That night Kyle opened the door, finding to her surprise Kitty, Rogue, and
Jubilee sleeping on the other side. Frowning and hearing music drifting
from down stairs Kyle quietly closed the door and looked at her friends,
then sitting next to Jubilee and staring at the door until Jubilee groaned
and moved over, falling on Kyle and her head resting on Kyle's shoulder for
a full five seconds before she stirred again and yawned, opening her eyes
and seeing Kyle.
"Kyle?" she asked groggily. Then she shook her head and nodded. "Yes, Sleeping Beauty has confirmed that she is looking at Kyle. What are you doing out here?"
"What are you doing?" Kyle returned, trying to smile. Jubilee grinned sheepishly.
"We didn't want you to run off again without us knowing," she said. "You doing ok?"
"No."
"Well, if you ever need-"
"I know." Jubilee looked at Kyle sadly.
"You don't want to hear any of that crap do you?" she asked softly. Kyle shook her head.
"I'm sick of it," she said softly. "It only hurts."
"Then I won't ask again, as long as you know it," Jubilee said. "And I'll make sure the Sleeping Smelly-Dead keep their big mouths shut too." Kyle managed a ghost of a smile on her lips, but her eyes never left the doorway as Jubilee hugged her tightly and Kitty snorted in her sleep.
***
Hank walked down the hall towards Kyle's room, sighing and then stopping when he saw Kyle, Rogue, Jubilee, and Kitty all asleep in the hall, leaning against eachother. The doctor noted that Kyle look somehow much paler and thinner than the other girls, and unhappily he bent down and put a hand on her shoulder, shaking her slightly.
"Kyle, wake up," he said softly. Kyle leaned to one side and then slowly opened her eyes, and seeing Hank right in front of her let out a long, seemingly forced, sigh. "Sorry to have to wake you up, but you have a visitor." Kyle snapped into focus.
"What?" she said, her voice croaking. "Who?" Hank paused.
"She says she's you're sister, and she would like to see you right now, she has to leave soon," he said. Kyle's heart froze.
"Karen?" she gasped out. "Karen's here? Why? How? My- no one ever told her I was-" Hank shrugged.
"She gave no explanation as to how she knew you were here," Hank said gently, "Or exactly who she was either, but she did make it very clear that she needed to see you right now, she says she had to be somewhere. Are you coming?" Kyle slowly got up and wiped her face with the back of her sleeve, then listened for a moment to the music coming from downstairs.
"The dance- still on?" she asked. Hank smiled sadly.
"No, you slept all of today, this I believe, is the boys dance. Far less hearts and pink things, I must say." They walked down the hall in silence the rest of the way to a dim-lighted classroom. When they walked in they found Karen, Scott, and Ororo all looking at eachother. Kyle froze when she saw her older sister, who had disappeared from her life when she was seven. Karen didn't smile at her, only nodded slightly.
"May we have some privacy?" she asked. The adults nodded.
"Of course," Ororo said, as she walked by Kyle she gave her a little smile, then shut the door behind her and the men. Kyle looked at Karen, suddenly aware that no one in her family had ever seen her like this, and the familiar sensation of a dart getting ready to explode shot through her arm. Karen didn't speak for a moment, looking Kyle over with a disapproving frown on her face, and Kyle wished Ororo or Hank or Scott had stayed. Finally she spoke.
"If you had stayed where you belonged you would be dead too," she said softly. Kyle looked at the floor.
"I know." She said.
"If you hadn't gone to school that day, you would be fine," Karen said. "No one would have known, dad would be alive, you knew you were sick, why did you go?"
"I thought it was only a morning thing," Kyle said, shrugging. "I didn't know-"
"Well I did." Karen snapped. Kyle looked up at her, wondering how in the world her sister could have known that. Karen snorted and glared at her.
"You think you're the only one in the family who's a mutant?" she snapped, Kyle looked into her eyes and to her complete shock they glowed green slightly, then returned to normal.
"You're- *you're* a-" she stuttered.
"Freak, just like you," Karen snapped. "Why do you think I left home so early? Mom and Dad thought I was mad at them, I let them think that because I knew it was better. You should have left to, I knew you were going to end up like this."
"Karen-"
"Shut up when I'm talking to you!" Karen thundered, her hands curling into fist. "You're an ungrateful brat, just like you always were, and now because you decided you couldn't live without going to school dad is dead!" Kyle looked away, tears forming in her eyes. "I can't believe you, Kyle," Karen said, her voice getting quiet. "You were always smart, Kyle, smarter than me, but you had to be stupid just one day! That day! I knew it was going to happen, I should have stopped you, but I thought maybe I was wrong and wouldn't have to come save your ass-"
"Karen!" Kyle sobbed. "Why? Why did you come?"
"Because I needed to make sure that I was right," Karen said, walking forward and putting her hands on Kyle's shoulders, making her look into her eyes. "I needed to see you myself, not just relying on visions and crap that I don't want." She stopped and noticed the tears in Kyle's purple eyes. "And my name is not Karen anymore," she said in a low voice. "Like yours isn't Kyle. We're mutants, we have no rights to our human names anymore."
"My name is Kyle-"
"No, it's Poison," Karen said. "And mine is Unknown. Those are our names, and you can't let anyone call you anything else." Kyle shook her head.
"No, I won't change-"
"You bitch!" Karen swung her fist and hit Kyle in the nose, sending her sister flying backwards. Kyle grunted and lay on the floor. "Damnit," Karen said, holding her fist. "Why'd you make me do that? Your face already looks like crap." Kyle slowly got up, feeling blood start to pour out of her nose she quickly put her hands up ad caught it, absorbing most of the acid before it ate through her clothes or the floor. Karen grabbed her sister's hands and looked at the blood, then pushed her away again.
"What do you want from me?" Kyle asked softly as Karen turned away. Her sister's shoulders dropped and she turned back around.
"You're not going to like this, but there's no question here, you're coming with me." Kyle stared at her.
"What?" she said. Karen glared at her.
"You're coming with me, you're not going to stay here. This place is going to be discovered one day, and as soon as they pass that law a hundred thousand military men will swoop in and kill or arrest all of the people here, the only way to escape that is to leave. Besides, with the rest of our family dead, thanks to you, you're under my charge, so you don't have a choice anyway," she said. Kyle backed away, shaking her head.
"No, no!" she said. "I'm not going, and dad put me in the professor's charge-"
"Where's the proof?" Karen demanded. "Where's the paperwork? Dad didn't sign any of that-" Kyle's breath caught as she realized that her sister was probably right, she had never seen any papers exchange hands between her father and any of the X Men, so there was nothing to prove that her father had sent her away.
"I'm not going!" Kyle shouted. Karen stepped forward again, fist raised, but Kyle was faster, dodging her sister's attack and barreling into her side, sending both crashing into a table. Kyle rolled off Karen and scrambled up, running to the door and wrenching it open and running into Ororo, who grabbed her.
"Kyle! What's wrong?" the white haired woman asked.
"I won't- I won't go!" she sobbed, tears flowing freely down the side of her face. Suddenly Karen appeared, shirtsleeve torn and breathing heavily, glaring at Kyle and the X Men.
"What did you do to her?" Scott demanded.
"It's none of your concern," Karen spat. "She's coming with me!"
"I beg to disagree," Hank said, stepping forward and frowning at Karen. "She seems to wish to remain here."
"I don't care what she wants, it's not her choice!" Karen fumed.
"Do you have anything stating that you're her legal guardian now?" Scott asked. Karen glared at them.
"Neither do you, and I am her sister," she said in a low voice.
"I beg to disagree," said a voice from down the hall. The group, minus Kyle, turned and saw a hard-faced Xavier holding some document in on hand and approaching them. "Kyle's father signed all of the necessary paperwork, otherwise Kyle could not have come to the school at all." Karen's face drained and she grabbed the papers, read them hurriedly and then glared at the professor.
"She should have died with dad," she said. "She doesn't belong here."
"Kyle belongs where she can feel and be safe," Xavier said, his eyes flashing. "She belongs where she will not be abused for making mistakes or for who she is, and she will remain here as long as she needs and wishes. Now you may leave, and not have further contact with Kyle unless it's an apology for you harsh and intolerable actions, am I clear?" Karen glared at him but didn't respond, instead stormed down the hall and through the front door. Xavier sighed as Ororo comforted Kyle, who was still crying.
"She will try and get Kyle again," he said in a soft voice. Then he looked at Scott and Hank. "Logan is having problems supervising the dance, perhaps you can go help him?" Scott and Hank nodded and walked away, and Xavier looked at Kyle, who shuddered.
~ It was not your fault, what happened to your father, ~ he said. ~ And your sister was out of line. But she will not bother you again, I promise. ~ Kyle didn't respond beyond a shudder, and Ororo hugged her a little tighter.
"It'll be alright," she said softly. "Don't worry, it will get better." Kyle still made no reply, but slowly pulled away, crossing her arms and looking down.
"She said they were going to pass the law," she said in a tiny voice. "The mutant registration thing and they'd kill or imprison everyone here. She said-"
"She was lying, trying to persuade you to go with her," Xavier said firmly. Kyle wiped away the blood on her nose and hiccupped.
"She hates me," she said.
"She hates that you are safe and don't want to be with her, she's reacting the only way she knows how, even though it certainly not an appropriate method. I hope you realize this and do not hold anything she told you to your heart." Kyle nodded slowly and looked at the floor.
"I'm gonna- I'm gonna go to bed," she said, walking away. Ororo looked after her.
"Did her sister hit her?" she asked, tight lipped.
"Yes," Xavier said.
"That girl has gone through so much, and her family keeps abusing her," Ororo said sadly.
"I know, but all we can do is make they do not hurt her again, and make her realize she has a family here as well," Xavier said. Then he smiled. "And as I understand it, Evan has asked her to a dance." Ororo also smiled.
"Yes," she said. "But I hope he realizes she is going through a hard time and keeps his distance if she needs him to, he can be a very persistent boy at times."
"I don't know, he might be good for her," Xavier said. "Certainly Rogue and Jubilee and Kitty are good for her."
"They make quite a group," Ororo said.
"Kyle?" she asked groggily. Then she shook her head and nodded. "Yes, Sleeping Beauty has confirmed that she is looking at Kyle. What are you doing out here?"
"What are you doing?" Kyle returned, trying to smile. Jubilee grinned sheepishly.
"We didn't want you to run off again without us knowing," she said. "You doing ok?"
"No."
"Well, if you ever need-"
"I know." Jubilee looked at Kyle sadly.
"You don't want to hear any of that crap do you?" she asked softly. Kyle shook her head.
"I'm sick of it," she said softly. "It only hurts."
"Then I won't ask again, as long as you know it," Jubilee said. "And I'll make sure the Sleeping Smelly-Dead keep their big mouths shut too." Kyle managed a ghost of a smile on her lips, but her eyes never left the doorway as Jubilee hugged her tightly and Kitty snorted in her sleep.
***
Hank walked down the hall towards Kyle's room, sighing and then stopping when he saw Kyle, Rogue, Jubilee, and Kitty all asleep in the hall, leaning against eachother. The doctor noted that Kyle look somehow much paler and thinner than the other girls, and unhappily he bent down and put a hand on her shoulder, shaking her slightly.
"Kyle, wake up," he said softly. Kyle leaned to one side and then slowly opened her eyes, and seeing Hank right in front of her let out a long, seemingly forced, sigh. "Sorry to have to wake you up, but you have a visitor." Kyle snapped into focus.
"What?" she said, her voice croaking. "Who?" Hank paused.
"She says she's you're sister, and she would like to see you right now, she has to leave soon," he said. Kyle's heart froze.
"Karen?" she gasped out. "Karen's here? Why? How? My- no one ever told her I was-" Hank shrugged.
"She gave no explanation as to how she knew you were here," Hank said gently, "Or exactly who she was either, but she did make it very clear that she needed to see you right now, she says she had to be somewhere. Are you coming?" Kyle slowly got up and wiped her face with the back of her sleeve, then listened for a moment to the music coming from downstairs.
"The dance- still on?" she asked. Hank smiled sadly.
"No, you slept all of today, this I believe, is the boys dance. Far less hearts and pink things, I must say." They walked down the hall in silence the rest of the way to a dim-lighted classroom. When they walked in they found Karen, Scott, and Ororo all looking at eachother. Kyle froze when she saw her older sister, who had disappeared from her life when she was seven. Karen didn't smile at her, only nodded slightly.
"May we have some privacy?" she asked. The adults nodded.
"Of course," Ororo said, as she walked by Kyle she gave her a little smile, then shut the door behind her and the men. Kyle looked at Karen, suddenly aware that no one in her family had ever seen her like this, and the familiar sensation of a dart getting ready to explode shot through her arm. Karen didn't speak for a moment, looking Kyle over with a disapproving frown on her face, and Kyle wished Ororo or Hank or Scott had stayed. Finally she spoke.
"If you had stayed where you belonged you would be dead too," she said softly. Kyle looked at the floor.
"I know." She said.
"If you hadn't gone to school that day, you would be fine," Karen said. "No one would have known, dad would be alive, you knew you were sick, why did you go?"
"I thought it was only a morning thing," Kyle said, shrugging. "I didn't know-"
"Well I did." Karen snapped. Kyle looked up at her, wondering how in the world her sister could have known that. Karen snorted and glared at her.
"You think you're the only one in the family who's a mutant?" she snapped, Kyle looked into her eyes and to her complete shock they glowed green slightly, then returned to normal.
"You're- *you're* a-" she stuttered.
"Freak, just like you," Karen snapped. "Why do you think I left home so early? Mom and Dad thought I was mad at them, I let them think that because I knew it was better. You should have left to, I knew you were going to end up like this."
"Karen-"
"Shut up when I'm talking to you!" Karen thundered, her hands curling into fist. "You're an ungrateful brat, just like you always were, and now because you decided you couldn't live without going to school dad is dead!" Kyle looked away, tears forming in her eyes. "I can't believe you, Kyle," Karen said, her voice getting quiet. "You were always smart, Kyle, smarter than me, but you had to be stupid just one day! That day! I knew it was going to happen, I should have stopped you, but I thought maybe I was wrong and wouldn't have to come save your ass-"
"Karen!" Kyle sobbed. "Why? Why did you come?"
"Because I needed to make sure that I was right," Karen said, walking forward and putting her hands on Kyle's shoulders, making her look into her eyes. "I needed to see you myself, not just relying on visions and crap that I don't want." She stopped and noticed the tears in Kyle's purple eyes. "And my name is not Karen anymore," she said in a low voice. "Like yours isn't Kyle. We're mutants, we have no rights to our human names anymore."
"My name is Kyle-"
"No, it's Poison," Karen said. "And mine is Unknown. Those are our names, and you can't let anyone call you anything else." Kyle shook her head.
"No, I won't change-"
"You bitch!" Karen swung her fist and hit Kyle in the nose, sending her sister flying backwards. Kyle grunted and lay on the floor. "Damnit," Karen said, holding her fist. "Why'd you make me do that? Your face already looks like crap." Kyle slowly got up, feeling blood start to pour out of her nose she quickly put her hands up ad caught it, absorbing most of the acid before it ate through her clothes or the floor. Karen grabbed her sister's hands and looked at the blood, then pushed her away again.
"What do you want from me?" Kyle asked softly as Karen turned away. Her sister's shoulders dropped and she turned back around.
"You're not going to like this, but there's no question here, you're coming with me." Kyle stared at her.
"What?" she said. Karen glared at her.
"You're coming with me, you're not going to stay here. This place is going to be discovered one day, and as soon as they pass that law a hundred thousand military men will swoop in and kill or arrest all of the people here, the only way to escape that is to leave. Besides, with the rest of our family dead, thanks to you, you're under my charge, so you don't have a choice anyway," she said. Kyle backed away, shaking her head.
"No, no!" she said. "I'm not going, and dad put me in the professor's charge-"
"Where's the proof?" Karen demanded. "Where's the paperwork? Dad didn't sign any of that-" Kyle's breath caught as she realized that her sister was probably right, she had never seen any papers exchange hands between her father and any of the X Men, so there was nothing to prove that her father had sent her away.
"I'm not going!" Kyle shouted. Karen stepped forward again, fist raised, but Kyle was faster, dodging her sister's attack and barreling into her side, sending both crashing into a table. Kyle rolled off Karen and scrambled up, running to the door and wrenching it open and running into Ororo, who grabbed her.
"Kyle! What's wrong?" the white haired woman asked.
"I won't- I won't go!" she sobbed, tears flowing freely down the side of her face. Suddenly Karen appeared, shirtsleeve torn and breathing heavily, glaring at Kyle and the X Men.
"What did you do to her?" Scott demanded.
"It's none of your concern," Karen spat. "She's coming with me!"
"I beg to disagree," Hank said, stepping forward and frowning at Karen. "She seems to wish to remain here."
"I don't care what she wants, it's not her choice!" Karen fumed.
"Do you have anything stating that you're her legal guardian now?" Scott asked. Karen glared at them.
"Neither do you, and I am her sister," she said in a low voice.
"I beg to disagree," said a voice from down the hall. The group, minus Kyle, turned and saw a hard-faced Xavier holding some document in on hand and approaching them. "Kyle's father signed all of the necessary paperwork, otherwise Kyle could not have come to the school at all." Karen's face drained and she grabbed the papers, read them hurriedly and then glared at the professor.
"She should have died with dad," she said. "She doesn't belong here."
"Kyle belongs where she can feel and be safe," Xavier said, his eyes flashing. "She belongs where she will not be abused for making mistakes or for who she is, and she will remain here as long as she needs and wishes. Now you may leave, and not have further contact with Kyle unless it's an apology for you harsh and intolerable actions, am I clear?" Karen glared at him but didn't respond, instead stormed down the hall and through the front door. Xavier sighed as Ororo comforted Kyle, who was still crying.
"She will try and get Kyle again," he said in a soft voice. Then he looked at Scott and Hank. "Logan is having problems supervising the dance, perhaps you can go help him?" Scott and Hank nodded and walked away, and Xavier looked at Kyle, who shuddered.
~ It was not your fault, what happened to your father, ~ he said. ~ And your sister was out of line. But she will not bother you again, I promise. ~ Kyle didn't respond beyond a shudder, and Ororo hugged her a little tighter.
"It'll be alright," she said softly. "Don't worry, it will get better." Kyle still made no reply, but slowly pulled away, crossing her arms and looking down.
"She said they were going to pass the law," she said in a tiny voice. "The mutant registration thing and they'd kill or imprison everyone here. She said-"
"She was lying, trying to persuade you to go with her," Xavier said firmly. Kyle wiped away the blood on her nose and hiccupped.
"She hates me," she said.
"She hates that you are safe and don't want to be with her, she's reacting the only way she knows how, even though it certainly not an appropriate method. I hope you realize this and do not hold anything she told you to your heart." Kyle nodded slowly and looked at the floor.
"I'm gonna- I'm gonna go to bed," she said, walking away. Ororo looked after her.
"Did her sister hit her?" she asked, tight lipped.
"Yes," Xavier said.
"That girl has gone through so much, and her family keeps abusing her," Ororo said sadly.
"I know, but all we can do is make they do not hurt her again, and make her realize she has a family here as well," Xavier said. Then he smiled. "And as I understand it, Evan has asked her to a dance." Ororo also smiled.
"Yes," she said. "But I hope he realizes she is going through a hard time and keeps his distance if she needs him to, he can be a very persistent boy at times."
"I don't know, he might be good for her," Xavier said. "Certainly Rogue and Jubilee and Kitty are good for her."
"They make quite a group," Ororo said.