"Enough already!" Mom said, laughing. We all piled off, and I scooted to
the edge of the bed, holding her hand. "You kids, I swear." She smiled.
"Well, can you blame us?" Braden said. "I mean, wouldn't you expect the same reaction from yourself if it had been one of us."
"Well of course." She said. "Thank you kids, all of you."
There were murmurs around the room. I turned my eyes to the doorway, and Kurt was still standing there uncertainly. I beckoned him into the room, and he came shyly in. "Mom, I'd like you to meet one of your rescuers. This is Kurt. Kurt, this is my mother."
For a moment, she regarded him silently. Then, she said "Thank you Kurt. I can not begin to repay the debt you've given me."
Kurt waved his hand, tail curling slightly. "Nein, no thanks are needed. You were in trouble. I could not let anyone else stay in the kind of situation I myself had faced."
She sombered. "So, you were guests of them as well?"
"Ja. Though I have not yet discerned the reason why." Kurt said honestly.
"Well, I believe I might be able to shed some light on that." Mom said. "They were pretty free with their conversation around me."
"Perhaps it would be best if we fetched the Professor for this." Kurt suggested.
"That would probably be best, Kurt. Thank you." Mom said.
Kurt glanced at me, then nodded and left. "Alright you lot, everyone out." My mom commanded, and there was a chorus of groans. "No arguments! I want to get this told to the right people, and go home. With you lot milling around it'll take more time to go through everything. I don't begrudge Professor Xavier his hospitality, but he doesn't need to be feeding an army of Irishmen, now does he?"
It took a moment or two, but we all began filing out. "Morgan honey, can you stay? You're part of this too, and I want to talk to you about something."
I waited for the rest of my family to leave, and went back to my mother. "Kurt seems very nice." She said.
Oh, I should have known that's what she wanted.
"He is." I said evasively. I wasn't quite ready to discuss him with her yet. I should have known she'd press the subject.
"I understand that you two have been pretty much attached at the hip since the day you found him." She said, and I nodded. "I also have it on good authority that you two have slept together."
I couldn't stop the blush from rising into my cheeks. My mom laughed. "Oh don't worry, I'm not going to preach at you about the virtue of abstinence. Of course, I'd rather you had saved yourself for marriage, but it's your life and your soul and you can do what you want with it. I just wanted to know one simple thing."
"What's that?" I asked warily.
"Do you love him?" She asked me.
I hesitated. It was that hesitation that made me answer "I think so."
She raised an eyebrow at me. "You think so?"
I nodded. "I'd like to say yes. It feels right. I care for him very very much, I like him certainly. I believe I do, but I'd be lying if I said a part of me didn't have a few doubts."
"And how does he feel about you?" She asked.
"He said he loved me." I responded. "But he may feel the same as me. I don't know, I'm not in his head."
She looked at me, and then said "Can you take some advice from your mother in this situation?"
I shrugged. "Sure."
"Slow down. Take some time to get to know each other better, before you both do something that you regret." She said.
It was good advice, and I knew it. Advice that I would definitely consider taking. "Yes mother." I said, and smiled. "Oh, well one thing that should put you at ease about Kurt. He's Catholic."
"Oh is he now? Well in that case, you have my blessing to have all the little powder blue children you desire!" Mom grinned broadly, and then laughed.
A knock sounded at the door. "Come in!" We both said in unison.
Kurt came in, pushing Xavier's chair before him. "Mrs. Flannigan, I am pleased to see you doing so well." Xavier said.
"Oh, bother, call me Margaret." Mom said.
"Only if you will do me the honor of calling me Charles." Xavier smiled at her.
"Of course, Charles." Mom said. "I can't thank you enough for everything you've done for me and my family."
"It's our pleasure, Margaret, to be able to help your family in it's time of need." Charles said.
I sighed. "This is all well and good, but can we please get down to business? Mom?" I felt rude for asking, but I was dying to know what all this had been about.
"Right." Mom said. "Well, here's what I managed to overhear. I was her prisoner for quite a few days you know, and there was a lot to hear. The girl, Candy, she's a mutant. Her Gift, such as it is, is stealing another mutants powers."
Charles nodded. "We have someone here who has a remarkably similar gift. Rogue's functions through touch."
"Candy is different." Mom said. "She can temporarily steal a mutant's powers, by creating situations of emotional stress. The higher the stress, the longer she keeps their gift. Pain and fear, she says, makes it even more powerful, amplifies it slightly. Death, she says, makes it permanent. From what her brothers have said, it is almost like an addiction for her. It was something she discovered by accident, but then she began to kill more and more frequently. The time span between murders became less and less, and over time she grew more powerful. Her brothers enjoyed getting involved in the torture almost as much as Candy herself. For her, it was intensely euphoric, and it frequently degraded into rather disgusting acts of perversion." "yes, but why did the time frame decrease at such a regular interval?" I asked. "That makes it seem almost ritualistic."
"In a way, it was." My mother said. "Candy is a very sick little girl. Not only was she killing people to gain power, they were also a sacrifice. She was a demon worshipper." Mom shuddered. "I have no idea if she was successful at it or not, but from listening to her brothers talk, she very well may have been. I think there's a lot more to that Warehouse than you guys saw. I'd recommend going back there and taking a priest with you."
I shook my head. "Mom, you know I don't believe in that stuff-"
"Just because you don't believe, Liebe, doesn't mean it does not exist." Kurt admonished. "Trust me, there is more evil in this world than what exists here."
I remained silent, but I still disagreed. I didn't believe in demons, and that was that. The only way to get me to believe otherwise was to show me it was possible.
"Her brothers were fairly concerned that her timetable had gotten off track. Apparently, she had been working up to summoning her particular god to the corporeal plane. I think, perhaps, that's why she chose you Kurt." Mom said. "You're appearance. And your gifts. I'm sure both of which were very attractive to her in her quest for power. She was very upset that you'd had to be dumped, and she wasn't able to finish her ritual."
Kurt frowned. "I remember the warehouse. When I met her in the club, she charmed me and took me there. That's where the torture began. They beat me quite a bit, but she didn't start cutting me until she'd gotten me into the alleyway. There was something significant about that particular location, but I don't remember what it was."
Mom nodded. "I remember that too. She said something about 'hoping the blood would be enough.'"
"Well," Xavier said, "we certainly have our answers now. That explains a great deal. It raises more questions of course, such as what would have happened had she been able to continue her rites."
"Or what might happen if she doesn't finish them." Kurt said. "We need to find out exactly what she was into, Charles. It could be very bad."
"I agree." Charles said. "Thank you, Margaret, for shedding some much needed light on this situation. I think we will leave you to your rest now."
"Thank you, but I think I'd rather just go home." Mom said. "If it's not too much trouble."
"No trouble at all." Charles said. "I'll have Scott ready the Blackbird to fly you, and some of your family, home."
"Thank you very much."
Kurt and Charles left, leaving me alone with my mother. "I'll come home with you, Mom." I said.
"You don't have too-"she began, and I shook my head.
"No. I want to. There is a ton of stuff I need to take care of anyway, and," I paused,
"You've got some thinking to do." She finished for me.
That seemed to me to be an understatement. I had a hell of a lot to think about. So much had happened in such a short span of time, that a good chunk of it was beginning to seem a little unreal.
"You should go say goodbye to him." Mom said. "Before you both get too busy otherwise."
I nodded, mumbling that I'd meet her at the Blackbird, and went in search of Kurt.
I found him in his room. He smiled at me, and hugged me, kissing me lightly on my forehead. "Hello, Liebe." He said softly.
"Kurt," I said, and my chest felt a bit tight, "I'm going home with Mom."
"Oh?" He said. "Das ist gut. You should spend time with her."
I disentangled myself from him, and began to repack my suitcase. "Yes. And there's something things I need to take care of. To think about."
There was a sudden stillness in the room, and I turned to look at him. He was regarding me seriously. "You mean us?"
There was no sense in lying to him. "Yes." I said. "Kurt-"
"Nein, don't say anything." He said. "You don't have too. I think I understand why." His tail curled around his leg absently. "You feel like we have moved fast? And you wonder, if what you feel is really love, or if it is just, ah, infatuation. A crush." He ran a hand through his hair, and sighed explosively. "I must confess, I've been wondering that myself. I find you to be," he grinned, "rather attractive, there's a definite physical attraction. Among other things," his eyes traveled up and down my body in a rather provocative way, and I blushed. "But, I do wonder how much I feel maybe be misplaced gratitude, or, perhaps a sense of dependency." He nodded. "Yes, I think it's a very good idea that we spend some time apart, and try to discover if what we feel is really what we feel, or if it's not something else entirely."
I felt my shoulders relax, and breathed a sigh of relief. "I wasn't sure you'd understand."
"Oh," he said, and took a step toward me, "I understand. But, if you think you're leaving, without giving me a chance to say goodbye," his tail snaked around him, and snagged my arm as he stalked closer and closer. His expression was intense, sultry, just the look from him made my toes curl up into my shoes, "then you are sadly mistaken."
I must say, it was the most memorable goodbye I've ever experienced.
And so ends, "Another Man's Trash." I bring this to a close, with much gratitude for those who loved it, and the few who didn't. I hope this answers some questions for you, and raises a great deal more.
But fear not. I am far from done with Morgan and Kurt. This tale was originally intended to be just a short little fic, but it has blossomed into so much more! And raised a whole lot of questions I'm sure.
What will Kurt and the others find in the old warehouse? What's to become of Candy and her brothers now that they've been captured?
What's the deal with Morgan's new powers? Do her new powers signify something major? Are they a big deal? Or is it just a flashy light show? How does she really feel about Kurt? And how does Kurt feel about her? Why does Patrick always wear that blasted trench coat!
See the answers to all these questions and more in the next exciting installment of "The Adventures of Morgan Flannigan!"
-Gialia
"Well, can you blame us?" Braden said. "I mean, wouldn't you expect the same reaction from yourself if it had been one of us."
"Well of course." She said. "Thank you kids, all of you."
There were murmurs around the room. I turned my eyes to the doorway, and Kurt was still standing there uncertainly. I beckoned him into the room, and he came shyly in. "Mom, I'd like you to meet one of your rescuers. This is Kurt. Kurt, this is my mother."
For a moment, she regarded him silently. Then, she said "Thank you Kurt. I can not begin to repay the debt you've given me."
Kurt waved his hand, tail curling slightly. "Nein, no thanks are needed. You were in trouble. I could not let anyone else stay in the kind of situation I myself had faced."
She sombered. "So, you were guests of them as well?"
"Ja. Though I have not yet discerned the reason why." Kurt said honestly.
"Well, I believe I might be able to shed some light on that." Mom said. "They were pretty free with their conversation around me."
"Perhaps it would be best if we fetched the Professor for this." Kurt suggested.
"That would probably be best, Kurt. Thank you." Mom said.
Kurt glanced at me, then nodded and left. "Alright you lot, everyone out." My mom commanded, and there was a chorus of groans. "No arguments! I want to get this told to the right people, and go home. With you lot milling around it'll take more time to go through everything. I don't begrudge Professor Xavier his hospitality, but he doesn't need to be feeding an army of Irishmen, now does he?"
It took a moment or two, but we all began filing out. "Morgan honey, can you stay? You're part of this too, and I want to talk to you about something."
I waited for the rest of my family to leave, and went back to my mother. "Kurt seems very nice." She said.
Oh, I should have known that's what she wanted.
"He is." I said evasively. I wasn't quite ready to discuss him with her yet. I should have known she'd press the subject.
"I understand that you two have been pretty much attached at the hip since the day you found him." She said, and I nodded. "I also have it on good authority that you two have slept together."
I couldn't stop the blush from rising into my cheeks. My mom laughed. "Oh don't worry, I'm not going to preach at you about the virtue of abstinence. Of course, I'd rather you had saved yourself for marriage, but it's your life and your soul and you can do what you want with it. I just wanted to know one simple thing."
"What's that?" I asked warily.
"Do you love him?" She asked me.
I hesitated. It was that hesitation that made me answer "I think so."
She raised an eyebrow at me. "You think so?"
I nodded. "I'd like to say yes. It feels right. I care for him very very much, I like him certainly. I believe I do, but I'd be lying if I said a part of me didn't have a few doubts."
"And how does he feel about you?" She asked.
"He said he loved me." I responded. "But he may feel the same as me. I don't know, I'm not in his head."
She looked at me, and then said "Can you take some advice from your mother in this situation?"
I shrugged. "Sure."
"Slow down. Take some time to get to know each other better, before you both do something that you regret." She said.
It was good advice, and I knew it. Advice that I would definitely consider taking. "Yes mother." I said, and smiled. "Oh, well one thing that should put you at ease about Kurt. He's Catholic."
"Oh is he now? Well in that case, you have my blessing to have all the little powder blue children you desire!" Mom grinned broadly, and then laughed.
A knock sounded at the door. "Come in!" We both said in unison.
Kurt came in, pushing Xavier's chair before him. "Mrs. Flannigan, I am pleased to see you doing so well." Xavier said.
"Oh, bother, call me Margaret." Mom said.
"Only if you will do me the honor of calling me Charles." Xavier smiled at her.
"Of course, Charles." Mom said. "I can't thank you enough for everything you've done for me and my family."
"It's our pleasure, Margaret, to be able to help your family in it's time of need." Charles said.
I sighed. "This is all well and good, but can we please get down to business? Mom?" I felt rude for asking, but I was dying to know what all this had been about.
"Right." Mom said. "Well, here's what I managed to overhear. I was her prisoner for quite a few days you know, and there was a lot to hear. The girl, Candy, she's a mutant. Her Gift, such as it is, is stealing another mutants powers."
Charles nodded. "We have someone here who has a remarkably similar gift. Rogue's functions through touch."
"Candy is different." Mom said. "She can temporarily steal a mutant's powers, by creating situations of emotional stress. The higher the stress, the longer she keeps their gift. Pain and fear, she says, makes it even more powerful, amplifies it slightly. Death, she says, makes it permanent. From what her brothers have said, it is almost like an addiction for her. It was something she discovered by accident, but then she began to kill more and more frequently. The time span between murders became less and less, and over time she grew more powerful. Her brothers enjoyed getting involved in the torture almost as much as Candy herself. For her, it was intensely euphoric, and it frequently degraded into rather disgusting acts of perversion." "yes, but why did the time frame decrease at such a regular interval?" I asked. "That makes it seem almost ritualistic."
"In a way, it was." My mother said. "Candy is a very sick little girl. Not only was she killing people to gain power, they were also a sacrifice. She was a demon worshipper." Mom shuddered. "I have no idea if she was successful at it or not, but from listening to her brothers talk, she very well may have been. I think there's a lot more to that Warehouse than you guys saw. I'd recommend going back there and taking a priest with you."
I shook my head. "Mom, you know I don't believe in that stuff-"
"Just because you don't believe, Liebe, doesn't mean it does not exist." Kurt admonished. "Trust me, there is more evil in this world than what exists here."
I remained silent, but I still disagreed. I didn't believe in demons, and that was that. The only way to get me to believe otherwise was to show me it was possible.
"Her brothers were fairly concerned that her timetable had gotten off track. Apparently, she had been working up to summoning her particular god to the corporeal plane. I think, perhaps, that's why she chose you Kurt." Mom said. "You're appearance. And your gifts. I'm sure both of which were very attractive to her in her quest for power. She was very upset that you'd had to be dumped, and she wasn't able to finish her ritual."
Kurt frowned. "I remember the warehouse. When I met her in the club, she charmed me and took me there. That's where the torture began. They beat me quite a bit, but she didn't start cutting me until she'd gotten me into the alleyway. There was something significant about that particular location, but I don't remember what it was."
Mom nodded. "I remember that too. She said something about 'hoping the blood would be enough.'"
"Well," Xavier said, "we certainly have our answers now. That explains a great deal. It raises more questions of course, such as what would have happened had she been able to continue her rites."
"Or what might happen if she doesn't finish them." Kurt said. "We need to find out exactly what she was into, Charles. It could be very bad."
"I agree." Charles said. "Thank you, Margaret, for shedding some much needed light on this situation. I think we will leave you to your rest now."
"Thank you, but I think I'd rather just go home." Mom said. "If it's not too much trouble."
"No trouble at all." Charles said. "I'll have Scott ready the Blackbird to fly you, and some of your family, home."
"Thank you very much."
Kurt and Charles left, leaving me alone with my mother. "I'll come home with you, Mom." I said.
"You don't have too-"she began, and I shook my head.
"No. I want to. There is a ton of stuff I need to take care of anyway, and," I paused,
"You've got some thinking to do." She finished for me.
That seemed to me to be an understatement. I had a hell of a lot to think about. So much had happened in such a short span of time, that a good chunk of it was beginning to seem a little unreal.
"You should go say goodbye to him." Mom said. "Before you both get too busy otherwise."
I nodded, mumbling that I'd meet her at the Blackbird, and went in search of Kurt.
I found him in his room. He smiled at me, and hugged me, kissing me lightly on my forehead. "Hello, Liebe." He said softly.
"Kurt," I said, and my chest felt a bit tight, "I'm going home with Mom."
"Oh?" He said. "Das ist gut. You should spend time with her."
I disentangled myself from him, and began to repack my suitcase. "Yes. And there's something things I need to take care of. To think about."
There was a sudden stillness in the room, and I turned to look at him. He was regarding me seriously. "You mean us?"
There was no sense in lying to him. "Yes." I said. "Kurt-"
"Nein, don't say anything." He said. "You don't have too. I think I understand why." His tail curled around his leg absently. "You feel like we have moved fast? And you wonder, if what you feel is really love, or if it is just, ah, infatuation. A crush." He ran a hand through his hair, and sighed explosively. "I must confess, I've been wondering that myself. I find you to be," he grinned, "rather attractive, there's a definite physical attraction. Among other things," his eyes traveled up and down my body in a rather provocative way, and I blushed. "But, I do wonder how much I feel maybe be misplaced gratitude, or, perhaps a sense of dependency." He nodded. "Yes, I think it's a very good idea that we spend some time apart, and try to discover if what we feel is really what we feel, or if it's not something else entirely."
I felt my shoulders relax, and breathed a sigh of relief. "I wasn't sure you'd understand."
"Oh," he said, and took a step toward me, "I understand. But, if you think you're leaving, without giving me a chance to say goodbye," his tail snaked around him, and snagged my arm as he stalked closer and closer. His expression was intense, sultry, just the look from him made my toes curl up into my shoes, "then you are sadly mistaken."
I must say, it was the most memorable goodbye I've ever experienced.
And so ends, "Another Man's Trash." I bring this to a close, with much gratitude for those who loved it, and the few who didn't. I hope this answers some questions for you, and raises a great deal more.
But fear not. I am far from done with Morgan and Kurt. This tale was originally intended to be just a short little fic, but it has blossomed into so much more! And raised a whole lot of questions I'm sure.
What will Kurt and the others find in the old warehouse? What's to become of Candy and her brothers now that they've been captured?
What's the deal with Morgan's new powers? Do her new powers signify something major? Are they a big deal? Or is it just a flashy light show? How does she really feel about Kurt? And how does Kurt feel about her? Why does Patrick always wear that blasted trench coat!
See the answers to all these questions and more in the next exciting installment of "The Adventures of Morgan Flannigan!"
-Gialia