jean's mental moans in her head. She also kept an eye on Kitty and Rachel, who indulged themselves in each other's pussies.
  
  Harry plunged his cock into her pussy and she squeezed him. A few more hard thrusts happened before his balls tightened and he spilled his cum into her pussy.
  
  Jean buried her face into Amara's pussy, when she came down, Harry running his hands all over her sexy body, when he pushed into her. Her nipples remained hard and she remained aroused when Harry thrust deep into her body. Cum splattered from her pussy.
  
  They were just getting started, there was plenty of time tonight.
  
  Smut/Lemon Ends.
  
  
  
  A few hours later Harry turned his head, when he relaxed with Kitty resting against his chest. Amara sat on the other side of him, with Rogue curled up right at his feet. Bobby and Kurt sat on the couch right beside him. The other members of the Institute mulled around, with Scott joining them.
  
  "After the day that we had, I think that we should kick back and relax," Scott stated, feeling the aches and pains in his body.
  
  Harry actually thought that Scott showed an intelligent decision making process for once and that hopefully would bode well for his future prospects. They were rapidly reaching the middle of June and Harry planned his departure on September 1st. He had been taking online courses to getting his teaching certification and also hooking up a lot of other things that was needed. Given that Fury owed him big time, Harry was able to cash on with a lot of Fury owed him by getting things set up on that front, fast tracking him ahead of others.
  
  "It would feel good to kick back, relax, and not have to worry about everything," Kitty answered when she curled up against Harry and sighed, his arms wrapping around her.
  
  "You can say that again."
  
  "You sure can."
  
  The television was on and the television was talking to them. It took them a few seconds to realize why the television was taking them. On the other side of the television screen, stood the Merc with the Mouth himself, Deadpool, with a laugh tracking going off behind him.
  
  "The networks must be desperate to give that guy his own television show," Kurt responded when he looked at the screen.
  
  "You sure can say that again,Nightcrawler," Deadpool responded which caused the furry mutant to lean up and turn his head around. He blinked a few times before he turned around and his mouth wide opened.
  
  'How did he know?' Kurt asked.
  
  "I'm sure you're mentally asking myself, how did I know?" Deadpool asked with a smug expression crossing his face and he cracked his knuckles. "Well you see it's very simple and by very simple, I mean needlessly complicated. The last time we met, for those who have short term memory problems, I was taken advantage of by good old dishonest Abe himself. Guns were going off, people were throwing babies in the air, and dogs and cats were living together, it was sheer carnage and venom too...mmmm foreshadowing much?"
  
  Deadpool knocked on the television screen.
  
  "Hello, is anyone there?" Deadpool asked before he threw his head back and laughed. "You see, I'm back and this time I'm working for the most fiendish, the most diabolical, the most cruel forces on the planet Earth today."
  
  Deadpool dropped his voice to a whisper.
  
  "Network Television Executives."
  
  Deadpool shuddered, he might be a whore but at least he was a high dollar whore.
  
  "Of course, this is the riskiest contract that I've ever taken because my boss, well he could lose interest halfway through the scheme because you know, Network Television Executives are very fickle," Deadpool commented lightly, when he looked around. "You can have this hit television show, beloved by its fan base but because it's beloved by the wrong demographic or the toys aren't selling...it gets cancelled. And a bunch of fanboys on the Internet whine about it."
  
  Deadpool shook his head.
  
  "Yes, boys and girls everything after your childhood sucked, now get over yourselves."
  
  He cleared his throat.
  
  "Anyway, anywhere, where was I, ah yes, Arcane, Shadowcat, Rogue, Nightcrawler, Iceman, Magma, you are the next contestants on today's lovely game show, the Price is Wade! So come on down!"
  
  A bright light engulfed them all. Harry tried to block the attack as much as he could but the powers of Deadpool were too strong for him.
  
  "You could block this attack naturally but we wouldn't have much dram, so let's just say I sold my soul to Mephisto for this magical remote control device," Deadpool answered when he sucked them into the television. "At least I didn't sell my marriage...LIKE SOME PEOPLE WE KNOW!"
  
  The X-Men except for Cyclops was sucked into the television scream.
  
  "Sorry, Summers, but no one likes you except for the point three percent of the people who do like you," Deadpool responded when he shook his head. "Actually that might be a tad bit generous, but I do know one thing, you're rating's death. Every time you're on screen, everything gets sucked down to your low pitiful level."
  
  Deadpool paused before he winked.
  
  "Stay tuned more to come, after these messages."
  
  To Be Continued in the Next Chapter "We're in TV."
  We're In TV
  
  Chapter Forty One: We're in TV(aka That's Mojotainment.)
  
  The good news for Bobby Drake, better known as Iceman was that he always wanted to be on television. Call it a quirk in his personality or whatever, but television appealed to him and his sense of drama. He smiled when he thought of all of the possibilities that being on television could bring. His very being tingled with excitement and he wondered what was going to come next. The young mutant turned to his fellow team members, Magma,Nightcrawler, Rogue, Shadowcat, and Arcane, when they stood on the stage, but none of them looked to be too happy with what was going on.
  
  In fact some of them looked rather peeved.
  
  Then again, Bobby supposed that he could not blame them at all, given that they were unexpectedly sucked through the television screen against their will. Nightcrawler, Arcane, and Shadowcat looked rather agitated when they saw this Deadpool character show up. Personally, Bobby never met him in his life, although he did wonder if that was a good thing or not."
  
  "Let's tell our fabulous contestants what they've won!" Deadpool chanted when he looked down at them from the podium.
  
  Rogue's eyes spun around and agitation filled her eyes, before she looked at Deadpool. "I'll tell you what you've won, my fist in your face!"
  
  Deadpool waved his finger in a reprimanding manner, a smile crossing his face, when he looked down at Rogue from his pedestal. "Temper, temper."
  
  "I haven't even begun to lose my temper!" Rogue shouted but Harry grabbed her by the hand, he wanted to warn her that what she was about to do was not a good idea. The young mutant shifted a little bit when Harry held her hand. "I'm...I suppose you have some ideas on how to get out of here, so we don't have to listen to that guy's voice much longer."
  
  "I'm sure he does," Kitty answered in an approving voice, when she looked back at Harry, who paused and blinked a little bit. "Or he will in a minute, I guess."
  
  Harry mulled over the situation in his mind, he remembered the rules for training, it was always a good idea to have a plan and a backup plan. That way if the first plan flew off the rails, one could pull their back up plan out of their hat. It was a longshot that any single plan would work but longshots was what Harry Potter lived for. He turned to his team members and offered a sigh.
  
  "Let's figure out what he is up to."
  
  "Figure it out no more, oh Harry Boy!" Deadpool stated, his voice echoing from the skybox, amplified a hundredfold. "You see, I've developed a nice little game, a game that the two of us could play. I've brought forth some guests, who are not infringing upon copyright in any way whatsoever."
  
  There was a buzzing, when Deadpool felt he had to clarify that point for any legal type people that might be hovering around. The last thing he wanted to do was get his pants sued off. He quite liked his pants intact thank you very much.
  
  "Back by the demand of absolutely nobody...THE CONFORMITY CUBS!"
  
  A flying troupe of multi colored bears with hearts with the words "conform" and "obey" etched on their chests appeared. They gave a sinister and sugary laughter, when they approached the group, their eyes glowing in a creepy manner.
  
  'Umbridge would approve,' Harry thought, shaking his head.
  
  "You will conform."
  
  "Hugs are the way of the future."
  
  "You will have no feelings that will be against the mindset the hive. All will have bright smiles or will be eradicated."
  
  "You will care."
  
  "System error. Reboot programming."
  
  Rogue pulled a face before she offered a statement that reflected the mindset of the entire group. "Those things are hideous!"
  
  Harry would have to agree and he showed his agreement by aiming a shot at one of the bears, decapitating it with a well-placed spell. He watched as the head of the cute, fluffy, and quite creepy bear blew off its shoulders, flying to the ground.
  
  "Bobby, freeze them!"
  
  "Gotcha."
  
  Bobby aimed his hands and the bears froze, before they shattered to the ground, into millions of pieces. Kitty reached up towards them, pushing her hands through, before she short circuited them. There was an explosion when the bears blew to dust. Rogue jumped up in the air, taking flight, and she used her super strength to punch one of the bear's heads clean off.
  
  "Yeah, that won't give any kids nightmares."
  
  Amara turned around, lighting the bears up. She looked quite flummoxed about the situation and turned to the rest of the group, biting down on her lip.
  
  "Is this what passes as entertainment?"
  
  Kitty rolled her eyes. "Trust me, no one finds it entertaining."
  
  She smashed several of the bears into pieces, causing them to fly in every single direction in a shower of mulit-color sparks. They ground to a stop when they landed on the ground, twisting and scrapping when they did. Harry waited before he conjured a solid spear and lit it on fire, before he blew up several of the wicked creations in one shot.
  
  "Oh that's going to leave a mark, hey, I just painted that one, watch it, watch it!"
  
  "Does this guy ever shut up?"
  
  That statement by Bobby got sad shakes of the head of Kurt, Kitty, and Harry who used a triple team attack.
  
  "I even think these things are hideous," Kurt stated when he shuddered and teleported out of the way of a beam. He figured that it was not a good idea if he got hit by these laser blasts, they would either hurt or hypnotize him again, either was not an attractive option. He dropped down to the ground and he twisted the head off, causing it to snap off. Rogue grabbed the head from his hands and crushed it in hers.
  
  Deadpool watched the insanity of it all, he was running out of his sugary coated super soldiers, but thankfully he had a back-up plan. One should always have a back up plan for reasons like this, because there will be always be someone who would ruin his first plan. He felt the heat pour on when Magma took out one of the legions of cubs with her powers.
  
  "And Round Two, fight!"
  
  Deadpool released the robotic ninja monkeys. Why was it robotic ninja monkeys? It was Deadpool, that's all of the people needed to know. He thought it was an extremely good idea.
  
  Deadpool watched when Harry Potter ran through his army like a hot knife through butter. It was just as well, he got this great deal of robot parts. But that was another story for another time, now, Deadpool had to wait for these particular robots to get mowed down. He hummed elevator music when he waited and watched the action, rocking back and forth on his seat. He folded his arms when he inclined his head and watched the action through his beady eyes.
  
  "Nothing really of note is happening...that was a nice tandem attack."
  
  Deadpool tapped his pen when he watched and decided to spice things up with some robotic clown penguins. Why robotic clown penguins? Again, it was Deadpool, there was no explanation that was needed beyond him being Deadpool.
  
  "What is this guys obsession with random and weird robots?"
  
  Rogue asked this question in an agitated manner when she smashed said robots into hundreds of little pieces. The young mutant continued to hammer her enemies, attacking them with fury and sending them flying in every single direction. The mutant fought through with fierce determination, but her dream was to go forward and wrap her hands around Deadpool's throat hard to strangle the life out of him.
  
  "It's Deadpool, don't ask."
  
  Kitty smiled when Harry responded with that statement. He grabbed her by the hands and swung her, causing her to fly through the robots. She phased through it, causing it to blow up when she pulled the right wires. The brunette landed carefully on her feet, before spinning around.
  
  "Wise words to live by," Kitty answered when she tried to punch one of the robots but a shielding appeared around it. "And I've been blocked out...wonderful."
  
  Kitty pouted in anger but Harry smiled, he knew that when there was a will, there was a way, there always was a way. He summoned the full force of his powers to himself, and they crashed in the air. They lit up several of the robots and exploded in a shower of nuts and bolts. They flopped to the ground, nowhere near complete and Harry dropped to the ground, but it was not because of exhaustion, it was fake out. Although why he was faking out robots, he had no idea, because it was not like they knew.
  
  Harry blasted the robots with an attack and the battle raged on.
  
  Deadpool waited for everything to cool down, a smile crossing his face beneath his mask and he decided to pass the time in between fights. Plus the children would get bored pretty soon, they had short attention spans.
  
  "So, one of the great literary classics was called My Immortal," Deadpool narrated when he put on a pair of glasses and read. "It has been said that this has been a masterwork of a devious troll but I say it is the work of a literary genius whose talent cannot be classed by any mortal means. The character of Ebony or is it Enoby, is a complex and deep character, with layers that us mere mortals cannot even begin to comprehend."
  
  Deadpool paused and smiled before he went back into his monologue.
  
  "And with such biting and cutting edge dialogue like, "what the hell are you doing, motherfucker" and "he put his thingy in my you-know-what and we did it for the first time", how could you not be enthralled with such a literary work of genius. GENIUS! GENIUS! SUGAR! But mostly Genius! But also sugar!"
  
  Deadpool paused.
  
  "WILSON!"
  
  Deadpool's head turned around and he winced slightly, for it was time for the boss to show up and if Deadpool knew the boss, he was not going to be too happy. He waited on him to arrive, taking a moment to lean back and sigh. This was not going according to anything that he planned but sure enough, the boss walked in or rather rolled in. Deadpool tried to stand up to be professional or at least as professional as he was going to be.
  
  To describe Mojo, well to describe him in one word, that word would simply be hideous. To describe him in two words "ugly motherfucker" came to mind. He was the color of rancid milk, with yellow eyes and liver spots, along with sharp teeth. He walked around on mechanical legs due to being too fat to walk out of him.
  
  "You aren't delivering me the ratings."
  
  "What do you want me to do?" Deadpool asked when he looked at his boss. "I'm trying to run an entertaining program here and I can't do it with network executives butting it."
  
  Mojo shook his head. "Entertaining, pah-shaw, that's not entertaining, that is not bringing in the coveted two to five demographic. We need more body humor, more puns; we need people dropping their pants."
  
  "Really, you think kids are that stupid?" Deadpool asked when he turned to Mojo.
  
  "We need jokes about the toilet, increased by two hundred percent," Mojo responded when he looked at Deadpool before his face twisted into a grin. "We need humor."
  
  Deadpool decided to enlighten his boss on one simple matter. "You see when we make those jokes, the children are laughing at us and not with us."
  
  "Pah-shaw, you don't know anything about entertainment."
  
  'And Mr. Executive knows what sells?' Deadpool thought when he turned his head around.
  
  "Okay, you want ratings," Deadpool stated when he focused back on the matter at hand. "There's...there's one question."
  
  Mojo invited him to clarify, so Deadpool did.
  
  "Do you want me to do this while I juggle flaming wine glasses while gerbils gnaw on my bits or not?"
  
  "Don't get cute with me, Wilson!"
  
  Deadpool threw his hands up, offering an innocent pose to Mojo before he stated. "Hey, I prefer the term roguishly handsome, really. And hey, there's no need...there's no need to give me the third degree, I'm going, I'll get things done, trust me, you'll see."
  
  "You better, for your sake."
  
  "I thought we were getting plenty of positive reviews," Deadpool answered when he folded his arms and inclined his head. "You know, on the Internet."
  
  Mojo's face twisted into a skeptical expression. "That's a lie, THERE'S NOTHING POSITIVE WRITTEN ON THE INTERNET!"
  
  Spit flew in the general direction of Deadpool wondered what he could have been thinking when he agreed to work with a network television executive. They were a rather pushy lot all things considered, they wanted everything done yesterday and not a second before. He wanted to bang his head against something hard and solid, likely the wall, but that was beside the point. The Merc With the Mouth was about to get serious or at least as serious as he ever got.
  
  The point was that Deadpool needed to keep a closer eye on his new co-stars.
  
  "And remember, Wilson, if the ratings drop under your watch, you'll be the one that will be canceled. Just ask your predecessor."
  
  Said predecessor rested on the floor, smoke coming from his head and Deadpool shuddered, that was a hell of a way to leave an impression, albeit it was not a very good impression. Never the less, Deadpool spun around, he knew what was on the line now, namely his life and since he was quite fond of it, he was not about to lose it.
  
  Back to action, the X-Men were dealing with their enemies, another string of robots. This was one of those good news, bad news situations. On the one hand, they had several moving targets to work with, where they blasted their enemies down.
  
  On the bad news front, the targets were infinite, no matter what their best efforts were, they kept coming.
  
  "The key to getting out of here is the remote control," Harry answered when he looked up and it struck him immediately. "We need to get Deadpool to relinquish the remote!"
  
  Rogue rolled her eyes a little bit and scoffed. "Get...get another guy to relinquish is precious remote control? Are you crazy, that's never going to work?"
  
  "Yeah, for sure, I'm a guy, and even I know that's a crapshoot at best," Bobby stated, when he aimed his hands and launched cold jets of ice. He froze his enemies and once again they shattered to the ground.
  
  Kitty smashed through one of the enemies, with Amara and Rogue helping her. Kurt jumped into the attack, leaving the carnage of broken robot parts in his wake. The fuzzy mutant's eyes snapped up before he turned around and sighed.
  
  "That's...that's the only shot we have."
  
  "That's for sure," Harry agreed when he propelled some flaming daggers from his hand and shot them at his adversaries. He saw a door, locked, likely some kind of area where Deadpool was broadcasting his little messages for them.
  
  It was locked, by mundane means but magic, well magic could do anything and Harry was willing to hammer that fact out. He pushed himself forward, waiting for everyone to move around him. They knew by now what he wanted to accomplish without communicating with him. That was a good thing, they could surround him and block him. His team covered his back, as they should; it was what good team members did. It was what a good team leader accomplished when he molded them into a working unit.
  
  Harry fired an attack and blew the door off of the hinges.
  
  "HEY, YOU'RE NOT ALLOWED BACK HERE, SECURITY!"
  
  Security came, in the form of giant turtles dressed like ninjas, again Harry was going to abstain comment.
  
  "COWABUNGA!"
  
  Harry nailed one of the turtles hard with an attack. It was carrying a pizza but the pizza quickly fell to the ground and out of his grasp.
  
  "I've got your back Harry!"
  
  That was Kitty, she rushed forward, doing a somersault and looking nimble, before she smashed one of the attacks down with both feet. The robotic turtles that did ninjitsu and were likely teenagers and mutants as well, but a catchy name for them escaped Harry at the moment. However, they were taken down handily. Sparks flew from them, when Kitty and Harry rushed their way up the stairs, followed by Kurt, Rogue, Amara, and Bobby.
  
  "Don't let them up here!"
  
  Harry was about tired of this fooling around by Deadpool and he stormed his way up the stairs, it was almost like he was storming the castle. His eyes narrowed, before he decided to ask in the nicest way possible the following question.
  
  "GIVE ME THE REMOTE!"
  
  "NEVER! YOU'LL HAVE TO PRY IT FROM MY COLD DEAD HANDS, BUCKO!"
  
  "WHY ARE WE SHOUTING?"
  
  "IT'S FUN!"
  
  Harry pulled the remote control device from Deadpool's hand with a summoning spell and it landed in his head. Harry caught it and smug satisfaction filled his face.
  
  "I've got it."
  
  "That's cheating."
  
  Harry retorted back. "No that's winning, and so is this."
  
  He blasted Deadpool hard and he blew to pieces, to reveal that he was a robot.
  
  "Oh right, like I'd be anywhere near this situation, with a person who actually kills people that tries to kill them, like I'd be putting myself in a situation where I'd be killed by them. I might be the Merc With the Mouth but I'm also a Merc with a brain. Plus the fanboys would riot if I got killed off, so got to keep myself alive somehow."
  
  Deadpool's face appeared on the video scream, masked, wearing a Speedo and sipping a martini while he was on the beach.
  
  "Yeah, that was fun, you blew up one of my best droids, and you got the magical remote, it's funny what you can find at a garage sale these days, or wherever I found it, I can't keep these things straight in my head," Deadpool responded when he winked at the group who stared back at him with contempt. "Tough crowd, oh boy, that's a tough crowd. All I'm going to say, is Albus Severus Potter...worst threesome ever. Now Lily Luna Potter...that's a threesome made of win."
  
  Harry decided to shake his head, he really had no idea what Deadpool was talking about and neither did his teammates. They were going to assume that he was completely and utterly nuts. All he knew was that he had the remote control in his hands and that was what wins truly were made of. All he had to do was activate it and he would find his way home in a matter of time. He smiled but suddenly a figure appeared before them all.
  
  "Oh no you don't."
  
  Harry turned towards him and Kitty and Kurt looked at him with widened eyes. Rogue spoke for all of them with her next statement, which was said with widened eyes and a disgusted expression on her face.
  
  "WHAT IN THE HELL IS THAT THING?"
  
  Harry paused, blinking, that was a good question, what in the hell was that thing indeed? The young wizard did not know, in fact he kept blinking and staring his adversary down. This abomination had pasty white skin, the color of rancid milk and that was only the tip of the iceberg. He stood before the ground, glaring menacingly when he stared them down. His teeth twisted when he stared down the X-Men and then, much to their horror, he began to speak.
  
  "I'm not going to let my rating's draws get away that easily. You guys, you're a hit, you've actually managed to keep the viewers interested and believe me, given the attention span of some of these people, that's saying a lot. A hell of a lot, if you want to...we're going to keep you together. The lot of you, you're going to be stars, superstars, for as lot as you get the ratings. When you stop getting the ratings, well canceled, you know how that goes."
  
  Kitty raised an eyebrow before she asked the obvious question. "Is this guy for real?"
  
  Harry swallowed and turned a little bit, shivering slightly. "I'm afraid so."
  
  "Look, we just want to go home," Kurt responded when he looked at them. "So could you, get out of the way, and maybe we can all get out of here, remain friends, that would be great, wouldn't it?"
  
  Something told Harry that it was not going to be that easy. The television director laughed when he looked at them, shaking his head before he smirked.
  
  "Leave, leave, no, no, no, nopers, you see, I now own you, each and every one of you..."
  
  Harry pressed a button on the remote control, which muted him. He smiled, before he programmed it to send him off.
  
  "I sent him to a test pattern," Harry answered with a shrug and Kitty asked the obvious question.
  
  "How did you know how to send him to a test pattern?"
  
  "I read the manual when he was going on his speech," Harry answered to the group and Kurt smiled brightly.
  
  "Makes sense to me."
  
  Rogue offered a smile of her own before she turned her head around. "Yeah, makes a lot of sense to me...so since you read that manual, I don't suppose there's a way for you to get us all out of here, before our brain rots for too much television?"
  
  Amara, Bobby, and Kitty all agreed and Harry held the remote control in his hand, before he pointed it and it propelled the entire group outside of the television. A flash of light engulfed them as they rode the waves back to the Xavier Institute. They appeared in a crash, about a half of an hour after they left.
  
  Logan looked at them when they arrived, his eyebrow cocked. "Dare I ask?"
  
  Harry shrugged and smirked before he answered the question. "I don't want to talk about it ever again."
  
  "Me either," Rogue answered when they all nodded in affirmation, today's battle was going to be one of those things where they walked in and did not talk about it, even though it did seem like it was a good idea at the time.
  
  "Let's never speak of this mission ever again," Kurt stated with a shudder.
  
  "Agreed," Harry responded and the group nodded carefully.
  
  Kitty's face twisted into a bright smile before she spoke. "You know, all and all, I think I'll go for a good book, because I've had enough television for one day."
  
  "Yeah, can't argue with that," Bobby answered with Logan raising an eyebrow.
  
  "The ice cube reading voluntarily, must have been something in there if we're able to accomplish that feat."
  
  Harry's face twisted into a smile before he remarked in a calm and casual voice. "You have no idea."
  
  "I'm sure I can imagine something," Logan responded when he folded his arms. Jean walked over, pleased that Harry was okay but they could worry about that later.
  
  "You all did well in there."
  
  "I hope we did," Kitty stated when she smiled and looked at them all.
  
  "Needs work, but will do for now."
  
  From Logan, Harry would take that praise one hundred percent of the way. The young wizard thought about what they needed to do. He had a training session tomorrow and a series of meetings with a bunch of different people. He hoped that the insanity died down enough for him to get all that he needed to get done, done, or there was going to be a problem. Things looked really promising and Harry hoped to keep that up, when his team adapted and improved.
  
  Another day, another session in the Danger Room and it was long and grueling as always. Harry felt that he needed to push the new recruits to their fullest, if there was no pain, there was no gain, or so the saying went. Plus he learned more from falling on his face, then succeeding. Some of these training simulations were destined to make them cope with failure and to adapt from it.
  
  "Take a few minute break whilst I load the next training simulation."
  
  Harry saw Xavier standing before him and he figured this conversation was going to come. Although he did not know that it was going to come this sooner or later. They had been dancing around the subject for weeks now.
  
  "Professor, how may I help you?"
  
  Xavier decided to remain cool, or as cool as he could .Given the situation, Harry suspected that there was some tension in the air. "I heard some rumors that you were considering leaving the Institute come September 1st and I wish to verify if they are accurate or not."
  
  "I am considering all options, but yes, my leaving is a strong possibility," Harry answered diplomatically before he continued in a diplomatic tone of voice. "Allow me to say that I appreciate what the Xavier Institute has given me but I do think that it's time for me to find my own place in the world, that I can build on my own."
  
  He did not want to mention the dreams that he had been having, because he felt that was on a need to know basis. Plus he felt it was his journey to take and his alone. There was something about, something that would tell him where he really was.
  
  Xavier decided to prod for some information but he did not want to sound like was trying to stall Harry's leaving. If he did something like that, he feared that the time table would be accelerated. "Is there anything that I could do to change your mind?"
  
  Harry frowned before he looked at Xavier. "I fear that everything being either you or Magneto is unfair, Professor. What if people had a third option?"
  
  Xavier remained silent; he did not want to enlighten Harry on what the third option was. He knew of the Hellfire Club and its existence. Both Magneto and Xavier agreed that the Club was too powerful although there was no way to put it down. Both had their contacts inside the Club, which would give them information. Right now they were plotting and planning.
  
  "I think that you've done a good job in setting up this school," Harry responded, not mentioning the flaws he found, because if Xavier couldn't see them, then he saw no reason why he should tell him. "Granted, nothing is perfect."
  
  "We would have to agree on that statement," Xavier responded when he watched Harry load up the training simulator. "If this is about your tension with Scott..."
  
  "Trust me, any problem Scott has with me is his problem because I don't have a problem with him," Harry answered when he turned his back on Xavier. "He's got to learn that being a leader is more than being handed that distinction on a silver platter."
  
  "Yes, I believe I may have put too much faith in him, too soon, "Xavier mused, when he thought about this point. "I do hope that your group whatever it is and the X-Men could work together."
  
  "It's not like I'm moving to a different planet," Harry responded carefully when he loaded the training simulator up, getting everything ready to go. It sure felt like he was from one sometimes but that was beside the point. He drew in a deep breath. "We're still going to be in this together, I just hope...well I just hope that everything turns out for the best with humans and mutants."
  
  Xavier could take that statement any way he wanted to, to be honest, Harry left it open to interpretation.
  
  The problem was that there were good mutants and good humans, and bad mutants and bad humans. Harry understood that this would not be all sunshine and roses. He continued to watch the training session, thinking about how far they've come but how far they're yet to go.
  
  He was hoping that Xavier would offer him some incentive to stay, that would make him almost reconsider. Even if his mind was essentially made up.
  
  Yet Harry was offered nothing so he shrugged. He did wonder what this would do for the team but he had to worry about what was best for him. The Xavier Institute allowed him to fine tune his skills and put himself back on his feet. After those skills were fine-tuned, he could move on and move forward with everything in life.
  
  He hoped that he could find out answers about himself, about these dreams that he thought about. And also about curing Sirius, but so far that was one dead end after another. There was something that he could use but it was out of reach. And he sadly came to the conclusion that Sirius might not be the same Sirius, that part could not be denied.
  
  "Multiple, excellent work today, the wrist band I got is working wonders. Of course, there will be a time where you need to learn how to control your duplication without it, as magical trinkets and electronics can make you become lazy."
  
  Multiple nodded, he supposed this made some degree of sense.
  
  "Sunspot, not bad today, although you may want to keep it up with wearing that modified suit of yours."
  
  Sunspot understood, the suit trained him to naturally absorb the sun's rays.
  
  "Boom Boom, targeting is good, although try and offer a bit more speed and finesse."
  
  "Gotcha," Tabitha stated with a smile.
  
  Harry really thought that he had far less notes for these people then before. Although there were rumors that Xavier was going to get another batch of mutants come the fall, there were more blips coming in than ever before. Harry might want to stick around for a little bit to see if there was any talent that he could scout before he moved off into the night.
  
  "You are a very difficult man to get in touch with."
  
  Felicia Hardy, better known as the Black Cat, sat before Harry. She dressed in a black jacket, along with a tight black top that showed her cleavage. She wore blue jeans that slung down low. She faced Harry, who had Jean and Kitty in toe with him. Not that he could not handle himself but it was important that he had a little bit of backup in case someone attacked him, as they were want to do in public.
  
  "Well, see you're quite the lady's man," Felicia responded when she faced the trio of them.
  
  "You must be Felicia," Kitty stated when she looked at the older girl, she looked about nineteen, twenty years old. "I'll look forward to getting to know you better later."
  
  Felicia offered a grin at the implications that statement offered, before she turned around the envelope that she had in her hand and passed it to Harry. "There it is everything that I got, I took my cut but if you don't believe me, you can check it out."
  
  Harry explained to Jean and Kitty that he conjured real jewels which were far more valuable than the fake ones at the museum that Felicia tried to steal. Sure enough, she came through.
  
  "I only steal from people who can afford to take the loss, your Osborns, your Fisks, the Shaws, people like that," Felicia commented when she ran her hands through her hair and smiled. "The people who I wouldn't lose any sleep at night thinking that they lost money and I don't think you would lose that much sleep either."
  
  Harry would have to agree, a few rich people down, it wasn't like some of these names were not doing anything that could be borderline illegal.
  
  "I love to stay longer but...I've got to do the secret identity thing, for my mother's sake at least," Felicia answered when she reached forward and gave Harry a nice kiss on the lips, before she pulled back. "I'm sure we'll be seeing plenty more of each other. Let me know if you need me to get anything else. Or if you want to conjure a few more jewels."
  
  "No it's best to do that sparingly, every few months, although with deals like that, we're not hurting for money," Harry stated when he looked at Jean and Kitty.
  
  Jean decided to state something to Harry, waiting until Felicia departed from the premises to make her move.
  
  "When you leave..."
  
  "Jean, that's not for a while yet," Harry responded when he looked back at her. "Trust me, it's a few months, at most."
  
  Kitty was not buying it for a moment, she knew that Harry had most of everything lined up. "I can't believe that you can't just walk out whenever you please."
  
  Harry agreed, technically speaking he could walk out of the Xavier at any time he pleased, at least of three months ago, but the problem was premises and everything. Also security equipment was going to be something that could be a concern. Harry wanted to have a mixture of magical and mundane security systems, so he did not have to rely on or get screwed over by one or another. He worked with Forge to try and get some ideas together. He also had a few other contacts that he worked with. He also had a contact at NASA.
  
  The Xavier Institute had a state of the art security system but given all of the people who broke in, Harry thought that Xavier should have gotten a second opinion. If nothing else, the security system has been compromised on seventeen separate occasions. That was the kind of record that concerned Harry. It was a good thing that some of the people inside were more competent.
  
  Harry on the other hand, had a lot to do, and the first thing possible was to meet with his lawyer friend to talk about his options regarding Wanda. He wanted to keep his promise to get her out of the Asylum by the end of the summer.
  
  He hoped that when he talked to his lawyer, she'll have a lot of the right answers.
  
  To Be Continued in the Next Chapter "Interactions."
  Interactions
  
  Chapter Forty Two: Interactions.
  
  Harry took a moment to take a few strides towards his destination. The young wizard took a few steps forward to the law offices that he took his trip towards. He hoped that this lawyer would be able to assist him with Wanda. Whilst he managed to make some concessions with getting her out of that place a lot more often, legally there was only so much he could do. Illegally, there was a lot he could do but eliminating the paper trail would be a problem. And if he missed one scrap of paper, that would mean the wrong people looking ofr him.
  
  He sat out in the room outside of the office, before his arms crossed before he tapped his foot on the ground and waited. He heard the music playing in the background, before the door opened and an aide walked out.
  
  "Ms. Walters will see you now," the aide stated in a bright and sunny voice.
  
  Harry smiled, before he walked into the office of his attorney. Her fees seemed rather reasonable, providing of course she could help him. That was the problem, finding an attorney that was worth their salt. He inclined his head, before he closed his eyes and continued to walk forward towards the office, crossing his arms.
  
  "Mr. Potter."
  
  Harry stopped at the desk, with a young woman, maybe not five or six years older than him. She had dark hair and glasses, with a conservative business suit.
  
  "Jennifer Walters," the woman stated in a businesslike tone of voice. She eyed Harry before a thought reached her mind. "I believe you've met my cousin."
  
  Harry raised an eyebrow. "Your cousin?"
  
  Jen smiled before she decided to clue Harry in on the fact. "Big, green, smashes things a lot, you know a guy that you wouldn't like when you were angry."
  
  Harry realized that immediately. "So your cousin is...Banner."
  
  "Yeah, that's a talking point at family gatherings," Jen stated with a smile before she looked at Harry and cleared her throat. "Down to business, I believe we have a few things to discuss about Ms. Maximoff and her future."
  
  Harry decided that was for the best, after all that was the reason why they were here.
  
  "I must admit, Wanda's case is rather intriguing and odd, especially given the circumstances she was sent to the Asylum," Jen answered when she looked at Harry through a pair of narrowed eyes.
  
  Harry waited to see what she found odd about it and his lawyer was not about to let him down.
  
  "She was sent there when she was seven years old, if I'm not mistaken," Jen responded when she looked at Harry and the young wizard responded with a crisp nod. "Yes, and you've included in your claim that the drugs were causing her to lose more control of her powers, not gain them."
  
  "I have words from an expert, no less than the Sorcerer Supreme, that the drugs in her system has caused her to lose all control of his powers," Harry answered, showing the written statement of Strange to his lawyer. "And if you want to talk to him, I'm sure he'll give you more information. She might have been trained up properly by now if they hadn't been drugging her."
  
  Harry paused before he added.
  
  "Thankfully I was able to convince them to stop the dosages but there was still damage that was done."
  
  "So do you think that you can get the Asylum for negligence?" Jen asked and Harry shrugged his shoulders before he dove into a further explanation.
  
  "That's not high on my list of priorities, I wouldn't expect a group of mundanes to understand the type of magic that Wanda has. It's beyond their studies, their capabilities to understand, and they treated her powers like some kind of medical disorder, some sickness. I don't know what her father told them, if anything, if they dropped her off and run."
  
  Jen rubbed her chin in thought before she took a moment to think.
  
  "That could be a concern but the problem is her guardian, Raven Darkholme," Jen stated when she looked at Harry.
  
  Harry nodded; he understood that to be a problem as well.
  
  "A problem I've managed to figure out how to deal with," Harry answered when he threw the papers down on the table. "Here is evidence supporting crimes that she did, so she wouldn't be a fit guardian. Many of them involve murder and blackmail."
  
  Jen looked over the information Harry obtained, with a raised eyebrow and a smile on her face when she flicked over everything. She tapped the book on the side of the table, before she read through the information.
  
  "Also, I'm certain that we could get records of the dosages and how they may have been potentially fatal if Wanda hadn't had her powers," Harry added when he looked at the lawyer.
  
  "As long as you don't do anything too shifty to get them," Jen answered but Harry offered an innocent smile, before he twisted his head around.
  
  "I don't know what you could be implying."
  
  Jen smiled back at them but she read the information, it was hard to believe some of this information but in her line of work, she was not surprising. She dealt with a few weird cases in her short time as a lawyer. "I believe that with this information, we can get the custody of Wanda transferred over you by the end of the summer."
  
  Harry thought that fit into his timetable quite nicely, he was about ready to leave the Xavier Institute, making that announcement officially at the end of August. He had a place lined up where he would be setting up shop, although it was more of an unofficial headquarters for now until he got everything outfitted out. Although that unofficial headquarters would be his base of operations as far as the general public was concerned, he was setting up another base that was more private and exclusive, with a portal in between the two of them that could be only accessed by him and people he keyed it. It needed three elements, blood, a password, and the brainwave patterns of the person keyed in. Magic could do a lot of things. Even with that, Harry felt a bit more security was necessary. There were a million things to do between now and then, and Harry hoped to get everything lined up properly.
  
  As for Wanda, well he got her out of there every weekend, and gave her plenty to do during the week. The doctors in that place left her alone for the most part, which was a good thing, because she had her share of bad memories. Harry saw flashes of the doctors tying her down and injecting various drugs into her system.
  
  That was a horrifying thought but one that Harry would ensure was a thing for the past for her.
  
  "We'll have another meeting next week when I have more information," Jen answered when she looked at Harry.
  
  Harry smiled back at her. "Looking forward to it."
  
  This was going to be one of those days where Harry hoped everything was going to turn out for the best, even though he suspected there was some kind of dark storm cloud hovering over everything.
  
  Adapting to the modern life was a challenge for Captain America but one that he hoped to deal with. Life in the year 2001 was most certainly different from the year of the 1940s. He stood outside of the Danger Room in the Xavier Institute, standing next to Logan, with a smile on his face when he surveyed the group inside.
  
  "It's weird how the world has changed," Steve stated when he looked at Logan.
  
  Logan's eyes narrowed and a grin cracked over his face. "I've lived every year since the 1940s and before, and I still find it weird, so you're in good company, Cap."
  
  Logan's eyes snapped towards the Danger Room when he watched the New Mutants. He had to give Harry credit, he really made something out of these kids. They weren't the best in the world but there were far worse people in there and far worse people who could train them.
  
  "Not too bad," Steve responded when he watched them. "Some of them...well a couple of them tend to take their eye off the ball. But you'd get that on any team."
  
  "Yeah, the ice cube," Logan grunted, knowing who his old friend was talking about, when he turned around and watched everything.
  
  "So where is the leader?"
  
  "Depends on what one you're talking about," Logan answered, sure Summers was there, hanging in the background but he had a sinking feeling that wasn't who Captain America was talking about.
  
  "Arcane, young Mr. Potter, I don't think I have had a chance to properly talk to him when we're not getting killed," Steve stated and Logan turned before he nodded.
  
  "Well, Potter's always busy with something, doing something," Logan stated before he mentally added "or someone", before he cleared his mind and turned his head a little bit. "He'll be around. So are the Avengers getting off the ground?"
  
  Captain America mulled this over in his mind. "We're...well a team isn't built in a day and we've had our share of growing pains."
  
  "You don't say," Logan answered when he stopped and stared.
  
  "That's for sure."
  
  Harry turned up, looking rather tense but pleased all things considered.
  
  "I figured you'd be showing up sometime soon," Logan commented without taking his eyes off of the action.
  
  "It's good to see you again," Captain America agreed when he turned towards Harry.
  
  "You as well," Harry said when he shook hands with the Spirit of America.
  
  Harry did not say anything this entire time but actually he had been standing there the entire time during most of the training session. All he missed was the first couple minutes at the beginning, he crossed his arms when he closed his eyes and thought about everything. There were many things that they were doing right, more right.
  
  He turned and could tell that Captain America made his share of notes in the back of his head, the team could benefit from the experience of someone like Captain America. He had been through many battles and many wars. The man's eyes looked forward and Harry offered a look towards him. He did not want to seem like that he was fishing for input but still to have the input of someone like this old soldier would allow Harry to see what still needed to be done. While he had a good amount of ideas what to do, there were instances where he thought he had a blind spot or two.
  
  Fortunately, Captain America was all too ready to tell him what was going to happen.
  
  "They aren't doing too bad," Captain America admitted when he turned towards Harry. "The best thing is that you've got them to a point where they can function on their own without too many problems. There will be circumstances where you won't always be around to lead them. The strength of a team leader is not how well he leads them when he or she is there, but rather how well the team functions when the leader is absent."
  
  Were they going through their growing pains, yes they were? Harry knew that, Logan knew that, Cap knew that, and every single member of the team who was on the senior squad and many of the new recruits knew that.
  
  It was all about practice, all about making sure that they got the most out of everything.
  
  "And that's a wrap," Logan stated when the new recruits staggered out. "A new record, none of you passed out, well done."
  
  Harry cracked a slight smile in amusement. Some of them looked sick, with Jubilee and Sunspot being the two key offenders.
  
  "Great, wonderful," Jubilee stated, when she hung onto the wall and panted heavily.
  
  "No sweat," Boom Boom remarked but she got a few looks from her teammates that insisted that this was the wrong thing today. "Okay, maybe a little bit of sweat."
  
  "Nah, we nailed it pretty good, didn't we?" Iceman asked when he looked at them with a smug expression, but in reality his knees barely were able to hold his weight.
  
  "You'll get my notes later, as always and I'm sure Logan will have a few words for you all," Harry stated and Logan nodded.
  
  "Not bad but you need a bit more focus in there and you need to quit tripping over each other," Logan stated.
  
  "It only happened once..."
  
  "Once is what kills ya."
  
  No one could argue with that statement from Logan but Steve took a moment to chuckle, Logan never changed. Some might say that the years mellowed people out but with Logan, the inverse was true. The years did not mellow him out at all, they made him more grizzled.
  
  "Now, you have potential," Steve stated when he looked at them all and they listened to him, their ears wide open and with wide eyes. "Out on the battlefield, it's good to listen to your leader but there can be a problem. There are times where the leader does not have the right answers or even if he is indisposed. If you wish to go against orders, you got to justify it and improvise."
  
  Iceman decided to be the one to ask the question. "When do we know?"
  
  "Trust me, you'll know," Captain America responded but he then paused and amended. "You need to creatively engaging your surroundings. There will be times where there will be nothing around you but the clothes on your back or so it seems. Anything can be used as a tactical advantage; you need to master everything around you."
  
  The new recruits nodded in rapt attention, not blinking, but rather they soaked in all of the knowledge from Captain America. It was them sitting underneath the learning tree and absorbing all of the morsels of information that he offered them.
  
  Harry smiled, he would like to pick Captain America's brain himself but that was going to have to be at another time. He returned to make his observations but he had other things on his mind.
  
  "Amazing, simply amazing...I know I've said that before, but that's amazing."
  
  Gwen continued to pour over the Sinister data, although there was a lot of it that remained a mystery. It was very extensive all things considered.
  
  "Well, he's dedicated to his work," Harry remarked with a smile when he sat down next to Gwen in her room, in the second chair beside her computer. "The last data he got was of Rachel and Jean, before we pulled the plug."
  
  Gwen decided to voice something she had been thinking. "He's got to have more backups, more data, lying around somewhere. This can't be the extent of the data he's collected, someone that's been around that long..."
  
  Harry agreed, Sinister would have to have more, much more, a lot more in fact. He collected a lot over the centuries that he had been on Earth. His eyes closed when he thought about everything that he went through in order to get this much data.
  
  "Well we know what's on the line, I think," Gwen responded when she worked through the data before her, clicking through one line after another. "And that's...look at Rachel's DNA."
  
  Harry decided to look at it, granted he was not the most adapt in understanding science, although he did hold his own more often than not. Still he did wonder what he was supposed to be looking at. Was Gwen going to clue him in on that fact or not?
  
  "See these DNA strands, they're unique, she's...I don't know where she came from," Gwen answered when she closed her eyes and mulled over the possibilities. "I think that wherever she came from, she's been experimented on, no human DNA is quite like this, at least none that I've seen. She matches up pretty well with Jean."
  
  Harry smiled; Gwen really had no idea how well she matched up with her. Although looking at the DNA strands, things tended to get curious and curiouser the more he read everything. He blinked when he looked at everything and thought about the enigma that was Rachel Grey. He found that her DNA was unique.
  
  Rachel's DNA seemed to be a pretty good match to Jean, although Harry saw under trace DNA elements in her strands. His eyes widened when he saw what was there but said nothing.
  
  It was too weird to be a coincidence, but he then figured that he should not believe in coincidences. Especially after everything that happened, all of the weird things that he went through during his life. Of course, he could be misreading things, science was not his thing.
  
  Gwen answered her cell phone when it rang. "Hey...yeah Peter. Your aunt finally decided that there was no excuse and set you up on that date. Well...that's great, yeah I'm here hanging out with a friend, so what if it's Harry, what's that to you? Yeah...well good look with Mary Jane, hopefully her personality is as wonderful as Aunt May says it is. I'm sure you'll have a great time. Don't get into trouble...yeah things have been very quiet on the super hero front. Talk to you later, bye."
  
  Gwen hung up the phone.
  
  "Pete's just being what Pete is," Gwen offered with a shrug, he carried the guilt of his uncle's murder with him for longer than anyone should. "So let's get back down to business, I think we've got everything, unless there are some hidden files."
  
  Gwen and Harry spent a few more moments looking over everything. Harry spotted Gwen bending over slightly, showing a little bit of her cleavage in the tight black top that she wore. Whether she was doing that intentionally or not, Harry had no idea but it sure got his attention. Harry looked at Gwen and the attire that she was wearing.
  
  She wore a short black tank top that showed her slender shoulders and cleavage. She had a nice chest as well, as the top was strained against it. His eyes traveled down to the sexy belly button that she had, along with the tight jean shorts that stretched around her legs.
  
  Gwen wondered if she got Harry's attention, she wore a short top and tight jean shorts today for the explicit purpose of getting Harry's attention after all. She decided that it was time to move on and when he mentioned his powers, her scientific curiosity was indulged.
  
  Harry thought that his attention was grabbed quite nicely, although it was a shame that he had a few things that he had to do.
  
  "This took a lot longer than I thought it would," Gwen remarked in a tense and tired voice, before she spun around and stretched a little bit, to cause her shirt to ride up and show more skin. "The two of us, we should get together sometime...without going through a madman's data and figuring out what's on it."
  
  "How about Saturday?" Harry asked her, feeling that it would be the best time.
  
  "It's a date," Gwen offered with a smile, knowing that she was finally going to make certain dreams she had over the past few weeks become a reality. She thought of all of the things that Harry could do with her and she talked with Kitty about it. Whilst Kitty was too explicit, there was something about the brunette's words that build up a certain amount of anticipation in Gwen's mind.
  
  She could hardly wait and she could tell that Harry could not either. If she did not know that he had some plans he had to get to soon, she would have jumped him now but good things came to those who waited.
  
  Gwen needed a shower at the thoughts she had.
  
  Kitty thought one of the joys in life that many took for granted was a nice and quiet peaceful evening, hanging out with friends, without anyone killing them. Okay, maybe some people would not even think of the anyone killing them part. However, the near death experiences were something that was completely with the territory of being an X-Men. It offered an amount of excitement and danger that Kitty could hardly believe. But yet despite all that, she would not have things any other way.
  
  Currently, she sat, with her head on Harry's shoulder, his arm wrapped around her. Rogue sat on the other side, with Jean and Rachel near them. Amara sat there as well, and Wanda, here for her weekend visit, sat there. Despite not being a member of the group, at least officially, she was always welcomed.
  
  Wanda thought about the strange last few weeks she had been having, to be honest, she was glad that things improved at the Asylum, even though it was only a slight bit.
  
  "Thank you for having me over and being a part of this," Wanda stated, she was far calmer than she was. Providing that her father and brother were not brought up in any form of the conversation, that was still a sticking point that she had to work on with her temper.
  
  That was something that Harry obliged her with. Pietro and the other members of the Brotherhood were locked up by SHIELD for their actions. Fury made a comment that he would make something out of them although Harry had no idea what that meant.
  
  "Wanda, it isn't a problem at all," Kitty offered, speaking for Harry. "You've had a rough life and soon Harry will get you out."
  
  Wanda hoped so but she could not help but think that everything was not going to be that easy. She feared that her father and Mystique would make things harder than they needed to be with getting her out of that place. Mystique more so.
  
  Rogue frowned, she knew Mystique had custody of Wanda, legally, although not for long. She could attest to how Mystique messed with a person's mind but Mystique was pretty messed up herself. "We're going..."
  
  "Yeah we're going to figure out everything," Rachel stated and Rogue offered her a frown.
  
  "I hate it when you read my mind like that," Rogue stated, offering a bit of a pout, which looked ucharacteristic on her.
  
  Rachel offered a shifty smile before she looked back at Rogue. "Sorry."
  
  "No problem," Rogue offered but Harry thought about everything.
  
  His powers were stronger but he held them back. Actually the reason he held them back was quite simple, he did not want the full scope of his powers to somehow get back to an extremely powerful enemy. Harry sensed that there was something dangerous in the offing and he would need that trump card.
  
  Then the dreams, those dreams, he could not really piece them together, although a field featured in them prominently once again. And there was a ritual that he underwent when he was younger, blood was involved.
  
  A whisper from Lily indicated that he was her miracle child.
  
  He shook his head, these dreams got more weird but he was not about to share them. The last thing he wanted was his sanity questioned.
  
  "Harry?" Kitty asked and Harry turned around towards her.
  
  "I'm fine, really I am," Harry offered to Kitty and she frowned. "Just thinking about everything that's happened lately."
  
  "A lot's been happening since you've been here," Jean offered when she looked at Harry and he could not resist asking the question that hung in the air between them all like a bad stench.
  
  "Have you talked to Scott since we got together?"
  
  Jean decided to offer an honest answer. "As friends, not really, as teammates, we spoke a few times yes. Scott needs to understand that everything is not going to go his way."
  
  That was a harsh statement perhaps one might say but it was an accurate one.
  
  "He had his hopes set on us but..." Jean offered but her voice trailed off. She was too polite to say anything negative.
  
  Rachel on the other hand, had no such tact. "He's a bit of a dick and he'll only get worse."
  
  Jean frowned but Kitty, Rogue, Amara, and even Wanda broke out into laughter. "I'm not sure if I would put it quite that way but..."
  
  "You can't deny that it's true," Rachel offered when she looked at Harry.
  
  Harry smiled back at her, choosing his next words rather carefully. He tried to keep the team together because he had this funny feeling that the X-Men would crumble apart when he left. Yet he would not be a slave to staying around out of obligation. He wanted Scott to stand up for something but he had a feeling that he was more of a figurehead for Xavier than anything. He hated to admit that but it was the truth.
  
  "Scott will be what Scott is."
  
  "A dick?" Rachel asked but Wanda looked at her, a smile crossing her face. She smiled a lot more around Harry.
  
  "And Harry lets you to kiss him with that mouth."
  
  Rachel offered a saucy grin before she turned to Wanda. "Harry allows me to do many things with this mouth, thank you very much."
  
  "Okay, need not know any more," Wanda answered with Kitty shaking her head in amusement.
  
  "It is nice, getting together without having someone try and kill us," Kitty answered when she looked at them all.
  
  Harry heard foosteps and Scott approached them, he dragged his feet nervously from behind him. Jean decided to be cool about his presence at first. It was obvious that there was some kind of unspoken agreement.
  
  "Harry, can I speak to you for one moment?" Scott asked but Kitty and Rogue got up, sensing there was some trouble.
  
  "It's alright, Scott couldn't do anything against me," Harry offered, with Scott wondering if that was a statement of trust or a slight jab at his lack of abilities. Or perhaps some combination of both tied together.
  
  Harry and Scott walked off with the two of them staring each other down. Harry paused and invited him to speak and speak was what he did.
  
  "You won."
  
  That was a strong declaration, not to mention extremely bold and brash. Harry wondered what he won about and his eyebrow raised. He took a moment to look at Scott, towering over him a little bit. Or perhaps it was because Scott slumped over in a defeated posture, it was kind of hard to tell really.
  
  "With Jean..."
  
  "Please do not imply that Jean was some trophy to be won in a contest," Harry answered, not liking his tone but Scott shook his head, he decided to try a different track.
  
  "No, no, of course not," Scott answered, backtracking quickly. "It's just that...that with my leadership skills not the best, I figure that it's the best that I focus on that and not about any relationship drama. I don't know how you can handle that."
  
  Harry offered a swift declaration. "If you have to ask, you'll never know."
  
  Scott figured that statement was going to come out of Harry's mouth. "So do you..."
  
  "Scott, it's healthier for all if you drop this and just do whatever you need to do to get your head on straight," Harry answered when he looked at Scott. "Trust me, if you don't have your head out there in battle, you'll get it blown off."
  
  One could consider that statement to be mean but it was apt.
  
  "Right and..."
  
  Scott had nothing else left to say and Harry for sure did not have anything left to say to him.
  
  "See you in training, I guess," Scott offered but he turned around. He did wonder if Jean would be following Harry out the door. Perhaps she could stay because of her loyalty to Xavier and this relationship she had with Harry was some kind of parting fling. He could reassess this situation later.
  
  Scott would have to wait and see.
  
  "So what was that all about?" Jean asked when Harry returned.
  
  "Scott decided to concede defeat," Harry stated when he sat down and explained it to them.
  
  "Like he had any chance," Kitty murmured underneath her breath. She hoped that Scott would pull his head out of his ass and soon because he was being a liability for their team.
  
  Even though the Red Skull was taken down, there were a few pockets of HYDRA that were still around. Black Widow, as she always was, vowed to put them on the endangered species list. She slid forward a little bit, pulling out a communicator device.
  
  "I'm at one of the final HYDRA bases on this list that we got from Sin," Natasha remarked when she saw them scurrying around like ants outside. "The game is afoot."
  
  "Keep us posted, Widow, Hawkeye is on his way," Fury responded through the communication link.
  
  "Understood," Black Widow stated with a small inclination of her head and a smile on her face.
  
  "I might not be Hawkeye, but I'm sure I can give you a hand or two."
  
  Natasha jumped a little bit when she saw Harry show up, dressed in a black overcoat, with a white t-shirt and blue jeans. His face was obscured to any that he did not trust, it was a handy bit of charm work and it also offered a slight distortion of his voice. He knocked down several of the scurrying HYDRA agents and summoned their weapons.
  
  "I wondered when you would show up," Natasha stated when she closed her eyes and flipped into the air.
  
  "I'm sure you did," Harry offered when he rolled his shoulders and blew a blue light towards the pods. "HYDRA, they won't die."
  
  "Thankfully Sin is willing to part with information, in exchange for a suspended sentence," Black Widow responded when she turned around.
  
  "The Brotherhood are still under lock and key?" Harry asked and Black Widow nodded in affirmation.
  
  "Commander Fury believes that they can be of some use but they need to cool their heels for a while," Black Widow stated when she shocked one of the enemies. "A good work out, isn't it?"
  
  "I'm sure we can have a better work out after this mission," Harry offered and Natasha smirked back to him.
  
  "I'm sure, but I have taken out more pods than you have," she fired back.
  
  Harry was not going to let that one go without a fight. "That remains to be seen."
  
  Natasha grinned, her competitive fire not extinguished by any means, when she knocked through the pods that she had to face. They blew up and Hawkeye popped up, followed by Mockingbird.
  
  "Sorry we're late," Hawkeye stated when he looked over his shoulder.
  
  "You just got here in time for clean up, something you have experience in," Harry answered without skipping a beat and blasting the pods. Hawkeye gave an exasperated look while Mockingbird snickered by his side. "I think that's another HYDRA base that's down."
  
  "That's the last one, but knowing HYDRA, there will be more," Black Widow stated when she remembered what Sin mentioned. HYDRA was working on replicating powerful strains of DNA, although this base was something that the Red Skull did not tell his daughter about.
  
  "Let's clean up, I guess," Hawkeye stated, he barely was able to fire one arrow but hey, it was another HYDRA base destroyed that they would not be able to use.
  
  "Erik, I do think that now comes a time where we should stand together so we could not drift apart."
  
  Xavier sat across with Magneto at a park, in a neutral territory, both men placing chess when they stared each other down.
  
  "Do any of your students know that you are meeting with me, Charles?" Magneto asked his counterpart across from them. He added another statement. "For that matter, does your staff?"
  
  "No this meeting is strictly known by you and I, I don't know how you escaped the SHIELD prison," Xavier responded but Magneto responded by staring down Xavier through narrowed eyes.
  
  "That's something that I will never tell."
  
  Xavier nodded in response. "Very well then...my students have come across the mutant known as Mesmero, stealing three discs and he got the key."
  
  "If he got the key, that means we are one step closer to the apocalypse that Adler foretold," Magneto responded, not mincing his words for a second.
  
  "Yes, I will not deny that we are in a situation where we will need to work together," Xavier responded when he looked at Magneto.
  
  "Or all of mutant kind needs a strong leader, which needs to do what is best for us all," Magneto responded, implying that he thought that Xavier's recent leadership skills left something to be desired.
  
  Xavier thought about it, oh boy did he think about it, and he feared that there was going to come a time where they were going to stand together or they would fail. The X-Men, as much as they were trained, were not quite ready to fight what was to come. The dangerous force before them was something that Xavier barely fathomed in his mind.
  
  "Are you ready to make the ultimate decision?" Magneto asked Xavier and there was a pause.
  
  Xavier could not answer that question straight away; the ultimate decision was one that he hoped that he would not have to make ever. There came a time where he thought about everything and realized that time was running out to do the right thing. In fact, one could argue that the right thing might not even be the right thing any longer.
  
  "I do not know, ask me again when the time comes."
  
  "When the time comes, it may be too late."
  
  Xavier paused and looked on with a grimace. "I certainly hope not but I fear you may be right."
  
  There was no more than what needed to be said at that statement as the friendly chess game continued.
  
  To Be Continued in the Next Chapter "Fate of an Angel."
  Fate of an Angel
  
  Chapter Forty Three "Fate of an Angel."
  
  The sun shined over New York City, it was a bright day in the middle of June. It was not too hot, not too cold, the temperature was right. It was a good day for a nice outing in the city, an outing with friends. A day to get out of the indoors and into the outdoors, that was the type of day that this one was. It was hard to say that it was a perfect day because that was a term that was thrown around a bit too much but the day was in fact pretty good.
  
  At least that's what Harry Potter thought when he walked outside in the bright sun in New York City, alongside his good friend Gwen Stacy and his girlfriend, Kitty Pryde. The trio of them decided to make a day out of hanging out in the city.
  
  "It's good to get out of the Mansion and get some peace and quiet after everything that's happened," Kitty stated when she closed her eyes and got in a good whiff of the summer breeze. It really ensnared the mind and caused her heart to beat faster.
  
  Gwen smiled when she thought about it. "Yeah I couldn't agree more. This has been a hectic last couple of weeks. We've got through most of Sinister's data but there's so much of it missing."
  
  "Well I don't think he strikes me as an all of his eggs in one basket kind of guy," Harry remarked with a shrug, but much to his disappointment, there was nothing on that drive to help him with Sirius's condition.
  
  The good news is that Sirius had not worsened any from when Harry last left him. That was pretty promising all things considered. The bad thing was that he sure was not getting any better that was the thing that drove Harry the most nuts of all. He stood on the ground deep in contemplation, carefully figuring out what he had to do and where he had to go from this point forward.
  
  "Our mysterious angel saved another person."
  
  Kitty and Harry exchanged a tense look, they heard about the mysterious angel a few times in the past, although they brushed it off to some kind of urban legend. Xavier knew more about it than he was letting on but then again, they could say that about a lot of things about Xavier. There was something about an authority figure and his desire to keep important information that Harry could not deny.
  
  "So what do you think about the angel?" Gwen asked them both, trying to gauge their reaction and Harry and Kitty took a moment to think it before, before it was Kitty who responded.
  
  "I don't know, it could be anyone or anything," Kitty stated when she shrugged her shoulders. "He's been around for months and months but I think now people are going to stop and take notice. Maybe he's a mutant that would get us some good pub."
  
  Harry hoped so but he doubted that he was the only one who made the connection to the fact that their angel was a mutant. He kept himself standing tall for a moment, hoping to find out more about this but this was not the top priority. If this angel did not want to reveal himself to the public, then it was his business and the magical mutant felt like it would be prudent for them to respect those wishes.
  
  "He could be some kind of government experiment that escaped," Gwen commented with a shrug. "Or he could be some kind of alien."
  
  Harry scoffed, that was kind of absurd, being an alien, but he shook his head to clear those thoughts. Given the weird nature of his dreams, perhaps Harry could be considered a bit more premature. He got another weird flicker about a planet exploding but that was absurd. Planets didn't explode, after all.
  
  "There are some people who say that he's a modern day miracle, some kind of heavenly gift, hence the moniker of Angel," Harry responded but he looked to be very skeptical of this notion. He tended to nod politely when people talked about religion, any religion. It was a long story why he was rather skeptical about the entire business. It had to involve the Dursleys and that was all the people needed to know.
  
  Harry heard a scream that caused his ears to perk up and he saw a child who was dangling from the edge of the bridge. He had been fooling around like children tended to do and lost his balance, about to plummet to his doom.
  
  "We better..." Kitty started before she trailed off and turned around, her eyes widening when she watched the white blur in the air. "Or not."
  
  For the angel arrived, swooping in from high in the air and scooped up the child. It was hard to see him in the glint of the sun and by the time the child was in safety, he was gone.
  
  "Wow," Gwen stated trying to get a closer look. "He moves pretty fast, his wings must have a heavy level of resistance that can propel him faster than almost anyone on Earth."
  
  "Yeah, something like that," Harry agreed, before he looked at the two girls and made a decision of what he wanted to do. "I'll be taking a closer look."
  
  "Okay, I figured as much," Kitty answered when Harry gave her a hug and a kiss and he hugged Gwen as well.
  
  "No kiss for me?" Gwen asked in a teasing manner, and Harry smiled when he grabbed her and tilted her back, before kissing her on the lips. Gwen's eyes widened before Harry flew off.
  
  Kitty laughed in hysterics with the shocked look in Gwen's face.
  
  "You should have seen the look on your face," Kitty answered when she turned around to hide her amusement.
  
  "I was only kidding...well kind of," Gwen answered with a shrug when she looked at Kitty.
  
  "Look, you can do far worse than Harry," Kitty answered when she smiled. "And that would mean that you have the same good taste that I do and I don't mean to brag, but my taste is pretty good."
  
  Gwen smirked. "Well I'm sure you have a pretty high opinion of yourself."
  
  Kitty threw her hands on a little bit and sighed, rolling her eyes. "You know what I mean Gwen."
  
  "Yeah, I know what you mean," Kitty agreed when she turned her head a little bit and smiled towards Gwen before the two walked. "Hey isn't that Peter?"
  
  Gwen sized up and saw her best friend walking towards them with a hot redhead wearing a black jacket, a purple top, and blue jeans. She had flowing red hair and green eyes, and paused.
  
  'Oh boy, this could get kind of awkward,' Gwen thought when she looked at the two of them laughing and carrying on.
  
  Peter stopped when he stood beside his blind date, Mary Jane Watson, and saw Gwen.
  
  'Oh boy this could get kind of awkward,' Peter thought to himself but he stood up straight and tried to play it cool.
  
  "Hey, Gwen, fancy meeting you here," Peter stated when he turned to Mary Jane. "This is Mary Jane Watson."
  
  "Oh, the one with the wonderful personality," Gwen stated in a polite voice when she looked at her and extended her hand with a bright smile on her face. "It's finally nice to meet you in person."
  
  "Nice to meet you too," Mary Jane stated in a tentative voice, she heard Peter talk about Gwen but meeting her, that was an entirely different thing. When your date had a female friend and one that attractive, it caused one to be on the edge. "So you and Peter are friends?"
  
  "We've been friends for a very long time," Gwen stated when she looked at Peter and Mary Jane.
  
  "Right, almost like brother and sister," Peter answered when he looked at Gwen.
  
  'Yeah, that was worse than being friendship zoned,' Gwen thought to herself but she remained bright and cheerful. 'Look on the bright side Gwen, you got ship wrecked, but you washed up in paradise if this Harry thing lines up right.'
  
  Kitty sensed the awkwardness meter hitting about a twenty, so she decided to chime in with a cheerful statement of her own. "Hey, Mary Jane, I'm Kitty Pryde."
  
  "Oh, please to meet you," Mary Jane answered, she could have sworn that she saw this girl somewhere before but could not place her.
  
  Mary Jane thought that this blind date business was rather fun, even if she did it to keep her aunt from harping on her. She had a series of bad relationships over the past couple of years. The bad boy might seem charming until one really got a look at them and what a relationship with them really entailed. Of course, what was life without a little bit of danger? Or at least any danger that would allow her to walk forward.
  
  "Are you alright Gwen?" Peter asked when he looked at his friend.
  
  "Pete, I'm doing fine, I've spent all day hanging out with Kitty and Harry," Gwen stated, offering a special emphasis on Harry when she spoke.
  
  Peter nodded, he only went through with this blind date business to get Aunt May off of his back about the entire thing. It was hard to explain to someone who did not know any better than the Spider-Man thing made dating anyone a bad idea. In fact, Peter wondered if he was going to be stuck in a permanent relationship with the web head and for some reason, he felt that it was a rather stormy one at best.
  
  At least Mary Jane was easy on the eyes and was rather fun loving.
  
  "Did you see that angel around here?" Mary Jane asked, trying to break the ice.
  
  "Yeah, he's a real hero," Gwen answered when she looked at Mary Jane and Peter. "Nothing like Spider-Man."
  
  Peter could not resist. "I don't know, Spider-Man's a bit overrated."
  
  "Nah, he's fine, he's more of a work in progress," Mary Jane stated, trying to gauge Peter's reaction but he remained stoic and said nothing more.
  
  Gwen smiled knowingly as the group of four walked, waiting for Harry to get back.
  
  'Now if I was a bird man where would I be?' Harry thought to himself, when he flied in the air, using an invisibility spell to keep people from seeing him. 'This entire angel business yeah it's...'
  
  "BURN THE ANGEL!"
  
  "HE'S NOTHING BUT A FILTHY MUTIE!"
  
  "HUMANS FOREVER, MUTANTS NEVER!"
  
  'Oh boy, that can't be good,' Harry thought to himself when he hovered in the air and he inclined his head watching the group of protestors move forward. 'The Friends of Humanity, well heard of them, but never actually saw them in action. They are quite the vocal lot, aren't they?'
  
  Harry hovered in for a closer look, as the Friends of Humanity marched around. There was a group of eight of them but they were eight of the most obnoxious people that Harry ever had the misfortune of meeting and believe him, Harry had the misfortune of meeting many obnoxious people. He turned his head, twisting it around.
  
  "Get him out of town, he's no good!"
  
  There was an explosion when a car started to spiral out of control. Someone suffered a blow out and they were careening towards the wall. Harry waited and wondered if he should interfere but a swooping in the air indicated that there was no need for him to interfere.
  
  The angel swooped in from the air, gripping onto the side of the runaway car and Harry watched, eyes narrowed, to say he was impressed would be the understatement of the century. He was extremely impressed and he watched the flying figure put his hands on the car to try and steady it.
  
  The door opened but he got a stun gun in the ribs for his trouble.
  
  "We've got him, we've got the mutie!" the man in the car stated and Harry realized that this was a diversion for the Friends of Humanity to attack and get themselves some of this mutant.
  
  Angel got to his feet, struggling, with his knees knuckling together. When he was on the ground, he felt awkward and bumbling as the next person. These men shackled huge cinderblocks around his ankles while they circled around him, one of them carrying an axe in his hand.
  
  "Hey, let's clip the angel's wings!"
  
  They never had a chance for two bolts of light shot out of the air and impacted them across the back of the head. The other members spun around but a bright light blinded them. There was a loud smack, a loud crack, and a loud thump, in that order, when Harry zoomed around, taking them out. The shattering of many bones could be heard. A humane death would be something that they might beg for and the men rolled over, panting and grimacing from the impact of the shots.
  
  Harry turned up, raising an eyebrow, before he cut the chains, holding this Angel down. He pushed himself up and Harry took the last idiot standing, before the wizard levitated him above the ground and draped him high above the waters over the side of a bridge.
  
  "Let go of me, you can't do this to me!" he yelled, dangling over the side of the bridge.
  
  "Who were you working for?" Harry asked when he appeared but only as a shapeless shadow with glowing red eyes that caused many to back away in fear.
  
  "What are you some kind of freak?" the man stammered but he hoped that warm fluid rolling down his leg was sweat.
  
  "I'm losing my patience with you," Harry stated, using another magical spell to make his voice echo creepily and his eyes glow. He thought he looked intimidating.
  
  "Alright, alright, let me go," the man stammered and Harry caused the threads on his shirt to slowly tear aware when he was suspended in the air. "I work for someone, Creed, his name is Creed, he runs this entire thing. I joined this...I don't...I don't have a problem with mutants, not really."
  
  The man screamed when he was thrown onto the bridge and he landed on the pavement with a force that broke his nose.
  
  Angel hovered in the air and Harry joined him.
  
  "The angel and the demon, who knew that could be a combination that would happen?" Angel stated in a calm voice, breaking the silence.
  
  "Not a demon, merely a parlor trick to make people talk," Harry stated when the shadow retracted, with Harry hovering before him in a white jacket, a black top, and black jeans, but his face was still a blur. "My name is Arcane."
  
  "Arcane, fitting," Angle muttered before he spoke up out loud. "I've trust you heard what's happened in the papers."
  
  "Yeah, I've read about it, what are you?" Harry asked when he looked at Angel.
  
  Angle paused before he tried to figure that out.
  
  "Well if you listen to them or my father, I would be considered an abomination. My wings were grown when I was young. At first I freaked out, what seven year old wouldn't if he had a pair of wings on his back? My father tried to hide my abnormality but I embraced it over time. He's been obsessed with curing mutants ever since. You're not public yet but he knows about you, he even went to Charles Xavier. You know him?"
  
  "Yes, I'm a student at his school," Harry confirmed and Angel inclined his head with a slight nod.
  
  "I was part of his first team of X-Men, the original X-Men, the team that all of the members but me, Storm, and Logan died," Angel stated when he looked at them.
  
  Harry frowned, he was under the impression that Jean and Scott were the members original members of the team, along with Storm and Logan.
  
  "There was Wolverine, there was Storm, Angel, Morph, Vulcan, Darwin, Thunderbird, and Sunfire," Angel remembered when he looked at them. "And a couple of others, but we didn't fair too well against Sinister and his Marauders."
  
  "They all died," Harry answered when he blinked.
  
  "All of us except myself, Storm, and Wolverine, those two stayed on with Xavier, I didn't," Angel remarked before he added as an afterthought. "And there was also one more, Magneto."
  
  "Magneto was an X-Men?" Harry asked when he looked at Angel in surprise.
  
  "And so was Mystique, but they left out of blame when Xavier let the team die, Magneto felt they should have struck harder against Sinister," Angel explained to Arcane, and the young magical mutant stated in a calm voice. "Asking Mystique about her time as an X-Men would get some violent reactions I'd imagine. Magneto prefers not to mention it either."
  
  Harry could only imagine but he did not say much more of anything.
  
  He could also tell one thing, the Friends of Humanity would not be taking this one lying down, even if most of these guys that Harry took out would have to lie down for some form of medical attention. He could not resist smiling about that.
  
  The Friends of Humanity were not about to take what happened lying down. Creed was on the phone.
  
  "I don't care if there's some kind of spooky shadow mutie creeping around, I want you to take that angel and clip his wings," Creed stated when he cracked his knuckles. "People might start to think that there some kind of symbol they can get behind and we don't want these mutants to think that they are any better than humans. We want to prove...we want to prove that no mutant can push us around, no matter what."
  
  The Friends of Humanity prepared for the battle, even though there was a chance that they might not come back from this one. Still regardless of that one, they watched and crowded around.
  
  Not too far from where they stood, Gwen, Kitty, Mary Jane, and Peter stood around, waiting for Harry to return.
  
  "I'm sure he'll be back in a little bit," Mary Jane responded in an optimistic voice.
  
  "Providing he hasn't run into trouble," Gwen responded when she watched.
  
  "What kind of trouble can he get into?" Peter asked but he was silenced from a look from Gwen. "Right New York, city that never sleeps, including the crime, all sorts."
  
  Mary Jane knew that Peter knew all about this but he did not know what she knew at all, which was something that she wanted to keep under wraps carefully for the time being. She tapped her fingers, drumming them patiently, and carefully waiting for Peter to make his next move.
  
  "So, is there anything to eat nearby?" Mary Jane asked when she looked at Gwen. "I mean, I was here when I was young but I've been in Philly for most of the past eight years until a few months ago, so..."
  
  There was an explosion and Peter got that look in his eyes. Gwen understood, it was time for her to run interference.
  
  "Come on, I'll show you something...Peter your aunt called me earlier when she missed you, she wanted you to pick up her slacks," Gwen responded when she pointed her eyes.
  
  "I'll go with him," Kitty answered, before she turned her wrist band and her costume appeared on her, along with a charm that obscured her face. Harry had them made for all of his girls; he figured that they would not want to be all exposed in public.
  
  Peter, on the other hand, had to change in the old fashion way.
  
  'Hopefully no one sees me,' Peter thought in amusement but he ducked into an alleyway. 'The last thing I need is Spider-Man exposed on the Internet.'
  
  Less than a moment later, everyone's favorite web slinging hero, the friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man swung out, ready to go. He kept up a steady pace, swinging forward a little bit.
  
  'And Arcane doesn't mess around,' Spider-Man thought when he paused and stopped, when he saw the Friends of Humanity members move forward with rocket launchers that were armed. 'And neither do these guys.'
  
  "We're not going to let you muties endanger innocent people any longer."
  
  "So sayeth the people who are firing rocket launchers in the middle of a populated area," Spider-Man responded when he shot a line of webbing out and yanked it out of the hand of his enemy. "Give me that, you'll shoot your eye out kid!"
  
  Spider-Man twisted and turned in every direction that he could but he saw all the rocket launchers levitated out of the hands.
  
  One of the Friends of Humanity members screamed when he was pulled beneath the ground. He popped back up, knocked unconscious. The Friends of Humanity members felt themselves pulled back underneath the ground one at a time, when Kitty popped back.
  
  "Stay away from me, you freaks!" the Friend of Humanity member stated when lobbed a hand grenade at him, but the hand grenade was encased in a glowing shield, when he blowing it up and causing the broken pieces of metal to impale into the chest of the hapless man.
  
  He dropped down to the ground, blood splattering from his chest.
  
  Several bystanders tried to stand at the edge of the bridge but found themselves slipping and sliding. It was obvious that they were moments away from falling to their grisly demise but one figure in particular swooped in to save the day and levitate them back up before they fell to that grisly demise and lost their balance.
  
  They cheered and the last two members of the Friends of Humanity ran off, trying to get back to base but one of them was shot in the kneecaps with a well placed charm, his bones shattering when he fell on his face. The other one slipped away, a tracking charm placed on him. With any luck, he'd be led back to base.
  
  At least he would have led Harry and his crew back to base, had someone not shot the goon in the back of the head. The blood splattered in the air and the people on the ground gave a rather pained grasp when the man dropped to his knees on the ground, he was not moving, oh boy was he not moving at all. The young man had his brain matter splattered on the ground and rolled over, taking a pained breath, before he passed out.
  
  "You were so close to getting us exposed to...to this...this...this thing!" Creed spat, not happy about the fact that the one known as Arcane decided to interfere in his business. "He's not your normal mutie, I don't know what he is, but he should be at the top of our list of things to take out."
  
  "And a disaster was averted today, thanks to Spider-Man, but the real hero today is the hero known as Arcane .Where has this mysterious hero come from and what is his purpose here? Hopefully we'll find out more in the coming weeks but he stopped a group of terrorists from blowing up a bridge today to kill our mysterious savior from the sky."
  
  Creed looked on the verge of having a stroke when he saw what happened. Now he knew that he was on Arcane's radar.
  
  "He's not like them, he's worse, he's far worse," Creed stammered when he looked on with blood shot eyes, angry that his fellow humans would make this Arcane into some kind of symbol. He would be some kind of hero. He hid his face in the shadows, so what kind of hero was that. "We've got to destroy him."
  
  Creed realized that he ranted to no one but the walls but he lost all sense of himself and his mind, he crossed his arms over and sighed deeply. He gritted his teeth when he realized what was on the line.
  
  'Unbelievable,' Creed thought to himself when he cracked his knuckles and mentally counted to a hundred but he would need more than that to shield the fact that he was pretty pissed off all things considered.
  
  It was bad enough that Spider-Man was out there, it was bad enough that the Fantastic Four, the Avengers, and all of the rest were out there. Now, he had to deal with Arcane and if he got branded as some kind of hero, the rest of the X-Men could follow, and people would support the hated mutants, tolerating them.
  
  Creed refused to allow that to happen; he worked too far and too long for anything like that to happen. His mind pulsed and his eyes shot in blood, but he refused to go down without a fight. Arcane would be the next one on his list, the Friends of Humanity would triple their efforts to go after him, he must be made an example out of.
  
  Little did Graydon Creed know that he was about to get himself into a situation that he could not get himself out of. Yet given his hatred and anger, he refused to admit how much he dug his own grave and it would be a matter of time for Arcane would seal his tomb.
  
  "Well it was nice to meet you, even though I barely met you," Mary Jane joked when she looked at Harry before she smiled and cleared her throat, to continue to speak. "It's...well it's good to meet you, but I think it's time we got back. When Gwen and I ran off, we missed a lot of the excitement."
  
  Harry looked at Mary Jane, a quizzical expression in his eyes, when he decided to feign what passed for ignorance. "Excitement, in what way?"
  
  "Spider-Man was here," Gwen offered when she had a knowing glint in her eye and smiled. "And so was Arcane, it was amazing, wasn't it?"
  
  "Wish I would have seen it," Peter responded when he looked back. He also wished he would have gotten some pictures but by the time he really did anything, Arcane and Shadowcat were taking them down with expert fury and teamwork beyond anything that was exhibited. He sighed, he would have to get another opportunity when it came, that much was for sure.
  
  Gwen shook her head, when she heard snatches of the conversation regarding the attack today. That group called themselves the Friends of Humanity, they were your average nutjob group who hoped to show their superiority over the mutants or something along those lines. Gwen kind of drowned out what they were saying after a while to be honest. It was one of those things where they rambled and ranted on and on. All she knew was that these people, they were no friends of hers and that's all that mattered.
  
  Gwen, Kitty, and Harry went their separate ways a little bit, before Gwen turned around, looking over her shoulder. A bright smile crossed her face when she waited.
  
  "So, you're starting to get a name for yourself," Gwen remarked when she looked at Harry with a bit of a teasing glint in her eyes. "It's the type of name that could get you a lot of fans, both wanted and unwanted."
  
  Gwen paused, but she could not resist saying even more than that.
  
  "It's one of those things where you fight some of the most dangerous people out there. It's not hard but it's going to be one of those things that is going to be tough. Then you realize that you have to deal with your legions of fans and you almost wish for the murder schemes. Now that Arcane is a bit more know...well I'm sure the Human Torch could tell you some stories about some psychotic fangirls."
  
  "Believe me, they exist," Harry stated when he looked forward, with a wistful smile and a nod, but Kitty grabbed his hand before she focused on him.
  
  He missed very little about the world he came from but the psychotic fangirls were something that he could do without. Unless they were hot, then perhaps they could come to an understanding. Harry felt he had his priorities firmly in place with that thought.
  
  "Not that you need any protection but I so totally have your back," Kitty answered when she looked at Harry.
  
  "As long as you're not driving me anywhere, I feel safe enough with you," Harry answered and Kitty had a cross expression fill her face, before Gwen smiled. She heard tales of Kitty's driving exploits. The girl was creative, although she might want to dial back the creativity a little bit if she was hoping to ever pass her driver's test.
  
  Harry stretched a little bit, with a girl on either side of him. He saw the storm clouds rolling in a little bit and smiled. Despite the run in with the psycho racists, today was a good day. Angel disappeared into the night, and Harry let him because he could tell that this young man did not want to be bothered. Harry respected that completely.
  
  He walked off into the night, as did Harry, Kitty, and Gwen, heading home before the storm hit them hard.
  
  Harry stepped out to use the facilities for a moment, which allowed Kitty and Gwen to have a moment alone with each other.
  
  "So, you're the latest girl that had been ensnared in Harry's web," Kitty stated when she looked at Gwen.
  
  "It's weird that he's with that many girls and anyone else, I wouldn't believe it," Gwen admitted before she snapped her eyes up. "But considering that it's Harry..."
  
  "It's perfectly natural," Kitty responded when she paused for a second. "He comes from a world where multi0partner relationships are more common, although he tends go that extra mile ."
  
  "So, Harry's...from another planet?" Gwen asked, this was a revelation that smacked her in the face.
  
  "Well kind of, it's complicated, Harry isn't someone who tells much of anything, unless he really gains your trust and I've known enough to know enough, that he doesn't like talking about his past or where he's come from at all," Kitty stated when she looked at Gwen. "I do know enough to know that if he kisses you, there's something behind it. And how was your kiss?"
  
  "Pardon the cheesy reference, but it was simply magical," Gwen answered when she turned around and looked off with a smile. "I guess I've had a bit of a crush on him since I met him but it's intensified. Unless I guess I've been holding out my hopes for someone else but I can't wait around forever."
  
  Kitty smiled when she looked at Gwen. "Harry's coming back any moment and you can do far worse than him like I said. Give him a test, and see what you like. Although you may be ruined for life if you get one taste of him."
  
  Gwen smiled, that was an endearment if she ever heard one but she supposed that it was now time to figure out what was going to happen. If something was meant to happen it would but if nothing was meant to happen, part friends. Gwen was willing to take a risk because she was kind of sick of playing it safe.
  
  "I'll leave you two alone," Kitty stated, feeling that the first time should be one on one, although she'd come back later for more.
  
  Harry arrived and Kitty passed him.
  
  "She's ready," Kitty whispered to Harry, who nodded before he walked over.
  
  "Gwen," Harry stated when he looked at her. He saw that she wore a black tank top that stretched over her breasts and rode up when she stretched, showing her toned midsection. Her legs were covered by a pair of short jean shorts and her feet were currently bare. Her blonde hair hung down her back.
  
  "Harry, you kissed me today," Gwen stated when she looked at him and offered him to sit down. She snuggled in close to him. "I was thinking about you a lot lately, in my dreams and in other ways. I was wondering, if you wanted me as badly as I wanted you."
  
  Harry raised an eyebrow, and he felt her hand move up his leg, towards his lap, and decided that there was only one answer.
  
  "You're an extremely hot girl Gwen, who wouldn't want you?" Harry asked when he cupped her face in his hands. "You're beautiful."
  
  Gwen, pleased with that response, threw legs over Harry's lap and straddled him, before she attacked his mouth with a passionate kiss. Every single kiss was more intense when she peppered Harry's mouth with them and Harry held her in straight, pulling her onto his lap. She ground against his bulge.
  
  She closed her eyes when Harry kissed her back, in a heated fashion. She sighed when his hands worked his way underneath her shirt, feeling the underside of her breasts.
  
  'Best...idea ever,' Gwen thought, feeling herself grow wet from his touches underneath her breasts and she flickered a little bit, her eyes going shut when she breathed heavily.
  
  "I need you Harry," Gwen breathed heatedly in his ear when she grabbed him around the neck and began to nibble on his ear. "I want you."
  
  Smut/Lemon Begins.
  
  Harry pulled Gwen's shirt up over her head, to reveal her firm breasts encased in a bra. She bent her back and kissed on her neck a little bit, causing her to moan heavily. Her eyes fluttered shut when his kisses trailed down her neck slowly, one at a time, his hands cupping the small of her back, when he rubbed circles around the soft flesh around her back, cupping her cute little rear in his hands when she ground up and down on him.
  
  "Yeah, fuck yeah," Gwen moaned when he teased her breasts with his fingers and she felt moisture pool between her legs. She unbuttoned Harry's shirt to reveal his muscular chest and abs. She appreciatively rubbed his chest with her hands, when she ground on his bulge, rubbing her ass into it.
  
  Harry grabbed her bra strap and pulled it off, to allow her breasts to pop up. They were C-Cups, close to a D but they looked wonderful on a human teenage girl with her frame. He grabbed her breasts, squeezing her, causing Gwen to moan lustfully.
  
  "You must be so wet now," Harry stated when he grabbed her breasts.
  
  "Yes, yes," Gwen panted, feeling good that Harry touched her in all of the right spots and caused the heat to rise up from her body.
  
  Harry slid Gwen's jean short's off, to reveal the black panties that Gwen wore stuck to her pussy, dripping with her fluids. He offered a smile, before she slid down, and his shorts slid down his legs. Then Gwen squeezed his bulge in his pants, teasing him with her firm grip.
  
  Gwen felt his cock, she thought that it was huge and she pulled down Harry's boxers. Sure enough, it was huge, his cock was eleven inches, maybe more, and sprung out in front of her face.
  
  "I think I'm going to suck you off," Gwen managed when she went down between his legs and started to lick his balls, before she ran her tongue up and down his cock.
  
  "Oh yeah, do that," Harry panted heavily, when Gwen offered a few kisses up and down him, it felt so good, she knew what she was doing.
  
  Gwen thought she did well for the first time that she did something like that. Harry enjoyed it and given that Harry enjoyed the talents of both Black Widow and Black Cat, Gwen took that as an achievement that she would take to the bank. Her tongue licked down his cock, taking more and more of it, running it on the underside of him.
  
  Without any warning, Gwen popped his cock into her mouth, going down on it and deep throating him with all of her might. Harry placed his hands on the back of her head, pushing him down, when she bobbed her head back and forth. She felt him grunt and groan, as the back of his large cock went down her throat.
  
  Gwen stayed the course, sucking him off and Harry sat back, enjoying the blowjob.
  
  "Good, you're great, awesome," Harry panted when he cupped her healthy tits in his hand when she speared his pole down her throat. "Fuck, yeah."
  
  Gwen continued to speed up the motions, moving down on him, and making sure he had the best time. She moved her fingers down and diddled herself when she went down on Harry even more. Her eyes flickered shut a little bit when she panted and continued to rub her lips through her panties. The fluid dripped down from her thighs.
  
  Harry thought she was doing a wonderful job; it was magnificent to see her on her knees with his cock down her throat. Gwen Stacy sped up her motions, sucking him down her throat, willing to get all of the essences out.
  
  He could hold back no longer and he let down all of it down her throat. His cock spewed its seed down her, pumping into her mouth.
  
  Gwen made a popping noise when she slid back and licked the cum off of her lips. She pulled herself back onto her legs and pealed off her panties. Her puffy sex was shown before Harry, wet, pink, and inviting with a small strip of blonde hair.
  
  "Want a taste?" Gwen asked in near purr and Harry rose to the challenge, going between her legs, before he began to lick Gwen out with all of his might. "Oh...yes, fuck yes."
  
  Gwen panted heavily when Harry's talented tongue did its work. She could not believe this...something that amazing should be illegal, it felt too good to be real. His tongue worked patterns into her, licking and working her over with fluid motions. The blonde panted heavily when he moved into her center, lapping up her juices.
  
  Harry tasted her, slowly at first, to build up the anticipation in her mind. His tongue worked circles around her center, before it started to vibrate in her center, and Gwen's eyes glazed over with the pleasure when her heart began to skip several beats.
  
  "Oh good god!" Gwen breathed when Harry's tongue vibrated inside her. She had her first experience of Harry's talented oral skills and it caused her to lose her mind. "More, please, more, yes!"
  
  Gwen felt herself rock back and forth with a powerful orgasm, her hips buckled up into Harry's face and she thought that she would lose herself. Harry pulled away and he slowly rubbed her clit, causing the warmth to fill her body once again.
  
  "I need it, inside me," Gwen breathed when she looked at him, spreading her legs, her juices rolling down her legs.
  
  Harry knew not to pass up an invite like this and he lined up his cock with her dripping slit before he pushed inside her. He felt Gwen's barrier and she bit her lip, shutting up the pain.
  
  Then the pain stopped and it was placed by nothing but pleasure, the pleasure of this thick cock spearing in and out of her. Gwen bucked her hips upwards, feeling rather heavy.
  
  "Faster," Gwen stated when she locked her legs around Harry and he continued to push inside her, feeling her silken walls caress his cock. It felt so good.
  
  "So tight," Harry grunted when he pushed into Gwen and sped up at her insistence. He thrust deep into her.
  
  "Harry...please, more," Gwen panted heavily.
  
  She lost all sense of herself when his cock entered and exited her, pushing in and out of her dripping slit. She rocked her head back and offered a hearty moan to the heavens. She grabbed her hands around him, when he bent down and devoured her breasts, sucking on them. He greedily feasted on the buffet of flesh offered before him and Gwen panted, slowly but surely she was about ready to lose her mind when she arched her hips forward, when he worked his cock into her.
  
  Harry sped up the motions, increasing the intensity of his thrusts. He pulled out of her a little bit, teasing her, before he pushed himself back in. This caused her to moan.
  
  "More, pound me, yeah!"
  
  Gwen felt herself rocked to another orgasm and she came down with a pause. She was disappointed that Harry slowed down a little bit but she did not have time to register her disappointed. He filled her hungry pussy with more thrusts yet, when he pushed into her.
  
  Her moist walls hugged and tugged on his cock and Harry rocked himself back and forth, keeping a steady pace, when his balls slapped against her thighs a little bit. He would not slow down, not in the slightest. His heart beat more steadily when he speared into her a little bit, feeling the burn when the blonde squeezed him with her inner walls.
  
  "Oh, such a hot pussy," Harry grunted when he cupped his hands around her ass, feeling it and squeezing it in his hands and Gwen moaned hungrily, feeling his cock bury into her.
  
  "Fuck me, never stop," Gwen stated when she panted heavily.
  
  Harry agreed never to stop, this pussy was so nice, and he could hardly believe it. She squeezed him and their positions were reversed after a time so she could ride him like there was no tomorrow.
  
  Gwen started to rock her hips back and forth across Harry's throbbing prick when she bounced up and down on him. She already came several times and was determined to get a load of her lover's cum between her legs.
  
  Harry felt her ride him, with Gwen using everything she could think of. He could go for very long time but despite her determination, Gwen was still a human girl, with human limitations. So while he pushed her towards the edge, giving her mind blowing orgasm after mind blowing orgasm, he did not want to fuck her into a coma.
  
  "Cum, please, I need it," Gwen panted when she rocked back, screaming her head off. She was very vocal but then again, Harry suspected that the smartest ones were always among the most vocal.
  
  After an amount of time, Gwen finished riding Harry into an orgasm, rocking herself back and forth on him, squeezing him around him his prick, when she felt him about at the edge, ready to pop. She bounced up and down on him and after a time, she decided to throw her head back and scream at the top of her lungs.
  
  Harry exploded, sending jet after jet of his warm cum into her body. He splattered his juices into her, and rocked his hips up, splattering it into her. Gwen felt good when he unloaded into her, sending jet after jet of cum into her. Both lovers saw stars before they collapsed into each other's arms.
  
  Smut/Lemon Ends.
  
  Gwen collapsed next to Harry, feeling the pleasure and she snuggled into his shoulder.
  
  "This should make these get together's a bit more memorable," Harry breathed when he wrapped his arms tightly around her and Gwen nodded, when she snuggled into Harry's chest.
  
  "Give me a few minutes, maybe an hour or two, and I think I'll be ready to go again," Gwen answered when she rested next to him, and kissed him on the lips, wrapping her arms around him. "All of those girls, they'll never be the same again once you got a hold of them. I know I won't."
  
  Harry smiled; he could not help but feel happy because of that.
  
  Kitty watched, once Gwen was rested, she would make her move, and the real fun would begin.
  
  To Be Continued in the Next Arc.
  The Sirens, the Devil, and the Kingpin
  
  Chapter 44 "The Sirens, the Devil, and the Kingpin Part One."
  
  A smile crossed Gwen's face when she walked next to Harry, eyes twinkling in amusement. She was actually glad that she had a steady boyfriend now, granted he was shared with several other women, but that actually made things oddly more alluring. Plus it was not like it wasn't plenty of Harry Potter to go around. And after what he suffered in his life, there was no one who deserved a group of several good looking and hot women that he did. The young wizard stepped forward towards Gwen, and smiled.
  
  "So, I take it you've had a great night," Gwen responded when she handed the newspaper to Harry, before flicking it in his face. She watched Harry to gauge his reaction but he said nothing yet. "So, the Bayville Sirens, I know you know."
  
  Harry offered a smile on his face, when he looked towards one of his girlfriends. "Guilty as charged, I knew you'd know that I'd know. It's an interesting story to tell never the less."
  
  Harry paused and thought over the events of the night in his mind, yeah this was quite the adventure. He recalled every single moment of it with picture perfect accuracy. He turned and sat down with Gwen on the steps outside of her house. It was rather early in the morning now, with everyone still in bed. Yet, Harry had been up for several hours, then again with his powers, he did not need much sleep. And with his girls, sleep was not a luxury he could afford, but that was beside the point.
  
  Still, tonight's adventure was a fascinating little jaunt, when he turned to Gwen and a smile crossed his face. He could tell that he was building up the suspense in her mind and he was building up the suspense in his in his own way. Although the more that he thought about tonight, there was a fair bit of absurdity with the interest that happened today. He crossed his hands, and thought about everything that occurred before opening his mouth to speak.
  
  "So, I think you want to know," Harry remarked when he turned to Gwen carefully.
  
  "Yeah, I want to know, believe me, I've been waiting for it," Gwen answered when she impatiently rocked back and forth to wait for what Harry was going to tell her. He built the anticipation in a great way, to the fact that it was almost annoying, if not slightly disappointing that he was not saying a word.
  
  "Well the Bayville Sirens, fascinating story," Harry answered drumming his fingers before he took a drink of water and paused once again before he spoke. "Would you believe this entire event was set off by something that Scott Summers did, where he put his foot in his mouth?"
  
  Gwen offered a statement in mock sarcasm, rolling her eyes slightly. "No, really, get out of here."
  
  Harry smiled back at her. "It's true, it really is true."
  
  Gwen waved her hand before she smiled at Harry. "So what really happened? I'm dying to know."
  
  Harry turned around; before he paused for a second, once again tonight was a fascinating night and one that could have ended a lot worse had he not been there. It proved one thing and that was that there were a lot of things that turned out for the best, but they could very easily turn for the worst. And for him, it did turn out fairly well.
  
  "So let's take you back to seventy two hours ago," Harry responded to Gwen who nodded, sitting in rapt anticipation before the young mage decided to go into the story, as he first lived it.
  
  The Xavier Institute was always a busy place, with plenty of hustle and bustle, along with chaos that went along with it. That was something that could completely happen with a group of super powered mutants, many of them who were only learning their powers for a few months at this present time. It was also a hot July day, that meant that tensions were high. It always seemed like something was wrong at the Xavier Institute and that made said tensions even higher. And there were no higher tensions that could happen with a Danger Room session in ninety degree temperatures with the air conditioning on the brink.
  
  Especially given the session that Jean was helping lead Amara for. Harry had his lessons with Strange and Logan was off doing his own thing, like Logan might. So it was down to Jean to help Amara with her training. The blasts of hot lava made the room hotter but she had to control them in such a way.
  
  "I know it's uncomfortable Amara, but you got to focus," Jean stated before she added as an afterthought. "Don't lose your cool."
  
  Jean could not resist this simple statement and Amara could not resist rolling her eyes because of it. Regardless, her heart beat against her chest when she picked up the pace and turned around, nearly being shaken from the attack. The Nova-Roma princess swayed, she tried to recall everything that she learned, but this was a particularly hard lesson. Still she really wanted to do it on her own.
  
  She was determined to achieve some kind of success she raised an eyebrow, shaking a little bit, before her hips swayed a little bit, and she blocked some of the pockets of lava. This was a one on one training session, it would be much harder with teammates.
  
  "Okay, I got this, I so got this," Amara stated, when one of the rocks fell from the ceiling of the training simulation.
  
  An optic blast of light struck the rocks, before Amara could reaction. She blinked and then cursed, she could have handled that and she got down to the ground, kneeling a little bit and watching every little thing. Her dark hair dripped with sweat and stuck to her face, when she spun around watching Scott down on the ground.
  
  "Just thought I'd lend a hand," Scott responded with a smile, he knew that after he let Jean go mentally, he could focus on other things, like taking his role as the leadership for this team. And being a leader, meant helping out the other team members when they could not handle the heat, which seemed to be often.
  
  "Lend a hand, I had it completely under control!" Amara stated hotly when she looked at Scott, like she was about ready to set him on fire.
  
  "Look, I know how it might seem that way but..."
  
  "Scott, just stop trying," Jean answered with a roll of her eyes before she stared him down, fury going through her eyes when she dis so. Her head was clearer than ever now thanks to the Phoenix and she saw that Scott was very flawed. Granted, they were all flawed, but his flaws were stronger than many others, to the point where it made her extremely uncomfortable.
  
  She could not wait for Harry to set up his place because she would be going out the door with him. As for the others, Jean had no idea
  
  Scott resembled a dog that had been caught doing its business on the rug inside the house.
  
  "I'm supposed to be the leader of this team, I should be able to lend a hand to those who need the help," Scott protested to the redhead before him, but he took a step back at the look of fury in Jean's eyes.
  
  Kurt popped up and watched Scott, eyes widened before he looked at him, shaking his head in pity. "Man, just leave it alone, you can't win here, this is an unwinnable thing. You should step back nicely and beg for forgiveness. Trust me, it's a lot better, it's a lot better, you're not going to win."
  
  Scott was not one to concede defeat, especially when he was getting his confidence back after the Asteroid incident. He thought that with Harry's focus on leaving the team and also with getting Wanda out of her current predicament, he would be able to step up a little bit and take the reigns of leadership. Unfortunately, that got him his share of nasty looks from both Amara and Jean.
  
  "What's going on here?" Kitty asked, who showed up, with Tabby walking behind her and Rogue also popped in with Rachel. Even Roberto, Bobby, and Sam turned up to watch the show or perhaps the slaughter, it was extremely hard to tell for now.
  
  "The point is Scott, you can help out all you want, but you lack one fundamental thing that a leader truly does," Jean stated, when she gained some momentum and was about to light into Scott for the viewing pleasure of the rest of the team. "That is the leader doesn't jump in and fight the battles for the team, especially when he could barely handle himself. A true leader is one that observes what's happening, and jumps in to take control but only when the team has faltered. Do you understand when you have failed?"
  
  Bobby grimaced when he saw Scott. He wondered if he should start buying flowers for the funeral.
  
  "I..."
  
  Jean was far from done lighting into Scott and she watched him. "And I suppose that you thought that you could swoop in here because Amara needs the help of the big and almighty powerful Cyclops. Perhaps you thought that she was a weak little girl that could not handle the heat. I think that Harry has been doing a good job in building up her confidence and the confidence of the other team members."
  
  "Oh boy," Sam whispered to the group and Bobby and Roberto nodded, with Jubilee biting her lips.
  
  "Alas, Cyclops, we barely knew thee," Tabby stated in mock remorse, when she clapped a hand to her heart in mock sorrow.
  
  "Jean I..."
  
  "You know, worry about your own inadequacies and not how you think others are inadequate, Scott," Jean practically spat at him, she wondered if the injury that caused him to be unable to control his optic blasts caused some kind of lasting brain damage. "And leave the leadership to the people who can actually lead this team until you take lessons in how to do so properly!"
  
  Scott was flummoxed; he did not know what to say, although his brain engaged to the point where he knew it to be prudent not say anything. Kurt and Bobby in particular gave him warning looks, as if to say to walk away whilst he was ahead. The young man wondered what the rest of the team would say, and he had been dressed down verbally in front of the entire squad. That to Scott was demeaning, but it should not be the end of the world.
  
  Except for the fact that it almost was and Scott blinked carefully, waiting and watching, wondering what to say or do next. The eyes of many were on him. Everyone, new recruits and old recruits alike watched to see what he was going to say or even if he was going to defend himself. He blinked and watched like a fish out of water, swaying a little bit and his heart beat steadily before he threw his hands up and turned so he could walk away. Scott Summers knew he fought a losing battle.
  
  "The nerve of him," Jean stated before she turned around and saw Harry. Her expression brightened up when she saw Harry. "So...how are you doing?"
  
  "Fine, I can tell you've been through quite the scene," Harry responded with an amused chuckle when he saw the members of the team, but he knew not to push it, because the busted air conditioning was making everyone testy. Harry didn't mind, he thought it actually built character. Although he was a bit agitated about giving the run around by Xavier when he inquired about the original X-Men. The statement "it was a lifetime ago" was given and that was that. "It's not something that I'm going to get involved in."
  
  "I wouldn't get involved in it either," Kurt stated to Harry with widened eyes when he walked by and the young wizard nodded.
  
  Little did he know that this simple incident would be the start of something that would be extremely interesting. He could not really even begin to fathom what was going on around him but he could tell that Jean, Amara, and many of the female members of this team had something to prove. Although perhaps something to rub Scott's nose in was the greater reason why they did this, that much was for sure.
  
  "Interestingly enough, the Bayville Sirens popped up around that time. Anyone with a few functioning brain cells could piece together who they were and who this mysterious group of six vigilantes turned out to be. Said group gave fits to the criminals of New York City, and it could not be better when they did."
  
  Gwen smiled when Harry continued to go into the story.
  
  "As for Arcane...well he had his own problems that he had to deal with. It seems like I can't even step out for a milkshake without attracting some kind of trouble."
  
  Gwen placed her hand on her heart and offered a mock expression of sorrow, a smile spreading over her face. "Such is the place for a hero, but continue your story."
  
  And continue his story was what Harry did in fact do, even if he would not consider himself the hero.
  
  Harry Potter took a moment to look around when he heard the alarm. Under the guise of Arcane, dressed in a black jacket, with a black shirt, and black pants, with a charm that disguised his true face, he turned around, walking forward and was ready for action. True it was not the flashiest costume in the world but damn it, it was the man who made the costume and not the other way around. That being said, Harry was ready for action and ready to see what the world had in store for him.
  
  Armed goons, they were really a dime a dozen, especially in a city as large as New York and he heard the patter of little steps. Harry arched his head back a little bit and saw that there was a gang of seven, eight, no wait about fifteen, damn there must have been some kind of convention in town. He turned around and waited, casually watching everything. So far no shots were fired, even if a door was broke, but still no casualties.
  
  That situation could turn around for the worst rather quick.
  
  Harry waited and he watched carefully, to see what was going to happen next but it turned out that he did not have to wait that much longer. He got a little back up in the form of everyone's favorite friendly neighborhood hero, Spider-Man.
  
  "Alright, you boys have been very naughty tonight," the wall crawler stated but they turned to him and lifted up guns which caused the web slinger's spider sense to flare.
  
  "Spider-Man, blast him!"
  
  The high powered and military grade weapons fired at the web slinger who ducked the attacks, trying to maneuver them against each other. If he had a nickel for every time someone said, "Spider-Man, blast him", well he would not have to slum it for Jameson at the very least. He ducked his head and rolled around, launching himself into the air. A click of his web shooters but the blast from the laser blasters burned through his webbing and dropped him to the ground.
  
  'Okay, that doesn't work as well as I thought it would, think Spidey, use your head, it's what brought you to the dance,' the wall crawler responded when he blinked carefully and once again, he dodged the blasts of fire, before he dodged the attacks and tried to maneuver them into a situation where he could take them down. His heart thumped hard against his chest.
  
  The blast of light knocked the enemies back and Spider-Man turned his head. There he was, on time as always. The web slinging hero watched as Arcane swooped in, quick as a cat, and dropped down to attack. Shot after shot disarmed and disabled the weapons of his enemies. Thick cords wrapped around his legs, before he spun around and took them down a little bit, before Arcane circled them like a shark seeking out his prey.
  
  His speed was insane and his intensity could not be matched by anyone. Spider-Man offered what he hoped was a helping hand when he shot his line of webbing out, wrapping around the ankles of his enemy and knocking them down. They landed down onto the ground with a solid drop.
  
  "So where do you think these guys came from?" Spider-Man asked Arcane when he continued to fight and Arcane knocked them down. "And wasn't there less guys there when we started?"
  
  "Pretty much, these thugs breed like rabbits," Harry responded when he swung his foot into the ankle of one of the attackers. They expected a magical attack so it would be prudent to use a physical one so he propelled himself up into the air, before he launched his attacker backwards, causing them to crash backwards with a solid impact and a crunch. The bones in their vertebrae cracked and snapped. Harry watched, a smirk that was calculating and was about to speak.
  
  Before he could say anything, a figure swooped from the air. He moved pretty fast, almost too fast for Harry to pick up at first. He saw a flicker of a red bodysuit and horns, when he rushed around. A white staff swung in his hand when he rushed around, moving into the the battle.
  
  "It's the Devil!"
  
  Harry corked an eyebrow when he heard them, he wanted to know more. The Devil...well that was something that was new and he wanted to find out further information about it. There was the thud, thud, crack, and another thud of several explosive attacks at rapid fire fury. Their enemies toppled to the ground with an attack, before the mystery man swung around, sending his staff cracking into the knee caps of his enemies.
  
  The sound of shattering bones against metal could be heard by all and everyone wondered what was happening now. Harry in particular, he was curious, and he tried to shine a light on them, but all of their enemies, they were down on the ground. Spider-Man in particular blinked and watched them, carefully trying to piece together what happened. It was not like anything he ever experienced.
  
  "And I didn't get to do much of anything," Spider-Man responded in a joking tone after he let out a breath and threw his hands into the air, in mock remorse.
  
  "I'm sure we'll get another chance," Harry offered Spider-Man with a shrug but his mysterious vigilante friend disappeared into the night. He took a few steps forward. "The devil, the devil, that name seems to be familiar."
  
  Spider-Man remembered something that he heard in the Bugle. "They...wouldn't be referring to the mysterious guardian devil of Hell's Kitchen, would they? As in Daredevil!"
  
  Harry read the reports, so he knew what Spider-Man was talking about but the real question was if this devil and the person that attacked him were one in the same. The young wizard only had a moment to carefully walk forward a little bit, and peer up on the catwalk before he spotted who was standing on it.
  
  The mysterious devil tried to make a getaway but Harry was not going to let him escape that easily. Not until he had answers. The young wizard kicked up the pace and flew towards him. The devil turned around, his hands on his hips.
  
  "Kid, you don't know what you've stumbled into," the Devil stated in a gruff voice when he crossed his arms, hearing a heartbeat like anything he ever heard before. It was positively alien given the odd rhythm.
  
  "You're the Guardian Devil of Hell's Kitchen," Harry stated when he looked back at the man before him, his expression intent when he watched the man preparing to defend himself if need be. "I've seen you on the news and saw what you've done."
  
  "Congratulations," he stated gruffly when before a pause. "And you also know what I've done and who I'm going up against. Those goons you went against, they're not your average group of goons. They're something else, especially who they work for."
  
  "What are they?" Spider-man asked but Daredevil sensed his presence, his heartbeat, once again unlike anything he ever saw before.
  
  "They work for a very powerful crime boss, he calls himself the Kingpin, he's using the recent string of car-jackings as a front," Daredevil answered in a brisk and curt tone of voice. "I've been chasing him for a very long time."
  
  "How long?" Spider-Man asked when he looked at Daredevil who answered in a gruff tone.
  
  "Longer than you've even had on those webs."
  
  He launched a line and flew off, with Arcane and Spider-Man standing there in his wake, without a further word of goodbye. Both of them were thinking about the same thing, it was a while before the web head actually said anything. The friendly neighborhood hero turned to him, before he carefully looked at him.
  
  "Nice fellow, about as nice as you are," Spider-Man remarked in a cheerful voice.
  
  Harry stared at him, giving the web slinger a gaze that made Spider-Man glad that Arcane could not shoot heat beams through his eyes.
  
  "What are you trying to imply?" Harry asked with a raised eyebrow.
  
  "Nothing, nothing," Spider-Man answered before he switched the subjects to address the elephant in the room. "So you and Gwen..."
  
  "Yes," Harry answered in a careful voice and Spider-Man looked at Harry, trying to act intimidating but failing.
  
  "Don't hurt her or...I'll web your feet to the ground," Spider-Man finished, he thought his threat sounded a lot more horrifying in his head but now it sounded kind of lame.
  
  "Right, I'll keep that in mind, but Gwen's a great girl, I think she'd hurt me if I hurt her," Harry answered with a crisp voice. "And I take care of all my girls and they know what they're getting into."
  
  "Yeah, I almost pity you," Spider-Man stated before he added. "I mean you have to deal with that time of the month times about seven or eight about now while most guys only have to deal with it once so..."
  
  Spider-Man shook his head when he watched Harry, who inclined his head and shook it sadly.
  
  "You know, I think I might shut up now, that would be the best, wouldn't it?"
  
  "It would," Harry stated when he nodded in agreement before he turned around and watched, but did not blink. "So, I think that now we should go after this devil. I managed to slip a tracking spell on him."
  
  "Of course you did," Spider-Man stated before he turned around to focus on the task at hand.
  
  It was time for him to join Arcane and track down the Guardian Devil, Daredevil, whatever they wanted to call him, he would be found.
  
  They were on his trail.
  
  'This is awesome, even more fun than I ever thought that something like this would be, I mean, isn't this amazing!"
  
  Tabby stated this when she walked forward, along with the rest of the group in black leather jackets and tight pants, along with sunglasses. Kitty, Rogue, Amara, Jean, and Rachel followed them. The Bayville Sirens made their mark on Bayville and in the greater area around New York. They noticed that there was a lot of car jackings in the area and they traced it back to the source.
  
  Rachel's expression crossed with one with trepidation. She was dragged into this battle with the rest of them, partly to make sure they stayed out of trouble and then to not let their initial successes get to their head. "Okay guys, this was fun, I don't think any of us would deny that, but the joke's over. We've allowed this one to get away with us and...I don't think that the joke is as funny as we thought it was anymore. We could get hurt."
  
  "We were trained for this, I mean Xavier's keeping us indoors for a while and so not letting us do anything, this is totally great," Kitty answered and the rest of the group nodded. "It's a shame that Harry is off doing something else."
  
  "Nah this is a girl's night out, no matter how good he'd look in tight leather," Tabby responded when she blinked and watched everything that happened around them before she heard the rumbling from indoors. "Did you guys hear them?"
  
  They all nodded, they did hear that and the assembled group edged closer, hoping that they would be able to find out more about what was going down. These car jacking, they happened for a reason but what was that reason? Jean led the group, being the senior member of the team. Amara followed her closely behind, then Rogue, then Rachel, Kitty, and Tabby. The group let one of the car jackers get away, while they tailed him.
  
  It was a play out of the playbook of their glorious leader, one Harry James Potter, alias Arcane, and they hoped to take more plays out of his playbook in the future. The Sirens stepped forward, listening carefully. They realized that enhanced hearing would be a power that would be pretty useful now. They could hear enough.
  
  "Yeah, those girls in the leather, they think they're something, don't they?"
  
  "Yeah, man but they aren't nothing but a bunch of little brats playing dress up."
  
  'Oh really now,' Jean thought when she stepped forward, eyes flashing with the desire to prove herself.
  
  "I got a word from the fat man, he wants the stuff moved and he wants it moved tonight, the devil's closing in on us fast. And these Sirens, well they'll be dead in a little bit. And there's the web head, that chump and Arcane, what is with this city?"
  
  "I don't know, something in the water," one of the car jackers stated with a thud. They had weapons that were military level; they had been smuggled into the city. The Kingpin's turf war with Silvermane heated up and the underworld chose sides. Although there was this Master Planner that offered a third option that upset things but that was another story all together.
  
  A telekinetic pulse knocked one of the weapons out of their hands and the goons spun around, before they watched the group of six peered at them.
  
  "The Sirens?" one of the car jackers stated when he looked at the girls.
  
  "Yeah, that's right, bub," Kitty stated when she stood and put her hands on her hips.
  
  "Bub?" Rachel asked with a raised eyebrow and she could not avoid smiling. "Logan's going to sue you for trademark infringement."
  
  "Enough, let's take them down," the goons stated, before they fired the high tech blasters at the girls, who scattered. The Sirens rushed around, trying to encircle their enemies. It was Rogue who after catching her breath, who stated the obvious point for all of them to ponder.
  
  "How does trash like this get their hands on high tech weapons?" she asked, when she used her strength to knocked her enemy into the wall. "I mean, seriously, these people...they don't seem like the type who could handle this stuff."
  
  "More than your average car jacking," Rachel stated when she used a pulse to smack the heads of her enemies together and they slumped down to the ground. "These guys are up to something but...DUCK!"
  
  That statement got their attention and they nearly go their heads taken off by the weapons. That was a close shave, all too close, and the group scattered, before they got away. But not before they left a crate on the ground, opened and Jean moved over, to see what they had.
  
  "So, are we going to see what goodies they've been hoarding?" Tabby asked when she took a moment to look at the crate and Jean responded with a nod and a smile.
  
  Jean tore open the crates to reveal the high tech weapons inside. If she was honest, this really scrapped the iceberg and now she believed them to playing into some much higher stakes than before.
  
  "Guys, I think we might be in the middle of some kind of turf war," Jean stated when she turned back around to them.
  
  "Which is a good reason why we should step back and let it go," Rachel stated and Kitty looked about ready to agree, but Tabby decided to be the one to egg them on a little bit more.
  
  "Hey, we could step back, you're right, but wouldn't that be proving Cyclops right?" Tabby asked when she looked at her fellow Sirens. "We could pretend this never happened, but this is a chance for us to really prove ourselves. Really apply our training in a situation where we could help people out and stop people from dying."
  
  Amara nodded in agreement. She hoped to have a real practical situation, sure there were a few battles here and there, but that really did not count. She really wanted something tangible to be able to happen.
  
  "So are we in this?" Jean asked and the group all nodded. "None of you are being forced to stay, when we signed up for this...we realized that this might be a fun thing and none of us took it too seriously."
  
  Kitty, Rogue, and Rachel all nodded, that was the idea.
  
  "But now we can do something worthwhile."
  
  Gwen waited for the pause of the story. "So how much of that were you witness to?"
  
  "Jean and I and Rachel and I, have mental links, so if I choose to, I can tap into it whenever I want," Harry offered her and Gwen nodded carefully when she watched Harry. "I don't try and make a habit out of it, it can get pretty unsettling if I keep popping in on someone's mind and stalking them but if they need help, they know that they can call me."
  
  "I can see why it would be so," Gwen stated when she moved over and sipped on the drink that she had. She paused and then stated her next question. "So you were in there for almost the entire time?"
  
  "Pretty much yeah, but Spider-Man and I had a few other things that we had to worry about. We were on our way to run with the devil and to track him down. I wasn't going to let that initial meeting go on without learning more. That was not the way I am."
  
  Gwen figured as much and she politely invited for Harry to continue his story and continue he did.
  
  The first night of the Bayville Sirens invasion concluded and it was the second night, with Arcane and Spider-Man sitting perched on the gargoyles. Now it was night two and they were after Daredevil. Harry figured that they could have tracked him down and found out his civilian identity but he was not going to go that route. Unless of course, the Guardian Devil of Hell's kitchen forced his hand.
  
  So far, it was so good, Arcane perched and ready.
  
  "So, if our pattern is right, the next car jacking should take place here," Spider-Man responded when Harry nodded. "And what if our mysterious Bayville Sirens show up?"
  
  "I sent them on a wild goose chase to the other side of town," Harry responded without a thought when he watched and waited, rocking back on his heels. "If this is as serious as I think it is, I don't want any of them in the line of fire."
  
  Spider-Man could not help but wise crack. "And how many of them are you sleeping with?"
  
  Arcane did not have time to dignify that question with a response, for now he swooped him down onto the ground. The web head dropped to the ground with him, when he saw the goons in the alleyway. Once again, the car jacking appeared to be a front for something else, but what it was a front for, Harry could not piece it together, at least not yet.
  
  The weapons were high tech, from the few glimpses Harry saw and he watched everything, using his rather sharp hearing to pick up the sounds of footsteps. He had hearing that was more enhanced than most humans were, wondering if it was another mutant power, a quirk of magic, or something else entirely?
  
  The crash echoed when the vigilante known as Daredevil swooped in and knocked his enemies down. They landed down to the ground, he moved quickly and without fear. There was no hesitation in his motions and his movement, when he was sent down to the ground with a loud crash. The thugs were no match for the Man Without Fear. When the dust settled, he wiped them out in record time.
  
  Arcane and Spider-Man popped up to face Daredevil once again.
  
  "You two again," Daredevil responded in his most crisp voice, recognizing their heart beats off the bat. "I told you that this is not..."
  
  "You need your help, things are getting worse," Arcane answered when he looked at the many before him. There was a careful moment in time when both stood face to face with each other but neither backed down. Spider-Man gulped a little bit, he didn't fancy playing monkey in the middle between these two dark and brooding forces.
  
  Daredevil paused before he explained the situation.
  
  "There's a gang war that is about to happen, people are gobbling up turf left and right. Silvermane's back in the game and there's the Kingpin. Then there's this new party, he's called the Master Planner, and he's making his play for the piece of the pie. All of them are dangerous and there are several smaller mobs that are trying to get their piece as well but they've been gobbled up more and more. It's down to the Kingpin, Silvermane, and this Master Planner."
  
  "The Kingpin, I fought a few of his men here and there, he's the worst of all the mob bosses in New York," Spider-Man offered.
  
  "Yeah, he is," Daredevil agreed when he watched them. "If you two are willing to work with me, then fine, try and keep up but otherwise, stay out of my way."
  
  Daredevil turned around, he knew that justice was blind, so that made him the perfect man for the job.
  
  To Be Continued in Part Two.
  The Sirens, the Devil, and the Kingpin Part Two
  
  Chapter Forty Five "The Sirens, the Devil, and the Kingpin Part Two."
  
  Daredevil was a man who stood forward and carefully, even if he could not see, his eyes were watching every single moment and every single movement. He stood without fear and without any attempts to show that he was anything but the calculating individual he was. His heart drummed strong and soundly while he awaited the next moment. Truly, he had an axe to grind with this Kingpin and that was something that Spider-Man noticed.
  
  'So he's really got it out for the Kingpin,' Spider-Man thought with wide eyes before he spoke up.
  
  "So, Um, what exactly happened between you and Kingpin in the first place that cause this?" Spider-Man wondered but Daredevil turned to him, slowly rooting on the spot.
  
  "It's personal," he responded in his gruffest tone of voice.
  
  Sure enough it was personal, most things were. He flashed back in his mind to a time where he was young and innocent. Or at least more innocent than he was now but that was beside the point, the point was that times have changed. His father was named Jack Murdoch, he was a prize fighter, the best in the world, but one day he was told to took a dive by a man who wanted to see his fighter win. Jack Murdoch did not play that game and was a man of honor.
  
  His young son, Matt Murdoch, stepped forward across the street, not watching where he was going. There was a truck that barreled down towards him and stopped, it carried radioactive waste on the back. Some of it splashed into his eyes, blinding him. That was a sad day and there was one man who was responsible for the trafficking of that material.
  
  His name was the Kingpin, that's all Matt needed to know. His father tried to get his hands on the Kingpin but he was shot down, quite literally. He still remembered hearing the life leave his father when the Kingpin's goons left him for dead. He recalled it with fury, his fists clutched and teeth gritted when he thought about everything that happened. This was the worst thing ever and something that spun his entire world on its head.
  
  He thought that everything was done but he got a lifeline, a man known as Stick found him and took him it. He trained Matt to use his senses, his other senses, to their fullest. The radioactive waste gave him super powers beyond his wildest imaginings and that allowed him to step forward, to do what needed to be done. This city needed protectors from trash like the Kingpin and the crowd he ran around with.
  
  So he became Daredevil, he was the Man Without Fear, and he stood at the edge of the rooftop, carefully pondering, while technically speaking he could not look over the city, he could still protect it. The Kingpin threw more people in the crossfire than ever before and things got more intense with each passing moment, the more the Man Without Fear thought about it.
  
  "So do you want our help?" Arcane asked to break him out of his thoughts.
  
  Daredevil paused, there was an instant where he looked his gruffest but underneath the mask, there was a hint of frustration. With anyone who did what he did, it was quite understandable. That hint could be picked up by anyone who was skilled at reading body language but he blocked it out from most of the world and powered on through.
  
  "Your help would be appreciated," Daredevil admitted grudgingly, but it almost pained him to admit so.
  
  A smile snapped over Spider-Man's face. "Great so that means we should..."
  
  "Do what we have to do to track down the Kingpin and stop him but it won't be easy," Daredevil answered when he spun around. "All I can piece together about him is that he is a man of immense resources. He has barely even stepped out into the light, letting his underlings do the work. Smart man, there are people who would shoot him on sight if they knew who he was."
  
  "I'd imagine," Arcane responded when he kept his gaze steady and thought about everything.
  
  He kept an eye on the girls, checking with the tracking charm that he put on them. Harry vowed to not get involved with their business unless they got into too much trouble. He had confidence in their abilities that they would not get into trouble, at least to a certain extent. Of course, leaving something like that up to chance. He kept a steady eye on the tracking spell.
  
  Somehow Harry thought that despite his attempts to lead them out of the line of fire of this gang war, they would come across trouble. He trained them too well all things considered, that's what the wizard thought.
  
  "So are we ready to do this thing?" Spider-Man asked carefully waiting on pins and needles.
  
  Daredevil's steely glance snapped towards the web slinger, when he heard the heartbeat of both of them. Spider-Man looked a bit apprehensive but ready, but the other one, this Arcane, he showed no fear whatsoever, in addition to his alien heartbeat. It was almost as if he had no concept of mortality, and the fact that it was a dangerous world out there. That spoke well of him to an extent, Daredevil imagined.
  
  "Yes, we are ready," Arcane stated before he paused and amended. "I can't speak for him, but I'm ready at least."
  
  "There is no amount of preparation that will prepare us for what was going to happen so now is the time for action," Daredevil responded in a gruff voice one could not argue with.
  
  Arcane and Spider-Man both knew they were ready. Both of them had been dealing with this sort of thing for a long time but given what Daredevil said the stakes could not be higher. Everything bubbled over carefully when they waited for the next move to happen. The trio moved off into the shadows, waiting to see what their next move would be.
  
  "Are you sure we should be meddling in this?"
  
  Scott took a moment to turn to Kurt, before he added in a confident voice that did not really suit him all that much. "Kurt, everything is going to turn out fine, just fine. We're going to give them a hand, like good teammates do."
  
  Kurt appeared to be uncertain. "I mean, I don't want to be near any of them when they get mad. And if Harry finds out about this...."
  
  "Harry won't find out about this," Scott answered in confidence but Kurt threw his hands up before he spoke in a frustrated whispered.
  
  "Are you daft, man? Harry Potter knows everything. He sees when you're sleeping; he knows when you're awake. He doesn't sleep, he merely waits. Even Professor Xavier doesn't know as much about us, and Logan doesn't, even though he should."
  
  Scott decided to block out the very real annoyance about how observant Harry was but so far, he was not here. At least he was not seen anywhere but as Scott painfully reminded himself, he was not nearly as observant as Harry was.
  
  Speaking of being observant, it was now that the group of six walked in. Jean led the way, walking with a confident stride that suited her new attitude. Kitty and Rachel followed closely behind her, then Rogue, then Amara and Tabby. The group of six waited and watched, before their eyes kept firmly focused on the task at hand.
  
  "Something big going on," Kurt whispered to Scott but Scott shushed him and Kurt fell silent. All the two boys could do is wait and watch.
  
  Kitty stopped and paused, she sensed that they were not alone. Perhaps it was an occupational hazard of being near Harry too much and thus she became slightly paranoid, but the fact of the matter was that she turned to her fellow teammates. Her eyes darted quickly to the rafters and she could have sworn she saw something move rather quickly.
  
  "Keep on your toes guys, we could have trouble," Kitty stated to them.
  
  Tabby was the one who responded in a brash voice, when she cracked her knuckles. "It's nothing that we can't handle. I mean after we trashed those car-jackers, we're on a roll, so let's do this thing."
  
  "You might be on a roll ladies, but it's about to stop now."
  
  The voice echoed for all of them to hear and the Sirens stood on edge, waiting a little bit. The voice they heard was commanding with a presence that caused them to all stand up and take attention. Voices like this echoed loud and bold, proud and could stretch on for miles. The group of six waited before they watched them.
  
  "Who are you?" Rogue demanded before she placed her hands on her hips. "Show yourself!"
  
  There was a chuckle before the voice responded once again. "Now be realistic, my dear, do you think that I would step into the light? I am called many things in the criminal underworld but you may call me the Kingpin."
  
  "Yeah, well I'm calling you out for a butt whooping!" Rogue stated when she cracked her knuckles.
  
  "Such spirit but yet such a temper," the Kingpin stated in an even voice. "You Bayville Sirens do have potential. I will not kill you, because you are an asset. Rather I'd offer you a job; I'd even pay you money. Mutants would be respected and not feared like it is inevitable."
  
  The girls got on edge, how did this guy know what they were? Jean tried to scan for any thought patterns so she could find out where the Kingpin was hiding. Yet after that search failed she came to one simple conclusion, whoever was talking to them, he was not here and that was pretty frustrating.
  
  "Too bad you can't come out and face us," Jean answered, feeling the Phoenix within her flare up in anger.
  
  The chuckle of the Kingpin echoed through their ears before he decided to enlighten them on one simple matter. "That would be folly, my dear siren. So my offer, whilst it will be generous, expires in a short time. I would suggest you take advantage of it while you can."
  
  "How about no?" Tabby asked when she put her hands on her hips, bracing herself for a fight. "We could dish anything that you can take out so bring it buster."
  
  The laughter of the Kingpin could be heard; this very thing put the Sirens on edge. The hairs on the back of their necks stood in attention when they waited for the other shoe to drop. The other shoe was about to drop but they did not know how much it was going to drop. The group swayed and waited, carefully keeping on their feet.
  
  "I'm guessing that means no," Kingpin stated when his chuckles ceased.
  
  Before any of the Sirens could make a snappy retort, a high frequency pulse ripped through the air. The siren felled the Sirens, with Jean and Rachel in particular getting the worst of it. It felt like their heads were split open, the other four did not fare too well other from the energy blast.
  
  "What....is that?" Amara managed, her heart beating heavily, when she felt her powers go out of control.
  
  Scott's eyes began to blast high above them, causing chaos and forcing the Siren's to scatter.
  
  "I can't believe....I can't believe that...." Kurt could not say anything more for he began to teleport in an erratic manner, nearly teleporting into things and on top of people, with his powers going completely haywire.
  
  "This frequency disrupts mutant powers, a hand little device as you can see, and causes them to hurt the users of them as well," the Kingpin commented, before he snapped his fingers and several armed goons walked forward, ready to rough up the Bayville Sirens. "Nothing personal, my dears, just business, that's all."
  
  "What are you doing here?" Jean demanded when Scott and Kurt were brought down, and collars were locked onto them, along with the crippled sirens.
  
  'And now our powers are gone,' Jean thought to herself, when she squirmed. 'Great, wonderful, could this day get any better?'
  
  "What I want to know is how this Kingpin guy got all of this tech?" Kitty wondered and that was a good question but none of them were close to getting the answers they wanted.
  
  You aren't the only group who works in a co-op effort," Kingpin answered carefully when he watched the carefully. "You X-Men aren't the only mutants in town."
  
  "So that's it, you're a mutant?" Scott managed, trying to get a word in.
  
  "Not that it concerns you, but that is not what I implied in the slightest," the Kingpin answered in a careful voice, choosing his next few words as such. "Although there are mutants in high society, not that you'd live long enough to learn about them, or whom they are."
  
  Warning and malice dripped from the voice of the Kingpin, when the X-Men were at his not so tender mercy.
  
  "Wait, so there are mutants....among us in high society,' Gwen responded when they broke back in the present.
  
  "Yes, that's what he said, I'm not sure what he really meant," Harry answered before he cleared his throat and went back to his story. "So, the X-Men were in for a rough time now."
  
  "That's what happens when they don't have their leader around," Gwen mused but Harry gave her a shifty look. "Sorry, please continue."
  
  "Gladly," Harry chimed in before he cleared his throat and then paused for dramatic effect. "So we established that the Kingpin had friends in high society, that equipped him with technology that brought mutants to his knees. At first, I thought that there was a Sinister hand at work here, but then I determined that there might be another explanation. Something new but we could not worry about that. This was the time where I decided to step in, I figured the practical lesson was over, and it was time to clean some house."
  
  Harry paused when he reflected, he wished the Kingpin would have been there in person but that guy, whoever he was, was not going to be that easy. He was the type that hid underneath a rock before he waited to strike at the right time, whenever that would be. The Kingpin was slippery as a snake.
  
  "And apparently, I can't leave my team alone for five minutes,' Harry thought to himself when he arrived, with Daredevil leading the charge and Spider-Man swinging in behind them. 'So...this Kingpin guy, doesn't want to show his face. That's fine, I'll take care of him later.'
  
  Harry heard a buzzing in his ears but his eyes closed and he blocked it out before he powered on through. His heart beaten against his chest when he tried to figure out what the source was to what was causing this. He would have been able to step forward had it not been for one simple thing and that was that Spider-Man hunched over.
  
  "What is it?" Arcane asked when his eyes flickered towards the wall crawler who placed a hand on the top of his head. What is it?
  
  "Spider Sense, going wild," Spider-Man answered when his eyes closed shut and his mouth rattled a little bit, but his heart beat a little bit more, when he swayed, sweat rolling down his body.
  
  Harry peered around, another high pressure situation but that was no problem, he'd been there and done that. He wished he could block out that infernal buzzing sound but perhaps he was trying to think about this problem from the wrong angle. He bent his knee down and waited for the right moment to strike. Any second now, he could jump in and find what was causing the issue.
  
  Suddenly, he saw that five of his girls were about to be roughed up by those gorillas, along with Tabby. Kurt was there to and Scott...well he was there too, so Harry supposed that he was going to have to save him as well. He calculated each and every angle with intense mental processing power, he tried to find it, tried to locate it. Time slowed down to a crawl and everyone but Arcane moved in slow motion. He could slow down time to a tenth of a second fast, which was new to him.
  
  Whenever he exhibited a new power, he simply rolled with the punches and saw what it would bring him. He carefully saw the glowing light, the blipping in the back of his head. The agitation echoed through the back of his head, but he found it. He found whatever was doing this.
  
  Or at least it was doing this, he felt a burning through his wrists but at the same time, he blasted the weapon to pieces. It shuddered and smoked.
  
  With a whip of his wrist, Harry released the X-Men from the collars and their powers returned, in time.
  
  "I was wondering when you'd turn up," Kurt commented breathlessly but suddenly, Spider-Man swung in and with one fluid motion sent his line of webbing around the ankles of one of his enemies. His enemy flew to the ground and smacked hard against the ground. "And you too."
  
  "Yeah me, your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man here to save the day and all that jazz," Spider-Man responded when he swooped in from the top of the rafters and prepared to clean house.
  
  "Now the odds are getting a bit better," Kitty answered with a smile, before she grabbed the gun out of the hands one of her attackers. Rogue knocked him down with a swift punch to the back of the head. The brunette mutant jumped up, before she grabbed her enemy around the head and sank him headfirst into the ground.
  
  Tabby launched several of her bombs, taking them off guard, while Amara heated up the ground where they were fighting. They got a hot foot and that allowed Jean to grab onto them with her telekinetic powers, before whipping them into the wall.
  
  Rachel closed her eyes, carefully maneuvering her powers against the minds of her enemies. She gritted her teeth before she projected a thought into their minds, to tell them to go to sleep.
  
  "Wow, where did that guy come from?" Kitty asked in a raised eyebrow when she watched Daredevil dive down and swing his mighty staff, before he knocked the feet of his enemies out from underneath him.
  
  "I don't know, but I like his moves," Tabby stated, watching him, interested.
  
  Harry dove forward and knocked one of the larger thugs into the wall, snapping several bones of his body. He lifted him up, his legs and arms stretched out by a magical attack.
  
  "So, I'm going to only ask you this question once," Harry remarked to him, carefully twisting his limbs, before he swung him upside down. "Where is the Kingpin?"
  
  "Go to hell," the criminal spat but that was the wrong answer to give, Harry whipped him back against the wall. He landed on the wall, when Spider-Man webbed two of the criminals together, causing them to clonk heads. Kitty drove one of the criminals headfirst into the ground until he stopped breathing and then brought him back up, before she kicked him one more time for good measure.
  
  "So how are you doing?" Kitty asked when she watched Kurt teleport out of the way, causing the charging enemy to trip himself up and he landed on the back of his head with the knock out attack.
  
  The enemies fell down, toppling like nine pins and everything worked out well with the exception of one thing that stuck in their teeth. Harry could tell that Daredevil felt frustrated.
  
  They were no closer than getting their hands on the Kingpin then they were earlier tonight.
  
  Harry spun around and faced the group of girls, his eyes narrowing at them. Amara was the one who looked the most sheepish.
  
  "So, how did we do?" she asked.
  
  Scott turned around, this was unbelievable. If he gave them a look like that, he would have gotten dressed down and yelled at. If Harry gave them a look like that, he was asked for his honest assessment of the situation. This was one of those things that made Scott want to lie down and give up.
  
  "We'll talk later," Harry answered to the girls, who all nodded, and Spider-Man stood off to the side, trying not to break down into laughter at the situation.
  
  "So, after all of that, the Kingpin slips away," Spider-Man responded before he amended in a hasty voice. "Not that it was your fault, obviously."
  
  "Well to be fair, he wasn't ever here," Arcane managed and Spider-Man nodded, that much was for certain. They could not really deal all that much with someone who was not really here.
  
  "Daredevil's gone but then again, he's not the chatty type to stick around," Spider-Man answered when he looked over his shoulder.
  
  "We busted a lot of the Kingpin's men, so this night wasn't a total waste," Arcane responded before he turned to Jean. Jean stood her ground but there was a bit of uneasiness dancing through her eyes. She didn't really care what Scott thought about what happened or Xavier but she cared a whole bit about what Harry thought about how this situation turned out.
  
  There was an extremely calm and at the same time, extremely awkward silence that happened. Jean watched Harry carefully, keeping an eye on him. The Phoenix even warned her that indulging in such activities out of spite might cause some friction. Yet, Jean chose to ignore those warnings. And the warnings of Rachel, who turned out to be right this entire time about what happened.
  
  "So the Bayville Sirens," Harry answered when he looked at them. "First of all, I knew it was you the entire time, and I kept an eye on you."
  
  "And it's a good thing you did," Kitty offered when she jumped in for the defense and Harry responded with a nod. "I mean, it could have totally gone the wrong way if you hadn't interfered when you did."
  
  "Yeah it could have," Harry agreed before he added to the group at large, a smile crossing his face. "Although today did prove one thing, and that is you are pretty well trained. That speaks well of you and that will continue to speak well of you. I hope that you've learned that training might not be everything. There will always be one person who will have the better tools. But those tools aren't everything, as if they bust, then the playing field becomes more even."
  
  Harry actually got a similar lecture from the Sorcerer Supreme about the folly of relying on magical artifacts. Just because something seemed like it was a good idea to use, did not always mean it should be used. Of course, there was also the point that most magical artifacts held a dangerous curse on them that could backfire in the face of the user, but that was beside the point.
  
  The point was that no matter how many trinkets that one had in their disposal, the human mind was still a very powerful weapon and Harry hoped to impart that upon his students. Powers were useless if a person was an idiot. Of course, the human mind was capable of making mistakes, that was what made them humans or in that case mutants.
  
  "So I guess we've got a lot to learn," Kitty answered when she looked at Harry, biting her lip in a sheepish manner but Harry gripped her hand, before he grabbed it tightly.
  
  "You do have a lot to learn, always have and always will," Harry added with a smile on his face before he watched her. "I have a lot to learn, we all have a lot to learn. I like to think that no matter what, we never stop learning. That is what makes us who we are."
  
  There was one thing that Harry would like to learn and that was where was the Kingpin. Or who was he, that was another thing that he wanted to know. His green eyes burned when he thought about the burning question. He knew that he was close to the answers that eluded him for quite some time. Today's battle, it was the first stage to something greater.
  
  From what Daredevil stated, there was a gang war coming, in fact one could say that it was on its way. He wondered how much that would affect what he was trying to with the X-Men and what his plans were for the not so distant future. As the summer wound down, so did his time at the Xavier Institute. He thought for a brief time that Xavier might try and make him an offer that he was unable to refuse, but so far, there was nothing, nothing at all. That disappointed Harry, but he supposed that such was life, even if it made him feel underappreciated. There was only so much charity one could give.
  
  It would come time to move on pretty soon but they were all heading home, it had been a long night.
  
  "So, that's it?" Gwen asked with a raised eyebrow when she looked at Harry ,when he concluded his story.
  
  Harry offered a shrug of his shoulders before he looked back at Gwen, a sheepish expression appearing on his face. "You know, this was one of those stories that sounded a hundred times better in my head."
  
  "No, I think the story was fine, it's just....I mean you learned a lesson, but the Kingpin is still out there," Gwen offered, before she placed her hand on Harry's, and the two crowded closer together. There was some time where they eyed each other for a moment and then Gwen cleared her throat before she continued. "I don't think that was a good thing at all, with him being out there and all still."
  
  "No it wasn't," Harry admitted when he spun Gwen around a little bit to look into her eyes. "The entire mutants in high society thing, well I knew that there were more of us out there. But if my guess is correct, they're using their powers to try and....they're going to try and take things over."
  
  Harry wondered what their game was other than that, for some reason, that seemed way too simplistic for people with mutant powers. He clicked his tongue and hummed a little bit, his eyes flashing when he mulled it over in his mind. Time ran short and Harry knew that he had to get back to the Xavier Institute for some early morning training.
  
  "Bye, Gwen, talk to you later," Harry answered, before she got up and threw her arms around her, before she pressed his lips against hers with a smashing kiss.
  
  "Don't be a stranger, Harry," Gwen responded and Harry smiled before he disappeared.
  
  Kitty was waiting for him at the Xavier Institute, and there was a sheepish grin on her face.
  
  "Well Xavier gave us a lecture about the entire Sirens mess, but....it was what it was," Kitty answered when she greeted her boyfriend with a hug. "As if no sex for three days wasn't punishment enough."
  
  Harry smiled before he looked at Kitty. "Well you have been a very naughty girl."
  
  "No, Lockheed's been the naughty one, he's did his business on Principal Kelly's lawn," Kitty responded, but she could not help but smiling. "I don't know how he escaped."
  
  "Dragons can be annoying resourceful," Harry responded wisely and Kitty gripped his hands, before she threw her head back, smiling at that fact. "And giving its owner, I would expect it to be doubly successful."
  
  "Flattery will get you everywhere Mr. Potter," Kitty answered when she eyed him with a smile on her face. "So can I...."
  
  "Tonight Kitty, training session awaits, you girls did have some moves out there, I want to make sure the other team members soaked it in that well," Harry answered when he turned to watch and observe the latest training session.
  
  "So we have more problems than we previously believed."
  
  An imposing and large figure sat behind the desk, when he folded his arms, his careful gaze on one of his lead subordinates. The events of the past couple of days went back into his head. The car jacking scheme was a front to distract the authorities and the heroes around this town from the true nature of his plans. Given the fact that Silvermane got released from prison and the Master Planner moved in on his territory, the Kingpin was put in the pressure cooker and he needed to make deals to deliver the goods to his partners.
  
  When the going got tough, the tough got going and there was no one as tough as the Kingpin. He rolled over every single crime lord that got in his way, building up his ranks. He strong armed many men out of his turf and folded them into his own criminal empire, whilst he made sure that he kept with his plans as it was in the past. He folded many of these men and women into his criminal empire, all in the name of ensuring that he would have the very best and the very brightest.
  
  And now there was a problem and that problem was Daredevil. The Guardian Devil of Hell's Kitchen muscled in on his territory, taking out his men one by one. There were more operations foiled in a month than the Kingpin could even remember happening during his entire time on the throne. This could not be allowed, no question about it. There had to be another way, although the Kingpin was at a loss to figure out what it was. Yet, he would find the solution for he was the best at what he did.
  
  As for another problem, well there were two more. These Bayville Sirens were an annoying distraction, as were the rest of the X-Men, but they were not the main issue. The problem was this mysterious Arcane. The Kingpin wanted his hands on this young man; he could be an extremely valuable asset.
  
  As a wise man once said, "Everyone has a price."
  
  All the Kingpin had to do was name Arcane's price but his time would come, along with the time for everyone else. Now, he prepared for his next move, for there was a gang war brewing.
  
  "Ah, Kingpin, tell me, did the power inhibitor collars work?" the voice over the phone asked.
  
  "They would have, had Arcane not been involved," Kingpin stated when his voice dripped with interest. "What is he?"
  
  "That's what I'd like to know," the man on the other end of the telephone. "The White Queen will seek him out and bring him over to our fold when the time is right. As of now, we must only wait and watch."
  
  "Of course," The Kingpin agreed, calculating and planning his next move.
  
  "You've come a long way and your membership in our club is valued," the man on the other end of the phone stated in a garbled tone. "The Hellfire Club will reign supreme while the Kingpin rules over the New York underworld. No one can stand in our way with our forces combined."
  
  "You said it, my friend."
  
  Kingpin plotted his next move, the game was on. He would be the chess master and when the time is right, the Black King would fall and all of the pawns would be under the control of the Kingpin.
  
  He was nothing, if not ambitious.
  
  To Be Continued in "Malice of a Mad Thinker."
  Malice of a Mad Thinker
  
  Chapter Forty Six: Malice of a Mad Thinker.
  
  The Baxter Building was the scene, the headquarters of the first family of super heroes known as the Fantastic Four. They have had many tough battles against many tough opponents but there was one battle that many of them struggled with many times on a day to day situation. It was a problem that many families dealt with and that was the fact that they tried to get along underneath one roof, with super powers.
  
  "Hey, get back here matchstick!"
  
  The bellowing voice of the Thing echoed throughout the Baxter Building when he rushed the Human Torch. The Torch snickered when he rushed forward, with the Thing right beside him. Ben Grimm was a very laid back man but there was sometimes where Johnny got under his rocky skin. He passed the half amused, and half exasperated look on Susan Storm, who turned around and folded her arms. The nineteen, almost twenty year old member of the Fantastic Four turned to Reed Richards who was hovered over an experiment. Nearly a decade older than her, Reed was always enamored in an experiment to the point where it was almost obsessively frustrating.
  
  "Just another day at the office," Susan stated when she threw her hair back and saw Reed at work. "You've been at work with that for three days, I wonder if you actually have remembered to eat."
  
  "Yes...but this is....our guests haven't arrived yet, have they?" Reed asked when his eyes remained fixated on the experiment. He had been studying this for almost a year, after the time-space continuum opened up and there was a rift that appeared shooting the person now referred to as Arcane from it. It was his belief that there could be other things that could have brought into their universe besides their guest.
  
  Susan only kept half of her attention on the antics of Ben and Johnny, and also turned around, to remember about the arrival here in this dimension. Reed was like a kid in a candy store, thinking that this arrival was some kind of alien life that popped in. He was only mildly disappointed that the young man that showed up was apparently not an alien but rather he was someone from an alternate universe not unlike there's. Although that was something that Reed got excited about.
  
  There was a knock on the door and Susan's ears and eyes perked out, before she walked towards the door with a smile. Ben and Johnny stopped, before she opened the door.
  
  Gwen Stacy, Kitty Pryde, and Harry Potter stood on the other side.
  
  "Thanks for inviting us to the Baxter Building," Harry responded with a smile and Susan blinked before she got ahold of herself and her bearings, shaking the cobwebs from her head.
  
  'Focus, Susan,' Susan thought to herself. 'No need to act how Reed acts around science, just keep a cool and professional head.'
  
  "No...problem, especially after what happened last time. I can assure you that Reed's upgraded security, at least he was supposed to. Doom won't be stopping by any time soon."
  
  Harry smiled, he sure hoped so. He did not enjoy being attacked and nearly dying every single time he entered somewhere. He could tell that Kitty and Gwen would enjoy a day out without any stress and drama. Peter would be with them but he got sidetracked with something, so he might be a little late or perhaps he might not show up at all.
  
  "Thank you for inviting us Ms. Storm," Gwen stated in a gushing voice, she was a bit of a fan girl, although she was trying her hardest not to show it.
  
  "Please, Susan," she responded with a knowing smile when she looked at Gwen, knowingly eying her before she invited Gwen, Kitty, and Harry inside. "I'm glad you came and so is Reed...REED!"
  
  "Oh our guests are here," Reed responded when his eyes looked up from his work finally. It had been three days since he really looked up from what he was doing. He eyed Harry with a smile. "You must be....Arcane, isn't it? It was fascinating how you arrived here."
  
  Ben stopped and offered a smile, before he inclined his head slightly. "Word of advice, kid, if Stretch here starts looking at you like you're some kind of science experiment, the exit's over there."
  
  Harry smiled before he shrugged but Reed acted like he didn't hear what his rocky friend said.
  
  "So how exactly did you arrive here?" Reed asked when he looked at Harry, eying him. "Did you perhaps access some tear through the fabric of time and space, that would allow you exist in this plane of existence? Have you ever contemplated a way in which you would return home? Did you wonder if your trip here might only be temporary and you might be recalled to your universe?"
  
  "I walked through a veil," Harry responded carefully, when Kitty offered a snicker and a smile, before stood next to Harry, placing her hand on his arm. "I woke up here in the Vegas desert. And I haven't considered ever returning home. And yes..."
  
  Harry stopped; he always wondered if someone would recall him home. He feared that someone would try and go through the Veil after him. Of course, given the state of Sirius, he did not recommend that at all. He was not in the best spirits and despite Harry using every method at his disposal, he did not wake him up. If he did not refused to give up hope, he would have given up hope.
  
  These dreams were getting more intense, he saw things around him, weird symbols of a language that he almost understood, and he wondered if it was some kind of side effect of the veil that was just being delayed. He didn't reveal this to anyone, not even any of his girls. Harry wanted to figure out this journey on his own, he had a feeling that there was some greater purpose.
  
  "So do you think that you could be recalled home?" Kitty asked, she tried not to act like she was freaking out about this, even if she was freaking out about this eventually. She grabbed Harry by the arm and Gwen grabbed him by the other arm .
  
  "Even if I'm recalled to that world, I'll find my way back," Harry responded, but he looked out.
  
  Home, what was home anyway? There was always something missing in the back in his mind, it got more prominent when these fragments, these dreams continued to flicker through his mind.
  
  He was something that transcended humans and also mutants, and the fact was that he would be able to live for a long time nagged in the back of his mind. And the scary thing was that his powers were still getting stronger, even though he wanted to hold himself back a little bit, he might not have much of a choice, as the threats were getting tougher. His powers were such to the point where he could hurt someone if he was not careful. And not hurt someone who deserved to be hurt, but hurt someone in the crossfire.
  
  Harry turned his head, when he heard a rattling in the side of the walls, carefully edging himself around.
  
  "What is it?" Susan asked, she watched Harry a little bit, and saw that he teased up. Gwen and Kitty noticed the same thing.
  
  Harry felt his hearing was getting sharper for some reason and he heard individual sounds, everything from the loudest boom to a pin dropping.
  
  "There's someone here," Harry stated and Johnny was the one who spoke up.
  
  "That's impossible, there can't be anyone here...."
  
  "That is where you're wrong, Jonathan Storm."
  
  The voice that echoed through the Baxter Building distorted and creepy, giving an echo and a hum, before it began to speak once again, with Reed trying to access the computers to pinpoint the source of the intrusion.
  
  'Do Richards and Xavier use the same security company?' Harry thought in exasperation.
  
  "You have spurned me once before Reed Richards, but now the Mad Thinker is not easily spurned," the distorted voice responded, when it echoed through the building maliciously. "And I will create your tomb within your beloved Headquarters. I shall bring down the Fantastic Four."
  
  "Ah, been there done that, get a new line," Johnny yawned but Susan gave him an exasperated expression. It was time to shut up so he did when he snapped his eyes towards Reed. Reed looked more frustrated than Johnny ever seen him before. "Problem?"
  
  "Yeah, we've been locked out," Reed responded when he clicked his fingers. "I'll try and access it but it won't be easy."
  
  Gwen, Kitty , and Harry all exchanged looks of frustration and despair. So much for them having a day where they were not going to run into any trouble. That was never in the books.
  
  
  
  Reed closed his eyes, in all of his genius, he rarely had been this challenged. It was an obsessive mania to know all, to be that bit better than anyone else. His intelligence grew, and he decided to use it to better serve the world. He kept the Fantastic Four together out of some kind of guilt because he was responsible for them receiving their powers and in the case of Ben, ruining their lives.
  
  Granted, the Thing tried to keep on a happy face for the public eye, but Reed could tell that he was disappointed at the loss of his looks, forever turned into a man made of rock. It was a sad irony that the one that looked like the monster was also the most dedicated and personable member of the team, the one who threw his all into the charity work. His big personality made his fate even more tragic.
  
  Right now ,none of that mattered, Reed found himself locked out of the Baxter Building and he tried to access the core, but found himself unable to do so. He tried every trick in the book and for Reed, that was many tricks. Someone compromised the systems, which he spent millions upgrading.
  
  "No matter how much you upgrade, you are just one step behind me in the theater of the mind, Richards," the Mad Thinker taunted him, the distorted voice echoing through there. "I have your building and soon I will have your head on a plate, Reed. You will bow before your intellectual superior."
  
  "Wow, another villain who doesn't know when to shut his mouth, there's a surprise," the Human Torch stated when he offered a mocking yawn.
  
  "I'll show you who needs to shut their mouth, you diseased child," the Mad Thinker responded through the distorted voice and the doors opened, to reveal robots marching towards them.
  
  "Robots, really?" Susan asked as she rolled her eyes.
  
  Harry offered a raised eyebrow, he was sick and tired of dealing with robots, and he wondered where these villains found the time to make all of these robots. Granted they blew up easily, even though these offered EMP shielding which made Harry have to work harder with his spells. Still he got them rather handily. He speared several blasts into the robots, backing them off and rocking them completely.
  
  "You know, it's getting kind of old, fighting these robots," Kitty responded when she phased her hand through the chest plate of the robot, rocking it to pieces. She phased one robot into the other, causing an explosion to echo.
  
  "About the fourth, or fifth time this week, wouldn't you say, Ben?" The Human Torch stated in a bored voice, when he blew up the robots.
  
  "At least two times before breakfast on Wednesday," Thing answered casually when he smashed through the robots, sending them crashing to the ground and breaking apart into pieces.
  
  Reed watched the robots with interest, his eyebrow raised when he studied them. A smile crossed over his face when he began to talk about them. "These robots, they are quite fascinating, their design are without peer. Sure they break apart easy in the face of our attacks but their craftsmanship is amazing. And how they conserve their power, remarkable and...."
  
  Johnny snapped to interrupt Reed's statement, using a fiery attack to knock out the robot that Reed was checking out. "Sheesh Reed, marry one already!"
  
  Reed stopped and remained focused, using his limbs to stretch around the robots to send them down to the ground.
  
  "That was merely the first assault," the taunting voice of the Mad Thinker echoed throughout the building. "I am just getting warmed up; it's time for the second volley. And Fantastic Four will quiver at my feet, quiver, and they will be brought down to a level that they could not imagine!"
  
  The doors opened once again, to reveal hovering droids.
  
  "So you react to us defeating your robots by sending more robots," Kitty stated when her eyes rolled into the back of her head. "Yeah, because that totally makes a lot of sense, doesn't it?"
  
  "Silence you insolent child, do not speak of what you do not understand," The Mad Thinker retorted when there were more blasts from the robots that flew through the air.
  
  The Fantastic Four circled around each other, carefully trying to formulate some kind of battle plan that would lead to them not going down in a blaze of glory. Even though that would be extremely hard not to do, they had to try. The droids circled around them and the Human Torch began to flame on, but foam shot at them, causing his skin to sting from pain, but his powers not to flame on. He dropped to his knees, breathing heavily and gasping for air, his chest burning.
  
  "Johnny, it's..." Susan stated but there was a pause when she was trapped inside her own force field.
  
  "These things, they turn their powers against us," Reed responded before his limbs stretched and wrapped around his throat, choking the life out of him, causing him to slowly black out. "Fasc...ah."
  
  The Thing clobbered one of the droids, while Harry whipped his hand, blasting them apart. Kitty helped them, while Gwen made her way to the computers, to try and lock out the Mad Thinker.
  
  "Your powers are unlike anything I've ever seen before," the Mad Thinker responded when the voice twisted with malice. "I will look forward to your dissection."
  
  "That's just messed up and disturbed," Kitty answered, when Harry launched her up and distracted the droid, so he could smash razor sharp spikes into it from behind blowing them up.
  
  As for the Fantastic Four, well they were dragged off, and the doors sealed behind them. Harry rushed forward, trying to blast through the force fields but his spells only barely bent the force field for a few seconds. He needed to find the source but where that source was, he had no idea.
  
  'Now the security works, that's about right,' Harry thought, feeling the need to bang his head against something.
  
  Gwen bit down on her lip, trying to get into the computer.
  
  "Do you need any help?" Kitty asked when she edged over towards Gwen.
  
  "No, I just...got it!" Gwen stated in a cheerful voice before she responded with a smile. "Ha, I'm smarter than Reed Richards!"
  
  Harry snapped back at her with a smile. "Don't let it get to your head."
  
  Gwen gave him a mock glare but secretly she was smiling and now they had a chance to track down the Mad Thinker. Whoever the Thinker was, they were in their grasp, and now all they to do was find where exactly in the Baxter Building they were sent.
  
  
  
  Susan, Reed, Johnny, and Ben were now strapped down to the table and slowly came to their senses. They had no idea how much time passed but they knew it was a lot. The quartet struggled against their bindings, but there was no easy way out. No matter how hard they fought, the bindings kept them down, making hem unable to break free no matter what. They pushed themselves up, but the straps that bound them, were forced back down. The group tried to push them down.
  
  "I forgot this lab existed, we moved out for the bigger one," Reed remarked, when he watched his fellow team members.
  
  "I thought this place looked familiar," Johnny answered when he tried to get himself out of the attack.
  
  "I wouldn't struggle, those straps might not seem like much but they will hold you. Until I am done with you, and then your demise will be at hand."
  
  Reed's head turned towards the sound of the voice. "You know all things considered, it would be prudent to kill us now, whilst we are at a disadvantage that you can easily exploit. I'm saying that we could escape if you stall for too long, it has happened numerous times before."
  
  "Reed, don't give the crazed psychopath pointers," Johnny winced but the voice snapped.
  
  "I'M NOT CRAZY!"
  
  "Oh boy, she's going crazy," Susan murmured to herself but she tried to push herself out. There was no give to the straps and she sank down onto the table, sighing a little bit, when her blonde hair draped over her face.
  
  "If you mind me asking, just who are you?" Reed asked when he turned his head, trying to figure out who he was dealing with. The scientist paused, before he also added. "I mean, someone like you, I assume that we've fought in the past. You seem to be the type to hold a grudge over a longer period of time, letting it fester until you unleashed it in a psychotic rampage."
  
  Susan thought that Reed spoke some sense, even though it distressed her that he would still be analyzing things when they were tied to tables. Potentially they would be about ready to be dissected, at least that's what she feared. She tried to twist herself out of the bindings, but the woman collapsed onto the table, unable to get herself free from the bindings.
  
  "Perhaps I shall beg your indulgence for one second," the voice stated, before a young girl, a teenager stepped from behind the curtain. She had jet black hair and taunting black eyes that flickered towards them.
  
  "You're just a kid," Ben remarked carefully but she sighed.
  
  "A kid who was spurned by Reed Richards," she stated when she looked at him. "Does the name Rhona Burchill ring a name to you?"
  
  Reed paused before he considered this question. "I can't say it rings any bells."
  
  "Well it will after today, it will be the name of the one that kills you," Rhona responded when she placed her hands down on the table and stared into his eyes. "After all that time, I've spent the past three years thinking about it. How I wrote you a letter and you never responded to me. Your arrogance knows no bounds but it matters little because I'm your intellectual superior in every way conceivable and the intellectual savior of the masses."
  
  "Really, this is all over about Reed not responding to your little fan letter?" Johnny asked when he rolled his eyes and his voice dropped to a whisper. "Think someone might be overreacting just a tad."
  
  "I AM NOT OVERREACTING!"
  
  This reaction was in fact shrieked at the top of Rhona's lungs and she stated this claim, snarling practically when she said it. Her eyes narrowed with fury and she watched them all, before she carefully contorted her face into a smile, tapping her hand on the side of the table.
  
  "I didn't....think that it would be a problem," Reed answered when he looked at his team members.
  
  "Well, I hope this teaches you a valuable lesson," Susan stated when she could have rolled her eyes. It wouldn't be the first time that Reed got caught up in his work and neglected to do something. Only this was perhaps the first time that that him neglecting something could have gotten them killed.
  
  "Yeah, always answer your fan mail, you never know when someone might take it the wrong way," Johnny remarked in a grim voice but he gulped when he saw Rhona brandish a buzz saw above him. "Hey watch it with that thing, lady."
  
  "There won't be the next time to correct your mistakes, for I will correct the ongoing mistake that is your existence," the Mad Thinker stated, she looked much like her name sake. She appeared quite mad and was deep in thought. Her face twisted into a grin of pure malice and her eyes looked over the Fantastic Four. "There are any number of ways where I can bring about your painful and humiliating demise. All I need is the right tools and the correct motivation."
  
  "By all means, take your time," Ben offered, despite his strength, he could not get free.
  
  "No, no, I've taken too much time, Richards was correct, I should strike whilst the iron is hot," the Mad Thinker remarked, when her eyes stared them down. "It is a matter of how to take you down; there are so many choices, so many options. I'm trying to determine which would be the most feasible."
  
  "Take your time," Susan remarked breathlessly, but Rhona placed her hands on the head of Susan.
  
  "You are the least reprehensible member of this team, therefore I will allow you a quick death, devoid of the agony and humiliation that the rest of this team shall receive," Rhona responded when her teeth twisted into a smile.
  
  "No, Sue she...."
  
  "I thank you for your irrelevant opinion," Rhona stated before she held the saw in her head and to Susan's throat. "Farewell Susan Storm, I am saving you from being in the presence of that simpleton any...."
  
  The saw in her hand transfigured into a rubber chicken and Kitty popped from underneath the floor in one fluid motion. She pulled the straps, releasing the Fantastic Four.
  
  "What is this?" Rhona demanded, before she pulled out a laser blaster. "Don't move, or I shall...."
  
  The blaster transfigured into flowers in her hand which levitated from her hand and then turned around, before the flowers shot razor sharp thorns at her. Rhona threw herself on the ground, ducked and rolled, before she tossed a knife that with a flick turned into a paper airplane.
  
  Harry dropped down to face her and she watched him, carefully studying his motions. She cracked her knuckles and swung for him but he blocked her attack.
  
  "You know, you've been here, but what is your game?" Harry demanded of her, carefully watching her, but she attacked him. "Not much of a talker, are we?"
  
  "You meddled in my plans, you insufferable fool!" Rhona stated, her eyes flashing in fury.
  
  "Really, she pulled that one out of the clich?d super villain guide," Johnny stated but more robots arrived to engage the Fantastic Four, Shadowcat, and Arcane. "Really, again?"
  
  "Quiver before my malicious plan!" Rhona stated in a crazed tone, eyes widened and unblinking, when she twisted a dial on her wrist and her molecules shifted through the wall.
  
  "Really, that's her plan of escape," Kitty responded when she heard the sounds of combat over her shoulder but she phased through the wall as well, chasing after her adversary.
  
  Rhona dropped to the ground and aimed a swing at Kitty but the brunette mutant dodged the attack, grabbed her wrist, and twisted it. Said wrist snapped back with a pop, and Rhona was driven to the ground.
  
  "And you're not much of a fighter," Kitty stated, when she dodged the attack that Rhona sent at her. She knew better than to go intangible all of the time, after what Sin did to her. "That didn't hurt at all, that...."
  
  There was a humming sound and Kitty stopped before Rhona laughed. Her laughter became more prominent to the point where it almost got kind of creepy. It really spooked Kitty to be honest and the brunette turned around, her eyes carefully on Rhona, before she managed to voice one simple statement, towards her.
  
  "What is it?" Kitty demanded, trying to grab Rhona, but a force field appeared around her body, which propelled Kitty back.
  
  Harry arrived and Rhona smirked, looking positively crazed when she watched them all.
  
  "The Baxter Building is above to go up, taking the entire neighborhood with it," Rhona stated when she bit her lip down, showing her crazed expression. "Either stop the explosion or stop me, it's your decision, make the wise one."
  
  "That little...." Kitty grimaced but there was a flash and she vanished.
  
  "She's packing some pretty heavy technology," Harry stated, careful not to let Reed hear that. The Fantastic Four finished off the robots in the other room. There was a loud crash, and a slight crunch, which put them all on pins and needles.
  
  "Gwen, I hope you're still in the computers, because Miss Mad Thinker triggered a meltdown of the core," Harry responded when he talked to one of his girlfriends.
  
  "Yeah, I'm in it, and I'm ready," Gwen stated when she hacked into the computers. She bit down her lip and sweat rolled down her face, the pressure was most certainly on but what was life without a little bit of pressure. Everything pushed down her face and she thought about what she needed to do. "This is going to be a close call."
  
  "And trying to stop technology that I don't understand with magic, that's just asking for people to die," Harry remarked but Kitty turned to him, a suggestion on her tongue.
  
  "Maybe you could use your powers to...."
  
  "No need, I'm in," Gwen answered when she managed to get inside. The pressure was immense but that was what made life worth living. Her heart throbbed against her chest when she carefully accessed the central core of the Baxter Building.
  
  She was so close.
  
  And she got it figured out, with only a few minutes to spare.
  
  Everyone let out the breath that they had been holding. It only was a few minutes later before they came to one conclusion. No matter what the tried to think about, no matter what they tried to do, Rhona was gone and she disappeared without leaving a trace.
  
  Someone like that would be back soon.
  
  
  
  "So, thank you for your help today," Susan stated when they managed to settle back down.
  
  "Yes, today could have gone a lot worse had you not been here," Reed answered when his eyes narrowed. "Her technology though..."
  
  "Not now please, Stretch, her technology almost killed us all," Ben stated, when he turned around with a grimace on his face. He thought about it before he mentally added. "But that's the way things go."
  
  "That is true," Reed admitted when he turned around. "I can't help but think that we haven't seen the last of our mysterious Mad Thinker."
  
  "You've been at this for how long and you don't know for sure," Johnny stated when he threw his head back and rolled his eyes slightly. He clucked his tongue before he thought. "Yeah, she'll be back, she'll be back before too long. She can't be stopped."
  
  Harry thought about that, with the twisted irony of the situation, he knew that Rhona, despite her best efforts, did not finish off the Fantastic Four. He thought that he might be able to take her out, but her technology found a way around his magic. He did wonder if there was some kind of mystical element around it. Magic was not the catch all and be all situation to everything and that was something that he reminded himself about time and time, something that Strange pounded into his head.
  
  Magic, while versatile, was merely a tool and like all tools, there were flaws that could be exploited by an outside party.
  
  Yet she had a plan and a backup plan and a backup to the backup plan, so it all worked together. That much alone caused Harry to have a mild amount of respect for what she did, although she was still out there. Tracking charms would have worked, although they were faulty, especially when the target moved out of range. And also given the armor she wore, Harry could only tag that.
  
  Likely someone like Rhona, shed the armor and made her getaway elsewhere. He would have to check to see if he was wrong in a few seconds.
  
  "So, thanks for coming to the Baxter Building today and thanks for bailing us out of trouble," Susan responded before she added carefully, with a grimace. "Again."
  
  "Yes, it was much appreciated," Reed responded, not even bothering to look up, he would have to fortify the building's security even more than it was.
  
  Gwen, Kitty, and Harry all turned to each other, smiles crossing their faces. Today was a great day and they hoped to make the most out of the rest of the day they spent to together, hopefully things would be better.
  
  They worked together and solved the crime to the best of their abilities, to them that was a win.
  
  
  
  "Well today was an interesting day," Gwen remarked when the three of them sat in her bedroom, unwinding and relaxing. Kitty and Harry would return back to the Mansion in a little bit, there was a Danger Room session in about two hours. In the meantime they hung out at Gwen's. "Too bad you couldn't grab the Mad Thinker."
  
  "She was quite bent that one," Harry responded when he turned his head, carefully looking forward and thinking about everything. "But I can't help but think that she'll be back."
  
  "Well you heard what the Torch said, they always come back," Kitty stated when she began to rub the back of Harry's neck with her hands, carefully feeling the flesh underneath her hands. "You look like of stressed, Harry."
  
  Harry had to admit that his girlfriend had a point. "Well today was a stressful day."
  
  Gwen leaned forward, before she offered in his ear in a whisper. "Well it might be time for us to unwind."
  
  She slid herself onto Harry's lap and wrapped her legs around him, before she straddled him and pressed her mouth onto him with a searing kiss. Harry returned the favorite, when Kitty grabbed him from behind and started to kiss on the back of his neck. The two girls worked their hands and their lips all over his body, before the real fun began.
  
  Smut/Lemon Begins.
  
  Harry pushed Gwen back and started to kiss her on the side of the neck, sucking the flesh on the side of her neck. Kitty slid across the side of the bed and yanked Gwen's shorts off, to reveal her wearing nothing but a pair of extremely sexy black lace panties underneath.
  
  "Mmm, Harry," Gwen breathed when he unbuttoned her blouse to reveal her bra covered breasts. Her fleshy globes were encased in them, a C Cup, borderline a D Cup, and they were quite lovely. He gave them a squeeze, carefully feeling them and enjoy their firmness. "Ah yes, Harry, oh yeah Kitty!"
  
  Gwen's legs parted, which allowed Kitty easy access to her cunt, with first her tongue and then her fingers. Kitty licked and sucked on her clit with her mouth a little bit, before she passed her fingers into her cunt, and stroked in and out of her. The brunette rocked her back and forth, before Gwen pushed up, her cunt meeting Kitty's probing fingers.
  
  Kitty felt Gwen's tight pussy when she felt it, it felt so good, she could hardly believe it. She reached up and massaged Gwen's sexy flat tummy, before she saw Gwen's bra fall to the ground.
  
  "I'm going to suck your juicy tits," Harry stated, squeezing them and running his tongue over the erect nipple, and then without warning, he buried his face into them. Harry feasted on the buffet of flesh before him and his cock began to throb with desire at the thought of doing more.
  
  "Seems like someone wants out to play," Kitty commented with a knowing smile and a wink, when she pulled Harry's pants down over his ankles. Gwen straddled him, when he continued to kiss her breasts and suck on the flesh before him.
  
  Harry's cock sprung out, and Gwen pushed back, before she grabbed it in her hand and caressed his throbbing member. She licked it and Kitty took her turns in licking Harry as well. Both girls worked over his shaft and sac, using their hot tongues and mouths to stimulate him.
  
  "Yes, oh yes, shit," Harry breathed when he bent down and stuck his fingers into Gwen's sopping cunt. Kitty removed her shorts and panties, and allowed Harry to do the same.
  
  Both girls were driven to pleasure beyond measure, when Harry thrust his fingers out from them, and they thrust their cunts upwards towards his probing digits. Both bucked their hips upwards, and moaned lustfully.
  
  Harry felt their pussies when they took turns licking and sucking his dick, when it hung down below them. It was a feeling that he enjoyed and it excited him, his cock throbbed in joy, when Gwen took it into her mouth and down the back of her throat. She gave it several excited sucks, when it buried deep into the back of her throat. Harry grabbed her face and pushed down her throat. She was surprised at first but somehow she managed to accommodate the girth in her throat as he continued to fuck her face.
  
  Kitty meanwhile sucked on his balls, using her tongue to eagerly stimulate his sac and she began to lick him rather carefully. The brunette mutant nibbled and suckled on his nuts, bringing him closer to an orgasm.
  
  "Fuck, yeah, keep doing that,' Harry grunted when he thrust himself forward, running his fingers through Gwen's hair and he pumped his cock down her throat, causing his essence to spill down it. She sucked him down quite eagerly, the fluid splashing down into the back of her mouth. He offered several more deep thrusts when he picked up the pace, going into her, splashing into her mouth.
  
  Gwen licked his essence off of her mouth and shared a hot kiss with Kitty, the seed being traded back and forth between them.
  
  "Gwen, you're so hot," Kitty breathed when the blonde pulled off the brunette's top and squeezed her breasts.
  
  "I know, you are too," Gwen responded when she presented herself for Harry, as she began to lick Kitty's pussy.
  
  "Time for me to fuck that tight little cunt," Harry stated when he grabbed her hips, before aiming his stiff rod into her pussy and rammed into her.
  
  Gwen breathed but she continued to nibble on Kitty's pussy, licking and sucking on her, her tongue working into her dripping snatch. She really enjoyed the taste that she had, it was like a wonderland. The brunette grabbed her locks and pushed her down into her pussy and Gwen rewarded her with licking her while she was rewarded by Harry banging into her from behind.
  
  Harry felt Gwen's tight pussy wrap around him, and he continued to pick up the pace, thrusting into him hard. His balls slapped against her thighs when he pulled himself back and buried into her nice tight snatch.
  
  "Oh I love this pussy," Harry breathed when he grabbed her breasts and cupped her.
  
  She had such nice tits as well, she was really hot, and Harry increased his pace, his member working her over.
  
  Gwen arched her head up, before she moaned.
  
  "Oh that's it Harry, fuck me, fuck my pussy, it's hungry for you!"
  
  "My cock needs you," Harry breathed when Gwen's pussy wrapped around him tightly, before he pushed into her cunt from behind. The blonde arched her hips upwards and it tightened around her.
  
  Harry pulled out of Gwen prematurely and she whined, but he laid back on the bed, his cock up.
  
  "You know what to do, baby," Harry responded when Gwen pushed herself up and nodded.
  
  She sank down on his massive rod, allowing it to push deep into her pussy. The blonde rode him with fury, bouncing up and down, her tits bouncing as she rode him. Gwen got into the movement, pushing herself up, before her pussy slammed down on him.
  
  Kitty waited her turn and decided to join Harry in playing with Gwen's breasts. The two lovers rolled their hands over her tits.
  
  "I think she....ah likes that," Harry grunted when he pounded into her pussy from underneath her.
  
  "Yeah, yeah, fuck, yeah!" Gwen screamed, when Kitty sucked and licked on her nipples, with Harry's rod spearing up into Gwen's pussy. She felt him stretch her walls and the resistance it offered caused her nerve endings to be shot on fire. "Blow your load into my hungry pussy, Harry!"
  
  She bounced up and down on him, and his cock thrust up into her, before his fluids spurted out, splashing into her. Gwen screamed when she felt the orgasm wash through her and she slid back, feeling absolutely excited.
  
  Harry was not properly deflated and Kitty laid back down beside him, her legs spread. Her wet and willing pussy was ready for him and her lips were extremely aroused.
  
  "Come and get it, lover," Kitty purred when Harry hovered over her entrance, it was so inviting that he could not say no. After a brief tease, he slammed into her. "Oh, Jesus!"
  
  "No, I'm sure Harry's much bigger," Gwen remarked when she closed herself and her pussy was dripping with hunger, so she placed it over Kittys's face.
  
  "You couldn't have, ah enough," Kitty breathed when Harry pounded into her pussy, causing the springs of Gwen's bed to creak.
  
  "No," Gwen stated when Kitty licked her cunt and then she lowered her pussy down on the younger brunette's face.
  
  Harry watched as Gwen reared her head back in a moan when Kitty went to town on the blonde's pussy with her tongue, scrapping and licking at her. The blonde grinded and bucked her hips on Kitty's face, before the brunette licked her inside. He reached forward and cupped her tits in his hands, squeezing them, before he bent forward and sucked on them, causing her to made sounds of pleasure.
  
  "Ah yes, suck my tits, oh yes, fuck her," Gwen panted, encouraging Harry. She loved to watch her lover's cock spear in and out of the body of the brunette below her, his large cock burying through her small body. She felt her sensitive nipples get pleasured and she panted and purred whilst Harry worked her over with talent.
  
  Kitty was moaning and screaming, even if her moans were muffled somewhat by Gwen's pussy rubbing against her mouth. The blonde rode her tongue while Harry speared into her with his cock.
  
  The three lovers continued their motions, when Gwen sprayed her fluids on Kitty's face and Kitty's face dripped with her honey. Harry thrust many times into her, speeding up the assaults on her vagina.
  
  Kitty shivered when Gwen bent down and licked the juices off of her face.
  
  "Kinky," Harry managed when he watched Gwen feast on her own juices and Gwen bent over, sitting on Kitty's mouth once again, while her ass was presented towards Harry, and she swayed it before him.
  
  Harry conjured a dildo when he continued to push into Kitty's cunt and with a shifty grin, he shoved the sex toy up Gwen's ass, causing her to scream in pleasure.
  
  With a few more thrusts, Harry came with an explosion, his juices splashing Kitty's walls and painting her insides white.
  
  Gwen turned around, before spinning around and watching her, legs spreading when her pussy hungered for him again.
  
  "Come on Harry, fuck my slutty pussy raw,' Gwen cooed towards him.
  
  Harry smirked, the smartest ones were always the naughtiest and he aimed his cock into her, before he pushed into her, causing Gwen's eyes to bulge with pleasure.
  
  "Time to return the favor," Kitty breathed when she watched Harry bang his cock into Gwen's tight pussy, and she draped her dripping cunt over Gwen's mouth.
  
  Gwen immediately began to taste Kitty, licking the juices out of her slit, and tasting every single tiny bit of her. The blonde worked circles around Kitty with her tongue, gaining more momentum and driving her to more pleasure.
  
  "Fuck she knows how to eat a cunt," Kitty moaned when she threw her head back and that was the last words she spoke for some time.
  
  Harry grinned, when he placed Gwen's legs up near his shoulders, before he thrust up and pounded into her pussy. Her pussy clenched when his cock thrust into her, burying himself deep into her. His super strong thrusts pounded into the brainy blonde's tight body, and she gasped and moaned when he worked into her further and further, to pick up the pace a little bit more.
  
  Gwen panted and moaned when he slammed his throbbing meat into her center, it speared into her. She thrust herself up, the sweat covering their bodies when the two of them thrust their hips upwards hard and they continued to match their motions, meeting them with every single thrust.
  
  Time wound by, before Gwen felt herself fucked into submission. Harry ended her torment by spewing a second load of seed into her, spraying several long ropes of his cum into her center and filling her up quite nicely.
  
  Smut/Lemon Ends.
  
  
  
  SHIELD was always busy, always with the hustle and bustle of a well-oiled government agency. Nick Fury took a moment to reflect the events of the year that was, his eye focused on what was below. Harry Potter or Arcane rather, arriving in this universe had been what one might call a game changer and something that kept Fury on his toes no matter what. The eagle eyed director of SHIELD understood about how much this was a potentially sensitive situation and his head turned around, the footsteps of an approaching figure could be heard.
  
  "Speak," Fury responded when one of the SHIELD agents who approved him. Fury spotted his reflection from through the window.
  
  "Another portal has opened above the Vegas Desert, much in the way that Arcane arrived," the agent stated, waiting for the other shoe to drop. He held a metal box in his hand, turning it open. "And this dropped from the sky on that point. SHIELD was able to pick it up but we've been unable to open it, no matter what."
  
  Fury's interest piqued and he spun around carefully eying the SHIELD agent. He reached forward and snatched the box into his hand. When Nick Fury became fixated on something, he was second to none with how he carefully studied every single of inch of what he had at his disposal. He carefully studied the box, keeping his eye glued to it. There were times where Fury thought that the box would get away from him and might even slip from his hand.
  
  He stopped and stared, he was almost sure if it was sentient or something among those lines and he put an ear to it carefully. There were whispers within the box but they were in a strangled language that he could not fully comprehend when he listened to it. The language was unlike anything that he ever heard of on Earth and he tapped on the box, carefully analyzing it. He wondered if it was indestructible which could pose a problem if the box turned out to be a threat.
  
  So far other than the whispers it seemed rather harmless but Fury was one to hedge his bets carefully, keeping an eye on the box and studying it, keeping it close to hand.
  
  "We've studied it slightly, Commander Fury, the alloy is like nothing we've ever seen on this planet or any other," the agent responded when he nervously bit down on his lip, watching Fury, trying to gauge his reaction, because it might not turn out to be one that was considered well.
  
  To his credit, Fury did not explode into a fury, he rather held the box. Black Widow and Hawkeye turned up carefully.
  
  "Another gift arrived, spit out in the same point where Potter was," Fury informed them before they could even ask and he held the box in his hand. There was three letters on the box but they were so small that Fury could not read them.
  
  "So what's in it?" Hawkeye wondered but Fury eyed him carefully.
  
  "I don't know, that's the problem," Fury responded when he turned to them.
  
  Black Widow offered a statement to Fury that posed a lot of truth to it. "Do you think that given that it arrived in the same way that Harry did, it was meant for him?"
  
  She realized what she potentially implied with that statement, but the statement was out and the damage was done. Fury gritted his teeth and continued to ponder the box, turning it over and looking at the inscription on the bottom of it. There was something inscribed on it but it was microscopic. He would have to blow it up and take a look at it in the not so distant future.
  
  "What does it mean?" Hawkeye wondered. "And what would this have to do with Potter?"
  
  "Maybe we should ask him," Fury responded and the SHIELD agents nodded but another SHIELD agent rushed over.
  
  "We've found something at one of the HYDRA bases," the SHIELD agent stated when he held up a photo. There was a busted containment tank and several HYDRA goons were done on the ground, with stab marks in them, blood dripping down from them.
  
  Fury recognized the indentations of the claw marks immediately.
  
  "It appears that Arcane isn't the only X-Man we'll be getting in touch with," Fury responded, he suspected that HYDRA appropriated Logan's DNA for some use but now this was the proof he needed to push forward with the investigation.
  
  Well whatever their little experiment was, it did not take too kindly to being held captive and being conditioned into a weapon. Given that it was made from Logan's DNA, that much was obvious.
  
  Just another day at the office for Nick Fury, uncovering more questions than he had answers.
  
  To Be Continued in the Next Chapter "Project X-23."
  Project X-23
  
  Chapter Forty Seven: Project X-23.
  
  Harry arrived at the SHIELD Hellicarrier, walking forward with a purpose. When Nick Fury called someone over, there was something that piqued the interest of a person. While they had a choice regarding whether or not they would answer the call, often the person in question did. The young wizard carefully walked forward, moving one step at a time. Logan followed behind him, they were both called to the ship, and both wondered the same thing. It was simply Logan who voiced the question to Harry first.
  
  "So, what do you think this is about?" Logan asked when he looked towards Harry with widened eyes.
  
  Harry shrugged his shoulders before he stood on the ground and looked suddenly thoughtful. "That's a pretty good question and I guess that's a good question that we're going to answer."
  
  He walked forward, keeping his strides. The SHIELD agents stood forward.
  
  "Barton," Harry responded with a careful nod of his head, before he turned to the hero known as Hawkeye. "Cleaned any good toilets lately?"
  
  Barton shook his head, biting down on his lip to the amusement of Logan. He gave Harry an exasperated look. "You're a real laugh riot, you know that."
  
  "I try my best," Harry responded when he walked by the agents and they were all crowding around.
  
  Fury stood before them, arms folded and Harry could already tell instantly that he had a certain amount of intentions on his mind. The young mage eyed the agent of SHIELD, there were times where this particular man looked completely serious. However, this was an amount of seriousness on his face that Harry did not really see before and it was at the point where Harry deduced he masked some true worry. He carefully kept an eye on Fury, before the silence and the tension stopped, when the air cleared.
  
  "So you wanted to see both of us," Logan stated in a crisp voice when he watched Fury.
  
  "Yeah, you should have figured that much," Fury responded when he spun around before he eyed them carefully. He motioned for the group of agents to step forward, carrying the security photos and also an object wrapped in a red cloth. Fury's eye watched Harry carefully before he cleared his throat with a solid cough. "Another one of those portals opened and something fell through before you. The same exact spot where you arrived."
  
  This was news to Harry and he raised an eyebrow before he slowly spoke to Fury. "What is it?"
  
  Fury had his agents unravel the clothe from around the box and the silver box glowed before Harry. He eyed it, the design was unlike anything that he ever remembered seeing before yet he had some degree of familiarity to it. It was extremely weird to that extent; he slowly picked up the box and held it in his hand. He eyed it and he heard the whispers. He strained to hear them completely but it appeared that the whispers did know that there were other people around.
  
  "When the time is right, you will know," the whisper in the box stated. "When the time is right, all will be revealed."
  
  'Cryptic much,' Harry thought to himself with a frown when he eyed the box carefully, flipping it over in his hand. The box remained held in his hand, when he carefully watched it. There was something on the box and the symbols on the box; they resembled what appeared in his dreams. His dreams got even more cryptic, as Harry wondered what he truly was. He hoped to find some answers but he did not want to share this revelation with Fury when it happened, thus he declined opening the box.
  
  Hell, he didn't even want to share the revelation with his teammates either. This was something that was private and for him, this had information about his heritage. The memories of the field moved through his head and he smiled a little bit. Perhaps this box, providing it opened, held the answers.
  
  Harry had one question to ask the agents of SHIELD. "Have you been able to open this box?"
  
  Fury shook his head when he eyed Harry. "No, I have been unable to ever get it open. I was hoping that you were able to open it and shed some light on it."
  
  "I'll handle this, and I'll take it," Harry responded when he turned to walk away but Fury placed a hand on his shoulder before he slowly spun Harry around. Casually, but firmly, Harry pushed his hand away. His eyes stared down Fury, before the two men stared each other down. "Is there a problem with me doing that?"
  
  Fury prepared to enlighten Harry on that fact. "Yes, the problem is it could be dangerous."
  
  "So could you, so could I, and so could Logan," Harry answered as the SHIELD agents stepped forward before they watched Harry with trepidation. "Whatever is in this box, you messing with this, if it came from my world, will cause more trouble than good. Providing this box came from my world."
  
  Harry was happily able to chalk up what was in the box as being a coincidence but he was also willing to keep his mind open despite everything that he learned. He bit down on his lip carefully, before his arms carefully swung around. The box in his hand gave him the feeling of something that contained answers and he peered at it. Temptation to open it visited him but yet dread of what could come when he opened it.
  
  'She will be your treasure.'
  
  That was the inscription written on the box and Harry frowned, whoever sent this box, they obviously were trying to send him some sort of message.
  
  "Leave it alone, Fury," Logan stated in a warning voice when he spun around towards the Director of SHIELD. "You said you wanted to see me."
  
  Fury scowled before he nodded, folding his arms across his chest. "Yeah, this came in today."
  
  He handed Logan the photos of the destroyed HYDRA facility and the claw marks in the wall. The downed HYDRA agents obviously tried to subdue whoever did this but it ended badly for them. Now Logan's curiosity was grabbed and he wondered what the hell happened.
  
  "We've known for months that some of your DNA may be used for a project by HYDRA," Fury added when he looked at Logan, who scowled at not being let in on this news but Fury was not finished. "One of the scientists has been in constant contact with SHIELD."
  
  "Wait you knew this and you didn't feel like telling me until now," Logan responded when he turned to Fury. Somehow, he should not be surprised but yet he was surprised. It was like Fury to keep secrets from those around him.
  
  Fury waved off his question, with a scowl on his face when his eyes fixed on Logan. "Don't jump down my throat Logan; it was handled that way because we don't know what we were dealing with."
  
  "Seems like you had a pretty good idea," Logan offered, that was about all he said, although one could tell from his eyes that he was seriously peeved.
  
  Harry kept his eyes on the tension between Fury and Logan, before he studied the claw marks in the wall and the three HYDRA facilities. One of them, he swore he visited before but he could not place it.
  
  "So what's he like?" Logan asked, he needed to know what he was dealing with.
  
  "She, actually," Fury responded when he watched Logan with a half-smile on his face, even though it was a pained one. "She is more or less your daughter, the cloning process had to be done through a woman and the child was kept for years in isolation, trained to kill. HYDRA took control of the old Weapon X facility but obviously months back they wanted you, because why only have one expert tracker when they can have two."
  
  Logan turned around to talk to Harry but he vanished. In his place there was nothing but writing in flames.
  
  Call it a crazy hunch, but I know where she went. Try that HYDRA facility down by the Hudson, that's the next one on her list.
  
  Fury nodded his head; he figured out the same pattern come to think about it and turned to his men, who awaited him to give the order.
  
  "Just don't stand there with your thumbs up your asses, move out," Fury barked and they SHIELD agents spun around.
  
  Logan was not convinced somehow and he doubted that Arcane was either. The kid lead SHIELD off in that direction on purpose, it was almost too easy.
  
  He had other plans, what they were, Logan could only begin to guess.
  
  
  
  The dark haired girl, dressed in black garb with a mask pulled over her face, edged closer to the mansion, she felt a buzzing in her ears. During her entire life, she felt nothing but violence. Yet, she could heard them, the sound of children playing, having fun. Such a sound was something foreign to her, she did not understand it. She frowned, essentially scowling when she pushed herself forward, eyes narrowed carefully when she walked forward.
  
  The situation was foreign therefore she had the temptation to act hostilely, almost like a threat.
  
  The New Mutants stood at the side of the Mansion and Multiple perked his ears up before he turned to his fellow mutants.
  
  "Hey did you hear something?" Multiple asked as he jumped up.
  
  Boom Boom shrugged her shoulders. "I....come to think of it, you're right."
  
  Jubilee stepped forward, edging towards the bushes. "Hello, come out we won't...."
  
  The figure jumped out of the bushes and moved faster. The New Mutants scattered, they could not believe what was happening, everything was happening so quick. This attacker caught them completely off guard.
  
  Bobby was the one that kept his head up before he turned to the New Mutants. Someone had to take charge and Iceman swung around, before he faced them all. "Amara, Sam, Ray, take the right side, Rahne, Jubilee, Tabby, take the left side. Roberto, Jamie, and I will take the middle."
  
  On paper this seemed like a sound strategy but there was one flaw to something sounding like a sound strategy on paper. Often times in practice, the strategy seemed to be a little less sound. Of course, there was no use thinking about this now.
  
  "What's going on here?" Scott asked as he walked outside, he could have sworn he heard something.
  
  "There's someone in the bushes, be quiet!" Multiple whispered but Scott frowned.
  
  "Step aside, I'll handle this," Scott stated, likely it was some kind of animal that spooked them.
  
  Amara frowned and opened her mouth but Sam shook his head when they watched Scott move forward. It was like waiting for some kind of bomb to drop and they watched him.
  
  "There's nothing in the bushes!" Scott answered with a frown but then the figure was on the wall, standing at the edge of the Mansion.
  
  "That's because it's behind you!" Cannonball stated, frantically pointing as he did so, but before Scott could react several things happened at once.
  
  First she dove down and grabbed him by the shoulder, causing his body to go numb when he buckled to his knees. This opened him up for a more fluid assault.
  
  Secondly, she grabbed him around the neck and placed a disc on the back of his head, which both inhibited his powers and also shocked him into unconsciousness. The next move was not needed because of this but she felt like it was necessary nevertheless; a vicious curb stomp to the back of the had drove Scott into the ground, shattering his nose. Blood trickled from the ground; he laid in the grass, blood pouring from his head.
  
  Iceman took a step back and he tried to ask himself the ancient question that had been asked since the beginning of time. "WWHPD". He bit down on his lip, as Jubilee tried to send a cascade of fireworks but she moved too quick to get attacked and took a swipe at Jubilee with her claws, but Iceman pulled her out of the way.
  
  "Great, she's like Logan on PMS," Iceman stated when he saw the claws bared towards him but he dodged it carefully, setting her up from an attack from Boom Boom. That comment was thankfully unheard by the women around him, because he would be in if they did.
  
  "She's really slick, isn't she?" Roberto asked while he shot into the air, but she grabbed him around the ankles before sending him crashing to the ground.
  
  "Right in one!" Jubilee stated when she rushed forward. "Halt, no one shall succumb to..."
  
  Bobby went down, as did Sam, and then Jubilee in one fluid motion. It was like she barely even tried. She worked fast, pretty faster. The New Mutants gave her a more even fight than she ever imagined but she was able to adapt. That was part of her training, being able to adapt to her surroundings.
  
  "Just calm down, none of us want to hurt you," Amara stated but at the same time her hands lit up with glowing sensations.
  
  Rachel popped in and used a psychic attack to bring her to her knees. She dropped to her knees, carefully shifting a little bit, to try and break into her mind.
  
  'It's savage, and untamed, I can't...'
  
  A swipe of the claws, which was more of a warning shot than anything. The girl pulled back before she did any real damage to Rachel. She propelled herself into the air and grabbed Rachel around the back of the head, before slipping the disc on the back of her neck.
  
  The New Mutants fought hard thanks to their training, but they were severely outgunned by someone who had been born and bred to fight, someone who was the best in the world at what they did. The fact they lasted this long against her and were not taken out collectively in less than a second spoke well for them.
  
  
  
  Harry flew back almost immediately when he heard what happened. He knew from the minute he saw those photos that she was coming here. There was a pattern, one that was almost too clean. She purposely led SHIELD on to make sure they followed the bread crumbs, but the bread crumbs lead to a false location. Harry pushed himself further and further, carefully managing to pick up his pace and he flew even faster, faster than a speeding bullet.
  
  Time ticked by but Harry would not be denied, he had to keep flying and if he reached this location before SHIELD could find out the false trail, so much more the better. He sensed that she had been used as a tool and rebelled against him. Oh, he knew how that felt and Harry dropped down to the ground to see her fighting the X-Men. Rogue, Jean, and Kitty were still on their feet, with Kurt bent over, wheezing, but he managed to hold his own as well.
  
  'The X-Mansion's security breached yet again,' Harry thought in an exasperated manner as he shook his head, before he flew forward, carefully watching the situation. August thirty first was just around the corner as he reminded himself.
  
  He could see it in her eyes; she was confused and predisposed to attacking. This young girl might have had a tough demeanor on the outside when she shielded herself from the rest of the world .However, there was no mistake about it, she had some amount of vulnerability on the inside. Harry saw the signs in her, the anger was a front and he moved forward to engage her.
  
  Whilst Kitty, Jean, Kurt, and Rogue held their own, they were a bit outmatched. Not that Harry was taking anything away from their abilities that was simply the fact of the matter. This girl was in fact that good.
  
  Without another word or thought, Harry made his move, quickly, not even blinking, never even holding up. He pushed himself up into the air, before he scooped her up in the air, before pulling her away at the Mansion. He did it such a way where he masked himself, along with his scent. It was a hard charm to pull off but Harry thought he did it rather well, given the fact that he got the jump on her.
  
  That being said, it was draining as well hell but that was beside the point. He grabbed his arms around her waist, before he set her down in a field out of the way.
  
  She was not a happy camper.
  
  "What are you doing?" she demanded when she rushed him with her claws but he went intangible, causing her to fly through him and land on the ground face first in the mud.
  
  "I could ask you the same question," Harry responded when she tried to attack him but he casually side stepped her attack. Again and again, he dodged her, he could keep this up all day but he had a feeling she could as well. "Come on now, why did you go after the Institute?"
  
  "Answers, I wanted to find him," she responded as her eyes narrowed. There was something about this boy that caused her heart to beat more steadily and caused her to lose focus. He was giving off some heavy pheromones that was making it hard to concentrate in taking him down.
  
  Her animal instincts were inclined to take him down but what she wanted to after, that was unprecedented.
  
  "Project X-23, I snuck a look at the SHIELD data," Harry answered when he dodged her attack once again. "You know, I can keep this up all day and all night long. I do have amazing stamina, as my girls keep reminding me."
  
  She frowned, but there was a feeling that flushed through her body. Her heart rate increased and her palms got clammy, with her knees getting weak. This reaction from her was unprecedented and she wondered what the hell he was doing to her.
  
  "What are you doing to me?" she asked when she dove towards him but he dodged the attack once again.
  
  "I have no idea what you're talking about," Harry answered with a charming smile that James Potter would be proud of. She moved towards him but he dodged her attack again. "Really, I can keep this up for hours and hours, on and on, around and around the loop."
  
  The girl tried to get away but Harry teleported in front of her before she could go more than five feet. Her teeth gritted and her eyes narrowed. "Why are you stopping me from doing this? Why do you care? Why do you..."
  
  "I know what it's like to be used by people," Harry answered when he eyed her, his voice quiet as he spoke. "I can help you, if you let me. Find the people who did this to you, I can do it."
  
  "I can handle this myself," she stated fiercely but Harry grabbed her hands, blocking it, before he overpowered her. No one overpowered her like this. She struggled on the ground underneath his grip, pinned down, exerting his dominance over her.
  
  "No, I think that you need to calm down and think about what you're doing," Harry answered before he pinned her down to the ground and removed her mask to reveal her face.
  
  She had a curtain of dark although slightly unruly black hair hang down her face. Had it not been for the scowl on her face, she would have looked amazingly pretty.
  
  "Calm down, take a deep breath, we'll work through this, I promise," Harry stated when he backed off and let her up. "Did they give you a name, other than X-23?"
  
  She hung her shoulders down, before her head twisted around and she decided to answer her question. Now that she calmed down, she could think more clearly. After what happened, it threw her in a rage, being held like that, being forced to do those training simulations. Being subjected to all of those tests to increase the scope of her healing powers but she would take them down completely.
  
  "Laura, that's what the woman who gave birth called me but they made me kill her," she stated in a pained voice and she slumped her shoulders. Harry carefully held her and she slumped forward a little bit. "I can't...I didn't want to, but there was something they used. It triggered a hypnotic suggestion in my brain."
  
  "And you won't do that ever again, because we'll find it, because we'll work together and fix you the best we can," Harry responded as she slumped in his arms, drained from everything that happened. "I swear, I'll find who did this to do."
  
  "Don't rush on my account, that's not your fight," Laura answered, as she eyed him carefully, but for some reason, he made her feel relaxed.
  
  "Well, I know it's not my fight, but that doesn't mean I can't help when I can," Harry answered when he offered her a smile. "Laura, you'll find with me, that I tend to stick my nose into situations where they aren't wanted or needed. I hate to say that, but that's part of my charm."
  
  Laura offered him a slight smile. "That's a matter of perspective."
  
  Logan dropped down and she tensed up, before the two stared down each other.
  
  "Logan, it's fine, I've got it under control," Harry responded when he watched her, and she eyed Logan suspiciously. He eyed her back; the two of them were carefully watching each other, neither backing down from the other. Something had to give but the real question was what?
  
  "So, you're her," Logan stated when he stepped towards her but she responded with a challenging expression of her own.
  
  "So you're him," Laura fired back while she watched him carefully. "You know, I've been trained to be better, stronger, faster than you. They've conditioned me to eventually take you out, so I can be better than someone who is the best then what they did. So if you attack me, you're kind of taking your chances"
  
  "That's a matter of option," Logan stated when he turned around. "The rest of the team are okay, a bit shaken up, you really did a number on them, kid."
  
  "They started it," Laura responded before she spun around and Logan smirked.
  
  "That I don't have a doubt about," Logan responded when he watched her. "You're good kid, you caught them by surprise. That won't happen much longer."
  
  "They didn't go down without a fight," Laura offered and she relaxed.
  
  "SHIELD wants to run some tests," Logan answered when he turned to Harry but he shook his head when she tensed off.
  
  "I'll keep an eye on her, she'll be my responsibility," Harry answered when he looked at Laura.
  
  "Are you sure?"
  
  "I'm sure," Harry stated to Logan carefully, he had a few questions but he was going to save them for later, after the day they had. "If Fury wants to throw a bitch fit about it, well he can take it up with me."
  
  "Oh, I'm sure he will," Logan responded carefully when he watched him, clutching his fists and he rubbed his hands together. "And you better take good care of her kid, I know where you live."
  
  "Not for long," Harry responded as he watched Logan. "And you know why."
  
  "Well, I'm pretty sure I can find out your new address," Logan responded, taking a moment to watch him.
  
  Laura was confused about this conversation but shrugged, it was likely not her place to know.
  
  
  
  Laura sat at the edge of the Danger Room, pondering about what occurred and what she was. She had a lot to sort out and had been offered a spot at the Xavier Institute to cool her heels. Fury arrived behind her but Harry blocked his access from her.
  
  "She's dangerous, you don't know what backdoor programming HYDRA left in her," Fury offered hostilely but the green eyed mage stared the one eyed secret agent down. He folded his arms and turned towards him. "I know you don't want to think anything bad of her but...."
  
  "I don't because she'd learn a lot more about getting herself together here than she would in any SHIELD facility in the world," Harry responded without even given the matter any consideration. His expression was firm and he eyed Fury carefully, almost as if he dared him to say anything that would contradict him but Fury did not say anything to him.
  
  "It's on you, don't forget that," Fury responded to him.
  
  The tension could be cut with a knife but Harry wondered if he was putting his neck on the line. The truth was Laura was not a bad person, and he had a feeling that SHIELD was not all that altruistic about their purposes. They may feel that she was an asset to be used. He carefully kept an eye on them, turning his head around, with a smile crossing his face when he watched them. The young wizard kept a careful eye on the situation before he nodded.
  
  "Worry about what you need to worry about Fury, and I'll worry about what you need to worry about," Harry responded to Fury, staring him down.
  
  "I hope you're right," Fury responded when he spun around and walked off, carefully making his motions away from him. Harry watched Fury leave, not bothering to say more than two more words to him.
  
  "Why do I have a feeling that this isn't over?"
  
  Harry spun around and saw Jean standing there, her arms folded and a smile on her face. He moved over to greet her, through his arms around her and giving her a kiss. He did the same to Rogue, Amara, Rachel, and Kitty who lined for him.
  
  "For the record, I understand where you're coming from," Kitty stated and they all nodded in agreement.
  
  Harry was glad because he was not going to argue with them about this even if they disagreed with what he was doing. For he already made up his mind of what he was going to do. He stepped over from his girls and bent down to face Laura who sat on a chair.
  
  "I could be dangerous, they could be right," Laura remarked carefully when she watched Harry, his eyes met on hers.
  
  "I could be dangerous too, we all could be dangerous," Harry responded and Laura shrugged.
  
  "You don't seem too dangerous but I suppose looks can be deceiving," she offered as she fixed a beady gaze on him. "You trained your team rather well; they gave me the best workout that anyone ever did. I don't know what you're doing, but keep doing it."
  
  Harry was glad about the statement she gave, and he smiled, that was the praise that he hoped to have more of.
  
  Laura thought about something and she turned around, her eyes carefully narrowed before she stated the next point. "Although not all of the people on this team were that good. That guy in the visor....he could use a lot of work. Although I suppose that you can't train everyone."
  
  Harry smiled towards her but he was not going to say much more than he said. "No, I can't."
  
  He held the box in his hand, turning around when he watched it. Ever since Harry got it, he was half fixated on it. It had been temporarily pushed in the back of his mind one he had to deal with Laura, but now he had much more time to focus on the box in his hand. He carefully watched the box in his hand and heard the whispers in the box. The box was held up to his ear when he really pondered it.
  
  'She will be your treasure.'
  
  Who was she, Harry wanted to know that? He had his fingers on the clasp of the box but he did not open it up yet. He saw the letter "S" encased in a silver shield on the box but what did it mean?
  
  'You will never be alone.'
  
  The box spoke to him carefully when he tapped the box on the side of the table and Harry frowned.
  
  There was another statement from the box.
  
  'All will be revealed.'
  
  "Problem?" Laura asked to Harry, frowning whilst she watched him.
  
  "Trying to figure out where I need to go and what I am?" Harry asked when he watched the box. "There are sometimes....well it's stupid."
  
  Laura watched Harry for a moment; she could tell that he was in a similar boat than she was. Perhaps it was not the same exact boat but she realized that he was closer to her mentally when she realized. She could tell that he was a strong person despite all that and a real Alpha Male. Given the animalistic instincts within her, that made him attractive and potential mate material.
  
  And he was strong enough to take her down with ease, that much was something that Laura remembered as well and respected.
  
  "I think we should judge whether or not it is stupid," Laura offered but Harry's eyes remained on the box.
  
  "Perhaps, perhaps not," Harry responded when he eyed the box towards them. Kitty walked up and he hid the box away in his bag, before any of them could see it.
  
  Something told Harry that he would learn everything that he needed to know when the time was right, and not one second before. The young magical mutant stood, there were many questions and very few answers, and he was going to answer it. He wished to open the box but now was not the time.
  
  'Soon.'
  
  
  
  Wanda stood outside across from the park with the wind blowing through her hair with Harry walking beside her.
  
  "So, I might be free after next week," Wanda responded to Harry carefully, dare she hope? Dare she hope that she be free from that place, forever?
  
  She was angry that they were playing the innocent act, trying to claim that all they were doing was trying to help her. Wanda remembered the straps; she remembered the needles being pushed into her skin. She remembered the hours she was forced into a small room without any windows or lights, because she was sick. It was inhumane treatment; in fact Wanda would go as far to say that prisoners who had committed murder and rape would not even get treatment that was that bad.
  
  It was hard to really think about anything like that and she shared what happened with Harry. There was something about the look in his eyes that made Wanda feel slightly at ease. There was this fact that despite everything that happened, Harry was someone who understood her plight and understood what she was going through. The wizard carefully kept his eye on Wanda and a smile crossed his face. This smile made her feel more at ease than she could ever imagine before.
  
  "A week from Thursday," Harry responded to her with a smile crossing his face. It was that type of smile that inspired trust within Harry.
  
  "A week from Thursday," Wanda confirmed, the smile being returned.
  
  The nightmare would be over, should be over, a week from Thursday, which was about nine days from where they sat and where they stood. Wanda mentally counted down each and every individual second in her head; the wait was rather hard to bare. Then again, most waits obviously were and she nervously rocked back a little bit on her hips. The magical mutant thought that her powers were reined in a little bit better although she had her moments. The long term effects of the drugs were leaving her and Harry managed to work his own magic to prevent the orderlies from pumping her system with anything further.
  
  She had to ask this question, it almost hurt her how vulnerable she felt but it was something that she had to say about it. "Do you think it's going to be that easy?"
  
  Harry smiled a bit of a smile, pained as it was for him to admit it, it was not going to be that easy. "No, but I have a feeling this should run rather smoothly providing that Mystique doesn't show up and contest it. However if Mystique shows up, we've got evidence of her wrong doings ready."
  
  "What about my father?" Wanda asked Harry when she stood by him.
  
  Harry paused for a moment, he could tell that a part of Wanda ached for revenge. But even if she went after her father, then what would happen? Would she have any kind of clarity? Something told Harry that despite that fact, she would have nothing resembling clarity. It would be an endless cycle of revenge, that's what he thought about and reflected on.
  
  Of course, he did wonder if Magneto would approve if the shoe was on the other foot but he never talked to the man himself about the circumstances of the situation with Wanda. The young wizard carefully chose his next words before responding.
  
  "Wanda, I'm not sure if I can even begin to think about what was going through his mind," Harry responded in a delicate voice.
  
  "Don't you dare tell me that the path of revenge is a barren one," Wanda stated in a snippy voice but Harry smiled.
  
  "I wasn't about to tell you that at all ,believe me," Harry answered when he carefully looked up into the sky. The birds tweeted in the sky and he put his hands on his hips. "But would it give you the answers that you seek? Something tells me that it won't give you those answers."
  
  Wanda grudgingly conceded that he might have a point, her shoulders slumped and she watched him before she opened her mouth and spoke her next statement. "It's almost like you're seeking answers about yourself."
  
  Harry did not say anything at the moment although Wanda struck the nail on the head. The moment he arrived, he realized that there was something different about him. He thought that it was because of the Voldemort memories that he had but there was something else. Harry spun around and he thought back to the box. The box was currently in a bag that he kept over his shoulder at all times. He would not even leave it alone for a second.
  
  He had a feeling that it was too dangerous for anyone but himself to tamper with.
  
  "Answers, yes, I want them," Harry admitted to her before he smiled. "Guess we're going to have to figure that out one step at a time."
  
  Harry thought to himself when he closed his eyes and looked up. He did hope after a week from Thursday, Wanda would be free of that place forever. There would be many demons that she would have to face otherwise but Harry thought that was something that she would deal with. They could continue their little sessions without any interruption. He only had a limited amount of time with her.
  
  
  
  "Keep the proper balance and that's it," Harry responded when he saw Amara standing atop the mountain, her eyes glowing. She requested a little bit of one on one time with him to get an exercise done that she was struggling with and Harry figured why not. He had some time to spare and he watched Amara carefully balance herself, watching him.
  
  "So how am I doing?" she asked Harry when she watched him.
  
  "Don't worry, you're doing great, but keep your focus on it," Harry watched her, before she slid down.
  
  "So is Wanda's hearing going to go by as planned?" Amara asked when she did the last part of the exercise.
  
  "Pretty much, just a little bit to the right," Harry responded when he eyed her carefully, when the two of them looked at each other. "And that's enough for tonight."
  
  Amara slid down when she walked over towards Harry, there was a moment where the two of stood next to each other. Harry brought her into an embrace tightly with the two of them standing with each other. The Danger Room returned to its normal status.
  
  "I'd give it a nine point five out of ten," Harry responded and she looked at him through widened eyes. "As you know, there's always room for improvement."
  
  "I'm sure there is," Amara stated while she placed her hands on Harry's hips. "And that will allow me to spend a lot more time together with you."
  
  Amara decided to look at Harry, carefully choosing her next words.
  
  "So, you really are leaving on September First?" Amara asked Harry carefully.
  
  "That rumor is flying around a lot isn't it?" Harry asked before he looked at the dark skinned princess, before he placed his hands on the small of her back. "Mostly because there's a lot of truth to it...it's really hard to say why I'm leaving in words."
  
  Amara smiled at him before she caught onto it. "It's one of those journey's that life takes you, isn't it?"
  
  "Right in one," Harry answered before he held her in close. "I won't forget the things that I learned here but I could stick around here and just be one part of a team where I can't stand out. Or I could lead something beyond the name of Charles Xavier."
  
  "You've always struck me as more of a leader than a follower," Amara answered when she turned away from Harry. She did not want to say anything about Scott but he did have a lot of issues that he needed to work out. "Is....you have everything set up, don't you?"
  
  Harry thought that everything was ninety five percent of the way done, it was that final five percent that always was the toughest. It was really funny how something like that went but it was true. The young wizard carefully kept his eyes on the princess in his arms.
  
  "Don't worry about that, I'm here now," Harry responded when he wrapped his arms around her. "And wherever I got, I'll be easily accessible."
  
  Amara smiled in spite all of what happened and Harry leaned forward, before he pressed his lips against hers with a kiss. She felt his hands move over her back and shivered with the delight, when he pressed his lips against hers. The girl was slowly backed into the wall and Harry had her pinned. He grounded against her slightly whilst her nipples stood out erect from beneath her uniform top, poking against his chest and Harry carefully cupped the underside of her breasts.
  
  "So, it's time, isn't it?" Harry asked before he continued to kiss her.
  
  "Yes," she breathed when he removed her uniform top.
  
  Smut/Lemon Begins.
  
  Harry grabbed her dark breasts when her back was pressed against the Danger Room and she pushed her breasts into his hands, when he molded them, squeezed them with his hands. The young wizard carefully ran his hands around them, carefully playing with her nipples which stood out and he carefully pinched them, causing her to moan slightly at his touches.
  
  Her uniform bottom went down and he peeled her panties off quickly. Her lovely lips dripped with arousal for him and Harry could barely even wait to indulge himself in the pleasures of this beauty before him.
  
  "Feels good," Amara panted when his fingers entered her and he slowly pushed his fingers in and out of her, before rubbing her clit with his thumb.
  
  "I can tell you've been waiting for this for too long," Harry answered when he pumped into her even more and she shifted her hips upwards, before he continued to cup her pussy nicely in his hands.
  
  "Yes, please, don't make me beg," Amara breathed heavily when he continued to bring his fingers in and out of her dripping cunt. It caused her body to heat up in the good way, whilst her eyes fluttered shut and a sigh of pleasure escaped her lips.
  
  She reached her hands around and pulled his pants down; she wanted to return the favor to him. After she fumbled slightly with his boxers, his cock sprung out of his pants to face her. Amara grabbed around her nice and easily, before stroking him rather seductively with her hand, grasping it within him. He responded by pushing his fingers back into her dripping hot cunt and she moaned when she forced her cunt down on his fingers.
  
  "Oh yeah, Harry," Amara breathed when her eyes glazed over and Harry reached around, cupping her breasts. "I can't wait, stick it inside me, you know you want to."
  
  Harry did want to and he grabbed either side of her, before he pushed his cock into her tight cavern, before slamming into her with rapid fire thrusts when she was pinned against the wall. She bit down on her lip in passion when he grabbed her breasts and squeezed them carefully in his hand, grabbing and touching them tenderly, tweaking the lovely flesh between his hands when he continued to cut a steady pace into her cunt.
  
  He sped up his thrusts nice and heavily, banging into her tightly. She squeezed him and he continued to thrust into her. The dark haired girl breathed when she felt his cock enter her, sliding into her.
  
  "Baby, so tight, I love this pussy," Harry stated when he speared into her, carefully aiming his thrusts to give her the most pleasure.
  
  Amara felt flushed she loved this, she really loved this, she could not get enough of his massive cock inside her tight little pussy. She was getting a fucking that was worthy of royalty and she felt his hands on either side of her hips, before he continued to spear tightly into her pussy. Harry continued his motions, her snatch wrapped tightly around him.
  
  "Oh, ooh, ah," she moaned when she squeezed him, feeling her clear juices splattering down on his cock and allowed him to continue to work into her. He slid in and out of her with ease, giving her a workout. "Oh, ah, yes."
  
  "Tight, oh yeah," Harry breathed when he nibbled on her ear which caused her to go wild. She was slumped against the wall, getting his cock buried into her. "Squeeze me, you want to cum again and again until you can't walk, don't you?"
  
  "Yes, oh, yes, please," she begged him.
  
  She grabbed his arm with her legs locked around him. Harry pressed his mouth on one chocolate nipple and licked around it, suckling on it and causing her to arch her hips up. The two continued their fucking, their bodies covered in sweat. Her pussy clenched him tightly and he sped up his motions into her, banging into her tight core.
  
  Harry gripped his hands around her breasts, covered in the sweat and dripping wet. He rubbed his fingers onto her nipples causing her to scream out in joy and his cock slammed into her hard. He moved his hands down onto her body, touching the side of her body, along with her hips and her backside, she really felt the desire flowing through her body for him.
  
  "Cumming soon," Harry breathed when he grunted and pushed into him.
  
  She summoned all of the energy she could towards her pussy and begged for him to continue to thrust into her. He rocked himself back to spear into her tight center; his thrust sped up until he gave more mighty thrusts and pushed his cock into her, pumping into her hips. Then his balls tightened. His fluids sprayed into her hole and Amara screamed out loud, before he slammed into her tight twat a few more times, gaining the momentum necessary to make everything the two of them felt the most pleasurable experience in the world.
  
  The thrusts continued went rope after rope of his thick cum splashed into her insides. She pulled away from him and Harry pulled out of her nicely, when she slid down on the wall.
  
  He flipped her over so she was on her hands and knees.
  
  "Ready for round two?" Harry asked and she bit down on her lip, before he spread her pussy lips and suddenly, she was down on the ground, her feet and hands shackled to the floor.
  
  Amara felt like she was at the mercy of this young man, no this young god, when he cupped her pussy in his hand, teasing the tender flesh. Juices dribbled down from her, when she felt his cock head brush against the slit of her from behind.
  
  "Oh, ah, yes Harry!" Amara panted when she felt his cock spear into her tight hole from behind, her hands and feet tied down, with nowhere to go. Harry placed his hands on her back and slowly slid them up, before he squeezed and played with her pussy. "Give me a royal fucking!"
  
  "I bet you like that, don't you?" Harry grunted and her moan was all that he needed in consent when he speared into her pussy from behind.
  
  Harry continued to push his cock inside her and the princess responded to his actions by squeezing him as hard as she could with her pussy. He picked up the cues from her mind and made her deepest desires come true with the spots that he touched her with his bulging member. The inside of her rubbed him and he felt the warm heat generated from her pussy to be quite pleasurable.
  
  Amara found herself in heaven, Harry knew what she liked and the pleasure was beyond all measure she could describe. His cock cut a steady pace when he picked up the moment rocking and plunging into her. She tightened herself around him, squeezing him as much as she could manage.
  
  "Fuck yeah, love this," Harry grunted when he speared himself into her even more, allowing her tight walls to caress him.
  
  A few more thrusts meant that Harry was done with this round, although this one went on for a longer. These two young, hot, mutants continued to work each other, feeling
  
  Amara bit down her lip in pleasure before she screamed, with Harry unloading his burning hot seed into her chambers and she screamed in pleasure, feeling the desire when he slammed into her, working his cock inside her, her pussy rubbing him nicely.
  
  He was ready for more and he would get plenty more.
  
  Smut/Lemon Ends.
  
  To Be Continued in the Next Arc "Days in the Dark Dimension."
  Days in the Dark Dimension Part One
  
  Chapter Forty Eight: Days in the Dark Dimension Part One.
  
  Smut/Lemon Begins.
  
  It was a long day of training behind him and all of the joints in Harry's back and neck ached. They would heal in a matter of moments but that did not disqualify from having the pain that came along with the training.
  
  A pair of hands grabbed him around the waist and pulled him into the room, before she threw her arms around him and pressed her lips to his with a searing kiss. He saw a curtain of red hair frame her face, her green eyes meeting his and her arms wrapped around him. Harry breathed when he saw the very naked body of Jean Grey pressed against him.
  
  "Hi Jean," Harry responded when he drank in her beautiful body, all of the lovely, juicy curves, the round perfect breasts, with the perky nipples, the flat stomach, the lovely pussy with red hair trimmed nicely, and her long legs ,along with her sexy ass.
  
  "Hey, Harry," Jean answered when she pulled his shirt up over his head, before she pressed herself against him, embracing him tightly.
  
  Rachel popped up next to Harry and she was in an equal state of undress, which she quickly divulged Harry of his pants, before she wrapped a hand around his cock and pumped him with a grin on her face. She felt him throb and twitch in her hand.
  
  Harry was in heaven; Rachel knew how to work his cock.
  
  "Oh that's it, fucking suck that cock baby," Harry breathed when Rachel got down between his legs and started licking his cock with skill, wrapping her tongue around him. Jean got down and licked his balls, the two of them using their tongues to give his throbbing member a workout.
  
  The two beautiful redheads were working on his cock and balls and Harry felt the burning pleasure fill his body when they took turns sucking and licking at his cock. The pair of them traded off every few seconds, working him over. Their mouths and tongues did delightful things to his loins when he placed a hand down on the each of their nearly identical hair, stroking their hair slightly, and feeling the pleasure.
  
  'Such a big cock, that I love sucking,' Jean breathed when she speared Harry's cock down her throat when Rachel worked on his balls, fondling them, before she used her tongue.
  
  'I think he likes that,' Rachel thought before she reached her hand over and cupped Jean's pussy, which caused her to moan. She smiled when she used her fingers to probe the lovely molten core of Jean, feeling the dripping center.
  
  "So fucking hot, ah,' Harry breathed when his aura washed over them, before he splashed his seed into Jean's waiting mouth. She sucked up every bit of essence he had eagerly when he pumped into her, with passing thrusts. The young wizard prudently worked his thrusts into her mouth, passing into her, drilling into the back of her throat.
  
  His seed spilled into her and Jean pulled back, some of it still lingering on her tongue. Rachel and Jean wrapped their arms around each other and exchanged a passionate kiss, exchanging the seed that they got from their wizard.
  
  "So how do you want to do this?" Rachel asked when the kiss was let go.
  
  "Eat my pussy, while Harry rams into your tight pussy from behind," Jean breathed when she rubbed Rachel's lips sensually before she backed off onto the paid.
  
  Jean sprawled herself out on the bed, her legs spread and her pussy lips wide open for the taking. Rachel knelt down between Jean's legs, before she crawled over and began to rub Jean's lips, causing her to rear her head back and moan hotly.
  
  "Oh yeah, that's it, mmm yeah Rachel," Jean panted hotly, when Rachel dove between her pussy and began to lick her walls.
  
  'You do realize that this is your daughter from a possible future timeline, don't you?' Phoenix thought in a nonchalant manner as Rachel dove between Jean's legs and licked out her tender core, running her tongue over her.
  
  'Yes, realize that....oh so don't care,' Jean thought to herself when she felt Rachel's talented tongue work her pussy. 'She's....so fucking good.'
  
  'You must be very proud,' Phoenix dead panned.
  
  'Yes, very,' Jean thought to herself when she arched her hips up and Harry plunged his cock between Rachel's legs from behind. She watched hungrily their shared lover's thick tool plunging out in and out of her. 'Oh that was...'
  
  Rachel munched down on the place that she came from in another timeline, really working over her mother's pussy. She stuck her tongue inside and furiously rubbed her clit, causing Jean to rear her head back and scream.
  
  "Oh Rachel, so good, give Mommy all your love!" Jean yelled at the top of her lungs, but Rachel froze, she was not sure she heard that right. She had little time to waste when Rachel drove her tongue deep into Jean's pussy, running her tongue into her mother's pussy.
  
  "So hot, that's it Rachel, eat her pussy, make it drip!" Harry yelled while he rammed into her hard from behind, his cock hammering into her dripping twat.
  
  'Fucking tear me up Harry,' Rachel thought as she felt something.
  
  'You know, it would something if she ended up being Harry's daughter as well,' the Phoenix mused in an off handed manner.
  
  'That would be wrong,' Jean thought to herself, but why did she find her pussy getting really went at the thought.
  
  'And hot,' the Phoenix thought as the cosmic force rolled her eyes. 'I will never understand human morality and their inability to seek fun where they need it. Animals have gotten it right, why can't humans?'
  
  Jean was too busy being eaten to another orgasm to really answer Phoenix's inquiry, when this threesome, technically foursome if one counted the Phoenix Force as being a separate entity, continued with Harry's cock working into her.
  
  Rachel panted when he fucked her senseless and Jean's pussy was sopping wet and in desperate need for Harry's cock.
  
  "Time to switch, baby girl," Jean breathed as she pulled her alternate timeline daughter up and kissed her lovingly on the lips.
  
  Jean pounced upon Harry no sooner than he pulled out and she kissed him on the lips rather hard. Her lips met his carefully when she sucked on them, before she spread her legs. Her extremely hungry pussy lips gobbled up his throbbing member and stuffed him inside her. She began to rock back and forth, spearing on his cock, and riding it.
  
  Rachel watched her mother ride Harry for all she was work and she spread her legs, before she essentially fucked herself using her telekinetic abilities. Harry helped out when he could, hitting the right spots in her and caused her to reach and shrieking orgasm that filled the heavens.
  
  Jean rose herself up and sank her hips down onto Harry, her curved body rotating onto her. He rocked back.
  
  'Ah, yeah, baby, fucking you know how to work a cock,' Harry breathed while he grabbed her ass checks and hoisted her up before he slammed her down. Her pussy hit his ship and her ass bounced against his thigh. Her red hair flung in the air like the Phoenix she was.
  
  'Oh you know how to play with my tits, oh yeah feels so fucking good,' Jean thought to herself as she drove herself down onto his cock, wrapping her pussy around him and squeezing him, allowing him to feel the warm tightness of her.
  
  Rachel pumped her fingers into her gushing cunt when she saw Harry's dick slide in and out of her mother's dripping wet pussy. She breathed heavily when she rubbed her clit with her thumb, grinding her fist into her pussy, when she took a moment to think what Harry could do to her.
  
  Jean rocked back, her orgasm exploded through her body when she rode Harry, slamming down onto him.
  
  "Oh yeah, so hot, your pussy belongs to me," Harry moaned when her pussy wrapped around him tightly and clenched.
  
  "Give me all that hot cum, you know you want to," Jean moaned when she squeezed him and she bent down, ramming her tongue into his mouth, licking the inside of her mouth.
  
  Harry pumped and his cock was defeated, for the moment. He sent several blasts of his thick seed into her, splashing her inner walls and he continued to shoot the insides of her like a fire hose, spraying her with his thick semen.
  
  Smut/Lemon Ends.
  
  
  
  A red haired woman with green eyes sat at the edge of the field unable to believe the misfortunate that had occurred. She looked so much forward to being a mother and than....well he was lost. The birth was a rough one, magical pregnancies always had a risk to them and when she was in a family that had high risk pregnancies, that added to the fun.
  
  Still she clutched the vial of blood in her hand, she felt that she should throw it away, but it was all she had to hang onto. Now she had to tell her husband....what happened when she returned. She felt like a failure of a person and most importantly a failure as a mother. She tapped on the vial.
  
  She was not the religious type but never the less, she prayed for a miracle.
  
  There was a shooting star in the sky and a loud crash in the field nearby. The woman rose to her feet, and saw the object in the field. A ship with an "S" carved into it, laying in the field.
  
  She had to investigate it further. The woman stepped forward and opened it up....
  
  Harry Potter woke up with a start as his alarm clock when off. He was careful not to awake Amara, Rogue, and Kitty, who were all sleeping at the foot of his bed after the festivities that happened until past midnight. It was a week after Laura's arrival at the Mansion and she was settling in as well as could be expected, although her relationship with Logan was rather shaky. Then again, Harry figured that there would be a degree of awkwardness.
  
  He reached forward to the dresser and pulled out the box. Said dresser was charmed where only he could open it. He stuffed the box into his pocket and walked forward.
  
  'You cannot outrun your destiny.'
  
  Harry wondered what the significance of that dream he was having because it most certainly was not from his point of view. He wished he had not woken up before he saw the inside of that ship.
  
  Then again, would he have wanted to?
  
  Wanda's hearing was today, so Harry needed to focus on that and worry about his fractured psyche later. It was almost like he lived two different lives.
  
  He reached forward and pulled up the wardrobe but the handle broke off. He never exhibited that amount of strength before and his eyes widened. He wondered if this was some kind of delayed goblin formula reaction or something else.
  
  Thankfully he did have the magic of magic on his side so he repaired the door and went to get dressed.
  
  
  
  Wanda Maximoff had never been more anxious about anything else in her life and given the fact that she spent half of her time in an Insane Asylum that was saying something. The young magical mutant folded her arms and swayed her head a little bit before nervously considered every possible outcome. The dark haired girl sat in the background, dressed in nicer clothes that she had ever been allowed in the asylum. She was not one for shopping, which likely might make most girls her age group think that she was likely prime material to be thrown back into the asylum.
  
  "I have proof that Miss Maximoff's powers should not have landed her in that institution," Jen stated as she focused her eyes intensely on the members of the court. "In fact, I would say that the Institute made her powers be twisted into something that could have been even more of a danger to herself than others. You might have believed that she was being helped but there was nothing that she was being helped with. Rather, it caused her mind to be tweaked. If it was not for my client, she might have had anger issues the moment she was released."
  
  Wanda looked carefully with Harry standing next to her. It was a matter of moments before she had to take the stand.
  
  The defense for the Asylum stood and faced Wanda, she swallowed a little bit. Harry warned her that the Asylum would try and paint themselves as the victims, as innocent, despite the fact of all that they did to her was borderline criminal. The defense eyed her carefully with a predatory smirk but it was all that Harry could do to prepare her for it. Wanda waited for him to ask the obvious question, Harry saw it coming and so did she when she thought about it.
  
  "So, Miss Maximoff, tell me, how is your stance towards your father?"
  
  "I object, he's trying to rile up the witness," Jen stated as she stood up and peered over her glasses, before folding her arms together and watching him.
  
  "Yes, try not and lead the witness on with questions," the judge stated whilst he gave an intense look towards the attorney that spoke up.
  
  "Her father placed her there for her own protection, because she got out of control and he could not handle her because of her unique abilities," the Asylum lawyer stated when he spun around and watched through narrowed eyes. He eyed Wanda, with a twisted grin on his face. "And the word of Charles Xavier was that she could not be controlled with her powers."
  
  Harry snapped up and his eyes were on them.
  
  "As Harry told you earlier, once he started training me, he showed me how to use the powers and I'm a lot better," Wanda stated, when she talked in a calm and tranquil voice when she eyed him, but shook her head. "But then again, you wouldn't know that would you."
  
  "Did you or did you not scream that you would kill your father if you ever escaped?" the asylum lawyer asked him.
  
  Wanda was not going to fall into this trap, she eyed him carefully. "Once I was pumped full of drugs that caused instabilities with my powers, I said and I screamed a lot of things. But none of them meant anything because I was not in my right mind thanks to the drugs you pumped into me. Drugs that Stephen Strange said was causing my mind to become warped, I'm sure you've read those reports."
  
  "I have read the reports, although our doctors at the Asylum have stated that they had no adverse effects," the asylum lawyer stated in a swarmy tone of voice when he eyed Wanda with a grin crossing his face when he eyed her. She did not like that smile, she wanted to slap it off of him in fact.
  
  "And you're questioning the expert testimony of Stephen Strange, who would know more about unique abilities like Wanda's than any doctor at your asylum?" Jen asked in an exasperated tone of voice. "His accreditations speak for themselves."
  
  She thought that they did at least but the lawyer was not convinced and all Harry wanted to do was get Wanda safely way from there. He half was tempted to make sure that nothing like this ever happened again to anyone, although he was not going to push his luck. Wanda was the most important thing in the back of his mind but there was going to be other things that was going to be done. The young wizard eyed them, he waited.
  
  Both sides continued to give their sides of the defenses before Harry watched them all and waited. Wanda sat back down next to him when they gave the verdict. He half expected Mystique to show up or worse be secretly disguised as the judge. Knowing his luck that was something that was likely to happen but nothing to that extent happened, at least not yet but Harry was prepared for something along those lines to happen.
  
  He let in a breath and let one out as Wanda slowly turned around to face him, looking a bit nervous.
  
  "What happens if they say that I have to go back?" Wanda whispered to Harry.
  
  "Don't think I haven't thought about that," Harry responded, but he really hoped that he did not have to do something borderline illegal to get her out of there. That was a point where the young man thought about many times.
  
  Time passed, with things ticking down before the judge walked forward after talking with the other people. He could not believe that this was such a big deal, although while mutants weren't known to the public at large, there will be those who would be able to find out where the mutants were. He tapped his fingers and waited, his nerves were rather carefully wrecked and he hoped that she would be get out of there.
  
  They would only know in a moment and sure enough the Judge returned.
  
  "Given the inability of Raven Darkholme to show up, we have agreed that Harry James Potter will gain temporary custody of Wanda Maximoff, but she is under a probationary period where if she commits any crimes, then she will be taken into custody and returned to the institution," the judge responded when he eyed them. "I trust we're doing the right thing."
  
  Wanda was smiling and she threw her arms around Harry, hugging him tightly, before she pulled back and realized what she was doing.
  
  "The sentiment is appreciated," Harry responded with a smile. "And I know you won't break that probation."
  
  "Well we didn't have to do too much," Jen answered as she watched them with a tired but satisfied expression on her face.
  
  Wanda was ready to celebrate the rest of her life, she knew that it was going to be a good day for her and she was ready to head by the Institute, to tell Kitty, Rogue, and the rest the good news.
  
  "Hey, Gwen," Harry responded as he answered his cell phone when they were outside the courtroom.
  
  "Did it go alright?" Gwen asked.
  
  "Yeah it did, Wanda's out, although on probation," Harry responded and Gwen sounded jubilant.
  
  "Best we could have hoped for, really," Gwen responded and Harry would have to agree with that.
  
  "So how are things going for you?" Harry asked Gwen.
  
  "Oh you know, fair enough," Gwen stated in a crisp voice before sighed. "Still trying to get that internship, going to be harder than I thought."
  
  "Well someone with your grades should get one eventually, keep your head up, you'll get it eventually," Harry said in a reassuring voice.
  
  "Right, thanks, talk to you later," Gwen responded. "I'll talk to you later, lots going on."
  
  
  
  "Well duh, I knew that you were going to so win this one, I mean with Harry on your side, you weren't going to lose all that much."
  
  Kitty offered that statement with a bright smile crossing her face, when she sat around the Institute with Laura, Jean, Rachel, and Rogue, with Wanda returning to them.
  
  "Gwen sends her regards by the way, but there's this family thing that she can't get out of to join us," Kitty responded as she watched Wanda with a smile on her face. "But I'm sure she'll be just as glad as we are because you got out."
  
  "They tried to make themselves look like the good guys," Harry responded as he heard Laura scoff on his other side, so he turned towards her.
  
  "Figures," Laura responded as she looked outside the window, carefully keeping an eye on everything that happened.
  
  "So you must be Laura, nice to meet you," Wanda responded, from what Harry said about Laura, the two of them had a lot in common.
  
  "A pleasure," Laura responded as she nodded her head but she carefully eyed Wanda, assessing her carefully. She was not going to jump in and be buddy-buddy with people but she sensed that Wanda held many of the same demons that she did. Rachel, Jean, Kitty, and Rogue were all nice to her. Kurt was a pretty decent guy as well. Doctor McCoy did what he could to help her, even if he ran a few tests on her, he made it feel painless. Ororo made her feel at home and Logan...well he was Logan.
  
  She guessed that he was her father figure, or the closest thing that she would ever have given all things that happened. Although he was not the type that would be very fatherly but it was kind of confusing to really think about everything. Laura gritted her teeth and thought about that.
  
  "So are you leaving to go with Harry too or not?" Wanda asked her.
  
  Laura eyed her before she turned around. "I don't know."
  
  "There's plenty of room in the facility," Harry responded when he eyed it.
  
  "I've talked to my parents Harry," Kitty answered as he looked at her. "And while they're kind of not exactly all one hundred percent with the idea, I think they trust you enough to think that you could make it work."
  
  "Don't worry, Kitty, I visited them, they're perfectly fine with it," Jean stated in a bright and sunny voice. "I convinced them of the merits of it."
  
  "Thanks Jean," Kitty responded in a gracious tone of voice.
  
  "I'm going to make it work, trust me," Harry responded and Kitty nodded.
  
  "They do trust you, but they hope that this won't interfere with my regular schooling," Kitty answered. "I can't believe you're..."
  
  "I've learned everything that I need to know," Harry answered as he pressed his fingers on her lips. "And I mean that in a good way."
  
  It was true, Harry could barely believe all that he learned but he managed to absorb more information than ever. More and more, he saw his powers expand. He was able to absorb and understand information many times faster than the people around him. He could not only understand the information but he could absorb it completely. It was retained and he burned through three years of high school within three weeks. Not that it was that much of a challenge.
  
  And he would be able to get his qualifications pretty soon. His mind was getting stronger and more enhanced, and he kind of was frustrated about what happened with him in the past, how he made some rather stupid decisions when he was younger. Yet, that was a huge problem that he would deal with in the future.
  
  Plus it was part of a world that he happily left behind forever.
  
  "Are you okay?" Rogue asked him when she turned around.
  
  "Fine, I'm better than fine now that court hearing is over," Harry answered with a smile.
  
  "And I'm sensing a but," Jean stated when she watched Harry.
  
  Harry smiled when he turned around; there was always something that would rain on his parade, especially after everything that has happened. He learned by now not to get too happy with achieving kind of victory because it meant it opened up a door to huge problems. Even after the victory, he was not about to raise his hand and toot his own horn.
  
  "He thinks that my father or Mystique might try something," Wanda stated, trying to keep the bitterness or the rage out of her voice. She walked a very fine line here.
  
  "Well, duh," Kitty stated while she rolled her eyes
  
  "The best way to know that Mystique's up to something is whether or not she's breathing," Rogue answered when she hung her head a little bit.
  
  Jean smiled. "That is it."
  
  'He is extremely powerful isn't he?' the Phoenix thought to her.
  
  'Yes, and he satisfies all sides of us,' Jean thought to her.
  
  'He is one that will be a god among all men,' the Phoenix mused when she watched him. 'It is funny how we sensed a kindred spirit; we're of similar extra-terrestrial origin.'
  
  'Wait, how do you...'
  
  Phoenix smiled a mysterious smile. 'It is one of those feelings that you will have.'
  
  There was no other word for what she thought and Jean bit down on her lip.
  
  'Of course, the Alpha has yet to present herself or assert herself,' the Phoenix thought.
  
  'I assumed that it was Kitty,' Jean thought with a frown when she thought to herself.
  
  'Well Kitty is high up the food chain by virtue of being the first but while she's able to assert herself well, it's not enough for her to become an Alpha,' Phoenix thought when she looked at Jean. 'Although perhaps I'm mistaken. Someone like Harry, he'd have multiple Alphas."
  
  "I was under the assumption that there could be only one Alpha," Jean thought to the Phoenix.
  
  The Phoenix scoffed. 'Please, when have the normal rules every applied to Harry.'
  
  'Point well taken,' Jean thought to herself before she closed her eyes.
  
  'I will be disappointed if we're not in the top five,' the Phoenix stated to Jean.
  
  'I do my best,' Jean thought to herself when she turned back and wrapped her arms around Harry when he rested against her. Kitty had her head on Harry's lap.
  
  Harry thought about the dreams, which were getting more vivid as if more jigsaw pieces slammed themselves together. He missed something, but what was it? What did he miss? That's what he really wanted to know. He saw him being found in a field again and again, but then there was something rather essential that he missed.
  
  Harry wondered if his mind was trying to give him some kind of deeper instincts to this, what happened? He never felt at ease in the other world, so perhaps he would have to come from somewhere else. The young wizard puzzled and puzzled, until his puzzler was sore.
  
  "So, what's up now?" Kitty asked, she almost sensed something that Harry was thinking about.
  
  "Just thinking about my childhood," Harry answered as he looked at her before he closed his eyes. "I was a baby, in a field with my parents."
  
  "I didn't know that most memories went back that far," Kitty responded when she looked at Harry with a shrug. "Chalk that one up for the enhanced brain powers, I guess."
  
  "Indeed," Harry responded before he checked his watch. He was due for a lesson with Doctor Strange in about an hour, although the lessons were merely something that took up less time than before. He processed what Strange was teaching him at a rate that was inhumane, even by the standards of magical users.
  
  Strange joked that one day he might be able to retire as the Sorcerer Supreme, at least in a few years, if Harry kept up with his current rate. Whilst Harry was not about to go that far, he actually was surprised that Strange thought that much of him. He hoped that he would be able to maintain that certain rate.
  
  Wanda meanwhile thought about her first day of freedom and where she was going to go from there. It was something that she dreamed about but she never thought about that much. Now that it was in her hands, she found herself awestruck by the freedom that was in her hands, brushing against the tips of her fingers. All she had to do was seize the moment and it would be hers, no matter what. She smiled and could hardly wait for the rest of her life.
  
  Hopefully she would not let Harry down. Although if she let Harry down, they wouldn't have to worry about taking her back to the Asylum but rather she would roll over and die in shame.
  
  "Talk to you girls later, off to see Doctor Strange," Harry responded as he edged off, not really knowing what would happen next.
  
  All he was assured with was that he would return back after.
  
  
  
  Perhaps Harry was getting paranoid in his advancing age, but the moment he stepped on the front steps for his lesson, he felt a prickling sensation. Goosebumps raised on his skin when he inched forward and the door swung open. Granted that was nothing out of the ordinary, the house always had its door swing open to allow him entry. Still despite that fact, Harry was on the edge; hopefully he would not get knocked off. One step inside and he already slowly edged towards the entrance way.
  
  A wind rattled in the back of his head and he turned around a little bit, before running his hands through the side of his head. The young wizard stood ready to find out what was happening. He opened his mouth, to try and call out for Strange but something stopped him. There was some kind of sixth sense that he had about situations about this but he spun around and walked up the steps towards the library. There was another loud humming and Harry felt his hair stand up on the back of his neck.
  
  He was in two minds about this.
  
  The first mind was to turn around and get out of here, without turning around and going back. Some might call that the coward's way out but when Harry thought about it, it was far from taking the coward's way. It was the difference between living and dying today and Harry kept edging a little bit, running his hands through his head when his eyes blinked slightly. He hiccupped a little bit but remained on edge.
  
  Then there was the second mind, where despite all sense dictating he should do otherwise, he was going to step forward and investigate. He always had a nosy streak a mile long and sometimes that saved lives, even if it put his own life at peril. It was just a part of his nature.
  
  Harry spun around and could pick up something, his hearing had got more acute in the past number of weeks, he could hear a pin drop from across town and it was getting stronger. He taught himself to isolate the sounds and kept moving toward, but he heard everything, every whisper, which was not necessarily a good thing.
  
  There were some things that were best left unheard.
  
  A creak, creak, creak followed a drip-drip-drip, and Harry stood forward with widened eyes, before he shifted his body to become one with the wall. He heard footsteps going by and they were not the friendly variety either.
  
  "Strange could not have gotten far, my master."
  
  Harry recognized the man immediately as one of Stephen Strange's greatest enemies, Baron Mordo. Needless to say, Mordo was the textbook example of how magical powers could in fact corrupt a person and Harry was on his guard to see what this individual had to offer against him.
  
  Mordo edged past him, followed by three robed figures, Harry suspected were henchmen. Now Harry thought about it, he could take them out easily but that would mean he did not know anything about the puppet master that was behind this.
  
  The box began to vibrate in his pocket, he nearly forgot about it. Harry put the box up to his ear and he got a sense that it was trying to tell him what to do but his hearing picked up a swirling vortex sound.
  
  Harry rushed up the steps, fast as he could. It would be unwise to leave traces of magic that the people could track. Yet adrenaline allowed him to propel himself up the steps at super speed. He saw energy fields around the books on the library and blood splattered on the floor, with a portal open. Anyone with common sense knew that random portals opened where blood was spilled on the floor seldom meant that cute and fluffy bunny rabbits were about to come out.
  
  In his experience, the portal was opened to another dimension. Dimensional travel was extremely sketchy business at best, hence why Harry never wanted to even try to return home. Even if he wanted and he never wanted to see that place ever again, the young wizard carefully edge the portal and he heard the voice of Mordo once again. He floated up and became one with the ceiling, before he looked down.
  
  "Strange won't stop him from coming, the Dreaded One will rise once again."
  
  Harry suspected that the Dreaded One could apply to a few people but there was one person who it could apply to with one hundred percent accuracy. The young wizard carefully eyed what was around him. He thought about it.
  
  "There is an intruder here Mordo, I sense him."
  
  'Oh boy,' Harry thought to himself, before he zoomed off, trying to make his enemy come to him and not vice versa.
  
  "Come back here!" Mordo stated before he blasted an energy pulse from his hand but the spell only destroyed the wall.
  
  'Okay things to do, find Strange, figure out how to close the portal, or...yeah here's a good one, Potter,' Harry thought as he paused and put up a shield to block the attack, before he fired a series of flaming spikes towards his enemy's shield to crack his defenses.
  
  That type of shield, a Killing Curse would be useless, not that much of the magic he learned in that universe was useful at all. Or much of anything really, given that there were five years where he could count one hand the useful things he learned and still had fingers left over.
  
  'Yes, escape, that's what I need to do, through the door and out of here,' Harry pondered to himself before he made his way down the set of stairs. He knew the front doors were blocked, they would have had to be.
  
  And the basement exits were blocked as well which Harry thought was great.
  
  He blocked them from getting him, that was a good thing but how long would they hold? That was the real question and one that Harry would have to answer before too long. The young wizard carefully kept one eye on the situation, Mordo and those minions were trying to get through his field. So far, so good, at least Harry was able to block him. And block him that he did, he eye up and down the steps, making sure that the shield held and perhaps hurt them a little bit.
  
  Satisfied, for the moment, Harry pulled out the communicator device. Of course the real question was how Mordo and his merry men broke the security of Strange's stronghold. It was pretty airtight, at least not with the eighteen separate violations that Harry counted at the Xavier Institute, but even the most secure security was never foolproof.
  
  Even magic done by the Sorcerer Supreme that was not foolproof. Which was why Harry would have two separate locations for his base of operations, one that was officially on the books, where he would have his meetings with those outside his inner circle, which would be laced with all of the security that he could muster. Then there would be the base where only the girls he was sleeping with would even have the slightest idea where it was. They would be forced to sign an oath binding the location to them under penalty of being cut off from sex.
  
  The official base was already set up, but the private base, well that was a work in progress, although Harry had a feeling that he would put that one somewhere remote.
  
  "Arcane to X-Men, Arcane X-Men, come in X-Men," Harry stated when he closed his eyes. "Phoenix, Shadowcat, Rogue, Nightcrawler, Storm, Wolverine, hell even Cyclops, if anyone is there, pick up!"
  
  And there was nothing which meant Harry was on his own and trapped in the Sanctum Sanctorium with Mordo and his not so merry men.
  
  It was time to get creative or as a wise man once said "win if you can, lose if you must, but always cheat."
  
  Harry turned the ground into quicksand, before he conjured large bowling balls with teeth and propelled them towards the minions. Mordo wisely checked out by now to do what he was doing but that was find, once the distractions were done, Harry could deal with him later.
  
  
  
  "Mordo, I must remind you that my patience grows thing and we must speed up the time table for this event."
  
  Mordo stepped back, that statement might sound clich? to some but the fact it was given with some malice, he was going to overlook that.
  
  "Where is Strange?"
  
  "Strange vanished, I think that he went into another realm," Mordo answered when he eyed the flaming head from the other side of the portal. "He sent a message to his apprentice to tell him not to come to this location today for the danger, but I have blocked it. His power and durability, not to mention his youth, will serve as a perfect sacrifice to bring you forth into this world."
  
  "I will hope that you are correct for nothing can be left to chance," the voice echoed, thunder clashing around him.
  
  "I know what...."
  
  "You don't understand anything about what needs to occur," the voice stated, before the brimstone crackled around him. "But I, the Dread Dormannu, have waited for too long for this moment, for my moment to gain revenge. I will scorch them all and it all starts with the Sorcerer Supreme."
  
  "Yes, yes, of course, but Strange has...."
  
  "You will find this apprentice of Strange and bring him before me," Dormannu responded when his eyes glinted with the personification of everything was power.
  
  He was a horror beyond all description and he devoured souls out of boredom, out of enjoyment, whatever one might wanted to say. Regardless, he was someone who offered destruction to countless mortals and he grew even more dangerous by each moment. His eyes blazed with the inferno that scorched all that defied him.
  
  And now his sights were set on this young apprentice of Doctor Strange, this young man known as Harry Potter, oh he would be the coup of a lifetime. Strange must have seen some potential in him train him and Dormmanu thought himself to be above those of this plane but he respected power. And that power would be in his hands, when he crushed the young wizard beneath his thumb until he cried out for mercy.
  
  "Bring him Mordo, bring him, if you value your existence," Dormmannu stated with a furious glint going through his eyes, he knew what was going to happen. "And remember, this is your final opportunity to make something out of yourself. Fail this one and you will not live another day."
  
  Again, Dormmanu was able to make the most tried statements sound the most threatening with the inflection in his voice. Mordo was powerful and formidable enough in his own right but even he had some problems with what was happening. The sorcerer spun around when he edged off and carefully grabbed the side of the wall, when he edged forward.
  
  "We lost him, master," one of his robed minions stated with a bow.
  
  "What?" Mordo asked when his eyes widened and he bit down on his tongue. "Do not stand there, find him?"
  
  "You can't find me, so you might as well give up!"
  
  Taunted, he was being taunted, likely baited by this young man but he would not be so easily tricked. That was not what he did, the sorcerer kept his mind carefully on the prize at hand before he edged ever so closer when he moved forward.
  
  "Come out, and you..."
  
  "Or what, you'll make it easier? You will make my torment less drawn out? I've heard all of these before. I've heard this song and dance, I can't believe you would think that I would fall for it. I mean come on, do you really thing..."
  
  "He's this way, he won't escape," Mordo responded before he edged closer, he needed to have this young man underneath his thumb.
  
  Mordo was not one to fall into obsessions no matter what other people would say about his past with the Sorcerer Supreme and his teacher, the Ancient One. Yet, he was dedicated to the cause, and he was dedicated in tracking down the young wizard apprentice. He picked up the pace when he stepped around and he heard a scream.
  
  One of his followers was taken down with a crash, his arms and legs snapping together in the fury of the attack. Mordo really took his hat off to this young man, he could not....he refused to show any respect to him.
  
  "Come out!"
  
  
  
  'And now, with Mordo being sent on a wild goose chase, it's time for me to figure out how to shut this portal,' Harry thought to himself when he edged closer to it. He saw the blood on the floor.
  
  Strange taught him how to close portals but the problem with magic was that there was more than one type of portal. There were your standard transport portals, which allowed for an easy escape. Then there were portals aligned to bring some dangerous force out. Then there were portals that were designed to suck something into a place. And that was really barely scratching the surface, the tip of the iceberg. Regardless, Harry turned his head and bit down on his lip.
  
  'Okay Potter, put your training to use and figure...'
  
  There was a humming and then a swirling vortex of wind.
  
  'Okay, this might be a tad bit trickier than we thought before but that's okay, that's what you were born for,' Harry thought to himself when he continued to edge himself closer to the portal. 'Easy does it Harry, almost there, just a little bit, the rabbit ear goes underneath the hole, and....'
  
  Harry's thought process stopped again and he felt the burning of a crisp wind against his face, and he slid back. He was unable to completely....yeah this wasn't good. He could barely formulate a complete thought that made any sense but this was not good. He edged closer and then edged back.
  
  "I have you now!"
  
  'And again, not good,' Harry though but he summoned all of the power to himself, when he tried to do the portal sealing ritual as Strange taught him.
  
  There was a flash of light and Harry blacked out immediately.
  
  
  
  "HARRY, WAKE UP!"
  
  "Huh, what...who?" Harry thought when he felt the lights of sunlight when he was sitting in a hospital room.
  
  He knew this room all too well; he was in...the Hogwarts Hospital Wing?
  
  None of this added upon and Harry peered his head up, when he bit down on his mouth. His head buzzed and he could not figure out what happened or why he was back here at all places.
  
  "Good, Mr. Potter, you're awake, you've been out for the past year."
  
  Harry's head turned and he saw one of the last people he wanted to see with newfound independence, Albus Dumbledore. Dumbledore stood there at the edge of the Hospital Wing and this made no sense to Harry.
  
  At all.
  
  "What are you doing here?" Harry demanded, a little testily. "What am I doing here?"
  
  "Calm yourself Harry, you've suffered trauma during your battle with the Death Eaters in the Department of Mysteries where you lapsed into a catatonic state," Dumbledore responded with a knowing twinkle in his eye.
  
  This Harry did not believe one hundred percent.
  
  "The past year, I was...." Harry responded when he eyed Hermione standing in the doorway.
  
  "Hello Harry, I'm so glad you're okay and back home," Hermione responded when she rushed over and tried to hug Harry, but Harry turned away from her. "Harry, I don't understand, you seem so...Headmaster, what is it?"
  
  "Harry's mind broke at the loss of Sirius and he tried to go through the Veil, but Remus's attempt to stop him was a little overzealous," Dumbledore responded with a sad smile. "He's fabricated a dream world based off of these....X-Men I believe they're called."
  
  Harry refused to answer, whatever game that was being played.
  
  "So I'm at Hogwarts," Harry responded whilst he eyed Dumbledore suspiciously.
  
  Dumbledore corrected this assessment immediately. "No, you're in St. Mungo's you've suffered a psychotic break. Hermione's read you Muggle Comic Books while you slept but I feel that they've contributed to the delusions. Your mind has created a dream world which you have tried to escape the harsh reality of a life filled with pain and loss. A virtual wish fulfillment in many words."
  
  "The adventures of these X-Men, they're not real, Mr. Potter," a healer stated. He had grey hair with a goatee and an expression on his face that was even more grandfatherly than Dumbledore. Harry kept his eyes on this man, wondering what the game was. "Your mind has fabricated a fantasy based on a desire to escape the real world. Eventually when your treatments are done, you will be able to function once again and all time you believed you spent in that world will be erased."
  
  "Don't worry Harry, I'll make sure you'll all better and whole again," Hermione stated with a bright smile. "You know you could trust me, right?"
  
  Harry shifted, for a second he bought it but he heard the burning of embers, the same burning that he heard before he got sucked into the portal. Then the sound was gone when he eyed Hermione and the Healer turned towards him.
  
  "I believe it should start with us removing that box that has been in your hand from your person, as it is the key to your delusions," the Healer responded before he offered Harry a smile. "Go ahead Mr. Potter, hand it over, it may be a dangerous magical artifact that is amplifying your delusions."
  
  'Do not under any circumstances relinquish control of the box,' a soft female voice whispered in Harry's ear and he turned over, to see a girl with red hair and green eyes staring at him. At first, Harry thought it was Jean but she was shorter.
  
  She nodded towards him, eyed the box in his hand.
  
  'It is the key out of here, you are being led to a world of delusion,' the girl responded as she watched him.
  
  'Who are you?' Harry thought to her.
  
  'Someone who was sent here by your mother to keep an eye on you, but I never revealed myself, always only watching from afar,' the girl responded as she watched them.
  
  Harry's head was spinning.
  
  'It's time we meet but the other one, she's on her way, don't worry, you'll understand,' she stated to him mentally.
  
  "Trust me," she whispered.
  
  "Harry, don't pay any attention to her, she's delusional," Hermione responded as she eyed her.
  
  "It is true, Miss Morse over there believes that she is a survivor of Mars, she has suffered a traumatic episode of her own, when trying to make a Potion and it exploding in her face," Dumbledore responded carefully.
  
  "Who do you trust?" Hermione asked. "Your best friend or some stranger."
  
  What was that annoying humming sound?
  
  "So be a good boy Mr. Potter and don't relinquish the box."
  
  "We only want to help you Harry," Hermione responded in a pleading voice.
  
  The healers moved over to sedate the redhead girl beside him.
  
  Harry wondered what happened, he felt his memories fading, strands being snipped away, and things got less vivid.
  
  "Go ahead Mr. Potter."
  
  Harry knew what his next move was. The box clutched in his hand.
  
  To Be Continued in "Days in the Dark Dimension Part Two."
  Days in the Dark Dimension Part Two
  
  Chapter Forty Nine: Days in the Dark Dimension Part Two.
  
  Harry Potter knew many things and what he did know was that there was a thumping that echoed in the back of his head, when he tried to shift his head away from the scene around him. A part of him wondered if they had a point, perhaps something happened in the Department of Mysteries. He had a very stressful year after all and that could shift his mind into certain things, delusions. A part of him always wanted to escape to a world where he did not have to worry. It was funny, the Wizarding World was the type of world that he thought that he could escape to when he was younger but with most of everything that happened, he wished that he could escape from.
  
  Friends, love, all delusions, he was back in a world that hated in feared him more than anything else, with very few friends. Very few people that he could trust, this was his worst nightmare come true and Harry closed his eyes when he thought it, but he felt a soft hand on his arm.
  
  "No, despite everything that they say, the world you left was very real, it was the only reality," the red head haired girl stated in a whisper when she eyed him. "The only true reality you've ever experienced. It was a place that you could truly call home even though you never truly figured out what you could do there, but soon you will find your place."
  
  Harry turned around slightly when he saw her there. She offered him a reassuring smile, as if to tell him anything that she could tell him.
  
  "I don't know why you ended up here in all places, but perhaps they need a leader that will guide them, a shining beacon beyond all else, someone that they could appreciate," the girl responded when she pulled a face when she thought about that other world. "That world, you might have a handful of people who appreciate what happened but in the end you're nothing but a martyr, a tool, someone to be used and thrown away when they have lost their ability to see the truth."
  
  Harry let that all sink in, he wondered who to believe and he heard Hermione say something but he also heard the flickers of flame around him. The wizard carefully turned around from one side or another.
  
  "For all intents and purposes, that world ceased to exist the moment you stepped through the veil," the redhead girl stated in a morose tone. Whilst many deserved the wicked fates they did, less than a handful, did not. "Much like our respective home worlds ceased due to a lack of understanding between our races."
  
  "How?" Harry asked her.
  
  "Once you took the exit point out, it created a backwash, you traveled through the Zone to get here, and nearly died," the girl responded when she kept her eyes on Harry. "Everyone in that building died the moment that you stepped through. The casualties were not pretty."
  
  A part of Harry felt a bit sickened by that fact but he saw flashes of memories, people dropping from the backwash. Hermione and the others might have already been dead to begin with thanks to the Death Eaters, that's what Harry hoped. He saw them and yet he saw something else.
  
  The people who deserved to suffer were in torment and those who did not deserve to suffer were at peace. The very few in that world that might have had a future but given the idiots running the place, it was highly unlikely they would have much of one. So in some strange way, they were liberated.
  
  "It is not your fault, you could not have known," she responded when the green eyes closed for a moment before they opened up. "Those who survived in that world, reality warped, this magical community....ceased to be. You going through the portal may have saved many of them from early deaths, even if they no longer remember that world or have the gifts. You with the lynchpin, without you, that magical world had no purpose. It's hard to explain really."
  
  This was more than a lot to take in and Harry once again wondered and not for the first time if he was losing his mind. There was a lot about how he got here that did not make any sense. Yet, he had one burning question on his mind.
  
  "What about Sirius?"
  
  Hermione responded with a slight pained smile crossing her face. "Sirius is fine Harry, he's going to be fine, you'll see, he's shaken up but he'll be fine."
  
  The redhead responded at the same time. "Sirius....well you saw the state of him, but if there is even the smallest chance of him being alive, I'll help you do what I can when I get here. But you must consider this possibility. Do you truly want Sirius to wake up?"
  
  She cut off Harry before he could respond.
  
  "He's your godfather, I get that but three things went through that portal on that night," she responded cryptically. "And just because that's his body, does not mean that his soul is the one inside should he wake."
  
  Hermione spoke loudly when she turned to Dumbledore and the healer. "Harry is talking to air once again, Headmaster!"
  
  "They can't see me anymore," she whispered now as she slowly faded away. "But I can't...I can't stay for longer, but you need to escape this world, while you still can."
  
  Harry mouthed one word. "How?"
  
  "You have the key, you've always had it, use it. And I'll be watching you, and don't worry, she is coming."
  
  She disappeared like she was never there at all and Harry sat, shell shocked, the question of who is she, never answered.
  
  "Mr. Potter, I thought you were well, but there is no doubt in my mind that you are still very sick," the healer said when he clicked his tongue a little bit, before he held a huge needle. "Don't worry though, this will make you all better."
  
  Harry's eyes widened when he found himself strapped to the bed but suddenly when he wished that he was not strapped to the bed, his arms were free.
  
  'They don't control this...I do....my mind is stronger than theirs,' Harry started as he closed his eyes.
  
  Harry jumped up and blasted the Healer with the needle and caused him to slam into the wall.
  
  "Harry, please!"
  
  "Sorry, Hermione, but you're not real," Harry responded as he blew past her out of the room.
  
  "Don't let him escape!"
  
  Harry ran; practically flying down the hallway as fast as his legs could carry him, he panted heavily when he blinked. The energies in this room, well they were off. The moment he sealed that portal, he opened his mind up for an attack. But his mind was strong; he was not going to give into the illusion.
  
  He saw another figure hovering in the dream scape. This was not his red head friend, rather she was blonde, had blue eyes, and floated in mid air, dressed with white fabric around her frame. A silver bracelet with an "S" etched on it hung from her wrist. She smiled towards him, she was beautiful, like an angel.
  
  "Soon," she whispered to him with a smile on her face, reaching forward to caress his cheek. "No matter what, I'll always be with you and soon you'll see."
  
  She floated closer to him, and wrapped her arms around him. Their lips almost touched but she slowly faded away. He was so close to touching this vision in the dream scape and he had a feeling that he had some kind of deep connection to her, like he met her before.
  
  Their souls formed a connection, a strong connection not unlike Harry felt with more than a handful of his girls but yet at the same time, it was different. He could not place how, just that it was.
  
  "No matter what, I'm always with you."
  
  That voice echoed in the back of Harry's mind when he sped up his motions, his legs dragging behind him when his eyes closed and he tried to focus on it. The healers were on his heels and he knew that running was not only an option but the only option.
  
  His mind was rattled by the attacks but he stopped with Hermione at the end of the hallway.
  
  "Harry, please, let them help you," Hermione stated in a pleading voice. "You always listened to me, why...."
  
  "That's just the point, I've always listened to the advice of my friend, but....I don't think anything that happened or every happened in that world matters anymore," Harry responded as he watched them. "It was a part of my life, a part of my training, my trials, but sometimes we got to move on."
  
  "Harry, what about us?" Hermione asked as she looked at him.
  
  "Hermione, regardless of what she said, the last time I saw you in the Department of Mysteries, you were in bad shape," Harry responded and Hermione shouted back at him, a little violently.
  
  "That wasn't real, that battle...."
  
  "It was real and that's what happened, and you're not Hermione," Harry responded when he grabbed her around the wrist and her face melted into a flaming entity, with demonic eyes. It angered Harry that a bastardization of his former best friend was used to trick him. "That's what I thought."
  
  Harry whipped the bastardization of his best friend in the world that he left behind into the wall. She smashed with a huge crack and the back of her head, dropped down. She crumpled into dust and it did hurt to do that on principle but Harry knew that this was not Hermione.
  
  'The key, the key, the key,' Harry thought over in the back of his mind.
  
  "Remove the box from his hand."
  
  Then it clicked, these people would not be so adamant about getting the box away from him unless it held some kind of significance and there was nothing more significant as far as Harry was concerned then getting out of this world, once and for all. He held the box in his hand and he saw the symbols glowing on the box, when he put it up to his face.
  
  There was problem; he really did not know how to work that box. It did not exactly come with a user instruction manual that he could use and he turned the box over in his hand, when he kept a nice eye on what was on the box.
  
  Then it hit Harry, this faux world, he manipulated it once to free himself, partially, he could manipulate it to his advantage. All he had to do was exert a certain amount of will and he could have it, it was in the palm of his hand, all he needed to do was exert it and assert the power in his hand.
  
  A large flaming sword appeared in Harry's hand, before armor appeared around his body. It was not the type of armor that inhibited movement, but rather the type that protected himself and enhancement movement. In other words, it was borderline impossible to create in the real world but since this was within the theater of the mind, anything could be done and the wizard swung his sword.
  
  He saw these healers for what they truly were, monsters that should be slayed, astral representatives of the demons in his mind.
  
  "And take some of that," Harry stated with fire burning in his eyes when he jumped up and slashed the sword through the air, taking out his enemies with fury and intensity. The young wizard expertly aimed the sword, swinging through hordes of monsters.
  
  "DESTROY HIM!"
  
  That was a statement that never boded well but Harry kept his mind steady and carefully aimed his sword with swings, knocking his enemies back. They went down, one at a time, then two at a time, three at the time. The magical mage found it funny that the more enemies there tended to be, the easier it tended to be to take them down. It was one of those things that amused in to a certain degree but he had to stay focused on the battle at hand.
  
  Dumbledore stepped forward with a disappointed twinkle in his eye. "This nonsense stops now I..."
  
  Harry swung the flaming sword and decapitated the faux Dumbledore with an expert swing. He hated to admit it, but that did feel oddly therapeutic. However, the longer he stayed her, the more his body and mind would be weakened, so it was now time to open up.
  
  "Um, would it help if I ask you to open politely?" Harry asked in a half joking, half serious matter but then suddenly, the box lit up in his hand.
  
  The purple light filled the room around them and the box sprang open before them, the symbols shifted and changed. There was something inside the box and Harry tried to get a closer look at it. It was most certainly a crystal of some sort inside there.
  
  "Well done," a monotone voice stated from inside the box. "You have passed one of your greatest trials."
  
  The portal opened and there was a strangled scream but Harry paid that no mind, all he knew was that he was on his way back out of the portal. The portal sucked him on through and Portkeys weren't half bad now that he thought about it. However, it sure beat staying in this dreary place and the wizard felt a shuddering breath leave his body.
  
  His body swirled before the light closed around him and it was back into the real world. For better or for worse, he was out of that place and back to fight Dormammu and Mordo. After defeating his attempts at possession in that world, Harry felt two hundred times more optimistic about his shot at victory.
  
  Dormammu's eyes burned with the fire that made him a feared individual and Mordo took half a step back, swallowing in fear. This was not going to plan, and the eyes of his master flickered to him. The silence was an element that made the anticipation far worst about what the dreaded one standing before him would say. His eyes flickered with the greatest of danger and Mordo braced himself for what was going to occur next.
  
  "Great one I...."
  
  "Not one word, Mordo, you have failed to defeat that human," Dormammu stated when his eyes flared with danger but then he stopped and stared. "But he's not that human, is he?"
  
  "I'm afraid I don't understand, great one," Mordo stated with his eyes widening in dismay.
  
  "He is much more, is he not?" Dormammu asked as he watched Mordo with vicious intentions in his eyes.
  
  Mordo's eyes flickered when he stood back, what was this Harry Potter? There were certain qualities within him that Mordo wondered why Strange would ever choose him as his apprentice. Unless....unless he was far from human. That had to be the answer; this Harry Potter was the furthest thing from being a human that there ever was.
  
  "I must have him!" Dormammu yelled but Harry's eyes snapped open, a smile crossing his face.
  
  "I guess I'm going to have to disappoint you as always," Harry answered, and whilst he distracted his enemy by talking, he sent a bolt of powerful magical energy. It should disable that fire head for a little bit.
  
  Mordo muttered a strangled tongue under his breath but the spell missed Harry when he dodged out of the way. Several more spells launched towards Harry but he dodged them again and again and again, each spell flying over him. Some of them looked lethal and one of the key lessons was that if magic appeared to be lethal, it likely was. So it was a prudent idea not to get hit by any of the attacks, at least that's what Harry assumed.
  
  'Hmm, he's a bit reliant on magic I see,' Harry thought to himself whilst he mentally calculated the body movements with a speed of a high processed calculator. He slowed down the motions in his head. 'And he remains stationary; yeah this is an attack that's easily exploited.'
  
  Magic was not Harry's next movement that was only one of the many tools in his arsenal as he reminded himself time and time again. Magic was a part of his offense but it was not his entire bag.
  
  In a swift motion, he propelled himself up into the air and swung around, before both of his feet connected with the head of Mordo. Mordo was not expecting a physical assault in a magical duel and he saw the amulet that Mordo wore around his neck. The wizard smiled a little bit, he knew that it was something he could exploit.
  
  He propelled himself up, snapped the amulet from around his neck, and held it into his hand, before clutching it in his hand. The wizard watched the amulet, before he saw a portal open.
  
  The Sorcerer Supreme was back.
  
  "It appears that you have not won the day, Mordo!" Strange stated as he held his hands up and used a binding spell to keep Mordo into place.
  
  "No, I won't lose, I can't lose," Mordo gasped when he felt the ties of the spell warp around him but somehow he pushed back out.
  
  In spite himself, Harry took a moment to watch the battle between two powerful magical users, spells flying around, although Strange was a bit more nimble on his feet. Mordo was more of a rock that threw attacks while Strange sent variety spells at his enemy and kept moving. The two of them did send some extremely powerful spells back and forth at each other.
  
  Yet, Dormammu edged closer towards the room and this gave Harry a moment to step forward.
  
  "You or Strange will not stop me from entering this world and having all," the Devourer of Souls stated, when his eyes glowed with malice and he went towards Harry but a shield appeared around the Boy-Who-Lived.
  
  "Care to bet?" Harry responded as he ducked his head and rolled, before three spells were fired off in succession. Two of them were to disrupt the energies around the portal and the third struck the dreaded one.
  
  It did not injure him but it made him mad, which was exactly what Harry wanted. If he was made mad, then that meant that he would be made careless and this was playing into Harry's hands. The mage weaved around the attacks when he barely kept his eyes on Strange and Mordo around him.
  
  There was a crack and a crunch, with Strange having bound Mordo.
  
  "You have dug yourself in a whole that you won't be able to get out of now, Mordo," Strange stated when his glowed with power. He twisted the bindings around, crushing Mordo.
  
  "It's not over yet," Mordo responded, but this would be a lame statement when one considered that it was in fact over, at least for today.
  
  Blasts of magical energy fired, when Harry blasted forward, before he enhanced his fist with magical energy and he fired one huge rocket buster of a punch into the face of Dormammu. A sonic boom echoed and he screamed.
  
  "For a powerful creature, you have a glass jaw," Harry responded with a taunting expression through his eyes.
  
  "This isn't over," Dormammu growled as he tried to latch onto Harry but the wizard pushed back. "What are you?"
  
  "If you have to ask, you'll never know," Harry answered with a smile crossing his face, when he shot a vicious spell that banished him quite painfully.
  
  Would that destroy him?
  
  Harry doubted so very much but he would have a hell of a time getting back that much was for sure. The young wizard staggered a little bit, before his knee buckled a little bit. A breath left his body and then the dark energies around the house faded.
  
  "Harry, is everything okay?" Kitty asked over the communication link. "We're kind of outside the Sanctum and...."
  
  "False alarm Kitty, everything's fine," Harry stated as he staggered back.
  
  "I believe there is no more of a practical lesson that I can give you then the events that happened today," Strange stated, speaking up for the first time directly to Harry.
  
  Everything kept coming back that box that rested in Harry's hand, when he turned it over in his hand a few times. That box had been a part of him for a few weeks but once again, the magical mage could not shake the feeling that box was part of him for much longer. It was one of those elements that he figured that it offered more secrets.
  
  And the blonde that he saw in the dream scape, she haunted his thoughts and would not be going away any time soon. The redhead was also interesting, she seemed that either came close to matching Jean or maybe even outstripped her by a tiny bit.
  
  "And now why won't you open?" Harry murmured to the box. He tried to blast it with a magical spell a few times, several different unlocking charms and blasting charms but all he accomplished was the box not opening itself at all.
  
  "When the time is right, you must remain patient," the monotone responded before it grew silent.
  
  He could have sworn that these symbols on the box changed but if there was one thing that annoyed Harry, was something was going to happen when the time was right. The mystery blonde still haunted his thoughts and she was not going anyway any time soon by the looks of these things. Harry smirked when he thought about it.
  
  Then there was a feeling of closure, providing what she said was true. Harry thought about it, he gave up on ever returning to that world a long time ago. Going through the veil caused a wave of magic that changed a lot. In fact, magic was high level reality warping at its finest, so what if the world he knew no longer existed?
  
  What if indeed?
  
  Harry was kind of glad because that eliminated any possibility of him returning, where the here and the now. He was free from that dreary place.
  
  And there was the hint about Sirius, that was among the most baffling of things of them all. Harry did wonder, oh boy did he wonder. He hoped that he would get some level of clarity when everything was all said and done. That box when it opened in the real world, that would be the key to the answers. The key to these weird dreams that he had, but the time ticked down.
  
  "Well I don't think I intended this lesson to go that way, but I think we both have to agree that it's been enlightening for the both of us."
  
  Harry spun around and saw Strange standing before him, smile on his face when he watched the magical mage before him, his apprentice.
  
  "We' are rapidly reaching a certain point, a milestone in your training," Strange continued when he watched Harry. "Especially at the rate where you are assimilating the lessons and I hate to admit this but it's true. The rate your power is dangerously close to outstripping mine, it does seem a bit redundant for me to teach you."
  
  Harry thought that the Sorcerer Supreme was showing an awful lot of confidence in him but that somehow did make sense. At the risk of sounding arrogant, he improved by leaps and bounds by the moment that he got here. And he had a crumbling foundation to build on to begin with; with the shoddy education that world gave him.
  
  "I'm sure he tried to tempt you with a promise of going back to the world that you came from," Strange interjected.
  
  "He did but if he thought that was going to tempt me, he doesn't know me at all," Harry answered with a smile.
  
  "If you had a choice..."
  
  "No," Harry stated, he believed that more strongly now ever before, he would never go back to that world, even if it still existed. Although his fears that someone got destroyed in a vain attempt to reach him were slightly put at ease by the possibility the dimensional tear warped his native dimensional into a world where there was never a hidden magical community, never a Hogwarts, never a Voldemort, Dumbledore, or any idiots at the Ministry of Magic, and thank Merlin's soiled underpants for that last part.
  
  Did some of the people he knows still exist? Perhaps, but they were technically not the same people that he knew. And that made the break from that world cleaner than ever before. Harry knew that in his heart that by taking the hidden magical community out of that world, he somehow saved countless lives over there and if he ever returned, those lives would once again be at forfeit.
  
  Harry smiled when he thought about everything.
  
  "So, we're getting off the subject, as for the future of your education," Strange stated, when he steered the conversation back in the direction that he wished it to go into. "We have reached the point where independent study will be necessary, as there is precious little more than I can teach you. Although, if you wish to fine tune your skills or have questions or theories about the nature of magic, my door is open as always."
  
  Harry would keep that in mind but now he had to figure out what he wanted to do with the rest of his lfie.
  
  "That will conclude our meeting for now," Strange stated as he watched Harry get up and leave.
  
  Harry walked out the door, in some ways, going back there in a way allowed him to get the closure that he needed.
  
  He eyed the box when he turned it over his hand and a smile crossed his face. There it was, the key turned over in his hand. What was going to happen next, well he was going to find out before too long. A smile crossed his face when he once again looked at the box.
  
  The answers were at hand, if he could be bothered to figure them out. In due time, everything would come unraveled for him and the answers of his heritage would slowly pick up.
  
  Something about that was said that resounded in Harry's ears.
  
  'That world ceased to be, much like the worlds we came from.'
  
  There was some times where Harry did wonder.
  
  Harry pushed himself back against the walls outside the Danger Room, they were rapidly approaching the middle of August. For many people, going back to public school was around the corner but for Harry, there was something else around the corner. On September 1st, he would be about to step forward into that next great adventure.
  
  The past year he trained with the X-Men he learned much but he felt that this was a necessary next step in his life.
  
  And now it was time for him to sit down and have a talk with all of his girls regarding the new step in their training. Although it would get a bit longer to get anything official for the public eye set up, the fact of the matter was that Harry was ready to leave.
  
  "So are you really going to do this?" Laura asked as she looked through appraising eyes at Harry.
  
  Laura in particular had been trying to fit in to the X-Men although it been hard. The codename X-23 was something that stuck with her, although she was trying to come up with something different than that name. It was a name that was a relic from her HYDRA days.
  
  For some reason the name Talon stuck with her but she'd have to think it over.
  
  She would most certainly follow Harry out the door, no matter whether or not Logan pitched a bitch or not. She could not stand to be in this Institute for much longer. Xavier seemed to have a stick up his ass, that was Laura's real theory of why he was in the wheelchair .And Summers....well he had an extremely punchable face.
  
  "I think it really has to be done," Jean answered as she saw that Harry was not one to be a part of a team unless he was the leader. And she also knew despite the fact that Harry was the popular choice, Scott was Xavier's choice. She knew why, but that was not something to get into now.
  
  "He made his choice a long time ago," Rogue stated whilst she kept her eyes on Harry. She was able to experiment a bit more with her new powers, although it took a while for her to learn to control them. She wanted to hurt her enemies and not her friends.
  
  Harry took a moment to look at them, all of them. Even Wanda and Laura, who he expected to follow him despite not being figured in the group, at least not yet.
  
  "Where I go is my choice, as is where you go is your choice," Harry stated carefully when he watched him. "I'm not going to force anyone to follow me out the door."
  
  Kitty offered him a smile before grabbing his hand and squeezing it tightly. "And that's the reason why many of us are going to so follow you out the door regardless."
  
  "We'd follow you anywhere and we stand by that," Rachel answered when she eyed Harry.
  
  Jean smiled before she thought about everything. She mulled it over in her mind, in a month she'd be eighteen years old, and that meant that she would be an adult. Given the strained relationship she had with her parents ever since the mutant thing came to ahead, they did take little interest in their daughter's life. Despite the fact that they put on a happy face and were proud for her in public, there were other things that indicated differently.
  
  "I do want to finish my final year at High School, and then figure out where I want to go from there but really it just changes the place I go home to," Jean responded when she turned her head around.
  
  "Yeah, my parents would kind of kill me if I didn't go to school," Kitty answered and there was laughter.
  
  Laura and Wanda exchanged an expression, in some ways there was gaps in their education but they could not see themselves doing the normal education thing for very long. There was something about it that rang as very false to them; perhaps they were not giving it an adequate chance.
  
  "My parents told me that they would support my decision either way, but they would like to meet you," Amara responded when she eyed Harry with a smile.
  
  Harry smiled; he tried to show any nerves, even though they were about ready to simmer to the surface in his body. "Is the fact that your parents want to meet me a good thing or a bad thing?"
  
  "Well when you meet then, you'll know," Amara responded, they were being a bit secretive about the reasons why they wanted to meet Harry, although for some reason, Amara got the fact that they were extremely interested in Harry once she described them although the reason why eluded her for the moment. It was something that she felt she should know but it slipped her mind.
  
  Rachel was prompt with her answer. "Yeah, the reasons that you know, I don't think that I'll be attending public school this fall again."
  
  "Yeah, I suppose I should go back," Rogue answered with a shrug, although she was fifty-fifty on the entire schooling thing.
  
  Harry paused before he fixed a stern look on his face. "I don't want any of you to neglect your educations on my account."
  
  "Aren't you the one who done dropped out of high school?" Rogue asked him with a challenging glint in her eyes.
  
  Harry smirked. "Actually, no, I got my high school diploma and I've got my college diploma. If you know the right people, they can pull the right strings."
  
  They took that to mean that Harry took advantage of the debt that Fury owed him and got every single bit out of it that he could. The young wizard was one that would not be denied something when it was owed to him. The Boy-Who-Lived would have everything that he wanted.
  
  "So, this is one of our last training sessions with you?"
  
  Bobby stated this question, when he walked up with the rest of the new recruits.
  
  Tabby was the next one to state a certain point. "You know, we're going to get stuck with Summers and all of your hard work will get flushed down the toilet."
  
  "Tabby," Harry responded in a reproachful voice, but the last six months he had been training the new mutants free of charge. This was so Xavier could not pull any cards that Harry owed him, to keep him there. Not that Harry's guilt would be such where he would buy into that but he knew that was a possibility.
  
  "Well it's the truth," Tabby remarked with a smile on her face as the other new mutants.
  
  "Hey, he's just doing what he thinks is right," Sam stated when he watched them.
  
  Harry agreed, he was doing what he thought was right and there was going to come a mind.
  
  Seventeen tiny days, but there was something about the date of September First that represented a flashpoint of something that was happening but what, what was the question?
  
  It was time to train, perhaps one of the last times he would ever step into this school. Unless Xavier wished to pay him to come back as a guest instructor but he would pop in a few times a week, train, visit, and pop back out. And it would be done on his schedule. So far Xavier did not offer Harry that, which was fine.
  
  Perhaps Xavier thought that the harmony of his team would go a lot better without Harry here.
  
  "So, you're really getting out of here, aren't you?" Logan asked, giving Harry an appraising look.
  
  Harry smiled when he kept his eye on the new recruits. "Yeah, I'm really getting out of here."
  
  "Well, good working with you at any rate and I'm sure we'll join up again," Logan responded when he watched it. "Xavier won't know what he's allowing to slip away until he's gone."
  
  "You don't think what I'm doing is right, do you?" Harry asked.
  
  There was a pause before Logan decided to answer.
  
  "Kid, if I've learned one thing, there are a few right things, there is the right thing for others and the right thing for you. It ain't the fairest thing in the world but sometimes you got to do the right thing for you. Maybe you leaving will give Summers the motivation that he's been lacking to step up and live up to Xavier's belief in him."
  
  Harry paused, Scott and him shared a few polite words lately, but it was the kind of false politeness that politicians shared with each other. He could sense the thoughts in Scott's head, there was a huge part of him that blamed Harry for this. That was why his leadership skills would falter in the end, when the heat got too hot, he had to run out of the kitchen.
  
  "Well, I can say that this would be a loss," Ororo answered when she took a moment to watch around Harry. "At the very least, I would hope that you would come back to visit."
  
  Harry smiled a brief smile. "Well given my abilities that is not without of the realm of possibility. And it's not like I'm dropping off the face of the planet."
  
  "So did you get your base set up?" Ororo asked, she did hope that whatever Harry was calling his team, they could find some kind of common ground and work together. The reasons why he left, she could see, and she did inform Charles that this day was inevitable if he started to take Harry for granted. Of course, Charles could be rather stubborn but then again so could Harry. And it was obvious what would happen when two forces like that collided.
  
  And that day did come, sooner than any of them could have expected. The training was getting stronger and there would be some new recruits coming in a few days.
  
  "Yes, I've got it mostly set up, just a few more minor things to tweak," Harry answered when he stood and thought about it. "I want to make sure the security doesn't have any holes in it, I have people testing it the best I can."
  
  He had to get the premises set to be perfect and dozens of other things to do before he even thought about recruitment. Even with magic and the mass amount of resources he acquired, the process was extremely laborious. He had Felicia test his security a few times with her creativity and they pinpointed a few things that would need to be fixed. And there were a couple more things that he had yet to find.
  
  "Yeah, best of luck with that one," Logan responded when he thought of all of the times that the Mansion Security was breached. It seemed like every hole they closed, two more had been opened. Harry gently offered Xavier the opportunity to use magic to close the security holes or at the very least limit the possibility of intrusion. Xavier declined the offer, which Logan wondered about.
  
  Yet, he was leaving, the clock ticked down bit by bit. D-Day approached rather quickly.
  
  Laura Kinney was ruled by animalistic instincts despite the fact that she was mostly human. The dark haired girl spun around and closed her eyes before she caught his scent. It bedeviled her for as long as she got here.
  
  "You should totally go for it," Kitty responded with a smile as she watched Laura.
  
  "Just waiting for the right time," Laura responded as she calculated her move.
  
  "No better time than now," Kitty answered when she watched Laura edge her way forward with a smile on her face, she did wonder what she was about to unleash but she supposed that she would find out in a matter of moments.
  
  Harry moved his way towards his bedroom and he heard Laura come from behind him.
  
  "Hey Laura...."
  
  Laura shoved her mouth onto Harry's, driven wild by the desire that she had while around him before she pushed him into the room. He was the Alpha Male, no question about it, and she wanted him.
  
  Harry was surprised at this attack but given her nature and his nature to attract girls like moth to a flame, he should have been a bit more prepared for this. Just like he should have been a bit more prepared to lose his shirt by her claws ripping through it and she shoved him back on the bed, before she straddled him a little bit. Laura wrapped her legs around Harry and pushed herself down against his crotch.
  
  The two kissed with animalistic desire, when Harry pulled back her top and the games began.
  
  Smut/Lemon Begins.
  
  Laura lost herself to the pleasure of Harry's hands on her breasts, squeezing them in his hands. His hands were talented, they caused her loins to burn with a pleasure she never experienced before. The dark haired girl wanted more and Harry kissed down on her mouth, before he moved his hands down her back, and his mouth to her neck.
  
  Laura tore off her own pants and then her panties, revealing her oddly smooth snatch, with a strip of dark hair and pussy lips dripping from desire.
  
  "I need your cock in me, now," Laura growled lustfully as she wrapped her arms and legs around him, knowing that he was built to take the roughness.
  
  Harry grabbed her arms, stopping her, before he smiled. "Good things come to those who wait."
  
  "I don't plan on waiting long for this," Laura stated but her hands were held into place.
  
  Harry cupped her pussy which caused her moans to get rather loud and she bucked her hips forward, savoring any touch he gave her. Laura breathed heavily when his hand worked over her tender folds, rubbing against her hips. She ground her hips into him, feeling the pleasure of his fingers dipping into her and touching her. The young wizard felt everything on her.
  
  Laura sunk herself down onto his fingers but she wanted more and Harry flipped her over, where she was down on the bed, her hips raised in the air. While she was on in her hands and knees, Harry grabbed her hips before he plunged his cock inside her.
  
  The black haired girl screamed when she felt his cock spear in and out of her at a rapid motion, when Harry slammed his cock in and out of her, sliding it between her dripping lips when he sped up the motions. His balls slapped against her thighs when he continued to pick up the pace, going into her, deeper. He rocked himself back and forth, he could hardly believe that he was balls deep into this pussy and he rocked back, before plunging into her once again. Harry picked up the pace, plunging his meat in between her legs.
  
  "More, harder, more," Laura groaned as she felt his cock pass in between her legs and touch the inside of her. He picked up the momentum and drove himself further into her waiting pussy.
  
  She tightened around him, with the pure pleasure rocking through their bodies. Harry felt it rub against her.
  
  "So tight, the latest pussy that belongs to me," Harry groaned as he grabbed her breasts, cupping them in his hands, and boldly squeezing them.
  
  "Yes, pound me," Laura demanded when his cock speared in and out of her dripping center. She could hardly believe she ever lived a day without this cock going in and out of her.
  
  His balls slapped against her thighs, beating against the side of her flesh and he rocked back and forth.
  
  Harry pulled out and she threw herself around him, before kissing him, violating his mouth with her tongue. The magical user returned fire, grabbing her pussy in his hands, before she rose herself up onto his lap and sank down onto him, squeezing his cock with her supreme tightens.
  
  "Fuck yeah, live for this," Laura grunted as she pushed herself up, burying his cock into her pussy.
  
  She was the best in the world at what she did and what she did was getting fucked by Harry Potter.
  
  "Keep riding, keep fucking me, oh yeah," Harry breathed heavily as he closed his eyes and felt her pussy tighten around him like a vice grip.
  
  Laura breathed heavily, his cock slid her and out of her, wrapped around her slick pussy lips, and Harry rocked back into her. The young wizard picked up a steady pace in her, her walls squeezing him hard and his balls tightened when he continued to pick up the pace. Harry pushed himself and slammed himself down into her once again.
  
  "Oh push me, squeeze me," Harry groaned when his cock pushed into her swollen and tender center, when he beaten into it. Given her healing abilities, she would always be virgin tight and that was something that Harry enjoyed to experience.
  
  Laura sank her hips down onto his cock, when she pushed herself and speared herself back down onto his throbbing prick. She rocked herself back and her hips connected with his cock, squeezing his member when she rocked up. Her hips rose up and she sank down, with Harry sucking her breasts.
  
  "Fuck, keep that up," Laura breathed when she growled, feeling the orgasm wash through his body but she must have this seed inside her body. She burned with desire, his thick cock burying into her pussy, she must have more, and she would have more, her pussy wrapped around him. She pumped his member with her hips, milking him for all he was worth.
  
  Harry sucked her breasts and ran around, grabbing around her ass when she rocked back onto him. His thick cock speared into her center, pulsing inside her. Laura breathed with her chest going up and down, when Harry squeezed her breasts lustfully and she gyrated down onto his cock, spearing his cock into her center.
  
  "Oh about to cum, keep riding me baby," Harry grunted as he pushed herself out.
  
  "Shoot it in me, shoot all of it, I need it all!" Laura begged herself when he speared himself up into her center and Harry rocked into her center, her pussy wrapped around his cock, squeezing around him, when she rocked back and forth.
  
  Laura wanted this god's cum swimming around her, she wanted everything that he had and she would have it. Her pussy clenched around him, when she pushed herself up and rocked down onto the base of his cock, burying it inside her tight cunt. Harry closed his eyes and he thrust himself back up, before he sent the load in her.
  
  In the most pleasurable way, Harry blew his load deep into Laura and he rocked his hips up, blowing the seed into her center. Spurt after spurt of the thick cum drenched Laura's insides and he rocked up onto her inside.
  
  Laura slid off and captured his cock into her mouth before he finished completely spurting. She dug her fingers into her pussy, working on him.
  
  "Damn it Laura, feels fucking great!" Harry grunted as he grabbed her face and she looked at him, his cock in her mouth.
  
  She wanted more of him and the sooner that she got him harder, the quicker that she would have him inside her. Laura blew him, her lips wrapped around the base of his cock, when she speared his cock down her throat. The black haired girl had her mouth full of cock and it tasted good, mostly because of who the cock was attached to.
  
  Laura sunk herself down onto Harry, facing away from him and she lifted herself up, before the girl sunk down onto the thick piece of meat that was between Harry's legs.
  
  "Fuck me," Harry groaned when she rode him and he rested back on the bed to enjoy the ride.
  
  Laura rocked back, eyes closed and lip bitten down, when she gyrated a pair of hips down onto his cock. His cock was between her tight walls and she used her muscles, to squeeze him, rocking down onto his cock when it speared into her body.
  
  "Keep working that, oh baby work my cock," Harry breathed as he pushed his cock up between her legs.
  
  Laura pushed herself up and sank herself back down onto his cock, when the dark haired girl rocked down onto him. He was buried balls deep into her pussy and that meant that her pleasure increased one hundred percent. The pleasure increased when Harry grabbed her hair and she encouraged that, biting down on her lip with a growl, when she grinded her pussy onto his cock, drilling it onto the base of him. She rocked herself up and sank herself back down onto the base of his cock.
  
  She rocked herself back and forth onto his cock, working him one hundred percent of the way, with Harry sending himself deeper and deeper into the lovely pussy that drove down onto him, when the mutant drove herself down. Her claws popped but Harry put his hands on her and her breasts, rubbing circles around them.
  
  Laura lost herself to the pleasures of his cock buried into her pussy, one hand on her ass, and one hand working her breasts. She bit down on her and an explosion of cum splashed down onto his cock, lubricating him. The mutant sank onto the cock buried deep into her, rocking back and forth, gyrating around the base of his cock.
  
  "Oh, ah, fuck, yes," Laura breathed as she felt herself being rocked with another huge orgasm and she rocked back.
  
  The two continued their activities for a while, with Laura riding Harry's cock and him rolling his hands around her body. The young mutant felt the pleasure when she breathed in and out heavily, feeling the hands around her. Harry smiled when he felt his balls tighten and he knew the explosion was coming. A few more thrusts worked into her center and Harry pushed up against her, before his cock tightened.
  
  The explosion of cum worked into her and Harry thrust up, spurting his load into her.
  
  Another round was to come, with many more throughout the night.
  
  Smut/Lemon Ends.
  
  Harry edged his way towards the front door the next morning, where Kurt saw him.
  
  "Someone left a package for you," Kurt responded when he kept his eyes on Harry. "Who do you think it is?"
  
  Harry walked forward but he stopped. He could have sworn that he saw past the paper when he edged his way there but it was a flash. He shrugged before scanning the package to see if there was any traps or enchantments on it.
  
  He pulled a box with a chess piece out. It was the White Queen and a note that said that it was for his eyes only.
  
  Harry was curious and also suspicious.
  
  He would find out what the significance was all too soon.
  
  Mystique wondered about the bargain she made with Sinister all of those months back, she was no closer to achieving her goals than she was all of those months ago when she left the Asteroid.
  
  "Hello, Raven."
  
  There was a swift voice and Mystique spun around to see Irene standing there.
  
  "I bring forth a message, another vision," Irene responded to Mystique.
  
  Mystique was intrigued.
  
  "Sinister will unleash the Apocalypse but it will only be the beginning," Irene stated in a cryptic voice and she did not give her old friend a chance to respond. "Apocalypse comes and opens the doors for many things. Doors are opened for a conqueror and a creature that is even more unstoppable than the Juggernaut. But they pale in comparison to the dark lord, the one of the fire planet, the one that will be set free when Apocalypse meets his end."
  
  "What if Apocalypse does not meet his end?" Mystique asked.
  
  Irene was silent before she spoke. "Then you need not worry for no one will be here to be engulfed by the darkness."
  
  Cryptic, very cryptic.
  
  Mystique had other problems to worry about, she heard rumors that Magneto was recruiting. Sinister demanded that she remained in the shadows but the thought that she might have revenge was too great of an opportunity to pass up.
  
  "But merely visions can be wrong," Irene added in a delicate voice. "Although this one has a stronger pull than the ones I have had previously."
  
  True or not, it made Mystique think about the consequences of what Sinister's plans were going to cause.
  
  To Be Continued in the Next Chapter, Part One of the Final Three Part Story Arc in Beyond the Veil Book One.
  Grand Finale Part One: Shifts of Time
  
  Chapter Fifty: The Grand Finale Part One: Shift of Time.
  
  Logan dropped down from the sewer grate in the alleyway, he swore that he could have heard something, and sensed something familiar. Not only was the something that he sensed familiar but it was unfriendly. At least that's what the thought that was going through his head was when he edged through the sewers, with the most violent intents in mind. He cracked his knuckles before moving forward and gritted his teeth with a growl.
  
  He recognized this individual almost immediately and his recognition did not improve his mood. Eyes widened, teeth snarled, before Logan let out a growling. "You."
  
  "Yes, me," Sabretooth stated when he cracked his knuckles, staring down his hated enemy through gritted teeth. "Surprised to see me, runt."
  
  "Not really, I was wondering when you'd crawl underneath your rock," Logan responded whilst he eyed the individual he last saw on Asteroid M. A part of him hoped that Sabretooth perished, but he knew better. There was many times where he thought that Sabretooth was dead, but he survived the battle. It was one thing that was true for as long as they knew each other.
  
  "Time to end this," Sabretooth growled as he rushed forward but Logan dodged the attack, before he kicked Sabretooth in the back.
  
  "Getting a bit slow, aren't you, Creed?" Logan asked before he tripped up Sabretooth and slammed him into the wall.
  
  Suddenly, a bright light popped up and blinded Logan, causing him to hunch forward, before going down onto the ground. He dropped to one knee, feeling the ringing course through his ears to the point where his eardrums came close to shattering.
  
  "Keep your hands up where I can see them, mutie."
  
  Logan felt himself shocked from behind, he never felt anything like this and he faded to black.
  
  The next thing he knew, he was on the ground in a government lab, never a good sign.
  
  "Good, you're awake."
  
  Logan peered up to see a man with dark hair and a mustache, dressed in a SHIELD uniform, staring down at him. "Who the hell are you, bub?"
  
  The man paused before he stared down Logan, not saying anything for a moment and then he cracked his knuckles, staring down at the feral mutant. There was a long pause before the question was answered. "My name is Bolivar Trask, I've been hired to commission a project to take down you mutants before you become a threat to humanity."
  
  Logan's eyes closed when he felt a ringing sensation in the back of his head, and felt weaker than ever before. No matter how much he tried to struggle, he could not get up. So, there was one question that he needed to ask and the mutant stared down Trask with furious intentions, his claws popping out threateningly. "Does Fury know about this?"
  
  Trask snorted before he focused on Logan. "Fury, he shut the project down, because he's gone soft. But I and a small group of SHIELD agents have started it back up. If Fury doesn't want to take the necessary steps to take down mutants than I will. Behold the salvation of mutant kind, the Sentinel."
  
  Logan pushed his head up, trying to figure out what to do against this creation of Trask, but he was out of it. There was a giant black robotic with glowing eyes that stepped in.
  
  "It evolves to take down the mutants in one fell swoop," Trask commented as he cracked his knuckles, before staring down at Logan. "So do you think you're hard enough to take it down?"
  
  Logan did not respond with anything other than a growl, when he looked up at the robotic enemy that stalked him. He was the best in the world at what he did and what he was going to do was take down this thing down. His knees shook a little bit but he stayed the course, pushing himself forward. Claws popped and claws rammed into the knee cap, denting it.
  
  "Allow him to go wild, because he will allow our creations to adapt," Trask stated to the man who stood in the shadows and nodded.
  
  "Mutant kind won't know what hit them," a crisp voice stated from the shadows.
  
  "And your funding for this project is invaluable, Mr. Osborn," Trask concluded; he saw the individual in the shadows offer a curt nod before Logan dove at the enemy
  
  "This Wolverine is a great test subject but the one known as Arcane would have been better," Osborn responded when he stepped forward, his face scarred and his eyes bloodshot, not to mention most of his hair was gone. He could no longer show himself in public because of what Arcane, Spider-Man, and Doctor Octopus did to him. It was all their fault and they would all pay in due time, along with the X-Men. "But unfortunately, we could not track him down with sufficient time."
  
  He blamed Arcane for what happened to him above all others. Osborn cracked his knuckles, before tapping his hands on the ground and drumming his fingers carefully when he kept monitoring the one known as Wolverine when the Sentinel learned from his movements.
  
  Panicked footsteps increased when a pink haired girl rushed down an alleyway, running as fast as her feet could carry her. This day started as a nice day for her, in fact a fun day, but it turned rather wrong. The pink haired girl moved forward further and further, away from the three goons with green jackets with the letters "FOH" on them. Her breath went in and out as she closed her eyes.
  
  "Get back here you filthy little mutie!"
  
  She did not even know what they were talking about and the fifteen year old picked up the pace, butterflies flapping in her stomach, when she moved forward. The girl found the back of the alleyway and closed her eyes. The wings on her back flipped and dust surrounded her.
  
  "Please don't, I didn't do anything to hurt anyone," she begged, her hands twitching a little bit and quite frankly she was scared out of her mind.
  
  "The thing is, you steal the air from humans, so you're doing plenty of harm," one of the members of the Friends of Humanity stated when he slammed the pipe on the side of his palm. "Now come quiet girl and we might go easy on you, maybe."
  
  The girl trembled, biting down on her lip, this had been the scariest situation she had ever been in her young life. There was nothing that periled this situation. She was on a holiday with her friends and now this happened. Friends that backed off in fear from her when they saw what this girl what she could do, it was funny how fickle friendship could be in the case of the unknown.
  
  "Time to smash this little pixie."
  
  "Sorry boys, I'm going to have to put a veto on that plan."
  
  Arcane dropped down, surrounded by shadows, his face obscured.
  
  "It's him!" one of the goons responded before he swung the pipe at Arcane but he dodged the attack at super speed, before levitating the pipe from his hand.
  
  "So you like to smack young girls in the face, do you?" Arcane asked, before he levitated the pipe over his head and smacked them in the face with the swinging pipe. There was a loud crack and a louder smash, when the pipe propelled into the back of the head of the Friends of Humanity goons, cracking their skulls.
  
  "Get him!"
  
  "You know, I did give you a chance to run," Arcane responded in a bored voice when he dodged their attacks, they were nothing. "Because let's face it it's not like any of you have a chance."
  
  The Friends of Humanity goons got knocked down and he levitated a fence into the air, before wrapping it around them. They screamed in agony when their bones crushed and they dropped to the ground.
  
  "For the record, bigotry should not be tolerated," Arcane responded firmly as he turned around to the girl in the alleyway. "Are you alright? Do you need any help?"
  
  "Who are you?" the girl asked, hints of a Welsh accent popping in her voice.
  
  "A friend," Arcane responded with a smile across his face. "But are you okay?"
  
  The girl kept her eyes on him for a minute, transfixed. "F-fine thanks, you....I don't know what their problem was."
  
  "Their problem was that they can't handle anyone being different," Harry responded as he threw his head back with a slight sigh. "At least you didn't get your head bashed in."
  
  "Thanks to you," the girl responded with a bright smile when she watched Harry, before a slight blush appeared on her cheeks as she saw his face. "My name's Megan....Megan Gywnn and you are...."
  
  "A friend," Harry repeated as he reached forward and extended his hand. With a tentative grab, she allowed him to help her up. "I'd tell you more but I'm trying to keep this entire secret identity thing under wraps."
  
  "Okay, but....thanks really, I mean that," Megan responded as she watched him carefully, before a bright smile popped over her face. "What you did out there, it was amazing, you're a true hero. You should....do that more often, step out of the shadows."
  
  Harry considered it, believe him, he considered it but he was not completely sure about taking that final plunge. Still he wondered if Arcane might be able do some more good.
  
  Or maybe he could still stand in the shadows as Arcane, prowling in the nights and avenging those who harmed mutants, and had a more public identity in the light. Although what that would be, Harry had no idea. Still he gave that some thought.
  
  He moved forward, before Harry flipped the box over in his hand and eyed it carefully.
  
  There was an "S" carved on the box, within a shield and Harry paused, that never happened before.
  
  "The day is arriving," the box whispered in a cryptic tone as Harry held it in his hand. "Soon your grander purpose will be fulfilled."
  
  "Okay, kind of creepy," Harry responded and Megan eyed him curiously.
  
  "What's kind of creepy?" she asked him, a smile crossing her face.
  
  Harry realized how insane he might look if he talked to a box and it did not talk back to him. It was weirdness personified; especially when he was the only one that heard the box. The young wizard carefully turned over the box in his hand, trying to figure out what made it tick but so far nothing. It opened once in the dream world and never again.
  
  "It's nothing, just had a long day, let's make sure there aren't any more of those guys around," Harry responded and Megan nodded, that was understandable, but she waited, tapping her foot on the ground when she did.
  
  The coast was clear and Harry made sure she was back to a safe place, before he had to head out for the next part of his day.
  
  The hidden nation of Nova-Roma was one that special permission was needed to visit, although Amara was able to get that permission for her and her boyfriend to visit, along with a few of their friends. Kitty and Gwen were the two that tagged along with the trip. The quartet walked forward, with Gwen turning around to Amara.
  
  "So is there anything that we should know about this place, so we don't offend anyone?" Gwen asked Amara in a serious tone of voice.
  
  Amara racked her brain. "For the most part our people are rather understanding."
  
  "Even about the collective thing," Kitty answered as she smiled, she always conveniently forgot to bring it up to her parents when talking about Harry, imagine that.
  
  "Especially about the collective thing, my father has a few women other than my mother," Amara answered, that was why she was so intrigued about Harry and how open minded he was about these things. Then again given the culture he came from, there were a lot of odd things around them that seemed perfectly normal. Although Harry mentioned that ninety five percent of the people where he came from seemed to be on the lower end of the intelligence pool.
  
  "So in other words, he would be pretty hypocritical if he lectured you about what you're doing," Gwen answered and Amara nodded with a smile crossing her face. "Pretty much yeah."
  
  The quartet walked forward, waiting for the other shoe to drop, and for something to happen. The group continued to move forward, waiting for something to happen and sure enough, something did.
  
  All of the villages saw Harry walking down the street with his girls, and they eyed him, muttering, before they dropped to their knees and bowed before him.
  
  "Great one, you have returned," one of the woman stated, her nose literally pressed to the ground as she bowed.
  
  "It's such an honor," another woman responded and several of the men muttered.
  
  Amara looked sheepish and Harry slowly turned towards her, completely dumbstruck by what happened. His eyes narrowed a little bit, arms crossed around his chest, and he saw their words of praise and dare he say it worship him.
  
  "He has fallen from the heavens and gifted us with great tidings," a man said, and Kitty and Gwen offered an expression of surprise and both shrugged, even though both girls were trying to hide the snickering that they were doing at the wide eyed look Harry gave. The young wizard spun around and eyed both of the girls before he offered one word curtly and firmly to Amara.
  
  "Explain."
  
  Amara flushed before she turned around and cleared her throat.
  
  "This way, great one," Amara stated as barely hid both her amusement along with her embarrassment.
  
  "C'mon Amara, not you too," Harry stated but he had to admit it, a small part of him, a very small part of him, felt oddly satisfied with being worshipped by an entire nation.
  
  Gwen smiled, she could not resist speaking now. "Oh suck it up and take it like a man, great one."
  
  "Yeah, great one, what's the worst that could happen, great one?" Kitty asked but Harry gave her a glare which caused the brunette mutant to back off. The fun was over.
  
  Amara opened up the doors of a temple and walked forward. The dust was siphoned away from Harry's magic and he stepped forward, to look up at the statue, inclining his head upwards to see it. There it stood, large and proud, making a heroic pose that Harry doubted that he would ever do in his life.
  
  "He has come from the heavens to bless us and the entire world, one day he shall return and lead us to a glorious new age, where he will shape the world and become a true man of tomorrow," Gwen read before she turned around to face Harry and get his reaction.
  
  "Good thing Selene didn't catch wind of you being here," Amara murmured under her breath.
  
  "Selene," Harry responded, his eyebrow raising.
  
  "Long story, tell you some other time," Amara responded but Kitty eyed the statue, seeing the weird shield on the shirt uniform.
  
  "I wonder what the "S" stands for?"
  
  "Sex god?" Gwen asked with an off handed shrug.
  
  "Apparently he will also be long lived, living for years and years beyond the average human or even....Harry, did you know about this?" Kitty asked as she rooted on the spot, her mouth open.
  
  "Now, Kitty, that's a myth," Harry responded as she eyed the statue, and looked at Harry. "But I did tell you my type is long lived."
  
  "The stop aging at twenty five or so long lived, you didn't mention anything about that," Kitty responded, it was something that was hard to swallow when you realized that your boyfriend was going to stop aging and remain forever young when you were going to grow old.
  
  Then again there was sometimes where Kitty wondered if she would even live to see her twentieth birthday, given the hectic nature of the X-Men. There was always a risk that despite being her very best, there was going to a chance that her very best was not going to be good enough.
  
  So in reality, the growing old thing when Harry didn't might not be a problem. She was going to make the most of every moment that she had.
  
  "So an entire race of people worship me," Harry responded, trying to keep his voice calm and neutral, even if this kind of felt weird.
  
  Gwen could not resist chiming in with her two cents. "Well look at this way Harry, this could either be good or bad."
  
  "How so?" Amara asked curiously and Gwen smiled.
  
  "Well Harry is either worshipped and he brings them to the promised land," Gwen responded before she added as an afterthought. "Or there is some kind of ancient prophecy where Harry must be sacrificed to appease some evil entity."
  
  Amara looked scandalized, her eyes widened at the thought. "Gwen, my people would never do that!"
  
  "Yeah and that's a really charming thought," Kitty answered in a dry tone of voice but she would be lying if she did not entertain the thought a little bit herself and became a bit worried at it. Harry looked up, before the exited the temple.
  
  The same "S" symbol that appeared on the box appeared on the statue, the same symbol that appeared on the bracelet of that mysterious blonde, there were too many things that were lining up and happening. Harry, Amara, Kitty, and Rogue stepped forward, before moving forward to the royal temple.
  
  "My parents are through that door," Amara responded when she bit down on her lip, hoping that her parents did not make fools out of themselves in front of Harry. For two reasons, one they would be making fools out of themselves to a god reincarnated in human flesh. Along with the fact that they would embarrass her in front of her boyfriend, which would be even worse.
  
  Harry moved forward to pay his respects to Amara's parents, but said parents sank to their knees before the wizard.
  
  'Well I should have seen this coming,' Harry thought to himself in a dry manner, before he looked up at them, waiting for them to speak.
  
  The king and queen of Nova-Roma got to their feet and eyed Harry respectively.
  
  "We hope we do not offend you by rising prematurely, great one," the queen stated when she eyed him. If she was not happily married, she would be envious of her daughter for netting him. Even she had to share him with others.
  
  "No, no offense at all," Harry responded when he eyed them. "I saw the temple...."
  
  "We hope it was up to your satisfaction," the king responded as he eyed Harry before he clapped a hand to his mouth, which caused Amara to get a small amount of embarrassment from the way her father was conducting himself. "I do hope that I have not offended you for speaking out of turn."
  
  "Just don't do it again," Gwen answered as she eyed the royals with a smile crossing her face.
  
  "The legend of the statue was not clear, I was hoping that you could fill me in a bit more on it, so I can correct any potential inaccuracies of course," Harry responded, with a smile matching Gwen's face. "Myself and my royal oracle here would like to make sure everything is on the level."
  
  Gwen smiled; apparently she had been promoted from girlfriend to royal oracle. Hopefully the perks remained unchanged.
  
  The queen pretty much tripped over her words to speak this next bit to Harry. "Of course, great one it would be an honor, a thousand years ago, upon the founding of our civilization, there was a prophet that arrived here and helped found this island nation of Nova-Roma."
  
  The queen took a moment to collect her thoughts before she continued.
  
  "This traveler came from extremely far away and also set up shop with his main lover, the one known as Selene," the queen answered before she looked nervous at speaking her name. "Selene has moved on to other pursuits but her influence was felt and the traveler's departure caused her to become twisted into what she is today."
  
  Harry knew that he would find out more about it.
  
  "We heard about the circumstances of your arrival and it fit the parameters of the prophecy," the queen added as she watched the group. "There is another that will be arriving here, for you two are the last of your kind."
  
  The scroll was handed over to Harry and he saw her on the scroll, the same blonde that visited him during his adventure in the dark dimension. There was also the Phoenix depicted on the scroll. The queen's hand was covering a third figure, a cat that was standing in a shadow that was also determined to be great importance by the one that drew the scroll, so it was unseen by the group.
  
  Kitty frowned, wondering where she fit into everything. She guessed she would have to ride this one out although the recent news that Harry would not age past a certain point that was a bitter pill to swallow. The fact that she felt so teenager compared to what Harry was doing and the greater purpose that he had, that made her determined to figure out a way to step up her game, even if it killed her.
  
  She needed an entirely new image beyond Shadowcat of the X-Men, beyond the teenage girl known as Kitty Pryde, to get her abilities to that next level. The pieces formed in her head.
  
  "She's beautiful," Gwen whispered when she saw the blonde. "Like an angel."
  
  Harry smiled, that she was, but naturally all his girls were, so why would this one be any different?
  
  "Of course, most of this is guess work, we could be wrong but we are confident on one thing," the king added, speaking up for the first time in a while. "You were sent here for a reason and the fact our daughter has met our star god, where there is only one thing that we must do."
  
  The king pulled out an envelope and handed it to Harry. He raised a hand. "I could not ask you to sign this now, but I will ask you to give it the full consideration and weigh open the options in our mind. Given all that you have done for this nation, my daughter is my greatest treasure and she adores you, so this is an agreement where there is no one that loses."
  
  "Father, I can't believe you....." Amara started but a stern glare from both her parents caused her to fall back into line.
  
  "What is it?" Kitty asked as she looked at her fellow collective mate, Amara looked agitated that her father would embarrass her in front of her boyfriend and her sister collective members.
  
  "Look it over and I'm open to negotiations, there are several other females on this island that would be willing to serve you as well," the king responded as Harry read it. "Talk it over with the other members of your collective."
  
  Harry mulled over the documents he had been given, he would have to arrange a meeting with Jen and look these over, to know exactly what he was getting himself into, before he even thought about signing them.
  
  That would have to wait until later, as they spent the rest of the day on the island, although having people drop to their knees and worship him was a bit tiring after a while.
  
  The work of a young wizard was never over, at least that's Harry thought when he arrived for his meeting with the mysterious white queen. She was not the type of woman that he thought was to be kept waiting, at least that's the assumption he had. The Boy-Who-Lived walked forward, and had backup cloaked, but he hoped that he would never need it. The wizard stood up straight before he stepped forward.
  
  The woman in question was dressed in a white jacket, a white blouse, and pants that fit her like a second layer of skin. Her blue eyes burned brightly towards him, before her hair hung over her face and she watched him.
  
  "Mr. Potter, I presume," she stated in a calm and crisp voice, her expression never wavering from that point. She kept a close watch on him, waiting to see what happened next, how he would react.
  
  "You presumed correctly," Harry responded, not keeping his gaze off of her for even a moment. "And you would be...."
  
  "Frost, Miss Emma Frost," the woman responded when she sat down. She was about twenty three, twenty four years of age, and had the type of beauty that was hard to miss. Yet, Harry knew that dealing with someone like that would mean that there was a game at foot. "You've caught the attention of a few people, Harry."
  
  "That's part of my charm," Harry responded when he watched the woman, who folded her arms together.
  
  "Quite," Emma answered when she watched Harry, before she responded with one statement. "I feel that your talents are being wasted with an outfit like Xavier and his X-Men and you are not being properly compensated as such."
  
  Harry said nothing but rather he took the coffee and the biscuits that had been provided and performed a few simple charms to make sure that everything was on the level. Not that he wanted to distrust anyone but Harry knew better by now to blindly trust anyone. A smile crossed his face when he watched the woman before her who carefully watched him for a response.
  
  Being the gentleman Harry was, he did not want to keep a lady hanging and he watched the blonde before him.
  
  "Well I'm keeping all of my options open," Harry responded when he watched her before a knowing smile crossed his face. "And one might say your talents are wasted by being the arm candy of someone like Shaw."
  
  Emma raised an eyebrow but said nothing.
  
  "I trust that's the nature of your relationship, a beard of sorts to make him look impressive, by having a beautiful young woman much younger than him," Harry responded when Emma said nothing, but offered a stoic nod.
  
  The truth was Emma could count on one hand the number of times that she had sexual relations with another man and still have fingers left over. Shaw was not going to be one of those men, for one he was unimpressive from what she heard and also deluded towards his true sexual orientation.
  
  Her telepathy skills made men think that she was having sex with them but in reality she sat in a corner, doing a crossword puzzle or reading a book, until they passed out, likely breaking their pelvis in the process. Then she took any incriminating information of them and sent it to the Hellfire Club.
  
  "So, it's almost like you're trying to recruit me," Emma answered when she fired back, watching him carefully.
  
  "What are you trying to imply, Miss Frost?" Harry asked, offering an innocent smile that she was not fooled by, not even for a second. The young wizard folded his arms and now it was her turn in the mental game of chess they played.
  
  "I'm not trying to imply anything," Emma answered in a careful voice when the blonde closed her eyes and watched her would be prey, even if she slowly got the impression that she was the one being hunted.
  
  The mental chess game continued and Harry knew that he had to be back in a little bit for his going away party and speech. He wondered if there was going to be any last minute attempts to convince him to stay, but all Harry had to do was wait and see.
  
  They would meet again, potentially in a more intimate setting than a public caf?.
  
  The Master of Magnetism shifted his weight when he turned around, Sabretooth gave the report back to him, whilst the rest of his Acolytes shifted in the background, waiting for their orders.
  
  The time was today; soon they would have to be revealed to the world one way or another. Magneto knew that this time was coming sooner rather than later, it was a matter of trying to figure out when exactly it would occur. He stepped forward and watched the Acolytes. Their shadowed figures looked up at him and they nodded.
  
  "So what is our play, boss man?" one of the shadowed figures stated in a Cajun accent, as he shuffled playing cards in his hand, eyes glowing when he waited for the next move.
  
  The Master of Magnetism was only too happy to elaborate what that next move would be to one of his men. "Our next move, Gambit, is to ensure that we are forced to band together. Because if we do not band together on this day, we will all hang separately. I have seen it happen before; the humans will never accept us. They are building death machines against us and it will not be long before they shift us all into camps."
  
  He would not allow that to happen, not again, not after the last time, the battle would be is, he could feel it. His wrists turned around, feeling pained and stiffened but the Master of Magnetism addressed his men.
  
  "Tonight comes the time where we must all stand together and force the X-Men to stand beside us, we are all brothers and sisters," Magneto added as he stared at them all, unblinking. "For if what's to come is going to come, then we must be one. Arcane has been sent here for a purpose, I have seen the prophecies, and read the signs. There is a reason why I went to recruit him. It is the worst kept secret that he would break away from Xavier eventually."
  
  "And what makes you think he'll join us, mate," a red haired man with an Australian accent stated when his fire flickered in his hands.
  
  "He'll join us, because he is the one," Magneto responded cryptically as he turned his head to the side and pondered the predicament that went over in his head.
  
  Now the time came, but what would happen afterwards? Magneto knew that today would separate those who could stand up and do what was necessary from those who would drop to their knees and cower in a fetal ball when they could not handle the battle. The Master of Magnetism planned for every contingency and every moment that would come after.
  
  Make no mistake about it, he had every concern that today's events would turn around for the worst but he could not worry about now. All Magneto worried about was succeeding for today's moment and winning the day.
  
  It was at the palm of his hand and he turned, his Acolytes watched him, smiles crossing their faces.
  
  "It is time."
  
  Portals opening at random locations was the rule rather than the exception as of late and the individual that exited the portal presently was not about to change that. He dropped to the ground, landing hard on the ground. A thunderous thud could be heard, when the figure stepped forward, face cloaked in light. It had been a long time, but he tracked the one who escaped before he could kill her to this time period.
  
  His future would be in peril if this girl succeeded in changing the timeline. The moment that the star child was killed and he erased their memories of him, that was the moment that his victory was assured. The footsteps got louder and more prominent when he edged himself forward, ready to pounce and ready to win the day, no matter what it might bring to him.
  
  His eyes glowed, illuminated in a sickening red light, but his fingers scraping together, that told the story, it was even more violent. This man was more machine than man but shutting down his emotional processes allowed for a great deal of efficiency. And the organs he harvested from mutants gave him powers beyond all. The eyes of one that shot optic blasts from his eyes plus the control the machine that allowed him more clarity.
  
  The spine of one that could phase through walls, that pleased him as well.
  
  The bones of one who could heal, yes he had the bones of Wolverine grafted into this form as well.
  
  Sinister tried to create him to ensure that he was the ultimate weapon but he decided that he evolved beyond Sinister's purpose.
  
  The skin of one who could absorb powers through contact, oh yes, that was another part of him and a part that he embraced one hundred percent of the way, grabbing his hands together and he kept walking forward.
  
  There was one more element from him, the heart of a true hero, he ripped that one out when he killed the star child and burned the rest of his body. He had super strength, flight, and the ability to perform the magical arts as well from the blood and the heart of this powerful individual.
  
  Then there was the brain of Charles Xavier and his amazing psychic gifts. He wished to get the powers of Jean Grey and the Phoenix Force as well but fate robbed him of that desire. It was as well, for there would come a time where he had his moment.
  
  His eyes glowed and he shifted into any form he wished. Now he shifted into one of the SHIELD agents moving around on the ground, inconspicuous. A subliminal hint from Xavier's brain would make them not question it too much.
  
  He was Bastion and he would have the world in the past to make sure the future extended beyond what it was. There was nothing and on one that could stand in his way. He beat the X-Men in his own time and now he would beat them in this time, when the team was barely trained and able to stand on their own.
  
  He relished killing Summers once again, that child had delusions of grandeur and assumed that he had the potential for leadership. Yet, the machine moved forward, the sum of his parts greater than the entire team together. He had all of their powers combined for he was Bastion and he would rule them.
  
  The plan worked like a charm and he began to track the only one who might be able to stop them. Today was the day that the meteor shower was supposed to happen and if he accessed his birthright, then the star child and the other, along with the Phoenix would combine their powers to destroy his future.
  
  The SHIELD satellites were always a constant hub of information that was flowing through the air, always running at optimal performance. There was a slight beeping noise that was unsettling even at the best of times, but many times at the worst of times. Nick Fury stood his eye on the map of the world. So far everything was quiet but that was known to turn around in a heartbeat. He threw his head back and placed a hand on his hips.
  
  A large spike of power blacked out most of the Hellicarrier.
  
  "What in the name of Sam Hill is going on?" Fury growled when he spun around and then there was a creepy voice that echoed throughout the ears of the SHIELD agents.
  
  "Hello children, my name is Bastion and I am now in control of all of the operations on your Hellicarrier," the voice of Bastion responded when it echoed intensely.
  
  Fury never liked to admit that anyone was in control but him and a foul expression spread over his face. The Director of SHIELD was not going to get counted out, not that easily at least. He spun around and began barking orders at the men around him.
  
  "Don't just stand there, make sure you get the power back on," Fury responded as he jerked his head from the screen wildly, one eye on the other agents of SHIELD and they scrambled as quickly as their feet could handle them.
  
  "Fury, it's been a long time since I've killed you," Bastion responded in a taunting voice. "Humans and mutants, they're all the same problems, and while they have many parts that work well, ruthless efficiency is something that can only be done with a machine. All problems must be calculated, and logically processed. That is something you pitiful humans and mutants cannot do with your emotions. You are too prone to flights of fancy."
  
  Fury tried to kick back up power on so he could track where this individual came from.
  
  "No, no, Nicolas, I have only begun to have my fun," Bastion responded with a chuckle that was very emotional. "You see, I've come here to tie up a few loose ends. There is a young girl known as Rachel who slipped through the time stream. Her actions have compromised my future, the future where ruthless efficiently rules the Earth and mutants and humans are mastered by the machines and not the other way around.
  
  Hawkeye turned up, his eyes widened, and he groaned. "I always knew computers would take over the world."
  
  Black Widow rolled her eyes, how her colleague could joke about something so serious at a time like this, she would never know. She did not want to find out.
  
  Bastion's chuckles continued to grow louder. "I wouldn't worry too much about me or what the Sentinels will end up doing once I have taken control of them. Your main concern should be evacuating thousands of people from a city like New York when the meteors start hitting."
  
  "Meteors?" Fury asked with an eyebrow raised, wondering what Bastion was talking about.
  
  The SHIELD power reserves kicked back on and just in time as well. There was a blipping motion that could be heard and Fury turned around, his teeth gritted. The Director of SHIELD wondered what problem he had to deal with now but suspected that he would find out all too soon. Fury spun around, clutching his head.
  
  "There are large meteors, on approach to hit New York," one of the SHIELD officers stated, shaking, trying to figure out if he could be blamed for this or not, his eyes closing shut. "ETA, two hours, fifty seven minutes."
  
  Fury had only one statement to this. "Evacuate the citizens of New York, time is the essence."
  
  Black Widow knew that there was one person who might be able to shed some light on this, and she slipped off to get in touch of him.
  
  Two hours fifty five minutes twelve seconds, two hours fifty five minutes eleven seconds, two hours fifty five minutes ten seconds, two hours fifty five minutes nine seconds.
  
  To Be Continued in "The Bastion of Mutantkind."
  Grand Finale Part Two: Bastion of Mutant Kind
  
  There's an Author's Note at the end where I have to explicitly spell out something that I've been hinting at for over forty some chapters but apparently people didn't make the connection.
  
  Chapter Fifty One: The Grand Finale Part Two: Bastion of Mutant Kind.
  
  Harry drew in a deep breath whilst he thought about everything that occurred over the past few months to a year. His time at the X-Men was time that he thought benefitted him in the long run but it was time to move forward to the next part of his life. He held the box in his hand; Harry took time looking at it more and more over the past few weeks. The young mage kept contemplating his lot in life and most importantly where he came from.
  
  One thing was for certain, it was not where he came from that matter, but it was where he was going next.
  
  Harry took a moment to step forward, with the entire group of X-Men standing there. Scott was there as well, even if he looked stoic and not too anxious or excited that Harry was leaving. It was easy to figure out what the would-be leader of the X-Men was thinking. The young wizard knew that he was conflicted about everything that happened while Harry was here. If Harry left, then it would allow him to step up. But he would always be second best to Harry.
  
  The magical mutant gave Scott plenty of opportunities to step up and be the leader that he could in fact be. However, it was his fault that he chose to squander those opportunities and instead worry about what Harry did. The wizard carefully eyed the group, smiling and waiting, watching them a little bit.
  
  "And we can cut the tension with a knife," Nightcrawler remarked carefully, trying to lighten the mood, which was what Harry appreciated. They needed the mood lightened after everything that happened. "So I guess this is it?"
  
  Xavier watched carefully, wondering what was going to happen now. He sensed from the moment Harry arrived that he was not one to follow the pack but rather set up and make his own mark in the world. The wizard carefully considered them, eye twitching a little bit before smiling carefully and crisply.
  
  "So, I guess this is it," Harry repeated as he watched them, good byes were always tough even if he was just leaving the Institute.
  
  "Couldn't you stay....for a little longer."
  
  Harry had no idea who said that for he was distracted by the incoming arrival of someone bursting through the door. He saw in a matter of moments that Natasha stepped forward, before bending at the knees.
  
  "What are you doing here?" Scott asked, trying to assert himself but Natasha shook her head, before turning to Harry.
  
  "We have a problem," Natasha offered with a tense expression when she motioned for Harry to follow her. Wherever Harry went, several girls tended to follow and in this case it was Kitty, Rachel, Rogue, Laura, and Jean, all of them stepping forward. Natasha allowed this to happen because she needed to talk to Harry without any issues. "Two problems actually....three?"
  
  "Are you sure that's it?" Harry asked, dread building up in his mind. Any number of possibilities flickered through his mind with none of them good.
  
  Natasha's expression snapped towards Harry's and she remained businesslike before she began to speak with him. "Essentially that is all, but one thing at a time. The first problem is...."
  
  "Greetings X-Men."
  
  "I'm guessing that's the problem," Rogue remarked in a dry voice but Rachel suddenly went pale. "Rachel what's....."
  
  "Bastion," Rachel breathed heavily, skin flushed when she blinked heavily and practically panted.
  
  This was the one voice that she never wanted to hear again, no matter how long she lived. He was the terror that tormented her from the past and beyond. The red haired mutant kept her ear out, neck extended and she waited for the other shoe to drop. Harry reached over and grabbed her hand, which she appreciated. He tightened around her hand, allowing a solid enough grip. The red haired girl relaxed in his grip, when the crisp voice of Bastion echoed throughout for all of them to hear.
  
  "I have come from the future to tell you that your prospects of a peaceful world for mutants is a lie and the biggest lie here is Arcane," Bastion breathed. "Or would you the prefer the term, Superman?"
  
  "What?" Kitty breathed in a heavy voice and this was news to Harry. He wondered if Bastion lost his mind and fried his circuits.
  
  Rachel mulled over it in her mind, Superman, Superman, there was something about that name in the archives but she had no idea what it is.
  
  "Harry Potter, Arcane, Kal-El, Superman, whatever name you wish to go under, Star Child, know this, for I am Bastion and I will be your decimation," the voice stated in a cold and crisp manner. "Something changed this time when you arrived and my time is becoming undone. But it doesn't matter, for once I'm no longer anchored in that part of the time stream, I will...."
  
  "You talk a good game but why don't you back it up with a little more action?" Rogue asked, interrupting Bastion. She was ready to take them on, even if she did not understand what he was saying.
  
  "I could expose you to the world, alien, but that would not be nearly as fun is crushing your spirit," Bastion commented, ignoring Rogue's outburst.
  
  "I think you've mistaken me for someone else," Harry answered as he stood proud.
  
  "I am never mistaken, I know who you are and know the danger you pose to my objective and as long as any version of you in any timeline exists, I can never win, Kal-El, " Bastion commented in a crisp voice, putting special emphasis on certain words that he stated. "But do not worry, you and your fellow companions only can hear this. I will not broadcast the fact that you are worse than a mutant, worse than a wizard."
  
  'Nonsense, he's talking nonsense,' Jean thought to herself, folding her arms.
  
  'Except it isn't,' the Phoenix stated in a tranquil voice.
  
  'What are you....what are you talking about?' Jean thought back to the Phoenix.
  
  'He is of similar extra-terrestrial origin to the force that flows through you,' the Phoenix thought to Jean. 'He is capable of much, much, more than foolish wand waving and silly incantations.'
  
  Jean thought about this and she did know that Harry could be something special but nothing like this.
  
  Harry was skeptical as everything, to be honest; he was not buying what Bastion was selling now. Even though that would explain everything, there was a certain amount of stubbornness that resided in Harry that prevented him from really getting completely on board with everything that was being side. The wizard's green eyes filled with discontent.
  
  "He may be playing mind games, that's what Bastion does," Rachel answered but that would explain why Harry did not exist in her time stream. What better way not to exist if he was underneath a different name?
  
  "Perhaps, child, perhaps not, but that is the least of your concern," Bastion answered in a crisp tone of voice when he paused for dramatic effect. "All you have to concern yourself with is the meteors that are flying into this city in two hours time. Today is the day you will leave the X-Men, star child, but it will be done in a body bag, for what comes down will be your death, providing I do not put you out of your misery first."
  
  Harry turned to Natasha and she offered a pained express. "This was the other problem that you spoke of?"
  
  She nodded and Harry decided to move forward with the third question.
  
  "I hate to ask this, but why is problem number three?" Harry asked when he watched Natasha carefully. He hoped that it was not going to get worse; there was no way that this could get worse.
  
  The problem was that things got worse. Natasha paused, trying to convey what she thought, with her eyes shifting before the spy spat it out.
  
  "There is a rogue SHIELD agent."
  
  "Bolivar Trask."
  
  True to form, Nick Fury popped up, whether he was invited or not.
  
  "SHIELD has the access codes to the security grid for the mansion, I disabled them to have Widow and myself step in to warn you of what is to come," Fury answered the unasked question. "You may want to do the exact opposite of what the X-Men does for their security, Mr. Potter, if you wish to avoid the headaches."
  
  Harry knew that he would need to keep that in mind but he had far bigger problems.
  
  "The third issue, Fury," Harry responded and Fury's face twisted into a grimace.
  
  "It's this, Mr. Potter," Fury responded when he kept an eye firmly on Harry. "Bolivar Trask was a SHIELD agent working on a top secret project, for a group of robots that would be a failsafe against mutant kind."
  
  Harry paused before shifting his expression a little bit. "And we thought that this was a good idea because..."
  
  Fury decided to cut straight to the point. "It was a flawed idea but it appeared to be a good one at the time. We pulled the funding but Trask and another small group of SHIELD agents went AWOL, with the funding and the prototypes of the project. The Sentinels could be online but they need a test subject."
  
  Harry was hit with it immediately as was Laura.
  
  'Logan,' Laura thought when she cracked her knuckles.
  
  'We'll get him back,' Rachel thought in a reassuring voice but her mind shifted to the terror that was Bastion. She remembered what he could do and feared the dangers. He became much more after he stole the body parts of several mutants for his reign of terror.
  
  Harry hoped that she was right but now it was time for him to team up with the X-Men for one last mission. Because of the insanity, he never did his speech. Harry and the girls left the room.
  
  With another swift expression, Harry's eyes blinked before he looked up at Xavier.
  
  "We have a situation."
  
  That got everyone's attention in a hurry.
  
  The team was mobilized one more time, one last time. They split into several squads, with Harry, Rachel, Kurt, Bobby, Rogue, and Wanda being part of the first squad.
  
  Wanda thought that this was a good way to test her skills in a more practical manner than what Harry was teaching her on the side. The dark haired mutant stood, ready for action.
  
  There was a rattling that echoed in the background.
  
  "Stay alert," Harry whispered to them and Rogue, Rachel, Kurt, Bobby, and Wanda all nodded; all of them expecting the worst. The ground watched with widened eyes and soon they realized what was about to drop down.
  
  Five metal spheres swirled around in the air, causing sparks to fly before the landed one by one by one with a huge crash. They splintered the ground, cracking themselves into the pavement.
  
  Wanda saw that they were magnetized and she saw him standing up there. This was a truer test than anything she ever could have been through not to attack. It took every amount of her will-power, strained as it might be, before she backed off. The dark haired magical mutant watched breathing when she saw her father stand tall on the ledge, looking down at them.
  
  "Wanda, don't get caught up in him," Harry warned her breathlessly and Wanda pulled back, blinking slowly before the girl's head inclined, once, twice, and three times.
  
  "Something's happening with those spheres," Kurt breathed and they stayed alert. Rachel frowned and Harry understood why when he heard the creaking and shifting the metallic options.
  
  Without warning, the spheres burst open one at a time, allowing a heavy cloud of dust to appear around them. The dust blinded the line of sight from most of the group but Harry, with his enhanced eyesight, was able to see through them. The young wizard carefully watched everything around him.
  
  "His Acolytes," Harry breathed and that's what they were for lack of a better term.
  
  He knew that these guys would be the cream of the crop, much better than the Brotherhood ever was trained. All and all, the Brotherhood was a rag tag group of misfits that Mystique and later the Taskmaster tried to make work. But in reality, they were more or less a rudimentary exam for the bigger challenge at hand.
  
  The first sphere burst open completely to reveal a red haired man dressed in an orange bodysuit and wearing goggles that wrapped around his face. He smiled brightly and quite maliciously, with his eyes glowing and miniature flames shot up, derived from a lighter. While he could not manifest flames, he could control them with a little spark from a lighter, a blowtorch, or a set of magic. He didn't start the fire but he kept it burning until the world stopped turning. His name was Pyro.
  
  The second Acolyte stepped forward, someone that the X-Men were all too familiar with and they cracked their knuckles together. Sabretooth was meaner and nastier than ever and he was ready to take a bite out of the X-Men. His clawed hands and nasty teeth along with unruly mane of hair and a murderous glare that would make many people piss themselves when they went up against it.
  
  The third Acolyte was none other than a Raging Cajun, with red hair, glowing eyes, and a trench coat with a black top and tight black pants, with a deck of playing cards. He gave a smile that would light the hearts of many women a flutter although he tended to always be one to play them. His name was Gambit and he discharged kinetic energy that could blow things up.
  
  The fourth Acolyte was the large but gentle Russian, known as Colossus, he had been here very begrudgingly when Magneto offered him the assistance that he could not get on his own. He cracked his knuckles and was ready for a scrap.
  
  The fifth sphere burst open to reveal a pale skinned woman with dark hair and ample assets, with black eyes. She was named Domino and her mutant power was that she never missed a shot.
  
  "Let's begin," Magneto responded and Domino fired the first shot but Harry dodged the attack.
  
  "Let's see how lucky you are," Harry answered before he levitated the guns out of her hand. She aimed a kick but Harry dodged it and took her down, causing her own feet to be tangled up in the attack.
  
  Sabretooth rushed forward, arms out to grab Rachel but she put up a telekinetic shield that propelled him back and his skull cracked against it. He gave a pained growl when the telepath jumped up and knocked him backwards with a solid smash and a slam. He rolled over, wheezing in the agony.
  
  "I'll get you little b...."
  
  "Watch the language," Kurt responded after he dodged the attack, before flinging a brick with his tail and smashing it into the Sabretooth.
  
  "We're about to put a little shrimp on the Barbie," Pryo stated as it lit things up..
  
  "Seriously, could you be any more stereotypical?" Iceman asked with a roll on his eyes as he sent ice to meet the fire, but the ice melted when the pyromaniac cut through the attack.
  
  "Going to have to fuel up a little more, mate," Pryo stated, laughing madly but Rogue knocked him out with a swift punch. She nailed him hard at half strength.
  
  A large metal door flew forward but Rogue ducked it, pivoting around on her heel, before kicking up and launching herself into the air. Magneto was trying to direct traffic and Harry watched him and Wanda did as well.
  
  The playing card flew towards her but Wanda deactivated it with a blast of light and sent flying back at Gambit.
  
  "Getting a bit frisky, aren't we?" Gambit asked in a suave and sophisticated voice.
  
  Suddenly, without warning, before the battle could get too intense, there was a rumbling beneath the ground that shook rocked them all. A platform rose up and a robot arrived, magnetized by the Master of Magnetism and brought up. He would force mutants to stand together against humanity or they would all perish in their ignorance that humans would understand.
  
  "At least, you will step into the...."
  
  "Mutant neutralize," the robot responded in a monotone and blasted the Master of Magnetism. He dodged out of the way, nearly tripping over himself.
  
  "That was not part of my plan," Magneto answered when he lifted up several metal sheets but they were blasted out of the way. An energy field appeared around the robot, preventing Magneto from magnetizing it. "This was not part...."
  
  "Nothing goes according to plan, does it Magneto?" the voice stated in a crisp monotone. "It will be a pleasure to kill you once more."
  
  Magneto was caught off guard by this situation and SHIELD moved in but their vessel shut down.
  
  The Sentinel prepared to engage the mutants in battle but Rachel and Harry slipped off, while others worried about the minions and the tricks, they were going to cut off the head of the attack.
  
  'Bastion is mine,' Rachel thought to Harry through their link.
  
  'No Bastion is ours,' Harry corrected her before they moved off into the night.
  
  It was obvious to see what Bastion was up to and that rocked both of them to the core, causing their stomachs to turn in a twisted fury. Both Harry and Rachel edged forward, carefully keeping an eye or an ear out. They needed to reach him in time.
  
  Bastion made one critical error; the brain of Charles Xavier left him with a thought pattern that could be tracked. Not to mention Harry was sure that all of the mutant body parts were not going to agree with each other, leaving Bastion open for an attack. He carefully edged off to the side, ready to pick and choose his next spot.
  
  'And with his robotic parts left open when he's concerned with the outer shell, this will lead me to believe that he hasn't protected those parts,' Harry thought to himself, carefully placing a hand on the edge of his forehead. 'It has to work, it's got to work.'
  
  Harry was able to shield his thoughts, mostly by misdirecting them into nonsense phrases that he cycled through his mind. That was the best thing for Harry, to keep everything at bay and to keep Bastion from finding out what ticked beneath the head of Harry.
  
  'Are you sure this will work?' Rachel thought to him, closing her eyes and Harry snaked an arm around hers, pulling her in close.
  
  'It has to work,' Harry thought, but his confidence was not as prominent as he made it out to be in the back of his mid. Still it was all or nothing. The wizard carefully edged himself forward, standing on his toes.
  
  "I know what you are trying to do and it will not work."
  
  "You are pretty bloody confident for someone who hasn't even won yet," Harry responded as he watched Bastion and Rachel stood rigid.
  
  "I have won," Bastion persisted in a silky voice but Harry aimed a bolt of energy at him. He blocked it with a shield of your own. "I have your heart, I also have your powers."
  
  "And my weaknesses as well," Harry stated when he watched Bastion, studying his movements to find flaws in them but it was frustrating as he could not get a clear reading on him. "And the weaknesses of every other single mutant that you used for your little helter-skelter body, not to imagine your own weaknesses."
  
  "Child, do not prattle about what you do not know about."
  
  "Sorry, I didn't mean to prematurely prattle," Harry responded with a shrug but then he shook his head.
  
  He needed to stop hanging out with Spider-Man it was kind of corrupting his brain and causing him to make inane quips. Be that as it may, Harry jumped into the air and made his movement towards Bastion. His eyes closed, heart pounding, blood racing, and brain ticking.
  
  Harry developed contingency plans to take down every single member of the X-Men in case of a worst case scenario like possession or brain washing.
  
  The barrier formed around Bastion but that was just what he wanted to. A dagger shot from Harry's wrist.
  
  The dagger disrupted the phasing abilities that he gained from ripping out Kitty's spine in the bad future and this allowed Rachel to jump in and grab him by the ankles to force him down.
  
  An echo curse caused the psychic backlash to become too great for Bastion to handle, his human brain was overwhelmed, and Harry now closed his eyes.
  
  Harry divided into half, then fourths, then eighths, then sixteenths, before he dove at Bastion. Several super enhanced punches knocked Bastion backwards and caused him to fly to the ground.
  
  "This is not over," Bastion growled but then Harry grabbed two ruby quartz pieces, before flinging them into the eyes of Bastion, which blocked his optic blasts and caused his head to ring with a huge explosion.
  
  "I beg to differ," Harry answered but flaming spears shot from him.
  
  Duck, duck, dodge, and blast the spears, that was a nice rhythm. Then propel one's self into the air and smash into the enemy, it was much better than what most wizards did and stand there like a rock whilst taking the punishment.
  
  "I don't think...."
  
  Rachel joined in and joined Harry's assault, before smashing through Bastion.
  
  Bastion skid back a little bit, his knee buckling back a little bit, but he stood his ground, knee twisting a little bit. The dangerous creation felt a fire burning through him.
  
  "You're done Bastion."
  
  "Now who is premature," Bastion answered after two more of the Sentinels arrived outside, to smash their way into the warehouse where they were fighting. "And there are three more being sent upon your associates. It seems like Trask only wanted to test them one at a time but my superior nature has made them work. And I can mass produce them, there is nowhere mutants can hide."
  
  'Well actually fighting more of them might give us an advantage,' Harry thought which caused Rachel's eyes to snap towards him.
  
  'Are you nuts?' Rachel thought to him but Harry smiled.
  
  'Probably,' Harry answered as he saw one of the Sentinels show up.
  
  Standard EMP pulse, could be generated by any wizard with a NEWT level education or at least moderately powered enough. Harry didn't have a NEWT level education but he had the memories of someone with that qualification. So it was time for him to kick things up a notch and fire in the whole. The young wizard carefully maneuvered around the sentinel.
  
  The EMP pulse only cut through the air partially, striking the robotic creation.
  
  Harry paused, that was nowhere near sufficient enough as the will of Bastion was protecting it. Suddenly, realization dawned upon him, it was simple yet effective.
  
  The wizard could use that against Bastion.
  
  'Split his control many different ways,' Harry thought to himself, before he flew forward, and wrapped his hand around the Sentinels, before they began to glow.
  
  He divided them in half and then divided the halves into fourths, until he had eight sentinels as opposed to the two.
  
  Rachel's eyebrows raised and exasperation filled her face. 'So is there any point where we....'
  
  "Just wait for it Rach,' Harry thought to the red head fighting beside him and there was a large crack when Bastion found controlling the Sentinels to be a bit more of a laborious process that he thought it was previously. The man's eyes became rather bloodshot and blood splattered from his mouth.
  
  "This is....you have not proven anything."
  
  Harry broke the force field yet again and knocked his physical form for a loop. The metal cracked and snapped when the wizard propelled his enemy to the ground. There was a huge explosion when Bastion flew head over heels.
  
  A burst of heat flew through the air and caused Harry's eyeballs to sting slightly. This caught him completely off guard but it caught Bastion even more off guard. The super intense heat flew through the air and fried Bastion upon impact.
  
  Harry blinked, rubbing his eyeballs before he only had one statement.
  
  "Okay, this is new," Harry responded but the magically enhanced heat vision succeeded in damaging Bastion badly.
  
  Scott flew to the ground, landing hard with a thud, his nose almost breaking when he hit. In reality, that could not be the best plan in the world what he just tried.
  
  "Hey, what are these overgrown bucket of bolts doing? Thinking that they can cause all of this property damage?"
  
  "Yeah isn't that our job?"
  
  "Quiet there Matchstick....It's Clobbering Time!"
  
  The Thing popped up, along with the Human Torch. The Fantastic Four were going along their day, when suddenly the Baxter Building was attacked by these robots.
  
  "So Reed, what do you make of these things?" the Thing asked as he picked up a lamppost that had been disengaged and swung it, smacking into the chest of the robot.
  
  "They are quite impressive," Reed remarked when he analyzed them but Susan shook her head.
  
  "Now's not the time to gush over the killer robots that are going to kill us," The Invisible Woman responded when she closed her eyes and popped up an invisible shield, which blocked the debris.
  
  "So is this a Fantastic Four get together or do the Avengers join in?"
  
  Iron Man popped up, blasting at the Sentinels, causing the armor to ding.
  
  "Threat, neutralize it," the Sentinel responded in monotone but Thor summoned the thunder and laid the smackdown on the Sentinel.
  
  "Have at thee, vile machine!" Thor bellowed, before he smashed the Sentinel, but it was adapting to Thor's attacks.
  
  "JARVIS, get a scan of that thing, it has to have a weak spot," Iron Man responded when he put up his wrist band and began to scan the Sentinel carefully.
  
  "At once sir," JARVIS responded, as the computer continued to scan.
  
  "Yeah, weak spot, good luck," Hawkeye answered whilst his best shots were bouncing off of nothing.
  
  "HULK SMASH OVERBLOWN TIN CAN!"
  
  Hulk jumped up and with a sonic boom knocked the Sentinel back, causing it to crumble and crack. The metal contorted and the Prince of Thunder dove up, before he combined the attack with Thor. The combined assaults of two of the strongest beings in the world smashed the Sentinel down and there was a huge crash when the machine bust apart.
  
  "That wasn't so hard," Hulk stated gruffly, brushing his hands off.
  
  "Yeah but there's about two more coming down the street, big guy," Iron Man responded when his hands lit up and he aimed a series of blasts at them. "If we can only back these guys up."
  
  "Easier said than done," Ms. Marvel panted, when she spotted Cannonball run down the street and launch himself into one of the Sentinels and did some pretty decent damage to it. "Well that worked out well."
  
  "I don't know how many of these things Trask has but we should assume that he might have dozens in a storehouse," Fury stated to the Avengers over the radio link. "Make sure...."
  
  Fury paused before he got some news off screen and it twisted his stomach into a knot. The eagle eyed director of SHIELD spun around, trying to watch everything.
  
  "Problem, boss?" Hawkeye asked as he spotted Spider-Man swinging into the battle, getting civilians out of harm's way. Beast assisted with the efforts, as did Storm off to the side.
  
  The news crews were on the scene, filming all of it.
  
  Thankfully the X-Men all wore wrist bands that would cause any photos or television images of their faces to be out of focus but still the people now knew at large that mutants existed, even though they did not know who they were. The Acolytes disappeared into the night, their purpose done, even if Magneto's plan kind of went off the rails.
  
  Jean paused, before she stepped forward. Scott stopped her.
  
  "Jean what are you doing?" Scott asked before she shoved his hand away. "You're breaking your position."
  
  'Tell the idiot that you're saving all of mutant kind from getting wiped out,' the Phoenix thought.
  
  However Scott was knocked down when a group of armed soldiers moved in. Kitty's eyes widened when she saw it and she turned, practically stammering when her head turned around before the brunette spat it out.
  
  "We got to so get out of here, fallout plan seven, like Harry taught us!" Kitty yelled, trying to rally the team the best she could.
  
  "Capture them, these specimens must not be allowed to leave," one of the army officers stated.
  
  There was a loud siren that echoed just as Fury was finishing giving the report.
  
  "What do you mean the meteors are going to crash into New York within fifteen minutes?" Iron Man asked, his voice nearly dropping and he looked up into the sky. There were flares.
  
  Iron Man calibrated Fury's findings and let out a low whistle. To say this was not good would be the understatement to end all understatements. "Well, here's the deal. We're about to get plowed by the meteors in fourteen minutes and thirty nine seconds. The magnetic interference brought them faster."
  
  "Damn Magneto," Rogue swore as she hung her head.
  
  Wanda did not say that, if she had been allowed to deal with her father, he would not have been allowed to reign down hell on Earth. Even if it was accidental, Wanda still blamed him as with everything.
  
  "We got to get everyone out of the city, now," Spider-Man responded but the Sentinels were making that harder that he was.
  
  'Bastion could be anywhere,' Harry thought to himself but he blinked. 'Then again, Bastion, you just slipped up.'
  
  He fired an electro-magnetic pulse into the air, with it smashing through the air hard and the wizard watched it explode, causing everything to rattle around them. The wizard felt pressure reign supreme after the communicator link went off.
  
  "Yeah Kitty....what do you need?" Harry asked but there was a squealing sound.
  
  'I'll put us on mind link,' Rachel thought to them and Harry focused a little bit, before Kitty managed to get in with the link.
  
  'Um ten minutes,' Kitty thought in a frantic manner when she clutched her hands together.
  
  'Ten minutes until what?' Harry responded to her, but he felt a deal of dread coming up with him. Something was happening but the real question was what.
  
  'Meteor shower,' Kitty thought to him, frantically. 'Be careful.'
  
  Harry looked up into the sky.
  
  "I can stop it," Harry responded as he put his hands on his hips but Jean's eyes widened.
  
  "A meteor shower?" Jean stated to him, thinking that Harry might have lost his mind and really she feared a little bit for his sanity. The red haired woman crossed her arms and threw her head back with a slight sight. "I don't know if you can even stop that, even with your abilities..."
  
  "I'm not insane," Harry answered in a defensive voice, trying to figure out what he needed to do.
  
  "You aren't going anywhere."
  
  And Bastion was back in the game, with Harry propelling himself up with all of the power that he had. He never tapped into this much power so it caused every single nerve ending in his body to explode in flames.
  
  Bastion was dangerous but so was Harry. Jean and Rachel joined him, before their eyes glowed.
  
  'Together,' Harry thought to both of the red heads and there was an explosion that rang through the air.
  
  Several explosions echoed, causing flames and fire to shoot out in every single direction. The trio smashed their way through the air, knocking the full force into their Bastion and sent the force slamming to the ground.
  
  The sparks flew when he smashed into the ground but there was a thunderous laughter that echoed, when Jean's eyes glowed and she began to rip him apart.
  
  "I guess you're the one who's going to kill me this time," Bastion managed as a combination of motor oil and blood splattered from his mouth. His eyes flickered into silver and they continued to spark a little bit more ,his heart beat rather firmly. "It's a pity that it's not going to matter."
  
  Harry spiked down all of his power down onto the head of Bastion, obliterating him with the full force of his powers, but it ticked into his mind.
  
  "Seven minutes, six minutes fifty nine seconds, six minutes fifty eight seconds."
  
  The Sentinels began to shut down but the flares up in the air indicated that there was a bigger problem.
  
  "Six minutes forty three seconds, six minutes forty two seconds, six minutes forty one seconds."
  
  To Be Continued in "The Grand Finale Part Three: The Parting of the Ways."
  
  I'm going to sum this up for those people who lack reading comprehension skills.
  
  1) Lily and James Potter had a son named Harry, but he died from complications from birth. Lily knew but James didn't.
  
  2) A despondent Lily found a crashed ship containing a child that was not in the best shape thanks to reasons we'll go into in Book Two, therefore she used the blood she had from her deceased son to save him. Thanks to the magic of magic, this worked out in ways that we cannot fathom as mere Muggles. Thus making him about 90 percent Harry/10 percent Kal-El. No one was the wiser, not James, not Sirius, not Colonel Fubster, not Goyle, not even the all seeing all knowing White Bumblebee.
  
  3) The Horcrux locked his Kryptonian abilities and they went dormant.
  
  4) Some of the powers came back when the Horcrux was destroyed when he went through the veil, such as flight, which Harry erroneously believed was from Voldemort. Yet Harry's flight powers were more refined while Riddle's are more like gliding really.
  
  5) All of the powers came back with the Osborn formula empowering him.
  
  6) Intimate relationships between first cousins aren't taboo in the Wizarding World or on Krypton. Figured I'd throw that one out there, even if Harry is more Harry, then Kal-El.
  
  That's about it, I think. It should have been obvious but apparently not. Now is that clear or would you like me to make a Powerpoint presentation with pretty pictures and graphs? (cue the smart asses asking for one in three...two...one.)
  Grand Finale Part Two: Fortress
  
  Smartasses. :)
  
  Chapter Fifty Two: The Grand Finale Part Three: Fortress.
  
  Six minutes and thirty nine seconds, six minutes and thirty eight seconds, and Harry was in his element, or at least wanted to hang onto the illusion that he was in his element. The wizard thrived in these high pressure situations where most would find it hard to even function logically. He drew in a deep breath and focused, focused, yes he had to focus. It would not be wise to lose his mind out of the fear and panic now. Harry saw that Bastion was down and out, smashed by the combined attacks of himself, Rachel, and Jean, which allowed them to focus on the problem.
  
  "Okay, everyone....we don't need a riot, come on now, easy does it," Iron Man responded, trying to keep himself calm. For Tony Stark he was really serious. Reed edged over which allowed Harry a chance to speak to him.
  
  "Have you been able to figure anything out?" Harry asked to Reed in a voice that he tried to remain calm about.
  
  Reed looked thoughtful before he brought up the calculations on the screen and nodded slightly, his head inclining a slight bit. "The good news is that I'll be able to stop the meteor shower, it is a simple enough process of misdirecting the meteors."
  
  Ms. Marvel helped move some debris and ushered civilizations out of the way before she turned and looked over her shoulder. "So that's the good news, what's the bad news?"
  
  "The bad news is that it will take fifteen minutes to do so," Reed answered as he saw the chaos forming around him. The Human Torch and the Thing did the best they could to work crowd control but they were out of their element.
  
  "Oh is that all?" Harry asked in a casual voice when Kitty moved towards him, with Harry putting his arm around her and pulling her in close. "Did you guys all get out okay?"
  
  "Yeah, but Ororo, Laura, and Kurt are still trying to track Logan down, wherever they have him," Kitty stated as Harry tightened his grip around her.
  
  Rogue edged over to join Harry and the others, a smile crossing her face. "But everyone got out okay."
  
  "There's still the meteor shower, in case you forgot," Rachel responded as she looked up to the sky and she almost sensed it coming. "Four minutes."
  
  "I know, four minutes," Harry answered as he hovered above the ground and looked high in the sky. "Which means I've got four minutes to pull a miracle out of my ass."
  
  "Do you think you can do it?" Natasha asked after she got done talking with the SHIELD agents. She tried to figure out if Harry ever lost his nerve but if he was not about to lose it during a meteor shower, than he was not going to lose it now.
  
  Harry shrugged his shoulders before he offered her a smile. "Miracles happen."
  
  Harry took a moment to watch them but Jean grabbed his hand holding him back. A frown and also a worried expression crossed her face before the red head decided to speak with him about the situation. "Harry, I've got...I've got a bad feeling about this."
  
  Harry would lie if he lacked a bad feeling but that was not something that he could focus on. All he could focus on was saving the day and getting everyone out safely. Even if this ended badly for Harry, at least he knew that he could save as many people as he could. He always suspected that the end would come with a bang; even if that end would be his end.
  
  "I know what I'm doing," Harry responded in a rather stubborn voice, before spinning around on his heel. The mage stepped forward, before performing a few charms. They numbed the minds of the people around them and got them moving faster, more receptive to the suggestions of getting out of there and less prone to mindless panic.
  
  The wizard flew up into the sky, putting spells around him to shield him when he got further and further up into the sky.
  
  "Do you think....do you think he'll be okay?" Amara asked as she watched but Kitty offered a smile, trying to remain more confident than she really was on the surface.
  
  "Of course he'll be okay, he's Harry," Kitty offered in a confidence voice but she watched his progress, her nerves were shooting into over drive.
  
  'What is he doing anyway?' Kitty thought to herself, with Jean, Rachel, and Rogue watching his progress but they all had a job to do.
  
  "Three minute warning."
  
  They better move quickly, time was running out for all of them and they all understood that there was so much on the line. The group edged themselves forward, smiling a little bit when they moved around the city, there was huge explosions that echoed. There were a few impacts of meteors clicking satellites.
  
  Harry closed his eyes when he flew up and saw them flying at the Earth's atmosphere. The good news was that the charms held, which proved the theory that magic could be in space. Granted he had to concentrate enough to focus on everything that was happening around him but the flickers of the meteor rocks burning through him, which pushed him back and there was a slight feeling of dizziness as he got closer to a few of the larger chunks of the green meteorites.
  
  'Not good, not good at all,' Harry thought to himself, closing his eyes and feeling himself falter, swaying from one side to the next, before he tried, vainly, to steady himself.
  
  The rocks were tinted green and Harry pushed himself forward but the shields faltered around him a little bit. He felt the rocks weaken him slightly, although much slower than they would without the use of magic. Still he felt dizziness that caused him to sway back and forth in the air, feeling a slight stabbing motion in the side of his head. The wizard carefully took a moment to adjust himself before he descended back down to Earth but at least he did not fall with a crash.
  
  Norman Osborn sat in the underground bunker, waiting, watching, and quite frankly pondering what happened. The Sentinel plan did not go as planned but he managed to escape in the confusion, while Trask was grabbed. No one would even connect him to this, no matter if Trask stooged him out or not.
  
  As far as the world knew, Osborn was in the hospital and in critical condition, but he subverted a sympathetic doctor to cover for him. He seduced her with problems, using that Osborn charm to really get her over to his side. Women were easy to manipulate, especially when a man listened to them a little bit and acted like they were considerate to their problems. Even if their problems had very little to nothing of relevance to them, but that was beside the point.
  
  Osborn smiled, a twisted grin going across his face, with any luck, there would be mutants that he would be able to capture and hold captive. They would be dissected and he could use their DNA to fine tune the latest match of the goblin formula. He would be stronger than ever before and twisting malevolence crossed his face as he kept an eye on the situation.
  
  "Monitor the situation,' Osborn stated to his men and said man nodded in response. "I want to find out if any opportunities present themselves."
  
  His men nodded but Osborn stopped them, before he added.
  
  "Make sure to do so until after the meteors hit, I feel that there is a chance that more mutants may perish, leaving them ripe for the taking," Osborn answered as he watched the countdown clock, having hacked into the SHIELD database to do so.
  
  Two and a half minutes until the end, clicking down, one number at a time, second after second. Osborn waited and Osborn watched, and he would have the day.
  
  He would know what opportunities that the meteor shower would present when they blew through town. Norman could arrange his recovery as well and no one would be the wiser. No one would complain about his pass misdeeds if he offered them help. Osborn plotted to become the white knight that would deliver the people of the city from the destruction and pick up the pieces. A little demonization would go a long way to affect the mutant race and put Osborn in a role as the savior of humanity.
  
  Time stood still but Osborn was a patient man who would wait when the time inched by. His nasty expression turned around and he waited for everyone around him. His knuckles cracked a tiny bit whilst he edged forward. Time would pass but there would be no one around them that would mater.
  
  'It's time,' Osborn thought to himself, nastily glaring through his eyes, when his heart beat more heavily. The goblin formula enhanced his mental processes, his stamina, his strength, while warping his looks and his sanity, not to mention removing every inch of hair on his head. Osborn cracked his knuckles and kept waiting, each tick of the clock drumming in his ear.
  
  Harry fluttered down on the city but edged off to the side, looking up with widened eyes. He saw a great majority of the people evacuated from the area where SHIELD calculated that the worst of the impact was about to land. The wizard hoped that they were right, because if they were incorrect in any way, it was going to be an issue. The young wizard closed his eyes and focused on the problem before he snapped them back open. He did not even begin to think about how problematic this situation was.
  
  Time was a torment that delivered them the trouble all in the end and Harry saw the flares from up above. Despite the dizziness that he suffered from the meteor rocks, there was determination that fluttered through and he knew that he had to try to stop it, one more time.
  
  'One more time, that's all I need,' he thought as he stood up straight and proud, trying to summon the determination and iron will that a wizard would need.
  
  One minute thirty seconds, one minute twenty nine seconds, one minute twenty eight seconds, one minute....
  
  Harry could not focus on how much time he had left, he closed his eyes and everything slowed down around him. Civilians were in a panic and Harry summoned all of the magic that he could around them.
  
  Pop, pop, pop, people disappeared one at a time. It was a terrible strain on Harry's body to transport these many people at once but he stood tall and proud, despite the fact of the searing pain through his body. There felt like there was much time that was passing but yet Harry held onto his sanity and himself when he kept moving as many people out of harm's way.
  
  Fifty eight seconds, fifty seven seconds, he could see them flying over the skies of New York, about to impact down at any second. More people were transported from the blast zone.
  
  Harry closed his eyes, this would be something that would be hard to determine. There was an entire group at a shopping mall off of the side. His palms sweated and his face reddened, the combination of the meteor rocks that seemed to harm him being so near along with the strain of performing forced apparation on hundreds of people started to get to him.
  
  'Jean, Rachel, get them of there, Kitty help them,' Harry thought to them with a shaken thought, when his eyes closed tightly and his heart beat heavily, when there was the whirling around them and he saw the meteors flying around him.
  
  The situation was dire.
  
  The biggest one was about to slam down on the back of his head, which was not good. Yet if he moved, the impact would cause debris to take out anyone close to him. With the last ounce of strength Harry was able muster, he pushed every bit of his power, and crossed his arms together. The wizard rattled everything on the ground beneath him and hoped that everything would hold itself together, but it was not working as he wanted.
  
  "EVERYONE MOVE IT!"
  
  That shout was not only heard by Harry but from everyone around him. The wizard rubbed the side of his ear, before stepping back a little bit. He rubbed his eyes and tried to focus on the glowing light, the humming nose up in the sky before him. Harry shifted; the meteors were not the only thing coming down onto all of their heads. He could not quite make out what it was, but it had a silver glint, with a symbol on it, that resembled both the one on the box and the statue on Nova-Roma.
  
  There was no time for Harry to really take a closer look at the ship; it was time for him to take decisive action. The wizard carefully stood on his heels, and peered up in the air, before watching the flying rocks spiraling down towards him in a virtual demonic cyclone of terror. The whirling and hissing sounds in the air put him on even more edge, because a sonic signal echoed through his ear and caused his ears to hurt.
  
  Jean, Kitty, Rogue, and Rachel, among others, tried to edge over, but Harry put up a shield, with his last bit of energy, he protected them, along with all overs, despite throwing himself into the eye of the storm. Wanda tried to counteract his magic with her own but there was a blinding bright light.
  
  The meteor rocks began to fly, but they only left dents into the mostly abandoned street, before they settled to the ground. Harry dodged the rocks, still feeling dizzied and slowed down half of his speed before when one of the jagged pieces of rocks pierced him in the side of his arm, causing him to be injured. Another impacted him in the chest and another in the side of the neck, he could not apparate, he could not fly, he was too weak to escape as they began to knick the side of his face. The pieces of debris falling down on him was not going to help matters and given that Harry drained himself teleporting thousands of civilians out of the blast zone, he could not save himself.
  
  The silver ship was among the last thing to come down along with the meteor shower and there was a huge explosion. Next to the ship, a final rock, this time silver, with a black growth of goo attached to it, landed down on the ground with a sickening thud!
  
  Harry flew backwards; his head cracking back against the pavement. The box flung over his pocket, with no one able to see what happened in the smoke. A purple crystal slid out of the box and laid to a still before it hummed, rattling, before engulfing Harry in a bright light.
  
  The bright light wrapped around Harry's body and absorbed him, before bringing him out of the debris, causing him to flash into a blinding light where no one saw where he went when he disappeared. From their points of view, he was vaporized by the ship.
  
  The silver ship rested to a stop when it was on the ground, moving back and forth, with a shimmering sound from within it. It remained still when the last of the meteors barely hit the ground. The green rocks rested on the ground, with the people coming to a stop. There was a gasp of terror when the full scope of the terror sank in.
  
  Kitty's eyes widened, she tried not to freak out, because freaking out was going to be a really bad thing. The brunette had a moment of time when she lapsed into shock but something distracted her. Granted the fact that she was distracted did not improve the situation in any way whatsoever but Jean dropped down to her knees on the ground next to her.
  
  The red haired girl gave a tormented scream, causing her cries to become rather dangerous. Wanda felt a presence around them as well and felt something happening. Her mystical abilities were unstable even though that Harry managed to help her control them a little bit. The magical mutant breathed heavily, her heart thumping along her chest, and her powers flared up. Edging closer to the edge of everything, Wanda watched with trepidation and bent down her knees, feeling the pain around her.
  
  Meanwhile despite not having the flares of powers, Kitty was going to freak out a little bit more with what happened to Harry. The brunette mutant ran it over in the back of her mind, trying to reconcile everything but she was totally flipping out. Logically speaking, her mind was going to be a wreck and she shifted herself a little bit. The brunette watched them all and carefully edged herself over towards the wreckage.
  
  Harry vanished, disappeared, around the time that ship touched down. Kitty edged forward towards the ship but Rogue held her back, shaking her hand and biting down on her lip. The mutants watched with trepidation when they watched everything around them. Anxiety worked around them, with all of them carefully edging themselves forward.
  
  "So, what's the deal with the ship?" Rogue asked but Kitty was a bit too depressed to answer the question. In fact, she was in complete and numb shock.
  
  Kitty turned to the SHIELD agents that walked over and snapped at them angrily. "You know, if you were doing your jobs right then Harry wouldn't be put in this situation!"
  
  Kitty placed her hands on her hips but Natasha shook her head, she was a bit annoyed about how Fury handled this situation as well. But now was not the time or the place to not show solidarity. In fact, it was now time to band together and figure out if there were any casualties.
  
  "I feel your pain," Captain America responded as he kept his eyes narrowed before holding the shield. This was one of the biggest catastrophes. He turned around and saw a figure move in. "Spider-Man, see what you can do about clearing that debris over there."
  
  Spider-Man's eyes widened, honored that he was addressed directly by Captain America, who was somewhat of a hero for him. The web slinger felt honored, but he would have enjoyed it more had it not been such a serious situation. Still he managed to remain on his feet, edging himself and walked over towards the rubble, but thankfully there was no one underneath it. Spider-Man kept rigid and released his breath in a sigh.
  
  "We found him!"
  
  Kurt yelled over his shoulder, with Jubilee, Laura, and Bobby helping Logan be dragged over. The mutant felt his legs drag behind him but he shook his head, before remaining careful on his feet.
  
  "Hey, I'm fine," Logan growled as he brushed them to the side and sure enough the healing factor was enough. He sniffed the air; there was something different now than there was before. "Where's Potter?"
  
  A sad expression crossed Kitty's face when she slumped her shoulders and tried not to go to pieces. Rachel was the one who was in sound enough mind, with everything that happened with the red haired telepath turning to Logan.
  
  "He....he didn't....he didn't make it."
  
  Rachel, who had experienced loss her entire life, found her voice shake a bit more than she thought it might. A knot twisted in her stomach, it hurt to stand on her feet but Rachel swayed herself.
  
  "I don't believe it," Laura responded as she looked around, sensing for something, anything.
  
  "I know, I don't...I don't want to believe it either," Rogue answered as putting her arm around Laura to try and give her some comfort. "But I know what I saw and....Harry got vaporized by that ship."
  
  "Well let's make whoever's inside answer," Laura stated, as she edged forward, claws bared and ready to go. Her eyes narrowed slightly when the girl tried to make her way towards the ship.
  
  The dark haired girl slashed against the ship but it did not even scratch against the ship. There was nothing that indicated that ship was anything of this Earth, in fact, with Laura's claws, she should have been able to scratch it and rip it open in time. Yet, there was nothing, not even a scratch, not even a....
  
  "First mutants, than some alien ship!"
  
  "Fucking Friends of Humanity, why won't they shut up?" Kitty swore as she balled her fists in anger, about ready to rip their heads about now.
  
  "Kid, I feel your pain but we got to get out of here, there's going to be police, government officials, and all kinds of other shit moving around here," Logan stated as the other heroes nodded, with Captain America trying to pacify the crowd. Logan stopped to address his old friend. "Best of luck, Steve, you're going to need it with these guys."
  
  Captain America acknowledged Logan with a brief nod, inclining his head enough to acknowledge Logan before he pushed himself out of the way. The Spirit of the United States of America eyed all of the people before him before he responded with a deep voice. "Back off people, you need to focus, there are lives on the line."
  
  "Yeah, get back, you don't want to be around the fallout, for all we know these meteor rocks could turn you into mutants," Hawkeye responded as he stood by the side and that caused a few of the Friends of Humanity members to step back. Of course, Hawkeye was not sure if he was completely wrong, who knew what these glowing green rocks could do. They could give people super powers.
  
  Fury kept walking forward, keeping an inventory on everything that was around him. The last thing he wanted or needed was any of this alien technology to fall into the wrong hands. Of course, his agents struggled with the ship which rested dormant in the middle of the street. One of them spun around to face Fury.
  
  "It won't budge, sir," the agent responded and Fury kept a careful eye on this agent.
  
  "See if you can make it budge then, any way you can manage," Fury answered in his most gruff voice and they reached the ship, putting their backs into it, when the ship burst open and smoke filled it. "Back off men, back off."
  
  The shadowed figure escaped the ship and she zipped around, staggering because of the green rocks a little bit but the adrenaline pushed her to resist that, as she flew into them, attacking them like a cornered animal. She knocked them down, a wide eyed expression on her face and speaking in a language that none of them could understand. The SHIELD agents could not see who she was or rather what she was, for she shot into the air like a cork and flew off into the distance, leaving her ship opened in the middle of Time Square.
  
  One of the SHIELD agents stepped forward and tried to place a hand on the ship but a jolt knocked him back.
  
  "Failsafe," Fury grunted, as they needed to find a way to haul the ship away. "Have you found our visitor?"
  
  The SHIELD agents shook their heads, one of them double checking the radar. "I think she went in the direction of the Artic, but why would she go there, sir?"
  
  Fury did not answer but he was determined to find out one way or another, no matter what.
  
  Spider-Man pulled himself forward, joining the rest of the team, unaware that a little black friend hitched a ride on his costume in the confusion. The web slinger was tired and haggard like the rest of them, so they did not notice anything.
  
  "What was with...the freak out?" Rachel asked as she snapped her fingers but Jean stood there, catatonic. She took a step forward, but it was in a zombified state. Rachel snapped her fingers but Jean did not say anything.
  
  Jean Grey could not voice what she saw but when those rocks came down, she could feel the psychic backlash of millions of lives being snuffed out. Their very last thoughts when they died and there was something encoded on that ship as well. Whoever the visitor was inside the ship, she was connected to the Phoenix Force, at least in some minor way.
  
  Said Phoenix Force was not responding to Jean, not that the telepath responded to anyone now, even the calls of her name.
  
  "Jean, are you alright?" Ororo asked her and Jean nodded her head, but her eyes were blank and her pupils were milky white. "Are you certain? Do you need medical attention."
  
  "I am fine!" Jean yelled, her temper flaring and causing people to step back. She was capable of intimidation without the Phoenix Force.
  
  The X-Men moved off, there was still the matter of Magneto and his Acolytes that slipped away into the night. And the fact that there was an alien ship sitting in the middle of Time Square.
  
  From the alien ship, a silver fluid that had been attached to the bottom it drained off the ship and down the nearest storm drain.
  
  Harry was cold, and miserable when he was face down in the Artic, it was almost like something took away his powers. The piece of the green rock impaled into the side of his shoulder and into his chest, not to mention the side of his neck, making it completely hard to get up to his feet. He was going to die here, completely frozen and buried in the snow.
  
  If he was perfectly honest, he would have expected the ending to be a lot less more....well it would have been a lot more exciting if he had the choice. Not that it really mattered, when Harry shook his head and carefully inched his way to a standing position, for a few seconds at the very least. Then his knees buckled and turned before he collapsed in the snow, breathing heavily.
  
  'Fuck not good, fuck not good, fuck not good, fuck not good,' Harry thought to himself with a shiver feeling cold like he was certain that he should not, but he managed to dig the jagged pieces of green rock out of his arm. He could barely perform a warming charm and since he was still drained from the mass teleportation, he rested in the snow.
  
  He heard a loud boom in the air and Harry wondered if anyone would even see him in this snow and ice. There was an abundant amount of it and he saw the purple crystal that flew out of his box in the snow. A swirling of light surrounded it and he could barely keep his eyes open to see the progress of it seemingly sinking into the snow.
  
  Harry faded from existence, giving himself a small shuddering breath, before he blacked completely out. He never blacked out this badly, not even from the Dementors. He never came this close to dying, not even from the Killing Curse. His few, tortured, tormented, and fragmented thoughts caused hands to twitch together. He felt the icy cold around him but suddenly his body warmed up.
  
  A pair of hands gently lifted Harry up above the snow, but his head fell back as he sank into the cold dark abyss of his mind.
  
  Had Harry been able to see something, he would have seen a huge crystal fortress erupting from the snow, with security the likes of which the world had never seen. The flying figure trafficked him towards this crystal fortress.
  
  "Hang on," she breathed in his ear, even though he was scarcely could be awake and the rocks weakened her as well. "I can't lose you...this soon after finding you."
  
  She pressed her palm onto the crystal fortress and it scanned every inch of her body. The Fortress also scanned for life forms around the snow but when it judged that they were alone, it allowed the two to enter it.
  
  The blood of Harry Potter left splattered in the snow but his body, busted and battered from saving the day, would heal once again.
  
  She entered the Fortress, feeling more at ease now that she was in a place much like the world that she left and not like a world that she barely understood.
  
  Norman Osborn understood many things and understanding opportunity was something that made him one of the key businessmen in the world. Even with the set back with the goblin formula, Osborn remained one of the top of the mark and his tenacious attitude allowed him to accomplish successes that were barely known until this moment. His eyes narrowed before he saw his men.
  
  "The ship, SHIELD tries to secure it, but they keep failing," Osborn remarked to his men and they nodded. A wide grin spread over his face. Many people would panic about little green men or whatever visiting, thinking they would be on the precipice of an alien invasion. Osborn sought opportunity to strengthen his defenses and potentially put himself in a higher standing. "If Oscorp acquires this ship, then we can build weapons, weapons that will put us light years ahead of anyone else."
  
  The stooges nodded but Osborn did not care about their opinions, all he cared about was the success of the business. Time and time again, people tried to undermine him, people like Octopus and Spider-Man but now he had the last laugh.
  
  "If they get to the ship before I do, Fury's likely going to squander its potential," Osborn added when he kept his eyes firmly on the crew. "We must wait until nightfall, so we can make a plan and get that ship."
  
  "But if SHIELD cannot get the ship, how can we get it, sir?"
  
  Osborn did not answer that question quite yet, although there were numerous possibilities rolling around in the back of his head. Carefully, the owner of Oscorp mulled over everything. He had left explicit instructions for his underlings that even a child could not screw up. His eyes closed and a wide grin spread over his face, sinister and it would send shivers down the spine of the most hardened of men in the world.
  
  "Patience, you will understand, you will know," Osborn responded crisply as he brought up the scans around the area. He had a truckload of the meteors already which he would study.
  
  Spending plenty of time turning over the circumstances of what occurred in his mind; Osborn would succeed where many had failed. Unlocking the secrets of life in other worlds would be his to accomplish and his alone. His eyes twisted in malice.
  
  "Patience, that will win the day," Osborn responded with a rotting smile on his face.
  
  "I'm sorry sir...."
  
  Osborn held his hand up before he watched the underling. "No, don't apologize. That means you don't believe in what you do. Don't apologize, because I never do."
  
  Osborn paused.
  
  "Conviction will do you well. I must return before I'm missed. I will return before nightfall."
  
  Norman Osborn plotted what he would do with that alien technology, feeling that the gift from the sky was his to claim. The first run as the Green Goblin did not go as planned but the second time around, it would be like magic. And all who wronged Norman Osborn would suffer. Pulling the split identity trick worked to fool people but make no mistake about it, Osborn was in complete and utter control of his mental facilities.
  
  "I still can't believe it," Laura persisted stubbornly with a cross expression on her face.
  
  "If it makes you feel better, I can't believe it either," Logan responded as the others stood by the side, in various states of mourning. While they all expected Harry to leave the Mansion someday, it was not as a pile of ashes in the middle of Time Square. "Too clean, too nice, too....easy for my liking."
  
  Laura did not say anything but was glad that someone shared her thoughts. Wanda and Jean had something go wonky with their powers; even if for some reason Wanda was held better together out of the two of them than Jean did. She could not begin to understand what happened. If Harry was here, then Harry would know.
  
  "He's....they never found anything did they, not even a body?" Kurt asked as he edged over, Rogue, Kitty, Rachel, and Amara were all in funks as they looked up at the sky with reddened eyes.
  
  Gwen edged over to the side.
  
  "So are you are holding up?" Kitty asked Gwen but Gwen shook her head.
  
  "I'm fine because he's not really dead," Gwen responded in a nonchalant voice.
  
  "Gwen, I know...denial and all that but we saw him," Rogue answered when she eyed the brainy blonde but said girl crossed her arms over her chest.
  
  "I know what you thought what you saw but it doesn't mean that I have to believe everything that you think that you've saw," Gwen answered, but she looked up in the sky, thoughtful.
  
  There were so many things happening at once, that Gwen could hardly believe that anyone should trust their own eyes. Between the meteors falling, the flashes of light, the Sentinels, and everything else going on around them, there were huge explosions. The young wizard who saved them all, countless civilians, it seemed rather disappointing that he would have dropped completely dead after that sacrifice.
  
  Gwen placed a hand on her eyes and whistled completely, before she saw a woman wearing glasses with her platinum blonde hair tied back, with a black jacket, t-shirt, and jeans.
  
  "I don't think he's gone either, I couldn't really see it but I was there in the crowd," Felicia remarked when she inclined her head, to pay some respects in case she was wrong.
  
  "And with no body, I don't think any of us can...well you know I don't know," Gwen responded, she did not want to cut in at this funeral with conspiracy theories. The blonde closed a pair of blue eyes and hoped that everything will turn out okay.
  
  Kitty always feared that something would happen that would pull Harry back into his main universe. And Harry shared that fear in many ways, she suspected. But getting pulled into that world would be...well Kitty couldn't tell if it would be worse than dying. That was one thing that she could not fathom in her mind ever.
  
  All they knew was there was a likelihood that Harry was never coming back. A couple of days passed since the incident and a memorial had been erected at the Xavier Institute.
  
  Scott stood but said nothing, watching Jean sit there, apparently catatonic by grief.
  
  Off to the side, unnoticed by anyone, a woman with dark hair and violet eyes, dressed in a black blazer, red blouse, and black skirt with high heels watched from the side. The intrepid reporter slipped off before she was noticed.
  
  Harry's eyes flickered open when he was surrounded by an ice palace, his body completely healed by the energies around him. His fingers flickered a little bit when he brought himself back up to life, his heart beating against his chest.
  
  "Welcome home."
  
  This voice was remembered by Harry and he saw her standing there in the bright light. He felt a throbbing in the back of his head. She was there, the girl from his dreams, and she watched him, nervous but bold at the same time.
  
  "Home, where is...."
  
  She placed a finger to his mouth, shushing him, before throwing her arms around him a tight hug.
  
  "We are the last two, the very last two," she breathed in his ear.
  
  "So you're another survivor from the Wizarding World?" Harry asked to her.
  
  She shook her head. "No, not that world, your real home, where you were born, but I'm sorry."
  
  "Sorry about what?" Harry responded.
  
  "I felt everything when I woke up, every pain that you ever felt during your life, and the despair...the longing to have things that others take for granted," she answered as she watched him. "You've been out for almost eleven days; the world thinks that you're dead."
  
  She curled up next to him, resting her head down on his chest.
  
  "I think about it all, and I miss it all, you don't remember them, your parents, mine, everyone else, even Zod," she responded, biting down on her lip, looking terrified and a bit vulnerable, with Harry pulling her into him. She wore white fabric around her body, a silver bracelet, a red headband, with flowing golden blonde hair and shimmering blue eyes. "But with you and with this place, I'm home."
  
  She paused.
  
  "It's down to the two of us to preserve our bloodline, our race," the blonde added, rocking back and forth against Harry. "Kal-El."
  
  That name was not registered with Harry. "You must have me mistaken for someone else."
  
  "No, no mistake, this Fortress would have admitted you," she responded, squeezing his neck tight in a hug. "Your father, your birth father, for all of his faults, built this place to give you everything you'd ever need."
  
  The tears clung to her eyebrows.
  
  "I missed you," she breathed as she brushed his hair away from her eyes. "I'm sorry I wasn't there for you."
  
  "Who are you exactly?" Harry asked her, when she shifted next to him.
  
  "Kara," she whispered timidly in his ear, biting down on her lip. "I'm from Krypton, just like you."
  
  Harry felt conflicted when he watched her.
  
  "Are you displeased?"
  
  "This is all new to me....I don't believe it," Harry responded but then he realized that nothing about him ever could be normal.
  
  "Seeing is believing," Kara said when she leaned against his shoulder. "I'll teach you about Krypton, you teach me about Earth because....I really don't know much beyond the basics. Deal?"
  
  Harry nodded with a smile, intrigued to learn more and besides he felt too weak to move too long or farwhich he suspected would be the case for at least a couple of days. "Deal."
  
  There was another voice before the two survivors of Krypton could speak.
  
  "Welcome home, Kal-El, my son."
  
  Sirius Black was still before his eyes snapped open, to reveal a pair of slit like red eyes and then there was high cold laughter that would have chilled most who heard it to the bone.
  
  To Be Continued in Beyond the Veil Book Two Chapter One "Shadows of the Past Part One" on August 19 th 2013.
  
  I figure in my head Harry kind of looks like the Young Justice version of Superboy now but with green eyes. And Kara is Superman: Unbound version.
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