AN: Thanks to everyone who has read my story so far! I really appreciate it!
Kitty stood there, feeling almost pinned down by the severe gaze of this woman, this Principal Darkholme. But, that's not the only name she's known by, Kitty thought to herself suddenly. She jumped mentally at the thought, but she knew that it was the truth. There was some other name this this woman sometimes used, but what?
"We were just looking for some friends of ours," Jean quickly said, "but it doesn't look like they're here right now. We probably should be going." She turned to walk away.
"Wait," Principal Darkholme commanded, "You two aren't students here, but we've met before haven't we? Just who are you anyway?"
"I think you must have us confused with someone else," Jean said, a slight tremor cracking her normally smooth voice.
"Yeah," Kitty spoke up, "that happens to us all the time. I guess we just have those kinds of faces." She laughed nervously as she turned toward Jean. "We have to be going," she said, "Dad will freak if we aren't at the restaurant before he is."
"That's right," Jean agreed, picking up on Kitty's act. She turned towards Principal Darkholme. "Sorry we can't stay."
They turned and started walking back towards the parking lot. The closer they got, the faster they walked until they were actually running by the time they reached the SUV. Kitty couldn't help but feel a little frightened. The woman would have to be really dumb to buy the story that Jean and her were sisters and she didn't seem to be ignorant. As they drove down the road, Kitty glanced back, but she could barely see the school - much less the mysterious Darkholme. She let out a sigh of relief. "Who was that?" she asked.
Jean seemed surprised. "You don't remember?"
"Well, I do a little. Darkholme…that's not her name is it? Or, not her only name at least." She turned towards Jean. "What was the other name: the name we knew her by?"
"Mystique," Jean responded. Her tone was soft, but that name carried a heavy weight.
Kitty waited for her to continue, but after a moment it was clear that she was unwilling to do so. In the relative silence of the drive, Kitty leaned back in her seat and stared out the window. "What have we gotten ourselves into?" she finally asked.
Somehow, the fact that Jean didn't have an answer made the situation all the more ominous.
********************
Mystique was surprised that Jean and Kitty were in town. She couldn't figure out how they had found their way here, but that wasn't really the issue. They were here so wondering about they why's and how's wasn't going to change anything. Besides, it wasn't as if she couldn't handle the situation. She may have not been expecting this to happen, but, as usual, she was still prepared.
She turned away from the large window where she had been standing and found herself staring into a jumble of wires, cables, and other devices. As she looked at the heart of the whole contraption, she felt a touch of guilt, but quickly pushed it aside.
She had things to do. There was no time to waste on foolish emotions.
********************
The sun was setting in the western hemisphere of the sky, it's golden light painting the nearby clouds so that they seemed to be dipped in gold. The dark veil of night stood poised, ready to cast itself over the world as frogs and crickets began their nightly serenade. However, Kitty and Jean were not admiring the beauty of the world around them.
They were looking at a beautiful property that stood atop of grassy hill. This is where it was, Kitty thought to herself, this is where the institute was. She no longer even needed to ask Jean. Her own memories had become strong enough that she didn't need to have someone else's verification.
However, the institute wasn't there now. Instead of the large mansion, a smaller two-story home stood. It looked pleasant enough, but the small "NO TRESPASSING" sign that hung from the tall fence, which surrounded the property, seemed to indicate the inhabitants didn't particularly welcome company.
Shaking her head, Jean climbed back into the SUV. She looked tired, drained, and mentally exhausted. "We need to get back," she said as Kitty got in the vehicle, "It's about time for you to call your father. Besides, we can look around some more tomorrow."
"Sure," Kitty agreed weakly, but both of them knew that the situation didn't look good. Jean would have to take Kitty home soon or her parents would be worried and so far they hadn't found a thing that explained what was happening.
At least, they didn't know they had.
There's Chapter 4 in all its glory. I hope you enjoyed it. Chapter 5 will be here soon!
