It was late, or early, depending on how you looked at the time. The sun was neither coming nor going, the skies dark and the streets an even more eerie black. As Evelyn made her way down the sidewalk, she felt herself reconsidering the decision to leave her apartment at this time of night. But after the long events prior, she wanted nothing more than to get back to the mansion and get some sleep.

Sleep. It was a rare thing when she was ready to rest. But getting chased through the sewers, thrown about and almost getting devoured tended to do that to you. Exhausted was an understatement for how she felt, and even the short walk to the corner store didn't deter her. With her cell phone dead, and no way to call a cab, she had no choice but to sneak through the darkness and try to find a payphone. It seemed a simple enough task at the time.

That was until the echoes flickered in warning, and an arm slammed into the side of her head sending her reeling backwards in pained surprise.

As if the night couldn't get any worse.

"I thought it was you, you worthless little mutant."

[Avery] The name flickered through her mind even as Evelyn stumbled back into the alley. Memories flickered through her mind momentarily as her brain threatened her with playbacks from the blow, and the silver haired mutant felt that unnatural sensation of fear rising back to the surface for the second time that night. The individual in front of her was a familiar figure at the museum not too long ago. But after his failed attempt to organize a kidnapping during the riots, he had been fired. No thanks to her and her favorite mirror-walker. It didn't look like he took too well with loosing his job.

Before she could stammer a reply, she was forced to dodge another swing, left arm raised to deflect the attack. What advantage the echoes gave her warning of the movements mattered little when she was too tired to respond fast enough, catching the next hook in the stomach. Doubling over in pain, the next fist connected with her face and she landed hard on her side, the already formed bruises from her chase in the sewer stinging with new injuries to her pale skin.

"I lost my job because of you! My house! Barely stayed out of prison, you dumb little--" His string of profanity was lost to her as he grabbed her by the front of the shirt and slammed her back against the wall. A scream for help was frozen in her throat as she stared helplessly at the figure in front of her. It didn't feel real. It had to be a memory. This couldn't be happening.

The echoes scrambled to push her into action. She had to defend herself. She had to fight back.

Her foot lashed out, kicking the man solidly between the legs. With a snarl, the attacker dropped her, and she made a desperate crawl to get away. Her mind was disoriented with the chaos. She couldn't form words, couldn't form thoughts, was only focused on getting away. She wasn't expecting the boot that came crashing down on her ankle.

The scream she couldn't muster of fear resounded through the alley in response to the pain. The sound resounded in a haunting way, and she could only hope someone else heard it...someone willing to help.

The mansion wasn’t home anymore at least that was how it was feeling his classes were becoming nonexistent and he had debated on resigning from the position all together. Bruno and Cammie were his only source of comfort inside the mansion. His friends and teammates didn’t trust him they might have said they did, said they didn’t fear him what could happen but when he wasn’t looking he could feel them staring in his general direction he could hear it in their tones when they spoke to him and he could see it in their movements. When he thought about it he didn’t blame them. Sam couldn’t really even trust himself.

The riots have been over for some time and Sam had been trying to move on from the events that had happened months ago but that was easier said than done. Some things you couldn’t move on from some things you couldn’t forget. A far of scream could be heard not so far away, something he had grown accustomed to in his dreams that were now nightmares. Something he was used to but then he realized he wasn’t dreaming. At least he didn’t think he was. Sam jumped from the ice slide he was gliding over the city with and that familiar falling sensation occurred and he found himself still there still out in the city on a early or late patrol time now didn’t matter he couldn’t sleep well and the mansion wasn’t as welcoming as it once was which was why he wasn’t in a rush to go back.

The streets were all empty the occasional homeless sleeping in the alley, the rats running through the streets and the occasional strays. Sam thought he heard the screaming coming from the direction he was forcing the slide in but then everything went quite. The air below started to grow cold as he forced himself to feel everything below. The apartments, buildings and shops gave off some low heat as the bodies were far more clear luckily it was warmer in the city and no one had their heat on otherwise this would have been all but impossible.

Sam looked around with his lone eye and willed the surrounding buildings to be covered in a small frost to help his sixth sense even more. He knew he heard a scream he couldn’t be losing himself. Not again.

Another scream echoed from an alleyway one building over and Sam turned himself and sped along as quickly as possible. Two screams he wasn’t sure a third one would be heard two was even rare it only meant there were more than two people screaming or she was trying to get away.

Sam’s lone eye fixed on the white below and his stomach dropped as he feared it was someone he knew when he got low enough he jumped from the slide landing a few feet behind the girl while his legs bent down to soften the landing. He stood up and felt sick to his stomach because it was someone he knew it was Evee.

Evelyn's head was spinning. Stunned, confused, and terrified, she tried getting away. The pain she felt from her ankle traveled like flames up her leg, but there wasn't time to register it as she kicked her free leg into the shins of her assailant. The heal of her shoe slammed into his bone and he stumbled backwards, cursing a few more creative threats as she stumbled to her feet and limped a few steps, before getting thrown back to the ground with a second scream. This time, the man circled, careful to stay out of kicking range. The terrified blond retreated, trying desperately to focus and think of a defense.

She could taste blood in her mouth from a split lip. Her already skinned knees and hands stung with renewed bleeding. She stared at the figure above her, throat dry with no breathe to cry again. She didn't remember when she started crying. She could only see the blurred shimmers as the salty water traveled down her face. The echoes flickered, faltered, drowned by her own disbelief and distress. Exhaustion stole her ability to think, to defend. The most frightening thing was, her attacker knew exactly how helpless she was.

A sneer and a snide remark started to form on his lips, then there was the distinct thump as someone landed behind her, and Avery froze. His expression went from confident, to uncertain, and Evelyn never felt so reassured to feel cold air wash across her back.

Even from the back of her whitish blonde head Sam knew the woman before him she was weak and scared. By the looks of the guy now standing in front of her and now him she put up a pretty good fight. She was however outsized and it looked like the guy got the drop on her. There was no way a girl dating Gawain one of his… well one of his only students now wouldn’t put up a fight that and he knew Eve had a good punch.

Sam took a few steps forward and his eyebrow lowered into a glare. His body tensed and his fist shook at his side. Stepping in front of Eve the air around them became cold, cold enough to reveal the breath. ”I’m really hoping I’m misreading this situation…” Sam said turning his head towards Eve who had a split lip, was limping, bruises on her body and had tears rolling down her face. How could anyone do this to someone who was so sweet so innocent? Sam’s fists tightened even more as more blood rushed from them.

A flash of some images he was forced to see recently danced across his vision and he snapped his head towards the man who was standing before him. A few steps and Sam’s hand was around the guys throat and he slammed him against the wall. ”The HELL DID YOU DO!” his voice was loud now revealing the anger he had been trying to hide for the past few months. His head shifted towards Eve and his grip tightened around the guys throat as another hand reached around the guys collar and lifted him off the ground. ”Eve! What happened!?!” Sam was trying hard not to jump to conclusions but he could hear the guy in his grip gasping for air.

Cold. It was cold, but Evelyn didn't so much as shiver. Her pained figure was relieved at the icy sensation, and even more relieved as Sam stepped in front of her. As he turned, a wave of emotions moved through her. Relief, comfort, guilt... She should have been tougher than this. She should have been able to stand up for herself. She shouldn't have been out in the first place, and one bad decision rolled into another in her mind as the anger settled into Sam's figure, and he threw Avery into the wall.

The question rang in her head, and she struggled to speak. Avery's disgusted voice drowned any attempt she made to talk though, as he squirmed and hissed with what little breathe he could manage. "She's a prissy little piece of trash is what happened. Spoiled, her parents don't even like mutants and they kept her at the museum regardless of how incompetent she is at dealing with patrons. Nosy little know it --" He struggled slightly to breathe and hissed over Sam's shoulder, glaring at the figure, his rage clouding his judgement. "Cost me my job! Why if I--"

As he spoke, the echoes picked up something from Sam she hardly recognized. It wasn't there when they first met, she had seen the first traces of it during the riots though after he cut the leg of the speed mutant to help her. It was a flicker of something darker, something angry, something vengeful. Something that wasn't quite the x-men she knew Sam was, but something that seemed to have become part of his nature recently.

She looked away. She willed herself not to watch whatever would happen next.

Eve looked away was all he needed to see the words that left the lips of the scum bag who ruffed her went in the ice-mancers one ear and out the other. He heard them but they held no meaning he hit a woman, that was already crossing the line to Sam to make it worse it was someone he knew and actually liked. Sam squeezed his grab around the throat of the man and pulled him away from the wall then slammed him back into it. He tried to talk again but the wind was knocked out of him. Sam pulled him away from the wall and threw him into a pile of garbage.

”Wait, she did this she-“ before he could say another word Sam had his hand on the guys collar and he clenched his fist and threw it right into the guys face. Sam let out a grunt as soon as he hit him. Then another and another, the guy managed to push Sam off of him as he tried to get away, ”B**** is dea-“ again he didn’t get to finish what he was saying because Sam lunged for him again. He had another flashback to watching someone he loved get killed and he couldn’t do a thing to stop them all he could do was watch, that wasn’t the case here. Sam could protect those he cared about. This was his reality every punch he through into the guys face solidified that.

A crack sounded and one of Sam’s knuckles started to hurt. His hand iced over and he started to throw a few more punches this time the guy was laying on the ground and he wasn’t getting up. Sam kept punching and the guy put up less and less of a fight till his hands dropped to the ground. He was done. His hands stopped moving and he didn’t talk anymore. He couldn’t hurt Eve again couldn’t even threaten her. Sam stood up to see the bloodied pulp that was once the guys face and he let out a low exhale and he shook his right hand the blood dropping off along with the ice.

Sam looked from his hand to the body again and then shook his head. His anger and rage subsided and he looked over to Eve with his one eye and slowly walked over to her. ”Eve…” he paused and reached out with his left hand the one that wasn’t bloodied. ”You alright?” he looked back at the body suddenly upset with himself he did this in front of her.

Evelyn may have shut her eyes, but she couldn't shut out the sounds. The echoes picked up on every blow, every crack of knuckle to face. It sounded awful. Even injured and bleeding and hurt, she felt a flicker of pity for the x-security guard. His words cut, and part of her believed him.

This was her fault. She angered him to the point he attacked her, and Sam was there defending her now. Tears made her eyelashes stick, her cheeks stinging and her lip burning as the salty taste cling to her mouth. She looked up when the sounds stopped, and her eyes flickered to where Avery was left. She tried not to glance, tried not to look. Tried not to see what Sam had done.

But she did anyway. And it was an image she would never be able to forget.

Her stomach turned slightly, and she looked up at the ice mutant, holding her arms tightly to her stomach as she watched as the anger subsided. She slowly reached out and took his hand, sniffling slightly as she looked at the ground. "I'm fine..." Her voice sounded quiet, still shaking slightly from the events the night had held. She forced her weight to her good leg and tried to stay on her feet, however unsteady she felt. She swiped the back of her hand across her eyes, and trembled slightly, whether from cold or stress though, she couldn't tell. "I was bringing some food to a friend...phone died while I was out and didn't have a way to call a cab...It was dumb to be out at this hour anyway..." Her voice cracked, and she folded her arm over the freshly bandaged cut on her arm. As the fear peeled away, she just felt shame take it's place. Shame, and a little bit of concern.

She looked up and the echoes flickered across Sam's face, their remarks pricking and sticking to her mouth in words she tried resisting. She saw the anger, saw the rage, that momentary flicker of some distant memory he was struggling with. Then she saw the guilt. She wanted to forget, to pretend nothing had happened, for both of them. But instead the words moved free, and she didn't stop them.

"I'm not sure you're alright, though...The riots...now...You've changed, Sam. You're still changing. I'm just not sure who you're changing into." Her voice was quiet, but non-judgmental. Part of her was unnerved by what he had done, but part of her didn't feel as surprised as she should have been.

She heard whispers of conversation, students being somewhat distant with the ice mutant. But she didn't know why, and hadn't really bothered to ask. She figured it was his business, she didn't need to be involved. But seeing the anger, seeing the results, she couldn't stop that questioning look from crossing her face. It wasn't fear of him, it wasn't even disapproval. If nothing else, it was concern for her friend. It was like she could see something dark trying to crawl its way out, and he was trying to stuff it back inside. There was nothing anyone else could do but watch.

Sam was about to lower his left hand and stop himself from offering to help her keep her balance but before he could she took hold and she stumbled. He tried not to act shock but was slightly relieved she wasn’t as disgusted with him as others had seem to be when they saw this side of him. The side he had been trying to hide his entire life.

Eve tried to explain her self but Sam didn’t really care why she was out she shouldn’t have to be afraid to walk the streets at any hour people like that… Sam looked over to the body again as Eve continued to explain why she was out, people like that shouldn’t be able to exist that was all he could come up with and people called him the monster. Sam looked to his right hand again and willed some ice to push the blood up from the surface of his skin. Once it was no longer touching the ice fell off with the blood and he did it a few more times cleaning his hand.

>>>>>"I'm not sure you're alright, though...The riots...now...You've changed, Sam. You're still changing. I'm just not sure who you're changing into."

Sam looked to Eve and his eyebrow twitched before it turned into a frown. He didn’t know what to say to the girl at first. He looked away from her and pulled his left hand free letting go of her hand. A few chunks of ice formed in his hand and then he offered them to Eve. ”Put them on your face. You have a few cuts and bruises. Don’t want it to swell…” his tone was a soft one and he tried his best to not reveal anymore of what he was feeling through his actions though he had a feeling Eve could see it all.

”I’m not alright.” was all he managed to say before looking back to her, ”Where else you hurt? Maybe we should take you to Doc before anything gets worse…” Sam looked to the body one last time and then started to walk away from it and towards the mouth of the alleyway.

He moved his hand away, which for Sam spoke volumes about the emotions he was facing. There was no smug smile, not flirtation, none of the playful fluff he used to hide himself. He was almost vulnerable, in a ridged, defensive sort of way. He wasn't exactly talking about what was going on, but he wasn't denying something was happening. He looked drained, his calm exterior cracking and revealing the raw emotions beneath. While most people might miss what was happening, it was crystal clear to the overly observant mutant. She hated her powers for it. She hated seeing the pain, watching the transition from rage, to guilt, and the subtle confusion in between. It was a story she wasn't sure she wanted to read.

But she was reading it.

She accepted the ice, and put it up to her face, flinching as the cold stung the bruised and battered skin. She matched his frown, and swiped her hand across her face again, trying to rid her vision of the watery tears that still clung to her skin. As he moved towards the mouth of the alley, she tentatively started to follow. It was hard not to limp, and she wasn't sure the extent her ankle had been damaged. Her first few steps sent fire up her leg though, and she stopped after a few steps.

"It's...It's been a rough night... Doc might be best right now..." She found herself admitting softly. She didn't have an answer to his question. Where else seemed like a tricky answer right now. She felt like one bruised nerve, and everything hurt. "Sam...I...My ankle..." She felt like crying again. She wanted to be tough and keep walking, call a cab and get home and brush all of this off. But he wasn't the only one who was transparent tonight.

She couldn't get through this on her own.

Sam stopped moving when Eve stopped moving he was a few feet in front of her and he sighed slightly and rubbed the back of his head with his hand. ”Yeah… try a rough few months and then we can talk.” Sam said mostly to himself but loud enough to hear. ”Lean against the wall for a few seconds and keep the ice on.” Sam poked his head out of the alley way and then turned to walk back towards Eve once he was sure there was no one on the streets. She screamed twice earlier meaning cops might be on but he wasn’t really concerned for himself of the body further back in the alleyway. He was more worried about Eve.

Walking back towards the girl he grabbed a piece of his shirt and tore it at the bottom revealing some of his stomach the sound of tearing clothes cut through the silence that filled the alleyway when Eve remained quite. Sam sighed and crouched down and waved for her ankle to be lifted towards him. Once it was he quickly wrapped it with the torn piece of shirt till it was cutting off some of the circulation. Sam then touched the cloth and willed some frost onto it hoping to reduce the swelling and pain the makeshift wrap quickly revealed his experience with ‘in the field first aid’.

”Who was he?” Sam asked after a few seconds of remaining silent, he was of course reffering to the man he just beat to death. His eye shifted from the wrap to back to the body as he stood up straight. He stared at the man and anger started to flow through him once again when he recalled how terrified Eve was earlier it reminded him of… the air started to turn cold again and he could feel that no one else was with them. Meaning he didn’t have much explaining to do for the body unless he decided to make it known for what he had done.

Exhaling Sam severed his hold on the temperature somewhat. Turning his attention back to Eve he gave her face a once over looking from the split lip to the bruises blotching her skin. ”he hit you in the head at all?” Sam asked trying to be as calm as possible hoping he wouldn’t give her anything to read into.

Little by little, Evelyn got pieces to a giant puzzle, but nothing definitive. Sam had a rough few months. Rough enough to make him angry. Rough enough to make him kill. Something had happened that made the students nervous around him, and the flickers of rage and emotional swings were similar to what she'd describe as someone suffering with PTSD. He was struggling, and she didn't know how to help. Here he was saving her. She felt like she wasn't the only one that needed help though.

She leaned against the wall obediently, adjusting her posture where the bruises gave their twinges of disapproval to the contact. She frowned slightly and glanced back at Avery, shrugging her shoulders. "Used to be one of the security guards at the museum. During the riots he came up with this brilliant idea for him and a few of his buddies to kidnap me for ransom... Mirror and I sort of...spoiled their plans though." She said with a shrug, giving him the cliffnotes version. She watched as he worked, and kept the ice to her face. His next question just brought a slight nod, and she looked at the freshly wrapped ankle.

"It's nothing too bad...I didn't reboot at least, which...probably helped." She looked up at him, feeling the temperature change. She forced herself not to turn back to her shoes though, and felt the echoes prompting her to speak.

"Listen...I...I know you're not a bit talker, and you don't have to say anything if you don't want to. But I guess I'm just...I'm a little worried about you." She found herself saying. She hoped he wouldn't get upset, and tried to keep her voice as neutral as possible. "I may not know what happened, but I can see the effects. I see the changes in you, and the people around you. I didn't want to ask anyone else what happened though, because I view you as a friend and I think it's your business. I don't want to just listen to hearsay. When I met you, you were someone who came from a darker life, and I told you that you acted like someone fighting for redemption. Now, when I see you, I still see the battlefield. I don't know what brought it back, but..."

She flinched slightly as the cold settled against her leg and started to numb the pain. She looked at her shoes then back up at him. "I guess what I'm trying to say is if you want to talk about it, I can listen. One way or the other though, I'm good at keeping quiet about stuff..." Part of that was directed towards the figure back in the alley they were leaving behind. She wouldn't tell the x-men what he did, and those images would just get pressed into the corners of her mind with the other dark images.

Sam’s eye locked on Eve while she asked him what had happened. He knew he didn’t have to say anything to her and he knew she wouldn’t press him for anything but he felt like she did deserve something seeing as he could tell she was trying to be sincere about listening. His hand reached back to his head and he scratched it slightly even though there was no itch to scratch. ”……” he stayed silent for a second before he turned his back towards her and leaned forward slightly.

”Come-on, can’t walk anyways.” Sam said as he waited for Eve to hop onto his back before he turned and walked out of the mouth of the alley way where he found Eve and Avery whom he now knew more about and felt less guilty about killing him in fact he was slightly glad he did it now. He pushed those thoughts from his mind as they surfaced however as guilt started to wash over him again. He promised once not to kill again it was clear now he should have never made that promise. Part of him wanted to call up Ghost and apologize.

Once clear of the alley way ice started to form under his feat and lifted him into the air until he could form his slide that would allow them to head towards the mansion as quickly as possible even if he wasn’t going as fast as he could. ”…. What did you hear around the mansion?” Sam asked having an idea what he was going to hear. He did kidnap some kids and he did attack his friends. What she wouldn’t have heard was the part that made him into what he was now.

As Sam faced her, it felt like one of those moments that would drag on for eternity. There was too much to read when she looked into someone's eyes, and even when Sam only had one good one, there was still plenty there. He was quiet though, and when he instructed her to climb on his back, she did it in the same silence. She watched the ice form under him, heart racing a few beats as she dreaded the ride back to the mansion. Being on anything beyond solid ground got her nerves tumbling.

She could feel the muscles in his shoulders shift as his emotions did, the echoes watching him think and processing her remarks. She could sense he wanted to talk, but even she didn't know if he would. Finally, the question was asked, and she shifted her hold slightly, glancing out across the city as she spoke.

"Honestly, not a whole lot... A few of the other students said you something about you involved with some kids getting kidnapped, and considering how everyone reacted and how you've dealt with it...I guess it would make it hard being a teacher still after that. But it doesn't explain everything. Plus, I guess I tried not to listen to what people said most of the time. I didn't want to just know the gossip side of it." She shrugged slightly, trying not to shiver with the cold that seemed to be everywhere right now.

Sam nodded his head in silence as Eve told him what she had heard almost wishing she listened to the gossip. Then he could get an idea on how hated he was at a place he had called home. ”Most of the kids at the mansion only know that much and hopefully they won’t know any more.” Sam said his voice loud into the rushing wind making sure Eve could hear his declaration he hoped that was all they kids would know. ”I wasn’t just involved in the kidnapping, I was the kidnapper.” Sam said ashamed of himself as he continued moving forward over the city.

”You once said I was looking for redemption, it was true.” Sam waited a second and debated going for a landing so he could actually tell her his story the one that only a few around the mansion knew only a few of his ‘friends’. Instead he continued onward and cleared his throat, ”I never had a home going up, I wasn’t a street kid but I never had a home. The mansion was my first home.” he paused again shifting his weight and tightening his grip around Eve’s legs making sure she didn’t fall back at all. ”I’m only telling you all this so you can stop bugging me with those ‘I can read what you are’ eyes.” Sam said trying to smirk but only managed a small facial twitch of his upper lip.

”Unfortunately the people I grew up with decided that my ‘home’ was a perfect place to pick up some new recruits and the best way to get said recruits was using someone the kids trusted, someone who can move around and no one would raise an eye about.” Sam let go of one of Eve’s legs for a second to point a finger at his head, ”One of the mutants I knew since I was a kid is a telepath she specializes in controlling the body however she sees fit and the only way she can control someone is by getting in their head and making them live in their dream world.”

Sam reached his arm back around Eve’s leg and continued, ”Amanda made me kidnap those kids, only right before she made me do it she let me see a bit of what I was doing, glimpses of how scared they were.” Sam shrugged his shoulders slightly trying to make it seem like it didn’t affect him that much. ”Why the kids are all afraid of me now.” Sam said trying to sum up some of the information by leaving out everything that happened after.

Evelyn was quiet as she listened, politely taking in what he said. She let the information sift through her mind, the echoes sorting and placing it, matching it with different memories, creating a separate place for the rest of it. Her thoughts moved so fast, it was useful in situations like this. It kept her own emotions from surfacing for long, and the surprise of his statements didn't have long to linger. Kidnapping transitioned to kidnapper, the word redemption was linked to memories of his past. She caught the pause, and the shifts in his movement that said he wanted to say move, but for now, he returned to the conversation of the present.

Mind control... she couldn't imagine what that would feel like. Mostly because she couldn't dream, and the things she faced in her head were all real. She wondered if Sam could forget. If he willed it away the images would leave. She knew what it would feel like if he couldn't though. Everything in her life was clear like glass, with nothing obscuring the visions.

"I guess it explains why the kids are afraid of you. But it doesn't explain everything. You're a fighter, Sam. Before you found the mansion, you were someone else. You used to have a grip on that, but something broke it. It's more than you let on... I'm sorry, I wish I could turn off my powers so I didn't see it, so I could let you just pretend everything is ok... Maybe I'd believe it then. But I can't. And I don't." She said quietly. The ice was melting against her face, and her cheek was feeling numb. She moved it away so she could talk clearer, adjusting her grip on his back so she wouldn't slide off.

"She screwed with your mind, didn't she? More than you want anyone to know? Something she made you do, made you see, made you feel; she did more than just control you. You react to the memories still. It makes it hard for you to deal with the present. I may not really get what she put you through, but I know what it's like dealing with a lot of crap in your head." She said. She watched for the warning signs she was pushing it too far. It was a delicate balance letting him talk without making him feel like she was prying. Even when he didn't speak, the echoes just kept reading though. It was impossible for him to really say nothing. Sometimes actions spoke just as loud as words.