black angel's wing - hello! I am so very sorry for being late, it was my older sister's seventeenth birthday, ab then we went on her official visit to Indiana University of Pennsylvania, where she's going to college to play volleyball next year. It was so much fun, there was just no wifi connection. Boo. And school does start this Tuesday, so my updates will play second fiddle to school work and volleyball. So there'll be some repetition from previous chapters. Just the flashbacks though, so when you have déjà vu, there is a reason. And for the sake of my story, Agatha Harkness will be a telepath of sorts.
Ok! Everybody go back and read chapter seven! I think that's the one... Anywho! I made some changes to it, and they are kind of important to the story, so go and read it!
And nobody got her name right, but you will find out eventually!
Disclaimer : I don't own X-Men : Evolution.
Chapter 9. Reminiscence
"Breathe easy, Calypso," instructed Agatha as they prepared to begin the lesson. "Feel your anger inside of you, and let it go."
This was the sixth session between Agatha Harkness and Calypso that had been conducted since the professor had invited her to come. One session for two hours each day had seemed like a good deal, and it was agreed upon.
The first five meetings had been easy enough; just a few simple breathing exercises for when she got mad. The rest of the time was spent talking, or in Calypso's case, writing on a white board that had been brought in for their sessions. The two females had gotten to know and to trust each other better, and Calypso felt more and more comfortable with each session.
Yesterday had ended with the elder of the two questioning her pupil about her life before she was captured. When Calypso couldn't give her a straight answer, Agatha decided to ask her if she would be willing to show her as opposed to telling her. At her approval, she would be going into Calypso's mind to find the truth, whatever it may be. To do this, she would be calling upon the child's memories an feelings, and find some clues as to how to keep her calm. The girl had been preparing the memories, and had readied herself to face her past.
"That's right Calypso," cooed Agatha as she slipped her index and middle fingers onto her student's temples. "Be at peace." The girl's eyelids fluttered closed, and she breathed deeply, taking in the sent of chamomile and Agatha's sweet perfume.
"Relax child," continued the old woman softly. "Breathe slowly and deeply. Clear your mind of everything but the sound of my voice. Let me in."
With one last, deep sigh, the pair entered the troubled mind.
Dreamscape
The inside of her mind was just as Agatha had imagined that it would be. It was dark, shadowy, and unwelcoming. It was cold too. Shivering slightly, the woman took notice of the tiny stars that lined the edge of her vision. Walking slowly across the sandy ground toward them, she corrected herself. Not stars, but memories. All glowing a faint blue, and pulsating in time to the heartbeat of their owner.
Speaking of their owner, Agatha sensed another presence behind her and to the right. Turning her head in Calypso's direction, she smiled slightly. Sweeping an arm out toward the wall of memories, she spoke.
"I hope you are ready," came her calm voice. When Calypso nodded, she smiled wider and the girl stepped forward. A small, neon purple wisp of a thought came from her head as she neared the wall, and she bit her lip nervously.
A warm hand clasped her shoulder, and with a last calming breath, she reached out to grab one of the memories. It fit in her palm perfectly, and a grin graced her lips as she peered into its faint blue glow. Gently, she placed it and a three others in her pocket for later.
Removing Agatha's hand from her shoulder, she placed it on top of the orb currently in her grasp, and they were immediately transported into the past.
Memory
"Oh, what a darling baby girl!" cooed a woman's voice. "And such a lovely family, too! Oh, your picture should turn out very well indeed!"
A man and a woman were seated on a wire bench in the middle of a park. The woman held a small bundle of a baby wrapped snugly in a light pink blanket. She slept soundly, making not a peep as she breathed. The mother smiled warmly at the speaker and nodded her thanks before placing a gentle kiss atop her daughter's forehead.
On the man's lap sat a young girl that looked to be about age three, and she say there staring curiously at the stranger as she's sucked away at her little thumb. Her ice blue eyes shined in the afternoon sun, as did her straight black hair, and her lavender dress fluttered in the wind. A small yellow butterfly floated by, landing on the frilly edge of the child's dress. Giggling to herself, she watched it carefully.
"Alrighty now," came the stranger's voice once more. "Just look up at the camera, and smile!"
"Callie, honey," spoke the man softly to the little girl on his lap. "Mommy and I need you to smile for the nice lady."
The girl nodded enthusiastically and flashed him a toothy grin. Her father chuckled and gave her nose a tweak before he wrapped his free arm around his wife. She held her baby a little tighter before she brushed her own wavy, dirty blonde hair out of her face.
"Ready?" asked the photographer. "On three now. One."
The father kissed Calypso's hair lightly before he smiled at the camera, the child doing the same.
"Two."
The mother leaned a bit more into her husband's embrace, and he gave her a gentle squeeze in response.
"Three!"
End Memory
"Come on Callie, we're gonna be late for the bus if you don't hurry up!" whined the voice of a young girl. This girl was standing on the front porch of a small, split level house. She was no older than ten, eleven years old at the most, and she was wearing a bubblegum pink backpack. She also wore a light pink and black plaid skirt with a white t-shirt that read 'Cutie Pie'. Her curly blonde hair was up in twin pigtails, and a pink ribbon was tied around each one. Tapping her foot impatiently, she called into the house again. "Calypso, come on!"
As soon as she had yelled it, another little girl appeared at the door. This one had pin straight, midnight black hair that was pulled back into a sleek ponytail, and a sky blue backpack on. She wore light wash blue jeans, and a simple purple v-neck t-shirt.
"Gosh Janey," she complained as the hopped down the front porch steps. "Mom said that the bus won't get here for another five minutes. I know that you don't want to be late for your first day of sixth grade, but-"
"But nothing!" interrupted the younger girl with a huff as they walked to their bus stop. "And stop calling me Janey. It's just Jane." The older girl rolled her eyes and laughed at her sister.
"Relax brat, I'm just messing with you, there's no need to have a hissy fit."
Jane stamped her foot indignantly and glared. "I was not going to throw a hissy fit!" she shrieked.
Calypso raised an eyebrow wordlessly, then shook her head slightly. They had reached their destination, and now stood still as they waited for the big yellow school bus. Jane was still fuming.
"Ever since Daddy left you've been so mean," she sneered. Every muscle in Calypso's body locked up, and she fought the hot tears that sprung to her eyes. Clenching her fists and grinding her teeth, she refused to bite on her kid sister's bait.
The bus chose that moment to pull up, and Calypso climbed aboard behind her little sister, still shaking from her harsh words.
End Memory
It had been a beautiful little house, white siding, black shutters, and a small red brick chimney. But now, all that could be seen was the unmistakable orange and red flare of a fire. It raged throughout the house, and a shrill scream pierced the air.
Through the smoky haze, a small figure was visible running through what had been the front door. The person, a mere child, tore away from their home, both choked sobs and ragged coughs coming from their strained lungs. Collapsing onto the sidewalk in front of her house, a young teenaged Calypso could see her home up in the harsh flames. Screaming wildly, tears poured freely from her blue eyes, making tracks in the soot that stained her cheeks.
Fire engines, lights flashing and sirens blaring, screeched to a halt in front of the burning building. Hands gripped her shoulders, and words were being spoken urgently to her, but Calypso could not stop screaming, nor could she tear her eyes from the bright orange tongues of flame that lapped around the roof.
"No!" came her hoarse cry. "No, Janey! Mom! No!"
An explosion rocked the neighborhood, and the child was forced to avert her eyes. When they resumed their former placement, she was shocked into silence. The only response to what she saw were the tears that came anew and flooded her eyes, blurring her vision.
It was completely gone. The explosion had leveled her small home, and had more than likely taken both her mother and little sister with it.
"No," a choked whisper escaped her cracked lips. Burying her head in her hands and sobbing silently, she came to te grim realization that she was all alone. Her father gone, and her mother and sister dead, there was nobody to care for her. She was on her own.
End Memory
A bleak sign reading 'Nexus Children's Orphanage' was barely visible through the pouring rain, and was made only a little more so when a bolt of lightning streaked through the night sky. The building itself appeared to be well kept, though the inside was much different than the outside.
Through a second story window, a girl looked longingly out into the night. Calypso's black hair was pulled back into a loose french braid, and a few stray pieces framed her pale face. Brushing them back behind her ear, she stood, leaving the view of the window.
She had been at the orphanage for about three months, and had hated every moment of it. Something incredibly strange had happened to her the night before when she touched her shadow, and she just wanted to get out of this hell hole. Kids her age had disappeared all of the time, so she didn't think that they would notice if one more of their wards went missing.
Moving back to the window, she cracked it open and was immediately hit with a rush of sticky air from the thunderstorm. A rose trellis had been hung directly under her window, and that was her escape route. However, she had yet to swing her leg over the sill of the window when she saw a man walking up to the front door of the building. Before he knocked, he looked up and to his left, making direct eye contact. She stared him down, until he gave a wolffish grin and pointed at her. Pausing in her actions, she listened carefully to the words being spoken below her.
"Hello sir," came the sleepy, falsetto voice of Carolyn, the orphanage director. "I would love to help you find a child, but we are closed for the night. You may come back tomorrow between-"
"This is of the utmost importance ma'am," interrupted the strange man with a deep southern accent. "I am looking for a thirteen year old child named Calypso Jessica Tenny. I have a note here from her mother's brother, Travis Conroy, sating that she should come to live with him immediately."
He handed Carolyn a piece of paper and she studied it carefully. Meanwhile, Calypso had narrowed her eyes. Her mother had never spoken of a brother. In fact, she had said many times that she had been an only child. Something wasn't right with this man.
Carolyn was oblivious per usual, and smiled widely at the man after handing him back the paper.
"Well come on in out of this rain sir. I can take you to her room and you can tell her yourself."
The door had only just shut behind the two when Calypso shot out of the window an down the rose trellis. Her feet had just hit the ground when she heard her bedroom door open, but she didn't pause in sprinting away. Minutes passed, and she was aware that she was being followed.
The footsteps behind her on the pavement were the only sound that she was aware of. Panting as she ran through the pouring rain, the girl turned the corner into and alley in hopes of losing her pursuer. The lightning flashed and the thunder rolled, and with the little light provided by the bolt, she saw a figure turn the same corner and her breath hitched.
He paced slowly into the alley, flashlight swinging it's beam around in a vain attemt to find the girl that he had been hired to capture.
"Come on out girlie," came his husky voice, low and threatening. "I know that you're in here. I know everything about you. I know about your little mutant powers. And here's the thing kid. They ain't gonna be much of a help to you in here. So come on out, and make this a lot easier for me."
The man paused, his ears listening intently for any sounds that would indicate movement, yet hearing only the deep rumble of thunder.
"No? Alright then kid, you asked for it."
The man suddenly unsheathed a small dagger and darted to the left, slashing at a shadow on the wall. The blade struck the brick hard enough to send sparks flying through the air. A gasp was heard, and then the small frame of the girl in question tumbled out of the shadows, a long and deep gash on the left side of her abdomen pouring dark red blood onto her flimsy white t-shirt.
From on her hands and knees, she looked into the eyes of her attacker and her icy blue eyes pleaded for him not to hurt her. The man only scoffed and reached into one of the pockets of his trench coat. He kneeled in front of her and pulled two syringes from its depth, one's liquid looking black in the lighting, the other being clear.
Roughly, he grabbed her right arm and pulled he cap off of the first syringe with his sharp teeth. He drove the needle into the crook of her elbow and smirked as she winced in pain. The substance burned throughout her entire
body almost instantly, and if she could have cried out, she would have. Spitting the cap into a puddle the ground, he pulled it out of her arm, a single drop of blood welling at the place where it had been.
"One to dull your powers," he spoke slowly as he readied the other syringe and moved his grasp on her from her arm to around her neck. Her eyes became wide, and she clawed at his hand, trying to free her restricted airway.
"And one to knock you out."
The needle slipped into the side of her neck, and as the substance was released into her bloodstream he released his hold, tossing her to the cold, wet ground. As the drug kicked in, her breathing slowed and she made one last glance toward her attacker. From behind him, the lightning struck again, illuminating his broad shoulders and athletic frame. A wolfish grin spread across his features as he looked down upon her, and her eyes fluttered closed, only hearing his last, sarcastic words before all of her senses cut off.
"Sweet dreams kiddo. God knows you won't have any after this."
End Memory
"No, no please!" pleaded a small voice in desperation. A young girl was strapped to a long, metal laboratory table; chained down by her arms, legs, and torso. She was struggling against the bonds that held her, all the while crying out for somebody to help her.
"Please, sir, you can't do this to me!" she tried to reason.
A large man stepped forth from the shadows. Dressed in a white laboratory coat and a surgical mask, he walked slowly over to the girl's side. He held a scalpel in his gloved left hand, and swung it loosely by her face, a smirk obvious in his hazel eyes as the girl shied away from the instrument in fear. Gently, he pressed the flat of the blade against her porcelain skin, right along the edge of her jaw.
"Well my dear," he spoke causally, almost carelessly through the mask. "You're a mutant. Therefore I can, and therefore I will."
With that, he dug the utensil into the right side of her jaw, stopping once he hit the bone, and dragged it all of the way to her chin. The girl shrieked and cried out in pain, fresh tears flowing heavily from her icy blue eyes and blood pouring from the new wound, and dripped onto the table and floor at a constant rate.
The man withdrew the scalpel and clicked his tongue at the wimpering little girl. Almost regrettably, he shook his head. With his free hand, he stroked his thumb under her eyes, wiping away her tears and softly patted her left cheek.
"Now darling, we can't have you making such a fuss every time we draw a little blood. We'll have to fix that. And what a shame. Your voice is so pretty too."
He turned away and called out to someone, "Bring me a syringe filled with an anesthetic and my tools. We'll be doing a total laryngectomy on her shortly."
The girl began to squirm around nervously, her tearfilled eyes betraying her fear. Her voice steadied some, but still quavered as she posed the inevitable question.
"What's a laryngectomy, sir?"
The man trained his eyes on the girl for a few moments before they narrowed and he answered.
"We're taking away your voice."
End Memory
Dreamscape
The flurry of memories faded back into the comforting blackness of Calypso's inner mind. Agatha was silent as she mused over what she had just seen.
The mute girl was, as usual, equally quiet, and she gathered her memories in her hands and walked over to the wall of similar orbs. Gently, she placed them in their rightful spots, one by one. She turned back to face her mentor, not sure what reaction to expect.
Agatha's eyes were narrowed slightly in a calculating manner, and she stood stock still with her arms folded over each other. The two females made eye and held contact, one a bit nervous and the other a bit pitiful for the other.
They stayed in that position for quite a while, until Agatha sighed and held out her hand to her companion, asking for her to take them back to reality. Calypso reached out and complied in a heartbeat.
black angel's wing - So, this chapter was Calypso's past. And here are the dumbed down version of the memories.
1. A family picture. Calypso is three, there's a mom, a dad, and a baby girl. They're all happy.
2. Calypso is about thirteen, and her little sister, Jane, is about ten. The dad left, and Calypso got meaner, according to Jane.
3. A fire destroys Calypso's home, and kills her remaining family.
4. Calypso is in the Nexus Children's Orphanage, and run away, which is when she is captured by a man, who you've read about before.
5. The laryngectomy, which you have read about already.
And yeah. That's about it. And Nexus, the town where she's from, is modeled after Pittsburg! Au revoir!
