[Extorsive: Serving to extort, tending to draw from by compulsion.]

After these chats, things were better with the team.

The next order of business was deciding what to do with Mystique.

Professor X thought maybe he could help her, but he found her pretty much shut off when he tried to probe. He could glean some things, but it would be hard to get anything really deep if she was trying really hard not to.

She also told him not to use his magic on her.

In fact, she insulted pretty much everyone.

So Scott, getting frustrated, told Morph to guard her. Morph wasn't happy about it--it seemed Scott was punishing him, though he said it was because Morph might not fall for it so easily if she shifted.

Mystique got her revenge for this by imitating Scott in a pretty accurate way--which Morph really would have found funny if it hadn't been her doing it, and if she wasn't stealing his thing.

She also almost tricked him into letting her out, too.

"Can someone else do this?" he finally asked Xavier.

"Well, Scott seemed confident anyone else might be too susceptible, but I suppose Logan could," Xavier said. "Until she's willing to cooperate, I fear we can't release her. She could lead any one of our enemies to this house."

"Yeah, it'd be hard to find one she hasn't worked for," Morph said snarkily.

"Maybe if I talked to her again..." Rogue offered, when she heard about this.

"She's not listened to you one time," Logan said. "If she tries anything funny with me, I'll talk--with these." He drew his claws.

"This is not getting us anywhere, and we can't keep her here forever," Scott said.

"She'll get under our guards and escape sooner or later," Jean mused. "But what can we do? She doesn't want anything from us."

"I swear, Sabretooth was more manageable," Gambit muttered.

"Oh, don't say that," Jubilee said. "She hasn't tried to kill anyone."

"She punched Morph when she tried to escape," Logan said. "As if he didn't go through enough. He shouldn't have to babysit 'er. I'll do it."

"Logan, are you sure you can control yourself if you do?" Jean said. "We mustn't harm her."

"So long as she doesn't give me a reason to," Logan said.

Wally poked his head in. "You guys ought to shut these doors."

"This doesn't concern you," Scott said coolly.

"Yeah, well, you know, it's too bad, because I just might have had a solution to your problem," Wally said. "But you're not interested, so I'll just mosey along."

"That way's the closet," Rogue said.

Wally turned around. "Right."

"Well, for curiosity's sake, what is your solution?" Storm asked.

Wally grinned. "Just let Shine talk to her again. She's been trying to get down there anyway, only Morph won't let her in."

"I said not to let her in." Scott frowned. "She's not qualified to handle a criminal, and since no one has told me what your mysterious powers are, I see no reason to make an exception."

"Oh, let's not be stupid," Logan said. "Maybe the lady can pull it off. She handled Creed."

"And Sabretooth," Rogue said. "I mean, ain't no one else gettin' anywhere with Momma. Maybe..."

"We could put her to the test," Jean suggested. "She couldn't make her worse."

"And if she decides to just let her go?" Scott said. "Like the others?"

"Shine doesn't want her to leave," Wally said. "She was real excited about her being here."

"And why would she be excited about that? Is she aware of how dangerous this woman is?" Scott said.

"You don't know my wife that well, do you, Scottie?" Wally said. "Or me. I mean...sheesh, danger? Who's that?"

"We don't have a better plan," Storm said to Scott. "I'm curious."

Scott frowned. "Fine. She can try. But she's going to go by our terms. Nothing about letting her go."

Wally rolled his eyes when Scott wasn't looking, making Logan almost chuckle.

* * *

"So I'm just going to talk to her?" Shine said later. "And...do what? Tell her to cooperate with her mind being probed? I would never."

"Well, then find out what it'll take to keep her quiet about this," Scott said.

"Wasting your time," Shine said. "I could answer that right now."

"I'm sure you think you can, Likstar, but how about you focus on actually doing as we asked, for once?" Scott said.

Shine raised an eyebrow. "And what do I get in return for this unpleasant task?"

"What do you want?" Scott asked warily.

"If I get you results, then I want you to let me be the one to keep an eye on her--and let her come out of that dank basement," Shine said. "It'd make anyone stubborn to be down there. In return, I can guarantee you she will not get away from the X-men until you're ready for it."

"And how can you guarantee that?" Scott said.

"Ask your friends if I can," Shine said.

Scott looked at them. They nodded.

"Wait, can you?" Jubilee said.

Wally nodded.

"Okay," Jubilee said.

"I also want to be able to take her out of the house," Shine said, "with the condition that she will come back and not leave our proximity while gone. We can make sure she's not contacting anyone."

"This sounds like part of our goal, not yours," Scott said.

"I really never understand why the X-men have the legal right to detain people at their house, and it's not considered kidnapping," Shine said, a bit more salty. "So I suppose that's also just beyond my understanding of how things work around here. I mean, surely you wouldn't be doing anything illegal, would you, Scott?"

Silence.

"I just want to appease my conscience," Shine said sweetly.

"Oh, come on," Scott said. "You can't go to the police--you don't even have ID. You'd be arrested first."

"I doubt it, Scott, but I can't fill out a report--it's true," Shine said. "But I can object, can't I? You asked for my help. You want it, you get it my way."

Scott gritted his teeth. "I'll hold you personally responsible for her actions if this goes south, Likstar. Have it your way."

Shine smiled very smugly and walked towards the basement.

Scott walked away stiffly.

"Should I have enjoyed that?" Jubilee said.

"Best show in town," Logan said. "What did you two say to Scott? He's not even stoppin' ya anymore."

Wally shrugged. "Couldn't tell you. Must have been pretty good, though. Well, I trust Shine completely to have results in about an hour. And we got a church meeting to go to after that, which I'm sure will be fun, so I'm going to go chill. Call me when she's done or whatever."

He went off.

"Even if Shine has made Creed cry," Rogue said, "Momma is different. I don't really understand her myself. Kurt tried to talk to her, y'know. She told him to get out. I think he cried."

"She ain't worth it," Gambit said. "What kinda mother abandon her own kin into a river?"

"But Preacher wants to forgive her," Logan sniffed. "Seems like she's stopped being grateful for it. Kid deserves better than that woman."

"We shouldn't judge so harshly," Jean said. "Perhaps she has reasons for being the way she is. I don't sense so much hatred in her as I do bitterness."

[This is, sadly, more useful than Jean's empathetic powers ever were on the show.]

"Momma is bitter, all right," Rogue agreed. "At everyone."

She walked away sadly.

"I'm afraid this may be harder on Rogue than we thought," Storm said. "I hope it was worth it."

* * *

https://youtu.be/MzWZ9dceWRQ

["Bad Reputation" -- Joan Jett.]

"You sure you want to go in there?" Morph asked Shine. "She's vicious."

"I heard you didn't hit it off," Shine said.

"She's the worst," Morph shuddered. "Mean."

"Well, I guess I'm used to mean," Shine said, "as long as she doesn't try to choke me out. I hate that. Let me in. I could get in anyway, but I don't want to freak her out."

"I think you'd have an advantage," Morph muttered, opening the door.

Mystique was sitting against a wall, head on her arms.

"What do you want now?" she said flatly, then she looked up and flinched. "You!"

She frowned. "Are all of you just going to come down here now? I don't want to talk to you."

Shine came up to her, and she leaned on the wall as far away from her as possible.

Shine put down a book on the floor. "I thought you might be getting bored in here."

Mystique frowned. "What's in it?"

"Words," Shine said. "'The most powerful drug known to mankind.' (Rudyard Kipling.) You can read, right?"

"Of course I can read!" Mystique snapped.

"Well, I didn't know what you liked, but I've always found this book to be impossible to put down." Shine pointed to the title: Till We Have Faces. "It's my favorite."

Mystique warily picked it up. Then she threw it at her.

Shine managed to duck, so it just grazed her shoulder.

"What was that for?" she asked.

"What are you up to?" Mystique demanded.

"Why are you so sure I'm up to anything?" Shine sat down. "I came in to talk to you."

"Who sent you? Cyclops?" Mystique shifted into him momentarily.

"That is weird to see," Shine said. "I prefer to talk to the real person."

"Oh?" Mystique shifted into Wolverine. "How unfortunate. I can keep this goin'."

"I wouldn't play that game with me." Shine leaned on her hands. "I took drama for years. I assure you, I can play to whichever one you pick. Might freak you out more than me. I bet it's easier to pretend when you can actually look like someone, but pretending when you have only your own face, that takes effort."

Mystique shifted back to herself. "So what did they send you in here to do? Talk me to death?"

"Do you want out of this room?" Shine asked.

Tentative glance at the door.

"Who wouldn't?" was the guarded answer.

"I agree. It's ugly, isn't it?" Shine looked around. "I swear Sabretooth's room had more taste when he was being held down here. By the way, do you think it's unethical to hold someone hostage if you're not the law?"

"I wouldn't care," Mystique said.

"Good thing I'm not your lawyer," Shine said dryly. "Now, I can help you, a little. I can't let you go...and I have to agree it would be unwise. You have a real penchant for being exploited by madmen with a weird cause. But I think this is inhumane. So I got them to agree to make it a bit more tolerable."

"Do I get a potted plant?" Sarcastically.

"Better, you can get a whole property," Shine said, "if you consent to being guarded at all times. All they want to know is what you want from them to ensure your secrecy about this place."

"Ah, so it gets back to that," Mystique said. "And what do you think I'd want?"

"Nothing they can give you," Shine said. "I know that you would never keep a promise like that, even if you made it. You'd betray them if someone threatened your life, because you survive, don't you?"

Mystique finally dropped her surreptitious expression.

"I also know that you wouldn't rush to betray them, for all that, because Rogue is here," Shine said. "You're crazy enough to work for Apocalypse, but not crazy enough to imagine it would end well to lead anyone here. You're the mistress of wishful thinking, also. I know that. I think I see where Rogue gets it from."

"Excuse me?" Mystique said.

"She is like you," Shine said. "I'll give you that. I guess parenting always does stick with you. You taught her well."

She looked towards the door. "So, I can't offer you freedom, because I can't trust you. You couldn't ask us to, either, in all fairness. The best I can give is a chance to at least get out of this basement and act like a human being."

"A human being?" Mystique said. "I know. You're human." She made a sneering face. "Creed told me. You like playing nice to mutants? One look at me, and you know I'm not human."

"Hon, I knew a pink girl, a green girl, and blue boy before I ever came here," Shine said. "You think I care what color you are? You could be rainbow for all I care."

"What's in it for you?" Mystique asked.

"To answer in kind to yourself, I suppose I feel a sense of purpose in showing kindness to people," Shine said. "And other things, like teaching, and spreading the Good News. I also have hobbies. I like the X-men. I like Rogue a lot too. She's a sweetheart. But I'm worried it might be hard for her if you're here. So this compromise is not the easiest thing to do. But it seems better than the Bastille treatment--minus the rats and starvation."

Mystique frowned. "You're like Kurt...aren't you? Preachy..."

"We share the same faith, yes," Shine said. "A bit different, but it doesn't matter."

"And...what has he told you about me?"

"Nothing bad," Shine said. "He wouldn't. But I knew already. It's not so hard to find out."

She tugged her hair. "I'm not here to judge."

"Yes, you are," Mystique said bitterly. "But I don't need your pity. Or your ideas. I just want to get out of here."

"I can't do that."

"Then get out!" Mystique said loudly. "Leave me alone!"

Shine didn't budge.

"Are you going to keep yelling at me?" she asked quietly.

"Go away." More subdued.

"Stop acting like a child," Shine said a bit more firmly. "Do you want to make this better for you or not? The price is being subjected to my company. Scott is willing to cast you off on me. But joke's on him, I intend to turn it back around on him. Only I need your cooperation for that."

Mystique tilted her head. "You don't care for Cyclops?"

"I suppose I care in a vague sense because he's a human being, but I could live without ever seeing him again and not feel a shred of regret," Shine said. "And I wouldn't mind making him a little crazy by defying his expectations yet again. You're not the only one he's insulted around here, let's just say. But you remember, I'm sure."

Mystique raised an eyebrow. "So it's revenge."

"No...repercussions," Shine said. "Revenge would be wrong."

"And what do I have to do?" Mystique asked.

"Basically agree to let me and my husband be your watchdogs, if you want to leave this room," Shine said. "And, in so many words, I have a power that will enable me to catch you from any point in the globe and bring you back here, just like restarting a video game level. So running is ultimately pointless. I'm willing to keep you here until the X-men are either satisfied, or I feel this has gone on way too long to be sane anymore. Or your life is in danger. I said I'd help them, and keeping them safe is one way to do it. But I do not work for them, and I have my own ways of doing things. I'm taking a risk here too. If you screw me over, I'll never hear the end of it."

Her eyes gleamed. "But I warn you, I'm hard to fool."

Mystique knew that already.

"So I can't escape," she said stiffly, "and I have to hang around you, the crazy girl...in exchange for a cheap imitation of freedom?"

"Or you can stay in here indefinitely," Shine said. "I mean, I'm sure it'll grow on you. The bare walls, hard floor, stuffy air...spiders and stuff... The rooms upstairs are much nicer. There's food and A/C and a pool...but suit yourself. I guess it's not like I suffer either way."

She stood up.

"And," she said in a lower tone, "Kurt wouldn't be upset over it. He really doesn't like this."

"I don't care what Kurt wants," Mystique said.

"You can tell yourself that if it makes you feel better, but I'm not stupid," Shine said. "Kurt is a good guy. I know why you can't stand seeing him. I know it a little too well. But here's a thought: You can't run forever. Either you go up there, or he comes down here. You are not getting away, either way. You can have some control, or none. I know what I'd choose if I were you. A few mores days, and I think you'll be too stir crazy to care. Make it easy on yourself and decide now."

She walked to the door, picked up the book, and slid it back. "I have my own copy, so you can keep this. I wouldn't try to brain the next person who comes in here with it. Logan would take it personal."

She knocked and Morph opened it.

"Are you real?" he said.

"I can't look like that." Shine pointed.

Mystique hadn't even tried to take her shape.

Morph let her out.

Mystique stared at the book and then at the ceiling.

* * *

"And she didn't give you an answer?" Scott was too smug.

"Give it a few hours," Shine said.

"Right, a few hours, because magically she'll change her mind in that time," Scott said.

"She's a woman, Scott," Wally said. "She could change her mind in the next two minutes."

Shine nudged him. "Shut up. I do not do that."

"Yes, you do. Like when we go out, and you change which restaurant you want halfway there."

"I give you options! I don't change my mind."

"Same difference!"

Scott rubbed his temples. "This is getting us nowhere. Maybe it's time to just try the forcible approach."

Shine looked up. "If you even think about trying to invade her mind, she'll be gone from here, I promise you that."

"Are you threatening me?" Scott stood up.

"Yeah, maybe," Shine said. "That's immoral."

"Under the circumstances--" Scott broke off. Jean had come in.

"Scott? Mystique just knocked on the door. She says she's ready to accept the terms."

Scott's jaw dropped.

"I think that was 45 minutes," Wally said.

Shine shrugged. "We don't always need that long."

* * *

"She agreed?" Kurt said, not long after. "You can vork miracles, Shine."

"The hard part will be what comes next," Shine said. "She thinks she can probably get away somehow if we let her out. She can't, but she'll try. She can't help it. Once she realizes it's impossible, she's going to be very angry. This will be hard for you, Kurt. You're okay with it?"

"Any chance to make things right vith her, I vill take," Kurt said. "I can't say if I really think a relationship is possible, but I vant us to be at peace. Do you think that's possible?"

"Anything is possible," Shine said. "But not everything is likely. It's too soon to call it."

"The look on Scott's face was so worth it," Wally laughed. "But...what about the meeting?"

"I thought we'd let her up here for a bit," Shine said. "We don't have to go for a while yet... Why do I suddenly feel like I do when I let my cat out in the backyard for a short run before I have to lock her in again?"

"She's a cat, all right." Logan walked by. "Why would anyone saddle themselves on purpose with this responsibility?"

"I took the responsibility of teaching you, didn't I?" Shine shot back. "What do you think is scarier?"

Logan was struck speechless by how savage that retort was.

Storm thought it was kind of humorous. But she said, "She may try to fight you."

Mystique walked in right then, escorted by Scott and Morph.

"Well, there, it's on her now," Scott said sourly. "Have fun." He walked away.

"Real cheerful fellow," Mystique said. "Reminds me of one of my exes."

"I hope not," Wally muttered.

"So now what? I just sit around up here?" Mystique avoided eye contact with Kurt.

"No," Shine said. "I'm afraid you'll have to help us out."

"You never said I had to do anything."

"Fine, stand there." Wally got up. "My name's Wally, by the way. And can I just say, this outfit is way better than the ones I saw before."

"Wally!" Shine was shocked.

"Sorry, it just...you know, it bothers me," Wally said. "It's a relief. Once was enough for that. Remember, Midnight?"

"Did you have to remind me?" Shine said. "Oh, one thing." She glanced at Mystique. "Flirt with him and you're dead. That's my one rule. And believe it or not, the married thing does not always stop some women so, yes, I had to say it."

"Like I'd want to." Mystique frowned. "Don't flatter yourself."

"Right, her type is rich," Shine said. "We're safe."

"Should I go?" Kurt asked meekly.

"You could help," Wally suggested.

* * *

https://youtu.be/ULAM5MNpIEo

["Something Heavenly" - -Sanctus Real]

Mystique didn't help them do any of the chores, she just watched sullenly and said it was dull.

Shine asked her if she'd like to go back to the room, and she shut up.

But of course, she had to go back anyway.

"Tired of the burden already?" she asked.

"No, we actually have a church meeting," Shine said.

"How droll," Mystique said.

"Yeah, it is," Wally said, with a bit of a sardonic tone. "Same place Creed helped burn down, actually, but the people weren't hurt, and now we gotta talk about what to do about it. So, you know, fun."

She blinked. "That's a new low."

Kurt had been sort of helping them, but keeping his distance from his mother, since she so clearly didn't want to talk to him.

"They are brave people," he ventured.

"It's Kurt's second time," Wally said. "Churches keep getting set on fire because of him, so you know, that must mean he's a saint."

Kurt actually thought that was funny. "Like Joan of Arc, you meant."

"More than her," Shine mused.

"A saint or a heretic." Mystique walked away.

Kurt sighed. "Tell me, vhy does she hate me?"

"She doesn't." Shine put a hand on his shoulder. "She's ashamed, Kurt. And you remind her of that, that's all. Because she mistakenly associates you with guilt, she doesn't believe you forgave her, as you know, because she can't forgive herself."

"I hope you're right," Kurt said.

"You'll have to learn sometime, Kurt," Shine said, "that not all hatred is actually personal. I felt much better after I realized that. It's nothing to do with you. She just thinks if she pushes you away she can save herself. I think once she gets used to you being around it'll become clear to her that it wouldn't solve anything."

"I hope you're right about that also," Kurt said. "Though I don't know vhy I should care. I've never really known her. It vould be better to only feel as Gott feels, and not bring my personal feeling into it anymore."

"God's not personal?" Wally sipped some juice. 

"I mean... No, you're right." Kurt rubbed his head. "I don't know vhat I vas thinking."

"It almost seems like it's easier for God, doesn't it?" Shine said. "But I gave up on thinking that after reading the prophets. If anything, God gets more upset than I do--I guess because I have enough mistakes of my own to know anything I complain about, I could be guilty of, but He doesn't have that problem. Must be frustrating."

"I vish more people thought of Him as you do," Kurt said. "They vould fear Him less."

"You're coming with us, right?" Shine said.

"I do vant to hear vhat they vill do, it they allow it."

"Where's Mystique?" Scott walked in, looking ready to blow his top if she wasn't with them.

"Well, I think she walked back to her room," Shine said.

"Oh, and you just let her walk out of this room?" Scott said. "She probably is out the door already."

"The door of the room?" Wally said, mainly to annoy him.

Scott hurried off in high dudgeon.

"He may be right," Kurt said.

Shine's eyes flickered gold. "She'll be in her 'cell' when he looks, don't worry."

Mystique, in fact, had run out the door as soon as she got away from them. She couldn't believe they'd just let her walk out of the room like they didn't even notice.

She got as far as the gate when something opened under her feet, and she fell through it and found herself sitting in the cell, next to the book she'd left in it.

Startled, she blinked. "What...?"

The door opened, and Scott looked in.

"What...? But Morph said... How did you get in here?"

"Your guess is as good as mine," Mystique replied sourly. "That little witch."

Shine was actually taller than her, but she didn't care.

"Well, stay put," Scott said stupidly, and the door shut again.

Mystique slapped her forehead. So that woman wasn't kidding... She really could dump her back in here at any time... There wasn't going to be any escaping here, not that easily... Well, fine, she'd have to figure out how her power worked, then...or else, figure out what would convince them to let her go. She could play up the charm. She always did.

Of course...it could take a while. They weren't as trusting as most stupid people were.

* * *

The church board was meeting in the only classroom that was undamaged enough not to smell like smoke still, and they were waiting for the three newcomers before they got started.

"Ah, right on time," Billings said, coming up to them. He seemed excited.

"Well, what's up?" Wally said. "I thought you guys would be gloomy."

"To be honest, Mr. West, up till yesterday, we were," Billings said. "Here, sit down."

They had one of those low tables for kids, which was awkward, but no one seemed to mind.

The guy in charge of finance, Clarence, nodded at them. "You've all got to see this."

He shoved a folder at them.

Kurt opened it. "I can't read this as vell as I vish, but...is this a record of money? I don't understand."

"Back in the days when we were part of the Civil Rights movement," Billings said, "the church had a P. O. Box, for safety. Well, as God seems to have it, I had just reopened it last week because of the drive. I thought perhaps some people would prefer so send money, instead of donate items, you know. It's just less hassle for some. So I wanted to be ready. Using the Church's address was possible, but this seemed more efficient--and harder to steal from, you know. Apparently, that P. O. Box  linked with our number and name on the internet still."

"Wait a minute." Shine took the folder. "These are donations, aren't they?"

The staff shook their heads in amazement, and one lady, the secretary for some of the records, and head of the prayer team also, started to cry.

Clarence had a look of wonder. "The news broadcast our story all over the country, probably in other countries too--it was such a scandal."

"Yeah, we heard about other uprisings because of it," Wally said.

"The news likes to cover the most disheartening facts of a matter," Billings said. "I began getting phone calls yesterday from people who found the number online. I have the church's phone in my home for now, you see. Anne was answering it too.... I think at least 20 people called from churches across the country, asking if we needed any help...from denominations I've never even heard of." He smirked a bit. "I'm not sure what Latter Days Saints are."

"Those are Mormons," Shine said. "I used to home school with them."

"Oh, are they? I've never heard that," Clarence said.

"Well, even they called." Billings shook his head. "Said some of their members were mutants too, and they thought it was a shame what happened. And that they'd pray for us. All of them said that...but some were also saying they had taken up a collection to help us."

"No way." Wally was gaping.

"All this?" Shine said. "I mean...I'm not sure with inflation, but this is a good amount, isn't it?"

"It's a start," Clarence said. "Rebuilding will take months with the size of the crew we can hire, but we can at least begin. Our congregation took up a collection too, but it didn't come anywhere near to enough...which is what we were going to discuss, up till yesterday."

"This won't cover it all, but we can lay some foundations," Billings said. "But a lot of them also said they wanted to donate towards our ministry to the mutants."

"They did?" Kurt said.

"You're not the only mutant who's used the church as a refuge," Billings said. "It's still a rare thing, but it seems I'm not the only pastor who has felt it's time to get more involved in this. People saw the burning as a tragedy and an atrocity.... I got calls from some of my old friends from college who didn't even like mutants before, but they said that if the FOH is going to attack the church over it, it's gone too far, and they may not understand, but they think they would be wrong to do that. I had an offer from a lawyer who wants to help us prosecute those men who were arrested."

Shine laughed in delight. "This is so amazing."

Kurt was crying. "People did this--all on their own."

Anne smiled. "Yes...we've had some hateful messages too, but I don't think they really matter. Hatred is what was expected, but this kind of generosity, it's so far beyond what we thought our little effort would ever warrant from people.... Perhaps you've struck a nerve, Mr. Wagner."

Kurt was speechless.

"It's possible more will come," Billings said. "We can't be sure, but if God provides.... I thought you had to see this. Tell it to your Morlock friends, so they don't feel so despairing when they hear of this."

"I'm pretty sure they've heard by now, but I'll feel much better facing them after this," Shine said. "We were going to, but I was putting it off.... We had some other excitement this week, too much to explain."

"We have to decide who to hire," Clarence said. "But I think we should start at once, not show fear. Some of us were angry about the attack, Mrs. West, but it's all in God's plan how it works out. Maybe we needed to rebuild."

"The bathrooms were a little old," the secretary, Mrs. Evans, said dryly.
They laughed.

"We'll be meeting at a park until then," Billings said. "I got permission, so long as we don't turn it into a protest. The city doesn't want the FOH to attack us there."

"We can hold off on that," Wally joked. "This is actually the news we needed to hear. Thanks."

"Figured we should show you in person," Billings said. "And don't you worry--your little outreach will be back on track in no time also, once we find a new temporary HQ."

"Thanks, Mike," Shine said.

* * *

The other X-men were shocked when they were told. Kurt could hardly contain himself.

"It's a miracle," he kept saying, "a God-given Miracle. People can surprise you."

"You sure this is real?" Gambit, ever the skeptic, asked.

"I fail to see why anyone would joke about it," Shine said. "They could get attacked too."

"And these random people who don't even know us are just willing to risk that?" Rogue said.

"The world turns because of random people who take risks." Shine shrugged. "What are we but that anyway? This has lifted my whole mood."

She walked off, singing a song.

"I must give thanks!" Kurt poofed away.

"Yeah, I think I'll celebrate too," Wally said, going out for a run.

"It seems more people are interested in this than we thought," Storm commented.

"Intriguing," Xavier commented.