Mystique growls as she rounds a corner and slams a fist into a nearby brick wall. The call she’s placed finally picks up, her phone against her ear.
 
“It didn’t work out, I take it.”
 
Thinking back to the look that Emma Frost had given her, and the psychic message the other mutant had beamed into Mystique’s brain… the shapeshifter lets out a bark of bitter laughter.
 
“No. But that’s something of an understatement, beloved. It didn’t just not work out. He’s with the Hellfire Club now.”
 
Of course, Destiny already knew that didn’t she? Mystique had long gotten used to her wife’s habit of being vague and holding her cards close to her chest over the years. Else, she probably would have been even more upset than she already was. As it is, she’s still fairly upset, however. If Destiny had just told her… well, maybe she could have stopped it. Somehow. Or at the very least not ran away from the boy at the first sign of something being amiss.
 
“… It’s not as bad as you think. The likelihood of him signing on with us was always low, darling.”
 
Mystique scoffs at that.
 
“I literally had sex with the boy! And you’re telling me that didn’t have an impact?!”
 
Over the phone line, Destiny lets out a soft chuckle.
 
“Oh, it definitely did. He’ll be remembering his experience with you for a long time, Mystique. When you realized Emma Frost was there, you locked down your mind, yes?”
 
Mystique’s lips thin out at that, but she nods her head even as she answers in the affirmative.
 
“Yes. She didn’t get anything from me.”
 
It wasn’t easy to do, and a psychic as powerful as Emma wouldn’t have been kept out for long if she really wanted to attack Mystique. But that was just it… she would have had to attack Mystique, not just toss a short message telling the shapeshifter to back off her way. What Emma had done was the equivalent of shooting Mystique a short, professional email. To continue the analogy, if she had gone ahead and tried to hack Mystique’s ‘computer’ afterwards, Mystique would have noticed and things would have gotten… violent.
 
Hundreds of years had trained Mystique on how to hide her thoughts from psychics of all power levels. After all, they were one of her main weaknesses, considering that your average psychic was more likely to recognize someone from their thoughts and mind rather than their physical appearance, which was the sort of infiltration she excelled at.
 
Regardless, Emma really hadn’t gotten anything from her. She was sure of it.
 
“Good. That’s very good. Do you understand what that means, Mystique? You left before you could tell young Thad anything. Which means that you and I are currently the only two people in the world that know his mutation also allows him to empower female mutants.”
 
Mystique’s eyes widen in shock at that. She hadn’t thought of it in that way until now… but Destiny was right.
 
“… Frost didn’t touch him, did she? Nor did she let him touch her.”
 
“That’s right. From his mind, they know that he got some of your powers. So they know about that aspect of his mutation. But they don’t know that you got a boost in turn. A boost that might even be permanent… it certainly lasts a long time in all of the futures I can see.”
 
A shuddering breath leaves Mystique at that. The boost was permanent?! She hadn’t… she’d thought, based on what they knew of what he gave to the normal girls at his school, that it would likely be temporary. But no… this was crazy.
 
“We need him even more, if that’s the case. I… can it be stacked? Is it a one time thing? Think of how your powers could be improved and finely tuned if…”
 
She trails off there, not saying the obvious ‘if you let him fuck you a few dozen times’. But Destiny still hears it, based on the chuckle her wife gives her.
 
“Oh beloved. I have considered that. I have even seen it, though things get a little weird for me when I’m looking into futures where my own powers have been improved. Weirder than usual. Unfortunately, the futures where we try to force the issue… those aren’t the futures we want to come to pass.”
 
Mystique has gotten used to her wife’s vague generalities… she’s also gotten used to trusting Destiny’s word. Still, it’s frustrating to say the least. Frowning, the shapeshifter looks back the way she came.
 
“… And letting the Hellfire Club get their hands on him results in something better?”
 
“Yes. The majority of the time, it can. He’s not just part of the Hellfire Club, beloved. He’s part of a scheme to topple its King. If that happens… well, I think I don’t need to tell you that removing Sebastian Shaw from the board is categorically a good thing.”
 
… She’s not wrong. It still bothers Mystique, to have failed. No doubt sensing this over the silent phone call, Destiny sighs.
 
“I’m sorry I couldn’t give you better information ahead of time, my love. Things didn’t crystallize until after he and Frost started talking. Once that happened, I could say with a seventy-eight percent certainty that he was going to be swayed by her offer in the end. Hellfire is going for a soft pitch this time. Offering Thaddeus freedom, independence… and security that we could not. Ultimately, the Brotherhood was always the underdog in this fight. But that doesn’t mean we’re out of the running. Not by a long shot.”
 
It's definitely a little abnormal for Hellfire to act so… benevolent when someone has something they want. But given what Destiny said about the scheming going on within their ranks, Mystique supposed it made some sense. Latching onto Destiny’s final words, Mystique pulls away from the wall she’d punched and steps back out onto the street.
 
“Oh? Not out of the running, are we? Tell me more… please.”
 
As she makes her way down the sidewalk, a slow smile spreads across her face at what Destiny tells her. This wasn’t the last they’d seen of Chad Thaddeus Cummings. And it wasn’t the last he’d seen of them either.
 
-x-X-x-
 
Ororo Munroe, otherwise known by her moniker of ‘Storm’, has been with the X-Men and Professor Charles Xavier for a while now. She’s gotten to know Charles quite well in fact. Which is why, when he suddenly leans back in his seat and lets out a heavy sigh, the dark-skinned weather-controlling mutant immediately knows something is wrong.
 
From up in the front seat, where she’s driving their car, Ororo makes eye contact with Charles via the rearview mirror.
 
“Professor? What’s wrong?”
 
Looking every bit his age, and rather weary and drawn, the Professor brings a hand to his forehead, giving it a rub.
 
“It would seem we have lost out on the opportunity we came here to pursue, I’m afraid.”
 
Ororo’s eyes widen at that, before narrowing sharply.
 
“Chad Cummings? But we haven’t even spoken to his parents yet!”
 
Charles shakes his head.
 
“He preferred the name Thaddeus, Ororo. I know I told you that. As for his parents… I doubt we will be able to sway them to go against his wishes. Especially when the Hellfire Club can afford to make a much better offer than us.”
 
Ororo damn near jerks in her seat at that, almost losing control of the vehicle as she twists to stare at the Professor incredulously. In the end, realizing she can’t drive and have this exciting of a conversation at the same time, the white-haired woman pulls over as soon as she’s able and parks the car. Then, she properly twists around to look at Charles.
 
“The Hellfire Club?! Professor, what are you talking about?!”
 
Grimacing, Professor X looks down at his hands in defeat.
 
“I’m afraid I underestimated the value that other forces would put upon our latest would-be recruit, Ororo. The boy drew more attention than just us. The Brotherhood was also in town… Raven making her own play for that gifted young man that I didn’t even notice until now.”
 
Mystique had been here?! And the Professor had missed her?! While it was true that Mystique had a lot of experience ducking psychics, that was still… no, there was no point in crying over spilt milk. The Brotherhood being around was practically small potatoes compared to the Hellfire Club.
 
“Professor, if Hellfire has him, we need to get him out, asap. We’ll call in the X-Men and find out where they’re holding him, and we’ll be able to free him… rescue him!”
 
She certainly wasn’t going to give up on the young man just because some villains had gotten ahold of him! While her first interaction with Chad Cummings had been both short and more than a little embarrassing for the boy, Ororo could tell that he had a good head on his shoulders, and that he was doing his best in a tough situation. The Professor had informed her further that ‘young Thaddeus’ as he’d called him was really quite gifted and had a rare mutation that would allow him to become more gifted over time… albeit through sexual exploits of all things.
 
But she’d been around the block a few times. She’d seen stranger mutations than that, for sure. So long as the boy didn’t turn out to be a sex offender, so long as he didn’t go around forcing himself on women… she wasn’t about to hold his mutation against him. Certainly, she wasn’t about to let Hellfire keep him, solely because they walked around dressed in bondage gear and what not!
 
“I’m afraid it’s not that simple, Ororo. Hellfire has not… taken Thaddeus hostage as you believe. They have not kidnapped him or spirited him away to one of their many secret bases. In the end… they made him a deal and he accepted. A better deal then we can offer him, at that.”
 
Wait, what? For a moment, Ororo doesn’t understand. Hellfire… not being maliciously evil and dastardly? It didn’t compute. Why would they make a deal with Chad when they could just kidnap him and do whatever they wanted with the boy instead?
 
“I have just been contacted by the Black Queen herself. She made it clear to me that young Thaddeus is to be left alone, and that he will be defended by the full force of the Hellfire Club if we try to force him into anything. That includes attempting to go over his head to his parents, I would imagine.”
 
Shaking her head, still confused, Ororo’s tone is baffled as she responds.
 
“I just don’t understand. What are they up to? What do they gain from this?”
 
Charles’ grimace grows more pronounced as he looks off to the side, through the window and into the distance.
 
“… I suspect, given what I know of the Black Queen’s nature, that she is trying something new. Rather than farm-raised… she is attempting to make a new type of meal for herself by letting young Thaddeus grow relatively uncontested out in the wild. But she will come for him one day… and she will consume everything he is and everything he has.”
 
Ororo’s breath hitches at that, her hands clenching into fists.
 
“We can’t let that happen, Professor.”
 
Finally looking back to her, Charles smiles softly.
 
“No, we cannot. Unfortunately, we must be careful in our next moves. For now… for now, we must withdraw. But in a short while, just a few more months, young Thaddeus will be off to college. I imagine then might be the best time to strike. Tell me… do you think Kitty is up for an extended, solo assignment of some import?”
 
Now that she knows Charles has a plan, Ororo’s racing heart calms down. Slowly, she turns back around in her seat and puts her hands back on the wheel. A moment later and she’s pulling back out onto the street and getting them on their way to their next destination once more. She spends the next couple of minutes mulling over the Professor’s last query, before finally nodding.
 
“You know, Professor? With a little more training, I think she will be.”
 
They share a smile through the rearview mirror at that. And if Professor X’s smile is more than a little bitter and brittle… well, Ororo doesn’t comment.
 
-x-X-x-
 
In a nice, dark office with no windows and only one exit, a bald black man wearing an eye patch sits behind a desk, going over the latest reports sent to his terminal. An increasingly dour look is spreading across his face, his lips turning down further and further as his one eye moves back and forth across a digital document.
 
With a grunt, Nick Fury, Director of SHIELD, shakes his head.
 
“Who the fuck is Chad Thaddeus Thundercock Cummings, and why the fuck is he so damn important?”
 
Obviously, he was a mutant. With Professor X and his X-men sniffing around, it was clear that he’d shown up on their little mutant finding device, Cerebro. That was fine. And having the Brotherhood also show up at the same time was… not entirely par for the course, but also not unusual. The two mutant groups clashed far more often and with far more collateral damage than Fury would have liked, though he acknowledged that the X-Men did far more good for the world than their terrorist counterparts.
 
But to have them both come up empty-handed… THAT was unusual. And all because of this Hellfire Club. What did a Gentleman’s Club have to do with all of this? Unless… Hellfire wasn’t just a Gentleman’s Club. Fury’s one eye narrows as he begins to pull up whatever information he can get his hands on. At first glance, the Hellfire Club is your standard social club for the wealthy and elite. With branches in all parts of the world, it focused most of its activities in America and Britain, the latter of whom was where it was founded.
 
Even still, there was definitely something suspicious about Hellfire’s leader, Sebastian Shaw. His name had come across Fury’s desk more than once over the years. And the others… he would need to look into all of them a bit more closely. SHIELD couldn’t damn well do its fucking job if it didn’t have the relevant information, now could it?
 
As for a way in… well, this ‘Chad Cummings’ might be just the path forward. Whatever Hellfire wanted him for, Fury couldn’t imagine it was all that different then the reasons Xavier and Mystique had wanted him. And soon enough, the boy would graduate from high school and be off to college. The perfect time to send someone in and infiltrate his life…
 
It was just a matter of who the best agent was for the job. A woman would have the best chance, if what Fury was reading about this brat was accurate. Thinking for a moment, the Director of SHIELD finally nods to himself and makes his choice, sending off orders to the agent in question. She would have to do. And soon enough, he would have his answers.