Johnny's entire body ignited. Flames wreathed him from head to toe, the heat making the air shimmer. "You did what?"
"Sit down," Reed said quietly, but his voice carried an odd quality that made it simultaneously a command and a plea.
"Sit. Down." Reed repeated, his tone unchanged, his eyes fixed on Jay with an intensity that could burn. "Everyone. Sit down and let them finish explaining before we start throwing blame around."
"Jay approached me and Scott before the kids were born," Reed said, his voice carrying the careful neutrality of someone discussing a theorem rather than their child's safety. "He explained his concerns about Nathaniel Essex, about Sinister's decades of genetic experimentation and cloning research. He showed me the data on previous cloning attempts, the patterns of behavior, the likelihood that someone with Sinister's obsessions would eventually target children with Franklin's power profile."
Reed's hands clenched into fists that trembled slightly. The only outward sign of emotional distress. "He asked permission to install a genetic failsafe. Something that would trigger if anyone tried to clone Franklin's DNA, and I said yes. We both did. Sue and I talked about it for hours and made the decision together."
Sue's expression shifted. The anger bleeding into understanding mixed with residual fear. "We agreed," she confirmed quietly, her voice steadier now. "Both of us. Because the alternative, what Sinister has done to other children, what he could do to Franklin..." Her voice caught. "We couldn't risk it."
"Jean and I made the same choice," Scott said quietly, and the words landed like stones in still water.
Jean's head turned slowly, her expression of tense agreement.
"We did," Scott confirmed, his voice rough. "Jay showed me Sinister's files on the Summers bloodline. How our family genetics have produced some of the most powerful mutants in history. All of them targeted, hunted and used as weapons or breeding stock or both." His hand tightened on Jean's shoulder, anchoring them both. "When Jay offered to install a failsafe in Nathan's DNA, something that would prevent our son from being cloned and weaponized, we argued. We fought. And then we looked at our baby boy and said yes. Together."
Jean nodded slowly. Her free hand came up to cover Scott's, where it rested on her shoulder. "We did," she said softly. "And I'd make the same choice again."
Johnny's flames guttered out. He slumped back onto the loveseat. "So all four of you knew. All four of you agreed. And none of you thought to mention?"
"Would you have felt safer knowing?" Reed asked genuinely. "Would it have changed anything except adding another thing to worry about?"
Johnny opened his mouth. Closed it. Scowled. "Okay, fine. Point. Still feels like something we should've known."
"You're knowin' now," Ben rumbled.
Nathan made a small sound from his carrier. A quiet coo of infant contentment as Luv's fingers brushed against the carrier edge. Franklin, still in Domino's arms, had gone completely calm for the first time in almost an hour. His attention fixed on the boy between the two babies like he'd found something he didn't know he'd been missing.
The fight drained out of the room like water from a broken dam.
"How did he survive?" Jean asked, her voice quiet but steady. "If both genetic samples had failsafes, if the explosion was powerful enough to register across the Atlantic, how is this child alive?"
"The universe decided he deserved a second chance," Jay said, kneeling beside Luv. He ruffled the boy's hair with a gentleness that looked unpracticed, like he was still learning how to be soft. "When Domino and I reached the epicenter, we found him at the center of nuclear fire. His body barely clung to life. But his soul..." Jay's voice caught for just a moment. "His soul was trapped in the spiritual plane, stuck halfway between life and death."
Domino shifted Franklin in her arms, her expression softening in ways that looked like they surprised even her. "I used the Death Stone to reach into that space between worlds. I found him there, crying and alone and so terrified. So I brought his soul back to his body. Anchored him to the physical plane."
She looked down at Luv with something unmistakably maternal, protective, fierce in a way that went beyond professional concern or obligation. "When he woke up, when he came back fully, he'd been reset. Whatever programming the Cabal installed, whatever commands or loyalties or artificial memories, all of it burned away. He imprinted on me because I was the one who pulled him out of death. Called me Mom before he knew his own name."
The weight of that statement settled over everyone like a blanket.
"You're..." Sue started, then stopped, recalibrating, "You and Jay are his parents now?"
"We're his parents now," Jay said with a smile that carried equal parts pride and terror. "For better or worse, through whatever chaos comes next, he's ours. Even though I have no idea what I'm doing half the time, I'm learning."
Johnny found his voice again, though it came out slightly strangled. "So let me get this straight. The Cabal cloned Nathan and Franklin, merged their genetics into one super-powered kid, your genetic failsafes nearly killed him, Domino literally pulled his soul back from death, and now you're raising him as your son?" He paused. His expression softened. "That's actually kind of beautiful. In a completely insane, only-in-our-world kind of way."
"Matchstick's right for once," Ben rumbled. "Kid deserves a shot at life after what he went through. And if anyone can handle raisin' a mini reality warper with telekinetic powers, it's you two crazy kids. Though I'm bettin' you're both scared out of your minds."
Domino's eye flicked to Ben. A brief flash of gratitude for the acknowledgment. "Terrified," she admitted quietly. "But we'll figure it out."
Luv looked up, his attention finally pulling away from the two babies to focus on the adults. His blue eyes, large and expressive in his small face, tracked from face to face with the careful assessment of a child trying to understand complicated adult conversation.
"Are they talking about me?" he asked Jay quietly, his voice carrying the particular clarity of a child trying very hard to use his best words. "What's a reality warper? Is that good or bad?"
"It's just a fancy way of saying you might be able to do really cool things when you're older," Jay explained gently. "Like how Franklin and Nathan might be able to do cool things too. But right now, you're just a kid, and that's all you need to worry about."
"Oh. Okay." Luv seemed satisfied with that answer. He turned his attention back to the babies, apparently deciding adults were boring now that they weren't talking about him directly.
"My name is Luv," he said to Franklin and Nathan, his voice taking on the formal tone of a child making an important introduction. "It means the love of both my mom and dad." He smiled, the expression transforming his small face, lighting it up from within. "I like my name a lot."
Franklin made a happy gurgling sound and waved his arms wildly. Nathan kicked his legs in what looked like enthusiastic agreement, his whole body wiggling in the carrier.
The room went quiet again. This time the silence felt different. Warmer. Less charged with anger and more filled with the kind of emotion that makes throats tight and eyes sting.
Sue cleared her throat, wiping at her face with the back of her hand, not bothering to hide the tears. "That's... that's a perfect name, sweetheart."
Jean's hand moved to cover her mouth, muffling a sound that was definitely both a laugh and a sob. "God, you two really don't do anything halfway, do you?"
"Never have," Domino said with a small smile. "Not planning to start now."
Sue stood, moving with the careful deliberation of someone making an important decision. "May I see him? Luv, would it be alright if I checked to make sure you're healthy? I'm a doctor after all, and I promise I'll be gentle."
Luv looked to Jay and Domino for guidance, his small hand tightening on Nathan's carrier. His lower lip pushed out slightly, uncertain. At their encouraging nods, he slowly stood and walked toward Sue, but his steps were careful, measured, like he was approaching something potentially scary.
"Okay, but please don't poke me too much. Mom already did checking and Dad did lots of checking too."
The casual mention of "Mom" made Domino's breath catch. Jay's hand found hers, squeezed.
Sue knelt to the boy's level, making herself smaller. Non-threatening. Her hands stayed visible, open. "I'll be very gentle. I just want to make sure you're feeling good. Can you tell me if anything hurts?"
Luv thought about this seriously, his face scrunching up in concentration. "My tummy hurt this morning but Mom made me pancakes and then it felt better. Does that count?"
"That's called being hungry," Sue said with a genuine smile that reached her eyes. Her fingers moved with delicate precision, checking his pulse at his wrist, looking at his eyes by tilting his chin gently up, feeling along his neck for swollen lymph nodes with touches so light they barely registered. "You're very healthy. Your parents did an excellent job taking care of you."
"Mom brought me back from the bad dream," Luv said matter-of-factly, like resurrection was just something that happened sometimes. "And Dad makes sure I don't hurt people by accident. They're really good at taking care of me."
Sue's hand moved almost of its own accord, reaching out to smooth Luv's hair. The touch was gentle, maternal, instinctive. She didn't stop herself this time.
Luv leaned into the touch like a cat seeking affection, his eyes closing briefly. "That feels nice. You're warm."
He opened his eyes, studying her face with the intense focus children use when trying to understand something important. "You're Franklin's mom, right?" He tilted his head slightly. "He really loves you. I can feel it. It's like... um... like when you stand in the sunshine."
Sue's composure cracked like glass under pressure. She pulled Luv into a hug that was probably too tight, her shoulders shaking with silent sobs that she tried desperately to muffle against the child's shoulder. Reed's arm wrapped around both of them, his own eyes suspiciously bright, his throat working as he swallowed hard.
Luv patted Sue's back awkwardly, the way children do when they didn't quite understand why adults cry but wanted to help. "It's okay. Don't be sad. I'm okay now. Mom and Dad made me all better."
That just made Sue cry harder. Reed's hand found the back of her head, cradling both his wife and this child who carried their son's genetics.
Scott and Reed's eyes met over the embrace. A moment of silent understanding passed between them. Two fathers who'd made the same impossible choice. Who'd agreed to install genetic failsafes in their sons to protect them from a nightmare they hoped would never come.
Scott gave a slight nod. Reed returned it. No words needed.
Reed finally moved toward Domino, his expression carefully neutral, though his eyes betrayed the emotion beneath. "May I hold my son?"
Domino passed Franklin over with the practiced shuffle of baby exchange, though her movements carried a hint of reluctance, like she'd grown attached to the calming weight of him. "He's been much calmer since Luv showed up. I think they're connected somehow, the three of them. Not just genetically, but something deeper."
Jean said, "Charles should probably examine Luv at some point. Make sure there's no residual programming buried deep."
"We'd appreciate it if you were the one to do it," Jay confirmed. "The Ancient One checked him mystically and spiritually. Everything came back clean, but we want to be thorough. The last thing any of us need is Sinister's backup commands activating when Luv hits puberty."
Jean stood, moving to where Luv still stood with Sue and Reed. She knelt to his level, meeting his eyes. "Luv, I'm going to look inside your mind for just a moment. It won't hurt, I promise. You might feel a little tickle, like a feather brushing against your thoughts. Is that okay?"
Luv looked to Jay and Domino again. At their nods, he turned back to Jean and nodded solemnly.
Jean placed her fingers gently against Luv's temples. Her eyes closed. The room went quiet.
What she found was remarkable in its simplicity. A child's mind, bright and curious and fundamentally innocent. Memories of waking up in Domino's arms, safe and warm. Jay's gentle voice explaining the world. Pancakes for breakfast. The babies who felt like family even though he'd just met them. Fear of the dark and Love for his new parents that blazed like a sun.
She found no programming, hidden commands or Sinister's fingerprints anywhere.
Just a little boy who'd been given a second chance.
Jean's eyes opened. She smiled, genuine and relieved. "He's clear. Just a child with normal thoughts, fears and loves."
The collective tension that had been holding everyone rigid released like a snapped thread.
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