The Thin Line Between Good And Evil

Chapter 12: Making Nice and a Big Suprise

The next few weeks went on without incident, though Jean and Storm had returned and Logan was nowhere to be seen. I'd become more withdrawn than I had been originally, only occasionally talking to Kurt, Lennon, and Sin, who I learned had the ability to turn into what looked like a demon, hence the name.

I also learned that Asuna and her two friends, Hazel and Kimberley, very much wanted me out of the house. Of course, I couldn't care less, though the fact that they hated me was my main motivation for staying here. Out of all of them, it seemed to me that Kimberly hated me the most. I knew that she had a thing for Lennon but didn't understand what that had to do with me. Any time I saw her, she would always warn me to stay away from him.

When I wasn't hiding in the library, Kurt was teaching me combat skills and the Professor was helping me control and strengthen my abilities. We had discovered, though I'd hardly had any training, my power greatly surpassed Lennon's, whose powers were similar to mine. The Professor looked as of he'd expected this, but didn't comment on it further. I still largely distrusted him as well as the other professors, but was growing more fond of them, seeing the becomings of family figures in them.

Two weeks after I arrived, my roomate returned to the school. She was a bit eccentric and had a rather bubbly personality. She first introduced herself as Siren, but later admitted her name was Kim. Her father, Banshee, has gone missing when she was young, begging the question, why didn't he take his daughter with him? Kim was nice enough and had an apparent dislike for Kimberley and her posse, so I decided she would be bearable, possibly even someone I could call a friend. Kim's boyfriend however, was an entirely different story. Detran was loud, rude, and rambunctious. We despised one another largely due to the fact that we were completely different. He often teased me about my hair and stature, believing me to be small and weak. Of course, more often then not this lead to him screaming like a ninny because I lit his hair on fire.

I understood that in order to gain their trust, I would need to assimilate better. At the rate I was going I'd never be able to get any information from the X-Men, leaving my deal with the Brotherhood unsubstantial.

§~§

"Can I help you," she sneered, making me want to punch her. I balled my fists but took a deep breath, calming myself.

"I wanted to apologize for hurting you. I should have let go well before I did. I'm sorry," I swallowed my pride and looked her in the eye.

"Hurt me?" She scoffed. "You damn near killed me. What the hell was that all about anyway?" Her southern accent came out slightly and I lowered my head in embarrassment.

"That was how I was trained to fight. 'Don't let go till their blue in the face,'" I quoted my former capture nonchalantly.

"Who the hell trains a kid to fight like that?" She exclaimed. I smirked and shook my head in dismissal. "Ohmygawd, where you part of the mafia?" She asked ridiculously, with wide eyes. "I bet you were, you seem like someone who could be," she looked at me slyly, almost all the hostility gone in her eyes. I wasn't sure if that was a compliment or an insult, but decided to scoff in response.

"But honestly, I am sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you-" I started to apologize but was cut off abruptly.

"Alex. Listen to me. Whenever you fight someone, no matter who it is, you need to mean it. If you don't it could mean your life," she spoke seriously, grasping my wrists in her petite hands. I shook my head in understanding, watching as she faught back tears.

"Are you alright, Asuna?" I heard someone behind me. Kimberly shoved me aside and embraced her friend, glaring at me suspiciously. "What did you say to her, you hellion?" Her eyes narrowed and I smirked, making it seem as if I hadn't just had a moment with her friend.

"Wouldn't you like to know, Barbie," I sneered before giving Asuna a sympathetic glance and stalking back to the library to finish my research.

When I got back to my table I saw that a manila folder was on top of my things. I opened it cautiously and saw that there was a post it note on top of a bunch of papers. I read the messy handwriting, shocked.

This is just a few of the things they decided to hide from you.

~Misty

I crumpled up the note and shoved it in my pocket before beginning to go through the papers. The first couple looked like adoption papers and upon further inspection I saw that they were for my parents. They'd adopted a baby girl, only 2 years old, whose name was Lucy. The biological parents were not listed. In the back of my mind I felt something stir as well as feeling as if I didn't want to continue to read the papers.

Two months after the date on the adoption papers, there were papers for a name change. The little girl went from being Lucy Romanov to Alex Baxter. That's when it finally hit me. I was adopted. I slid down into my chair, trying to process what I'd just learned. My eyes went back to the folder and I picked up what looked like a profile for an employee of some company named S.H.I.E.L.D. She had long red hair and a mischeviously dangerous smile. She also happened to have the same last name as me.

Was she my sister? My aunt? Or perhaps she was my mother, the one who gave me up for adoption. Behind me I heard movement and slammed the folder shut, feeling as if the information was somehow private, or at least secret.

"What are ya working on, Lex?" Sin asked leaning against the table with his arms crossed. I smiled absentmindedly and grabbed some papers, discreetly setting them on top of the folder. I shrugged and refused to look up at him, not wanting him to see that I was holding something back. "Well, do you want to sparr with me? Kurt said you were getting pretty good, almost as good as him in fact."

"For a former munk, he sure does fight well. Who do you think taught him?" I asked, taking notes on the article I was reading. I sensed Sin staring at the paper I was writing on and scowled up at him. He flashed me a dazzling smile and I looked back down at my paper, feeling my cheeks redden.

"He's a super Ninja Munk," Sin said matter of factly, causing me to giggle at the thought. "In fact, he comes from a colony of Super Ninja Monks whose sole purpose in life is to wipe out all the nonbelivers." He said in a mock serious tone. I shook my head and rolled my eyes. "Did you know the Brotherhood tried to attack a couple of days ago," he suddenly changed the subject. I thought it over before responding, trying to contain my suprise.

"Oh really, did they say why?" I tried to seem almost uncaring. He scoffed and I continued with my notes, my hands shaking slightly.

"Because their evil and want us to all just conveniently drop dead," he replied snarkily. I felt the urge to defend them but bit my tongue, knowing that would end up making me look suspicious. Instead I grunted in consent and slammed the large book shut, done with my studies for today. The brotherhood was not evil, they just weren't blind to the world around them. Xavier, the students, the X-Men, they were all stupidly optimistic when it came to the humans. To think that they would ever accept us, that they would ever understand.

I shivered at the memories I'd long been trying to get rid of and stood, snatching up the papers and folder before muttering a clipped 'goodbye' and hurrying to my room, not wanting to be late for my training session with Kurt.