Rayellen never told anyone what she overheard between her mother and grandmother that night. Instead, she hid it away in her heart. It was a secret pain, but also a secret strength. Each day, she put all her effort into her schoolwork, determined she could that she could show her mom that there was no reason to be embarrassed of her. The other students did not make this easy, nor did Miss Louisa do anything to help. In fact, her teacher seemed to look for any minor reason to mark down her grade, but she didn't complain much. Instead, she tried to make every paper and test as perfect as possible so that Miss Louisa would have no choice but to give her the A she deserved.
The one person she did not feel that she had to appear perfect around was Last-Un. Her friend seemed to be the same person as the first day they met. When she had complaints about school, it was Last-Un she talked to instead of her mom or Mamaw. In fact, she almost told Last-Un about the late night conversation she had overheard but decided against when she visited her friend's home. The Packs were one of the largest families around, but she had never seen a group of people so close and caring. They treated her nicely as well, although she couldn't help but notice Last-Un's oldest brother, Joseph, had stared at her momentarily with his mouth hanging over before he managed to say, "Hello." Still, it was nice to be in a home that seemed so warm and friendly. She visited as often as she could.
However, she didn't go over the Pack's so often just because it was friendly. The truth was, her mother was rarely home until late, and then she was too tired to talk or to listen to Rayellen. She was actively seeking a new husband, a fact that Mamaw no longer attempted to hide, and so far it seemed that her search had not be very successful. Rayellen didn't know much about fathers, but she didn't really care about gaining another parent, especially if it mean losing her mother in the process. Yet, she knew better than to express these feelings aloud. She just hoped her mother found someone soon - or even gave up so that they could be together again.
First grade passed by quickly and second grade began much the same. Miss Louisa was her second grade teacher as well and she still chose to ignore the way the other students treated Rayellen. Most of the new first graders soon joined in the teasing of their unusual classmate, although a few saw how well she did in the class and would ask her for help on their assignments. Rayellen didn't actually expect any improvement and took each sign of it with suspicion. With the exception of Last-Un, she didn't really trust anyone.
Third grade began and Rayellen thought it would be the same deal. Yet, the moment her new teacher walked into the room, she began to rethink her beliefs. Unlike Miss Louisa, her new teacher was a younger woman with blonde hair and bright blue eyes. She was quite pretty and, like Last-Un, she had a dazzling smile. She swept into the room in a periwinkle blue dress suit and everyone one of the students stopped what they were doing to look. Everyone seemed a little enchanted with this new teacher, but none more than Rayellen. To her, this was the prettiest woman she had ever seen.
"Hello class," the teacher greeted them, "I am Ms. Bowen. I'm sure we're going to have a wonderful school year together but first, let's take roll."
The pretty teacher was quick and efficient. When she read Rayellen's name, Rayellen braced herself for a comment from the class, Ms. Bowen stated that from looking at her grades, she expected that Rayellen would be a good student. Rayellen was surprised, but she couldn't help but smile. Last-Un was the only person that had complimented her before.
Ms. Bowen also had a comment for her friend. When she had called for, "Sue Pack," Last-Un quickly spoke up and said that she preferred her nickname. Ms. Bowen had politely responded, "Sue is such a lovely name, though." Last-Un had blushed slightly and had consented to use her real name.
It was a time of change, and Rayellen welcomed this change. Despite her suspicion, she found herself trusting Ms. Bowen. From day one, she had accepted Rayellen and was always ready with a compliment. She often would allow the girl to borrow books, and Rayellen loved to read. Her grades, which had always been good, soared to the top of the class and Ms. Bowen had begun to let her work on 4th, 5th, and even occasionally 6th grade material. Rayellen felt the hardness she had let form around her heart soften slightly.
One day, she was especially happy. She had gotten a 100 on a spelling test and ran home to show Mamaw. To her surprise, her mother was home. So far, the search for a new husband had not been successful and she could tell her mother was getting restless and was embarrassed to be still be living at home. Normally, she would have avoided her mother because she had seemed so angry lately, and Rayellen no longer trusted her since she had overheard the late-night conversation. Yet, today she was so ecstatic that she forgot her usual hesitation.
"Mom!" she cried, "Look what I got!" She tried to show her mother the paper.
Elizabeth shoved the paper away. "Not now," she said.
"But, Mom," Rayellen insisted.
Elizabeth spun around and the moment that Rayellen saw the anger in her mother's eyes she knew that she had made a mistake. Her mother grabbed her upper arms and held on tightly. "Ya're tryin' to talk fancy, ain't ya? Like that fancy teacher ya got!"
Rayellen hesitated. She had been practicing trying to talk like Ms. Bowen, but only because she liked the way her teacher spoke. She never thought it would be a problem. "I'm sorry, Mom," she cried.
"Ma! I'm yer Ma!" Her voice dropped slightly. "'Though sometimes I wish I weren't. It would be a lot easier."
Tears came to Rayellen's eyes at her mother's statement, but it seemed that Elizabeth now had second. "Oh, baby. I'm so sorry. I didn't mean that."
"Yes you did!" Rayellen yelled, jerking free of her mother's grasp. "I won't call you Mom anymore. I'm not calling you Ma either! You're nothing to me!"
"I'm sorry," Elizabeth repeated, "I think I'm just jealous of that teacher. She seems so special to ya. And I've been goin' through a lot lately."
Rayellen didn't stay to listen to Elizabeth's confession. She turned and ran from the house and down into the nearby field. She had let down her defenses down and once again she had been hurt. Never again would she be so foolish. In that moment, she decided that she didn't need her mother. She had Last-Un, or rather Sue, to rely on not to mention her wonderful new teacher. Who needed anything else?
"I'm movin'"
Rayellen looked at her friend in disbelief. "What?" she asked.
Sue sighed deeply. "I'm movin," she repeated, "I just found out the other day. We'll be leavin' before school starts back."
"But why?" Rayellen inquired, trying not to cry. She hadn't gotten to spend much time with her friend this summer and had just been eagerly awaiting the start of the school year so that she could see more of Sue and Ms. Bowen. "Why?" she asked again.
"My oldest brother, Joseph Allen, he got a job in Virginia. He wants all us to move out there. He said it would be a better life." The tone of her voice indicated to Rayellen that she wasn't so sure of Joe Allen's ideology of a better life.
"Do you have to go?" Rayellen asked.
Sue nodded, tears welling up in her eyes. "Yeah. I don't want to, but I don't have a choice."
Rayellen gave into the tears she had been trying to fight. "I wish you didn't have to. I'll miss you so much!"
"I'll miss ya too. Will ya come by to visit before we leave?"
"Sure," Rayellen replied. She meant to be telling the truth, but as the day for Sue's departure grew closer, she found herself more and more reluctant to go. She realized that this might be the last time that she ever saw her friend and she hated to even think of that. Also, she found herself a little angry at Sue. After all, Sue was supposed to be there for her. She was her friend yet, she was leaving. While she knew that it wasn't Sue's fault, she still was hurt. Too many times in her life people that she had loved and trusted had hurt her and now Sue was doing the same thing. It didn't matter if it was on purpose or not.
Yet, on the final day she did go to Sue's house to say goodbye. The two friends cried and hugged one another until it was time for Sue to leave. Rayellen felt horrible about avoiding her friend but there was nothing she could do about that now. As Sue's family drove away, she waved until the car was no longer in sight.
At least school was starting soon. Her best friend was gone, but she did have Ms. Bowen to look forward to seeing again. She just had to focus on that.
Thank you for all the wonderful reviews. I really appreciate it. I'm not sure exactly how long this story will. I had a rough idea that would make it around 20 chapters, but things change as I write, so there may be more or less. I will definitely have some chapters that deal with her as a teenager. In the next chapter or two I will deal Mystique's first shapeshifting experience. And, Magneto will be in the story, but not for quite some time.