The icy wind whipped past Pyro as he sat on the roof of the institute. Pulling his jacket closer to his body, he cursed the freezing weather and pulled his feet underneath him. It had been three weeks since the previous ordeal with the Brotherhood, and almost everything had worked out fine. Almost.

Wiping a stray tear from his chilled face, John thought back to that grotesque night. He had killed two mutants. He remembered Mystique lying dead on the floor, a single hand clutching the bullet hole that he had given her. The crimson puddle that surrounded her matched that of her hair. No one, or anything, could die that beautifully. He was sure. Mystique died as lovely as she appeared the day John had first seen her.

Those yellow eyes would never stare into his again.

Burning Sabretooth alive was not that big of a deal. He didn't even really know the mutant so it didn't tear at his conscious too much. But still, the image of the element claiming the man's life burned itself into John's skull and he would never forget it. He remembered how he hadn't felt any sorrow that night for either of the people that he killed. But now, they were the main things that troubled his mind.

Psylocke, Toad, and Lady Deathstrike left after they realized that this was a battle that they would not win. They might have been hesitant to leave, but they were no fools. They knew when to walk away.

Madelyne Pryor had gently set Bobby, Kitty, and Rogue down. The telepath had no complaints. She explained to them that the Brotherhood had hired her to possess Gambit, as he was the stronger-willed mutant out of him and Jubilee. However, Jubilee did put up a fight when Psylocke tried to control her mind.

Jubilee was not always possessed; she made haste to explain that when John looked at her pleadingly. He wondered if everything they had been through was a lie. And now he knew that it wasn't.

John rubbed his gloved hands together and bowed his head. Gambit was on the brink of death; Wolverine had made sure of that. As of now, Remy was in stable condition and would recover in another week or so. It was possible that if Logan had injured Gambit further, Remy would have died. Toad had just possibly saved Gambit's life.

Now his thoughts dwelled on Jubilee. She had gotten the worst of it all.

Jean had thrown her into every wall imaginable, beaten her against the tile floor, run her into metal tables... It was safe to say that Jubilation Lee was a mess. Many of her bones were cracked. She had had a concussion when Jean was finished with her, but the will of Psylocke had sustained her in battle. Then was the matter that Bobby had frozen her completely. When Jubilee was melted from her icy cocoon, her body was blue and her hair, brittle. For two weeks, John stayed with her by her bedside in the MedLab. He didn't like to see her in pain, and he knew that he had caused it all.

Jean Grey was patched up and given a blood transfusion since she had lost so much. Her already white skin had paled, and she appeared ghostly thin for a couple of days. Jean had lost her appetite and had to be fed intravenously. In a couple of days, however, the doctor was back on her feet, looking very much alive. Scott had stayed with her through it all.

John smirked as the warm thought thawed his mind. Scott and Jean were perfect together. Pyro bowed his head again. He wished that he had someone like that- someone to hold and love for the rest of his life. He wasn't sure if he would ever find someone that could truly share his feelings and emotions. Maybe there was a girl out there that could open her heart to him. But then again, maybe he would be left alone forever.

Ororo Munroe made a terrible fuss over John the past three weeks. She brought him breakfast in bed, took out his laundry for him... the only thing she didn't do was lighten his homework load.

"It's good for the brain." She'd say. John rolled his eyes at the thought of his professor. She was insane, but he loved her all the same. Her bruises were beginning to fade now. Sabretooth had done a great deal on her; she was lucky that she was still alive.

As the wind died down a bit, John smirked as he thought about Kitty Pryde. She had come out of battle with no more than a few scratches. Every time someone tried to harm her, she just phased through him or her, confusing her enemy. Yes, Kitty would be just fine.

Rogue was lucky that no one disturbed her table while she was unconscious. Her broken arm was now in a sling, but she was Rogue, and she never even talked about it except to make a joke once in a while.

Nightcrawler had taken some serious damage from Yuriko in his battle with her. Yes, he could teleport and fight expertly, but Deathstrike was lightning quick, and her claws were sharpened to a fine point. Many gashes adorned Kurt's body, but he was a sport and never complained. He did, however, visit Bobby an awful lot in the MedLab. Bobby had suffered a great deal- emotionally as well as physically.

Before she left, Psylocke admitted that she had entered Bobby's mind and attacked him using her telepathy. There was no way that he could fight back, so he was vulnerable to her every attack. Bobby was still in the MedLab; he hadn't talked to anyone in three weeks. John hadn't the heart to visit him but once. That one time scared Pyro and he hadn't been back to see Bobby since.

Sliding off of the roof, John brushed himself off and headed toward the front door of the mansion. He laughed as he thought of Wolverine. Of course Logan had been the one to suffer the least damage! His mutation forbade physical wounds to last too long. John shook his head and pushed open the solid oak doors.

Warm, luxurious air greeted him as he shed his coat and gloves. The interior was bright and cheery, with laughter spread around the entire vicinity. John smiled shortly. He was going to miss this.

Quietly, Pyro made his way toward Professor Xavier's office and stopped for a moment. Was this really what he wanted to do? Well, there was only one way to find out. John knocked softly on the door and heard Xavier's soothing voice beckon him inside.

"Ah, John. Is there something I can help you with?" There was a twinkle in Xavier's eyes. He knew damn well what was on John's mind.

Pyro smirked and sat down in a leather chair across from his professor.

"Sir, I've made my decision. I want to go and fend for myself a little while- away from the school. I'll come back but..." John stopped. He struggled with all of his reasons but couldn't find the suitable words to say.

Xavier only stifled a chuckle and offered, "You want to see if you can make it on your own." John raised his head and looked into Xavier's eyes.

"Yes," He breathed. "That's exactly right. How did you...?" But he had forgotten his professor's powers and laughed in spite of himself. Charles laughed as well.

"No one here is stopping you, Mr. Allerdyce. You are free to leave. But remember," Xavier stopped for a moment, staring into John's eyes; his face was caring and compassionate, "there will always be a place for you here."

Pyro smiled, got up from his seat, and hugged his professor. This was what he wanted to do, and nothing was going to stop him.

After his short farewells to Charles Xavier, John made his way back up to his room. In a matter of minutes, he had everything he would surely need, and he trotted back down the stairs. Donning his coat and gloves again, he was about to open the door when:

"John!" A familiar southern voice floated into his ears. He smiled and dropped his bags. Turning around, he saw Rogue with a number of other students behind her.

Marie stepped up to him and embraced him affectionately.

"So you're finally leavin', huh?" He nodded somewhat sadly, but Rogue only smiled.

"Good. Now you can see what it's like without us! I don't think you'll last a week without me." She stuck up her chin defiantly but couldn't suppress her giggles. "Well, good luck, handsome." Rogue stepped back and let everyone else get their chance to say 'goodbye'.

Kurt stepped up to him and hugged him. "You be careful out there. I don't care how bad-ass you think you are. If you get any trouble," he smacked John on the back, "you don't hesitate to call. You hear?" Pyro nodded and took Kurt's hand that he offered. With that, Nightcrawler backed away and Jubilee stood before him now.

Tears were brimming in her eyes as she slowly spoke to him. She was supposed to be tough, but her heart wrenched as she stepped closer to John.

Pyro could see that she was somewhat nervous about coming closer so he started to speak:

"Jubilee, I'll miss you, and I..." Suddenly, a warm body collided with his almost knocking the wind out of him. Jubilee buried her face in his shirt and hugged him tightly. John wrapped his arms around her and stroked her dark hair.

"Jubes, everything's gonna be okay. Before you know it, I'll be back. Don't worry 'bout it."

Sniffling, Jubilee released him and looked deeply into his eyes. She was going to miss him. She felt John's hand on her chin.

"Keep your head up, Jubes. I don't wanna have to think about you bein' sad while I'm gone, got that?" The girl nodded fiercely and gave him one last hug. God, she would miss him.

Waving goodbye to everyone else that had come to wish him farewell, John turned toward the door again. He started to pick up his bags when a low, whispery voice called his name.

"'Dyce?"

Pyro felt his eyes fill with tears as he turned around for the last time. There was Bobby.

Bobby- his best friend that was there with him through everything. Bobby- the person that no matter what, he could talk to. Bobby- his friend for life.

John stepped forward and watched as his friend stumbled in his words.

Finally, his weak voice asked, "You were gonna leave without saying goodbye to me?" John's heart sank and he furiously shook his head.

"No, no, no, Bob. I wouldn't think of that. As soon as I would have left, I would have ran back to the MedLab. I couldn't leave without saying 'bye to my best friend." He watched as tears fell from Bobby's swollen eyes. Slowly, he reached out and the two friends embraced.

They stayed that way for who knows how long. The two mutants had remained friends through everything that had happened and their bond could never be stronger. This was a friendship worth keeping. Finally, the two released each other and Pyro stuck out his hand. Smiling, Iceman took it and they shook. A silent promise was made. Pyro would never forget them, and they would never forget him.

Without another word, John picked up his bags, walked through the door, and closed it behind him. Now it was just him and the world. Whatever challenges arose, he would conquer them. Whatever ordeal decided to hinder him, he was sure that he would overcome it. But no matter what might befall him, he would never forget his true friends.

*A/N: I hope you enjoyed the story, but I'm afraid all good things must come to an end. Do I sense a sequel? Weeeeeeell... maybe. Does anyone want me to make one? Anyway, thanks you SO much for reading and reviewing! :)