[hr][hr][center][img]https://s14.postimg.org/ab7ce0jmp/giphy.gif[/img][/center][hr][hr][center][i]~One make-out session later...~[/i][/center]
	Guin giggled contentedly, putting her head on the crook of Pietro's neck. The lab was blissfully quiet, with Beast likely off somewhere teaching some of the younger students at Xavier's Institute. They were sitting on the ground, leaning up against a deck - well, Pietro was leaning up against the desk and Guin was leaning on him. [color=cc33ff]"That was fun,"[/color] Guin mused, fixing her hair slightly. [color=cc33ff]"Permission to talk about something serious?"[/color]

	The instant Guin asked about something serious, his mind started racing even faster than it already was. What would she want to talk about? It was strange, trying to think about what she could be referring to, but after a moment, he decided that it was best to just dive right in. [color=7ea7d8]"Well, if it is something I don't want to talk about, I can just choose to ignore you right?"[/color] he said, giving her a grin.

	She rolled her eyes at him - he was completely ridiculous. [color=cc33ff]"You can - free country - but then you're sleeping on the couch tonight,"[/color] Guin pointed out to him. She turned her head so that way she was looking up at him, without losing her comfortable position. [color=cc33ff]"The Mutant Registration Act...Jakobsen...Does it scare you too?"[/color] She bit her lip slightly. Guin wasn't the type of politics but the MRA was everywhere. Everyone knew about it that hadn't been living under a rock. And while she had talked about it with Tony once - he shot down her idea of running to the moon if things got bad - it had been weighing on her mind slightly. 

	Pietro thought for a moment, trying to think of how best to answer her question. The truth was, he was afraid. He had no idea what to do if all of it did happen. Everything would probably go to hell, but he'd try to keep Guin safe at least, no matter what happened. [color=7ea7d8]"To be honest, I kind of am. Everything that could happen, I don't really know what to do."[/color]

	Guin nodded, but her heart sank slightly. It was one thing to be afraid oneself - another to have someone else be feeling the same way. As far as history went, things like this didn't end well. With registration would come forced relocations - the designation as second class citizens - and eventually the death camps. She shuddered slightly at the thought, and as she didn't want to even think it, she wondered if maybe Magneto hadn't been so crazy after all. [color=cc33ff]"I don't know either...I want to say that Jakobsen'll never be elected...But people like him. And they're scared,"[/color] she sighed a bit. [color=cc33ff]"I guess part of me thought...This would work, y'know? But...I don't know."[/color]

	[color=7ea7d8]"Hey, don't worry too much about it. I bet Xavier is working on coming up with something. Besides, I'll stick with you, no matter what ends up happening. Alright?"[/color] he replied, and he meant it. It was strange, thinking that about someone. The only one he ever said something like that to was Wanda, and that was because she was his sister.

	[color=cc33ff]"Even if I build a murder bot by accident?"[/color] Guin then joked. It was partially an attempt to lighten the mood, but also to steer her own mind away from this topic. She used humor as a defense mechanism. But Pietro's words did help her to feel a little bit better. Xavier had a lot of experience with this type of stuff - and then there were the Avengers. They'd help them if they needed it. Worst case scenario, they'd go to Canada (or the moon. Guin was still keen on the moon idea). [color=cc33ff]"You don't have to answer this if you don't want to...But do you ever regret leaving the Brotherhood?"[/color]

	Well, right when he started thinking about his sister, Guin brought up the one question he had been avoiding for months. Or close to it anyway. He had his reasons for leaving, reasons his family members didn't seem to understand, or even want to understand. [color=7ea7d8]"Well, sometimes I do, but not for the reasons most people would think,"[/color] he finally said, choosing his words carefully.

	Guin took Pietro's hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. She had been practicing at not switching and had gotten pretty decent at it. Case in point, despite the emotions running through her mind at the moment, she was staying firmly in her own body - no Freaky Friday'ing. She had a guess as to why Pietro regretted leaving the Brotherhood - he had abandoned his family. They were held up in the RAFT, one of the most secure facilities on the planet. Odds were, he'd never see them again. [color=cc33ff]"What do most people think?"[/color] Guin then asked carefully. 

	[color=7ea7d8]"Well... Most people think that it is either because of my love for my father, which by the way is getting close to non-existant there. Or that I agreed with everything that was going on there, breaking the law, plotting mass-genocide. Things like that. I care about my father, don't get me wrong, it's just he wasn't exactly a father figure until I was around 13 or 14 years old."[/color] he said, looking at Guin.

	She could relate to that. While Tony had raised her on paper her entire childhood, it wasn't until after he was kidnapped by terrorists in Afghanistan that he began to actually raise her. She didn't know her father until she was around ten years old. It had been an odd time - being told her father was likely killed by terrorists and she would be inheriting the company to finding out that he was alive - and a superhero. [color=cc33ff]"It's Wanda, isn't it?"[/color] Guin asked, her voice soft and her tone low - just in case anyone happened to walk back the lab. [color=cc33ff]"I'm no expert in family structures...Hell, I'm an only child...Maybe I have some half-siblings out there - probably do, knowing my dad and how careful he was back int he day - but if there's one thing I learned from the Disney Channel, it's that twins have a special bond."[/color]

	[color=7ea7d8]"Yeah, it is. Though I didn't watch much TV as a kid, so there is probably some sort of reference in that last thing you said that I don't get,"[/color] he replied, looking away from her, before continuing. [color=7ea7d8]"The problem is... Wanda and I, we've always been close, ever since we were little back home in Serbia. At least we were anyway."[/color]

	Guin wasn't quite sure how to proceed here. She knew that she had a tendency to just blurt out her mind and not realize the repercussions of what she was saying - she had gotten into a lot of fights with Mary that way. And Tony. Hell, even Pietro once. But what could she possibly say to make him feel better? There wasn't anything she could do. Her family had power, yes, but not enough power to get Wanda sprung from the RAFT. It'd be hard enough to arrange a visitation for Pietro with her - and unlikely to ever be approved. [color=cc33ff]"She's probably wondering why you left her...I think she misses you too."[/color]

	[color=7ea7d8]"Ha, maybe. Though I highly doubt it. Wanda never really was the type to care about those things. If she did I never knew about it. I remember, right after we left Serbia, we settled in a small village. This was right before our father found us, and things were great for a while, but then her powers started acting up and I raced us out of there. The village wanted to burn her at the stake, thinking she was a witch."[/color]

	[color=cc33ff]"Ugh, I don't blame her...Her powers are nuts. I couldn't even open a damn door properly,"[/color] Guin said, reminiscing on the time she briefly spent trapped in Wanda Maximoff's body. [color=cc33ff]"But people thought she was a witch - so she said fuck it and went by Scarlet Witch? That's pretty badass. If she didn't hate my guts, I'd so be friends with her. Think she's more likely to want to kill me - probably thinks I'm the reason you left, just like about everyone else."[/color]

	[color=7ea7d8]"Uh, actually, that isn't how she got that name,"[/color] Pietro said, looking away from Guin, trying to hide the fact that he was tearing up a little. Talking about Wanda was hard for him, the reason he didn't really want to talk to Guin, or anyone for that matter, about leaving the Brotherhood, and his family. [color=7ea7d8]"When we were little, our mother Natalya Maximoff, had powers too. She died, when Wanda and I were about 3 years old. A group of people, were frightened of her powers, similar to how they had called Wanda a witch. She managed to get us to her brother's home, before she went out to face the mob. She died, but she went by the name Scarlet Witch. That was what our uncle told us about her anyway. I don't really remember her."[/color]

	Guin was at a loss for words. Normally, she'd just make some sort of awful joke to try to cheer Pietro up - but his mother had [i]died.[/i] She looked down at the floor for a moment, wondering if there was anything she could say to cheer him up. Did she tell Pietro that she understood the pain he felt? She remembered when she was ten and was informed that her father had died - even if it wasn't the case, she spent three months living under that assumption. Or about the time when she was twelve and her father had nearly died again, flying into a wormhole? She decided to just let the silence hang - anything she said, she was certain, would only make it worse. 

	The silence was getting to him, but he wasn't too sure what to say. The fact that somehow he had managed to make Guin be quiet was impressive, but the reason for her silence was a little unsettling. He decided it was probably best to break the silence. [color=7ea7d8]"It doesn't really matter now, she's been gone for over 18 years now. I always thought it was nice that Wanda took up the name Scarlet Witch in her memory."[/color]

	[color=cc33ff]"Sorry if that was insensitive of me - I didn't know,"[/color] Guin finally said. She let go of Pietro's hand and pulled her hair back into a ponytail. It had been falling into her eyes during their conversation and she was getting sick of it. Plus, it was a problem that she could fix. She couldn't bring back Pietro's mother from the dead and she couldn't spring his sister from prison. [color=cc33ff]"But of course it matters - she's your mother,"[/color] Guin said, even though the words felt a little hollow to her. She wasn't on speaking terms with her own mother. 

	[color=7ea7d8]"No, it really doesn't. The only thing that really matters to me at this moment is the fact that my only family is a father who has tried to destroy the human race a lot, Wanda, who is right there beside him. Not to mention my other sister who I only met a few years ago. Talk about family issues, they generally are the reason I don't like talking about my family,"[/color] his voice sounded partially choked, and he still didn't turn to look at Guin. The whole thing just made him want to race out of the mansion, to be by himself for a little while.

	[color=cc33ff]"I feel that. My family shit isn't nearly as bad as yours but... Well, my dad didn't even acknowledge I existed until I was ten - and that was after I thought he had been dead for months. Then there's my mom - she's a piece of work. She sleeps with anything that moves, which I could tolerate - but everything to her is about getting her five minutes of fame,"[/color] Guin hesitated for a moment. She hadn't told anyone this - only Lance knew this had happened. [color=cc33ff]"I was sent to rehab when I was...I think 16, going on 17...And she said she wanted to come visit me. I was so excited - thinking that I'd have a normal relationship with a parent - but then she showed up with a camera crew. Sold me out to about any tabloid that would pay her for the recordings and photos."[/color]

	[color=7ea7d8]"That, is really cruddy. Our families are both pieces of work you know. That is one thing we clearly have in common. You know, I stuff like that never really bothered me, though all of that stuff shoots through my system so fast nothing works anyway,"[/color] he said, turning to look at Guin, giving her a smile. [color=7ea7d8]"Come on Guina, we can't sit around here feeling sorry for ourselves all day. Let's see what the rest of the mansion is doing, since being down here by ourselves just talking is probably going to make us cry a lot more."[/color]

	Guin glanced up with surprise at Pietro's non-reaction to her past. It was something she wasn't proud of - and certainly not a period of her life she wanted to go back to. She had convinced herself that if anyone ever found out about it, they'd look at her differently. That they'd only see her as a former user - and not as herself. [color=cc33ff]"Psssh. You haven't made me cry yet,"[/color] Guin pointed out. She rested her head back on Pietro's shoulder, not really feeling like getting up. [color=cc33ff]"I don't just cry for any boy, you know,"[/color] she then teased. 

	[color=7ea7d8]"Well, you better move or your going to wind up on the floor in the blink of an eye,"[/color] he said, kind of starting to move like he was trying to get up. Being down in the lab was getting a little boring to him, not to mention the fact that they had both seemed to have gotten a lot off of their chests.

	She smirked and then wrapped her hands around his arm, mockingly pinning him down. [color=cc33ff]"Sounds like a challenge, Piet,"[/color] Guin pointed out. She knew that he could easily wriggle out of her "grip" if he wanted to, but her laziness had been threatened. It was time to take a stand. And she loved labs - they always had been her happy place. Well, labs and nearly empty movie theaters. Jury's still out on which one she preferred. [color=cc33ff]"But if memory serves, I kicked your ass first time we met - [i]and[/i] I got that electrical tape I needed. So my calculations say I'm about to win."[/color]

	[color=7ea7d8]"I did try to warn you Guina,"[/color] he replied with a grin, and a moment later, he made good on his threat. Guin was now on the ground, and Pietro was standing over by the door. [color=7ea7d8]"As I recall that is because I wasn't actively trying to stop you, also, last I checked you blew the place up and I had to save everyone."[/color]

	[color=cc33ff]"Why weren't you actively trying to stop me?"[/color] Guin then asked. [color=cc33ff]"It's because of my wicked good looks, right? My sharp tongue? My Einsten-like intellect? My fashion sense? Or my taste in music? Any of those are acceptable answers,"[/color] Guin teased. She was perfectly content lying on the floor of a lab. Sure, safety protocol likely outlined that this was something you should [i]never[/i] do - but it wouldn't have been the worst violation of safety protocol she had ever done. [color=cc33ff]"Hmmm. Or were you just so starstruck from meeting me, Piet?"[/color] she added on. She lifted a hand up, as if she was trying to use the Force to pull herself to her feet. It obviously didn't work - but Guin took it as a sign from the universe to stay on the floor a little while longer. 

	[color=7ea7d8]"That is for me to know, and you to never find out!"[/color] he said, still grinning, before he started heading out. The lab was a little bit cramped in his opinion, he preferred more open spaces than that, like the main floor of the mansion. It also was getting a little boring there, and with him leaving, maybe Guin would stop being lazy. He was hungry anyway and he needed to restock his pocket supply of Twinkies.

	[color=cc33ff]"Ruuuuude!!!"[/color] Guin called out, knowing that it was entirely possible that Pietro was already far enough away that he wouldn't hear her. She then glanced up at her computer, noticing her glasses blinking weakly as P.H.I.L.'s protocol was being reset to its last save point. She imagined it'd be about another hour or so before it was done. [color=cc33ff]"C'mon, Silver Balls! No piggy back ride?"[/color] Guin then snickered, before pushing herself up off the floor, kicking her body up in the process and landing on her feet. She grabbed her phone from the table and put it in her pocket, before heading over to the lab's light switch and flicking it off. No point in running the lights when no one was working in there. 
[hr][hr][center][h1][b][i][color=0072bc]Dean Kesseli[/color][/i][/b][/h1][img]https://s17.postimg.org/5yix22r6n/original.gif[/img][hr][color=0072bc][b]Location:[/b][/color] Lounge[/center][hr][hr]	While his friends his age were off in a training session with Wolverine, Dean had been asked by Professor X to get the flyers handed out for a new tradition at the school. Every other high school in America had some sort of formal dance - usually a prom - for their graduating class. There was no reason why Xavier's Institute should be any different. He had been planning the dance with the help of Jubilee and Bobby. The theme they had chosen? Under the Sea. He was going to DJ it if he was lucky - just needed to convince the others. 

	Dean really didn't want to be that awkward guy going stag - and he had [i]no[/i] idea who he'd ask to the prom. [color=0072bc]"Hey, ladies, we're having a prom in two weeks - you should come,"[/color] Dean said, handing flyers to Carolina and Mira as he entered the lounge. His eyes flickered over to the TV, catching the last bit of the report about the Brotherhood escaping. He wasn't too sure how to feel about it. They had good intentions - just horrible ways of acting through with them. 

	[color=0072bc]"I'm Dean, by the way,"[/color] he said, holding his hand out to both Carolina and Mira. [color=0072bc]"I've seen you guys around before, never got a chance to introduce myself...which I realize makes me a bit of a jerk,"[/color] he said with a smile and a bit of a laugh. 
	
	He glanced over his shoulder, stepping to the side just in time for Pietro to whizz on by. While to other people Pietro moved in the blink of an eye, Dean was able to see the speedster and carefully move out of the way. Pietro set down Guin and Dean gave a friendly wave at the pair - he recognized both of them from around the Institute, as well as tabloid headlines. 

	[color=0072bc]"Prom?"[/color] Dean offered, holding out flyers to the pair of them.

	[color=cc33ff]"Eww, gross."[/color]