I'm really, really stupid with a capital S. I should have seen this coming a mile away,
I really should have. This is a school for mutants for crying out loud! It was just a matter
of time until something like this would happen.
Hank was a bit of a surprise for me too but that's nothing compared to what he was to Joanne,
and even if he hadn't come back for this surprise visit he's not the only one with such
a distinctive look.
What about Warren, Kurt, Sarah or even Bobby clothed in ice. Nothing Joanne in all likelyhood
has ever seen. Or even something even remotely like it. She may have run across some mutants
without knowing it but those with physical mutations are not as common.
Oh well. I can blame myself later though and maybe I will even have more reason to do so
then if I don't handle this properly. I may have handled the Jean situation wrong
but I refuse to do this the wrong way. First things first. Which is finding Joanne,
trying to calm her down and explain some things to her.
My instincts tells me has run for either her room or back to the lake. I take a chance and
run up to her room, which is completely deserted as it turns out. A bad choice. Down again.
Hank's down at the bottom of the stairs, looking utterly miserable and as if he wants
to jump down the nearest black hole.
"Scott, I'm so sorry."
"Not now Hank. I know you didn't mean too but right now I have to find her, and then
you'll hopefully get the time to make it up to her."
"I understand."
I knew he would and I hope I can help Joanne not fear of him. It's really not fair
that someone as kind, gently and loving as Hank should be trapped in a body that makes
people instinctively fear him, as if he's going to have them for breakfast or
something. Nothing to be done about that I'm afraid, but I have to admire his guts
for living among non-mutants for long despite his mutation. It can't have been
easy.
Anyway, I found Joanne near the lake, crouched under a tree, eyes cast to the ground.
"Joanne?"
"Yeah?" she says, but still not lifting her head to look at me.
"How you're doing?"
She's not answering.
"Well, let me guess then. Hank scared you didn't he?"
"Hank?"
"Yeah, the guy in blue fur."
"Well, eh, yeah he did. He was so big! And he looked like he could beat everyone
up. He sorta looked like a bear."
"Think of him as our own private teddy bear. Yeah, he can probably beat most people
up if he needs to protect himself, or people he love but he's also the best friend you
could possibly have. He's not dangerous at all."
"I'm sorry."
"What for?"
"For running away."
"Don't be. It has happened before, but try to be nice to Hank okay?"
"I will try."
"That's a girl. And now I have to say I'm sorry too."
How do I explain all of this? She just looks at me with curiosity evident in her eyes.
Here goes.
"Well, you see. I should have expected something like this to happen eventually. I
didn't know exactly how to tell you so I guess I was delaying it for as long as I
could so I could tell you as we went along. But I didn't know Hank was coming home
so scratch that stupid idea. You know this is a school."
I stop momentarily to collect my thoughts, and she's nodding as if I had asked her
a question.
"Not just any school though. Everyone that lives here is a little different than
the people you're used to knowing."
Do kids her age know of mutants at all? And what did Abby tell her?
Better just ask I guess.
"Do you know what a mutant is?"
She just nods.
"Well, everyone here is a mutant with some special ability or power that makes
us a little different. On Hank and a few others it shows, like a guy that can
fly with these giant wings he has on his back. But everyone here is one, no
matter if it shows or not. And we're just like you, your mom or your friends
in every other way."
"What can you do that I can't?"
She's more mature than I would have guessed, or is it just a child's natural
curiosity and willingness to learn?
"Well, I can show you." I say as I pick up a coin from my pocket, "Watch this" I
say and toss it up into the air and mostly by instinct I lift my glasses and look
at the coin. The red beam immediately drills a hole through the center of the coin.
"Wow!"
"Pretty impressive huh?"
"Yeah! Can everyone here do something like that?"
"More or less. Everyone has different things they can do but everyone has
something. Hank looks the way he does plus he could win every gymnastic
competition there is without even trying. You'll see what the others can
do later I'm sure. So what do you say, shall we head back to Marie and
continue our breakfast?"
"Yeah!" she says, dragging me by the hand toward the mansion.
It seems I handled this little trauma good but this instant fatherhood is going to
be harder than I imagined.
"Dad?" she says when we're almost halfway back. Dad? Don't know when she felt
comfortable enough to start calling me that but I'm not complaining. Far from
it. Very heartwarming in fact.
"Yeah, sweetie?"
"What can Marie do?"
"Well, she could just touch your skin and instantly know everything you've ever
known and been able to do if she wants to do that. When she doesn't want to do that,
which is all the time, she's just as you. She would also hurt you at the same time if
she wanted to do it unfortunately and we don't want that do we?"
"No."
"Let's hurry back then so she don't get pissed of" I say, making sure she knows I'm joking.
I really should have. This is a school for mutants for crying out loud! It was just a matter
of time until something like this would happen.
Hank was a bit of a surprise for me too but that's nothing compared to what he was to Joanne,
and even if he hadn't come back for this surprise visit he's not the only one with such
a distinctive look.
What about Warren, Kurt, Sarah or even Bobby clothed in ice. Nothing Joanne in all likelyhood
has ever seen. Or even something even remotely like it. She may have run across some mutants
without knowing it but those with physical mutations are not as common.
Oh well. I can blame myself later though and maybe I will even have more reason to do so
then if I don't handle this properly. I may have handled the Jean situation wrong
but I refuse to do this the wrong way. First things first. Which is finding Joanne,
trying to calm her down and explain some things to her.
My instincts tells me has run for either her room or back to the lake. I take a chance and
run up to her room, which is completely deserted as it turns out. A bad choice. Down again.
Hank's down at the bottom of the stairs, looking utterly miserable and as if he wants
to jump down the nearest black hole.
"Scott, I'm so sorry."
"Not now Hank. I know you didn't mean too but right now I have to find her, and then
you'll hopefully get the time to make it up to her."
"I understand."
I knew he would and I hope I can help Joanne not fear of him. It's really not fair
that someone as kind, gently and loving as Hank should be trapped in a body that makes
people instinctively fear him, as if he's going to have them for breakfast or
something. Nothing to be done about that I'm afraid, but I have to admire his guts
for living among non-mutants for long despite his mutation. It can't have been
easy.
Anyway, I found Joanne near the lake, crouched under a tree, eyes cast to the ground.
"Joanne?"
"Yeah?" she says, but still not lifting her head to look at me.
"How you're doing?"
She's not answering.
"Well, let me guess then. Hank scared you didn't he?"
"Hank?"
"Yeah, the guy in blue fur."
"Well, eh, yeah he did. He was so big! And he looked like he could beat everyone
up. He sorta looked like a bear."
"Think of him as our own private teddy bear. Yeah, he can probably beat most people
up if he needs to protect himself, or people he love but he's also the best friend you
could possibly have. He's not dangerous at all."
"I'm sorry."
"What for?"
"For running away."
"Don't be. It has happened before, but try to be nice to Hank okay?"
"I will try."
"That's a girl. And now I have to say I'm sorry too."
How do I explain all of this? She just looks at me with curiosity evident in her eyes.
Here goes.
"Well, you see. I should have expected something like this to happen eventually. I
didn't know exactly how to tell you so I guess I was delaying it for as long as I
could so I could tell you as we went along. But I didn't know Hank was coming home
so scratch that stupid idea. You know this is a school."
I stop momentarily to collect my thoughts, and she's nodding as if I had asked her
a question.
"Not just any school though. Everyone that lives here is a little different than
the people you're used to knowing."
Do kids her age know of mutants at all? And what did Abby tell her?
Better just ask I guess.
"Do you know what a mutant is?"
She just nods.
"Well, everyone here is a mutant with some special ability or power that makes
us a little different. On Hank and a few others it shows, like a guy that can
fly with these giant wings he has on his back. But everyone here is one, no
matter if it shows or not. And we're just like you, your mom or your friends
in every other way."
"What can you do that I can't?"
She's more mature than I would have guessed, or is it just a child's natural
curiosity and willingness to learn?
"Well, I can show you." I say as I pick up a coin from my pocket, "Watch this" I
say and toss it up into the air and mostly by instinct I lift my glasses and look
at the coin. The red beam immediately drills a hole through the center of the coin.
"Wow!"
"Pretty impressive huh?"
"Yeah! Can everyone here do something like that?"
"More or less. Everyone has different things they can do but everyone has
something. Hank looks the way he does plus he could win every gymnastic
competition there is without even trying. You'll see what the others can
do later I'm sure. So what do you say, shall we head back to Marie and
continue our breakfast?"
"Yeah!" she says, dragging me by the hand toward the mansion.
It seems I handled this little trauma good but this instant fatherhood is going to
be harder than I imagined.
"Dad?" she says when we're almost halfway back. Dad? Don't know when she felt
comfortable enough to start calling me that but I'm not complaining. Far from
it. Very heartwarming in fact.
"Yeah, sweetie?"
"What can Marie do?"
"Well, she could just touch your skin and instantly know everything you've ever
known and been able to do if she wants to do that. When she doesn't want to do that,
which is all the time, she's just as you. She would also hurt you at the same time if
she wanted to do it unfortunately and we don't want that do we?"
"No."
"Let's hurry back then so she don't get pissed of" I say, making sure she knows I'm joking.