He looked around, seeming disoriented, as if the room wasn't in focus yet. He put one hand to his forehead and let out a moan. Then he noticed us.
"What did ya do to me, kid?" he said quietly.
"Uh,…"
I was saved from trying to answer anything because the professor rolled in.
"Ah, good, you are both awake. Can you try to explain what happened?"
Logan spoke first. "I had her by the wrists because we were doing a fighting session. And then I felt something brush against my ankle and something, well…" He seemed to struggle for the right word.
"Exploded. I was trying to find some memories to distract you. It obviously didn't work like I thought it would. I didn't know about your past. Honest. I'm really sorry."
"Can you tell me what you guys saw. You did see some memories, didn't you?" I think he was talking to both of us.
Wolverine tried to explain. "Well, there was this, and green light, and the…"
"Wait, let me explain." I stood up and turned off the lights. Images flickered to life on the opposite wall. The professor watched intently. Kurt seemed highly shocked and disgusted, like he was about to be sick.
"If you are feeling better, you may go with Kurt. Logan and I need to talk about a few things. The two adults watched us get up and leave the room. We had barely shut the door when some very loud and high pitched squeals filled the hall. Priya, Jenn, Staci, and Andy had spotted us and through the jumble of talk in following seconds before they calmed down, I got the basic idea that they were glad that I was awake.
"You missed three days of school. The class was boring, but lunches have been getting increasingly interesting. Especially since Pietro sneaks over from those weird guys he hangs out with daily now, and Kitty and Evan have started regularly sitting with us. And then today, two rather unpleasant people tried to join our table as well." Staci gave a snort of displeasure.
"Have you met, or rather smelled, since you can smell him before you see him, a guy named Todd?"
I nodded.
"Well…"
"Ooh, lets show her, cmon, I'll show her." Priya was bouncing with energy and laughter. "Read my memories. They're *funny*."
I sighed. I was still feeling a little drained. "Ok-ay." I got the memories quickly and then projected them onto the wall.
They were sitting there at the usual table outside under the purple tree (well, it has purple flowers at least). Toad, Fred, Lance, and Wanda were watching Pietro talk to the others. Toad left them and hopped, er walked over and plopped down next to Staci. "Yo, whats up, chick?" Staci looked like she wanted to throw up. Preferebly on Toad. "So, yo, man, why you sittin over here? I mean, besides all the ladies, a course." He looked around the table and back at Staci.
Stalker Dan chose that moment to walk over. "Great, all we need is another lovestruck dumbass." Staci rolled her eyes and tried to push Toad off the seat beside her. He was stuck like glue, or rather, slime. Rather than falling off, he put his arm around her. "Oh God, there's a toad on me." Toad was saved the trouble of being punched in the face by a shadow that fell over the group.
"Where's Beth." Stalker Dan demanded. "She hasn't been here all day."
"She's, uh, at home." Priya quickly came up with a lie. "She's dying."
Dan gasped.
"I'm not serious, dumkopf, she's got the flu."
Dan looked immensely relieved. "Oh, good, you had me scared there for a while. Now, can you guys help me think of something to write for her? I'm making a po-em."
"Now Dan, don't be rash, there's no need to inflict such horrors on the world." Staci told him kindly.
Dan looked confused. "What horrors?"
Toad was getting annoyed. "Yo, man, cant you see the ladies don't like you? They're too busy with me, ya dig? They've got better guys to be with than some lame-o like you."
"Who the heck are you, Stinky? And how could someone like *you* become such an expert on the ladies? Unless you *were* one, but even then, you'd probably not know much about them."
"I happen to be Todd Tolansky, ladies man extrodinare. You wanna make summat of it?"
Dan looked nervous. He was the kind of guy who couldn't beat up a dead butterfly. Then he noticed that everyone was watching. Something like, 'If I win, they'll tell Beth about my brave heroics in her honor. Then she's bound to love me, if she doesn't already.' Must have crossed his mind.
"Yeah, Yeah I do."
They started hopping about and punching the air in front of them, since they were about 10 feet apart, with a lunch table and several people in between them. They continued to do this for the next couple of minutes, and before they got close enough to hurt each other, the bell for the next class rang. Everyone else, who had gone back to their lunches and conversations got up and left, except Priya and Pietro, who were still watching with great interest at the antics of the two. Eventually, the brotherhood came over and "rescued" Toad from Stalker Dan.
"I coulda beat him, yo. Wanda, did you see how brave and manly I was? And I wasn't even trying that time. It's all pure skill." He puffed out his chest as Wanda quaked with either suppressed laughter or rage.
Lance yelled back to the lunch table. "Hey, Quicki, stop mooning over your girlfriend and come on, were gonna be late."
Pietro gave Lance a glare and Priya a wink, blew her a kiss, and then ran off."
Priya looked as if she was about to swoon with happiness. If it had been a cartoon, she would have little heart bubbles popping all around her.
The memory ended. "Hey, you weren't supposed to that last part!"
"Sorry Pri, I'm getting a little tired."
I then joined in the others, who were laughing and looked as if they were about to fall over. Then they did.
Andy managed a few words between gasps of laughter. "Priya…and…Quicki…sittin'…" That's when he caught fire. Not big enough to hurt him much. Just enough to make him give a girlish yelp and have to stomp his feet to stop them from burning. Priya herself was nearly completley covered in angry red flames. "Don't make me share what I saw you and little Ms. Kitty doing."
Andy's eyes grew wide. The rest of us burst into a fresh wave of laughter.
"You'd so better not. And we weren't doing *anything*. Just…" He mumbled something indistinct.
"Beth, get over here and get this memory before I light you on fire too."
I obeyed with only minor giggling.
Andy and Kitty were watching the Simpsons on the couch in the living room. Andy gave a huge, fake yawn and *somehow* his arm was around a certain Kitty. Well, more in her shoulder, but the effect was the same. They grinned at each other and looked as if they would have tried for a kiss, if not a certain someone who'd be standing discreetly in the corner had not started laughing so hard that the couch had started on fire.
"Andy! How, um, un-victorian of you." Jenn put in. Priya was laughing so hard she looked as if she would accidently light something else on fire. The rest of us were laughing just hard.
"What about you, Jennwise Gamgee?" Staci asked cheekily. "I saw you and Evan." More memory taking and displaying on my part. Jenn and Evan were reading Jane Austin together under a tree in the yard, from the same book. Their arms were linked and Jenn had her head resting on Evans shoulder. He was holding her hand. They looked very snuggliy. Ah, the power of Victorian reading.
More laughing. It was a wonder that no one had stopped by to see what was going on. I was doubled over with the pain of laughing so hard. Or maybe it was my headache from overusing my powers again after being unconscious for three days. But either way, another memory started.
Me and a certain fuzzy blue elf. He was showing me how much fun it could be to hang upside down from a chandelier. I was laughing in agreement that he was right, but mainly because he was tickling me with his tail. Someone called his name. He game me a kiss atop the head before bamfing away. My voice trailed away after him. "Hey, wait, how the heck am I supposed to get down."
We laughed continually for about another 10 minutes before the professor and Logan came out of the hospital wing. It was amazing at how quite it could get in less than a second. And how empty a hallway could get when only one person could teleport.
I said goodbye to Kurt after he teleported me in front of my door. I was really tired, so I decided to go straight to bed. Rogue was in there reading, but she didn't look like she wanted to be bothered. I was all too happy to oblige.
It felt like no time passed between falling asleep and when the dreams started. Flashes of green, a glint of the operating table. Screaming. Horrifyed, tormented screaming. Eyes, all around me. Murmuring. Nothing was too clear. It kept going faster and faster, spinning around my mind, making my head hurt. And then another scream, longer and louder than the others. The spinning stopped, and I was left with the image of a man tied to a chair, blood pouring off him, unconscious. I woke up with a gasp, flashing out my claws. But they weren't there. There was a girl, gently shaking me. I jumped back and hit the wall. Familiar, but I couldn't place her. Not yet.
"Rogue?" That was her. I was myself again. "Who was he?" Well, sort of.
"Who?" I blinked some more, with my hand on my forehead. The last image of my nightmare appeared on the wall for a few seconds. I hadn't tried to. Rogue took a step back.
"I don't know. Maybe its just another nightmare."
I *told* you, I don't have dreams, or nightmares. Just memories. That's never happened to *me*. I was staring at my other hand now, still clenched into a fist, trying to make claws. I looked up at her. "Logan."
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
An: YAY! Chapter 11! Sorry If the romancy stuff is annoying. I had to embarrass all my friends equally so that maybe they'll be too busy laughing at each other long enough for me to flee the country. If I stop updating, it's because I'm getting tortured for trying to be devious like this. J (Well, *I* think its funny)