I have returned, people! It's been a rough year for me, but now things are looking up. I just recently went on a day-long Physics trip to Six Flags: Great Adventure (I got to go on SUPERMAN! ^_^ *holds up picture as proof*), AND I saw X2…which was awesome, by the way, although I have one thing to say about it: …doesn't Jean EVER die? Oh, come on…like you didn't know that was Phoenix under the water. Damn girl's gotta be almost as invincible as Wolverine!
bunny angel—I can't help the updating thing; you couldn't even BEGIN to imagine how little time I have to do anything. But I know why you wanna keep reading…*holds up pendulum* You liiike this story…you loooove it…you think it's wooooorth the wait to keep reading…and not just the romy scenes, either. Admit it. ^_~
Eileen—The point was to make her parents (especially Mrs. Sefton) sort of overreact on purpose. I know it's unfair…but if you think about it, a lot of parents would probably react the same way. Including my own.
Pyromaniac—Yeah…at least he had his Australian accent, though. Speaking of, have you seen St. John in the movie yet? *_* Why did they have to make all the guys so damn cute?! Yeah, I hated Todd in that scene, too. But you can't stay mad at those big puppy-dog eyes for too long!
todd fan—Brilliant? *blink blink* I've never heard that word associated with me before. I'm glad you're enjoying it so far; it's only gonna get better, I promise. Considering how well this is going, I'm probably gonna throw a few more episode parallels in the near future, too. Any particular ones you'd like to see?
Lady MR—It all depends upon my mood, really. For example, one of the upcoming chapters is full of nothing but sporadic insanity, while yet another is a definite tear-jerker. Believe me; that quote is nothing compared to some of the things said in my school (example: "This question is for the pedophile ring in the corner"—said to my friend Lizzie, who was a senior dating a sophomore at the time, and her cluster of friends in the same predicament). Of course, we're talking about a place where teachers walk down the hallways with tricycle bells and whoopee cushions…*ducks garbage* LOL—a pun worthy of Lance! Wanda/Pyro is actually very fun to write, and don't think this will be the last you see of it from me ~hint, hint~ It wasn't hard to figure out which scenes to keep; that's one of my favorites, too. And yes, there's a reason for making Amanda's family German. Aside from the mother's accent in the show and the obvious comic reference, I mean.
ishandahalf—I promise I'll definitely make up for it later. Trust me; I'm a big a Romy fan as anyone on this site (I nearly died of happiness when I got to watch Sactuary Part 1 and Part 2 on Sunday. ^_^ So much Romy mush it made Logan wanna hurl!). But for now, plot comes first.
d—Why thank you. The plan is to keep going as much as possible.
[Random Quote: "What are you afraid of, a fate worse than death?" "No, just death; isn't that enough?"]
The chilling winds had subsided considerably by the time she made it to the Mount Aeros ski lift. With an exasperated sigh, the sixteen-year-old took a seat on the next available chair, overlooking the scenery. There was no sign of Pyro for the moment, so she sat back and took a moment to catch her breath. In spite of the current circumstances, Wanda couldn't help but feel a sense of peace and tranquility as she stared at the snowy-tiped mountains sprinkled with an occasional pine tree, friends and loved ones enjoying themselves making their way down the slopes, although they appeared as little more than colored specks from so far away.
Her mind drifted back to earlier that morning. Lord knows how, but Toad had somehow managed to find her on numerous occasions already despite her secrecy and numerous hex-bolts delivered. Even stranger was the fact that he appeared each time as a different person, though she could always tell it was him. He'd certainly been stalking her long enough….
"Fine day for skiing, ja?" An odd German accent brought her out of her musings, and Wanda sensed another presence take a seat beside her just as the chair began to rise.
She turned to briefly acknowledge this person: "Yes, it's…beautiful." And froze.
There, sitting right next to her, was the most gorgeous guy she had ever seen. He looked to be in his early twenties (maybe 23 or 24) and over a foot taller than her with golden blonde hair, a well-toned muscular physique, and sparkling blue eyes. His gleaming white teeth shone in the afternoon sunlight as he gave her a million-dollar smile, and Wanda (who usually never paid attention to such things) found herself suddenly lacking in oxygen intake.
"I'm Eric, the ski instructor. I haven't seen you here before."
"No, I-I…" She looked away, feeling an unfamiliar source of heat rush to her cheeks. That was when her gaze drifted downward, just in time to see none other than Pyro skiing downhill directly beneath her. The moment was lost as she quickly remembered why she was here in the first place. "I have to go." Without another word, she hopped off the lift and snowboarded after him, vaguely hearing Eric calling after her to wait.
He's toying with me. Wanda thought to herself as she saw Pyro glance back sporadically to check whether or not she was still following. He skied up and over one of the more higher-up hills, one she reached just in time to see where exactly it was he was heading: a large, metallic dome right in the middle of the icy field.
Magneto's secret base, no doubt…or at least one of them. "Magneto." She muttered to herself, her voice filled with a venomous hatred behind it. "…huh?" Out of seemingly nowhere, three metal orbs barely bigger than her head flew towards her and formed a surrounding circle. Before she could react, they emitted a strong spray of knock-out gasses; she fell to the ground within seconds, completely unconscious.
Trudging through the snow, Todd cursed his luck. All morning long, he had been chasing after Wanda in hopes of winning her affections with his new toy, and all morning long he had been found out before the magic could happen. And finally, when it looked like his plan was working…well, he wasn't quite sure what made Wanda jump off the ski lift at that moment, but he knew the timing couldn't have been more horrible. It was only pure luck that after falling off the chair from the sudden movement and shutting down the inducer, he's been able to look up in time to figure out which direction she was heading towards.
Being the determined guy he was, Todd wasn't about to give up yet!
But his thoughts were soon interrupted as he reached one of the larger ski jumps just in time to see an cataleptic Wanda being dragged off towards some type of metallic dome in the distance. "Huh?" His eyes went wide in a mixture of surprise and fear.
"Wanda!"
Seated at his desk, Kurt rested his head in his folded arms, eyes fixed on a simple picture frame holding the only picture he had of himself and Amanda together. They were smiling…laughing…looking so genuinely happy with their arms around one another. It pained him to think that because of one night that wasn't even his fault, a moment like that would never happen again.
Kitty had phased through his locked door a little while ago to check up on him, but aside from his best friend's concerned visit, no one else had bothered to try and get the Fuzzy Dude out of his slump. That was why Kurt was so surprised when a sudden voice called to him from the window: "Hey, Nightcreeper!" He recognized it almost immediately.
"You!" He stood up abruptly at the sight of Toad crouched on the open windowsill, eyes glaring intensely. "You ruined my life, you bug-eating scab. Give me back my inducer!" Kurt moved to attack him, but Toad instinctively hopped out of harm's reach, landing safely on the bed.
"Hey, hey…easy there, pal. I ain't here to fight." Kurt hurled himself onto the bed, forcing Toad to jump once more onto the other bed in the room. "Actually, I need your help with something."
But Kurt didn't seem to want to listen. His bright yellow eyes glow with fury as he attempted to tackle the boy one more time. Toad jumped out of the way again, but this time, he landed on Kurt's back. "Um…I take it this would be the wrong time to ask you for a favor?" Muttering a few choice words in German, Kurt reached behind him and easily flipped the younger boy over, yet quickly found himself in Toad's hold. Then he flipped him over again, followed by another attempted tackle. Toad easily escaped harm by hopping on the desktop. "Look, I haven't got your inducer okay?"
"Was?"
Toad cringed slightly at the tone. Oh, boy…still in German. That ain't good. "You'll get it back, I promise. I just need your help on a teeny weeny matter."
Sitting upright, the exhaustion was clearly evident on Kurt's face—both physically and mentally. "Give me one good reason why I should help you with anyzing."
There was a moment's pause where Toad didn't say anything, and Kurt could swear he glanced over at the picture of him and Amanda with a sort of envy. "Because," he finally replied. "Because it's not for me..."
A dull pain between the temples greeted Wanda as she slowly regained consciousness. With a faint moan of discomfort, her eyelids fluttered open only to have them closed shut seconds later from the harsh light of the room. It was then the realization came to her that she couldn't move her arms or legs, both being restrained by some kind of leather straps. Flashbacks of those awful straightjackets and restraints she had been forced to wear at the asylum came flooding back to her, causing a brief state of panic when mixed with the after-effects of whatever gas had come out of the orbs.
No sooner did she begin to pull at them, however, when a familiar voice ran out. "The sheila is awake, I see." Her struggling ceased as she snapped her head up towards the source, eyes glaring if still a bit unfocused. "I was startin' to get nervous about you, Scarlet. For a moment, I though the boss had used too much gas."
Why does he have to keep calling me that? She wondered to herself, not giving him the privilege of having her talk back. Having no desire to even acknowledge his presence anymore, she turned away in hopes that he would leave. Within seconds, however, a sudden source of warmth appeared in front of her, drawing her attention once more.
A rose. It was a flaming rose…or, more specifically, a rose-like shape forged from the flames.
For a moment, Wanda forgot herself as she reached out with a curiosity, wishing to touch it. The heat emitted from it was so inviting; something inside told her it's touch wouldn't hurt her, that it would never. Her fingers just barely brushed against the burning petals before coming out of her stupor. She pulled back, blowing the fire flower out in one angry breath as her answer. Pryo seemed unfazed by her actions, kneeling down so he could meet eye-to-eye with her. The lack of his usual goggles revealed a softened expression in his gaze.
"I don't mean you any personal harm, Scarlet," he spoke quietly, as if the words were for her and her alone, "Try to understand; I'm only following orders."
"There's much to be said for the company you keep." Came the whispered reply, less harsh than probably intended. This earned a smile from him; not the coy smirk he usually deployed, but one lighthearted and true. He reached out and, much to her surprise (and his), gently brushed away a few loose strands of hair that were out of place. He had taken his gloves off earlier due to the warmth of the room; as his fingers trailed over her skin, he seemed to pause briefly if only to prolong the touch.
Wanda found herself only vaguely aware of the closeness between them, suddenly unable to tear her eyes away from the boy, although his sight was shifted slightly upwards. An unfamiliar feeling washed over, and she could feel the heat rising to her cheeks. The sensation only intensified further as his amber eyes lowered to meet with hers, sparkling from the lights above. Her breath caught in her throat
The sound of metal doors sliding open off to the side, announced the arrival of a third person. A sudden voice rang out, breaking Wanda out of the trance she had unknowingly been ensnared in: "And how is our guest faring, Pyro?"
She recognized it as her father immediately. Pyro quickly stood to attention, but had yet to turn around; his eyes were still locked with hers.
"One heck of a sheila you got here, sir." He quipped, still smiling. "Not much of a talker, though." As Magneto came into sight, Wanda saw that he was not wearing his usual helmet, startled at he hardly seemed to have aged since the last time she saw him. Even more startling was the striking resemblance to her twin.
"Leave us."
The curtness of his tone startled her, and she suddenly realized he was right next to her. With a nod, Pyro turned to leave at the room, pausing only once at the doorway to glance back.
I'm sorry...
And he disappeared from her sight.
With the swish of a cape, Eric Lensherr—his face was currently free of the metallic helmet's obstruction—was directly before of her in the exact same spot Pyro had stood only seconds before. "Wanda," he greeted her with the same tenderness, but received a colder response. "You have no idea how good it is to see you again, my daughter."
"I am not your daughter!" She hissed, and the restraints holding her down shook from her powers' fury. "I ceased being so over eight years ago." From the quivering of her voice, Wanda realized with a start that she was the one shaking, not her powers. All the raw hatred buried deep inside her escalated to its pinnacle as she stared at the man responsible for all her suffering.
Eric heaved a sigh, one full of weariness and suffering. He bend down, resting his palms on the armrests. When he spoke again, his voice held a hint of desperation in it. "Please, you must understand. I had no choice but to leave you there. Your powers were out of control; you were a danger not only to others, but yourse—"
"Enough!"
The word echoed off the metallic walls, during which time neither of them made a sound. Eric pulled back, standing up straight so he could once again look down upon her. His eyes, no longer gentle, were cold and harsh once more, showing a hint of annoyance at her unwillingness to cooperate. Turning his back to her for a moment, he walked over to a pedestal in one corner, where his signature helmet lay, and placed it over his head before heading back to Wanda.
No longer Eric, he had once more become Magneto.
"This little mission of your in life to kill me has been a hindrance on my plans as of late." She wasn't sure if he was serious or joking around with her. He didn't seem much like the joking type.
"Everyone's got to have a hobby." She quipped back, maintaining a steadfast glare.
"Really, Wanda, I had hoped we could have settled this in a more civilized manner, but now I see that won't be possible." He extended one hand and, without looking, slid open a hidden door off to the left. Out of the corner of her eye, Wanda saw a figure emerge from the shadows hunched over a crooked, wooden cane. "Mastermind here is going to alter your memories of the past eight years. Hopefully, your mind won't be too damaged in the process."
Her gaze switch back and forth between him and Mastermind, finally resting on her father once more. "Is that what you did to Ryo?" She accused, her voice filled with a sudden passion that surprised even him. "Did you alter her memories, too, so that she'd be driven to attack me?!"
"Ryo?" He repeated the name without a hint of familiarity. "I know of no one by that name." Anger quickly filled Wanda, convinced that he was lying. But before she could open her mouth to accuse him of such, her eyes met his…and for a brief moment, locked. His normally crystal-blue pupils seemed oddly lacking in color, they held a strangely familiar glazed look at the mentioning of her childhood friend and companion.
He really doesn't remember her. She thought in sudden realization. But, then…who…
Magneto stepped back, showing no signs of concern for the girl as he allowed Mastermind to take over. Slowly placing the cane against the chair, Mastermind raised his hands, palms facing inward just above her temples. But it wasn't until she felt the familiar tingle of a foreign presence fighting for entrance to her mind that Wanda was drawn out of her current bewilderment, finally able to register everything completely.
Her eyes went wide with sudden fear, then quickly shut tightly as she tried to fight it. She could already sense the images of her mind shifting… changing… disappearing all together…. Mastermind could obviously sense her resistance, grunting from the mental strain.
You're only making it harder on yourself… She heard him say to her as her vision began to blur.
Then everything went black.
It didn't take long for the two of them to reach their destination. Surprisingly—and Kurt had to give the frog-boy credit for this—Todd seemed to have remembered exactly where to go, hardly pausing even once. He was acting very different from the Toad he was familiar with. He wasn't quite sure exactly what it was, but he knew it definitely had something to do with who it was they were saving.
The overhead sun indicated the time to be no more than a few hours past noon when they reached the snow drift, overlooking the giant dome that was no doubt Magneto's hideaway.
"All right, here's the deal," Todd immediately took charge, eyes scanning the parameter for any signs of those mini-spheres he saw attack Wanda, "You get us in and I'll to the damsel rescuing, got it?"
"And zen we get my inducer back?" Kurt knew he was being selfish, but he couldn't help it.
Todd visibly winced at the German mutant's tone. Pulling back from the snow, he turned to look at his temporary comrade, who was sitting couched in the snow. "Yeah, about that…" I'm gonna regret this. He reached into his back pocket and pulled out the object in question, dangling it in front of him by the watchband. Kurt's eyes widened.
"I don't believe you!" He screeched, "You had it on you ze whole time?" Angrily, he snatched it away and placed it back on his wrist. "Zat's it; I'm out of here!"
"No, wait!" Todd held his arms out in defense, receiving a harsh glare in response. Heaving a sigh, he lowered them and looked to the ground. "Okay, I screwed up; I admit it. I thought…I thought that maybe if I looked—well—not like me, that Wanda would gimme a chance, y'know." Sitting down with his back leaning against the snow drift, he looked back up at Kurt, whose expression had turned neutral. "You have no idea how lucky you are, Fuzzball. You got someone like Amanda, who genuinely cares about you, no matter how you look or what you are."
"You mean I did."
Despite himself, Todd managed a smile. He even chuckled. "I deserved that, I guess. Y'know," he continued thoughtfully, "Hiding who we really are from the world, that's somethin' you and me kinda got in common." Kurt was fiddling subconsciously with his watch as he spoke.
"Zat is true," He replied, his voice softening as his anger departed, "But I never had to hide from Amanda."
"Like I said; you don't know how lucky you are." A moment of silence passed between them, in which the air seemed thick with tension. Staring down at his unofficial rival, Kurt was at a loss for words. He almost felt sorry for him, being able to relate somewhat to what the poor boy was going through. He couldn't even imagine what it would be like were it Amanda in danger and their roles were switched.
But Todd didn't need his pity right now; he needed help…and if he was desperate enough to come to Kurt to get it, well…
Groaning in defeat, Kurt slapping a palm to his forehead, shutting his eyes. "Oh, somebody shoot me." He muttered under his breath. Todd heard him and, knowing instantly what that meant, stood up in delight.
"All right; you my main elf!" In one swoop, he grabbed the watch inducer back from Kurt and slapped it down on his own wrist. "Time to rescue Wanda!"
With a press of the buttons, the image of Todd faded out only to be replaced with that of a tall, well-built blonde…otherwise known as 'Eric.' Kurt groaned upon seeing this: "Oh, no you don't!" He snatched the watch away, and Todd reappeared.
"Hey!"
"Don't you 'hey!' me." Kurt snapped back, this time placing it in his pocket for safekeeping. "Weren't you listening to me before? Mein Gott, I don't know what's worse, your choice of image or your attempt at a German accent. If you wish to play ze hero, it's going to be you doing ze rescuing, not some Duncan Mathews look-alike, verstehen Sie?" He gave Todd a moment to think about it before reaching out his hand. "Hold on to somezing!"
With a *bamf!* the two vanished, leaving behind a faint trail of smoke.
"Stare at dat door any longer, mon ami, an' Remy t'ink y' gon' burn a whole t'rough it."
St. John hardly blinked in response to the Cajun's light-hearted comment. In fact, he hadn't moved once from his current position—leaning up against the wall directly opposite the entrance to the room, arms folded and eyes glued to the door—since Magneto had ordered him to leave not ten minutes prior. His two comrades were also close at hand, as Magneto had requested should he be in need of assistance; Gambit was the closest, sitting on a crate by the adjacent wall, while Colossus opted to sit on the floor directly opposite him, a pad of paper resting in his lap as he occupied himself with various drawings.
As the seconds ticked by, he grew more and more unnerved. This was the first time the Acolytes had been kept out of the loop while on a mission, although it hadn't seemed like much to him. Oh, sure, he got to have a little bit of fun for a while, burning bridges and causing mayhem (always a plus), but the rest was like a bizarre game of cat and mouse. And that girl…
Wanda.
The Scarlet Witch.
Why was he suddenly thinking about her so much? I mean, she certainly wasn't lacking in the looks department—that was obvious from the moment he first laid eyes on her—but that wasn't it. There was just something about her, something he'd never noticed in another girl before. And back there, in the room… Something had overcome him, like he suddenly wasn't thinking straight. Or even thinking at all. It was as if all the rest of the world had vanished and there was no one but the two of them. Looking back, St. John began to wonder what might have happened if Magneto hadn't shown up when he did….
That was the other thing on his mind. He's been doing a bit of background research in his spare time when things got boring around the base, and was more than a little shocked to discover the fact that she was his daughter, the twin sister of Quicksilver. There was little other information about their connection, however, other than the fact that he'd placed her in a mental institution a few years back when her powers first manifested…but from the looks of it, it seemed he had done so out of concern for her safety. But then, if all this was true, why would he have ordered her to be captured and restrained? He was so confused.
Something was amiss, he was almost sure of that.
Seeing a frown appear and then deepen on his comrade's face, Remy stood up. A wide grin was evident on his face; the Australian mutant was emitting his emotions so loudly, they were all but impossible to ignore, and his empathy was able to pick up every last vibe with ease. What was so amusing, though, was despite all the confusion and uncertainty Pyro felt at the moment, Remy knew exactly what was happening to him (hell, he'd gone through the same thing himself not that long ago).
He was falling in love with Wanda.
St. John was so deeply into his thoughts, he nearly jumped when a hand was placed on his shoulder, diverting his attention to a now-smirking Remy Lebeau. He knew that smirk; it always meant Remy was up to something.
Sure enough, the Cajun had decided to have a bit of fun at the pyrokenetic's expense. "Y' be lookin' awful worried f'r de guy dat captured her in de firs' place," He asked, innocent except for the smirk. Pyro hated that smirk. "Remy startin' t' t'ink dere be some alternative motive, non?"
"Non." Pyro mockingly replied before muttering under his breath. " 'Remy' thinks too much."
Unfortunately for him, Remy had sharp hearing. "Don' know 'bout dat. Maybe we jus' need a second opinion. What do y' t'ink, Poitr?" The Russian looked up at hearing his named called, an uncharacteristically evil grin tugging at his lips. Without a word, he held up the current drawing he had been working on so they could see. Upon getting a good look, Remy vainly tried to stiffen his laughter while Pyro simply glared. Even Poitr gave a slight chuckle.
"I hate you both."
It was an extremely lifelike image of Wanda that border-lined impressive, especially considering it had been done from memory. Behind her was a drooling caricature of St. John, complete with wide eyes, his tongue hanging out, and a dozen or so little hearts all around his head.
The good-humored moment was cut short, however, when Remy suddenly froze in place. "Y' hear something?" The noise was faint, a muffled sound coming from behind the door. Voices, and neither Magneto's nor Mastermind's. "Dere's an intruder in de room. Let's go."
Kurt heard the footsteps heading towards them from where he stood. He quickly turned to face Todd, who was fiddling with the chair straps. "Hurry up, will you? Somebody's coming!" He teleported over to see what was taking so long. Both boys had been somewhat surprised to find an unconscious Wanda left unguarded in the room, but rather than waste precious time brooding over it and risk getting caught, they decided to count their blessings.
"Hey, I skipped this day in hero class, okay?" Todd snapped back, getting somewhat frustrated. "You got a better idea?"
In a burst of inspiration, Kurt grabbed a hold of Wanda's arm and bamfed her out of the chair. "Just zat." He handed her over to Todd—who was amazed to discover just how light she felt, like it had been days since she last ate—just as the metal doors behind them started to open.
"Time for the get-out-of-town express!" Todd exclaimed as Kurt grabbed hold of both him and Wanda, teleporting them out of the room. Seconds later, the Acolytes ran in.
The first thing Pyro noticed what the vacant chair where Wanda had been earlier. His eyes went wide in alarm and he started muttering a few choice words. Remy, on the other hand, was more trained as remaining calm in such situations and came to a stop to better observe the scene. A few seconds later, a familiar scent caught his nose and he sniffed the air. "Y' boys smell dat?" Colossus and Pyro looked at him oddly for a second before following suit. Pyro winced at the stench, waving his hand in front of his face a few times, while Colossus nodded in confirmation.
"Brimstone."
"Wait…why would the X-men come for her?" Pyro asked, "I thought they were rivals." Yet the relief of knowing she was in safe hands was clearly evident on his face, no matter how hard he tried to hide it.
"Dere's a fine line b'tween friendship and rivalry," Remy stated with a shrug. "An' dey been known t' cross it on more den one occasion."
None of the boys, however, noticed the two figured lurking in the doorway, watching them from the shadows. One appeared to be leaning heavily against his wooden cane while the other maintained a steadfast glare towards the empty seat. With hardly a glance towards the man beside him, Magneto's abrupt question broke the heavy silence between them.
"Did you finish the job?"
It took a moment for Mastermind to catch his breath before he could even reply. "Her memories have been altered." He then winced as if in pain, holding one hand to his forehead for a moment before continuing. "But it took more energy than I thought. The child has an incredibly strong will, and I often had to fight her mind's resistance to the change."
"You haven't answered my question, Jason." Magneto calmly stated, though he was obviously impatient. "Is the job done?"
After a brief pause, he finally answered. "Yes."
"Very well then." He abruptly turned to leave. "I thank you for your assistance. You are no longer needed." As Jason Wyngarde watched him disappear down the hallway, the feeling of dread returned. In all this years as a mutant illusionist, he'd never encountered a mind quite like the young Wanda Maximoff's before—traumatic, random, heavily guarded—and for the first time, he'd briefly lost control of the illusion. Not very long, just for an instant, but the struggle she had so valiantly put up left him unsure of the outcome it would have on her psyche.
He could only pray, for her sake, that she would come out of it all right.
Kurt glanced out the window one last time, checking to be absolutely positive that no one had followed them back to the cabin before turning away. His gaze drifted over to Todd standing in the middle of the room. Wanda was still unconscious in his arms, as he had yet to put her down, and he was gazing down at her like she could vanish at any moment. "How's she doing?" Kurt asked after a moment of silence.
"Okay, I guess. She's just exhausted from the whole thing." Kurt walked over towards them, and Todd's voice grew softer, more serious. "You know, people give her a lot of grief for being so mean-spirited and cruel all the time, but you can't really blame her. I don't. Nobody should ever have to go through the things she has, especially not alone."
"She certainly is a survivor." Kurt commented, not sure of what else to say.
This earned a faint smile from Todd. "She's the strongest person I've ever known." He shifted her weight slightly in his arms and she stirred a bit, turning her head so that it rest comfortably against his chest. She didn't smile, but she looked unbelievably happy and comfortable for once in her life. The opportunity was too great to resist; gently, he leaned down and planted a soft kiss on Wanda's forehead. His lips brushed against the skin, lightly so as not to disturb her. As hoped, she hardly even blinked.
Kurt watched the touching interaction with a somewhat fascination. "You really do care about her, don't you?" For the first time since they'd arrived, Todd looked up so he could meet him eye-to-eye.
"Yeah. Lord knows why, but I do." He gave a light chuckle to ease the mood a bit before changing the subject. "Think you're rested enough to 'port us outta here yet?"
"I believe so. Here we go." Seconds later, they vanished once more in a puff of sulfurous smoke.
A few hours later, Todd staggered into the living room, where Wanda was still sleeping, with a huge bucket filled with ice water in tow. Placing it on the floor, he knelt down beside her to check the cold compress on her forehead. He frowned; she'd started to develop a low fever soon after they'd arrived back at the house, and it was getting worse and worse with the passing of time. Already, she was breaking out into a cold sweat and shivering.
Luckily the closet still had a few more blankets left to wrap her in. When that was finished, he dipped the compress into the water to re-cool it and used a dry cloth to try and wipe away some of the perspiration on her face. No sooner had the material touched her skin when she gave a low groan and her eyelids fluttered open.
He pulled back. "Sorry about that. I didn't mean to wake you." She turned her head towards the sound of his voice, looking a little dazed. "How are you feeling?"
Wanda didn't answer right away, placing one hand to her forehead and closing her eyes. She then moved to sit up, and Todd reflexively wrapped his arms around her shoulders in assistance, blushing slightly from the skin contact (he'd removed her jacket when they got home, leaving her in the red leather tank top underneath). She didn't seem to notice, even smiling briefly at him for the gesture.
When she was comfortably propped up against the armrest, she tried talking. "What happened?" Her voiced cracked slightly from having just woken up.
"That depends. What's the last thing you remember."
She looked down at the blankets clutched in her hand for a moment before turning back to him. "I…don't know." Then, as if noticing for the first time where they were, her eyes traveled across the room, looking for something. "Where did everybody go?" She wondered out loud.
"Well, Lance and Freddie went out for the evening," He replied after a moment of thought. "And you're brother's already asleep upstairs; 'said he had a long day and was beat." Turning away for a moment, Todd stood up and bent down to retrieve the ice water. "You feeling hungry? I'm heading back to the kitchen any—Wanda!" When he looked back, she was leaning against the couch back, clutching her head. Tears were already trickling down her cheeks.
"Make it stop, please." She whimpered in between sobs. "It hurts… Somebody make it stop!"
He dropped the bucket so abruptly it tipped over, the water spilling out all over the floor. Rushing to her side, he sat down on the couch next to her, leaning in to get her attention. "…Wanda? Wanda!" Not knowing what else to do, he started stroking her hair to calm her down, peeling away a few strands that were plastered to her forehead. "Shh…it's okay. I need you to calm down, all right? Take a few deep breaths." She nodded to let him know she was listening, her sobbing already dwindling down, then did as he told her. Her arms soon came down. "That's my girl."
Under any other circumstance, Todd might have been enthralled by the situation. Here was Wanda, the girl of his dreams, in his arms…and she had yet to electrocute him. But Todd Tolensky deserved more credit than most people gave him for; he may have been an ambitious amphibian, but he certainly wasn't heartless—he knew this wasn't the time for such things.
"Try going back to sleep, all right?" He gently coaxed her into lying back down, which she hesitantly obliged to, yet refused to let go of his hand. Almost like a child. As the last of her tears subsided, she settled down into a peaceful slumber.
Todd waited a few minutes to be sure she was fast asleep before carefully getting up, removing his hand from hers. He tip-toed as quietly as possible to the door, throwing on his jacket and checking to be sure the envelope was still in the pocket before heading outside.
A small voice stopped him in his tracks. "Where are you going?" He hesitated, still in the doorway, but didn't turn around. After a slight pause, he responded as softly as he could.
"Go back to sleep Wanda. I'll be right back. I've just got a small favor to repay."
Amanda Sefton lazily wandered into her room after a tiring day of avoiding her parents. She was still clad in her pajamas from the night before, having not bothered to get dressed that day since it was a Saturday, and her eyes were red from crying. If it weren't for a slight gust of wind outside her window, she might not have seen the crisp, white envelope slipped through the cracks of her window, flapping from the breeze.
Curiosity getting the better of her, she sat down on her bed and opened it:
~Amanda~
Can't say I blame you for being mad about the other night. I guess I wasn't thinking straight, and kinda made a bad choice. But I'm not asking for your forgiveness, if that's what your thinking. I already know there's a slim chance of that. All I ask is that you try not to blame Blue Boy for all the damage. You two got something really special, and it'd be a shame to see all that go to waste just 'case your folks ain't the biggest mutant fans around. You never cared about that stuff, did you? Hopefully, you still don't. Bl—Kurt really cares about you, you know…you can see it in his eyes, and knowing what he's been through in the past, you're probably one of the best things that ever happened to him. The rest of us should only be so lucky. Think about it.
The note was unsigned, although Amanda had a pretty good idea who it was from.
She stared at the note for a long while, rereading it over a few times before finally setting it down on the dresser. After thinking about it for a moment, she got up and walked over to her vanity mirror and sat down. She picked up the extension line in her room, pausing only once before making up her mind and dialing a number she knew by heart. It rang twice before a girl around her age answered.
"Hey, Kitty? It's Amanda." She paused, allowing the girl to speak. "Yeah, I'm okay. Listen…can I talk to Kurt?"
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TO BE CONTINUED…