During his few days at the Xavier Institute, Dilos stuck to the same routine: tempering his body, practicing his punches, eating, reading, and resting. It was a little monotonous, but worthwhile. After a few days of recuperation, he had completely adapted to his increased strength. Even the hidden damage to his body from spending too long in the Spirit Snake Wild Dance state had mostly healed.
The Day of Purgatory had caused enormous damage, and many Mutant students and their families were still dealing with its aftermath. So although Ororo had planned to find time for Dilos to interact with the students, the school was so overwhelmed with work that she had to keep putting it off. Qin Jiayin was also swamped, helping Ororo and the others handle school affairs.
That morning, with nothing else to do, Dilos planned to follow the same routine he had kept to over the past few days. But just as he was about to start tempering his body, a few faint sobs caught his attention.
Dilos's room was in a relatively remote part of the Xavier Institute, where few people ever went. That was what he had asked for. Until he could resolve his physical problems, he wanted a quiet place where he could focus on them.
Through his open doorway, he saw a girl of about twelve or thirteen huddled in a corner, holding a photograph and crying softly.
When she heard the door open, the girl jerked her head up. Her eyes were swollen, and tears had smudged her cute little face.
"Sorry, I didn't realize anyone was here."
Apparently surprised to find someone there, she quickly hid the photograph behind her back, apologized, and turned to leave. But just as she was about to go, Dilos called out to her.
"You