Thank you guys so much for the nice reviews!!! They make me feel really special. There's something I do need to address, though. I had never intended any of these chapters to be lengthy. In fact, what I was going for originally was actually quite short. So…umm…yeah. There's not really a set length for any of these. And honestly my attention span is so bad that a lot of them might end up being short. But that'll just mean more chapters! Yay! Enjoy. And Happy New Year's Eve.
Liza almost dropped the plate she was handing Marie. "Lord Almighty! Will you look at that!" She pointed blue eyes wide, to the screen above the bar. "Well, ain't that just a mess o' chaos…"she trailed off.
Marie, finishing serving the coffee to Mr. Elkins, turned to the television simply to appease Liza.
She was caught between horror, sadness, and pride.
Horror for what the mutants were doing and shouting as they crowded around the newly restored Worthington Labs. Sadness for what that meant for them, for her. And pride in the fact that no one seemed able to stop them, and no one seemed to want to.
"Damn", Liza breathed in wonder. "And I had a distant cousin that took it, apparently. A shame really. Poor muties. Guess they'll really never get the chance to be normal. But, ha! Poor Worthington, wherever he is, anyway. Alrighty Marie, nothing that concerns us, let's-Marie?"
Broken coffee pot on the ground and spilled hot coffee everywhere, there was no sign of Marie.
She sped up to her apartment building, heart racing and head pounding. Her time couldn't be up yet.
Thinking of nothing else, she grabbed all of her items, stuffing them into the luggage she had brought haphazardly. She whipped off her shirt and apron from the café, and tore off her black pants, stuffing them in her bags as well.
Tears she had fought so adamantly began to pool in her eyes as she pulled on her favorite dark jeans and silver shirt. And they finally started to fall as she pulled on her hooded green cloak and gloves.
She'd been a fool to think she'd never have use for them again.
When she finally reached the door, she pulled out her phone from her jeans pocket and began dialing the familiar number-only to stop cold.
She would leave, yes. And she would go back to the mansion for Hank to monitor whatever was going on pertaining to the Cure in her body. But she would go unannounced, giving them no time to craft their faces and attitudes toward her. She wanted no masks of pity and no fake offers of friendship. Her time at the mansion would be just like her visit to New Orleans; Marie would be nothing but a fleeting memory.
Phone safely deposited back into her pocket, she grabbed her leather jacket, a gift from Logan, and left.
They'd all been sitting in the game room when the news came one. Kitty had been sitting next to Piotr, happily retelling her shopping adventure with Jubilee while the Russian man stared at her with unhidden adoration. Bobby scowled at the pair, unhappy that'd he'd lost Kitty's attention but more unhappy with the fact that they were so happy. Really, he was just sore about the fact that Gambit had beaten him in the Danger Room just an hour before…and everyday since he's been there. Logan stood in a corner of the room, simply surveying and "playing chaperone" while Storm took care of some financial business in her office. Hank played good naturedly with several little boys as they mock wrestled. Warren was intently focused on the television program ("My father never let me watch a lot of it when I was young" he'd admitted sheepishly) and Remy sat beside him, Cassie perched happily and importantly on his lap, while he dozed.
At commercial break, the first image that appeared on screen was one of complete pandemonium. Instantly understanding the situation, everyone fell silent and grim. Logan pushed away from the wall, tense.
The reporter had said that only a few mutants' powers had returned in full. The more average case was that small but visible signs of their mutations had retuned slowly and in increasing amounts. Depending on how powerful the mutant was, complete restoration of their mutation would occur within 2 to 12 weeks. Warren Worthington Sr. had nothing to say on the matter.
And now back to our regularly scheduled program.
Of course, everyone had lost interest in the "reality" show by that point.
Warren, refusing to look anyone in the eye, stood abruptly and made to leave the room. Jubilee stared after him sadly.
Logan roughly grabbed the winged mutants arm before he could exit the room. "None of this is your fault. You know that." He growled. Angel merely nodded and left.
Remy, who had snapped awake the minute the news came on, glanced back at the Wolverine, only to see a black glare. Gently removing an unusually silent Cassie from his lap, he stood and walked to Logan.
"Something I'm missin' here, homme?"
Logan merely grunted, then motioned for the Cajun to follow him outside.
Lighting a cigar, while Remy pulled out a pack of cigarettes, Logan glanced down the road that led to Xavier's School. "We had a few leave here to take the Cure." He began.
Remy scoffed and then took a deep drag from his cigarette. "T' be expected, I woulda thought. It's a house full o' mutants. But how many?"
"About 8. No where near as many as it coulda been. Two little girls and one boy were taken by their parents. Four were teenagers-left by themselves. But the first to leave was a team member."
Surprised, but letting nothing show, Remy nodded. "Odd decision."
"Not really, if you think about. But I guess you'd have to know her, first." Uncharacteristically somber, Logan gave a half hearted sigh. "You'd really have to know her." With a clap to the Cajun's shoulder, Logan left.
Reviews are really great!!! And I promise next chapter…THEY MEET! Peace.
