Before the crypt opens to release Sconda again – a few notes.
Rating on story bumped up to PG-13 due to references to drinking alcohol. If it should be an R rating, please let me know and I'll change it.
Thanks to the kind reviewers and readers – I have passed a couple of milestones. I now have over one hundred reviews for ALL my stories (yes I know some of you have seen other authors with over 300 reviews for a single story, but I'm very easy to please). I've also passed the 7000 total chapter hits mark. I know about 2000 of those are my edits – [Augh – I can't believe I spelled that three letter word THAT way!! XD]. It's nice to know my stories are being read by someone.
This has proven to be quite a popular story – twenty reviews and over a thousand hits in the short six weeks it has been up. I know it's not Scott that has been pulling in the readers – he's in all my other stories. So the magic ingredient is Wanda – she is quite the hit and review generator if you are a fellow author in need of a review fix.
A quick tip of the hat to all the Jonda or Pyro/Wanda fans out there – you all have been very gracious in tolerating the whole idea on Scott and Wanda together in this story. I support you all in your belief that St. John and Wanda make a cute couple – O.o – this is just a one shot for Aprils Fool's day that has spiraled way out of control. (remember – I blatantly stole this pairing from sparkie-thewateringcan so it's all her fault!)
Two notes about the thriving artwork of Evo characters
1. Lesli's groovy Evo site has a completed X-pets contest (with a wicked picture of Wanda as the winner!) and a new historical setting contest ending soon. You can find the site by opening google and typing lesli groovy.
2. In the pets pictures contest entries, Lesli begs you to visit the Brotherhood Club chibi comic strip collection located at thebrotherhoodclub.deviantart.com then click gallery to see the collection. It is a hilarious ongoing story of Wanda and the boys trying to fit in to everyday life with the X-Men close behind messing things up. Not all of the older strips are visible but the text of the comics is in a sidebar. Some really great stuff for BH fans.
Back to our story - So just how did the horror of Sconda come to be? In our last chapter Jean asked Scott that very question. All together now – just like Wayne and Garth do in flashback sequences – de-liddle-do, de- liddle-do, de-liddle-do as you wave you hands in a up and down motion. If you have no idea what I'm talking about – I pity you. It's what Dana Carvey and Mike Myers did when in a Saturday Night Live "Wayne's World" skit flashback sequence. If you still don't know what that is – ask your parents to do it and then laugh at how silly they look.
Read on
:Denotes private thoughts:
Out of the Blue – Chapter 5 – A Chance Meeting
Scott Summers walked quickly to the food court of the Bayville Mall. He had finished his errand for Jamie and even snuck in some personal window shopping - a certain little ring – maybe someday. Maybe soon.
He promised the younger boy a pack of the latest 'must have' collectible cards if Jamie's math score jumped at least one grade. Jamie made a jump of two grades so Scott decided that miracle was worth two packs of cards and the store with the best pricing and selection was here at the mall.
Scott gave into the rumbling of his stomach by deciding to stop at the ice cream shop for a quick cone on his way out. It was busy at the checkout but no one was in line to be served but him. The older man who Scott knew was the manager looked at him and asked, "Can I help you?"
Ah – a fresh tub of his favorite – this was his lucky day. "A double cone of moose tracks, please." Scott saw the flash of recognition in the man's eyes as he scooped out the teen's order. Oh well, such is the price of mutant celebrity. He opened his wallet and took out a ten dollar bill, getting ready for a quick exit. Scott's eyes turned to a collection jar detailing a young tot in need of an operation – an expensive eye operation. He saw his server was busy scooping his ice cream, so Scott tucked the money from his hand quietly into the jar, then turned to see the cone being handed to him – and a smile on the face of his server. The man whispered to Scott, "Thanks for that – they really need the help. Is that all?"
Scott nodded yes and was surprised at the commotion suddenly behind him. A female voice gearing up for a major tantrum sounded, "I don't understand – how can you post one price and then charge another?" Something about that voice was familiar. Scott saw the terror in the manager's eyes as a young girl behind the counter disappeared into the back of the store – towards a wall phone.
The young cashier being chewed out shrugged her shoulders and said, "It's called tax – it adds a little to the cost of stuff. Blame the state – not me." Scott decided maybe he could help and offered to his server, "How about I pay for my cone and the balance on hers?' Always the knight in shining armor – he smiled to himself.
As he looked to see who he was rescuing, he came face to face with Wanda Maximoff, as she looked up from searching her pocketbook for spare change. :So much for my lucky day.:
"You!" the Scarlet Witch sneered. "I don't need you or your X-geek charity. I can handle this myself!"
A group of seven mall security guards suddenly appeared behind Wanda, billy clubs drawn. An older guard held up his hand signaling for the others to wait. "What the trouble here, Tom? We got a frantic call about a mutie fight." he asked the man behind the counter.
Scott didn't wait, "No trouble here, sir. The young lady and I were just paying and are on our way out."
The lead guard growled, "I didn't ask you, freak. Tom, you OK?" The man behind the counter frowned at the name directed at Scott. He gazed at the collection jar then responded, "Just like the boy says, Frank. They're just paying and leaving. That's $6 even for the two." The manager walked to the register and rang the sale up. Scott placed the twenty in his server's hand, kept his arm on the counter and then slowly stuffed his change into his pants pocket .
Scott could hear Wanda using breathing exercises to get a grip on her temper. The blue glow was beginning to form at her hands. He looked at the lead guard and carefully motioned up a hallway, "My car is that way if it's okay to leave now."
Frank Thompson was near panic – these were two of the kids that trashed the mall before it even opened. He had seen the security videos of their battle and knew this could get out of hand real quick. His job as day shift security chief was to keep the peace, not start trouble. This kid seemed to know his place – no smart remarks, no sudden motions, hands always visible. But his hands weren't the problem – the eyes were.
Wanda growled, "I'm not going with you – my bus stop is the other way!" The other guards started to step forward and the lead guard shouted, "Hold it!" Looking at the teens he said, "You can go together in his car or go together to the police station." Frank was carrying the only taser and was not about to split his guards into two groups. If word got out a mutie was waiting at the bus stop, things could get ugly quick.
Scott looked at Wanda and pleaded, "Please walk out with me and let me give you a ride. I promise to behave. It's in our best interests." He thought of trying his best winning smile, but remembered Kitty saying something about that always being when Wanda cut loose on Todd – right after the smile.
A long period of silence and no motion passed. Wanda's breathing became more regular and the blue glow at her hands slowly dissipated. It would be quicker to get a ride. The bus wasn't due for another forty minutes and it was obvious she was not welcome here now. Agatha had stressed to her – no scenes - try to mingle in at the mall. Besides that - her ice cream was melting.
Wanda motioned to Scott, "You first – so I can keep an eye on you."
In a totally different situation, Wanda's command to him would actually be funny. Her keeping an 'eye' on him, and not him keeping his 'cyclops eye' on her. He and Kurt started to develop a dark sense of humor related to their powers as a way of coping with them. They had pun duels when no one else was around – Kurt's were generally much funnier then Scott's but recently the older boy began to hold his own against his German friend.
:Reality check, Slim – angry Wanda and nervous security guards. Get it in gear.: Slowly Scott walked towards the exit, Wanda three steps behind him and the guards in a half circle behind her. He had a spare visor in his car – if something happened along the way. :Please don't let anything happen,: he silently prayed to himself as he finished off his cone. He noted hers was a plain vanilla cone – somehow he thought she'd be more complicated then that.
They made it to the exit without any major incidents – a few catcalls and slurs were cast at Scott and Wanda when shoppers recognized them. The security escort discouraged anyone from following them, at least not too closely.
As Scott headed into the parking lot towards his car with Wanda a few steps behind, the lead guard called out to them, "In the future, you check in with the security office when you get here and you'll be escorted around. Tell the other freaks that too."
Wanda stopped and turned suddenly back towards the mall, blue bolts appearing at her hands. She thought :It would be so easy to level this place. A few key girders shifted out of place here, a few cracks in the cement there.:
Scott panicked for a second and then could see she was counting – attempting to control her temper again. He was glad for her efforts – she had really taught him a little humility that night they first fought here. He watched her become calm again and softly said, "My car is over this way."
He moved to open the door open for her and bumped into her by mistake. "Back off, you pervert. I can open the door myself – I'm not helpless," she sputtered. He wondered, :When was the last time she appreciated something nice being done for her? Or was the real question when was the last time someone did something nice for her?:
He walked around and hopped into the driver's seat. He started the car and drove along the main road, towards the rougher side of town.
He didn't want to risk an argument over what radio station to listen to so he left it off. But the silence was killing him. What the heck, he thought. "So, what brings you out to the mall today?"
"Agatha wants me to interact with normal humans. I'm supposed to practice blending in."
Scott fought to hide the smile – shocking red jumper with torn legs, haircut with blunt scissors, red highlights on jet black hair, combat boots, huge earrings – oh yeah – she's a blending.
Wanda turned to Scott, "So what's your deal – why do you care what happens to me?"
The question surprised him. Scott shrugged, "No big deal – just trying to lend a hand."
She grilled him again, "Todd tells a story about you saving him from three football goons once. Even though he was stealing from people's wallets in the stands. What's with the hero complex?"
He shook his head, "Let's just say I despise a certain football player more then I liked Todd. I was trying to get Todd to join the X-Men – I guess I didn't do a good job of recruiting him."
Wanda tried to imagine Todd in blue spandex with a big yellow X on his chest and snickered. It had been a long time since something made her smile.
She pressed again, "But why do you care – what's in it for you to help others out? Even these humans who would just as soon spit on you then give you a second glance?" Her hands began to glow as her rage built.
He shifted in his seat, uncomfortable about her lingering anger and the fact she was still in his car. He still owed the professor some serious cash for the last 'mutant fender bender.' "Let's just say I have a thing against bullies. They were targeting Todd simply because they could."
She sneered at him, "What's the matter? Some popular kids kept you out of the country club clique that Daddy couldn't buy your way into?"
Scott thought about telling her about his past and how the Professor saved him. How he was pulled from the brink of a lifelong depression, an endless stream of foster homes and then orphanages. Saved from endless run-ins with bullies like Duncan Matthews – who picked on a lonely blind kid – just because they could. A world filled with darkness till he received the gift of a lifetime – his visor.
He decided to keep such thoughts to himself. How did any of his past compare to a childhood trapped in a white padded room – a straight jacket your only companion. Is there anything he could say to her to make her understand? How he needed to repay the debt he owed Charles Xavier? That the things he did as part of the X-Men was a chance to balance the karma in his life? He was given this ability – this power to do the right thing, to climb from the ashes of his childhood after the plane crash. At first all Scott thought his optic blast could do was hurt or kill. The Professor showed him how to use it for good – to protect, to divert danger. Had the Professor had any luck reaching her as he did with Scott? Considering the place he was driving Wanda to - the Brotherhood house – most likely the answer to that question was 'no'.
There was nothing he could say to her that even came close – her pain was still too new and too raw.
She watched him – he was deep in thought over something – did the boys at her house have it wrong? Was he not from a perfectly preppy household with both parents, 2.3 kids and the family dog? He certainly dressed the part – right from the pages of those dumb teen girlie magazines Kitty left around the Brotherhood house.
He simply responded, "Yeah, something like that."
They arrived at the Brotherhood house. She got out of the car and walked away without looking back. Scott called out to her, "Wanda, if there is anything you ever need - a ride to the mall, someone to talk to, maybe a punching bag – you know how to reach me." He floored the gas pedal and ran through the gears, without waiting for a reply. She walked into the house and slammed the door closed.
Scott muttered to himself, :Mr. Ace Mutant Recruiter stikes again.:
Author's note: Please read and review. Two other chapters were posted same day to make it easier to follow the flashbacks – so enjoy!