Infirmary; 11am.

Shelby was home.

She had been home for approximately twenty minutes and in that time she had been ushered by a concerned friend straight to see the staff doctor at the school. Didn't even have time to change her clothes. She'd met him before a while ago after someone had mentioned that she didn't need to suffer through the healing process when a guy called Doc. Prof could literally heal you within a few minutes. She supposed it made sense, even if it was a weird concept for her to wrap her head around.

She sat perched on the edge of an examination bed, waiting to be seen by the kindy Doctor who was apparently on his way. After her trip to the hospital the previous night she had spent the rest of the night going over the incident with detectives, and then in protective custody when Roach hadn't been located at the scene. She'd been shocked to learn that he was gone and possibly still alive, but that had been quickly overshadowed by the news that Saph had been found. He was injured but alive and as far as she knew he spent the night in a hospital as well. 

After she had more time to digest everything she was told, or unintentionally heard, she was trying to figure out if she should be mad at the x-man. He'd run off again without telling her he was planning on doing something dangerous. In fact, it appeared as if he had intentionally waited for her to fall asleep before leaving specifically so she wouldn't know.

That went against their no secrets pact, didn't it?

She turned her attention away from her bandaged ankle, wincing as she turned her head, toward the door as it swung open.

Infirmary. 11:01am

He had been labeled a priority patient. They'd stabilized him at the hospital, and the good doc had seen the report and flagged him for transfer to the X-Facility.

BOOM!

The gurney shot through the door with a dizzied Saph placed securely in it. He had minor burns in many locations on his body, and he was pretty beat up from all angles, with shrapnel wounds on both sides, but mostly on the left.

Still, he was awake, and until they'd administered painkillers he'd been complaining about how he was fine the whole time. Those drugs had yet to wear off, so as he was rushed past he stared at Shelby, turning his head until he could no longer see her. Now that Doc. Prof could give him a quick healing up he gladly accepted the transfer and the removal of the meds. A little temporary pain was nothing to him. All that mattered was that Shelby was okay. He hadn't found out until hours after he'd been checked in. He'd tried to leave several times before they were forced to restrain him.

Now, though, he could focus on healing. He was rushed into the back room where the good doctor met with him quickly, and they began the healing process. He and the Doctor shared a long glance as the healer saw how he'd gotten the injury.

It was done before he knew it, but he was still a but unsteady due to the painkillers working their way out of his system. Still, he stumbled his way out of the room and toward where he'd seen Shelby.

He burst into the room and practically threw himself on her, clinging to the pink haired girl before pulling back to look her over. "Oh, yer okay... Jesus, I was so #@$^ing worried!"

The moment the door burst open and Saph was wheeled in, she forgot all about what she had been pondering. Even from the brief glimpse she had gotten of him, she could tell he was worse off than she. She watched as he was pushed to the back, past another door and to the doctor who was waiting.

A handful of minutes later the large man came stumbling back out. He was healed as far as she could tell but still seemed a little out of it. Shelby let him cling, patting his shoulder slightly until he pulled back.

She wouldn't necessarily consider her self alright... but she supposed she was better off than it could have ended up. Her ankle was pretty messed up from the running leap she had taken, and the knot on her head was turning a deep blue and purple, which was nice because it matched the neat little black eye that appeared to be forming from the punch.

She resisted the urge to comment anything to him just yet, as the kindly old doctor had trailed Saph out of the room. The older man stopped beside her bed, gently asking her a few questions as he poked and prodded gently at her various injuries. Then, he laid his hands on her and went silent as he watched through a vision of how she had gotten those wounds.

The glowing of is hands eventually stopped, and with it went away her wounds. She prodded at her forehead as the Doctor patted Saph on the arm reassuringly. "There, right as rain now."

He angled a sweet smile Shelby's way, "Very brave what you did. I'm glad you two are okay."

"Thank you." She watched as the doctor saw himself out, before turning her attention back to Saph. She was happy that he was okay. She really, really was... but now that he was whole again seeing him wheeled in like that brought back her previous thoughts.

"... He told me he killed you." She searched his face for a moment, "Looks like he nearly did."

Her gaze shifted away, dropping to her hands in her lap. "I'm glad you're okay."

"I ain't goin nowhere..."

He looked away with a shade of guilt on his face as he looked away, unable to face her after not being there again.

"I..." He sighed deeply. No lies. "Elke reached out to me after you fell asleep. We were going to investigate a place where we thought a lot of the recent kidnapping victims downtown might've been held. I didn't want to wake you up... I told myself that I would be back before too long... It was just recon. When we got there... I thought I saw him. I thought..." He gritted his teeth, facing his failure head on, and trying to force the tears back.

"I thought I could end it. I thought I could save you from him, and instead, I put Elke and myself in danger. I failed." He closed his eyes, blinking a tear down his cheek. He'd had so much pride. He thought he was invincible. He was a fool.

He needed to apologize to Elke, too... Without her there he might have died... The Minions she'd fought had probably been placed to finish him off if he survived. He thought she wasn't ready, but he'd made the rookie move in the end.

What a fool he'd been.

"What happened? I heard so many things from so many people that didn't know a thing..."

She listened to his side of the story quietly before deciding whether or not to be angry. In the end she wasn't, just sad all around. The both of them had been through some real @#%$ that night.

She reached up to wipe away that tear, and poked him square in the nose after. "None of that. How were we supposed to know he was planning something last night? We can't walk around on egg shells the rest of our lives, and you don't get to guilt trip yourself anymore for not being born psychic. Otherwise I get to beat myself up for not knowing you were walking into a trap."

She squeezed one of his hands to try and reassure him. "The baby and I are fine. And it looks like you've still got all your limbs. How the heck your face scruff always survives I'll never know."

He asked her about what happened and she pursed her lips, rolling her eyes toward the ceiling as she thought about how best to describe it.

"Well, I was asleep and then I woke up in a sack I think... got knocked on the head then woke up again in a room he had filled with various paintings of mine."

Her brows furrowed and she idly scratched the side of her belly as she continued. "He threatened the usual things. 'Going to eat your face, or feed your friends to you'... etcetera. Apparently he wanted me to paint him something. My 'swan song' he called it."

It was weird, reflecting back on all of it out loud for a third time. It felt like she had been desensitized to it already. It didn't feel normal.

"I did. Paint something that is." She focused back on Saph as she reached the end of her story. "Painted five really big, really angry versions of me and trapped him in the painting. They beat the @#$% out a him while I escaped and, well now we're here."

While she made a good point, there was simply no way he was not going to beat himself up about this for a while. Still, he eased up to listen to her story.

It sounded very much like a typical encounter with Roach up until the end, when she pulled him into her world, and took our her frustration on him... It must have been terrifying, but gratifying at the same time. In so many ways he wished he would have been there. Hence, giving himself a hard time. He'd never heard her talking about her experienced with Roach so frankly. It was almost as if there had been this huge release; a catharsis from finally turning the tables on him.

Still, would they ever really be safe? How could they not walk on egg shells? He was still out there.

For now, though, he smiled as reassuringly as he could. "Remind me never to piss you off... eh... Again." His phone buzzed in his pocket, and he pulled it out and glanced at it... A message from a number he hadn't recorded, but recognized. It said simply. Roach is dead. Forever. I did it myself. He stared at the phone for some time before looking up to Shelby.

No Secrets.

"Shelby... She got him. Megan killed him. She said it's for good this time." He believed her. She had no reason to lie... Still... A sinking feeling hit him for a moment as he replied quickly.

How do I know this isn't him?

A few moments later he smirked a bit at the short fire back: Really? Go fuck yourself. Yeah, things were going to be just fine. He looped an arm around Shelby's shoulder. "I think we need to get out of here... To the room? Somewhere else?" It didn't feel right to talk celebration about the death of another person, even though really, it was sort of worth celebrating, right?

"Remind me never to piss you off... eh... Again."

"No promises." She quipped back, then fell silent when his phone buzzed. She waited as he checked whatever it was, inwardly hoping it didn't have anything to do with another incident.

"Shelby... She got him. Megan killed him. She said it's for good this time."

The artist blinked. "For good? What, has this happened before or something?" She paused, reflecting on what the big big had been gurgling at her before. "Wait, never mind I don't wanna know." She lapsed into silence then, expression slipping a little into an unfocused stare at nothing in particular.

Roach was dead... how did she feel about it? She wasn't sure. A mixture of a lot of things. But, she did feel like some of the tension had left her body, and she hoped it never returned.

"I think we need to get out of here... To the room? Somewhere else?"

Shelby nodded briskly. "Yes. Solid plan. Let's go to the room, order in food, and I wanna drink until I cant feel feelings anymore, then--" she paused midsentence, gaze dropping to her belly before she threw her arms up and head back dramatically.

"@#$##@%$$! Okay, revision of plan. you drink until I can't feel feelings anymore, and I'll try to drown my sorrows in chow main. Then we sleep for two solid days." She nodded, plan solidified in her head. "You're gonna have to carry me there though, because I'm sure freaking tired."

She made grabby hands at him pathetically.

He opened his mouth to comment on reports of the big bug dying and coming back in the past, only to close it right back up again when she opted out. It was probably for the best. He couldn't help but grin when she began detailing her plan, That grin turned into a raised eyebrow when she talked about guzzling alcohol, and then a cross look when she mentioned him drinking for her.

He was a recovering alcoholic, after all. The last thing he needed right now was a drink.

"Check on the first part, but why don't we wait til Saph jr. is 21, and then he can drink for both of us, eh?" He stood and turned to walk out with her when he realized she was requesting a carry. With a chuckle he turned and grabbed her up, heading toward two days of doing as close to absolutely nothing responsible or dramatic as possible.

Days later, things had changed again. Thankfully for the better this time!

Why? Saph was getting old. His birthday was creeping up, and while Shelby had been planning a quieter celebration her dad had gotten wind of it. That, combined with his excitement over the baby and the closing of the Roach case, had the older soon-to-be-Grandpa going a bit overboard with gifts.

Shelby, fearing how her poor fiance would take it, had decided to fill him in on the situation lest it send him running for the hills. This. She was gently shaking him awake after a rather restful night's sleep. "Babe.. wakey wakey. I've got a birthday surprise for you." She left shortly after to get her own gift and her phone, running out of the room for but a moment.

"Alright, I'll admit you were hard to shop for, until I ran into this at an antique store and had it brightened up a little and refinished." In her hands was a long box tied with simple red ribbon and a bow. She blinked at him as she turned around.

It was his birthday. Didn't they let you sleep in on your birthday? What time was it anyway?

Time to be 35 years old... Jesus, was he really that old? It seemed like just yesterday he was in his 20's.

The grumpy old mutant was still half asleep when, in his mind, his girlfriend told him she would be right back, in a sultry voice, saying she had a 'birthday surprise for him.

Naturally, he perked up, jumped up, and got stark naked as quickly as possible, displaying himself proudly among the bed sheets in his most Fabrio pose ever. He held the pose as she walked in and fiddled with something. Oh yeah, here it came. She turned around, and his eyes widened in surprise as she presented a package with a bow.

Well, this was awkward.

Even more so, when her dad walked in.

"Well, guess I know why you're marrying him now." Colin chuckle, while nudging his daughter with an elbow.

"Dad, no.. oh god, no." The artist was rubbing her fingers on her temples with one hand while they waited outside the room while holding onto her present with the other.

"What? Can't a man make a joke anymore?"

She sighed and ignored him, turning back to knock and check and see if Saph was dressed yet. Once he was thy re-entered for a moment to collect him. She presented her gift to him again, albeit with an embarrassed blush on her face while her dad giggled childishly in the background.

"Happy birthday from me to you, love." When opened, he would find an item his crowbar collection currently lacked. She had found an older Firemans Crowbar, used by some New York City fire department at some point. It was in great condition after the restore, steel gleaming and fresh red paint for the few bands of color. She'd even had the various points and edges sharpened back to like new conditions. The thing was at least four feet long, and weight a good bit.

She waited for a reaction with baited breath.

Well, That was a surprise. He started out laying out like a platter to feast off of and then suddenly tucked and covered as quickly as possible, and then he burst out laughing when her dad told an honestly hilarious joke.

They left the room, and he quickly got dressed in an old pair of jeans and a black shirt that said in really small text 'Nosy little f**ker, aren't you?', one of his favorites. He popped out, and cleared his throat, nodding a bit and waving half heartedly. "Ahem... Colin."

His eyes widened when she handed him the present, and he opened it quickly, pulling out the long tool with still-wide eyes. "Ohhhhhh... It's a Halligan! Old one, too! Where'd you find this? They don't make them this thick anymore, or this sturdy... One of these badboys can do pretty much anything you want... Thanks babe!" He gave her a big kiss, sliding the prying end into his crowbar-loop. Woah, it nearly hit the floor. He would have to come up with a rig for it... Maybe on the back?

"I'll call it Hal. Nice name for a tool like that." Hal was gonna #$^& up some bad guys in his time, that was for sure

He paused for a moment, and then turned to her dad. "So, eh... Stopped by to say happy birthday?" He'd kinda been into the thought of staying in bed all day and netfrix and chilling, but... you know, family visit wasn't so bad, and Colin could probably still use the distraction. He didn't mind. Nah.

Nope.

Maybe for the second half of the day?

Daughter and Father watched as the Crowbar was dropped into the crowbar-holster (probably the only of its kind). They shared a silent look that said a lot, mostly questions for Shelby and answers for Colin. Yes, it was normal. Not that normal, but whatever. She had weird quirks too.

Colin took his chance to step in when Saph addressed him. The towering, gentle giant stepped closer to put an arm around his soon-to-be-son-in-laws shoulders and lead him out of the room. Shelby waddling behind at their heels. "You bet I did, my boy!" The large man chuckled, "Didn't Shelby ever tell you about how I am at birthday surprises?"

"Bursting into my room at three o'clock in the morning and scaring the @#$% outta be to celebrate the exact time I was born doesn't count as amazingly awesome in my books, dad."

Her father blew a raspberry at her over his shoulder. "I knew plenty of kids who would have been ecstatic for cake and ice cream in the morning. Such a stick in the mud, Shelly."

The artist rolled her eyes. "Say, actually... I've been meaning to ask you. Who was the gene carrier in our family for mutations? I don't think you ever mentioned one."

"What? I talked about your gramma Beatrice all the time."

".... what does she have you do with this? Are you saying she was the mutant who passed the gene on?" She couldn't pin a single memory of it ever being mentioned, well... except-

"Why do you think I was always calling her a Mutant?"

Shelby blinked. "... I thought you were being mean... Now I see you were just being uncreative. Really lame, dad." He cackled as they exited the building and into a parking lot. Right at the very front say a dark grey, four-door Prirus with a giant red bow on top.

"I heard about the catastrophe with your last car, and figured this might make for a pretty decent birthday gift!" He held out a little key fob that didn't actually have any keys on it. "Happy Birthday!

He gave Shelby a slightly panicked side-eye when her dad grabbed him up and talked about how great he was at surprised. Oh great, he was going to show up all the time when ever he decided to splay himself out naked like one of Leo's french girls. He would just pop out of nowhere and scream 'Surprise!' They had their banter as the man grabbed him and steered him out of the room casually. All the while he tried to look back to Shelby, wondering what exactly was going on.

Were they going out for breakfast or something? He hoped her dad was driving; he was still out a car, and he already had plans for his savings. A ride wasn't going to be a thing for some time. They left the building, and Colin aimed him at a car with a bow on the top. He paused for a moment, processing what this was exactly, before looking to Shelby with wide eyes, and then to her father.

"R- Really? Seriously? Holy #$%&!" He ran up to the car to get a closer look. It was... Well, it was the exact opposite of what he had before on the outside. He didn't follow different brands a whole lot, always figuring anything he ended up with would be enough generic parts that you might as well take the brand off anyway.

He glanced into the driver side window. Was that a freakin computer screen in the dash. "No way! You got me a car?! Holy, For real?" He was at a loss for coherent thought. No one had ever given him something like this before. He'd never had anything like this before!

Was... Was this real? He pinched himself. Yep, not dreaming.

He tried to open the handle, but it was locked. "Oh, yeah, keys." He held out a hand to have Colin toss them to him. The toss was a little off, but he could bend physics, so, like, it landed in his hand anyway. He paused when he looked down at the keychain to find that it lacked a key. "Uh... The key fall off?"

Colin was wiggling on his feet, hands clapping his hands 5ogether in joy at Saph's reaction. When he had attempted to give Shelby a car years earlier, her reaction had been a "No, take it back." Because she hadn't wanted to deal with all of the costs that came with car ownership.

Shelby watched Saph freak out with a little smile on her face. It was cute! He'd had that old clunker so long, keeping it running despite how it looked. It would probably be weird getting used to not having to slam the door, or jimmyrig the bumper back on.

The key fob was tossed, and father and daughter shared a laugh at saphs expense for the key comment. Colin started miming hooking his hand in the door handle, while shelby just waddled on over to show him.

"It's keyless. You just step close and go to open it, and it unlocks." She slipped her hand in and the car beeped, then unlocked. She opened the door for him to get inside.

"Keyless for driving it too. Just push the power button."

Colin danced around to the other side of the store to get in, joyous expression still in place. "Wanna take it for a spin, Birthday boy?"