Thanks to Foreststar of Wind Clan, hippiechick2112, HalfSquirrel, and savedbygrace94 for reviewing!

Two weeks between updates... uncool. I know.

Standing Still was a low-tech planet. It was strange, really. They had some technology, small things like interplanetary travel… but the music. They had no recorded music, and they didn't need it. They played live music, they danced under the stars, they fell asleep in hammocks and on soft moss.

Scott had known that Standing Still was perfect, but he had still been miserable. The Starjammers took them there right after they left New York. And Earth.

He was siting just outside the mansion, looking out at a calm lawn, but he was seeing Ororo dancing, flitting in and out of his line of vision. The Starjammers were with some of the natives of Standing Still—they didn't have a name for themselves—drinking. Chris had bruises on his neck and jaw because earlier that day his son had tried to kill him.

Remembering gave him the same sick feeling he'd had then. His eyes and throat had burned. Standing Still was a refuge. For Scott, external safety meant his mind settled—and it settled on the knowledge that he would never see his home again. His parents were gone.

He and Ororo were now relying on the charity of a man who had once drunkenly beat a five-year-old.

The others enjoyed Standing Still while Scott sat on the sidelines and struggled not to cry.

It was a memory he had tried to ignore for a long time. He didn't know what had brought it up now, besides how alone he felt. It was early afternoon. Ororo was still asleep and Jean thought he was crazy.

A hand on his shoulder made him jump.

"Sorry! Sorry, I didn't mean to sneak up."

Jean sat beside him and Scott couldn't help but think of how Ororo would have reacted. You scare too easily! It was always a competition with Ororo, like a game, in a way Jean just didn't approach him.

"So… I talked to Professor Xavier about what you told me," Jean said, "and he told me that a lot of it's true."

Scott was surprised. "A lot?"

A lot? He thought he'd told Jean the truth!

"He said he never met any aliens, so he couldn't confirm that part."

Well, that was fair enough.

"I should've believed you."

Scott shook his head. "No, you shouldn't. I told you an outlandish story, it's not unreasonable for you to verify with someone you trust."

She bit her lip, but she didn't argue.

"I've, um, been having kind of a hard time here. I was… jealous. Because I thought, I mean, I've known Professor Xavier for years and I'd never met you and Ororo, never even heard of you. I thought—you showed up out of the blue and it was like you were family. I didn't see how that was possible. You didn't have a history and I did, how could you… it was just tough. But I get it now. And I really appreciate you telling me the truth. Thanks for trusting me, Scott."

A small part of him, a part he didn't like, wanted to point out that she hadn't afforded him the same courtesy. She hadn't trusted him. But he had known she wouldn't, and they weren't really the same, were they?

To his surprise, Jean reached over and took his hand.

"You like me, right?"

"Jean, of course I like you."

In more ways than one. She had her hair loose, an almost hesitant smile on her face, absurdly perfect freckles.

"Not like that," she replied, lacing her fingers through his. Her knuckles brushed against his thigh and how did she do that to him? "I mean," she said, shifting closer, "you like me. Oh my god, Scott, please say you like me or this is going to be so embarrassing."

"I… I like you."

The world blurred. Fuzzy dark shadows…

Ororo squeezed her eyes shut. She laced her fingers together and stretched her hands above her head, pointed her toes straight back from her head. Her muscles were sore and cramped, like she hadn't moved in days.

She reached for the lamp and opened her eyes again. Vaguely she noticed the window, how dark it was outside. But she noticed something else, something much clearer and far more important.

Someone had left a water bottle by her bed. Suddenly she realized how desperately she wanted it—needed it. Her body felt like a washcloth wrung out so dry it would never hold water again. Like she had been wandering the desert for days….

Ororo sat up, pushing the covers off. She tore the cap off the water bottle and gulped. It didn't taste as good as water from a trickling stream in the desert—sand and grit tasted better than fluoride—but it was still a sweet relief.

At least until it shot through her in a second. Or maybe all that time she had been asleep was weighing down on her, because she needed to pee like six hours ago. She left the blanket trailing across the bedroom floor and bolted for the bathroom.

Ororo had never been a big fan of clothes. It wasn't exactly a cultural issue. When she was little, she had worn a hijab to hide the color of her hair. But her body never felt right when it wasn't touching the elements; she didn't like having cotton between her skin and the wind. So waking up naked didn't concern her. It happened a lot. She was more comfortable that way.

She pulled on a t-shirt and boxers, ran a hand through her hair, and headed for the kitchen. She remembered the party, a pill that stuck in her throat, making out with some people from her class, and then… it was there, but different. Brighter and softer, more feelings than memories. She had definitely been asleep for a while, though. Her mind and body felt… odd. Too much sleep.

She wandered out to the kitchen. Jean and Scott were there, a GED guidebook open on the table but from the tones of the conversation, not doing much studying.

"Hey," Ororo said.

They both looked surprised.

"Morning," Scott said.

Jean went to Ororo and hugged her like they hadn't seen each other in months—which was weird, because they had barely known each other for months, but nice and warm.

"You okay?" she asked.

Ororo nodded. "Yeah."

"There's pizza," Scott said, indicating the box on the counter.

Oh, that was needed.

It was cold, but that didn't matter. Ororo chewed her way through two slices, thinking about how this would be awesome on molly. Hot pizza, though. Cold pizza, the sauce was too squidy, cheese didn't stretch that fun way.

"So, how long did I sleep?"

"A while," Scott said.

"I guess like… twenty, twenty-one hours?" Jean said. "Most of the day."

"Professor Xavier wants to see you."

"Yeah, but that can wait, right?"

"She should know."

"Scott, she just got up!"

"Like it's my fault sh—"

"I can hear you," Ororo said. They were going on like she wasn't in the room. She was pretty sure she still was. She was standing there, chewing at the pizza rind. Scott and Jean were talking like she wasn't, though, so she chucked the rind in the trash. "Whatever. I'll go talk to him."

"No," Jean said, quickly, "Ororo, you don't have to go right now, that's not what he meant—"

She shrugged. "Might as well."

That, and she didn't want to stay in the kitchen.

She didn't know if she felt like Jean was stealing Scott from her or Scott was stealing Jean, just that they were closer to each other than to her—in that moment, anyway. Just in that moment. But knowing so made it no less painful a moment.

Professor Xavier wasn't in his office. She tracked him down in the library. Rather than saying anything, she flopped down in a comfy chair and waited.

He placed a bookmark, closed the book, and set it aside.

"So," Ororo said.

"Indeed."

She didn't say anything further, just raised her eyebrows.

"How was it?" Professor Xavier asked.

Ororo's eyebrows were already high. Now they jolted so far her head moved forward to accommodate, mouth open. Had he really just… did he ask that… what about…

"Ororo," the Professor said, quite calmly, "it was your first time on methylenedioxymethamphetamine." He said that like it was a normal word that people used. "Ecstasy is a… unique experience. I thought you might like to discuss what you experienced."

"Um… yeah. Am I not in trouble, then?"

"Oh, of course you are, you're going to be grounded for quite a while, I'm afraid. To school and back, nothing more."

"That sucks.

"It's meant to suck, Ororo. It's a punishment."

When he put it that way, it made sense. She still didn't like it, but she understood.

"Huh. Well. I was like… really, really in love with everyone. Everything was bigger and brighter, I was feeling more. It was like I was happy because my body was happy, I didn't have feelings as in feelings, you know? I just felt with my body and everything felt good. Even when I stubbed my toe, it hurt, but it was this massive feeling. Not pain, just the feeling of feeling.

"And then… I said something things I probably shouldn't've. Jean and Scott just wanted to go home, but we drove past the field where Scott and I first landed. I needed to be there again. I literally needed, I had to. I had to feel the air and the rain—a part of me knew it was only temporary and I wanted to feel everything while I could. I needed the world up against me."

She was aware now of how she was, of her disheveled hair, the dirty t-shirt and boxers she used for pajamas, the taste of pizza and unbrushed teeth. Tiredness clung to her from too much sleep.

And yet…

"I will never feel that good again, will I?"