Rating: PG-13 for language and violence
Disclaimer: All Marvel characters belong to Marvel. All non-Marvel characters belong to the authors of this story. No money is being made off of this story.
Maggie sat in the shade of a palm tree, watching lovers frolic together all over the beach. She flicked the ash off her smoke with a slightly impatient move. She was starting to get the impression that she wasn't in Kansas any more.
Eric came out of the Beach house; he wanted to be alone, but not really. He just felt lonely... everyone had someone but him. And he longed for someone to talk to. He started walking towards the beach, when he got hit with a wave of loneliness that seemed to echo his own. He made his way towards it, and found the girl he had been locked in the bathroom with at the motel.
"Mind if I join you?" He asked a little uncertain.
Maggie glanced up when the shadow fell over her face. She bit back a sarcastic comment and shrugged. "Sure, if ya want."
"It's beautiful here." Maggie said as Eric sat down next to her.
"Yeah, I can see why Amanda chose this place. It's so peaceful." Eric said, stealing little glances at Maggie. He could see that something was bothering her, but he didn't want to push her.
"Can I ask you something?" Maggie glanced at him.
"Sure." Eric said.
"What is going on around here?" Maggie gestured towards the beach full of people relaxing. "I mean, one minute we are locked in an life or death struggle... the next we are all sitting on a unknown beach."
She opened her guitar case to get a fresh pack of cigarettes. She absentmindedly tucked the picture of her parents back in the corner. It had been years since she had looked at it. Eric watched her as she opened the case and took out the cigarettes. He saw her tuck the picture away. He noticed a very distinct hair style on the man in the photo.
/I'll ask her about that later. I don't want to scare her off yet./ He thought. "Well, Let's see. It's a very long story. Do you want the long version or the short?" He asked, thinking about that picture and how everything seemed to click ino place.
"Give me the short. I don't think that my poor nerves can handle much more." Maggie grinned; showing him a dimple.
"Ok, well, about five years ago a bunch of writers ended up in another dimension. See, the X-Men aren't real here, in this dimension. They're comic book characters. In the dimension that the writers ended up in, the X-Men are real." He looked at her to see if she wanted him to continue.
"Ok, that explains why the guy at the newspaper stand looked at me like I was nuts when I commented how nice it was not seeing something about mutants smeared all over the front page. Where I am from we have the Avengers, and the Fantastic 4," Maggie told him.
"They are? That means that your from that other dimension." Eric said as the pieces fell further into place.
"I guess," Maggie frowned. "What I don't understand is how I ended up in Frisco. I was on my way to a school in up-state New York."
"Somehow, when the X-Men came here, you were brought here too. Where were you going?" Eric asked.
"Some school called the Xavier Institute," Maggie dug around in her backpack, pulled out an old business card and handed it to Eric.
Eric nearly fell over when she said that. He looked at the business card and then back to her. "Well, you didn't find the school, but you found Xavier." Eric said as he pointed over to where Amanda, the Professor and Magneto were talking. "The guy in the wheelchair is Professor Xavier."
"That's Xavier?!" Maggie could have fallen over. Then she looked hesitant, "Well, I guess I did a bang up job of keeping that promise, Mom." She sighed and felt torn. She had promised her mother that she would go to this school, but she had no way of knowing what she would be getting into.
"So what do I do now?" She asked him.
"Well, why were you going there?" Eric asked, wondering if it had to do with a certain kanucklehead.
"I promised Mom that if anything had ever happened to her, I would go check it out. Mom was a mutant too. She could make listeners actually feel the emotions behind a song. She was voice training at Juliard when she met the Professor. That was like way before I was born. She kept the business card that he gave her, and he told her that if she ever needed him to give him a call. Mom was murdered last year," Maggie brushed a tear away, hoping that Eric hadn't noticed. "I guess I inherited a little of her too. She always said I was just like my dad though."
Eric, seeing her wipe the tear away, slowly put his arm around her in a hug. "Do you know who your father is?" He asked.
"I have no clue," Maggie was a little uncomfortable at first. "Mom never talked about him much. I guess it hurt too much. I know she was murdered because of him, and if I ever get my hands on him or the bastards that killed her, they will pay, dearly." Maggie relaxed against him. It was nice having a little support.
Eric liked the way it felt to have her next to him. "Is that picture of him?" He asked a little shakily.
"Yeah, I hadn't looked at it in years. Mom gave it to me when I was little. I used to get picked on for not having a dad," Maggie shrugged. "Not that it really mattered. We moved around a lot." she smiled at her memories. "It was like a game. Mom would pin a map of the US on the wall and let me throw a dart, and that's where we moved to next. Foot loose and fancy free was what she called us."
"It's tough not having a father. I can't imagine how Sammi and Jamar dealt without having anyone. Can I see the picture?" Eric asked.
"Sure," she opened her case and handed it to him, without really seeing it. "I have a better one of Mom." She rummaged around for a second and pulled out a handful of pictures.
Eric looked at the photo. /Suspicions confirmed,/ He thought as he looked at the photo. In it was a younger Logan and a beautiful woman. Logan had his arm around her, and a look of total happiness on his face. /Boy, Sammi and Logan are going to flip./ He looked over to her and smiled and said, "Looks like you have more than just a father out there."
"Excuse me?" Her eyes hardened. "I don't have a father. I wouldn't claim any man as family that couldn't stick it out. The day that my mother was murdered, some men came to the house looking for my father. My mom told me that it was okay to go to my guitar lessons. When I came back, I found my house destroyed and my Mother half-beaten to death. The last thing that she told me before she died was to get the hell out before they came back for me. He was the reason that we were on the run. He is the reason that she is dead, and I hope that I am the one to put the sorry low-down-vermin in his grave."
Maggie realized that she may have gone to far. "Oh, hell... I am sorry."
"It's ok. You were saying what you feel. But maybe you father didn't have a choice. Maybe he didn't remember. How old are you?" Eric asked. He knew she was upset, but he also remembered how happy Sammi had been when she found her father. He wanted Maggie to feel the same. He never wanted to see her hurt, only happy.
"I turn 19 in a couple of days. Man, this year is going to suck," Maggie held tight to her control. This was the first year without her mother. They would never again spend the day at the spa, and then paint the town red.
"What about you? You have sat here, letting me ramble on like a fool."
"I'm 19, too. You weren't rambling. But I think you should know. At the time you were born, your father was stuck in a place where they took and changed all of his memories. He escaped from there, but he couldn't remember anything about his life before." Eric said.
He wanted to make her happy, and he had to tell her Logan's side of the story. He hated it when people fought, but he knew that in some cases it was necessary. In this case, however, it wasn't. He thought that she needed to hear the whole story.
Maggie listened, though a part of her wanted to run. She had spent a year building up a hate for her father... but her mother's voice echoed in her ears. 'Mags, if you don't hear both sides, how can you judge fairly?' When Eric was done, Maggie excused herself, taking the picture of her parents with her.
Eric watched her as she left. "Are you going to be Ok?" He yelled after her. He didn't want her to leave. He cared about her, and he only wanted to see her happy.
Maggie didn't answer him. She walked until she found Logan. She stared at him for a second, and handed him the picture with a shaking hand.
"I have hated you for a year, but it's not your fault. None of it was." Hot tears flowed down her face.
Eric followed behind her. When he saw her walk over to Logan, he stopped. When he saw her hand Logan the photo, Eric quickly rushed to her side.
Logan looked at the photo, and back to Maggie. "What's this?" He asked, confused.
The guy in the photo was him, but he didn't know who the woman was. Then in a flash of memory, he saw a smiling face and felt so much love, but then it was gone. He looked at Maggie, and it clicked in his head, but he had to be sure.
"Am I your father?" He asked, shaken.
Maggie could only nod as silent sobs racked her small frame. She finally was able to cry for the loss of her Mother. The pain was still so fresh. Logan grabbed her in a Cara special. He was so happy. He had a family, but now to find out that he had another daughter... it thrilled him to the bone. As he hugged her, he thought of Sammi and how happy she would be when she found out.
"Wait until your sister hears about this." He said through happy tears.
"Mom died last year," Maggie told him in between hiccups. "She was murdered."
Logan was taken aback. "What? Who did it? I'll kill them for hurting my family." He said as he held her tighter.
"Some people," Maggie tried to regain composure, "looking for you."
Logan saw his own eyes staring back at him. Now he could understand why his stare made people nervous. She had that same crazed look that he sometimes got.
"Not if I kill them first." Maggie shook it off. This wasn't the time. "Mom loved you. There were never any other men in her life." She told him.
"I really don't remember that much. But when you showed me the photo, I remembered her smile and felt the love we had for each other." Logan said, crying a little again. He knew that he had just lost the love of his life.
Lady_Yann and Jubliee_79
Hope blinks and looks around, surprised to find herself on a tropical island. She had no idea that Amanda had such great power. Could she have been imbued with the Phoenix's power? She wonders. She notices that several people are finally getting together. Hope looks to see if she can find Hank, but she is unable to locate him. He avoided her after the incident back at Sammi's place.
Hope didn't blame Hank for avoiding her... after all, he had been falsely accused of assaulting her. Hope hadn't known at the time that Hank hadn't been himself... that Anon had been in control. All Hank had ever really done was try to help her, not harm her. She knew that now... but that didn't make any difference to Hank; not now, at least.
Hope sighs and makes her way to the beach. There she sees Bobby, Athena and the kids playing, making sand castles. Athena and Bobby holding onto each other, talking about future plans. Hope moves quietly to avoid disturbing Athena and Bobby, but Athena notices her. Athena kisses Bobby, then runs over to Hope.
"Are you all right?" she asks, concerned about her friend.
Hope puts on a smile, trying to act like everything is all right.
"Yes, everything is all right. I was just going for a walk," Hope replies.
Athena looks at her thoughtfully, "Hope, quit lying. I know you are miserable. Go find Hank and make up with him."
"I don't think that he wants to be around me. After all, I accused him of hurting me, and he didn't." Hope's eyes fill with tears.
Athena puts her arms around Hope, giving her a big hug.
"Now listen here, Hope. You should not give up on him. It may take a little bit of time and effort, but I think that you will be able to smooth things over. After all, you really can't give up hoping for the best, especially since that is your name." Athena smiles at Hope, who smiles back and starts to laugh.
"You are correct on that Athena. I'm so glad that we are friends, and I have you to remind me of that." Hope gives her dear friend a big hug.
Mac and Robert, seeing Mommy and Auntie Hope hugging, decide they want to get some hugs too. So they run over and wrap their arms about the two ladies legs, saying, "My turn, my turn!"
Athena looks down at her two boys and smiles, "Looks like they want some loves too, Hope."
Hope giggles, "Yes, I think they do."
She and Athena pick up the boys, and give them a hug and a kiss on the cheeks . Then they set the boys down, watching them run back to their sand castle . Mac looks at Robbie while they are working on the castle. They both smile, then taking a bucket, they move to the water. Scooping up some water, they run giggling over to splash Auntie Hope and mommy with the water. Bobby busts up laughing, seeing the mischief his boys just did.
Athena and Hope look at each other, then back at Bobby, and smile sweetly as they approach him. Bobby gets an exaggerated look on his face as they near him. Hope looks at Athena who nods at her, and then the girls give chase trying to catch him. They catch him and drag him to the water . Bobby "struggles" all the way, much to the amusement of Robby and Mac. Then Bobby, once he comes out of the water, grabs hold of a bucket, scoops up some water and chases after Athena and Hope. With a squeal, they run.
Victor and Ryan, along with Kat, walk nearby, and try to avoid being hit... But it doesn't work. Athena and Hope come racing by, laughing, then Bobby throws the water, missing his targets and hitting Victor instead. Victor stands there, water dripping down his face and chest. He looks at Ryan, then back at Bobby who has a nervous look on his face.
Victor stares at him, then in one swift movement grabs Bobby and runs for the water, tossing him in. Ryan laughs and laughs, as well as Athena and Hope . Kat and Robbie eye each other, then they grab handfuls of sand and start to pelt each other with it. Mac tries to get them to stop.
"Now quit throwing sand.. it can get in your eyes and hurt!" he says to his brother and Kat.
Robbie and Kat quickly grab a bucket each, and race to the water to fill them up. They then race towards each other, throwing the water. Mac just shakes his head. Suddenly, "Kersploosh!" He is hit from both sides by Robbie and Kat. He looks blinking through the water, then he joins in the fun. There is a laugh, and then all three kids are hit with water balloons.
"Hey, who did that???" Asks Mac, looking around.
"I did," says LJ, giggling, "and here are some more!!!"
A tub of water balloons appears on the beach, and the kids with a squeal run for it, grabbing up balloons and throwing them. Hope runs to get a couple as well, then throws them at Bobby and Athena. She misses Athena and hits Ryan instead. Ryan looks at Hope grins, then she grabs a few and begins to toss them. Soon a regular balloon war commences, everyone enjoying themselves.
Jubilee and Storm are laying down, getting some sun and relaxing. They are trying to make certain to enjoy the moment. Maria and Banshee walk by, talking and gathering up seashells. Cyclops soon joins them, along with Cable. Remy and Leilee catch up to the others.
"There's a barbeque going and plenty of food to eat, compliments of me and Leilee," Remy smiles. "If you go hungry, it's your fault!"
The scent of the food wafts its way down the beach, and soon Athena and the others follow their noses to where the others are at. Teb and Angelo soon join them. Ryan and Maria come over and to talk to Teb.
"Hey," says Ryan to Teb.
Teb nods, then Ryan after a moment gives Teb a hug.
"It's good to see you. Sorry I haven't had a chance to talk to you since you arrived, but I kinda got occupied . Sorry about that."
Teb shrugs, "It's okay. Hey, the food smells good. Let's get something to eat."
Maria looks over at Teb and gives her a hug too. " I'm glad to see you as well, Teb. You look well."
"I am, especially now that Ange is here." Teb smiles over at Ange, who nods back.
Teb moves over to Ange, who wraps his arms around her. Then they go get some food. Banshee comes over to Maria and pulls her to one side.
"I haven't had a chance to say hello until now. I really missed you... and when I thought you were dead, well it hurt. I consider you a good friend." He gives her a hug.
Maria smiles, feeling pretty happy.
Dreamweaver
Cara lay in bed, snuggled deep into the arms of her beloved, Jamar. She rested her head on Jamar's chest, and listened to the gentle rythm of her love's heartbeat. Cara loved the sound. The gentle roar of the water as it rushed upon the shore outside accompanied it, creating beautiful music. It had been a wonderful day, but Cara's thoughts kept returning to Sammi. The expression on her face had been one reminiscent of the one Cara saw on the face of Anon. And the emotions... Cara shuddered. So much evil, coming from one of her dearest friends... How could it have happened? Tears began to form, sliding down Cara's face no matter how hard she tried to hold them back.
Jamar was startled awake by the sensation of something wet and warm falling on his chest. He realized at once that they were tears.
"Cara, love, what's wrong?" he asked, gently lifting her face up to his so he could see into her eyes.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to wake you..." Cara said, trying desperately to calm down.
"No, luv, there's nothing to be sorry about. Whatever's troubling you, you can tell me. That's what I'm here for."
Cara lay her head back on Jamar's chest, and he began stroking her hair back away from her face.
"I just couldn't help thinking about Sammi..." she began, and told him of everything she had sensed from her sister-in-law. "But even through all of the hate, I could still feel that there was good in her. But there is more. When Anon pulled me onto the psychic plane, and began to talk about her past, I also sensed good coming from her. It's still there, trapped beneath all of her pain and anger. I know that she's caused us all so much pain... but I can't help wishing that there was some way..." Cara's voice shook, she could not finish the sentence.
"You wish that there was some way to bring the old Anon back..." Jamar finished for her.
"Even after all the pain..." Cara said, then she shuddered as she began to remember the pain that Anon felt. So horrible, so strong...Cara knew how Anon had felt after all she loved was stripped from her. Such agony... how could anyone bear it for so long? The tears began to fall from Cara's eyes more rapidly than before.
Jamar knew what Cara felt, and he raised her head gently, and looked deep into her eyes. The pain he saw there tore at his heart. Jamar pulled Cara close, and kissed her. Cara wrapped her arms tightly around his neck and clung to him as if her life depended upon his kiss.
Rainfall
Amanda and Xavier watched as their respective teams relaxed and had fun. It was the first time they were alone, and they were determined to enjoy it. Amanda decided that they need a quiet stroll down the beach to help them relax.
/I know that look, Charles. I'm fine, and I know what I'm doing./ Amanda telepathically said.
/I know that, but I can't help worrying about you. You know I love you./
/I know that. I love you, too. ... Did you ever watch the message I left you?/
/... No...I couldn't....it would have meant that../
/We would have seen each other again. The message said that I loved you and that I would find you./
/I figured as much. I knew you were dead in my heart, but it still hurt that you weren't around. I missed your smile and laughter. I missed your wisdom and compassion. I even missed that temper./
/My, you have it bad, don't you? Would you care to demonstrate how bad?/
/Right here on the beach?/
/Don't sound to excited, Charles. It might spoil that reputation of yours./
/I'll live./
" Where's Xavier?" asked Scott,
There were laughs from two of the party goers. The rest just smiled. Scott's look got more confused.
"I think I heard Xavier ask Amanda to give him a debriefing about what happened with Anon on the Astral plane." stated Magneto with a straight face.
"Yeah. You know debriefings, Scott. They could last for hours." teased Leilee.
Everyone began to laugh so hard that Scott wondered what was so funny.
A.C.
Samantha paced back and forth in her room. She was itching to fight, but that had to wait. She had to figure out why she hadn't killed all of them when she had the chance. She knew that she aimed right, but it missed. She looked up and said to herself, "Damn, this isn't working."
She headed for the door and out to the hall way. She heard voices coming from the lab and walked towards them. As she got closer, she knew that it was Sinister and that Doctor. She stayed just outside the door and listened.
"Did you know that She was the firstborn?" The doctor asked.
"Yes, I did. And I knew that if I found her, I could then find her brother." Sinister said from behind the desk. He was shuffling papers around, and didn't even look up at the Doctor.
"So you know where her brother is? How did the experiment work on him?" The Doctor asked, getting giddy. He was finally finding out how his experiment had turned out.
"Her Brother, well, It didn't turn out as we would have liked... but at least Kyle came out of it." Sinister said, finding the paper he was looking for. "I see from your report that there was also another girl. Tell me, Dr. Cornelius. What happened to her?"
Dr. Cornelius swallowed deeply and said,"Well, She was taken by the mother. We heard reports as to where she was, but when our men got there they only found the mother. And She wouldn't tell them where the child was."
"So, there is still one out there? I could use this to my advantage." Sinister said as he grinned evilly.
"Yes, but she doesn't have what the other two have. She's just ordinary." Dr. Cornelius said.
"No she is not!" Sinister shouted. "She's one of Logan's children. None of them are ordinary. Samantha and Jamar are in more control of their powers than all of them. They are both literal time bombs, just waiting to go off."
"But what about what you said about Kyle?" Dr. Cornelius asked.
"Kyle is a pitiful excuse for a mutant. The only thing that is keeping him here is his deep hatred for Samantha and Jamar. And I have to keep an eye on him, because if he acts on it in any way towards Samantha, He will ruin all of our work." Sinister said, sitting back down.
Samantha listened to all of this with mute interest. So what if they were her family... they caused her to fall in love and have those she loved ripped away from her. They were still going to die. All of them. Even Father, Brother and Sister dear. She was going to make them pay; but first she wanted to train so she could be ready. So she walked outside.
Kyle stomped angrily in to the room.
"Where is she!?!" He yelled at Dischord.
Dischord turned her head slightly towards him, as if he were an ant she had just stepped on.
"You are not to bother her. She is off limits to you," She said, and turned her attention back to Anon.
Kyle stomped his foot and walked out of the room. /I don't think so. She's mine, and has been mine since we were kids. I'm going to make her pay./ He thought as he walked outside.
Maria and Sean were talking about all that had happened since she had gone. But they were interrupted.
"Might I have a word with the lady?" Cable asked.
Maria looked at Sean and Sean nodded.
"Go ahead, lass."
"Thanks." Maria said as she got up and followed Cable to beach.
Maria was silent... she didn't know what to say. She missed him, but she couldn't bring herself to say the words.
"I missed you." Cable said as he stopped and grabbed her arm gently.
Maria looked up at him and said, "I missed you, too."
"I almost died when I thought you were dead, but I remembered your strength and I held on to that." Cable said, reaching up to move a stray piece of hair that the wind had swept into her eye. "You mean a lot to me." He finished, looking into her eyes.
"You mean a lot to me, too." She said as she hugged him.
He hugged her back.
jubilee_79