Buffy X-overs 1. Getting to Know You

Title: Sirens' Song  
Author: Sinayah  
Disclaimer: I don't own any characters from Buffy, Angel, or Xmen. They belong to very rich people who don't appreciate them as we fanfic writers do.  
Disclaimer 2: The Chapter Title and Lyrics belong to Oscar Hammerstein.  
Authors Note: Many heartfelt thanks to my muse Zenura, without her I wouldn't have had the guts to write. If you like this story please review or send me an email, I'd really appreciate hearing what you think. Enjoy!  
Chapter 1: Getting to Know You  
"getting to know you, getting to know all about you…"  
  
Serena Masterton, the mutant known to her friends as Siren, was bored. Things had been quiet around the X mansion lately, not even Sabretooth or Mystique had been by to cause trouble. Serena was new to the Xmen. Professor Xavier and his team had found her in New Orleans just six months ago. The newest Xmen team member reminisced on the first time she saw another mutant.   
  
Cerebro had detected her powers and the Wolverine had been sent to retrieve her since he'd been near by. The gruff, rude, hairy man had found Siren huddled against the wall of an alley in the French Quarter. He'd made overtures to the frightened woman, who had just fended off a group of would be rapists, telling her that he wouldn't harm her and understood what was happening to her but she only curled into herself more and shook her head back and forth, refusing to speak.  
  
The normally impatient mutant had continued trying to calm the girl, knowing that she needed help. It took a while but Siren began to trust the scary looking man and was about to take his hand when Mystique had shown up. A battle ensued between the two mutants but stopped abruptly when the silent girl stood and opened her mouth in song.  
  
Serenas' mutation was simple to understand if you knew your mythology. She was a sea siren. Her voice was hypnotic and would bring people under her control in a matter of moments. She could also change form. At will the small, curvaceous woman with raven hair, amber eyes, and pale skin would transform into a mermaid like creature with black eyes, gleaming fangs and long sharp claws.   
  
When the lovely young woman started a low murmuring song that night in the alley, the two combatants had stopped fighting immediately and stood still. Using her influence on their minds Siren had questioned them both as to what they wanted from her. When the answers were given, she ordered Mystique to leave the city and then fell silent again, freeing the mutants from her power.  
  
The shape shifter had fled in quite a hurry once released. Logan turned to the mute woman when she put a hand on his arm to stop him from chasing after Mystique. She motioned for him to stay where he was, then hunted around for her purse. Locating the bag, she had pulled a notepad and pen from it and scribbled off a note. 'Let her go. I will come with you. Will explain later.' It had said.  
  
The trip back to the school was silent. Logan had guided the bedraggled woman to his motorcycle and driven with her to the nearest open lot where Scott Summers was waiting to fly them both back to the mansion in the X Jet. Siren had seated herself in one of the chairs and promptly fallen asleep. She never heard the conversation between Logan and Scott, nor did she notice the quizzical glances that Wolverine had sent her way throughout the trip.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
The transition had gone fairly smoothly. Upon landing she was taken by Wolverine and Cyclops to meet Professor Xavier. She'd opened her mind to the older gentleman, allowing him to see what her mutation was and a small portion of her history. She was willing to trust the telepath, but only up to a certain point. Her mental defences kept the powerful man from seeing the things she didn't want him to know.  
  
The kind professor had allowed her to keep her secrets and given her a place at the mansion that night. He'd called the residents together and explained her mutation so that no one would expect her to speak to them. Since she was older than the students that resided at the mansion, in her mid twenties, she stayed at the mansion during the day, training with the professor to control her abilities and sparring with Logan to increase her already formidable fighting skill.   
  
Now, six months later Siren was a valued member of the team. She'd found friends in the older Xmen and had been taken in by the teens as a surrogate mother since she always seemed to be watching out for them.   
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Glancing at the wall clock as her memories faded into the present Siren muttered "Time for the daily concert." And left her bedroom. It had been apparent after two months that controlling her mutation was pretty much a lost cause. She could now control the power behind the suggestions she gave, but could not stop the hypnosis itself. Even with a miniscule amount of suggestion the people she practiced with would fall under her spell after hearing her speak for a few moments. So instead of attempting to control the mutation herself, the Xmen were now attempting to build up a resistance to her voice.   
  
Every evening at curfew, when all the residents were in the mansion, they would gather in the common room and listen to the Sirens song. She would read aloud from books or sing while her hypnotic suggestions ordered the others to do different things. Her plan was to embarrass the group so much that they would try their hardest to resist her. It started working after the first week.  
  
The group, though they loved their newest member, hated her mutation with a passion during that first week. The dignified professor kept awakening from Serenas' hypnosis to find himself in the disquieting position of acting as someone's chair. First Storm, then Jean, Rogue, and Kitty. He'd begun to fight the hypnosis off with success after he found himself with a lap full of Nightcrawler.   
  
Jean was the next to successfully resist Sirens voice. The telekinetic simply got tired performing menial tasks for the raven haired team mate she secretly hated. Finding herself cleaning the boys' bathroom was the last straw for the young redhead. Storm was next, having been dizzy for hours after the last session where she'd obviously been doing loop de loops in mid air for an hour. The others fell like dominoes, redoubling their efforts after finding themselves in various embarrassing situations. Now all the residents of the mansion could speak to Serena without falling under her spell, at least for short periods. Logan was still having a hard time though; he just seemed to like the sound so much he forgot to try to resist its pull. Tonight though, Siren planned on pissing him off and embarrassing him at the same time.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *   
  
  
An hour later the raven haired singer came barrelling back into her room with one hand over her mouth, trying to stifle her laughter. She locked the door behind her and started howling, dropping to her knees with the force of her amusement. She had no doubt now that the fierce Wolverine would fight her hypnosis. Said badass was downstairs at the moment, probably trying to decide what part of his body to wash first.   
  
Though the Xmen had succeeded in building up their tolerance for Sirens mutation, a little extra effort on her part had hypnotized the people she needed to help her with Wolverine. Not that any of the girls needed to be hypnotized for what she had planned, all the girls wanted to see the mighty Logan fall, but Scott sure did and the girls were there anyway.   
  
During the hour long session she'd had Jean paint Wolverines fingernails, toenails, and adamantium claws different rainbow colours. Storm had been in charge of the mutants' hair, which now looked like a clown wig. She'd made the big badass change clothing, a pink ballet costume; complete with starched tutu was provided by Rogue. And for the finishing touch, she'd ordered Cyclops to kiss this clown/ballerina as if he were the laser eyed mutants beloved Jean. Kissing and groping in progress, hidden video camera well placed and running, Serena had ordered Logan to enjoy himself, and not to kill anyone when he woke up. Then she had bolted.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Now as she lay on her bed calming down, Wolverines low growl came over the intercom. "You know I'm gonna kill ya when I get outta the shower Chatty. What in the hell were ya thinkin?" Siren took a few deep breaths before pressing the button to allow her to respond to Logan. She was grateful to the professor for giving her a small computer that would voice whatever she typed into its keypad. She could now speak to people without having to write everything in a notebook.   
  
"I was thinking that you haven't been trying real hard to build up a tolerance for my voice Logan. I had to do something drastic to make you try harder. That dye coming out alright?" The raven haired woman typed into the device on her arm. She really didn't want Logan mad at her, but she also didn't want him to freeze in a fight because she'd accidentally hypnotised him. The voice coming out of the computer was a replica of her own, complete with slight Ukrainian accent. The only thing it was missing was the hypnotic power.  
  
Logan looked himself over in the mirror. The hair dye had come out fine, but he was still dealing with the nail polish on his fingers and toes. He growled into the intercom, "The dye's gone but what the hell do you women use to get this crap off your nails?" He was attempting to use one fingernail to remove the paint from another under hot water. That wasn't working very well and he was about to pop a claw when the hypnotist responded.  
  
"Nail polish remover Logan. Come on up to my room and I'll help ya. It's the least I can do. Better go by the garage and bring some turpentine as well." Serena snickered, wondering if Logan had seen his claws yet. She soon got her answer.  
  
"Why the turpentine Chatterbox?" Logan increased the volume and ferocity of his growl, hoping to intimidate the little brat. She may have been older and more mature than the students but Siren could pull pranks just as well as Kurt and Evan. He listened to her giggle over the intercom, getting pissed all over again. Logan walked over to the full length mirror on his bedroom door and looked his nude form over once again. He couldn't see anything wrong except for the rainbow nail polish.   
  
Realization dawned and the continuous low growl that accompanied a pissed off Wolverine turned into a thundering roar that echoed through the halls of the mansion as the man popped the foot long adamantium claws from between his knuckles and saw that they were painted in rainbow colours too. Two thoughts warred in the furious mans head 'I'm gonna kill her!' and 'How the hell did she manage to paint my damn claws?' Pulling a pair of jeans on, Logan left his bedroom and stalked up the stairs, intending to shred the raven tressed woman with his colourful claws.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *   
  
Outside the bedroom where Siren had taken refuge he found the three senior members of the Xmen team along with Chuck waiting for him. Seeing Scott increased his rage. When Logan had awoken from Sirens hypnosis he'd found himself being kissed, quite well, and very passionately. As his eyes were closed he had no idea who he was kissing and didn't back away immediately. When his azure eyes finally opened though and he realized he was frenching Cyclops, and enjoying it, Logan freaked. He'd barely resisted the urge to kill the other man, being aware that Scott was under hypnosis as well.  
  
"Now Logan, please just calm down." The professor said, the epitome of calm even in the face of Wolverines temper. Storm was quick to defend their team mate, explaining to him that Serena wouldn't have done it if she hadn't felt it was necessary to get Logan to focus on resisting her influence. Jean remained silent, only wanting to watch as Wolverine eviscerated her nemesis. Scott also stayed quiet; the team leader tended to agree with Logan but didn't have a hot enough temper to get through the adults.  
  
Wolverine felt his fury begin to ebb, knowing that Chuck and Storm were right. He hadn't been trying with his usual fervour to fight off the effects of Sirens voice. 'Her voice is just too beautiful to want to ignore. I just want to listen to her, and it aint all the hypnosis.' Logan mused. "I'm fine Chuck, just let me into her room so she can get the freakin paint offa me."  
  
Professor Xavier conceded after taking a quick glance into Logan's mind. Knowing the man would not hurt their Ukrainian friend he motioned for the others to leave with him. As Scooter passed him he whispered, "When you start lecturing her, give her a good five minutes for me would ya." After receiving a nod from Logan, Scott disappeared around the corner, following his team mates.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *   
  
Logan squared his shoulders and entered Serenas' bedroom. The woman was sitting cross legged on her bed, dark head bowed, waiting for him. Without turning her head the woman tapped at her arm band computer. "I'm sorry Wolvie, please forgive me. I just don't want you to get hurt because you got mesmerized in a fight." She looked up at him as the computer finished reciting her plea, her whiskey coloured eyes beginning to fill with tears. Siren truly liked her gruff team mate. She felt more comfortable with Wolverine than she did with any of the mansions other residents. Logan often reminded her of her first saviour.  
  
Seeing the tears in Serenas' eyes, the last of Logan's anger disappeared, despite her use of the hated nickname. He shut the door, securing their privacy and opened his arms to the lovely woman. A bright smile lit up her elfin face and she rushed into the big mans arms, throwing her own around his neck and burying her face in his wide chest. "Course I forgive ya Chatterbox." Logan wrapped his thickly muscled arms around the small woman and nuzzled her hair. He released her after a moment and pulled her back enough so that he could meet her eyes. "Just so long as ya get the paint off me before I leave this room." He managed to keep a stern expression on his face while he chastised his friend gently.  
  
Stepping back Siren nodded and gestured for him to sit on her bed. When he complied she sat before him, taking a bottle of nail polish remover and a bag of cotton balls from her nightstand drawer and beginning the arduous task of removing all traces of nail enamel from her friends' hands, feet, and claws. 


	2. The Sound of Your Voice

Title: Sirens' Song  
Author: Sinayah  
Disclaimer: I don't own any characters from Buffy, Angel, or Xmen. They belong to very rich people who don't appreciate them as we fanfic writers do.  
Disclaimer 2: The Chapter Title and Lyrics belong to .38 Special.  
Authors Note: Many heartfelt thanks to my muse Zenura, without her I wouldn't have had the guts to write. If you like this story please review or send me an email, I'd really appreciate hearing what you think. Enjoy!  
Chapter 2: The Sound of Your Voice  
"'Cause all I needed to hear, was the sound of your voice…"  
  
Siren was taking a leisurely walk around the grounds when she felt a probing at her mind. Since Jean was at school she assumed it was the professor and opened her defensive wall enough to allow his message through. 'Logan, Serena, please come to my office. I have a favour to ask of you.' The raven haired woman responded that she'd be right there, then changed directions and headed back to the mansion.  
  
Meeting her brawny friend at the office door Siren tapped out, "Any idea what the prof wants?" Receiving a shake of the head in response Logan opened the door and they entered Professor Xaviers' sanctuary. They greeted the austere gentleman and sat themselves in the plush chairs opposite his desk.  
  
"Thank you both for coming, I know you were enjoying some time away from your duties." The telepath began. He sighed before continuing, linking his hands under his chin for a moment. "I just got off the phone with Principal Darkholme. It seems that Kitty, Kurt, and Rogue have gotten themselves into some trouble at school. Apparently they got into a fight with Pietro, Lance, and Freddy. Now I know this isn't unusual, but Mystique is going to make an issue of it this time."  
  
Logan and Serena rolled their eyes in unison. Whenever Mystique got bored she found some way to make the Xmen students miserable. "Was anyone hurt?" Siren asked, her concern for the teens apparent. When the professor shook his head, she sighed in relief. The silent woman was extremely fond of the teens, Kurt in particular, and she knew Logan felt the same about Rogue and Kitty.  
  
"What do you need us to do Chuck? I'd be more than willing to shred Mystique anytime you give me the go ahead." Wolverine growled. He had plenty of issues with the shape shifter, and messing with the kids he cared about pushed the limits of his tolerance.  
  
Charles shook his head again, vetoing Logans' idea. He knew how the adults in front of him felt about the children in their care. If Charles was their mentor, and Scott their team leader and steadfast older brother, the pair in front of him were the young mutants surrogate parents. The telepath mused on the subject for a moment before giving a further response.   
  
Though Serena was but a few years their senior, the children looked to her for a mothers nurturing love and approval, which she gave freely. The young woman was a natural mother. Even the older students, like Scott and Rogue turned to her for reassurance, though they'd dealt with not having parents long ago. The only resident who didn't seem to adore the small woman was Jean. Logan too was a parental figure to the teens, the stern but fair father who taught them everything they needed to know about surviving in the world. He gave lessons in everything from mechanics to fighting style and handed out praise as well as punishment.  
  
His thoughts now ordered, Charles told the two what he needed of them, "Principal Darkholme wants to hold a parent/teacher conference tomorrow in regard to all the incidences where our students have clashed with her group. I suspect she wants to intimidate us with a threat of suspending or expelling our residents from Bayville High." Charles paused a moment to let that information sink in to their minds. The pair were extremely protective of their charges and would most certainly take this as a threat to them.   
  
He continued when Logan started growling and Sirens golden eyes clouded in worry. "What I need from the two of you is for you to attend the meeting, acting as the children's guardians. I would go myself but I have a speech to give in Washington. Ororo can't attend as she's still on vacation. I know the two of you have a special bond with the students and I'm certain you can handle this situation. Do you have any problems with this?"  
  
"Not a single one Professor. In fact, I'm looking forward to seeing Mystique again." Serena answered, speaking aloud. Thanks to the resistance training she could now forgo the computer if she kept her comments brief. Anger was beginning to overtake the woman's worry and it showed, her amber eyes had darkened to onyx and her fangs had lengthened as her volatile emotions started triggering her change to sea siren form. Wolverine merely grunted his ascent, nodding for emphasis. The stoic man was always ready to take on their enemy, whatever the circumstances.  
  
Professor Xavier nodded, relieved that the pair were willing to attend to this problem. "Thank you both. I have every confidence that you'll handle the situation well. Be careful though, we never know if Mystique has something else planned. Now before you go back to your previous tasks I have one more thing I'd like to discuss. An experiment, if you will, that may aid us with Serena's mutation."  
  
Sirens' eyes lit up, her face hopeful. She detested being unable to speak and was willing to try just about anything that would allow her to express her thoughts freely, without harming her friends. Logan remained his usual laconic self, saying nothing. Inside though he was as exited as his friend. 'I'd love it if she could control the mutation, I'd get to hear her voice more often. Without wakin up a drag queen.' He mused.  
  
Serena brought the computer attached to her arm up and tapped at its keys rapidly, her message being, "What is it Professor? Have you figured out a way for me to control it?" The woman was practically bouncing in her seat with anticipation. It had been ten years since she'd been able to speak freely. She refused to let her memories carry her away from the present. She needed to find out what the Professor wanted to try.  
  
Logan chuckled at her exuberance and the professor smiled as he responded. "Have you ever tried giving a hypnotized person the suggestion that they free themselves from your power and not come under its influence again?" the telepath asked. Charles had happened upon the idea while reading a book on hypnosis and subliminal messages. He was eager to see if it would work in Sirens case.  
  
"No, I've never even thought of it professor. Can we try it? I mean, is it safe? It won't harm anyone if it doesn't work?" The ebony haired woman tapped out. 'Why didn't I think of that! I've had this problem for so long and it could be as easy as telling people to ignore the suggestion? How stupid can I be?' She thought, berating herself.  
  
"You're far from stupid Serena." Charles stated, not needing his abilities to see what the girl was thinking. He continued, "I think we should try it now, using Logan and myself as the test subjects." The professor relaxed his mind, preparing to let himself fall under the influence of the Sirens song. Before the singer could begin though, Logan covered her mouth with his hand, halting the experiment.  
  
While the discussion between Chuck and the Chatterbox had been going on Logan was thinking over the ways this could affect the Xmen, he found the security breach just in time to stop Serena. "Whoa, slow down you two. I found a problem with your plan. We need to solve it before she tries the idea out." He removed his hand from Sirens pretty mouth and continued when he had their attention.   
  
"Chatterbox can't just go around tellin people not to get hypnotized by her voice ever again. What if we need her to hypnotize someone she's told to ignore her influence? We've worked with Mystiques gang before and probably will again, not to mention the times when we've had to fight each other. Now we can't have em gettin mesmerized when they're fightin on our side, but it's the quickest damn way to end a fight when they're on the other side. You get what I mean?" Once he finished, the big man settled back into his seat, waiting for Wheels to figure out a way around the problem.  
  
"Hmm you're quite right Logan. I hadn't thought about that. Perhaps if she used a key word of some sort, that could bring someone back under her control." The telepath mused, trying to find a solution. So far the petite woman hadn't gone on many missions with the other Xmen as they couldn't risk having their own team hypnotised as well as their foes. The bald man was desperate to find a solution that would allow the hypnotist to fight with her team. She could be a valuable asset if given the opportunity.  
  
"A key word might work, for people she'll be talkin to a lot. Any visitors like the suits that come by every once in a while she can just give em a suggestion like 'Ignore my hypnosis unless I give ya a vocal command.' if she needs to talk to em" Problem solved to the security experts satisfaction he gave his assent to the experiment. "Go ahead Chatty, let's see if it works. Pick a key word, and give Chuck that suggestion. Try the vocal command one on me so we can see how each one works."  
  
The professor nodded and Siren thought for a moment before beginning to sing an old children's song. When she had both men under her power she focused on Charles first. As her low alto voice filled the room, her suggestion filled his powerful mind. She directed to him a specific order. 'Charles Xavier, you will ignore the hypnotic suggestions of my voice until I speak aloud the word Forevermore. When that word is spoken or sung by me you will fall under my influence again and be at my mercy.'   
  
The professor came out of his mesmerised state once the order was given. She nodded to let the telepath know it had worked so far, and then directed all her energies at Logan. She turned to face the big man, meeting his crystalline eyes with her own amber orbs. Once again her suggestion filled the mind and she issued a specific order to her friend. 'Logan, you will ignore the hypnotic suggestion of my voice unless I give you a specific, vocal order.'  
  
When Logan shook off the hypnotic state Serena stopped singing. "Now lets see if it worked." She said, rising and taking a book from the professors' bookshelf. "I'll read aloud for a while and then give the key word. If you fall under Professor I'll have you do something then free you again. I'll try Logan after." She began reading, using the full power of her mutation. She watched for any signs that her friends were falling under her power but none came. After fifteen minutes of reading Siren began to think the experiment had worked. Not even the professor could withstand her voice for that long.   
  
Pausing in her reading for a second Siren looked over at Logan, who was relaxing in his chair. She'd decided to try the feral mutant first, rather than Charles. "Logan get me a drink of water from the kitchen." She said, and then continued reading from the book, watching her friend. At her order Logans eyes had glazed slightly and his stony expression softened. Sure signs that he was under her thrall. Without comment the large man got up and left the room, heading for the kitchen.  
  
A minute later he was back, carrying the requested drink. He handed her the glass and resumed his seat, the glazed look disappearing from his blue eyes and his face hardening once more. Serena nodded a thanks to him and downed the water. Continuing she spoke "The circumference of a Forevermore is." Speaking her chosen key word Siren looked at the professor. He had slumped slightly in his wheelchair and was looking at her for direction. "Return this glass to the kitchen Charles, and then come back here." The hypnotist ordered.   
  
When the bald man had returned to his place behind the desk Siren waited for him to shake off the hypnosis. When that failed to happen she realized she would have to give the suggestion again. Deciding to include Logan this time she gave a vocal order to him first. "Logan you will fall under my hypnosis now." When he had complied the raven haired woman began singing another children's song, making sure both men were under completely. She allowed the full force of her suggestion to invade their minds before giving the specific instruction. 'Logan and Charles, you will ignore the hypnotic suggestion of my voice until I speak aloud the word Forevermore. When I speak or sing this word you will again be under my control.'  
  
She watched as the men again shook off her influence. They looked at her expectantly and neither could keep the wide grins from their faces as the small woman literally jumped for joy. "It worked! It worked! Thank you Professor! Thank you so much!" she shouted, throwing herself into the bald mans arms. After his initial shock, the telepath patted her back and said, "You're quite welcome dear. I'm very happy for you."  
  
Kissing the older mans cheek she bounded out of his lap and ran around the desk to throw herself at Logan. The fierce man caught her in his embrace and hugged her tightly, sharing her enthusiasm. Chuckling into her hair Logan teased, "Guess you're gonna live up to your nickname now aren't ya?" Her tinkling laughter against his neck was his answer. 


	3. Something to Talk About

Title: Sirens' Song  
Author: Sinayah  
Disclaimer: I don't own any characters from Buffy, Angel, or Xmen. They belong to very rich people who don't appreciate them as we fanfic writers do.  
Disclaimer 2: The Chapter Title and Lyrics belong to Bonnie Raitt.  
Authors Note: Many heartfelt thanks to my muse Zenura, without her I wouldn't have had the guts to write. If you like this story please review or send me an email, I'd really appreciate hearing what you think. Enjoy!  
Chapter 3: Something to Talk About  
"let's give em something to talk about, a little mystery to figure out…"  
  
The Xmen team were happy to hear that the professor had found a way around Serena's mutation and the key word suggestion was given to them as a group. Their attempt at celebration though was cut short by their mentors other news. A pall lay over their exuberant mood. None of the group liked waiting to see what Mystique was up to and it showed in their actions.  
  
In the common room Scott was buckled down with his homework. Jean sat in a chair not far away, chewing her fingernails while pretending to pay attention to the television. Evan was playing on his game boy while a scowl decorated his face. Kurt, Kitty, and Rogue obviously felt that the coming confrontation was their fault.   
  
Rogue was taking out her frustrations on the punching bag in the gym, music blaring through her headphones. Kitty was typing on her laptop but kept looking up to make sure Logan was in easy reach. She'd held a special fondness for the gruff man since he'd protected her from himself in the snowy wilderness when the chip in his head was active and attempting to make him kill she and Kurt.   
  
The fuzzy blue teen's dread was almost palpable. Since Kurt had found out that Mystique was his biological mother he'd taken great pains to avoid the school principal. Nightcrawler was the joker of their group, always into something or pulling pranks with the other team members. Tonight he was silent and brooding. When the professor had explained the situation Kurt had moved from the lounge chair he'd been seated in and curled up on the couch, as close to Serena as he could get. The boy had stayed in his place next to the woman he'd adopted as a mother figure the entire night, his tail curled around her leg for comfort.  
  
When bed time came around Siren ushered the teens to their bedrooms. As was her habit, she spent a few moments with each of her friends, bustling around their rooms picking up laundry and making sure alarm clocks were set. In Kitty and Rogues room she went about her activities while the girls climbed into their beds. Then she went to Rogue and performed another nightly ritual.   
  
Sitting at the auburn haired girls' side, she said goodnight and ran her bare hand over the girls' forehead before kissing it lightly. Serena felt for the young woman, unable to touch as she'd been unable to speak. The only times Rogue touched people were fights, and then only when necessary. Siren knew those brief touches, given freely every night despite the danger made Rogue happy. The brief, light touch of hand and lips caused no harm to either and made the younger feel wanted and cared for.   
  
Kitty wasn't left out of the ritual either, when Serena had finished with Rogue she went over to the other girl and hugged her tightly before saying goodnight once again and leaving the room. As the door shut behind the older woman Rogue turned to face Kitty and said, "Sirens really great huh?" a smile on her lips. Kitty agreed and the girls went to sleep.  
  
Siren bumped into Logan in the hall as she made her way to Kurts' room. She'd decided to stop by the blue teen's room last, feeling that he'd need a little extra attention this night. Logan was making his own rounds, as he did every night, stopping outside each room to make sure the kids were sleeping and not trying to sneak out. "I don't think anyone's going to try to break curfew tonight Wolvie, too much stress. Go on down to the kitchen and get us some coffee while I say goodnight to the blue guy." Logan nodded to the woman and went downstairs. This was another nightly occurrence. After the kids were safely tucked in bed the two adults would sit in the kitchen and reminisce about the day. Sometimes Charles or Ororo joined them but most nights they were left to themselves. Each looked forward to the quiet conversations, getting to know a bit more about each other as the tensions of the day eased.  
  
Smiling at her friends retreating form Serena turned and made her way to Kurt's room. She found the German boy already in bed waiting for her. Seeing that the blue mutant had already tidied up his room she sat on the bed next to him. "What's wrong Kurt? You've faced Mystique and her boys before and it never effected you like this." She said quietly, laying a hand on her young friends shoulder.  
  
"This'll be the first time I've seen her since I found out she was my mother Serena. I don't know what to say if she talks to me. She's our enemy; she'd like to see us all dead. But she is my mother, she gave birth to me. How am I supposed to act around her?" The boy's confusion was clearly expressed in his opalescent eyes.   
  
"You act as you always have Kurt. She may have given birth to you but that doesn't make her a mother. Your mother is the woman who took a tiny blue baby out of the river and cared for him, loved him, and taught him to be a good, sweet person. Mystique is merely a mutant that causes trouble for us whenever the mood strikes." Smoothing the boys black hair, Serena smiled down at him.  
  
Kurt raised his upper body from the bed and hugged the woman to him in silent thanks. "I am one lucky blue guy. I had to leave one mother behind in Germany, but I got another one here. Who needs Mystique as a mother when I have you." As Serena's arms gripped him tightly, Kurt let all his worries go. He had nothing to fear from Mystique as long as Siren was near.  
  
Letting the boy go the hypnotist kissed his furry forehead and ran her fingers through his hair. She walked to the door and before it closed behind her she turned and spoke softly in german. "Sweet dreams my son." Serena shut the door and laid a hand against it, two tears running down her smiling face. She truly did love these children.  
  
Logan was seated at the kitchen table, two cups of steaming coffee in front of him when the small woman entered. Seeing the combination of tear tracks and smile the man gave her a look that said clearly 'Women are strange creatures.' Aloud he asked, "What's with you Chatterbox?"  
  
Taking a seat and sipping at her coffee, made just the way she liked it Serena gave a brief summary of her conversation with Kurt, ending with how he'd all but called her his mother. This started the happy tears flowing again and Logan smiled at the emotional display. When she'd finished 'being a woman' as the big man described her state they chatted for a while about the things they'd done during the day and their strategies for the next afternoon. The easy conversation flowing between them, each relaxed significantly and when they headed to their respective bedrooms an hour later they slept deeply and without dreams. 


	4. When Worlds Collide

Title: Sirens' Song  
Author: Sinayah  
Disclaimer: I don't own any characters from Buffy, Angel, or Xmen. They belong to very rich people who don't appreciate them as we fanfic writers do.  
Disclaimer 2: The Chapter Title and Lyrics belong to Powerman 5000.  
Authors Note: Many heartfelt thanks to my muse Zenura, without her I wouldn't have had the guts to write. If you like this story please review or send me an email, I'd really appreciate hearing what you think. Enjoy!  
Chapter 4: When Worlds Collide  
"Now this is what it's like when worlds collide…"  
  
The next day dawned with its usual chaos at the mansion. Most of the children woke up cranky and they fought over bathroom time, borrowed clothing and jewellery, and who had to sit next to Wolverine at breakfast. Siren had gotten up early this morning and, in a particularly good mood, had made an elaborate breakfast for everyone. She greeted each teen as they slumped in, still rubbing the sleep from their eyes. No one spoke at the breakfast table but as they piled into the cars to head to school Scott asked Siren and Wolverine, "What do we tell Darkholme if she asks who's coming to the meeting this afternoon?"  
  
Reminded of the forthcoming confrontation Logan spoke loudly, so all their charges could hear. "If the bitch asks just tell her your 'guardians' are coming and leave it at that. I don't think she'll be expecting Serena and me and I wanna keep it that way." Seeing the kids drive off through the front gate the adults returned to the house to get on with their daily chores.   
  
* * * * * * * * * * *  
  
Serena was worried, though she hid her anxiety well. Not about the meeting with Mystique, she had barely any concern on that issue at the moment. The focus of her worry was someone from her past. Her mind floated away in memory as her body went about her daily chores. 'It's been ten years since I first saw him, so long ago, yet not.' She mused.  
  
She'd been barely fifteen when her mutation manifested. Her parents had kicked her out of the house, quite forcefully the same evening, when the priest of her church had phoned them to report that their only child had hypnotised the entire church choir. Her father, until now such a kind, loving man, had struck his daughter repeatedly before throwing her out of her home with only the clothes on her back. Serena could still feel the sting of the slaps and hear her mothers' impassioned prayers to save her devil child.  
  
Homelessness is not easy for anyone, let alone a fifteen year old girl in the Ukraine in mid winter. Her saviour had found her, much as Wolverine had six months ago, huddled in an alley. She'd been starving, and freezing in that dark, smelly alley when out of nowhere a dangerous looking man had appeared. Bleached blond, with chiselled, angular features and piercing blue eyes the man had spoken in fluent Ukrainian with a distinct English accent, "Well now, what do we have here?"  
  
Knowing the man was probably dangerous, but still unwilling to harm him Serena had simply curled into a ball and lowered her head, hoping the stranger would lose interest and pass her by. Another voice sounding from the end of the alley had startled her into looking up again. A sweet soprano had uttered, "She is of the new breed my Spike. The stars whisper that she is not food, that she is of great importance. We must help her!"  
The strange man had knelt down and taken a closer look at the dark haired urchin. "Well Ducks, if Dru says we help you then that's what we'll do. Now be a luv and tell us your name." Still wary but no longer fearing harm from the blond man or his companion Serena had made a motion indicating that she couldn't speak. "Cant talk huh? Well then let's get you inside and we'll see if you can write."   
  
Spike had placed his beloved duster around her thin shoulders and guided her to their lair a block away. He'd gotten food for her and Drusilla had dressed her in one of her ancient gowns. Serena had written her name for them and explained what little she knew of her powers. In return they'd told her who and what they were, and she'd been plummeted into the world of demons and vampires.  
  
Serena had spent a year travelling with Spike and Dru and when they parted ways it was with fondness. The vampires had set her up in New Orleans with a new name, an apartment, a huge bank account, and the protection of their bite marks and vicious reputations. They'd kept in touch with phone calls, letters, and the occasional visit. She missed her friends dearly.  
  
Coming back to the present Siren looked around the kitchen, making sure everything was spotless. Satisfied that the last of her chores was finished the petite woman dried her hands and went upstairs to her bedroom. She hadn't heard from Spike in over a month now and was anxious to tell him her news. Opening her address book the raven haired woman flipped through until she found the cell phone number for her vampire friend. The last time they'd spoken the blond had been in Sunnydale California looking for some ancient artifact that would render him unkillable. She dearly hoped the number still worked as Spike wasn't all that great with letter writing.   
  
A moment later, in a top secret lab underneath the U.C. Sunnydale campus a cell phone began ringing, unheard by its owner, who was at the moment banging his bleached head against Rupert Giles bathtub in frustration.   
  
* * * * * * * * * *   
  
After about twenty rings with no answer Serena replaced the receiver. Though her worry increased, the lion eyed woman set her fears aside and started getting ready for the confrontation at hand. She looked through her extensive wardrobe, finally choosing an oversized sweater in violet and pairing it with skin tight tan leggings. Low heeled ankle length boots completed the ensemble and her waist length black hair was smoothed into a sleek chignon.   
  
Siren was anxious to meet the troublesome teens who made up the Brotherhood. She'd heard a lot about the four boys from her team mates. Kitty had a large crush on their leader Lance Alvers, which upset Kurt endlessly. Rogue, having lived with the boys for a time had more detailed information but was reluctant to share her knowledge. Pietro, one they called Quicksilver or Speedy was arch rivals with Evan. The other two brotherhood boys were general nuisances, having no special relation to any of the Xmen.   
  
Serena was most interested in seeing this Quicksilver guy. In the sanctity of Rogue and Kittys' room behind a locked door, girl talk was prevalent, and all her female team mates thought Pietro was the best looking thing since Brad Pitt. Since the girls were surrounded by great looking guys at the mansion the dark haired woman had to wonder what it was about this particular boy that made even the staunchly prim and proper Jean sigh at the thought of him.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *   
  
Grabbing her purse Serena left her bedroom and made her way down the hall to see if Logan was ready to go. 'Now that is a good looking man.' She thought idly, 'The girls might see him as a father or guardian but for me he's right up there with Spike in the drool worthy category. Now let's see if I can get him to wear some decent clothes for this bloody meeting.' Knocking on Logan's door and receiving a grunt that passed for an invitation Siren opened the door and stepped into the big mans bedroom.  
  
Wolverine was sitting on his bed reading. He looked up from his book when Serena entered and had to suppress a growl. 'Doesn't that woman own any clothes that aren't sexy as hell? Christ I bet she could even make a potato sack look good.' Logan was a man who enjoyed beautiful women, but his quiet little friend defied description, at least in his mind. "You ready to get this stupid thing over with?" he asked.  
  
"I am, but apparently you're not. At least put on a clean shirt and pants Wolvie. We're supposed to be playing along with Mystiques charade as the school principal. You can't go to an official parent/teacher meeting in those ratty, filthy old things." Moving to his dresser Serena pulled out a clean pair of blue jeans and a black cotton button down shirt to pair with them. "Now get changed and let's go. I don't want to be late." The petite woman ordered before leaving the room.  
  
Logan growled at the now empty room, cursing women in general and bossy chatterboxes in particular. He looked himself over in the mirror and noted the grease stains and torn knees of his jeans and the grime clinging to his flannel shirt. Accepting his fate, the big badass changed his clothes and made his way downstairs to the garage where Serena was waiting for him.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
They arrived at the school a few minutes before the appointment and found their charges waiting for them in the parking lot. Noting the somber expressions of the teens Serena pasted a large smile on her face as she got out of the car. "Ok guys," she addressed the group, "we're going to go in there and get this done. I want everything to run smoothly so control your tempers! That goes for you especially Logan. No powers, no insults, no arguments. You'll sit quietly and let Logan and I handle it. Don't let the boys bait you."   
  
Everyone nodded their agreement and they walked into the school building. Outside the door of Principal Darkholmes' office Scott paused and asked the older woman, "Are you going to hypnotize them like you did us or use your computer?" Scott looked down at Serenas' arm, finding it free of the gizmo she used for speaking to people.  
  
"It's too good an opportunity to waste Scooter, I'll hypnotize them all and give them the key word suggestion I worked out with the prof. and Wolvie yesterday." Smiling once more for the childrens' sake Serena nodded to Logan who knocked on the office door. The group tried mightily to reign in their nervous tension as they waited for a response.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * *  
  
Inside the principals office Mystique was giving her gang of rowdy boys the same lecture Siren had given her charges in the parking lot, only without the affectionate tone of voice. Pacing in front of the four boys the shape shifter railed at them. "You four will keep fucking quiet while I talk to Charles. If I see so much as one rude gesture to those morons or hear one insult I'll rip your ears off and shove them up your asses since that's where your freaking brains are located. Just sit still and shut your mouths. The sit still is especially for you Maximoff, absolutely NO jumping up and running around like an animal on drugs do you hear me? Answer me damnit!"  
  
A chorus of affirmative answers and nods were the principals' response. The fierce woman was about to begin another tirade when a knock on her office door was heard. "Fuck, the morons are here. Just remember what I said. Lance go let them in." Mystique hated the idea of talking with any of the Xmen, but she knew this issue had to be resolved, and quickly, for all their sakes.  
  
Lance Alvers opened the door to Mystiques office and with a surly tone, invited them in. Logan entered first; he was after all the groups' protector. He and the mutant disguised as Principal Raven Darkholme regarded each other, both groaning inwardly. The Xmen team came in after Logan and ranged themselves behind the big man. The site of Wolverine and the assembled Xmen had Mystique and her boys glowering darkly, but their worst shock was yet to come.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * *  
  
Serena was livid. She'd half expected Logan to push past her and enter first, but having the teens also put her behind them had angered her. Entering the plush office she rounded the defensive line the Xmen had formed and stood beside Logan, glancing over her shoulder to give her friends a look that could only be topped by 'mothers shaking finger'. Turning her head back to get her first good look at their enemies Siren caught Mystiques gasp of recognition.  
  
'Who's the new chick?' echoed in the minds of the Brotherhood boys. They glanced at their leader and saw her recoil slightly at the sight of the beautiful dark haired woman. Mystique stared at the young woman beside Wolverine. Charles she had been prepared to face, even Wolverine or Storm were expected, but this woman scared the shape shifter. Mystique had no defence against the lion eyed womans' powers and her charges knew nothing of the stranger at all. The retrieval of this woman was Mystiques worst failure in the service of Magneto and the Brotherhood, her failure as a mother not withstanding. When the Siren opened her mouth and began to speak in a calm, clear voice the powerful mutant trembled before falling under the dark haired womans thrall.  
  
Serena was pleased with Mystiques reaction to her, especially the fearful quiver she'd managed before succumbing to the hypnosis. Implanting the keyword suggestion quickly, she watched the five mutants shake off her influence before re stating her previous comments. "Now that that's over with; Good afternoon Ms. Darkholme. Professor Xavier couldn't attend this meeting so he sent Logan and I to act as the childrens guardians."  
  
Taking note of his friend's calm demeanour Logan continued, speaking with the same business like eloquence Serena had used. "Would you care to explain the situation to us Ms. Darkholme? I'm afraid our residents were at a loss as to why you'd request this meeting." Glancing back at his team mates Logan took great pleasure in the shocked stares he received from the group. 'Ha! Shows em how much they know. Just 'cause I usually talk like a dumb shit don't mean I am one.'  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Raven gestured for the other adults to take a seat in front of her desk before taking her own chair. Dropping the premise of a parent/teacher conference she got right to the point. "I asked you here so we could come to an agreement. Yesterday morning I had to attend a meeting with the district superintendent. He's noticed that I haven't taken any disciplinary action against any of these kids." She gestured at the assembled group.   
  
"Every single one of them is responsible for some form of property damage to the school. They also have a habit of fighting with each other. The little shit is threatening to fire me if something isn't done to stop the fights and the resulting damage to the schools property." Mystique paused, waiting for a reaction from the Xmen team leaders.  
  
Serena could see the mutants dilemma and how having her as the principal benefited both groups. With so many young mutants attending classes here, some unable to keep firm control over their powers or their tempers it was to everyone's benefit to have an authority figure in the school who was also a mutant and would turn a blind eye to the random manifestations of the teens mutant abilities.   
  
"What do you want us to do about it Mystique? It's your group that usually starts any fights and cause the damage." Apparently Logan hadn't seen the ramifications of having a human principal. Serena placed a hand on her friends arm to quiet him and took control of the negotiations.  
  
Looking the shape shifter in the eye Siren spoke, "I see what the problem is. In this particular situation I think we all need to work together." The principal nodded, glad someone understood, even if it was the powerful hypnotist. Mystique hoped the woman could come up with a solution.  
  
Standing and rounding the desk to perch on the edge next to her enemy Serena addressed the two groups. "In case you haven't worked it out yet, we all need Mystique here as the principal. A normal human wouldn't know how to deal with you kids. Take a moment and try to remember all the times each of you has used your powers here. I can imagine the things she has turned a blind eye to."   
  
Pointing to each student in turn Serena recited an incident that could have easily occurred, and some incidents that actually had. "Let's start with the most obvious property damage. Lance, how many times have you created an earthquake that rocked the school? Evan, how many spikes have you accidentally launched? Fred, I remember hearing about a bunch of lockers getting crushed. Scott, how many times have you nearly blasted someone with your eyes?"  
  
She was about to continue, her amber eyes seeking Evans rival, the one they called Quicksilver. Her gaze found the boy and instead of berating him for opening lockers and stealing from them she gasped. Her whiskey hued eyes took in the lanky, muscular frame, the cherubic features, stormy blue grey eyes, and snowy white hair.   
  
'No, it can't be!' She thought. She hadn't taken a good look at each of the boys earlier, but now noticed the stunning similarity of features, and names, the speedster shared with another ghost from her past. As the boys gaze turned curious Siren shook herself mentally and continued speaking.   
  
"Sorry, my mind wandered. I trust I don't need to go on?" seeing the teens nod understanding the hypnotist resumed her seat next to Logan, looking to Mystique to provide a solution. To a casual observer it would seem that the petite hypnotist was concentrating all her attention on Mystique, but in truth her mind was elsewhere, on the snowy haired boy who she should've recognized in an instant, whose name she hadn't connected to a sweet babe she'd never thought to see again.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Mystique was in a quandary. She had no idea what to do to solve this problem and keep her job. The two rival groups were enemies, they were supposed to hate and fight each other. The shape shifter was saved from having to admit her inability to come up with a resolution when Logan began to speak.  
  
Wolverine had remained quiet during Sirens diatribe, thinking things over. He realised the benefit of having a mutant as a principal, even if it was an enemy. He'd thought up a plausible solution by the time Serena sat beside him again. "What we need is for the kids to think of this place as neutral ground. They all have to go to school here and everyone profits having you in this position."   
  
Standing and facing the teens the intimidating man continued, "From now on you play by the rules. If you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all. If you can't avoid someone, ignore them. Absolutely no using your powers on school property, I'll make an exception if you have to use your powers to keep someone from getting hurt. I don't want to hear any arguments from any of you, got it?" Finished with his orders Logan resumed his seat, the matter done as far as he was concerned.  
  
Mystique finally spoke up. "That works for me. From now on if I get any reports on any of you kids I'll assign detention or some other punishment. I'll also contact Charles if any of you Xmorons get in trouble so he can punish you his own way. As for my group, you don't want to know what I'll do to you if you get me fired."  
  
Sensing that the meeting was about to break up, Serena injected a final thought. "Before we go I've got a suggestion. What you two outlined should keep problems down to a minimum, but we have to remember that these are kids. Their tempers are bound to get the better of them sometimes, especially if they can't hassle each other like normal teenagers. I think that we need to give them an outlet for their frustrations."  
  
Seeing Logan and Raven nod their agreement and hearing positive murmurs from the teenagers she outlined her solution. "I think the two groups should meet once a week at the mansion. We can put them all in the Danger Room and let them vent at each other under our supervision. We can make sure no one gets really hurt and the regular sessions will make them less likely to antagonize each other at school. Does that sound good to you?" Her last comment was directed at the entire group.  
  
Various agreements came back to her though Mystique was quiet. Finally she asked, "Why do these sessions need to be held on your territory? They could just as easily 'vent their frustrations' elsewhere." The shape shifter didn't like the idea of her recruits visiting the mansion on a regular basis.  
  
"I can't think of a better place to hold 'em Mystique. The kids're gonna be usin their powers during the sessions. Any place other than the mansion it'd be too easy for someone to see 'em goin at it, doin things they shouldn't be able to. You don't have the facilities we do to hide 'em." Logan answered the woman.   
  
Mystique thought about it for a moment before conceding. 'And the Xmen save the day again. Whoo-hoo.' She thought. The shape shifter was pleased with to have her problem solved, but having to work with the enemy to do it pissed her off, especially since they'd come up with the perfect solution without any help from her. "Alright Dog-boy I'll agree to once a week sessions at your place. Now if there aren't any questions from the peanut gallery I think we can consider the matter resolved and go home." Not waiting for any questions or comments that might be forthcoming the dark haired principal crossed the room and held her office door open. 


	5. Somewhere Out There

Title: Sirens' Song  
Author: Sinayah  
Disclaimer: I don't own any characters from Buffy, Angel, or Xmen. They belong to very rich people who don't appreciate them as we fanfic writers do.  
Disclaimer 2: The Chapter Title and Lyrics are from An American Tail.  
Authors Note: Many heartfelt thanks to my muse Zenura, without her I wouldn't have had the guts to write. If you like this story please review or send me an email, I'd really appreciate hearing what you think. Enjoy!  
Chapter 5: Somewhere Out There  
"Somewhere out there, beneath the pale moonlight. Someone's thinking of me, and loving me tonight."  
  
Back in the school parking lot Serena and Logan received congratulations from their charges on how well the dreaded meeting had gone. They grumbled a bit over the new rules, especially the danger room sessions. The teens didn't like inviting the enemy into their sanctuary. As the group piled into the cars Serena announced that she felt like walking some of the tension off and told her friends to leave without her. Several of the teens expressed a desire to walk with her, especially Kurt. Siren knew the boy probably wanted to talk to her but there was something the dark haired woman needed to do, alone.  
  
Watching her team mates exit the parking lot Serena waited until they'd disappeared from sight before turning and making her way back towards the school building. She chose a spot outside on the lawn and sat down under a tree, where she could see the jeep the Brotherhood boys used to get around. It didn't take long for the boys to make an appearance.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *   
  
After getting a final lecture from their boss Lance, Todd, Freddy, and Pietro left the school and headed for their jeep. "Yo, did you get a look at that new chick? Man she was weird! She even scared the Boss Lady, yo!" The amphibian-esque teen commented to his friends.  
  
"Yeah I noticed. If she's hanging with the X geeks she must be a mutant. I wonder what kind of powers she has that could scare Mystique. The boss may be a bitch but not much scares her." Lance replied. He was thinking of ways to approach Kitty to find out about the new chick. The rock tumbler was also surprised that Mystique hadn't told them anything about the woman after the meeting. He went over the conversation in his mind and remembered something else that was strange, "She got all weird when she saw Pietro too. You know her or something dude?"   
  
The speed demon had noticed the strangers' reaction to him, and was confused. Her face was familiar to him, and her golden gaze had brought a warm feeling and a sense of comfort to him. "I don't know Lance. She seems familiar, but I've lived in so many places and met so many different people that I just can't place her." The snowy haired boy answered truthfully.  
  
Freddy had heaved his massive frame into the jeep while his friends were talking and he spotted the strange, beautiful woman sitting under a tree not far away. "Why don't you go ask her Pietro? She's sitting under the tree over there watching us." The super strong teen commented, nodding his head in the dark haired woman's general direction.  
  
"I think I will. You guys go on without me; I'll meet you at home." Pietro said, walking toward the strangely familiar woman. He kept his blue grey eyes focused on her as he walked, hearing his friends leave in the jeep. When he reached the woman she looked up, her amber eyes again locking with his own.  
  
"Pietro? Are you Pietro Maximova?" she asked. Serena looked him over again, now that there wasn't a room full of people around her. She was sure that this teen was the small boy she'd known years before in the Ukraine. The snowy hair and swirling blue grey eyes confirmed it. Her hands moved to the purse she carried and reached inside for her wallet. Opening it, she removed an old, torn picture and gazed at it, a smile gracing her features.  
  
"Close enough I guess. My name's Maximoff though, not Maximova. I think I went by Maximova a long time ago, but I can't really remember. Who are you anyway and how do you know me?" The young man asked, looking closely at the seated woman, trying to recall her face from his memories. Pietro was feeling fidgety, normal in itself, considering his mutation, but it wasn't the powers making him twitchy this time.  
  
Seeing the confusion in the teens eyes Serena gestured for him to sit next to her. He complied, knowing he could always take off again at light speed if the need arose. "When you knew me, long ago, my name was Nichola Kalinskia. I'm not surprised that you don't remember me. You were so small when you were taken away, only five years old. You lived with my parents friends and the two of us were always together. Here, look and see. This was taken just a week before you left."  
  
Pietro took the picture she handed him and looked closely. Memories long forgotten came back as he gazed at the old photograph. It showed a young black haired girl with amber eyes holding a small white haired boy in her lap. They were wrapped in a blanket that was thrown about the girls shoulders and there was a fire burning brightly behind the pair. The boy in the picture was obviously his younger self and the girl closely resembled the woman beside him. I remember. You used to sing to me, and you taught me how to play the church piano. You had a nickname for me too, what was it?"   
  
"I used to call you ptichka. My little bird, always flitting about and chirping at me. Such a sweet thing you were, I couldn't resist you. I missed you so much when you left, I never thought I'd see you again; especially after my mutation manifested and I left the village and everything behind, including my name. I'm glad you turned out so well Pietro, even if I don't like your boss, at least you are alive and well." Taking the old picture back, Serena tucked it into her wallet again next to another picture, one of a china doll looking woman and a Billy Idol look alike, and returned the wallet to her purse.  
  
Still a bit shell shocked from the memories Pietro nodded at the woman. As she got up to leave though, the boys arm shot out lightning fast and grabbed her wrist. "Wait, please. I don't remember much, but it's coming back to me. You were my friend, you took care of me and I remember that I loved you. You said you left your name behind, what is it now?"  
  
Crouching back down Siren pushed an errant lock of snowy hair away from the boys face and replied, "I am Serena now, Serena Masterton. Or Siren, depending on the situation." She smiled at Pietro, hoping he'd ask another question. She wanted to get to know the young man her ptichka had become.  
  
Since Serena seemed willing to talk Pietro asked the question he and his friends wanted to know. "What kind of mutation do you have? All of us are curious. We didn't even know about you until today, though Mystique acted funny when you came in so I assume you've met her before."  
  
"Yes, we've met. She wanted to recruit me to your team, but I didn't like her motives. Also, Wolverine was there and I had to break up a fight between them. As for my mutation, about a year after you left it manifested. I can hypnotize and control people with my voice. I can also change shape, though not like Mystique. If you know your mythology you should recognize the term 'sea siren'. That's what I am." Serena explained. She knew she should've avoided answering, but they would've gotten the answer from Mystique sooner or later.  
  
"Wow, cool power. I was wondering how you could break up a fight between Wolverine and Mystique without getting seriously hurt or killed. Those two hate each other with a passion. So how come you're not hypnotising me now? Or everyone in the meeting?" The speedster asked, quite curious. He liked the feelings being near her gave him. She was a part of his past that was nice to remember.  
  
* * * * * * * * * * *  
  
Looking at her wristwatch Serena noted it was getting late. She needed to get back to the mansion before they sent out a search party. "I need to get back to the mansion. The kids will be wanting dinner soon." Seeing the dejected look come over his face and an all too familiar pout start to form she offered, "Why don't you walk with me and we'll talk some more on the way?"  
  
Perking up, the boy stood and offered a hand to help Serena back up. She took it and the pair began walking toward the mansion, talking along the way. Serena explained that the professor had found a way around her mutation so that she was able to speak freely, though she didn't go into detail on the subject. In turn Pietro told her a few things about himself, demonstrating his own powers by taking off and returning a few moments later with the pen that had been on Mystiques desk at the school.   
  
When they reached the gates outside the mansion Pietro was reluctant to leave his long lost friend. He truly liked her, and not just what he remembered of their shared past. "Well this is where we part ways. Look, I know we're supposed to be enemies and all but, couldwegettogetherandtalkagainsometime?" He babbled the last, wanting to get it out before his macho 'don't give a damn' attitude could take control and stop him.  
  
Taking a moment to translate the garbled question Serena answered. "Of course. You'll be coming here regularly with the other boys, we can talk then." Pleased that he wanted to renew their friendship the hypnotist graced Pietro with another of her lovely, happy smiles. Unlocking the gate with her key she said good bye and started up the walk, looking back to see the teen watching her.   
  
She waved and was about to turn back toward the mansion when he called out, "Do you still sing that lullaby you used to sing when you put me to bed?" The memory had just come back to him, the dark haired young woman sitting at his bedside, tucking him in and singing softly in Ukrainian until he nodded off, feeling the brush of her lips on his pale forehead.  
  
"Not since the night before you were taken from me Ptichka" was her response. She gave him another small smile before turning and walking up to the mansion. Pietro didn't see the tears of both joy and sadness in her whiskey coloured eyes; neither did Serena see the smile that touched his cupids bow lips before he dashed away.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *   
  
Pietro got back to the ramshackle house he and his team mates called home two minutes after leaving Serena at the mansion. The wiry teen tempered his exuberance and forced the smile from his lips. Entering the house he noted the chill and figured the heater was broken again. He found his friends lounging around in the living room griping about the new rules and the scheduled battles with their rivals. "Hey guys." The stormy eyed boy said in greeting.  
  
"Yo dude, how'd it go with the freaky chick? What's her deal?" Todd asked before snatching a spider off the wall with his tongue. Both he and Lance were extremely curious about the new mutant and her possible connection to one of their friends.  
  
Pietro sat on the couch, nudging Lances' feet out of the way. He decided not to share everything with the others, fearing their taunts if he told them too much. "Turns out she did know me, when I was about five I guess. We lived in the same village in the Ukraine and my foster parents were friends with hers. She had a picture of us to prove it."  
  
"Cool. So is she a mutant or Wolverines girl or what?" Lance questioned. As the leader of their group he wanted to know if she should be considered a threat. 'God, the X geeks get all the babes. That chick was hot, even if she is older. 'Course we got the two best looking guys; got the worst too now that I think about it.'  
  
"She's a mutant. She hypnotizes people and controls them with her voice and turns into a mermaid from what she told me. Xavier found a way around the hypnosis though so she can talk. For an X geek she's pretty cool. She said if I wanted to know anything about when we were kids she'd tell me, doesn't care that we're on different sides." Pietro wasn't above twisting the truth now and then. The snowy haired boy wasn't about to let his friends know that he really liked the woman or that he'd been the one to ask if they could talk again.  
  
"That's cool yo. Think you can talk her into joining us? It'd be fuckin cool to have a hypnotist on our team. And she's a lot nicer than the rest of the X geeks yo." The greenish grey teen commented. She'd been looking right at him when he'd caught a fly during the meeting and hadn't been grossed out like most people so Todd figured she was cool.  
  
Lance nodded in agreement; he was imagining what a mutant with those powers could do in a fight. The dark haired boy also thought it would be nice to have a girl around the place again, especially if she wasn't as stand offish as Rogue had been. "Maybe you could talk to her when we go to the mansion for our first torture session 'Tro. She doesn't have a history with any of the geeks so she might be willing to change sides to be closer to you. If she's nice like you said she won't want to have to hurt you in a fight, mention that."  
  
"We'll see." Was Pietro's non-committal response. He didn't want to talk to her about them being on different sides of the fight. He didn't want their new friendship to be ruined because of that. The lanky young man resolved not to bring the subject up in conversation unless she did first.   
  
Having been quiet during the conversation, Freddy spoke up. "Can she cook?" was the heavy set boys question; his mind, as always, on his stomach. He got a shrug in response from Pietro and watched as all three of his friends tried not to laugh at his oh so typical choice of comments.  
  
With no more questions forthcoming Pietro left the living room, hearing Lance say something about ordering pizza since the fridge was empty again. He made his way up the creaking, rotted stairs to the hole in the wall he called a bedroom. Laying down on the single bed his stormy eyes closed and he called forth all the memories he could of the girl Nichola and her adult counterpart Serena.  
  
His childhood memories were dim, only vague flashes. There was one of Nichola holding him in her lap, her hands over his, teaching him to play the piano in a small church. Another flash showed him riding a bicycle and falling off, skinning his knees, and the girl carrying his small body home to clean him up and sew the hole in his jeans closed before his foster mother could see the damage.   
  
A third flash brought an embarrassed wince and a smile. He'd walked to her house to visit his pretty friend and found a group of boys her age waiting outside for her. They'd asked him what he was doing and told him to go home when he'd explained that he was going to play with Nichola. He'd yelled with childish arrogance that she was his girlfriend and he'd play with her if he wanted. That had brought derisive laughs from the older boys and they'd begun teasing him.   
  
The young Pietro had been in tears when he'd suddenly been scooped up by loving arms and hugged tightly while Nichola railed at the boys in rapid fire Ukrainian that she was his girlfriend and that they should leave her ptichka alone. He'd stuck his tongue out at the bullies when she'd turned and carried him into her house.  
  
A dozen or more images ran through the teens mind, all of them happy. Pietro didn't have many memories like these. He'd been shuffled through foster homes all of his life, until his father finally came forward and set him up with the Brotherhood. If for no other reason than the good memories, he was glad to have been reunited with Serena.   
  
One last flash of memory lulled the young mutant to sleep, the one he'd asked Serena about earlier. She'd been his regular babysitter on nights when their parents went out and she'd always sung him to sleep with a softly murmured lullaby. She sang in different languages, sometimes German or Russian, less often in English. Different languages, but always the same song, and always ended it with a soft kiss to his forehead.  
  
An hour later Todd came upstairs to tell Pietro dinner had arrived. When his knock went unanswered the teen opened the flimsy door and found his friend sleeping peacefully, his face relaxed, making him look incredibly young. A soft smile was on the white haired boys lips. Not wanting to disturb Pietro's pleasant dreams, Todd closed the door again and went back downstairs to grab some pizza for them both before Freddy ate it all.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *   
  
On the other side of town in the X mansion dinner had been finished and the teens who weren't out on dates were lounging in different parts of the mansion. Serena had enlisted Jean to help with the after dinner clean up and they were currently washing the dishes. The black haired woman tried again to make overtures of friendship to the young telekinetic girl and was rebuffed. Jean did not like Serena for some reason, the redhead tolerated her presence when others were around and behaved in a friendly manner at those times, but when they were alone the girl shunned her and tried her best to annoy the older woman.  
  
Tonight was no exception. The tensions of the day, her worry for Spike, and the unexpected reunion with Pietro had left Serena with a headache. She was washing dishes and handing them to Jean to dry, dearly wishing she could escape to her bedroom for a rest. The redhead wasn't making things easier; Jean was probing her mental defences, a habit she'd developed months ago. Usually Siren didn't mind it, as it developed the weaker of the girls' abilities.   
  
"Jean please stop probing my mind. I have a headache." Serena asked. She knew the younger woman wouldn't find a weak spot, Drusilla had taught her well how to hide her mind from psychics and telepaths; but the redhead kept pushing, her efforts becoming less subtle with each failed attempt.  
  
The girl smirked inwardly, pleased at having annoyed the older woman. 'Good, I hope it hurts. Why don't you go away you black haired bitch. My life was almost perfect till you showed up and ruined it. I don't see why everyone likes you so much. They should like me better. I'm the pretty, popular one. God, why can't you just go back where you came from.' With that thought Jean sent another, even less subtle probe at the womans mind. She was determined to break through that mental wall. The redhead hated being unable to access the lion eyed womans thoughts.  
  
Feeling the probe as a lancing pain through her skull Serena pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed, repeating herself. "Jean, please knock it off. I don't feel well and your probes are making my headache worse. Why don't you go get ready for your date with Duncan, I'll finish the dishes myself." Serena offered, hoping the redhead would leave her alone.  
  
Pretending to think about the offer Jean said, "No I'll stay and help you. I have plenty of time before Duncan gets here. You do everything around here, the least I can do is help with the dinner dishes." A false smile marring her pretty face Jean prepared to launch another mental attack.  
  
Noting the sarcasm and the lack of apology for causing her pain Serena prepared to teach the redhead a small lesson should the girl attack her mind again. Predictably the probe came a moment later. Instead of deflecting it Serena opened a portion of her mind and let the girl in before erecting her defences again and trapping the girl inside her mind.  
  
'I'm in, I'm in! I finally broke through the bitch's wall!' Jean thought as she gained access to Serena's mind. A split second later though, she couldn't think at all. Jean was trapped inside the hypnotists mind with no way to escape. She was blasted by the maelstrom of Serena's emotions. Pain, both physical and mental were prevalent; as were anger, fear, joy, worry, and love. The barrage was too much for the younger girl and she screamed, both inside Sirens mind, and in the physical world where she'd collapsed to the floor with her hands over her face.  
  
Serena had released Jeans mind and was sitting on the floor with the girls head in her lap, rubbing her temples in a soothing manner when the other Xmen ran into the room, responding to Jeans pained cries. "It's alright guys. I was just teaching Jean a well deserved lesson. She was probing my mind even though I'd asked her to stop a couple times."  
  
Professor Xavier entered the room in time to hear Serena's explanation. He'd barely stepped out of the jet when Jeans mental scream reached him. "What did you do exactly? Is Jean hurt?" He asked, though he knew Siren wouldn't hurt the girl. Jean had done the same type of thing to him as well. She didn't believe that there were mental defences strong enough to keep her out of someone's mind.  
  
"I let her in Professor. I trapped her in my mind and let her feel my emotions rather than read my thoughts. I let her out after a few seconds. She may have a headache for an hour or so but she isn't hurt. Look, I know I shouldn't have retaliated but I won't apologize for it. I've had a rough, emotional day and I couldn't take the constant prying. I asked Jean politely to stop, twice in fact, but she persisted." The dark haired woman explained.   
Serena was sorry she'd let the redhead get to her, but Jean had more than deserved the light punishment Siren had meted out. Compared to other mental tricks and traps she knew, the girl had gotten off lightly. Being masters at psychic mind tricks and mental tortures, Spike and Dru had taught Serena everything they knew so that she could defend herself against psionic attacks. The skills had come in handy on more than one occasion.  
  
The professor understood the skill Serena had employed, though he wondered how she'd acquired the mental control needed to effectively trap a telepath, even one as weak in the power as Jean was. 'I'll have to ask her one day. The woman knows far too many ways to defeat a telepath. I can't even get around her defences unless she allows it.'   
  
Aloud he said, "It's alright Serena, I know how persistent Jean can be, she's tried to get into my mind on several occasions. As long as she isn't hurt I see no reason to discuss it further. Logan would you carry Jean up to her room please?"   
  
After the crowd had left the kitchen Serena hurriedly finished the cleaning and retired to the rec room to relax with her team mates. Kurt and Rogue joined her on the couch to watch some television within a few minutes of her arrival, silently letting her know they weren't angry about the altercation with Jean.   
  
Logan came in about half an hour later with a beer and switched the TV over to a hockey game in typical male fashion. Nudging Rogues' feet over he sat between the women and put his arm over the back of the couch to massage Serenas' neck. He confided that Jean was in a rage over what had been done to her, complaining to anyone who would listen. "I think what's pissin her off is that no ones sympathizin. After livin around two telepaths for a while, you can tell when one's sneakin a peek in your head and that Jeannie is one nosy little girl." The gruff man divulged.  
  
The rest of the evening passed without incident. Jean steered clear of the rec room on her way out for her date, and Serena enjoyed the company of her friends. She argued with Logan over the merits of football (soccer) versus hockey. Both teens sided with her and they were almost an even match to Logan's vehement defense of his favourite sport.   
  
When the huge grandfather clock in the foyer chimed eleven Serena ushered the teens to bed while Logan stood sentry at the front door to catch anyone who was more than five minutes late for curfew. 'He really loves getting the late ones up for an early workout in the Danger Room. The man is perverse.' Serena thought, smiling as she made her rounds to say goodnight to the teens.  
  
Kurt wasn't in his room when Serena checked it. He'd wanted to talk to her earlier that day and she decided he was probably waiting in her own room. Her suspicions proved correct when she entered and found the fuzzy blue boy sitting in her rocking chair. "Hey Serena. I just wanted to say thanks for helping me get over the fear of seeing Mystique again. You did really well in the meeting today." Her sweet friend said.  
  
"Thank you, and it was my pleasure. Are you feeling better now that you've seen her and the world didn't end?" Serena asked teasingly. Pleased with the answering grin he gave her she continued. "Now it's time for all fuzzy blue elves to bamf off to bed don't you think?"   
  
"I'll go in a minute Mother." The boy replied, half serious and half teasing. "First I wanted to ask you something. It may be none of my business, and please tell me to shut up if you don't want to talk about it. I just wanted to ask what you did after the meeting. You were gone a long time and umm, I saw you talking to Speedy at the gate when you got home. I wasn't spying or anything, I just happened to see you out of my window." He assured the dark haired woman.  
  
Charles, Kurt and Logan were the only three people at the mansion Serena felt she could talk to about Pietro. Retrieving the picture from her purse for the second time that day she handed it to the boy and explained. "I knew Pietro when he was just a little boy. That's him there with me in the picture." The teen nodded, recognizing the similarities between the children and the people he knew.  
"I haven't seen him since he was five, it surprised me when I looked around the room today and saw him there. I waited after the meeting and talked to him for a while. It took a minute but he remembered me. Can you keep it a secret? I don't know how the others would react if they knew that I was friends with one of the Brotherhood. I'll probably tell Logan and the Professor, but I don't think anyone else needs to know yet." Serena hoped he'd agree, she could just imagine the torment Jean would put her through if she knew. Scott would rant as he did to Kitty for her tentative friendship with Lance and Evan would likely stop speaking to her.  
  
Kurt gave her one of his fang filled grins and handed her picture back, saying "Of course I will not tell. Pietro is kind of nice as long as Evan isn't around, or his friends. I better go to bed now before the Wolf comes to do his bed check. Goodnight." He hugged his pretty friend for a moment before teleporting to his own room, leaving behind a faint wisp of sulphuric smoke.  
  
Serena smiled and shook her head at the boys' antics, she really did adore the little joker. Giving Logan a few more minutes to make his rounds Serena headed downstairs again for their nightly coffee klatch, taking the picture of she and Pietro with her and sending a mental invitation to join them to the Professor. Receiving his response that'd he'd join them in a moment Serena prepared two cups of coffee and a cup of tea for Charles. She would explain the reunion with her ptichka to the two men and then call it a night.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *   
  
It was about four in the morning in Sunnydale, dawn would arrive in just two hours. 'Finally' Spike thought as the lock on his wrist manacles opened. Using his lock picking skills, the vampire had himself completely free in another five minutes. Removing the chains from his body quietly the blond stepped out of Giles bathtub and stretched his aching muscles. 'Now, time to get some real help. Think I'll have another mug of blood as well, that slayer bitch left the worst taste in my gob.'  
  
Moving into the watchers living room Spike listened closely to the sounds from the loft. 'Good, ol' Rupes is asleep. I'll just get this letter written and posted before he wakes up and as soon as she gets it I'll be out of this bloody town for good.' Sitting down at Giles desk Spike pulled a piece of paper, an envelope, and a stamp from the top drawer. Taking a pen in hand the vampire wrote in an old fashioned Victorian script.  
  
'Ello my little Nymph,  
  
I know you're probably worried about me since I haven't called. Well you certainly had a reason to be this time Ducks. I seem to have gotten myself into a pickle here in Sunnyhell. I had that bloody Gem of Amara, but the bitch slayer took it from me when I tried to make a meal of her. Yes I know I promised I'd leave the bint alone, but you know me. Anyway she took it right off me finger in broad daylight! Sent it to my overly gelled ponce of a Sire. Went to L.A. after it I did, and got my arse royally kicked, again. But on the upside I did get to see the great poof being tortured. He looks much better with hot pokers sticking out of him! After all that trouble I still didn't get the Gem. Went back to Sunnyhell to dole out some payback (Yes I know, I need to stop and think once in a while, but I got BORED!) and got myself bloody captured by a bunch of soldier boy commando types. Managed to get free of 'em, but not before they put some kind of bleeding chip in my head that sends this searing pain through me skull any time I try to feed or even think about hurting a human. To make a long story shorter I'm now a 'guest' of the Slayer and her groupies, chained to the watchers tub and drinking pigs' blood out of a Kiss the Librarian mug. Bad enough that humiliation is but just today the little witch messed up a Will Be Done spell and I ended up ENGAGED to the bloody SLAYER!!!! I've had enough Luv. Please, I'm begging you, come and get me. I can't take any more, I need your help. You'll find me at the watchers flat. 56972 Horizon St. #12. You might want to bring a couple of your new friends, I don't think the Slayer will just let me go. She thinks I have information on the commandos that got hold of me. Please, come soon.  
  
All My Love,  
  
Spike  
  
Satisfied with his explanation of the last month the blond folded the letter and put it in the envelope. After attaching the stamp he addressed the missive:  
  
Serena Masterton  
c/o Prof. Charles Xavier  
11521 Montague St.  
Bayville, NY  
90650  
  
Glancing out the window Spike noticed that sunrise wasn't far away. He stood and pocketed the letter then left the watchers apartment. Running down the block to the nearest mail box he dropped his plea for help into the receptacle and hurried back to re chain himself in the tub.   
  
As the vampire lay, chained in the cold dark room, he reassured himself with silent thoughts. 'Serena will come, a week at the most. She'll get me out of this bloody mess and figure out a way to get rid of this chip. These new friends of hers sound like alright blokes, all of em mutants like her. Satan below I miss that little chit. Best thing I ever did was not eat the girl in that god awful alley. Never should have let her stay in New Orleans, no matter what Dru said about it being time to free the songbird. At least she's happy. She likes those kids a lot, that Wolverine bloke too. Bloody strange if you ask me, having metal claws rip through your knuckles, and the furry blue kid she keeps telling me about that people thought was a demon. It'll be fun to meet 'em, especially if the sodding slayer wants to argue with 'em.'  
  
With thoughts of the various ways Serena and her mutant friends could dispose of the slayer and the commandos Spike fell asleep with a sadistic smile on his face. The week of waiting couldn't go by fast enough as far as he was concerned. 


	6. East Meets West

Title: Sirens' Song  
Author: Sinayah  
Disclaimer: I don't own any characters from Buffy, Angel, or Xmen. They belong to very rich people who don't appreciate them as we fanfic writers do.  
Disclaimer 2: The Chapter Title and Lyrics belong to Doro & Warlock.  
Authors Note: Many heartfelt thanks to my muse Zenura, without her I wouldn't have had the guts to write. If you like this story please review or send me an email, I'd really appreciate hearing what you think. Enjoy!  
Chapter 6: East Meets West  
"when east meets west, it's gonna be one helluva mess…"  
  
Monday at Bayville High the students and faculty noted a distinctive change in the attitudes of two particular groups of students. The first group, made up of some of the schools best students seemed to go about business as normal but everyone got the distinct feeling the teens were walking on eggshells. The second, more rambunctious group, were sullen and trying extremely hard not to cause trouble, especially when they came in contact with members of the first group. The teachers all knew by now that their Principal, Ms. Darkholme, was in trouble with the superintendent and they passed the changes in these students off as the womans' way of cracking down on the teen's mischief.  
  
At lunch break that day Scott Summers approached his Brotherhood counterpart, Lance Alvers. "Hey Alvers, just wanted to let you know that the professor and Logan have decided we should have our first Danger Room session this Saturday. I guess Logan's designing a whole new scenario for us to use. Anyway, you and the others are supposed to be at the mansion by eleven a.m. Saturday morning."  
  
"Dude don't you X geeks ever take a break? Eleven on a Saturday morning? Shit we're still asleep then, that's what weekends are for." Lance responded, irritated in the extreme. Mystique had ordered them to cooperate with whatever arrangements the X geeks made, and he'd obey her demands, but he didn't have to like it.  
  
Scott grimaced, agreeing with the Brotherhood team leader. He was no more exited about this than Lance was, but the professor had accepted Serenas' plan whole heartedly. He felt it was a good opportunity for them all. "Hey, don't shoot the messenger man; I don't like it any more than you do. None of us have much of a choice since our 'guardians' have ganged up on us."  
  
Lance nodded, knowing that his rival was as disgusted as he with the whole idea. "I know Dude, but this is just fucked up. You don't want to know what the boss lady threatened to do to us if we didn't cooperate on this crap. I'll tell the guys about it later and we'll be there on Saturday. Might be late though, Freddy is not a morning person."   
  
The laser eyed teen nodded and walked back to his friends before he and Lance could give in to the urge to start insulting each other. "Well that's over with. They'll be at the mansion on Saturday. I guess they're looking forward to the session as much as we are. This just sucks." Scott divulged as he sat down with his team mates. The dark haired boy brooded silently through the rest of the break.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Monday night, over another dinner of take out food, Lance relayed the news to his friends. The rock tumbler got the exact response he had been expecting. The outraged bellows of Freddy and Todd almost deafened Lance.  
  
"What? That's just whacked yo! They can't expect us to give up our Saturday to fight with them!" Came from Todd, who usually spent his weekends lying around the house keeping it free of insects. Freddy's response was no better. He spent the rest of the evening complaining about how he hated getting up early on the weekend and how he would crush the X freaks for ruining his day.  
  
Pietro remained silent on the subject, though he made a point of scowling and pouting to show his displeasure in front of his house mates. Inside though, the white haired boy was exited about the excursion. Not only would he get a chance to annoy Evan Daniels and the other Xmen, but he would get another chance to talk to Serena. As far as Pietro was concerned, Saturday was going to be one fine day.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
The week flew by for the rival teams and they woke on Saturday morning with mixed feelings on the day ahead of them. Waking early out of habit Serena went about her morning routine humming softly to herself. Stopping in the kitchen to grab her morning coffee the dark haired woman took the elevator down to the floor that held the Danger Room. She wanted to take a look at the new scenario's Logan had programmed for this mornings session.  
  
She entered the large room and found her burly friend already there. He was in the control room making some last minute adjustments. "Morning Wolvie. Everything ready for today?" she asked, peering at the monitor around Logans broad frame.   
  
"Almost done Chatterbox. I sure hope this plan of yours works. I hate havin to go up against kids in a fight, there's just somethin wrong about it." Logan responded, finishing his work.  
  
The past Friday evening when Serena had sat down with Logan and Charles they'd talked about a few different things. The first thing Charles had asked about was, predictably, the outcome of the meeting. Logan had explained what was going on and the professor had been pleased with their solution. Serena had gone on to detail what the 'venting' sessions were really for.   
  
The hypnotist had kept her ulterior motive for the sessions a secret from the teens, but she needed the help of the adults to make it work. She wanted the two groups to merge and become a single fighting unit. Her plan was to start their weekly sessions with the expected fights, but before they finished she wanted them to have to work together toward a common goal. In this way she planned to build the teens respect for each other and eventually she hoped they would become friends and the four Brotherhood members would join the Xmen at the mansion.   
  
Charles had proclaimed the younger woman a genius. Logan had been sceptical at first but agreed that her plan had a chance of working. Serena had then confided her final secret, that of her history with Pietro Maximoff and their reunion that afternoon. Charles had thought it would increase their chances of Serenas' plan working if the speedster wanted to rebuild their old friendship. Logan had seen the joy on her lovely face and said that as long as she wouldn't hesitate to fight him if necessary then it was fine with him.  
  
Back in the present, Serena asked Logan to show her what he'd come up with for the teens workout. He explained that they would start out with a 'laser tag' type game, each group trying to win by disqualifying their opponents. They would be allowed to use their powers as long as they didn't intend to harm someone. The second part of the workout was Logans pride and joy. He'd constructed an obstacle course and maze that would force the two groups to work together if anyone wanted to get out. Each person's mutation would be needed at some point.   
  
Serena congratulated her friend on his ingenuity and went upstairs to prepare breakfast. Alone with her thoughts the hypnotist found her mind wandering to her missing friend. She'd tried repeatedly to get in touch with Spike, to no avail. About mid week the cell phone number had stopped working. 'I'll have to use magic I guess. I'll go into the city tonight and get the supplies for a locator spell. Once I find the bloody pain in the arse I'll ask Charles if I can borrow the jet for a day to go see him and stake him for making me worry.' She mused. Siren disliked using magic to accomplish what should be a simple task, she wasn't very experienced in the dark arts and it would take a great deal of concentration to locate her missing vampire.  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Lance, Pietro, Todd, and Freddy arrived at the mansion fifteen minutes late to find Serena waiting for them at the gate. "Well it's about time you boys showed up." She unlocked the gate to allow them to drive through. In a polite gesture Lance asked if she wanted a ride back up to the house. "You bet; it's cold out here. Scoot over Ptichka."  
  
The snowy haired boy obliged, but grumbled "It's too early for pet names 'Rena, I can barely respond to Pietro right now." The boy was pleased that she still called him by the old nickname, but he didn't want his friends to know that.  
  
"Early? It's almost noon you lazy things. I've been up since seven! Even the kids have been up for a couple hours." She responded as Lance parked the jeep in front of the mansion. Leaving the tired eyed boys stretching next to the car Serena jogged up the steps and held open the door. "Come on boys, hurry up before Wolvie pops a claw over your lateness. Ptichka, you're supposed to be the fast one!"  
  
Using his speed Pietro was beside her before she'd finished the sentence. A moment later Todd was also up the steps and asking, "Why do you keep calling Pietro that?" If it was an embarrassing nickname or curse word Todd wanted to know. He didn't have much to tease Pietro with.  
  
Serena chuckled, seeing the plea for silence in the speed demons eyes. "I call him Ptichka. It is the nickname I gave him when he was just a little boy. It means…" The lion eyed woman found Pietro's hand over her mouth before she could reveal the embarrassing translation for his pet name.  
  
"Don't even think about it 'Rena. You're not gonna disgrace me in front of the boys." Pietro stated, glaring at his friend. He liked the nickname, it was accurate from what he could remember of his youth, but he really didn't want Todd hopping around calling him a little bird.   
  
Siren removed the boys' hand from her mouth and nodded. "Alright, I won't tell them your nickname. Now come along and we'll get this session started. I'm sure you've thought up a hundred insults you want to give my friends." That said, she led the boys through the house and down the elevator to the Danger room where the Xmen were suited up and waiting for them.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Serena and the Professor watched the first half of the session from the control room. She found that the two teams were evenly matched, even though the Xmen outnumbered the Brotherhood by two members. Logan was down there with the teens to make sure everyone played by the rules and no one got hurt. He was grinning over the childish antics and scathing insults that were interspersed throughout the game.   
  
The adults had been unable to control their laughter when Pietro had sped around the room giving the opposing team wedgies, or when Nightcrawler had pantsed the speedster in retaliation. They'd also winced at some of the comments exchanged between Evan and Pietro and Lance and Scott. Those two pairs would be the most reluctant to change their attitudes.  
  
When Wolverine called a five minute break to set up the second half of the session Serena left the control room and went back upstairs to make lunch for all ten teenagers. She'd just finished the last of a huge pile of sandwiches, half for Freddy and half for the others, when Storm came into the kitchen.  
  
"Good afternoon Siren, I see you've made enough lunch for our little army. Logan sent them all to the showers about ten minutes ago so they should be up soon." The weather witch commented, smiling happily. The dark skinned woman had taken Serenas' place in the control room to view the second half of the session and had been pleased with the results of her friends experiment.  
  
"How did it go? Did they manage to stop fighting and work together?" Serena asked. She planned to view the tape recording later but was anxious to know how things had proceeded.   
  
Ororo nodded and gave her friend the good news. "When they left the Danger Room they were all speaking pleasantly to each other and talking about how much fun the session was. The professor glanced into their minds as well and declared the day a success. Congratulations Serena, I think we may be off to a good start in bringing the two groups together."  
  
The news brightened Sirens mood and put a joyful expression on her face. Ororo turned to go outside but turned suddenly and said, "I almost forgot. You got a letter yesterday. The professor forgot to give it to you and he asked me this morning to put it in your bedroom."  
  
Serena called a thanks over her shoulder as she ran from the kitchen, her thoughts whirling. 'It has to be from Spike, he's the only one besides Dru who knows where I am and I talked to Dru last week. It's about time Spike, you pain!' Throwing open her bedroom door Serena spotted the letter propped against her pillow. Snatching it up a relieved sigh passed her lips as she saw her vampire friends Victorian scrawl on the envelope.   
  
Tearing it open she began to read, taking in words such as captured, tortured, chip, pain, humiliation, spell, slayer, engaged, watcher, and chained. Her relief quickly dissipated into horror as she read. As she read the last lines, her friends' plea for help, the small woman crumpled to the floor and screamed at the top of her powerful voice "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
The howl of grief and anger echoed through the mansion. Serenas' emotions crashed over the two telepaths like a tidal wave, making both clutch at their heads in pain as the womans anger, pain, grief, and horror filled their minds.  
  
In the dining room where the teens and Logan were eating the lunch their friend had prepared ten heads simultaneously jerked up while one bowed in pain. Everyone recognized the anguished cry as coming from Serena. Kurt immediately teleported to her side, Pietro arriving a split second later.  
  
The two boys found Serena curled in a fetal position on the floor, a piece of paper clutched in her fist. They crouched next to her, their enmity for each other forgotten the moment they saw the strong woman in such pain. Kurt was the first to wrap his arms about her, rocking with her as she cried. Pietro took the letter from her fist, gripping her hand tightly as he read.   
  
Logan and the teens came thundering up the stairs and into the room. Wolverine had his claws out, Evans' hands were spiked, Scott had his hand on his visor and Rogue had her glove off, each was prepared to kill whatever it was that had caused Serena to shriek like a banshee.  
  
Seeing no intruder, only the small woman on the floor being held by one boy and clasping the hand of another Logan motioned for the teens to stay in the hall while he entered the room and lifted his little friend off the floor and sat with her on the bed. "Serena, Chatterbox, what's wrong? What happened?" the gruff man asked, rocking her as Kurt had done. Serena just burrowed her head into the crook of his neck and shoulder, sobbing.  
  
"I think this has something to do with it." Pietro said, reading the missive. "It's from someone named Spike, and he says he's been captured and experimented on from what I can tell, and he's currently living in 'the watchers' bathtub, chained. I don't understand most of it but this guy is asking for Serena's help in getting away from some people."  
  
Hearing the word experimented; Logan began to growl low in his throat. "Chatterbox? Honey you need to calm down and tell us what's going on. We'll help you get your friend back, but we need you to tell us what to do. Come on Serena, talk to us."   
  
Serena forced her emotions back under control and lifted her head from Logans' shoulder. 'I have to be strong for Spike, I have to help him. My friends will help me; they won't let the slayer keep my Spike.' Wiping her eyes, which had blackened as she started shape shifting Siren looked at her friends, all of them prepared to do battle for her.  
  
"Someone get Professor Xavier and Storm. Everyone meet in the ready room. Lance, Todd, Fred, Pietro, you're free to leave if you don't want to get involved in this. Anyone who stays is going to have their world turned upside down. After I explain some things I'll be taking volunteers on a trip to California, on a rescue mission." Serena steeled herself and gave orders like a little general. 


	7. 3rd Rock From the Sun

Title: Sirens' Song  
Author: Sinayah  
Disclaimer: I don't own any characters from Buffy, Angel, or Xmen. They belong to very rich people who don't appreciate them as we fanfic writers do.  
Disclaimer 2: The Chapter Title and Lyrics belong to Joe Diffie.  
Authors Note: Many heartfelt thanks to my muse Zenura, without her I wouldn't have had the guts to write. If you like this story please review or send me an email, I'd really appreciate hearing what you think. Enjoy!  
Chapter 7: Third Rock From the Sun  
"welcome to earth, third rock from the sun…"  
  
Five minutes later a somber group of people assembled in the mansions Ready Room. The Brotherhood boys had elected to stay for this special meeting, curious as to what information the new woman had that could 'turn your world upside down.' Pietro had decided he would go on the mission, no matter what it was. The dark beauty was his friend after all.  
  
Standing at the head of the large table Serena began. "First I want to apologize for scaring everyone earlier. Jean, Charles, I'm so sorry I hurt you; I assure you it wasn't intentional." The lion eyed woman felt guilty for the pain she'd caused her friends, though in the state she'd been in there was no way to have blocked her emotions from them. Charles nodded acceptance of the apology, knowing the girl wouldn't blast her thoughts and feelings deliberately. Jean also nodded, though she glared at the woman.  
  
"Now, I believe I promised to turn your worlds upside down, that's one promise I can fulfil. I'm going to give you a little history lesson now, and if at any time you don't believe what I'm telling you just look to Charles or Jean. I'll be showing them my memories and they'll confirm the truth of my story." The dark haired hypnotist said, and opened a window into her memories for the two telepaths.  
  
"For as long as we can remember, humans have thought themselves to be the only intelligent race on this planet. This is not true. The earth was ancient long before humanity evolved, and it was inhabited by untold races of intelligent beings. Some of these beings still walk the earth today."  
  
"Think back now to all your childhood nightmares, they're about to become frighteningly real to you. Demons, Vampires, Witches, Werewolves; they all exist. Demons were the first inhabitants of this world and some still walk among us. Most are the incarnation of evil and take great pleasure in slaughtering humans. Some are benevolent though. They only wish to live out their lives in peace, as we do."  
  
"Back in the beginning of humanity, demons were expunged from the planet, to make room for the new race. This was done through the opening of a dimensional portal that came to be known as a hellmouth. The hellmouth lies on this continent, in a small town called Sunnydale, in California."  
  
"Not all the demons were taken through the portal, but those who were left were severely weakened. It's said that the last demon to be sucked through the portal mixed its blood with the blood of a human. That human died and rose again as the first vampire. Now vampires are the most prevalent species of demon on earth."  
  
Serena paused to let the group assimilate this new information and, as expected, they looked to the telepaths to confirm or deny her story. Both the old man and the teenage girl were forced to agree with the hypnotist, having looked into her memory and seen her various encounters with demons and vampires and her dabbling in witchcraft.   
  
"It's true children. Her memories of the last ten years show countless meetings with demons and vampires. She lived with two vampires for a year after her mutation manifested. They saved her from starving or freezing to death on the streets." Charles said. The professor had known about the mystical realm for some time, though not about the creatures that filled Serenas' memories.  
  
The teens looked back at Siren with shock, believing her but at the same time not wanting to consider that the evil creatures of their nightmares were real. "Don't give up hope yet kids. Demons are real, and they're evil. But the bloodline of the very first mutant still exists to battle the demons. The first mutant was called by a higher power to fight the demons and vampires."  
  
"Every generation a Slayer is born, the one girl in the entire world who has the power to fight the ancient evil. The slayers are stronger, more agile, and heal faster than a normal human. They have a natural affinity with weapons, especially a wooden stake. The current slayer, Buffy Summers, lives in Sunnydale with her Watcher, Rupert Giles, and a small group of friends that know her secret identity and aid her in her fight." The dark haired woman finished her tale of the history of demons and slayers. She looked around the room, pleased to see hope still in the eyes of her friends.   
  
Pietro, who had read the letter from Serenas' friend, recognized the terms slayer and watcher. The snowy haired boy spoke up, "'Rena, I read your friends letter. Didn't he say he was being held captive by the slayer and the watcher?"  
  
Serena looked at her old friend, wondering how much he'd deciphered from Spikes letter. "Yes Ptichka, my friend Spike is being held by Buffy Summers and her group. Spike and his girlfriend Drusilla saved me when my powers manifested. They took me in and protected me, taught me how to get along without my voice, and took me on a year long trip around the world. When I decided to stay in New Orleans Spike gave me a new identity and enough money to live comfortably for the rest of my life. We've remained in close contact over the years and I love him dearly."  
  
"He's a vampire isn't he? The Professor said you used to live with vampires. This Spike is who he was talking about right?" Kurt asked, shocked that the gentle woman he knew and thought of as a surrogate mother had lived with creatures that killed people to survive.  
  
Serena smiled at the blue teen, nodding. "Yes Kurt, Spike is a vampire. He's one hundred and twenty six years old. I lived with him and Drusilla, who is a hundred and forty odd. I make no apologies for them. They're two of the most vicious vampires alive. Spike earned that name by ways I won't tell you the details of. Dru is a raving psychotic, she's insane and psychic and can do with her eyes the same thing I do with my voice. I know they're killers, and I love them despite that fact. They saved my life and stood me back on my feet when I didn't want to live. They even went so far as to stop killing when they fed because I couldn't bear the thought of my friends murdering people."  
  
The hypnotist took a look at her friends, these people she loved, seeing the feelings returned. The Xmen would care for her despite her background and her friendship with a murderer. She hated to test their trust in her but for Spike, she would ask. "Now that I've explained I'd like to ask a favour from you. I have to go to Sunnydale and get Spike away from the slayer. She's holding him captive because she believes he has information on a group of soldiers that have been hunting demons in Sunnydale. He was captured by these commandos and they did something to him that's made him unable to harm humans."  
  
Siren looked at the Professor and asked the favour. "I need to borrow the X jet. Also, if any of you are willing to go on this trip with me your help would be most appreciated. If you're all agreeable I'd like to bring Spike back here with me, to live at the mansion. He could be a great asset to the team if you're willing to give him a chance. I can promise no harm will come to any of you, even if I find a way to undo whatever the soldiers did to him. I'll understand completely if none of you want to help me, and if you'd rather I left I'll pack my things and go back to New Orleans after I retrieve Spike."  
  
Finished, Serena moved away from the tables head and took a seat between Logan and Rogue. Both patted her hand and gave her a small smile. Looking around the room she received several similar signs of support and only a few negative reactions. Smiling back at her friends the lion eyed woman waited as Professor Xavier took her previous position.   
  
"First my dear, I commend you on your honesty. I imagine it was quite difficult to tell us the things you did, not knowing how we'd react. You've been through some difficult times, and I agree that your vampire friend saved your life. As far as I am concerned, you may take the jet and as many volunteers as you wish to California to retrieve him. As for having a vampire living here in the mansion I'll leave that up to a vote."  
  
The older mans eyes ranged over his charges, "Children, What are your opinions? Serena has promised that her friend will not harm you, and I personally think he would make a good asset to the team, but the decision is yours and the majority will rule. I'll even go so far as to allow Lance, Fred, Todd, and Pietro to vote in this matter." The professor was astute enough even without his telepathy to realize Serena had two or three votes at least from those boys.  
  
Nervous glances were exchanged between the ten teenagers, no one wanting to be the first to speak up. "I'll go with ya Chatterbox, and your friend can stay here as far as I'm concerned." Logan spoke up. Being the object of experimentation himself, Logan felt an amount of sympathy for the vampire.  
  
"I'm with Serena and Logan. Spike can stay." Kurt was next, teleporting to stand behind them. Rogue placed her gloved hand on Serenas' arm. "I'm with them on both counts." One by one the others declared their support of their friend and their willingness to give the vampire the same chance they had been given at the mansion.  
  
Of the Brotherhood members Pietro was, expectedly, the first to support the hypnotist. Lance shrugged and declared that it sounded cool to him, while Freddy merely nodded and asked if he could finish his lunch before they left. Todd commented on how cool Serenas' life was, with a lot of 'yo's thrown in.  
  
Jean and Ororo were the last to capitulate. "I am wary of this vampire my friend, as you said so directly, he is a vicious killer. But I will give him the chance you ask for." The weather witch stated.  
  
"Well I don't want him here! He's a murderer, a demon! I say let Siren go far, far away and take her 'friend' with her! But it looks like I'm the only one with a shred of sanity left so I guess we'll be getting a new house mate." Was Jeans exclamation, the redhead in a fury over what she saw as a betrayal by her friends.  
  
Serena moved again to stand behind the Professors wheelchair and placed a hand on the older mans shoulder. "Thank you, all of you, you don't know how much your support and trust means to me. I'd like to take all of you to California with me, but I don't want to overwhelm the slayer and her group by showing up with an army at my back. I think we should keep the group small."  
  
"Logan, Kurt, Evan, Rogue, Kitty, and Pietro will be the most effective if anything should happen. Also, a lot of you are quite sensitive to the energies that surround us and I fear the negative energy coming from the hellmouth would put a great strain on you. Don't underestimate my gratitude though, you're all the best friends I could possibly ask for." Giving her friends a huge, endearing smile of thanks the hypnotist told everyone good bye and sent her chosen team to pack a bag for the trip and told them to meet in the hangar within the hour. She wanted to hurry and get to Spike before the british pain in the arse annoyed the slayer into staking him. 


	8. Journey to the Past

Title: Sirens' Song  
Author: Sinayah  
Disclaimer: I don't own any characters from Buffy, Angel, or Xmen. They belong to very rich people who don't appreciate them as we fanfic writers do.  
Disclaimer 2: The Chapter Title and Lyrics are from the Anastasia Soundtrack.  
Authors Note: Many heartfelt thanks to my muse Zenura, without her I wouldn't have had the guts to write. If you like this story please review or send me an email, I'd really appreciate hearing what you think. Enjoy!  
Chapter 8: Journey to the Past  
"Heart I'm trusting you, on this journey to the past…"  
  
An hour later the X jet left the mansion with Wolverine at the controls. The teens lounged about in the cabin, talking amongst themselves and asking Serena questions about vampires and demons and how she'd come to be friends with some. The hypnotist answered their enthusiastic questions with pleasure, taking joy in watching them as she always did.  
  
"So what's he look like Serena? Is he, like, cute?" Kitty asked. A typical teen girl, the brunette was a special treat to be around. Serena couldn't help but chuckle, knowing that her undead friend was considered a fine example of the male gender.   
  
Taking out her wallet Serena opened it to the compartment where her pictures were stored. Flipping to the one of Spike and Dru, she handed it to Kitty. "See for yourself, that's Spike and Dru there. And before you ask, yes that is a doll Dru's holding; like I said before, she's rather insane."   
  
"Gawd, that's one fine looking corpse Serena! Cheekbones like that should be illegal." Rogue gasped out, leaning over the seat to take a look. Both girls gushed over Spikes appearance while the guys leaned in to look and went into their own hormone fit over Drusilla. Even Logan, when shown the image had to comment on the lovely vampiress. "They don't make many like that any more." Was his assessment, glancing back at his female team mates and making a qualification that the few they did make seemed to have ended up living with him.  
  
"What other pictures have you got? Oooh there's us Roguey, and there are the guys. Aww look at that one, don't Kurt and Evan look sweet sleeping on the couch together?" The girls were acting with classic teen character, going through mothers' purse.  
  
Rogue took the wallet from her room mate and flipped through the pictures, stopping to examine the oldest one. The goth girl glanced from Serena to Pietro and back at the picture, then held up the image. "Hey Siren, is this what I think it is?"  
  
"Mmm hmmm. I knew the speed demon when he was just a little boy. I recognized him at the big meeting last week." Serena said, not making a big deal out of it. Taking her wallet back, she tucked it into her bag and closed her eyes to have a cat nap before they arrived in Sunnydale, leaving her Ptichka to answer any questions.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
It was late afternoon when the X jet landed in a clearing of the woods that skirted the edge of Sunnydale. Logan didn't like leaving one of his mechanical babies in such an open spot but he also didn't want the jet in plain view somewhere in town. He hoped the commandos that had gotten hold of Chatterbox's friend didn't patrol the woods much; they'd surely know it was like no other aircraft in the world.  
  
The group walked into town from the woods, much to their displeasure; they were kids after all and hiking wasn't their kind of fun. Serena led them to a hotel, not the dingiest place to stay in town, but not the finest accommodations either. Handing out room keys, one to the girls and one to the boys, she pocketed a third and said, "Now if anyone asks, this is a family weekend. Logan and I are married; Kurt and Rogue are our kids. Kitty you're Kurts girlfriend, Ptichka you're Rogues' boyfriend and Evan you're the boys best friend. I know this irks some of you but that's the only way I could think of to explain such a large group of people just here for the weekend."  
  
When it looked like arguments were forthcoming from Kitty and Rogue the dark haired woman continued, "No if's, and's or but's guys. Now Kurt, Evan, and Pietro you share one room, Rogue and Kitty you're in the other. Logan and I will take the room between you in case you need us. Now go get settled, I want to have a look around town and do some reconnaissance around the watchers house before we go get Spike."  
  
The kids went off, with the boys grumbling a little about having to room together, Evan especially not wanting to share a room with his rival. Logan and Serena went to their room and discussed plans for how to retrieve the vampire. "I like the idea of taking a look around before we just barge in, we don't want to fight them if we can help it." Logan said, though he thought that this slayer person might give him a good sparring match. So far the only person who could hold their own against him was Serena.  
  
"I agree, the slayer and her group fight on the same side we do, only facing different enemies. I don't want to hurt her, I just want Spike back." Serenas' strong façade was beginning to slip, her worry for her undead friend growing now that they were in close proximity to him and she could sense his anger and frustration.  
  
Seeing his little friends' emotions getting the better of her Logan wrapped his big arms around the woman and hugged her to his chest. "Shhh Chatterbox, we'll get him back and we'll figure out what they did to him. You just have to tough it out for one more night."  
  
Serena leaned against her friend, drawing strength from his presence. "I can feel him Wolvie. He's so angry, and he's in pain. He's frustrated and his temper is horrible. I don't know how much longer he can take the humiliation of being restrained." Taking a deep breath to gain control again Siren hugged Logan tightly for another moment before letting go.   
  
Reaching for her bag, the hypnotist said, "Thank you for helping me Logan. I can't tell you how much you mean to me. I'm going to take a quick shower and change. Call the kids and tell them we're going out." Pecking the big mans cheek with her lips; Serena went into the bathroom, locking the door behind her.  
  
Re emerging fifteen minutes later, Serena's friends almost didn't recognize her. Gone was the sweet woman who exuded love and happiness. In her place was the Siren, dressed in leather and lace; danger radiating from her in waves. Mouths agape, the five teens could only stare, while their guardian roared, "What in the HELL is that getup?"  
  
"This is what one wears when one wants to intimidate the hell out of people and demons Logan." Siren gently patronized the big man. Turning to the group she laid out the plan for the evening's excursion. "Ok guys, this is how things are going to work. First, don't address me as anything but Siren. I have a reputation that will make most demons we happen to run into think twice about attacking us."  
  
"Now, we're going to take in the local haunts. There's a teen club not far from here, the slayer and her friends like to hang out there. Logan, Pietro, Rogue, and Kitty will go in. You kids will mingle a bit; see if the slayer and her groupies are there. From what Spike's told me the slayer is a tiny little blonde girl, her name is Buffy. Her friends are a tall dark haired guy named Xander and a petite redhead named Willow. If any of them are there, try and talk to them, maybe they'll let information slip. Logan will be hanging around watching the three of you, in case you have any trouble." Siren detailed for her friends.  
  
Before she went on to her own plans, she cautioned "Vampires often go to that club to find dinner. Pay close attention to people who approach you. Vamps are fairly pale, they have no pulse, and they'll feel cool to the touch. The younger ones also tend to wear really stupid looking clothes for some reason. If you run into one, don't go outside with it alone! If you want to try your hand at killing one, make sure Logan has followed you outside."  
  
Serena reached into her bag again and pulled out a handful of silver and gold necklaces with crucifix pendants and some small vials of clear liquid. Handing a necklace and a vial to each of her team mates she said, "Put these on. Crosses will burn a vampire if they touch it, and the sight of one is enough to hold them off for a while. The liquid is holy water, throw it in their faces. Those things will hold a vamp off. To kill them you need to do one of two things. A wooden stake through the heart is most efficient, Evan would you shoot some out for us? Beheading works well too, Logan that should be perfect for you."  
  
"Will anything else work? What about garlic and sunlight?" Rogue asked; fingering one of the stakes Evan had shot out of his hand. She was a fan of horror movies of all sorts, especially the old Dracula movies and was extremely curious about the real ones.   
  
"Yeah Siren, is there anything else we need to know? This is just like, weird." Kitty said, putting the crucifix on and pocketing the holy water. 'I'm like, not letting Logan out of my sight until we're out of this place, it's like, creepy.' The young girl thought, taking a stake from the small pile on the floor.  
  
Siren nodded, taking a few of the stakes and stashing them in various places on her body, including one up each sleeve loaded into a spring release device. The ankle length velvet and lace coat she wore made a good cover for weapons. "The garlic thing is a myth. It's just that the smell is irritating to a vamps sensitive nose. Sunlight will kill them, as will fire. Also, vamps look human until they're getting ready for a bite or trying to scare their victim. Their faces morph; forehead ridges develop and cover their eyebrows. Their eyes turn yellow, sort of like a cats. All their front teeth grow jagged edges, and their canines elongate to form fangs. And when you kill them, they explode into dust."  
  
The dark haired woman lifted her hair away from her neck and said, "Take a close look at both sides of my neck. Those are vampire bite scars. No nice neat puncture marks in real life, instead you get a torn, ragged bite mark with the punctures on each side." She waited patiently as the kids looked at the faded white scars over each side of her neck.  
  
Logan growled loudly, taking hold of her chin and turning it to get a good look at the marks that marred her pale throat. 'I'll kill whoever did that! No one marks her but me!' he thought, resisting the urge to pull the beautiful woman into his arms and prove that she was his. "Who did this?" he rumbled.  
  
Siren stepped away and smacked Logans hand lightly. "Stop being all growly Logan, I swear you act just like Spike sometimes. Why do I always get stuck with the over protective men huh? Spike and Drusilla made these marks to protect me. Other vampires and demons see the scars and know that I'm under the protection of two different vampires. It's enough to scare most off, and their names send all but the bravest running in terror."  
  
Logan quit growling, though it took effort. Her explanation of the marks made sense to his animalistic side, marking your territory to ward off trespassers. He still grumbled a bit though, not liking another's mark on the woman he considered his. 'I'll just have to have a conversation with this guy about whose woman she is.'   
  
Seeing no more questions coming Siren continued detailing the night's activities. "While you four are checking the teen club Evan, Kurt, and I will be not far from here, at the local demon bar." Hearing the growling coming from Wolverine she placed a hand over his mouth before he could interrupt.   
  
"Hush Wolvie, you don't have to worry about our safety. Besides the marks on my neck I have a reputation of my own in the demon world, and it's pretty nasty. Kurt will be going in sans image inducer; they'll think he's one of them. Evan will probably be talked about for years to come in that place just by shooting a stake out of his body." The dark skinned boy laughed, thinking that his mutation had a whole new purpose now.  
  
"Trust me Wolvie, I love these kids and I wouldn't take them anywhere if I couldn't guarantee their protection." Looking into his sapphire eyes the powerful woman begged him to believe in her. Logan nodded his assent, kissing her palm before she removed it from his mouth.  
  
Serena gave him a cheeky smile and clapped her hands once. "Ok troops; let's get this show on the road. Everyone grab a spare stake before you go and remember the cardinal rule; BE CAREFUL!" The group walked out to the courtyard and Serena pointed, "The club is that way. This is the main street of town, just follow it past the shopping district and turn right on Prescott. That will take you straight to the club, which is in a warehouse, have fun kids."  
  
She hugged each of the three teens briefly and told Logan, "Meet us back here in an hour; we'll go by the groups' houses together. Watch them closely Wolvie, they think they're ready for this stuff, but it's a whole new ball game. Take care of yourself." Logan nodded and couldn't resist the urge this time to pull her against him and get some of his scent on her.   
  
"You be careful too Chatterbox. First sign of trouble you have the Elf teleport you back here understand? I'll whop you good if you let yourself or those boys get hurt." The big man growled out before kissing her harshly on the lips. Before she could respond Logan had taken off, running after his charges.  
  
Pressing a hand to her deeply rouged lips Serena thought, 'Wow, Wolvie sure is taking this protective thing overboard. But damned if I don't think I like it!' Letting out a 'humph' for the benefit of the boys the dark haired woman said "Remind me to do something nasty to that man when we get home. Maybe I'll make him kiss Scott again. Ah well, let's get going." Turning in the opposite direction from the way Logan, Pietro and the girls had gone Serena led her team mates to Willie's Place.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
It took Logan and his charges about twenty minutes to walk through the small town to the club which turned out to be called The Bronze. It was located in a rather seedy warehouse district not far from the main part of town. Seeing a line and a bouncer checking ID and taking a cover charge the older man pulled out his wallet and lined up with his friends.   
  
The line moved swiftly and the four mutants went inside the club. Upon seeing the many features of the club, which boasted something for everyone, the teen's collective response was "Cool!" As the sole person over twenty five in the entire warehouse, Logan felt honour bound to say "God this is a nightmare. At least this place serves beer."  
  
"You three go 'mingle'. I'm gonna stand up on the catwalk where I can keep an eye on you. Remember what Chatterbox said and be careful. You'll get worse from me than you'll get from any vampire you try to kill got it? Good, now go play." Logan ordered before heading to the bar for a beer to take onto the catwalk with him.  
  
Watching the big badass Wolverine flee from a club filled with teenagers, Pietro and the girls chuckled. "Well you heard the Wolf, let's go play! We'll go out and dance a little first. Keep an eye out for the kids 'Rena described. If you think you see one of the girls let me handle it, you two can talk to any guys." Grabbing the hands of the unresisting girls Pietro cut a swath through the crowd on the dance floor and began dancing with both girls.  
  
Logan watched them from above, noting how well they danced. 'Speedy has some moves on him that's for sure. Bet he knows that all the skirts are eyein him, just like all the hormone bomb boys are lookin at my girls.' He growled lowly and tried not to pop his claws when he saw a boy reach for Rogue, and chuckled when Pietro handled it by pulling the girl close to him and saying "Sorry dude, these two are mine."  
  
Kitty was enjoying the club and hoped that they could come back before they left. Pietro and Rogue were good dance partners and the little brunette was having a lot of fun. Her light blue eyes scanned the room and she saw a flash of red over at one of the tables. Curling up against Pietro's back she said loudly, "There's a redheaded girl over at that table, you should go talk to her, see if she's Willow."  
  
Pietro looked over to where Kitty pointed and saw the redhead. He nodded his consent and slid gracefully from between the girls. "Don't go anywhere without me, and don't get separated. One of the girls who grabbed my ass was a vampire, I think, she certainly had the claws." He waited until they'd nodded consent before leaving the floor and approaching the red haired girl.  
  
Using the moves that all bad boys are supposed to be experts at, Pietro sidled up to the young woman and said "Hey, mind if I sit down?" The girl looked up and he gave his best 'Aren't I just the most gorgeous thing you've ever seen?' smirk. He saw the typical reaction in the girls' eyes, which filled with lust at the sight of the young man.  
  
"Like sure! I'm Aura, what's your name?" the girl said. 'The red must be fake; this girl is blonder than me!' Pietro thought, seeing that this was one of the rich, popular girls that brought down the academic averages of every school in the world. Knowing she wasn't the girl he was looking for he attempted to extricate himself from her presence. "I'm, uhh, I'm gone. There's my girlfriend. Bye." Too eager to be away, the snowy haired boy dropped his cool façade and quickly left, making his way back to Rogue and Kitty.  
  
"What I said before, forget it. You can talk to the girls too. I try to keep well away from that type. Kitty, please lose the habit of saying 'like' in every other sentence, trust me, it grates on a guys nerves after a few minutes and it makes you sound dumb." Pietro said, while taking Rogues hand, making a show in case the redhead was watching.  
  
Having heard the spiel before, but unable to stop using the word when she was exited Kitty merely nodded and said, "I know, but I can't help it. It just kind of comes out." Looking around the club the brunette failed to see anyone else who might be the subjects they were looking for she continued, "Let's sit down and have a coke, I'm tired of dancing and I don't think the people we're looking for are going to show up."  
  
Rogue and Pietro both agreed and the boy offered to go to the bar and bring back their refreshments, feeling gentlemanly. The line at the bar took him a few minutes and when he returned to the table they'd snagged the white haired boy had a treat for the girls. Along with their cokes he'd brought each one a large chocolate chip cookie.   
  
He'd seen the over sized cookies while he was waiting and, since both girls had been nice to him all day, despite which side he normally fought on, he'd decided to buy them each a treat to say thanks. 'They really are nice. Even Daniels is okay if I don't start hassling him, and Kurt is funny as hell.' He thought, sitting down and handing each girl a cookie.   
  
"Wow, thanks Pietro, I love chocolate chip cookies." Rogue said, taking a bite of hers. Kitty nodded her agreement and added a pretty smile. Both girls had noticed that away from the Brotherhood, Pietro had dropped his bad boy act and turned into a nice guy. Rogue had seen it before, but only in brief moments when they were alone.  
  
"I remember. You used to make them when you lived with us. And they're my way of saying thanks for being nice to me today, even though I'm supposed to be the bad guy." He replied, a faint blush appearing on his pale cheeks. The trio talked for a few minutes, enjoying their drinks and the cookies.   
  
Meanwhile, Logan was getting extremely bored up on the catwalk. He'd seen Pietro approach the red haired girl, and almost run away a minute later. 'So much for smooth moves Kid.' He'd thought. Watching the kids sitting down and talking amongst themselves he glanced at his watch and saw that it was nearly time to head back to the hotel.  
  
The big man descended the staircase and was turning toward his charges when he saw a dark haired girl being led out of the club by an unusually pale man. Taking a deep breath of the air through his nostrils, Logan caught the scent of death. Following after the pair he quickly made his way out the side door and found himself in an alley.  
  
Scanning the area, he heard a strangled scream from the back of the alley. He ran toward the sound and sure enough, found the man, face morphed, with his fangs in the girls' neck. Logan growled loudly and the vampire looked up. Before the vamp could make another move, Logan ran to the pair and took hold of the victims arm, pulling her behind him. He kept her there, a hand on her arm, and raised his other hand up in front of him.   
  
As the vamp watched, the big man closed his fist. Thinking the human was going to try to fight him, the week old minion would have peed his pants if he could have when the man tightened his fist and three long, sharp metal claws broke through the skin between his knuckles. The vamp was still staring at Logan, mouth agape, a moment later when those claws severed his head from his body, returning him to dust.  
  
Logan guided the frightened, bleeding girl back into the club, and told the bar tender to call an ambulance for her. Wanting to avoid being questioned he hurried over to the table where his charges were sitting and said, "Come on kids, time to go." They turned to him and saw how tense he was, and the telltale traces of blood on one hand that meant he'd popped his claws. Without comment, all three teens stood and walked out with their guardian.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Serena, Evan, and Kurt were about half a block away from Willie's when the woman stopped them and pulled them into an alley. Glancing between the boys she said, "Okay boys time to put on your costumes. Kurt, turn off the image inducer. Don't worry; in this case your physical mutation will give you some protection. Evan, can you let some spikes come about half way out of your skin and hold them there? Just a few on your hands and arms. You'll probably get to fire them if I don't get the information I want within a few minutes."  
  
"I can hold the spikes for about ten minutes, and then I have to either fire them or draw em back." The blond boy said, allowing several wooden spikes to come out over his hands and forearms. Kurt had switched off his holographic image and was flitting his eyes back and forth, waiting to be attacked.  
  
Siren took the boys chin in her hands and looked into his opalescent eyes. "Honey, it's alright. No one's going to attack you for looking like this. I promise I won't let anyone or anything hurt you, my sweet child. You can trust me Kurt, I'll protect you." The blue boy calmed and she gave him a reassuring embrace. "Evan, change of plans; draw the spikes back for now and I'll just have you fire them when I need it okay? Good, now Kurt, peek around the corner and take a good look at the alleyway next to the bar that says 'Willie's' on the sign."  
  
The teen did as asked, poking his head around the corner and taking a good look around. He saw the alley she wanted him to focus on and took a good look before drawing back and saying, "Okay Siren, I got a good look and there's no one around. What next?"  
  
"I need you to teleport us to that alley. We'll move so that you can see it when you bamf, I just wanted you to get a good picture of it then. Think you can do it?" She asked.  
  
"Sure thing, just hold on to me." The trio moved closer to the mouth of the alley they were in and held on to the blue teen. A moment later they appeared in a puff of sulphuric smoke in the alley next to the demon bar. "What was all that about anyway? We could have walked." The boy asked his friend, knowing that on this mission, Serena had a reason for every small action.  
  
Serena inhaled deeply, lifting her arm and smelling the sleeve. "The smell from the dimension you travel in is really sulphurous. Around here it usually means you've been somewhere that's particularly nasty. I wanted us to carry the scent in with us, let the patrons know we aren't as innocent as we look." She closed her golden eyes for a moment, concentrating, and when she opened them again, the orbs were black as onyx and the long needle sharp fangs that were also part of her transformed state had emerged.  
  
"Ok then, let's go find out where the slayer and her friends live shall we? Remember to address me only as Siren. Take shit from no one, if someone mouths off to either of you, use your powers. Leave them with no doubt that you're not to be messed with. Don't talk to anyone. I'll be using my computer to talk unless someone pisses me off. Are we ready? Let's go."   
  
As she took the first step out of the alley, Serenas' whole demeanour changed. She was Siren again; a deadly, sultry beauty with a reputation for delivering a beautiful dirge and a ghastly death to anything that underestimated her. The two teens looked at her, then at each other, and followed.  
  
The tension level in the demon bar went up a notch as the patrons watched the dark beauty saunter in past the beaded curtain. She was followed by a blue furred demon of unknown origins, and a human teenager. The young demon and the human, though they tried to seem confident, radiated nervousness. The black eyed, fanged woman however, radiated evil. The scent of sulphur hung in the air around the three. The womans jet coloured eyes scanned the room, a predator searching out hidden prey.  
  
Serena spotted the bartender, a greasy little rodent of a man. Spike had told her about the double dealing snitch and she knew the weasel would have the information she needed. She stalked up to the bar and leaned against it, gesturing for her companions to watch her back. Glancing over her shoulder Siren was pleased to note that the boys stood tall at her back, facing the room full of demons and vampires. She turned back to face Willie and tapped on her computer keyboard. "Hello Willie. Come on over here and have a chat with me."  
  
Willie the snitch was used to dealing with trouble. He dealt with evil on a daily basis, and usually enjoyed his lifestyle. Not even his encounters with the slayer fazed him anymore. But this woman was different from his usual clientele. She was beautiful, and her black eyes suggested power in the magicks; while her fangs and claws were reminiscent of a vampire. "Wh…Who are you?"  
  
Again the long claws of the woman tapped at the small keyboard on her arm. "I am Siren. My friend's are Nightcrawler and Spyke. Now that we know each others' names, maybe you can give me a little information. What do you say; you wouldn't want to upset me would you?" As her computer asked the question, her onyx eyes met the muddy orbs of the bartender and he was caught.  
  
The name had rung a bell with some of the vampire patrons and one large male rose up, denying her claim. "You're Siren? Right, and I'm The Master. I guess you didn't do enough research little girl. The Siren is a singer, and you haven't spoken a word since you came in here."  
  
Serena turned to look at the large vampire, giving him a thorough once over before placing a hand on Evans arm, and making a small gesture towards the vamp when the boy looked at her. The blond teen nodded and held a fist out toward the offensive creature, then shot three stakes into its chest. Siren gave the boy a pleased smile as the dust settled.  
  
Seeing the bartender trying to sneak out while Serena and Evan were occupied Kurt teleported to the little mans side, took hold of his arm, and teleported him back. The blue teen was also graced a smile of thanks from the woman as she tapped into her keyboard, "Not so fast Willie, we still have to have that little chat."  
  
Giving up the thought of running, how could he flee when that little blue demon could teleport him back in an instant? Willie sighed and said, "What do you need?" The snitch hoped he had whatever information she wanted, not wanting to think of what she and her cohorts would do to him if he didn't.  
  
"Why that's easy Willie, I want to know where the Slayer, the Watcher, and her little friends live. I also want any information you have on the soldier types that have been capturing demons around here." Came her reply. Seeing Willie nod that he did have the information she wanted, Siren nodded to Nightcrawler to let the man go.   
  
Willie dashed around to the other side of the bar and bent to retrieve the list of names and addresses he'd had copied years ago because he'd been asked for the information so many times. "Here's the addresses and phone numbers, all of them are current. See there, those two; they're for the slayers mother and the redheads parents. The slayer and the witch have a dorm room together at the college, that's the information there. The watcher and the boy still live at the same places, those two addresses." The snitch babbled, wanting the strange woman and her friends out of his bar.  
  
Serena took the list, looking it over and handing it to Evan, who pocketed it. "And the soldier boys?" she tapped out impatiently, hoping the little weasel had some information that would help her to both avoid the soldiers while they were in town, and help Spike get back to normal once they returned to Bayville. The dark haired woman was losing her cool and she knew it, so she ran a claw down the bartenders' cheek to speed him up a little.  
  
Kurt sensed that his friend was becoming upset and wrapped his tail around her leg, giving it a squeeze of reassurance, without letting the watching demons see that she needed help keeping her composure. Willie started babbling again and the blue teen listened closely as he spoke.  
  
"I…I don't have much info on them, I swear. Demons that see the guys don't usually come back to tell the tale, ya know? A few have managed to not get caught, and they say that the base is somewhere near the college campus. Only one guy has ever escaped, but the slayer's got him now. This guy, he's older than most of the vamps around here, his name's Spike, and if you can get him away from the slayer, he might be willing to tell you what he knows." The man said, getting nervous with the black eyed womans claws so near his throat. He hadn't been this scared since those apocalypse sister demons had beaten him nearly to death.  
  
Siren nodded and replied, "Thank you Willie, you've been most helpful. Now, if you please, give me two bottles of your best whiskey and about a dozen bags of human blood. Since you've helped me so much, I'll even pay for them."  
  
The bartender was quick to grab the things she asked for, stuffing them in one of the Styrofoam coolers he kept on hand for deliveries. He handed the cooler to the furry guy, not really expecting payment from someone who'd just intimidated information out of him. His mouth dropped open when the woman actually reached into her pocket and pulled out a wad of large bills, peeling a hundred off the top and handing it to him. "Now be a good boy Willie and take that money, then duck down behind the bar and cover your ears."  
  
Seeing the man obey her typed command, she spoke aloud for the first time since entering the bar. "Spyke, Nightcrawler, why don't you introduce these nasty creatures to whichever deity would want their worship?" Humming to keep the demons under her hypnosis, The Siren left her friends to stake all the vampires, withdrew a short sword from beneath her long coat, and proceeded to behead the demons.   
  
Leaving the bar and its owner to clean up the bloody, gory, dusty mess they'd left in their wake Siren, Nightcrawler, and Spyke vanished in a puff of sulphuric smoke. 


	9. Kick Some Ass

Title: Sirens' Song  
Author: Sinayah  
Disclaimer: I don't own any characters from Buffy, Angel, or Xmen. They belong to very rich people who don't appreciate them as we fanfic writers do.  
Disclaimer 2: The Chapter Title and Lyrics belong to Stroke 9.  
Authors Note: Many heartfelt thanks to my muse Zenura, without her I wouldn't have had the guts to write. If you like this story please review or send me an email, I'd really appreciate hearing what you think. Enjoy!  
Authors Note 2: The 'lullaby' in this chapter is actually a variation of an original poem I wrote for my son. It's copyrighted so please don't steal it.  
Chapter 9: Kick Some Ass  
"How many people wanna kick some ass…"  
  
Serena, Evan, and Kurt arrived back at the hotel just as their friends returned from the club. Serena and Logan left the five teens exchanging stories on the terrace of their second story rooms, while the adults went into their shared room to discuss the evening's adventures thus far.  
  
"Next time Chatterbox, I beat people up for information and you go to the hormone warehouse with three teenagers. If I never see that place again it will be too soon. Are you sure the hellmouth is under the school and not in that place?" The big man asked, rubbing his temples, trying to rid himself of the headache that was forming.  
  
Serena gave him a sympathetic look before remembering the kiss he'd planted on her before they parted earlier. I wicked gleam came into her whiskey coloured eyes as she clucked her tongue and took over the task of rubbing her friends temples. "Aww poor Wolvie, was it too much for you?"  
  
Logan growled and sat on the bed, letting the small woman minister to his aching head. "It was awful Chatty. I had to stand up on a catwalk to watch the kids and all the hormone bombs were hitting on Rogue and Kitty. I even felt sorry for Speedy; his ass got pinched so often. Then right before we left, I had to take off a vamps head. Found it…him, whatever, tryin to eat some brainless girl."  
  
Chuckling, Serena took her hands from Logans head and tilted his chin up. Her lovely eyes glared down at him as she stated, "Good! I hope you suffered! If you ever kiss me like that again I'll let the kids throw a party at the mansion and leave you as a chaperone got it! If you want to kiss me you do it like this."   
  
Logan gaped at the younger woman, stunned speechless by her lecture. He watched as her full, darkly rouged lips descended, and closed his eyes to receive her kiss. "Hey Logan, Serena, come on! We're getting hungry out here, let's go eat already!" Kurt and Evan stuck their heads through the partially opened door. "Umm, oops?" Both heads pulled back when they'd taken in the scene they'd interrupted.  
  
Serena pulled her head back and began laughing loudly. She grabbed her bag and hustled herself into the bathroom to change into her normal clothing. Blue eyes opened, and six gleaming claws shot out of Logan's hands as he stood. Stalking to the door he stuck one clawed fist out the opening and growled, "I oughta gut ya both for that you little brats! Do you know how long I've waited for that woman to get a clue? If I don't get a kiss tonight neither of you will see tomorrow morning!"  
  
The two jokers laughed out loud, happy to have foiled Logan's liaison for the moment. "What's going on guys? Did you interrupt something?" Rogue asked, finding their amusement contagious, even without the benefit of knowing what they were laughing at.  
  
"Logan was about to get that kiss he's been wanting for months! We interrupted just before Serena touched him!" Evan gasped out. Everyone at the mansion knew that Logan was deeply in lust with their house mother. The sparks between them were obvious even to the densest of the residents. Evan had organized a pool on when the two would get together; even Ororo and the professor had put their money in.  
  
The announcement made the group laugh all the harder. Kitty asked who had this week in the pool. Evan thought for a moment before replying that his aunt did. Pietro was asking how soon he could get in on the action when Logan and Serena came out of their room. Seeing the objects of his disgruntlement Wolverine growled at the teens until Serena patted his arm to make him stop. "Come on you little jokers, we'll eat at the diner down the street and then we have some more work to do."  
  
Dinner went well, with the kids talking about their adventures. Pietro and Rogue pouted when they heard about the massive slaying of vampires and demons in the bar. Kitty made some disgusted noises, not really liking violence. The young brunette talked about the club and asked the adults if they could visit it one more time before they left. Serena told her it would depend on how things went the next day with the slayer and Spikes' rescue.   
  
After everyone had finished eating Evan gave their leader the list Willie had given them and the group left the diner, walking together toward the nearest house, which happened to belong to the watcher, Rupert Giles.  
  
They found the complex that housed Mr. Giles townhouse easily and wandered into the courtyard, finding the right apartment and circling around it, looking for a convenient window to peep through. They'd gotten around the side of the building when Logan stopped them. The group waited silently, watching the man as he cocked his head, listening to a sound their ears couldn't pick up. "Someone's having sex up there Chatty." He said, jerking his head upwards to indicate that the sounds were coming from the upstairs bedroom.  
  
"Well then he won't mind us having a peek into his downstairs bathroom will he? That's where Spike said he was being kept." Continuing around to the back of the building Serena spotted the bathroom window, set high on the wall. There was no light on in that room and the woman became enraged at the thought that her friend could be chained up in a cold, dark room, listening to the noises of one of his captors having sex.  
  
"Kitty, can you phase your head into the bathroom and see if Spike is in there? If he is there is going to be unimaginable amounts of hell to pay when I get a hold of that group." The older woman said; a dangerous gleam in her darkening eyes. Kitty went to the wall under the window and phased her upper body through the obstacle. She looked around the dark room, seeing that she'd entered over the bathtub. There was no one in the tub, but the chains piled near the sink indicated that Serenas' friend had been kept there.   
  
Pulling back out of the room Kitty turned to Serena and said, "He's not in there, but there are some chains on the floor so he must have been there not too long ago right?" The girl hugged her friend tightly, seeing that she was near tears.  
  
"He should be there. Where else would they keep him? He wouldn't have escaped on his own; not after he sent me that letter to come and get him. God I don't even want to think that the blonde bitch might have dusted him. He's helpless!" Trying hard to control her emotions Serena clung to her young friend as she spoke. Logan came over and picked the woman up, gesturing with his head for the teens to follow.  
  
Outside the complex, the group sat down and gave their leader time to pull herself together. Pietro took the list of addresses from Evan, who'd taken the paper back after Logan and Serena had looked at it in the diner. The snowy haired boy spoke to the group, thinking aloud. "Ok so he's not where he said he'd be. One of the other members must be keeping him for some reason; probably so this guy could have his girlfriend over. So, which person is most likely to have him?"  
  
Evan took over where Pietro left off, putting the pieces together to find the missing vampire. "The dude in the bar said the slayer and the redhead live in a dorm at the college. If Spike is with them against his will, I doubt the girls could sneak him into their dorm room without him causing a ruckus."  
  
"That leaves the guy then. Give me that list man, and a quarter." Kurt finished Evan and Pietro's thoughts. He held out his hand and accepted the paper and coin from the white haired boy. Kurt stood and walked across the street to the payphone. Looking at the phone number beside the name A. Harris, he deposited the coin and dialled.   
  
Rogue had followed her team mate, wanting to see what he was up to. She reached him as he began speaking. "Hi, this is Kurt umm Kurt Logan. Is Xander there?" Rogue smiled at the boys' nervous attempt to disguise his voice and his use of a false last name. They waited a minute before Kurt began speaking again.  
  
"Hey Xander, this is Kurt, you know from work? Listen man, I know its short notice but can you switch shifts with me tomorrow? Why? Umm, because my sister has a doctors appointment and I have to take her. Ahh thanks man you saved my neck. Hey, didn't I see you earlier? I thought I saw you with some bleach head, Billy Idol wannabe. Huh, your cousin eh? Sounds like you don't like him much. Yeah I know how that is. He staying with you long? Not too long then, that's cool. Hey I better let ya go and get some sleep man. Thanks for switching with me. Yeah, that's right, lunch shift. See ya later man, bye." Kurt hung up the phone with a pleased smile on his face.   
  
The two teens returned to their friends and Kurt crouched down in front of Serena. "Spike is with the guy, Xander. He's staying with him for a few days while his 'parents are on vacation.' You want to go over and check it out?" He asked, feeling like a knight in shining armour when Serenas' face lit with joy.  
  
The dark haired woman lunged at her friend, hugging him tightly. "Thank you for finding him. Let's go take a look around the boys place. Maybe Kitty can let Spike know we're here." Standing, she led the way to Xander Harris' house. Feeling proud of themselves for solving the problem that had made their friend so sad, the boys exchanged high fives before falling in with the girls.  
  
The Harris home was a single story building in a lower middle class area of the town. Kitty once again stuck her upper body through the wall, taking in the sight of Mr. and Mrs. Harris sleeping in their bedroom. Another try located the second, empty bedroom, and a third showed the living room and kitchen areas. Xander and Spike were nowhere to be found. Withdrawing from the living room wall Kitty just shook her head, letting the others know she hadn't seen Spike.  
  
Becoming angry Serena whispered, "Where are they? This is getting bloody ridiculous." The group circled the house once more, looking for some indication that there was another room in the small house. Logan spotted a window set near the ground at the back of the house and pointed. "There's a basement. Take a look inside Half Pint, the kid probably lives down there."  
  
The willowy brunette obliged, kneeling down on the grass and phasing her head through the wall next to the window. Looking around the room, she saw the disco ball hanging about two feet from her face, and beyond that was a fold out sofa, a dark haired boy snoring away on the make shift bed. Pulling out of the wall Kitty got up and walked around to the side of the house, her friends following behind.   
  
She knelt and phased through the wall again, her dark eyes immediately spotting the bleached blond hair and pale skin of Serenas' friend. She sighed with relief before pulling back to give her friends the good news. "I found him." She whispered happily, "He's tied to a chair, sleeping. That Xander guy is sleeping on a sofa bed. You were right Mr. Logan, he lives down there."   
  
Serena knelt down on the ground beside her friend and gave her a hug. "Think you could phase me through Kitty? I need to see him and make sure he's alright. He's probably heard us out here by now." Kitty nodded and took hold of her older friends hand and phased them both partially through the wall again.  
  
Serena spotted the golden yellow orbs peering back at her the moment her head came through the wall. Spike was looking at her with his trademark smirk in place. His amber eyes took in the little brunette that had come through beside the woman. Winking at the young girl, he made a gesture in sign language. "Well what are you waiting for, get me out of here."  
  
Being unable to sign back while holding Kittys' hand Serena mouthed "Tomorrow Spike." Seeing his impatient glare, she continued, "I want to have a word with your hosts." After years of reading the womans lips, Spike understood her words and nodded. Just then, another head came through the wall. Logan had apparently gotten curious and taken Kitty's other hand so that he could take a look as well.  
  
Nodding a greeting to the man who'd just phased in Spike gestured, "This that Logan bloke you told me about?" She nodded yes and smiled. "How many others did you bring Nymph?" He chuckled silently when she mouthed the words "Four more outside."  
  
"Well Luv, you've truly brought the cavalry. Now go away and let a vamp get some sleep. I'll be expecting you tomorrow." Spike signed. Serena couldn't hold back a small giggle at his flippant attitude. "See you tomorrow Spikey, good night. I love you." She mouthed before pulling out of the wall, taking Kitty and Logan with her.   
  
As they disappeared Spike sighed, "I love you too my little nymph, Thank you for coming to get me." The vampire closed his eyes and settled in for the first decent nights sleep he'd had since he was captured by the soldiers, knowing that his Nymph would rescue him the next day.  
  
Walking away from the house, everyone noted Serena's greatly lightened mood. The woman practically skipped down the sidewalk, heading back to their hotel. Kitty explained to the others that Spike had woken up and that he and Siren had spoken for a few minutes using sign language and lip reading. "Rogue, he's even cuter in real life! That picture doesn't like, hold a candle to the real thing." The brunette exclaimed.  
  
The boys groaned good naturedly at the thought of yet another good looking male to compete with for the attention of the girl's. Their moods too were lightened, now that Serena was happy again. Now that she'd seen her missing friend and knew he was alright the worry lines had disappeared from her forehead and the tension in her small frame had eased.  
  
It was about midnight when the group paused in their trek. Across the street in one of the towns many cemeteries Logan had heard a frightened cry, and seen movement between the headstones. Fearing that someone was being hurt, he called for the team to follow and made his way into the dark cemetery.  
  
The big man used his sense of smell to track the creatures and their victims through the rows of headstones to a large mausoleum. He looked inside and his stomach churned at the scene inside the building. At his gesture Serena came forward to look inside. She looked for a moment, counting heads, before backing a few feet away, bringing Logan with her. The teens had caught up and were standing with curious expressions when their leaders rejoined them. "What's going on in there Chatterbox? That was…Gawd that was horrible."  
  
"It's a nest. Probably a family group, I sensed a couple of older vamps and a lot of newbies. There are five people still alive, and fifteen vamps." Looking at her charges she said, "We need to get them out. How do you kids feel about having a little play time?"  
  
In response the teens reached into their pockets and pulled out an assortment of stakes and vials of holy water. Logan unsheathed his claws and growled. Taking out her own stake, Serena gave them a quick plan. "Ok, Kurt and Kitty will go over near the mausoleum and start talking to get their attention. When they come out to investigate back off and scream, like you're afraid of them. Once they're all out we'll take them on."  
  
"Don't take on more than one at a time. Stay close together and help each other. Evan, be careful where you shoot your spikes, I don't want one of us to get hit by one. Rogue, do not use your powers on these things. I'm not sure what you'll absorb and the last thing I want is for you to get a taste of the demons that animate these creatures. Ok. Kurt, Kitty you're up." The kids started walking slowly toward the crypt, Kitty talking loudly about how creepy it was to be walking in a cemetery after dark.  
  
As expected, the vamps came rushing out, eager to take a couple more victims. Kurt yelled and backed away, dragging Kitty with him, both playing the part of the frightened innocent well. Thirteen of the creatures followed the teens, leaving two behind to guard the lair. As Kurt and Kitty ran past Evan, he stepped out from behind a tombstone and fired a multitude of stakes from his arms and chest.  
  
Two vamps exploded into dust as the wooden spikes entered their hearts. Another four were wounded by the flying wood. Stunned by the attack, and the boy who shot stakes from his body, the vamps got an even bigger shock when four other people emerged from their hiding spots and their first victims returned.   
  
Logan charged into the vamp closest to him, adamantium claws raking the creatures' neck and severing its head. Serena had vaulted over a headstone and kicked another in the chest, sending it to the ground where she quickly staked it. As each adult took on another vamp, the teens were dealing well with the five that had come after them  
  
Evan and Kitty were fighting back to back against two vamps. They were holding the creatures off, Kitty phasing through the attacks of one and Evan expertly blocking the blows of another. They duo obviously had a plan of their own because Kitty yelled "Now!" and Evan spiked out, grabbing the arm of his opponent and pulling the vamp into him, impaling it on his chest spikes. As that one turned to dust Kitty phased straight through her opponent and, with the help of Pietro, who'd appeared in a flash of white hair, pushed her vampire into Evan, impaling it on the stakes protruding from the boys back.  
  
Rogue and Kurt were having fun, toying with the vampires who weren't used to food that fought back. The slayer and her group aside, the vamps in Sunnydale had never seen teenagers who fought like this group did. Rogue sent a spinning back kick at the female vamp she was fighting, sending it sprawling. She quickly jumped on it and sent her stake into its heart with a strong stabbing motion. Kurt was playing 'can't catch me' with his vamp, also a female, and the creature was getting confused. The blue teen teleported around her and threw his open vial of holy water onto the back of her head. The vamp screamed and was unprepared when he re appeared in front of her and plunged the stake into her heart, Pietro appearing again to shove the vamp when the stake didn't quite reach its heart.  
  
Logan and Serena had taken out another three vamps and they looked around to see their charges doing tremendously well. Pietro had used his sonic speed in lieu of strength, backing off and taking a running start, charging the first vampire that came after him with his stake raised. His aim had been true and the vamp exploded into dust before it had even realized what the streak of white coming at it had been.   
  
The speedster had used a similar tactic on a second vamp, this time using his powers to rapidly beat the creature into submission. When it lay stunned at the boys feet Pietro's arm had flashed down to end its existence. Having managed to kill two of the vamps, the boy had turned his attentions to helping the other teens, dashing to aid Kitty in shoving her large opponent onto Evan, tripping a vamp that was trying to sneak up behind Logan, and shoving Kurt's vamp to help the blue boy finish his kill.  
  
The team gathered together as the dust of their opponents settled to the ground. The teens were gasping for breath, tired from their exertions. Taking only a moment to regroup Serena sent Pietro to call for an ambulance and left the other four teens to rest while she and Logan went into the mausoleum.  
  
The two minions left to guard the lair had fled during the skirmish, realizing that the strange people were going to win the fight. Logan covered his mouth and nose when he passed through the doorway to the crypt, and Serena wrinkled her own nose in distaste. The ground was littered with human remains and assorted garbage. Flies and maggots teamed on and around the corpses. Making their way carefully to the far corner, where the frightened, wounded, but still living people were huddled Serena typed, "It's alright. The creatures are dead now. We've got an ambulance coming to take care of you. Let us help you get out of this place."  
  
The five terrified people, all teenagers who'd been caught during a séance, allowed Serena and Logan to lead them out of the grisly crypt. Hearing the sirens of the ambulance Logan called for their charges. "Come on kids, we don't want to be around when the cops get here. They'd ask too many stupid questions."  
  
The tired group walked quickly back to their hotel and entered their rooms, calling dibs on who got the showers first. No one noticed the small blonde figure that trailed behind them, shock and a bit of fear showing on her face. 'I've got to talk to Giles first thing in the morning. They don't look like demons, but that was too weird.' Buffy thought, her hazel eyes looking at the closed doors of the three hotel rooms.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
In Serena and Logan's room, Logan got the first shower. He'd sneezed all the way home, the vampire dust irritating his sensitive nose. He wished he could stay under the warm spray for a while, but he quickly cleaned up, knowing Chatty was waiting for a turn.  
  
Slipping a pair of black sweat pants over his damp legs, the big man left the closet sized bathroom and let Serena in. Figuring the woman would take a while in the shower Logan took the opportunity to go check on the kids. They hadn't complained of any injuries but as their guardian on this mission it was his duty to make sure they weren't hurt.  
  
Rogue let him into the room she shared with Kitty and he found that his favourite girls were tired but not seriously hurt. Kitty had phased through her attackers punches and was unhurt, but Rogue had a fist sized bruise on her shoulder where the vamp she'd staked had landed a punch. Logan made a snap decision and lightly brushed his lips over the girls' forehead, allowing her to absorb a bit of his healing power. He watched the bruise vanish and ignored her screeching about his touching her, knowing Serena did the same thing each night.  
  
Leaving quickly, he said goodnight to the girls and made his way to the boy's corner room. Evan let him in and he looked each of the boys over. Evan and Kurt were exhausted from using their powers so much that day, but they would be fine in the morning.   
  
Pietro was just coming out of the shower and Logan saw that the boy had skinned his knee sometime that night. He asked the snowy haired boy how it had happened and was touched when the kid muttered that he'd fallen after tripping a vampire that was set to attack Logans back. The older man nodded in thanks and said his goodnights to the youngsters, telling them that Serena would probably be in later to 'tuck you in like good little boys.' Logan chuckled as he closed the door on the boys' groans.  
  
The water had stopped running back in his room and he lay down on the queen sized bed, waiting for his little Chatterbox to appear. She emerged about five minutes later, her hair damp and curling around her waist. Logan had never seen Serenas' nightwear and gasped now at the sight before him. Her curvy little body was clad in a mans flannel shirt that was about five sizes too big for her small frame. The bottom edges of the lycra shorts she wore peeked out from under the loose shirt, showing a long expanse of pale, shapely leg. With her wildly curling mane of raven black hair and deep honeyed eyes Serena was a sight to behold.  
  
Serena too was getting an eyeful. With only a pair of sweatpants covering the essentials, too much of her friends' deeply tanned and lightly furred body was revealed. Her golden gaze took in the thick ridges of muscle on his arms and chest, the deep suntan from long hours working outside, and the soft looking black hair that seemed to cover his entire front, narrowing slightly as it reached his navel. 'I always knew he was a fine looking man, but damn! No wonder I feel so tiny next to him.' She thought, letting her appreciation of his form show in her eyes.  
  
"I'm going to go say goodnight to the kids Wolvie. Why don't you pour us a nightcap? If you look behind that cooler I stuck in the mini fridge you might find a nice surprise. Don't look inside the cooler though, that's Spike's dinner for tomorrow and I doubt you'd find it a 'nice' anything." Serena said, heading out the door, giving Logan a fine view of her swaying backside.  
  
Logan got up, her idea of a nightcap sounding great to the tired man. Taking her advice he pulled the cooler out of the fridge without opening it and found two bottles of his favourite Jack Daniels whiskey hidden behind it. "God love that woman, I know I do!" He thought aloud, praising his friends' thoughtfulness.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
While Logan was searching the hotel room for glasses, Serena was chatting with her female team mates. They were dead on their feet tired but still yakking away about their adventures. She listened to Rogue gripe about Logans touching her to heal 'a little bruise' and promised to chastise the man thoroughly, all of them knowing it wouldn't happen. Hugging both girls and kissing their foreheads Serena wished them goodnight and followed in Logans footsteps to the boy's room.  
  
They must have been expecting her because her knock was answered by three voices calling "Come in." Entering, she found the boys already abed, Kurt and Evan sharing one double bed and leaving Pietro the other. Sitting down on Pietros' bed facing Kurt and Evan she asked, "So boys, how are you enjoying your first California trip?"  
  
They laughed with her and started babbling about how much fun they were having. Serena could only shake her head over her boys' insistence that killing vampires was 'cool' and 'fun' and 'better than skateboarding.' Knowing the dangers of their cocky attitudes toward the life and death battle they'd been in earlier she felt the need to caution them.   
  
"Ok boys, I know you think all of this is great fun, but let's be serious a minute. What happened tonight wasn't a Danger Room session; it was a kill or be killed fight. If you hadn't staked those vampires, you can be sure they would've drained you, and maybe tortured you first. Also, never do again what you did a few minutes ago. If you're in a private home, a vampire can't enter without an invitation. Never just call one out, always get up and see who's knocking first, even if you recognize the voice. It's such a small thing I know, but a mistake can get you killed." She lectured, pleased that the boys were listening to her and taking the matter seriously.  
  
After getting their agreement to be cautious she continued on a more light hearted note. "Alright then, enough serious talk. You're all tired and I think it's time you got some sleep." The boys were happy to obey, laying their heads down and closing their eyes. Moving to the bed Kurt and Evan shared Serena tucked the blankets around their shoulders and brushed a kiss over each forehead, making the boys smile. 'Logan's right, we really are her good little boys.' Kurt thought.  
  
Pietro was awed by his friends' easy, mothering nature. He was even more shocked when she approached his bed to give him the same treatment as the other two teens. Remembering that she'd done this with him as a child he gave in and allowed her to tuck him in. She kissed his forehead and was about to turn away when his arm came out to halt her. "Please?" he asked, knowing she'd understand.  
  
A warm smile gracing her elfin features the dark haired woman sat at his side again and spoke softly. "Alright Ptichka. All of you close your eyes and go to sleep now." Closing her own amber eyes and leaning her head back, the sea siren opened her mouth and began to sing an old Ukrainian lullaby, translating the words into English so the boys would understand.  
  
God please bless the children,  
Who sleep in here tonight.  
Lord protect the innocents,  
Until dawns early light.  
  
For here lies my heart,  
My pride and my joy.  
These sweet smiling angels,  
My precious baby boys.  
  
God please bless the children,  
You sent on angels' wing.  
That the world may know the happiness,  
My little ones can bring.  
  
Lord protect my baby boys,  
These children so brave and bold.  
Stretch your arms out to comfort them,  
When the night grows cold.  
  
Nothing for myself,  
Do I ask of Thee.  
Only that you keep these babes,  
Safe for you and me.  
  
Her sweet voice faded away at the end of the song and she looked at the three teenage boys lying in their beds. The happiness in their smiles brought a flush of warmth to her heart, and the lone tear on her Ptichkas' pale cheek touched her deeply. Serena brushed the wetness away and kissed his forehead again, as she had long ago. Then she turned and left the room, turning off the light and locking the door behind her.  
  
When the door closed behind the small woman three pairs of eyes opened. A voice came from the bed that held the shining silver blue orbs. "Do you guys get that treatment every night?" Pietro asked, thinking of his cold, drab room in the Brotherhoods house and the loneliness that was a constant feeling for the four boys.   
  
In the bed that held a pair of chocolate brown eyes and another pair that shone with an iridescent light a voice responded, "Not the lullaby part but yeah, Serena usually comes in every night and does the mother hen thing. She picks up our clothes and makes sure our alarm clocks are set, then tucks us in and kisses and hugs us goodnight. I get it twice because Auntie O comes in after Serena leaves." Evan said, sighing as though the routine got tiresome, trying to preserve his cool.  
  
"Yeah, Serena is a good Mama to all of us. She even visits Jean every night and Jean hates her. It's good to have Serena around, she makes the mansion feel like a home." Kurt added, thinking of the many times he'd taken the nightly opportunity to unload his fears on her, and how she'd always given him the reassurance he needed.  
  
Pietro nodded, closing his eyes. "She used to sing that lullaby to me, back in the Ukraine, when she put me to bed at night. I couldn't remember the words until she sang it again tonight. I'm glad I remember some of the time I spent with her. She hasn't changed much over the years." The white haired boy turned onto his side and let himself drift off to sleep.  
  
When his breathing had evened out into the shallow even pattern of sleep Kurt's voice sounded again quietly. "I think Serena was a good Mama to him too. Those Brotherhood boys, they need a Mama; badly." Evan nodded in agreement, and the two Xmen followed Pietro into sleep.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Serena walked quietly back to the room she shared with Logan and walked in, turning and locking the door behind her. She sat down on the queen sized bed next to her friend, who handed her a plastic cup with two inches of amber liquid in it. Leaning back against the headboard, the woman crossed her delicate ankles and sipped at the strong whiskey.  
"I heard you singin to the boys a minute ago. I'm surprised they let ya treat em like little kids. If it was anyone else comin to tuck em in and kiss em goodnight they'd probably groan and gag. The male ego, ya know?" Logan said, awed by the power the tiny woman seemed to wield over teenagers.  
  
"They may be nearly adults, but all children need a mother, even teenage boys. Especially our kids, who've either had to leave home to learn about their powers, or were forced to leave by their own parents because of their mutations. I love taking care of them, and being able to make them feel loved. They need to be loved and I need to love them. It completes the circle." Serena responded, taking another sip of the whiskey and letting the alcohol soothe away the tensions of the day, finally able to relax a little. The pair lay silently for a while, sipping at their drinks and letting the exhaustion take hold.  
  
When they'd finished their nightcap Serena rinsed the cups in the bathroom sink, then returned to the bed. Logan had climbed beneath the covers and was holding the other side open for her. She climbed in and sighed deeply, the lumpy hotel mattress and thin pillow feeling heavenly to her aching muscles.   
  
Logan turned off the bedside lamp and lay on his back, listening to the sounds of the late night traffic. After a minute or two Serena turned to face him and propped her upper body up on one elbow, her honey coloured eyes shining with a golden light. Not saying a word, her hand came up to caress his stubbled cheek. Her small thumb traced the outline of Logans' full lips, then rubbed over the soft, dry skin. Bringing the hand up, Serena smoothed his tousled black hair away from his temple, and lowered her face to meet his lips in a sweet, gentle kiss.  
  
The seconds ticked by quietly, unnoticed by the man and woman. Then Serena reluctantly pulled back for a breath, breaking the tender kiss, but not the serenity of the moment. Logan moved his arms, one going around her shoulders and the other around her slender hips, pulling the dark beauty into his embrace. The large, callused hand on her hip trailed upwards, fingertips dragging over the dip of her waist, roughly textured but gentle palm stroking over the curve of generous breast, tickling lightly over her collarbone and finally treating her cheek and lips to the same exploration she'd given his.  
  
Tilting her chin so that her darkening eyes met his twinkling sapphire orbs, Logan tilted his head downward to meet her lips in a second, more passionate kiss. His lips moved softly over hers, coaxing her response, and she parted her lips when his tongue touched them, begging entrance. Their tongues duelled flirtatiously for a few moments, until they again had to separate for breath.   
  
Without speaking, each knew that this was as far as they would go tonight. Gently passionate kisses, just enough so that they knew how the other felt, and that there would be another time and another embrace, once they were home again. Tucking her dark head under Logans chin, Serena cuddled close to the big man, feeling protected when his large, muscled arm came around again to hold her close. A kiss pressed into her hair, and she returned the gesture against his chest, before both closed their eyes and allowed sleep to take them into its deep embrace.  
  
When a breeze from an unknown source drifted through the hotel in the dead hours of the night, all seven members of the rescue team were sound asleep, and their smiling lips parted willingly to allow a breath of white smoke to leave their bodies. 


	10. Sounds of Silence

Title: Sirens' Song  
Author: Sinayah  
Disclaimer: I don't own any characters from Buffy, Angel, or Xmen. They belong to very rich people who don't appreciate them as we fanfic writers do.  
Disclaimer 2: The Chapter Title and Lyrics belong to Simon and Garfunkel.  
Authors Note: Many heartfelt thanks to my muse Zenura, without her I wouldn't have had the guts to write. If you like this story please review or send me an email, I'd really appreciate hearing what you think. Enjoy!  
Chapter 10: Sounds of Silence  
"But my words like silent raindrops fell, and echoed, in the wells of silence…"  
  
It was late morning when Serena awakened, the past days adventures having left her exhausted. Her first thought upon waking was 'It's been too long since I've woken up this comfortable. Note to self, must sleep with Logan often.' The pair had turned during the night and were now sleeping on their sides with Logan spooned up behind Serena. The big man had one arm under her ribs and his wrist was nestled between her breasts; his other arm had curled around her waist and was holding her tightly, pressing her backside into his...'Whoops. Not-So-Little Wolvie's awake. Better move before he starts humping me.'  
  
As Serena extricated herself from Logan's arms and got out of bed she noticed something. The buzz she'd felt in her throat since her mutation first manifested was missing. The power of her mutation was so strong that her vocal chords were always vibrating; creating a buzzing feeling that had been with her for ten years. She'd become so used to the sensation that it now felt strange for it to be missing. Placing a delicate hand at her throat, the dark haired woman attempted to speak.   
  
Her golden eyes widened alarmingly as no sound emerged from between her lips, not even a whisper. Trying not to freak out, she sat down heavily on the bed, attempting to scream; hoping for some small sound. After only using her voice occasionally for years, she found it amazing how easily she'd become accustomed to speaking freely, and was both angry and frightened now that it had been taken from her again.  
  
She started a moment later when Logan's warm hand settled on her shoulder. Her movements had wakened the man and he'd opened his azure eyes to see the tiny gypsy woman sitting next to him, a hand to her throat, screaming silently. 'This is not how I imagined waking up with Chatterbox.' He thought. When her whiskey coloured eyes met his blue ones he asked, "What's wrong Chatty?" Though his lips moved, no sound came from them. Mimicking Serenas' actions he placed a hand to his throat and tried again. As his second attempt failed, Logan growled in frustration and found that even his baser vocalizations were, well; non vocal.  
  
Serena jumped up off the bed and ran to the television set across the room where she'd placed the computer armband. Buckling it on quickly she tapped out. "Wolvie? I don't know what's happening. We better get the kids and see if they're alright." When Logan got out of bed and headed for the door she grabbed his arm. "Wait a minute, I have another computer. Use it to talk to the girls while I go get the boys." A quick search of her suitcase came up with the second computer armband and she showed Logan how to operate the machine.  
  
"I'll get the girls. Bring the boys back in here after they get dressed. I want to find out what's happening, now." Striding out the door at a fast pace, Logan was back a second later, tapping at the computer with one finger. "By the way, good morning." Was the message, and he followed it up with a quick, hard kiss before leaving the room again.   
  
Serena stared after him for a moment, a small smile on her worried features. Shaking herself mentally, the mute woman trotted out the door to wake her charges. Knocking loudly on the door brought no response from her dead to the world boys, and since she couldn't yell at them to get up, she made do. Running back to her room for a small leather pouch, she returned quickly and used the lock picking tools to open the door.  
  
As she walked into the room Serena noticed that the sleeping arrangements had changed. Evan was now sleeping in Pietro's bed, the boys curled in similar fashion to the way she'd woken up. Wishing she had a camera, the motherly woman smiled at the thought and sat down on the bed Kurt was slumbering in and shook the furry blue boy awake. As his opalescent eyes opened Serena moved to the second bed and repeated the gesture, until the other two boys awoke.   
  
Evan and Pietro jumped apart as they realized how they must look. Shaking her head in silent amusement, Serena tapped a message for all three boys. "Good morning guys. Now, don't freak out on me. We seem to have lost our voices during the night. Neither Logan or I can make a sound, can any of you talk?"  
  
The boys went through the same tests she and Logan had done on themselves earlier with the same results. Three sets of frightened eyes focused on the older woman and she smiled reassuringly. "We will figure this out and get our voices back, I promise you. Now hurry and get dressed and come to my room so we can figure out where to start. Kurt don't forget your holo-watch." She tapped out, turning to leave so they could dress without her watching.   
  
Before she got to the door Kurt was beside her, taking hold of her arm. The boy held her computer up and typed a message in. "Do you know what's happening?" He asked. His frightened eyes met hers and Serena pulled him into a hug. Over his shoulder she saw the other two boys standing not far away. Holding an arm out for them she soon found herself crushed in a triple embrace.  
  
When the boys backed away she quickly typed, "I don't know exactly, but I have a hunch. Get dressed and we'll discuss it with the others. Hurry now, I don't want to waste any more time." The boys scrambled for clothes and she left the room, heading back to her own. Seeing Logan standing on the balcony, a cigarette in his hand, she came close and leaned her head against his shoulder.   
  
"How are the girls?" she tapped out, raising her head to meet his azure gaze. He typed a response into his own computer, "Scared. They're dressing now. I snitched these from Rogue. I think I'm gonna need em." He showed her the pack of cigarettes and lighter. Everyone at the mansion knew Rogue had a smoking habit, and they'd all tried to break her of it without much success. Every time her pack got confiscated, she'd just go buy a new one. "The boys ok?" he asked.  
  
Deciding to indulge herself, Serena took the pack of cigarettes from Logan and lit one up. "Same as the girls, scared. We really need to make Rogue quit. It's too damn tempting to have these around all the time." Serena typed. She'd developed a taste for cigarettes while travelling with Spike and Dru, and had managed to quit for the most part, only smoking when she was stressed. Right now she felt like finishing off the pack and buying another.  
  
The teens emerged from their rooms a moment later, finding their guardians standing outside, still smoking. Rogue charged up and held out her hand expectantly. Serena shook her head and put the cigarettes in her pocket while Logan sent the girl a rude gesture. Indignant, the seventeen year old grabbed Logans arm and tapped a message. "Give me my cigarettes! If I'm old enough to kill people with a touch I'm old enough to smoke damnit!"  
  
Feeling sorry for the girl, Serena still shook her head in denial. A moment later however, the pack and lighter were missing from her pocket. Pietro had grabbed them and was now lighting one. He passed it off to the girl and lit one for himself before taking Serenas' arm and typing "Live with it 'Rena." He then handed the pack off to Evan, who also lit up.  
  
Rolling his eyes and giving a shrug Logan decided to allow the three their small vice, knowing the professor and Ororo would give him hell if they ever found out. Kitty had walked up and was now standing close to the man who towered over her. Logan put his arm around the girl and hugged her to him, giving comfort. Kurt was being held in a similar fashion by Serena, and the other three teens were standing close together between the adults.  
  
When the five people had finished their daily dose of lung cancer, the group went inside the room Logan and Serena shared. Serena made a pot of coffee, thankful that the run down accommodations still provided this luxury. While it was brewing she turned the television on to the late morning news. Handing each of her friends a Styrofoam cup of the steaming liquid she listened as the news anchor detailed the citywide epidemic of 'laryngitis'. They seemed to have no medical explanation and the police had declared the town under quarantine.  
  
Turning off the set when the reports turned to other subjects Serena stood in front of it and began typing on her armband. "I didn't think this was a medical mystery, but now I know for sure. Something mystical, probably a witch or a demon, has stolen the voices of the entire town. We need to get to Mr. Giles house. If anyone in this town knows what's going on and how to fix it, he will. Our first priority now is reversing this 'laryngitis'. After that we're taking Spike and getting the hell out of this bloody place."  
  
Her friends nodded their enthusiastic agreement to her plan and Serena continued. "First, Kurt I need you to teleport to the X jet. I should have at least one more voice computer in my lockbox. After you get back we'll walk over to the watchers place." Serena took a small key off of her key chain and handed it to the slender teen.   
  
He vanished in a puff of smelly smoke and was back a few minutes later with two more of the computers. "You had two in the box." He tapped into the computer he'd attached under his image inducer. Pleased that they now had four of the devices she spared a grateful thought to the professor for designing the computers and having so many made.  
  
Handing the fourth computer to Rogue she typed, "You kids can share those two computers. Logan and I will be doing most of the 'talking' so we'll each keep the ones we have on. Is everyone ready to go?" Receiving nods all around she finished, "Good, let's head over. I'll stop at the front desk and tell them we want the rooms until the quarantine is lifted."  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Spike was pissed off. He stalked around the watchers house like a caged animal, his thoughts channelling Willow as his mind babbled, "I knew I should've bloody well made the Nymph take me last night! We could've been well away from Sunnyhell before this happened. I should have bloody figured the hellmouth would try to ruin my escape. I swear once I get out this time I am never bloody well coming back! Where the sodding hell is my Nymph anyway?'  
  
The vampires thoughts were interrupted by the arrival of Slutty and Willow. They looked pathetic, wearing those message boards around their necks. The girls greeted Giles and Xander, ignoring Spike. Using a combination of gestures and the boards, the trio conversed about the epidemic and it's undoubtedly mystical origins.  
  
Thinking about her dream, and it's mention of some group 'coming by', Buffy remembered the strange people she'd seen fighting vampires the night before. Grabbing her message board the slayer wrote. "I saw some really weird people last night on patrol Giles. There were seven of them; three teenage boys, two girls, a man, and a woman. Could they have done this?"   
  
She allowed the entire group to see her message. After they'd had a chance to read it Giles took the redheads board and wrote back, "What were they doing when you saw them?" Again allowing the group at large to read the text, Buffy wrote a reply.  
  
"They were fighting a nest of vamps. Giles they were too good. And some of them had strange powers." Was the slayers message. Giles sighed, irritated at having to prod his slayer for details. He loved Buffy like a daughter, but the girl could be quite bothersome. "What powers?" he wrote.  
  
It took the slayer a few minutes to write the reply. "Boy 1: Shot stakes out of his body. Boy 2: Teleportation? Boy 3: Ran real fast. Could barely see him. Girl 1: Like a ghost, passed through a vamp. Girl 2: No special powers, but good fighter. Man: Had metal claws in his hands. Woman: No special powers, but familiar fighting style."   
  
Giles, Willow, and Xander gaped at the outrageous things the slayer had seen. The group had seen some very unusual things over the years, but never humans with powers like the ones Buffy described. Spike waved at the group to get their attention. He figured he'd better explain about his Nymph and her friends so that when they showed up the slayer wouldn't stake them on sight.  
  
The blond vampire made a series of gestures with his hands. "Do any of you understand sign language?" was his question. Both Giles and Willow nodded. Spike gestured again, "I know the people she saw. They are not here to hurt anyone. They came to get me. The woman is an old friend of mine."  
  
Willow grabbed her message board from Giles and quickly translated the vampires signs for Buffy and Xander. When the slayer and whelp had read the board both scoffed, making it clear that they thought he didn't have any friends. Giles took the slayers board and wrote, "Who are they? Demons?"  
  
Spike rolled his ice blue eyes and signed, "Not demons. Human mutants. It's been happening since about WWII. They go through childhood normal, but when they hit puberty their powers manifest. If you don't believe me that's bloody fine. My Nymph will explain when she gets here."  
  
Giles was about to write a response when a knock sounded at his front door. Xander gave the group a befuddled look before opening it. He found himself face to face with seven angry looking people. A small, dark haired woman held her arm up and typed onto a funny looking keyboard and a second later a sweet alto voice came from the device. "We need to speak to Spike and your Mr. Giles."  
  
Looking past the confused Xander, Serena spotted her blond friend and smiled brightly at him. Flashing his own grin Spike held up his hands and signed, "Come on in Nymph, they won't invite you, especially not that lackbrain."  
  
Serena stepped over the threshold and turned to face her friends, gesturing for them to enter uninvited. Only when her friends were safely inside the house, Evan closing the door behind him, did she face Spike again. The vampire was standing across the room, his arms held out. The small woman took the invitation and ran into the blonds embrace. Spike held the woman tightly, her warm body the only gentle touch he'd known in months.  
  
Ten people watched the reunion of the young woman and the ancient vampire with various reactions. The Xmen team were happy that, even under these circumstances, Serena had found some joy. The slayer and her friends just gaped, not understanding how the woman could be so happy to see the bleached blond.   
  
A tinny voice sounded from the computer on Rogues arm when it appeared that the hug could go on for some time. "Hey Siren, let the corpse go so we can figure out what's going on and get our voices back. I want to get back to the mansion, this place sucks. Then again, so does your friend."  
  
Serena pulled away from Spike, blushing faintly. Tapping on her keypad she replied, "Ha Ha Rogue, very funny. But I suppose you're right. Let's get the introductions over with. Spike have you told them anything about us?"  
  
Taking the arm she held out to him, he studied the device for a moment before typing, "Just the basics Luv, don't think they believed me anyway. Evil demon, remember?" The vampire smirked at the scoobies as his message was relayed. Serena rolled her eyes at the 'evil demon' and made a quick sign, telling him to introduce his 'friends'.  
  
Using her keypad Spike introduced the Sunnydale group in his own unique way. "The older bloke is the Watcher, call him Giles or Ripper. The cute little redhead is Willow, she and Rupes are the brains of this outfit. The chit with more bleach in her hair than me is Slutty the Vampire Layer, and the dopey looking kid is Xander. There's another chit upstairs, the watchers bird, think her name's Olivia."  
  
Taking her arm back Serena tapped out, "Thank you Spike, for that lovely introduction, it's a good thing we already know who they are." She took the vampires hand and led him to the corner near the stairs where her friends were standing quietly. Typing again, she introduced Logan and her charges.  
  
"This is Logan. The dark haired boy is Kurt, the blond is Evan, and the one with white hair is Pietro. The brunette hiding behind Logan is Kitty, and the redhead is Rogue." Each team member nodded or smiled a greeting as they were introduced. Logan and Spike eyed each other warily before exchanging a firm handshake.   
  
Now that there were no more pleasantries to be exchanged, the two groups fidgeted in uncomfortable silence. In a city of mutes, every little sound of day to day life echoes like a thunderclap; and in this small townhouse, filled as it was with so many people, the small movements of nervous tension sounded like the wrath of Mother Nature herself.   
  
Wanting to break the tension before the nervous people exploded, Giles took the message board from his lap and began to write. Serena, seeing the man, came forward and offered her armband in a gesture of friendship. The older man looked at the device attached to the small womans arm, then turned confused eyes on her. Serena offered a smile, and typed a message into her band.   
  
"Hello Mr. Giles, I'm Serena. If you'd like to say something you can use my armband. I find it much more efficient than writing." The message came out through the small speaker on the computer. Giles nodded, then gently took hold of her arm and tapped his own message slowly, with one finger. "Thank you, I appreciate the offer. Forgive me if I sound demanding, but why are you here?" the computer relayed the librarians message.  
  
"We came to get Spike. He sent me a letter, which I received yesterday, telling me that he was in trouble and needed my help. My friends offered to come with me in case of trouble. I had planned on picking him up here this afternoon, but seeing as my friends and I woke up mute, we'll do all we can to help you find whatever is causing this and kill it before we go." Serena typed back.   
  
Giles nodded his ascent, glad to have more people to research the current problem. They would deal with the Spike issue once they had their voices back. "Very well. I assume you know the nature of our work here? Currently, all we have to go on is what Buffy remembers of a prophetic dream she had yesterday. It's not much, and so far our research has turned up nothing." He borrowed Serenas' computer again. When the message was relayed, the scooby gang let their guard down visibly.   
  
The Xmen waited for Serenas' response, they wouldn't do anything without her consent. "Can you show us what you have so far? I'm afraid my group isn't used to the things you do. Until yesterday, they had no idea demons existed, let alone that there were people who fight them. But they're fast studies, and willing to help." The woman typed, letting her friends know that they should relax for the moment.  
  
Giles retrieved the notebook from his desk and handed it to Serena. The page had the nursery song verse the Buffy remembered, as well as Giles notes. Taking charge of the situation Serena took Giles message board and quickly wrote the verse on it, then moved around the couch and set the board upright on the table so that everyone could see it's contents.   
  
"This is all we have to go on guys. Most information on demonology and arcane lore is in books, which as you can see, Mr. Giles has plenty of. Everyone grab a book and start looking for references to what's written on the board, and the muteness we're experiencing. Be careful with the books, by the looks of them, they're ancient and valuable. Share the armbands we have too, so that no one has to write out questions or comments." Serena said, giving her friends the knowledge they needed to begin helping.  
  
The Xmen came around the couch and each took a book from the table before sitting down on the floor to read. Giles gestured for Willow, Xander, and Buffy to join their new helpers before borrowing Serenas' computer again. "Thank you for your help Serena, the extra hands will be most useful. Could I speak to you a moment outside please? I have some questions I'd like to ask, but I don't want to interrupt the children."   
  
Serena nodded and went over to where Logan was seated on the couch. The big man looked at her, his blue eyes wary. She smoothed a hand over the worry lines on his forehead and smiled down at him, her whiskey hued eyes reassuring. Tapping on the computer she said, "Keep an eye on the kids, they don't trust each other yet. I'm going to talk to Mr. Giles; I'll be back in a minute or two." Turning so that she could see Spike and the mutant teens she continued, "Kids, keep reading, I'm sure some of the things in those books will fascinate you. Spike, be good. All of you, no powers."  
  
Spike flipped her the British bird and the kids laughed when she stuck her tongue out at him cheekily. The young Xmen could tell that Spike would be a fun addition to their group. Serena kissed Logans cheek and walked out the front door, stopping at the coat rack to steal her vampire friends' cigarettes on the way.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *   
  
Outside, Giles was chuckling silently. He'd seen and heard the last comments and found the interaction between the young woman and Spike to be amusing. Serena pulled the door shut behind her and lit one of Spikes cigarettes. 'It's barely noon and it's already been a long day. At least we got them settled with no bloodshed.' The dark haired woman thought, walking over to the tall librarian.   
  
Giles smiled at the little woman as she sat beside him on the courtyard bench. She smiled back and held her arm out on the table so that the man could begin the conversation. He tapped in a message, the first question he wanted to ask. "Spike was telling us, before you got here, that you and your friends are mutants. I hate to sound rude, but is it true? And if so, are we in any danger from your powers?"  
  
Knowing that the man would probably see a demonstration of their abilities before the day was over, Serena answered truthfully. "Yes, we're mutants. Each of us has a different ability. Some of our powers can be dangerous, I won't lie, but we don't intend to harm any of you."  
  
Giles took another turn at the device when the woman finished 'speaking'. "May I ask what powers you all possess? I find it quite fascinating." He asked, getting better at using the contraption.  
  
Serena nodded and detailed the individual powers her friends had at their disposal. "This muteness has taken my power from me. Being a watcher, I'm sure you've heard the term sea siren. My powers are similar, I hypnotize and control people with my voice, and can change form at will into a mermaid like creature. Logan has off the chart healing abilities and enhanced hearing, sight, and smell. Due to some kind of experimentation, he also has an alloy called adamantium grafted to his entire skeletal system, and three claws of the same material that come out of each of his hands."  
  
Giles was staring, slack jawed. She gave him a moment to recover his stuffy british composure before continuing. "Kurt as the power of teleportation, he's wearing an image inducer at the moment because his normal appearance is, well I'm sure you'll see it sometime. Rogue is unable to touch people as her skin absorbs peoples energies, memories, and mutations. Evan shoots wooden stakes out of his body. Kitty can walk through any solid object, and Pietro can move faster than anything else on this earth."  
  
Giles nodded, his mind still taking in all the information. 'Remarkable. Human evolution is upon us Rupert. I wonder if they'd be willing to demonstrate their abilities. I must ask later.' Pecking at the computer again, Giles said, "Thank you for your honesty, and for your help. I must say I'm anxious to get our voices back so that we can communicate more easily. For now, we had best go back inside and see what the children are up to."  
  
"Yes, I think we'd better. Logan's probably about ready to pop the claws at them." Seeing the alarm in the librarians eyes along with the blatant curiosity over their powers Serena added, "I'm just kidding Mr. Giles; Logan doesn't use his claws as a scare tactic…at least not too often." She patted his arm to calm him and they went back inside the townhouse.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Once Giles and Siren had stepped out, the teens had stopped researching and attempted conversation. Kurt, who was sitting near the desk with his back against the couch, noticed the petite redhead looking at the voice computer on his arm with bright green eyes. Offering the cute girl a smile he'd typed a greeting. "Hi, I'm Kurt. Would you like a closer look at the computer?"  
  
The redhead nodded eagerly and smiled at the dark haired boy. He stood up and walked over to where she was seated at the desk in front of her laptop. He held out his arm and the elfin beauty quickly typed a message. "Hi! I'm Willow. It's nice to meet you. This voice computer is neat. Mind if I ask where you got it?"  
  
Kurt looked at Logan for permission to talk about their powers and received a nod. "All of them are Serenas'. Until recently her power kept her from using her voice, so our professor designed these for her. We're lucky she brought them along." He typed, glad that the cute redhead was being friendly. The blonde girl had sat herself down in a corner and refused to look at any of the newcomers.  
  
Kitty wandered over, the bubbly brunette always eager to make friends. She used Kurts armband to say, "Hi, I'm Kitty. Is this your laptop? It looks cool, I wish I'd brought mine from the hotel."  
  
Willow nodded and both girls became engrossed in the computer. They sat down in front of the machine and had quickly opened up a blank document so that they could talk to each other. Kurt took the dismissal with a shrug and resumed his seat, picking up his book.  
  
Xander was the next to try, using a message board to say hello to Rogue. The girl waved back, but was engrossed in the book she was reading, finding the demonology text fascinating. She did take a moment to unclasp her armband and hand it to Evan, who was more than willing to chat. The two boys started talking, at first tentatively, then more animated as they exchanged information.  
  
Spike was sitting in Giles favourite chair, his blue eyes staring at Logan. 'I know this bloke, I'm bloody sure I've seen him somewhere before. I wish my Nymph had told me more about him. This is bloody irritating, and where is that thieving little chit anyway, how many questions could the sodding watcher have?' The blond thought, turning his eyes from Logan to watch the front door.  
  
When the two team leaders returned, the groups 'chatted' for a few minutes before settling in for some serious research. As the afternoon wore on with no success Serena watched her charges become more and more restless. They were unused to long periods of inactivity, and the research was becoming boring.   
  
Just as Serena was about to stand and call for a break she felt something creeping around her leg. Glancing down, she saw it was Kurts tail. The boy was sitting on the floor in front of her looking at pictures of demons. A glance over his shoulder revealed his sudden need for reassurance.   
  
The demon on the page he was looking at resembled him. It had the same glowing eyes, tridactyl hands and feet, and the tail. Leaning forward, she ran her fingers through his dark hair and gave him a smile when he turned his eyes up to her face. Her movements had attracted the attention of the rest of the group and Xander was the first to notice the blue tail curled around her leg.  
  
Jumping to his feet in fright, the young man pointed at her leg, mouthing silent words of alarm. Buffy jumped up to see what had freaked her friend out, and when she saw the tail the slayer reached for one of the stakes hidden up her sleeve. Before she could take a step toward Serena and Kurt though, she heard a snick sound.   
  
In the blink of an eye, five people were standing between her and the boy with the tail. Logan had his foot long claws out, Evan now sported spikes on his hands, arms, and chest, Pietro was poised to send several punches at her, Rogue had a glove off and a deadly serious look in her eye, and Spike had gone game face and was standing over a half transformed Serena, who was hugging Kurt close to her. Kitty was touching both the woman and the boy, ready to phase them through the floor out of harms way.  
  
Giles ran over and took the stake from Buffy's hand, throwing it toward the door. Making placating gestures at the Xmen, he made the slayer back down. Logan retracted the claws on one hand and typed. "Don't ever make a move like that again little girl. No one hurts one of ours without a serious fight. You try it again and I won't hesitate to gut you. Understand?"  
  
Buffy nodded, frightened by the sudden change in the group. Those gleaming claws, and the stakes coming from the black kid looked deadly. Logan retracted the claws on his other hand, and gestured for the young mutants and the vampire to back down. They did, albeit reluctantly, though they continued to glare threats at the blonde slayer.  
  
Serena stayed where she was, her arms around Kurt, who was frightened and hurt by the violent reaction of the strangers at seeing just a small part of his mutation. He hid his face in Serena's shoulder and resisted the urge to teleport himself away from the people. Serena cuddled the boy close, her eyes and fangs remaining clearly in evidence.  
  
Spike gestured to Logan for the use of his armband. Typing furiously, he berated the slayer and the whelp for their stupidity. "You all knew they were different. You bloody well saw them using their powers last night Slayer! Are you two just so bloody stupid that you forgot? I can't believe you 'wigged out' over a tail! These people have been sitting here trying to help you for hours now, and at the first sodding opportunity you try to stake one of them, are you mad?"  
  
Buffys' eyes glittered with hatred at the blond vampires' rebuke. She knew she had over reacted, but the blonde was loathe to admit it. She didn't like these strange people who just barged in and took over. Sending Spike a rude gesture, the blonde stalked out the door, bending to grab her stake on the way out.  
  
Giles walked over to the couch where the dark haired woman was still holding Kurt. He crouched down in front of the pair and tapped the boy on the shoulder. Kurt peeked out at the man, and Giles mouthed the words "I'm sorry." The boy nodded, and cautiously released his hold on Serena.   
  
Kurt looked at the group, seeing their worried eyes on him. Making a decision, he stood up and looked at Serena, gesturing to his image inducer. When she nodded, he pressed a button and turned the holograph off. Standing tall on his tridactyl feet, the teen met Giles, Willow, and Xanders' eyes in turn, daring them to say something.  
  
Giles merely smiled at the boy, nodding that the new appearance didn't bother him. Xander approached him and gestured to his armband. When the blue teen held it out, the older boy typed, "Sorry I freaked, I was just surprised. Never had a research party where tails just appeared. I don't know why the Buffster went ballistic though, I mean, I actually scream and run away whenever I see her and Wills first thing in the morning…now that's scary!"  
  
Kurt nodded his forgiveness and couldn't resist a silent chuckle at the other boys joke. He half turned and pointed at Serena, Kitty, and Rogue; then made a screaming and running motion. Xander grinned as Evan, Logan, and Spike let out silent laughter and nodded their agreement. Beautiful they might be, but all women looked like hell in the mornings.  
  
The four unamused women shared a commonly understood look and flipped off the males. Then Willow approached and gave the blue teen a hug before saying, "I think you look cute, like a furry blue elf." She gave him one of her trademark grins, and Kurt smiled back; his friends often described him that way. Willow started typing again, this time aiming a question at the rest of the new people. "So, since we're having share time, is there anything else we should see?"  
  
Willing to demonstrate, the teens showed off their powers. Evan grew his spikes again, and laughed when Spike backed away and hid himself behind Serena. Logan popped his claws and got a round of silent 'oooh's' and 'ahhh's' and one 'ack!'. Kitty snapped her fingers to get their attention, then phased through the floor; coming up again across the room. Kurt was next, teleporting himself up onto the stairs and back again.   
  
Willow and Xander looked to Rogue for a demonstration, and the girl said, "My skin absorbs life energy. No demonstration unless someone wants a nap and a headache." Nodding, they turned to Pietro.   
  
Serena went to the front door and opened it, then gave Pietro one of the hotel room keys. She typed a quick message, "Go get the cooler out of the fridge in my room." Flashing a smirk at the group, Pietro was off. Serena typed again, "We're staying at the Motor Inn across town."  
  
The two scoobies gave her a befuddled look, but their question was answered before Serena could type it. Having been gone only a couple moments Pietro was back with the cooler. The white haired boy gave the box to Spike, and then used the nearest band to say, "Present from 'Rena." When the vampire gave him a confused look.  
  
Willow looked at Serena, then gestured at the others and pointed back at her. The older woman sighed, then let herself transform partially. Eyes darkened, fangs dropped, and claws lengthened. Pushing the features back, she tapped a message, "That's about half my transformation; I also get fins and a mermaids tail. But my primary mutation is in my voice, which I'll demonstrate when I get it back."  
The redhead and Xander nodded, and Serena decided to call a recess from the research. "I think we all need a break. It'll be dark in another couple hours so why don't we take a short break and meet back here in an hour." The dark haired woman typed, looking forward to a walk. The suggestion was met with applause from the group, all of whom needed the rest.  
  
Logan relayed that he wanted to go check on the X jet, and get a message to Professor Xavier to let the man know what was going on. Rogue and Evan went with the big man, the girl wanting to retrieve her CD player and the boy wanting to let his aunt know he was alright. Before the trio left Logan pulled Serena aside, typed a message to be careful, and kissed her thoroughly before stalking out the door.  
  
Serena went back into the librarians' living room and ranted to Kurt, "Remember what I said earlier about reminding me to do something nasty to Wolvie when we got home? That goes double now; I am tired of being kissed by that man and left standing in a daze while he walks off." Even the computer simulation of her voice sounded irritated. Turning to face Willow, Xander and Giles she tapped another message, "Have the three of you eaten today? My team haven't and if I can borrow your kitchen I'd be more than willing to make us all some supper, if the supermarket is open that is."   
  
The three nodded enthusiastically, not used to home cooked meals. Xander and Willow volunteered to go shopping with the remaining Xmen and Giles went upstairs to see Olivia. The woman hadn't come downstairs all day, the sudden muteness having traumatized her.  
  
Serena and the teens returned from shopping almost an hour later, loaded down with bags and one additional person. Xander had asked if they could swing by Anyas' apartment and bring her back with them and Serena hadn't been able to resist his puppy dog eyes. Spike met them at the door, his handsome face set in a scowl.   
  
Speaking sign language, the vampire berated Serena. "Couldn't have left someone here with me could you. I've been bored out of my bloody skull sitting around here while the watcher tried to get his bird to come down." Was his petulant message. Serena signed back to him, "Don't pout Spike, it suits you too well. We're back now and the kids will keep you company while I cook dinner. Just try to be nice."  
  
Patting his cheek as if he were one of her charges, Serena had the kids put the grocery bags in the kitchen before dismissing them with the message, "Why don't you kids talk to Spike while I make us some dinner, the poor vampire is bored senseless." The Xmen teens shrugged and went into the living room, using the computers to start a stunted conversation with the blond.  
  
Willow and Xander had stayed behind in the kitchen, and Willow signed "I can't believe you're friends with Spike. You're so nice and he's a big jerk. How did you meet him?" The redhead helped put the groceries away while Serena typed a reply, using the computer so that Xander wouldn't be left out of the conversation.  
  
"I suppose you have good reason to think he's a jerk, and much more. If he'd tried to kill me when we first met, I'd probably dislike him too; but he didn't try to kill me, he and Drusilla actually saved my life the night we met, and they took me in and protected me when I had no where else to go." She explained, looking over the counter at the vampires' profile, a fond smile gracing her features.  
  
Xander borrowed the computer and replied, "I can't picture Junior saving someone's life, or Looney Toons either. No, wait…Nutsy did save my life once, but she was in love with me at the time." He received a 'go on' gesture from Serena as the woman chopped vegetables.   
  
At the grocery store she had decided to make a large pot of beef stew, Ukrainian style, for the group. She had taken her armband off earlier so that the teens could use it, and now listened attentively to Xanders story of the 'Valentines Day Magick Fiasco'. Her silent laughter was so hard at times that she had to stop chopping until it had subsided.  
  
Logan and the other two Xmen arrived a while later to find everyone sitting around chatting, passing the computers back and forth. Giles had convinced Olivia to come down and sit with the rest of the group, and the slayer had returned and apologized to Kurt. Dinner was simmering on the stove half an hour later when the sun finally set.   
  
Spike, who had been watching the windows closely, immediately left the group to go outside for a cigarette. He slammed the door behind him, and re appeared a moment later, signing to Serena, "Give me my bleeding smokes Nymph." Instead of turning them over, the dark haired woman had gestured to Kitty to keep an eye on dinner, and then gone outside with the vampire.  
  
After checking to make sure they were finally being given a moment alone, Spike turned to his young friend and held his arms out to her as he'd done earlier. Serena went into the embrace, wrapping her arms around the vampires' neck and hugging him tightly, her amber eyes tearing with emotion. Spike also found his eyes watering slightly as he held his little nymph close to him, glad that she cared enough to come to his aid when he needed help.  
  
Knowing he'd only bollocks it up or sound like a bloody ponce if he tried to tell the woman how grateful he was and how much he cared for her, Spike let his actions speak for him as he held her close and reverently kissed her throat, his lips fitting over the scar he'd put there ten years earlier. He pulled back to meet her honeyed gaze with his ocean blue eyes and let his emotions shine through them.  
  
Serena leaned up and kissed his cheek, understanding what he couldn't say. She released him and signed, "I love you too Spikey. Now come sit with me and we'll catch up a little before dinner." She held out her hand and the vampire took it, leading her to the courtyard table.  
  
"So those are your new friends, I like em. That blue bloke is bloody funny, and the chit with the white streaks in her hair is a real spitfire. That little Kitten is a lot like Red, blushes prettily every time I look at her. Haven't had a chance to take a measure of the others yet. Tell me about them, especially the bloke who keeps kissing you and glaring at me; I'm bloody sure I know him from somewhere." Spike signed before taking his pack of smokes from Serena's hand.  
  
Serena watched the vampire light his cigarette, and then signed back. "I'm glad you like them, they mean a lot to me. Evan, the boy with the stakes, is Storms nephew; he and Pietro are old rivals. Do you remember the picture I keep in my wallet, of the little boy?" Spike nodded, remembering the picture and the many stories of the child she'd told him and Dru.   
  
Serena continued signing, "Pietro is that little boy, my Ptichka. I only found out last week. He's one of the Brotherhood I told you about. I'm trying now to bring the two groups together." Spike smiled brightly, happy for his friend. The vampire knew how much she'd loved that boy, she always asked him to keep an eye out for a white haired boy in his travels.   
  
"I don't know much about Logan, he doesn't remember much about himself. When those people experimented on him and put that metal in his body, he lost most of his past. I know he's a lot older than he looks though; he was a soldier in world war two. He's travelled all around the world, so you could have seen him anywhere." She finished. She took a cigarette from the pack and lit it, waiting for Spike to say something.  
  
The vampire was lost in his thoughts, the subject of where he'd seen Logan before weighing heavy on his mind. Spike had a feeling that the previous meeting hadn't been a good one. By sight alone, Logan looked no more than thirty; yet his nymph had said the man was a soldier in the second world war. Broadening the search of his memories, Spike quickly found the right one.   
  
The master vampire, whose very name brought terror to humans and demons the world over, actually gasped when the memory came to him. If he was correct, and he could easily check when they got their voices back, then this Logan bloke was as famous for killing demons as Spike was for killing humans. In fact, part of the vampires own terrifying legend was gained by killing the famous demon hunter in the nineteen fifties.  
  
Spike quickly relayed the information to Serena, who sat in shock. Her Logan was a demon hunter? A demon hunter that the underworld thought Spike had killed? Shaking herself to clear her head she signed to Spike, "We better go in. Don't say anything about this until you're sure. Logan's been looking for his past a long time, I don't want to get his hopes up and then find out he just resembles this demon hunter. What was the guys name anyway?"  
  
"I don't know Luv, he was just known as the Hunter. The bloke was Canadian, and he had military training; he was a bloody good hand to hand fighter, and damn near impossible to hurt. He has a deep voice, with a low rumble in it, almost a constant growl. I'll know for bloody sure when we get our voices back, I'd remember it anywhere." The blond signed, dropping the butt of his smoke and grinding it under his boot. Serena did the same with hers and both went back into the townhouse. 


	11. Eve of Destruction

Title: Sirens' Song  
Author: Sinayah  
Disclaimer: I don't own any characters from Buffy, Angel, or Xmen. They belong to very rich people who don't appreciate them as we fanfic writers do.  
Disclaimer 2: The Chapter Title and Lyrics belong to Barry Maguire.  
Authors Note: Many heartfelt thanks to my muse Zenura, without her I wouldn't have had the guts to write. If you like this story please review or send me an email, I'd really appreciate hearing what you think. Enjoy!  
Chapter 11: Eve of Destruction  
"But you tell me over and over and over again my friend, that you don't believe we're on the eve of destruction…"  
  
Dinner passed easily, and the group complimented Serena on the wonderful stew. Leaving the scoobies, Kurt, and Kitty to clean up the kitchen and wash the dinner dishes Spike and the rest of the Xmen team retired to the courtyard for a breath of nicotine filled air. They smoked in silence, each lost in their own thoughts. When they went back inside, and the others had finished their chores, the groups sat down in the small living room, filling the space to overflowing. Serena wanted to get back to working out a way to return their voices, and she started by asking Buffy to tell them anything she could remember from her dream besides the nursery rhyme.   
  
The blond slayer borrowed a computer from Evan, who was sitting near her spot in the corner and typed, "There wasn't much else to it. Something about the sun going down, but that might have been a normal dream. The only weird part was the little girl singing that song and the flash of a really ugly demon."  
  
"Tell me about the girl. What did she look like? What was she doing besides singing?" Serena typed back, wishing she had Jean or the professor here so that they could just look at the memory. 'Getting information from this girl is like pulling vampire fangs, not bloody easy.' The raven haired woman thought, her dislike of the slayer growing.  
  
Buffy thought for a long moment before typing again, "She was young, maybe seven, with long blonde hair. She was wearing a dress, ankle socks, and mary janes. Oh, she had a box in her hands, a small wooden box with a pattern on it. It didn't really look special."  
  
Serena nodded her thanks and mused, wondering how the box might be significant. She looked around the room to see the teens hard at work with their noses stuck in the ancient tomes. 'I wish I had a camera with me. Charles would love to see this.' She thought idly. Her whiskey eyes landed on Logan. The big man was fidgeting in his seat, rubbing his temples.   
  
Something about this whole thing was making Logan edgy. He had a niggling feeling in his skull, as if a memory were trying to push forward and hitting the blank space left by the experiments. He kept thinking of Ireland, at the end of the war. Taking action he tapped at his armband. "Half Pint, I need you and the Pixie on the computer. I want you to do a search for me."   
  
Kitty and Willow got up from the floor and sat at the laptop with Logan hovering over their shoulders. He tapped another message, "I want you to get into the newspaper archives, Galway or Dublin, near the end of World War Two. Look for articles about mass laryngitis, combined with seven murders."  
  
Feeling better now that a search was underway, Logan re-took his seat. The group was looking at him questioningly, but he gestured for them to wait. He was sure the girls would find something soon. Kitty was a genius with a computer, and from the way she was silently gossiping with the pixie like redhead, he guessed the older girl was a kindred spirit to the little brunette.  
  
About fifteen minutes later there was a flurry of excitement at the desk. Kitty and Willow clapped their hands to get everyone's attention, then gestured at the computer. Rather than crowding around it, Serena gestured for everyone to remain seated while she joined the girls at the computer. She scanned the text on the screen, and her eyes lit up. Shooing the teens out of the way, she sat in front of the monitor and started typing the relevant text into her armband so that everyone could hear what it said.  
  
"A small farming community outside Galway is grieving today. Two days ago, the villagers woke to find that their entire population had come down with laryngitis…roads into and out of the town were sealed off, to stop any spread of disease…a neighbour to one of the victims said, "monsters came in the night"…three murders the first night of quarantine…mutilated, hearts missing…four taken the second night…third morning found villagers able to speak again…disease vanished as quickly as it appeared." She typed, quoting the passages that had the most meaning for them. The computer, its volume set high, relayed the information to the group, who turned their eyes to Logan, asking silently how he'd known.  
  
A small grin accompanied the sigh of relief when the irritating feeling in his head went away. Seeing all eyes on him once again, Logan typed, "That's been annoying me all day, trying to get through the amnesia. All I could remember was that this sounded familiar, and the general place and time it came from."  
  
Kitty and Willow were the first to applaud him, and the others followed suit, showing their appreciation. Logan waved them off, wanting to get this thing over with so he could speak again; he also wanted to get the hell out of this town. The bad vibes of the area Serena had told them about were beginning to get to him; he felt the rabid urge to kill something, as violently as possible. The big man figured these demons would do nicely to settle the burning need.  
  
Giles had gone for a set of books that remained untouched when the newspaper article mentioned the seven murdered people with missing hearts. The title on the leather-bound volume, written in gold, was 'Fairy Tales'. The librarian flipped through the pages at a fast pace, until he found something near the end of the book. He read for a few long minutes, and then looked up.  
  
Seeing that Kurt had the nearest computer, he gestured to the boy, and was typing a moment later. "These demons are fairy tale monsters. They take our voices when they come to a town because the only way to kill them is a human scream. We need to get our voices back before we can rid ourselves of the demons."  
  
Giles received the same applause Logan had gotten and he waved it off the same way. Now the group knew what they were facing and how to kill the threat. It was time to go to work. Logan took charge and concocted a plan.  
  
"Okay kids, we know what we're facing and how to kill it. I wanna get these things before they hurt someone. We'll divide into groups and patrol the town. They'll have set up a lair somewhere, and that's what we need to find. Serena, Buffy, Giles, and I will each take a team. I want Xander and Porcupine with me. Slayer, you get Speedy and Half Pint. Chatterbox, you take the Elf and the Pixie. Spike, Giles, and Stripes are the last group. That suit everyone?" He typed quickly, wanting to get this done. The look he gave the group suggested that anyone who argued was going to meet the business end of his claws. As he expected, no one argued.  
  
Giles pulled out a well worn map of the town and gave each group an area to patrol. Logans' team would take the warehouse district, looking for a lair. Buffy, Kitty, and Pietro would take the college campus. Serena and her group would take the park and the town itself, and Giles, Spike and Rogue would sweep the cemeteries.  
  
Serena took Kurt and Evans computers and handed one to Giles and one to Pietro. She showed them a button near the top of the device and explained its function. "All my computers have an inbuilt communicator, a walkie-talkie if you will. If you press this button before typing a message it will be relayed to all the other communicators in a five mile radius. If you find the demon lair, or run into trouble of a different sort, press the button and let everyone else know where you are and what's happening."  
  
The teen and the older man nodded before clasping the devices to their arms. The Scooby gang went to their weapons chest to load up, and Evan went into the courtyard for a moment, returning with an armful of ready made stakes. "Now that's what I call handy. Think of all the hours we could've saved carving stakes if Evan had been around. We should call him Spike instead of wasting it on Junior." Xander commented, using Logan's computer. The others nodded, laughing silently, and Evan smiled brightly.  
  
The four teams walked out into the courtyard, and Evan used a computer to tell the older boy, "That actually is my nickname, we all have one. I'm Spyke, Kitty's Shadowkat, Rogue…well duh, Logan's Wolverine, 'Tro is Quicksilver, Kurt is Nightcrawler, and Serena is Siren. We normally only use the names when we're on a mission." The groups parted ways in front of the housing estate, each heading a different direction.   
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Logan, Xander, and Evan made their way through town to the warehouse district without much conversation. The trio checked abandoned warehouses and prowled through the alleyways, hoping to come across one of the demons so that they could follow it back to its lair. The night time noises were minimal in this area of town, the factories having been closed due to the epidemic.  
  
Logan kept the boys moving, even as hours ticked by. The gruff man was determined to find something to take his frustrations out on. In front of a particularly run down building, an old abandoned warehouse, he stopped and scented the air. The two boys, standing close behind the man, listened carefully. Xander didn't know why the older man had stopped, so he gestured at Evan, nodding is head at Logan as if to say 'what's up with him?' Evan tapped his nose with a finger, and then took a deep breath through his nostrils, trying to reply that the older man had smelled something.  
  
Signalling the teens to wait where they were, Logan made his way to one of the dusty windows where a board had fallen away. Peering inside, his lips twisted into a feral grin. There was a group of vampires in the building, and they had a couple of large demons with them. The older man gestured to the boys to come over, and he let them get a good look through the window before pulling them back a fair distance, so as to be out of hearing range.  
  
"You boys think we can take them? I doubt they're the monsters we're lookin for, but it oughta be fun. You game?" Logan asked, wanting to do some damage. Evan nodded eagerly, but Xander was more cautious after years of battling vampires and demons. He took Logan arm, and typed into the computer, "Sorry to have to be the voice of reason here, but unlike you two, I'm no superhero. A couple of vamps I can deal with, but there are five in there, plus the two demons. Are you guys sure you can handle that many?"  
  
Logan and Evan both nodded, and the dark skinned boy took the computer to add, "Our group took out thirteen vamps last night in about five minutes. Logan can handle the demons; you and I will deal with the vamps." Xander sighed, and nodded his ascent. He held up his stake, and gestured to the younger teen, asking silently if he could get a couple more.  
  
Agreeably, Evan shot two of the wooden splinters into a nearby pile of debris. After Xander had collected his extra weaponry, the trio made their way to the front door of the building. Logan extended his claws with a soft snick, and Evan grew spikes from his chest, arms, and back. Xander held his own stake tightly, and put his hand on the door handle.  
  
Logan stopped the boy, shaking his head. Wanting to surprise the creatures, the man used his claws and quickly ripped the wooden door to shreds. Evan stepped through the new opening first, letting the assembled monsters see him. Logan and Xander came in and stood slightly behind the youngest of their group, waiting for the vamps to make a move.  
  
The two demons made frantic gestures at their vampire minions, and all five rushed the intruders. Logan waited until the vamps were close enough, and then vaulted over the oncoming creatures to take on the demons. Evan took his time, holding his arms straight out in front of him. Choosing his targets, the boy waited until the two largest vamps were in range, and shot a stake from each hand, dusting the vamps before they even had time to realize what had happened.  
  
The demons didn't know what to think of the small human standing in front of them. As far as they were concerned, this man was no threat. Logan proved them wrong a moment later by impaling the nearest one on his claws and eviscerating it. The remaining demon roared silently, and then charged the man.  
  
Xander and Evan were engaged in hand to hand combat with the remaining three vampires. Two had gone for the young mutant, and the other had headed for Xander, thinking the human would make an easy meal. Using that to his advantage, Xander let the vamp get close, and then slammed his stake into its heart. The older teen turned to help Evan, and found the younger boy doing quite well.  
  
Evan was easily blocking punches, the armour that came with his spikes preventing him from being hurt. Xander ran over and spun one of the remaining vamps away from the boys back, punching it in the face. Evan spared a moment to glance behind him at the older teen, and then decided to use the move that had worked so well the night before.   
  
He grabbed his vamps arm with the next punch it threw, and pulled it into his chest. Xander saw the move and as Evan backed up, the dark haired boy lunged at his vamp, slamming it onto the huge spikes protruding from the blond teens back. As the vampire on Evans back turned to dust, the one hanging off his chest spikes finally realized that these two boys were not easy prey.   
  
None of the spikes had hit its heart and it was now trying to free itself. Xander shrugged and took it by the shoulders, pulling it away from Evans chest. The younger boy grinned and held his hand out, index finger extended and thumb raised, as children often did to imitate a gun. He pressed his index finger to the vamps chest, and as it looked down he lowered his thumb. The minion felt the small stake leave the boys finger with enough force to bury the wood deep in its heart.  
  
When the last vampire exploded into dust between them Evan and Xander exchanged high fives and turned to see how Logan was doing. The big mans feral grin had returned, and Logan looked as if he were having immense amounts of fun. Evan knew instantly that his guardian was toying with the large demon, as a cat played with a mouse before eating it.  
  
When Xander went to aid Logan, Evan held him back and instead led the boy to a pile of crates, taking a seat to watch the show. Xander joined him, realizing that if the other boy wasn't worried about the big man he shouldn't be either. As he'd done many times before on patrol with Buffy, he sat back and enjoyed the show.  
  
Logan was indeed having fun. He kicked and punched, weaving and dodging the demons attacks, his claws raking over the putrescent skin of his opponent. The creature was about two feet taller than Logan, with huge teeth and claws of its own. But the demon was outclassed by the smaller human, and now that all its minions were gone, it was trying to find a way to escape.   
  
Xander was watching, awed by the skill and fighting style of the older man. 'Even Buffy would be impressed by this guy.' He thought. After watching for a few minutes, the teens were getting bored, and Evan shot a stake into the demon to catch Logan's attention. The big man looked at the kids and Evan pantomimed a yawn, silently telling the big man to hurry up and finish.  
  
Logan waved at the boys and, as the demon tried to charge past him, making a break for the door, he took off its head. The boys hopped off their crates, and Evan grabbed a scrap of cloth to give Logan so that the man could wipe the demon blood off his claws before he retracted them. The blue eyed man thanked the teen, and congratulated both boys on their quick dispatch of the vampires. Feeling good about themselves, the man and two boys left the warehouse and continued prowling through the dark streets.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Buffy was pissed off. The slayer didn't like this group of people who'd come barging into her territory and taken over for the duration of their stay. The older man, who seemed to be in joint charge of the 'rescue team' with the woman, got on her nerves. The teenagers seemed okay, reminding her of the way she, Willow, and Xander had acted at their ages. Buffy wondered what they really wanted in her town, certain they wouldn't have travelled a single step to rescue Spike.  
  
Pietro and Kitty walked close together behind the annoying blonde girl, neither of the younger teens impressed by the slayers attitude. Since their meeting that afternoon at the watchers place, Buffy had behaved like a spoiled brat who wasn't getting her way. The older girl had taken every opportunity to glare daggers into the Xmen team, focusing her anger at Logan and Serena. The final straw for the teens had been when she'd made a move to attack Kurt, just because of his tail. They hated to think of what she might do to them once they exhibited their powers, if she could lay hands on them that was.  
  
The trio had been walking around the outskirts of the college campus for hours, seeing nothing unusual. Not even a vampire had come their way. The slayer was now leading them into the woods that flanked the far edge of the campus, hoping to find something to slay.  
  
Pietro was keeping track of their position in his mind. He had a feeling that the slayer wouldn't come to their aid if he or Kitty found themselves in trouble, and he wanted to be sure he knew which way to go if the two of them needed to leave in a hurry. Feeling uneasy, the tiny hairs at the back of the speed demons neck rose, and he moved closer to Kitty.   
  
Buffys' slayer sense told her there was something close by, probably vampires looking to have a co-ed dinner. She glanced over her shoulder at the two young mutants, and found that the boy had a stake grasped tightly in one hand. The girl was casting her cornflower blue eyes nervously around her, and keeping within touching distance of the white haired guy. The slayer motioned them to stop, and then listened closely to the night sounds.  
  
The trees creaked loudly in the cold breeze, and the bushes that grew low to the ground shivered restlessly. Somewhere in the distance a car horn blared, and close to the small group, off to the right, a large foot came down on a dead branch, cracking it with a harsh snap. With the element of surprise gone, the four demons attacked.  
  
The creatures were short and stocky, about five feet tall. But as they attacked the group they perceived as helpless mortals they showed a certain amount of strength and agility. The first two demons to get to the group went after the slayer as she was closest. The nearest one was immediately kicked into its partner, and both flew back in the direction they'd come from. Leaving the mutants to fend for themselves against the two remaining demons, Buffy pursued the two she'd sent flying.  
  
The initial charge took Pietro and Kitty by surprise, but the girl was fast enough to grab Pietros' arm and phase them both so that the demons rushed through them. Quickly realizing they'd missed their targets, the demons whirled and headed back to the young mutants.   
  
Pietro separated himself from Kitty, trying to lead the demons away from the girl. Only one fell for the trick and both teens engaged one creature. Kitty used her power to phase through a punch that otherwise would've knocked her unconscious. The girl had a sweet, passive nature, but faced with a life or death situation, she fought like a small wild cat.   
  
As the demon tried to catch her in a series of lightning quick punches, the girl ghosted and moved into the attacks. Once she was close enough, she ducked under the blows and rammed her stake into the demons abdomen.  
  
The creature doubled over, and though it was by no means dead, it was wounded, and bent now on revenge for its injury. It bent its short, heavily muscled legs, and sprang up, vaulting over the young girl to attack her from behind. Kitty whirled around, but not quickly enough, and a harsh blow grazed her shoulder, throwing her to the ground in pain.  
  
The demon saw the brunette go down, stunned by the punch it had thrown and immediately pounced on the girl. Kitty phased just before its deadly teeth reached her and sank into the ground. Seeing an opportunity, she moved herself through the earth to the area where the demons feet should be and reached up.   
  
The demon was on all fours, looking dazedly at the hard earth it had landed on, where a small girl had rested just a second before. Kitty grabbed the demons ankles and phased the creature into the earth with her, so that it was stuck in the soil up to its waist, with its knees bent to make sure it wouldn't have an easy time freeing itself.   
  
Kitty lifted herself out of the dirt, just beyond the demons reach, and dusted her hands off, smiling at the incapacitated creature. Then she turned to see how her companions were doing. Buffy was nowhere in sight, though the sounds of a fight came back to her ears from the trees about twenty yards away. Pietro wasn't exactly in sight either, but there seemed to be a small tornado just ahead of her.  
  
Pietro had kept the small girl in sight, wanting to be able to help if she got into trouble. When he'd first engaged the demon that was following him, he'd zipped around it, pausing every few seconds so it could get a look at him. He knew he couldn't use that tactic for long, but it gave him time to think about how best to kill the creature.  
  
Darting about, he kept the demon confused. As long as he didn't stop in the same place twice, it couldn't anticipate his next move. He'd taken a second to look in Kittys' direction just when her opponent landed a blow to her shoulder. Not even thinking about the creature he was fighting, the white haired boy had stopped in his tracks as he saw his not quite friend fall to the ground. That pause had given his demon the opportunity it needed, and the creature punched the slender boy in the back. Pietro had fallen to his knees, winded by the blow and in pain, fearing a cracked rib.  
  
Knowing he had to get up and move or he'd be killed, the teen had pushed his pain away and shot to his feet. He began running around the creature again, not stopping this time. He forced himself to run faster and faster, building up speed and quickly forming a tornado that lifted his opponent into the whirling air currents.   
  
The force of the wind he created broke the leafy end of a branch off of a nearby tree, and Pietro noticed the convenient sharply pointed limb that was left. The speed demon slowed, allowing the tornado to subside enough so that the demons torso was level to the broken branch. Waiting for the right moment, Pietro let the creature get into position and then shoved it with all the force he could muster, impaling the creature on the branch.  
  
As soon as he was sure the monster was out of commission Pietro dropped to his knees, clutching his ribs in pain. Kitty rushed over to her fallen companion and knelt at his side. She unclasped the armband he was wearing and quickly typed, "Pietro how bad are you hurt? Should I call for the others?"  
  
The boy took a deep shuddering breath and released his torso, then shook his head in the negative. One long fingered pale hand reached for the computer and he typed, "No, I'm ok. That thing actually managed to hit me. Are you ok? I saw you go down."  
  
The brunette gave him a smile and a thumbs up, indicating that she was fine, and then typed, "We should find Buffy and see if she's ok. She took two of them on herself." Pietro nodded and allowed the girl to help him to his feet. He kept an arm around her slight shoulders as they made their way in the direction the slayer had gone.  
  
They found the slayer quickly enough, but not battling demons as they'd hoped. The demons were down, one appeared to be dead, a stake through its throat. The other was lying on the ground twitching and the slayer was facing off against a young man in fatigues. The man had a weird looking gun aimed at Buffy and the blonde girl was mouthing the word "Riley".  
  
Not knowing what to do, Kitty and Pietro stopped at the edge of the clearing. Demons and vampires they'd expected, but the group had forgotten about the commandos that were the reason they'd needed to come and get Spike. The soldier lowered his gun as they watched, and mouthed the slayers name, looking completely befuddled.   
  
Pietro took a step forward, bringing Kitty with him. The slayer and the soldier both turned quickly, and Buffy relaxed noticeably when she saw the two teens. She limped over to them and took the computer from Kitty. "Are you two ok? What happened to the demons?" she typed. Kitty took the computer back and explained that Pietro had killed one and she'd left the other half buried in the ground. Then she gestured at the unknown man and typed, "Who's he? One of the commandos?"  
  
Buffy took the computer back and typed a message quickly, "I don't know Kitty. Until just now I thought he was a psych major at the college, a T.A. for one of my professors." Turning to the soldier who still had a confused look on his face the slayer typed again. "Well Riley, answer the girls question. Are you one of the commandos?"  
  
The mans blue eyes widened with astonishment. No one was supposed to know about the military presence in Sunnydale, yet here was the girl he had a crush on, and two high school kids who seemed to know something about his team. He opened his mouth to make some kind of denial, but of course, no sound came past his lips. Giving the trio another bewildered look, Riley Finn turned and ran quickly into the woods.  
  
Buffy glared after the man, but didn't pursue him. She turned to the two younger teens and tapped at the keypad, "I'll talk to him later. Right now I think we should go back to Giles' place." She typed one more message before handing it back to Kitty. "Tell the others we'll meet them back at Giles. Let them know we're hurt but not seriously and that they should keep patrolling."  
  
Kitty quickly relayed the message to the other three groups, receiving an almost immediate reply from Logan saying that he and his group would meet them there. 'I should've known Mr. Logan would come running if I said we were hurt. He's like, so overprotective sometimes.' The brunette thought, walking slowly between Pietro and Buffy.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
When Kittys' message came through Giles armband, the librarian was too busy to take much note of it. After patrolling Sunnydales many cemeteries for a few hours, the trio had come across three of the straight jacketed, muzzled minions that accompanied the Gentlemen. They knew that these were the monsters because Rogue had caught a glimpse of one of the voice snatchers and described it to the man and the vampire as being 'a funeral home director, post mortem.'  
  
The three minions had spotted them in the cemetery and immediately come at them. Rogue and Giles had each taken one of the ghastly creatures while Spike dodged the blows of the third, thinking himself unable to fight the demon without setting off his chip.  
  
They were holding their own in the fight until Giles tripped over a headstone and went down. Rogue had abandoned her fight to run to the librarians side, sending a flying side kick at the demon who was about to pummel the fallen man. The girl was helping Giles to stand when the demon she'd been fighting appeared behind her and struck a hard blow to her side.  
  
Spike had seen Giles fall and Rogue go to help him, getting a punch to the chin as a reward for his inattention. The master vampire was beginning to get pissed off. 'Without this bloody chip in my head I'd have already beaten these useless things into the ground.' He thought, dodging another punch successfully.  
  
Rogue got back up and held her side for a moment, taking a deep breath. She caught sight of two minions ganging up on the librarian, who was doing his best to fend them off. 'He's got balls for a librarian. Doing pretty good at holding em off.' The redhead thought as she took off running to Giles aid again.   
  
The blond vampire smirked as the gothic dressed girl shook off the painful blow she'd been dealt and got back to business. It was a few minutes before Spike had a chance to check on the others and when he saw the predicament they were in, the vampire saw red. Giles was unconscious, having been knocked hard against a tree. Rogue had obviously gone to defend the man, and was unsuccessfully trying to keep them away from the watcher.  
  
One minion got a strong backhanded punch through her defense and the girl went flying, landing a few feet away in a heap. Without even thinking about the pain that might accompany his next actions Spike blocked a punch, his face shifting, fangs and claws lengthening. With blinding speed, the master vampire reached in and tore out the throat of the demon he was fighting.  
  
Not even waiting for the body to drop, he ran at full speed to Giles, who was about to be beaten from unconsciousness into death. Leaping onto the minions back from five feet away, Spike wrapped one leather clad arm around the demons neck, holding it under the chin. His other arm came up and grasped the top of the creatures head, Spike then gave a vicious twist and heard the satisfying crack of the minions' neck breaking.  
Rogue was lying on her side, her face set in stoic resolution, though her green eyes betrayed her fright. One of the minions was nearly upon her, and she knew she couldn't get away in time. She didn't have anyone's power in her but her own, and she couldn't see a spot of bare hide on the creature to touch. As the minion got closer, she cocked a leg up, intending to kick the monster in the gut, hoping it would buy enough time for her to regain her feet.  
  
As the girls jade green eyes glared at the demon, she saw something flash silver in the moonlight, just beside the minions muzzled head. As the silver blade came across the creatures' throat, Rogue saw Spikes blond head and glowing yellow eyes. The vampire had an evil grin on his ridged face as he slashed the last minions' throat with his boot knife.  
  
Letting the body of the demon drop, Spike went to Rogues side and offered a pale hand. Looking at his handsome face as he shook off the ridges, the girl saw him mouth the words ' 'Ello Cutie.' Embarrassed to find herself blushing at the light flirtation, Rogue took the vampires hand and let him pull her to her feet. She tried to walk, taking a step in Giles direction, but stumbled on a twisted ankle and was caught and lifted into strong, leather clad arms. Blushing fiercely and silently berating herself for it, the girl wrapped her arms around Spikes neck and allowed him to carry her over to the librarian, who was beginning to wake up.  
  
Spike kept the girl in his arms as he knelt beside Giles. The man groaned silently and clutched his aching head. Realizing that the vampire wasn't going to put her down, Rogue took one arm from around his neck and rested it on the watchers shoulder. When he looked over she mouthed the words, "Are you ok Mr. Giles?"  
  
Giles nodded and typed into the computer on his arm, "I'll be fine child. I've been knocked on the head so many times now I must be developing a thick skull. How are you? And what happened to the demons?"  
  
Spike finally set Rogue on the ground next to Giles and took the computer to type, "I killed the bloody things. Chip must not activate if I'm fighting a demon. Saw them about to make mincemeat out of the two of you and stopped prancing around like a ponce. I figured it'd be worth the sodding headache to keep the little spitfire here alive."   
  
Giles was about to comment when the body of the minion nearest to them started shivering. He pointed at the thing, thinking maybe Spike hadn't killed it after all. The vampire and the girl looked, then glanced around to find the other corpses shivering as well.   
  
Spike went to the nearest one, the minion with the broken neck, and kicked the trembling corpse. As his boot connected with the demons ribs, the heads of all three bodies exploded, showering green goo over the ground, and Spikes jeans. They gazed at the now headless corpses, astonished. A moment later three white wisps of smoke drifted into the cemetery, and entered the mouths of the trio.   
  
Rogue coughed as one entered her mouth, and to the men's surprise, the cough sounded loud and clear. The girl opened her mouth and spoke aloud, "Well, it looks like someone's gotten our voices back." Spike and Giles thought they'd never heard a sweeter sound than that of the redheads' lilting southern drawl.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Kurt was enjoying the nights patrol, though the hours of walking had tired him. After making a thorough sweep of the park, Serena had let Willow take the lead as they patrolled the streets of the town. The older woman had handed her armband over to Willow early in the walk, so that the girl could talk to Kurt. The two teens had quickly gotten engrossed in conversation.  
  
As they neared the center of town, Serena thought she saw a strange floating figure. She caught the attention of her young friends and made a swift gesture across her throat, indicating they should stop conversing. Willow signed quickly, "What's up?"   
  
Serena signed back, "Demon, over there near that building. Wait here while I check it out." Willow nodded and took Kurts arm, moving them both into the shadows. Serena moved away silently, and followed the well dressed monster into an abandoned building. Keeping close to the wall, Serena moved up the stairs and peeked at the second floor. There were half a dozen of the skeletal creatures, and four of their minions inside.  
  
The raven haired woman practically flew back down the stairs and out of the building. She gathered Willow and Kurt and led them to a spot about a block away. Using the computer she told them what she'd seen. "The demons have set up shop in the clock tower of that building. There are six demons, and four minions on the second floor. I thought I caught a glimpse of the box Buffy was telling us about, on a table with some empty mason jars."  
  
Willows eyes widened, the redhead couldn't believe the monsters were audacious enough to make their lair in the middle of town. From her experience, most demons preferred to keep to the outskirts of town, in the caves or the woods. She typed into the computer, "Should we call for the others? I don't think we should go after that many alone do you?"  
  
Serena nodded for the girl to get the message out, but before she could, one came to them from Kitty. After Logan's response Willow went to go ahead with her message but Serena stopped her. Taking the redheads arm she typed, "Scrap that idea. Buffy, Kitty, and Ptichka are hurt, and Logan needs to go take care of them. Giles team didn't reply so they're probably busy. We'll have to do this ourselves."  
  
The raven haired woman thought quietly for a moment, trying to come up with a plan that wouldn't get any of them killed. 'Kurt should be able to get the box easily enough, if I distract the demons. But what about Willow, the mud ugly things will think Kurt and I are other demons, but Willow looks human and doesn't have any special powers. Or does she? Spike said she was a witch, and if she could work a 'will be done' spell she can probably come up with a convincing glamour.'  
  
Serena took the computer again and asked the redhead, "Willow, can you perform a glamour on yourself? One that will mask your heartbeat and give you a vampire face at least? I don't want the demons to see that we're human. Kurt and I can both pass as demons but we need some kind of disguise for you."  
  
Willow thought a moment and responded, "I can do a glamour easy enough, and I know what I look like as a vampire. But muffling my heartbeat and stuff would require another witch, I don't have enough power to do it myself and then fight demons." She typed, thinking of her vampire twin.  
  
The older woman sighed, and then typed, "I have a bit of power in the magicks, you can take what you need from me. Let's do it now, I want to get this over with so we can get to the others in case they're more injured than they think." She held out her hands to the younger woman and closed her eyes, focusing on the natural magick within her. Willow took the offered hands and pulled the power from Serena, silently chanting the spell to make her appear to be a vampire.  
  
Kurt watched in amazement as the women's joined hands glowed white. He looked at Willow and saw that she was changing. Her pale skin became translucent, her elfin face grew the forehead ridges he'd seen on Spike earlier, and her canines elongated into fangs. When the glamour was complete and Willow released Serenas' hands it was impossible to tell that the older girl wasn't a walking corpse.  
  
Serena leaned against a convenient wall for a moment, catching her breath. Willow had taken quite a bit of her energy to complete the spell, but when the womans whiskey hued eyes took in the girls' appearance, she was pleased with the results. The redhead hadn't merely covered her face and body functions, she'd changed her whole body. If Serena had known the girl the previous year, she would've recognized the disguise as that of the vampire Willow.  
  
She gave a bright smile to let the redhead know she'd done a good job, and then took the computer to outline her plan. "Ok kids, we'll go in the same way I did. When we reach the upstairs room Willow and I will distract the vampires. Kurt, as soon as the demons come toward us, you teleport over to the table and grab the little wooden box. It probably won't open willingly so I need you to smash it with something heavy. That should release our voices and we'll be able to kill the damn things."  
  
The teens nodded and the trio made their way back to the old building. Outside the front door Serena closed her eyes and allowed her fangs and claws to come forth. When her eyes opened again, they were shiny black pools. She gestured to Kurt and the boy turned off his image inducer, revealing his natural appearance. Serena led them silently into the building.  
  
No more than two minutes later Serena was cursing silently in every language she knew. The plan would have worked, if luck had been on their side. But luck was a woman, and a fickle one at that. According to the plan, Serena and Willow had made themselves visible at the top of the stairs, and the demons had come after them. Kurt had teleported when the creatures moved away from the table, but one had seen him and come back.   
  
Before the blue teen could lay hands on the box, he was knocked backwards with a powerful blow to the stomach. One of the minions came after him and he had no choice but to fight it, needing to gather his thoughts before he could teleport again. His training with the Xmen proved well worth the effort as he defended himself against the mindless creature.  
  
Serena, seeing her friend fall, had rushed the demons floating toward she and Willow, gesturing for the girl to stay back. The dark haired woman forced her arm fins out. The shiny iridescent fins, thin and silky smooth, had jagged barbs protruding from them, their tips poisonous. She drew her arm forward and slammed the first demon a backhanded blow, raking the deadly barbs through its hide. Using all the fighting skills she'd learned from Spike and Logan, the small woman battled her way through the demons, trying to get to Kurt.  
  
Willow had a stake clasped firmly in her hand, prepared to defend herself if one of the ugly demons got past the furious mutant. Her attention was so focused on the battle in front of her, the redhead didn't see one of the minions, just arrived from the outside, come up behind her. The strong creature hit her between the shoulder blades, and the petite girl flew forwards, hitting her head against the table before landing in an unconscious heap on the floor.  
  
Kurt saw the girl land and teleported to her side, relieved to see her still breathing. He grabbed the box in one hand just as Serena reached them. The woman looked into his opalescent eyes and touched his fuzzy cheek gently. Behind the woman, Kurt saw one of the demons coming at her with a scalpel. His eyes widened in alarm and Serena turned just in time, the scalpel making a gash through her arm rather than stabbing into her back.   
  
Jet eyes tearing from pain, Serena pushed Kurt away from her, making a gesture for the boy to take Willow and teleport out of there. Not wanting to leave his surrogate mother to face the demons alone and wounded, Kurt hesitated. She made the gesture again and pointed to the box still held in his hand.  
  
Realizing that she could destroy the demons if he got the box open to release her voice, Kurt knelt and grabbed Willow by the arm, then teleported to the safety of the street. Serena let out a relieved sigh when the teens vanished in a puff of foul smelling smoke. Gritting her teeth, she turned to face the demons and their minions, prepared to defend herself until Kurt got the box open.  
  
Outside and a block away, Kurt and Willow appeared. The redhead was beginning to rouse, groaning silently. Her emerald eyes opened and she looked into the boys blue face and glowing white eyes. He spared her a fang filled grin before standing and looking around, trying to find something to smash the box that held their voices within.   
  
Willow saw her new friend holding the box and an idea came to her. Gesturing wildly, she made him set the box down and step away from it. Dropping her glamour to leave her powers free, the amateur witch focused on the box and shouted a silent command in latin. The box exploded under the force of her spell and released a huge cloud of white smoke that rose and separated as each voice headed back to its owner.  
  
Inside the clock tower, Serena was getting tired. There were just too many creatures; she couldn't hold them off much longer. As she raised her good arm to block a minion's punch, she saw a white wisp of smoke shoot into the room and enter her mouth. Realising that Kurt had opened the box, Serena leaped backward away from the monsters. Falling to the floor, the raven haired beauty opened her full lips and screamed with all the force of her powerful hypnotic voice. To human ears, the sound barely reached Kurt and Willow, sitting together a block away, but to the demons who couldn't bear the slightest sound of a human voice, it echoed throughout the city, reaching the ears of all the creatures.  
  
Serena watched through black eyes as the sound of her voice killed the demons in the lair. First they stood completely still, and then their skeletal hands came up to cover their ears, attempting to muffle the shrill scream. Their heads began to shake, and the Sirens lips formed a beautiful, evil smile as the horrible grins on the creatures faces exploded into green goo.  
  
As the sound of Serenas' scream faded from his sensitive ears, Kurt took Willows hand and teleported them to the front door of the old building. A minute later Serena appeared, stumbling slightly, bruised and bleeding from her injured arm. Kurt left Willow leaning against the wall of the building and ran to help his friend.   
  
Serena graced the boy with one of her lovely smiles that reached all the way to her now golden eyes. She leaned on the teens shoulders, his lean form having more than enough strength to help her walk over to the small redhead. She leaned against the wall beside the younger girl and ripped her already torn sleeve away from her injured arm. Giving the scrap of material to Kurt, she offered the bleeding arm to the boy and indicated that he should tie the sleeve around the wound, making a pressure bandage.  
  
After Kurt had tied the makeshift bandage, he wrapped Serenas' good arm around his shoulders again, then held out a hand to Willow. The petite redhead took his three fingered hand and Kurt teleported them back into Giles courtyard.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Kurt left his companions in the courtyard and went to get some help. His strength was failing and he hoped by now someone was back to help him get the injured women into the house. Logan met him at the door, having smelled the odour that accompanied the blue teen's teleportation. "Hey Logan. I need some help out here. Serena and Willow are hurt." The boy said, his German accent becoming heavy with his fatigue.  
  
Logan ran out, as did Pietro. The two groups had arrived almost simultaneously a few minutes earlier. The man and the two teens went back to the courtyard and knelt beside the injured women. Logan saw the bandage on Serenas' arm and the many bruises that were forming on the visible parts of her skin. A rumbling growl came up from his throat as he lifted his Chatterbox into his arms.  
  
Pietro was supporting Willow as the girl stood on shaky feet. The knock on the head had made the hacker dizzy, and the use of her magic had weakened her severely. The five were about to go back into the house when Spike came into the courtyard carrying Rogue, with Giles weaving along beside them. Logan yelled for Evan and Xander and the two teens came running. "Go help Spike and Mr. Giles. We need to get everyone inside and patched up." The big man said as he walked past them, anxious to find out the extent of everyone's injuries. It appeared that his group was the only one to have escaped the night unscathed.  
  
When the whole group was assembled in the watchers living room Anya and Olivia could only stare. Eight of the twelve warriors were injured, though except for the gash on Serenas' arm no one appeared seriously hurt. Xander and Evan went into the kitchen and brewed a large pot of tea, as well as several mugs of coffee. They handed the beverages out while Logan assessed the damage done to their group.  
  
Rogue was nearest to the big man, and he saw that she was still nestled in the vampires' arms. Her ankle was swollen and he could see a large bruise forming on her side under the sheer green over blouse. Logan held his bare hand to the girls' cheek for a moment, until she'd absorbed some of his power. He moved to Serena, who was still bleeding, but she waved him off after taking his armband.  
  
Logan growled at the woman, she was the most seriously injured of the group and he needed to take a look at her arm. "Let me see that arm Chatty." He growled. She waved him off again, pointing to Willow who had a cut on her forehead oozing blood. When her friend growled at her again, she typed a message into the computer she'd taken from him.  
  
"Go tend to the others and stop growling you big bully. Spike will fix my arm; he can get it sealed in a couple minutes. You'd just want to put stitches in it." She typed, wanting to wait until everyone was patched up before she spoke aloud to the group. Logan gave her a confused look, but did as she asked, crossing the room to kneel beside Willow.  
  
Serena tapped out another message, "Spike, Rogue is all better now, you can put her down. Come and fix my arm for me, it hurts like the devil." The blond vampire stood up, placing Rogue gently in his seat. He winked at the blushing girl and then walked over and knelt at Serenas' side. The woman was sitting in one of the recliners, her left arm bandaged and laying uselessly over the arm of the chair.  
  
Spike gently took her injured arm at the elbow with one hand, and untied the scrap of cloth binding the wound with the other. The cut was shallow but long, extending from her shoulder almost to her elbow. The vampire looked at the still oozing gash and was glad that whatever had cut his friend had a clean edge on it. It made his job that much easier.   
  
Various cries of shock were heard a moment later when the vampires' face changed and he began lapping at the long cut with his tongue. Xander started to go for a stake, then changed his mind when he saw the raven haired woman smile down at the vampire. Whatever Spike was doing was making the injured woman feel better.  
  
Serena turned to face the shocked stares of her friends and the scooby gang. Sighing loudly, she laid her computer in her lap and typed with her good arm. "Vampire saliva has healing properties. He's sealing the cut so I won't have to get it stitched. He's also numbing the area so it doesn't hurt anymore." She explained. Her friends shrugged and went back to resting, though the scoobies continued to watch Spikes actions closely.  
  
Spike was taking a great amount of pleasure in treating his friends wound. It showed great trust on her part, and helped her friends to trust him. The rich blood had nearly stopped flowing, but the vampire continued to lap at the wound, a low purr rumbling up from his chest. It soothing noise grew louder when Serena reached over and began petting his bleached hair.  
  
Buffy watched the proceedings with a look of utter disgust. The slayer was appalled that the strange woman would allow a vampire to lick her wound clean, even if it was closing the gash. When Spike started purring with enjoyment the girl couldn't help but comment. "Healing my ass, he's getting a free snack. Don't you know better than to let a vampire anywhere near you when you're bleeding? If it wasn't for that chip in his head he'd have already taken a bite."  
  
Serena rolled her dark eyes at the girl before typing, "And if he was hurting me now he'd be groaning in pain don't you think? I don't mind that he's drinking my blood; he's done it before and probably will again. And I could ask the same question of you child, I see you have a nice ragged scar on your neck. At least when I got bitten they took enough care that I didn't have a nasty scar, mine are barely visible."  
  
The slayer scowled at being called a child but took a closer look at Serenas' throat anyway. The woman tilted her head, first to one side, then the other and Buffy saw that she did indeed have a scar on each side, which was only visible if you looked closely and knew what you were looking for. The slayer grumbled, but refrained from making any more comments.  
  
Logan asked Giles for a first aid kit and then went around the room caring for the injured teens. Pietro had his ribs wrapped tightly, as did Kurt. Buffy bandaged her own sprained ankle, knowing it would be healed the next morning. Rogues injuries were completely healed by Logans touch, and Willow had a bandage placed over the cut on her temple. Kitty asked for some aspirin to take care of her bruised shoulder, as did Serena for her multiple bruises. Spikes attention had worked wonders on the gash, and Logan only had to bandage it to make sure it didn't re-open.  
  
After the first aid was given and everyone had settled into a seat, Serena decided it was time to get the hypnosis of the scoobies over with. Sitting back in her chair, with Pietro leaning against her knees and Logan perched beside her the dark haired woman closed her eyes and began to hum a lullaby. Giles, Willow, and Xander went under almost immediately. Buffy took a little longer, almost making it through a whole verse. Spike had built up a strong resistance to her voice over the years, and it took about three minutes to make him fall under her influence.  
  
The Xmen team watched their new friends become glassy eyed with hypnosis, glad that they'd already been through the process so that they could just relax and enjoy the soothing sound. When Serena was sure that Spike had gone under, she quickly gave the group the 'forevermore' suggestion and watched amusedly as they shook the effects of her voice off.  
  
Spike was the only one to realize what Serena had done. He shook off the hypnosis to find himself in game face. No matter how often he heard his little Nymphs' voice, he always went game face just before he was hypnotized. The vampire forced the ridges and fangs away, then arched a scarred brow at his friend. She smiled back at him and signed that she'd explain later.  
  
The adults sat quietly for a while, letting the teenagers talk about their night's adventures. Xander and Willow sang the praises of their new friends, each telling Buffy and Giles that they absolutely had to see the mutants in action. Giles commented on Rogues exceptional fighting skill, comparing her to a younger Buffy. The blonde slayer fumed silently at the comparison, and was the first to leave the watchers home a few minutes later.  
  
When the slayer made her exit, Logan looked at the clock on the wall behind him. Seeing that it was nearly five a.m. the big man stood and said, "I hate to break this up, but we'd better get back to the hotel. You kids need some sleep and Spike'll get fried if we wait too much longer." Serena and Giles nodded their agreement and the exhausted teens pushed themselves out of seats grown comfortable to leave.  
  
As they left Willow called after them, "Will we see you guys tomorrow before you leave?" The redhead wanted to talk to the group more, especially Kurt and Kitty. The younger girl reminded Willow of herself a few years earlier, and the redhead thought Kurt was a fuzzy blue sweetheart. For the first time since Oz had left, Willow looked at another boy and found him attractive, and was surprised to find she didn't feel the least bit guilty about her interest.  
  
Giles also wanted a chance to talk to the group before they left. They'd proven themselves to be friendly and helpful, despite his slayers childish behaviour and violent outburst. "It would be nice to have a chance to speak with you under more pleasant circumstances. If you're not in any great hurry, maybe we could meet tomorrow afternoon?" the librarian asked, hoping they'd accept his invitation.  
  
Serena looked at Logan, and the big man nodded his head in agreement. "We'll come by after lunch tomorrow. The kids probably won't wake up until after noon." He said, also wanting a chance to speak to the slayerettes, though hopefully Buffy would make herself scarce. Waving goodbye, the group trudged wearily out of the housing complex and headed for their hotel.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
The large group made it back to the hotel with about half an hour to spare before dawn. Spike settled himself on the balcony of the upstairs rooms to enjoy a last smoke before the rising sun forced him inside. The teenagers had walked into their respective rooms and flopped onto the beds without even changing clothes. Shaking her head in weary resignation, Serena had followed the girls in order to nudge them into at least putting their pyjamas on.  
  
Serena settled Rogue and Kitty into their beds, giving them the same attentions she did every other night. When they were tucked in, and had each been given a warm hug and kiss, she left them already dozing, shutting the door softly behind her. Giving Spike a small smile as she walked past, she entered the open door of the boys' room.  
  
She couldn't hold back a chuckle when she walked in and saw the boys already sound asleep. The dark haired woman nudged them awake and made them change clothing. Too tired to argue, they'd crowded into the bathroom and stripped to their boxers before coming back out and falling into bed again.  
  
Softly singing the same lullaby she'd put them to sleep with the previous night, Serena pulled the covers over the teens and kissed them each on the forehead. A loud snore from Evan followed her out of the room. Again shutting the door behind her, the exhausted woman went into her own room and changed into her pyjamas. Logan had been in there while she was tending to the kids and after she'd changed, she joined he and Spike on the balcony.  
  
Serena leaned into Logans embrace and sighed contentedly. She had Spike, she had her voice back, and her charges weren't seriously hurt. The blond vampire handed her a lit cigarette which she accepted, taking a deep drag on the filter. Logan looked down at the top of Serenas' dark head and smiled, his Chatterbox was asleep on her feet.   
  
"Why'd ya take the trouble to tuck the rug rats in tonight Chatty? I don't think any of em noticed." The big man asked, squeezing her good arm lightly. She tilted her head up and met his deep blue eyes, smiling at the sight of his heavily stubbled, rugged face.   
  
She lowered her head to look at the lightening sky and took a drag on her cigarette before replying. "They noticed. After a day as strange to them as this one has been, they needed the comfort of that familiar ritual, even if they were too tired to realize they needed it. Remember, it was only yesterday that they found out all their nightmares were real. They hadn't even had time to adjust to that before I brought them here and threw them into life or death battles with those monsters."  
  
She took another drag on her smoke, and let it out on a shuddering breath before she continued. "I realize now I shouldn't have asked them to come here. I was so frantic to get Spike back that I didn't stop to think about the effect this place and the creatures that live here would have on them. Every one of those babies could have died tonight, and it would've been my fault."  
  
"I doubt you could've stopped em from comin Chatty. They sat in the ready room yesterday and listened to your story, but even with Jeannie and Wheels backin you up, they didn't really believe it was true. They didn't volunteer for this mission just to help you, no matter how much they love ya. They had to see it for themselves, had to face the monsters, look em in the eye, and fight em to the death so that they knew it was real. Don't you go blamin yourself because they got hurt, they all had a chance to say no, and none of em did." Logan tried his best to reassure the woman, but he could tell she still felt guilty.  
  
The door to the corner room opened softly in the middle of Logan's speech, and Pietro stepped out into the cool breeze of early morning. The snowy haired boy padded over to his old friend on bare feet and spoke softly to her when Logan had finished. "Listen to him 'Rena, he's right. We didn't just come to help you, though that was a big part of it. When you were telling us about demons and vampires yesterday, I almost thought you were playing some kind of joke on us all. But I looked in your eyes, and I saw the same look in them that you had when my father took me away."   
  
"Back then you were scared for me, about what might happen to me, and yesterday you were scared for Spike. I knew then that you were telling the truth, but I still didn't want to believe you. When you picked me as one of the team, I didn't accept only to help you; I also accepted so that I could see everything you talked about for myself, so I could make myself believe." The boy finished his speech, and was pleased when she looked at him with dark eyes free from guilt.  
  
Serena opened her arms and hugged the slender boy tightly, being careful of his bruised ribs. She whispered a thank you as she brushed her lips over his cheek and then spoke louder, "Go on back to bed now Ptichka, you need to sleep." The teen gave her a cheeky grin and quickly walked back into his room.  
  
Spike, who'd been silent through the conversation, spoke up now, "You listen to them Nymph. You've got a good bunch of niblets there, but they wouldn't have come unless they really wanted to. Now, where should I bunk down? A few more minutes out here and you'll be taking a large pile of dust back home tomorrow.  
  
Serena threw her cigarette butt off the balcony and headed into the room she shared with Logan. The big man followed and passed her as she stopped in the doorway. "Better stay in here with Logan and me, if you stay with the boys they might forget your 'allergy' and open the curtains on you." Spike nodded, and followed the womans retreating form, closing the door as the first rays of sunlight hit the balcony.  
  
Inside the room, Logan had laid down on one side of the large bed and closed his eyes. He didn't know where Serena was going to put the vampire and was too damn tired to care. Serena had closed the heavy curtains tightly, and then moved the single armchair over to hold them shut. She made sure no stray beams would get through, then turned back the covers and crawled between the sheets, snuggling her back into Logans chest. "Strip down to your boxers and climb in Spike. I'm too bloody tired to think of another place for one of us to sleep." She said, a large yawn following close behind the words.  
  
Spike shrugged off his duster and laid it over the chair, then shed his shirts and jeans, putting them in the same place. Serena giggled at the sight of the vampires' Halloween themed boxer shorts, having given them to the blond as a gag gift the previous year. Spike looked down and saw the reason for her laughter, then tried to glare her into silence. "Bloody hell. Not a word about em tonight eh? Save your jokes for tomorrow."  
  
Serena nodded, trying to hold back the giggle fit. As Spike crossed the room to the bed Logan opened his eyes to see what was amusing his friend. When he caught sight of the black boxers with their broom riding witches and cape wearing vampires, and the words 'happy halloween' over the crotch, Logan snorted in amusement.  
  
"Wait until you see the back Wolvie." Serena said, her giggles having started up again at Logans' snort. The blond vampire gave the laughing pair a rude gesture and climbed into the bed. Unfortunately for Spike, his actions gave them both a good view of the bright orange pumpkin that covered his rear end. Logan roared with laughter and his Nymph went into hysterics.   
  
Spike pouted and grumbled something unintelligible. When the laughter behind him faded away he said, "Better watch how much you laugh at these things mate. The little Nymph has a habit of giving gifts like these to her male friends. Before you know it she'll have you in something I'll find just as bloody amusing." He heard Logan growl softly, and felt Serena let out another silent chuckle. The blond had a feeling she'd already given the gruff man something that was equally as bad as his boxers.  
  
The three exhausted people settled down quietly, spooning against each other as they drifted into sleep. Logan wrapped an arm around Serena, who in turn wrapped one around Spike. The vampire rested his arm over the womans, lacing his fingers through hers. Tangled together, the two men fell asleep with the petite woman between them, and all three enjoyed a long, peaceful, dreamless sleep. 


	12. Crash and Burn

Title: Sirens' Song  
Author: Sinayah  
Disclaimer: I don't own any characters from Buffy, Angel, or Xmen. They belong to very rich people who don't appreciate them as we fanfic writers do.  
Disclaimer 2: The Chapter Title and Lyrics belong to Savage Garden.  
Authors Note: Many heartfelt thanks to my muse Zenura, without her I wouldn't have had the guts to write. If you like this story please review or send me an email, I'd really appreciate hearing what you think. Enjoy!  
Chapter 12: Crash and Burn  
"When darkness is upon your door and you feel like you can't take anymore, let me be the one you call, if you jump I'll break your fall …"  
  
It was about twelve o'clock when Rogue and Kitty woke the next afternoon. Kitty woke first and stared at the wall clock in astonishment, the brunette couldn't believe Serena had let them sleep that late. 'I know we were like, up until dawn but still; Serena never lets us sleep past eleven.' Deciding to check on her guardians, the blue eyed girl turned onto her stomach and stuck her head through the wall between the rooms.  
  
She suppressed a giggle when she saw that Logan, Serena, and Spike were still fast asleep, tangled together in a heap on their bed. 'This is something a sixteen year old shouldn't like, have to see. If they didn't have their clothes on it'd look like an orgy was going on in there.' The thought made her really want to laugh, so she pulled her head back into her own room and let loose with a fit of hysterics.  
  
The brunettes' laughter woke Rogue up, and the redhead looked at her roommate with bleary green eyes. "Whatcha laughing at Kitty?" she asked, the giggles becoming contagious. Kitty put a hand over her mouth and pointed at the wall that separated them from the next room. "The wall is funny? Looks like a wall to me, do the walls in this place talk?" The girl asked, taking a closer look. After the last two days, Rogue was ready to believe anything about this town.  
  
Kitty forced herself to calm down and said, "I don't think so. I looked through the wall to see why Serena or Mr. Logan hadn't woken us up. Come over here and I'll phase us through so you can see." Rogue hurriedly climbed out of her bed and onto the brunettes. Kitty placed a hand on the other girls shoulder and phased both their heads through the wall.  
  
Rogue took one look at the three adults asleep in bed and pulled her head back so she could laugh without waking them. Kitty came back as well and both girls enjoyed a good five minutes of laughter at their guardians' expense. When they'd calmed down Rogue asked to go through again and Kitty obliged. This time the girls restrained their laughter so that they could get a closer look at the trio.  
  
Somehow Serena and Spike had changed places in their sleep and now the blond vampire was between the humans. Logan had his muscular forearm wrapped snugly around the vampires' waist, and Spike was holding the other mans hand. Serena was sleeping with her face pressed to the blonds' bare chest and one of her legs was caught between his. Spike had an arm around the small woman and his large hand was resting on her rear end. All three seemed quite content with their positions and were sleeping soundly to the tune of Logan's soft snores.  
  
The girls pulled back into their own room and looked at each other before giggling once again. "I didn't know Logan swung that way." Rogue got out between fits. Kitty laughed harder and no more was said until they'd regained their composure. When they'd quieted Rogue continued, "Serena sure has good taste in men though. Logan and Spike are gorgeous, especially without their shirts on."   
  
Kitty pictured the sleeping men in her mind and had to agree. "Like, yeah. They're not really my type but still, wow! We like, so need to get the guys and show them. Let's get dressed and go get them." The brunette said, hopping out of bed and running to get to the bathroom first. Twenty minutes later the girls exited their room and went to fetch their team mates.  
  
When Kitty phased them through the door, they were treated to another Kodak moment. Kurt was sleeping alone in the bed closest to the door and they saw him first. The blue teen was sleeping face down with his boxer clad butt in the air, snoring softly. If that wasn't enough to make the girls wish for a camera, the sight in the next bed was.  
  
Evan Daniels and Pietro Maximoff, well known to be bitter rivals, were curled around each other in sleep. Pietro had his snowy white head tucked under Evans' chin, and the dark skinned blond had both arms wrapped around the other teens pale back. Someone had kicked the covers off the bed and the girls saw that the boy's legs were tangled together. Looking into each others faces, the girls both sighed loudly, "Aww that's so cute!"  
  
The sound woke Kurt, who looked over at the intruders and yelped when he realized they were seeing he and his friends sleeping in their underwear. Trying to be cool about it, he turned onto his back and said, "Hey girls, what time is it?" Rogue pointed at the wall clock and after taking a look the boy continued, "Why didn't Serena get us up? We're supposed to meet the other group soon."  
  
By now the sound of people talking had roused Evan and Pietro. Still more asleep than awake, each boy realized that he was snuggled up to someone as yet unknown. Evan tilted his head down as Pietro brought his up, and lips met at the same time their eyes did. Pietro, being as fast to awaken as he was at doing everything else; looked into the dark chocolate eyes of his nemesis and realized he was being held tightly and kissed by Evan.  
  
Evan wasn't much slower than the white haired teen, and both boys broke apart quickly, scrambling to get out of the bed and each others embrace. They stood staring at each other with the bed between them until the sound of three voices laughing turned their attention to the witnesses they'd have to kill.  
  
Rogue and Kitty had collapsed onto Kurt's bed with the boy when they saw Evan and Pietro kissing. As the boys broke apart the hilarity of the situation overcame all three and they began a round of raucous laughter. Looking back at each other, Evan and Pietro came to silent agreement and they stalked around to the other bed, jumping onto it and tickling their team mates until the three agreed never to tell a soul about what they'd seen.  
  
When they had all calmed down, the girls remembered why they'd come in to wake the boys in the first place. "Hey guys, if you think what you did was embarrassing, let Kitty poke your heads into Logan and Serenas' room. Trust me; you'll forget about your little show once you see what the big badass is doing in his sleep."  
  
Kitty held Kurt and Evans hands, and Kurt took Pietro's and all four phased their upper bodies into the next room. The adults were in the same position they'd been in when Kitty had first awoken and the boys had to pull back into their room for a well deserved fit of laughter.   
  
"We better let you guys get dressed so we can go wake them up. Willow, Giles, and Xander are expecting us soon. If you want to save time one of you can use our shower." Rogue said, getting up off the bed and heading for the door. Kitty followed and a second later so did Kurt. The blue teen figured Evan and Pietro could use a few minutes alone.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
With Kurt and the girls gone Evan and Pietro found themselves in an uncomfortable silence. Having been rivals for so long, they were both disconcerted at having woken in such an intimate position for the second morning in a row. If they'd been residents of Sunnydale they might have passed the events off as the hellmouth at work, but they were New Yorkers and didn't know what to say to make things normal between them again.  
  
Belying the falsity of his brash, smart-mouth attitude, Pietro blushed fiercely and gathered his things to take a shower. Evan, being the more naturally bold of the two, gave a couple of false starts before finally saying, "At least no one noticed it yesterday."  
  
Pietro nodded, avoiding the other boy's eyes, "Umm, why did you get in bed with me anyway? I thought you were gonna share with Kurt. You were when I fell asleep." Hating himself for blushing like a girl, the speed demon forced himself to ask the question. Pietro wasn't fazed about waking up with another guy; he'd realized he was gay years ago, but waking up cuddled in Evans arms was another story. The white haired teen had been hiding a crush on the other boy for over a year. That's how their rivalry had gotten started in the first place.  
  
"Umm, I kept rolling over onto his tail and waking him up. He got tired of it and told me to go sleep with you. You were already asleep so I didn't think you'd care. Last night I just slept where I fell. Didn't expect to wake up hugging you and I really didn't expect to kiss you. The girls will probably bug me for weeks to tell them how good a kisser you are; all of them have the hots for you." The dark skinned boy explained.   
  
The secret he'd never tell his female team mates was that even though it was unexpected, and too quick to really judge, was that he'd liked it. Waking up with Pietro in his arms had felt good, and right in a way he couldn't explain. Evan didn't think things with the snowy haired boy would ever be the same again, but something in the back of his mind said that he could make them better, if he was willing to make the first move.  
  
Pietro accepted the explanation, but his hidden elation deflated when Evan admitted he hadn't planned anything. The slender boy had been half hoping Evan had gotten into bed with him because he was beginning to feel the same things Pietro was. As he walked quickly into the bathroom he said, "Yeah, I know they do. Too bad they're not my type; I could have my pick of the girls at school. I'll be out in a minute and you can have the shower."  
  
Evan stared at the closed bathroom door, his thoughts whirling. 'Who's not his type? The Xmen girls or girls in general? Oh man is 'Tro gay? He's always had girls around him, but I can't remember him ever dating one, not even back at our old school. I wonder if he likes me. He's been different on this trip, not as much of an asshole. Must be because of 'Rena. She knew him when he was just a little kid, so he probably can't fool her with the attitude.'  
  
Shaking his blond head, Evan gathered his own shower things and some clean clothes. The shower cut off and a minute later, Pietro was out of the bathroom, dressed in his usual black tee and blue jeans; his white hair perfectly styled. 'Damn he's fine; no wonder the girls flock around him.' Blushing at the thought Evan hurried into the bathroom, hoping the other boy hadn't noticed his chocolate skin darkening.  
  
Pietro quickly packed up his things, then did the same for Evan and Kurt. They'd be going home later and packing now saved time when they came back for their things. Looking at the bathroom door, the teen decided to wait for Evan before joining Kurt and the girls to wake their guardians. He lay back on the bed, wondering how much hassling he'd be taking for almost admitting that he was gay.  
  
Evan took considerably longer in the bathroom than Pietro had, and the snowy haired boy jumped up when he saw the expression on his rivals face. He headed for the door, intent on escape. Evans' face was set in resolution, much the same expression he'd had when he set a trap for a locker thieving Pietro months ago.  
  
Evan placed a hand on the door before the other boy could open it. He was going to try something and he prayed that God or his aunt wouldn't send down a lightning bolt to strike him dead for it. "Hang on a second 'Tro." The pale boy turned to face him, and Evans nervousness was reflected in Pietros' eyes.  
  
"Look man, I'm freaking out even thinking about this, but I have to try it. Hit me if it pisses you off ok? Just don't run away." That said, the dark skinned boy leaned in and touched Pietros' lips with his own. Keeping his dark eyes open to judge the other teens reaction, Evan tilted his head and moved his lips gently but firmly over his rivals, trying to get some kind of response from the stunned boy.  
  
'Evan's kissing me, Evan's kissing me, oh shit Evan's kissing me!' Was all Pietro could think. The speed demon had never thought he'd get a chance like this. The small touch earlier had already burned itself into his memory to be taken out for enjoyment later. Now his lips were again pressed against those of his crush, and Pietro wasn't about to stand there like a statue when he could be kissing Evan back.  
  
Silver blue eyes closed and Pietro relaxed against the other teen, shyly putting his hands on the dark boys' hips. Evan smiled against his mouth and slid his own arms around to caress Pietros' back. Now that he was sure the speedster wasn't going to bolt, Evan let his eyes fall shut and deepened the kiss, running his tongue over the other boys' lips, begging entrance.  
  
Pietro obliged, parting his lips and letting the tip of his tongue touch Evans. As the boys kissed, tongues gently rubbing against each other and pulling back before touching again; their arms tightened around each other until they were pressed together as they had been when they'd awoken. They parted for breath a moment later and smiled into each others eyes.   
  
"Oh yeah, that's nice, more." Evan whispered as his hand came up to cup the back of Pietros' head. Long fingers threaded through the corn silk hair and he brought the pale boys lips back to his own for another kiss. They could've continued like that for minutes or hours, each lost in the new, happy, tender feelings that were coming to life between them. Pietro cursed his over-active brain as he remembered that they needed to leave the room and get on with the day.  
  
He pulled away from Evan, smiling shyly when the boy tried to follow his lips. "Umm I really, really hate to say this, but we need to meet the others before they come looking for us." Chocolate eyes glazed with lust opened, and Evan shook his blond head to clear his thoughts. The dark skinned boy groaned, knowing Pietro was right.  
  
"Yeah, you're right. But next time I do this I'm making damn sure we don't have to be somewhere in a hurry. C'mere, I want one more before we go. Don't know when we'll get another minute alone." Evan said, not quite ready to walk out the door and end the pleasurable moment. Pietro came back into his embrace quite willingly, wrapping his slender arms around Evans' neck and initiating another kiss.  
  
When the teens broke apart a minute later they didn't say anything about the interlude. They simply grinned to let the other know they were happy. Evan ran his hand down Pietros' arm and took the teens pale hand in his own. The snowy haired boy laced his fingers through Evans' and let the boy lead him out of their room and over to the girls.   
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
In Rogue and Kittys' room Kurt had finished showering and dressing and was now sitting on one of the beds chatting with his team mates. "How come you guys laughed at Logan and Spike but just made cutsie noises when you saw Evan and Pietro?" Kurt asked. He was watching Kitty as she combed and braided Rogues red and white hair.  
  
"Because Logan isn't gay and as far as I know, neither is Spike, so it was funny. Pietro's as gay as Mardi Gras and he has a huge crush on Evan, so seeing them all curled up like that was cute." Rogue explained. She'd found out about Pietros' sexual preference when she'd lived with the Brotherhood.   
  
The speedster had wanted to be friends with her, but couldn't get close without the southern belle making a pass at him. Finally tired of having his ass pinched he'd sat her down and explained that while he liked her, he wasn't interested in girls. Rogue had backed off and gotten over her crush on the boy, and they'd been good friends ever since, even after she'd joined the Xmen.  
  
Before either Kurt or Kitty could comment, the objects of their conversation came through the door. Only Rogue was quick enough to catch the boys' hands as they came apart. She smiled and arched an eyebrow at Pietro, who grinned happily back at her. "Well you two like took long enough. Let's go wake up Mom, Dad, and Uncle Spike." Kitty said, not wanting to be too late for their meeting with the scoobies.  
  
Rather than knocking on the adults door, Kitty phased Rogue and Evan through the wall while Kurt teleported with Pietro. They found Serena awake and just coming out of the shower. Logan and Spike were still asleep though, and the older woman smiled and gestured that the teens should go ahead with whatever plan they had to wake the adults up.  
  
The teens approached the bed, keeping out of reach of Logan's claws, and whined loudly in unison, "Daddy, Uncle Spikey wake up! Come on, we're hungry! We've got to meet the other group in a little while!" The five teens collapsed in laughter and Serena wasn't far behind them a minute later when Logan came awake and jumped out of bed, cursing loudly when he realized he'd been cuddling Spike and not Serena.  
  
Spike was slower to wake, and when he did he looked at the laughing teenagers, the chuckling woman, and the cursing man with angry blue eyes. The vampire flipped them the British version of the bird and went back to sleep, muttering loudly into his pillow, "Bloody kids. It's daytime, I'm supposed to be sleeping! You lot go play with the slayers bunch and I'll meet you after sunset. Now shut the bleeding hell up and let 'Uncle Spikey' sleep!"  
  
Serena shooed the giggling teens out of the room, making sure Spike was under the blankets so the sunlight wouldn't burn him. Leaving Logan to shower and dress, she took Spikes cigarettes out of his duster pocket and joined her charges on the balcony.   
  
"Well, what have you five been up to? I heard all sorts of interesting things after Kitty woke me up. And yes Rogue, I do have great taste in men, thanks for noticing." She lit a cigarette as the teens gaped at her. The children always seemed to forget she heard things almost as well as Logan did, and the thin walls of the hotel didn't do much to muffle the sounds of their conversation.  
  
Rogue reached for the cigarettes and Serena pulled them out of the girls reach. She started to put the pack into her pocket, but then cast a wary glance at Pietro. The boy grinned wickedly at her, and she mimicked the expression as she tucked the cigarettes into her bra beneath the halter top of her dress. She raised an eyebrow at the teen, daring him to try to steal the pack now. The snowy haired boy pouted instead.  
  
Logan joined the group a few minutes later, and they walked through town to Giles house, stopping briefly at the Expresso Pump for coffee and muffins. The teens walked faster than their guardians, leaving Logan and Serena to chat. The big man looked Serena over carefully as they walked.   
  
The petite woman had put on a white sun dress that enhanced the beauty of her dramatic colouring. Her waist length blue black hair was left hanging down her back in smooth waves, and she'd put on a touch of makeup to add colour to her pale face. The over all effect of her appearance would've been angelic if not for the many bruises that marred the flesh of her arms, chest, and back. The upper part of her left arm was swathed in bandages to protect the sealed gash.  
  
"How you feelin today Chatterbox? Those bruises look bad." Logan asked, running a callused fingertip over a large bruise on her shoulder. He wished he could've been there to help her fight the demons the previous night. Logan knew that she was a good fighter, but from what Kurt and Willow had described, she'd been outrageously outnumbered and fighting alone.  
  
Serena tilted her dark head up and smiled at the concerned face of her friend. 'He really is an overprotective creature, my Logan is.' She mused happily. Aloud she reassured, "I'm feeling fine Wolvie. The bruises will heal in a few days, don't worry so much." She took the big mans arm to halt him, stood up on her toes and wrapped her slender arms around his neck, pulling him down for a gentle kiss.  
  
Logan forgot his worries when the tiny woman kissed him. He placed his hands on her waist and lifted her off her feet before deepening the kiss. He stood on the sidewalk with his Chatterbox in his arms for a good long moment before releasing her to continue their walk. After a few steps Serena threaded her arm through his and linked their fingers together.  
  
Sunnydale wasn't a large town and it didn't take long to walk from their hotel to Giles home, even with their stop at the coffee shop. Giles answered the door when the group knocked and invited them in. Seeing that the teens were already set with beverages, he offered Logan and Serena a choice of coffee or tea which the pair accepted gladly.  
  
Willow, Xander, and Anya were already seated in the watchers living room when the Xmen arrived. The teens quickly seated themselves, taking the floor so that the three adults could have the chairs and couch. The younger people were already deep in conversation when Logan, Giles, and Serena joined them.  
  
Giles shooed Willow out of his favourite chair and Logan and Serena took the spaces left for them on the couch. Sipping at their drinks, they listened to the teen's gossip for a few minutes before Giles opened the conversation. "Well, umm, I do hope you're all feeling well after your activities last night. We're extremely grateful for your help; I imagine we'd still be mute and looking for a solution today if it weren't for your assistance."  
  
"You're welcome Mr. Giles, we were glad to help. But we didn't come here to help you deal with a sorry bunch of demons. We came here to get Spike, and I fully intend for us to leave with him today. From the tone of his letter, Spike didn't expect that your group would allow him to leave without an argument, especially the slayer." Serena stated, wanting to get the issue of custody resolved before they started chatting about less serious matters.  
  
Giles nodded and sipped at his tea before replying, "I had a feeling this would come up. We don't have a problem with you taking Spike away, to put it bluntly, he's been a royal pain in the arse since he came to us on Thanksgiving. But before you go, I'd like for him to tell us what he knows about the soldiers that captured him. That information is the only reason we took him in and fed him, and he's been reluctant to part with it. I suspect he was only waiting for you to arrive."  
  
It was Serenas' turn to nod thoughtfully. She had figured Spike was holding something valuable to keep himself alive. From what she'd seen of the slayer, the vampire was being prudent rather than merely his stubborn self. "I'll ask him to tell you what he knows. If nothing else, Spike is very observant. He'll have noticed something during his imprisonment that will prove helpful."  
  
"Is that why you kept him chained in your bathtub, half starved all this time? And why Xander had him tied to a chair the night before last?" Logan asked, a deep growl in his voice. Serena had explained earlier that the reason she'd brought human blood back from the demon bar was because she'd seen that her friend was starving on a diet of animal blood. Having strong feelings about forced captivity and torture from his own experiences, Logan was outraged on the vampire's behalf.  
  
"Half starved? We fed him regularly; I got the blood myself from the butchers every couple days. Giles kept him chained at first because he needed to assure himself that Spike couldn't hurt us. The first thing he did when he got out of the lab was come to my dorm room and try to eat me. Though he did offer to turn me, I suppose that was nice of him in an evil sort of way. And he cheered me up too, before the soldiers came to try and recapture him." Willow babbled, going off topic as she had a tendency to do when she was nervous. The hacker hadn't liked keeping Spike chained, and she didn't want the other group to think they'd done it just to hurt him.  
  
Serena smiled at the girls babbling, and then replied. "He doesn't offer to turn just anybody, he must like you. I can understand the chains too, because he can be a real bastard sometimes and he's as good at mind games as his Sire. But he's a vampire, and vampires need human blood to live. Animal blood is a poor substitute and he would've eventually turned to dust from starvation. I thought all watchers knew that, which is why I was rather outraged when I saw him at Xanders."  
  
"You saw him at my house? When? How?" Xander asked at the same time Evan commented, "Outraged? She was out for blood from the minute she read the letter until she woke up yesterday without her voice." The other teens nodded at Evan's assessment of Serenas' mood and Kitty explained their late night visit to Xanders basement.  
  
Giles took the information in and tried to see the situation from the other group's point of view. He hadn't realized he was starving his unwanted houseguest, and he could imagine their outrage over the vampire's second imprisonment. "I didn't know that we were starving him, Spike never said anything about the blood we gave him except that it tasted disgusting. It wasn't our intention to harm him I assure you. We merely wanted to make sure he couldn't harm us or escape until he'd given us the information. He's been free to roam here for the last week. Xander is less trusting than I and tied Spike up while he slept. I won't apologize for the actions we took, it pays to be cautious when dealing with a vampire of Spikes' calibre, but we won't attempt to prevent you leaving with him."  
  
Serena smiled; glad that she wouldn't have to fight the group for her friend. She said as much to Giles, "I won't ask for an apology, and I'll see that you get whatever information he has. I'm truly glad that you don't want to fight me for him, after yesterday I didn't want to have to use my powers against any of you." Giles nodded understanding and sipped at his tea, hating to think of what this group of people could do to he and his charges if they were angry.  
  
"Hey, you never did show us your powers. You said it was something with your voice." Xander remembered. As the only truly normal member of his group, the dark haired young man envied the powers that these people possessed. He wanted to know what other powers someone could be born with.  
  
All the Xmen chuckled at the boys' statement, knowing that he simply didn't remember his hypnosis the previous night. Logan explained his companions' laughter to the scoobies. "She used her powers on you last night, you just don't remember it." When the trio merely gave him confused looks he turned to Serena and said, "You explain it, I'd probably mess it up."  
  
Serena patted his hand and said, "No you wouldn't, but I'll explain anyway." Turning to Giles she began, "I told you yesterday that my mutations resemble that of a sea siren. I hypnotize people with my voice. Until recently, I'd been living as a mute, only using my voice occasionally to protect myself. Just a few weeks ago our mentor, Professor Xavier, found a way for me to work around my mutation. It isn't a great solution, but I wanted to be able to speak, so I agreed to it."  
  
She took a deep breath, and mentally prepared herself for whatever reaction they might have to what she'd done to them last night. "Last night, I started humming and hypnotized your entire group. Once you were under my influence, I gave you the suggestion that you would ignore the power of my voice until I said a certain word. Basically, I've turned you into sleepers. The key word is only a precaution though, in case we're ever forced to fight someone I've given the suggestion to."  
  
The trio's eyes widened in shock. She'd put them all in the position of being her minions. But they could also understand her desire to speak, especially after their experience the previous day. Willow touched a small hand to her throat, and asked, "How long were you mute for?"  
  
Serena answered quietly, still waiting for some kind of outrage at what she'd done to them. "Ten years. My mutation manifested when I was fifteen and I barely spoke after that. Time and long exposure to my voice can help build up a resistance to its influence, but I still couldn't talk to anyone for more than a few minutes without them succumbing to it."  
  
"I suppose we can understand your desire to speak, as long as you don't plan to harm us with your powers. You didn't hurt us last night, and you could have easily. It must've taken a great deal of self control to live without your voice for so long. I honestly don't know how many people could've resisted the temptation to use powers like yours for their own benefit." Giles said. The librarian wanted to trust the young woman and her friends, but all the same he would be researching hypnosis to try and remove the hypnotic suggestion from the minds of his charges.  
  
The conversation lightened after that, and the two groups felt a strong friendship building between them. As the hours passed the cluster of people separated into smaller groups. Rogue had stayed with the adults, sitting quietly beside Logan and listening to the conversation between the three. They discussed a wide range of topics, finding that between the three of them they had a lot in common.  
  
Kitty was chatting with Xander and Anya about mutants and the different types of powers she'd seen. The older boy seemed fascinated by the many different mutations and their value in day to day life as well as in fighting circumstances. She told him about their school, and the mansion, and the sub basement levels that held wondrous things like Cerebro and the Danger Room. Xander decided he'd have to see some of these things to believe them.  
  
After what he'd deemed a reasonable amount of time with the group, Evan had wandered into the kitchen, catching Pietros' eye and gesturing for the white haired boy to follow. The boys were now sitting on the kitchen floor, talking quietly between kisses. They'd made tentative plans to see each other once they got home, and agreed to keep their new relationship a secret for the time being, though Pietro indicated that he thought Rogue already knew.  
  
The last to separate themselves were Kurt and Willow. The redheaded hacker hadn't been able to stop looking at the raven haired boy since he'd shown up. Kurt had noticed her attentions and was glad that his hologram hid his blush. When they seemed to be getting left out of the conversation, he'd asked the girl shyly if she wanted to go hang out in the courtyard. The older girl had nodded eagerly and they'd excused themselves before heading outside.  
  
Once they were seated in the secluded courtyard, neither of the bashful teens knew what to say to each other. After a few minutes of shy glances and faint blushes Willow decided to act her age and speak up. "So, umm, I noticed you have an accent. Where are you from?"  
  
"I'm German. I didn't come to America until a couple years ago." He replied, wanting to say more but not getting any ideas that would keep the conversation flowing. Kurt really wanted to get to know the redhead; her quick acceptance of his natural appearance had piqued his interest. Before her, only Serena and his adoptive parents hadn't needed weeks to get used to him.   
  
"That's neat, did it take you long to learn English? I speak a little German, mostly spells though. Do you like living here? You guys came from New York right? I went there once with my parents, it was umm unusual. But that was before I learned about demons and vampires and everything that goes on here, so New York doesn't seem as strange now. I'm babbling aren't I? Sorry I have a tendency to babble, I've done it all my life. And I'm gonna stop now." Willow replied, as anxious to keep the conversation going as her companion.  
  
Kurt laughed lightly, enjoying her speech. Willow gave him a self depreciating smile and he returned it before saying, "Don't stop babbling on my account, it's cute. I already spoke some English when I came over, and I learned more. It helped when the Professor made these holo-watches for me so that I could go to school with everyone else. I do like living in New York with the others, but I miss my mother and father sometimes. Logan and Serena are good surrogate parents though."  
  
He paused for breath before asking a few questions of his own. "Umm, trying to think of something to ask and coming up blank. Why don't you just tell me about yourself?" The boy sat back as Willow obliged and began telling him about growing up in Sunnydale. When she finished her life story, he gave her his, surprised to realize how easy it was to tell this girl about his life, including the fact that his biological mother was the Xmen's enemy.  
  
Once they'd gotten past the initial awkwardness their conversation flowed easily back and forth. They chatted about anything and everything, finding that they liked a lot of the same things. It was beginning to get late when Willow asked him the question she'd been dying to ask all day.  
  
"Umm Kurt, will you let me see you without the hologram again? I've kinda been wanting to take another look all day but I wasn't sure you'd let me. I umm, thought you were really cute with all the blue and elf ears and the tail. Not that you're not cute with the hologram on because you are and oh goddess I'm embarrassing myself and I'm babbling again and I can't believe I told you I thought you were cute twice and you probably think I'm silly and I'm still babbling so I'll shut up now." Willow took a deep breath after her speech and looked at the boy with pleading green eyes, hoping he'd understood her rapid words, at least the question part anyway.  
  
Kurt looked around the courtyard. There was too much possibility that someone besides Willow would see him if he turned off the hologram here. He had an idea though and said, "Okay, but not here. Give me a minute to talk to Serena and I'll teleport us back to the hotel so no one else will see me and freak out."  
  
Willow nodded and bounced in her seat happily. Kurt smiled at her antics and went into the townhouse. He approached Serena and said, "Hey Serena, it's getting late. Willow and I thought we'd go over to the hotel and get all the bags ready to leave. We can come back with Spike after sunset. Is that okay with you?"  
  
Serena turned to look at her surrogate son and heard the pleading in his voice. She glanced at Logan, who nodded ascent, then replied, "Sounds like a good plan to me, thank you for offering. But don't walk over, teleport. I don't want you two running into something nasty. And make sure Spike knows you're there so he doesn't leave without you." She cautioned with a smile.   
  
"We will. See you after sunset." Kurt said as he turned and went back out the door. He returned to Willow and told her, "I told Serena we were going back to the hotel to make sure everyone's bags are packed. We're supposed to come back with Spike after dark." Kurt held out his hand to the redhead and she grasped it tightly. The pair vanished in a puff of smoke a moment later.  
  
When they appeared in the boys hotel room Willow squealed. "That was fun! Can we do it again before you go?" The redhead asked; her mind already at work over what dimension they'd travelled in and the physics behind teleportation.   
  
Kurt grinned and nodded, "How do you think I plan to get everyone's bags back to Mr. Giles house? I'm gonna go tell Spike not to leave without us, be right back." He vanished, and a moment later she heard him talking to the vampire in the next room. When the voices went silent and Kurt didn't return Willow began to get worried. 'Maybe he changed his mind and doesn't want to show me his real face anymore.' She thought as she wandered around the room, making sure no one had left anything laying around.   
  
Kurt walked in the door a minute later carrying two bags and saw her worried expression. "Sorry I took so long. I checked the girls' room after I talked to Spike. They left a few things out and I had to pack them up. Now we don't have to worry about getting that done before Spike is ready to leave." The boy explained, dumping the bags on the floor near the door and moving the other three bags to lay with them.  
  
"Oh, okay. I kinda thought you might have changed your mind, which you can you know, I won't get mad if you don't want me to see you." Willow said, having to forcefully stop herself from babbling at the boy again.   
  
Kurt smiled and shook his head, indicating that he hadn't changed his mind. He was nervous about letting her get a closer look at him, but determined to go through with it. He liked the girl and was rapidly developing a crush on her. If she accepted his natural appearance on closer inspection, he would feel more comfortable letting her know how he felt. Kurt walked over to the redhead and stood in front of her, "Here goes nothing." He said, and turned off his holo watch. He kept his opalescent eyes on the hacker, watching the expressions play over her face.   
  
Willow slowly looked him over, from head to two toed foot. She took in the blue fur, pointed ears, glowing white eyes, slender but well muscled chest and arms, the hands with only two fingers, long pointed tail, and legs that were bent at the knees to make walking on tridactyl feet easier. After taking note of each feature that made him different from any other boy, she came forward until she was standing close to him.  
  
"I still think you look cute. It just suits you somehow, it looks right. Can I touch?" Willow asked, bringing a small hand up near his face. Kurt smiled a fang filled grin and nodded. Willow pressed a hand to his cheek, smiling as the short, kitten soft fur tickled her palm. She traced the outside of one pointed ear and then ran her hand gently down his arm to bring his hand up towards her face. "Does it make it hard to write, only having three fingers?" she asked, rubbing her thumb over the fuzzy fingers.   
  
Kurt replied, "Nah, I've always looked like this, so I learned to write with three fingers when I was just a kid. Typing can be hard though, my fingers are bigger than the keys." He tried to joke his way around what was becoming an intimate situation. Willow had brought his hand up to her cheek and was nuzzling her face against it. The blue teen was used to being touched, but not by someone he had a crush on. There had been Kitty for a while, but she was like a sister to him now, as were all his female team mates.   
  
Willow was feeling the same nervousness as Kurt. She hadn't touched anyone like this since Oz had left, but something about the blue teen was calling to her, making her want to be near him, to touch him and be touched by him. She looked up into the glowing white eyes that she found beautiful and laid her feelings bare. "Kurt, I don't know what's happening, but I feel something for you. I look at you and there's just something there that makes me want to be close to you. I don't usually lay everything out like this, and the goddess knows it's hard to do it now, but I have to 'cause you're leaving and I don't want to let you go."  
  
Kurt brought his other hand up so that he was cupping her pixie like face between his hands, and softly replied, "I know Willow, and I feel it too. I…I want to kiss you, and hold you, while we still have some time left. Will you let me?" He barely waited for her nod before bringing his lips down to meet hers. As his lips moved against hers, he lowered his hands from her face and wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her forward a step so that she was pressed against him fully. The redhead placed her own arms around his slender form, her fingers clutching the back of his shirt as he deepened the kiss, rubbing his tongue against her lips until they parted and allowed him in to explore the recesses of her sweet mouth.  
  
Willow returned the kiss wholeheartedly. She allowed her tongue to twine around his, and then did some exploring of her own. She ran her tongue over his pointed canines and sharp edged front teeth, then beyond to taste his mouth. The pair stood together in the middle of the hotel room, lost in their embrace. Neither noticed the sun sink past the horizon, or the bleached blond vampire who opened and the quickly shut the door a minute later.  
  
Spike smirked at the closed door. He walked a few steps away, and then sat down to have a smoke. 'So Red and the Elf are getting together eh? Good for them. The blue kid is more deserving of her than that cheating mutt she was with before. I'll give 'em a few more minutes before we go.' The vampire thought as he sat in the twilight, smoking silently.   
  
When he'd finished his cigarette Spike again entered the corner hotel room. He found Kurt and the redhead still standing in the middle of the room making out. The only thing that indicated they'd moved at all was that Willows hands had wandered south since he'd last looked in on them. The bleached blond leaned up against the door jamb and twisted his lips into his trademark evil smirk. "Do I need to break out the oxygen tanks? It doesn't look like you've come up for a bloody breath in the last ten minutes."  
  
Willow and Kurt broke apart, startled out of the sweet interlude by the obnoxious vampire. Kurt whirled around and crouched low, putting Willow safely behind him and growling softly at what he perceived as a threat, at first not knowing who or what had interrupted them. Spike chuckled as he pushed away from the doorway and sauntered in. "Right, growling lessons for you then. That little purr might've intimidated Reds' pet rat. It's supposed to sound like this." The vampire demonstrated a proper intimidating growl, crouching low and letting the sound build up in his chest before it came out in a menacing, predatory rumble.  
  
Willow recovered her composure while Spike was playing 'big bad' and said, "Knock it off Spike; he hasn't had a hundred years to perfect it. Is it sunset already? We only got here a few minutes ago." The redhead looked out the open door and saw that it was fully dark. 'Wow, we must've been kissing longer than I thought.' She mused as Spike chuckled evilly again.  
  
"It was sunset when I checked on you the first time Red. I left you two alone for a good ten minutes while I had a smoke. Now, we better get over to the watchers place before my little Nymph sends a search party for us. She'll be wanting to get home soon, doesn't care for the hellmouth much." The vampire said, picking up four of the duffels and leaving Willow and Kurt to take the other three. He'd brought Logan and Serenas' bags with him and dropped them with the others when he first came in.  
  
Kurt had remained silent, embarrassed over being caught with Willow. He hoped the vampire wouldn't make a big issue out of the intimate pose he'd found them in. When Willow went to pick up the remaining bags he shook himself and took the bags from her, setting them back on the floor and curling his tail through the handles. The blue teen took Willows hand and gestured for Spike to come close enough so that he could take hold of him for teleportation.   
  
Spike grinned; glad he wouldn't have to carry the heavy bags all the way to Giles home. He crooked his elbow for the boy to grasp and a moment later he set his burdens down in front of the watchers door. "Nice way to travel that, have to use it more often." He complimented. Leaving the humans at the door, he opened Giles door and sauntered in. He wandered over to the couch where Serena and Logan were seated and plopped himself down beside the small woman. "'Ello Nymph, sorry we took so long, but I almost had to use a pry bar to separate Red and the Elf. Seems they've taken a fancy to each other."  
  
Serena laughed at her vampire friend and replied, "Really, that's interesting. She seems like a nice girl. Did you get us checked out of the hotel?" she asked. Kurt and Willow came in before the vampire could respond, having stayed outside for a minute to enjoy another kiss. They looked up to find the group staring at them and both blushed. Serena shook her head indulgently and addressed the blue teen, "Kurt, I think you forgot something." When the boy looked around confused she continued, "Turn your watch back on Sweetie."  
  
Taking the groups attention off the brightly coloured pair, Spike answered Serenas' question. "No Luv, I didn't get us checked out; we'll have to send someone back to do it. I'll just grab some dinner before we go; I forgot to take your pressie back to the hotel last night." The vampire wandered into the kitchen to get his blood from the fridge. As the door shut behind him the group in the living room heard him exclaim, "Bloody hell, why me?"  
  
When the vampire got into the kitchen he noticed that Evan and Pietro, who'd been missing from the group, were still in the kitchen, and for the second time that day he'd walked in on a make out session. Tilting his head up to the sky he'd gotten the boys attention by saying loudly, "Bloody hell, why me?"  
  
The pair had quickly separated and tried to babble an explanation but the vampire had held up a hand, "Out, both of you. I don't bloody well want to know, it's none of my business. We're getting ready to leave, so go see if Nymph wants you to do anything before we go." Evan and Pietro quickly left the vampire alone, hearing him mutter, "Too much bloody puppy love around here, must be the hellmouth. If I see any more kissing today I'm gonna heave. Satan, save me from humans in love."   
  
The pair quickly rejoined the group, trying to look nonchalant. Serena, being the ever observant mother, looked them over and cocked an eyebrow. Logan had given them the once over too, but not seeing any bruises to indicate they'd been fighting, he turned his attention to the muffled sounds coming from the kitchen where Spike was still talking to himself. "What's he goin on about?" He asked the boys.   
  
"I got no idea man; he just came in mumbling something about the hellmouth and puppies. There were a couple 'bloodys' in there too." Evan said, hoping the vampire wouldn't fill in the blanks later. The group seemed to accept the explanation, and didn't question the boys about their activities, though both Serena and Rogue were giving the boys knowing looks.  
  
Serena had gathered the hotel room keys and now she handed them to Pietro. "Can you run over to the hotel and get us checked out Ptichka? Kurt forgot to do it earlier." The snowy haired boy took the keys and left the house, speeding through the dark night. "When he gets back we'll take our leave. Mr. Giles, can Logan and I talk to you outside for a moment?" Giles nodded and walked out with Logan. Serena went into the kitchen and asked Spike to join them.  
  
When all four were seated outside, Serena became serious. "Spike, tell Mr. Giles what you know about the soldiers and the place where you were kept." Spike obliged, and the other three paid close attention as the vampire detailed his stay in the lab. He was able to describe the cell block and the route he took to get out. As he spoke, the vampire reached into one of his duster pockets and pulled out a palm sized notebook. Inside the book he'd made several drawings. Faces and descriptions of his captors, other species of demons he'd seen while escaping, and a map of his escape route.   
  
The watcher looked closely at each drawing and read each notation. He held the book in his hand and addressed the vampire, "Thank you Spike. This information is certain to prove useful." The watcher wanted to say more, but couldn't bring himself to do it.   
  
Spike waved off the thanks and replied, "Just let me know if you find out how to get rid of this bloody chip. You help me get back to normal and I'll swear on the Order of Aurelius never to set foot in this town again, at least while you and your slayer are here." He looked into Giles eyes and was pleased to see that the watcher understood the magnitude of his offer. A master vampire didn't go back on a deal when he'd sworn on his clan.  
  
Serena patted the vampires' hand, letting him know that she would do everything in her power to free him. The dark haired woman reached into her pocket and pulled out a business card. She handed it to the watcher and said, "This is the address and phone number of the institute where we live. If you find any information on the chip, or if you need our help, call."  
  
"Nothin good can come from these soldiers. Nothin good's ever come of the government messin around with things they don't understand and I've seen it happen enough to know. You find yourselves in trouble, call us and we'll come. There're more of us back in New York, and together we're one helluva team." Logan added. The big man wanted to get in on whatever fight was coming, he had some issues he'd be happy to work out on the faces of the soldiers and their lab coats'.  
  
Giles thanked the mutants and the four continued to talk amongst themselves until Pietro returned a few minutes later. They walked back into the townhouse and Serena addressed the large group. "Okay kids, let's get a move on. I'm sure Mr. Giles would like his peace and quiet back."  
  
As the young mutants went outside Xander approached Logan and asked, "Can I walk with you guys? I'd really like to see the jet Kitty was telling us about and I think Wills would like to spend some more time with the blue guy too." Logan agreed and with a round of handshakes, the mutants and the vampire left Giles home.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
The walk back to the clearing in the woods took about twenty minutes. When they reached the jet, the teens stood outside talking to their new friends and saying their goodbyes. Email addresses and phone numbers were exchanged with promises to call or write. Logan took Xander into the X jet so that the boy could take a look at the cockpit. Serena stood outside talking with her charges, waiting for Kurt and Willow to come back into view. The pair had gone off to say a private goodbye and Spike had followed behind them.  
  
Away from the rest of the group, Kurt and Willow were speaking quietly, exchanging tearful goodbyes and promises to keep in close touch through the internet. With a last long embrace, the blue teen held out his hand to the redhead and began to walk back to join the rest of the team. Spike intercepted them before they came out of the trees. "Mind if I borrow your bird for a minute? Need to say goodbye to my favourite redhead." The vampire asked. Kurt shrugged and continued on to stand beside Serena.   
  
Willow looked at the vampire nervously, wondering what he wanted to say to her. Spike had a serious expression on his handsome face, and that was never a good thing as far as she was concerned. "Well umm, bye Spike. I hope you like New York." She said, hoping he would let her rejoin the others.  
  
"Hold on a minute Ducks. I need to say something to you." Spike came forward and took the witch firmly by the arms, leaning down slightly to look directly into her elfin face as he spoke. "I'm going to be blunt Red, don't have much time. I like you. I like the watcher and the whelp too. I don't want to see any of you get hurt. Things are gonna get bad from here on out, and I don't need any special powers to know that. The hellmouth is practically vibrating with anticipation of whatever's coming. Whatever those soldier boys are doing, the end result is gonna be worse than anything you've faced before."  
  
Spike reached into his duster pocket and pulled something out, then lifted Willows hand and placed the object in it. "I want you to take this. It's the keys to my DeSoto. The car's parked in the garage of the Crawford street mansion. If things get too bad here, and you need to leave, you grab Giles and Xander, take the car and get out. There's travelling money in the glove box so if you need to run, don't stop to get anything."  
  
Willow nodded to let him know she understood his instructions and he continued, "You don't tell anyone I gave you the car, or where it's kept understood? Not even your friends can know. I have a feeling your life may depend on it being secret. If you have to use it, go to the pouf in L.A. and ring me from his place so I can bring your new friends to come help you."  
  
When Spike finished his cautioning speech Willow stood in shocked amazement. She couldn't believe the vampire cared enough about her and her friends to give them something as dear as his car. 'He must be serious. He loves that car almost as much as his duster. He's right too, something bad is coming, and I might really need his secret escape plan.' She mused, staring into the handsome planes of his face.  
  
A sudden rush of feeling for the blond overcame her and the girl gave in to the urge to hug the vampire. She wrapped her arms around his neck and said, "Thank you Spike. You're right, about everything. I know something is coming and I'll keep the car a secret until I have to use it. I'll try to find some way to fix your chip, I promise, as long as you don't plan to eat me once you're free. I kinda like being alive. You know, I wish you'd said all this sooner 'cause now you're leaving and I don't want you to. You're actually a nice guy when you're not being all 'big bad grr face.' Take care of yourself okay? Don't get dusted."  
  
Spike hugged the redhead while she spoke, a grin hidden in her flaming hair. He released her when she'd finished and said, "Don't let it get out Pixie. With this chip in my bloody brain all I've got left is the image. You take care of yourself too, be careful, and pay attention to the people around you. Especially the people in that class you have with the Slayer on Fridays. Whenever you come back from that class you stink of the place I was kept. Now, let's get back to the rest of the happy meals so I can get out of this hell hole."  
  
The vampire threw an arm around the hacker and she allowed him to lead her back to the group. Logan and Xander were just exiting the jet when they approached. Willow pecked Spike on the cheek, and then left him to say one last goodbye to Kurt. Spike continued over to Serena and asked, "Why don't you give us a tune Nymph? You promised me years ago that when you got control of your powers you'd sing my favourite song for me. I want to hear it now; this place could bloody well use the good vibes."   
  
Since Kitty was busy taking pictures of the group Serena was happy to oblige. She moved out into the open space between the jet and the woods. Her friends turned to watch and were awed by the picture she made. The moonlight made her pale skin and white dress glow, and the stars lit her raven hair. Giving Spike one of her lovely smiles, the Siren leaned her head back and began to sing.  
  
Amazing grace! How sweet the sound  
that saved a wretch like me!  
I once was lost, but now am found;  
was blind, but now I see.  
  
'Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,  
and grace my fears relieved;  
how precious did that grace appear  
the hour I first believed.  
  
Through many dangers, toils, and snares,  
I have already come;  
'tis grace hath brought me safe thus far,  
and grace will lead me home.  
  
The Lord has promised good to me,  
his word my hope secures;  
he will my shield and portion be,  
as long as life endures.  
  
Yea, when this flesh and heart shall fail,  
and mortal life shall cease,  
I shall possess, within the veil,  
a life of joy and peace.  
  
When we've been there ten thousand years,  
bright shining as the sun,  
we've no less days to sing God's praise  
than when we first begun.  
  
The earth seemed to hum in appreciation of the womans song. The trees blew in a breeze that came out of nowhere. Though the hymn was sung in a soft, reverent tone, it was heard for a long distance. In his home, reading through the book Spike had left him, a breeze wafted into Giles living room and the man closed his eyes, listening to the whisper of an old hymn. In a cemetery near the edge of the woods, a teenage couple escaped a group of vampires who had suddenly stopped their attack to listen as the wind brought an intoxicating sound to their sensitive ears. Standing within a few feet of the voice, with tears in their eyes, a group of humans and one vampire bowed their heads. When the sound faded away, the group felt a sense of loss, and with no further words spoken, the mutants and vampire boarded the jet, waving a last goodbye to the two teens they now called friends.  
  
As the plane left the ground, Willow and Xander watched, and they continued to stare long after it had gone. After an extended silence, Xander took his best friends hand and left the clearing, turning back once to look at the place where Serena had stood to sing and whispering, "Wow." 


	13. Hope Has a Place

Title: Sirens' Song  
Author: Sinayah  
Disclaimer: I don't own any characters from Buffy, Angel, or Xmen. They belong to very rich people who don't appreciate them as we fanfic writers do.  
Disclaimer 2: The Chapter Title and Lyrics belong to Enya.  
Authors Note: Many heartfelt thanks to my muse Zenura, without her I wouldn't have had the guts to write. If you like this story please review or send me an email, I'd really appreciate hearing what you think. Enjoy!  
Chapter 13: Hope Has A Place  
"if such a love is meant to be; hope is home, and the heart is free…"  
  
When you have access to a jet that can do mach five, the world becomes a much smaller place. It didn't take long for the weary warriors to return to their home outside New York City. Logan forced the craft to hover over the tennis court long enough for Kurt to teleport Serena and Spike to the ground before directing the plane around to the rear hangar. Professor Xavier met the trio at the door and cordially invited the vampire into his home.  
  
"Well Serena, I see you've accomplished your errand, despite the happenings while you were there. Is everyone alright?" The telepath asked, wanting to take a look at her memory of the events but unable to because of her defences. Serena nodded and opened her mind to the older man, giving him access to some of her memories of their trip.  
  
"The kids are a bit bruised but there were no serious injuries. They did very well Charles, as you just saw. This is Spike by the way. Spike this is Professor Charles Xavier, he owns this place and can boot your pale arse out so be nice to him." Serena replied.  
  
Scott and Jean wandered down from the second story of the mansion, having heard the jet return. The laser eyed boy came forward and introduced himself and the redhead. "Hello, I'm Scott Summers and this is Jean Grey. How was your trip?" Spike shook the boys hand and then looked over to the petulant redhead.  
  
"Call me Spike. Trip was fine, glad to be out of Sunnyhell. You won't get anything trying to read my mind Red, telepathy doesn't work on vampires." The blond replied. He'd seen the girls' concentration and felt the probing. Vampires had a natural immunity to telepathy and empathy; as with their bodily reflections in mirrors, their thoughts created no reflection to a telepath. Buffy had found that out for herself the previous year.  
  
Serena shook her head regretfully. 'Nice way to introduce yourself Jean.' She thought, carefully keeping the rebuke from the girls mind. The remaining team members came into the entryway before she could respond and greeted their mentor and the other two teens.   
  
Pietro walked slowly over to his old friend, wishing he didn't have to go back to the Brotherhoods boarding house. "I better go home 'Rena. Thanks for letting me come on the trip, it was fun." The snowy haired boy turned to say goodbye to the others but Serena took hold of his arm. He turned back to her and saw her gentle smile.  
  
"Stay a while Ptichka. Call Lance and the others and invite them over here for dinner. I'm sure they'd like to hear about our adventures." The raven haired woman offered, not wanting to let her friend go back to the dismal place he called home. The others echoed Serena's offer and Pietro happily accepted. Evan offered to show him where the phone was and the boys went off down the hall.  
  
While the returning team put their bags away and changed into more comfortable clothing, Serena went into the kitchen and began frying meat and chopping vegetables to create a large taco salad for the group. Storm spelled her in the kitchen so that the hypnotist could put her things away and change clothes as well. The two women conversed for a few moments before Serena left the room. Ororo had noticed that her nephew seemed more mature after this trip and since he was unhurt, the weather witch complimented her friend on a successful trip.  
  
Spike was still in the entryway talking to the professor when Serena passed by. The vampire excused himself from his conversation with the telepath and followed his friend to her bedroom. He shut the door behind himself and addressed a large, to his mind anyway, problem. "Nymph, did you think to have someone stock some butchers blood for me? That human blood you got for me at Willie's was gone before we left the watchers and I'm a bit peckish around all these humans."  
  
The small woman smacked herself on the forehead for forgetting the small detail of feeding her friend once they got him home. "Shit, I knew I'd forgotten something. You'll have to drink from me tonight and I'll get some animal blood in town tomorrow."  
  
"Forgetting the chip Luv, I can't bite you without getting a sodding migraine." Spike replied, wanting nothing more than to sink his fangs into his little nymphs' neck and take a sip of the ambrosia that was her life's blood. The amber eyed woman had fed both he and Dru occasionally over the last ten years, so he wasn't surprised in the least by her offer.  
  
"Crap, I'm just forgetting everything today. Wait here a second while I change and we'll get you taken care of for the night." Serena gathered up one of Logans flannel shirts that she'd stolen and a pair of lycra pants, then went into the bathroom to change. Returning quickly she had the vampire follow her back downstairs where she quickly gathered the professor and pushed his wheelchair towards the elevator.  
  
Rogue saw the trio as she came out of the rec room. "Hey guys, what are you doing?" Spike shrugged, not knowing what Serena was up to, only that she planned to get him dinner somehow.   
  
Serena turned to the girl and explained her errand. "Just a little blood transfusion. I forgot to have someone pick up some butchers blood while we were gone and Spike's hungry. Can you run into the kitchen and tell Ororo I'll be there in about fifteen minutes to finish making dinner?" Rogue nodded and turned toward the hallway that led to the kitchen, her emerald eyes clouded in thought. The girl relayed the message to her older team mate and then wandered back to the rec room where her friends were sitting.  
  
She walked over to one of the couches where Evan, Pietro, and Kurt were sitting and leaned over the back to talk to them. "Hey guys, Serena is down in medical having some blood drawn for Spike. I'm gonna go down and give some too, you guys want to donate?"  
  
All three thought about it for a moment before agreeing and getting up. Kurt reasoned that giving some blood was a good way to say thank you to the vampire for allowing him extra time with Willow earlier. Evan and Pietro were a bit more selfish in their reasons, thinking that if they helped feed him maybe Spike wouldn't tell everyone what he'd caught them doing in the watchers kitchen.   
  
As the others got into the elevator Logan asked what they were up to. "Got a little food drive going for Spike. We need to go down to medical so the professor can take some blood from us." Evan explained.   
  
"Tell Wheels I'll come down to have a few pints drawn after the brotherhood gets here. I can spare more than any of you little twerps." Logan relied, knowing his healing power would replace the lost blood instants after it was taken. First he wanted to get the boys settled and make sure they wouldn't start a fight.  
  
Serena was sitting back on one of the hospital beds with a tube coming out of her arm, talking with Spike and the professor when the four teens came in. She looked over to them and asked, "What are you three doing down here? I told you I'd be back in a little while Rogue."  
  
The kids moved close to the bed and Kurt spoke for all of them. "Rogue told us what you were doing and we wanted to donate too. It's our way of saying welcome to the team." As Serena and Spike thanked the teens the professor removed the needle and tube from the small womans arm and set up another IV for one of the kids.  
  
"That's very kind of you children. Whoever wants to go first get up on the bed with Serena. I'm beginning to think we need a larger medical room." Charles said, his admiration for his students growing as they willingly offered their blood. Pietro rolled up the long sleeve of his black shirt and sat on the bed next to his old friend. The dark haired woman took his hand and he smiled back at her as the professor slid the needle into his arm. "This should only take about ten minutes a person, and you'll each need to rest for a few minutes afterwards before going upstairs." The telepath explained.  
  
While the white haired teen had his blood drawn the professor set up another two transfusions at the second bed. Evan and Kurt took their places and Charles quickly got them started. Serena squeezed Pietros' hand and left the bed carefully, making her way over to the other boys to thank them again. She left the room a few moments later to take over the dinner preparations.  
  
Spike was amazed at the group of children his little nymph had hooked up with. The teens had only known him for a day, yet here were the majority of them, having their blood drawn to feed him. Feeling a bit like a ponce, he offered an awkward thanks to each of them and sat between the beds through the procedures.   
  
When Pietro had finished his donation, Rogue sat down beside him so that the professor could take her blood. The snowy haired teen only stayed in the bed a minute before getting up and leaving the room, hoping to meet his team mates when they arrived. Spike ambled over to the girls' side and sat in the vacant place. The vampire had caught a small whiff of fear coming from the girl and wanted to reassure her. "You don't have to make a donation Spitfire, I'll be fine. I'm bloody surprised you all offered in the first place." The vampire commented.   
  
"It's alright Spike, I just don't like needles much. I don't mind giving you some blood, but I think I'd rather have you bite me to get it. Needles freak me out." The redhead replied. Her foster mother Irene had been diabetic and needed insulin shots every day, and Rogue had never gotten over the creepy feeling she had whenever she saw the blind woman inject herself.  
  
Spike gave the girl one of his trademark smirks before wrapping a leather clad arm around her shoulders and squeezing gently. "Trust me Luv, I'd rather bite you to get it too, but that won't be happening any bloody time soon, and there are about a dozen of your friends upstairs that'd stake me for trying." As he was talking, he met her emerald eyes with his azure blue orbs and held her attention while the professor began the blood withdrawal.  
  
Rogue looked closely at the vampire beside her, distracting her mind from the needle in her arm. The redhead had seen beautiful men before, but Spike topped them all in her mind. His deep blue eyes were rimmed with long dark lashes any girl would kill for, pale skin made his prominent cheekbones and firm jaw look even more chiselled. The scar bisecting his left eyebrow gave him a rakish look.   
  
Not a hint of the other face was visible, and the girl looked closely, trying to find even a hint of the ridges and yellow eyes. "Yeah, Logan would take your head off, he's overprotective. So umm, how do you like your new home?" She asked, wanting to have an actual conversation with the blond.  
  
Charles kept an ear open to the dialogue between Rogue and Spike as he finished Evan and Kurts' donations. The two boys relaxed for a few minutes before going upstairs, and when they left the telepath wheeled himself to the redhead's side and joined in the light chatter. When the girl had finished with her withdrawal he quickly removed the needle from her arm and put all five sealed bags of blood in the small refrigerator that was kept in the room.  
  
"Well Ducks, you're all done here. Would milady like a ride back upstairs?" Spike asked, teasing the girl gently. Rogue blushed around her smile and held her arms out to be lifted and carried back upstairs. The bleached blond executed a courtly bow before picking the teen up as if she weighed nothing and striding out the door with her. The professor chuckled out loud at the antics. A moment later Logan entered the medical room and the telepath saw that his old friend was also quite amused.  
  
Logan sat back on the hospital bed and kicked his long legs up, holding out his arm for the professor. "Go ahead and take a few pints Chuck, we might as well keep a stockpile for the vamp. Chatty says he needs human blood on a regular basis to stay healthy, so we'll have to schedule some regular donations."  
  
The professor set up the first bag for the transfusion and replied, "Yes I suppose we should. Serena mentioned something similar before the children came in. She had planned on having a pint drawn every few days. If you and the students are willing to make donations as well we should be able to simply take a pint from all the volunteers once a week." Though Charles was happy to see his Ukrainian friend so joyful he still wanted to have a long talk with the vampire soon.  
  
"What do you think of this creature old friend? He seems to be a pleasant character, but I'm wary of him. Serena was quite honest about the fact that he is a murderer. She showed me some of the things he's done, and it was horrible to watch. Her memories also show that she is herself quite capable of performing similar atrocities, though she focuses her more violent episodes on demons rather than humans." Charles continued. During the history lesson in the ready room, the raven haired woman had been completely honest in both thought and word. Some of the things she'd shown him were so hideous they'd kept him up that night for fear of reliving the images in his dreams.  
  
Logan pondered for a few long moments before answering, "I like him Wheels. He may be a mass murderer but you should have seen him in Sunnydale, especially with Chatty and the kids. He adores her and was great with the brats. The way Rogue and Mr. Giles told it, he saved their asses in a big way last night. I think we should trust him for now, but keep an eye on him until we're absolutely sure about him. Right now he can't hurt anyone, but Chatty'll be wantin whatever they did to him fixed. Before the chip or whatever it is comes out I think we should get a few promises from him."  
  
The two oldest members of the Xmen continued to talk quietly as three pints of blood were drawn from the big mans arm. They agreed to trust the vampire, to honestly give him the chance that Serena had asked them for, but they would watch him closely for a while, until he'd proven himself worthy of their trust. When the three bags of blood were sealed and placed in the refrigerator with the others Logan took the back of his old friend's wheelchair and the two men rejoined their charges upstairs.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
When Logan and the professor exited the elevator they deduced quickly that everyone had adjourned to the dining room for dinner. Serena had set up a buffet style arrangement so that the group could serve themselves. The dark haired woman motioned for them to sit and quickly prepared their meals. "Well hey there you two, you certainly took long enough down there." She greeted with a smile as she set the bowls of taco salad in front of them.  
  
"Yeah well it takes a while to draw three pints through a little needle Chatty. Spike should be set for a day or two. When it runs out I'll go down with you and have some more taken." Logan said before taking a bite of the salad. Serena kissed the big man on his heavily stubbled cheek and thanked him. After making sure everyone was settled down to enjoy their meal she gestured to Spike and the two retired back to the medical room.  
  
Returning a few minutes later, Spike was noticeably calmer. The vampire had taken only two of the bags, but the rich human blood had sated his demon and he could now relax around the large group of humans without the demon roaring in his head to feed. The vampire sat back at the table with a cup of tea and listened to the pleasant conversations around him while his Nymph and her friends ate.  
  
After dinner everyone retired to the common room to listen to a more detailed version of the mission. Spike was introduced to Lance, Todd, and Freddy and everyone watched as first Lance, and then Todd shook the vampires' hand. Neither boy tried to act superior by trying to break the vampire's fingers, and the Xmen teens waited, knowing that they'd leave it up to Freddy to show the blond who had the biggest pair.  
  
Serena had a smirk very similar to the blonds on her face as the enormous teen approached her friend. Though Spike was considered rather short and slender, she knew he had more than enough strength to prove himself in this universal male superiority contest. As expected Freddy took the vampires' slender hand and crushed it in his massive palm. But instead of swearing in pain, Spike merely gripped back with his nearly broken fingers until the super strong mutant winced.   
  
Willing to be gracious, Spike released Freddy's hand and patted the shocked teen on the shoulder. "Word of advice kid, that never works on a vampire. You could make mincemeat out of my hand and I'd still just keep bloody tightening it til you backed off." Freddy was starting to get angry and was about to lift his meaty fist when something stopped him.  
  
Serena had started giggling from her place on Logans' lap and told the group at large, "He would too, the stubborn bastard. I've had to set his broken fingers a few times because he wouldn't give up. Don't get mad Freddy; you can get even with him sometime." The strongman looked over at the giggling woman and realized she wasn't laughing at him, that she was making the whole thing into a joke at the vampires' expense. A smile turned the boy's angry scowl into a pleasant expression and the group sat down to listen to whatever story the returned team had to tell.  
  
The brotherhood boys mixed well into the Xmen group once their nervousness wore off. The fact that Pietro seemed so comfortable, sitting between Evan and Kurt helped them to be at ease, as did Kitty and Serena's smiles and overtures to include them in the conversation. They listened attentively as the five teens who'd gone on the trip detailed their adventures.  
  
About mid way through the account Serena did something that set her on a pedestal in Todd 'Toad' Tolansky's heart. The slimy teen had been eyeing a fly that was buzzing around the room, longing to let his tongue out to catch the insect but afraid of being ridiculed and hearing the disgusted sounds of the group if he did.   
  
The raven haired woman had seen his predicament and without hesitation she'd begun to wave her hand around her head, as if shooing the insect away; though it was buzzing around Jeans head at the time. Catching his grey green eyes with her golden gaze she'd said, "Todd would you please catch that fly? It's annoying the hell out of me." The teen had done as she asked, and no one had made any derisive comments about his actions.  
  
An hour after the fly incident Logan had called a halt to the impromptu party. The big man had stood and plopped Serena down in his vacant seat and said, "Ok twerps, time for bed. You've got school tomorrow and I doubt Mystique is too happy with five of you missing classes yesterday. You can finish your story telling at school or this weekend after your 'anger management course.'"  
  
The group had grumbled for a minute but said goodnight and goodbye to the brotherhood boys under his stern glare. While the six Xmen teens went upstairs to get ready for bed Serena had escorted the four boys to the front door. "Well then, this has been a fun night. I'll look forward to seeing you all bright eyed, bushy tailed, and on time Saturday morning." She said as she opened the front door.   
  
Pietro approached her first and replied, "We'll try 'Rena, but don't count on it. Thanks for letting me go to Sunnydale with you, it was fun." He'd shyly opened his arms for a hug; wanting at least a small part of the bedtime ritual Evan and Kurt would be getting and not caring if it made him look silly in front of his friends.   
  
Serena had held him tightly and softly kissed his cheek, then shooed him out the door with a playful smack to his backside. "Thank you for coming Ptichka, you were a great help, even if you are a thieving little brat. You did very well in California, I'm proud of you." She graced him with one of her pretty smiles before turning to the other three boys who were waiting to say goodbye.  
  
The trio approached the small woman and Lance acted as their spokesperson. "Umm, thanks for inviting us to dinner, it was really good. We'll try to be on time Saturday, but like Pietro said, don't count on it. We're uh, we're glad you got your friend back; he's pretty cool for a walking corpse." The other two boys nodded their agreement with their leader and they started to walk to their jeep.  
  
The dark haired woman held out a hand to stop them before they crossed the threshold. Wanting to give the three lonely boys a friendly hug, but not offend them she teased, "What, you don't think I'm going to let you tease my Ptichka for getting a hug and kiss do you? You come here and get the same treatment." Not giving them a chance to do more than stare at her in shock, the little woman hugged and kissed first Lance and then Todd.  
  
Pietro laughed as his friends blushed, and then watched in amusement as Serena looked Freddy up and down, trying to figure out how to embrace the teen. Her head barely reached his chest and there was no way she could get her arms around him. She backed up a step and considered the problem a moment before holding out her arms and demanding, "Well then, pick me up Freddy. I'm just too short to reach you." The large teen had made a strange noise in his chest and his face became bright red as he lifted the woman up so that she could give him a hug. The other boys thought Freddys' face would explode with embarrassment when she bussed her soft, full lips over his cheek.  
  
Serena had to whisper to the teen to put her back down when he didn't do it right away. The four boys walked down the steps and piled into their jeep, and waved at her as they drove off. Serena sighed, her shoulders slumping. She wished they didn't have to go, that they would choose to stay in the mansion. Logan and Spike were both waiting for her as she closed the door a minute later.   
  
Spike told her that they would come around, given time and in Freddy's case, more of her cooking. Logan pulled her into a half embrace before saying, "You're doing your best Chatty, and it's working. You made them all feel real good just then. I doubt any of em can remember the last time someone gave them a hug; let alone a kiss. And Hoppy has a huge crush on you now because of that fly thing. Spike's right, just give em some more time and a lot more home cookin."  
  
"I know, but I hate seeing them go back to that dismal place. They're just boys Wolvie; they need someone to take care of them." Serena replied, thinking of the run down boarding house Mystique had them living in. She'd driven by the place a few times and thought it needed to be condemned.   
  
Forcing herself to remember that she still had six children who were waiting upstairs for her to come in and say goodnight, she moved out of Logan's embrace and headed upstairs, continuing as she went, "I'm going to put the kids to bed. Why don't you two find out if Charles has a room in mind for Spike and make sure it's sun proofed."  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
While Spike and Logan were checking out the suite Charles had had prepared for the vampire, Serena said goodnight to each of the kids. She wanted to get them all tucked in bed quickly so that she could retire to the kitchen for her nightcap with Logan, but the teens had other ideas.   
  
The visit to Jeans room was, as normal, brief and to the point. She knocked softly on the door and waited for it to open. The young redhead was in bed and greeted the older woman, "I picked up my stuff and my alarm's set, goodnight Siren." The dark haired woman said goodnight and shut the door behind her.  
  
Her visit to Scotts' room was also brief, the laser eyed teen thinking himself too old for the attention she lavished on all the students. He allowed her to sit beside him for a moment, and kiss his forehead, but he looked after his own belongings. They spoke for a few minutes, about the trip and Spike, and then Serena left the boy to sleep.  
  
Rogue and Kitty were sitting on their beds talking when the older woman came in. Unlike Jean and Scott, the two girls were more than happy to let their friend take care of them. They conversed enthusiastically about their trip while Serena tidied their room and put their duffel bags away. The raven haired woman had to promise to tell them about her travels with Spike and Dru the next day before the girls allowed themselves to be tucked in and kissed goodnight.  
  
Kurt was in a buoyant mood when Serena came in to visit him. He'd emailed Willow earlier and the redhead had already sent him a reply. The blue furred teen lay back on his bed and talked with the hypnotist about his new love. He told her about their mutual attraction, and about the embrace they'd shared in the hotel room, though he didn't go into detail on the make out session. Serena had shared his enthusiasm, happy that her surrogate son had found someone who cared for him despite his abnormal appearance. She talked with the boy for a good fifteen minutes before finally making him close his eyes and go to sleep.  
  
Evan's room was her last stop for the night. Ororo had already been in to talk with her nephew and the dark skinned boy was fast falling asleep. Noticing that either the boy or his aunt had gotten the room in order, she simply sat down at the boys' side and said, "So Evan, what's going on between you and my Ptichka eh? You two got awfully cosy in Sunnydale, and don't think I didn't hear quite clearly what Spike was muttering about as you left the kitchen."  
  
The teen stared at Serena, shocked into speechlessness. His thoughts whirled, trying to find a viable excuse for what he had been doing with Pietro. The new feelings he had for his old nemesis were still confusing to him, he didn't know how to explain them to the older woman. "Umm, I don't know what you're talking about?"  
  
The sentence came out as a question rather than the denial Evan was trying for. Serena chuckled softly and gave him one of her all knowing smiles. "Of course you do. You and Pietro were making out in the kitchen if I'm not mistaken, and Spike caught you. You find you actually like him, but you don't know why, or how to explain it yes? You just know you want to be with him, be his boyfriend. And I'm guessing you think you have to hide it from everyone, because some might not understand, or accept the two of you; am I right?"  
  
Evan looked closely at his friend, seeing nothing but love in the golden eyes. "You understand me better than I do 'Rena. It just happened this morning. We woke up together and umm, accidentally kissed. After that things just kept going, and we ended up making out before we woke you guys up. It's so weird, I never thought I'd umm like another guy that way, and I really never thought I'd be having feelings for Pietro. How did you know anyway, besides Spike I mean, you were giving us weird looks all day." A blush darkened the boys chocolate skin and he couldn't meet the womans eyes.  
  
Serena patted Evans' cheek gently and replied, her accent becoming heavier as it did whenever she spoke of the past. "My Ptichka, he always wears his heart here," she gestured to her shirt sleeve, "out in the open where everyone can see. When he was a boy, it was natural for him to show and tell how he felt. But the years, growing up, he thinks he has to hide himself away. His heart is still there on his sleeve, but now he does this." Serena crossed her arms defensively over her chest.   
  
"He covers his heart, acting like a brat, being the bad boy. It is his defense, to keep from being hurt. But I know him well, and I can see. He cares for you deeply Evan, but he's scared to tell you, afraid you are playing with him. His father, I met the man once; is a cold, unfeeling bastard. He hurt Pietro, denied the boy his love, and he tried to make the child into a younger version of himself." The dark haired woman shook her head to clear the painful memories away. When her darkened amber gaze met the teens, she saw that he understood.  
  
"You really love him don't you? Pietro I mean. Look, I'm not sure what's going on between us, but I won't hurt him 'Rena. Not on purpose anyway. I like him, especially when he drops the badass act. Just umm, just don't tell anyone about this, please? The others would go ballistic, I know it." Evan took her hand as he spoke, his eyes as well as his words pleading for her to keep the secret. He'd seen the way Scott lectured Kitty for her friendship with Lance, and could imagine what the team leader and the other Xmen would say and do if it got out that he was involved with Pietro.  
  
Serena squeezed the teens' hand and gestured for him to lie back down. "Most of them already know there is something going on. Rogue knows as much as I do, I'd bet. Kurt and Kitty both know that Pietro has feelings for you, but not that you return them. I won't say anything to the others for now, but they will find out eventually."   
  
"Neither of you are very good at covering your feelings around each other; and you live with two telepaths. I think Charles would be fine with the two of you seeing each other, but Jean is another story. I will show you both a few tricks I know to keep her out of your heads. I should do that with all of you kids anyway. Now go to sleep, you have a busy day tomorrow, planning on how to get my Ptichka alone and kiss him senseless." The hypnotist smiled brightly as Evan blushed, but obediently shut his eyes.  
  
She crossed the room and opened the door, but the teen's voice made her turn, "What does his nickname mean? The sound of it suits him, but I don't know what you're calling him." Serena smiled again, knowing that the pet name she had for the snowy haired boy suited him in more than just sound.  
  
She clucked her tongue and chuckled before replying, "Ptichka, he would have my head if I told you. You want to know, you ask him. Goodnight Evan." She shut the door on the boys' quiet laughter and made her way back downstairs.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
In the kitchen Serena found the other adults sitting at the table chatting over cups of tea and coffee. Storm had started the dishwasher earlier, which left the hypnotist free to sit with her friends and join the conversation. She sat between Logan and Spike, and asked the vampire, "Did you find a room to sleep in? We'll have to hang some blankets over the windows tonight, but I'll get some blackout curtains tomorrow."   
  
Spike smiled at his thoughtful friend and replied, "No need Nymph, your professor thought about that. The room he gave me already has heavy curtains, and only southern exposure so I should be fine during the day. Right down the hall from your room it is, and a few bloody steps higher than being chained in a bathtub, I'll tell you. Gotta thank you for that again Professor, I appreciate you letting me stay with the Nymph."  
  
Charles nodded and replied, "No need Spike, we all agreed to let you stay. Serena assures us that you'll be a great asset to the team." The telepath was anxious to talk with the vampire, both about what he and Logan had discussed, and about Spikes long and adventurous life. He decided he would give the blond time to adjust to life at the mansion before asking his questions, just a day or two so that he could organize his thoughts.  
  
"Right, I don't know how much of an asset I'll be with this bloody chip in my head, but I'll do what I can. Already promised the blue kid some growling lessons. I could probably give the rug rats some pointers on fighting too." Spike replied. He's only seen one of the teens fight, and had been impressed, but he knew a few tricks that could help them with their style.  
  
Serena wanted to help her friend fit in, and she spoke up, "Spike is great in hand to hand combat. He trained me, and even Wolvie was impressed with my fighting when I first came here. Logan, you ought to show him the Danger Room, he could help you design all the new training courses you want to make up for the kids."  
  
The five adults conversed for a while, but eventually called it a night. They all had things they needed to do the next day and were tired. Ororo took the back of Charles wheelchair and pushed the telepath to his room before adjourning to her own. Logan left next, heading for his room and a hot shower. Serena walked slowly with Spike to see the room the professor had set up for her friend.  
  
The lavish suite was at the back of the house, on the second floor with the kids, herself, and Logan. Though it was simply decorated, Serena was sure Spike would make himself at home in no time. "I have all the stuff from New Orleans down in the lower levels Spike. We should go through your trunks and see what there is to decorate the room with. All your books, weapons, and mementos would turn this place into a museum."  
  
Spike nodded absently, his mind on other things. He was a bit shell shocked over the group's easy acceptance of him. All the kindness was bringing out the remnants of William the Bloody Awful Poet that still existed inside him. It was unusual for the vampire to feel grateful, and he thought he'd acted like a nancyboy all night. He sat down on the huge king sized bed and gestured for his old friend to come to him. "C'mere Nymph."  
  
Serena sat in her friends lap, the seriousness of his tone making her worry. Spike wrapped his arms around her slender form and held her close, delighting in the warmth of her body. "I don't know how to tell you what I'm feeling without sounding like a bleeding ponce Luv. When I found you in that alley and Dru said we had to help you, it was easy for me to just pick you up, take you home, and take care of you. We both waved off your thanks, it didn't mean anything that you were grateful to us for saving your life, it was just something we did."  
  
The woman raised her honeyed eyes to meet his and started to speak, but Spike pressed his fingers to her full lips to silence her. "I know Luv, you don't have to thank me again. What I'm trying to get out is, bloody hell. I want to thank you. Sunnyhell was like that alley ten years ago; you picked me up, brought me home, and you're taking care of me. I don't suppose you want my thanks any more than I wanted yours, but I had to say it. You and your friends, I owe you all a lot. I'm not used to feeling grateful, especially not to humans. I won't mess this up Nymph, you have my word, I won't make you regret caring enough to come and get me."  
  
"You're right Spikey, I don't want your thanks, and you don't owe me anything. I love you, you silly vampire. I would've gone to you come hell or high water. When I told the others about you, I didn't think they'd volunteer to help. I was prepared to leave the life I made here, all my friends, to rescue you. I almost cried when they decided to help, and let you stay here with me. They're good people Spike, and I know you'll like them as much as I do when you get to know them better, and you won't mess this up because you like them." Serena replied, hugging her vampire friend, the man she called saviour.   
  
Spike pressed a kiss into her sweet smelling hair, and said, "I love you too my little Nymph. You and Dru are the best things that could've happened to me, besides Angelus turning me that is. Have to take you to see that prancing pouf soon, I bet he'd just love to see you again. Now piss off and go to bed, let a vamp get some sleep, I'm sure those kids you love so much will be waking you up early to get em off to school."  
  
Serena laughed at the vampires' comments, and got off his lap. She kissed his cheek lightly before leaving him to his thoughts and rest. Her smile stayed with her as she passed each of the boy's rooms on her way to her own. 'Charles is a genius, he's got this floor planned perfectly. Wolvie and Spike at each end and me in the middle. There's no way the kids can sneak out without one of us hearing. Well other than Kitty and Kurt that is.' She thought idly.  
  
The grandfather clock downstairs began chiming the midnight hour as Serena opened the door to her bedroom. She made her way to the adjoining bathroom without noticing the surprise waiting in her bed. Logan was lying on his back, an amused grin on his face as he waited silently for her to come out of the bathroom and notice him. Soon enough she did, exiting the bathroom after brushing her teeth and tying her hair back. "Ack! What're you doing here Logan? I thought you went to bed a while ago."  
  
"Only long enough to shower Chatty. Come get in bed, I'm gonna sleep in here tonight. Can't believe I slept with ya two nights in a row and wake up right at least once. Tonight I'm gonna fall asleep holdin you and wake up the same way, with my voice." Logan explained. The big man wanted to talk with Serena too, but that would wait for another time. They'd started something in California and he fully intended to keep it going. Having the little woman sit on his lap, and bestow friendly hugs and kisses wasn't enough any more.  
  
Serena gave him one of her smiles, though she was exhausted and just wanted to fall into bed and sleep. She climbed under the thick comforter and curled herself against Logans body, saying sleepily, "Too tired to argue with you. Gimmie kiss and go to sleep." She lifted her head to receive the gentle press of his lips, then closed her eyes and sighed in contentment as his arms wrapped around her. The pair was asleep in moments, soft smiles on their faces, their dreams sweet. 'Home, sweet home.' Was the last thought that projected itself to Professor Xavier and he listened with his mind to the sounds of the house settling itself. 


	14. I'm With You

Title: Sirens' Song  
Author: Sinayah  
Disclaimer: I don't own any characters from Buffy, Angel, or Xmen. They belong to very rich people who don't appreciate them as we fanfic writers do.  
Disclaimer 2: The Chapter Title and Lyrics belong to Avril Lavigne.  
Authors Note: Many heartfelt thanks to my muse Zenura, without her I wouldn't have had the guts to write. If you like this story please review or send me an email, I'd really appreciate hearing what you think. Enjoy!  
Chapter 14: I'm with You  
"Take me by the hand take me somewhere new, I don't know who you are but I'm,  
I'm with you. I'm with you…"  
  
The next morning started a few new trends at the mansion. Serena woke early out of habit, but instead of jumping up to get her morning routine done so that she could be downstairs with breakfast waiting for the kids; she snuggled back down into the warm body that was holding her. She spent a few minutes just looking at Logan, his strong features softened in sleep, ocean blue eyes closed so that the thick black lashes swept his blade like cheekbones. His full lips, usually set in a stern frown, were slightly parted and tilted up at the corners. The softest of snores issued from him as he slept, the sound more soothing than annoying.  
  
Unable to resist the temptation, Serena brought her lips to his, and woke him in the fashion he'd expressed a desire for the previous night. Logan woke slowly, a 'huh' sound on his lips, as his bed partner delicately licked at his mouth trying to get a reaction from him. Realizing that he was in Chattys' bed and that the small woman was kissing him awake, Logan closed his eyes again and pulled her tighter against him. He kissed her back with lazy passion, his tongue duelling with hers until they had to part for breath.   
  
"Now that's the way I wanna wake up." The big man stated as he stretched his heavily muscled frame. He'd worn only his boxer shorts to bed and was now treating Serena to a free show. The womans golden eyes roamed over his body, lingering on his furry barrel chest and…lower portions. Logan looked like a big cat as he stretched, arching his back off the mattress and curling himself in various positions. A growly yawn made its way out of him, the low sound almost a purr.  
  
"Morning Wolvie, glad you liked it. Too bad we can't stay in bed and enjoy waking up a while longer. The kids will be getting up soon and I need to have their breakfast ready." A soft sigh issued from her lips as she continued, "The last thing we need is Kurt getting in trouble for being late; if I don't feed him he'll stop at that rat stand for one of his 'burger bombs'." Serena got up and returned Logans' earlier favour by stretching languorously.  
  
Logan grunted at her, and started to get up, but was stopped by the site of his dark haired bed mate walking to her dresser and bending over to pull out some clean clothes. He growled, "Keep showin me that curvy little ass and we will be stayin in bed; probably for a month or two. Gawd woman!" Serena, still bent over her dresser, looked back at the big man. She saw that he was staring; mouth agape, at her rear. Giggling at the evil thoughts in her mind, she faced the dresser again and wiggled her derriere.  
  
Her teasing actions sparked the same kind of response in her friend. Logan stood and crossed the room, coming up behind Serena as she stood. He took her by the shoulders and spun her around, then kissed her thoroughly. Pulling back to look into her clouded eyes, he smirked and proceeded to swat the woman on her backside, twice. "That's for teasin me; and that's for stealin my shirts to use as p.j.'s. Didn't think I noticed did ya?"  
  
Serena made a face at the man and rubbed her stinging butt. "No I didn't, but since you know, I'll just nick a couple more next time I do your laundry. They make great pyjamas; now go on back to your room and let me get dressed." Logan leaned in and kissed her once more, his large hand coming around to join hers in rubbing the soreness from her behind. When he finally turned to leave, the evil glint was back in Serenas' eyes and she swatted his rump with a fair amount of strength. "That's for my sore arse."   
  
The two grinned at each other and Logan quietly left the room, shutting the door behind him. As the raven haired man walked down the hall, he heard the first alarm clock go off. Knowing that his charges would be up and about in a few minutes, he quickened his pace. 'Have to keep up appearances; the brats expect you to be downstairs frowning at the newspaper by the time they come in for breakfast. Don't know about the frown, but I'll be in the kitchen alright. Gotta pay Chatterbox back for the smack on my ass. Damn but that woman is fun to be with.' He mused as his bedroom door closed behind him.  
  
Half an hour later the six teens plodded, teleported, or phased downstairs. It took them a moment to realize that this was no ordinary morning. There was food on the table, and their surrogate parents were in the room, but those were the only things resembling normalcy. Logan and Serena were standing next to the window seat, making out. All six would swear that they had seen Logan actually grin; not his normal sardonic smile or evil smirk, but a big goofy grin; when Serena patted his denim covered butt. As a chorus, they'd all said, "Huh?"  
  
"Oops. Bloody hell Wolvie, I knew I shouldn't have let you in the kitchen this morning. Go sit down, I'll bring you some coffee. Morning kids, did you all sleep well?" Serena took no notice of her charges shocked stares, they all knew she and Logan were close, and it didn't matter to her if they knew that the two were now an item. When no one responded she continued, "Oh quit acting as if you'd never seen two people kissing before. Sit down and have your breakfast."  
  
Trying and failing to wipe the grins off their faces, the teens sat, and Scott was the first to comment. "So Evan, who has today in the pool?" The group laughed, even when Logan growled and held up a fist at them. Serena chuckled and told the laser eyed boy that she believed today was one of Kurts'. This sent the teens into another round of laughter. They hadn't thought Serena and Logan knew about the betting.  
  
The room quieted after that, and Serena brought out coffee for she and Logan. The pair sat in the window seat, listening to their friends chatter. Rogue informed Serena that she'd closed the curtains in the second floor hallway so that Spike could move around when he woke up. The woman thanked her friend, remembering that she'd have to close some on the first floor so that the vampire could get downstairs.  
  
After breakfast Jean, Rogue, Kitty, and Scott piled into the convertible and drove off. Evan was right behind them on his skateboard. Kurt planned to teleport to school, so he had some time before he had to leave. He talked with Serena and Logan for a couple minutes, then said goodbye and vanished in a puff of fragrant smoke.  
  
"Well Chatty, now that the kids are off to school, why don't we pick up where we left off?" Logan grabbed his little woman and pulled her into his lap. Serenas' laugh was muffled against her companions' lips. Knowing that they had some time before duties called them away from each other, the pair relaxed into a lengthy, passionate embrace.  
  
Charles and Ororo, who were taking a morning stroll through the gardens, passed by the kitchen window and saw the pair engaged in a tender moment. Logan had leaned back against the wall and bent one leg up, booted foot resting on the seat. Serena was curled between the mans thighs, her upper body cuddled against his muscular chest and her long dark hair fell loose and wild over the arm that held her. Logan was pressing soft kisses against her face as she ran her fingers through his hair.  
  
"They look very good together, I am happy that they've finally decided to start a relationship." Storm commented as she and the professor stopped to watch the cheerful scene. The weather witch had hoped that her friends would become a couple. They made each other happy.  
  
Charles agreed, "Yes, they compliment each other well. I've known Logan for many years now, and I've never seen him as light-hearted as he is with Serena." The telepath was mildly tempted to scan Logan's thoughts, to experience for a moment the tender passion his old friend was giving and receiving with the little hypnotist; but he resisted the urge, unwilling to intrude on his friends mind.  
  
In the kitchen, Serena pulled back and rested her head on Logans' shoulder. Looking out the window, she spotted Charles and Ororo under a tree and commented to the big man, "Take a look outside Wolvie, we've got a couple of peeping toms." Her tone was amused, and Logan raised his gaze from the top of her head, glancing outside.   
  
"What say we join em Chatterbox? Have a little walk before we have to get to work." Logan offered, though as far as he was concerned the rest of the world could go to hell while he stayed in the window seat with Serena. She nodded consent, though her mind was in full agreement with Logans'. He ran one long fingered hand through her mane of dark hair, and kissed her kiss bruised lips once more before they got up and went outside.  
  
The morning passed quickly as the older members of the Xmen walked through the gardens, talking about this and that. When they returned to the house Ororo pushed the professors' wheelchair into his office and stayed there with her mentor, helping him with the day to day paperwork. Logan and Serena parted at the front door with a last heated embrace. "See you later Sweetheart. I'm gonna go work on the bike, call me when the bleached guy gets up and I'll show him the Danger Room."   
  
"Have fun Wolvie, I'll get you when Spike wakes up. Try not to get too filthy working on your baby, the grease is a nightmare to get out and I want that shirt for a nightie." The woman replied cheekily. When Logan gave her a look she interpreted to mean 'I'm gonna spank your butt again' she turned and trotted away quickly, grinning at him over her shoulder as she went back into the kitchen to clean up the breakfast mess.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Morning also passed quickly at Bayville High. The tension that normally lay between the Xmen and the Brotherhood was almost completely gone after their get together the previous evening. Lance passed by Scott in the hall between classes, and instead of stopping to insult each other, they just nodded politely and kept walking.   
  
Kurt and Todd shared second period and usually glared at or insulted each other, but today the black haired teen voluntarily sat next to the Brotherhood member and they talked a little when the teacher wasn't looking. Rogue had some trouble with her locker and would've been late to home room if it hadn't been for Freddy, who gave the locker a light punch on his way past to unstick it. The redhead shared her first class with the huge boy and offered him a 'thank you' when she sat at her desk just before the tardy bell rang.  
  
A few minutes after the bell for lunch break sounded, Evan and Pietro were nowhere to be found. A note left in the white haired boys' locker between classes had asked him to meet Evan in Forges' old lab at lunch. The speedster had tried extremely hard not to rush to the building as soon as the bell sounded. Even without using his sonic speed, Pietro arrived a few minutes before his crush.  
  
Just as Pietro was starting to get nervous, Evan arrived. In the dark skinned boys' arms was the reason for his lateness. The boy had brought both lunch and a daisy to his new boyfriend. He set his offerings on the ground and faced the angel faced teen, "Hey 'Tro." He greeted with a nervous smile.  
"Look man, I'm not quite sure how this works. You're the first guy I've ever been with and I don't really know what to do with you. If you were a girl it'd be easy, I bring you a flower," he held up the daisy, "I get a smile. Add in some chocolate," A chocolate bar came out of his pocket. "I get kissed." The dark boy babbled.   
  
Evan looked down at the small gifts in his hands and shrugged before meeting Pietros' eyes again. "But you're a guy, and I realized last night that while I may like you, a lot, I don't know much about you. I don't know what to give you to make you happy. You're gonna have to give me some clues on how to go here." When he finished explaining, Evan held out the tokens he'd brought, hoping that Pietro would appreciate the fact that he'd tried.  
  
The snowy haired boys face lit with delight, and the grin he offered was genuine. He came forward and took the flower and candy, then pressed a kiss to Evans' cheek. "Thanks Ev. I'm not really the flowers and candy type, but it's the thought that counts. You didn't have to bring me anything to make me happy, I'm just glad that you came, that what we started yesterday meant something."  
  
"Ok, no more daisies or chocolate, but can I get a kiss anyway?" The dark skinned blond asked, a teasing smile on his handsome face. Pietro nodded and pressed his lips to Evans. Drawing back for a much needed breath a moment later, he took his boyfriends' hand. Pulling the blond behind him, Pietro picked up the food and led Evan over to the wall of the building.  
  
"Sit down Ev, let's have lunch. Thanks for that too by the way." Pietro said. Evan sat down on the dusty floor, crossed his ankles, and reached up to take the food from the white haired boy. Pietro gave him the bag, but didn't sit down. He crouched instead and shook his head, then took hold of the dark boys' foot and pushed his legs apart. When Evan arched an eyebrow at him, he smiled, and quickly settled himself into the newly cleared space.  
  
When he was situated comfortably, his back pressed to Evans' chest, Pietro sighed contentedly and said, "Here's a clue, I like to cuddle." Evan laughed lightly, relaxing. He kissed the snowy hair and wrapped one arm around the teens' stomach. Pietro grabbed a sandwich out of the bag and started eating. Evan followed suit and the new couple enjoyed a quiet meal.  
  
After they'd finished eating, Evan said, "'Rena knows, about us I mean. Man she scared the hell out of me last night. She came into my room and asked me straight out what was going on between us." The dark skinned boy chuckled at the memory.  
  
"I figured she knew, she's the closest thing to a real mom I've ever had, and it shows; she sees and hears way too much. Is she ok with it, with us?" Pietro responded, dearly hoping the raven haired woman would understand and accept them. He'd only been reunited with his old friend for a week, but his love for her was as strong now as it had been when he was a child.  
  
Evan nodded and explained, "She's fine with the idea, and happy for us. She told me some things about you, when you were little." He grinned at the thought of a small Pietro and continued, "She really loves you man, not just the kid she remembers either, she loves who you are now too." The dark boy finished speaking and ran his fingers softly over Pietros' cheek and through his silky white hair.  
  
Pietro smiled, knowing what his boyfriend said was true, he'd felt Serenas' love from the moment she set eyes on him in Mystiques' office that day. "I know she does, 'Rena loves everyone. Well except for Mystique and my father. What did she tell you about me? Please say she didn't translate my nickname for you. I love it when she calls me that, but man if anyone found out what it means I'd never be able to show my face at school again." His speech became fast as he spoke, his nervousness over his nickname becoming apparent.  
  
"I asked, but she wouldn't tell me. Said you'd have her head if she told and that I should ask you if I really wanted to know. Must be really embarrassing huh? She told me a couple of things, mostly to help me understand you." Pietro gave him a confused look; he didn't think he was that hard to understand.  
  
"She said you wear your heart on your sleeve, but you've learned to hide it behind the bad boy attitude. She also told me that you care for me a lot, but were afraid to tell me yourself because I might be playing with you." Evans' tone was serious, and before he continued he took Pietros' chin between his fingers and lifted the young mans head so that he could meet the silver blue eyes.  
  
The snowy haired boy was tense now, not knowing what to say. It was all true, he did care for Evan, and he was scared to tell him. Magneto had taught him that showing your feelings, even having feelings, made you vulnerable. Evan saw that the boy in his arms was getting skittish, and he soothed away the tension, "I'm not playing with you Pietro. All those bad feelings I had for you are gone; I like you, and I want to be with you. Whatever we have here, it's just the beginning. I'm telling you the whole truth man, and I hope it helps."  
  
Evan turned Pietro in his arms and placed the boys' hand on his chest, over his heart. Still looking into the whirling blue grey eyes he continued, "I trust you with my heart Pietro; I believe Serena and I think you'll take good care of it. I told her last night I wouldn't hurt you, and I'm telling you the same thing now. I won't hurt you 'Tro, not intentionally, and if I do it on accident I'll do whatever it takes to make it better."  
  
Listening to the boy he had adored for so long tell him all the things he'd never thought to hear brought a warm rush of joy to Pietros' heart. As his emotions got the better of him, he wrapped his arms tightly around Evans neck and buried his face in the boys' shirt. He felt Evans' arms come around him and the dark skinned boy held him close, rocking slightly.   
  
Pietro eventually loosened his hold on Evans' neck, but he kept his face hidden in the boys chest as he said, "I trust you too Ev, I was just scared to tell you. You and 'Rena are the only people who've ever cared about me. After my father took me away from her, I wouldn't let anyone near me; I didn't want to love anyone and lose them like I did before. When I met you, I had to try really hard to be mean and nasty to you. I liked you even then, but I didn't want to get hurt."  
  
Evan smiled and kissed Pietro gently on the lips before replying, "I know, when 'Rena was talking to me last night, she made it all seem clear, and I could see what she did. Next time I go to pick flowers for you, remind me to give em to her instead, I've got a feeling I owe her a lot."  
  
Thinking of Serena brought the scene that morning to mind and he was eager to tell his boyfriend about it. "Oh, that reminds me. You'll love this, I came down to breakfast this morning with the gang, and we all caught 'Rena and Logan making out in the kitchen. Looks like Kurt won the pool. Man, even though we were expecting it, it was freaky seeing 'em making out. Logan actually grinned when she patted his ass."   
  
The couple enjoyed some light laughter at their friends' expense and then cuddled close together to talk about lighter subjects until the lunch period ended. Before the break ended they'd decided that the abandoned lab would be their regular meeting place, and they would have their lunch there in private whenever they could. The boys were making out when the bell rang, and by the time they realized it was time to go not even Pietro Maximoff; the fastest teenager on earth, could make it to class on time.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Back at the mansion, Serenas' chores kept her busy most of the day. Professor Xavier had a cleaning service that came in three times a week to clean the mansion, but when the hypnotist had moved in, she'd taken over some of the duties. She didn't like the idea of strangers cleaning the personal bedrooms of the residents, so she did it herself. She also took care of the daily nuisances, household laundry, and the cooking.   
  
Since she'd been gone for two days, taking half the residents with her, things had only piled up a little, but there was still work to be done. She'd just finished changing clothes at three o'clock when Spike poked his head out of his bedroom. Seeing that the hallway was darkened he walked down to Serenas' room and made himself at home.  
  
The hypnotist had done a good job decorating her suite. Spike saw many of the gifts he and Drusilla had given her over the years scattered around the room. On the king sized bed was a beautiful, hand made goose down comforter that he'd bought in Russia just a few weeks after meeting her. The old wooden chest at the foot of her bed was the trunk she'd taken on their travels. Sitting in a rocking chair was Isabella; one of Drusillas' favourite dolls that she'd gifted Serena with when they parted in New Orleans.  
  
When Serena came out of the bathroom Spike commented, "You've got a touch with decorating Nymph. This place looks better than your flat in Louisiana. Did you really bring all those bloody trunks and trinkets of mine up here?"   
  
"Of course I did. As soon as I knew I was going to stay here I took a quick trip back down to New Orleans and shipped everything. You left your things in my care Spike; I wasn't just going to leave them. You've got a regular treasure trove stored away, all those years of collecting things like a pack rat. I bet the kids would be thrilled if you showed them some of the stuff in those trunks." Serena replied. The vampires had shown her the contents of the trunks when they brought them to her. Inside were stored a century and a half of mementos from both their lives. She even had a few trunks of Angelus' things that Spike had kept after his sire was cursed.  
  
"We'll go through them later, the brats can help. Is there a clear path for me to get down to the hospital room? Need to get some breakfast before the kids get home." Serena nodded and led the vampire downstairs where she had closed enough curtains to make a darkened path to the elevator.   
  
She left the vampire to go get his blood, and went out to the garage. Logan had finished with his motorcycle, and was now lying underneath the X van doing something that would no doubt leave him filthy and smelly. Serena nudged his hip with her boot and he slid out from under the van. "Hey there Grease Monkey, whatcha doing?"   
  
Logan offered her a grin and replied, "Just changin the oil Chatterbox. How come you're all dressed up?" He stood up and stretched after he finished speaking, trying to work the kinks out of his massive shoulders. He laughed out loud when his girl gave him a once over and shuddered at the state of his clothing.   
  
"I'm going to grab a couple of the kids when they get out of school and do some shopping. The cupboards are nearly bare and I need to pick up some blood for Spike. He's up and about by the way, so if you're finished playing in the dirt you can show him around the lower levels." Serena chastised her Wolf. In truth she thought Logan was the sexiest thing on earth, even covered in filth. But she wasn't going to tell him that.  
  
The greasy man gave Serenas' outfit another glance; to him it looked too dressy for shopping with a couple teenagers. The lovely woman preferred dresses and skirts as pants prevented her tail from morphing into place if the need arose. Today the skirt was long and airy, floating around her legs to mid calf, its deep wine color accenting her pale skin. A cream coloured sweater covered the generous mounds of her breasts, though a good amount of cleavage was visible where the neckline dipped into a deep vee. "One day I'm really gonna have to try that potato sack. Woman you look too damn good."  
  
"Potato sack, Logan? I think not. Thanks for the compliment though. Do you want me to pick up anything special at the store?" Serena asked. She planned to pick up a few things at the mall after the teens inevitably ditched her, and picking something up for Logan would leave the kids more time to have fun.  
  
Logan thought about it for a moment. 'Let's see, you can get all the condoms they have, and some whipped cream, and some chocolate sauce. Massage oil would be good, and maybe some little nothin to wear that costs a fortune.' The images that came with his wayward thoughts had his already tight jeans cutting off circulation in an instant. Aloud he shrugged and replied, "If you pass by a department store you can go in and get me some new shirts. The laundry monster seems to have stolen half of mine."  
  
Serena went into a fit of giggles and Logan joined her. A moment later she said, "I have three Wolvie, so if half of your shirts are missing you better go down to the laundry room and kill the monster." While the big man chuckled over her comment she came close and took his chin between two delicate fingers. Pulling him down to her level, Serena brushed her lips over his and backed away. An evil smile graced her lips as she whirled suddenly, making her skirt flare up and out to display the long length of her legs all the way to the tops of her thighs.   
  
"Jaysus H. Christ Chatty, you tryin to kill me?" Logan called after her, once he'd rolled his tongue back into his mouth. 'Right, that skirt goes on the 'not to be worn outside the bedroom' list. Along with that whatever the hell it was she wore that first night in California.' He mused as he lowered himself back onto the dolly and slid underneath the van to finish his oil change.  
  
Spike was in the professors' office when Serena came back in the house to get her purse. She said a quick goodbye to the men, and told Spike that Logan would be in soon to show him around the lower levels of the mansion. Charles offered her a small pile of money to pay for the groceries, but she waved him off. Keeping the mansion stocked with food was just one way she could repay the man for all he'd given her.  
  
By the time she got back to the garage, Logan had left to clean up. Serena grabbed a set of keys off the wall and hopped into the minivan she'd bought after moving to the mansion. It took only a few minutes to make the drive to the high school, and she parked near the front entrance just before the final bell rang.  
  
Standing next to the van, the Xmen and Brotherhood teens saw her as they came out of the school building. They all came over to greet her, some wanting to know why she was there, and some just wanting to say hello. She greeted them all with a smile, "Hey kids. I need a couple volunteers for grocery shopping, there's a trip to the mall and twenty bucks in it for anyone willing to help an old lady keep you all fed."  
  
Kitty and Rogue answered by jumping into the van, not willing to give up a mall trip with money to spend. Kurt climbed in as well, always willing to spend time with his friends. "Anyone else?" Serena asked, her eyes on the four Brotherhood boys, including them in her offer as if they were already part of her team.   
  
"Sure, why not." Lance replied as he slid in next to Kitty. While the teen wasn't particularly fond of grocery shopping, he was fond of both money and Kitty. Since the older woman had made the offer while looking at him and his friends, he wasn't going to turn her down. Twenty bucks was more than good pay to help her with her groceries.  
  
"That'll do. And at least one of you could've said I wasn't an old lady. See you later kids." The raven haired woman said cheekily as she rounded the front of the van and climbed behind the wheel. "Lance you might want to give one of your friends the jeep keys so they don't have to walk home." She added. Lance tossed his keys to Freddy, who was closest, and they were off.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Serena headed to the mall first, and as expected, the four teens ditched their chauffer. Kitty dragged Lance along with her to the music store, Kurt wanted to check out a computer program Willow had told him about, and Rogue headed into Bloomingdale's to look for any new clothes that might suit both her needs and her sense of style.   
  
The older woman followed Rogue, needing to pick up some clothes for Spike and Logan. Joining the girl in the young women's section, she saw that Rogue was casting wistful glances at the skimpy clothing worn by other girls her age. As the two women chatted about clothing, Scotts' girlfriend Taryn and three of her friends walked by. The comments of the dim witted but popular girls reached their ears.  
  
"Look at that Goth wannabe and her sister Miss Priss. I can't believe that girl, she bleaches those streaks into her hair, and tries to wear the clothes, but she keeps herself completely covered, I mean she even wears gloves. And that black haired bitch is no better, with her old maid sweater and skirt." Taryn gossiped.  
  
The trio of minions nodded and one blond replied, "Didn't Scott say that Rogue girl had a skin condition? How gross is that, I mean, eww. And did you see the way everyone flocked around his house mother after school? Like, Mama's boys much? Even Lance and Pietro went over to talk to her."  
  
The group passed by before any more of their comments could be heard, but the damage they left in their wake was evident in Rogues jade eyes. The redheads' shoulders had slumped, and Serena could see that her friend was fighting back tears. "Sometimes, it sucks having to be mature. If I was your age I could get away with the things I'd like to do to that bunch. What Scott sees in Taryn I'll never know. Come on Rogue, don't pay attention to them. They're petty, jealous morons, and we have a variety of gorgeous men at home who think we're Gods' gift to the male gender. I'll take a handsome mans opinion of my looks over theirs any day."  
  
Rogue nodded, knowing that Serena was right. She thought of Spike, how the blond treated her like a queen, and told her she was a 'cute little spitfire'; but the remarks of her peers still cut. Looking in the direction they'd gone the girl quietly told her friend, "I wish I could be like them Serena. Just for one day, one moment, I want to be able to wear something skimpy and sexy and not have to worry that I'll hurt the guys who'd want to touch me. It's not too much to ask for is it?"  
  
"No Rogue, it's not. You should be able to wear what you want and not have to keep your skin covered. But life's a card game and we'll play the hand we've been dealt Sweetie. Eventually the house has to lose doesn't it? It did for me when the professor found the loophole in my mutation, and I swear some day soon I'll help you to get that moment you want so much." Serena vowed, aloud and inside her mind, that she would make her friends' wish come true, very soon.  
  
Rogue stayed close to Serena for the rest of the shopping trip. The older woman was her best friend and out of all the mutants she knew only Serena, Scott and Kurt had dealt with the same problems she had. The hypnotist had given up her voice for almost half her life, Kurt had to hide behind a hologram just to be accepted into society, and Scott couldn't look at anything without his ruby shades. 'They get through; even with the limits and rules they have to follow. How can I do any less?' The younger girl mused as they strolled arm in arm through the mall, picking up a variety of things for their friends.  
  
An hour later the women gathered their missing friends and left the mall. Grocery shopping was an easy task, only taking an hour and two shopping carts to make sure that the Xmen and Brotherhood would be well fed for another week. As they exited the supermarket Serena handed the keys to the minivan over to Kurt, and told him to take Rogue and Kitty and get the groceries stowed away. Lance started to follow the other teens, but the older womans' hand on his arm stopped him.  
  
"Not so fast Lance honey, I've got a little test for your manhood." The rock tumbler gave her a confused look and she pointed to a shop on the other side of the parking lot. "You, are going in there, with me." When Lance saw which shop the woman was pointing to he tried to back away, shaking his head in an emphatic 'no'. Serena nodded her head in an even more emphatic 'yes' and dragged the teen over to the arts and crafts shop by the arm.  
  
When she had the boy inside the store, she released his arm and said, "Don't worry Lance, you don't have to do anything except carry heavy objects back to the car for me." The teens chocolate eyes lost their panicked glint, and he followed Serena to the back wall of the shop where the large bolts of material and sewing machines were kept.  
  
Lance leaned against the wall with his muscular arms crossed defensively over his chest and watched as Serena commandeered a sales lady and ordered the most expensive sewing machine they carried. 'Holy shit! She's spending six hundred bucks on a sewing machine? What the hell for?' he thought, shocked at the amount of money he'd seen her spend so easily.   
  
Serena saw the dark haired boys' utter shock and confusion and decided to explain. "Sewing your own clothes is fast becoming a lost art. I learned when I was a little girl and I used to sew Pietros' clothes. Now I need a new machine so that I can make something special for Rogue, and if you tell her I'm making her something I'll make sure you regret it." She shook one finger at him as she commanded his silence.  
  
While the sales lady was retrieving the machine Serena wanted, the woman looked over the large selection of material the store carried. A crooked finger brought Lance to her side and she loaded his arms up with a variety of fabrics. "Rogue's gonna wear plaid flannel?" the boy asked when she put a couple bolts of the thick material in his arms.  
  
"No Silly, Wolverine is." A minute later she gestured to a row of gauzy, sheer, elastic material in several different colours. "This is what Rogue will wear. I think we'll get some of each color." Lance looked at the material and made a face, some of the colours were awful. He shook his head and remarked, "Nuh uh, most of those colours are just nasty."  
  
Serena chuckled silently at her small manipulation. She'd wanted the boy to help her pick some colours that would look good on her young friend, and knew he wouldn't cooperate unless the situation was dire, and she had to admit that some of the colours in that pile were drastic, to say the least. "Alright, which ones do you think would look good on our Rogue hmm? Tell me the four best and that's what I'll get."  
  
Lance set his pile of fabric down and took the time to inspect the prettier materials. He quickly pulled out the bolts of black and white, and then added the girls' trademark green, but he puzzled over the last choice. "Can I ask what you're gonna make for her? Some of these would look nice if there was just a little of it, but if there's gonna be a lot of this stuff then I'd choose something else."  
  
"I can't tell you exactly, it would ruin the surprise later. But there will be a lot of the gauze." While Lance debated over colours, Serena wandered around, picking up a few more bolts of material. When she came back and added them to the large pile the teen was still lost. "Just grab both and add them to the pile." The boy gave her a relieved smile and grabbed the light tan and royal blue gauze. The older woman nodded approval of his choices.  
  
The rock tumblers' arms strained under the weight of the huge pile of materials Serena had chosen, "You're not really gonna buy all of this plus the sewing machine are you?" The small woman shook her head and led him to a large table where the sales lady from earlier met her.   
  
Serena gestured to the boy to set his burdens on the table and told the woman, "Cut me four yards of each please. I'll be back to collect them and the machine in a few minutes." She typed into her computer. With an empty armed Lance trailing behind her, the raven haired woman wandered through the isles, collecting needles, pins, some ribbon and lace, tiny seed beads, and spools of thread.  
  
"Wow, I didn't know there was so much stuff in these stores. Does anyone else from the mansion come here?" Lance asked. Some of the wood and porcelain sculptures looked like they'd be fun to work with, not that he would actually buy the things and do the projects.  
  
The small woman nodded and pointed to various types of crafts. "Ororo, she likes to paint the sculptures. Look around the mansion sometime and you'll see a few of her pieces. Kitty weaves with thread and beads; Rogue makes the pretty sun catchers over there. Logan sometimes works with wood, but he goes to the lumber yard like a 'real man' and carves it himself, with his claws. The boys aren't too big on the hobbies, only Kurt comes in here with me; he likes to build the models like the ones on that wall."  
  
"Cool. One of my foster mothers used to do the yarn stuff, and the canvas, you know what I mean?" The teen was taking a closer look at some of the model ships, fingering the twenty dollar bill in his pocket. Most of the models were upwards of thirty bucks, but he could save the extra ten pretty easily if he pretended the jeep was out of commission.   
  
"Needlepoint, crochet, and knitting. I can do those, but they take a lot of time. You like the models Lance? Which is your favourite?" Serena asked, noticing the boys' interest. Having grown up with a mother who enjoyed working with her hands, she thought everyone should be able to do some kind of craft. Lance pointed to the replica of a submachine that was actually supposed to work once you put it together. "Why don't you use the twenty I gave you and put it on lay-away? You can pay it off fairly easily."  
  
Lance shrugged and said that he'd think about it and the pair went back to the sewing section to pick up Serenas' purchases. After the woman had paid, using a platinum credit card, she sent Lance to the car ahead of her, pretending a sudden interest in one of the displays near the door. When the boy was out of sight she ran back to the models and grabbed the one he'd pointed to.  
  
Taking it to the counter she convinced the more than willing sales lady to let her purchase the model now, and pick it up the next day. If she remembered right, Lance had a birthday coming up the next month, and this could be his gift from her and the other girls at the mansion. With a pleased smile on her elfin face, Serena left the store a few minutes later.  
  
The last stop for the day was on the outskirts of Bayville. Serena parked the van and turned to face the teens. "You kids stay in the car and don't unlock it. I'm going into the butcher shop to get Spike some blood. If anyone comes near or tries to open the door you honk the horn to let me know." Leaving the curious but cautioned teens in the van, the older woman got out and walked into the butcher shop.  
  
Bayville was small compared to the other suburbs of New York City, but it had a small vampire population. The shop where she would regularly buy cows blood for Spike was patronized by vamps, and the owner knew that these special clients were not normal. Serena allowed her eyes to blacken and her fangs and claws emerged. Inside the shop she didn't bother with pleasantries, just handed a folded piece of paper with the amount and type of blood she wanted on it. The man took one look at her and filled the order as fast as possible.  
  
Back in the van a few minutes later Serena drove back into the main part of town. She dropped Lance off at the boarding house, thanking him profusely for his help. The teen blushed faintly and waved it off as nothing. The other three teens waved goodbye as she pulled back out onto the street and drove home.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Logan and Spike came out to greet Serena and the teens when they pulled into the garage. The dark haired woman gave the vampire his cooler of blood, and told him his very own mini fridge would be delivered the next day. She called for the teens that hadn't gone shopping and set them to putting the groceries away.   
  
Logan hauled out the sewing machine and tossed the large bag of material and other items to Spike. "Sewing again Nymph? At least you bought a machine this time, took you bloody months to make that dress for Dru last year doing it all by hand. Who's getting new clothes? You better not be thinking of making me any, I like my clothes straight from the factory; had enough of hand sewn clothes when I was alive."  
  
Serena groaned, remembering the long hours of hand sewing she'd done to make a gown for Dru. "Mostly Rogue, but that's a secret and I'll lace your blood with holy water if you say anything to her about it. I also got some material to make a couple shirts for Wolvie and a new dress for each of the girls."  
  
"You're gonna make my new shirts for me? I thought you were gonna buy em. Where'd ya find this woman Spike? All we need now is to get her barefoot and pregnant and she'd be the perfect woman." Logan teased, grinning happily. Spike laughed and was about to comment when Serena scowled and flipped them both off, then stalked into the house, leaving them to bring in the bags of stuff she'd bought.  
  
When he'd calmed down a bit Spike nudged his new friend, "We're bloody screwed now Logan. She's a devious little witch, my Nymph is; she'll get us both back for that comment." The dark haired man nodded in silent agreement, loading up his massive arms to bring Serenas' purchases into the house. Spike followed, also loaded down with bags.  
  
They dumped their burdens in a corner of the rec room to be sorted through later and Logan took the sewing machine up to the little hypnotists' room along with her bags of material. Serena was lounging in her rocking chair when he entered. "Where should I put this Chatty?"  
  
"Just set it on the floor for now Wolvie. I need you to haul my sewing table up here from the storage room in the hangar. Might wait till Saturday to do it, Freddy can bring it up while everyone else carries the trunks I brought with me." She rocked back and forth lazily, eyes closed. Serena was feeling languid, content to just sit quietly and rock for a while until she had to go prepare dinner for the kids.  
  
Logan sat on the bed and watched the woman for a long while, listening to the rhythmic creaking of the chair and the soft melodious hum coming from the little gypsy. Their quiet moment was broken when Jean knocked on the door to ask Serena what she wanted left out for dinner. "Don't worry about it Jean, I'll be down in a minute." The woman answered, getting out of her chair and retreating to the bathroom to change back into her sturdy jeans and sweatshirt.  
  
After dinner everyone retired to the rec room and Serena handed out the things she'd bought that afternoon. Logan got a pair of his favourite flannel shirts, and Spike got a new wardrobe of black and blue jeans, black tee shirts, and red silk button down shirts. The professor had a couple new books for his library, Ororo got the lily bulbs she'd asked for, and the teens got a variety of new things that they'd needed.  
  
The teens all went upstairs to do their homework a little while later, leaving the adults alone to chat for a while. Charles retired to his office to look over his new books, and Storm left to take a walk through her gardens. Spike, Logan and Serena were left to their own devices until the kids came back down to watch television and play games. When Logan went upstairs for a few minutes to put his new clothes away, and Spike took the opportunity to talk seriously with his friend.  
  
"Nymph, if I wasn't sure in California, I am now. Your Logan is the same demon hunter I killed forty odd years ago. Everything about him is the same; the looks, the voice. I drained the Hunter, and Logan has his blood. You say he doesn't remember his past; I've got a part of it. We need to tell him Luv, he has a right to know." Spike said, his tone serious. Spending the last few hours in the man's company, the blond had felt guilty for withholding the information he had; a key to the past.  
  
Serenas' whiskey hued eyes were troubled, but she nodded and replied, "Yes, we need to tell him. Logan's been looking for his past for a long time. Do you think that between us we could get some more information from the demon world? We could go into the city, use our reputations to make a few of the older demons talk."  
  
Spike was in the middle of agreeing to the trip when Logan came back into the room. The big man took one look at the delicate face of his girl and knew something was up, "What's goin on you two?" He asked, wanting to help with whatever it was. Spike had told him a couple stories about his travels with the Chatterbox, and the big man figured his friends were planning some kind of prank.  
  
Logan meandered over and sat down beside Serena. The tiny woman lifted his arm and situated herself under it, leaning her dark head against his chest. The big man squeezed her shoulders and smiled at her proprietary actions. But his smile faded into a serious frown when Serena spoke quietly, "Logan, I'm sorry we kept this from you for so long, but we had to be absolutely sure before we could say anything. Go ahead Spike, tell him."  
  
Two pairs of blue eyes met across the short distance, and the vampire took an unnecessary breath before saying, "I've been around a long time Logan; travelled all over the world more than once. Forty odd years ago, I was in Canada with Dru. We were settling down for a while in Quebec when I heard that we had a demon hunter after us. I don't know his real name, he was only called Hunter."  
  
Spike paused for a second, trying to find the right words, "Hunter was bloody good at what he did. He'd become a legend in the demon world. He'd killed demons that even a slayer stayed away from, and it was well known that he couldn't be killed, that it took a hell of a lot to even hurt him. I didn't take Dru and run when I heard he was after us, though there wasn't a demon around who would've faulted me for it. I was already a legend myself, and I wanted a chance to increase my reputation by killing the unkillable Hunter."  
  
The vampire finally got around to the point a moment later, "The bloke caught up with us soon enough, and I fought him. We tangled for hours; each of us was just too quick and cunning for the other to get in a fatal blow. Near dawn, it looked like the Hunter was gonna get me; caught between him and the sun. He let his guard slip a little, and I managed to get a hold on him. I broke his neck and drained him, then left the body in the field where we'd fought. I never knew someone who could get up and walk away from a broken neck, not to mention the massive blood loss. But Hunter bloody well did, and he's sitting right in front of me now."  
  
Logan sat in shocked silence, processing the news. Between the end of the war and the eighties, his mind was a complete blank. He'd found no trace of his past until the microchip in his head was activated just a few months ago. Now this vampire, Serenas' demonic friend, was offering him part of the puzzle. "You're sure Spike? There's no doubt I'm the guy you thought you killed?" He asked, needing to know what this wasn't another false lead.  
  
"Not a single one mate. I knew you were familiar the minute I saw you at the watchers. Once the Nymph explained that you were a lot older than you look, the memory came back to me. She told me to wait until I was sure, so I waited. I looked at you closely, watched the way you move; and it's the same. I listened to your voice, and that's the same too. The last test was your blood; I drank it this afternoon, and except for an overly metallic tang, it was the same." Spike explained clearly.  
  
Serena pulled away from Logan a little, and took his large hand in her small one. "We can find out more Wolvie. Spike and I will go into the city this weekend and talk to some of the older demons. Someone in the demon world will be able to give us the details of your life as Hunter, at least your real name. If you need to confirm his story, I'll call Dru now. She can tell you if she recognizes your voice."  
  
Logan shook his head in the negative and sat still, wracking his brain for some memory to get through the amnesia. The woman and the vampire sat with him; one presence offered comfort to his troubled mind, the other he knew was offering friendship and would try to answer any question he wanted to ask. After a long while, Logan stood. "I need to think for awhile, I'm gonna go wander around outside, maybe take the bike out. I'll be back before the kids' curfew."   
  
He pressed his lips into Serenas' dark hair, and paused for a moment beside the vampire. Laying a hand on Spikes' shoulder he said, "Thank you Spike. No matter what we do with the information, I'm glad to have it. I won't even fault ya for 'killin' me." That said, he strode out of the mansion and into the night, leaving his friends to wonder what was going through his mind.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Curfew came and went without Logans' reappearance. Spike took over the big mans bed check, poking his bleached head through each door to say goodnight after Serena had made her rounds. The vampire was only mildly worried about Wolverine, knowing the man would be back eventually. He noticed that Serena was agonizing over her loves disappearance though.   
  
He'd been listening in the hallway while she spoke to the teens, and her usual enthusiasm was gone. Not even Kurt could cheer her up, with his news from Willow that the Sunnydale team had averted an apocalypse that night. Evans' news that he and Pietro had had a long discussion on their feelings also went by without much of a response from the small woman. After he finished the bed check, the vampire peeked into Serenas' room. "You okay Nymph? Your Wolf will be back Luv; he just needs to think for a while."  
  
"I know, but I can't help being worried. I doubt the life of a demon hunter was the past he was hoping to find. I hope he hasn't gone into the city to try and find out for himself, he doesn't have the contacts you and I do, and no one's going to believe he's Hunter. I'm going to go take a walk, would you like to join me?" Her tone was melancholy, and Spike knew she was hoping he'd refuse; she wanted to be alone.  
  
"Nah Luv, think I'll just sit in the lounge and take a closer look at the plans Logan showed me earlier for the Danger Room. You enjoy your walk. If he comes back while you're gone I'll send him down to you." The blond replied. He knew she would remain fairly close and if he opened a window he would be able to listen to her song.   
  
His nymph was predictable when it came to her emotions; no matter what they were she wanted to express them in song. He could picture her in his mind, walking along the beach with the breeze tossing her hair around, singing whatever song suited her mood. The dark haired woman nodded and said she'd be back soon, and then wandered outside.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
Rogue made her way quietly downstairs a little while later. She shut the back door softly behind her, and pulled a crumpled pack of cigarettes out of her pocket. Shaking one out, she reached for her lighter and held it near the tip of the cigarette. 'Damnit! Work you stupid thing. Just my freaking luck, I finally get a chance to sneak out and the lighter won't work.'  
  
Giving up on the useless lighter a few minutes later, she expressed her frustration by throwing it across the yard. She was about to go back inside to risk lighting her cigarette on the stove when she heard a low chuckle sound a few feet from her. Rogue whirled around and came face to face with Spike, who was walking toward her from his place against a nearby tree.  
  
The vampire offered her a smile and flicked his Zippo lighter, igniting it. "Need a hand there Spitfire?" He teased gently. The redhead flipped one white forelock away from her face and leaned forward to light her cigarette. She watched as the handsome blond lit another for himself before quietly informing her, "That was the Nymphs' work, your lighter. She took the bloody flint out of it. She's tried that a few times to get me to quit smoking."  
  
"That figures; she and Logan have been trying to get me to quit for months. They take my pack every time they find it; I just go buy another one and tell them if I'm old enough to have this mutation I'm old enough to smoke." Rogue replied after she'd taken a lungful of nicotine. A sudden breeze made her shiver with cold; her pyjamas weren't really suited for being outside in the early spring chill.  
  
Spike shrugged out of his heavy duster and offered it to the girl, "Silly chit, couldn't take a second to grab a coat on your way out? Put this on before you get sick." He helped bundle her into the too big coat and chuckled at the sight she made. She'd had to bunch up the sleeves to bring her hands out, and the bottom of the coat dragged on the ground. She said thank you and leaned against the wall of the house.   
  
The pair smoked in silence for a while, until Spike heard the sound of his nymphs' humming. "There she is, wondered when she'd start that. Logan had better get his arse back here soon."   
  
Rogue cocked her head, not hearing anything. "What's going on? Is Serena out here too? She was acting strange earlier, kinda blue; is anything wrong?" She kept her ears open, wanting to hear what her companion was listening to. Serena singing was not an event to be missed; the older woman had the most beautiful voice Rogue had ever heard and the girl would be content to listen to her friend for hours.  
  
Spike explained about the information he'd given Logan earlier, "The big mutt went off to think for a while, get things sorted in his head. Nymph's just worried about him; she'll cheer up when he comes back. Let's go back inside and leave her to it, she'll turn me into ashes if she comes back and finds you out here smoking."   
  
Instead of going back upstairs to bed, Rogue followed Spike into the rec room where he was looking over the plans for the new Danger Room workouts. She curled up beside him to watch, using his duster as a blanket. Her tiredness soon overcame her though and she fell asleep. Her upper body slowly leaned sideways until her head came to rest against the vampires' shoulder. Smiling down at her sleeping face, Spike wrapped his arm around the girl and cuddled her into his chest before turning his attention back to the notes he was making.  
  
Serena walked along the cliff that marked the edge of the mansions property. The wind coming off the ocean whipped her long hair around, and she hugged herself tightly to ward off the chill. She hummed softly to herself as she walked, her mind troubled with thoughts of Logan and what he might be doing at the moment.   
  
A light rain started to fall, and still she wandered; though her hair and clothing became soaked. At one point she turned and started back toward the mansion; not hurrying even as her skin pebbled into goose bumps from the cold. As she neared the mansion again she paused under an old pine tree and faced the cliff, looking down at the ocean as the waves broke and crashed at its base. A memory came to her unbidden, of Logan standing in a dirty alley, holding his hand out to help her. With the image came the words of a song and she sang it loudly, hoping that her love was close enough to hear.  
  
I'm standing on a bridge  
I'm waitin in the dark  
I thought that you'd be here by now  
There's nothing but the rain  
No footsteps on the ground  
I'm listening but there's no sound  
  
Isn't anyone tryin to find me?  
Won't someone please take me home?  
It's a damn cold night  
Trying to figure out this life  
Won't you take me by the hand  
take me somewhere new  
I don't know who you are  
but I'm, I'm with you…  
  
Spike raised his sapphire eyes to the window when he heard Serenas' voice near the back of the mansion. 'Bloody hell but that little Nymph has a voice on her.' He mused, cocking his blond head to one side to listen more carefully to the words of the Avril Lavigne song. A stunning smile lit his angular face when he heard another sound; a motorcycle was coming up the driveway at a fast pace. 'Wolf's back just in time. Wonder if he'll notice she's singing for him.'  
  
Knowing he'd better get Rogue back into her bed before the pair came inside Spike stood and lifted the lovely redhead into his arms. He carried her up the stairs without waking her; nudging the bedroom door open with his hip. The vampire bent over and laid his warm burden in her bed, tucking the edges of his duster around her. Pale, slender fingers threaded through the white forelocks as he laid the hair over her pouty lips and pressed a gentle kiss to them. "Good night Luv." He whispered. As silent as a shadow, Spike left the room and its sleeping beauties.  
  
I'm looking for a place,  
searching for a face.  
Is there anybody here I know?  
Cause nothings going right,  
and everything's a mess,  
and no one likes to be alone  
  
Isn't anyone tryin to find me?  
Won't someone please take me home?  
It's a damn cold night  
  
Trying to figure out this life.  
Won't you take me by the hand,  
take me somewhere new  
I don't know who you are  
but I'm, I'm with you…  
  
Logan parked his bike in the garage and took off his helmet. His keen ears heard the voice of his Chatterbox, singing loudly somewhere out in the rain. He followed the sweet sound, listening to the desperate tone of the song and the lyrics that seemed to have been written for him. He found the raven haired siren standing at the edge of the cliff, giving her song to the roiling sea.   
  
She'd brought him to this spot once, he remembered as he hid himself in the trees. Serena hadn't been with them long before she found out about his amnesia and ongoing search for his past. She'd taken him by the hand a while later and brought him out to watch the sun set over the ocean. Her computerized words from that day came back to him.  
  
'Like you, the sea had no memory my friend. It's too vast, too deep, and too ancient. The sea knows all, and remembers nothing, but is content to live in the moment. I hope you find your past some day Logan, and that what you find is what you wish to know. But if it never comes, or is not all you had hoped; remember the sea, and maybe you'll find your peace within it.' She'd wrapped her arms around his waist when she finished, and he'd hugged her back and watched with her as the sea swallowed the sun.  
  
As the last verse of the Sirens' song came to him on the wind; Logan took her words, both past and present, into his heart. Serena seemed too wise for her meagre years; sometimes her golden eyes carried a look as ancient as her ocean. But her words were always the simplest of truths, even if the person she was speaking to didn't want to believe her wisdom.  
  
Oh why is everything so confusing  
maybe I'm just out of my mind  
yea yea yea  
  
It's a damn cold night  
Trying to figure out this life  
Won't you take me by the hand  
take me somewhere new  
I don't know who you are  
but I'm, I'm with you  
  
Take me by the hand  
take me somewhere new  
I don't know who you are  
but I'm, I'm with you  
I'm with you  
  
Serena let the last note fade away slowly, her mind easing in its worries. As the troubled thoughts cleared away she took in her cold, wet, trembling state and ran for the house. She didn't notice Logan watching from the darkness of the trees, his blue eyes shining brightly, a single tear mixing with the rainwater to run down his ruggedly handsome face.  
  
Logan watched her hasty retreat back into the warmth of the house. When she'd disappeared through the back door he walked slowly to the spot where she'd been standing and looked out into the inky blackness of the sea. His voice came quietly as he spoke to the wind and rain, sand and sea. "She says I might find some peace with you, but we both know she's wrong don't we? My peace is with her." Receiving no answer, yet knowing he was right, Logan followed in the footsteps of his love, going back into the mansion.  
  
Spike met him at the door and offered him a towel as he'd done for Serena a few minutes before. "You alright mate? Nymph's been worried about you; she just came in herself, soaked to the skin." The two men spoke briefly and said goodnight, then Logan went upstairs. He showered and changed into a pair of sweat pants, and then walked quietly down the hall and entered Serenas' room.  
  
He found the tiny woman sitting again in her rocking chair, her dark hair curling damply around her face. She'd changed into her nightwear, one of his shirts, and was looking out the window as she rocked back and forth. Logan padded across the hardwood floor and knelt at her side. Serena turned her head and let her deep gold eyes roam over his face. A delicate, long fingered hand ran through his black hair and cupped his cheek. "I'm glad you're back. Are you alright?" she whispered softly.  
  
Before answering, the big man stood and lifted the small woman into his arms, carrying her to bed. When he'd laid her down under the thick blankets, he crawled in beside her and rested his head against her breasts. Her hand lifted and went again to caress his face, and he placed a gentle kiss on her palm. "I'm just fine Sweetheart, I'm with you." He spoke softly, his last three words mimicking the ones she'd sung for him earlier.   
  
His arms held the woman close, and she returned the embrace; one hand cupped his shoulder as the other rubbed his bare back in a soothing manner. He snuggled down against her returning warmth and nuzzled his face against the soft fabric that covered her breasts. As they fell asleep together, the rain outside the window slowed and stopped, and the peace they'd both sought settled over them.  
  
Take me by the hand  
take me somewhere new  
I don't know who you are  
but I'm, I'm with you  
I'm with you  
  
I'm with you... 


	15. Be Prepared

Title: Sirens' Song  
Author: Sinayah  
Email: Sinayah@hotmail.com  
Distribution: Ask and ye shall receive.  
Rating: PG-13 so far, with an option for R and NC-17 later; those will be marked.  
Disclaimer: I don't own any characters from Buffy, Angel, or Xmen. They belong to very rich people who don't appreciate them as we fanfic writers do.  
Disclaimer 2: The Chapter Title and Lyrics are from The Lion King Soundtrack.  
Authors Note: Many heartfelt thanks to my muse Zenura, without her I wouldn't have had the guts to write. If you like this story please review or send me an email, I'd really appreciate hearing what you think. Enjoy!  
Note 2: There is a translation for the French phrases at the end of the chapter for those of you who don't speak the language.  
Chapter 15: Be Prepared  
"so prepare for the coup of a century; be prepared for the murkiest scam…"  
  
Willow Rosenberg sat at the desk in the dorm room she was supposed to share with her best friend. Though only a couple weeks had passed since the mutants had come to collect Spike, things had gone downhill rapidly in Sunnydale. Buffy Summers, the chosen one, was now a full fledged member of the Initiative and the girlfriend of their best soldier, Riley Finn.  
  
Buffy had been distancing herself from her old friends starting immediately after the mutants had left. She'd begun dating Riley, even though she knew he was one of the commandos; and she'd voluntarily told the young man about her secret identity. Once Riley had informed his boss, Maggie Walsh, of the slayers presence, Buffy had been welcomed with open arms. Now the slayer patrolled nightly with a team of soldiers, and behaved like a queen to her court when she checked in at Giles house, which was extremely rare.  
  
The redhead logged herself onto the net and prepared to write an email to her new boyfriend Kurt Wagner. The fuzzy blue teen was the one highlight in Willows life these days. Though they'd only met a few weeks ago, and been together for less than a day before he'd had to leave, they cared for each other deeply. They exchanged email daily, and Kurt had phoned her once, just to hear her voice again.   
  
Tonight she divulged all her fears and worries to the sweet elf in a long email.  
  
To: Kurt fuzzybluedude@hotmail.com  
From: Willow hellmouthwitch@ucsd.edu  
Subject: Hi Kurt!  
  
Hi Kurt! I'm gonna unload on you tonight, so sorry in advance. Things here are getting bad, just like Spike and Logan predicted. Buffys' joined the Initiative, which is what the commando group calls themselves. It turns out our psychology professor is the leader of the group and their base is under one of the fraternity houses on campus. Buffy's pretty much moved out of the dorm, she's staying with her new boyfriend Riley. He leads the soldiery part of the Initiative. Giles, Xander, and I have tried to warn Buffy about jumping on their bandwagon without asking any questions, but she won't listen. I think she likes all the attention she gets from Prof. Walsh and the commandos because of her slayerness.  
  
I'm so worried Kurt. Buffy almost killed Giles the other day. An old enemy, a sorcerer named Ethan Rayne, came to town and turned Giles into a demon. We tracked him down, and Buffy and demony Giles fought. Buffy stabbed him with a letter opener before I recognized him and figured out what was going on. We made Ethan turn Giles back, but it scared me, the way she acted.   
  
Ethan gave Giles some information, before the whole demon thing. He said that the Initiative has some secret agenda called Project 3:14 that's even got the demons scared. We've asked Buffy to try and find out about it, but she told us no. She says asking questions is the quickest way to get her kicked out and that whatever it is has to be good if it makes demons worry. I don't hold much hope that Buffy will come back to our little group. Giles is trying to keep our spirits up, but I can tell how worried he is about Buffy and whatever the Initiative is doing.   
  
Uh oh, I hear Buffy in the hall. I better sign off before she comes in. I want you to show this email to Logan, Serena, and Spike. They need to know how bad things are here; we may need all of your help soon. I'm leaving the last line of this letter for Spike specifically, he will probably tell you guys what it means.   
  
I miss you,  
  
Wills  
  
For Spike: They're in my pocket always and I might have to use them very soon. Thank You.  
  
Willow quickly sent the email and was closing her laptop when the slayer walked in. She tried to give Buffy a smile, but failed when she saw the scowl on her friends' face. "Hey Buffy, what's wrong?" She asked, her voice tremulous. She didn't like being around Buffy anymore, the girl made the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end.  
  
The slayer settled her gaze on the redhead, and the look was not friendly. "Hey Willow. Studying again? Nothing's wrong, I just had a little talk with Giles. He refuses to talk to Professor Walsh; she wants access to his books so she can research more types of demons."   
  
Willow thought for a minute before replying, "I don't really blame him Buffy. He doesn't like the professor or what they're doing in that lab and neither do I. If they want to help fight demons, they should just kill them like we've been doing for years, not experiment on them or put chips in their heads."  
  
The slayers fury was clearly apparent in her hazel eyes. "They're the future Wills, and they're doing good things. So what if they experiment on the demons we capture? Don't forget, Spike would've killed you if it hadn't been for one of those chips. I can't believe I let him go with those freaks. Do you know what kind of reward Professor Walsh is offering to the person who brings in Hostile 17? Oh forget this, you wouldn't understand. I'll come back tomorrow and pack some stuff for next week."  
  
Buffy stalked out of the dorm room, and walked toward Rileys' frat house. Her thoughts as usual revolved around herself. 'I can't bring Spike in, but I wonder what Professor Walsh would give me for a witch, an ex demon, and a boy who's been possessed twice. Or information about those damned mutants who were here. I'm sure Willow and Giles have some kind of contact number or address for them. I'll have to have a talk with her soon.'  
  
Willow stared at the door for a long moment after Buffy left. The calculating look the slayer had given her sent chills down her spine. Her roommate was planning something, and the chances of it being good were slim to none in the redheads' mind. One small hand crept into the pocket of her skirt and found the keys on their sun keychain. The familiar weight gave her comfort, the knowledge that she could be well away from Sunnydale with her friends at a moments notice relieved her worries somewhat.  
  
'I don't know what you're planning Buffy, or how the Initiative fits into your scheme, but I'm not going to be here to see it. The minute I know for certain that trouble is close, I'm getting Giles and Xander and we're leaving. You're not the be all and end all of this group; not anymore, and I'll protect my friends better than you ever did.' The redhead thought as she gripped her escape firmly in hand. She would wait, but she would be ready, and she would protect her friends come hell or high water.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Serena and Logan were relaxing in the kitchen as had become their habit. Today Rogue had closed all the blinds in the room and joined them along with Spike. The raven haired couple had watched over the last few weeks as Spike and the young girl became closer. Rogue had become the blonds' constant companion and the pair was often seen in intimate poses, cuddled together on a couch or with the redhead perched in the vampires' lap.  
  
Today was a perching day for both women. Serena was in Logans lap in the window seat, while Spike was holding Rogue in one of the chairs. The first couple was relaxed and content; they'd grown ever closer after the revelation of Logans past. The big man hadn't spent a night in his bedroom since they'd come back from California, and his new bed partner was just fine with that arrangement. They hadn't made love yet, it was too soon, and they were happy just to spend the nights in each others arms.  
  
The second couple was nervous, though they tried to hide it. Today they were going to test Rogues' ability to touch the vampire, skin to skin. Serena had a theory that her young friend might be able to touch Spike freely because he was; technically, dead and as such the girl wouldn't be able to absorb anything from him. They'd waited until today just to be on the safe side. If the opposite reaction occurred and Rogue absorbed a piece of Spikes' demon, they would have both the Xmen and the Brotherhood boys on hand to control the girl until the energy she took from the demon receded.   
  
Serena prayed that the experiment would work in favour of the couple. Rogue deserved to have someone she could touch; it was a basic human need. Spike appeared to be in full agreement and was quite willing to touch the redhead as often and in as many places as she'd let him. He'd taken to wearing a pair of black leather gloves whenever the girl was home, so that she could forego her own gloves and the long sleeved sheer tops she wore over her normal shirts.  
  
With only a whiff of foul smelling smoke to announce his arrival, Kurt suddenly appeared in the room. In his three fingered hand he clutched a sheet of paper. "You guys need to read this. I got an email from Willow last night, but I only read it this morning, she wanted me to show it to you. She's worried, and scared; things are going badly in Sunnydale. Please, read it and tell me how to help her." The teen pleaded. He felt strongly that his girlfriend was in trouble and needed their help, or would soon; but he didn't know what to do, he was counting on his older friends for an answer.  
  
"Calm down Kurt. Give me the letter so I can read it." Serena ordered as she rose from her seat. She took the slightly crumpled paper from the boys hand and hugged him with one arm while she read the missive aloud. Her amber eyes began to whirl and darken as she heard about the Slayers' involvement with the commandos who'd hurt her vampire friend and the fact that she'd nearly killed her watcher.  
  
When she got to the last line, the one meant for Spike, the vampire removed Rogue from his lap and began to pace, muttering obscenities under his breath. The others looked at him, silently asking what was wrong. The blond explained, "Before we left, I gave the Pixie the keys to my DeSoto, and told her where it was parked. Told her if things got too bad in Sunnyhell she should use the car to get herself, the watcher, and the whelp out. If she's worried enough to mention it, things are starting to get bloody serious."  
  
Logan pondered the letter, taking in the events the little redhead spoke of. Making a decision he said, "I think we should check up on them. We'll call Mr. Giles later tonight and get his take on things. Not that I don't trust the Pixie, I do; but we don't wanna rush in too early and expose ourselves to these soldiers before we're needed." He looked to his companions and saw that they were in agreement.   
  
"That's a good plan Logan, but I think we should also have someone check the place out, get a feel for the energies of the area and the attitudes of the population, both human and demon." Serena added, having the perfect person in mind for the job. Logan agreed and asked who she wanted to send.   
  
Spike was giving her a knowing look. "You want to call my poufy Sire don't you Nymph? Get him to drive that bloody phallic symbol of his up to Sunnyhell and ask a few questions." He asked; his blue eyes bright with mirth. She nodded and watched as he began to chuckle. "Good choice Luv, he'll find out what you need. Can I listen in when you talk to him, please? I want to hear his reaction when he figures out who he's talking to."  
  
The other three were looking at Serena and Spike as if the two were speaking another language. Spike explained about his Sire, and the one time he'd met the little hypnotist. It had been hate at first sight between the two when Serena had come to visit during the months Angel was soulless. The weekend she'd spent with the three vampires was the best time he could remember from his incapacitated period.   
  
"Angelus, the soulless version, is a real bastard. When he met the Nymph, all he saw was a tiny bit of a thing. He didn't like the way she ignored him, or that Dru and I abandoned him to spend time with her. Stupid prick went into a rage and tried to beat her into submission. Before he could get one hit in she had him under her spell, made the bloody pillock wear one of Drusillas' frocks and dance around singing 'I feel pretty' in front of the minions. Cor, I've never laughed so much in my life. Needless to say, he left her alone after that, wouldn't come out of his bedroom until she'd left."   
  
Everyone got a good laugh from the image of a cross dressing, badly singing master vampire, and the mood in the kitchen lightened. With a plan of action in mind for the troubles in Sunnydale, they were able to resume their seats and unwind. Kurt joined the two couples, and made Logan growl over having to share 'his Chatterbox' with the furry elf.  
  
At ten thirty, half an hour before the Brotherhood boys were due to arrive; Spike and Logan adjourned to the Danger Room to make a few last minute adjustments in the new program they'd been working on. The two men had become good friends during the last few weeks, working together day after day on plans for the Danger Room. The vampire was no mechanic, but he had a brilliant imagination and had come up with some devious ideas to help bring the two groups of young mutants together through their weekly sessions.  
  
"Logan, adjust the trapdoor here to the next tile and reinforce it. We'll stick one of the obstacle blocks next to it and holograph it. With any luck we'll catch Speedy in here and the Ghost girl will have to get him out. Make sure it's strong enough so that the Blob won't be able to get it open." Spike called, looking up to the control room where Logan was sitting.   
  
The big man did as he was asked and called back, "Done Blondie, anything else need movin or should we start testin out the holograms?" The vampire called back for Logan to turn the simulation on and come down to take a look. When the raven haired man joined Spike on the ground, the Danger Room was no longer a sterile looking auditorium.   
  
Working together and with Professor Xavier at certain points, the men had created a difficult maze and obstacle course, then holographed it into a labyrinth of warehouses and a cemetery under a night sky. The objective was to work together to get through from the starting point to the finish, which was usual. But today they would also have to fight together to defeat the opponents that would be stalking them and engaging them in battle at different points in the maze.  
  
"I sure hope this works Spike. Those boys should be with us, not that bitch Mystique and damn well not with Magneto. Workin with those two will only get 'em killed or sent to jail, and they don't deserve either." Logan said as he walked through the maze with the blond. He had to admit Spike and Wheels had done a good job on the imaging. The place gave him the creeps, just like Sunnydale had.  
  
Spike stopped and crouched down to adjust an obstacle that was supposed to be a pile of debris. "It will mate, I'm bloody sure of it. You and the Nymph have done a good job bringing the kids closer together. They want to be friends now, but the boys have to learn to trust us. Nothing builds trust more than a life or death situation, even if it's a false one. Having us in there with them will help too I think. One of the reasons I always had so many minions is because they knew I wouldn't make them do anything I wasn't prepared to do myself."  
  
Logan nodded, knowing that was true. He wouldn't ask any of the kids to do something he couldn't or wouldn't do himself. Satisfied with their efforts he looked at his watch and said, "I'm glad we figured out you could mock fight with humans, as long as you don't intend to hurt em; it's gonna be fun watchin you spar with the kids. Come on Blondie, let's go get suited up; the boys should be here soon. They're getting better at bein on time; they don't like Chatty naggin at em every time they're late."  
  
It took a good ten minutes for the men to come back upstairs. Spike had balked at wearing one of the skin tight leather uniforms, preferring his own clothes which consisted of black jeans and black shirt, with his trademark duster to top it all off. Logan had eventually talked him into the suit, threatening to sic Serena on him if he didn't change. "If Chatterbox has to come down here, she'll have you wearin that goddamned pink tutu she keeps hidden." The look on the big mans face had convinced Spike, and the vampire had laughed behind his friends' back at the image of Logan in said tutu.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Serena stalked through the maze of warehouses, silent as a jungle cat. Spike was beside her, game face firmly in place. The pair were hunting the ten young mutants through their obstacle course. It had been the vampires' idea for them, plus Wolverine and Storm, to act as opponents for the kids. The professors' holograms had given each of the humans the appearance of a vampire or demon, while the real vampire simply morphed his face. Right now they were chasing after their charges to engage them in battle.  
  
When the battle with their friends ensued, it wasn't pleasant. Two real vampires, fledglings at least, would have been no match for the teens; but Spike and Serena were experienced fighters. They took the group by surprise but gave the teens a split second before attacking. Spike went for Scott, dodging under an optic blast. He had knocked the teen to the ground and was about to mock bite the boys' throat when Toads slimy tongue wrapped around his neck and jerked him back.  
  
Serena had come at Jean from behind and grabbed her around the throat, a move that was the first stage of breaking someone's neck. Kitty had come to the redheads aid and phased her out of the 'demons' hold, just as Lance sent a jolt through the ground to knock the hypnotist off her feet. She leaped before the mini earthquake could unbalance her and kicked the rock tumbler to the ground before landing on top of him. An optic blast caught her in the back before she could mimic raking her claws across Lances' throat.  
  
Todds' grip on the vampires' neck didn't last long. Spike freed himself and whirled to face the amphibian teen. The Toad jumped over the blonds' head and kicked him in the back, but as the vampire went down he turned again and grabbed the boys' leg, pulling him down too. Nightcrawler came to the other teen's aid and teleported him away before Spike could take advantage of his downed state.  
  
Pietro was running in circles, creating a tornado that caught Serena and lifted her into the air. The hypnotist let herself fly, relaxing so that the air currents could lift her easier. She closed her golden eyes and allowed her legs to merge into a tail. Using the extremely strong appendage she smacked the speed demon in the stomach. As he flew out of the tornado the currents dissipated and Serena fell back to the ground, landing on her feet as her legs separated again. She sprinted to Pietros' side while he was catching his breath, but Rogue stepped into her path and sent a spinning back kick into the older womans stomach.  
  
While Serena and Rogue were exchanging blows, Spike was busy being double teamed by Evan and Freddy. He was dodging their attempts to catch him, using his enhanced speed to avoid flying stakes and fists. He knew he'd run out of options when he suddenly found himself unable to move, due to Jean holding him paralysed. Freddy grabbed him around the chest, allowing the redhead to release him, and Evan approached with three stakes protruding from one fist. The dark skinned boy touched the spikes to the vampires' chest and said "Poof, you're dust man."  
  
Rogue had her hands full with the dark haired woman, and the attempts of her friends to aid her were almost useless. When Todd had tried to catch Serena with his tongue she'd actually played jump rope with the appendage for a moment. When Kitty had grabbed her and tried to phase her into the floor the older woman had twisted out of her grasp and knocked her to the ground. Jean had thrown Serena across the room with her TK, but the older woman just used the distance to make a running attack at Evan, whose back was turned. Nightcrawler took her out of the game before she could reach the dark skinned boy by grabbing her and teleporting her into a trap the group had revealed earlier.  
  
Wolverine and Storm had no better luck in removing one of their friends from the game, and the ten teens made it through the obstacle course bruised and battered, but victorious. In the control room Charles ended the simulation and the Danger Room was once again revealed. The four adults joined their team-mates to celebrate, and they bore their own bruises happily.   
  
Upstairs Serena laid out sandwich makings and told the freshly showered teens to help themselves before leaving the room, supposedly for her own shower. A couple minutes later the professor met her in the medical room. She had stripped to the waist and was lying face down on one of the beds, and Charles saw what was wrong immediately. Cyclops had caught the woman with an optic blast and used too much power. There was a nasty, blistering burn on Serenas' back that needed treatment.  
  
"Just bandage it and give me some pain killers Charles, I don't want Scott to know." The woman said, keeping her tone even though the burn was becoming extremely painful. She hadn't noticed it during the battle, her adrenaline had been going strong, but it was wearing off now and Serena knew it would hurt like hell if she didn't get some treatment.  
  
The professor wheeled over to one of the cabinets and loaded a tray with bandages, tape, and other supplies. Coming back to the dark haired beauty he replied, "It'll need a bit more than bandages Serena, this is a bad burn. I'll put some anesthetising ointment on it and bandage you up, but it will take a while to heal. You'll have to watch for infection, and come down to have the bandage changed regularly. I do think Scott should see this; he should know that he used too much power so that he can avoid doing it again and injuring someone else."  
  
Serena remained silent while her mentor tended to the wound and gave her some strong pain killers. When he was through she grabbed a tank top that she'd brought down and said, "I'll tell him, but you'll have to help me reassure him that I'm ok, I don't want him fussing over me. As it is Wolvie is going to hover like a mother hen when he sees it. Just let me change and we'll go back upstairs. We still need to perform the test with Rogue and Spike."  
  
Joining their friends in the rec room, Serena sat beside Pietro and patted the boys' knee. She listened quietly to the conversation for a while, letting the pain killers take effect. The teens complimented her on her fighting style, and her near misses at taking them out of the game. Pietro turned slightly and asked what she'd hit him with. "I smacked you with my tail Ptichka. Are you alright?" she answered in a concerned tone. The hypnotist hadn't hit him hard, but like Scott she sometimes misjudged her own strength.  
  
"Nah I'm fine, I just wondered because it was too big to be one of your legs." The boy replied, reassuring his friend. He wanted to see her tail now, all he'd seen earlier was a flash of color before he was knocked off his feet. He was tempted to ask the woman to transform so that he could get a look, but figured he'd see it later. Instead he turned his thoughts to finding a way to get his boyfriend alone for some quality make out time.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
When the pain in her back had receded to a dull throb Serena rose and asked her friends, "Ok everyone, I need you to arrange yourselves around the room please. We're going to do an experiment with Spike and Rogue and we'll need your help if things don't go well." The group stood and moved into a circle with Spike and Rogue in the middle. Lance asked what kind of experiment they were doing and the raven haired woman realized she needed to explain further.  
  
"Rogue is going to touch Spike with her bare hand. Our theory is that since he's technically dead, she won't absorb anything from him. Now if we're wrong and he's susceptible to her mutation she may end up with some of his demon in her; namely the demons strength, speed, and bloodlust. If that happens we'll have to keep her restrained, and it will take some effort to control her. We wanted you all here just for precautions sake so that if she tries to run at least a few of you will be able to stop her." The small woman explained. When each of the teens had given her an understanding nod she gestured to the couple to begin.  
  
Rogue lifted a hand to remove her glove, but Spike caught her and shook his head no. Reaching into his pocket the vampire took out a handkerchief and used it to wipe away the plum coloured lipstick on her mouth. The girl was blushing as red as her dark hair when she realized Spike intended to kiss her in front of everyone, but she figured it might be her only chance to really kiss anyone, let alone the vampire she was steadily falling for.  
  
When the vampire had removed all trace of the lipstick, he pulled the slender girl into his arms. One hand pressed against her back, holding her tight against his muscular frame while the other gently threaded through her hair to cup the back of her skull. Rogue tilted her face up slightly and closed her jade eyes when Spikes' full lips pressed firmly against hers. Not waiting for the pull of her mutation and not caring that there was a crowd watching them, the blonde parted his lips and lapped at Rogues' with his tongue.   
  
A soft sigh was muffled between them as Rogue opened her lips to deepen the kiss. Her slender arms came up to wrap around the vampires neck as his tongue invaded her mouth and began to explore. Tentatively she responded, rubbing her tongue against his. A pleased growl rumbled in Spikes' chest and the couple soon forgot about everything but the pleasant sensations coursing through them as their tongues duelled.  
  
After thirty seconds Serena silently declared the experiment a success. If the girls' mutation was going to do anything to Spike, it would've happened by now. Quietly, so as not to disturb the couple she ordered everyone to leave the room. When the teens, Charles, and Ororo had passed through the door she took Logans hand and pulled on him to make him leave. The big man let a low growl rumble through his chest, a warning to his undead friend. Not breaking the kiss Spike had simply lifted his hand from Rogues back and given Logan a rude gesture. The raven haired man snorted in amusement before following his girlfriend from the room, shutting the door behind him.  
  
A few moments later Rogue pushed on Spikes chest and broke the passionate kiss, needing to catch her breath. Looking around, she noticed everyone had left the room. 'Huh? When did they leave? Wait, if they had time to leave then we must've been kissing awhile. That means; Gawd that means my mutation didn't affect him! I can touch Spike!'   
  
Spike watched through sapphire blue eyes as his Spitfire went through her realizations. Her beautiful green eyes reflected all the happiness she was feeling, and the vampire felt her joy echo in his heart. He quickly shed his duster and held his bare arms out to catch her when she launched herself toward him for an exuberant hug. "Well then Luv, I don't know whether to congratulate you or give you my condolences. You've finally got someone you can touch, but what you've got is; as the Nymph would say, 'a cuddle buddy with a bad attitude and worse habits'. But if you can put up with my attitude and look past those bad habits you've got yourself a vampire who's more than happy to touch you whenever and wherever you like."  
  
Rogues' southern drawl was heavier than normal when she replied, "I'll take you up on that Spike, just so long as that nasty habit of killing people doesn't come back once we get that chip out of your noggin." Before she allowed herself to get any closer to the vampire, she had to be sure that he wouldn't start killing again. She could look past the horrible things he'd done before she knew him, but the girl didn't think she could stand it if he went back to his old ways once the chip was gone.  
  
The vampire had already had this talk with the other adults. The deal he'd made was simple; as long as he was part of the team and lived at the mansion, he wouldn't kill for food or sport, and wouldn't kill an enemy unless there was no other choice. It was easy enough to agree to; Spike was quite content to get his blood from bags and his new friends generously donated their own blood so that he didn't have to subsist on animal blood. He had his choice of sparring partners to work out his aggressive tendencies on, he had his Nymph, and now he had a new girlfriend. Rogue wasn't a replacement for Dru as Harmony had been; he genuinely liked the southern belle and was fast falling in love with her.  
  
"You don't have to worry about that Luv. I've already sworn to your professor and the others that I wouldn't take up killing again while I'm living here, not even an enemy unless there's no choice about it. I'll give you the same promise now; as long as you and I are involved I won't kill unless I have no choice in the matter." The thick cockney accent had been replaced by soft cultured tones, and the serious expression on his handsome face belied his honesty.  
  
The redhead looked deep into his sparkling blue eyes and recognized the truth of his words. "I believe you, and I trust you. I wouldn't have even asked if I'd known you already talked to the prof. and Serena about it." She said while gifting the blond with a bright smile. The last of her worries faded into nothingness and Rogue laid her head on Spikes' shoulder.  
  
Spike hugged her tightly around the waist before lifting her up and moving to the couch. When he had them settled comfortably, he helped the girl remove her gloves and the sheer over blouse that kept her arms and midriff covered. Rogue felt some lingering nervousness at having so much of her deadly skin bared, but the vampire quickly reassured her by wrapping one bare arm around her equally bare waist and placing one of her arms around his neck. "So what does a vamp have to do around here to get a kiss from his girl?" he asked teasingly.  
  
"You just have to ask Sugar." The girl replied, bringing her lips to his. As they enjoyed another passionate embrace Rogue took silent enjoyment in more than the press of lips and tongues. She touched the vampires' arms, his neck, and his face; her fingers traced the perfect cheekbones, smoothed over the scar on his eyebrow and over the beautifully formed lips when they parted so she could breathe. The new couple spent the remainder of the afternoon tucked away in the rec room; lost to anything except each other.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Outside the rec room Serena had watched as the teens made plans for the rest of the day, smiling happily when it appeared that the Brotherhood boys were content to spend the afternoon with the Xmen. Jean and Kitty had planned to do some shopping at the mall and Kurt, Freddy and Todd wanted to tag along. Scott offered to show Lance more of what the Danger Room could do, and give him a tour of the X Jet; the rock tumbler had accepted and the two boys went off, talking animatedly with new found friendship. Ororo had gone into her green house to tend her plants, and Charles retired to his office for some reading.  
  
Evan and Pietro were making noises about going to play basketball at the park, but the dark skinned teen kept looking between his boyfriend and the stairway. Serena had walked over and casually placed an arm over the white haired teens' shoulders. She turned her head and whispered, "If you and Evan want to go upstairs for some private time it should be safe, the others will be busy with their own things for a while. Just hang around with Lance until Jean and the rest leave. Tell Scott to come up to my room will you?"  
  
Pietro gave her a grateful smile and moved away to nudge Evan, gesturing for the boy to follow him as he trailed after the two team leaders. With the group scattered, the raven haired woman deflated and answered the call of her soft bed and a nap. Logan came upstairs behind her and entered 'their' bedroom. He found his Chatterbox laying face down in bed. "Tired already Chatty? I didn't think the workout was that tough." He said teasingly.  
  
"Not tired Wolvie, I'm hurt. Don't overreact; I'll be fine, Scott just used a little too much power when he blasted me earlier. Charles patched me up and gave me some painkillers so don't start fussing at me. It'll be bad enough when Scooter sees it; he'll be up here in a minute. Wheels said I needed to show him so he can be more careful next time." She replied, shifting slightly in an effort to find a comfortable position to nap in.  
  
Logan growled and came to sit beside his girlfriend, needing to make sure she was truly alright. "Let's see it Sweetheart, I gotta know how bad it is." He said, reaching for the bottom edge of her tank top. Serena allowed him to lift the top up and then off when she realized she was more comfortable without it. She gathered the blankets around her front, keeping herself decent as Logan peeked under the large bandage and growled again when he saw the burn.   
  
Before the big man could comment on her injury a knock came at the door. Checking to make sure Serena was properly covered; he answered and found Cyclops standing outside with a curious expression on his face. "Pietro said Serena wanted to see me up here?" The boy said, his tone questioning. Logan waved him inside, all the while resisting the urge to pop a claw at the young man who'd hurt his woman.  
  
Serena waved at the teen, and Scott blushed bright red when he saw that the raven haired woman was topless. His colour faded a second later when he took note of the large white bandage between her shoulder blades. "What happened? Are you ok?" he asked, concern making his voice tight. He approached the bed to get a closer look, fearing that his friend was seriously injured.  
  
Giving the boy a reassuring smile Serena replied, "I'm fine Scott, so don't worry about me. When you blasted me in the Danger Room earlier, you used a bit too much power and burned me. Now I don't want an apology, it was a smart move and kept me from taking Lance out of the game. I didn't even want to tell you I was hurt, but Charles reminded me that you needed to know so you wouldn't use that much power next time."  
  
Scott looked into his dorm mothers golden eyes through ruby quartz glasses and saw that she wasn't mad at him. He was angry with himself though, and all the insecurities he had about his mutation and its harmful abilities came back. "I am sorry Serena; I didn't mean to hurt you. I didn't think I used a lot of power in the blast, but obviously I did. Are you sure you'll be ok?" He said, his worry for her clear in his voice.  
  
The woman smiled for him and replied, "I'll be fine, Charles said it's not too bad and it should heal up in a week or two. I know you didn't mean to hurt me Honey; it's hard to tell sometimes how much force you're using, I have the same problem with my voice sometimes, and especially when I morph and use my tail like I did on Ptichka earlier. Now you know how much is too much and I know you won't slip again. You're very good at controlling your blasts so don't start feeling bad and worrying yourself sick because you made one mistake you hear me? I catch you brooding about it and I'll smack you upside your head. Now go on back down and have fun with Lance. Show him all the gadgets we have to make life easier."  
  
Scott nodded and rose from the bed, taking the beautiful womans words to heart. He said goodbye to Logan and left the older couple alone, making his way back to the lower levels where he'd left Lance, Pietro, and Evan. The three boys noticed his deflated mood and Lance asked, "What's up Cyke?"  
  
"I hurt Serena in the workout earlier man. She's got a bad burn on her back where I blasted her." The teen replied, turning to punch the wall in his frustrated anger. Lance awkwardly patted his counterparts' back in sympathy. The rock tumbler still felt bad when he remembered how he'd brought a school building down on Kitty, Jean, and Kittys' parents.  
  
Pietro exchanged a worried look with his boyfriend and Evan asked, "She alright man? I mean, she seemed okay afterwards. Don't feel so bad Scott, we've all had accidents with our powers. I nearly skewered Auntie O last week when she surprised me."  
  
Lance and Pietro agreed, telling the laser eyed teen about times they'd accidentally hurt people with their powers. "It's tough, having these powers, but we've got friends who understand and that makes it easier. 'Rena wouldn't hold it against you, just like she wouldn't be mad at any of us if we were the ones that hurt her. Besides knowing what we're going through, it's just not her way; she loves all of us no matter what we do." Pietro said, hoping to reassure the other boy.   
  
"I know she's not mad, she's a great friend. But I still feel awful about it; I wish I didn't have a mutation that could hurt people. But I guess if we don't use them right all of our powers can hurt people. Come on Alvers, let's go check out the jet before Logan figures out we're messing with his baby." Scott sighed and tried to shrug off his depression. If he let his worries show he knew Serena would follow through on her threat to smack him for it.  
  
The rock tumbler trailed after Scott, but noticed Pietro and Evan weren't with them. He turned and saw the pair walking the other way and called out, "Hey guys aren't you coming with us?" Scott also turned and looked at the younger teens, wanting to get moving and find something to distract his mind.  
  
Evan sent his boyfriend a sideways look and replied, "Umm nah man, think 'Tro and I'll go play some b-ball in the park. It's too good a day to stay inside. You guys have fun though, see ya later." The dark skinned boy started walking toward the elevator again and after giving the other two a wave Pietro followed.  
  
When the younger boys were out of sight Scott and Lance looked at each other and gave a mutual shrug, neither knowing what had prompted the sudden friendship between their team mates. But then the same could be said about their own new found respect for each other, so they let it pass. Scott gestured to Lance and the two team leaders made their way down the corridors to the hangar where the X jet was kept.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
As they climbed the stairs to the second floor of the mansion Evan and Pietro were congratulating each other on their escape from group activities. They cleared the landing and stopped speaking, seeing one more obstacle in their path. Logan was just coming out of Serenas' bedroom. The older man spotted the teens and asked, "What're you two brats up to? Thought you were goin to play basketball."  
  
Evan thought fast and replied, "We're just getting my ball man, and then we're gone." He breathed a sigh of relief when Logan accepted his excuse with a grunt. The big man started to walk past them but turned when Pietro touched his arm.  
  
The teen looked up to meet Logans gaze and asked, "How is 'Rena? Scott said she was hurt; is it ok if I check on her before we go?" Concern was evident in the snowy haired boys' voice and eyes. Before he could loosen up and spend some quality time with his boyfriend Pietro wanted to make sure the older woman was really alright.   
  
Logan looked the boys over and answered, "She's fine Speedy, the burn isn't too bad. She's sleepin now so don't go in and wake her, you can check on her when she gets up later. I swear even hurt that woman was still jabberin about feedin you kids dinner tonight." He turned to Evan and cautioned, "Don't you be late Porcupine; I don't want her havin to hold supper for you."  
  
Logan strode away without waiting for a reply from the boys. They watched him disappear into the elevator before going down the hall to Evans' room. Pietro stared at the large bedroom that belonged to his boyfriend. He recognized a lot of the stuff in the room from when they'd lived in the city. The pictures above the king sized bed caught his eye and he moved over to take a look.  
  
There was one of Evan and his parents in their back yard, a couple of group pictures from the basketball team, one of his aunt; and a few of the Xmen. Pietro had to sit down when he saw the photo that graced his boyfriends' bedside table. An older photo, it showed a ten year old Evan playing in the mud. A young Pietro was standing behind the boy with a bucket of mud and an angelic smile on his dirty features.   
  
Evan was sitting beside the white haired teen; also remembering the day that picture was taken. "Man, it took my mom an hour to clean us up after that mud fight, remember? She kept looking at the sky and asking why she couldn't have had a girl, and my dad was laughing so hard he fell out of the hammock."  
  
"I remember. My dad had just brought me back to New York when another of his friends got fed up with me. We used to have some good times when we were kids huh Ev?" Pietro asked, placing the picture back on the table and leaning his head against the other teens' shoulder.   
  
A strong, dark arm came around and pulled him into an embrace. "Yeah we did 'Tro, when you weren't being a brat. I'm glad I know now why you always tried to keep away from me. I don't even know the dude, but your dad was a real asshole and I'm happy he finally decided to let you stay in New York and quit moving you around every year." Evan pressed a kiss to he snowy hair of his boyfriend and hugged him tightly.  
  
Pietros' wiry muscled arms went around the dark boys' waist and hugged back for a long moment. He raised his head and replied, "Yeah he is. Enough with the serious stuff for today Ev, gimmie a kiss." Evan was happy to oblige and he caught the pale, full lips with his own. Soon the couple was locked in a heated embrace that seemed to last for hours.  
  
After a long series of passionate kisses Pietro screwed up his courage and let one long fingered, slender hand wander over Evans back to the waist band of his jeans. He tugged at the dark boys' shirt until it came loose, and then slid his hand underneath the material to touch the warm, bare skin of his boyfriends' back. He held still, just touching, hoping that Evan would like it and return the gesture.   
  
The dark skinned blond felt the warmth of Pietros' hand on his bare back and smiled against the other boys' lips. Answering his boyfriends' silent wish, he tugged at the black tee shirt until it was free of the pale boys' pants. Evans' slightly callused hand moved under the shirt and glided gently up Pietros' back, sending shivers down the recipients' spine. The snowy haired teen returned the favour, but instead of a shiver, Evan responded by making a pleased sound in his throat.  
  
The couple continued to make out, hands exploring bare skin while lips moved gently over faces and throats. Evan was feeling playful as he trailed kissed over pale skin, and he nudged the collar of Pietros' shirt out of the way before settling in to create the perfect hickey on his boyfriends' collarbone. It took the speedster a good minute to realize what the result of all that sucking and nipping would be. "Ev quit that! If the guys see it I'm toast!" He chastised, removing his hands from his boyfriends' back to push against his chest.   
  
When Evan finally pulled away he gave his boyfriend a teasing grin. He reached up and pulled the tee shirt away so that he could see the mark he'd made. Where the sun hadn't given him a tan Pietro had nearly translucent skin. The purple hickey stood out like a neon sign against the milky flesh. "Now that looks cute." He said, giving a satisfied nod.  
  
The speed demon stood and walked over to the mirror. He looked at the mark for a moment, and then touched it with his forefinger. He'd never actually been given a love bite before and he decided it really did look cute. He'd have to make sure it was covered though, or Lance and Todd would nag him until he told them who'd given him the hickey.   
  
He came back to the bed and plopped down beside his boyfriend, kicking back so that he was laying in a relaxed pose. "I'd offer to return the favour, but I don't think it would show up as well on you. You better hope the guys don't see it; if they do and I have to think up an excuse I'll do something really mean to you." He threatened playfully.  
  
"Oh really, I dunno man, I think I might enjoy it." Evan teased back, making his boyfriend blush. The playful banter continued for a while, resulting in a tickle fight; which eventually came full circle until the pair was once again engaged in a steamy make out session that lasted the rest of the afternoon.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
About half an hour before sunset the group started to reassemble. Spike and Rogue reluctantly opened the rec room door and the teens trickled in two or three at a time. When the ten kids were chatting happily about their afternoon Logan decided to go upstairs and check on his Chatterbox. He could hear her humming softly as he ascended the staircase and felt a smile twitch at the corner of his mouth as the womans sweet voice washed over him.  
  
He opened the door without knocking, as was his habit, and realized he should develop new habits. Serena was up from her nap and getting dressed. She'd gone to sleep topless to relieve the pain of her injury and was just now getting around to putting a shirt on. The jaded, world weary Logan could only stare with mouth agape at his half naked girlfriend. His higher brain functions had all but disappeared with the sudden loss of blood, and his thoughts ran mostly to 'Gah! Jaysus H. Cripes in a sidecar! Tits!'  
  
Serena heard the door opened and glanced behind her. She saw her boyfriends' condition and could only roll her eyes. 'Men, show them a pair of breasts and they turn into zombies.' She mused. The small woman was feeling much better after her nap and decided to tease the big goof. "Todds' equipped for catching flies Wolvie, shut your mouth."   
  
Turning her gaze back to the contents of her closet, Serena quickly pulled out a loose summer outfit. The black vest type blouse buttoned up the front and was airy enough not to irritate her burn, classy enough to suit her style, and flattered her full figure without need of a bra. A pair of palazzo pants would complete the ensemble, the loose fitting pants swirled around her legs as she walked, drawing attention to them. She held the garments over her chest and strode calmly to the bathroom just as her Wolf decided to close his mouth.  
  
While Serena was busy changing Logan gathered his composure. The big man had seen nude women before, literally more than he could remember. But his little gypsy girl had caught him off guard, and he cursed himself for acting like he imagined one of their teen charges would in the same situation. He forced his raging hard on away and walked across the room to wait for his Siren in her rocking chair.  
  
When the woman re emerged ten minutes later, he was able to give her a calm smile. She returned the gesture and came forward to sit in his lap. Logan cuddled the tiny woman for a moment before saying, "Feelin better Sweetheart? How's your back?" He'd been careful to keep his arm away from the injury when he wrapped it around her small frame, not wanting to cause her pain.  
  
"I feel much better, thanks. The nap helped and the painkillers are still working. Are the kids back yet? I was about to go down and throw a couple pans of lasagne into the oven; I'm glad I had those put away, I really don't feel like cooking for twenty people tonight." Serena replied, leaning her head against Logans' shoulder. She wanted to relax and enjoy some quality time with her friends before she had to make her phone calls to California, she knew Kurt wouldn't feel better until something had been done about the situation in Sunnydale.  
  
The raven haired man grunted in reply and stood, lifting his girlfriends' light weight along with him. Being chivalrous wasn't in his nature, but this particular damsel in distress had a good honest hold on his heart so he figured he could make an exception. With an unresisting beauty in his muscular arms he walked downstairs and rejoined the teens in the rec room.   
  
Once there he looked for a convenient place to sit Serena down. Even Logan, who had no idea what to do in a kitchen, could throw something pre-made in the oven and the hollow-legged teens would be complaining for dinner soon. His sapphire eyes scanned the room and, seeing that all the seats were taken, he picked a nice, non threatening person to dump his Chatterbox on.   
  
Kurt was talking animatedly with Scott when a bundle of black landed on him. Looking up, his eyes met Logans' and the older man said, "Take care of her would ya, she's stoned. Careful of her back, she's hurt. I'm gonna throw dinner in the oven so she doesn't have to cook." His gaze turned from the still confused elf to the tiny brunette who was sitting to close to Lance for the raven haired mans comfort. "Half Pint you better come with me; make sure I don't burn the house down."  
  
Using Kittys' flaws in the domestic area to make sure no one thought to make a comment about him cooking was a brilliant plan in Logans' mind. It was well known that the girl couldn't cook to save her life, and if it got his little girl away from the rock tumbler; well that was just a bonus. After making sure Kitty was following him he strode from the room in the direction of the kitchen.  
  
"Oh Gods above and Devils below, they're gonna burn the house down, I know it. One of them in there is bad enough, but both?" Serena muttered; her whiskey hued eyed raised to the ceiling. She attempted to rise from the awkward position Logan had dropped her in but only half heartedly. She was reclining on one of the couches, her upper body in Kurts' lap and her legs in Pietros'. Giving up the attempt she relaxed and said, "Hey kids, how was your day?"  
  
After dinner the four Brotherhood boys went home and the six remaining teens settled down in the rec room to watch television or play games. The adults left the room once their charges were busy, Kurt and Rogue tagging along to listen in on the phone calls their older comrades were going to make. With Professor Xavier sitting in, Logan made the first of the planned phone calls.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Rupert Giles was hard at work, studying all the materials he had concerning the Initiative when his phone rang. He picked it up absentmindedly, expecting to hear a sales pitch or some other nonsense. "Hello?" He asked, his tone the very essence of British boredom.  
  
"Hello Mr. Giles, this is Logan. We heard you've been having some trouble down there and we wanted to check in and make sure everything's okay." Logan greeted, trying to keep his tone light.   
  
Giles recognized the name and the low pitched, rumbling voice that accompanied it. He wondered how the mutants had heard about the slayerettes recent problems, but remembered Willow saying she had been keeping in touch with them via that blasted laptop of hers. "Hello Logan, it's wonderful to hear from you. I trust things are well with your group? I won't say that everything is fine here, but we're holding steadfast through the troubles."  
  
To the man on the other end of the line, the librarian sounded both troubled and strained. "We're fine, no trouble to speak of. It's actually gettin borin 'round here." Logan replied casually. He wanted to probe the British man, find out how things really were; but he realized that since they were dealing with a government problem the Watchers phone was probably tapped.   
  
The two men conversed about small things for a few more minutes before they ended their call. Logan felt he'd accomplished what he'd set out to do and was pleased. The point of the call had been to let the man know that they were aware of the problems he was having, and were ready to help if the need arose.   
  
The raven haired man turned to his companions and said, "I didn't get much out of him, but I didn't expect to. Giles is a smart man; he knows his calls are probably being monitored by the commandos. I don't think we'll be getting any details unless we send someone there in person. Chatty, you still gonna call that Angel guy?"  
  
Spike and Serena exchanged a knowing look. Getting Angel involved had repercussions; the souled vampire hated Spike, and wouldn't want to trust Serena. The blond nodded his head, indicating that he thought the ends justified the means. He reached into one of the pockets in his duster and pulled his wallet. He thumbed through the contents before pulling out a white business card. "Here's the number Nymph. Poufs' lackeys should still be there, you'll have to get through the beauty queen to talk to him."  
  
"Thanks Spikey. I hope he doesn't hang up the phone as soon as he hears my voice. We never mentioned to Angelus that my hypnosis doesn't carry over the phone." Serena replied, taking the card. She gave the design on it a quizzical glance, wondering what in the hell the drawing was supposed to be. Shrugging, she perched on the edge of Charles' desk and picked up the receiver.  
  
After three rings a cheerful voice came over the other end, "Hello, Angel Investigations. We help the hopeless for a reasonable price. This is Cordelia, how may we help you?" The raven haired hypnotist shuddered slightly at the shiny, happy, money hungry tone of the secretary's voice.  
  
In a calm, even tone she said, "Hello, I'd like to speak to Angel please." The chirpy voice on the other end tried to tell her that her boss was unavailable, but that Cordelia could take her information and have him get back to her. Serena rolled her eyes and replied, "I know Angel is there, I doubt the sun has set enough for him to be out and about. I'm an old friend of his and I have a job for him. Now please put the big broody hulk on the phone."  
  
Hearing that the woman was a friend of Angels gave Cordelia the wiggins. Did that mean she was a friend of Angelus'? The brunette decided to let her boss handle it and put the call through to his office. She hung up the phone and joined the vampire just as he was picking up the receiver. "She says she's a friend of yours. If she's evil she better be paying a lot of money for whatever she wants you to do."  
  
Angel rolled his eyes at his secretary and pushed the button to take the unknown 'friend' off hold. "Hello, this is Angel." He greeted in his usual direct way.  
  
A hauntingly beautiful, seductive, purring voice came over the line and Cordelia watched her normally pale friend become even more so. The vampires chocolate eyes flared golden as he listened. "Hello Angelus, it's nice to hear your voice. I hear you've become rather ensouled, again. Now, don't hang up on me; I promise I can't hypnotize you over the phone."  
  
A low growl, reminiscent of Wolverine, echoed back over the line to the enhanced ears of both vampire and mutant. Logan growled back, though the sound didn't carry. The big man didn't like anyone making threatening noises at his Chatterbox. He heard the vampire responding, "What do you want from me Serena? I don't know or care where Spike and Dru are so if you're looking for them you called the wrong person."  
  
Serenas' low laughter sounded for a moment before she answered, "I know exactly where your childer are; in fact Spike is here with me. As to what I want from you, well that's a little harder. I want you to start caring, about your childer, and about your friends on the hellmouth. Don't you start growling and threatening me Angelus, I haven't harmed them and I don't intend to. I'm not evil you prancing ponce, I never was."  
  
The British epithets, picked up from long association with Spike, sounded extremely strange in Serenas' rapidly thickening Ukrainian accent. She listened as Angel said, "If you're not evil, and I truly doubt that; then why did you just threaten my friends?" Cordelia was fingering the crucifix pendant that hung from her throat. She'd reached for it the minute Angel went game face and started growling.   
  
"Don't you ever listen Angelus; I also mentioned caring about Spike and Dru. Have you kept up on what's happening in Sunnydale? There's a group of commandos and scientists performing experiments on demons under the college campus. The reason Spike is here with me is because he got caught and was seriously hurt by them before he managed to escape." Serena was getting impatient with the dense vampire. She'd always thought Angelus, while being a prick, was intelligent; but obviously his souled counterpart was thick as bricks.  
  
She took a deep breath and continued, interrupting the vampires reply, "I realize you don't want to care about what happened to him. Yes, yes I know the story; he had you tortured blah blah blah, I can't honestly say I blame him for it. Not really the point Angelus; the point is that your little blonde ex has joined up with them. Think about it, the government is experimenting on demons; can anything good come of that? Giles is worried and Willow is scared to be around the Slayer."  
  
Angel absorbed all the information he was getting between insults. He hadn't kept tabs on the group in Sunnydale, and with the new information Serena was providing, he realized he should have. "How in the hell do you know Willow and Giles and what do you want me to do about this?" He asked, his temper showing in his voice.  
  
Serena gave an abrupt nod, glad that the vampire was finally getting around to the point of her call. "I met them when I went to Sunnydale to pick up Spike; he was staying with the slayers' group. My friends and I helped them out before we left. What I want you to do is get in your car and drive your arse to Sunnydale. I've got friends here that are ready to help if the problem there gets dire, but with the phone lines tapped I can't get any information."  
  
"I want you to go up there and get a feel for the attitude of the place. Talk to Willow and Giles, talk to Willie down at the bar. Do not contact Buffy, you might find yourself in a lab cage if you do. You're good at lurking, so I know you can keep yourself from getting captured by the soldiers. Well, that's about it. You ready to put aside your grudge and help your friends?" When the raven haired woman finished she rolled her head and tried to stretch the kinks out of her shoulders.   
  
Angel pondered the situation for a quiet moment. If the hypnotist was lying then he could be falling into some kind of trap, but if she was telling the truth his friends were in danger. "You said Spike's there with you? Let me talk to him."   
  
Serena held the receiver out to her blond friend and Spike groaned loudly before nudging Rogue off his lap to take it. He began talking with his sire, verifying Serenas' story. While he was busy the small woman turned to the two teens in the room and asked them to go get one of the pictures Kitty had taken of the group before they left Sunnydale. She had a feeling Angel would need some kind of proof that she did indeed know the scooby gang and was friendly towards them. Using Kurts' teleportation the retrieval didn't take long and she used the professors fax machine to send a copy of the image to the souled vampire.  
  
Cordelia was listening to her boss talking with the Billy Idol wannabe when the fax machine started humming. She left her seat and went into the office to see what was coming over the line. Glancing at the cover sheet she saw an emblem for a school, and the details of where the fax had come from. There was only one page after the cover sheet and it contained a large photograph.  
  
The brunette walked back into Angels' office, her coffee brown eyes focused on the image. She recognized the background as a popular place for picnics in the woods outside Sunnydale. The people in the foreground interested her. She recognized Willow, Xander and Spike; but there were five teenagers and two adults that she didn't know. Cordelia walked around the desk to stand next to her boss and placed the picture in front of him.  
  
Angel was able to identify one more face than his friend, that of a small black haired woman. Serena had one arm wrapped around a big, rough looking man on one side and was grinning at Xander Harris who was standing on her other side. Spike and Willow stood close to each other, smiling as if they were friends. A blue furred demon had one arm around the redheads' shoulders and a tail curled around her waist. Standing at the vampires' side was a girl dressed in gothic clothing, two white streaks standing out against her auburn hair. Two other boys were standing next to Xander, laughing at something a delicate looking brunette girl was saying.  
  
Looking at the picture Angel could find no sign that his friends were with the group by force. The vampire was looking closely at Willows face, and saw that his little friend seemed happy to have Spike near her and a young demon holding her. Xander looked fine too; the photo had captured him with his goofy smile in place. With Spikes' word and the picture for verification Angel decided that he would do as Serena asked and take a quiet look around his old home.  
  
When the blond vampire hung up the phone after speaking with his sire he turned and said to the group at large, "Paingel will drive up to Sunnyhell as soon as the sun sets and take a look around. Said he'll call the number that was on the fax when he gets back to L.A."  
  
Serena smiled, pleased with the results of their work so far. She had one more call to make in private, but that would wait until later. Turning to Kurt she said, "Feel better now Sweetie? We'll have some information tomorrow night at the latest, for now why don't you go up to my room and call Willow, I'm sure she'd love to hear from you. Just be sure that neither of you mentions demons or mutants, anything that might raise alarms at the Initiative if they're listening in."  
  
The blue teen hugged his surrogate mother and gratefully accepted her offer. The students weren't allowed to have their own phones and had to use one of the common room phones unless they were talking to their parents. The chance to talk to his girlfriend in private, without any of his friends listening in or interrupting was not an opportunity to be missed. Saying a quick thanks and goodbye he teleported up to Serenas' room to make use of the womans private line.  
  
The people left behind waved their hands in front of their noses to clear the smell of brimstone from their nostrils before laughing lightly at the boys' antics. Spike took hold of his girlfriends' hand and the pair made their own getaway, heading outside for a walk.   
  
Logan, Serena, and Charles discussed the situation in Sunnydale and what repercussions they might face if they exposed themselves to help their friends. Logan pointed out that if the government knew about demons, they surely knew about mutants. The Xmen wouldn't be revealing the secret of their existence, just some of their powers. The trio talked seriously for a long while, until Serena noticed that it was nearing curfew. She and Logan excused themselves to see that their charges were all inside and getting ready for bed.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Logan took up his position in the foyer to catch any of the teens who were out on dates that came in late. Thirty seconds before the grandfather clock started chiming the hour Rogue came running in. The girl saw the 'terrifying teddy bear' as she'd dubbed Logan, and said breathlessly, "I'm not late! Don't you dare go getting me up early for a Danger Room workout in the morning! It's all Spikes' fault!" She pointed a suspiciously gloveless finger at the smirking blond that was just coming in the door.   
  
The two men had no choice but to laugh uproariously at the fiery tempered southern belle. Rogue gave her boyfriend and father figure a rude gesture before storming upstairs, no doubt to complain to Serena about men in general and 'those two' in particular. Logan turned his midnight blue eyes to his vampire friend and said, "You got your hands full with that one Spike, she's a little hellcat."   
  
An urge to give a little fatherly warning overcame the gruff man and he continued, "She's my little hellcat. I like you Spike, I really do; but if you hurt that girl in any way I will make you pray for an end to your life. Pray, beg, wish, and hope; you'll do it all before…"  
  
"Before I let him have a go at you. You know I love you Will, but I love Rogue too. You just treat her like you treated Dru and everything will be fine." Serena finished as she walked gracefully down the stairs. She leaned up and kissed the vampires cool cheek, then did the same to Logan, who growled at her for stealing his thunder. "The kids are all tucked in bed Wolvie, no late comers for you to play with in the morning. Kurt's tucked into the wrong bed though so you'll have to move him later. Right now I feel like taking a walk, anyone care to join me?"  
  
Logan smiled down at the womans dark head and squeezed her shoulder. "Sure thing Chatty, but first; exactly whose bed is the elf tucked into?" She met his curious blue eyes with twinkling amber and smiled.  
  
"I found him in our bed and didn't have the heart to wake him. He must've gone straight to sleep after he finished talking to Willow. Poor thing, he's been worried about her all day, despite our promises to make sure everything was okay. He really cares for that girl, I hope she knows and appreciates just how much." The woman replied as the trio started out the front door. Spike had decided to tag along for the walk, not wanting to be cooped up inside until the daylight forced him back.  
  
The vampire mused as they walked through the gardens in companionable silence. Finally he spoke, his words reassuring, "If anyone can love that boy as much as he loves her, it's Willow. Red is one of the purest souls I've ever seen, the sight of all that goodness in her used to blind me. She'll take care of your baby Nymph, as long as we make sure she bloody well stays alive to do it."  
  
Serena gave her favourite men a wide smile and began to run ahead of them. Logan looked at Spike, and the vampire returned the look. Both shrugged and sat on a nearby bench to wait for the woman to return. They talked a little as they smoked their cigarettes, enjoying the night air. The weather had been warming in preparation for spring and the breeze off the ocean was pleasant.   
  
The men heard their companion returning before they saw her. She was singing something that sounded vaguely familiar to both, though their music tastes varied radically. Logan mused on that for a second before asking, "Hey Blondie, back in California, why'd ya ask the Chatterbox to sing Amazing Grace? Seems strange for a vampire to ask for a hymn of all the songs that woman knows."  
  
Spikes' glacier blue eyes unfocused for a minute before he responded, "The Nymph told you that Dru and I took her around the world with us right? About six months into the trip we ended up in London; that's where both of us came from originally. We let the chit wander during the day, doing the tourist thing, while we slept until sunset. The night we left she picked a bunch of white roses out of the hotel garden asked us to take her to one of the older cemeteries. We did, and waited outside; while she went so deep in that we couldn't see or hear her."  
  
He paused, gathering his thoughts and then continued, "She came out about ten minutes later. Dru, always the clever girl, asked who the Nymph was singing for. Turns out that while she was out during the days, she'd found out that both Dru and I were supposed to be buried in that cemetery. She'd gone in to pay her respects to our souls, and give them a gift. She laid the flowers on our headstones and sang. I told her that night that when she got control of her powers the first song I wanted to hear from her was whatever she'd sung in the cemetery."  
  
"She's a treasure, my Nymph is. Even after ten years she remembered that I wanted to hear that particular song. I love that girl, with all the heart I'm not supposed to have and the soul I lost over a hundred years ago. You remember your words to me about Rogue mate, because the same will happen to you if you ever cause Serena pain. As long as we understand each other about that, you and I will continue to be bloody good friends." The vampire finished and held out his hand. Logan took the offered hand in his own and the two alpha males sealed their friendship just as Serena came around the corner.  
  
She eyed her friends warily and gave a dainty sniff of the air. Teasingly she announced, "I smell way too much testosterone out here. I don't know what you two were talking about, but I'm glad you managed to discuss it without bloodshed. Now I think it's time to go back inside. I need Kurt out of my room so I can use the phone."  
  
Logan and Spike trailed after the small woman who bound them together as she walked back toward the mansion. The raven haired man turned to the vampire about halfway back and muttered, "She may be a treasure, but she's also a royal pain in the ass."  
  
Spike chuckled quietly and nodded his bleached head, "Got that bloody right. We don't have to worry about the world ending one of these days; it ended for men the day a woman put on a pair of pants and declared herself the boss." Neither could control their laughter, and it was a good five minutes before they were able to rejoin Serena in the house.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Inside, Logan went to the room he shared with Serena, intending to move Kurt to his own bed. While the big man was busy Serena took a moment to talk to her vampire friend, "Spike, I'm going to be talking to Raphael Martine in New Orleans. Do you want me to pass on any messages?"   
  
Spike gazed at the lion eyed woman incredulously for a moment before taking her hand and forcefully pulling her down the hall to his room. When the door shut behind him he whirled to face her, "What in the bleeding hell are you calling the Consortium for Nymph? I know you've done them a few favours over the years, but what do you need to talk to that bastard for now?"  
  
"Do you know of anyone better to get information from in the demon world? I've done more than a few favours for them, and now I want one in return. The last job they sent me on nearly got me killed. They failed to inform me that the damned apocalypse demons I was hunting were deaf. They owe me for that if nothing else, and I want whatever information they can gather about the Initiative, the 3:14 project, Hunter, and the Weapon X project." Serena answered defiantly. She'd promised Logan that she'd do what she could about finding more information on Hunter, and anything they could get on the Initiative would be helpful.  
  
The blond vampire gave way only reluctantly; he'd never liked his Nymph working for the Consortium of Nightwalkers. Being known to the council had its benefits, but they often came with deadly consequences. The group watched over their specific cities, keeping demonic activity under the radar of the human authorities and preventing apocalypses that might upset their decadent lifestyle. "Alright Nymph, you call them; but don't speak to anyone but Raphael. Don't tell him any more than he needs to know either. If he gives you a hard time you tell him that I'll give him that demonstration I always promised if he doesn't cooperate."  
  
Serena gave her friend a hug and kissed his cheek. "I will; thanks Spikey. Logan and I will probably go straight to sleep after I finish on the phone so I'll say my goodnights now. Sleep well, I love you."   
  
Spike hugged the frail looking woman tightly and pressed his lips to her forehead before shooing her out the door with a smack to her behind. "Goodnight Nymph, I love you too. Even if you are a bossy little chit." He laughed as her dark head poked back through his door long enough to stick her tongue out at him before closing tightly.   
  
"Impudent little brat. And Angelus always thought I was a disrespectful childe. Good thing the overly gelled pouf didn't have to raise my Nymph, he would've staked himself. On second thought, maybe I ought to con her into living L.A. style for a few years." The blond muttered under his breath as he got comfortable in his chair. He settled in for some reading, knowing he wouldn't fall asleep until early morning.  
  
Logan was waiting for Serena when she entered the bedroom. He'd carried Nightcrawler back to his room and showered quickly while his girlfriend was busy talking to the vampire. "Got the elf squared away in his own room. Kid didn't even wake up when I carried him down the hall; he sleeps like Spike."  
  
"Spike actually sleeps lighter. He was always afraid Dru would wander into the sun one day while he was sleeping. You go ahead and relax Wolvie; I need to make that phone call. Just please don't start growling or interrupt while I'm talking, this is important." The small woman replied as she sat down at the sewing table that also served as a desk. Before Logan could respond she had lifted the receiver and started dialling.  
  
After what must have been ten rings the phone was picked up and Serena started speaking. "Bonjour, I need to speak with Raphael Martine…I realize he is a busy man, I simply don't care. Tell him that Siren is on the phone…Really, I highly doubt that Raphael would tell me to go to hell; he knows I'd enjoy it too much. Procedure? You must be joking môn amie…Now you listen carefully, I am a busy woman with no time for procedure and no time to waste speaking to lackeys. You get that Creole bloodsucker on the phone this instant or by all the devils in hell I will be down there in an hour and you will see me in person the second before I rip your throat out comprendez-vous?...I thought so…yes I'll hold for a moment."  
  
Logan watched the small woman intently during her conversation with the person he assumed was this Raphaels' secretary. His interest had been piqued when she used her code name, and she had his full attention after her comment about enjoying hell. Her entire demeanour had changed from the first word she'd spoken. Her pleasant Ukrainian accent had been replaced with an authentic sounding Cajun one, and her tone had become low pitched, with a definite hint of a seductive purr. The attitude was reminiscent of their first night in Sunnydale, when she'd gone to the demon bar.   
  
'Who in the hell is she talkin to, and why is she usin that voice? Wait a minute, did she say bloodsucker? She's tryin to get hold of a vampire?' His musings were interrupted when the raven haired woman began speaking again. He listened carefully, and managed to hear both sides of the conversation.  
  
A deep tenor voice came over the line, "What did you say to my assistant Cherie? She ran out of here in a blur after she told me you wished to speak to me."  
  
"Raphael darling, you need to stop fucking your secretaries, it makes them insolent. This one, she actually had the audacity to tell me to go to hell. How are things with you chere?" Serena replied, her voice still carrying the new accent and seductive purr.  
  
"I apologize petite, she will be punished severely for her insolence, I assure you. Things are well with me, though I miss you terribly. Make my heart whole again, tell me you are coming home." The voice of the mystery vamp came back to Logans' ears and he had to grit his teeth to stop the growl from being heard.  
  
Serena, his Chatterbox, gave a tinkling laugh before saying, "Non Chere, I am afraid you must keep filling your heart with those brainless secretaries. This is my home now, and I find I am having much fun."  
  
"How can such a lovely flower thrive in that filthy place I ask you? Now tell me môn coeur, what can I do for you if you are so happy? Anything you ask, and it is yours." Logan did not like this conversation, especially the man who was flirting outrageously with his woman. That she was responding, in fact flirting right back, was driving the man insane.  
  
Serena sighed dramatically and replied, "I am afraid this is a business call Raphael. I have done much work for your branch of the Consortium and asked very little in return. Now I find myself in need of some information."  
  
"Oui, Cherie. You have done excellent work for us. We are still looking for the man and child you seek, but lady luck has turned her back on us in this matter. Tell me what information you need môn amour, and we will see what we can do."   
  
Before making a reply Serena turned her dark head to give her love a reassuring smile. She could tell he was angry, and knew she would have to do some explaining when she finished her business. "You need not continue that search môn amie, I have found l'enfant and he will eventually lead me to son pere. What I need now is information on two subjects. You may need to write this down Raphael, doux; I want the results as soon as possible."  
  
"Go ahead, I will write it down for you. It piques my curiosity, but then again you always have môn petit bohémien." Now Logan actually leaned forward from his place on the bed, anxious to hear the reason he was being put through this torture.  
  
"The first is this, information on a government run facility that preys on demons and vampires over the hellmouth, called the Initiative. Within the Initiative there is a project known only as 3:14. I want anything you can find on the facility in general and that project in particular." Though her false accent was still in place both the man in the bed and the vampire in New Orleans knew she was through flirting for the moment, intent on her purpose.  
  
A small gasp could be heard from Raphael before he responded, "Siren, petite chere, we do indeed know of this threat on the hellmouth; sil vous plait môn amie, do not involve yourself in this. It is bad business."  
  
"I know it isn't a good thing Raphael, I've been to la bouche d'enfer recently. Trust me môn amie, I'm not going to involve myself, I only want to be fully informed of the situation in case I pay another visit. Don't concern yourself for my welfare; just get me all the information you have." Serena responded calmly.  
  
"Very well petite, and what is the other subject you wished information on?" The vampire seemed reluctant to agree, though his concern was more for the small womans' safety than for the information.  
  
Logan watched as his woman slumped slightly in her chair with relief. He hadn't realized she was tense until that moment, his Chatterbox had sounded completely calm, even light hearted throughout the entire exchange thus far. He watched her muscles carefully as she began to speak again, noting that they tensed, but not as much as before. "Merci darling, I appreciate your assistance. The second subject I wish to research is much lighter I assure you. A history project if you will; I'd like to know all the information the Consortium has on a demon hunter from the mid nineteen hundreds. He went by the name of Hunter and was killed by William the Bloody somewhere near Quebec in the fifties."  
  
"Ahh yes, and how is your overly blond, British friend ma cherie? Still catering to la beauté aliénée? You have definitely captured my interest môn couer; I can certainly help you with your history project. Appease my curiosity though; why after so many months away from our world do you suddenly call upon us to repay old debts?" Raphael asked, his tone becoming serious despite all the French endearments.  
  
Serenas' eyes began to darken in response to the questions her former associate was asking. Raphael Martine was an important figure in the Consortium, and a master of game playing. She knew her requests might cause some suspicion, and was prepared subtly threaten the vampire on that subject if need be. What she wasn't ready for was his sudden interest in Spike and Dru. It was well known that he did not like the pair and would take great joy in their demise.  
  
"Spike and Dru are well môn amie, I've spoken to them both recently. As for the repayment I ask, it is little compared to the things I have done on the Consortiums' behalf. Let us say that the information is a gift; and if the recipient should know about it before the gift is given, well I shall be obliged to send gifts to you and your associates all wrapped up in red paper. You would enjoy such a present from me oui?"  
  
"Non ma cherie, no gifts are necessary. As you say, you have done much for me in the past, this is but a well deserved payment. I will gather the information you asked for and have it delivered to the Consortium chambers in New York by next weekend. It has been wonderful hearing from you petite, but I must go now and begin the hunt for your information. Stay well môn amour, and contact me if you find anything wrong with your package." The vampire seemed in a sudden hurry to end the conversation.  
  
Logan suppressed a shudder at the evil grin that spread itself over Serenas' elfin features. "Merci Raphael, you are a good friend to me. Be well Chere, I will call you again once my package has arrived. Give my love to Dominique when you see her again."  
  
The vampire still seemed rushed, but relaxed a little when he spoke his final farewell. "I will look forward to your call then petite chatte. Domi will be pleased you remember her. Je t'aime ma cherie, au revoir."  
  
"Bonsoir Raphael." Serena hung up the receiver and collapsed back against her seat, closing her eyes. She neither heard nor saw her muscular boyfriend leave the bed and walk over to her, his face set in an angry scowl and his fists clenched so hard they were white at the knuckles.  
  
Logan stood staring at the telephone for a moment, thinking back over the conversation his Chatterbox had just finished. He placed one fist on the phone and watched with glee as his claws punched through it to embed themselves in the sewing table. His gold flecked blue eyes met those of the small woman when her golden orbs flew open at the sound of her phone being destroyed. Before she could ask what he was doing, he demanded the same in a threatening growl, "Just what in the hell was all that Chatterbox?"  
  
Serena took in her gruff boyfriends' hard, angry expression, his tense muscles, and the three claws that were still embedded in her table. Though she was mentally exhausted from her previous conversation the small woman felt her anger rise. "You listened to it, what do you think it was?" she spat out.  
  
"I think it sounded a hell of a lot like my woman puttin on a fake accent and flirtin like a whore to get information from a goddamn vampire." Logan growled out. He retracted the adamantium claws from the ruined telephone and took a half step forward so that he loomed over his seated girlfriend.  
  
Rather than cower from the angry man, Serena leaned her chair back and met his eyes with an icy calm stare. "Really, I didn't think whores were in the habit of flirting. What it sounded like to me was a conversation between old friends, albeit a strange conversation since I was in fact asking for payment of a debt through information, and there was a death threat involved."  
  
Logan was honestly surprised that Serena didn't back down in the face of his threatening posture. It made his emotions cool a little and he backed away so that he was no longer hovering over her. "I've never heard a conversation with so many pet names in my life. Who in the hell was that Raphael, an old boyfriend?"  
  
Serena stood and honest to goodness laughed in the big mans face. "Boyfriend? Raphael Martine? Oh Spike will love hearing that one. Sit down and quit growling at me and I'll explain what you just heard; but first I want to say this. Do not take your anger out on my possessions or make threatening gestures to me again. I don't take that from anybody, loved one or not."  
  
The raven haired man sat, though his growl was still present. He made a grand gesture, sarcastically indicating that she should begin. She took note of his manner with a raised eyebrow and began her explanation. "Raphael Martine is a vampire, as you figured out. He heads up the New Orleans branch of an organization called the Consortium of Nightwalkers. It is, basically, a group of demons and vampires that keep the demonic activity in their city under control. They make sure humans don't find out about their existence, and they remove any apocalyptic threats in their area."  
  
"When I decided to settle in New Orleans Spike brought me before the Consortium so that they would know I was in their domain and was not a threat. Raphael took an interest in me, and it wasn't long before I was asked to help rid the city of a threat. Demonic activity is prevalent in New Orleans for some reason, and I've done quite a few 'favours' for the Consortium over the years, the last of which was the night you found me."  
  
The big man paid careful attention to his girlfriends' explanation; the idea made sense to him. His dark head jerked up and startled blue eyes focused on her face at the last sentence, "The night I found you? You told us you'd been attacked by a couple of rapists and used your powers to scare em off." He interrupted.  
  
A dainty hand brushed through his black hair as she replied, "I lied. Didn't you ever wonder, after you got to know me, how a couple of normal people managed to beat the crap out of me? Even without using my voice as a weapon, I'm too damn good a fighter to have gotten hurt that badly by a couple of men. I'd just finished killing a group of demons who were trying to end the world. The reason I was injured so badly was because the bloody things were deaf; I couldn't hypnotize them."  
  
When he went to speak again Serena laid a finger over his lips, "No, let me finish. That conversation you heard, it wasn't what you thought, honestly. All the flirting is just the way Raphael and I have always spoken to each other; it's very common in Louisiana for people to use endearments instead of names. I had to exchange pleasantries before I could ask him for that information so that he wouldn't know how badly I wanted it, I had to be casual."  
  
"The Consortium owes me, and they're damn good at getting a lot of information quickly. I played the part, and soon we'll know everything they do about you and about the Initiative. Do you need anything else explained?" She finished, removing her hand from Logans face and retreating to sit in her rocking chair. She held the doll Isabella on her lap and waited for the man to respond.  
  
Logan's anger had faded rapidly under her calm demeanour. Her explanation had been rational, and it cleared up his confusion over her sultry comments on the phone. Now that she'd given her excuses even her fiery temper at his jealous outburst was gone. He glanced away from Serena for a moment to take in the damage he'd done to her things. Feeling guilty and shameful he turned back to face his love.  
  
He watched her motions in the chair and saw in her posture that the small woman was utterly exhausted. Her forehead was wrinkled with worry lines, and the way her back was positioned it was obvious that she was in pain. Her golden eyes were closed, and he saw a single tear drift down her porcelain cheek. As he'd done weeks ago he crossed the room and knelt down beside her chair. A strong, deeply tanned hand reached up to catch the tear before it could drop from her face. When her head came down and honeyed eyes met his gaze Logan said gruffly, "I'm sorry Sweetheart; I shouldn't have lost my temper."  
  
Serena watched as he enveloped one of her small hands in his larger one. He brought it to his face a pressed a soft kiss into her palm, then nuzzled his stubbled cheek against her silken skin. Her voice was quiet with weariness, just above a whisper when she spoke, "I don't care if you lose your temper Logan, it happens. What pissed me off is that you put your claws through my things and then tried to intimidate me. I don't take either of those actions well. If there's ever anything you want me to explain, just ask me. I'll give you an honest answer. Okay?"  
  
"Okay darlin. I'll get you a new phone tomorrow and see what I can do about the table. You forgive me for bein a big ol' canuckle head?" A huge grin lit up Logans' ruggedly handsome face when Serena nodded and gave him one of her special smiles. He leaned up and pressed a gentle kiss to her lips. When he pulled back he continued, "You look tired Chatty. Why don't you get changed and lay down; I'll bring up some of that decaf and get you a pain pill for your back."  
  
The small woman rose from her chair and placed the doll back in the seat. Before Logan could turn and leave the room her small arms wrapped around his waist and instead of leaving he cuddled his Chatterbox for a long moment. He released her only reluctantly so that she could change and hurried downstairs to make their coffee.  
  
After attending to her bathroom needs Serena looked through her armoire for a nightgown that wouldn't irritate her back. The pain killers had worn off and the burn was beginning to hurt again. She found one that would suit her needs, but wondered if she should look for something else. 'No, none of my other nighties have an open back. Wolvie will just have to forgive me.' She mused, looking at the garment. The same beautiful blue of Logans' eyes, the nightgown was of a silken material and draped lovingly over her curves all the way to the floor. Spaghetti straps at the shoulders kept the nightie on, and the long line of her back was left open to the air.  
  
Back in the bathroom she changed into the gown and brushed her long hair before braiding it. She heard Logan return and swallowed nervously before stepping back into the bedroom. Before the man could get a good look at her she said, "Sorry about the nightgown Wolvie, it's the only one I have that won't irritate my back."  
  
Logan looked her over from head to toe, taking in the alluring nightie that shimmered in the moonlight. He growled his appreciation with a grin. "Just promise to wear it again when you're not hurtin and I'll be a happy man. Come drink your coffee and take one of those pills Wheels gave you and we'll get some sleep. Lucky tomorrow's Sunday, we can sleep in and let the kids fend for themselves."  
  
They drank their nightly coffee in companionable silence until two thoughts occurred to Logan. "Hey Chatty, don't you have a healin factor when you change form? Spike could get the healin started and you could finish it off by morphin."  
  
"Don't I wish. Sorry Wolvie, but Spike can't help unless it's bleeding. I do heal faster if I change form, but I can't change with this burn. It's sitting right over where my dorsal fin comes out and it'd hurt like the devil, might even extend the burn to the fin and then I'd just be worse off." She explained, having thought about it earlier.  
  
The big man raised a curious eyebrow and asked, "Dorsal fin? I really have to see this some day soon. I thought you just got the face and tail." He'd always been curious to see Serenas' other form, but she rarely let anything except her eyes change. He'd seen the fangs too but nothing else.  
  
Serena laughed lightly and closed her eyes in concentration for a minute. She couldn't change all the way when she was so tired but she could show him a partial transformation. Her eyes darkened and her fangs and claws grew in, and then she let the fins on her arms emerge completely. "Can't do the back or tail, I'm too tired. But you can have a look at the arm fins. Be careful touching though, the barbs are poisonous."  
  
He sat his coffee cup on the bedside table and leaned in to get a good look at the beautiful fins that now ran down the backs of his girlfriends' arms. Made of thin but strong membrane, the fins shimmered in the light with shades of gold, bronze, and copper. They were about a foot wide, from where they joined her arm to the tip of one of the six deadly barbs that supported and added strength to the delicate looking fins. He touched the membrane, feeling its smooth texture. "These're pretty. Strong too." He commented when he finished his examination.   
  
Closing her eyes again, Serena changed back and replied, "They make swimming with the tail easier, they act like rudders and keep me balanced. Well that's taken about all the energy I have left for tonight. Let's get some sleep big guy."  
  
Logan shucked his jeans and climbed under the blanket beside his love. He lay on his back and curled an arm around Serenas' shoulders when she cuddled against his side and rested her head against his furry chest. One sweet kiss later, the pair closed their eyes and let themselves drift off to sleep. Trouble of the apocalyptic type might have been just around the corner, but they slept easily with smiles on their faces and sweet dreams in their heads.  
French Translations:  
Bonjour…Hello or Good Day  
Mon Amie…My Friend  
Comprendez-vous…Do you understand me  
Cherie/Chere…Darling/Dear  
Petite…Little one  
Non…No  
Mon Couer…My Heart  
Oui…Yes  
Mon Amour…My Love  
L'enfant…the child  
Son Pere…his father  
Doux…Sweet  
môn petit bohemian…My little Gypsy  
petite chere…little darling  
sil vous plait…please  
la bouche d'enfer…the mouth of hell (hellmouth)  
Merci…Thank you  
Ma cherie…my darling  
la beauté alienee…the insane beauty (Drusilla)  
petite chatte…little cat  
je t'aime ma cherie…I love you my dear  
au revoir…good bye  
Bonsoir…good night 


	16. Riders on the Storm

Title: Sirens' Song  
Author: Sinayah  
Email: Sinayah@hotmail.com  
Distribution: Ask and ye shall receive.  
Rating: PG-13 so far, with an option for R and NC-17 later; those will be marked.  
Disclaimer: I don't own any characters from Buffy, Angel, or Xmen. They belong to very rich people who don't appreciate them as we fanfic writers do.  
Disclaimer 2: The Chapter Title and Lyrics belong to The Doors.  
Authors Note: Many heartfelt thanks to my muse Zenura, without her I wouldn't have had the guts to write. If you like this story please review or send me an email, I'd really appreciate hearing what you think. Enjoy!  
Note 2: There is a translation for the French phrases at the end of the chapter for those of you who don't speak the language.  
Chapter 16: Riders on the Storm  
"riders on the storm; into this house we're born, into this world we're thrown…"  
  
Kurt POV  
  
This week at the mansion has been tense, at least among the adults, Rogue, and I. We're the only ones who know that things are going downhill in California. We agreed to keep it quiet until the time was right. Our groups seem to be total opposites; as things get worse for Willow and her friends, things get better here. The brotherhood boys have started hanging out with us between classes and at lunch. They're very nice now that we aren't fighting with each other anymore.   
  
I know Serena has a lot to do with the way things are going here. She is the reason for most of the good things that happen for us. I love her more than ever since she led me to Willow. It's been hard the past month, not seeing her pretty face all the time, I miss her smile and her eyes. I've been so worried this last week, since Logan and Serena made those calls. Willow didn't sound like herself on the phone that night, she was sad and tense and she didn't babble, which is rare.  
  
Serena got a call back from Spikes' dad or whatever on Wednesday. She told me that he said the town seemed to be in a holding pattern, and that she thought this was the calm before the storm. She thinks something will happen soon, but Logan says we need to wait and choose our moment carefully. He won't let us go in too early, so we're in a holding pattern too I guess, waiting for a phone call or an email from Sunnydale.  
  
Am I being stupid by hoping that it will come soon? I don't like waiting, especially now, when my girlfriend might pay the price. Willow is the first girlfriend I've ever had, and I miss her so much it hurts. I want something to happen so that she'll leave that town and come here to stay with me and my friends.   
  
I told all this to Serena last night. I had a nightmare about what might happen to her in Sunnydale with those soldiers. My Willow is a witch, and if they hunt demons, they might want to take her too. Logan and Serena heard me thrashing around and came to see what was wrong. I was beyond scared; I pretty much crawled into Serenas' lap when she hugged me. She sent Logan back to bed and stayed with me all night, even after I fell asleep. She was sleeping in the chair by my bed when I woke up this morning. When I looked at her I made a promise to myself. If I ever have children, I will be as good a parent to them as Serena is to me.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Willow was taking an extra long time in the shower Saturday morning. Buffy had come up to her yesterday and said she'd be dropping by to pick up some clean clothes. The redhead didn't want to be anywhere near her old friend so she stayed in the bathroom, hoping that the slayer would have come and gone by the time she went back to the dorm room.  
  
Glancing at the clock, the hacker saw that it was just past noon. 'Buffy should've been here by now, I'll chance it and go back to the room.' She thought. She grabbed her shower bag and towel and walked slowly back to the dorm room. When she got close enough Willow could see that the door was open a crack. She hugged the wall and approached quietly, going on instinct.  
  
The redheads' choice paid off as she heard Buffy speaking on the telephone. She kept out of sight and keened her ears to eavesdrop on the slayers' conversation. The blonde seemed to be talking to someone in the Initiative, probably Riley.   
  
"…low isn't here. I thought she would be studying when I came in…No this doesn't change my plan, I'll leave her a note…She's pretty naive, if I ask her to meet me tonight for a patrol she'll jump at the chance…Are the teams ready to capture the others? …Good, that's the best way to take them. You won't get too much of a fight, they're only human remember…Yes I'm sure it's safe to talk about this on the phone, if I wasn't sure I wouldn't have called you…Okay, if it makes you feel better. I'll come back down as soon as I write that note…See you soon, Bye."  
  
As soon as Willow had deciphered the meaning of the words she was hearing she bolted, not waiting to hear the last of the conversation. 'Goddess, oh Goddess. Buffy's crazy! We have to get out, it's set for tonight. Why Buffy? We were your friends!' The redheads' thoughts continued to whirl in an almost incoherent frenzy until the girl stopped running a long while later.  
  
She looked around and realized that she had run to the college library, which was a good distance from her dormitory. She sat down at one of the tables in the main area and opened a book so that she could pretend to be reading if someone she knew came in. She placed the shower bag and towel on the floor between her feet and reached into the pocket of her jeans. Willow hadn't been kidding when she wrote to Spike that she kept the keys on her at all times, she'd taken them into the shower with her earlier and was now more grateful than ever for her paranoia.  
  
Her delicate features drew tight with concentration as she organized her thoughts. 'Ok Willow, we don't have time to panic. I don't have much time to get us out of here before the soldiers come to take Xander and Giles, probably Anya too. I've gone over this a dozen times; I just have to remember the plan.'  
  
Willow removed the keys from her pocket and focused her green eyes on the silver sun key chain and the two keys dangling from it. In her mind she spoke to the object, 'Ok, before we get the car, we have to talk to Giles or Xander. I know the phones are tapped, I found the bug in mine. I can use a glamour on my voice; that's it, good thinking. I'll call Xander and disguise my voice, get him to bring Giles and Anya someplace. I'll pick them up in the car and we'll just go. We can be in L.A. before sunset and Kurt will bring his friends to get us.'  
  
With the plan firmly in her head Willow strode out of the library, taking her shower bag but leaving the towel behind. She walked purposefully away from the campus and didn't stop until she'd reached a pay phone that wasn't on the college grounds. Long before the keys to Spikes' car had taken up residence in her pockets Willow had carried change for a telephone. She dug in her pocket again and came up with a few coins, just enough to place a call.  
  
Before dialling she murmured a short incantation, keeping the voice of the person she wanted firmly in mind. She said 'hello' a few times to test out the disguise and was satisfied that she sounded like her dead friend Jesse. With her thoughts focused on her goal she dialled Xanders' number and waited for her best friend to answer.  
  
"'Ello? Xander here." The boy answered groggily. He'd been on night shift and was still sleeping when the phone rang.  
  
Willow took a deep breath and prayed to the Goddess she didn't give her friend a coronary. "Hey Xanman, it's me. Look, I know we haven't talked in a while but I need a favour, can you help me?"  
  
"Ok, hellmouth at work here, or I'm still asleep. Ouch, nope I'm awake. What do you need? Weeds pulled, new flowers, a bit of stone polish?" Xander replied, trying to joke his way around the fact that he was speaking to his very dead, very dusty friend.  
  
"No dude, I just need you to come see me. I want you to bring Cordelia's replacement and your dad to my place so we can talk. Can you do that man? Bring them and come out to see me right now? Trust me if it wasn't really important I wouldn't be calling." Willow hoped her message got through. One of the few things she and Xander did without Buffy was visit Jesse's grave. They always went on his birthday and death day to put flowers on his grave and talk to him and to each other. Cordelia's replacement was Anya, of course; and both Willow and Xander sometimes referred to Giles as their dad.   
  
Xander was growing more confused by the second, he understood the message, bring Anya and Giles to Jesses' grave; but he really wanted to know why he was doing it and why the dead boy didn't want Willow to come. "You got it man, I'll bring them. Do you want me to get Wills too? You realize I'm gonna want an explanation here buddy right?"  
  
Willow bit back a groan; she didn't have time to explain now. "Already got Wills, she'll meet you there. I'll explain when everyone's together, I promise. Oh and Xan, if you see that cute little blonde chick, the new girl? Try not to let her see you, I'm serious man. Just get everyone here a.s.a.p."  
  
"Okay man, I'll do it right now. We'll be there in about half an hour." Xander replied, trusting the voice of his friend for reasons he didn't know. The tone of Jesses' voice sounded desperate, and it struck a chord of urgency in the young man.  
  
"Thanks Xan, you won't regret it. I'll meet you guys there in about an hour; I have one thing to do before I can meet you. Once you get there just wait, I will show up. See you soon buddy." Willow hung up the phone as soon as her dark haired friend said good bye. Removing the glamour with a few simple words, she started walking toward Angels' mansion at a fast clip.  
  
The redhead was about two blocks from the mansion twenty minutes later, when her emerald eyes widened in shock and fright. Coming towards her on unsteady legs, wearing a plain white cotton gown and nothing else, was Faith. 'This is so not good. I hope she doesn't want to kill us because I'll have to bring her with me. Not even Faith deserves to be caught by the Initiative.' She mused, trying to figure out how to approach the brunette without getting her neck broken.  
  
Faith was confused. She'd woken up in the basement of Sunnydale Memorial just an hour earlier, after experiencing one of her slayer dreams. She'd seen Buffy coming after her with her own blade, and a group of men in fatigues behind her. Familiar faces had flashed in front of her eyes, each saying things like 'trust', 'help', and 'friend'. She'd had a gut feeling that she needed to find the scooby gang and aid them if they'd let her.  
  
The thin brunette had wandered out of the hospital unnoticed and headed for the high school where she figured the gang, at least Giles, would be. A newspaper had told her she'd been asleep for eight months, and she wondered how things had gone with graduation and the ascension. She figured that if she was supposed to help the slayerettes then they must have found a way to defeat the Mayor.  
  
When she got a look at the rubble that was Sunnydale High she knew she'd been right. Not knowing where their new meeting place was she'd headed for Giles' and found no one there. She didn't want to go to Buffys' house so she'd made her way to Angels' mansion and found it abandoned. She was just wandering, trying to remember where Willow and Xander lived when she spotted the flame haired hacker coming towards her.  
  
"Willow? Red? Please don't run, I need to talk to you." The brunette slayer called in a hoarse voice. She ran across the yards separating them and stopped directly in front of the girl who had every reason to flee from her.  
  
Willow didn't run as she desperately wanted to. Instead she stood still, taking stock of Faiths' appearance. The slayer was too thin from months of inactivity, and her deep brown eyes were both haunted and frightened. The redhead could tell that the woman had changed radically. A rush of sympathy for the obviously scared brunette welled up inside her and she reached out a gentle hand to squeeze Faiths' arm.   
  
When the brunette met Willows eyes the redhead spoke urgently, "Look Faith, we don't have a lot of time for explanations on either side. I can tell you're scared and that you don't want to hurt me so I'm going to trust you. But I need you to trust me too. I need you to come with me, no questions asked. Like I said before, we don't have much time."  
  
The slayer nodded her dark head and followed the redhead back to Angel's mansion. Willow didn't go inside; instead she used one of her keys on the garage door. Sunlight filtered through the layers of dust to shine on the hood of Spikes' beloved DeSoto. "Thank you Spike." She murmured quietly when she took in their mode of escape.  
  
The vampire had had some work done on the old car since the last time Willow had seen it. The previously spray painted windows were now covered in dark tint that would do the same job and looked better. Using the second key Willow opened the drivers' side door and climbed behind the wheel. The interior was cluttered with maps and empty cigarette packs and a few whiskey bottles but thankfully, no mouldering corpses.   
  
The hacker climbed back out of the car and spoke to her unexpected companion, "Can you close the garage door after I bring the car out? We need to get going. One stop and then we are out of this town."  
  
"Sure Red, I'll shut it. Umm, I know I don't have any right to be asking questions but you are gonna explain all this soon right?" Faith asked with a hint of her old zest. From her dream, the slayer knew she should trust the hacker, but she was missing a lot of pertinent information.  
  
Willows' elfin features brightened a little when she replied, "For now I'll say this. Everything will be five by five if we get out of Sunnydale. If we don't, we'll all end up in a five by five. Make sense?" Willow hopped back into the car, thankful she was close enough to Spikes' height so that she didn't have to adjust the seat. Faith had given her an honest to goodness smile at Willows' use of the slayers catch phrase and it cheered her heart.  
  
The redhead pulled the big car out of the garage and watched in the rearview mirror as Faith slammed the garage door shut. The brunette ran to the passenger side and climbed in, shutting the door with a bang before saying, "Well then Red, let's get the hell outta this place. Where do we need to stop? Please say it's somewhere I can get some clothes, this nightgown is kinda drafty."  
  
"Sorry Faith, we're going to pick up Giles, Xander, and Anya at Restfield. After that no stops until we get to L.A. where we'll be safe for a while. I'll pop the trunk when we stop at the cemetery though; maybe Spike or Dru left some clothes in there." Willow replied as she pulled onto the road. The car handled extremely well considering it was older than its occupants combined age and it didn't take long before the girls reached the graveyard.  
  
Willow parked the car in the lot, as far away from the road as she could get to avoid having it spotted. Buffy would recognize the vehicle if she saw it and feel the need to check it out. As promised she unlocked the trunk so that Faith could look for something to wear. While the brunette was rooting through the enormous junk heap she walked into the cemetery, to Jesses' grave.  
  
Xander was standing at the foot of the grave, looking at the monument with expectation. Anya and Giles were sitting on a gravestone nearby in silence, curious expressions on their faces. The young man hadn't told them much when he picked them up, only that he'd received a strange phone call asking him to bring them to this spot. Willow approached the trio with her resolve face firmly in place and said, "Hi guys." She placed a hand on Xanders' arm and continued, "Xan, I'm sorry for tricking you, it was me on the phone and I didn't want my voice recognized."  
  
Giles stood and walked over to the girl, placing a hand on her shoulder he asked, "Why did you call us here Willow? I know there must be something amiss but I can't think of anything that would prompt you to such actions."  
  
"Ok, here are the basics, no questions or interruptions please. I heard Buffy talking on the phone in our room a little over an hour ago. She was planning our capture Giles. The commandos were supposed to bring us in sometime tonight. Now, with many thanks to Spike, we're leaving. We aren't going to stop anywhere or take anything with us; we're just getting in the car and driving, got it? Also, I ran into a very frightened Faith on my way to pick up the car. She's waiting with it now. She doesn't want to hurt us, and she doesn't deserve to be caught by the Initiative so she's coming with us. I think she's supposed to, otherwise she wouldn't have come out of her coma." Willow outlined her plan.  
  
Xander and Giles paled drastically when she told them what she'd overheard, but balked at the idea of just leaving, with an old enemy in tow no less. It took a good ten minutes of arguing and the threat of force through magic before the men conceded. The petite hacker led them back through the cemetery to the car, glancing around nervously. She was close to her goal now that she had her friends, and her paranoid mind kept telling her that hellmouth law wouldn't just let them leave without something happening.   
  
Faith was sitting on the hood, smoking a cigarette when they came into sight. Willow looked her up and down, taking in the new attire. One of the blond vampires' tee shirts was knotted under the womans breasts, and a pair of faded black jeans was zipped but not buttoned low on her hips. This would have been a completely normal outfit for the brunette if it wasn't for the red, silk covered, four inch stiletto heels that adorned her small feet. Willow giggled at the shoes and Faith flipped her the bird before saying, "Can it Red and let's get going. Umm hi Giles, Xander, and chick I don't know."  
  
Both men sputtered a reply while Anya merely nodded, not knowing or really caring who the strange brunette was; the ex demon just wanted to get out of town. Willow clapped her hands and got everyone into the car. Giles crammed himself in the back with Xander and Anya while Faith rode shotgun. The brunette didn't blame them for not wanting to sit beside her or have her in back of them. She clearly remembered all she'd done to these people and was amazed they weren't leaving her behind to face whatever they were running from.  
  
Willow remained silent and serious as she drove, her thoughts consuming all of her attention that was not dedicated to controlling the car. 'Good job Willow, you've got your friends and you're on your way. I'll have to remember to give Spike a big hug when we see him. I know Giles and Xander both have cars but we couldn't have escaped unnoticed in them. When Buffy comes looking for us tonight she'll think we just disappeared since the cars are still here. I wonder how long we have before she realizes we left. Probably about an hour after we don't show up to be captured. I hope it's enough time for us to get to Angel and call Kurt.'  
  
The redhead saw the sign announcing that they were leaving Sunnydale and went with her instincts, running over the sign in true Spike fashion. A moment later Xander made a comment from the back seat. "Okay, it's bad enough she's driving his car, did she have to do that too?"  
  
"Yes, I did. I don't ever plan on going back to that place, not to live anyway. Once the Initiative is destroyed I'll leave without looking back. I couldn't live there again after today, after I had to grab my friends and run for my life, from my best friend; in a car given to me by a vampire who cares about us more than Buffy ever did."  
  
The passengers gave that statement silent contemplation, and realized that their friend was right. After today, none of them would live on the hellmouth again. Giles was the first to break the silence, the older man needed to know what he was missing. "Willow, I know you've already told us a little; but I'm afraid I need to know more. Please, can you explain why we're running rather than simply keeping out of sight? I'm sure if we could just speak to Buffy we could make her realize what a terrible mistake she's making."  
  
A tear slid down the redheads' cheek as she looked at her mentor through the mirror. "Giles, there's no hope for Buffy. She wants to let them experiment on us, like they do on demons. She sounded so cold, so calculating. She's not our friend anymore, she's our enemy. And before anyone mentions Faith, she's had eight months in a coma to change, and she did. She was just scared before, I know that, and I trust her. Even if I didn't I would have brought her with us; no one deserves what they would've done to her if I'd left her there."  
  
Giles laid a hand on the girls' slender shoulder and squeezed reassuringly. Beside her, Faith gave a wavering smile. Xander was clenching his fists in an effort to control his emotions. Willow continued after a moment, "As for why we're running now; Spike told me that if things got too bad here I should get you guys and leave without any warning. I don't think it can get much worse than your best friend wanting you as a lab rat."  
  
The miles passed quickly as the five people thought in silence. Willow noticed that there was only about a quarter tank of gas left and remembered something else Spike had given her. She glanced at the glove box and said, "Faith, open up the glove box would you? There should be some travelling money in there. I need to stop for gas at the next station."  
  
The brunette flipped the switch and the compartment door fell open. Inside, among the papers were ten banded stacks of twenty dollar bills. Faith quickly thumbed through the stacks, tallying the amount in her mind. "Holy shit Red, there's five grand here!"  
  
Willow lifted her eyes to the ceiling and said, "I love you Spike. Five thousand dollars for travelling money?" Glancing back at her stunned companions she continued, "Well I guess we can spring for snacks too." A few minutes later she pulled the car in to a truck stop. She took three twenties out of one of the stacks and went into the small store with Faith, leaving the others to pump the gas and stretch their legs.  
  
With the redhead and the slayer out of sight Xander punched the side panel of their getaway car and said, "Damn it! Why is Buffy doing this Giles? How could she want to hand us over to those guys?" The dark haired teen started filling the gas tank so keep his hands busy.  
  
Giles was cleaning his glasses, a habit that always served him well in tense situations. The same thoughts his charge had voiced were heavy on his mind as well. "I don't know Xander. Buffy hasn't been the same since Angel left her, she's been so withdrawn from us lately. I never thought she would want to harm us though, but I fear that Willow is right. She wouldn't have taken us away like this unless she was truly frightened of Buffy."  
  
Anya, who'd been uncharacteristically quiet for the entire trip thus far, spoke quietly, "I had a feeling something like this would happen when she joined those commandos. I've had my own car packed and ready for weeks. It was those mutants who really set Buffy off though. She didn't like having them here, doing her 'chosen' duty. It didn't matter that they were only trying to help, she hated them on sight."  
  
"I hope those guys are still willing to help, cause we're gonna need it if we want to stop the Initiative." Xander commented as he removed the nozzle from the gas tank. Giles explained to the boy that one of the mutants had called to check on them only a week ago and someone had sent Angel up to take stock of the situation. It reassured all three that they were not alone, they had friends who were simply waiting to be called before they came back to help.  
  
Willow came out of the store with Faith behind her a minute later, loaded down with drinks and packets of snack food. She pulled the car away from the pumps and got out again with one of the maps Spike had strewn around the interior. She spread it out on the hood and started looking for the easiest route to Angels' office.  
  
Faith sat in the passenger seat, her legs hanging out the open door. She lit a cigarette and looked at her old mentor, asking, "So Giles, can you fill me in on the back story here? All I know is we're running from B and some soldier types who want to experiment on us. Oh, and that a vampire gave Red this car and five grand."  
  
Giles explained to the slayer the basic happenings since she'd lost the fight with Buffy all those months ago. He detailed the visit from the Xmen, and Buffys' attitude change just after they left. He crouched down beside the woman as he spoke, and when he finished he took one of her cigarettes and lit it for himself, the frustration and anger he was feeling overcoming his better nature and bringing forth hints of Ripper.   
  
In return for his explanation Faith spoke about the dream that had brought her out of her coma. She told him all she could remember about it, and about her escape from the hospital with the knowledge that she needed to help her old friends. Her voice was quiet when she asked for the older mans forgiveness of her past sins, and the watchers' reply was a bare whisper as he gave it to her.  
  
By the time watcher and slayer had finished talking, Willow had her route planned. She got everyone back into the car and drove back onto the freeway that would lead them to within blocks of their destination. Once they were back on the road Xander asked, "Wills, where exactly are we going?"  
  
"Angels' place for the moment. I'm following Spikes' plan. Once we get to Angel, we're going to call him in New York and he'll bring Kurt and Logan and Serena to get us. I don't know what he has planned after that, but I'm sure they'll do something." Willow wasn't thinking of much besides getting to Angel so she could talk to Kurt. She desperately wanted to hear her boyfriends' voice, and to feel his arms holding her in a reassuring embrace.  
  
Xander was shocked that all this had come from the vampire they'd held captive and he asked, "Why did he do all this, Spike I mean? I thought he hated us as much as we hated him, but here we are escaping in his car, with his money, using his plan. It's giving me a major wiggins." The boy shuddered to emphasize his words.  
  
Willow remembered her conversation with the blond a month ago and smiled a little. "Spike cares about us Xan; he told me so before he left. He gave me all this so that I'd have a way to get all of us out when things got bad. He told me, warned me that it could all go to hell really fast and that I needed to watch everyone closely. The way he spoke, it made me trust him, I just knew he wanted to keep us safe."  
  
"I don't know about you people, but I think we owe this vamp big time. Who is he anyway?" Faith asked, extremely curious as to what kind of vampire would help the slayers' friends. The name sounded familiar but she couldn't quite place it.  
  
The redhead nodded emphatically from behind the wheel and answered, "You'll meet him later I'm sure. Spike is the youngest of Angels' childer, William the Bloody. He got taken by the soldiers and they put something in his head before he managed to escape. He lived with Giles for a while, until his friend came to take him home to live with her."  
  
Now the slayer remembered where she'd heard the name Spike. The group had fought with him for months before Angel turned bad. He was also known as the Slayer of slayers, which made her a little nervous, but she was also in awe of his generosity, especially after the royal ass kicking he'd taken from Buffy and Angel the last time he'd shown up.   
  
The rest of the trip passed fairly quietly, with little in the way of chit chat. When the redhead pulled off the freeway she glanced at the radio clock. 'Three thirty. We still have a few hours before sunset. I wonder if Kurt and the rest will get here in time to plan something for tonight, it would be a good opportunity with all the soldiers out looking for us.'  
  
Faith had gotten bored earlier and put one of Spikes' cassettes into the tape player. As Willow pulled into the underground garage that housed Angel's convertible a song began to come out of the speakers that struck a chord with all five of the DeSoto's occupants. Willow stopped the car, but kept the engine running as the eerie melody filled the car and Jim Morrisons' voice sang Riders on the Storm.   
  
When it had finished Giles sighed and said, "How bloody fitting." After the redhead turned off the engine the group got out of the car and walked up the stairs to the Angel Investigations office. The older man fell back to walk beside Faith, both to reassure the troubled young woman and to let the petite redhead take the lead. It was Willow who got them safely out of Sunnydale, her secrecy about Spikes' gift and her keen intelligence that had saved them from disaster. Giles felt that he should continue to follow her lead, she hadn't led them astray yet, and he didn't think she would.  
  
Cordelia was arguing with Wesley when the group entered the office. The former cheerleader might have been tactless but she knew what to do when something was seriously wrong. Her friends looked frightened, and that wasn't at all usual even during life or death battles. She crossed the room and shut the door behind Giles, flipping the closed sign over. "Let's go down to Angels' apartment guys. I have a feeling whatever has been happening in Sunnydale just got worse."  
  
They piled into the elevator and rode the noisy piece of machinery down to the basement where their friend made his home. Angel had just gotten up and was coming out of the bedroom when the troubled group emerged. He took note of the faces, and the mingled scents of fear and sorrow coming from his friends. He noticed that Willow seemed to be in charge for the moment, standing at the front of the group. His chocolate eyes widened at the sight of Faith standing slightly behind Giles, but covered his surprise to address more important matters. "What happened?" he asked bluntly, concern etched in his handsome face.  
  
Willow turned green eyes back toward her mentor and said, "Giles, would you please explain why we're here? I'm tired, this is all too much; I just want to get Kurt here." The older man gave his charge a reassuring smile and nodded. The redhead then turned her eyes on the dark haired vampire and asked, "Can I use your phone Angel?"   
  
"Go ahead Willow, there's one in the bedroom if you want some privacy. Why don't the rest of you sit down and rest; you look worn." Angel replied, welcoming his old friends into his home. He sent Wesley to make coffee since the younger watcher was casting frightened looks toward Faith. When the redhead disappeared into his bedroom the vampire sat and gestured for Giles to begin his explanation.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
With the door shut firmly behind her Willow sat on Angels' bed and bowed her head until it rested in cupped hands on her knees. She was struggling to retain the calm, purposeful attitude that had gotten them this far, and failing. Tears began to slip down her cheeks as the emotions she'd stomped down all afternoon broke free. She didn't notice when the door opened and a slender figure entered and re shut the door behind her.  
  
Faiths' keen hearing had picked up the sound of the redheads distress. She had only been half listening to Giles speech when the soft sobbing reached her. The slayer had pushed away from the wall where she was leaning and walked quietly into the bedroom to see if she could help the hacker.   
  
The brunette placed a gentle hand on Willows' shoulder as she crouched in front of the crying girl. "Willow? Are you okay? Come on girl, you told me things would be five by five if we got here, and we did. I know I still don't understand all that's happened, but from what I do know, you saved all our lives back there. You got us out of Sunnydale before we even knew something was fucked up. You did good Red."  
  
Bloodshot green eyes lifted to see the truth shining through the chocolate orbs of the other young woman. Willow caught the slayer in a tight hug of grateful friendship and replied, "Thanks Faith, I needed to hear that. I'm not used to being the strong one, it doesn't suit me. All I've been thinking about since I ran out of the dorm is that I wanted Kurt with me, and Spike, and Logan, and Serena."  
  
"Well then Red, you better dry up and give them a call don'tcha think? And after that you can sit here and tell me who this Kurt guy is; you've mentioned him an awful lot today for a girl on a mission." Faith encouraged, keeping one arm around her friend as she got up and sat beside the girl on the bed.  
  
Willow looked at the phone on the bedside table and nearly started crying again. She'd just realized she didn't have the number for the institute. She told Faith about her dilemma and the slayer groaned in sympathy. The slayer asked if Giles might know how to reach the people and Willow brightened, saying that yes, he had the number.  
  
Faith left her friend and went back into the living room. Giles and Angel were discussing the events of the day, with Xander and Cordelia making an occasional comment. The dark vampire met her eyes and asked if Willow was alright, he had also heard the girl crying and was worried that she'd taken too much pressure on her tiny shoulders. The slayer nodded and replied, "Yeah, she's five by five. Just had to release some of the tension. Giles, do you have the number for these guys she wants to call? She almost broke down again when she realized she didn't have it."  
  
The watcher looked in his wallet for the business card Serena had given him and couldn't find it. He told the slayer he must have left it near his telephone at home. Angel came forward and handed the brunette a slip of paper. "Here it is. Someone should answer; it's about dinner time in New York."  
  
The slayer sent Angel a grateful smile and retreated back to the bedroom where she handed the paper to Willow with a triumphant grin. "Here ya go Red, courtesy of Broody. Giles didn't have it with him." She turned to leave the room, giving the redhead some privacy, but the girl caught her arm and asked her to stay. Faith sat down beside her happily and watched while her friend dialled the phone.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Angel's calculations were correct; it was dinner time at the mansion and Serena had just finished serving her friends and sat down with them to eat when the telephone rang. The small woman started to get up to answer it but Spike waved her back and left to get it himself. The vampire often sat with the residents while they ate dinner, but only partook of the meal himself occasionally. He walked leisurely into the kitchen, where the nearest phone was mounted and picked it up. "Hello, Xavier Institute." He said in a cultured voice. He rarely answered the telephone at the mansion, but when he did he used the smooth accent of his birth, rather than the cockney one he normally used.  
  
"Hello, umm I need to speak to Mr. Logan or Miss Masterton please. It's urgent." Willow said, not recognizing the voice of her friend. She'd been hoping someone she knew would answer and save her the trouble of waiting for them to be tracked down.  
  
A sick feeling clawed at the vampires' stomach when he heard the voice of the witch. He knew instinctively that this was the call they'd been waiting for with dread. "Willow luv, it's Spike. Are you ok? Where are you?" He asked quickly, his fear for her safety making its way into his tone for the redhead to hear.  
  
The redhead slumped slightly in relief when the vampire identified himself. "I'm ok, we all are. We're in L.A. at Angels, I did exactly what you told me to do and we got out safely. You better get Logan and Serena before I explain more; I've already gone over it too many times today." She answered, letting her gratitude show through her voice.  
  
Spike told her to hang on a minute and bolted into the dining room. He pointed at Serena, Logan, and Kurt, and then waved at them to come into the kitchen. The trio looked at each other as they got up, recognizing the urgency in the vampires motions. Kurt teleported after taking Serenas' hand and Logan appeared in the kitchen a second behind them. "What is it Spike, what's wrong?" the woman asked.  
  
"It's Red on the phone; they're at the poufs' place. I'm gonna put her on speaker phone so she can tell us all at once what happened." The vampire answered, putting words into action and pressing the button to allow the redhead to be heard by all of them. "Ok Luv, I've got them here, your elf too; so tell us what's going on." He said to the girl on the other end of the line.  
  
Willow gripped Faiths' hand to steady her nerves and quickly explained the basics. "Buffy was going to have Giles, Xander, Anya, and I captured tonight. I got lucky and overheard her on the phone without being seen. I knew it was time to go so I did what you told me to Spike; I got the gang, plus Faith, and left in your car. We just got to Angels' a little while ago. Can you guys come and get us, please? Once Buffy realizes we ran this will be the first place she looks."  
  
Kurt was matching Spike and Logan in the volume of his growls. Before any of the adults could answer the boy said, "We'll be there Wills. We'll get what we need and come as quickly as we can." Logan and Spike quickly agreed with the teen.   
  
Serena had remained quiet, though her feelings were quite clear in the whirling blackness of her eyes and the gleam of needle sharp fangs. When she gave her answer it was simply, "You three get the details; I'll tell the others and get a team together. We won't waste this opportunity; we're going into that place and making our disgust felt." That said, she left the room.  
  
The group at the dining room table were casting curious glances at the kitchen door when the small beauty came back. They could tell that things were bad when they saw her transformed state. Serena was emanating fury in waves that everyone could feel. The woman opened a window to her mind for Charles, who was probing gently to find out what was going on. A moment later he nodded and gestured to the group, "Anyone who wants to go is free to. I'll prep the jet for you." The older man said, wheeling himself away from the table and heading for the elevator.  
  
Serena quickly explained what was happening and she got a unanimous show of hands when she asked who wanted to go. The brotherhood boys were again dining with the Xmen and all four were ready to join forces with the other teens against the horrible people in California. Logan and Spike came back into the room and stood on either side of the small woman. The three spoke quietly for a few minutes before turning back to the group.  
  
"Okay kids, we can't take all of ya since we'll be bringing at least five people back with us. I'm not playin favourites here, and the ones who get left behind this time will get their turn eventually. The main goal for tonight aint to fight the soldiers, it's to get information to use later. We still don't know what they're plannin and I aint sending all of ya in until we do. Today we're takin Cyke, Jean, Lance, Rogue, and the Elf." Logan stated before choosing the team. He knew there would be a final showdown with the soldiers, but it wouldn't be tonight.  
  
The chosen teens left the remains of their dinner on the table and went downstairs to change into uniforms, thankful that they had spares because the ones they'd worn for their training session were filthy. Lance had to borrow a uniform since he didn't have a spare. Luckily Scott was able to supply his friend with a suitable outfit. When they assembled at the X jet half an hour after Willow called, the teens were eager to be on their way.  
  
Logan, Serena, and Spike made a stunning group as they strode purposefully into the hangar. Logan was wearing an army uniform rather than his Xmen gear and the camouflage suited his rugged good looks. Spike had paired his black leather uniform pants with the normal black t-shirt and topped it with his trademark duster. Between the two men Serena was again dressed in the skimpy, seductive outfit that served as her fighting clothes.   
  
It was an odd style for battle gear, considering the fact that it was comprised of a black leather halter top with lace accents at the edges, and a loose fitting mini skirt of the same material. A full length coat of midnight blue velvet billowed back from her bare legs as she strode along at a fast clip to keep up with her companions. When Logan, Spike, and the teens boarded the jet Serena waited for a moment, speaking quietly to the professor while she waved a hand behind her back, a gesture to the girl who was half hidden in the floor.  
  
Kitty Pryde was not about to be left behind on this mission. She'd dressed upstairs in her room rather than in the locker room with Jean and Rogue. The tiny brunette knew she could be useful, especially if they were gathering information inside the complex. Besides being able to walk through walls she was also good with a computer and with Willow beside her they could surely find a way to hack whatever programs the soldiers had on their computers. When Serena had seen her, the girl thought she'd be told to go back to her room, but the woman had waved for her to get aboard and hadn't gotten into the place until the teen was inside.  
  
The small woman climbed into the craft and told Logan to let Scott fly the jet for the moment. She had a packet of papers in her hand, information sent by Raphael Martine. The vampire had come through and given her detailed maps of the complex in Sunnydale, personnel profiles, and some sketchy information on the 3:14 project. Scott took control of the plane, with Lance sitting beside him, and they left the mansion at high speed.  
  
Once they were in the air Kitty made her presence known. The girl had more gumption that many men; she stood her ground with Logan growling at the top of her dark head and when he'd finished threatening to spank her behind she'd poked a finger into his chest and given him all the good reasons she should've been picked in the first place.  
  
Watching the scene from his seat beside Scott, Lance asked, "How can she stand up to him like that? I won't even go near him, he's one scary guy." The teens chocolate eyes widened as Kitty actually forced the growling, heavily muscled, adamantium clawed man back a step.  
  
"The girls know he would rather die than harm any of them. Kitty, she's fully aware that Logan loves her like a daughter, and he's wrapped around that finger she's poking him with. Keep watching, you'll see what I mean." The laser eyed teen replied, turning to take a quick look at the scene  
  
Lance took the other teens' advice and kept his eyes focused on the big man and the comparatively tiny girl. Logan had crossed his arms over his chest, either to protect it from further abuse or to prevent the girl from bruising her finger on his rock hard pectoral muscles. When Kitty finished berating him for under valuing her she stood with hands on hips, daring the older man to argue.  
  
Logan glared down at the little girl who held a good piece of his heart. His lips began to twitch when he saw that her cornflower blue eyes were giving the look right back. He heard Serena and Rogue snickering in amusement and lost his stern resolve. The raven haired man threw his head back and roared with laughter. The burly arms unwound from his chest and he caught Kitty up in a bear hug that the little brunette returned once she'd phased her arms through his chest to wrap around his neck.  
  
"They must be ice skatin in hell today. We got quiet little girls takin charge and out-smartin the fighters on both sides of the country. Go let Chuck know you're with us and take your seat Half Pint. But remember what I said about tannin your backside the next time you pull somethin like this." Logan said through his chuckles. He set the girl back on her feet and grinned when she placed a kiss on his stubbled cheek.  
  
After looking over the maps of the Initiative complex and reading through the other material Logan and Spike replaced Scott and Lance in the cockpit. The men spoke quietly, forming a tentative plan for their infiltration and information gathering. Nothing would be concrete until they'd also talked it over with Giles and Angel, but they had some good ideas.  
  
Serena passed the time in silence, sitting between Kurt and Kitty with the blue teen's tail wrapped around her forearm. She didn't think the boy even realized he'd moved; twining the prehensile tail around some part of her for comfort had become an unconscious gesture. The Xmen teens had seen it before and considering the situation, they didn't need to ask why their friend needed reassurance. Lance thought it odd, but a gesture from the raven haired woman stopped him from asking about it and making Kurt feel self conscious.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Logan had accelerated their flying speed when he took control of the jet. It took only an hour to reach the landing pad the professor had arranged for them. A building just half a block from Angel's office had a private helipad and Charles had gained the owners permission for his team to leave the jet there while they did what they needed to.  
  
The group made an odd looking procession as they walked from the landing pad to the office building where their friends were waiting. Six teenagers in black leather uniforms and two adults, one in army fatigues and one looking like a biker chick. Spike met them in the underground garage, having come through the sewers, and led the way past his beloved car to the door that would open into Angel's apartment. He backed away from it suddenly, sensing something he didn't like.  
  
Serena came up beside him and reached out with all her senses, trying to pick up what her friend had. A mild burning sensation in her bones alerted her to what it was Spike didn't like. She turned to her friends and said, "Go in quietly and be prepared for an attack. There's a slayer somewhere nearby."  
  
"It doesn't feel like Bitchy, Nymph. She has a foul odour about her, and this one doesn't. Red said something before I got you; she brought the scoobies plus Faith. Faith must be the slayer who replaced the one Dru killed. If Willow brought her here, she should be alright." The vampire recalled. He wished the redhead had told him she had a slayer with her; he'd damn near had a coronary when he'd felt her presence, fearing that Buffy had caught the escapees.  
  
The raven haired woman nodded, it hadn't felt like Buffy to her either, but she'd been trained to detect slayers and other supernatural beings, it wasn't an instinctive knowledge like Spike had, and was sometimes faulty. "Ok, we'll go in openly then. I've never heard of there being two slayers before though, someone will have to explain it to me later."  
  
The three adults approached the basement door that Spike said opened into his sire's apartment. The teens stayed back, warned by Serenas' gesture. Spike knocked loudly and stood between Logan and Serena, waiting for the door to be opened. A long moment passed and the vampire raised his hand to knock again. His fist almost ended up thumping against Angels' chest when the older vampire suddenly pulled the door open. The blond put his hand down and gave his Sire a trademark smirk. "'Ello there Daddy, how's tricks? Brought your favourite granddaughter to see you I did, and the rest of the family as well."  
  
Angel stared at his youngest, most impudent childe for a moment, and then looked beyond him at the raven haired couple and the seven children. "Hello Spike, Serena. I'd say it's good to see you again but I'm not in the habit of lying."  
  
"Sure you are Pops; you're just out of practice. Now why don't you heave your massive bulk aside so we can come in. We've got things to do and people to see." The blond replied cheekily, knowing that the more obnoxious he was the more he could annoy his Sire.   
  
The dark haired vampire sighed hugely and stepped away from the door to let the group in. He led them into his living room and there was immediate chaos when his friends saw the newly arrived people. Willow had stood up from her place on the couch and as soon as she caught a glimpse of blue she ran around the obstacle, trying to get to her boyfriend. Kurt saw the redheads' dilemma and teleported behind her.  
  
A three fingered hand grasped her slender shoulder and spun the girl around. "Miss me?" the boy asked teasingly. When the redhead threw her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly he wrapped his own around her waist and lifted her off the ground. After a long moment Willow lifted her head away from his shoulder and replied, "Goddess, yes." She brought her lips to meet his in a long awaited, passionate kiss.  
  
The large group of people watched the reunion and no one was left unemotional at the sight of the young couple. Before everyone started moving and talking again Serena hummed loudly for a few moments and gave her standard key word suggestion to the three people and one vampire who hadn't yet been made immune to her voice. When she was done she walked calmly to Giles and wrapped her arms around the stunned man, "I'm so happy you and the children are alright. We've been worried about you." She said softly as the older man tentatively hugged her back.  
  
"Have to go with the Chatterbox on that note, playin the waitin game aint fun when there are friends on the line." Logan agreed, coming forward with his hand out to greet the Watcher. Serena released Giles and went over to give Xander and Anya each a hug, expressing her happiness to see them again.  
  
Willow and Kurt came out of their lip lock and the redhead looked around at the group, finally spotting the face that had been in her mind almost as much as the blue teens' that day. She gave her boyfriends' hand a squeeze and then took a running leap at Spike. The blond vampire was grateful for his enhanced agility as he managed to catch the redhead without them both toppling over.  
  
"'Ello Luv, it's bloody good to see you." He said as he wrapped her in a strong embrace. The age old master vampire cuddled the girl into his chest and grinned into her hair, relieved and happy to see her alive and well and out of Sunnydale. "I'm proud of you Pet, you did a good job."  
  
The redhead heard Spikes' compliment and had to fight back tears. She pulled away enough to meet his beautiful blue eyes and replied, "Thank you Spike, I can't tell you how grateful I am for everything you did to make sure we'd get out safely. I couldn't have done it if you hadn't given me the car, and the plan."  
  
Spike brushed her cheek with the knuckles of one hand and smiled gently, making his handsome face light up, "You would've done just fine Red; I just did what I could to make things easier on you. Now go on back to your boyfriend, he's going to start growling at me in a minute. I've taught him well if I do say so myself, kid's growling like a pro these days."  
  
"Just one more thing and I'll go back to Kurt. It was more than the car and the plan Spike, you could've given that to any of us. You trusted me, and you were confident that I could do what had to be done. That gave me the courage to actually do it, and that's why I keep thanking you." Willow kissed the vampires' cool cheek and squeezed his hand once before walking back to Kurt and being enveloped in another hug.  
  
Angel had been standing close to his childe and heard the exchange, "There's just something extremely wrong with that picture." He muttered under non existent breath. Spike sent a rude gesture in his direction before walking over and greeting Giles, Xander, and Anya.   
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Once the two groups had finished greeting each other with hugs and hand shakes Serena and Willow took turns introducing everyone. Once they had settled down the raven haired hypnotist addressed the group. She wanted to get their plans made before nightfall so that they could take advantage of the break the Initiative had given them.   
  
"Before we got Willows' call I received some information from a contact in New Orleans that should prove useful. We don't want to waste this opportunity, it won't come again. We know the soldiers will be out on a mission tonight, so Logan, Spike and I have made some tentative plans to infiltrate the complex and take whatever information we can get." Serena said, an evil glint lighting her golden eyes.  
  
Logan laid out the maps on Angels' kitchen table and the team leaders gathered around, making plans. Most of the teen's stayed in the living room talking quietly while they waited to be given orders. Cordelia was listening to Willow describe their first encounter with the mutants when a vision hit full force.  
  
The adults rushed back into the room when they heard twin shouts of pain. Angel knelt next to Cordelia, holding the brunette as she writhed, blind to anything but the images flashing through her mind. Scott had Jean in his arms on the floor where the girl had been sitting when she screamed. The other teens were looking at the girls in frightened confusion.  
  
Serena came to stand beside Jean and turned to Angel, asking the vampire, "Your friend is a seer?" When he nodded the small woman was quickly able to deduce what had happened. 'Damn that girl, spying on peoples' minds again.' She thought angrily. She met the eyes of her worried charges and reassured them, "Jean will be fine in a minute."  
  
Angel was confused, the redhead was supposed to be a mutant, not a seer for the PTB. In the vampires' arms Cordelia started to come out of the vision, groaning with the pain in her head. Wesley gave the brunette a glass of water and some pills, and then offered the same to Jean. Angel noticed that Serena was glaring at the redhead and asked, "Is she a seer too? I thought you were all mutants."  
  
The raven haired woman sighed and answered, "We are all mutants. Jean isn't a seer; she's a telepath with a penchant for being nosy. She must have been reading your friends' thoughts when the vision hit and got caught in it along with her. I apologize to both of you for her behaviour, as will she when she regains control of herself."   
  
Jean sat quietly, listening to Serena apologize for her. She was embarrassed to have been caught using her power on the brunette and after taking a quick glance at her team mates she knew there would be several lectures in the near future. When Logan knelt down beside her, the redhead actually flinched back from the big mans angry expression.   
  
"Serena shouldn't be havin to apologize for you girl, she wasn't the one snoopin where she didn't belong. You go over and apologize to that woman, and to anyone else you used your powers on since we got here. These people are our friends Jean, you shouldn'ta been spyin on them." The man growled out, trying to keep control of his temper.  
  
The tall redhead stood up shakily and apologized to the room in general, though her words sounded forced. Serena took her hand and led the girl to a corner so that she could speak to her with a modicum of privacy. "That's the poorest excuse for an apology I've ever heard Jean, but it will have to do. You've embarrassed yourself and your friends. When we get back home we're going to have a long discussion about this with Logan and the professor. Until then you keep out of peoples' minds unless I tell you otherwise. We still have a job to do tonight and you will act like part of the team and help, understand?"  
  
Jean nodded and kept her head bowed. Her green eyes glared into the floor, fury evident in her expression which she kept covered by a curtain of red hair. When the older woman turned and walked back to the group the girl slid down the wall and sat on the floor. While the others talked, finalizing their plans for the mission, the redhead kept a silent vigil. Her thoughts turned inward and she brought forth her memory of the vision she had intruded on.  
  
She had only been scanning Cordelias' surface thoughts when the first image flashed in front of her. The redhead had tried to pull her mind back from the pain that filled her head, but was instead drawn deeper. She'd seen a middle aged woman in a lab coat examining some kind of monster. There were alarms going off in the back ground, making the womans words to the creature impossible to hear. Suddenly the thing had awoken and gotten off the table. The scene seemed to flash forward and then Jean was looking at her team mates, watching them fight the monster with little success; the images stopped just as the creature put some kind of skewer through Logans' abdomen.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
It was six thirty, nearing sunset, when a much larger group left the office building. The humans walked the distance in a few minutes to be greeted by Kurt and the vampires, who had been teleported due to sun issues, when they climbed aboard. The trip that had taken Willow over two hours that afternoon was accomplished in thirty minutes with the X jet and Logan landed the craft in the same clearing they'd used a month earlier just as the sun sank past the horizon.  
  
The large group split before the left the clearing. Giles and Anya would stay with the jet in case someone came back injured. Logan, Angel, Faith, Xander, Scott, and Jean were going to go in through an entrance the maps gave located in the hills behind the campus. Their job was to distract any soldiers still in the complex so that the second team would have time to download files when they reached the computers.  
  
Serena led her group, comprised of herself, Spike, Rogue, Kitty, Willow, Lance, and Kurt to an entrance located closer to where they had determined they would find the main computers. Once there, the two hackers would attempt to burn whatever files they could access onto blank CD's while the others gathered any records that were in the room. Once they'd finished their job they would contact Jean telepathically and order the others to get out.  
  
Everything went according to plan for the two teams. Scott and Kitty used their mutations to disable the alarms on the doors, and the groups entered unnoticed. Once they were a good ways inside Logans team allowed themselves to be caught on camera and a squadron was dispatched to remove the threat. The soldiers engaged the band of fighters but were taken down in minutes.  
  
Meanwhile, Serenas' group had indeed found the main computer terminals. Willow and Kitty were hard at work using two stations each, busily transferring data from the computers onto CD's. Pair of soldiers had entered the room, apparently to begin their shift watching the terminals, and were quickly knocked out by Lance and Rogue.   
  
Maggie Walsh watched from a bank of monitors as the three men, one vampire, and two women fought off one of her squads. She quickly ordered another to stop their progress and pressed a series of buttons on the panel under the monitors. Alarms sounded throughout the building to alert the staff, and four squads patrolling the town checked their buzzing pagers to see a 911 message, signalling a need for their immediate assistance back at the complex.  
  
When the alarms started going off Serena quickly sent a thought out to Jean, 'Are you guys ok?' The redhead sent an affirmative response and the older woman replied, 'We need a little more time here. If you run into anything you can't handle start pulling back and tell me to get my team out.'   
  
The raven haired woman looked around the room at her friends and announced, "Start getting ready to leave, Logan and the others are giving us a good distraction but with the alarms we're sure to be spotted soon. I imagine that whoever set off the alarms also called back the teams that are out patrolling, and I want to be long gone before they get here." She received a series of nods and gestures and the team went back to work.  
  
In the safety of the secret lab, behind the door labelled 3:14 Maggie Walsh watched as her creation, called Adam, awoke for the first time. Cloudy blue eyes gleamed with a mothers' adoration at the sight of her horrible child. "Hello Adam. Mother has some new toys for you to play with." She said, anxious to test her creation on the inhuman people that were destroying her facility.  
  
Logan and his team were indeed doing vast amounts of damage to the complex and its inhabitants. Their seemingly random destruction of property had a purpose though, which would only be revealed after they left. The soldiers were well trained, but in small groups they were no match for the six people. Angel and Logan were at the head of the group when they saw the Frankenstein monster coming toward them. "I've seen some ugly demons in my time, but I have to go with Cordelias' description on this and say Eww." The vampire commented, glancing at his burly companion.  
  
"Jean, tell Chatty to start pullin out. We're leavin this hell hole." Logan called over his shoulder. The group began to fall back, heading for the nearest exit. The telepath shook off her shocked paralysis and did as the man asked before fleeing with the others. She knew that if the vision she'd witnessed earlier came true the awful thing would come after her once he'd made shish kebobs of the others and she had no desire to die.  
  
Serena received the girls' message loud and clear and immediately evacuated her team. "Spike, get the others out. I'm going down with the boys to make sure nothing happens to them. We don't know exactly what's on the next floor. We'll meet you and the others at the spot we chose. Take care of them for me." She said as the vampire paused, prepared to take the rear guard once Kitty had finished her part in this final task.  
  
"Okay Kit-Kat, I'll go down first, Lance second, and Kurt last. Then you get the hell out of here." The lion eyed woman said urgently. She knelt on the floor and kept her eyes focused on the ground as Kitty placed small hands on her shoulders and began to push her through the floor.  
  
She landed in a crouch after a ten foot drop from the room above. 'Merde!' was her first thought, the epithet sounding much better to her in french than english. She had managed to land right in front of two armed soldiers, in what looked to be a small armoury. The maps had indicated that there were many such rooms in strategic places around the facility. The soldiers she'd encountered must have been arming themselves to go after Logans' team.  
  
A glance upward saw Lances' legs coming through the floor and the woman knew she needed to dispose of the soldiers quickly. In a move she'd been taught years earlier the woman feinted a roundhouse kick at one of the guards, actually aiming her foot to go over his head. She used the momentum to spin completely around, going back into a crouch as she did so that when her leg came at the man again it kicked his legs out from under him. A punch to the throat incapacitated the commando and she turned black eyes on his companion, who was aiming a taser gun in her direction, trying to get a clear shot.  
  
What the second soldier didn't realize was that when he'd stepped forward, looking for a shot, he put himself directly in the path of a falling body. He went down under Lances' weight and knocked himself out on the cement floor. "Thank you dear, I was just trying to work out how not to get myself shot. Now, once Kurt gets down we'll just 'shake things up a little' and go home."  
  
"Uh, you're welcome 'Rena." The teen replied as he rolled and stood up beside the unconscious soldier. He saw the other lying near by gasping for breath and wondered how the small woman had taken one soldier out in the short amount of time between her disappearance and his arrival. Serena noticed where the boy was looking and she sighed dramatically.  
  
She walked over to the gasping man and said, "Here, it'll be easier to breathe like this. Nightie night." One dainty fist landed on the mans' temple and knocked him unconscious. He immediately started breathing easier and she continued, "See, I told you so." She grinned up at Lance and saw that the boy shared her amusement. Normally she didn't like to have the teens see her doing violent things, but if they were going to see it anyway she figured she might as well have some fun while she was doing it.  
  
A moment later Kurt landed in a crouch on the back of the second soldier. When he took a look at the damage to the men he felt the need to complain, "Why do I always miss the fun? It's not fair." The other two laughed with him and then Serena gestured for the older boy to get down to business. While Lance was gathering strength for an earthquake that would damage the facility badly, Serena started grabbing the high tech equipment that was hanging on the walls and strapping it on her body.  
  
Logan, Faith, and Angel were fighting toe to toe with the strange demon hybrid at their exit, giving the other three time to escape Between the three of them they were managing to hold the creature off, but even the deep gouges and slashes Logan inflicted with his claws didn't put the monster down. The trio felt a rumbling begin beneath their feet; the sign they were waiting for. Logan pushed the other two behind him and was diving in to take one last swipe at their attacker when he felt something punch through his abdominal muscles and come out his back, a mere half inch from his spinal chord.  
  
Serena had finished supplying herself and was standing in the open doorway, keeping a lookout, while Lance used all his considerable power to shake the complex, doing as much damage to the structure as possible. Suddenly, an echo of pain sliced through her. Nothing like this had ever happened to her before, but she was aware that this horrible pain was coming from Logan, her love. A shriek of absolute despair rose from the pit of her stomach and echoed through the entire complex.  
  
Logan was running, clutching at the hole in his gut and trying with all his strength not to fall into oblivion. His healing factor was working, attempting to repair the damaged organs, but he couldn't stop moving with the monster behind him. As suddenly as his pain hit Serena, he felt her strength wash over him as his ears picked up the sound of her scream. Putting on a burst of speed he managed to reach the other members of his team outside and allowed Angel and Faith to assist him as they ran for their chosen rally point in the woods that bordered the campus.  
  
Kurt and Lance held their hands over their ears in a desperate attempt to block out the high pitched wail of their friend. Serena hadn't taken a breath since she'd first started the inhuman shrieking and it was deafening to the boys. Kurt knew he needed to get his team mates out and uncovered one ear to grab Lance by the arm and drag him to the wailing woman. He wrapped his tail around her small waist and concentrated for a moment before teleporting all three of them to the rendez-vous point.   
  
Spike and the others of their group were just coming into the small clearing when Serenas' keening reached the vampires ears. He sprinted towards the sound and a moment later he spotted the tiny woman being held tightly by two very confused, worried, and deaf teenagers. He pushed his way into the embrace and took hold of his Nymphs' shoulders and started shaking her, trying to bring her out of the state she was in. "Nymph! Serena! Snap out of it woman before you deafen us all! What in the bloody hell happened to her?"  
  
Lance replied, yelling into the vampires' ear to make himself heard, "I don't know man. One minute she was grinning at me while I shook up the building, the next she was clutching her stomach and screaming like this. How can we stop her, she's barely stopped to take a breath."  
  
The blond vampire gestured for the boys to back away. He knew he was about to give himself a hell of a migraine, but his Nymph was hysterical and her screaming would attract attention they didn't need at the moment. He pushed Serena into a sitting position, drew back his fist, and punched his beloved friend in the face. The scream cut off abruptly as the raven haired woman fell to the ground unconscious, with Spike right behind her.  
  
"Well that stopped her screaming, but now he's out too." Lance commented. He bent down and rolled the vampire off the small womans body so that she could breathe easier. When she was free of the vampires' weight Kurt went down on his knees and half lifted his surrogate mother to cradle her upper body in his lap.   
  
When Faith and Angel carried an unconscious Logan into the clearing a couple minutes later Spike was awake and groaning. The others had taken up guarding positions around Serena and their eyes flooded with both relief and fear as they caught sight of the rest of their friends and then realized someone was seriously injured. The vampire and the slayer laid Logan beside his girlfriend and Angel ripped the mans' fatigue shirt off to make a pressure bandage.  
  
"What happened to Serena? We heard her screaming a few minutes ago, and it's still echoing around in that place." Scott asked when he saw his team mate asleep with a large bruise forming around her eye and temple.  
  
Lance came to pat his comrade on the back and answered, "Spike punched her to shut her up. I don't know what happened; she just started screaming while I was shaking things up."  
  
The blond vampire sat up and looked at Logan and Serena lying on the grass. His glacier blue eyes took in the stab wound that was now beginning to heal, and he remembered the rock tumbler saying the Nymph had clutched at her stomach when she started pitching a fit. "Bloody hell, its empathy. She felt it when Logan got hurt and reacted to the pain he was in."  
  
Angel spoke up, "There's no time to figure it out now, we need to get back to the jet and out of town before those soldiers get organized enough to start looking for us. We did a good job starting the structural damage, I'm sure Lances' earthquake made a hell of a mess down there. Spike, Faith, you're going to have to help me carry Logan, the man's heavier than he looks. One of you boys strip those guns off of Serena and carry her. I don't even want to know how she ended up loaded down with the soldiers' equipment." The vampire put words into action and began to lift the extremely heavy mutant.  
  
"Forget that. We can move faster if the blue guy teleports them straight to the jet. Giles and Anya can help him take care of them until we get there." Faith replied, coming up with a much better solution. Kurt agreed and knelt between the wounded couple, he took Logans' hand on one side and Serenas' on the other and vanished in a puff of smoke.  
  
Spike and Angel encouraged the group to run, hoping to keep a few steps ahead of the commandos. They made it back to the jet without seeing any of the fatigue clad men, and everyone breathed a small sigh of relief. After Angel had checked on Logan he spoke briefly with his childe and the scooby trio. "I'm not going to go with you. You need to get that guy some medical attention; I don't care how fast he's healing. Invite me into your homes and I'll get some things packed to send to you in New York. I'll have Wesley pick me up tomorrow night."  
  
When Angel had finished speaking to the group he went once more to the place where Logan and Serena lay side by side. He checked the big mans wound and was amazed at how much it had healed. He'd been injured not even an hour ago and already his bleeding had slowed to a mere trickle as his amazing healing powers worked to repair the internal damage.   
  
Scott and Lance watched from the cockpit until the dark haired vampire disappeared into the trees, and then the laser eyed teen started the engines of the jet and took off, his course set for the mansion. He flew the plane as fast as he dared, knowing that Logan would need some kind of medical attention despite his natural abilities. Scott radioed ahead and let the professor know that they were coming home and that two of their guardians were injured.  
  
Mid flight, half an hour after she'd been knocked unconscious by Spike, Serena awoke with a start. Her golden eyes were panicked and if she hadn't seen Logan lying next to here, very much alive, she would've started screaming again. The woman paid no attention to her throbbing headache, black eye, or the lingering pain in her abdomen. She forced herself to roll onto her side and make an examination of her love.  
  
The wound was horrible to look at, gaping and raw; and Serena realized that his healing abilities must be repairing the internal damage first. After she'd assessed the gut wound, her eyes roamed over the rest of his torso, which showed dark bruises. A dainty hand came to rest on his heavily stubbled cheek, and the small woman leaned down to press a kiss to her boyfriends' brow.   
  
Though she was loathe to leave the wounded man, Serena stood up and walked toward the front of the plane where the rest of the group were seated. Spike was just getting up to check on Logan when he saw the black tressed woman coming up the aisle. He went to her side and clasped her small form to his chest. "You scared me Nymph, going mad like that. I'm sorry about the black eye but we needed to get you quiet. Before you ask, everyone got out and they're all fine. As you can see they're having a bit of a nap. We've got about thirty minutes before we get home and the prof is ready to treat Logan."  
  
"Thank you Spike, I couldn't have stopped if you hadn't knocked me out. I was…doing something, it was so strange. I felt it when Logan got hurt; it felt like I'd been wounded myself. When I yelled…it felt like I was giving him my energy, I got so weak, all I could do was keep screaming and hope I really was giving him my strength so that he could get away." She replied, leaning against the vampire as her knees wobbled slightly. Serena still felt weak; body and mind, heart and soul. She didn't know what she'd done, but it had left her as frail as a kitten.  
  
Spike lifted the woman into his arms and carried her back to Logans' side. He knelt down and laid her on the pallet of blankets, skimming his fingers through her hair before replying, "You did something Nymph. Angelus, he said Logan came bolting out of that tunnel like an angel outta hell. Got a good distance away before he collapsed and the pouf saw he'd been skewered. He and the slayer half carried him to the rally point. Seeing as I'd knocked you out Kurt teleported you both from there to the jet."  
  
Serena nodded wearily and the two spoke for a few minutes before the vampire left so that the woman could rest. She waited until her friend was out of sight and then pushed herself into a sitting position. 'If I can do it once, I can do it again.' She mused as she manoeuvred her body so that she was leaning against the wall with Logans' head in her lap. She didn't have the energy to give full voice to her song, but she began to hum a melody and tried to focus on sending whatever strength she had left to the man she loved.  
  
Back in his seat Spike closed his eyes and tried to rest, it had been a long day. He wasn't actively listening so it took a good ten minutes before he heard the soft humming. 'Fuck! I should've known she'd try that.' He thought angrily, getting out of his seat and running to check on the pair. The sound stopped just before he reached them and he saw that the woman had merely fallen back to sleep, rather than put herself in a coma. "You're going to be the life of me Nymph, I swear." He chastised gently before returning to the front once again.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Once Scott had landed the X jet in its hangar, the weary group went into action again. Professor Xavier had called a colleague of his who was a doctor and the woman was waiting to treat Logans' injuries. Kurt teleported the wounded man directly into the medical bay and then left to help the other teens get organized.  
  
Serena had barely taken the time to change clothing from her fighting gear into a pair of jeans and flannel shirt before she took up a sentry position outside the examination room. When the professor tried to examine the dark bruise and swollen eye she shooed him off, telling him to save his attention for Logan.  
  
Since the other adults were busy downstairs, Ororo took charge of the newly arrived people and greeted them warmly. She had prepared rooms on the third floor for their guests and now she escorted them to their simply decorated suites. The snowy haired woman had thoughtfully laid out an assortment of clothing in each room, things borrowed from the closets of the other residents. The weather witch left the tired group to freshen up and invited them to come downstairs when they wished for food and drink.  
  
The returning teens greeted the ones left behind and gave a bare bones account of their mission after they'd showered and changed out of their uniforms. Within thirty minutes of the jet landing the entire household and their guests were waiting with Serena outside the medical lab doors, anxious to hear news of their fallen friend.  
  
After an hour of tension filled pacing, cursing, and silent worry; Professor Xavier and his dear friend Dr. Patricia Harding came through the swinging doors. The doctor was astounded by the sheer number of people in the make shift waiting room. She counted fourteen teenagers and four adults all gazing at her with worry and fear. They all seemed to be surrounding a small woman with wild black hair and tear filled golden eyes who was curled into herself, rocking slightly back and forth.  
  
The doctor figured that the disconsolate woman must be either a relative to her patient, or his lover. A quick, silent conversation with Charles proved the second guess correct and provided her with the womans' name. Patricia walked over and knelt in front of the petite woman, placing a hand on her denim covered knee. She spoke in a calm, precise voice that she found worked wonders on the loved ones of her patients.  
  
"Physically, he's going to be fine. I've never seen a man with healing powers like his; it's hard for me to believe he was injured less than two hours ago. I've done what I can to help him along, and the wound should be fully healed by tomorrow." A sigh of relief echoed loudly when it came from eighteen people at one time. If she had been finished speaking, the doctor might have smiled at the group, but there was more to her patients' injury.  
  
"However," she continued, bringing the peoples' attention back to her. "However, he has fallen into a coma. My guess would be that was induced shock, blood loss, and his body's rush to heal itself. There is no way to tell when he will wake up; it could be days or weeks. I'm truly sorry, but there is nothing I can do that would make any difference or bring him out of it." 


	17. Coming Out of the Dark

Title: Sirens' Song Author: Sinayah Email: Sinayah@hotmail.com Distribution: Ask and ye shall receive. Rating: At FF.net, rated R. Any other site, NC17 Disclaimer: I don't own any characters from Buffy, Angel, or Xmen. They belong to very rich people who don't appreciate them as we fanfic writers do. Disclaimer 2: The Chapter Title and Lyrics belong to Gloria Estefan. The song I Need You belongs to LeAnn Rimes, and Cowboy Take Me Away is by the Dixie Chicks (NC17 version only). Authors Note: Many heartfelt thanks to my muse Zenura, without her I wouldn't have had the guts to write. If you like this story please review or send me an email, I'd really appreciate hearing what you think. Enjoy! Authors Note 2: I just want to say thanks to everyone who's reviewed Sirens Song, all the encouragement you've offered gives me the warm fuzzies and inspired me to write more. This particular chapter has been difficult, and might not have been as good without your support. Please keep reviewing, I love hearing from you all!  
Chapter 17: Coming Out of the Dark "coming out of the dark, I know the love that saved me; you're sharing with me."  
  
"It's been four days Professor, isn't there something we can do? She's going to end up in the bed beside him if this goes on much longer." Scott asked, worry clear in his tone. The mansions occupants, including the new arrivals and half the Brotherhood were gathered in the rec room; trying to figure out a way to bring two of their friends back to them.  
  
"I don't know Scott; I'm just as worried as the rest of you. As Dr. Harding said, there is nothing we can do about Logans' condition. However, we must find a way to get through to Serena. Frankly, her rapid decline frightens me. I have tried to speak to her, both aloud and telepathically, but she doesn't hear me. Her attention is focused solely on Logan." The professor replied, his frustration evident.  
  
Over the last four days, the group had tried everything in their power to help their friend and been wholly unsuccessful. After the doctor had finished speaking, Serena had gone into the hospital style room and taken up a position at her loves' bed side. She hadn't left that position for more than a few minutes at a time since then.  
  
The first day no one had showed much concern for the womans constant vigil. They had all come in to sit with the pair and check on Logan, and no one had thought anything of Serenas' silent, withdrawn demeanour; passing her behaviour off as merely worry for the man she adored.  
  
The second day, when they noticed that the hypnotist hadn't come upstairs even to change clothing or eat, those closest to her had begun to worry. Kurt had come down with Willow and tried to talk to Serena, but the woman wouldn't make comments, and would answer questions only with a great deal of prodding. Spike had forced her to eat something, and then talked to her for hours with no more success than the blue teen. In his frustration he'd even phoned Drusilla in South America and had the vampiress try to talk some sense into her.  
  
On the third day, when she still hadn't moved, taking her rest in the chair next to the bed, the others became concerned. She wouldn't speak at all, didn't even acknowledge the presence of her friends. When Lance and the brotherhood boys had visited they'd noticed how sickly looking Serena had become. Pietro had spoken to all the Xmen about her appearance, particularly about how her uniquely beautiful amber eyes were now sunken and muddy looking.  
  
Now, after four days, the group was seriously frightened for their friend. Something had to be done before the woman slipped into a coma herself. Xander listened to the conversation quietly, discarding everyone's ideas in his mind moments after they were spoken. The dark haired boy noticed Faith doing the same thing and caught the slayers eye. Understanding passed between the two and they stood, leaving the room without anyone's notice.  
  
Downstairs, they entered the hospital room and found the scene they'd expected. Serena was in her rocking chair, which Spike had brought down for her comfort after it became apparent that the woman wasn't leaving the room except to use the adjoining bathroom occasionally. They approached the bed and Xander knelt beside the catatonic woman while Faith placed a hand on the comatose mans shoulder.  
  
"We could almost be them ya know Faith? I was in her position once, when Angels' minions put Willow in a coma. Up until a few days ago you were where Logan is now. We've got to get through to one of them, or we might lose both." The dark haired boy said as he gazed at the older couple.  
  
Faith too looked closely at the pair, fear for these people she didn't know welling up in her heart. "Yeah, but how? I remember things from when I was in that coma. I could hear the doctors and nurses when they came in; sometimes they talked to me. But she won't talk, she just sits there looking at him and holding his hand."  
  
Xander threaded his fingers through the slightly greasy, tangled mass of Serenas' hair and pushed a forelock behind her ear. "I guess all we can do is talk to her, and hope she's not too far gone to hear us. Maybe if we tell her about the things that happened to us, she'll come back and bring him with her."  
  
Faith nodded, it was better than any of the ideas she'd heard upstairs. She liked these people, but none of them really understood what these two were going through. She cast a glance at Xander, the boy she'd once tried to kill. He was smarter than anyone gave him credit for, she realized, especially when it came to understanding people. "I'm sorry you know, for what I did to you. I can't take it back, or make excuses, but I am sorry."  
  
"I know, it took me a while, but I realized you aren't that girl anymore. I can forgive you for the things you did, to me and the others. We're all starting over here, and I'd like for us to start as friends." The dark haired man said, offering his hand across the space that separated him from the brunette slayer.  
  
The young woman took his offered hand and squeezed it tightly. "Friends. I think I'd like that. Well friend, let's see if we can get these two back on the right track. I think they'll be good friends to have, friends worth saving." When Xander nodded in agreement Faith turned her attention to Logan.  
  
She squeezed the mans shoulder and studied his strong, handsome features. Her voice was soft when she spoke to the older man, but loud enough for everyone in the room to hear. "Hey Logan, how're you doing in there? I know you can hear me, kinda been there and done that if you know what I mean. I don't think anyone told you that up until the day we met I'd been in a coma, like you are now. I got there in almost the same way too, stabbed through the gut."  
  
A soft hiss of remembered pain issued from her full lips before she continued, "There's only two differences I can see in our situations. First is that I deserved what I got and you didn't. I'm no innocent, like those kids upstairs. Before I got hurt I'd done some pretty nasty things, including murder and betrayal. In fact the reason I got stabbed was because I'd shot Angel with a poisoned arrow and mine or Buffy's blood was the only cure." The brunette explained.  
  
"That leads me to the second difference. When I went into that coma, there wasn't a single person who didn't celebrate and wish I'd died instead. You're lucky there Logan, you've got a house full of people who want you to wake up; and a powerful little woman who's making herself sick sitting here day after day, waiting for any sign that you're getting better. What she doesn't realize is that you can't give her that sign. You can hear her if she talks, you can smell her scent and feel her touch, but you can't work up the energy to climb out of that place. It took an act of God to make me wake up; I hope it takes a lot less for you." When she'd finished speaking Faith bent down and pressed a kiss of friendship to the big mans' brow.  
  
Xander gave the slayer a bright smile, one that grew to a grin when she returned the gesture. The boy then turned his attention to Serena, and he noticed a tear slipping down her sunken cheek. 'So you did hear her. I knew you weren't that far gone.' He thought as one large hand came up to wipe the wetness away. He took the womans chin between his thumb and index finger and used firm pressure to turn her head until his coffee brown eyes met the whiskey coloured orbs that seemed to have lost all the sparkle that made them beautiful.  
  
"Hey 'Rena. I know you can hear me; you haven't disconnected that far yet. We're all worried about you, you know. Your friends are upstairs right now trying to figure out how to bring you back to us. You might as well come back, because you're not doing Logan any good with this vigil. You heard Faith, she's been where he is now and she remembers the things that happened around her. It's been four days 'Rena, he's probably taking some comfort in you holding his hand, but I doubt he's enjoying the smell anymore, you're getting a little rank."  
  
The small woman winced a tiny bit at his half joke and Xander knew he was getting through to her, so he kept pressing. "You're also not doing the one thing that might give him the will to come back. That voice of yours has been a curse for ten years, why don't you turn it into a blessing now? Use it, talk to him, make him want to come back to you."  
  
"Did you hear what I said earlier? I've sat where you're sitting 'Rena. When those vamps put Willow in a coma I was right there beside her through the whole thing. They had to set my broken arm while I held her hand with my good one. I talked to her all that night, told her everything I should've said while she was awake." Xander closed his eyes and remembered how terrible he'd felt that night, holding Willows pale, bruised hand and babbling worse than she'd ever done, hoping that something would make her wake up.  
  
"You know what finally brought her back? I told her that I loved her. She'd loved me in secret for years and when I finally realized how much she meant to me and told her, she woke up. Too bad for me the first thing she did was call for her boyfriend, she thought it was him talking. I doubt Logan will do that to you though, he'll probably wake up growling for you to bring him a steak or something." Xander smiled at the thought of the big, gruff man opening his eyes and growling for his dinner.  
  
He saw Serenas' lips twitch and a brief twinkle in her eyes. "Ah ha, I saw that. So bad jokes are the way to get through to you huh? Well then, this man walked into a doctor's office.No, I'm kidding, I won't torture any of you with my frightening sense of humour. Faith and I will leave you two alone; I think you might have a few things to say to each other."  
  
Xander stood and placed a kiss on Serenas' hair before holding a hand out to Faith. The brunette came forward and swatted at the appendage, telling the boy that his girlfriend would rip her to shreds if she happened to see them holding hands. The two friends walked out the swinging doors and their laughter echoed through the sterile room where Logan lay sleeping and Serena still sat in silence, holding his large hand. But the sparkle was coming back to her eyes, and a tiny smile tilted the corners of her mouth up.  
  
When she heard the elevator at the end of the hall start up, Serena pressed her lips to Logan's hand. "Is what they said true Wolvie? Can you hear me, wherever you are? I hope you can; Xander's right, I do have a few things to say to you. But first, I think a shower is in order, otherwise I'll never know if it was my words or my stench that got through to you. I'll be back soon."  
  
With renewed hope in her heart, Serena walked out of the hospital room quickly, intent on having herself a shower and changing into some clean clothing. In the elevator, she heard and felt her stomach complaining. 'Maybe I'll stop by the kitchen and get something to eat too.' She mused.  
  
Logan was floating, or so it felt to his mind. He was in a dark place, not the nightmarish dark of his worst dreams; this dark was warm and comfortable. As Faith had described, he still had some of his senses; he could hear his friends talking, and feel when they touched him. When he inhaled, he could detect the scents of those around him. But he couldn't see or move and it angered him. He'd tried, so many times, to squeeze his Chatterbox's hand, to give her some sign that he was there with her.  
  
Through his remaining senses, he'd known the small woman was always near, and he'd heard the people who visited the room talking about how she was making herself sick with worry for him. That knowledge had made him fight the undetectable, but rock solid barrier that held him captive. The problem was energy; he couldn't find enough will power to break out of the cage in his mind.  
  
He didn't know how much time passed between Serena leaving and her reappearance, but he could feel the difference in her by the pressure of her hand. She took his limp hand in hers and climbed up beside him on the bed. Her free hand traced the contours of his face, smoothed the whiskers at his jaw line, tickled across his closed eyelids, and her lips pressed gently against his.  
  
"Hey there Wolvie, told you I wouldn't be gone long. I did some thinking while I cleaned myself up. I wonder, did you feel anything after you were stabbed? I felt that you know, your pain hit me like, well like a skewer through the gut. I started screaming like a banshee, it scared the hell out of poor Kurt and Lance. I put everything I had into that sound, and I sent it straight to you. I heard third hand that it might have gotten to you, but I don't know for sure." She started, explaining things she didn't quite understand herself.  
  
With a sigh, Serena leaned in close, and her amber eyes focused on his face. "So here's what I'm going to do. Everything I feel, everything I want you to know, I'm going to sing. Right here, right now, I'm going to throw myself out there and hope what I have to say will bring you back home to me. So you listen Logan, and you hold on to these words, they aren't easy for me to say."  
  
"I don't need a lot of things,  
  
I can get by with nothing  
  
Of all the blessings life can bring,  
  
I've always needed something  
  
But I've got all I want  
  
When it comes to loving you  
  
You're my only reason,  
  
You're my only truth."  
  
In Logan's darkness, Serenas' voice was like a bolt of lightning. Her words of love cut a path through the blackness and when the light reached his consciousness, he grabbed onto it like a lifeline.  
  
"I need you like water Like breath, like rain I need you like mercy From Heaven's gate There's a freedom in your arms That carries me through I need you."  
  
Once again, Serena opened her mind and heart and poured everything she had into the words she sang. She felt the connection with her love and increased the volume of her song, putting as much pure energy into the sound as possible. She felt it leave her body, using her voice its method of transportation. With it she sent all the love she had in her heart for the one she was singing to.  
  
"You're the hope that moves me To courage again You're the love that rescues me When the cold winds rage And it's so amazing 'Cause that's just how you are And I can't turn back now 'Cause you've brought me too far."  
  
Upstairs in the common room where the large group was still discussing Serenas' declining physical and mental state, several people jumped in surprise when the amazing voice of their friend came to them, singing words of love and need that they knew instantly were meant for Logan. Professor Xavier reached with his mind, thinking to make contact with the shields she kept around her thoughts.  
  
He was surprised to find the barriers down, though he could only hear an echo of her thoughts; it seemed to him that she was purposely directing her message to someone, and from the words and images, the telepath knew it was his old friend. He pulled his powerful mind back, not willing to invade her privacy more than he already had.  
  
Sitting across the room from each other, Xander and Faith shared a smile. At the very least, the young people were glad that they'd brought one friend back with their words, and they hoped that the beautiful song she was singing would bring the other home.  
  
"I need you like water Like breath, like rain I need you like mercy From Heaven's gate There's a freedom in your arms That carries me through I need you."  
  
Logan climbed; he could feel himself rising, following the line of light out of the dark void. His beautiful Sirens' energy was pouring into him, giving him the strength he needed to reach her. As her voice faded on the last note, a sudden rush overcame him and he was pulled completely out of the dark. Sapphire blue eyes opened just in time to see tear filled gold ones closing as Serena collapsed in complete and utter exhaustion.  
  
"Oh Darlin, I need you too. You brought me back Baby, sleep now." The big man whispered hoarsely. Serena had fallen across his chest when she lost consciousness and he was able to wrap his arms around her sleeping form. He clasped her tightly to him and was pressing a kiss into her damp black curls when the first of his friends arrived.  
  
The residents arrived in what was becoming an expected order. Kurt and Willow appeared first via teleportation and were almost knocked over by Pietro as the speedster bolted into the room. Spike was mere seconds behind the teens, having run down the stairs at top speed.  
  
The blond vampire was the first to take in the situation. "Well, it looks like she's done it again. Welcome back Wolf, been a bit boring around here without you." Spike greeted as he came forward to clasp his friends shoulder. He gave the feral man one of his beatific smiles to indicate how pleased he was with the big mans recovery.  
  
Kurt and Willow approached to make their own greetings before Logan could reply, "It's good to see you awake mien friend. You have had us all worried about you. But what is wrong with Mama, she should be jumping for joy now." The blue teen's heavy accent belied his happiness, as well as his concern for Serena.  
  
"I think she must have done the same thing she did in Sunnyhell. She gave all her energy to Logan so the lazy bloke would wake up. She just needs to sleep for a while now, get some strength back." Spike replied, stroking a hand over the womans' hair. He arched his scarred brow when Logan growled at him for touching the Nymph.  
  
Before any more could be said, a large group of people came through the doors. They'd crowded into the elevator to come down and see their friends. Greetings were exchanged along with handshakes from the men and hugs or kisses from the ladies that made Logan growl at having too much affection showered on him.  
  
Everyone expressed concern over Serenas' unconsciousness, but were reassured when the professor probed her mind and explained, "She is just extremely tired, even her mental shields are down. I can sense her sleeping thoughts, so she is not comatose. She will wake up when she's regained her strength. Come now; let's leave Logan and Serena to rest a while."  
  
The group began to leave, but was halted a moment later by a vicious growl coming from the man on the bed. Spike had approached the couple, thinking that both of his friends would be more comfortable if he moved Serena to the bed a few feet away. Logan was now growling threateningly at the vampire, warning him to keep away from the sleeping woman. "Mine. She stays right here." The big man informed his undead friend.  
  
"Don't get your knickers in a twist Logan, it was just an offer. If you want to keep her there it's fine with me. We'll come down and check on you later." The blond placated. He could've kicked himself for not realizing that the feral man would be overly protective of Serena right now. Logan was acting mostly on instinct and had taken the vampires gesture as a threat to his woman.  
  
Logan shook himself a little, regaining control of his emotions, and said, "Yeah, later. Sorry bout that Blondie." Spike nodded understanding and left the room, shooing the spectators in front of him. As he entered the elevator with an arm around Rogues shoulder he mused, 'So, the big brute's going to lay claim to my Nymph huh? 'Bout bloody time.'  
  
Left alone in the large room again, Logan turned onto his side and cuddled the soft, warm, sleeping woman beside him. He leaned back after a moment to gaze at her lovely, delicate face. 'She looks so damn young when she's sleepin. Too young to be doin the things she does. Fightin to save the world, fightin harder to save her friends. The Elf called her Mama earlier; she's a mama to every kid in this house.' He reflected, memories coming forth at random.  
  
He smoothed her hair back and placed his lips against her brow for a moment, "Not a mother to me though are ya Chatty? The animal inside me, that part is real specific about what you are. You're mine, my mate. I'm not quite sure what the other side calls you. More than girlfriend, more than lover even though we haven't got that far yet. Love will do I suppose; you are my love and damn near everythin else I can think of."  
  
"I'm not real good with words like you are. I don't always know just what to say, and I sure as hell couldn't sing it if I did. But I do love you Serena, and I need ya. You rest now, get back all that strength you gave me, and when you wake up I'll tell ya again." Logan closed his eyes and tightened his hold on the small beauty, breathing in her scent. A smile softened his chiseled features as he drifted off to sleep beside the woman who'd given her heart to bring him back.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
The mansion was suffused with happiness all evening. It banished the tension that had loomed over the house since the teams' return. Homework was finished quickly so that the teens could gather in the rec room for activities that matched their exuberant moods. Kitty filled the room with music and an impromptu party got under way. Scott and Lance were in front of the television playing a video game in friendly competition. Jean was reading a book on the couch. Xander and Spike played pool with their girlfriends. Kurt, Evan, and Pietro were quite happy to dance with Willow, Kitty, and Faith. Todd and Freddy were expected to come over after they finished detention at six and join the fun.  
  
Even Charles, Ororo, and Giles joined in when the loud music and sounds of laughter drew them to the rec room. It was quite a sight when Kitty took hold of the austere professors' wheelchair and began dancing around the room with the telepath. Ororo was dragged onto the make shift dance floor by her nephew, protesting all the way. When Willow and Faith started glancing at Giles, the librarian quickly escaped to join Spike and Xander at the pool table.  
  
At a quarter past six, the doorbell was heard, and Ororo excused herself to go answer it. A minute later she came back with Todd and Freddy. The two boys hadn't been able to come to the meeting earlier, or even to the mansion since the mission. On Monday Mystique had found her car suspiciously dented and slimy, and the pair were given three days detention. They hadn't met the Sunnydale group yet, and were looking forward to it since Pietro and Lance had had only good things to say about them. Once they were informed the crisis with Wolverine and Siren was over, they were in even better spirits.  
  
Lance and Pietro took their team mates around the room and introduced Xander, Anya, and Faith. They were in the middle of greeting Giles when Todd absently flicked out his tongue to catch a fly that was buzzing above the bright red hair of a girl on the couch, who the boy assumed was Jean.  
  
Willow was talking with her boyfriend and waiting to be introduced to the new boys when she saw the long, slimy tongue flick near her face. 'FROG!!!' her mind screamed as she jumped up off the couch and ran a few feet away. Mimicking her thoughts she squeaked, "Ack, Frog! Oh Goddess, Frog!"  
  
"Naw, it's Toad, yo. Or Todd; you must be the tree girl right? Willow?" The amphibian-esque teen replied, wondering what had startled the girl so bad. He took a few steps forward with a hand outstretched in greeting. Willow backed away from him in panic, her mind still taken over by the phobia everyone had forgotten.  
  
Todd started to turn away in dejection when the girl kept acting afraid of him. He'd seen the reaction to his mutation many times, but it still hurt his feelings. He was stopped by Xanders hand coming down on his shoulder. "Just give her a minute Todd. No one told her about what your power is, so she wasn't expecting that tongue of yours. She's afraid of frogs, has been since we were little kids."  
  
The greenish skinned teen looked back at the redhead, who was beginning to calm down as her boyfriend hugged her. Kurt gestured for Todd to come over, and the boy obeyed, though he moved slowly so he wouldn't accidentally scare the pretty girl again. "Willow, this is my friend Todd." The dark haired teen said as his girlfriend pulled away to greet the boy.  
  
"Umm, hi Todd, it's nice to meet you. Sorry I wigged a minute ago, no one told me about your mutation. I kinda have frog fear, but don't worry I won't freak on you again." The redhead said brightly, extending her hand and smiling at the boy. She reminded herself to do something nasty to the others for not warning her.  
  
Todd took the offered hand in his and shrugged off the incident with a smile. "It's ok yo. It happens sometimes. I only flicked my tongue out because I thought you were Jean, it grosses her out, and I love pissing her off. So you're Blues' girlfriend yo? You do know he's got blue fur and stuff under that holo-thingy right?"  
  
Willow nodded and lifted Kurts hand to turn off the image inducer, "Yeah I know, I think he's cute." She kissed a fuzzy cheek happily and watched the navy coloured fur darken as her boyfriend blushed. Past her fright now, the redheads' cheerful personality came forward and before long she and Todd were chatting like old friends. When Freddy joined them and shyly introduced himself, the redhead had tilted her head as far back as she could to look at him and said, "I wish Serena would wake up, she's must be the only person in this town who's shorter than me!"  
  
While the group was laughing at Todds' story about the shortest resident having to be picked up to hug his super strong friend, the object of their humour was just awakening in the med bay. Serena opened bleary golden eyes and wondered where she was for a minute before remembering her attempts to wake Logan. She tried to push herself up, but settled again when a familiar, strong arm clutched at her waist.  
  
An elfin face tilted upwards from its place against a muscular chest, and whiskey hued eyes met twinkling midnight blue. Logan had woken from his light sleep when his bed partner shifted and when his eyes took in her tired, disbelieving expression a deeply tanned, callused hand lifted to brush against the silken skin of her cheek. "Hey there Darlin, I was beginnin to wonder if ya were gonna sleep as long as I did." He greeted, his rumbling voice like the sweetest music to the small woman.  
  
A lone tear of happiness drifted down Serenas' face to be caught on the big mans fingertip. He brought it to his lips and kissed the moisture away before pulling the stunned woman up onto his chest for a deep kiss. A soft sob was muffled against Logan's lips as the small woman kissed him feverishly, small hands coming up to roam over his face and clutch as his wild black hair.  
  
It was a long while before the lion eyed woman pulled back for breath. As she gasped in much needed oxygen her eyes traced his features, followed closely by gentle fingertips. "You're alright. Thank the Gods, you're alright." She whispered in her native Ukrainian, too emotional to do the mental translation and speak English. She pressed light kisses over the roughly whiskered cheeks, over her loves forehead, nose, and eyes; before settling back on his lips in a kiss that was gentler than the last, but no less passionate.  
  
When she released Logan to take another breath the big man chuckled, amused by her fierce welcome. He pulled himself into a sitting position and relocated Serena to his lap before wrapping her small frame in his arms and hugging her tightly. "Not the Gods Sweetheart, you. You were screechin too loud for me to stay asleep, had to wake up so you'd be quiet."  
  
"Screeching? You wait Wolvie, I'll show you screeching. It would've served you right if I did." She replied, laughing softly and smacking him gently on the back of the head. After holding him in her embrace for a long while she pulled herself back and met his eyes, "You scared me Logan, so badly. I don't know how, or why, but I felt that piece of bone go through you. I could see, through your eyes, what had happened. I thought I was going to lose you. Don't ever do that to me again Logan, don't let me lose you." The last sentences were choked out on a sob or remembered fear and pain.  
  
Choking up himself, Logan drew her back into his embrace and held her tightly, almost too tightly. He rubbed her back as she cried out her fear into his shoulder, her tears soaking through the thin cotton hospital gown that covered him. He murmured reassurances in her ear, words about never letting go and always being by her side. When she quieted again he gripped her shoulders and pulled her back until he could gaze into the watery, bloodshot, amber eyes. "I mean it Chatty, I aint never lettin ya go. What was it you sang to me?"  
  
He remembered the words and gave them back, "'I need you like water, like breath, like rain. I need you like mercy from Heavens gate.' It goes both ways Serena, I need you, and.I love you." The raven haired, golden eyed, angel faced creature in his arms was the first in his memory to hear the declaration from his lips, and he swore that she'd be the only woman to hear it ever.  
  
It took a great effort not to burst into tears again. Serena knew that Logan cared for her, but she hadn't expected to hear the words before she'd given them herself. Her Wolvie guarded his thoughts and feelings like a dragon over his hoarded treasure, and now it appeared that the dragon was handing her the loveliest jewel in his trove. "I love you too Logan, so much."  
  
Suddenly she remembered a sheet of paper she'd been looking at before the hurried trip to California, and the name printed on it. She placed her small hands on his cheeks and stared into his eyes as she spoke clearly, "I love you, Logan Gabriel Chapman."  
  
The big man shuddered when he heard the name she'd given him along with her love. It settled into him with a warm sense of belonging. It was right, it fit on him like a favorite piece of clothing, shoved into a closet and forgotten for years, just waiting to be pulled out again. Just to be sure, he asked, "Is that my name Chatty? That vampire found it for you?"  
  
Serena smiled brightly and nodded, "That's your name. Logan Gabriel Chapman, I like it. There wasn't much else to be found, at least not in the demon world. They had a long, detailed list of demons and famous vampires you'd killed, going from your sudden appearance in the northern untied states in '44 to your 'death' at the hands of William the Bloody in Canada in '59. Fifteen years is a long career for a demon hunter, According to Raphael, several contacts he spoke with actually winced when they heard the name Hunter."  
  
Logan took in the information and mulled it over in his brain. He figured he could learn his history through the military, now that he had a name to search for besides Logan. Willow and Kitty wouldn't have much trouble hacking into their records if he asked them to. But he wasn't as exited as he'd always thought he'd be when he had his missing past back.  
  
He realized that the past wasn't as important as the present and future, which was cuddled in his lap and running around upstairs. He'd still have the girls work their computer magic, he'd searched too long to just let it lie now that he had the key, but his life was here with Serena and the Xmen, and he was quite happy to put the past to rest once it had been found.  
  
He said as much to Serena after he thanked her with a scorching kiss and tight hug. They spoke for a long while about it, and about the future. They were still talking quietly when the professor came to check on them two hours later. Charles gave his friends both a clean bill of health, though he suggested that they try to take it easy for a while, knowing they wouldn't. As he left the room he invited them to come upstairs and join the impromptu celebration being held in their honor.  
  
"What'cha say Chatty? Want to go up there and get mauled by the rug rats?" Logan asked as he threw back the thin blanket and stood, a bit shakily. He steadied himself and grinned, feeling content and happy with the world in general. He started toward the door when Serena nodded and stopped again when her laughter rang out. He turned around to face her and asked what she was laughing at.  
  
A long, slender finger pointed at him while she tried to control her giggles. "You might.you might want to get dressed first Wolvie.Unless you're feeling happy enough to give the kids a free show." She started giggling again, imagining the fiercely blushing faces of their female charges should they happen to see Logan in his current state. The thin hospital gown did little to cover her boyfriends' well formed, tightly muscled derriere.  
  
Logan looked down at himself, felt the breeze of air conditioning on his rear, and started cursing. He'd been too preoccupied with thoughts of spending a pleasant evening with his friends that he hadn't noticed his state of undress. "Where the hell're my clothes and whose idea was it to put me in a damned dress?" he growled, reaching back to undo the ties on the garment before realizing that if he did he'd be standing there naked in front of his woman. After a split second pause he continued to untie the strings, a wicked gleam in his eyes.  
  
Serena rooted around in the bedside dresser to find the clothes she vaguely remembered someone bringing down in anticipation of Logans' awakening. She came up with a pair of jeans and a black t-shirt as well as boxers and socks. When she turned and held the items out to him, she gasped.  
  
********** NC 17 description of Logan naked has been edited out. To read it go to the adult fan fiction dot net site and look for Sirens Song there.***********  
  
Quick reflexes saved him from getting a face full of cloth and he hurriedly dressed, cursing silently that the jeans were uncomfortably tight. When he had the pants fastened he quickly threw the shirt on and walked stiffly to where Serena was sitting in her rocker, eyes tightly shut and breathing deeply to calm down. He crouched beside her and threaded his fingers into her hair, pulling her head down for a kiss that expressed all his love, lust, and anticipation which she returned whole heartedly.  
  
"You're evil Wolvie, the most beautiful man I've ever seen sure, but still evil. Luckily, I have a thing for evil, gorgeous men. Now, let's get to that party before I give in and attack you." Serena said once she'd caught her breath.  
  
Logan chuckled at her, though he was sorely tempted to let her try. 'Very sorely' he mused when his cock twitched to add its opinion. Aloud he said, "Beautiful, my ass. Come on Chatty, let's go up and see the brats." He took her hand and led her toward the door.  
  
Serena gave in to her own evil thoughts and pinched the previously mentioned rear, "That too." When Logan growled and slung his arm around her shoulders she smiled happily and snuggled in, her arm coming to rest at his waist, a thumb hooked through one of his belt loops.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
It was just past ten when the four teenagers that comprised the Brotherhood of Mutants opened the front door of their boarding house. Lance Alvers, their leader, nearly punched the wall when the door fell off its hinges. "You know, I hate this place more and more every day. I should just shake it down and make Mystique find us somewhere else to live. This is worse than any of the damn foster homes I've lived in." He grumbled, taking hold of the door to try and fix it for the third time in as many weeks.  
  
His three friends could only agree with the sentiment. Todd had done the foster home circuit himself, Fred had lived with that travelling truck show, and Pietro had lived all over the world. None of them knew why Mystique had chosen to place them in an old boarding house that was literally falling down around their heads. "Maybe if she actually lived here with us it wouldn't be so bad, but she never uses that room she keeps locked upstairs." Fred intoned as he pounded the door back onto its hinges while Lance held it up.  
  
"And it sucks having to ask her for shit all the time, yo. She won't even give us grocery money until we ask for it and she laughed in our faces when we gave her that list of repairs for the place." Todd said when they'd plopped down in their usual spots. Fred in the ratty recliner, Lance and Pietro sprawled on the lumpy couch and the greenish skinned teen crouching on a straight backed kitchen chair with a broken rail.  
  
Again, the others nodded agreement. They'd been brought here, supposedly 'taken in' by Mystique, and each felt that the shape shifter should be caring for them, at least financially. Fred turned on the television and they stared blankly at some sitcom through the static.  
  
Pietro flicked his blue grey eyes around the room at his friends. He wanted to bring up the subject of switching sides, becoming Xmen, but he didn't want to upset any of the guys. It was harder each time for the snowy haired boy to leave the mansion after a training session or visit, to say casual goodbyes to the group, including his boyfriend. At least Serena never let any of them cross the threshold without a hug and kiss of farewell. The motherly affection did wonders for his friends' moods, since none of them had really been given that kind of attention before.  
  
If the boy had been gifted with telepathy rather than sonic speed, his fears about speaking against Mystique would've been greatly eased. Lance, Todd, and Freddy had the same thoughts of desertion in their minds. Lances' foremost reason was Kitty, and running a close second was his new found friendship with Scott. Todd had the same type of friendship with Kurt and now Willow. He couldn't remember having as much fun as he'd had with them earlier in a long time. For Freddy, it was the adults whose companionship he craved. He'd never felt as proud of himself as he did when Wolverine and Spike praised him for throwing them across the room in the last training session.  
  
Each boy knew he'd be welcomed to the Xmen team with open arms; all they had to do was knock on the door. They never pushed or tried to manipulate the teens into joining them, but the message came through clearly. Though they wanted to leave, they felt they owed Mystique and Magneto for the things they'd done for the boys. So they waited for something to happen, something that would decide their loyalties once and for all. They knew it wouldn't be long before one of their leaders gave an order they weren't willing to follow.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
The next two weeks seemed to fly by in a blur, no one having a spare moment. Professor Xavier had been called away to consult with the warden of his brothers penitentiary on different types of security measures and cells made specifically to house mutant criminals. Ororo was attending a conference for meteorologists to discuss the latest weather technology and the effects El Nino was having around the world. That left Logan, Serena, and Spike in charge of their rambunctious teenagers.  
  
Someone had sabotaged the cars in their garage one night and Logan was in a fury. He spent all his time in the garage trying to repair the damage, starting just after breakfast and finishing when he was simply too tired to work any longer. Mystique and Magneto were the main suspects, but there was no proof, not even a scent that Logan could detect under the fumes of spilled engine fluids.  
  
With Logan busy from sun up to sun down, it was up to Spike to put the teens through their daily training and make modifications to the Danger Room to prepare it for the weekend sessions. After school Rogue would join him there to give what help she could and just be in his company. The vampire also started doing post curfew patrols to stop any of the kids from going out. He'd caught Evan coming back in at two a.m. one morning and that added a week of early morning workouts with the boy to his list of duties.  
  
Serena spent most of her days helping people move. Xander and Anya had quickly decided that while they enjoyed being around their young friends, living with them was not an option. The teens had agreed after three days of listening to the symphony of bangs, creaks, moans, and screams coming from the couples' room. The raven haired woman had found them an apartment in the city, and Xander got a job with a local construction company. Serena had gone shopping more times than she could stand with Anya, who was ecstatic about decorating her new home.  
  
Giles had also moved out of the mansion and settled into a small townhouse near the high school. With the professors recommendation added to his amazing credentials the British man once again found himself ensconced in a library. He'd been swept up by the city library and offered the position of head librarian. Once his books had arrived, courtesy of Angel, he'd settled into his new home quite comfortably. Serena had used her shopping trips with Anya to also help the older man decorate his townhouse.  
  
Things had finally started to calm down by the Friday two weeks after the mini celebration two weeks earlier. At least Serena thought they had, until Evan approached her in her bedroom where she was working secretly on Rogues' surprise. She had closed and locked her door, which was highly unusual since the teens were normally allowed to visit her there whenever they liked.  
  
The door opened after a flurry of activity to hide the half made clothing, and Serena ushered the dark skinned boy in. "Hello Evan, come to ask me when I'm going to cook dinner?" she asked, smiling brightly. That was the boys' usual question, if he hadn't gotten the answer from Kurt. Her smile faded when he shook his blond head and his eyes met hers seriously.  
  
"I think something is wrong over at Pietros' house 'Rena. He nearly fainted on me today at lunch, told me he skipped breakfast because he was running late and was just hungry. 'Tro is never late, not with his powers. Scott and Kurt both mentioned that the other guys didn't look right, and Kitty was running on about how Blob hadn't eaten lunch today. That's weird right; I'm not just over reacting am I?" Evan blurted out, wanting some reassurance that his boyfriend and the others were okay.  
  
Serena pondered the information and asked, "Do you think Mystique is doing something to them that's making them sick? If it was just one of them I'd pass it off, but with all four of them ill then I have to say that you're not over reacting." Her voice didn't betray the anger she felt rising, though her whiskey shaded eyes began to whirl and darken at the thought of someone harming her friends.  
  
Evan was quick to answer, "Man, I haven't seen Ms. Darkholme at school since the day after Logan woke up. I figured she was on vacation or something. Would she really do something to hurt 'Tro and the guys?" Worried brown eyes met Serenas' equally worried gaze.  
  
"She hasn't been to work in two weeks? That's strange, and it worries me more than the boys' health. I've got an idea what's wrong with them and I'll see it gets fixed right now. You did very good letting me know about this Evan, thank you. I'm going to check things out with Logan. You go down to Spikes' room and tell him to order pizza for dinner, double our usual order. Don't worry about Ptichka and the boys, Logan and I will make sure they're ok." Serena replied, gathering her purse and stepping into a pair of shoes.  
  
Evan gave her a confused but trusting glance as he went down the hall to follow her directions. He took notice of her inky black eyes and the gleam of fangs when she smiled at him. 'Uh oh, she's pissed. Man, I wouldn't want to be Mystique right now.' He thought, also wondering what the woman knew that he didn't.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Logan had just finished washing the grease off his hands when a small bundle of anger stalked into the garage. He groaned as he took in his loves' partially changed face and the tense, predatory movements. Without a word, she unlocked her van and tossed him the keys. He climbed behind the wheel and started the engine before asking, "Where are we goin and who's gonna die when we get there Darlin?"  
  
"The brotherhoods' house; and Mystique if she's stupid enough to be there." Came the answer, hissed out through clenched teeth. Not known for being a voice of reason, or passing up a damn good idea, Logan pressed the accelerator and drove towards the boarding house.  
  
When they were underway, Serena began to calm down. She recounted her conversation with Evan and then explained what she believed was going on. "Two weeks is a lot of time off for a principal, they take their vacations in the summer like the teachers and students. What Evan told me, combined with the destruction of our cars, makes me think she's gone to join Magneto somewhere and abandoned the boys to fend for themselves until she needs them for something."  
  
The big man growled and gripped the steering wheel so hard his knuckles were white. "What are you gonna do when we get there Chatty? Much as I'd like to we can't just storm in and drag 'em back to the mansion."  
  
Serena answered in a calm voice, "We're going to knock on the door and go inside. Then I plan to walk through the house and take a look around. If I don't like what I see I plan to give the boys twenty minutes to pack their things and get in the van. Then I'm going to tear it apart. Sound good to you?"  
  
"I love your mind Darlin', you think just like I do. I'm gonna have a lot of fun rippin that place apart." He replied, his grin just as menacing as that of the woman beside him. As far as the big man was concerned, the time for passivity was over. They'd all tried hard not to pressure the four boys into joining their team, but if Mystique had abandoned them to survive as best they could he was fully prepared to take them back to the mansion kicking and screaming.  
  
He stopped the van in the litter strewn driveway in front of the house. They walked up the steps and Logan fumed when he saw the door hanging half off its hinges. Serena knocked on the door frame and they waited for one of the boys to come out. When Todd hopped down the stairs he was clearly shocked to see the adults standing there. No one ever came to the boarding house to visit them.  
  
Todd blushed with embarrassment as he pulled the falling down door completely open. "Umm hey 'Rena, Logan. Is something wrong, yo?" He asked, gesturing timidly for the pair to come in. Logan stepped inside first and stood against the wall, waiting to see what his companion would do.  
  
Before Serena could reply Lance and Freddy appeared from different places in the house. Pietro bounded down the steps a second later and skidded to a halt when he realized the people were friends rather than the bill collectors he'd been half expecting. The four boys looked at each other, confused by the presence of their friends, and embarrassed to have the older couple see their home.  
  
"I heard a rumour that some of my boys weren't feeling well. I would've brought chicken soup, but I figured you might prefer pizza at the mansion instead." Serena was smiling as she spoke but her eyes were darkening again. She came into the small foyer to bestow hugs and cheek kisses to the boys. "You know, I've never actually been in here before. Mind if I take a look around?"  
  
Without waiting for permission, Serena wandered into the living room. She took in the dirty floor and broken furniture, saying nothing. When she walked back across the hall to the kitchen, she found herself hard pressed not to voice her anger. The place was filthy; the open cabinet doors revealed empty shelves, a peek into the refrigerator confirmed her suspicion that the boys hadn't been left with groceries or money to buy them. She waded through the garbage and tried to turn on the faucet in the sink, but nothing came out.  
  
The boys could see the anger written clearly on her face when she came out of the kitchen. They didn't know what to do or say to explain the situation. If it had just been one thing, they might have said Mystique was out having it fixed right now, but there were just too many things wrong. When she attempted to go upstairs Lance stood in her way, making noises about there being nothing up there and how about that pizza. She'd kissed his bright red cheek and gently pushed him out of her way.  
  
Upstairs, Serena poked her head into each small bedroom. She found that these four were as messy with their things as most teenage boys, but the clutter was not what pissed her off. There were holes in the floor, water stains and mildew on the walls, and when she tried to turn on the lights she found that there was no electricity. At the end of the hall she found one door solidly locked and pulled out her leather pouch of lock picking tools to get it open.  
  
The uncomfortable silence downstairs was broken when Serenas' loud voiced, multilingual curses came down to their ears. Amongst the foreign sounds they clearly heard, "Logan, boys, get your asses up here NOW!" With frightened looks passed between them, the boys followed a growling Logan up the stairs.  
  
They found Serena standing in the center of a huge, opulently decorated bedroom. Her black eyes focused on the boys and she said, "Explain to me this. You live in this house; it is falling down around you. You have no lights, no water, no food in sight. I pick a lock, and I find royal palace bedroom. You tell me now why you allow this. You tell me where Mystique is, why she has left you in such conditions. You explain to me why four beautiful, intelligent boys let themselves be treated in such a way."  
  
Four sets of eyes gazed around Mystiques' bedroom. They hadn't known what was behind the locked door. The things they saw, the luxury of the huge room, the expensive decorations, made them as angry as Serena and Logan obviously were. When they finally met the small womans onyx eyes, they didn't need to say anything.  
  
"Get your things packed and your asses into that van." Logan growled in a low voice. The order was closely followed by the *snickt* sound of his claws coming out. Four heads nodded agreement and before they turned to leave they saw Serena pick up one of the knick knacks from the bureau and heave it across the room to smash against the wall.  
  
The sounds of destruction made excellent moving out music as the boys went into their rooms and gathered their clothes and personal belongings. None of them had much and it didn't take long for them to finish their packing and put their bags in the jeep and van. Though they were extremely curious to see what kind of damage the adults were doing around the house, they stayed outside and continued to listen.  
  
Siren and Wolverine left the boarding house almost unrecognizable. Fists were put through walls, knickknacks were shattered and left in broken pieces, and claw marks from both were evident on the walls, doors and in Mystiques mattress. Growls and hisses of satisfaction lingered even after the pair had left a room. Logan had etched a message for Mystique into the headboard of her bed, a large S and W to indicate that Siren and Wolverine were the ones to blame for the ruination. When they walked out of the house they wore twin smiles that sent shivers down the boys' spines.  
  
When the pair approached, Logan spoke to the boys. "You boys know what loyalty is, and that's a good thing, but misplaced loyalty isn't. You shoulda come to us when the blue bitch left ya on your own. You might think you owe her somethin for bringin ya here and puttin ya up, but you don't. You don't owe shit to a woman who'd bring you here and then leave ya to do whatever you had to, to survive."  
  
"You pay attention to him boys; and now you listen to me. You deserve to have a safe place to live, food to eat every day, and adults to love and care for you. We've tried to be patient and let you make your own decisions about where you wanted to be. The powers know how many times I've had to force myself not to hold onto you and make you stay with us at the mansion. What I saw in there was the last straw. You're coming home with us now." Serena stated, meeting each boys eyes. Love, friendship, and honesty were clear in her now golden gaze and left each of the four wondering why they hadn't come to her earlier.  
  
Todd and Pietro climbed into the van with most of their belongings, while Freddy and Lance took the jeep. Logan and Serena took their original places, the petite woman happy to let her love drive them home so that she could talk quietly with the boys. She reassured them of their acceptance among the residents, and their worth on the Xmen team; doing her best to soothe their fears and Logan drove them away from the hell hole they'd called home.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
There had been a huge bustle of activity when Logan and Serena came home with the former Brotherhood boys. Wolverines' loud roar for the Xmen to get their butts into the foyer had teenagers literally coming out of the woodwork. With a wide, cheeky grin on her face Serena had announced that Mama and Daddy had brought their new brothers home. Kurt had been the first to start laughing at her joke, closely followed by the rest of the group.  
  
When Spike and Willow got back with the huge stack of pizza boxes a few minutes later, Logan dragged Serena away from the dining room where the teens were stuffing their faces and arguing good naturedly over who was eating all the best pizzas. He led the confused woman upstairs to their bedroom and shut the door behind her. "What's wrong Wolvie? We should be celebrating down there with the kids." Serena asked, curious as to her boyfriends' odd behaviour.  
  
"Nothin's wrong Chatty. We're just gonna do some celebratin alone tonight. We haven't had any time alone together for two weeks and I'm gonna fix that right now. You put on one of those fancy dresses you never wear and do whatever it is women do that takes an hour to get prettied up. I'm takin you out for dinner and dancin." The big man replied only after he'd lifted Serena off her feet and kissed her senseless.  
  
Serena let out a happy sigh. She hadn't been out on a date in ages, and never with Logan. Since she'd moved to Bayville and become the mansions house mother the only time she went out was to shop for groceries and other odds and ends that the kids needed. Dinner and dancing with Logan sounded better than a hot bubble bath and chocolates at the moment. "How fancy are we talking about Sweetie? Champagne and violins or whiskey and a jukebox?"  
  
Logan bit back a groan at the mention of champagne and violins. He hated places like those with a passion, but if his woman wanted them, so be it. "Your choice Darlin'." He hoped she wouldn't choose the uptight classy place, but since she was a classy woman, he prepared himself to put on the monkey suit that was stored in his bedroom closet.  
  
'Hmm, proper behaviour, too much silverware, and waiters that look down their noses to gape at my tits; or relaxed manners, not enough silverware, and waitresses who are more interested in him than me. As the kids would say.No brainer.' Serena mused before replying, "I'll take the whiskey and a good honky tonk jukebox any day. Go on and get ready while I make myself pretty. I promise it won't take an hour."  
  
The big man gave her a relieved kiss and patted her rear on his way out the door. "Wear somethin red Chatty, it looks good on ya. I'll meet ya downstairs as soon as you're ready." He called over his shoulder.  
  
He was sitting in the rec room with the teens half an hour later, freshly shaved and dressed in his favourite black jeans and red button down with the sleeves rolled up over his massive biceps, and his Stetson fitted comfortably on his head. He'd had just about enough ogling and teasing from his charges when a vision in red entered the room.  
  
Serena waltzed into the rec room and gave a little spin for her gaping audience. She was no ones mother tonight, but a beautiful woman dressed up for a night on the town with her beau. Her glorious mane of raven black hair was left loose to curl and wave its way down to her bare waist. She'd used a light hand with her makeup, and the natural beauty of her face shone like a beacon.  
  
As ordered, she'd picked an outfit of scarlet red. The top was snug fitting and cropped to bare her midriff. Held together only by a knot between her generous breasts, it left an enticing amount of pale flesh visible between the bottom of the blouse and the top of the skirt. Long sleeves flared out at the elbow and covered the armband computer strapped to her forearm. When she whirled, the calf length, airy cotton skirt flared out and gave a mouth watering peek at curvaceous, lightly tanned, bare legs. Strappy leather sandals with four inch stiletto heels and a few pieces of gold jewellery completed the stunning ensemble.  
  
She took the chorus of assorted 'wow', 'damn', and 'holy cow' expressions as the compliments they were meant to be and grinned widely when they were overshadowed by a "Mien Gott" from Kurt, a "Bloody gorgeous, Nymph" from Spike, and especially a "Christ on crutches!" from Logan as he stood and crossed the room to take her in his arms.  
  
"See there, thirty minutes and I'm ready to go. I believe I was promised dinner and dancing?" Serena teased after pecking Logan's cheek. The big man growled and pulled her close for a more passionate greeting.  
  
When he finally removed his tongue from her mouth, Logan took a step back to get another look at her outfit. "I don't think I want to take ya out anymore, I'm gonna end up kickin the ass of every man in the place. You're just too damned beautiful Darlin." He praised, grinning down at his striking girlfriend.  
  
Before Serena could return the compliment Pietro was beside them and backing away with an arm around the womans waist. "Sounds good to me. Stay here and you can try to steal her back from us all night." He took Serenas' hand and used the arm around her waist to spin her off into another pair of arms, "Catch Ev!"  
  
It wasn't long before a full fledged game of 'keep away' erupted in the rec room using Serena as the object to keep, and Logan as the one to keep her away from. The girls were laughing uproariously as their male friends spun the older woman around the room from boy to boy, trying to keep Logan from catching her.  
  
The adults were having as much fun as the teens. Logan was caught between fits of laughter and mock growling at the boys while he chased the flash of crimson and black. Serenas tinkling laughter spread around the room as she was passed from one teen to another. She kept calling for Logan to hurry up and catch her, but cooperated with her young friends by spinning and running with them.  
  
Eventually Logan caught his woman, but only because Todd misjudged a pass and spun Serena into a chair rather than Scotts' waiting arms. Logan had pounced on the opportunity and had the laughing, dizzy woman over his shoulder and out the front door before she could be whisked away by yet another boy.  
  
With their game ended, the boys sank back down into chairs or onto the floor in laughter. "Man that was fun! I didn't know Logan could relax enough to play games, I thought he was gonna kill you 'Tro." Evan sighed from his place on the floor next to the snowy haired boy.  
  
"So did I, but you know me. I couldn't resist!" Pietro replied, grinning widely. The speedster was well known for playing practical jokes on people, especially people who didn't normally take well to being played with. He'd been as surprised as the rest when Logan began laughing and gamely chasing Serena around.  
  
Spike stood in the doorway and watched the teens settle down for a Friday night at home. On the couch, Kurt watched television with one arm and a tail curled around Willow, who was studying a book of protection spells. Beside the redhead was Faith, talking animatedly with Scott, who had an arm on the back of the couch and was toying with the slayers' hair. Jean was watching the laser eyed boys' actions from her place in the recliner, though she pretended to be reading every time someone tried to include her in the general conversation.  
  
Todd and Freddy were playing ping pong at the other end of the room, and the vampire chuckled when the ball bounced off the larger teen's chest and onto the pool table, ruining Lances shot. The rock tumbler was trying to teach Kitty how to play the game without much success since the little brunette was more interested in getting the boys' arms around her. Pietro and Evan were lying on the floor, hands clasped behind the dark skinned teens' back as they watched television.  
  
Slender hands, freed from their usual covered state, pulled the vampires t- shirt out of his jeans and rubbed against the bare skin of his back. Spike turned slightly and pulled Rogue into his arms with a teasing smirk. "'Ello Luv, where have you been? You missed the keep away game."  
  
"Keep away game Sugar? I was upstairs finishing that essay for history class; I didn't want to have to worry about it over the weekend. It looks like everyone's staying in tonight, why don't you and I go on outside and have a cigarette?" Her emerald eyes gazed upward into icy blue, and expanded the sentence to include some quiet make out time.  
  
Spike answered with a low pitched laugh and led his little spitfire out of the mansion, calling back to the rest of the teens, "Behave yourselves happy meals! This place had better still be standing when I get back!" In a softer voice he told Rogue, "I can't believe I just said that. If the demon world saw me now, I'd be a laughingstock until the day I turned to dust. William the Bloody, the Slayer of Slayers, babysitting a bunch of human teenagers and telling them to behave instead of teaching them how to take over the world." He shook his blond head and gave a self depreciating smile to his girlfriend.  
  
Rogue snuggled into the vampires' chest and squeezed with the arm she had wrapped around his waist. "Are you really unhappy here Sugar? I know it isn't the way you used to live, but it isn't that bad is it?" Her pretty face turned up to meet the clear blue eyes, uncertainty written in her features.  
  
Sighing unnecessarily, Spike turned his head and softly kissed Rogues' wine coloured lips. "No Spitfire, I'm not unhappy here. This isn't what I'm used to, but it's better in a lot of ways. I have you and the Nymph, an actual friend in Logan; the niblets never cease to amaze me, and I have all the bagged blood and sparring partners I want. Sure, I still have this chip in my head, but it doesn't bother me as much now. If it's possible for a demon to be happy, then that's what I am."  
  
His softly spoken words reassured the young redhead, and she leaned up to kiss him passionately. Spike obliged her ardour, returning her kiss with equal passion as he walked them to the nearest tree. He leaned back against the bark and pulled Rogue up against his chest, then ran his hands down her sides to cup her rear end. 'Oh yeah, life is bloody good these days.' He mused when she inadvertently rubbed against his crotch. When she did it again, he ceased to think at all, and groaned instead.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Logan and Serena were still suffering from occasional fits of the giggles when they arrived at a nondescript roadhouse fifteen minutes after leaving the mansion. The place was a favourite of the big mans; serving huge steak dinners and good beer as country music filtered through the room from a jukebox beside the bar. The couple were lead to a booth in a quiet corner by a college age waitress named Bonnie who lived up to Serenas' expectations, the girl was unable to remove her gaze from Logans behind until he sat down.  
  
The girl took their drink order, which consisted of a beer for Logan and a straight scotch for Serena, and disappeared, leaving the couple alone. Serena flipped back the loose sleeve of her blouse and tapped on her armband, "This is nice, we should've started going out months ago. Look, not a teenager in sight!"  
  
The big man chuckled a little before replying, "You adore those kids and you know it Chatty. I give it half an hour until you want to call home and check on the brats. I gotta agree though, it's nice to sit down for dinner with a pretty woman and not have to worry about someone coming along to interrupt us."  
  
Bonnie came back with their drinks after a few moments and left again after taking their dinner orders. They talked quietly for a while, sipping at their drinks and holding hands across the table. By the time the waitress brought their dinners out the pair had relaxed and let the company and the alcohol soothe away the tension of the day. Conversation was paused while they ate, except to comment on the delicious food. Another round of drinks came midway through the meal, and were pushed aside to be enjoyed after dinner.  
  
When their plates had been taken away, and an ashtray brought over at Logans' request, the couple leaned back to enjoy their second drinks with a cigarette taken from the pack Serena had confiscated from Rogues' room that day. "You know Chatty, if we're ever gonna get that girl to quit; Spike's gotta do it too. Damned vampire gives the things to her now."  
  
"Yes I know, I've told him not to, but he can't resist her. He's always been a big softie when it comes to the women he loves, he'll give us whatever we want. You should have him tell you about the time be broke into a wizards' fortress to get a pendant that Dru wanted. I swear, it took months for the burns to heal!" Serena replied, laughing lightly at the memory.  
  
The jukebox came to life before Logan could comment, and after he heard the soft strains of a country ballad, he stood and held a hand out for Serena. As he led her out onto the small dance floor, he listened to the lyrics and smiled. With a gentle spin, she was in his arms, and they swayed gracefully as Kenny Rogers crooned about his Lady.  
  
The old bartender watched the lone couple on the dance floor. He and Logan were fairly good friends, and Bill had never once seen the stoic loner come in with a woman, let alone come in and dance with her. He wandered over to the juke and popped in a few quarters, choosing some old ballads that would allow his friend to keep the little beauty close to him.  
  
Now, Bill was a betting man, and he remembered a bet he'd made with Logan one night when the big man came in for a few drinks. He recalled his words from that night, "One day Logan, you're gonna come in here and get blind drunk. I'm bettin when that day comes I'll see you out on the dance floor twirlin and two steppin like a born and raised Texan." Logan had scoffed at the idea, going so far as to laugh at the thought, and the bet was on.  
  
With the grin of a man who knew he was about to win, Bill put two more quarters in and chose Mary Chapin Carpenters' 'Twist and Shout' and Garth Brooks' 'Aint Going Down'. He went back to the bar and started pouring drinks again, silently counting down the songs while his victim danced on; deaf, blind, and dumb to everything but the woman in his arms.  
  
Serena was having the time of her life, held fast in Logans embrace, swaying gently to the music. The last strains of a song she vaguely recognized as something by Vince Gill faded out, and she was caught between disappointment and excitement as the next song started at a faster pace. Disappointment that she was leaving her comfortable place in Logans' arms, and excitement because the big man was not leading her off the dance floor.  
  
Rather, he'd grinned and spun her away from him, making her skirt float out to the tops of her thighs. Keeping a hold on her hand, he brought her back in the same way, so that she landed with her back to his chest. She laughed aloud as he started dancing her around the room in a perfect two step. "Logan, I didn't know you could dance like this! You're not even drunk!"  
  
They executed a complicated series of steps and turns before he replied, "There's a lot of things you don't know about me Darlin, this being the least of 'em. Go round the world now." He pushed her away from him and held on to the tips of her fingers as she spun in tight circles around his body, heels clicking and skirt flaring. When she completed the step he held her tightly and continued dancing.  
  
Serena and Logan were both excellent dancers, and the other people in the roadhouse stopped to watch the couple as they danced, the graceful way they moved together, executing complicated turns and lifts with ease. When the last song ended there was scattered applause for the dancers, who paid them no heed.  
  
The raven haired couple walked off the dance floor and sat back in their booth. The waitress came by and asked if they wanted another round of drinks, but Logan ordered coffee instead. He was sitting next to Serena now, rather than across from her, and had the woman pleasantly cuddled into his chest, one thickly muscled arm draped around her.  
  
"I haven't danced like that in months, thank you Wolvie; this whole night has been wonderful. I love you." Serena said, looking up into the deep blue of Logans eyes.  
  
Deeply tanned fingers came up to caress her flushed cheek, "I love ya too Chatty. It's been a long time since I had fun like this. But you're never wearin that skirt out in public again, especially if we're goin dancin." Her laughter was caught by Logans' mouth as he leaned down to kiss her. She responded immediately and parted her lips to allow his tongue inside, where she twined hers around it in a lazy duel.  
  
So involved were the couple in their embrace, that not even Logan noticed when they were joined by Bill, who had brought their coffee. "So, someone's finally tamed the lone wolf eh? Quit sparkin your girl there and introduce an old man Logan." The bartender ordered as he sat down on the opposite side of the booth.  
  
Logan growled menacingly at the man, who wasn't fazed in the least by the sound. "You gettin senile in your old age Bill? Seems you oughta know better'n to interrupt me when I'm busy." A tilt of his lips suggested that the big man was teasing the newcomer, and that it was an old joke between them.  
  
Bill grinned widely and jested back, "Oh, were you busy? I couldn't hardly see that tiny little thing you got buried under ya, thought she mighta left you all on your lonesome. Now pretend to be a gentleman and introduce me to the lady."  
  
"Damned old coot. This is Serena. Chatty, this naggin pain in the ass is Bill; he owns the joint and works the bar. We go back a ways, which is why I aint shreddin him for interruptin" Logan made the introductions with mock disgruntlement.  
  
Serena took her arms from around Logan and flipped up her sleeve to type a greeting, "Hello Bill, it's nice to meet you. I'd apologize for the big grump, but if you've known him a while you must be used to his lack of manners." She extended her hand, which was taken and a flirtatious kiss pressed to the knuckles before being released again.  
  
Bill laughed loudly at her gentle chastisement of his friend and replied, "That I am little missy. If I had a nickel for every time he's threatened to gut me, I could close down the bar and retire in style. So where'd you pick up the stray dog anyway? In the years I've known him, this boy aint never come in with a lady. Shocked the hell outta me when I saw him doin the two step with ya."  
  
The small woman turned her face up to Logan, silently asking whether she could tell the truth or not. The man apparently knew about her boyfriends' claws, hence his mutant status, but she was unsure if he knew about the other mutants in Bayville. He gave her a reassuring smile and answered for her, "She's one of the Xmen Bill. I brought her up from Louisiana bout eight or nine months ago."  
  
"And ya haven't seen fit to bring her in here before now? Shame on you Logan, the one place in town where she could let loose without worryin about keepin her secret and it takes ya eight months to bring her out." Bill chastised, shaking an arthritic finger at the big man.  
  
Logan shrugged and replied, "We've been busy up at the mansion. Got a vampire and a witch livin with us now, and the Brotherhood boys moved in tonight. This was the first chance we've had to get away for a while."  
  
A grey eyebrow rose at the news, "A vampire and a witch you say? Huh, well how bout that. You don't go waitin for months to bring em in here to say Hey. Now, we've been ignorin the pretty lady here, and she's givin us some real confused looks." Bill turned his eyes to Serena and explained, "Ya don't have to worry about bein a mutant in here little missy. I've known Charles Xavier for years now, and I know about what goes on up at the mansion. You feel free to come in here whenever ya like, you won't get no guff from anyone cause a your powers."  
  
"Thank you Bill. I don't get out of the mansion very often because of the kids, but I'll keep the offer in mind. Maybe I can talk Wolvie into bringing me back once in a while." Serena replied through her armband. She noticed that Bill was giving the computer curious glances and explained the details of her mutation. Conversation flowed easily between the three after that, until Bill took his leave of the couple a while later.  
  
Logan and Serena finished their coffee in companionable silence, and danced to a few more ballads before paying the bill and leaving the roadhouse. The night was warm, but the wind coming off the ocean was a little chilly and Logan kept Serena cuddled in the protective warmth of his embrace for the ride home in Scotts' flashy red convertible. Though he drove slowly, it only took twenty minutes to reach the mansion.  
  
The big man parked the car next to his motorcycle in the garage and the pair got out. Serena circled around the convertible and took Logans' hand. Rather than leading him towards the house, she turned towards the back of the property, taking him to a destination as yet unknown to her companion.  
  
"Where we goin Darlin'?" Logan asked after they'd been walking in the sparse woods for a while.  
  
Serena smiled up into his handsome face and replied, "Nowhere in particular; I just don't want the night to end. It's been so wonderful, getting out of the house, spending an evening alone with you. I guess I never really noticed before how little time we get to ourselves in this place, until I started going crazy from wanting to be completely alone with you."  
  
Logan smiled gently and squeezed the small woman around the shoulders. "I know how ya feel Chatty. These last few weeks have been hard; hell by the time we got the kids to bed at night even I was too tired to do much besides crawl into bed and sleep. There's a clearing up ahead a little, why don't we head there and just sit awhile before we head back." He replied, and received a nod in answer.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
They entered the small glade a few minutes later, and settled down on the grass. Logan lay on his side, propped up on one elbow, and looked down at the woman beside him. Serena had sprawled herself out on the grass, not caring about what it might do to her hair or clothing. Her pale skin was glowing in the moonlight, and the inky dark hair was tinted with blue highlights. A soft smile curved her lips as she gazed back up at him.  
  
One slender arm reached up, and soft fingertips traced the bold planes of Logans face. A scarlet tipped thumb rubbed over his full bottom lip and then joined the fingers in threading through his unruly hair. A gentle press was all the urging he needed to lean down and kiss the crimson shaded lips.  
  
Serena revelled in the sensations the big man was creating in her with his kiss. Her arms came up to wrap around his neck, and she tugged gently, encouraging him to move so that his upper body hovered over hers, covering her slight frame with his. A work roughened hand skimmed over her side, stopping to rub gently at the bare skin of her waist before moving upwards to curve around the generous swell of her breast.  
  
She arched up in response, wanting more of the touch. Her own hands weren't idle, massaging the heavy muscles of his shoulders and back, making their way around to his chest and arms. Time seemed to have no meaning in this place, and they could have been kissing for minutes or hours before parting for breath. Hands wandered, exploring each others bodies at first shyly, and then with more confidence when each new touch was rewarded with soft noises of pleasure.  
  
When the arm that was supporting his weight started to go numb Logan wrapped his free arm around Serenas' small waist and rolled onto his back, carrying her with him so that she ended up stretched out on top of him. It was a small shock to his system when he felt the naked skin of her breasts against his equally bare chest. He hadn't realized they'd been undressing each other as they kissed. The knowledge brought his already half erect cock to full attention, and he growled lustily as his hands came up around the womans back and under her open blouse to free the catch on her bra.  
  
********** NC 17 sex scene between Serena and Logan has been edited out. To read it go To read it go to the adult fan fiction dot net site and look for Sirens Song there. ***********  
  
They lay pressed together for a long while, trembling in the aftermath of their love making. Very slowly, their minds fell back to earth, and they separated reluctantly. Logan rolled off of the small woman, and cuddled her close against his side. One of her arms came to rest on his chest, and she bent her leg to rest over his thighs. She placed a soft kiss against his chest and tilted her head up. "I love you Logan." She said quietly.  
  
He brushed his knuckles over her flushed cheek and replied, "I love you too Serena. I love you too." He turned onto his side and wrapped both of his large arms around the small woman. His lips met hers in a gentle, lingering kiss that spoke more than the simple spoken words could.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
A long time passed as they lay entwined, looking up at the stars, but eventually they parted and gathered their clothing to return to the mansion. The walk back was quiet and peaceful, and they held each other close for the entire trip. At the front door, Serena turned to face her lover and said, "I want one more kiss before we go in and the chaos erupts around us."  
  
Logan smiled and bent his head, touching his lips to hers at first gently, then with more passion as her arms came up around his neck and her lips parted to welcome his tongue. Suddenly, the door swung open and a flash went off. The startled pair jumped apart like guilty teenagers and Logans claws emerged with a familiar 'snickt' sound.  
  
Lance was standing partially behind the door, and Kitty was holding a camera to her eye. Both were wearing wide grins, and before the adults could react, the camera went off again, its flash making them blink. Serena turned to her lover and said in a slightly menacing tone, "See, chaos. You take her, I'll get him."  
  
The big man growled and an evil grin twisted his lips as he eyed the little brunette that had just become prey. Kitty gulped dramatically and ran for it, barely taking time to grab Lances' vest and drag him along with her. The adults gave their quarry about two seconds head start before they chased after them.  
  
It didn't take long to corner the pair in the rec room where they were hiding behind Freddy, giggling madly. As they'd agreed, Logan grabbed Kitty and threw her over his shoulder, walking with her to the couch which quickly emptied of its occupants and dropping her on it before leaning in to start tickling her.  
  
Serena, being unable to throw the tall boy over her shoulder, simply tackled Lance to the floor and mercilessly attacking his ribs. Only when both teens were crying from laughter and begging for mercy did the adults let them go. Logan was the first to notice that it was two hours past curfew/bedtime and all the teens were still lounging around in the rec room. "Anyone wanna explain why there're a dozen rug rats and one passed out vampire sittin in here instead of bein upstairs in bed where they belong at one in the morning?"  
  
"It's all Spikes' fault! He wanted to watch Interview with the Vampire and made all of us watch it with him." Willow replied, pointing a dainty finger at the bleached blond who was currently sleeping in the recliner with a tired looking Rogue in his lap. The other teens were quick to agree with the redhead, nodding their heads and pointing.  
  
Serena smirked and shook her head indulgently, "You mean you conned him, or bribed him with alcohol, to let you stay up past curfew. It's a good thing for you we had a wonderful night, otherwise you'd all be participating in a five a.m. Danger Room session."  
  
Logan nodded his head in agreement and added, "You've got ten minutes to get this mess cleaned up and get your asses in bed. Or there will be a five a.m. workout, no matter how good a night Chatty and I had. And if it was my liquor stash you bribed Spike with you'll be in the Danger Room all day."  
  
The teens quailed at the threat and began cleaning up the scattered bowls and glasses that had previously held snack food and sodas. Spike was shaken awake by his girlfriend and he groaned at the sight of his friends standing before him. "It's all your bloody fault. You left me alone to deal with twelve teenagers while you went out on a nice quiet date! Never again, not even if you beg me on hands and knees will I ever baby sit for this lot again."  
  
The vampire looked around him to see the last of the teens heading upstairs and the messy rec room free of clutter. There was a hint of awe in his voice when he said, "How did you manage that? I tried for a sodding hour to get them to go to bed."  
  
"You're dating one of them Spikey, it undermines your authority. All we had to do was say the words 'five a.m. danger room session' and they got down to business. You do know they're blaming you for being up after curfew right?" Serena answered, amusement in her voice and her lips forming a smile.  
  
Spike cursed under his breath for a while, muttering threats against the teens and plotting to get back at them. Serena placed a kiss on one of his blade like cheekbones in consolation and left the room to say goodnight to the kids, kissing Logan on her way out the door.  
  
The big man sat down on the couch, only half listening to Spike's ranting. Seeing his undead friend had brought several questions to the forefront of his mind, and seeing his lover kiss the blonds cheek with such familiarity sent a rush of jealousy through him. He brought one of his hands up to rub at the spot on his neck where Serena had laid her claiming mark.  
  
'She claimed me, even if I won't show the scar, it was still a claim. But does she know that? Or did she just bite me because she wanted to? She was so good, so wild; she might've just bitten me in the heat of the moment. Damn she was tight, but she wasn't a virgin! She's been with someone else. Was it Spike? Did he take her first? Did he put his mark on her while he fucked her? Did she claim him too? How long ago would it have been? Not since she came here, but before that?' His thoughts whirled, jealousy over an unknown past, confusion about the future.  
  
He said goodnight to the vampire and went upstairs to the room he shared with Serena. He stripped off his clothing and climbed into the bed after a quick stop in the bathroom. His thoughts continued to plague him with questions he had no answers for as he waited for his mate to come to bed.  
  
* * * * * * * * * *  
  
Serena stopped in each room to say goodnight to the teens, but she kept her visits short, wanting to get to bed where Logan was waiting for her. Lance, Todd, and Freddy were all surprised when she came into their rooms. The boys couldn't remember the last time someone had stopped in to wish them a good night, let alone bestow hugs and kisses. They took the mothering with half hearted protests and wide grins as the door shut behind her.  
  
She had to separate several couples during her rounds. She found Lance kissing Kitty in the hallway, Willow in Kurts' room, and surprisingly, Faith in Scotts' room. Her last visit was to Pietros' room, where she found Evan, who had evidently thought she'd already been and gone, and was currently curled up behind the snowy haired teen. After she'd lectured them about the brand new 'no bed hopping' rule and escorted him back to his own room, she came back to visit with her Ptichka.  
  
Pietro looked like an over grown two year old as he lay propped up in his bed. Wiry muscled arms were crossed over his chest and his angelic face was twisted into a scowl, cupids bow lips pouting as he glared at the older woman. Serena couldn't help but laugh lightly at the expression which was very familiar to her. Her little bird looked as if someone had taken his favourite toy away. "You quit pouting at me Ptichka, I am immune to it."  
  
The snowy haired teen tried to keep his petulant expression, but when Serena sat down on the bed beside him and opened her arms for a hug he smiled and leaned forward to embrace her. He rested his head on her shoulder and held her tightly around the waist, feeling happy and safe in her motherly embrace. He felt her hand petting his hair and sighed deeply.  
  
Serena felt the tension in the boys shoulders and back ease as she held and petted him. She'd noticed his wariness when they'd first gotten back to the mansion, but hadn't had a chance to ask about it. She did now, "What is wrong Ptichka? Something has been bothering you since we left that awful boarding house."  
  
The tension immediately returned to his slight frame and he pulled back from the embrace to look into her concerned eyes. Pietro wasn't used to talking about his problems, but he desperately wanted to share this burden with Serena and have her reassure him. He took her hand and held it tightly as he spoke, "'Rena, I can't stay here. They'll kick me out if they find out who my father is. You remember him right? You know who he is?"  
  
She did indeed remember. She remembered fear and unbearable pain of body and soul. Her mind cringed at the memories that threatened to overwhelm her. The humiliation and anger, and the black hatred she felt for the man. She forced the memories down, back into their cage of promised vengeance, and looked into the lovely silver blue eyes of the child she'd given everything for. "Yes, I know who he is. Charles showed me his picture not long after I came here."  
  
"Then you know that they won't let me stay here. The Xmen will never trust Magnetos' son, even though I hate him as much as they do." The boy replied, his voice both fearful and angry.  
  
Slender arms reached out to embrace him again, and pulled until he was sitting on her lap the way he'd sat countless times as a child. "My baby, my little Ptichka. You think these people are so shallow that they would hold you responsible for your fathers' actions? No, Magnetos' crimes are his own, and he will pay for them eventually. You watch, tell them tomorrow and you will see. You're a good boy and they know that, and they won't turn you away because of your father."  
  
Pietro held on tightly, wanting to believe the woman, "Are you sure? I like it here, I don't want to leave. I.I'm afraid they'll hate me, that Ev will hate me."  
  
Serena tilted his chin up and made him look at her. She wiped the stray tears from his face and kissed his forehead, "You listen to me. No one will hate you. They might be shocked at first, but they won't turn against you. Anyone who speaks a word about making you leave will deal with me. I lost you once, though the gods and goddesses know how hard I fought to keep you, I will not lose you again. I love you Pietro, as if you were my own son, and nothing will take you from me."  
  
The seriousness of her tone gave the teen the reassurance he needed. No matter what happened, she would stand by him. "I love you too.Mama. I'll tell them tomorrow like you said, if you'll talk to them with me."  
  
"Of course I will Ptichka, we'll tell them together. Now, you need to get some sleep. Back under the covers." She replied, smiling at the boy. She watched as he scrambled back under the thick blankets and laid down on his side with one hand curled beside his face. She pushed a lock of snowy hair out of his eyes and kissed his forehead. He turned his face up and kissed her cheek, then closed his eyes. "Goodnight Ptichka, sweet dreams." She whispered, getting up to leave.  
  
"G'night 'Rena." He replied sleepily. Serena paused and turned to look at the boy, holding the half closed door. She smiled when she noted that he had his thumb pressed against his lips, reminding her of all the times she'd had to stop him from sucking his thumb as a child. 'Some things never change.' She mused, closing the door.  
  
She walked down the hall and into her room, her smile widening when she saw Logan already in bed. He was dozing off, but his eyes opened as she closed the door behind her. "Where ya been Darlin?" he asked, the words slurred slightly from tiredness. Serena told him about having to kick a few people out of the wrong rooms, and that she'd stayed in Pietros' room talking with the boy for a while.  
  
When she'd undressed and finished her nightly routine she crawled into bed and curled up against him. The couple kissed and petted for a while with lazy passion that became less lazy and more passionate as they continued. After a long while, Logan moved over his lover, and Serena opened her legs to receive him. They made love slowly, holding each other close and whispering words of love and devotion. When they climaxed together, they muffled their sounds of completion in each others necks, biting down over marks the marks they'd made earlier.  
  
Afterwards, they lay entwined listening to the quiet stillness of the mansion. As they drifted off to sleep, each tried to put aside their worries for the moment, and basked in the love they shared. Tomorrow would take care of itself, and tonight they would sleep contentedly in the arms of the one they loved. 


	18. Behind Blue Eyes

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Title: Sirens' Song

Author: Sinayah

Email: 

Distribution: Ask and ye shall receive.

Rating: This chapter is rated R FOR A VERY GOOD REASON!

Disclaimer: I don't own any characters from Buffy, Angel, or Xmen. They belong to very rich people who don't appreciate them as we fanfic writers do.

Disclaimer 2: The Chapter Title and Lyrics belong to The Who

Authors Note: This and all chapters following are dedicated solely to those wonderful people who have waited so patiently for me to get my life together and continue with this fic. You know who you are, and it's been your faith in me that kept this story alive.

Authors Note 2: This was a VERY difficult chapter to write. Even in the planning, before my life went to hell I knew this chapter would be a true test of my dramatic talents. BE WARNED, this chapter contains semi graphic violence and rape. NOT for children or teenagers…it's rated R for a good reason.

Chapter 18: Behind Blue Eyes

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"no one knows what it's like, to be the bad man, to be the sad man, behind blue eyes…"

When Professor Xavier returned to the mansion the next morning, he was rather surprised at the results of his general mind scan. There were four new people in the house, and only two of the residents were awake, even though it was nearly ten in the morning. He found Logan in the kitchen preparing two cups of coffee. When the feral man saw his friend, he grabbed another cup and fixed tea for Charles without being asked. "Mornin Chuck, how'd things go at the prison?"

"They went well, several new types of cells and security measures will be added soon thanks to our last two weeks work. The suggestions you and Spike came up with were well received. Might I ask, why the brotherhood boys are sleeping upstairs?" The telepath replied, nodding his thanks when Logan handed him the tea and sat down in the window seat.

The big man growled a little as he remembered why the boys were now in residence. "Chatty and I brought em here last night. The Porcupine told her something was wrong with the boys and she figured out Mystique left em and they were goin hungry. We went over there, and basically told em they were comin home with us. Gawd Charles, you shoulda seen the shit they were livin in. We tore the place apart before we left, what there was of it still standin. Boys are joinin us here, just like we wanted."

The telepath took a quick glimpse into his friends mind to get the pictures. What he saw angered him, and he was pleased with the actions the pair had taken. "Good, they deserve much more than Mystique was providing them, especially if she's abandoned them now. Any other problems while I was away?"

Logan gave him a run down of the events from the last two weeks, and was just finishing with the events of the previous night when Serena walked into the room, a cheerful bounce in her step. "Good morning Charles, it's good to have you home. Ahh, there's my coffee, thank you Wolvie." She greeted with a large smile. Cup in hand she leaned down to give her mentor a one armed hug and a teasing kiss on the top of his bald head.

When her mate growled over the attention that she was giving their friend, she shot him a confused look before coming over to seat herself between his legs and kiss him gently. The professor too gave him a look of confusion, sensing the mild jealousy in his friends rumbling vocalizations.

Even Logan was mildly surprised to hear himself growling. He knew Serena was extremely affectionate, and she often bestowed hugs and kisses to her friends and the teens. But today was different; the small woman was his mate now, whether she knew it or not. Upon waking, the same nagging worries of last night had come back, the jealousy of Serenas' unknown past and the lovers it might have contained, his confusion over her knowledge of their claims on each other. He was in turmoil, acting on instinct to keep his mate only for himself.

He calmed down once he had the small woman close to him. He wrapped one muscular arm around her waist and hauled her as far back against him as he could, then continued his previous conversation with the professor. "Anyway, the cars are fixed, got most of the scoobies moved out, and a couple new danger room scenarios worked up. Not bad for two weeks work if ya ask me."

"Don't forget the new house rule Wolvie. The last thing I want to see when I go in to say goodnight to the kids is two of them going at it." Serena commented, a small shudder running down her back at the thought of witnessing any of her children engaged in something beyond kissing and cuddling. The two men shared her feelings on that matter and they decided that she should talk to the teens later about the new rule.

When she'd finished her coffee, Serena started making a large breakfast for the residents. Logan and Charles continued to chat, and she made occasional comments from her place at the stove. When the food was nearly ready she asked her lover to use the intercom to wake the children up. The big man got up and moved to the wall box, pressing the button that activated every intercom in the mansion. "Wake up you lazy twerps! Breakfast in ten minutes and if you're not down here I'm gonna eat it all!" He yelled into the device. His threat echoed through the mansion and startled everyone into wakefulness, as it was intended to.

The sudden rush of activity over their heads was like thunder, and Serena couldn't help but giggle at the immediate response to her mates' demands. "Ok, bets are on. Who's going to be down first, Kurt or Freddy?" She asked, a teasing twinkle in her eye.

Logan and Charles were still thinking about their vote when Pietro answered her question a second later. "Neither! What do I win?" He asked, stormy eyes glittering with merriment. He walked over and said good morning to the professor and Logan, and then used his super speed to steal a kiss and a pancake from Serena at the stove.

The other teens weren't too far behind the speed demon and soon enough everyone was seated in the dining room having breakfast. "So what's on the agenda for today?" a couple of the teens asked, wondering if Logan and Spike still wanted them to take their Saturday danger room workout now that their former enemies were living with them.

"Today we're gonna practice sparring. You've learned the basics of hand to hand fightin from Spike and me, now it's time to test your knowledge. Everyone meet down in the gym in half an hour." Logan responded, smirking at his charges.

Spike and Serena exchanged grins with each other as well as Logan, all three adults looking forward to an afternoon of kicking butt. Combat without the use of their mutant abilities was a skill the adults believed necessary for their charges considering the lives they led and the distinct possibility of coming under attack for their mutant status once the world at large found out about their existence.

Forty five minutes later all the teens sat cross legged on the floor mats of the large gym. Standing in front of them were four of the best hand to hand combatants in the world. Faith, Serena, Spike, and Logan would be watching over the teens as they sparred with each other, making comments and demonstrating ways to improve the teens' abilities. Each adult chose two of their younger friends and led them to a spot away from the others.

The teens found themselves enjoying the workout, throwing punches and kicks, blocking or dodging blows aimed at them. The adults made constructive criticisms and made their friends switch partners and instructors every once in a while so that everyone got to work with everyone else. Though it was a fun exercise, it was very demanding. Sparring was actually harder than actual fighting. The teens had to learn to control the force of their blows so as not to hurt their partners, which put a strain on the muscles.

"Ok, break time, even I'm tired. You guys are slave drivers!" Pietro called two hours later, dropping to the floor rather than changing partners as he'd been instructed. The rest of the teens followed his lead, bodies falling to the ground wherever they happened to be.

The adults grinned amongst themselves and nodded agreement. Faith jogged out of the room to get some bottled water for the exhausted teens while Logan walked over to a cabinet and pulled out a stack of towels to hand out. Serena watched Spike as he stalked around the room like a caged panther. She could tell her friend was itching to do some fighting himself.

When Faith returned and the teens were taken care of the raven haired woman clapped her hands together for attention. "Well, that was a fine workout. You kids did very well, but we're not finished for the day." Various moans and groans echoed through the room at that announcement, which made the adults laugh. "Oh don't worry, all you have to do is sit and watch. Logan, Faith, Spike, and I are going to pair up and show you a real fight."

The teens grinned at their teachers, pleased with the idea of watching a fight between their mentors. Most of them had seen at least one of the adults fighting, but this promised to be special. That was confirmed when the professor entered the room with Ororo and the scooby gang, who'd come over specifically to watch a sparring match between the four warriors.

Logan slung an arm around Serena, intending to take his mate as a sparring partner. The small woman looked up, gracing him with one of her lovely smiles and said, "Why don't you pair up with Faith? I know you've been wanting to try your hand at fighting a slayer. Spike and I have trained together for years, we'll be able to give a good demonstration together."

The big man growled at her offhand remark about the vampire. Jealousy burned in his blood over the history between Spike and Serena. He looked down at the woman who was eyeing him curiously, focusing on her delicate throat where his claiming mark stood out against the pale skin. Beneath the healing bite was a faint scar, translucent with age. He knew the mark had come from the blond vampire. Spike had bitten the little hypnotist years ago to protect her.

'But is it just a bite or did the bastard claim her? She's MINE damn it!' Another growl rumbled through his chest and his arm squeezed tightly around Serenas' shoulder. "Wolvie, what's with you today? I haven't heard you growl this much since the last time Sabretooth was in town. Is something wrong?" The tiny woman asked, golden eyes looking at him worriedly as one delicate hand came up to caress his cheek.

The low rumbling noise in his chest stopped and he sighed, letting his frustrated jealousy go as the soft touch on his face soothed his inner beast. "It's nothin Chatty, don't worry about it. Come on, let's go play with the corpse and the firecracker." He replied, twisting his lips into a small smirk.

After a few minutes of conversation with Spike and Faith, Serena and the vampire stepped off the mat and sat against the wall with the teens. Before Faith and Logan could begin their match, Kitty and Lance strolled in. When Serena had announced that the adults would be fighting the young couple had gotten up and disappeared back into the mansion. Their reason for leaving was now apparent as Kitty held her portable stereo and Lance had a few CD's in his hands.

The brunette pair spoke quietly as they shuffled the discs Lance had brought. The rock tumbler loved hard rock and heavy metal music and had decided to play some as background music while the adults fought. Together with Kitty he chose a CD and put it into the stereo. Gesturing to Logan and Faith to begin, he hit the play button.

There was no soft lead in to the frantic beat of drums and guitar, just as the two combatants on the mat needed no lead in. An arched brow from Logan asked if the slayer was ready and an abrupt nod was her reply. Just as the music began in a flurry, so did the fight.

Logan swung a hard right at Faiths jaw. The slayer ducked the blow and feinted a punch to the big mans chest, following it with a roundhouse kick aimed for his jaw. Logan leaned back to avoid the flying foot, catching the slayers ankle and spinning her off balance so that she fell to the mat. Before he could press the slight advantage she was up again and had landed a solid backhand on his cheek. Logan went with the blow, using the momentum to swing his leg up for a hard kick to Faiths ribs.

The teens watched with wide eyes as their friends fought. Fists and feet struck in moves that looked wild, but were painfully accurate when they landed. Both Logan and Faith had enhanced speed and agility, and it became increasingly difficult to track their movements. The pair seemed to be lost in the battle, focused completely on bringing the other down. All the while the frenzied beat of drums and whine of electric guitar kept pace with them, egging them on.

They could've been sparring for a minute or an hour, neither knew or cared how long they'd been trading blows. Logan came out the winner, having finally gotten Faith in an unbreakable headlock, his arms clenched in position around her head to break her neck with a forceful twist. The slayer gave in with a laugh, letting her tense muscles go lax as she relented. When the feral man released her she turned and offered her hand. "Damn that was a good fight. Gotta do it again sometime Wolvie." She said with a bright smile.

The big man smirked and took the offered hand in a firm shake. "Anytime Firecracker. Not many around here who can hold their own sparrin with me." He grinned at the slayer with real pleasure twinkling in his midnight blue eyes. He truly admired the girls' skill, which he'd only glimpsed while in the Initiative complex. She had a few moves he wouldn't mind learning himself.

Serena and Spike approached their friends, offering water and towels that the others took gratefully. "That was one hell of a demonstration Wolf, Slayer. Have to have a go with you both myself one day soon." The vampire commented. Spike didn't hand out praise lightly and both Logan and Faith nodded with acceptance and gratitude for his compliment.

"I agree, that was wonderful to watch. Your fighting styles compliment each other well. I've sparred with Logan and Spike before of course, but I'd love to work out with you soon Faith. I think the four of us can learn a lot from the others." Serena spoke up, smiling at her love and the slayer.

Faith accepted the offer and then she and Logan made their way off the mat to sit in the spots their friends had vacated. The teens sent a lot of compliments their way, then everyone settled back to watch as Serena and Spike began. Lance and Kitty had changed the music and a steady, throbbing beat filled the room. All eyes turned to the new combatants, wondering how this couple would compare to the last.

Spike took Serenas' hand and bowed over it, kissing her knuckles lightly, "May I have this dance Nymph?" he asked, smirking at the petite woman. She returned the mocking expression and curtsied before backing away to fall into a fighting stance. The vampire mimicked her action, backing up a step and crouching slightly, putting his weight on the balls of his feet.

One of the reasons Serena had wanted to spar with Spike instead of Logan was the vampires chip. When he'd first begun training her to fight, Spike had shown her how to spar properly, pulling her punches and kicks to avoid injuring her opponent and feigning reaction to the blows he landed on her. Long familiarity with each other would now ensure that the vampire and the hypnotist could give an amazing demonstration of fighting skill without causing the chip to go off.

The pair circled each other as the steady beat of music pulsated around them. Just as their audience was starting to get impatient with their seemingly wary movements, they burst into action. Spike threw a spinning kick at Serenas' head, which the golden eyed woman ducked. She crouched low and kicked out at his ankle, and he fell to the mat even though she'd merely tapped him with her foot.

She leapt forward as if to pounce on the downed vampire, and as she expected, his legs came up on either side of her face and tugged downward. She jumped and flipped her body in the air so that she landed on her back. Spike had rolled with her, and was now kneeling over her chest, pinning her shoulders and upper arms with his legs. He placed his hands at her throat, mocking strangulation.

Serena brought her forearms up and her hands grasped his shirt. She pulled at the material, making the vampire back off as she sat up. Spike was now bent backwards over her legs and she released his shirt, quickly extricating her arms and clasping her hands together to club him in the stomach. He obligingly curled himself into a fetal position, as if the blow to his abdomen had hurt, and she rolled his body off her legs before jumping to her feet and reassuming her fighting stance.

If the fight between Faith and Logan had seemed wild and frenzied, the one between Spike and Serena was controlled and precise. They came together, trading punches and kicks, putting one another in positions that seemed impossible to get out of until the feat was accomplished. Then they separated and circled again, waiting for another opportunity to strike.

Their audience was dumbfounded, in awe of their abilities. The teens had giggled when Spike began the match by asking their house mother to dance, but now they understood the comment. Watching the pair fight was like watching a complicated dance. Spike moved like a big cat, stalking his prey and pouncing with graceful, deadly accuracy. Serena, though just as graceful, was more like a snake. She watched her opponent, keeping eye contact as if to hypnotize him, then striking forward swiftly before retreating again.

After a long battle, Spike finally took the victory. He kicked Serenas' legs out from under her, sending the small woman sprawling on the mat. The vampire pounced before she could leap up again and pressed her down with his weight. She brought her knees up on either side of his to buck him off, but he didn't move, instead lowering his head and kissing her exposed throat. If they had been enemies and the fight real, the kiss would've been a draining bite. Serena allowed herself to relax and tilted her head further to the side, indicating her defeat.

Logans' mind was a maelstrom of angry and jealous thoughts. He was growling again, the sound menacing. His deep blue eyes scowled and a ring of gold had appeared in the irises. He watched as his mate lifted her arms to hug the vampire who was still hovering over her in an intimate position. The rumbling in his chest became louder when the blond kissed Serenas' forehead sweetly before getting up and extending a hand down to help her stand.

Faith looked at the older man curiously, not knowing what had caused her friend to growl and tense up beside her. She glanced back at the pair on the mat and recalled the position they'd ended the fight in. 'Ahh, the wolf man's jealous.' She mused, turning her chocolate eyes back to the feral man. She leaned in and whispered, "Might want to knock off the snarling Wolf, your girl doesn't seem the type to enjoy having a jealous lover."

Though he heard the slayers words of advice, putting it into action proved difficult. The feral part of Logans' mind had been pushing forward all day. Since the previous evening the big man had taken notice of his new mates every action. Friendly touches, hugs, and kisses bestowed on their housemates all seemed to provoke his jealousy and possessive instincts. With a great deal of willpower he was able to force the volatile emotions down again and congratulate his lover and friend on their wonderful demonstration.

Serena was almost oblivious to her mates' inner turmoil. She knew he was being a bit more possessive of her today, but didn't understand the cause. As she accepted compliments on her combat skills and handed out praise to the teens for their work that morning her thoughts were centered on what the cause of Logans distress might be. She worried that he hadn't wanted to be claimed the night before, but brushed the thought aside as her hand reached up to finger the healing mark on her throat. If he hadn't wanted to be claimed as hers, he wouldn't have returned the gesture and claimed her. As the group left the gym Serena looped her arm through Logans and squeezed gently, seeking to reassure him that whatever was troubling him, she was there to listen.

Though the amber eyed woman didn't know what had caused her lover to become so protective, someone else had a good idea. Spike had been watching the newly mated pair closely since he'd joined the group in the dining room that morning and heard the rumbling growl of his friend when he brushed his lips over Serenas cheek in greeting. The vampire noticed that Logan had placed his mark directly over the blonds, therefore eradicating his claim on the woman.

The blond man knew what it was like to have a beast inside, and how that beast would react to a threat against its mate. Spike realized that his feral friend was feeling insecure about the newly formed relationship he had with the hypnotist and acting on instinct. He also realized that he himself seemed to be the cause of Logans worry, though all the males were being treated to small growls and glares from the big man. The vampire resolved to talk with Serena that night and encourage her to clear up any vague areas about their relationship with Logan.

The group of teens and their guardians had all retired to the locker rooms to shower and change clothing after their workout and those who had not participated in the sparring retreated to the large rec. room to chat. They arranged themselves comfortably and Willow brought in a loaded teacart to serve the older people drinks.

Sitting in an easy chair, Giles thought back on the demonstration the adults had given for their charges. The four warriors were some of the best fighters the watcher had ever seen. He'd watched with rapt attention as Faith and Logan fought like wild animals, and then had to forcibly keep his jaw from dropping as he witnessed the controlled precision of Spike and Serenas' battle. He wondered if Faith would be amenable to restarting her training, with him as her watcher. If she was, he would also ask Logan, Serena, and Spike to join in training with the Slayer, both so that she would have capable sparring partners, and so that all four could learn from each other.

The watchers reverie was broken a moment later by Charles as the professor said, "Well, I must say, that was a magnificent demonstration don't you think Mr. Giles? I've no doubt that those four could take on anything and come away unscathed. Faith has told me that you trained her in combat, I wonder if you would consider helping with the students training along with the others?"

"I was just thinking about starting to train Faith again, if she's willing. I would be happy to work with the children, though I feel a bit outclassed after watching the others. Perhaps Faith and I could work together training them with weapons, while Logan, Spike, and Serena handled the hand to hand combat." Giles commented, already visualizing the lessons.

The two gentlemen continued to discuss the possibilities and benefits of training the teenagers in combat for a while, waiting for the other adults to join them before making any plans. The teenagers trickled in slowly as they finished their showers, and collapsed around the room in tired heaps. After watching Kitty and Lance trudge in, only to fall into a recliner together and close their eyes for an impromptu nap Giles motioned to the room in general and told his colleague, "I expect this will be a regular occurrence if we go ahead and begin their training. I believe they will become quite good, but at the moment they are much too used to relying on their powers rather than their strength and agility."

As their conversation turned to debating the good and bad points of constantly relying on mutant abilities versus only using learned skills Willow excused herself and went upstairs. The redhead was holding one of her favorite spell books, her index finger stuck between two pages to keep her place. She spotted Serena and Logan coming out of their room and jogged up. "Hey guys, that was a great match earlier. Um, I was wondering if I could talk to you for a minute Serena."

"Sure Willow." The smaller woman replied before turning to her mate. "Why don't you go on down without me Wolvie, I'll join you when Willow and I are done talking." She smiled up at the big man, and was confused when she was met with a frown. She cocked her head to the side in question and watched as Logan seemed to give himself a mental shake. He nodded in acquiescence and leaned down to kiss her gently on the lips before continuing down to the rec. room.

Serena turned back to the young hacker and gestured towards the bedroom she shared with Logan. "Come on in, we can talk in private." The two young women entered the large suite and Serena sat down in her rocking chair, while Willow sat at the desk. "So, what can I do for you?" The hypnotist asked.

The redhead fidgeted a bit and opened her book, offering it to Serena. "Umm, I saw this spell a week or so ago and I thought it would be good to use as a protection barrier around the mansion. Kurt told me that some really not nice sounding mutants have gotten in here before and this spell is supposed to be sort of like a vampire barrier but for all your enemies, not just vamps. If it's done right then only people without bad intentions can enter uninvited." Serena raised one hand to halt her friends babbling and smiled at the girl.

"Whoa, breathe Willow. Give me a minute to read over it." The lion eyed woman said, turning her gaze to the book. She scanned the spell, noting that it was indeed a powerful protection spell. It was also quite complicated and would require a lot of power to cast. "Well, it all looks in order. I know an occult store in town where we can get the candles and herb weavings, unless you have them already. I'm assuming you came to me because you need a second to cast this?" she asked.

Willow nodded, smiling brightly. "Yeah, I don't think I could do it by myself. I mean, I've done some really powerful spells before alone, but I'd rather work it with another witch and make sure it goes right. I have everything we need for it in my room, it was in the trunk Angel sent to me."

Serena smiled back at the younger woman and replied, "Alright, let's go downstairs and run this by Charles and Giles. If they okay it we'll do it right away. I'll warn you now though, I only rarely use magic and I haven't cast a tandem spell in years." She stood up and gestured for the redhead to come downstairs with her.

As they walked, Willow asked, "Is tandem casting easier or harder than casting alone? I haven't actually done it before. The closest is when I borrowed some of your power to do that glamour on myself."

Stopping outside the door to the rec. room Serena thought about her answer before saying, "It all depends. If the casters are easily compatible then the casting is easier, but if they can't synchronize their power, it becomes difficult and in some cases impossible to work together. Going on how easily I was able to send my power to you that night I'd speculate that we'll be able to do this without any problems. But before we do any more casting together I'd like to work a synchronicity spell with you to see just how compatible we are."

Willow nodded, she'd heard of synchronicity spells before. "Is it okay to ask who you've done tandem casting with? I'm just curious, the only other witch I've met was Jenny and she wasn't really a witch, so much as a techno pagan."

"I've cast with Dru a lot. She taught me how to use the magicks when we traveled together. I've even tandem cast with Spike a few times." She replied before walking into the living room with the younger woman behind her. She approached Giles and handed the book to him, pointing out the spell. "Giles, Willow and I are thinking of working this spell as an extra protection for the mansion, what do you think?"

While the librarian read through the spell, Willow and Serena explained its benefits to the professor, who readily agreed upon thinking back over the many times that Magneto and his henchmen had entered the mansion with ill intent. Their eyes turned to Giles when he cleared his throat. "This is quite a powerful incantation. Are you sure that between you, you have enough power to complete it?" After receiving their nods he continued, "Alright, if you're sure you can work this. But I would prefer it if you brought in a third person to anchor the two of you in case something goes wrong."

Before he could volunteer himself, Serena had nodded and said, "Spike can anchor us if he's willing. He knows a couple of anchoring spells. Whatcha say Spikey?" She called, turning to the blond, who was sitting on the couch with Rogue cuddled into his side.

The vampire looked up and arched his scarred eyebrow at her, "What was that Luv? Sorry, wasn't paying much attention." He said lightly. Willow quickly explained what they needed and he looked over the spell before agreeing to act as their anchor. The blond didn't do spell work often, it wasn't his thing, but he didn't mind acting as a second or in this case, third to someone else's casting.

It still mildly surprised Giles that his vampiric former housemate could work magic and was knowledgeable enough on the subject to hold a lengthy and intelligent conversation about it. While Willow ran upstairs to collect the needed supplies, the watcher engaged both Serena and Spike in conversation about their experiences with spell casting.

"Angelus was always into the spell books back before he turned poncy. He was damned good at casting, taught Dru when she started showing an interest in it. Living with the two of them I was bound to pick up something. I ended up learning it for the knowledge mostly, it wouldn't do for something to go wrong and have me not know how to fix it." Spike told the watcher. He continued, talking about how he'd been dragged into anchoring and tandem casting for Dru over the years, especially when the vampiress starting teaching Serena.

Logan sat back in his chair and watched his mate and the vampire as they talked with Giles and eventually started reminiscing over the time they'd spent together. He felt the jealous anger bubble up in him again as the pair leaned against each other in a fit of laughter over some mishap in one of Serena's first castings that had ended with Spike's duster being turned pink and both Serena and Drusilla earning a spanking from the blond for messing with his coat. It took a smart smack to the back of his head from Faith accompanied by a warning look to reign in the low growling.

Everyone was interested in seeing the two women perform the spell. None of the mutants had seen spell casting before and were anxious to see real magic being done. With Serena and Willow's permission, the whole group followed them down to the lowest level of the mansion to watch the witches do their work.

This particular spell needed to be cast at the lowest point of the home they wanted protected so as to encompass any and all possible entrance points. They decided to work in the Danger Room as it was on the lowest level and was large enough for all the spectators. While everyone made themselves comfortable Spike, Willow, and Serena prepared their spells.

The blond vampire watched the two women place their candles and herb weavings at the four corners, creating a perimeter for his own preparations. When they finished, he took a bottle of natural rock salt from Willow and had the redhead sit facing Serena with enough room between them for him to sit down. He then walked in a clockwise circle around the pair and their lit candles, pouring the salt to create a protective circle. When he'd finished, he knelt between them and placed one hand on each of their foreheads and intoned, "I offer my power and protection to you as you work to protect your loved ones."

In unison Willow and Serena reached out and placed their hands on the vampire's shoulders. "We accept the generous offer of our friend to anchor us in our work. May the Goddess protect him as he protects us." They removed their hands and Spike turned to face Serena before holding his arms out to each side. The women linked their hands around his and all three spoke, "An it harm none, so mote it be."

With those words, the protective circle of salt glowed. Spike bowed his head and closed his eyes, beginning the incantation for the anchoring spell. Serena and Willow also bowed their heads, listening as the vampire went through the incantation once, timing the beginning of their own spell with the second round of the anchoring spell.

It was remarkable for the ones watching to see the ritual being performed. In a soft whisper Giles described the purpose of the circle and the ritual of offer and acceptance between the anchor and the casters. "The circle protects all of them from outside forces that might seek to harm them, but that isn't the most amazing part of this, having a vampire as their anchor is. If either Willow or Serena didn't fully accept Spike for who and what he is, he wouldn't be able to do this. It is unbelievable to see a vampire being able to anchor such a light magic spell. Watch now, they're starting the protection barrier."

With the redhead and the mutant woman chanting the Latin spell in unison, the power was evident within moments. A white glow started around their hands, linked around Spike's palms. It seemed to pour from their hands into the vampire until his whole body was glowing. Once the anchor was fully wreathed in light, the power spread through the women, bathing them in its glow as well.

"Almost finished now. Mind your eyes, if it works, and it certainly looks like it will, the glow will leave them and flash outwards to surround the house. It will be blinding when it does, like looking at the sun. I knew this was a strong spell, but my word, I had no idea they could invoke this much power." Giles whispered, raising a hand close to his eyes as the glowing magic concealed the casters from view.

As the former watcher had said, a few moments later the solid white glow burst forth in all directions in a wave of power that washed over the observers and spread through the mansion to anchor itself in the walls, floor, and ceiling of the building; protecting any perceived entrance against people who had ill intentions to anyone who called the residence home. When the group opened their eyes again, they were breathing hard from the sheer amount of energy that had gone through them.

That was nothing compared to the two who had cast the spell and the one anchoring it. Willow had her forehead resting against Spike's back as she panted to catch her breath and a trickle of blood was running from her nose. In the center, the vampire had his back bowed forward and seemed only held up by his extended hands clasped by the two women. Serena had her head tilted to the ceiling and a stripe of red from her own nosebleed ran down her cheek.

It seemed to take much of her remaining energy for the raven-haired woman to bring her head back to face her companions and she shook their arms to bring them around to finish their work. Willow raised her head from the vampire's back and her eerily glowing green eyes met the now bright gold of Serena's. "Our work now finished, we release the protective power granted us back to the Goddess with our humble thanks. Our thanks also to our friend, our protector who anchored us in our efforts this day. We release him from our casting with hope for our continued friendship." They spoke softly in unison.

The women unclasped their hands and reached out to steady Spike as he straightened up after being released from the power of their magic. "My work now finished, I release the protective power granted me back to the Goddess with my humble thanks. My thanks also to my friends, my loved ones who accepted and included me in their efforts this day. I release them from my circle with hope for our continued friendship." The blond intoned, making the circle of salt vanish in a flash of light and smoke.

Willow and Serena moved their hands from the vampire's arms to his shoulders and he touched each of their foreheads as the three ended their work by speaking in harmony, "Merry meet and merry part and merry meet again." With the last words of the ritual, the eerie glow in the trio's eyes faded away, leaving three tired but successful people to collapse in a heap as they felt the last of the magic seep from them.

Giles was both elated and worried when he got up from his spot on the floor and hurried with the others to check on their friends. He and Anya were the most knowledgeable of the observers and the watcher shared a look with the ex-demon as they approached the trio. The blonde woman seemed to concur with him, there had been much more power than was expected in that spell. The watcher had known the witches and vampire were invoking a lot of power, but he hadn't realized just _how_ much until it washed over him.

Logan, Kurt, and Rogue were each down on the floor holding their respective partners. The man and boy were busily wiping at the blood on their girlfriend's faces and trying to rouse them and it was Rogue who turned worried green eyes on the librarian and asked, "What's wrong with em Giles? How come they're unconscious?"

"I believe they invoked and used too much magic. That spell was far more powerful than it should have been. They should wake up soon; they just need a few minutes to readjust. Let's get them to the recreation room and make them comfortable." Giles said, trying to soothe the frightened girl as well as the others.

Kurt teleported out with Willow and Logan lifted Serena into his arms to carry her up. Faith and Scott pulled Spike up and handed him off to Freddy to be carried and everyone trooped after the huge mutant to the elevator. Charles detoured to retrieve some smelling salts from the infirmary and met the group in the rec room a few minutes later.

The three spell casters were laid out on the couches when Charles arrived and he went to Willow first as she was closest. A few passes of the bottle of smelling salts roused the small redhead and she wrinkled her nose in distaste as she awoke. Spike was next and it only took one whiff of the bottle to have the vampire up and commenting on the awful smell. As the wheelchair bound man headed toward the couch where Serena was laying in Logan's arms a small voice addressed him, "Be careful Professor Xavier. Logan growled at me when I tried to take her hand. I thought he was going to hit me."

The bald man turned his head and saw that it had been Pietro who gave the warning. The snowy haired boy was looking at him over Evan's shoulder, as he was half hiding behind the other boy. Charles nodded to him and approached the raven-haired couple. As the speedster had said, when he got within arms reach of Serena, Logan started growling. "Logan, I need to help Serena. Please quit growling at me." He said calmly and moved his chair forward a bit more. The rumbling sound from the big man increased in volume and the professor reversed his chair away from the couch.

The telepath took a closer look at his old friend and saw that the man's sapphire blue eyes were more golden now, indicating that he was starting to turn feral. Charles had been watching Logan since the incident that morning when the big man had growled about Serena kissing his head. He'd heard the low rumbling sound several times throughout the day and seen Faith intervene to stop the man's growling earlier. "Faith, would you come here please?" He called to the Slayer.

The brunette came forward and stood next to him. Charles handed her the bottle of smelling salts and said. "Would you see if Logan will allow you close enough to wake Serena? I believe his feral side is coming out and reacting to any man who comes close to her. If we can wake her he should begin to calm down."

"Sure thing Prof." She replied and walked calmly forward. Logan was still growling softly but he didn't increase the volume when the Slayer got close to them. She knelt down on the floor beside them and waved the smelling salts under Serena's nose while saying, "Oh knock it off Wolf, it takes more than a little growling to scare me. You're being an ass."

The ebony-haired woman opened her eyes and groaned, a headache making itself known behind her eyes. She heard Logan growling above her and sat up slowly. The big man immediately wrapped his arm around her waist and hauled her up into his lap where he started nuzzling the bite mark on her throat. "Huh? Logan what are you doing?" She asked, confusion in her tone.

No answer was forthcoming from the feral man and she looked to her friends, hoping one of them could tell her. "He's gone feral Nymph. He's been growling and glaring at any man who comes near you all day, especially me. When the spell knocked us out and he brought you up here he just let go of whatever control he had. The elf was just telling me he damn near took a swipe at Speedy for trying to hold your hand while you were out." Spike told her.

Charles cleared his throat to gain her attention and continued, "That is quite true Serena. If you'll remember, he took exception to your greeting me when you arrived in the kitchen this morning. I believe that when he calms down and regains control of himself the two of you should talk about whatever it is that's bothering him."

Serena opened her mouth to reply but was halted by Spike. "I've got a feeling it has to do with what happened last night Nymph, and exactly where he put his mark. You get my meaning Luv?" The blond asked.

The amber-eyed woman thought for a moment before it hit her what her friend meant. "Damnit! I asked him earlier what was wrong and he said it was nothing. Cripes how could I be so stupid?" She muttered, putting the clues together. "I'll take him upstairs now and get this worked out."

Logan was beginning to come back to his senses and when Serena removed herself from his lap and ordered him to follow her he sent a confused look at the rooms occupants before trailing the raven-haired woman out of the room. She opened the door to their bedroom and went in, waiting beside it until he entered the room before closing it firmly and locking the door. "Sit down Logan." She said in a flat voice.

He sat down on their bed and looked at her, still a bit confused. He couldn't remember how he'd gotten from the Danger Room to the rec room or why Serena would be angry with him, which she obviously was. She came to stand right in front of him and took his chin in her hand, tilting his face up to peer at his eyes. "Well, the gold is gone. Are you back to yourself now or should I wait a few minutes?"

"Huh? Gold? You mean I went feral? Shit!" The raven-haired man cursed, realizing what had happened and why he was missing time. "What did I do Chatty? Did I hurt anyone?" He asked.

Serena let out her own growl, this one of frustration and anger. "Let's count them off shall we? According to Charles and Spike you've growled and glared at any man who came near me today, that's one. You lied to me when I asked if anything was wrong, that's two. You went feral when the spell knocked me out and almost hit Pietro, that's three. I imagine that Spike is a bit embarrassed at having to explain what he thinks caused all this, so we'll call that four. Not to mention what having him know that you think that he and I used to be lovers has done to me. That's about it I think, of course I haven't talked to everyone else."

Logan winced as his mate listed each of her points and gaped when she related Spike's thoughts on the cause of his attitude. "Damn vampire notices more than I gave him credit for. How the hell did he figure it out?" He muttered under his breath.

The raven-haired woman turned darkening eyes on him as she replied, "He noticed where you put your claiming mark. It isn't a big jump from there to figuring out why you chose that particular spot to mark me. I asked earlier and got lied to, so I'll rephrase the question now and give you a chance to answer me truthfully. _What_ is wrong?"

The big man sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. Serena's anger at him was making his own anger, frustration, and confusion come bubbling up and when he replied his tone was just as nasty as hers. "I didn't know alright? God damn it Serena! I didn't know if you knew about claiming a mate. I didn't know if you knew you'd claimed me and that I claimed you. That got me started on the fuckin vampire's mark on you. I haven't liked it since I first saw it."

"I more than half expected you to be a virgin last night, but you weren't and when my brain started doing my thinkin for me again I started wonderin if it was him who got to be your first and if he laid that mark on you while he was takin your virginity." He had gotten up and started stalking around the room while he ranted and now he stopped and whirled around to face his lover.

"I can't help who and what I am Serena. I've lusted after you since you got here. I fell in love with you months ago and danced around it, waitin to see if you felt the same. Then we went to California and you kissed me. I finally knew you felt something more than friendship towards me and I was the happiest goddamn man alive. And the next day, there was Spike, and he knew you. He'd known you for years, he was the one you risked getting kicked outta here to save, he was the one whose mark you wore so proudly."

"I shoved the jealousy aside and told myself I was bein stupid. I made friends with him and I actually like the blond bastard. He got together with Rogue and everything was fine, he wasn't lookin at you like he wanted to be in your bed. And then we get to last night. I finally made love with the angel I've been callin my mate since before I can remember and I find she's been with someone else and I realized that for all I knew about your past you coulda been a street whore or worse. I wanted you to be mine, just mine, so I put my mark over his and wiped out his claim on you. But that didn't stop me from wonderin."

"I've been actin like an idiot all day today and I can't fuckin help it. What happened between us last night didn't seem to have changed you at all. You still went around givin out hugs and kisses to everyone and every other word outta your mouth seemed to be Spike, and that damned vampire was beside you every time I turned around. You got hurt doin that spell with him and I guess I just lost what little control I had left." Logan trailed off; unable to think of anything else to say to the woman he loved. He sat back down on the edge of the bed and put his head in his hands, glancing over once to see Serena sitting in her rocking chair, clutching the porcelain doll and sobbing.

Serena was quiet for a long while, rocking in her chair and holding tightly to Isabella while the tears poured down her cheeks to wet the dolls hair. "Why didn't you ask me?" She finally asked in a mere whisper of a voice. "Last night, this morning, hell any time today you could've asked me. Last time we fought I told you that if you ever had a question for me I'd answer you truthfully if you asked, and I would have. I'd still tell you, if you asked, but not right now. I'm too damn tired, and too hurt and angry to say more than this, so pay attention. Before you, I had _been with_ one other man. That man was not Spike, so you needn't be jealous of him. He marked me for protection only, as did Dru. Now please leave, I really want to be alone."

Logan got up and walked to the door. Before he opened it he turned back and said quietly. "You're right, I should have just asked you. I'm sorry that I didn't and I'm sorry I hurt you. I know you don't wanna talk to me right now, but I'd like to, when you're ready. I love you Serena, I don't wanna lose you because of this."

He opened the door and walked out, closing it softly behind him and walking down the hall to his own room, the room he hadn't slept in for over a month. He knew he should go downstairs and apologize to the guys, especially Spike and Pietro, but he didn't feel like seeing them right now. Unfortunately, the vampire was waiting for him in his room.

The heavy drapes had been drawn over his window and Spike was sitting in his recliner, an unlit cigarette between his fingers. "If it makes you feel any better mate, she'll probably forgive you." The blond said softly, announcing his presence in the dark room.

Logan was startled, having been too lost in his thoughts to notice the other person in the room with him. "Shit Spike! What're you doing in here?" He asked after locating the other man.

"Eavesdropping. You'll have to forgive me for that, evil demon you know. I was also waiting to talk to you." Spike replied, keeping his tone neutral. The vampire was both pleased, and not pleased by the conversation between Serena and the big man and felt the need to interfere in order to make sure things turned out well for the small woman.

The raven-haired man sighed and sat down on his bed, leaning against the headboard. "I suppose you want to beat the shit outta me for hurtin her, can't say I'd blame ya. For what it's worth, I'm sorry for growlin at you and generally bein an asshole today."

Spike waved off the apology and replied, "You don't need to apologize to me Logan. Of everyone in this place, I'm the one who knows what was going through your head today. You and I aren't that different, we both have a beast inside us. If you weren't hurting as much as she is, I'd beat you until you were, but there's no need."

The vampire muttered under his breath for a moment before pulling out his cigarette pack and lighter. He lit the one he'd been playing with and tossed the pack to Logan. As the feral man lit up, he continued. "I'm gonna do you a favor Logan. I'm going to tell you a bit about my Nymph, and about those marks on her neck. Some of this I'm going to have to be vague on because it's not for me to tell you, but I want to make sure nothing like this happens again. I hate seeing Serena cry, and hearing it's just as bad."

Both men took deep drags on their cigarettes and Logan sat up a sit straighter, preparing to listen to his friend's story. "A lot of people will tell you that vampires can't love because they don't have a soul. That isn't true; a demon can love just as easy as anyone else. When I first saw Serena, or Nichola rather, I was fully prepared to turn her into dinner. Dru was the one who wanted to keep her, and I always did what Dru wanted, especially if it came from her stars. It didn't take long for either of us to come to love our pet human, she's easy to love."

"The marks on her neck were there for months before we actually claimed her. She would let us feed from her occasionally, if there were no other food source available. It was when we were preparing to leave New Orleans and she told us she wanted to stay that Dru and I claimed her. We wanted to protect her, and we wanted to have a link to her, something that would proclaim to any demon that she belonged to us."

"Dru might be insane, but there are times when you wouldn't know it. She was as sane as anyone when we discussed claiming Serena. I decided to claim her as my future childe, and Dru agreed to mark her as a second. Basically what the claiming marks on her neck mean is that one day, with her permission, I will turn Serena and make her my childe. Dru's mark states that she agrees with my choice of heir and if for any reason I can't turn her, Dru will."

"That type of claim is called the Rite of Sire bond and is the best protection I could give her. If any fool was brave enough to ignore my claim and try to kill her or turn her Dru and I would know and could perform a ritual bloodletting that would prevent her death and turn her instead, as childe to either or both of us. That claim can't be erased Logan. When your mark heals, mine will still show, and the link to me will still be there. You need to understand that, and that for all intents and purposes I am her Sire, her father, and one day I _will_ change her into a vampire. I love her, and as her future Sire a part of her will always be mine. Now that you know, can you live with that?" Finished for the moment, the master vampire extinguished his cigarette against the sole of his boot and looked over at the other man.

Logan was stunned; behind the amnesia a part of him knew he should've recognized those marks for what Spike said they were, that he'd seen similar marks before. He put a hand to his head and rubbed, trying to work out the tension. He thought about everything the vampire had said, that some part of his mate would always belong to the blond, and he realized, "I should be feeling threatened by you. Another alpha male with a claim on my mate, I should be going completely feral and trying to kill you right about now. Judging by the fact that I'm not even growling, let alone feral, I'd say that yeah, I can live with your claim on her."

Spike let out the unneeded breath he hadn't realized he was holding and relaxed into the recliner. "That's good then, everything's fine. Before I go back to my little Spitfire though, I have a couple more things to say to you."

He paused and took another unneeded breath, trying to figure out how to phrase his next comment. "Like I said when you came in, I eavesdropped on the fight you had with my Nymph. Consider this a friendly warning for future discussions. Talking about the person she was with before you is going to bring up some of her worst memories, _the_ worst in fact. Memories she has nightmares about even now, over a decade later. I won't say anything else about it, it isn't my story to tell."

Spike got up and walked over to the bed where he leaned down over Logan in a stance that was purely threatening as he gave his next warning. "One last thing Logan, and this warning isn't the friendly type. Do not _ever_ use the word whore in reference to my childe again. She hates that word more than any other and will likely beat the living hell out of you if you call her that again. And once she's finished with you, I'll torture the word out of your vocabulary."

"If you take nothing else I've said today to heart, make sure this warning sticks. You don't want to learn first hand how I came to be known as William the Bloody, or Spike." With a swirl of black leather, the vampire left the room. When the door shut behind him, Logan gave in to the fear the blondes last comment had invoked, and shivered.

Serena didn't know how long she'd been there, sitting in her rocking chair, lost in her thoughts. It surprised her that night had fallen outside her window when the timid knock on the door brought her out of her silent contemplation. She gave herself a mental shake and called out, "Come in."

Pietro poked his head around the door, and came in when the amber-eyed woman beckoned to him. "Hello _Ptichka_, are you alright? I'm sorry that Logan frightened you earlier, he wasn't really himself." Serena said, getting up to hug the snowy haired teen.

"I'm okay 'Rena, it just freaked me out a little. Spike let me come up, he's been playing guard dog at the bottom of the stairs all afternoon. He wasn't going to let me up, but I told him I really needed to talk to you. I guess it's not the best time, what with you and Logan and everything but well, everyone's here and…" The teen trailed off, his nervousness becoming more apparent.

The older woman tightened her hold on the boy, nodding her agreement. "You want to tell them now and get it over with, I understand. Come, I'll use the intercom and have everyone meet us in the rec room. It will be okay _Ptichka_, you'll see."

Putting words into actions, she kept one arm around the teen and walked with him to the door where the intercom box was located just to one side. She activated all the intercoms in the house and asked everyone to meet in the rec room, then opened the door and led Pietro out into the hall and down the stairs. Spike met them at the bottom and with an arched eyebrow asked if she was okay and what was happening. As they walked toward the rec room Serena quietly filled the vampire in on what they were going to talk about and received his support. "I'm behind you Nymph, Speedy, whatever happens."

Most of the residents and visitors were already in the room when they got there, but they waited until everyone had arrived and gotten situated before they began. Pietro sat in a recliner with Serena perched on the arm of the chair with her arm around his shoulders. He looked around the room at everyone, finding that they were all staring back at he and Serena, waiting to see what they had to say. He turned his silvery blue eyes up to the older woman, silently asking if she would start.

"Pietro asked me to bring you all here and help him talk to you tonight. There is something you don't know about him, and he is scared to tell you. I've tried to reassure him that sharing this secret will cause no problems, but that is really up to all of you. We'll try to keep this as short as possible so you can get back to what you were doing. _Ptichka_?" The amber-eyed woman addressed the group, giving her surrogate son time to organize his thoughts.

Pietro swallowed hard and straightened up in the chair. "Okay, I guess keeping it short is the best way to go so I'll just say it. I really like it here, I've finally got friends I can trust, and I found the only person I ever knew who loved me here. I don't want to have to leave, but I'll understand if you don't want me here after I tell you what I've been keeping from you."

The snowy-haired boy reached over and grasped Serena's free hand to steady himself as he continued, "My mother died in childbirth. I was five years old when I first met my father and thirteen when I learned who he really was. I don't like him, in fact I got pretty good at hating him over the years. My father is the one who got me out of jail and brought me here from the city. He set me up with the Brotherhood because he runs it. My father is Magneto."

The room was silent after Pietro finished speaking. The Scooby gang was looking confused, as they hadn't been told much about Magneto yet. Charles was nodding his head, as if he had known or at least suspected it. Everyone else seemed to be going from shock to anger, and the former Brotherhood members as well as Evan were showing betrayal mixed with the other emotions. Logan however, turned his eyes on Serena. "You knew about this Chatterbox." He said flatly.

The raven-haired woman was the epitome of calm on the outside, but inside she was getting angry at their reactions. She nodded and looked back at her mate. "Yes, I knew Pietro was Magneto's son. I've known since Charles first showed me his picture. He said to me, 'This is Magneto, be wary of him.' I almost said back, 'This is the devil-man I've been hunting for years.'"

"Why didn't you tell us? You let the son of one of the worst mutants around into our home. I can't even remember all the opportunities you had to tell us who this kid is." The big man asked, receiving nods of agreement to his comments from everyone else.

Serena's warm amber eyes turned cold as she sensed the anger directed at herself and Pietro. "Why didn't I tell you? Because it should not matter. 'Magneto's son', that is not _who _Pietro is. That is _what_ he is, and then only a small part. Who he is, is a teenage boy. He is a mutant gifted with sonic speed. He is a friend to many of you, and a teammate. I could go on forever listing the things that make him who he is."

"You say who he is, is Magneto's son, the son of our enemy, and let it lie with that. I say, if he is to be judged only by his parentage, then you can as easily say he is _my_ son. Magneto fathered him and then left him with strangers all his life. I helped raise him from infancy, I was there when he took his first steps, said his first words. I taught him to read, to ride a bicycle, to play the piano. I fought like a mother lion to keep him when the devil-man came to take him away. I fought with, and lost, everything I had for Pietro, so if you judge him by his parent's deeds, you judge him by his mother, not his father." Serena was up now, pacing around the room, her eyes flashing as she looked into the eyes of her friends and teammates while she stated her case.

Her ranting seemed to hit home with many of the group. The anger and betrayal faded from their eyes, replaced with understanding of the situation Serena and Pietro found themselves in. The woman had one more thing to say to them though. She stopped again beside Pietro's chair and the teen stood to embrace her tightly. Holding the boy in her arms, she met each persons eyes briefly before locking gazes with her lover and speaking again.

"I hate Magneto, I hate him and fear him more than anyone in this room, including the friend and son he betrayed. I have hunted Magneto for years, as Spike can tell you. The next time I meet him, he will die by my hand, for what he has done to Pietro, and even more, for what he did to me. If I, who suffered physically, mentally, and emotionally from Magneto's brutality, can still look at his son with nothing but love in my heart, then all of you should be able to find it in yourselves to see Pietro as himself, and not as his fathers son." She moved again, releasing Pietro and dropping gracelessly into the recliner where she seemed to fold into herself.

The whole room watched the woman as she crumbled from the emotional stress of the day. They all knew her as a strong woman; she had a will stronger than the adamantium that lined Logan's bones. To see her small body shaking uncontrollably brought home to everyone the knowledge that she had gone through something horrible that was connected with Magneto.

Her friends wanted to go to her; to comfort her and ask how they could help, but those who knew her best and loved her most were already crowding around her. Pietro, who was closest to the chair, was kneeling with his arms around her, crying with her. Spike, who had the advantage of knowing the background of her statements had rushed over and placed his arm around her back, whispering reassurances in her ear. Kurt, who also loved her as a mother was hovering next to Spike, concern evident in his opalescent eyes. And Logan, the anger in his eyes completely replaced with sorrow and worry over his mate had taken up a position opposite Spike and mimicked the vampire by placing an arm around her and murmuring in her ear.

Serena was aware of the arms around her and she heard the soft sounds of Pietro crying, Logan and Spike murmuring to her. She tried to calm herself, focusing on the sounds, the feel of comforting arms. She took deep, shaky breaths and forced her mind out of the black pit where her single memory of Magneto sat like a caged beast, ready to pounce and destroy her at last. It took a long time to calm herself enough to straighten up again, and there was a clearly audible sigh of relief from the people who remained in the room when she did.

Charles and Giles had ushered most of the teenagers out of the room when Serena collapsed. The only people who remained in the room besides the four who surrounded her were Willow, Rogue, Evan, Charles, and Giles. All except Pietro and Logan backed off to give her some room and they waited for a while. "Serena, are you alright?" Charles finally asked, breaking the silence.

The dark haired woman nodded, but didn't look up at the others. Instead she focused on Pietro who was still kneeling in front of her. She smoothed the corn silk hair back from his forehead and lifted his face from where he'd buried it in her skirt. "My baby, do not cry. I do not like, when my _Ptichka_ cries." She murmured in a soft, heavily accented voice and wiped the tears from his reddened face.

"Mama, what did he do to you? I remember now, it was so vague before, but I remember. You were hurt, bruised, you couldn't walk. I remember, I heard noises; I didn't know what they were." The teens normally silver blue eyes were red rimmed and bright aqua from the tears. He lowered his head, clutching at her hands and repeating over and over, "What did he do to you?"

The boys tears brought forth her own and Serena leaned down, coaxing him up and into her lap where she began to rock. "No _Ptichka_, do not ask this of me. This thing, it is not what a child should know of his father. What it is that you remember, it is child's nightmare, only bad dream. You listen to Mama, to Nichola, is only bad dream. No monsters in baby's closet, you understand? Only bad dream." She continued in that vein, her heart hoping she could convince the boy her words were true, her mind knowing she couldn't.

Pietro wanted to believe her, but he shook his head violently to chase the false hope away. "No, it wasn't a nightmare, not a child's bad dream. He hurt you! He hurt you so bad you could barely get out of bed to say good-bye to me the next morning! Tell me Nichola…Mama! Tell me, I need to know what he did to you."

Serena shook her head; she didn't want to tell. Her eyes searched out Spike, begging her friend to find a way to get her out of this. The blond vampire met her eyes and said, "It's his decision Serena. He's old enough now to understand and decide whether he wants to know or not. I think Logan and Charles should hear it too. Logan needs to know, he's your mate; and Charles used to be his friend, he deserves to know the type of monster the man has become."

The woman lowered her eyes and nodded, resigned to telling the story. "Spike, please get everyone out, everyone except them. The others don't need to hear this. But come back after, if I'm going to do this I need you with me, only you know what reliving it does to me."

The vampire quickly cleared the room and locked the door. He walked to the recliner swiftly and said, "Pietro, you need to go over and sit with Logan and the Prof. You can't sit this close to her while she tells it, she might accidentally hurt you. Go on, sit with Logan."

Shakily, Pietro stood and went to sit next to the big man. He watched as Spike lifted Serena and sat in her place. The way the vampire held her was strange. He put her back to his chest and locked his arms around her, restraining her arms at the elbow. His strong legs closed around her shins and he crossed his ankles. From behind the curtain of Serena's hair he spoke to the two men and the boy. "What you're going to hear is Serena's worst memory. Whenever she talks about that night, she relives it in her mind. When she told me and Dru, she started hurting herself, and she hurts herself every time she has a nightmare about it. I'm just restraining her to keep any damage to a minimum. Go on Nymph, I've got you."

The woman's eyes were glazed when she raised her head. She wasn't seeing the room around her, only what was happening inside her mind. "He came from nowhere, with no warning. Not even Nadia and Peter knew he was coming. We were all having dinner together; my parents, Peter and Nadia, and Pietro and me. Mama, Nadia and I made a lamb roast. He came just in time to try some."

"Peter asked what brought him back to the area. He said he came to take Pietro. He wanted his son to live in America, to learn English and grow up as an American. Peter and Nadia, they did not want to give Pietro to him. 'We have raised him, he is our son.' They said. My mama, she told him 'If you take him away from Nichola he will be lost. He does not know how to live without her. Those two, they are joined at the heart. It would be cruel to separate them.'"

"He didn't care what any of us said, he did not care what Pietro said. My parents, they saw how upset this talk was making Pietro and I. They told me to take the baby and go home. 'Put him to bed at home Nichi. We will speak with the man and make him see reason.' Papa said, and I did. I carried Pietro to my home and put him in my bed. I told him, 'Everything will be good _Ptichka_. Mama and Papa, and Uncle Peter and Auntie Nadia will make the bad man go away and leave us alone.' I rocked the baby, my little one, and sang to him until he fell asleep. I left him sleeping in my bedroom with the door open just a bit. I was sitting next to the fire when the devil-man came."

Serena started shaking in Spike's arms, and her fists clenched until they turned a bloodless white. "The adults, they had talked to him for a very long time, but he would not relent. My Papa told me later, he and Mama had stayed to comfort Nadia and Peter. He thought the man had gone to stay at the inn. He did not know the devil-man had come to our house. He did not know what was happening to me because he did not come home to protect me."

"I was not frightened of the man at first. I was angry. He said, 'I am taking my son to America in the morning.' I wanted to scream at him, but I could not, I did not want to wake the baby. I threw things at him, told him he would not take my _Ptichka_ from me. He got angry, and yelled at me, and I was still not afraid. I say to him 'Be quiet pig-dog, do not wake the child.' And he laughed at me, and I was still not afraid."

Her shaking intensified, she was vibrating in the vampire's arms. Suddenly, her head jerked to one side. "He laughed, and he struck my face with the back of his hand. Ah! His ring cut my cheek, and it hurt. I was afraid now, I had fallen to the floor, but I was not enough afraid. I got up, and I hit back, and kept hitting. I smiled when I saw his cheek bleeding as mine was from where my fingernails cut deep."

"When he looked at me again, I knew true fear. His eyes, devil's eyes, red as blood and burning. Things started shaking around the house. I backed away from him, from his eyes, his anger. The fireplace poker, it lifted all on its own and came toward me. I opened my mouth, I would scream! My scream would bring Papa and he would make the devil-man go! He laughed again, and he say to me, 'Be quiet little whore, do not wake the child.' Mocking me, he was, but he was right. If I screamed, it would wake Pietro and he would see. He would see the devil-man and be scared; I could not let the baby see this demon. I did not scream."

Her mouth opened in a silent scream and she began jerking around in Spike's arms violently. Tears streamed down her face and she unclenched her fists to claw at the vampire's leather-clad arms, trying to break his hold. The blond shook her and she started speaking again, even as she jerked and scratched. "I did not scream. I did not scream when the poker hit me and broke one of my ribs. I did not scream when I fell to the floor in pain. I did not scream when the poker hit me again, and again, over and over until I thought my back would break."

"I did not scream when the poker fell to the floor beside me and the devil-man turned me over. I lay there silent while he beat me with his fists and feet. I turned my head to the opened door of my bedroom and concentrated on not waking my baby when he fell on my body and raped me. And when he finally finished with me, he went to the front door. 'That's a good little whore, you didn't wake my son. For that, I'll leave him here until morning so you can say your good-byes. If you'd been a little better, I might have taken you along with us, but what can you expect from a backwoods whore.' He said to me."

The convulsive jerking had subsided, though Serena was still shaking. "It was long time before I could get up. I went to shower, washed myself, took care of places that were bleeding. When I finished, I crawled into bed and held Pietro close to me. I sang to him and prayed for his safety. I loved him so much, but I knew I would not survive another fight with the devil-man. I prayed for God to keep him safe from the monster until I was strong enough to follow after him and take him back."

"And the next morning, my parents came with Peter and Nadia, and the devil-man came after them. I could not walk, so I crawled. I crawled into the living room and hugged and kissed the baby, I told him we would see each other again. I watched the devil-man pick him up and walk away from our house. And when I could not see their shiny white hair anymore, then I screamed." She was finished now, her energy completely gone. She slumped back into Spike's chest and just breathed, forcing the memory back into its cage.

As the horror faded, her energy levels increased. Her anger over what had been done to her gave her the strength to open her eyes and face her audience. Pietro was curled in a fetal position on the couch; Logan had retreated to a corner of the room and was visibly trying to control his feral instincts. Charles had his face in his hands and was shaking his head back and forth. "Let me go Spike." She whispered quietly.

The vampire obliged and released his hold, allowing her to climb out of his lap. She turned and took in the bloody tears leaking from his eyes and the bruise forming on his cheek where she had hit him with her jerking and thrashing. "Thank you for going through it with me again, I'm sorry for hurting you. I love you Will." She said softly as she leaned over to hug the blond and kiss his bruised cheek.

Next she went to Pietro and hugged him as tightly as she could. "I love you Pietro, never doubt it. What I went through, I would go through again if I had to, for you. I need to leave for a while now. I think things will be alright for you here, but if they make you leave, or you feel like you can't stay, go into my bedroom. There are letters in my bedside table, in a box with a combination lock; the combination is your birth date.

"If you decide to leave, put the box somewhere they will find it and take your letter. Read it carefully and follow what it says to do. When I come back, I'll come here first, and if you're not here I'll come to you at the place my letter will send you. Be safe _Ptichka_, and remember I love you."

She pulled out of the embrace and looked deep into the boy's eyes, nodding when she saw he understood. Her hands came up to his face and she kissed his forehead, eyes, cheeks, and nose before standing up again. Serena looked at Logan and Charles who had turned to look back at her. They both opened their mouths to say something, but she held up a hand to stall them. "I need to leave for a while. Everything today, reliving that memory again, it's too much. I need to go lose myself somewhere until I can think straight again. I will come back as soon as I can, but I can't give you a day or time to expect me. Be well, I'll miss you all, and I love you."

With nothing more to say, Serena walked calmly to the door and opened it. Her pace quickened down the hall to the kitchen and she ran out the back door. Her destination was the cliffs, and she reached the place swiftly. Her control was slipping, and she clumsily ripped at her clothing, leaving the garments in a torn heap at the edge of the precipice. Her eyes were inky black and her words came out in a hiss from behind long fangs, "Poseidon protect your daughter, and protect your creatures from her fury."

She dove from the cliff. Her arm and dorsal fins broke through her skin and her legs lengthened and joined together. When she hit the water, she cut through it cleanly and disappeared into the ocean with a flash of moonlit color as her tail submerged.

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Authors Note: For those who didn't read the notes up top, this was a very difficult chapter to write due to the sheer amount of emotion that I wanted to pour into it. After the difficulties in my life that halted the story it was even more difficult than I imagined it would be. I would really appreciate some feedback on this and the following chapters. Let me know if anyone is interested in seeing it continued. So, this being the only time (hopefully) that you'll see me pleading for reviews I'll go all out. PLEASE REVIEW, the author is DYING to hear what you think!


	19. How Do I Live

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Title: Sirens' Song

Author: Sinayah

Email: 

Distribution: Ask and ye shall receive.

Rating: PG-13 so far, with an option for R and NC-17 later; those will be marked.

Disclaimer: I don't own any characters from Buffy, Angel, or Xmen. They belong to very rich people who don't appreciate them as we fanfic writers do.

Disclaimer 2: The Chapter Title and Lyrics belong to Trisha Yearwood and the song at the end is sung by Garth Brooks.

Authors Note: This and all chapters following are dedicated solely to those wonderful people who have waited so patiently for me to get my life together and continue with this fic. You know who you are, and it's been your faith in me that kept this story alive.

Chapter 19: How Do I Live

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"how do I live without you? I want to know. How do I breathe without you if you ever go? How do I ever, ever survive? How do I, oh how do I live…"

The days after Serena's abrupt disappearance left an unfillable hole in the lives of the people she lived with. "I don't know what to do Lance, it's like we don't know how to live without her anymore. Kurt, Pietro, Rogue, they're all hurting so bad you can almost see it when you're in the same room with them. And seeing Logan is awful, he's not eating or sleeping, he just wanders the woods or sits for hours in the place where Kurt found her clothes, like he's hoping she'll appear out of thin air." The brunette told her boyfriend, leaning into his embrace with her head against his shoulder."

The rock tumbler moved with her over to the window seat, away from the disaster area she'd made of the kitchen while trying to make dinner from one of the missing woman's recipe books. "I know Kit Kat. She's special to everyone here, except maybe Jean. We all miss her, even me and the boys, but there's nothing we can do, we don't know where she's gone or what made her leave."

"Logan came and gave me a present from her for my birthday yesterday. I guess he found it in her room. She must've had it for a while; it was a model I saw in the craft shop that she took me into right after we started hanging out here. He said she'd have wanted me to get it even though she wasn't here to celebrate with me. I didn't even know she knew when my birthday was; let alone thought to get me a present. It hurts, you know, to find out she cared that much and not have her here to say thanks." The older boy replied, letting his hurt show to the girl.

The pair sat quietly in the window seat comforting each other until Scott and Faith walked in. "Another adventure in the kitchen Kitty?" The laser-eyed teen asked, trying to lighten the heavy mood of the room.

Kitty nodded against Lance's shoulder; "I just wanted everyone to sit down for dinner together again. I haven't seen everyone all together since Serena left. I miss it." She whispered, tears filling her eyes.

Scott sighed; he missed the nightly gatherings too. It was fun to have everyone together, just sitting and talking over dinner. He went over to the brunette couple and knelt so that he could see the girl's face. "Why don't Faith and I go out and bring back some Chinese food. Then we can call everyone down to eat together okay?" He said, hoping to make the younger girl feel better.

She gave her older teammate a smile and moved out of Lance's arms to hug him. "Thanks Scott, that'd be nice. Lance and I will get this mess cleaned up while you're gone."

The laser-eyed teen chuckled and passed Kitty back to her boyfriend. "You do that, and get some of the others to help. Cripes knows Todd and Freddy didn't clean up after they tried to cook last night." He said, going over to take Faith's hand before walking out to the garage.

"You make a pretty good big brother Shades. How many times have we gone out for food this week because somebody screwed up the kitchen?" The slayer asked as she hopped over the door and into the passenger seat of the red convertible.

Scott smiled a little, "Three, if you don't count us going by ourselves after that whatever it was Freddy and Todd made yesterday. I'm debating over whether I should ask Storm to go grocery shopping or not. If we run out of food no one can try to cook and accidentally poison us all." He said, chuckling.

Faith returned the laugh and leaned back in her seat, enjoying the wind blowing through her hair. "What's with everyone trying to cook anyway? Even Kurt and Pietro tried the other night, and they aren't doing much but hiding in their rooms this week."

Her question made the laser-eyed teen sigh, "It's a Serena thing. Before she came we pretty much lived on take out and whatever we could make ourselves, and we didn't all eat together much. After she got here she took over the cooking and made us all sit down for dinner every night. We were always to be home for supper unless we had a date or something planned in advance. I know I enjoy it, I've learned a lot about everyone from listening to them talk over dinner."

The brunette woman reached over and patted his hand where it sat on the gearshift. "I get it now, they're trying to take over where she left off, making it seem like she isn't gone. I just didn't notice it; I just thought that was how it always was when I got here. I know they miss her a lot, you miss her too don't you?"

He nodded in reply, "Yeah I do. She's been a big part of our lives since she came. Before, we were a fighting team that just happened to live together. We were friends, but not family. She made us family, and since she took off, we're falling back into what we were before. What about you?"

"I dunno, I miss having her around to talk to. She understands where I'm coming from since she knows more about demons and vamps and that kind of stuff than any of the other girls. We've had some interesting conversations since I got here, and she has some great stories." The slayer replied. The pair continued to drive in comfortable silence, each thinking about their missing friend and wondering why she'd left.

The attempt at a group dinner would've been a success, if Jean hadn't interfered. Scott and Faith had gotten back with loads of Chinese food and laid it out on the table before calling the others. They came in a few at a time and sat down after serving themselves, beginning somewhat tentative conversations. The telekinetic girl was seated next to Kurt, and was disgusted when the boy turned to his girlfriend and started asking the witch about possibly using magic to find Serena.

She was even more disgusted when everyone else turned to pay rapt attention to the young woman's ideas. "This is so stupid!" Jean yelled, turning their eyes to her as she jumped up from her seat. "Why don't you all just move on for crying out loud! So the bitch is gone, who cares? I'm not going to sit here and pretend to be sorry she's vanished, hell I say send the vampire, the witch, and the damned slayer after her and hope they never come back!"

"Serena's been nothing but trouble since she got here, and now she's brought all these freaky demons and demon fighters here and gotten us involved in some stupid fight that has nothing to do with us. I can't believe you're all so miserable without her!" With a jerk of her head, she sent the food flying up to land all over the table and its occupants before trying to storm out.

Only trying, because Rogue got to the door first and decked the girl with no preamble. Jean hit the floor hard, her hand rose to her quickly swelling eye. Rogue leaned down close to the other girl and said, "You spiteful little bitch. How dare you say those nasty things and ruin our dinner. Serena was nothing but nice to you, but you're so jealous of her that you can't stand it, and you can't stand anyone else liking her."

"Well I've got news for you Jean. We all like Serena, we love her, and we want her back. We'd rather have her here than you, and you can bet that we wouldn't be half as worried if you were the one to disappear. Just stay the hell away from us; I'm not the only one here who's had enough of your bitchy attitude. Keep it up, and the next person who hits you is likely to be a lot stronger than me." Rogue threw a nasty look at the other girl and stalked back to the table where she joined the effort to clean up the spilled food.

Willow and Evan hadn't watched the exchange between Rogue and Jean. They were too busy looking after their boyfriends. Kurt was shell-shocked over his older teammate's vicious comments and judging by the fire burning behind his eyes, he was angry too, and Pietro had tears gathering in his eyes. With a look between them, the witch and the chocolate skinned blond stood and took their partners hands to lead them from the room.

They went up to the third floor, to Pietro's room. Evan led his boyfriend to the bed and sat with him, leaning back against the headboard when the smaller boy climbed into his lap. Willow brought Kurt to sit at the other end of the bed and held his hand, watching the white fire of anger in his opalescent eyes die down as he calmed. After a few minutes of silence, Pietro turned his head from Evan's shoulder to meet Kurt's eyes. "Mama will come back Kurt, she told me she would." He said quietly.

"But she didn't tell me. She always tells me goodbye when she leaves. I don't even know why she left, since you say you can't tell her secret. I'm worried about her. You didn't see her clothes when I found them; they were ripped to shreds. What happened to her after she left the house?" The blue furred boy replied, covering his face with his hands and shaking his head.

Willow leaned in and gave her boyfriend a hug, "Kurt, she's okay. Serena knows how to take care of herself. We know she's alive, the residual link from the spell we did together tells me that much, and Spike says his link with her is still firm. Logan and Professor Xavier think she dove off the cliff, and that's why she left her clothes behind, she didn't need them in the ocean. Believe me Kurt, she's okay."

Evan was nodding and voiced his agreement with the witch. "She's right. 'Rena knows how to handle herself, and if she needed to get away for a while the ocean's where she'd go. You two need to remember that, and that she'll come back when she's ready. Do you think she'd be happy with you cutting classes and hiding out in here all the time, worrying about her? I don't think she would; in fact I think she'll rip you up one side and down the other when she comes back and finds out you ditched the chemistry test on Wednesday."

The two couples talked for a long while, as had become their habit over the week. Kurt and Pietro didn't want to be around the others much, especially Jean, and Pietro seemed almost scared to be in the same room with Logan. So, they all met up in one of their rooms during the evening and talked or studied together. Both Evan and Willow were worried about their boyfriends and did their best to support them when their surrogate mother's disappearance dragged them into depression, but each hoped that the woman would return soon and bring happiness back with her.

Logan was fuming over Jean's words, and her destruction of what was looking like the one good spot in a very bad week for the group. One glance around the room showed that everyone else shared his anger at the redhead, and it only increased when Willow and Evan led their hurting boyfriends from the room. When the group had finished cleaning themselves and the dining room, the big man walked over to Scott and Faith, who were talking with Lance and Kitty. "I wanted to say thanks, for trying this. It woulda helped everyone if Jean hadn't gone and ruined it with her temper tantrum. You did good, all four of ya." He said quietly.

Kitty came forward and wrapped her arms tightly around his waist, "She'll come back soon won't she Logan? We tried, but it's just not the same without Serena here." The girl asked in a whisper.

"Yeah baby girl, she'll be back soon. We just gotta hang tough until she does. I know none of ya really understand why she left, but she did have her reasons. The last thing she said was that she'd be back, only that she didn't know when. You know Chatty doesn't lie, so we just have to wait for her to show up and let her know how much we missed her so she won't get it in her head to take off again." Logan replied, hugging the girl back and petting her hair as he spoke.

He held the girl for a few moments before nodding to Lance, "Okay Kitten, go on back to your rock tumbler. If you've gotta come to an old grump like me for a hug I'm gonna decide he's not good enough for ya after all and scare him off." He said, passing her off to the boy and chuckling a little at the kid's expression.

Logan patted the nervous looking teen on the shoulder and walked off, heading for the door after bumming a cigarette from Spike. A few minutes later, the vampire took his girlfriend's hand and led her outside, following the scent of his friend toward the cliffs. His keen eyes saw the big man as they approached, sitting under a tree near the spot Serena's clothes had been found.

The couple joined him on the ground, and Rogue leaned her head against the dark haired man's shoulder while her boyfriend lit them both a smoke. "You okay Logan?" she asked, turning her eyes up to see his stoic face.

The big man took a drag from his cigarette and put his arm around the girl to keep her warm. "As good as I can be Spitfire, as good as I can be. How bout you though? I heard you havin a nightmare last night and came to check, but Spike and Kitty were with ya."

"I'm okay, just one of those times when I get flashes from the lives of people I've touched. I've never had one of 'Rena before, but I guess not having her here brought one up. I saw the first time she changed form and since it scared her, it scared me." She replied, recalling the dream of looking down only to see a magnificent fish tail where her legs used to be.

Spike shook his head, "I remember that, it happened not long after we found her. She was trying to teach Dru how to ice skate and fell through a thin patch, changed on instinct. Imagine my surprise when Dru and I hauled her out to find her transformed; her eyes, fangs, claws, fins, and that tail. Poor Nymph was so scared of herself she went into shock, took hours before she was feeling calm and secure enough to force herself back to normal." The vampire told them, remembering the fear he'd felt as he and Dru held their little girl between them while she shook and cried in fright over her changed state.

Logan nodded his understanding, "I think that happens to every new mutant at some point. It did to me when I first saw my claws and how my skin healed right up when they retracted. Happened to most of the kids here too if I remember right."

It didn't surprise the vampire to hear that, "Happens to us as well. Waking up a vampire is a damned scary thing, feeling your face change at the first scent of blood, the demon taking up residence where your soul used to be. Looking at me now, you wouldn't recognize the human I used to be, William Masterton, geek extraordinaire."

Hearing his full name, both Logan and Rogue turned to look at him with curious eyes. "William Masterton? Isn't that 'Rena's last name Sugar?" Rogue asked.

"Oh, that's why you're both looking at me funny. Yeah, when we set her up in New Orleans, she didn't want to be Nichola Kalinskia anymore, so Dru and I gave her a new name and set up the paperwork for it. Serena Annabelle after Dru's sisters, and my human surname. It took about a year to convince her it wasn't a good idea to call me Gramps." The blond replied, laughing a bit at the joke he shared with the young woman.

When only Rogue's light laughter joined his, Spike sighed and turned his ice blue eyes to see Logan staring out into the darkness. "Logan mate, why do you keep coming out here?" He asked.

The big man lifted his hand from Rogue's shoulder and pointed to the cliff, "Because that's her spot, where the Elf found her clothes. She comes here to think, and when she has something important to say to someone she brings them here. If what we think is right, and she jumped, then she's out there in the water somewhere, and when she heads back, she'll come to this spot."

"I can't sit here and wait much longer Spike. I need to know she's okay, that she's safe and not drowning in that god-awful memory I helped bring out of her. It'll be a week tomorrow that she's been gone, and if she doesn't turn up by then, I'm goin after her the next day." He stood up then, and walked over to the edge of the cliff to look out over the water. "I'm comin after you Darlin, cause I don't know how to live without you anymore." He whispered before turning away and heading back to the house.

True to his word, the next night Logan called a house meeting and announced that he was giving Serena one more day to reappear and if she didn't, he was going after her. Everyone agreed with him, fearing for her safety after a week with no sign of her.

While Logan was announcing his intention to go looking for his missing mate, someone else stood on a lonely stretch of beach and watched as the form of a naked woman washed up just in front of their feet. The watcher placed a blanket over the bedraggled; half starved form and lifted her up with preternatural strength. The exhausted, badly injured woman was carried away from the beach and placed in a car.

Serena awoke while her injuries were being tended. When her amber eyes opened for a moment and she saw the huge, haunting brown eyes set in a delicate face surrounded by dark brown curls Serena gave a weary smile. "Take me home, please?" She said quietly.

Her rescuer tucked the blanket closer around her shoulders and got behind the wheel of the black luxury car with darkly tinted windows. As the car pulled out of the parking lot and turned toward the freeway a sweet voice replied in a far away tone, "Of course Pretty, I'll take you home."

"Home to Father, home with Mum. Home to Logan and the little ones. Home to rest, to wake and rise, home to take the devil's prize. No dolls, no stars, just you and me. Just you and me and your children three. Scattered by pain, brought together by fate. It's been so long, you mustn't wait. Claim your daughter, claim your sons. With family love, one battle is won." The singsong chant continued, repeating as the cars driver headed north, towards New York, towards Bayville, towards the sleeping woman's home.

It was sunset, and Logan and Spike were in the garage readying the big man's motorcycle for the trip ahead. They finished checking the bike and Spike pulled out his pack of cigarettes, shaking one out for himself and offering the pack to Logan. "If you wait a few minutes, till the sun goes down all the way, I'll walk you up to the gates. I hope you know what you're doing mate. The Nymph is damn fast in the water, fully transformed. You'll have a lot of ground to cover." The vampire said, worried both for the missing woman and the man who was leaving to find her.

"I know Spike, but I have to at least try to find her. I didn't realize how badly I fucked up with her until she told us about Magneto. I went off the deep end thinkin she'd been sleepin with you and it turns out she was raped. That day, you warned me not to put the word whore on her, but that was already the second time I'd done it, and now I know why she hates it so much, it's what _he_ called her. I don't blame her for bein so pissed at me; I cut her to the core without even knowin it. I can't wait for her to come back any longer; it's drivin me crazy. At least if I'm out there lookin I know I'm doin somethin to bring her back." The big man replied with a deep sigh.

The two men finished their cigarettes, watching the sun sink below the horizon from the shelter of the garage. When it was safe for the vampire, Logan kicked up the stand on his bike and started walking up the long driveway. Spike pulled a piece of notepaper from one of his duster pockets and looked at it for a moment before handing it over. "What's this?" Logan asked.

The blond ran his fingers through his hair and rubbed his neck for a moment before he replied. "I've been watching the news reports and listening to the radio every day. That's a list of beaches where sea predators have been turning up dead. Sharks mostly, and a few stingrays and jellyfish, they've been washing up on beaches all down the New York coast and into Jersey for the last week. Reports say other predators or dolphins and the like killed them because they're torn up. A predator did them in alright, but none they've seen before. Nymph said she needed to lose herself for a while and she did. She let the Siren out and she's been killing anything that comes close enough."

"There's fifteen beaches on that list, heading straight down the coast. Follow the trail she's leaving; try to get ahead of her. Eventually it'll be a naked woman washing up on the beach, not whatever crossed her path. It's the only help I can give you, but it's more than what you had." They'd made it to the gates by the time Spike finished his explanation and Logan rested the bike against the wrought iron barrier.

The raven-haired man looked down at the notepaper, reading the list of public and private beaches and what was found there. He saw that the last beach was on the Jersey coast and asked, "This last entry, today?"

Spike nodded, "Yeah, two sharks were found washed up there this morning. She's making good time, I'd suggest you drive fast and get ahead of her. It's about a days drive for me, what with sunlight issues, but you should be able to get ahead by tomorrow and just wait for her to come to you."

Logan agreed and the two men shook hands. The big man straddled his bike and was putting his helmet on when he heard a car engine. He looked over at the vampire who was about to open the gate and said, "You hear that Spike? Someone must be lost, there aint nothing up here besides the mansion. You talked to Wheels last, he mention anyone coming by?"

"No, he didn't say anything. Don't take off just yet, in case it's trouble and not some idiot who got lost." The blond replied, looking down the road in the direction the noise was coming from. Logan laid his helmet over the bikes handlebar and the pair watched the road.

After a minute had passed, they saw a black Lincoln coming toward them. The driver of the car braked to a smooth halt in front of the gates and the automatic window on the passenger side rolled down. An alto voice with a lilting British accent came out of the dark interior. "Spikey, Spikey. I don't like what happens when I leave you alone. You went and got yourself in trouble and then you lost our songbird, naughty boy. Not to worry though, Isabella told me what was wrong and I came to visit. Pretty's wolf pet's been a bad doggy, but the stars say he's sorry and that her little ones need her, so I brought her home. Be a good boy now and open the gate so I can come in. My pretty one is all cold and tired from playing with the fishes."

Spike groaned. He couldn't help it really. He'd finally gotten used to being around people who didn't talk to stars and dolls and Satan knew what else and now here she was, in all the beautiful, undead flesh. "'Ello Dru. Back the car up so you can get in once we open the gate." He said in a resigned tone.

"Thank you Lovey. We're quite tired and I'm hungry. Pretty is too tired to feed me tonight but she said you had plenty of yummy bagged food here. When did they start putting people in bags Spikey?" Came the voice from the car again. The vampiress didn't wait for an answer and started backing the car up.

The blond gave another groan and punched in the code for the gate. He glanced over at Logan who, though he looked confused as all hell, was smirking at him. "Shut the bloody hell up and help me open the damned gate." He grumbled.

The smirk broadened and threatened to become a laugh but the younger man held himself in check and simply said, "I didn't say a word, and I'm not gonna. She hasn't been here two minutes and she's already called me a bad doggy. I'm not gonna give her reason to have another go at me."

The two men pulled the massive gate open and watched the black car drive through. Drusilla didn't stop to wait for them and continued up the driveway to the mansion. "Shit, hurry up Logan, she's going to need an invitation which means we have to convince the Prof to issue one. Oh, this is not going to be fun." The vampire said, resisting the urge to groan again. The men quickly got the gate shut and locked before jumping on the bike and roaring back down the drive.

They found Drusilla's car parked in front of the mansion and Logan let Spike off the motorcycle to talk to his former girlfriend while he put the bike back in the garage and went to explain to Charles. Spike approached the luxury car, wondering when his ex had learned to drive, and saw the woman's behind sticking out the open back door of the vehicle. "Pretty, Serena, it's time to wake up now. Mummy's brought you home to your Daddy and your wolf-pet and little ones. You want to see your little ones don't you? Wake up now." He heard the vampiress speaking to her passenger.

"Budge over Pet, let me see the Nymph. Her mate's inside now wrangling you an invitation so we'll be able to get you some blood in a minute." Spike said, coming up and patting Drusilla's rear to make her move.

The brunette woman let Spike take her place and the vampire leaned in to see Serena asleep under a blanket. He shook her gently and watched her amber eyes open and look at him blearily. "Spike? What're you doing he…oh, we must be home then. Cripes I'm tired." She said, her eyes closing again.

The blond man shook his head and muttered, "Gonna make me carry you, aren't you Nymph. No matter, I don't mind. It's good to have you home Luv, you've been missed." He went to lift the blanket away so that he could pick the small woman up but after glimpsing only a lot of bare skin underneath, he hoisted her into a sitting position instead and wrapped the blanket more securely around her before lifting her from the car.

"Couldn't you have stopped long enough to dress her Dru? No wonder she's cold. Come on then, looks like Logan found the Professor." He said, turning and walking toward the front steps. He paused a moment later and turned to the vampiress. "I want a promise from you Drusilla, on the link we share with Serena. You promise me that you will _not_ bite any of the humans who live here, or any that come to visit. You don't bite them; you don't even threaten to, understand? These are my friends, and they're Serena's friends, they are not food."

The insane woman nodded, "I promise Spike, on the link we share with our songbird. She already made me promise not to hurt anyone while I'm visiting. Can we go inside now? I want to see the bagged food, I can eat that right?" She said in a childish voice.

The blond took a deep breath and started up the stairs. "Yes Ducks, you can eat the bagged food." He said, hoping that a bit of time with Serena would make the vampiress more rational. Drusilla always seemed a bit saner when the amber-eyed woman was present. Serena didn't allow the other woman's flights of fancy and insisted she behave as rationally as she could.

The vampires came to stand just outside the French doors and Spike adjusted his burden before addressing Charles. "Professor Charles Xavier, may I present the Lady Drusilla, childe of Angelus. Serena and I both have her promise that she will harm no one while in this house. It's a promise she can't go back on prof. You can trust her."

"Good evening Drusilla, I've heard much about you from Spike and Serena. Won't you come in please?" The bald man said, holding his hand out for the vampiress. Dru placed her hand in his and stepped past the barrier.

Charles looked up at the lovely, ancient woman, expecting to hear some kind of nonsense in reply to his invitation and ended up getting the shock of his life. 'Thank you for the invitation. I've missed my Pretty and I'm looking forward to visiting with her and meeting her little ones. I promise I won't hurt anyone here.' The telepaths mind was filled with Dru's lilting voice as he locked eyes with her and she projected the words to him.

Spike noticed the professor jump in surprise and bumped Drusilla with his shoulder. "Be good Dru, don't scare the man whose home you're staying in. Logan, come here and take the Nymph up to her room. I need to get Dru fed and settled before the niblets come across her." The blond said, holding the sleeping woman out to her mate.

Logan came forward and took the small woman in his arms, cuddling her close to his chest. He turned toward the stairs and started walking but was halted by a womans chiding voice. "You be good to my Pretty. If you're a bad doggy again I'll have to punish you. I don't like it when Serena is unhappy. She won't sing for me if she's unhappy." Drusilla said in a very serious and slightly threatening tone.

The big man turned and nodded at the vampiress. "Yes ma'am, I don't want her to be unhappy either." He replied and started away again only after receiving a nod and wave of permission from her.

Walking up the stairs slowly so he wouldn't jostle the sleeping woman, Logan peered down at her elfin face. Her skin was darker, tanned from a week in the ocean under the bright sunlight. Her face was thinner, and she felt lighter, which he imagined came from living on he didn't want to know what during her absence. He nudged open the door to their bedroom, glad he'd taken the time to straighten up that afternoon in preparation for when he returned with her.

He laid her down on the bed and went to her dresser to retrieve some clothes. He came back with a pair of panties, some lycra leggings, and one of his flannel shirts for her but rethought the idea of dressing her himself. For all he knew she was still angry with him and he didn't want to risk ticking her off even more by dressing her without her permission. Instead, he laid the clothes down beside her and went to the intercom. "Storm, Faith, please come to Serena's room, it's important." He said into the box, calling for help from the two oldest female residents.

He met the women outside and ushered them into the room. "As you can see, Chatterbox is back. Spike's ex girlfriend brought her in just as I was taking off. She's cold and tired, probably hungry too. I don't want to risk pissing her off so would you two mind checking her over and getting her dressed?" He asked hopefully.

"No problem Wolf. Blondie's ex though? Isn't she a candidate for the vamp mental hospital?" The slayer asked, going over to sit on the bed beside the sleeping woman.

Logan shrugged, "From what I can tell, Xander isn't kidding when he calls her Loony Toons. She was telling Spike about Chatty's doll and the stars telling her to come here. Not to mention she called me a bad doggy, and got away with it. I think she's gonna be stayin a while though, so you can't stake her."

Faith grumbled about that but replied, "Five by five, as long as she doesn't try to eat anyone I won't dust her. You might want to warn her that there's a slayer in residence before she sees me though. Vamps like her can sense slayers and I don't want her attacking me because I surprised her."

The big man nodded and thanked his female teammates, then left the room so that they could take care of Serena, telling them that he would be back in a while. He headed back downstairs, using his nose to track the vampires. Dru's perfume and Spike's aftershave led him to the elevator, so he figured the blond was getting his ex something to eat.

He found the pair in the infirmary where they stocked the blood bags that wouldn't fit in Spike's mini fridge. The vampiress seemed to be entranced by the ruby liquid and was turning the bag from side to side, watching the blood move. He gave Spike a quizzical look and the blond shrugged and said, "Whatever makes her happy mate, that's her third bag. You get the Nymph settled?"

"I called Ororo and Faith in to check her over and get her dressed. They'll probably wake her up to have a bath too since she smells like salt water and dead fish and there was God only knows what in her hair. The Firecracker said I should make sure Drusilla knew about her in advance, something about sensing her and attacking because she was surprised." Logan replied, coming over to sit with his friend.

Spike nodded and called to the brunette woman, "Quit playing with your food Pet, and come over here when you're finished, I need to talk to you." He watched the vampiress bite into the bag and turned to Logan, "Good idea that, she's right. Master vampires, like Angelus, Dru, and I, can sense slayers when they're near. You saw my reaction in L.A. when we got to the pouf's place and I sensed her. We don't like slayers, obviously. They're our natural enemy. If you spend enough time around them though, you get used to the creepy feeling. Best to warn her anyway, keep any accidents from happening."

Three pints of blood obviously helped the woman's mental state. She joined the men as Spike finished explaining about sensing slayers and took a good look at Logan. "Spike, didn't you kill this one? I remember him, but you said he was dead. How can he be dead? He's not one of us, but he's here and he claimed my Pretty."

The blond sighed and hoped Dru would understand his explanations. "Logan is like Serena Dru, he's a mutant. He can heal himself much faster than even we can. I thought I killed him that night, but he managed to heal himself after I left. There are a lot of mutants here Ducks, all the Nymph's little ones have different powers. You'll get to meet them in a little while, once Serena is awake and can come down. They're going to want to thank you for bringing her back, they've missed her."

"That's nice, the stars told me the little ones needed my Pretty. And it's good that you didn't kill her wolf-pet. He makes her happy so she'll sing for us." The brunette replied and turned her dark eyes on Logan. "You won't hurt her again will you? You won't make the devil-man haunt her dreams again?" She asked, looking up to meet his sapphire gaze.

Logan shook his head negatively, "No ma'am. I didn't mean to hurt her before, and I'm gonna apologize to her when she wakes up again." He answered honestly.

Dru reached up and patted his stubbled cheek. "That's good. You tell her you're sorry and she'll be happy. She'll sing for us and we won't go funny in our heads anymore because Mister Bald Man fixed her voice. Did you want to tell me anything else Spikey?"

Both Spike and Logan were too busy laughing for a few moments over her nickname for the professor to answer her question. When Spike finished chuckling he replied, "Yes Ducks, I have to tell you about some of the other people who are here. You remember when we went to the hellmouth? We met the slayer there, and her friends?"

"I remember. There was a little tree girl, and the funny boy and the yummy tasting book man. I liked him, he kissed very well." The brunette answered, causing Logan to choke and shoot Spike a questioning glance.

Spike rolled his eyes over the comment and continued, "Yeah, that's them. They're here now Dru. Willow lives here and the whelp and watcher live in town. There's also a slayer here, but not the blonde one who hurt us. This slayer is pretty good, she won't hurt you as long as you keep your promise and don't harm anyone here alright?" The woman nodded agreement and waited for him to continue, which he did after a moment, "There's one more thing Dru. I met someone here, someone I love. I…"

A delicate hand tipped in dark purple nail polish stopped the blond. "I'm a bit mad Spikey, not stupid. I know about your Spitfire, and I'm happy for you. I hoped you would find someone new to love when I told you to go. Miss Edith told me about the girl you met and she said you were happy. I want to meet her though; I have to make sure she'll take good care of my William."

The vampire closed his eyes and smiled underneath the woman's fingertips. He raised his hand and took hers away so that he could kiss her knuckles. This, he remembered, was why he had stayed with the insane woman for over a hundred years. No matter how bad she got, how many times she had visions that left her weak and talking only to her dolls for months, she always wanted him to be happy. "Thank you Dru. Rogue does make me happy. I may not be with you anymore Luv, but you'll always be my Princess."

Logan watched as Spike raised his and Drusilla's hands over their heads and the woman turned in a circle underneath. He decided to give the vampires a few moments to themselves and walked over to the intercom. He punched the number for Serena's room and called, "Hey Faith, Ororo, how are things going up there?"

The weather witch answered him a moment later. "Things are going well Logan. Serena is awake and says she is feeling better, though she's tired. I see you're calling from the infirmary. Would you mind bringing up some bandages, tape, and stitching supplies? She has some nasty injuries. I was just about to go down there myself."

"Sure thing 'Ro, We'll be up in a minute." He replied and cut the connection. While he gathered the supplies, he told Spike and Dru where he was going and asked them to come along. They took the elevator up to the second floor and hurried down the hallway to Serena's room.

They entered quietly and found the three women on the king sized bed. Serena was lying down with her flannel shirt tucked up under her breasts, exposing a raw looking scrape across her left side and belly. They'd traded the lycra leggings Logan had picked out for a pair of cotton shorts so that Ororo could continue to hold a towel against her leg. "Good, you're here. Give Faith one of those bandages Logan, and Spike; she says you or your friend can do something about her leg. It won't stop bleeding." The dark skinned woman ordered.

Both men came forward and Logan handed over the requested supplies before stepping back to watch what was happening. He was feeling nervous now that his lover was awake and didn't quite know what to do with himself so he simply sat down in the rocking chair and watched.

While Faith bandaged up her abdomen, Spike lifted her right leg up and removed the makeshift compress to reveal another large scrape along with a fairly deep cut that ran from the bottom of her thigh to the middle of her shin. "What in the hell did this Nymph?" He asked before going game face and lapping at the wound to try to seal it.

"Shark. I ran into a big one last night, the tear is from something that was stuck in its hide. Damned thing was almost too much for me to handle. It caught me off guard; I had changed back to my normal form and was swimming to shore when it came at me. I was able to force my claws out and blind it to get away, but not until after it did this. Luckily, Dru was waiting when I washed up and managed to stop the bleeding before she brought me home." Serena replied, sending a grateful look over to the brunette vampire.

The Slayer had finished with her bandaging and lowered the flannel shirt before she spoke up. " Storm and I didn't realize how bad it was when we first saw it. It was scabbed over; we thought it was just a nasty scratch since she has that scrape right around it, but the damned thing came open and started bleeding when the water softened the scab and we realized how deep it was. Scared the shit outta me when we couldn't get it to stop."

The amber-eyed woman smiled and replied, "Sorry Faith, if I'd been a little more coherent I would've warned you it was bad."

A few minutes later Spike raised his head from her leg and asked the weather witch for the stitching supplies. Ororo handed him the threaded needle and backed away, looking a little green. Muttering all the while, the blond stitched the wound shut, wincing in sympathy every time Serena did. When he was done, he bandaged her leg tightly from thigh to ankle and elevated it, telling the younger woman in no uncertain terms that she was to stay off the leg until it healed thoroughly. Finished with their job of putting the hypnotist back together, Ororo and Faith left with Spike and Dru close behind them.

Before he left though, Spike stopped next to Logan and leaned down to whisper in his ear, "Talk to her Wolf, and don't muck it up. I don't want to see either of you until you've worked things out." The blond patted his friend's shoulder and rushed out after the women, knowing he needed to keep Dru out of sight until they could announce her presence to the teens.

Logan watched the door close behind his vampiric friend and turned back toward the bed to find Serena looking back at him. He gave a nervous smile and felt his heart flutter when she returned it with one of her own. She patted a spot on the bed next to her and called to him softly, "Logan, come sit with me, please?"

The big man moved to her side eagerly and sat down next to her. Unable to resist, he took her hand in his and raised it to his cheek, nuzzling the soft skin and breathing in her scent. He looked down into her whiskey-hued eyes and found her still smiling. "Logan, I'm so sorry about before. I should've told you, about Spike, Pietro, Magneto. The fight we had was my fault, and I'm sorry. I stand by what I said, who Pietro's father is shouldn't matter here, but I should've told you about everything."

He saw her eyes fill with tears of regret and replied, "No Chatty, it was as much my fault as yours. I shoulda asked you about your relationship with Spike when I first suspected somethin. You were right about Speedy too, it doesn't matter who his father is, he's a good kid. I'm sorry for bein an asshole that day, for not wanting risk sounding stupid for askin questions. Forgive me?"

"If you'll forgive me. I love you Logan, and I missed you so badly while I was away, but I couldn't come back, not until I purged all the feelings reliving that memory left in me. But I'm glad Dru found me and brought me home, I don't think I could've lasted much longer without seeing you and making things right between us. Are we alright now Logan? Is everything okay between us?" Her golden eyes pleaded, sparkling with unshed tears.

Logan nodded and his lips turned upward in a grin that lit up his sapphire eyes. "More than okay Darlin, much more than okay. I love you Serena, and I missed you like I'd miss breathin. " He leaned down as he spoke, and pressed his lips to her sweet mouth in a kiss that spoke of forgiveness and love that wouldn't fade no matter how many arguments and misunderstandings came their way.

An hour later the raven-haired couple were interrupted by a knock on their door. They'd spent their time alone talking about their pasts, as well as their shared present and future. Logan answered the door, greeting their visitors and allowing the group inside. Charles was the first in, and since the professor hadn't had a chance to welcome their missing housemother back, he went directly to her bedside. "Welcome home Serena. We've missed you around here."

The amber-eyed woman sat up and swung her good leg over the side of the bed so that she could lean down and hug the telepath. "I've missed you too Charles, and everyone else. I'm glad to be home."

Spike, Dru, Ororo, and Faith came in after the wheelchair bound man and spread themselves out around the room. After Logan had helped Serena back onto the bed and adjusted her injured leg on a pile of pillows Charles explained the impromptu meeting. "I just wanted to inform you all that I've telephoned Rupert and Xander. I told them that you were back Serena, and who brought you. They have some concerns about Miss Drusilla being here and are coming over to talk about it, and of course, to welcome you home."

The blond vampire was nodding his agreement and spoke up next, "I expected that. Ripper will be okay once we tell him Dru promised on the Rite of Sire bond not to harm anyone, and the whelp trusts him. I don't anticipate any problem from them, it's Jean I'm worried about. She's not going to be happy to find out the Nymph is back, and she'll pitch a fit over Dru visiting."

"I gotta agree with Blondie Professor, Giles and Xander will be okay but Miss Priss is gonna freak out big time." Faith put in and got a unanimous round of agreement from the other residents.

Charles gave a deep sigh, "I'm worried about Jean. She hasn't been herself for months and she took an unusual amount of pleasure both in Serena's disappearance and in provoking those of us who were upset over our missing friend. We'll need to speak with her about this soon, but for now she will just have to live with it I'm afraid."

"Now, I believe we have guests about to arrive and a group of teenagers who will be most pleased to see their housemother back. Ororo, would you please ask everyone to meet in the rec room in ten minutes? And Faith, my dear would you go down to the gates and meet our visitors?" The women agreed and left the room to complete their tasks and the telepath followed them after asking the remaining four to come down when he called for them.

After the door closed behind the professor, Serena turned her amber gaze on the vampiress who was sitting in her rocking chair, murmuring to the porcelain doll that usually resided there. "Dru? Come over here with me would you?" she called.

The brunette smiled and carefully sat Isabella back in the chair before coming over to sit next to her friend. "What is it Pretty? I was having a lovely chat with Isabella. I haven't visited with her in quite a while and she has many things to tell me." The vampiress asked.

Serena smiled indulgently for a moment before she took the other woman's pale hand and looked into her hypnotizing eyes. "Were you listening to us Dru? You're going to meet my friends in a few minutes. I want you to be yourself when you meet them Dru, no stars, no Isabella or Miss Edith, just you, just Dru. Can you do that for me? I want my friends to meet the real Drusilla, not the mad vampire."

Drusilla seemed to fade away and her eyes went glassy for a moment before she came back to herself. Serena and Spike both grinned at the vampiress when they saw the light of sanity and keen intelligence in her dark eyes rather than the twinkles and sparkles that usually occupied them. "Yes Serena love, I can do that. It's easier with my stars and dolls, but I can be myself for you."

"Thank you Dru, I know it's hard for you, but it's better this way. I've always told you reality might be more difficult, but it's better than imagination." Serena replied, leaning forward to hug her best friend.

Spike made a disgruntled noise and put his two cents in, "Hey, I've told her that as well you know. How come you only listen to the Nymph Dru?"

The women laughed, and it was a beautiful sound. "Because she says things worth listening to and you don't Spikey." Drusilla replied, setting Serena off in laughter again with Logan joining in. Even the blond had to chuckle over his ex girlfriend's joke once he finished blustering at her.

Once they'd recovered from their humor, Serena had Dru pick something out of her closet to exchange for the elegant gown the vampiress was currently wearing and a much more modern woman emerged from the bathroom a few minutes later. She'd chosen a royal blue halter-top that left her arms and midriff bare and a pair of black cotton pants that had a silver and gold Chinese dragon coiling up each leg. Her mahogany curls had been brushed out and hung loose around her shoulders to the middle of her back. "You look wonderful Dru." Serena complimented, with Spike and Logan immediately voicing their agreement.

A minute later, Charles called over the intercom for Logan and Spike to come down with their surprise. Anxious to see her friends, Serena swung herself off the bed and stood up, only to fall back when she put weight on her injured leg. Spike started chiding her for disobeying his orders while Logan lifted her into his arms and they left the room with Spike and Serena arguing all the way down about which one of them was the worst patient.

By the time they reached the closed door to the rec. room Drusilla had joined the argument on Serena's side. Spike was too busy being double-teamed to think before he opened the door and he barged in grumbling, "Bloody women. Someone remind me why I don't stake one and eat the other?"

The gathered people could only sit in stunned silence when Drusilla followed the blond into the room, and then Logan came in carrying Serena. The two women gave each other a look; "Because you love us Spikey!" they replied together in childish, singsong voices, which made Logan laugh.

"No I don't. I hate you both. You're pains in my arse, thorns in my side, and headaches worse than this bloody chip." The vampire returned before taking note of where he was. "Ah, bugger. Surprise." He said to the teens, gesturing toward Serena.

There was a sudden rush of activity as many of the teens started to get up to greet their housemother. "Whoa rug rats! Let me sit her down somewhere before you mob her." Logan called to stop them. He didn't want to end up on his butt at the bottom of a pile of teenagers.

Faith got up from the couch she was sitting on and hauled Scott and Lance off as well, giving Logan a place to put the small woman. The big man nodded gratefully and sat his burden down gently on the middle cushion, leaving the sides open for the two boys who'd been as worried and depressed over her disappearance as he had. He backed off after commandeering a footstool for her leg and took up a position behind her. None of the teens made to get up again until he raised an eyebrow and said, "Well, doesn't anyone want to say hello anymore?"

They came forward a bit more calmly this time, greeting their teammate with hugs of welcome. As Logan had expected, Kurt sat down beside the raven-haired woman when he hugged her and cuddled in close, wrapping his tail around her waist as he spoke to her in his native German. What did surprise the big man was that Pietro, who'd been agonizing over his surrogate mother's disappearance, was not the first to reach her. Instead, the speedster was hanging back, his whole manner screaming insecurity and nervousness. Serena also seemed to have noticed the teen's absence, and after she'd given Xander a warm hug, her eyes locked with the boy's silvery blue ones and she held her arms out, softly calling to him, "_Ptichka_?"

The snowy-haired teen came forward and sat down, tentatively wrapping his arms around the woman's small waist. The feel of her arms coming around him to return the embrace seemed to break through his insecurity and he tightened his hold, burying his face into her neck and whispering hoarsely into her ebony curls, "I'm sorry Mama, so sorry. Please don't leave me again."

Serena's eyes became troubled when she heard the boy's words and she pulled back just enough so that she could lift his face up with one hand. She saw tears gathering in his eyes and stroked his cheek, "What is this, little one? Why are you sorry? You haven't done anything wrong."

Pietro hid his face in her hair again as the tears he'd been holding back spilled over; "It's my fault, all my fault. He hurt you, I made you tell, made you leave. I'm sorry Mama." He whispered, the emotion making his voice crack and break. Serena tightened her hold, crushing the boy's small frame against her.

The woman tried to soothe the snowy-haired boy, rocking him gently back and forth and murmuring softly against his ear. She felt Logan lean down from his place behind the couch and heard him whisper to Kurt. A moment later the blue furred teen had his arms around both of them and they vanished with a whiff of smoke.

Logan had asked the German boy to teleport Serena and Pietro up to her room so they could have some privacy. The group still had no idea of the circumstances behind their teammate's disappearance, and the big man didn't think they needed to witness the conversation between the woman and boys.

Serena was grateful to her mate for gaining them some much-needed privacy. The trio had landed softly on her bed and she scooted up against the headboard, bringing Pietro with her so that he was lying against her chest. She looked up when she felt Kurt remove his arms and tail from around her and whispered to the teen, asking him to stay and holding one arm out to embrace him as he came back to cuddle against her side.

Kurt didn't know why the amber-eyed woman had asked him to stay, as obviously something needed to be said privately between she and Pietro, but he wanted to remain close to her after her long absence, so he curled up with the pair and laid his head on her shoulder, enjoying the warmth of her embrace. She sang to them in a soothing tone, using the Ukrainian lullaby to relax them all.

When she felt they had all calmed sufficiently enough to talk, Serena coaxed both boys into sitting up so that they could see each other. "Now," she began, "Everyone tells me that both of you were very hurt and worried when I left, and I am sorry for that. I thought that we should talk about it, but first, I think you wish to know what has Pietro so upset, right Kurt?"

The blue-furred teen nodded in answer, and Serena sighed before giving a firm nod of her own. "You know something bad happened to me, I remember you stayed until Spike made everyone leave. After you left, I told Logan, Pietro, and Charles what happened, and then I went away. I told them about Magneto, and the time I met him. I told them that Magneto beat and raped me, and then took Pietro away. Pietro thinks it is all his fault, what happened to me, why I left."

Her eyes turned and fixed on Pietro then, she reached out and took his chin in her hand, lifting his face until he met her gaze. "It is _not_ your fault _Ptichka_, none of it. You did not hurt me all those years ago, he did. You were just a child, asleep in bed when it happened. I was a stupid girl, I should have known it would do no good to fight with him, but I did, and I lost. It was my decision to fight for the child I loved, and I would do it again with no hesitation or regret. I never blamed you for it, and I never will. And you will not either, you understand me? You are responsible for no one's actions but your own. Not mine, not Magneto's, no one's."

"And it was also not your fault that I left, no more than Kurt or any of the other children are at fault for it. Yes, you asked me to tell you what happened, and it hurt to relive the memory, but that is only part of why I left. Several things went wrong that day, most of which I am not going to speak of with two teenage boys who do not need to know the details of my love life. I needed to get away, to lose myself until I had everything straight in my head again. So, you listen to me, and believe what I say, _nothing is your fault._" When she finished, her arms opened to welcome the snowy-haired boy, who returned her embrace with his normal fervor.

After a moment, Kurt was brought into their hug, and the older woman squeezed both boys tightly before releasing them to talk about the other thing on her mind. "Back to where I started now. I was not happy to hear how the two of you worried over me while I was gone, and how you showed your concern. You skipped school, you failed your big chemistry test, and you hid in your rooms with Evan and Willow when you were home. You, _Ptichka_, I understand now. But Kurt, I would like to know why you were so troubled, I can't think of any reason for you to fret so badly."

Kurt looked back at her a bit shyly and replied, "I was worried you wouldn't come back. We haven't talked as much as we used to since Willow and the rest came, and it hurt when you left without saying good-bye. You always said good-bye before when you had to leave, even for an afternoon, and if it was going to be longer you never left without telling me you loved me. This time, you were just gone, disappeared. I found your clothes at your spot on the cliffs and didn't know what to think."

Serena shook her head sadly; "I am sorry Kurt, my sweet. But did it never occur to you that I would not leave forever without saying good-bye, and telling you where you could find me? Silly boy, I do love you, and I would never go for good without letting you know. This was a one-time thing; I was very upset and not thinking."

"Now, I have one more thing to say to both of you, and then we need to go back downstairs." She took one of the boy's hands in each of hers and held them tightly as she spoke. "I love you, both of you. The kind of love that happens when a mother sees her child for the first time. There is a special bond between us, from my heart to each of yours. You are my children, my little ones, and I promise you that I will never leave you behind. I may leave for short periods of time, but I will always come back to you. Even when you are fully-grown and don't need me anymore, I will be there, just in case you do."

She pulled the boys into another hug and finally felt the peace she'd been trying to find for the last week. Her relationship with Logan was back on track, and she'd told her boys, the sons of her heart, how she felt about them. The part of her that was Siren eased itself back into the recesses of her mind and relaxed, knowing that she was safely home with her family.

After Serena and the boys had departed, all eyes turned to Logan, Spike, and the strange woman who'd accompanied them into the room. The Sunnydale group, as well as some of the teens, recognized the woman either from personally meeting her, or from Serena's photo and Spike's stories. Dru nudged her former lover in the ribs when she started feeling self-conscious, silently ordering the blond to explain her presence.

"Right, explanations all around then. For those of you who don't know, this" He paused and made a grand gesture, " Is Drusilla. You've all heard me talk about her at some point, but I'll tell you the basics again. Dru here is my ex. She's a vampire, some twenty odd years older than I am. She's a few smokes short of a pack, and she has psychic visions once in a while, but she's a likeable enough bird if you can put up with the stars and dolls talking to her."

He received a sharp smack to the back of his head from the vampiress for his description of her, and continued with a bit more tact after rubbing the sting from his skull. "Anyway. Dru, I'm assuming from one of her visions, knew that Serena needed her and was waiting when she washed up on a beach in Jersey last night. She cleaned her up as best she could and brought her home."

The blond turned to Giles when he spoke the next part of his explanation, knowing the watcher would understand what he was saying. "Ripper, I know you and the whelp are wary of Dru, and given our history with each other, you have reason. Under any other circumstances, you'd be right to worry about having her here around the kids. But before she was invited in, both Serena and I extracted a promise from her. She promised on the Rite of Sire bond we both share with Serena, not to harm anyone who lives here or comes to visit. You know she can't go back on that, and she wouldn't have made the promise if she intended to break it."

Giles nodded at his former housemate and addressed the entire group with his reply. "That does relieve my concerns. I suspected you shared that type of bond with Serena when I saw your mark on her neck. If Drusilla has made a promise on that bond, I believe it is safe for everyone to have her here. Even her insanity would not allow for the breaking of that promise."

The group relaxed a bit after the librarian's pronouncement, trusting the man's judgement in things like this that they didn't understand. Logan spoke up next, wanting to add his thoughts. "We all owe Dru a big thanks for what she did. If she hadn't been waiting when Chatty turned up on that beach, she might've bled to death before she could get medical attention. You all saw her leg; Spike put about twenty stitches in it after she arrived. Drusilla's gonna be staying here for a while, so if you're still leery of her, despite what Giles said, then remember that she saved Serena's life and brought her home to us."

Dru smiled up at the big man and turned to face the group of people on her own. "There's no reason to be scared of me, I do promise not to hurt anyone. I may go a bit crazy sometimes, but Serena made me promise to try and be myself around you all. She's talked a lot about you children in her letters and on the phone, and I'm happy to finally meet my Pretty's friends." She gave a smile to the group, pleased when a few smiled back.

Over the next minute or so, the room filled with nervous tension. Despite the reassurances they'd been given, none of the teens wanted to be the first to go up and introduce themselves to the vampiress. Finally, Rogue remembered where she'd put her backbone, got up from her recliner, and went to face her boyfriend's former lover. "Hello Drusilla, it's nice to meet you. I'm Rogue, Spike's girlfriend. I wanted to say thanks, for bringing 'Rena back, we've missed her a lot."

"You're welcome, but there's no need to thank me. Serena means a lot to me too. The three of us really must sit down to tea while I'm here. Pretty and I have many stories about Spike that you certainly wouldn't hear from him. Did you know he was called William the Bloody because he was a bloody awful poet when he was alive?" The vampiress replied, chuckling softly.

Logan turned to the blond and raised an eyebrow as he commented, "You mean when you threatened to show me how you got your nicknames you were gonna torture me to death with bad poetry? Hell, I actually bought that line!"

Spike growled, first at Logan and then at his ex. "Bloody hell, Drusilla! You tell one more story like that and I'll smack you so hard when you wake up your damned gowns will be back in style!"

Dru stuck her tongue out at the blond as everyone else broke out in laughter. When it subsided, the tension seemed to have eased off and Xander kept up the light-heartedness with one of his trademark wisecracks. "By the way Drusilla, welcome to the twentieth century."

From where he was standing, Spike could see Dru's dark eyes light with mischief and chuckled, waiting for her comeback. The vampiress sniffed daintily and turned her nose up in a snobbish manner, "Why thank you, you might consider joining me here one day. I'm sorry; I don't seem to remember ever getting your name. The last time we were in close contact, I was too busy comparing your face to a poem and keeping Angelus from making you his dinner to ask. I do hope you've given up on using magic to aid your love life?"

Xander's jaw dropped and his face flushed bright red with embarrassment as everyone laughed and gave him curious looks. "It's not a good idea to joke about Dru when she's sane whelp, especially if she's got anything embarrassing on you. She's as sharp as Ripper and the Pixie put together when she's not talking to the stars." Spike informed him through his chuckles, remembering the incident from his Sire's ranting after the fact.

With their fears eased by the vampiress' good humor and witty repartee the group broke off into smaller bunches and conversed together as if it were any other evening. A few at a time, the teens came over and introduced themselves to Drusilla, speaking with her for a while before moving off again. The brunette woman had a lovely smile for everyone who came to her, happy at being accepted among her friend's charges.

She knew she owed a large part of her acceptance to the reassurances of the watcher and drifted over to where he was sitting in a recliner, talking with Professor Xavier. She sat down on the arm of his chair and waited patiently for the man to notice her. He looked up at her after a few moments, curious as to who was sitting beside him, and was startled to see the vampiress. "Hello Drusilla. What can I do for you?" He asked.

"Your name is Giles isn't it? That's what the children call you." She asked and waited until he nodded before continuing. "I wanted to say thank you Mr. Giles. You told them the truth about the promise I made, and helped them accept me. Considering what I did to you the last time we met, I wouldn't have been surprised if you'd told them to make me leave or even had your slayer stake me. I can't say I'm sorry for what I did, because it stopped Angelus from torturing you any longer, and I don't enjoy seeing anyone tortured. But I am sorry you lost your lover, she must have been a very special woman." The vampiress said softly, with sincere regret in her tone.

Giles nodded, feeling his heart twinge for a moment at the mention of Jenny. "Thank you Drusilla, and you're welcome. Looking back on the incident, I am grateful to you for stepping in when you did; though I do wish you hadn't gotten the information I held. You have an amazing amount of power and control with that particular gift. I truly believed for a few moments that Jenny wasn't gone, that she'd come back to me in my time of need. It was almost worth the pain of losing her again when you released me."

Charles watched his friend and the vampiress, curious about their conversation and wondering if they even knew that their hands had linked while the Englishman spoke. He decided after a minute of silence between the pair to ask about it. "Forgive me for interrupting, but I must admit you've made me quite curious as to what you're talking about."

The librarian seemed to give himself a mental shake and turned his eyes away from the lovely woman. He related the story of his capture and torture by Angelus and how the vampiress had intervened. "Drusilla is a very powerful hypnotist and I believe, telepath. She projected herself as my girlfriend Jenny, whom Angelus had killed some time earlier. As Jenny, she was able to get me to tell her the information Angelus wanted to perform a ritual that would bring about an apocalypse. Not even Kendra, a very well trained and accomplished Slayer, could withstand Drusilla's mental powers."

The professor nodded and replied, "I believe I've already been given a small demonstration of her abilities. I'd thought I was imagining things, as vampires are supposed to be immune to telepathy, and Spike has so far proven that true. But I could swear I heard Miss Drusilla speak to me telepathically when she arrived."

Dru smiled at the bald man, "You did hear me Professor, I thanked you for the invitation and promised not to harm anyone. Vampires _are_ immune to telepathy, as a rule. It's like with mirrors; as our bodies do not create a reflection for others to see, neither do our thoughts. I can't receive your thoughts, but Mr. Giles was correct, I can use my own telepathic abilities to project my thoughts to you. My talents, with both hypnosis and telepathy, are powerful, though limited; I have to maintain eye contact with the person." She explained, showing her keen intelligence.

They continued chatting together; discussing different types of hypnosis and ways it could be used. When Serena, Pietro, and Kurt came back a while later, having retrieved a pair of crutches for the woman from the infirmary, the vampiress gestured them over to the nearby couch. When the raven-haired woman got settled between her boys with her leg elevated by a footstool she said, "Sorry I disappeared on you Dru, I had a few things to work out. Is everything alright?"

"Everything is fine Pretty. Spike, Logan, and Mr. Giles made sure the children wouldn't be frightened by me, though Spike needed his tact button pushed rather sharply. I see you worked things out with your little ones, would you mind introducing me?" The vampiress replied, giving a smile first to the watcher and then to the woman and boys.

Serena returned the smile and glanced curiously at Giles before she spoke, taking note of his hand linked with Dru's. "Kurt Wagner, Pietro Maximova, I'm happy to introduce my dearest friend, the Lady Drusilla, childe of Angelus. Dru, my sons Pietro and Kurt." The raven-haired woman gave the formal introduction.

The boys had already been told about the vampiress' presence and greeted her warmly, thanking her for bringing their mother home. With the introductions completed, Dru turned the conversation back to its previous topic. "I was just talking with Mr. Giles and Professor Xavier about hypnotic and telepathic powers." She told Serena.

The lion-eyed woman smirked over at her mentor when she heard that and asked, "Really? So, have you figured it out yet Charles?"

The professor gave her a curious look, "Figured what out Serena?"

Her smirk broadened as she replied, "You've been curious as a cat about my mental defenses since you first tried to probe my mind and couldn't get past them. I'm a bit shocked that you've been sitting here discussing mental powers with the woman who trained me and couldn't figure that out without being told."

Charles gave in and laughed lightly with Giles and the women, shaking his head at his own ignorance. "Yes, I should have worked that out. Miss Drusilla is very knowledgeable on the subject. I imagine she coached you in the technique you used on Jean a few months ago as well?"

She chuckled darkly before replying; "You don't know the half of it. Jean is a child, and I punished her as one for that incident. If I'd wanted to, I could have driven her insane before you were able to break through my walls and stop me. Dru taught me the techniques yes, but Spike taught me how to use them against an attacker."

"And both Spike and I learned first hand under our sire Angelus, who is feared in both the human and demon world as a master of mental torture. Of course, Angelus himself has been driven completely insane by his own soul now. May it never leave him again." Dru spoke up, remembering her sire's insane power trip during the months he'd been soulless.

Giles and Serena both nodded in agreement with the vampiress, having met both Angelus and his souled counterpart Angel. "Speaking of Angel, I believe we should get in touch with him soon and find out how things are going in both Sunnydale and Los Angeles. Buffy would not have been best pleased to see him on the security tapes fighting side by side with Logan and Faith against the soldiers that night." The watcher said, looking to Serena.

The raven-haired woman agreed with him and put words into action by sending Pietro over to collect Logan and Spike. She had Logan clear the room, as it was almost curfew, which meant bedtime for the teens, and asked Spike to pass the word around to Faith, Ororo, Willow, and Xander that there would be a meeting in the ready room in ten minutes.

As the teens left, they stopped by to say goodnight to their housemother, understanding that she wouldn't be able to come up and visit with them individually until her leg had healed. She held Kurt and Pietro back for a few moments after the others left, saying goodnight and letting them know that she'd tell them the outcome of the meeting in the morning. They left for their rooms with a last long hug and Serena sighed, positioning her crutches and pulling herself up.

She fought with the metal crutches for a few moments, trying to find a comfortable way to walk with them and failing miserably. Finally, she started forward, holding her leg out at an awkward angle. It took a few minutes, but she made it to the staircase just as Logan was coming back down. She gave the big man her best pathetic expression in hopes of catching a ride down to the ready room in his arms.

He laughed loudly in response to her silent plea and lifted her up, leaving the crutches on the floor for Spike, who was on his way down after saying goodnight to Rogue. "Where did you get those stupid things anyway Chatty?"

"I asked Kurt to pop down to the infirmary and find me something so that I could get around when we decided to come back downstairs. He came back with those. I don't know how I'm going to get around the house until my leg heals with those things, they're a pain in the arse." Serena replied, wrapping her arms around her lover's neck and getting comfortable.

The feral man shook his head, still chuckling. "There's a wheelchair down there somewhere. It's not as fancy as Chuck's but it'll get you around. I'll get you settled in the ready room and go find it while we wait for the others. By the way, where'd Dru get off to? I thought she'd be with you."

The amber-eyed woman shrugged, "Faith wanted to show her where she'll be sleeping, and before you ask, I have no idea where that'll be. I just asked Faith to vamp proof a room for her if she got a chance."

Spike caught up with them in time to hear the comment and chuckled, "Slayer's giving Dru your room Logan. They were hauling your things into the Nymph's room when I came down. You should've seen them mate, they've got your clothes draped over the bookcase and they were carrying it down the hall. Looked bloody ridiculous seeing as that bookcase is a foot taller than both of them and weighs about five times what they do."

Laughing at the mental image, they took the elevator down to the first sub level, which housed the infirmary, ready room, and the gym. Logan settled his burden in the ready room quickly and left with Spike to return the crutches to the infirmary, both of them coming back after a few minutes with a motorized wheelchair for the woman.

By the time the others who made up their team arrived, Serena was situated in her new chair and was talking with Logan and Spike about whether or not they needed to be discreet about their contact with the souled vampire. "I don't think we should bother Chatty. I'm bettin Buffy saw all of us on the security tapes and told the soldiers who and what we were. The only question is whether she gave Angel up to them. If she did, they've tapped his phones and will listen in on our conversation, which is no big deal now, and if she didn't then we'll still have some privacy." Logan explained.

The others agreed with the big man, and Giles made the call to Los Angeles. He greeted Cordelia when the woman answered and was quickly put through to Angel's office. The watcher turned the speakerphone on when the vampire picked up so that anyone on their side could listen and participate in the conversation. "Hello Angel, this is Giles. I'm sorry we haven't contacted you before now, things have been rather hectic around here." The librarian said.

"It's good to hear from you Giles, I've actually been meaning to call myself. I've got some news about Sunnydale you and the others should probably hear. Are they there with you now, or are you alone?" The vampire asked.

Giles chuckled, thinking that it was typical of Angel to get straight down to business. "They're all here, including Professor Xavier and Miss Munroe who you haven't met, and Drusilla is here as well. I've put the call on speaker so that everyone can listen. What news do you have?"

Angel mimicked the watcher and turned the speakerphone on so that Cordelia and Wesley could listen to the conversation as well before he answered, "First let me say that I'm sorry I couldn't get more of your things Giles, and Willow and Xander as well. From what I saw of it, Buffy did not react well to your disappearances. She tore the dorm room and your apartment apart. I got out what I could before the sun rose and took it all to the mansion. When I went back the next night, everything had been cleaned out, right down to Xander's disco ball."

The three Californians winced, but were grateful for what their friend had managed to save. "Thank you for saving what you were able to Angel. I believe Willow, Xander, and Anya will agree that you retrieved our most important things. The fact that the Initiative didn't get my books and weapons or the trunk with Willow's spell supplies relieves many of my worries. Has Buffy contacted you at all? We've been worried about whether she'd turn you over to the soldiers since she failed to bring us in." Giles asked.

The dark-eyed vampire didn't reply for a moment, having paused to rub away the headache that took up residence when he thought of his ex. "She came down here, alone, about a week afterwards. I think she must be finding it harder to live without her friends than she thought it would be. She said she didn't tell them who Faith and I were, but I honestly don't know if that's the truth. She did tell them about Logan, Serena, and their group, I know that much; she was raving about them and how their 'freaky powers' had destroyed the complex. She's been converted by this Walsh person, and truly thinks the Initiative has the right idea."

"As for Sunnydale in general, it depends on your point of view. For the humans, things have never been better; there are very few vampire attacks or 'gang violence'. But the demons and those who associate with them are running scared. The soldiers are capturing demons and vampires left and right, whether they're malevolent or not. They're also taking humans who can be connected to the demon world. Willy disappeared about two weeks ago, and there have been others." The vampire told them, having kept in touch with his contacts on the hellmouth since Serena had first contacted him.

The vampire went on to detail one more happening he'd been told about. "There have also been some very odd murders of both humans and demons in the area. The bodies look to have been dissected and examined. My source for that information described the culprit for me, it's the thing we fought with that night, the one that got Logan."

The big man was sitting quietly, listening to Angel and Giles talk and thinking. When the souled vampire finished detailing the situation he spoke up. "Angel, Serena told me once about the Consortium of Nightwalkers and I was just wondering, have they gotten involved in this at all?"

Angel was a bit shocked that the feral man knew about the Consortium, but he was able to answer. "Good question Logan. The L.A. consortium knows about it, but the only measures they've taken are to pass the word around down here. They've placed signs around the city, both magical and demonic, warning that Sunnydale is now extremely dangerous and shouldn't be approached. I'm not in touch with anyone in the consortium here, so I can't say for sure, but I don't think they'll take any direct action in this. Despite the damage they're doing, the Initiative _is_ protecting the hellmouth from apocalyptic threats, which is what the Consortium did before Buffy came."

The men continued to talk for a while, catching up on what each group had been doing, but about fifteen minutes later they ended the call and the group of mutants, vampires, and demon fighters turned their discussion to what they had and could do to stop the soldiers. Willow, Charles, Ororo, and Kitty had been working on the stolen computer files every chance they had, but so far had come up with little.

The red-haired hacker pulled out a pile of documents she'd printed from one of the files just that morning and showed the thick stack of papers to the group. "I finally decrypted one of the top secret files we got from their computers and lucky for us, it's a helpful one. This is a report from Professor Walsh to her superiors on the progress of the 3:14 project. From what I read, I figured out that 3:14 is the thing that skewered Logan. It's a hybrid; part human, part different species of demon, and part artificial intelligence. They call it Adam, and at one time, it was a highly decorated army ranger named Adam Michael Pearson, who was severely injured in Desert Storm. Now, it's the first of a new breed of government crafted soldiers."

All eyes turned to Logan as the man growled loudly and practically leaped out of his chair, striding out of the room at a fast clip. Both Faith and Spike made to go after the big man, but were held back by Charles words, "No, let him be. This hits very close to home for Logan. It is exactly what was done to his friend, who you would know as Captain America, and very similar to what happened to him. Logan just needs some time to himself, to work out his anger at seeing this happen again. He hasn't gone far, just into the gym. Once he has drained his frustrations, he'll return. For now, it is getting late, so I believe we should call it a night."

The rest of the group agreed and left the ready room, heading for bed, or in Xander and Giles case, to their own homes. Serena hung back, saying goodnight to her friends and pointing her wheelchair toward the gym. She knew what her mate was doing, and wanted to be there for him when he came crashing down from the high charged emotions.

The gym had been enhanced and rearranged over the last month in order to suit the new training for the teens, and to serve as Faith's training room when the slayer started working with her watcher again. She entered quietly in her chair and positioned it just to one side of the door and settled back, watching her lover.

Logan had chosen the specially constructed training dummy to work out his fury on. The vaguely human shaped punching bag had a solid steel core and was bolted to the floor, making it a good choice for the man, who had enhanced strength that almost equaled the slayer it had been made to withstand. The big man punched and kicked at the dummy, going through the complicated routine he used when training his abilities.

Serena watched as he completed the familiar routine and moved on to another, and yet another with no signs of stopping. Her heart ached for the man, and she wanted to soothe him, so she began humming softly. She kept her voice low, not trying to overpower the noise of Logan's growling and the steady thuds of his fists and feet against the dummy, only make herself heard in the background.

As she'd hoped, Logan began to slow his rapid pace, his subconscious mind responding to the soothing sound of her voice. Eventually, he stopped altogether and simply leaned against the dummy, breathing heavily from his exertions. When he'd caught his breath and felt a bit more steady, the big man came over and took the back of Serena's chair without saying a word and pushed her out of the room and down the hall to the elevator.

When they reached their room, the still silent man turned back the covers on their bed and lifted his mate out of the chair only to settle her quickly into bed and walk into the bathroom. He came back fifteen minutes later, damp from a shower and wearing only his boxers. He got into bed beside Serena and she curled up against his chest, looking up at him with worried eyes. "Sing for me Darlin, let me know everything's gonna turn out alright. Let us all know." He said softly, leaning down slightly to nuzzle her sweet smelling hair. The lion-eyed woman placed a soft kiss against his chest and started singing the same tune she'd hummed for him earlier.

__

"You know a dream is like a river,

ever changing as it flows,

and the dreamer's just a vessel,

that must follow where it goes.

Trying to learn from what's behind you,

and never knowing what's in store,

makes each day a constant battle,

just to stay between the shores.

And I will sail my vessel,

till the river runs dry.

Like a bird upon the wind,

these waters are my sky.

I'll never reach my destination,

if I never try.

So I will sail my vessel,

till the river runs dry.

Too many times we stand aside,

and let the water slip away,

until what we've put off till tomorrow,

has now become today.

So don't you sit upon the shoreline,

and say you're satisfied.

Choose to chance the rapids,

and dare to dance the tide.

Yes I will sail my vessel,

till the river runs dry.

Like a bird upon the wind,

these waters are my sky.

I'll never reach my destination,

if I never try.

So I will sail my vessel,

till the river runs dry.

And there's bound to be rough water,

and I know I'll take some falls.

But with the good Lord as my captain,

I can make it through them all.

And I will sail my vessel,

till the river runs dry.

Like a bird upon the wind,

these waters are my sky.

I'll never reach my destination,

if I never try.

So I will sail my vessel,

till the river runs dry.

And I will sail my vessel,

till the river runs dry.

Till the river runs dry."

Her voice echoed through the quiet house, and everyone heard at least a whisper of the song. For those who were still awake, it was a special treat to hear the woman singing again, and her song brought hope with it that everything would be alright. Even the sleeping teenagers were effected, relaxing in their slumber and smiling softly.

When the sound faded away, Logan sighed deeply and smiled, comforted by his mate's song. "Thanks Sweetheart, that was just what I needed to hear. Welcome home Serena, I love you." He whispered.

She tilted her head up and kissed him gently for a few moments before settling her head back onto his shoulder and replying, "I love you too Logan. Sweet dreams." And drifting off to sleep in his embrace. He followed her soon after, feeling more at peace than he had since she'd disappeared.


	20. Welcome to My World

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Title: Sirens' Song

Author: Sinayah

Email: 

Distribution: Ask and ye shall receive.

Rating: PG-13 so far, with an option for R and NC-17 later; those will be marked.

Disclaimer: I don't own any characters from Buffy, Angel, or Xmen. They belong to very rich people who don't appreciate them as we fanfic writers do.

Disclaimer 2: The Chapter Title and Lyrics belong to Jim Reeves and the song within the chapter is When I Fall in Love by Frank Sinatra.

Authors Note: This and all chapters following are dedicated solely to those wonderful people who have waited so patiently for me to get my life together and continue with this fic. You know who you are, and it's been your faith in me that kept this story alive.

****

Chapter 20: Welcome to My World

__

"welcome to my world, won't you come on in…"

The next morning was the usual exercise in chaos, being Monday, but for once Serena slept through it. Her journey down the coast combined with her injuries and the emotional rollercoaster of her return ensured that the exhausted woman spent the entire morning in bed and didn't rouse herself until noon. When she did finally wake, she was not happy about being left to sleep the day away.

She found a note from Logan explaining that he was going into the city on an errand for Charles and grumbled to herself as she carefully climbed out of bed and hopped her way to the intercom on one foot, knowing she would need help to get herself showered and dressed for the day. "Could I get any female with some free time to come up to my room? And please bring a garbage bag?" She called into the box.

A few minutes later Faith arrived in answer to her plea. "Hey 'Rena, how you feeling today? I'm the only one free at the moment, Red and Storm are down in the ready room with Wheels, neck deep in research, and Dru's still asleep. What did you need? And why a garbage bag?"

Serena explained her problem to the younger woman, and between the two of them managed to get her showered without wetting her bandages and accidentally hurting herself, hence the garbage bag to cover the injured leg. Dressing however, was another matter. "Faith, I do not want to wear a halter dress, or any of my other club clothes. I need to go down to the school later and talk with the chemistry teacher. How about the beige pinstripe outfit?" The amber-eyed woman argued, rejecting the third rather skimpy outfit the slayer had pulled out of her closet.

The brunette sighed and returned the dress, pulling out the requested outfit. She looked it over and nodded, "This one isn't too bad, I guess. But I've got to see you in some of these other outfits one day, you've got some seriously cool clothes 'Rena."

"Why don't you try a few on yourself? We're about the same size; I'm just a bit shorter. Dru on the other hand, is going to require a whole new wardrobe, and soon. She only pulled off wearing my clothes last night because the pants are too long on me. What do you say, you drive me to the school this afternoon and we'll hit the mall afterwards." The older woman said, remembering that she'd need a chauffeur since it was her right leg that was injured.

Faith thought about it while she helped Serena into the clothes. "Yeah that'll work. I hate to say it, since I don't have any cash, but I could use a few things too. I've kinda been living out of Rogue and Spike's closets since I got here." She admitted a bit hesitantly.

Serena smacked her forehead with her palm, only now realizing why she recognized the clothes her friend wore. "You should've said something before Faith. I can't believe I didn't notice you didn't have your own clothes. We'll get both you and Dru a new wardrobe then. But for now, go ahead and grab whatever you like out of mine."

The brunette smiled and turned back to the closet, pulling out a pair of black leather pants and a deep purple crop top. "Thanks 'Rena. I didn't want to ask for anything, since you guys are already letting me live here, but I was getting kinda tired of wearing other people's clothes." She said as she headed into the bathroom to change.

The amber-eyed woman waited until the slayer came out to reply. "That's nonsense Faith. We're not 'letting you live here', you're one of the team and you do your share of work around here. You help train the kids and plan out scenarios with Spike and Logan. And now you're training with Giles to get back in slaying condition. You deserve the perks that come with the job, and one of those is access to the Institute credit card."

The two women talked for a while longer before Serena's body demanded food and caffeine and they headed down to the kitchen. They prepared a tray of sandwiches and drinks to take down to the trio working in the ready room and after having lunch; they went to work on the files Willow and Charles had managed to decrypt. They all worked steadily for a few hours, until Faith noticed it was time to leave.

The two women arrived at the high school about ten minutes after it had let out for the day, having barely avoided the rush of the students leaving. Faith unloaded the wheelchair for Serena and helped the woman into it and they made their way to the administration building to ask where they might find the chemistry lab.

The secretary was glad to help and gave them directions to the science building, even phoning ahead to tell Mr. McCoy they were coming. The science teacher met them outside his classroom and invited them in. Faith hung back, sitting on one of the stools while Serena wheeled herself up to the desk and positioned herself across from the bespectacled man. Before she spoke, she hummed for a few moments and gave the teacher her standard keyword suggestion to ignore the power of her voice. "Good afternoon Mr. McCoy, it's a pleasure to finally meet you. My name is Serena Masterton." She greeted, holding her hand out.

The teacher shook her hand with a firm grip and gave her a curious look. "I'm sorry Ms. Masterton, your name isn't ringing a bell. Mrs. Walker, our secretary, said you were here for a short parent-teacher conference, but you look a bit young to have a child in our school."

Serena laughed lightly and replied; "Technically I am too young, but my charges are all like sons and daughters to me. I work with Charles Xavier, I believe you know him? Anyway, I came today to talk with you about Kurt Wagner and Pietro Maximoff. I know they skipped out on your test last week and I wanted to explain the reason why in hopes that you'd allow them to make up the test or complete an extra assignment to even out the zero they got."

"Ah, now I recognize your name, Charles mentioned you the last time we spoke. I'm glad you came to talk to me about those two boys. I admit, I was a bit worried when they didn't show up on Wednesday, they're usually good students and it isn't like them to behave the way they were this past week." The dark-eyed man replied, giving her a friendly smile.

The ebony-haired woman returned the smile with a slightly sad one. "No it isn't like them. As I said before, all of our charges are close to me, but Pietro and Kurt couldn't be more my sons if I'd given birth to them. Charles told me earlier that you knew about mutants, so I'll be frank in my explanation. I am a mutant, with a very powerful gift. Last weekend, something happened at the mansion and I lost control of my powers. I had to leave in a very unexpected fashion, and was only able to return last night."

She sighed, shaking her head in sorrow. "Everyone has been very worried about me, and as you can see by the wheelchair, they had reason. Pietro blamed himself for my disappearance, and Kurt had no idea why I'd left so abruptly. I am very sorry that they ditched your class, but I hope you can understand why they've been behaving differently."

The teacher nodded in understanding as he replied, "Yes, I understand a bit better now. Some of the other children from the Institute were also behaving out of sorts, and the disappearance of their housemother would explain it. I'll allow Kurt and Pietro to make up the test, but they'll have to do it after classes tomorrow if they want the grade to count on their report cards this semester."

"That will be fine, I'll tell them about it tonight. Thank you very much Mr. McCoy, I appreciate you letting them make this up as neither can afford to take a zero on it. Science isn't their best subject, as I'm sure you know." Serena said, giving the man a smile of gratitude.

The bespectacled man chuckled, "No, it's not. They do fairly well in my class, but only because they study. And please, call me Hank. I get enough of Mr. McCoy from the kids. I hope you won't mind my curiosity Ms. Masterton, but could you tell me about your mutation? The last time I spoke with Charles he mentioned that he was having some difficulty with it, but not what it was."

The raven-haired woman nodded in response and replied, "It's Serena, Hank, and I should have expected you to ask, since you're aware of mutant abilities. I assume you read Homer's works in college, if not in high school. In _The Odyssey_, he speaks of the sea sirens; their hypnotic voices and mermaid like appearance. My powers and physical transformation mimic them, which is why my nickname is Siren. The trouble he was having was controlling the hypnotic power, but we found a way around it by having me simply implant the suggestion that those I speak with should free themselves from my power and not become influenced by it again unless I spoke a specific key word."

Hank seemed intrigued by her description. "An interesting solution, but effective since you're speaking with me now. I assume you gave me the suggestion when you introduced yourself?" She nodded and her eyes were sorrowful as she opened her mouth to voice an apology, but he held a hand up to stop her. "No, no, I'm not angry Serena. But I need to know more. The suggestion you planted, how deeply ingrained is it?" He thought for a moment before phrasing his next question, "Would it stop an animal, if it had your suggestion buried in a human subconscious?"

Now it was Serena who was curious, and a glance back at Faith showed the slayer an equally inquisitive expression directed at the teacher. "An animal with a human subconscious? I can safely say it would, but why do you ask? Is there something you'd like to tell me?"

The bespectacled man looked to be thinking hard. "I need to think about this a bit longer, and I'd like to get Charles' opinion on my theory. Would it be alright if I came by the mansion this evening to speak with both of you?"

The amber-eyed woman nodded, "Yes, I think that would be fine. You could come to dinner if you'd like, or later in the evening. If you call before you come, someone will meet you at the gate and let you in. I have to ask though, you seem very troubled and at the same time relieved, is this something I should be worried about?"

"No Serena, it's just that you've given me some things to think about, and perhaps a solution to a problem that's been troubling me. I'll explain more thoroughly when I come by this evening. I'd rather the kids not see me visiting, so I'll take a rain check on dinner and come later. For now, let me walk you out to your car. I imagine the wheelchair must have been difficult to manage." He replied, standing up and coming around the desk.

Faith chuckled under her breath as his last comment, but didn't say anything in response and allowed the athletic man to fold up the chair and put it in the van for her when they got to the car. The pair said goodbye to him and drove away before exchanging a knowing look. "You were unusually quiet in there Faith, especially when he started those strange questions. Are you thinking the same thing I am?" The older woman asked.

The slayer glanced at her friend from the corner of her eye, "If what you're thinking is that the hunky science teacher, which is weird enough all by itself, knows about stranger things than mutants, then I'd say yeah, I'm right there with ya. As for me keeping my mouth shut, you were handling him pretty well, but if he hadn't asked for a meeting I would've said something."

The lion-eyed woman leaned her head back against the seat and sighed, "I learned a long time ago not to make assumptions about people, but really, an animal with a human subconscious? That just kind of shouts vampire to me, even demon to some extent, though I'd describe them more as having human-like intelligence. Oh well, I guess we'll have to wait until he comes by tonight to find out."

Faith agreed and the pair turned their conversation to more ordinary things. They got to the mall and the younger woman took full advantage of her passenger's injuries to snag them a good parking spot. The pair shopped for clothing to outfit both the slayer and Drusilla, spending a good hour roaming the department stores.

When they finally got home, they realized they were in trouble. Not only had they not waited to take Rogue and Kitty shopping with them, which had the two girls fuming, but Giles was waiting for Faith to begin her training and the teens had turned Serena's kitchen into a war zone. "This is what I get for leaving. All my training, down the drain. Faith, would you take Dru her clothes since you're heading upstairs? It's going to get very loud in here." The amber-eyed woman said, wheeling herself over to the intercom box.

The slayer took one look at her friend's irate expression and laughed, grabbing the bags and ducking out of the room just as Serena's voice echoed through the mansion. "Whoever it is that made this god awful mess in my kitchen bring your sorry behinds down here immediately!"

Several pairs of footsteps thundered down the stairs and Freddy, Kurt, Evan and Todd skidded into the kitchen wearing pitiful expressions. They saw their housemother beside the counter with her arms folded across her chest. "Ah, here are my culprits. Do I look like a maid? Let me assure you, I am not. I may do a lot of the cleaning around here but this? No, I will not clean this mess. But you four will if you want me to cook dinner tonight. I am going up to my room now, and I will be back down to start dinner in a while. I had better find this kitchen spotless, you understand?" She said, shaking her finger at the boys, who nodded and quickly began cleaning up.

She left the kitchen and made her way up to the second floor, noting that someone had closed the curtains for Spike and Dru. Stopping her chair in a convenient spot, she awkwardly stood and hopped on one foot over to the bed where she stretched out for a short nap. Her exertions over the week were still heavy on her body and she quickly fell asleep.

An hour later, she awoke to find her head pillowed in Drusilla's lap. The vampiress was running her fingers through Serena's midnight locks and the younger woman leaned into the soothing sensation. "Hey Dru, do you like your clothes?" She asked after a moment.

"Very much Pretty, thank you. I thought you might want to wake up now, since the little one's tummies are growling. Would you like me to help you make dinner?" The brunette asked, helping her friend to get up and move to the wheelchair.

Serena smiled up at the other woman, "I was hoping you would. It's been a long time since we played around in the kitchen together. Have you eaten yet? Spike keeps a supply of blood in his room, and more in the infirmary if you're hungry."

Dru returned the smile but shook her head negatively at the offer of blood. "He brought me a few bags when I woke up and told me it was safe to leave the room. I've been downstairs watching the red eyed boy playing games with the slayer on the television. Logan came in a few minutes ago, he was going to come up and get you but Spike wanted to talk to him." She informed the younger woman.

The women took the elevator downstairs and went into the kitchen. "Ah, I see it isn't that they forgot how to clean, they just needed an incentive. Let's see what's in the fridge shall we? I should've looked to see if we needed groceries before Faith and I went out. Is there anything you'd like to make, if we have the ingredients?"

They decided on Cajun cuisine, since they had everything that they needed and whoever had depleted Serena's spice rack had left the hotter seasonings alone. With Dru doing any running around for ingredients, the younger woman was able to sit on a stool and do the actual cooking. An hour later they were ready to serve the blackened trout, red beans and rice, and salad to the others.

When the group responded to Dru's call on the intercom and saw the spread of food, they all groaned in anticipation. After a week of take out and failed attempts by several people they were looking forward to a home cooked, well made meal. Logan came over and kissed his mate soundly, both in greeting and advance gratitude for a meal that was both recognizable and edible. Everyone dug into the meal happily and ate their fill of the spicy food, making a run for the milk bottle between helpings. When they finished, they thanked both women heartily, complimenting them on the delicious dinner.

The teens went back to homework and entertainment after dinner, leaving the adults sitting around the table enjoying an after supper cup of coffee. Across from Serena, Faith looked pointedly from the older woman to the professor and mouthed 'McCoy' to her friend, indicating that she hadn't told Charles about their expected visitor. The raven-haired woman nodded and turned to the bald man, "Charles, you know how I went and talked to Hank McCoy about Kurt and Pietro this afternoon?"

Charles turned to look at his young friend and replied, "I had almost forgotten to tell you the truth. How did that go?"

"They'll be able to take the test tomorrow after classes. What I wanted to tell you about was that something came up while we were talking. I told him about my mutation and he asked some questions that Faith and I found strange. He wouldn't clarify anything, just said that he needed to think a bit more, and asked if he could come by to meet with the two of us this evening. I told him that it would be fine, so we should expect him to arrive later." Serena informed the older man; half-hoping he would be able to shed some light on her worries.

The professor nodded and replied, "It will be good to see how he's coming along. I see the two of you are worried, but I sincerely doubt there's any need for it, so don't fret." He turned his attention to Giles at the other end of the table and continued; "Now Rupert, I believe we had planned on a game of chess this evening. Would you rather play in the rec. room or my office?" The slayer and Serena exchanged another look, this one exasperated, but resigned themselves to waiting and went with Spike and Logan to the rec. room while Dru and Ororo followed Giles and the professor to watch the chess match.

In the rec. room, it seemed to be couples night. Kurt and Willow were sitting close together on one of the couches studying. Kitty was sitting next to her flame-haired friend typing something on her laptop, while her boyfriend Lance sat at her feet playing a video game with Scott. Faith went over to join the laser-eyed teen, ragging on him when he lost the round.

Spike had immediately gone off to the corner recliner where Rogue was reading a magazine and lifted her out so he could sit down with her in his lap. Pietro and Evan were playing ping pong together, which was as close as they were allowed to basketball in the house. Assuming the rest of the teens were upstairs, Logan sat down in an easy chair and Serena positioned her wheelchair beside him.

The couple chatted for a while, and the big man made his mate listen to a lecture on not doing so much while she was hurt. She couldn't really argue with him, since the outing that afternoon had left her in need of a nap, so she took his chiding with good humor, promising to rest more until she was fully healed.

At nine thirty, half an hour before she normally would, Serena told the teens to head upstairs, remembering that Mr. McCoy didn't want to be seen visiting. The children grumbled a bit, but did as their housemother asked, stopping to say goodnight to both she and Logan on their way out.

The amber-eyed woman held Kurt and Pietro back a little longer when they came to her and informed them that they'd be taking their chemistry test after school the next afternoon. That news made the two boys groan, and with a hug and kiss goodnight they vanished up the stairs for some serious study time. Not long after that, Dru came in to inform Serena and Logan that their visitor was on his way up the driveway and Ororo would meet him at the door.

Logan called Spike and Faith on the intercom, telling them to meet everyone in Professor Xavier's office and the trio went to wait with the others. A few minutes later, just after the vampire and slayer arrived with Willow behind them, Ororo came in with the bespectacled teacher. Hank looked nervous to see the group gathered in the large room, and Charles quickly made introductions.

"Come and sit down Hank. You've met Ororo, Faith and Serena of course. The others are Miss Drusilla, Willow Rosenberg, Rupert Giles, Logan, and Spike. You'll have to forgive them, but the older members of the team prefer to stick together. Your questions this afternoon worried both Serena and Faith, and spread to the others, so they're all waiting to hear what you have to say." The bald man said with a bit of amusement.

The teacher nodded to everyone before replying, "I really wasn't expecting to meet with anyone but Serena and you Charles, and perhaps Faith, but I suppose it's for the best. I'm going to assume you know the reason I'm so interested in Serena's mutation my friend, so I'll just go over the history for everyone else."

Hank's dark eyes scanned everyone in the room, but when he spoke, he turned his attention to the amber-eyed woman. "I'm sorry if my questions caused you concern Serena, but as I said, your mutation could be the solution to a problem that's worried me for years. You see, I am a mutant as well. I've been repressing my mutation with a serum of my own design for years."

"I asked you about how your hypnotic suggestion would work on an animal, because that is what my mutation makes of me. A beast with no conscious human emotion, Mr. Hyde to my Dr. Jekyll, if you want to make another literary comparison. Charles has known of course, and he helped me to some extent, though he urged me to accept the change. I've fought that with everything I know, but it troubles me, especially lately, because the serum isn't working as well as it used to." He finished, his last words both worried and saddened.

Serena breathed a relieved sigh during his speech, and when he finished explaining she was smiling and holding back a laugh. Her whiskey colored eyes turned to see Faith suppressing her own chuckles. When the slayer caught her friend's eye, neither could hold back their humor. Leaving everyone confused, they burst into gales of laughter. "We…We really need…to get our minds…outta the hellmouth 'Rena." The younger woman gasped between giggles.

The statement clued in most of the others as to what exactly the two women found amusing about the situation and they joined in for a few moments before Charles broke in to suggest they get serious again. "So you're thinkin what McCoy? That our Chatterbox could act like a failsafe if you went berserk one day? Or do you wanna use her to make sure Mr. Hyde never gets out in the first place?" Logan asked, his tone protective.

The teacher took note of the other man's tone and replied carefully, "Both of those ideas occurred to me, which is why I asked for this meeting. I wanted to ask Charles for his opinion on the matter, and explain to Serena to see if she'd be willing to help me, if indeed she could."

Logan turned to Charles, as did the others, and the professor spoke up, "When you first disregarded my suggestions, I was very worried that what you're experiencing now would happen. I performed a scan of your mind when you entered the room, and what I found doesn't surprise me. The serum you've been using has only forced your mutation to strengthen itself, and when it bursts through, it will be completely feral until it burns itself out. It will happen soon Hank, a matter of a week, two at the most."

The older man's eyes turned to Serena and he nodded slightly appeasing the worry and curiosity in her amber gaze. "However, I do believe Serena can stop you when it occurs, though in her present condition she will need help from either Logan, Faith, or Spike to physically restrain you until she's invoked the key word and calmed the beast."

"It would be best not to just wait for the transformation to take place though, as there's no telling exactly when it will happen. If you have, or can come up with, an antidote that will counteract the serum, then we can induce your transformation under controlled conditions here at the mansion to avoid the potential disaster of your feral self loose in the city." Charles finished, pleased that this need not become a mission for the X-men.

Hank however, was anything but happy. "What if becoming the thing inside me still isn't what I want Charles?" He said angrily, "Can't she just fix it? Just go into my head and convince the animal that it doesn't exist?" He gestured toward Serena.

The raven-haired woman voiced her own rising anger with a hiss that joined Logan, Spike, and Dru's growling. "That is not something I am _willing_ to do, though I might be capable of it, as is Charles no doubt. I will not change who you are in the deepest part of yourself, it is unethical and immoral."

The bespectacled man turned to face her; "I am _not_ an animal Serena! I'm a human being, a man, a scholar and a teacher. If you don't suppress the beast before it gets loose and changes me then I can never be any of those things again!"

"I don't see why not." She returned and her eyes blackened while her fangs, claws, and arm fins emerged. The others saw the point she was going to make, Logan's claws came out, and Spike and Dru showed their true faces. Serena gestured to her appearance, then to her family. "I manage just fine, and so do my mate and my surrogate parents over there. The four of us have beasts inside us, but we're still human."

Serena turned her head and smiled gently at the others before turning back to the teacher. "You might now argue that our physical changes come and go on command, so our situations don't count. I'll counter that before you even get started by telling you this. There are three children here whose mutations manifest physically and are present at all times. Scott Summers wears his ruby glasses to control the laser type energy that comes from his eyes. Rogue always covers her skin because it absorbs life energy from anyone who touches her.

"And then there is Kurt, who wears a holographic image inducer to hide his physical appearance. My son's body is covered in deep blue fur; he has tridactyl hands and feet, a prehensile tail, pointed ears, luminescent eyes, and fangs. Would you tell me that his looks make him an animal, or a demon as he's been called since his infancy? Or would you say that he his simply a teenage boy with a special gift and a unique appearance?" She finished, her eyes almost daring the man to call her surrogate son an animal.

She'd obviously given the man a lot to think about, "I'd say that he's a teenage boy, like you said, a very special boy." He turned back to Charles, "Is what she said true? Can you make something that would hide the animal appearance if I go through with the transformation?"

The professor nodded, "Yes, I can make an image inducer for you to restore your outward appearance, though it's only a hologram, people would still be able to feel a difference if they touched you. Will you go through with it?" He asked.

Hank put his head in his hands and sat quietly for a few minutes, thinking about what both Serena and Charles had said, and what the woman and her friends had shown him. "Yes, I'll do it. There is a counter serum, though I don't know why I ever bothered with it since I never intended to take it." He said finally, and raised his head to look at the group. "I apologize for getting angry Charles, Serena. I've just been fighting this for so long that it's hard to accept that I was only putting off the inevitable."

Serena nodded and smiled at him, "It's alright, I think everyone here can understand your difficulties to some extent. We've all had to accept changes within ourselves, and outside of us. What was it you said to me Dru, when I kept refusing to use my powers, even to save my own life?" She asked, turning toward the vampiress.

Dru glided over and knelt before her friend, her daughter. "The stars have a purpose for everything Pretty. Every gift, every hardship, every life, every death has meaning. The stars gave you many gifts, and a choice. You can use your powers to help others like you, or you can refuse the gifts and destroy not just yourself, but the others who need you too." She replied, repeating the context of one of her first visions of the amber-eyed woman.

The younger woman took Dru's hand and squeezed. "Wise words Dru, and true, like all of your visions." She turned her attention back to Hank and told him, "You had the same choice Hank, and you made the right one by deciding to go through with the transformation. You may not believe it, but even a gift like yours can be used to help others, to teach them and to save their lives. If you use your powers for a purpose that has meaning to you, then it really is a gift."

The teacher nodded and smiled, "Your friend isn't the only wise one. Now, I think it's my turn for a question or two. How can you consider Drusilla and Spike your surrogate parents? They look about the same age as you. And I'm still clueless about what had you and Faith laughing so hard after I explained my situation, and why everyone else joined in."

Hank's questions set everyone to laughing again and Serena gestured to Faith to explain. The slayer came out from behind Charles and spoke to the athletic man, "You should know that not everything is as it seems. There's a whole other world out there, beyond even mutants in the weird factor. If I let Giles, 'Rena, or the fangy duo over there tell it, we'd be here all night, so we'll get straight to the pointy end of the stake. Vampires are real, demons are real, and witches are real. Spike and Dru, they're vamps and have a hundred plus years each under their belts. Wills over there is a witch, and she can do some serious mojo."

She gave a low laugh at the older mans expression and decided to shock him a little more. "Now me, I'm a slayer. Born to fight the vamps and demons and whatnot, your general super-hero crap. I was only being polite when I let you deal with 'Rena's chair earlier." She made a show of giving him a once over, "You're a pretty big guy, bout two hundred, two fifty pounds, most of it muscle?" She asked and waited until he nodded. Then she took a hold of his shirt collar with one hand and lifted him up above her head before sitting him down again effortlessly.

He gaped at the young woman and she finished her explanation, "As for why we were laughing, well, when you started asking strange questions 'Rena and I both thought you were kinda like Giles, hunky teacher by day, evil fighter by night. We figured you were gonna come here and tell us about the demon world, maybe ask for our help with the vamp population here."

"Vampires? As in Dracula? And a witch? It'll take more than a show of unnatural strength to convince me of that." The teacher said once he'd recovered his skepticism. Willow came forward and levitated some of the things on the professor's desk. "Telekinesis." He said, refuting her ability. She snorted at that and muttered a short incantation, making the words 'I ticked off a witch and got away with only a shirt I can't wear in public again' appear on his shirt front.

Dru came over to him while everyone was laughing at Willows trick and let her true face come forward while holding out her arm to the man. "If my appearance can't convince you, try to take my pulse. I assure you, you won't find one." She said.

The teacher looked closely at her face and at the two-inch claws on her dainty hand before placing his fingers over her cool wrist and feeling for a pulse. "Amazing." He said when it became obvious that there was no blood moving under her skin. His eyes roamed over to Faith once Dru moved away, wondering what else the young woman could tell him.

Faith took his curious gaze the wrong way and asked, "What, picking you up as easy as I would a kitten isn't enough proof? I'm not allowed to dust either of the vamps here, even if I wanted to, so I could only give you another strength test. I suppose I could pick Logan up and throw him across the room, but that takes both hands, damned metal on his bones makes him a hell of a lot heavier than you."

"Oy!" Logan spoke up indignantly from beside Serena. "The only time you get to toss me around like a rag doll is when we're sparring Firecracker. Otherwise you keep your hands to yourself."

The group started laughing again, and Hank appreciated being able to join them this time. They all talked for a little while longer, turning the discussion back to the teacher's problem. Charles thought that he had at least a week before they would have to induce the transformation so they decided that he would take a leave of absence after Friday's classes, claiming a family emergency, and he would come directly to the mansion from there.

After the plan had been finalized, Hank left the mansion, lighter at heart than he could remember being since his animalistic mutation had first made itself known in his mind. He found himself looking forward to spending more time with the X-men and learning about them and the things they did. He thought hard about Drusilla and Serena's words, about using his powers for a purpose. If the X-men's purpose was helping people, he thought, then he just might take the professor up on the offer he'd made years ago and move into the mansion.

As it turned out, their plan to induce Hank's transformation at the end of the week backfired. Just three days later, Kurt teleported into the mansion with Pietro arriving a second later, both with stories of seeing an ape-like beast running away from the school campus wearing the torn remains of their science teacher's clothes.

Charles immediately sent the X-men out to search for him, contacting those who hadn't yet returned from school to start in that area, and notifying Giles and Xander to keep an eye out. The plan he developed quickly relied heavily on Kurt, since Serena wasn't yet mobile enough to go on the search herself. The blue furred teen would wait with her at the mansion until Hank was found, then the boy would teleport to that location and bring the transformed man back, straight to the Danger Room where Spike, Dru, and Serena would be waiting.

It took hours for the team to finally corner the beast, luckily just within Kurt's two-mile teleportation range. The boy left the mansion in a whiff of smoke, using Pietro as his target destination. The white haired teen was standing outside the area of activity waiting for his friend and pointed him in the right direction.

On the stage of the outdoor amphitheater Logan, Faith, and Freddy were wrestling with the transformed man and only barely managing to keep him in one spot. When they saw Kurt approaching, they backed away from the beast but kept his attention focused on them while the teen came up from behind.

Kurt launched himself at the beast's back and teleported the moment he felt the man's fur under his fingers. He landed them both in the Danger Room as planned, but the return trip carrying the man with him proved exhausting and he was left unable to teleport himself to safety. He was thrown hard from his teacher's back and landed, not against the wall as he'd expected, but in Drusilla's arms.

Both Spike and Dru had been waiting in the Danger Room incase their preternatural strength was needed to help subdue Hank, and the vampiress had caught the boy while Spike turned the beast's attention to himself. Dru did not hang around once she had Kurt, she ran for the door, calling behind her for the blond to follow.

From the open window in the control room Serena watched with fear as Kurt was thrown, and as Spike took a hard hit to the chest before bolting away after Dru. She waited until the door slid shut behind the blond, then shouted "Forevermore!" at the top of her voice.

The transformed man paused for only a second on hearing her voice, but shook his head and ran to the nearest wall, where he began hammering at it, trying to find a way out. Serena was shocked that the key word hadn't worked, and yelled it again, which still only made the beast pause for a moment.

She hit the intercom button, yelling for Spike and Charles. Both appeared almost immediately, having been waiting outside while she tried her key word since if they heard it they too would fall under her hypnosis. "Spike, I don't know how to work this bloody thing, pad the walls before he hurts himself! Charles, the key word isn't working! He only pauses for an instant and then goes wild again. What's happening?" She asked, both shocked and frightened to see her powers fail.

The professor wheeled himself up to the window next to the younger woman and looked down at his friend. He concentrated, looking deep into Hank's mind to find the problem. "The beast has grown too strong, it's separated itself from Hank almost completely. The part that is our friend is responding to your key word, but it isn't enough to overpower the feral side. We need to calm the animal, make it passive enough for the human to gain a better hold before you can stop him."

"How do we calm him Wheels? He sure as hell isn't going to stay still long enough for us to sedate him, and from what I heard over the com units Logan, Faith, and Fred were having a hard time holding him to one spot." Spike asked, having finished entering the command that would pad the room and prevent the man from harming himself.

Charles shook his head negatively. "I don't know Spike, this is something I hadn't anticipated. I knew the beast would be strong, but nowhere near strong enough to prevent Serena's powers from working. If any of you have any suggestions, I'm willing to hear them."

Dru had followed Spike and the professor into the room with Kurt and guided the boy to his surrogate mother. Serena had the boy in her lap and was humming to him to soothe away his fright. The vampiress looked down over their shoulders and saw the purple-furred man had slowed his destructive efforts. "But her powers are working, just look at him. Pretty is only humming now, but he can hear it and he's calming down." She said, gesturing down into the room.

Charles and Spike looked down, seeing that Dru was right. Though he was still hammering at the walls, he wasn't using as much force and seemed distracted by the soft sounds coming from Serena. "You know what they say Nymph, 'music hath power to soothe the savage beast.' Try singing for a while, see if he'll calm down for you." The blonde said.

The professor agreed with renewed hope, "Yes, that might just work. The suggestion you already planted in Hank isn't working, but that shouldn't stop you from using your power to calm his animal side. The mental integration between the two is thin, and you've already invoked the keyword to the human side. Put a directive to calm down into your voice, see if you can get him to sleep. If the beast is asleep I can use my own powers to help reintegrate the two sides."

Agreeably, Serena leaned on the open window and sang the first ballad that came to her mind, concentrating on a feeling of calm and peacefulness. The purple-furred beast did calm, and stopped banging on the walls, but resisted her efforts to put him to sleep. As she began her third song, the amber-eyed woman was amazed at the resistance he was putting up, but figured that after constantly battling to be freed, it had developed a strong mental defense.

She realized that the music itself was helping as much as the calming suggestion, and since the rest of the team had arrived and seated themselves in any convenient place, she decided to give them a little show. She caught Spike's eye and signed to him with her hands, "Sing the next one with me. When I Fall In Love, okay?"

The vampire nodded and when her sweet sounding alto gave voice to the first note, his mellow tenor joined for a two part harmony. Her previous songs had succeeded in relaxing everyone within the control room and they looked up in surprise when they heard Spike's wonderful singing voice added to Serena's.

__

When I fall in love,

it will be forever.

Or I'll never fall in love.

In a restless world,

like this is,

love is ended before it's begun.

And too many moonlight kisses,

seem to cool in the warmth of the sun.

When I give my heart,

it will be completely.

Or I'll never give my heart.

And the moment,

I can feel that,

you feel that way too.

Is when I'll fall in love with you.

Generally, Spike didn't let it be known that he liked any kind of music that didn't come with the whine of an electric guitar and a solid, heavy drum in the mix. But his Nymph had found out quite early in their years as friends that he shared her eclectic tastes in music and had a good singing voice to go with it. When she'd asked him to sing harmony with her, he couldn't deny the younger woman.

Though they were singing together, each made a point of looking at their respective partners throughout the song, leaving no doubt as to whom the recipients of their words were. Logan and Rogue smiled back at the pair, returning the emotions silently.

__

When I fall in love,

it will be forever.

Or I'll never fall in love.

In a restless world,

like this is,

love is ended before it's begun.

And too many moonlight kisses,

seem to cool in the warmth of the sun.

When I give my heart,

it will be completely.

Or I'll never give my heart.

And the moment,

I can feel that,

you feel that way too.

Is when I'll fall in love.

When I'll fall in love, with you.

Just before they finished, Serena signed the title of the next song to Spike, and the vampire shook his head in a firm 'no'. He was not going to sing Disney, no matter how hard her golden eyes pleaded. He did however pass the word along so that 'Beauty and the Beast' had an accompaniment from Kitty and Kurt.

While the children, and sometimes the adults, joined the impromptu sing along with their friend, Charles kept his eyes turned toward the bestial Hank. The transformed man was finally giving in to the power of Serena's suggestion and was now slumped against the wall; half-asleep with his face turned upward toward the control room.

The professor half listened to three more Disney songs, each sending the beast further toward slumber. When Spike started another duet with the young hypnotist, Hank finally fell into a deep sleep. Knowing Serena would be getting tired by now, Charles sent his mind out to the new mutant and probed his thoughts.

He breathed a sigh of relief to see that with the feral side of himself unconscious, the teacher's human side was coming forward again. With his powers, he was able to help the process along by working to reintegrate the two almost separate personalities within the man. When he felt he'd succeeded in balancing out the human and feral sides of his friend, he pulled his mind back.

Both Serena and Spike had noticed him going into a trance-like state, which he did when using advanced telepathic techniques. He spoke softly to the raven-haired woman. "Very good Serena. You need to re-implant the standard suggestion into his mind now that it's balanced, then I believe you should have a nice hot cup of tea to soothe your throat, it must be getting sore."

The amber-eyed woman nodded and turned slightly to look down on the sleeping man. Still singing, she took a more active grasp of her hypnotic powers and firmly planted her keyword suggestion deep in his mind, adding a second directive to make sure that even if he'd gone completely feral, he would still respond to the key word. Once she'd finished, both with Hank and the song she'd been singing, she took a deep breath and said, "Okay, thank Cripes that's finished. I am in serious need of a drink, so let's get out of here."

Hank recovered well from his transformation, coming out of his hypnotically induced sleep a few hours after Serena and Charles had finished. Unfortunately, the havoc his feral side had wreaked in the school and surrounding area caused a few problems. The main one being that the police had deduced that he was responsible for the chaos and had a warrant out for his arrest on several charges and were considering him armed and dangerous.

When the first report had come over the evening news, Charles realized that Hank McCoy would have to disappear and sent Logan, Spike, Faith, and Freddy over to the teacher's home. The foursome were able to recover the teacher's belongings before the police arrived and left the small house ransacked to make it seem as if the man had been and gone.

Luckily, the next few weeks went by in the quiet routine of school and work. The teens accepted their new housemate easily, and the former science teacher settled into one of the free rooms on the third floor. He spent most of the quiet time learning to accept his new appearance and the fact that he wouldn't be able to return to his old life. The group didn't let him get away with isolating himself though; they always made a point to get him down to the common room in the evening to join their nightly activities.

Serena was recovering well from her injuries and her overprotective family finally allowed her to walk around after a week, rather than using the wheelchair or being carried. Enjoying her freedom, the raven-haired woman took up her old routine of cooking and cleaning, and generally looking after her friends and family. As they all did, she spent time in the ready room going over the files they'd taken from the Initiative.

Eventually, most of that work had to be set aside for Giles, Willow, Charles, and Hank, who were the only ones that understood the technical, scientific, and demonic aspects of the decrypted files. But they all helped where they could, looking the growing pile of papers over and sorting them out to be given to the person they thought would be able to make sense of it.

The hypnotist also spent a lot of time with Drusilla. The vampiress was a joy to be around, especially when she wasn't using the stars or her dolls to speak for her. Dru would usually wake in the mid-afternoon and after Serena closed the blinds, would join her friend in whatever she happened to be doing. Sometimes, Faith and Willow would join the older women and the foursome were often seen chatting in the kitchen or found holed up in Serena's room talking as the amber-eyed woman and the vampiress sewed.

The other residents also enjoyed the quiet after all their worry over Serena during her absence and the ruckus with Hank. It was good to see things getting back to normal, Charles thought as he finished off a game of chess with Hank and turned to watch the group on the rec. room one night. Lance and Scott were bickering over some trivial thing, Rogue and Kitty shared the earphones to the stereo as they worked on a project for school and were about to get pranked by Kurt, Evan, and Pietro.

Willow and Faith were over at the pool table teaching Drusilla how to play, and Serena, Spike, Logan and Ororo were watching the news. Even Jean seemed to be enjoying herself, which was a rare occurrence these days. The telekinetic girl was helping Freddy and Todd with their algebra homework and seemed to be enjoying their company. "What's wrong Charles?" Hank asked, seeing his friend scanning the room.

"Nothing at all my friend, nothing at all. Everything is as it should be, and that is a thing to enjoy. So much of the time we're busy fighting against people and now creatures that would like to destroy us because of who and what we are. I've learned to take pleasure in these peaceful moments, and the memory of them keeps me going during the difficult times. Living here, being a part of our team; it's a difficult road to walk Hank, but well worth it. Welcome to our world." The professor replied, smiling as he looked the room over once more.


End file.

Buffy X-overs, Adventure, Romance