Treble Clef
By Silver Falcon
Chapter Eight
Ororo waited patiently at the airport an hour outside of town, watching and waiting for the redheaded man to come out of his flight. She leaned against the vending machine, her eyes scanning the group of people. The professor had complied with Todd's request, using Cerebro to find a healing mutant that went by the alias of Gabriel. His real name was Geri Parker, and he lived in Nevada. They had told him about their circumstance, and he booked the next flight to Massachusetts (That is where Bayville is right? If not, just hang with me.) He had called them and told them when he was to arrive, and here Ororo was.
She watched the crowd of people flood past her, the droning of noise seeming like a buzz in her ears. The endless flow of people would make it nearly impossible to find him, and that meant that she would be here for at least another hour. Ororo hated airports. Of all the places, it had to be an airport. There was so much noise and ruckus. It was hard for one to think at all!
He had said that he would wear a dark red shirt and blue jeans with a cross around his neck. She had combed the passengers, watching waiting…
"Ororo Munroe?" a shy voice answered behind her.
She turned around and nearly drowned in the deep green eyes of the young man behind her. He looked around twenty, maybe twenty five, and he had a head full of messy red hair that poked up all over the place. He had a book bag and a suitcase and looked not at all exhausted from his flight.
"Geri Parker?"
"Actually, it's Geri. It sounds like J-E-R-R-Y."
"Oh my mistake. Well, do you need help with your luggage?" she asked, holding out her hand.
He smiled and shook his head. "No ma'am. Just lead the way."
Ororo smiled. Geri looked like the very essence of innocence with his big eyes and sweet face. She walked with the crowd, turning her head every few minutes to make sure he was still behind her.
"I want to thank you for what you're doing. I really don't know the girl, but some of the students do, and it means a lot to them."
He nodded. "I would have come anyway. Healing is what I do."
Gabriel kept as close to her as he could, making sure that he didn't lose her in the crowd. Ororo felt him occasionally bump into her because someone had shoved him. They finally made it out to Ororo's car. She opened the trunk, and he put his luggage back there before moving to the passenger seat. She sat in the front and poked her keys into the ignition.
"You look young…"
He smiled. "Thank you. You look…twenty-five?"
"Twenty-eight," she laughed.
As they drove down the road, she noticed that he had been drawn to staring out the window. She knew he was probably taking in the sights since this new place was the last place he thought about coming.
"Are you hungry? We can stop on the way if you want."
He turned and looked at her and shook his head. "No, I'm fine, but thank you."
Why couldn't more boys be like Geri? He was so polite and quiet. Too bad the boys at the institute were just the opposite.
"You have any family in Nevada?"
"No, I'm an only child, and my parents live in Canada."
"Have a girlfriend?"
He laughed. "I've dated but no girlfriends."
It had begun to rain when she had driven him to the institute. He took his luggage to his room, took a shower, and changed his clothes. When he came down, Ororo was standing there with Wolverine and Professor Xavier.
"Welcome, Geri."
"It's a pleasure to be here."
"We will accompany you to the hospital. Come along. The children are waiting for us."
In no time at all, he was in a vehicle again and moving towards the hospital. For the past three days, the children had come and gone regularly, but it was spring break, and no one minded.
It was his first time on this side of America. He was nervous on the plane and nervous here. He didn't know these people very well, but he had talked on the phone with Professor Xavier many times before coming here. He felt comfortable talking to him, but now wasn't the time to talk.
He wasn't sure exactly what he was healing, but he knew that he had the God-Given ability to do it. He heard it was a girl, and that she had extreme burn wounds. He wasn't afraid, but something told him that this healing was going to be different.
When they entered the hospital, they saw Rogue and Kitty sitting in the lobby talking. They had phoned them earlier and told them to wait for them so they would know exactly where to go. Kitty stood up.
"Hey! Mr. Logan! Professor! Miss Munroe!"
"How are Jean and Scott?"
"They're in tha room keeping an eye on tha Brotherhood," Rogue said.
Gabriel walked out from behind Wolverine and looked at the two girls. Immediately, their faces looked surprised and seemed to shout 'Hello, Gorgeous!'
He tried to cower behind Wolverine again, but Logan moved aside. Geri looked at the floor to hide his blushing face.
"Well, they're waiting for you. Come on!" Kitty said softly.
Everyone began to follow the two girls. The hallways were quiet and had a smell that made Gabriel want to gag. He didn't like hospitals, but he visited them anyway. He had often been called an angel of God, and it earned him the name Gabriel.
Geri knew that the real Gabriel had delivered the message to the Virgin Mary that she was going to give birth to Christ. He wasn't a Gabriel, but that's what he was known as in his little town in Nevada.
***
The door opened, and the shadows cast themselves on the floor of the dim-lit room. Todd was sitting next to the bed, holding her hand. The dark witch was in the corner, sitting in a chair and staring off into nowhere. Pietro was gone.
"Marcie and Jack left a little ago. They said they had to do some business at the Night Sun and for us to watch her," Jean said, looking at Rogue and Kitty.
Scott sat in a chair next to Jean, his arm around her shoulder. Todd looked up at Gabriel and for a moment, they just stared at each other.
"He's the guy?" Todd asked, standing up and walking towards him.
"Yes, I'm…Gabriel. I'm the healer."
Toad moved aside and let Geri pass him. Gabriel looked at the girl that was lying in the bed. There were IVs and monitors all over the place. She had been skin grafted and her bones were set to fuse back together.
He walked to the bedside and leaned over her, looking from her head down to her feet. Wanda suddenly found herself curiously attracted to the bedside opposite of the strange newcomer. He extended his hands over her body and put one on her stomach and one on her forehead.
Then, he began to pray. His words were in a language not known to any of them, but it seemed to relax him. He opened his eyes and a mist began to pour from them. It fell onto her bed, and seeped over the edges, pouring onto the floor. Ororo bent down and put her hand in it.
"It…feels like…water," she said, the mist spilling out of her hand in a slow steady stream.
In a few minutes, the mist water had filled the room up to Wanda's waist, and she heard Toad sputter from the floor beside her. He rose out of it and coughed.
Gabriel's hands began to glow, and the mist water began to be drawn toward his hands. In a bright flash, the mist drew back into his hands and shot into Pix's body, making it blink with each second that passed. Everyone had covered their eyes and were unable to see that with each pulse, something new happened.
After about two minutes of the pulsing, Gabriel collapsed, slamming into a heart monitor. The flashing vanished, leaving the room in the dark state that it had been.
Storm rushed to Gabriel's side, lifting him off the ground with his arm slung around her shoulder. He coughed, and his eyes were closed, but he was okay.
Todd jumped so high that his head hit the ceiling, sending him spiraling to the floor. His muffled laugher overrode his pain, and he was bouncing like a ball in no time at all. Wanda smiled, her eyes focusing on Pixus' fully restored body. Pixie began to involuntary cough, trying to get the tube out of her lungs. A small beeping began, and in not time, doctors and nurses ran into the room and rushed everyone out.
Gabriel was given some head medication and some water while the doctors tried to figure out what the hell had happened to their "worst burn case in the history of the hospital" patient. Todd couldn't peel himself from Wanda if he tried, but she wasn't to keen on forcing him off that much. He hugged her tightly, and she only had to shove him off about ten times in an hour.
After everything had calmed down, Ororo had phoned Jack, and they said that they would be there in an hour. The doctors cleared out about one and everyone was allowed back in.
Todd was the first to bounce in. Pixie's eyes were open but barely. Todd grabbed her hand, but her grip was little more than a quivering pressure. Her voice was nothing more than a dying whisper, but she was there. She was weak, but she was alive.
One doctor remained there. He waited while the teenagers rejoiced about receiving their friend back.
"This is definitely a miracle, but I need you to leave. She has to rebuild her strength. I suggest you go home and get some rest, all of you. She doesn't need this much excitement now."
Everyone exited the room except Todd, who had to be drug out by Wanda.
***
Toad and Wanda arrived back at the Brotherhood a few minutes later. Toad jumped on Fred's shoulder and started rambling about the man Gabriel, the mist water, and the way she glowed when he had healed her.
Pietro, of course, was interested, since it had been the first day that he had spent away from the hospital. The smell began to get under his skin.
"She even got her hair back! It's a little longer though, but she got it all back! She's not blistered or red or anything! Her skin is just as white as snow! Ya' should have been there, Freddy!"
Pietro had vacated to the corner, now pissed at Toad because he had been there when she had woken up. She had held Toad's hand first, not his. It wasn't at all how he had planned it to be.
Wanda had left Toad to his own insomniac personality to night with a warning to be quiet when he finally went into his room. She was excited about Pixie's state and how lucky they had been to find someone willing to help them.
There was something strange about Gabriel though. He felt…too…saint-like. Too much of a saint.
Toad was still rambling when Pietro went upstairs, storming about in his anger. Lance had gone to bed already, and he was snoring like there was no tomorrow.
"Do you like her?" Fred asked, stopping Toad's speed talking.
"What?" he asked, not sure if he had heard the question right.
Freddy grinned impishly and patted him on the back, knocking him to the floor. "Do you like her? You know…like her, as in the way you like Wanda?"
Toad sat down and considered his options. Did he still love Wanda? Or had Pix become his new obsession? Pix treated him like a person, but recently, Wanda had treated him like…sort of like…a person. Then it hit him. Was she jealous? Was Wanda jealous because he had shown emotion towards Pix?
"I…I don't know, Freddy. I sorta like them both, but…Pixie…she's…she's Pietro's. He wants her."
Fred watched the distant gaze flood over his eyes. "You want her."
Good ole Freddy…
He could read Todd like a book. He wasn't too book smart, but he just had the sense of some things. Todd slumped down on the back of the sofa.
"She doesn't like me, though. She likes Pietro."
Freddy smiled warmly. "Yeah, maybe she does, but I haven't seen her kiss him yet."
Todd fell off the back of the couch. He was dormant for a while, but then he jumped back onto the sofa.
"What?!" he squeaked with wide eyes and a puny voice. "How…?"
Freddy winked at him and patted him on his shoulder. "Well, I was going to ask you what you wanted on your sandwich, but when I opened the door, I saw her kissing you on your wittle cheeky weeky. Hey, I think she's hot, but I just don't feel ready for some lovin' now."
"Don't tell Pietro…or Wanda…or Lance," Todd whispered.
Freddy nodded. "Don't worry, little buddy. Your secret's safe with me. Pietro'd strangle you if he found out, and you're my pal, Toad."
"What about Pietro? What if she does like me more than him? He'd kill me for messing with her!"
Freddy nodded. "But remember, she stands up for you. She won't let him hurt you."
Toad didn't know what to think anymore. "She can't love me…no one loves me. She loves Pietro."
"I'm willing to bet if she loves Pietro, she loves you too."
Toad shook his head. "Why?"
Freddy shrugged. "I ain't that professor guy. I can't read her mind. Maybe you should ask her. I know you can get into the hospital. Go on. I won't tell anyone."
Todd looked down. "What if she loves Pietro…?"
"Pietro takes five girls to a dance, Toady! He can't handle just one anymore! Unless she's as fast as he is!"
He was right. The last dance, Pietro had taken four or five girls with him to the dance. What would he do with Pix? Drag her and three other girls with him to the next dance? She was special, and she didn't deserve that.
"I'll…go see if I can get it. I'll try to be back by morning."
"Go get her, Toad."
Freddy winked just as Todd jumped off the couch. He hopped out of the door and was gone.
Gabriel had insisted on staying at the hospital for a while. He said he could find his way back to the institute because he had picture perfect memory. Professor Xavier knew he was lying and showed it with a stern glance, but he allowed him to stay anyway.
He felt connected in some way to the sleeping girl on the hospital bed. He felt a strange emotion invade his mind each time he looked at her. She was sleeping with the purple orb revealed to the world, and Marcie had explained to him what it was. The sleeping girl's name was Pixus Raise. As of now, she had a steady heartbeat and was breathing on her own.
Marcie and Jack came in and left a few minutes ago, but not after nearly suffocating him with hugs, thank-you's, and how can we repay you's. Gabriel had stationed himself in a chair, monitoring her while she was sleeping deeply.
She looked so familiar it was uncanny, like a dream. Even her hair seemed to be just there. It was like a puzzle that was completed, giving the puzzle maker the satisfaction of being finished with his long-term work. She just made him feel complete, but he was certain that he had never seen her before in his life.
There was a pitter-patter at the window, as it swung open. The healer jumped out of his seat, sliding against the wall.
"Yo man, it's just me," Todd said, panting heavily from his little hop and climb spree.
Gabriel took a few bold steps forward. "What are you doing here?"
"I could ask you the same question yo," Toad said, hopping onto the floor.
With his tongue and a sick look from Gabriel, he closed the window.
"I wanted to make sure I …ugh… got the job done correctly," Gabriel answered.
Todd nodded, accepting his answer. "I wanted to make sure you got the job done correctly."
Gabriel shrugged and sat down in a chair. Todd grabbed a chair from the wall and pulled it up to the bedside, crouching on it and entangling her fingers with his.
"I'm not sure that's a good idea," Gabriel whispered.
Todd looked at him. "Why?"
"Because sometimes a person such as yourself might feel the aftereffects of my power."
"What are the aftereffects?" Todd asked, refusing to release her hand.
"A person will see other injuries that she's had, but it's possible that the doctors absorbed it."
Todd looked at Gabriel. "Don't tell anyone. I didn't expect you to be here."
Geri nodded and stared with his large, innocent green eyes. "I promise."
Todd nodded and put his head on the edge of the bed next to their hands. He slowly brought his other hand up to cover hers, feeling the warmth under both.
'I have to know. Is there anything between us? Why did you kiss me? Why? Is it Pietro or me?'
The purple orb disappeared briefly under her skin as it blinked, but then its shimmer became present once more. Gabriel watched as Todd's eyes closed, and it wasn't long before his breathing slowed just like hers.
It was weird. She seemed to demand, just her image, something that he had never given to another woman, but he didn't know her at all. He just felt connected, like he had known her before.
She and the thin boy slept peacefully, leaving him alone in the darkness to think. It was obvious that the boy cared. He knew that the first time he had seen her, and he also knew that it was a hidden caring. He would not have stole away here in the middle of the night just to see her. He wouldn't have asked him to stay quiet in that voice.
He never had a girl that he had instantly fallen in love with, and because of that, he didn't believe in love at first sight. The feeling he had wasn't love, it was something else. He recognized her from somewhere, but he had no idea. Was it from a magazine? She was pretty enough to be on a magazine. No, not that he recalled. He did go to the bookstore, but he never looked at the magazines very much. She just felt like…a part of him.
Who was she?
Why did he remember someone who he had never met?
Why did he feel connected to her like that? What did it all mean?
Ever so slowly, Geri drifted into his subconscious in darkness of the room, with only unanswered questions to sleep with.
By Silver Falcon
Chapter Eight
Ororo waited patiently at the airport an hour outside of town, watching and waiting for the redheaded man to come out of his flight. She leaned against the vending machine, her eyes scanning the group of people. The professor had complied with Todd's request, using Cerebro to find a healing mutant that went by the alias of Gabriel. His real name was Geri Parker, and he lived in Nevada. They had told him about their circumstance, and he booked the next flight to Massachusetts (That is where Bayville is right? If not, just hang with me.) He had called them and told them when he was to arrive, and here Ororo was.
She watched the crowd of people flood past her, the droning of noise seeming like a buzz in her ears. The endless flow of people would make it nearly impossible to find him, and that meant that she would be here for at least another hour. Ororo hated airports. Of all the places, it had to be an airport. There was so much noise and ruckus. It was hard for one to think at all!
He had said that he would wear a dark red shirt and blue jeans with a cross around his neck. She had combed the passengers, watching waiting…
"Ororo Munroe?" a shy voice answered behind her.
She turned around and nearly drowned in the deep green eyes of the young man behind her. He looked around twenty, maybe twenty five, and he had a head full of messy red hair that poked up all over the place. He had a book bag and a suitcase and looked not at all exhausted from his flight.
"Geri Parker?"
"Actually, it's Geri. It sounds like J-E-R-R-Y."
"Oh my mistake. Well, do you need help with your luggage?" she asked, holding out her hand.
He smiled and shook his head. "No ma'am. Just lead the way."
Ororo smiled. Geri looked like the very essence of innocence with his big eyes and sweet face. She walked with the crowd, turning her head every few minutes to make sure he was still behind her.
"I want to thank you for what you're doing. I really don't know the girl, but some of the students do, and it means a lot to them."
He nodded. "I would have come anyway. Healing is what I do."
Gabriel kept as close to her as he could, making sure that he didn't lose her in the crowd. Ororo felt him occasionally bump into her because someone had shoved him. They finally made it out to Ororo's car. She opened the trunk, and he put his luggage back there before moving to the passenger seat. She sat in the front and poked her keys into the ignition.
"You look young…"
He smiled. "Thank you. You look…twenty-five?"
"Twenty-eight," she laughed.
As they drove down the road, she noticed that he had been drawn to staring out the window. She knew he was probably taking in the sights since this new place was the last place he thought about coming.
"Are you hungry? We can stop on the way if you want."
He turned and looked at her and shook his head. "No, I'm fine, but thank you."
Why couldn't more boys be like Geri? He was so polite and quiet. Too bad the boys at the institute were just the opposite.
"You have any family in Nevada?"
"No, I'm an only child, and my parents live in Canada."
"Have a girlfriend?"
He laughed. "I've dated but no girlfriends."
It had begun to rain when she had driven him to the institute. He took his luggage to his room, took a shower, and changed his clothes. When he came down, Ororo was standing there with Wolverine and Professor Xavier.
"Welcome, Geri."
"It's a pleasure to be here."
"We will accompany you to the hospital. Come along. The children are waiting for us."
In no time at all, he was in a vehicle again and moving towards the hospital. For the past three days, the children had come and gone regularly, but it was spring break, and no one minded.
It was his first time on this side of America. He was nervous on the plane and nervous here. He didn't know these people very well, but he had talked on the phone with Professor Xavier many times before coming here. He felt comfortable talking to him, but now wasn't the time to talk.
He wasn't sure exactly what he was healing, but he knew that he had the God-Given ability to do it. He heard it was a girl, and that she had extreme burn wounds. He wasn't afraid, but something told him that this healing was going to be different.
When they entered the hospital, they saw Rogue and Kitty sitting in the lobby talking. They had phoned them earlier and told them to wait for them so they would know exactly where to go. Kitty stood up.
"Hey! Mr. Logan! Professor! Miss Munroe!"
"How are Jean and Scott?"
"They're in tha room keeping an eye on tha Brotherhood," Rogue said.
Gabriel walked out from behind Wolverine and looked at the two girls. Immediately, their faces looked surprised and seemed to shout 'Hello, Gorgeous!'
He tried to cower behind Wolverine again, but Logan moved aside. Geri looked at the floor to hide his blushing face.
"Well, they're waiting for you. Come on!" Kitty said softly.
Everyone began to follow the two girls. The hallways were quiet and had a smell that made Gabriel want to gag. He didn't like hospitals, but he visited them anyway. He had often been called an angel of God, and it earned him the name Gabriel.
Geri knew that the real Gabriel had delivered the message to the Virgin Mary that she was going to give birth to Christ. He wasn't a Gabriel, but that's what he was known as in his little town in Nevada.
***
The door opened, and the shadows cast themselves on the floor of the dim-lit room. Todd was sitting next to the bed, holding her hand. The dark witch was in the corner, sitting in a chair and staring off into nowhere. Pietro was gone.
"Marcie and Jack left a little ago. They said they had to do some business at the Night Sun and for us to watch her," Jean said, looking at Rogue and Kitty.
Scott sat in a chair next to Jean, his arm around her shoulder. Todd looked up at Gabriel and for a moment, they just stared at each other.
"He's the guy?" Todd asked, standing up and walking towards him.
"Yes, I'm…Gabriel. I'm the healer."
Toad moved aside and let Geri pass him. Gabriel looked at the girl that was lying in the bed. There were IVs and monitors all over the place. She had been skin grafted and her bones were set to fuse back together.
He walked to the bedside and leaned over her, looking from her head down to her feet. Wanda suddenly found herself curiously attracted to the bedside opposite of the strange newcomer. He extended his hands over her body and put one on her stomach and one on her forehead.
Then, he began to pray. His words were in a language not known to any of them, but it seemed to relax him. He opened his eyes and a mist began to pour from them. It fell onto her bed, and seeped over the edges, pouring onto the floor. Ororo bent down and put her hand in it.
"It…feels like…water," she said, the mist spilling out of her hand in a slow steady stream.
In a few minutes, the mist water had filled the room up to Wanda's waist, and she heard Toad sputter from the floor beside her. He rose out of it and coughed.
Gabriel's hands began to glow, and the mist water began to be drawn toward his hands. In a bright flash, the mist drew back into his hands and shot into Pix's body, making it blink with each second that passed. Everyone had covered their eyes and were unable to see that with each pulse, something new happened.
After about two minutes of the pulsing, Gabriel collapsed, slamming into a heart monitor. The flashing vanished, leaving the room in the dark state that it had been.
Storm rushed to Gabriel's side, lifting him off the ground with his arm slung around her shoulder. He coughed, and his eyes were closed, but he was okay.
Todd jumped so high that his head hit the ceiling, sending him spiraling to the floor. His muffled laugher overrode his pain, and he was bouncing like a ball in no time at all. Wanda smiled, her eyes focusing on Pixus' fully restored body. Pixie began to involuntary cough, trying to get the tube out of her lungs. A small beeping began, and in not time, doctors and nurses ran into the room and rushed everyone out.
Gabriel was given some head medication and some water while the doctors tried to figure out what the hell had happened to their "worst burn case in the history of the hospital" patient. Todd couldn't peel himself from Wanda if he tried, but she wasn't to keen on forcing him off that much. He hugged her tightly, and she only had to shove him off about ten times in an hour.
After everything had calmed down, Ororo had phoned Jack, and they said that they would be there in an hour. The doctors cleared out about one and everyone was allowed back in.
Todd was the first to bounce in. Pixie's eyes were open but barely. Todd grabbed her hand, but her grip was little more than a quivering pressure. Her voice was nothing more than a dying whisper, but she was there. She was weak, but she was alive.
One doctor remained there. He waited while the teenagers rejoiced about receiving their friend back.
"This is definitely a miracle, but I need you to leave. She has to rebuild her strength. I suggest you go home and get some rest, all of you. She doesn't need this much excitement now."
Everyone exited the room except Todd, who had to be drug out by Wanda.
***
Toad and Wanda arrived back at the Brotherhood a few minutes later. Toad jumped on Fred's shoulder and started rambling about the man Gabriel, the mist water, and the way she glowed when he had healed her.
Pietro, of course, was interested, since it had been the first day that he had spent away from the hospital. The smell began to get under his skin.
"She even got her hair back! It's a little longer though, but she got it all back! She's not blistered or red or anything! Her skin is just as white as snow! Ya' should have been there, Freddy!"
Pietro had vacated to the corner, now pissed at Toad because he had been there when she had woken up. She had held Toad's hand first, not his. It wasn't at all how he had planned it to be.
Wanda had left Toad to his own insomniac personality to night with a warning to be quiet when he finally went into his room. She was excited about Pixie's state and how lucky they had been to find someone willing to help them.
There was something strange about Gabriel though. He felt…too…saint-like. Too much of a saint.
Toad was still rambling when Pietro went upstairs, storming about in his anger. Lance had gone to bed already, and he was snoring like there was no tomorrow.
"Do you like her?" Fred asked, stopping Toad's speed talking.
"What?" he asked, not sure if he had heard the question right.
Freddy grinned impishly and patted him on the back, knocking him to the floor. "Do you like her? You know…like her, as in the way you like Wanda?"
Toad sat down and considered his options. Did he still love Wanda? Or had Pix become his new obsession? Pix treated him like a person, but recently, Wanda had treated him like…sort of like…a person. Then it hit him. Was she jealous? Was Wanda jealous because he had shown emotion towards Pix?
"I…I don't know, Freddy. I sorta like them both, but…Pixie…she's…she's Pietro's. He wants her."
Fred watched the distant gaze flood over his eyes. "You want her."
Good ole Freddy…
He could read Todd like a book. He wasn't too book smart, but he just had the sense of some things. Todd slumped down on the back of the sofa.
"She doesn't like me, though. She likes Pietro."
Freddy smiled warmly. "Yeah, maybe she does, but I haven't seen her kiss him yet."
Todd fell off the back of the couch. He was dormant for a while, but then he jumped back onto the sofa.
"What?!" he squeaked with wide eyes and a puny voice. "How…?"
Freddy winked at him and patted him on his shoulder. "Well, I was going to ask you what you wanted on your sandwich, but when I opened the door, I saw her kissing you on your wittle cheeky weeky. Hey, I think she's hot, but I just don't feel ready for some lovin' now."
"Don't tell Pietro…or Wanda…or Lance," Todd whispered.
Freddy nodded. "Don't worry, little buddy. Your secret's safe with me. Pietro'd strangle you if he found out, and you're my pal, Toad."
"What about Pietro? What if she does like me more than him? He'd kill me for messing with her!"
Freddy nodded. "But remember, she stands up for you. She won't let him hurt you."
Toad didn't know what to think anymore. "She can't love me…no one loves me. She loves Pietro."
"I'm willing to bet if she loves Pietro, she loves you too."
Toad shook his head. "Why?"
Freddy shrugged. "I ain't that professor guy. I can't read her mind. Maybe you should ask her. I know you can get into the hospital. Go on. I won't tell anyone."
Todd looked down. "What if she loves Pietro…?"
"Pietro takes five girls to a dance, Toady! He can't handle just one anymore! Unless she's as fast as he is!"
He was right. The last dance, Pietro had taken four or five girls with him to the dance. What would he do with Pix? Drag her and three other girls with him to the next dance? She was special, and she didn't deserve that.
"I'll…go see if I can get it. I'll try to be back by morning."
"Go get her, Toad."
Freddy winked just as Todd jumped off the couch. He hopped out of the door and was gone.
Gabriel had insisted on staying at the hospital for a while. He said he could find his way back to the institute because he had picture perfect memory. Professor Xavier knew he was lying and showed it with a stern glance, but he allowed him to stay anyway.
He felt connected in some way to the sleeping girl on the hospital bed. He felt a strange emotion invade his mind each time he looked at her. She was sleeping with the purple orb revealed to the world, and Marcie had explained to him what it was. The sleeping girl's name was Pixus Raise. As of now, she had a steady heartbeat and was breathing on her own.
Marcie and Jack came in and left a few minutes ago, but not after nearly suffocating him with hugs, thank-you's, and how can we repay you's. Gabriel had stationed himself in a chair, monitoring her while she was sleeping deeply.
She looked so familiar it was uncanny, like a dream. Even her hair seemed to be just there. It was like a puzzle that was completed, giving the puzzle maker the satisfaction of being finished with his long-term work. She just made him feel complete, but he was certain that he had never seen her before in his life.
There was a pitter-patter at the window, as it swung open. The healer jumped out of his seat, sliding against the wall.
"Yo man, it's just me," Todd said, panting heavily from his little hop and climb spree.
Gabriel took a few bold steps forward. "What are you doing here?"
"I could ask you the same question yo," Toad said, hopping onto the floor.
With his tongue and a sick look from Gabriel, he closed the window.
"I wanted to make sure I …ugh… got the job done correctly," Gabriel answered.
Todd nodded, accepting his answer. "I wanted to make sure you got the job done correctly."
Gabriel shrugged and sat down in a chair. Todd grabbed a chair from the wall and pulled it up to the bedside, crouching on it and entangling her fingers with his.
"I'm not sure that's a good idea," Gabriel whispered.
Todd looked at him. "Why?"
"Because sometimes a person such as yourself might feel the aftereffects of my power."
"What are the aftereffects?" Todd asked, refusing to release her hand.
"A person will see other injuries that she's had, but it's possible that the doctors absorbed it."
Todd looked at Gabriel. "Don't tell anyone. I didn't expect you to be here."
Geri nodded and stared with his large, innocent green eyes. "I promise."
Todd nodded and put his head on the edge of the bed next to their hands. He slowly brought his other hand up to cover hers, feeling the warmth under both.
'I have to know. Is there anything between us? Why did you kiss me? Why? Is it Pietro or me?'
The purple orb disappeared briefly under her skin as it blinked, but then its shimmer became present once more. Gabriel watched as Todd's eyes closed, and it wasn't long before his breathing slowed just like hers.
It was weird. She seemed to demand, just her image, something that he had never given to another woman, but he didn't know her at all. He just felt connected, like he had known her before.
She and the thin boy slept peacefully, leaving him alone in the darkness to think. It was obvious that the boy cared. He knew that the first time he had seen her, and he also knew that it was a hidden caring. He would not have stole away here in the middle of the night just to see her. He wouldn't have asked him to stay quiet in that voice.
He never had a girl that he had instantly fallen in love with, and because of that, he didn't believe in love at first sight. The feeling he had wasn't love, it was something else. He recognized her from somewhere, but he had no idea. Was it from a magazine? She was pretty enough to be on a magazine. No, not that he recalled. He did go to the bookstore, but he never looked at the magazines very much. She just felt like…a part of him.
Who was she?
Why did he remember someone who he had never met?
Why did he feel connected to her like that? What did it all mean?
Ever so slowly, Geri drifted into his subconscious in darkness of the room, with only unanswered questions to sleep with.
