Thank you. I really didn't want to commit infanticide...on the fic, I
mean. It's my first fic, my baby. It's also very developmentally slow
compared to my other stories, which are leaping ahead miles at a time.
Let's fix that, shall we? On with the story!
***
Stoic by Eternity's Voice
***
"Professor?"
"I'm here, Scott. Be careful, and remember that step." I grinned ruefully, thinking about the numerous times he hadn't remembered "the step." Why there was a step going from the kitchen to the hall I had no idea, but it was damned annoying for a person who couldn't see. How the wheelchair bound professor got around it, I didn't know.
Carefully, I stepped up into the kitchen and made his way through it to the living room. I stopped a few feet from the collection of couches and chairs...I hoped. I was always misjudging my surroundings and crashing into things. Xavier promised none of the things that had shattered had been valuable, but I knew better. "You wanted to talk to me, Professor?"
"Yes, Scott. Come in and sit down."
I began my arduous trek again. My legs were still a little shaky from disuse and I wobbled. A small voice gasped and I froze. "Who's there?" I demanded.
Xavier chuckled lightly. "Sit down, my boy. Your legs won't last much longer. I take a certain pride in being the only person in a wheel chair in this residence. It would be a blow to my self-worth if you were forced to use one again because of a simple thing like a fall."
I managed to drop into a couch, and opened my mouth to speak, but the Professor beat me to it.
"I would like to introduce you to someone, Scott. The person who startled you is Miss Jean Grey. Jean, this is Scott Summers, my foster son."
"Nice to meet you." The girl sounded very shy. She also seemed troubled, as if she had a lot on her mind. Eventually, she mumbled. "He sounds very scary. I'm sorry, but I'm glad the demon wasn't in me."
Xavier let out an exasperated sigh. "I thought we had been through this, Scott."
I hung my head and the man continued. "There was no demon, just a rogue telepath. Mind mutants are quite common, much more than demons, I can assure you." There was a hint of amusement in his voice as he said that, but it vanished shortly.
"I wish I could show the havoc this man or woman placed in your mind. I wish I could wave my hand and fix it, but as long as you believe it was demonic, I can't help you.
"I can't explain to you why, exactly, but let me try. There are changes in your brain, connections that shouldn't be there. They are linked into thoughts like demon and damned and grow stronger every time you think of such things. They grow weaker the longer you go without acknowledging it. That is why the mutant was desperate that you fight or flee from it. When you ignored it, the ties grew weaker and it had to struggle to reach you. If you could focus on something else for a week, it would all go away and this telepath could never touch you again."
I stifled a sigh. To forget the terror of my life since before I could remember...it was infinitely easier said than done. "I'll try."
The professor's voice grew softer. "That's all I could ask for. I'm sorry to pull you into this, Jean. I hope you understand how important it was for me to talk to Scott."
"It's all right, I didn't mind. You'll probably have to have a talk with me too."
I drew my eyebrows together, the action hidden by my thick blindfold. What did that mean?
"Scott, Jean will be staying here. She is like us, like me specifically. A telepath."
"Is she..."
The girl answered the question I had hesitated to ask. "My parents are still alive...sorry."
I tilted my head towards the girl. I could pinpoint her now that she spoke loud enough. "Don't be," I said forcefully. "I'm glad I didn't ask that out loud."
The professor ended the following silence. "If you two will excuse me, there is something that needs my attention." The handicapped mutant rolled away to some part of the mansion.
I sank into the couch cushions. Why had the professor left so abruptly? He had never left me alone before. Well...if I concentrated, I could hear the faint sound a person breathing. I wasn't alone, but the girl was a stranger. Suddenly, her voice filled the quiet. "Scott?" Why did she sound frightened?
"What?"
"Please don't stop talking. I don't want to slip in again."
"What do you mean, Jean?"
There was a soft sound like a whisper, or a sob. "The inside world, in my mind." She grew quiet.
"Miss Grey?"
She gasped at her name. "I was there again. She was there too."
"She?" I was getting confused. It would be so helpful if I could see, but I had to go by sound.
"The firebird. She...she calls to me. I'm sorry, this must sound so strange."
I laughed, "I'm the one who thinks he was possessed by a demon. Just talk. What is the inside world? Who is this firebird and why are you afraid of her?"
"Maybe I should start at the beginning. My best friend Shelly and I were hiking in the woods. I don't remember what happened, I've tried, but it's not there. Afterwards, when I woke up, there was blood. It was all over, on the ground and on the trees. It was on me. It was Shelly's. I watched her, waiting for her to get up, but it never happened. I began to cry and I just wanted the world to go away. The world was just lonely trees, blood, and a dead girl. What reason was there to stay? There was a voice, from inside, that told me to come. She said She would make everything right. I believed Her. I was an idiot.
"The firebird never made it right, She made it wrong. She said things. It made me feel angry and I wanted to do something...bad. I couldn't leave, though. The firebird, She said I wasn't angry enough and wouldn't let me go. I would run, but I just ended up in the same place. It was beautiful, but dead and burnt.
"Then the professor came and saved me, took me out of my coma. He says that She is a figment of my imagination, something I just made up to cope. I can't believe that yet. At least you can blame your monster on an outside source. How can I believe that thing came out of me?"
I sat still, and then began to speak. "The same way I can believe my demon was a cruel psychic. I can't, but you can. I'll believe She was just something your mind dreamed up without your permission. You believe that He was a fake. We'll just keep on telling each other that and maybe one day we'll believe it ourselves. Do you like smores?"
"What?"
I laughed. "I know the professor has chocolate, marshmallows, and graham crackers, but I can't make smores anymore. Will you make some for me?"
She said softly, "Will you believe for me?"
I sighed. "Jean, speak up. I can't see your lips move and I can barely hear you."
"Will you believe for me?"
"That's better. Yes, I will. Will you believe for me?"
"Yes. Where are the marshmallows?"
***
Thank you for reviewing.
***
Stoic by Eternity's Voice
***
"Professor?"
"I'm here, Scott. Be careful, and remember that step." I grinned ruefully, thinking about the numerous times he hadn't remembered "the step." Why there was a step going from the kitchen to the hall I had no idea, but it was damned annoying for a person who couldn't see. How the wheelchair bound professor got around it, I didn't know.
Carefully, I stepped up into the kitchen and made his way through it to the living room. I stopped a few feet from the collection of couches and chairs...I hoped. I was always misjudging my surroundings and crashing into things. Xavier promised none of the things that had shattered had been valuable, but I knew better. "You wanted to talk to me, Professor?"
"Yes, Scott. Come in and sit down."
I began my arduous trek again. My legs were still a little shaky from disuse and I wobbled. A small voice gasped and I froze. "Who's there?" I demanded.
Xavier chuckled lightly. "Sit down, my boy. Your legs won't last much longer. I take a certain pride in being the only person in a wheel chair in this residence. It would be a blow to my self-worth if you were forced to use one again because of a simple thing like a fall."
I managed to drop into a couch, and opened my mouth to speak, but the Professor beat me to it.
"I would like to introduce you to someone, Scott. The person who startled you is Miss Jean Grey. Jean, this is Scott Summers, my foster son."
"Nice to meet you." The girl sounded very shy. She also seemed troubled, as if she had a lot on her mind. Eventually, she mumbled. "He sounds very scary. I'm sorry, but I'm glad the demon wasn't in me."
Xavier let out an exasperated sigh. "I thought we had been through this, Scott."
I hung my head and the man continued. "There was no demon, just a rogue telepath. Mind mutants are quite common, much more than demons, I can assure you." There was a hint of amusement in his voice as he said that, but it vanished shortly.
"I wish I could show the havoc this man or woman placed in your mind. I wish I could wave my hand and fix it, but as long as you believe it was demonic, I can't help you.
"I can't explain to you why, exactly, but let me try. There are changes in your brain, connections that shouldn't be there. They are linked into thoughts like demon and damned and grow stronger every time you think of such things. They grow weaker the longer you go without acknowledging it. That is why the mutant was desperate that you fight or flee from it. When you ignored it, the ties grew weaker and it had to struggle to reach you. If you could focus on something else for a week, it would all go away and this telepath could never touch you again."
I stifled a sigh. To forget the terror of my life since before I could remember...it was infinitely easier said than done. "I'll try."
The professor's voice grew softer. "That's all I could ask for. I'm sorry to pull you into this, Jean. I hope you understand how important it was for me to talk to Scott."
"It's all right, I didn't mind. You'll probably have to have a talk with me too."
I drew my eyebrows together, the action hidden by my thick blindfold. What did that mean?
"Scott, Jean will be staying here. She is like us, like me specifically. A telepath."
"Is she..."
The girl answered the question I had hesitated to ask. "My parents are still alive...sorry."
I tilted my head towards the girl. I could pinpoint her now that she spoke loud enough. "Don't be," I said forcefully. "I'm glad I didn't ask that out loud."
The professor ended the following silence. "If you two will excuse me, there is something that needs my attention." The handicapped mutant rolled away to some part of the mansion.
I sank into the couch cushions. Why had the professor left so abruptly? He had never left me alone before. Well...if I concentrated, I could hear the faint sound a person breathing. I wasn't alone, but the girl was a stranger. Suddenly, her voice filled the quiet. "Scott?" Why did she sound frightened?
"What?"
"Please don't stop talking. I don't want to slip in again."
"What do you mean, Jean?"
There was a soft sound like a whisper, or a sob. "The inside world, in my mind." She grew quiet.
"Miss Grey?"
She gasped at her name. "I was there again. She was there too."
"She?" I was getting confused. It would be so helpful if I could see, but I had to go by sound.
"The firebird. She...she calls to me. I'm sorry, this must sound so strange."
I laughed, "I'm the one who thinks he was possessed by a demon. Just talk. What is the inside world? Who is this firebird and why are you afraid of her?"
"Maybe I should start at the beginning. My best friend Shelly and I were hiking in the woods. I don't remember what happened, I've tried, but it's not there. Afterwards, when I woke up, there was blood. It was all over, on the ground and on the trees. It was on me. It was Shelly's. I watched her, waiting for her to get up, but it never happened. I began to cry and I just wanted the world to go away. The world was just lonely trees, blood, and a dead girl. What reason was there to stay? There was a voice, from inside, that told me to come. She said She would make everything right. I believed Her. I was an idiot.
"The firebird never made it right, She made it wrong. She said things. It made me feel angry and I wanted to do something...bad. I couldn't leave, though. The firebird, She said I wasn't angry enough and wouldn't let me go. I would run, but I just ended up in the same place. It was beautiful, but dead and burnt.
"Then the professor came and saved me, took me out of my coma. He says that She is a figment of my imagination, something I just made up to cope. I can't believe that yet. At least you can blame your monster on an outside source. How can I believe that thing came out of me?"
I sat still, and then began to speak. "The same way I can believe my demon was a cruel psychic. I can't, but you can. I'll believe She was just something your mind dreamed up without your permission. You believe that He was a fake. We'll just keep on telling each other that and maybe one day we'll believe it ourselves. Do you like smores?"
"What?"
I laughed. "I know the professor has chocolate, marshmallows, and graham crackers, but I can't make smores anymore. Will you make some for me?"
She said softly, "Will you believe for me?"
I sighed. "Jean, speak up. I can't see your lips move and I can barely hear you."
"Will you believe for me?"
"That's better. Yes, I will. Will you believe for me?"
"Yes. Where are the marshmallows?"
***
Thank you for reviewing.
