This is an OC story so Whisp/Alice is mine. But I can't take credit for any of the other characters, the belong mostly to Marvel...
I pushed myself deeper against the wood, the roughness of the bark chafing against my skin. There were four of them, four strangers, ringed around me, boxing me in. Two males and two females. I sniffed judging their smells. The girl, the smallest one, she smelled the worst. There was a hint of corruption around her, like a disease or an infection. It was faded and strange, like there was a part of it missing but it would probably be best to avoid her, to avoid them all. They definitely weren't normal. They weren't a part of THEM, not a normal part anyway. The blond boy kept checking on her, sidling up and touching her arm, brushing his fingers through the white streak of her hair. He was dangerous too, I could barely smell him amidst the snow the two scents were so similar, but I could smell enough to judge that he was best avoided too, more then the big thick man, but less then the white haired woman who smelled the strongest. The reek of burnt wires rose out around her like a cloud, filling my nose with a static charge. They all crept closer and closer to me, their eyes shifting for some sign. But none were as close as the big man.
His eyes seemed to lock on me with every sweep, but of them all he smelled the least threatening. He had a nice, subtle smell, beneath a perfume of old smoke; it was musky like an animal, layered over with a sour tang of metal. The muscles bulged out on his arms, making him the most physically dominating of them all but when it came down to the...manifestations, I would guess his was the most defensive. Which meant when it came time to flee, I would probably take my chances with him.
And that time was fast approaching, I had chosen a terrible place to hide, isolated out in the open, but usually after I decided not to be found very few people got this close. I wasn't sure what that told me but I knew it wasn't good. Maybe it was his fault; I ran my eyes over the musky one, part of his manifestation. They all seemed to look towards him, like he was somehow special, and he seemed the most capable of finding me.
"Logan, you're sure this is where she went?" the blond one asked, stopping his slow approach.
"Positive. Just keep your eyes open." the big one replied, his eyes boring into mine.
They were getting too close, any moment now and the Logan one would be under the boughs of my single tree. I sniffed them again, weighing their smells against them, trying to find the weak spot. If not for his muscles I would say it was the musky one, but then there was that smell of metal. The blonde one and the burning one were no good either. And that left the dead smelling one. She was probably my best bet; if what I knew about Infections held up I should be okay as long as I kept my distance. Besides she was the smallest and the blond had his hands all over her only moments ago, if there was any danger it would be manifesting now, while she was stressed. I braced myself, ready to spring just as soon as blondy took a few steps away.
I was so intent on my target I didn't hear him beneath me, winding around the tree to stand directly below, waiting like I was. And when I leaped at last, shaking snow from my branch and leaving it swaying behind me he was ready. He leaped up, his hands curling around my legs and we went tumbling to the snow. There was no running now, so I turned on him snarling, maintaining my advantage. I slashed at his face with my strange, thick, triangular claws, ripping open his cheek and lip. He grunted but his hold didn't loosen. I lashed out again, this time striking him in the nose with a curled fist. I heard the crunch of bone and he bared gritted teeth, but his fingers never faltered. The others were coming now, running forward and dropping their weight on me.
"Careful of her head." The older woman cautioned, kneeling carefully.
"Where's her head?" the blond asked, reaching out carefully, looking for something to hold onto. My claws tore through his thick leather sleeve, leaving one of his arms raw and bloody. He fell back with a yelp of pain and surprise, fingers curling around his bleeding wrist.
"Storm!" the man holding me commanded and the next second a thick blanket of snow was falling all around me, coating my furs, while at the same moment a fierce wind blew away everything else on the ground. I was exposed I knew, or at least enough of me was that the blond and his girl were able to find my arms.
I'd been right, the girl was weak; she had to apply all the force in her body just to keep my hand on the ground. The boy was a different matter; he crushed my forearm into the dirt even with his injury.
"Now what?" the girl asked in a lulling accent, looking up at the white eyed woman above her.
"Now we just have to get her back to the professor." the woman sighed, eyes clearing.
The Logan man took over my arms, curling them around me and holding them tight against my chest. Even unable to see me he knew what he was doing. Maybe they were mercenaries sent to bring me in, but I didn't think THEY would hire the Afflicted no matter how much they wanted me brought in, it went against THEIR code, and I had never heard of a professor before... so who were these people if not THEM and what did they want with me? I fought every step of the way, though it was useless, the man was too strong and pain seemed lost on him. He didn't complain about his face though it must have been hurting him. I twisted my head around to look to see if maybe the pain was in his eyes, but I couldn't see his face, just the underside of his jaw. I lunged up cracking my head against his chin. I heard him curse, and he stumbled slightly, but there was no change in the pressure around my arms.
We only went a short way, and then there was a massive black jet, just sitting there on the mountain waiting for them. For us. He lugged me aboard, the dramatic temperature change made me feel suddenly cold and I began to shiver violently against his chest. I watched helplessly as the hatch closed behind us and I was sealed off from my world. A cold world sure, made up of snow and wind and unforgiving rock, but a safe world all things considered. An animal didn't hunt what it couldn't see, and it didn't kill what it didn't know. Usually. The jet hummed to life, I could feel it vibrating beneath my feet. He let me go as we rose up into the air.
I lunged away from him, finding a nice quiet corner to press myself into. I had never been in a plane before, but I had seen them in movies in the BEFORE time and I didn't trust them as far as I could push them. I could feel it rocking subtly up in the open air, thousands of feet away from any sort of ground. I kept my eyes away from the vast clear windows in the cockpit, keeping them instead on the people that moved around me. They were Afflicted, my nose was never wrong about that. I watched them move, trying to gain a perspective of their...gifts. But there were no indications, that I could see... the white haired lady flew the plane, so she remained sitting for the most part, focused. The younger ones were normal, shifting and stretching just like anyone. And the man seemed as uncomfortable with the plane as I was. He sat rigid in his seat, muscles bulging, eyes darting every which and way.
"Do you think that was smart?" the blond one asked, his eyes taking in every inch of the plane. "Letting her go like that?"
The man turned dark eyes on him.
"You want to hold her?" the man asked darkly, trailing the blood stains on his face. I jerked in surprise, but years of habit kept me silent. They were gone. The deep red gashes I had tore into his face were gone, like they had never been. "She's in the corner." the man grunted, jerking his head in my direction.
I froze, feeling two sets of eyes slide over me.
"How can you tell?" the girl asked.
The man tapped his ear.
"I hear her breathing." he glanced in my direction.
Well that was a problem. Holding my breath and moving as quietly as I could, I inched my way behind the young couples seats, hoping their sounds would be enough to mask my own.
"That's not gonna help." he pulled a thick cigar from one of his pockets and pinched it between his teeth, but he didn't light it. I dared a small hiss in his direction and he smiled. A small, self confident smile. This time I kept silent. Nobody talked to me, nobody looked at me, for very long, and eventually I found myself being lulled by the gentle movements of the plane and the soft buzz beneath my hands. My eyelids drooped and the next thing I knew the jet landed with an awakening thud.
I was awake instantly, lurching into an upright crouch. All of them were gathered around me, the white haired one just coming from her chair, but only the man was even remotely looking at me. I bared my teeth at him even though he couldn't see.
"Now what?" the pilot demanded.
The man looked around. Then he started walking purposefully away.
"Gimme a minute." he came back with a water bottle. He unscrewed the cap carefully. They were all looking at him funny, myself included. And then- Ack!
He threw the water in my face! I sucked up a great nose full, so shocked that I lost my invisibility snapping into sharp, solid focus. Still choking on my sudden face full of water I leaped to my feet and attempted to dart away, forcing my way between them.
"Don't even think about it." he growled locking his arms around me. I growled back but held very still. I could feel all of their eyes, staring into me, seeing me, but I held off going invisible, knowing what would happen with him that close. "Walk." he demanded and I did, slowly and carefully, taking in everything that I could.
It was built entirely of cement, the room we exited into, cold and hard and I felt a chill go through me. So this was it, I was going to be locked up again. Shoved into some dark closet and hung up by my hands. Maybe the professor would experiment on me like HE did. Maybe he'd already done it to them, planted something, some sort of control...or maybe they were just morbid. Or cannibals. Maybe they were going to eat me after the professor was done with me.
Nobody's going to eat you Alice. If you'll just calm down everything will be explained.
I skidded to a halt as the voice whispered through my head, soft and reassuring, and yet so entirely un-reassuring. They hauled me up some steps and into a vast garage, filled with all sorts of sleek, sporty looking cars. I scanned the walls for guns, or knives, computers, but there was nothing but blank cement. This wasn't all that reassuring either. Through a large set of doors into... oh...
Well it didn't look like a place of torture and despair, it was very plush and upscale, polished wood railings on broad sweeping staircases, thick foot swallowing carpets, gargantuan windows, vaulted ceilings, whatever they were hiding they hid it well. The drapes were long and velveteen, with crystal chandeliers swaying from the ceiling. I wondered if either of those would be strong enough to hold me? It might be a good place to hide if I ever got away from musky here...
I would appreciate if you would stay off the wall fixtures for now, at least until we have a chance to talk.
H mph. No promises there. We started up one of the massive stairways, the man pushing me all the time. Faces peered at me from doorways, young faces mostly, with a few adults sprinkled through. I studied them critically for the one second that I saw them, searching for signs of abuse. But they all looked well-fed and healthy, one of them even smiled at me... mind control was definitely a factor to be considered. I yipped in surprise when a man appeared in the center of the hallway. A blue man, covered in strange symbols, with claws much like mine-but uglier, I thought anyway.
"Ow deed it go?" his accent was even stranger then the girl's, German or something like it, and he had a soft, humble voice that I found extremely odd.
"We got her didn't we?" the Logan one said gruffly, holding up my arm like I was some sort of prize. The white haired one shot him an irritated look and smiled at the blue man. They disappeared behind us and then it was just us four. The icy man, his girl, the musky one and me. All in all I felt a little out of place in the gathering. Icy raised his hand to knock at a big wooden door but a voice cut him off.
"Come in Bobby."
I couldn't help growling slightly, it was the same voice that had been talking in my head. The growl got me some looks from my 'companions', and then the big door was opened and I was ushered into the room beyond. It was surprisingly small, filled with books and couches with a view that overlooked much of the grounds beyond, including a little duo of tombstones set up in the lawn. I spent a long moment looking at them, wondering at the stories behind them. Not that it was any of my business.
"Hello Alice. You can let her go now Logan."
I turned my attention to the old man in a big shiny wheel chair sitting in front of the window. He was bald. Amazingly so, not a strand of hair anywhere on his head, it was extraordinary. He had a calm, unassuming demeanor, with a soft pleased looking smile that seemed a common feature of his face. And he smelled like dust and old paper, which might have been because he was old and looked to spend the majority of his life in a library, and it might have been because his manifestation was mind reading, they all generally smelled the same. I suspected the latter, and I instantly set about thinking of trivial things, like falling leaves and the shape of river rocks and how bad squirrel tastes.
"I've been looking for you for a long time you know. You've been through quite an ordeal."
Don't think about it. Don't think about it. Don't think about it. If you think about it it's real, ignore it and it will go away. They'll all go away.
"Alice please, we only want to help you."
Lies. Lies. Lies. Don't believe it. Don't get reeled in again. The whole world is against you. Probably. The world that knows you is against you, everybody else could care less. Stay alone, stay strong.
"You should listen to him. He really does want to help."
What the heck! I whirled, sinking into a crouch. She was tucked away into a corner, shrouded by dark wisps of shadow, but I definitely should have seen her when I came into the room, or at least smelled her there. I sniffed at her. Odd. She had no smell. Nothing. I took a really huge whiff. Still nothing. I really couldn't smell her.
"Who Alice?" the bald guy asked, concerned. Everybody else just looked bewildered. Especially the musky one, he had a really cool trick he could do with his eyebrow, it arched beautifully, giving him the perfect cynical look. Maybe the not smelling was a part of her manifestation, like the being invisible. Maybe she was like me..."Alice, who is like you?" the old man asked again, coasting his chair forward. I was too absorbed to really acknowledge him, but I spared him a glance.
"I'm not like you Alice, at least not for the same reasons... I used to be like the professor, a little. And I was telekinetic, before..."
Before what? I didn't say it out loud, I figured since they couldn't hear her it wouldn't make a difference. Plus she was a telepath, or had been...
"I prefer not to talk about it." she said apologetic and I dropped the subject, I knew what it felt like to want to avoid something. Of course that didn't leave us much to talk about except...do you trust them then?
"More then anyone, they'll help you."
Really? Cause right now they're just giving me bruises.
"That's just Logan, he'll soften up. He's a little like you, he doesn't trust just anyone."
Does he trust you? Cause I did, for some reason, and if he did that was a definite vote in his favor. She opened her mouth, but nothing came out for a minute and then...
"Yes." she said, very softly. And that was enough for me...well, it was enough for me to relax my shoulders anyway.
I turned back to the bald guy, staring at him for a long time, conveying my wants telepathically. They weren't much, just introductions, explanations, properly cooked meat. Maybe some real clothes. He cut to the chase, didn't waste any time trying to talk about what had happened in the last few minutes, or bring up my ordeal, and I was grateful for that, even if I still didn't entirely trust him.
"My name is Charles Xavier. This is Storm," he indicated the white haired chick, who I hadn't even noticed entering the room, "Curt" her blue friend, "Marie" the dead smelling girl, "Bobby" her guy friend "And Logan." who I knew already. Sort of. "They brought you here to my school for mutants, to keep you safe." and why exactly did they want me safe? "There will be clothes in your room and dinner at six, if your hungry." he continued, ignoring my question. Well, I might not have gotten all my answers, yet, but I'd gotten enough that I didn't mind taking advantage of the situation. Good bye fleas, hello laundry!
"Marie, would you mind showing Alice to her room?" the bald guy asked, oh so politely. The girl glanced at me uncertainly. I showed her my teeth warningly, until something hit me upside the head. My teeth clicked painfully together and I whirled. The musky one, Logan, lowered his hand, giving me a dubious look.
"Behave." he demanded and I tried to look scornful, while backing carefully away. He hit like a crowbar, obviously that metal smell had more to do with his manifestation then I thought.
"Your sense of smell is truly remarkable." the professor told me, smiling that gentle smile. "Logan has something similar, but it does not quite go that far."
I glanced at Logan, he was frowning at his professor, one eyebrow arched.
"What does she do professor?" the white haired one, Storm, asked.
"She can smell mutations."
They all glanced at me in surprise.
"How?" the young girl asked, in that strange lilt of her's.
"Well, she doesn't always know what they are, but she can smell the... essence of them. If they're dangerous, defensive that sort of thing. She knew instantly that I was telepathic, apparently we all smell like dust."
"Dust?" Logan inquired. The professor made a small noise in agreement.
"I suspect it has a lot to do with her subconscious, her mind trying to give her as much of a hint to our abilities as it can. It's all about how she thinks of things. She doesn't know it but when she smells us what she's really doing is sensing our abilities. Smell is just the way her mind makes sense of it."
"Fascinating." Logan said sarcastically. "Now if you don't mind I'm going to go take off my 'super suit' before my lungs give out."
"Marie...if you would." the professor nodded in my direction. She gave him a timid smile and then turned in my direction. I thought of snarling at her again, but my head was still ringing from the first blow and the guy who hit it wasn't out of range quite yet. So I just stood real stiff and waited for her to go first. She did, the inviting smile leaking off her face.
My instinct was to crouch, and slink across the ground so as to make myself less of a target, but it didn't really fit the landscape so I walked, standing as tall as I could. Being taller then her was at least a little comforting, if it came to a fight I was pretty sure I could win, as long as there was no 'cheating' involved. The place was huge, with more doors just on the ground floor then I think I had been through in my whole 22 years, granted there weren't a lot of doors on the mountains but still, it seemed a substantial number.
"Marie." the girl told me suddenly, as if the professor hadn't already. I forced what I hoped was a polite facial expression. She shrank back a little, looking at the floor. Maybe not so polite after all. There was an awkward silence and then... "Your Alice right?"
I grimaced. Alice wasn't a name with very many good memories. I wondered if the professor knew that? I tried to open my mouth and tell her no, but my lips seemed stuck together. I hadn't spoken with anyone in... at least eight years. Maybe more. And most of my talking in the three or so years before that had been screams so... it wasn't really a skill I kept up on. Not a lot of animals want to have conversations, especially if they're dead. Or going to be dead.
"Here's your room." she gestured at an open door.
I crept inside. It was big, bigger then the professor's little study. With a massive bed, that had a blanket and pillows! I pushed a hand into it. It was soft too! I pushed with both hands, probably smiling like an idiot. I moved up to the pillows, running a hand across their silken covers of cotton. Wow.
"Here are some clothes."
I spun; I'd kind of forgotten she was there. She offered me a cloth pile. I took it and sniffed it judgmentally. They smelled...clean. I'd almost forgotten what it was like. I buried my nose in them, taking big, exhilarating sniffs. She stood awkwardly in the door for a minute, and then inched out with a shy wave, closing the door behind her. I probably should have said thank you. I thought of yelling it after her, but years of silence stopped me. I walked around the perimeter of my room, feeling the walls, opening the wardrobe, sniffing the clothes.
There was a door on the right hand wall and I peered through it. A bathroom! A clean bathroom! With an actual bath! I bounded in, gazing around me in awe. Everything was so clean and white. A mirror took up a fourth of the far wall and I jerked back when I saw my reflection. Mirrors are more telling then rippling water and it had been a few years since I'd seen one, or seen myself in one I should say. I was hideous. Really terrifying. Now I knew why the Marie girl had been so afraid. My hair was a mess, if you could call it hair, it was really more of a dirt clod. There hadn't really been any place to wash it, except subfreezing rivers and I tended to avoid those. Unless I was thirsty.
I didn't really recognize my face under the dirt, I looked kind of like a monkey, to be honest, and I wasn't really sure that was fair to monkeys. I spat on a finger and trailed it down one cheek. It left behind mud. But the really terrifying part was my furs. Sure they'd kept me warm, but... I wasn't even really sure what to say about them. They were wrapped helter-skelter around my body and secured there with bits of rope, wire, even some fishing line. They were matted with mud, and you could actually see the fleas jumping amidst the hairs. I tried not to be sick as I tore them from my body. It probably would have been best just to burn them, but I didn't have any matches so I shoved them into a garbage can that was tucked in a corner, smashing them down with a foot. Then I took a very long, hot, bath. Three of them. Because that's how many it took until the water stayed clear. Mostly clear.
When I was clean, and clothed (I'd forgotten what clothe actually felt like...it's nice.) I poked my head into the hallway. It was mostly clear, just a few wandering 'students', no threatening adults anywhere to be seen. I went invisible. It was just safer that way. Now it was time to explore and see what secrets lay hidden behind the luxury. I crept out, frowning when the floorboards creaked. It was a lot easier to be silent when the ground itself didn't betray your position. But nobody was looking for me, so I was safe. Or should be. There was no clues, no hints to something worse, everything remained plush and upscale. It was mostly bedrooms, some bathrooms, a few massive gaming rooms, I found the kitchen but I didn't stop for a snack, that sort of thing would be noticed, and then I found it. The entryway into the depths of this place's soul. Its depths were, quite obviously, down, below the main floor, that's where the elevator opened into something straight out of a science flick.
The walls were pristine white and the wood fixtures had turned to metal, the chandeliers replaced by long florescent light bulbs. There were no windows, anywhere on these floors. I moved with caution, sniffing every corner. The place smelled like a hospital. One room even looked like a hospital, it was filled with strange blinking devices, and steel tables that looked decidedly medical. I backed out of that slowly, a small shiver running down my spine. I knew experimentation was inevitable! But for them to do it to their own kind! It brought me to a new level of disgust. Just then I heard voices down the hall, one of which was all too familiar.
I spun, looking for a good place to hide but unlike the ground levels these floors were pretty much devoid of concealing furniture. And then I remembered I was invisible. It's funny how you can forget things just because there are people around. Of course being invisible hadn't stopped them from finding me before. But that was when they were looking for me... then again some of them seemed to have an uncanny knack for finding me... I didn't really have time to think about it, the voices were getting closer. I held very, very, still.
"We don't need a doctor." That was the familiar voice, the musky one's voice. Logan.
"No? What happens if one of the kids gets sick? Can't take 'um to a hospital Logan." there was a brooding silence after the stranger spoke. "Look I get why you don't want a new doctor."
"Don't." Logan warned.
"But it's not just about you. It's about the kids." the voice continued, like he hadn't spoken. "The professor will find a good doctor. Heck, it might even be a nice red headed dame just for you."
There was an ominous slicing sound.
"Watch it bub." I heard Logan growl, the voice laughed.
"Bring it on Teach."
"I've cut through metal tougher then you Tin Man." there were sounds of a scuffle and then more laughter. I could see them now, patting each other's backs. Logan, and a younger man just as thick with muscle, with close cut black hair and a chiseled face set with dark eyes. The stranger's eyes seemed to catch on the door I was standing in and I saw rather then heard him sigh.
"I'll see you later."
Logan nodded a farewell, but I could see that he had been distracted; he was looking around with hyper vigilance, nostrils flaring occasionally. I held my breath. The stranger passed dangerously close, so close I could feel the heat coming off him and smell the metallic tang of his manifestation, more sour then Logan's subtle steel. Logan was getting closer, hands balled into tight fists, something straining beneath the skin. Tendons maybe? Bones? I had no idea. I wasn't big on anatomy. I stepped back a silent inch. He stiffened. And then relaxed suddenly.
"What are you doing down here?" his hands relaxed, the tendons disappearing. I didn't say anything, hoping he would go away.
"He's not going to leave."
I stopped a jump of surprise. The red head from the study was back, leaning in the doorway, arms folded over her chest.
He could. I argued silently, still daring not to breath. She shook her head with a small sad smile.
"No. Once Logan decides on something he doesn't give it up, not till the last second." she looked distant for a moment then her eyes fixed back on me. "He knows your there, and he's not going to leave until he knows he's right. Unless he doesn't think it's worth his time. But this is worth his time. The best thing to do is just give him what he wants."
No. She raised her hands helplessly, but said nothing, watching Logan fondly.
"Hey," Logan's hand came up, finger pointed as if to poke me in the head. I ducked quickly, the bruise already on the back of my head throbbing anxiously. His hand whipped through where I had been and he froze, eyes moving slowly, nose working. I started to back away, hands reaching out behind me and of course...the floor creaked. His hand shot out. I ducked, jabbing my own fist into his stomach. His rock hard stomach. He barely grunted, but I heard him grit his teeth angrily. And where before he had only meant to grab, now when his hand shot out his fingers were curled. I blocked another blind swipe (because when you're fighting an invisible person that's the only kind there really is) and returned with an elbow against his nose. Blood ran down his face briefly as he stumbled into a crouch, teeth bared. I hesitated, glancing behind me. That was all he needed.
He leaped forward, wrapping iron arms around me. I don't know how he knew I wasn't looking at him, all I knew was I was getting seriously annoyed at being caught so often in one day. I smacked my head against his...and instantly saw stars. Wow. It was like hitting a moving van with my head. Only his head wasn't even moving! I swayed, dazed, very nearly knocked out cold. My invisibility flickered and when I went clear again I took him with me. He could see me, I knew. One of the perks of being invisible was being able to see other invisible things but to anybody else the hallway would be empty. He yanked me around, pinning my arms behind my back.
"I'll ask again...what are you doing down here?" his voice was low and menacing and more then anything I wanted to reply, if just so he wouldn't squeeze my arms so tightly. But my tongue just wouldn't work, not even now. I twisted around to glance up at him, to show him the pain in my eyes. He stared back at me and hesitated for an instant.
"Let her go Logan, she wasn't doing anything wrong. Merely curious." I glanced around at the professor's voice.
"Yes, we wouldn't want you taking the arms off of Charles' new pet would we? Especially with no doctor to care for her afterward. Isn't that right Logan?"
He dropped my arms and spun around to face the smooth voiced stranger, I quickly made him visible and retreated into the safety of the empty medical room.
Logan took a threatening step forward.
"Logan." I saw the professor give an infinitesimal shake of his head.
"Down dog." the stranger said smugly. Logan bared his teeth.
"Logan." the professor cautioned again. "Erik, please."
The stranger spared him a glance, and then turned to look into the medical room, in my direction. What was with these people? Couldn't an invisible person hide from anyone in this house?! I inched back, sniffing as quietly as I could. Another metal smell, or maybe it wasn't metal... it was like metal...but different somehow, and weak...so weak. Strange.
"Why don't you come out here where we can see you my dear." the stranger invited warmly, eyes moving greedily around. I bared my teeth like Logan had, but quieter, not even allowing them to click together. There was something off about this man, and it wasn't just his weak smell. I didn't trust him, he reminded me too much of...HIM.
"Careful Erik, it's been many years since Alice has had to deal with people, she may have a very bad reaction if you-"
"Come now Charles, what could a little girl possibly do?" he scoffed, blowing their professor off. "No doubt she's hiding in some corner, isn't that right my dear? Wouldn't want anyone finding you. Would we?"
My skin crawled as I looked at him, at the possessiveness already leaking across his face, so very like HIM, too like HIM, almost as if... but no, I knew what HE looked like and his name wasn't Erik. Surely the professor would know if he was lying. Unless he was in on the lie and this was all just a trick to begin with... of course it was, what was I thinking! All people ever did was use you: these people were no different. I'd let myself get sucked in again! Why? How stupid was I? And now I was trapped. There was no way out, no windows, seal able doors, they would find me... they would take me back. Back to THEM, to HIM.
There was no being quiet now; my breath was coming in short desperate gasps. It was the only reason they would take me in. The only thing they could want. There was always a reason. Always. Every time. Maybe they had been blackmailed? Bring me in and HE wouldn't go after them. Maybe that was it; maybe they'd had no choice. I could respect that. Sympathize. But it didn't change anything. I was never going back to HIM. There had to be a way out... some way to escape. This Erik guy looked pretty weak... I could probably brush by him and the professor, and then it would just be a matter of avoiding Logan until the ground floor, and everyone else after that.
"Alice, it's alright. Please, calm down. Nobody is going to hurt you."
Yeah, I wasn't going to believe that again, baldy, not again...
"Alice come on." the red head was back, crouching in front of me. "Do you really think the professor would hurt you?"
To protect his family, yes.She shook her head, giving me a small smile.
"Alice professor Xavier is a very powerful man, with a lot of people behind him. If anybody threatened his family, he could protect them. He's done it before."
Then...he's just a bad guy. I frowned uncertainly.
"No, the professor is a very good guy. He just wants to help you Alice."
And Erik?
"Erik...well, he's another story. The professor is trying to help him too."
Could I trust her?...
"Who Wisp?"
My head snapped up, eyes locking on the professor. He'd known. He'd known I hated the name Alice and he's chosen it anyway! He'd even known my name. The name I liked. The one I'd been using since...
"I believe all names should have some good behind them Alice, changing a name does not change who you are... or what happened to you. It doesn't even help you forget. Your name is something you always have to live with, something that comes with you past the obstacles of your life." he trailed off for a moment. "You get to start over here, a new life. One that may help you remember your name more fondly."
I stared at him, trying to figure out if I believed him. If I believed any of it. The story or the name. I heard the stranger mumble my name to his self, Wisp. Then he snorted as if amused.
"It's fascinating isn't it Charles? The way we name ourselves... and particularly after a traumatic event. Look at your little Rogue, but of course it's Marie again now, isn't it? And Logan, with his Wolverine, and myself of course."
"The way I remember it Erik you didn't come up with your own name."
"Yes well, I was trying to start a new world Charles, I didn't have much time for those sorts of things. Nevertheless I adopted it for my own. Until those curs stole away my right to it." a dark glare took over his face. "And they will steal yours too my dear. If they don't think you deserve it. Imagine, taking away a person's birth right, it is like cutting off one of their arms for thievery...and I thought the world was past such petty retribution."
"Erik" the professor began warningly, but Erik continued talking.
"They'll rip it from you my dear, expose you, send you back where you came from and you'll never be able to escape into the background again. You'll be trapped, stranded... deserted."
My panic was building again, my heart hammering in my chest. No...no, they wouldn't do it. I wouldn't let them, they couldn't take it away... they can't send me back. Not to HIM, not to THAT... I looked at the strange man's face, at that smug certainty, the little less then cold indifference. I looked at the professor's stricken face and I knew it was true, they would take away my obscurity, betray me to THEM, if not the professor then this man that stood beside him. He would do it. I wasn't going to let him.
"No!" the professor and the red head beside me screamed in unison as I leaped forward, hands outstretched, fingers curled into wicked claws. Logan leaped only a moment after me, flying toward me as if guided by a sixth sense, or by a bald telepath. We collided for what felt like the hundredth time that day. I snarled, bringing up my claws to slash wildly at his face. His hands curled around my arms like iron bars and his weight forced me into the floor, so much heavier then he should be. Blood poured onto my face from the gashes I gave him, hot and salty. I shrieked and twisted, trying to free myself. I got a brief glimpse of the stranger, his face oddly pale and twisted, like he had seen a monster. Or heard one. Then he righted himself, and with a dramatic flair of one arm he stalked off.
"Logan, take Alice to her room."
Wisp! I wanted to shriek, I am Wisp! But I couldn't breathe, let alone talk.
"That should be easy." He grunted, still holding my arms to the floor. The red head walked up behind him and knelt beside me, offering me her hand.
"Come on Alice, Magneto isn't worth it."
Who?
"Erik."
I forced myself to calm a bit. Forced my muscles to relax, if I believed nobody else I believed this invisible woman that it seemed only I even knew existed. Logan rolled to his feet, offering me his hand. Dabbing at a bloody lip I had gotten somewhere in the scuffle I regarded him, coldly. Then I took his hand and stood up. He had strange bones, hard, even when layered with skin. The blood on his face made him smell extra musky and I took a deep breath. His fingers tightened on mine and he looked at me hard for a few long minutes. He wasn't going to give up; the red head's words came back to me.
Doing my best to appear dignified I snapped into visibility. I wilted almost instantly as his eyes gripped my face. I could feel his blood on my face, still dripping slowly. Feel the bruising on my cheek where he had slammed it into the floor.
"Come on, we'll get you cleaned up."
I licked my lips, and winced when I tasted the blood. Keeping my eyes on the floor I followed him. I could feel people's eyes on me, even though the hallway was empty. We went back to the occupied part of the house, and then the eyes were real and my visibility flickered.
"Keep up." he cautioned, turning his hard eyes on me. I glared at him and didn't speed up. He glanced back, and I took a deliberately slow step, long and exaggerated. I thought I saw the briefest smile turn up his lips.
I got cleaned up and changed into new clothes, although they all looked exactly the same, gray sweatshirt and loose black pants, and when I was done I went back into the hallway. All without going invisible. Logan was gone of course, no reason for him to stick around. I stepped boldly into the hallway, amidst the masses! And my resolve quaked. There were so many of them! Scampering every which and way, their eyes seemed to gravitate towards me. I was taller then most of them, older, but that didn't help. All I could see was their hands pointing at me, all I could hear was their multitude of voices screaming HIS name. Calling HIM to me.
"It's alright Alice, I'll stay by you."
I turned to the constantly re-appearing red head and gave her a timid smile.
Thanks. She smiled back.
"I'm Jean. Jean Grey."
Wisp. I told her with some relief. She cocked her head, debating.
"Alice..." she hesitated as I winced. "The professor is right. HE'S taken everything else from you are you really going to let him take your name?"
I didn't have an answer to that. What sort of answer could there be? Yes? So I walked in silence for a while, following someone, I had no idea who it was. I had no idea who anyone was, sure I knew a few names but what did that really tell me? I knew what my gut told me. It told me I could trust them. But my gut had been wrong before... a lot of times before. I didn't even know who this Jean person was, although I half suspected she was a figment of my imagination. I watched the children running around me, who were they? Where were their families?
Jean? Who are you? What is this place?
"What do you mean?"
The professor said it was a school.
"Yes." she agreed instantly.
Is that all it is?
"No, it's also a...a sort of outreach, a safe place for mutants who have nowhere else to go..."
People like me?
She didn't say anything.
And who are you? How do you fit into it all? The professor didn't know you. Couldn't hear you like he can me.
"No." she agreed again. "He can't hear me like that... you're right. No one can... except you. And that's the way it should be Alice, no one can know I'm here... it would hurt them too much. Stop them from enjoying life." she was silent for a moment, her eyes lost on some distant place. "The professor knew me once Alice. Not too long ago... I can't tell you anything else, if the professor were to pick your brain and find out any of this..." she sighed. "I hurt them so much already. And Scott... I'm still hurting him."
I didn't understand anything she was saying except that her presence was something I couldn't share, not that I was going to, and that it was best I didn't pry. So I didn't. Much.
Did you know the... the Logan guy...
I fidgeted awkwardly. She smiled at me and at something just beyond me, a sad smile, a very, very sad smile.
"Yes... I knew him too, the Logan guy." she laughed softly, and her eyes refocused on me. "He's a good guy."
I made a noncommittal noise, and scuffed my foot against the carpet. I needed some shoes. My stomach gave a tremendous growl right then, I flickered out of focus instantly, almost on instinct. The person I'd been following glanced behind them in bewilderment. Well, at least I could hide from some people. Even if they were just twelve year old kids.
"Don't worry, it's almost time for dinner." Jean told me laughing. I glared at her and I didn't go back into focus. I could smell the food cooking, it was what had triggered my stomach's demanding response. I could smell meat, cooked meat! With seasoning! Garlic and salt and bubbling puddles of grease... my stomach gave another impatient grumble. Jean laughed again. "If you're that hungry Alice we can always get you a snack."
No, no... I can wait, but if you wouldn't mind I could use some help getting around. Do you know the way around this place?
She smiled, looking up at the vaulted ceilings.
"I know this place better then anything. It was my home." she looked at me and though the smile never wavered I saw the outline of a pain in her eyes. A pain I suspected would always be there, a pain of loss and longing... I suspected there was something like it in me, though that might have just been me being dramatic. "It can be your home to Wisp, if you want." I forced myself not to comment on the name change, I suspected it would come and go as she attempted to please two sides. Her old professor and the one friend she had left. Even if I was just an acquaintance.
So they won't force me to stay?
She was shaking her head instantly.
"The professor wouldn't dream of doing such a thing." she laid a comforting hand on my shoulder and I left it there allowing myself to be comfortable. For now…
Dinner was at six. Like the professor said it would be, though it wasn't the great affair I'd imagined. The kitchen was overflowing with steaming food and people were merely lining up and taking a plate before running off to places unknown. I got in line with everyone else, maintaining my visibility so that people didn't cut in front of me. I towered over most of the people filling the hall and though there were a few teenagers that rivaled me I was definitely the oldest one there. I stood awkwardly with my shoulder pressed against the wall, I could feel the curious glances boring into me, but I endured it, for the food's sake.
Loud, obnoxious laughter echoed from across the small expanse of carpet to the far wall. It rose above the rest of the din, as if intentionally. Ignore it, I told myself, don't look. But it kept coming back, echoing in my ear over and over, threatening memories. I dared a quick glance, just to ease my anxious mind. They seemed to be waiting for it. The laughter cut off almost instantly. There were two of them, leaning casually against the wood paneling. They exchanged a quick look and then their eyes locked onto me, cool and hard.
One was of average size, with shoulder length greasy dark hair, and a thin, snide mouth on his impassive face. He was twisting a lighter in his hands, snapping the lid over and over, a series of sharp metallic clicks, but no flames filled the gaps. Every so often he would rub his thumb along the edge of his pocket, like there was something in it he wanted, some secret, forbidden thing that he couldn't touch or look at but that he wanted nonetheless. He reeked of ash and singed hair, his smell drowning out that of the boy beside him.
He was paler, with a shock of orange hair that stuck out in every direction and a long thin nose set between a pair of huge icy blue eyes. The laughter had come from him, spraying out of a mouth that seemed almost to large for his face, it twisted at the corners and pressed in too thin in the middle, giving his smile a pained queasy look. He probably would have stood taller then his friend if he had straightened his shoulders, but he seemed comfortable hiding in his shadow, his head carefully ducked. His eyes flickered to the other boy's with a rhythm almost as natural to him as blinking.
They stared at me and I stared uncertainly back. Ahead of me the line was moving but I seemed frozen, locked between their two stares. Like a rabbit looking at a cougar. I didn't know what they wanted with me, but I could see that predatory desire in there eyes.
"Hey." a small voice complained behind me, saving me from my petrifaction.
I started and leaped forward to fill the growing the gap. The laughter was back, this time accompanied by the other boy's own quiet chuckle. This time I kept my eyes away and followed the line. The food smell was growing stronger, overwhelming everything else and drawing a mutinous growl from my stomach. I drew in a nose full of the intoxicating air and felt the sting of tears behind my eyes. I blinked, shocked and tried to shake away the building water. But it seemed my body had taken over my mind and I could not stop the tears of happiness that slipped down my cheeks. It had been so long since I smelled anything so delicious, longer still since I had eaten it. The mere hope of such a meal left me teary and shaking.
I could see it now, plates lined up down the counter, spilling with mashed potatoes and mounds of rolling peas, a steaming bun and a large hunk of seeping roast beef dribbled in gravy. It was all I could do not to lurch forward and start stuffing my face. Storm and her blue friend, Kurt stood behind the counter doling out plates as quickly as they were taken. Logan sat on a stool several feet behind them, a beer in one hand, watching the procession with his dark gleaming eyes and yet seeing nothing. For a moment my hunger was forgotten as I studied him, this strange and solitary man. He did not seem to be a true part of the professor's school; he was not like the other people here. And yet I could tell that there was nowhere else he wanted to be. He might not stand with an apron and serving spoon patting little children on their heads and telling them to eat their vegetables but he would stand as he was and take a bullet for anyone of them, I could tell. What I couldn't tell was why?
I continued staring at him, inching along behind the rest, he didn't show any sign that he noticed but I didn't doubt that he knew there were eyes upon him. He took a swig of beer, his eyes still lost in that distant time. What was he thinking about? The Erik freak had mentioned him earlier, said he'd been through something traumatic. Was that what he thought about? Was he dwelling on the dark moments of his past, rethinking his mistakes, or was he, like me, unable to think upon them without falling to pieces? Or were they thoughts more tied to the present? They weren't happy, I could see that much. Maybe he was thinking of Erik, I knew he distrusted him, maybe he knew something about him that the professor did not, something nobody else could see.
"Here you go Alice." my attention snapped back into focus. The white haired one, Storm was holding a plate just beneath my nose. My mouth filled with saliva at the tantalizing smells that rose from it and grease and juice dripped from it's edge as the extra meat threatened to tumble from the sides. I took it carefully, the fork rattling from the tremors in my hands. It slipped precariously down the side, dislodging a chunk of meat that threatened to tumble to the floor. I froze, watching the roast balance, teetering on it's edge, before falling back amidst the mash potatoes. I sighed thankfully, straightening my bent knees. The fork jerked down the last few inches of food and fell to the floor with a clatter that seemed to echo endlessly. Logan looked up from his beer and everyone seemed frozen staring at me. I snapped clear instantly, backing out and fleeing with my food, flattening it to the plate with one hand, the meat juices burning into my palm.
"Hey, hey!"
I heard him shout behind me, but I ran on down the corridor, praying I wouldn't drop a single green pea. I kept my head down, feeling the tears of embarrassment burn down my cheeks. I couldn't remember where my room was so I just kept running. I ran to the end of the hall and then out through a pair of thick, smooth hinged doors, onto the lawn. The grass felt soft and cool beneath my bare feet and the air was warm and sweet, with a gentle breeze ruffling my hair. I could see those two tombstones, resting together in the dark. I made my way to a tree that grew a few yards to their left, throwing myself to the ground beneath it's wide spread branches. I set my food down carefully, peas and potato sticking to my fingers. I couldn't eat, not now. The shame I felt seemed to fill my stomach, leaving no room for the delectable food.
I didn't really know why I was crying. I mean, dropping the fork had been the start; the sheer unfamiliar embarrassment bringing tears to my eyes and the soul piercing stares drawing them onto my cheeks and making me flee the room. But I was alone now. The tears should have stopped, I should have been able to soothe myself, the food should have been half gone by now. But I couldn't stop the quiet sobs, and it wasn't the just the fork that was causing them now. It was this whole day, being taken in, captured, my scuffle with Logan and Magneto, those two boys laughing in the hall, it all came crashing down on me, more painfully then I would have thought. And I wasn't even sure of the reason why...
"Hey..." Logan jogged up, scanning the place around the trunk, I'd known he would find me, the food sent up a beacon of smell and it wasn't like I was being quiet. He threw something in my direction; it knocked against my knee and landed in the grass. A fork. I picked it up, watching him warily. "You're gonna need that." he continued to stand there, waiting again. I smeared the tears from my eyes, inching a little further back, his eyes followed the indentations my feet made in the grass. "You gonna eat or not?"
I glanced at my food, and then very slowly, starting with my feet and working my way up, I let myself fade into existence. I picked up the plate, forking up a massive heap of potatoes. He watched me for a bit, hesitating and his eyes drifted over to the tombstones resting a stone's throw away.
"Weird place to eat." he mumbled, nodding at them. I looked at them too, wondering again at their stories. They didn't bother me, if anything they made me feel better. HE hated cemeteries, very superstitious. He looked back to me, frowning slightly, tracing the tear tracks on my cheeks. "Hey, you alright?"
I stared up at him for a brief moment, lost in the eyes that bore down on me, then I nodded slowly, a lump rising in my throat. It wasn't a lump of sadness, or anger, this was something entirely new, something I didn't fully understand. He kept my gaze and we stared at each other for a few moments. What he saw I couldn't begin to guess, and what I saw was almost as much of a mystery to me. It was just... I felt so comfortable- no, comforted, by him. I wasn't comfortable, those rich brown eyes made me squirm like any other, if not more so, but beneath that... beneath the anxiety and uncertainty I also felt a certain measure of calm. I don't know where it stemmed from, surrounded by strangers, in a foreign place that I couldn't begin to guess the location of, with people that seemed to know where I was no matter the lengths I went to hide, but it was there and especially around him.
He gave a curt nod and turned as if to walk away, but he stopped. He hesitated again, shifting his arms, muscles clenched.
"Look," he turned on me and I flinched back reflexively. He didn't notice, or ignored my reaction and kept talking, his voice oddly soft, some of the angry tension leaking out of it. "I'm... sorry if... I got a little... rough, earlier."
My heart twisted painfully, and I shook my head quickly, forcing a smile. I wanted to say something, more then anything I wanted to say something. But what? I swallowed hard and opened my mouth but there was nothing, no words. I swallowed again, fighting for something, ANYTHING, to break the tension. I took in a huge breath, determined to say at least one word, ANY word, okay maybe not any word. My eyes caught on the tombstones again and although I'm fairly certain I meant to say something like 'no problem' or 'that's okay' or something else polite instead I heard.
"Who are they?" which was definitely the wrong thing to say. A guy apologizes to you for being rude you don't ask him about the dead people in his yard. He stiffened, and although his eyes had been roving those two simple blocks since the moment he stepped outside he seemed unable to look at them now. Some of the anger had come back into his muscles and he had a pain like Jean's in his eyes, but darker, filled with rage or hate or some other dark emotion.
"Old friends." it was all he seemed able to say. He turned away at last, shoving his thumbs into his pockets as he walked away. I watched him go, my food all but abandoned in my lap.
I did eventually finish my meal, years of living day to day had taught me not waste anything, but when it was done I found myself rising from my place beneath the tree. I don't know what drew me to them, if anything I should have moved away. They were obviously very special people, people I had no right to visit. But for whatever reason, I felt I had to look at them, had to know their names. Logan had said they were old friends; maybe I would get some answers from them, answers about Logan and his professor, answers about the school itself.
I moved around to the front of the headstones, feeling as if I were trespassing on a sacred place. Because I was trespassing on a sacred place, a place Logan obviously didn't want me to have anything to do with. Maybe he didn't trust me, why would he? But maybe there was more to it, what if he genuinely hated me? But if that was true why apologize? Maybe he hadn't hated me before, I'll bet he did now. I almost turned away, went back to my room and forgot the whole idea. But my morbid curiosity held me into place and the names drew my eyes like magnets. It was just names, no dates, no fancy descriptions, just two names, simple and clean.
SCOTT SUMMERS
And
JEAN GREY
I stared at the second name, hardly able to blink.
"Alice?"
I whirled fast as she reappeared,so quiet and demure and... and...DEAD. -Oh, my gosh.., you're dead. You're dead!- I was shaking again, pressing my palms into my forehead. -You're dead. Why... why can I see you if you're dead? Why are you dead? What the HECK do you want with me? What...- I couldn't focus, couldn't think, I mean, she was DEAD. No, there was no way I was seeing a dead person, this had to be some sort of hypodermic shock right? Right. I heard the name Jean Grey somewhere and now my brain is building some sort of world around it. That's it. That's got to be it. I'm dreaming, the cold finally got to me and I've gone insane. Totally and completely insane... insane.
"Alice you're not insane."
-Your dead !Don't tell me I'm not insane. I know I'm insane, how else could you- I swayed, clutching at the tombstone for support. Her tombstone. Because she was dead. DEAD. You don't see people after they're dead. You don't talk to them. You bury them in dirt, buy them flowers every few years and do your best to forget about them! You don't hold conversations, or ask them for directions and you definitely don't BEFRIEND them! They're dead!
"Alice please, calm down."
-Like heck I'm going to calm down!- Oh, my gosh, this couldn't be happening. No. Not another complicated twist to my life! My life had already been bad enough, it was finally getting simple again, I'd had a strategy! Stay warm, find food, don't die. Plain and simple. Not particularly enjoyable, but simple.
"Alice look where you are? Do you think this is the strangest thing that goes on in this school?"
I thought about that. About all the people I'd met. The things I'd seen them do...
-Yes.-
She laughed. "Oh come on Alice! The professor reads minds, Storm controls the weather, Logan has literally come back from the dead! On more then one occasion. I mean, even people without powers can see ghosts." She smiled at me, laying another comforting hand on my shoulder. I studied her, the life like glow still lighting up her cheeks, her shimmering red hair so beautiful and vibrant, her emotional eyes, even now brimming with mirth and happiness...
-It's creepy.- I decided finally, giving a matter o' fact nod to prove my point. -You shouldn't be here. You should be off, being dead. Because you are DEAD! You're dead...You're suppose to...suppose to go to the light! Suppose to...suppose to... Why didn't you go to the light? YOU need to go and...and, MEET the light. Peace and destiny and all that good bye!-
I spun away from her determined that that would be it. That she would leave, I would become sane again, I'd mooch a few more days of food and comfort off these people and then I would go back to my simple life. Eat, stay warm, don't die. That would be it. That would be IT!
"Please Alice. I can't go yet. I want too, more then anything... But I can't. I have an obligation here and I want to stick around and see it through. I left everyone so broken when I-... I can't be at peace until I've made it right again. Until they're happy again. All of them." There was a silence, I didn't know what to say... And maybe for a minute she didn't either. I knew who she meant though. Even after a day I knew. She had left Logan behind. Left him...broken. I could see that too. Although I hadn't known why until now. Broken. There were a lot of broken people here. Me, Logan...even the ghost of Jean Grey. "Will you help me?"
Would I help her? Would I help the dead woman with a fixation for the man that had recently acquired a hatred of me, make that man happy and pass on into the netherworld? Was she kidding?
-Of course.-
I didn't know how I was going to help. I was going to, any way that I could. But with Logan hating me, and my general lack of people skills it was going to be a very...touch and go experience. And with nothing else to think about but the countless untrustworthy souls living in this 'school' it was an experience that occupied my mind. At least I told myself that's what it was...In truth it might have been something, someone, else.
As I lay there in the dark, wallowing in the unfamiliar comfort of a spring mattress, it seemed that all I could think on was him. Just him. I should hate him, or at least feel indifferent towards him. After all, he'd tracked me, captured me, kept me here. Sure, he'd had his team, his professor, but in the end all it really boiled down to was...him. I couldn't get him out of my head, couldn't stop thinking of his eyes, those dark, bleeding eyes looking down at me as I hurt him, as I drew the buried past up from his mind, like a jagged blade, embedded in his heart. I rolled to my side, burying my face in the pillow. I tried to make my mind go blank, tried to focus on the insubstantial, the weight of the blanket as it encased me, the warmth of the heater filling the room, the stillness of the night. But it all just served to remind me. To draw him out again and again.
The weight of the blanket was the weight of his body as he held me to the ground; the heater's warmth was his arms wrapped around me once again as he held me in place. And the stillness was him incarnate, the stillness was him motionless as he hunted me on the mountain, smelled for me in the corridor, and watched over me on the lawn. -He hates me.- Yes, he hates me. I knew that. I'd told myself that, countless times already in a pathetic attempt to drive him out. But it wasn't working. Because I didn't hate him. I liked him enough that I was going to try and help him. 'Make him happy.' I liked him more then that even. Or did I? Maybe I didn't like him. Maybe I was afraid of him. I thought about that, thought about the feeling that boiled up in my chest and sent waves down to my fingertips whenever I thought of his eyes on me, and I couldn't stop a shudder.
No. It wasn't fear. It felt sort of like fear, but such a petty fear. There was nothing behind it, no threat, just the tingle of adrenaline. No. It wasn't fear and it wasn't hate. It was...new. I tried another exasperated turn; the room felt suddenly stifling as I struggled to sleep. I couldn't remember the last time I'd felt this safe and hadn't slept. Couldn't remember the last time I HAD felt safe. But I did, with him in my mind, even with the knowledge that he hated me, it was enough that for the first time in my life, I felt relaxed. I wasn't afraid. Not of the professor or his lackeys, not of the if's and but's of this place. Not even of HIM. I wasn't afraid. I could go outside right now and scream HIS name. I could look HIM in the eye. I could SPIT, in HIS face! I could... I could... sle...eep.
I forced myself upright, peering through the red darkness, I could here the siren blaring somewhere in the distance. Where was I? I did a quick turn. The guard room, I checked my wrist, rubbing the raw skin. The shackles were gone. I tried to think of how I had gotten here. Had Thomas... Had he finally done what I'd been begging him to? Did he help me? There was a pounding of footsteps in the hall and I crouched, going clear. It wouldn't really help, unless there were a few guards out there not wearing heat vision goggles. Which I doubted. I tried the door. You never did know in this place. HE got his kicks in a lot of weird ways. But it was open, and the guards had stormed on.
I ran as fast as I dared down the corridor, checking the number on all the doors. Ground level. That was a stroke of luck. How did Tommy manage to get me past four flights of guards? No- that wasn't important. Focus Whisp. I was on the ground floor, that's what was important, now how did I get out without being seen? An ironic problem for an invisible person, but it was a problem. The guards would have rushed to sub floor D so that gave me some time but not much. And truth be told I wasn't exactly privy to all the twists and turns in this place. But I knew someone who was. And he was on this floor. But he had guards. Still he was probably my best bet. I followed my nose through the humid hallways. Sniffing at each door in turn.
"Whisp." I jerked and spun to my left. And there he was.
"Ghost. How did you..."
"Not important. We need to go."
Yes, we had to go. I spun.
"Wait. Don't you think we should..." He made a suggestive move. "all the guards?"
"What?"
"So they don't follow us." I hesitated. I didn't like it. Sure they were all heartless jerks and everyone of them deserved it, but...still. "We'll tranny um, then?"
I nodded. Tranquilizers were definitely better and Ghost set off with me at his heels. The place seemed strangely quiet, but I'd made it a habit not to question good fortune until it bit me back, so I just followed Ghost. He led me to what looked like a storeroom and nudged me at the door. I hadn't realized until then that he was already holding a gun. Probably taken from one of his guards. I inched into the storeroom, and froze.
Tommy was lying stretched out on the floor, snoring softly. What was I going to do? I didn't have anything against Tommy. He'd been a friend. Been gentle. Hadn't hit me more then he had too. I didn't want to...
"YOU HAVE TO." I didn't know where the voice came from, it resonated up from somewhere in the back of my head. "FOR HIS OWN GOOD. OTHERWISE HE'LL BE BLAMED." That was true. And I knew HIS punishments better then anyone. It would be helping him. So I went and took a position by his head, and Ghost stood beside me, with the tranquilizer at the ready. I didn't want to. I looked at his gently resting face and I couldn't move past the guilt. "DO IT." the voice demanded. And what choice did that leave?
"I'm sorry."
His eyes flew open and he sat bolt upright, glancing quickly left and right.
"Alice?" I froze. That wasn't right. Tommy didn't say Alice. He knew better. Was nicer. Who was this man? Ghost had already fled, and the fake Tommy got up to follow. I couldn't let him catch him. He was my way out. But my hasty blow missed and he was after Ghost. I ran after, always one step behind it seemed. Down the corridors, through side tunnels and into the 'lobby'. He stopped there, scanning the empty room. And then... HE appeared.
Logan stopped, whoever the kid had been he'd disappeared behind one of the schools many doors. The professor came rolling out a corridor, looking more like he'd come from tea then been woken in the middle of the night. But Alice had been in Logan's room and without the professor he'd have a hell of a time pinning her down. Whatever she was doing she wasn't too sleepy.
-You were right to call me.- the professor whispered in his mind and he didn't bother with a reply, the professor knew what he needed. -She's here. But... I don't think she realizes that.-
-What do you-
-Logan!- An image seared through his mind and he spun, sending out an arm to catch her as she leaped for the professor, her hooked claws tearing through his back as she tried to clamber over him. He threw her back, bringing up a fist and sending her flying. She snapped into focus, falling into a roll and coming up in a low crouch smearing a hand across her bloodied lip.
"Professor?" Logan demanded as he watched Alice brace herself, baring her teeth and flexing clawed fingers.
"I'm trying. But there's something there. It's blocking my telepathy."
She lunged again, taking a swing for his head; he ducked, sending his arm out in a backlash that threw her into the far wall.
"A telepath?" he moved more securely in front of the professor, watching Alice warily as she climbed slowly to her feet.
"I don't think so, what ever it is it's planted very firmly into her subconscious. She doesn't think she's dreaming."
"So?" He braced as she ran at him, watching in surprise as she flipped over his head, raking her talons down his spine as she landed on the other side. He spun grabbing her by the shirt and flinging her down the room. The professor waited until she had crumpled against the floor until he spoke.
"So she's going to be that much harder to wake up. Pain obviously won't do, she's expecting it. We need something more...surprising."
"Surprising? What is this a birthday party?" Alice was rising slowly to her feet, shaking her head and growling. Logan let loose his claws. "How's this for a surprise?"
I stood slowly, shaking the pain from my head. Miserable lackey! He wasn't going to stop me. I WOULD kill HIM, if it was the last thing I did! I whirled, letting out a snarl. The not Tommy, stood waiting for me, a new pair of knives in his hands. Where had he pulled those from? I hesitated. The knives were a complication. Not only did they extend his reach, but they caused a lot more damage then a pair of blunt fists. I circled warily. I wasn't going to let the knives stop me. They would just slow me down.
If I could avoid them entirely, that would be good. But he was ready for me to jump. Or at least could handle it when I did. Yes. But what would he do if I slid?
"Logan, the claws aren't enough all she sees is more violence."
"What else am I suppose to give her? A hug?" There was a moment of strained silence, Alice was inching slowly left and right, looking for a lapse in his defense.
"Hmm. That may work."
"What?"
"A hug." Logan turned to stare at him.
"Your kidding?" Alice made a feint and he spun back around, baring his teeth.
"No, I'm not. If she expects pain, then a little kindness may be enough to snap her from her trance."
"It better." Logan grumbled.
"I agree. Any more of this and she may actually succeed in killing me."
He seemed distracted, he talked back and forth with HIM, his eyes flickering away from me. This may be my only chance. I sprinted forward, putting as much power into my feet as I could. He ran towards me, momentarily shocking me into slowing, and let out a mighty roar of anger. I increased my speed running at him with all my strength, bracing myself for the collision. But we didn't collide, he swerved at the last minute, and the only collision was his hand against my arm, the knives disappearing as mysteriously as they had arrived. He grabbed my forearm, pulling me to a halt and locking his hands together in a cage like grip.
"Alice stop."
Phony Tommy. I was going to kill him!
"Stop."
I stopped. I... I wasn't sure...The weight of his arms around me, the feel of his warm skin, it all seemed so...so...familiar. I stopped, taking in deep, panting breaths. And smelled musk. Rich, calming, musk.
"Logan."
"Just calm down."
How could he say that? HE was still right there, standing in front of us, grinning, GRINNING!
"Logan. Logan, HE'S there. HE'S right there! I need- I have to kill HIM Logan! I have to!"
"Calm Alice, breathe, that's not HIM. I promise. Just breathe."
I forced a long steady breath, and nearly choked on the reek of dust. Dust...
"The professor..." I blinked, blearily, fighting to clear my eyes. And there was the professor, smiling softly at me, Logan's arms wrapped around me like a vice. I blinked again as the world became light.
"Wha-What happened?" I looked down at Logan's fists, at the pink lines between his knuckles and reached a hand around to rub at them. "What were those?"