From the Dust…
By Egypt
Disclaimer: The X-MEN do not belong to me, and I aint getting paid for this.
She sat silently in the car for a moment just staring at the house before her. She had bought it at auction, sight unseen. What drew her to it was its history and the rich tapestry of people who had passed through it's halls. Much good had been done within these walls and she had high hopes for its future.
It stood seemingly abandoned; its windows darkened and the yard around it thick with weeds. Amazingly all the windows were still whole but that did little to improve upon the 'haunted' look. Just by looking at the exterior one could tell this used to be a place of life, of happiness. That life and happiness was gone now, torn from the very bricks that made up the house in what could only be assumed was a violent confrontation. The house itself held no outward sign of this confrontation but Regina had heard enough about the previous occupants to know that they would not give up their home for any less.
Finally, with a calmness that was almost uncharacteristic, Regina climbed out of the black Dodge Viper and softly closed the door. Slowly she made her way up the steps until she stood on the stoop just outside the double doors. Her hand shook slightly as she brought the keys up to the keyhole. Despite her nervousness the key slipped easily into the lock and turned with a metallic click. Retrieving the key, she reached up and turned the knob. It turned as easily as the key and with a deep breath she threw the double doors open but made no move to enter the house, not yet.
From where she now stood the inside seemed scarcely better than the outside. Hard wood floors were littered with paper and other debris as shadows danced and skittered across the walls. Here and there she noticed a bullet hole in the rich oak walls, the moon glinting off a shell casing or two that lay near the entrance. The few furnishings that remained were broken or lying half-hazardly on the floor, their pieces adding to the rest of the debris that seemed to collect in the corners of the room.
A cold breeze blew through the open doors, brushing past her and rustling the papers on the floor before making its way down the hall. She could almost hear it whisper for her to follow, as if it wanted her to see more. Somehow she found herself stepping through the doorway and walking gingerly across the floor. She followed the wind, moving down the hall through the heart of the house. There were several rooms on her way, each one with the door standing ajar so that one could only get a glance of what lay within. She was pretty sure that she walked past an office, a living room, a library, and what seemed like a game room. Many of these rooms, unlike the front entryway, still had their furnishings. They even appeared to be in good shape. It was almost as if the house was waiting for it's occupants to return...waiting for them to step through the door and flick on the lights, or pick up the video game controllers, or even possibly a book from the library and set down on one of the many chairs to read it. It felt almost as if the house was holding its breath, anticipating their return.
As she passed a certain panel in the hall she heard what seemed like an electronic buzz. The only thing she could liken it to would be the sound made when the TV was left on. It was a bit of a hum, one that made her pause for a moment before the wind pushed her further into the house and the panel was forgotten.
She found the kitchen with almost no trouble. It was the room at the end of the hall to the right. It was quite possibly the largest room she had seen yet. It had no doors closing it off from the rest of the house. Instead there was simply a doorway that admitted any to enter and a rich decor that bade them stay. The industrial size refrigerator still stood in the corner, it's once stainless shine now dulled by the collection of dust and corrosion. She dared not look inside for fear of what may be growing within, so instead she turned her attention to the table in the center of the room. A single plate sat on the table, accompanied by a fork and a knife. On the floor lay an empty soda bottle, its cap lost somewhere amongst the dust and debris.
Slowly Regina stepped forward and bent down to pick up the bottle. She turned it over in her hands for a moment before standing and placing it on the table above the plate where she was sure it had belonged. With that done she took one last look at the kitchen before moving back into the hallway. As she did so her attention was drawn to a staircase that she hadn't noticed before. It stood just to the right and across the hall from the kitchen. She remembered the Double Grand Staircase from the entrance hall and wondered if they led to the same place.
With a bit of a shrug she mounted the staircase and ascended into darkness as the walls closed around it. A short time later she came out into a hallway. To her surprise she found that this second floor was better than the main floor. Debris still cluttered the now carpeted floors but there was not nearly as much here as there was on the main floor. She stared down the hallway for a few moments, her eyes focused on one of the many doorways that dotted both sides of the hall. They were at regular intervals giving the impression that all the rooms were the same size. As she began to walk down the hall she caught a glimpse of several of the rooms from their open doors. Almost all had a bed and a dresser. Some had bare mattresses and some still had sheets and blankets on the beds. From the disarray of those that still had blankets and sheets, and also from the ones who did not have any bed coverings, Regina assumed that whatever happened here happened at night while the occupants were sleeping.
Finally she came to the room that had drawn her attention from down the hall. Slowly she pushed the door fully open but she did not enter. Instead she stood in the doorway and took in the site before her. The bed was still there, its coverings thrown back as if the occupant had jumped out in a hurry. The wall was accented with several posters, each one depicting a different circus act. The words above the beautiful pictures were in German but many of them were obscured by either dust or some kind of dirt that covered the glass that protected them.
She stepped into the room and moved toward the bed, her hand falling to the pillow that still lay where it had been left, lengthwise on the right side of the bed. On the nigh stand next to the bed lay a worn bible. She could tell by the way that the texture on the cover was worn down that it was not age that had made it this way but rather use. It was the same with the wooden rosary that sat next to it. Several of the beads were worn to almost flat shards of wood.
The next thing that caught her eye seemed almost out of place in this room. The room was sparsely furnished with just a bed, a dresser and a night stand. The only decoration was the posters and there seemed to be almost no personal possessions aside from the bible and the rosary. However, next to that bible and rosary set what looked like a wrist watch. The black plastic band and the face were reminiscent of a man's sport watch complete with four buttons, two on each side of the watch face. Despite its outward appearance she knew what it was...and what it was used for.
She stared at it for a moment before reaching down and almost reverently picking it up. Her soft hands cradled the watch as she plopped down on the bed eliciting a large cloud of dust from the bunched covers. The particles floated aimlessly around the room before resettling on the floor and bed, as well as the bed's new occupant. She seemed not to notice though, her eyes firmly fixed on the 'treasure' that lay within her palm.
Slowly her fingers ran along the face of the watch, and with the feeling of the plastic beneath her touch came memories of Kevin. She remembered his smile, his eyes, the way he had always treated her as if she really were his mother. Visions of the last time she had seen him flashed in her mind causing her to wince. The fear and pain that twisted his features, how he begged for her to run and save herself, the love that still shone in his eyes for her.
Loss once again grasped hold of her heart making the hole that ached there seem as if it would swallow her whole. New tears caused by an old pain welled up in her eyes and slowly cascaded down her now dirt covered cheeks. Unconsciously she pulled the watch to her chest, holding it against her heart as if it were a piece of her lost son. There she sat, the darkness overtaking her as she cried for the first time since she had learned of Kevin's death.
She had no idea how long she sat there. It was still dark when she exited the house and relocked the door. The cleaning crew would arrive in the morning and despite the fact that she had to be here for that she really didn't want to go home and go to bed. She had considered sleeping here but it was not a good idea either. There was not a clean bed in the place and she had promised that she would not stay here until it was finished.
Reluctantly she turned and descended the steps to the driveway where her Dodge Viper still sat. She stopped short of getting into the car, her eyes once again pulled toward the house. A proud smile spread across her face as she looked at that house. An extraordinary dream has been born here and many said it had died here as well. She was about to prove them wrong. From the dust that now covered the floors of this home that dream would rise again and go on to shape the world the way that it's dreamer had envisioned. His vision of the future was still attainable, more so now than he could have ever imagined. She owed it to him and the others who had lived and died for that dream to make it a reality.
"You are no longer alone," she whispered to the house as she slipped behind the wheel of her car.
The sound of her car's engine starting resembled the roar of a wild animal in the stillness of the night. She seemed not to notice though as she shifted the car into first and started down the driveway. Glancing in her rearview she thought she saw the house shudder a bit, as if after 4 years of holding it's breath it was finally able to exhale. She shook it off though, attributing it to the old and pitted driveway.
Ahead of her the car's headlights flashed through the darkness illuminating the large brick wall that bordered the property. Once she had exited the property she stopped the car and got out to close and lock the gate. As she did a plaque to the left of the gate caught her eyes. It was overgrown with vines and barely visible from where she stood. Curious she reached over and removed the dried foliage from its face, her hands running across the brazened brass letters as another smile came to her lips.
"Good," she said with a bit of a sigh, "I won't have to have another one made. All this one needs is a little bit of polish and it'll shine like new.
She nodded in satisfaction and returned to her car. As she pressed in the brake and clutch to put the car back into gear the red of the brake lights lit up the wall behind her, glinting off the tarnished brass plaque and the letters that denoted the house's name...and in a way it's purpose.
'The Xavier Institute for Gifted Youngsters'