A/N: The rest of the team meets the Forgotten Realms crew! Yay, I'm so excited. I love it when a story really begins to come together. Anyways, I hope you enjoy it.
Disclaimer: I own nothing you recognize.
The situation was surreal for all parties involved. For the Do'Urden family, seeing someone that, until a few days ago, they had never hoped to lay eyes on again, plus the fact that she inexplicably remembered who they were, made the entire thing seem too good to be true. Cattie-Brie especially felt as if she had to wake up at any moment, this couldn't be real.
For Ororo's part, she just could believe that they were all here, all sitting right in front of her. They were all just as she had seen in her head, but there was a difference between seeing them in her head and seeing them before her, to be able to touch them and loose herself in their arms. Storm had never been an intimate person, physical contact with others was usually kept to a minimum, but it was different here. For the first time that she could recall, she had a family, and they loved her. Their arms around her felt incredibly right and she never wanted them to let go.
The Professor's shock was a bit more conventional in its source. Only a few days ago, his beloved student had woken up telling the most ludicrous and impossible tales. It was, understandably, a bit shocking to have the objects of Storm's alleged hallucinations sitting before him in his study.
Professor Xavier examined the group over his peaked fingertips; they certainly looked like nothing in this world. You can imagine his surprise when Ororo had suddenly burst into his study, dragging behind her a middle-aged woman of still considerable beauty. The behavior itself was out of character. Storm was always collected and calm, she did not burst into people's studies, period. It was also rare for Storm to show much emotion, and she certainly did not cry in front of her teammates. And yet, an extremely emotional Storm and a woman claiming to be her mother had interrupted his morning skim of the daily newspaper.
Professor Xavier was naturally suspicious of the whole thing, but he read no ill intentions off this visitor, nor from the rest of the group who had shortly joined them (through the window of all things). Storm had seemed honestly thrilled to see them, calling them by name and sharing tight embraces with all. The ones she called 'father' and ' brother' certainly fit the part with their dark skin, white hair, and strange ears. Add in their unusual garb and they didn't appear remotely human, but if Storm was to be believed, they weren't, and neither was she. The rest of the group was equally mismatched. The other human male was easily the size of Colossis with muscles to match and a metal hammer strapped to his back. The other two were much shorter than normal, one was apparently grizzled and gruff while the other was soft, rather fat, and with the same inhuman ears that Ororo and her 'family' possessed. Of the entire group though, Xavier found himself most focused on the tall, silver haired woman. It was not so much her dress, they all looked outlandish, but she seemed to stick out of the crowd. She carried herself straight and tall, like a queen, and he could sense her power. This one was a mutant of some sort, unless he missed his guess, and thus the reason for his suspicion. He couldn't help but consider the timing, Ororo has a dream, and then these people show up. He was seriously considering that the entire thing was a simple illusion created by the powerful mutant before him.
The joyful reunions had apparently tapered off, Xavier realized, tearing himself from his private thoughts. Storm glanced over to him, looking more radiant than he could ever remember her being. He felt his heart give a little jolt. As suspicious as he was, some small part of him hoped this to be true; Ororo looked so happy.
She approached his desk. "Professor…I know you didn't believe me and maybe you still don't, but this is my father, Drizzt, by brother, Zaknefein, my Grandfather, Bruenor, my uncles, Wulfgar and Regis, the High Lady Alustriel of Silverymoon, and you already met my mother. Father, everyone, this is Professor Xavier. He helped care for me all these years."
A grin broke out over Drizzt's face. "Then you are a friend of ours indeed!" He said, offering his hand across the desk. The professor hesitated for a moment before accepting it. "I imagine there are many questions that need answering."
"An understatement," The professor agreed. "Ororo has given us a basic understanding of events, but I imagine there is far more that she left unsaid."
It was hours later before any of them emerged from the study, so involved were they in their conversation. In the meantime, word had spread around the mansion that a group of strangers had arrived that morning, claiming to be Storm's long lost family. Speculation ran wild, especially among those outside the core X-men group and therefore not privy to Ororo's dreams or surprising revelations. To most in the mansion, the morning's events were simply a conversation piece, something to break up the monotony of the day. A long lost family was certainly something to talk about, but only Storm's teammates knew that there was anything more unusual than that going on. Among whispered comments of 'I thought they abandoned her when she was little' and 'how did they find her?', the X-men went quietly about their day, exchanging worried and anxious looks. Several appropriately abled mutants, both student and X-men alike, considered using their gifts to listen in, but the professor had a nasty habit of knowing when someone was eavesdropping and was unlikely to approve. As much as everyone wanted to know what was going on inside that room, they respected both the Professor and Storm too much to intrude on what was obviously a private discussion.
Both Logan and Scott were currently sitting in the living room, glancing in the direction of the study every now and again. The tension in the room was palatable.
"I don't like this." Wolverine muttered. "Ororo has a dream and suddenly her long lost family comes knockin'? Too convenient if you ask me."
Scott frowned, silently agreeing with Logan. The timing made the whole thing seem suspicious. He looked up as Jean entered the room. "They still at it?" He asked rhetorically. "How much longer do you think?"
"Who knows." Jean answered softly. "Not that I'm surprised. Imagine if suddenly the family whom you've never known shows up on your doorstep, the conversation is bound to be long. Even with this so-called dream of Storm's, there have to be a lot of questions."
"So suddenly you believe her?" Wolverine shot. "Last time I checked, you agreed with me that the whole 'dream' thing was a load of crap."
"I did." Jean bit her bottom lip. "But you weren't there when that woman and Storm saw each other. They were both honestly ecstatic; there wasn't anything artificial in either of their reactions. I don't know…I guess I'm beginning to think that there was more to what Storm told us than we thought."
"The mutant that affected Storm could just be manipulating you too." Cyclops reminded.
"I know," Jean said. "But it's hard for me to believe that anything in that encounter was faked. Maybe I'm just trying to convince myself that it's true. I've never seen Storm so happy and heaven knows she deserves some happiness."
"I'm more worried about what happens if it turns out to be some sort of fraud." Scott frowned thoughtfully. "Storm always keeps herself so in control, so closed off. This is the first time I've ever seen her let down her guard like this. If this turns out to be fake, she'll take it hard."
Both Logan and Jean nodded, they had come to a similar conclusion. "Logan," Jean started. "I know you don't believe this and I don't blame you, but if Ororo and the Professor decide that this is on the level, you need to be happy for her. We won't change her mind and we won't convince her otherwise. All we can do is be here, however this turns out."
Wolverine regarded her for a long moment before looking away. "You're probably right," He growled softly. "But that doesn't mean I have to like it."
And coming from Wolverine, that was the best Jean was likely to get.
Silence ruled for a long time afterwards, there didn't seem to be anything else to say on the subject, and no one in the room could find anything non-Storm related to talk about. Jean and Logan sat facing each other while Scott had taken to pacing in front of the window. Jean was utterly still, caught up in her own thoughts, while Logan fidgeted. He desperately wanted to get out of here, to go for a ride or something, but more compelling was the desire to see how this whole thing played out. When Storm and her supposed 'family' came out of that room, he fully intended to be right here. If this turned out to be some sort of trap, there was no way in hell that he was letting the rest of the X-men face it alone.
On the other hand, the silence and tension was becoming unbearable. Logan was a creature of action, sitting and doing nothing was grating on his nerves. Finally, he couldn't take it anymore.
"I'll be in the danger room if anyone needs me." He muttered and turned to the door. "Tell me when they come out." He added, his tone making it perfectly clear that if he wasn't immediately informed when the meeting was done, someone would die.
Without further comment, Wolverine strode out the door, leaving Scott and Jean alone.
"Can you catch anything that's going on in there? Emotions or stray thoughts or anything?" Scott asked after another long silence, knowing that Jean sometimes picked up on things even when she didn't mean to.
Jean shook her head. "The professor is shielding the room. Whatever's happening in there, he wants it to remain private. Not that I blame him," She added. "Privacy is the least that Storm deserves. Emotions have to be running high in there."
Just then, they caught the telltale sound of a door opening.
"They're out." Jean announced, moving to stand up with Scott right behind her. "I've already told Logan and he's on his way up."
Together, the Professor's oldest students walked out of the living room and headed towards the study. No words were said, no words needed to be. Both were tense with anticipation and trepidation, no one was quite sure how this encounter was going to end. The Professor met them halfway there.
"Scott, Jean." He greeted them. "Storm would like to see you in my study along with the other X-men. She has some people she would like you to meet."
"So it's true, who they claim to be?" Scott pressed.
The Professor's lips twitched. "As difficult as it is to believe, yes, I believe so. I caught no hint of deception in that room. There was no evidence of mental manipulation or any other kind of power used that I can sense. And the outrageous nature of their story itself leads some credence to it. If they wanted to trick us, there are far more believable tales that they could concoct.
"Logan isn't going to like this." Scott couldn't help but point out. "He fully expected you to send them packing, maybe even hoping that he and his claws would get to help in the process."
"Logan doesn't have to like it, remember?" Jean answered before the Professor could. "He just has to accept it. Storm's life, Storm's choice. We all knew that this might be a possibility from the moment she told us about her dreams. No matter how remote we thought the possibility was."
Just then, Logan strode up the corridor to meet them. "Let's get this over with." He growled before moving towards the study. The others quickly followed.
Whatever they had been expecting, even with the information that Storm had shared, it wasn't what met their eyes. Ororo sat clustered in the middle of some of the most out of place looking people that the X-men had ever seen. Considering that they were mutants who regularly saw other, more dramatic mutants, this was saying quite a lot. Although the room was relatively large, every one of the newcomers sat in a tight little group around Ororo, as if she would disappear if they weren't in constant contact with her. Even Logan had to admit that if this was a fraud, it was a good one. Everyone sitting there had an expression of true joy and those closest to the center looked so much like Storm that it was hard to believe the story to be anything but true. In the woman, Storm's features were clear, as well as those bright azure eyes. The resemblance to the males was even more obvious, lithe build, pointed ears, white hair, and skin carved out of onyx. They certainly looked like her family.
Although Logan had tried to be quiet when approaching the door, everyone was looking up expectantly at him when he entered the room. Ororo immediately got up and approached her teammates. "Jean, Scott, Logan, I'd like you to meet my family."
A/N: Well, here it is. Tell me what you think. I know that not much happened in this chapter, it was basically a filler, but I thought it turned out alright.