The night air was cool and still, wrapping around the mansion like a quiet veil. The sounds of the world had quieted, leaving only the rustling of tree branches and the occasional chirp of distant insects.
Alex sat alone on the wooden bench outside the mansion, his posture loose but deceptively casual. His head tilted slightly upward, eyes closed, as if he were simply enjoying the silence. But the tension in his jaw, the slight curl of his fingers, betrayed the storm in his mind.
The faint bruises and muscle strain from the training match earlier still lingered, but he ignored them. They weren't important. Not compared to the real problem gnawing at him.
The Omnitrix had stopped him. Again.
It had forced him back into human form, shutting him down when he was at his strongest.
Why?
His teeth pressed together. He hated restraints. Hated limits. Hated the feeling of soone deciding for him.
Then—
Footsteps.
Soft, steady, cautious.
Alex didn't move.
Didn't open his eyes.
But his muscles coiled, ready.
The scent of leather and faint perfu reached him first.
A familiar voice spoke.
"You always sit alone, huh?"
Alex exhaled slowly through his nose, his shoulders remaining still.
"Guess so."
"Ah figured." The voice was Rogue's, light with amusent but carrying sothing calculated underneath.
She moved closer, stopping just beside the bench. Alex caught the slight hesitation in her step before she spoke again.
"You know, Ah've been thinkin'."
Alex still didn't open his eyes.
"About what?"
"About you." She shifted her weight, arms folding. "You ain't like the others."
Alex huffed softly. "Yeah, I noticed."
Rogue chuckled, but there was sothing asured in the sound. "No, not like that. Ah an… the way ya see things. The way ya fight."
She sat beside him, but not too close. Her posture was open, relaxed—but Alex knew better. He noticed the way she angled herself slightly, the way her fingers brushed against her sleeve, like she was asuring the space between them.
"Yer not an X-Man. Not really."
Alex's fingers twitched slightly. He finally turned his head just a fraction toward her.
"Didn't say I was."
Rogue tilted her head, studying him now. Her green eyes searched his face for sothing.
"Then why stay?"
Silence.
Alex's jaw tensed. A muscle ticked at the side of his face, barely noticeable. He didn't answer.
She continued.
"They don't trust you."
A flicker of sothing crossed Alex's expression. He didn't respond, but his lips pressed together.
"They pretend they do. They act like they're tryin' to 'help' ya, but you know better, don't ya?"
She leaned in just slightly, her voice dipping lower.
"They see you as dangerous. As a weapon. Not a person."
Alex's eyes remained closed, but she saw the subtle shift in his breathing. A controlled inhale. A deliberate exhale. The way his fingers curled slightly before relaxing again.
She pressed further.
"They fear you, Alex. An' what happens when people fear sothin'?"
She let the question hang.
Then—
"They cage it."
A breeze passed between them, rustling the leaves.
Alex finally spoke, his voice quieter now.
"And what? You got a better offer?"
Rogue smirked. "Actually, yeah."
She leaned back slightly, shoulders rolling in an easy motion.
"You ever heard of the Brotherhood?"
Alex exhaled through his nose, the edge of a smirk pulling at his lips. "Oh, this is getting good."
"Ah'm serious, sugar. The X-n want to control you. The Brotherhood?" She spread her arms slightly, her tone soft but enticing. "They let you be free."
Alex finally opened his eyes.
And for the first ti, he turned his head to look at her.
The way he studied her—it was like a predator analyzing prey.
"That's funny."
Rogue blinked. "What?"
Alex smirked slightly. "You talk like this is so big choice." He shook his head, chuckling under his breath. "But you and them? You're the sa."
The amusent flickered from Rogue's face.
Alex leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. His tone was cool, even.
"The X-n shove their 'peaceful coexistence' crap down my throat, and now you're here, selling on 'freedom and strength.'"
His crystal-blue eyes glowed faintly.
"Both of you are trying to shove your ideals down my throat."
Then, in a flat, cold voice—
"And both of you can shove them straight up your ass."
Silence.
Rogue's expression twitched.
Then—
For the first ti—
She hesitated.
Alex caught it instantly.
His stare sharpened.
And when he spoke again—
His voice was calr.
More dangerous.
"You ca at confident. Thinking I'd actually buy into this."
A pause.
"But now? You're shaken."
He tilted his head slightly, voice smooth.
"That tells two things."
He lifted one finger.
"One, you already know what I can do."
A second finger.
"Two, you know you're a lamb walking into the slaughterhouse."
Rogue's pupils shrank slightly.
Her composure cracked.
And in that mont—
Alex knew.
His smirk widened slightly. "You're not Rogue."
Then, in a sharper, deadlier voice—
"Who are you?"
Silence.
Then—
Her form shimred.
And the soft features of Rogue lted away—
Revealing the blue-skinned, yellow-eyed form of Mystique.
The Predator Turns Prey
Mystique stared at Alex.
And Alex stared back.
For the first ti in a long while—she was the one off-balance.
"How?" she asked, her voice lower now.
Alex leaned back on the bench, arms stretching along the backrest.
His smirk was still there.
"Simple."
His gaze turned sharp.
"Rogue talks too much."
Mystique's brows furrowed. "What?"
Alex gave a lazy shrug.
"Rogue wouldn't have kept talking if she thought I wasn't listening." He gestured lazily. "You kept going. Kept pushing. That ans you weren't sure if you had yet."
He locked eyes with her.
"Rogue? She'd have just called an asshole and walked off."
Mystique was silent.
Alex's smile vanished.
"You should leave."
Mystique tensed.
"You think you can threaten , boy?"
Alex's crystal-blue eyes glead in the moonlight.
His next words were spoken with the kind of calm that made the air colder.
"It's not a threat."
He tilted his head slightly.
"It's a fact."
Silence.
For a long mont, Mystique didn't move.
Then, slowly—
She took a step back.
Her form shimred again, shifting.
Within seconds, she was gone—vanishing into the night.
Alex watched until she disappeared.
Then—
He sighed and leaned back, closing his eyes again.
The quiet returned.
But the air still felt… different.
That just made by mood Sour.
Don't dine and dash give the power stone (╥﹏╥)
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