Not
Myself
By Princess
Alexandria
Princess_alex24@hotmail.com
Bobby's hair was still damp from his post training shower as he started down the hall for the elevators.
~Robert, I have the information~ Emma's telepathic voice told him just as he pushed the button to go upstairs.
~I'll be right up~
He walked into Emma's office to find a box of things sitting on her desk. It had several photocopied articles, a book, and the school emblem embossed envelope. "This should be everything she needs to get started, but if she's calling for help she's clearly not qualified to teach a telepath." Emma's disdain for the woman she'd never even talked to was clear. "I included a generic invitation to the school."
"I'm not sure she's gonna appreciate us trying to steal her students." Bobby protested while looking at the other items in the box. The book was actually written by Emma Frost. What a surprise.
"What kind of a school is she running if she's not able to deal with teaching simple mental shields?" Bobby blinked for a moment as he realized that was true.
"Well, thanks for getting this all together." He moved to grab the box. He still had time to call Christy and get her address so he could mail this out.
"If this is an emergency I should probably call and give her some of the basics over the phone." Emma sighed like she was being put out, and Bobby started to get uncomfortable. He wanted to be the one to call Christy and tell her that he'd gotten what she needed. Emma's eyes narrowed a little and Bobby grimaced. You'd think he'd learn to keep his mental shields at full strength around her.
"Technically I got what she needed." Emma grumbled, "Robert. Put aside your foolish hopes for a date and give me her number, because I can guarantee you that if she's concerned enough to call here, she's worried about her student. Waiting until she gets the books isn't going to make her too thrilled."
********
Christy got back from driving the van to the house just a little bit before class started. Jessi drove her and Annie in to work and would pick them up after. She was just in the middle of grabbing the things she needed to take to class when her cell phone rang. One look at the area code on the number let her know it was the mansion. "Annie, start class without me." She said quickly and sat down to answer the phone. It was another lab day so the girl could handle it and this phone call was important. "Hello."
"Ms. Taylor." A distinctly feminine voice threw Christy for a loop. She'd been expecting Bobby. "I'm Emma Frost, an instructor at the school." Annie was leaving and closing the door behind her or she would have seen Christy almost drop the phone in her shock. Emma called her. "Are you there Ms. Taylor?" Emma sounded irritated. Not good.
"Yes, I'm sorry. I was getting rid of a student." Technically not a lie. "Call me Christy."
"Well, Robert told me of your problem and I've assembled some materials for you. I just needed an address and I'll send him out to mail it now." Christy quickly complied. That was the best way to deal with the White Queen. She could hear her writing it down and then handing it off to Bobby. "I am… concerned that you teach and you don't know about this skill." Christy could hear the disapproval it wasn't disguised.
"Well, I don't teach at a… special… school. I just happen to have some mutant students. They tend to come to me with their problems." And their furniture and all their belongings, she added mentally while thinking of the boy currently moving in.
"Oh." After a moment of silence Emma added. "I included an invitation to the school." She sounded almost like she was looking for an argument.
Christy sighed. "Good. Thanks." She slumped down a little in her chair. "How does that work if someone wants to enroll or just check the place out? At the rate these students are coming to me I may end up sending some your way." She thought about Erik and Annie when she said that. She wouldn't force them, but they should have the option.
Emma's voice sounded not as cold. "If you run into someone that is interested just call us and give us their phone number. We can take care of it from there."
"Okay."
"Now, you need to teach someone mental shields. Have you any experience at all with this?"
Christy thought about her own shields, but she didn't put them there. "No, nothing."
"Well, I'll see if I can talk you through making your own. You can then tell him what we did."
"You can do this over the phone?" Christy's voice rose a little in surprise. She thought you needed to be a bit closer for telepathy.
"No." Emma sounded just a little amused. "I'm not able to read your mind from New York." Christy blushed a little even though there was no one to see it. She'd keep her next stupid question to herself. She was learning technique, not actually building a shield, so the fact that she already had one wasn't important.
After the description of what she should do, which really seemed kinda new age, with all the visualizations; Christy had the basics of something she didn't believe would work. Well, if Emma said it did, it did, but still it felt ridiculous to visualize a wall or the building of a wall around one's mind.
"I'd like his number to talk to him personally." Emma added after their lesson.
"He's in the middle of moving today, and I didn't get his permission to call you." She felt a little uncomfortable with going behind his back like this. If people started to call him about his powers she didn't know how he'd deal with it.
"He's moving?" Emma sounded a bit concerned, and she didn't even know him. She talked like she was a cold woman, but she wasn't. She was very passionate about protecting young mutants.
"He was living in an apartment. Too many minds in a small space." Christy sighed and glanced at her closed door. Her habit of not letting anyone know she had a house full of teenagers won out. "He's moving to a house out of town. Fewer people to worry about."
"Oh well give him our number. Learning telepathy on one's own isn't easy, and the mistakes can be dangerous."
"No, he's Empathic, does that make a difference in the shield?" Christy didn't think it would but she didn't want to assume.
That comment was met with silence for a moment. Emma sounded a little distracted when she spoke, "No, no, it doesn't. Same principles, just slightly different powers."
********
When Emma hung up the phone she got up and stood at her office window staring out at the garden. This untrained woman was trying to teach an Empath, and she wasn't even a teacher for mutants. She was a regular school teacher. This had disaster written all over it. The woman obviously had no mental powers at all, and knew nothing about them.
And why would a friend of Jean's know nothing about shields? Surely the redhead cared enough about her friends to teach them that basic skill. She cared enough to tell Christy she was a telepath, but didn't seem to explain what that was at all. Christy actually thought Emma could read her mind over the phone. A determined look came to Emma's ice blue eyes. She was going to have to talk to Jean about this. Perhaps Jean could get her friend to see reason. That woman seemed too reluctant to give Emma the phone number.
She went back to her scratch paper. She's written hard enough for the address to be imprinted on the sheet below it. Robert would have complained if he'd seen her making a copy of it. A slight smile touched her lips. It wouldn't be hard to track Christy Taylor down and get the information she needed about the Empath. She traced over the address to make it more readable and put it in her desk. She'd talk to Jean first, but she was pretty sure that the school would want to look into this. If not, she did have some vacation time coming. Christy's intentions might be good, but that boy needed real training before something truly horrible happened.
********
When Christy came into the classroom Annie could see she was happy about something. The woman just smiled at her in a way that let Annie know she'd hear about it later.
On the way back to the office Christy finally started to tell her. "I called those people in New York I told you about and they are sending me some books for Erik." Christy's eyes widened a little and the grin looked so triumphant. The woman rarely got this happy, and seeing it was causing Annie's heart to beat faster as she gave her own answering smile. "They mailed it out today, so we should get it next week. I also talked to one of their… experts." Christy glanced around at the students walking past them and not paying much attention to their conversation. She obviously meant some Telepath or Empath. "And she gave me a few things to tell him so he can make it until the books arrive."
"That's great." Annie's heart felt a bit light as her eyes trailed over Christy's expression while the woman's eyes were drawn to some of the human students milling about. Christy's voice became a little more serious. "I'm thinking you all need to learn about it. Everyone of you could use your own… protection, and if you can protect yourselves it will be easier on Erik." The way Christy could talk in public and still not say anything other people would understand was amazing. Christy didn't even seem to have to put effort into it.
"I'll tell them." Annie smiled and pulled her coat closed around her a little tighter. She hadn't noticed the February chill until they were almost to the office.
When they got home they walked into the house and saw that Erik's things were all laid out. His bed and dresser were in place and it looked a little strange to have it just sitting out there like that, but they'd build the wall tomorrow. His clothes were all just laying on his bed since he didn't have a closet yet. He was in the process of putting things in his dresser drawers.
"Once we get the wall up you can decorate however you want as long as you don't damage anything." Christy told him gently while glancing at the rolled up poster collection. Annie wondered if Christy knew those were all models or nearly naked women. Christy hadn't seen Erik's room before. Christy walked over towards his bed and Annie got the impression that Christy needed to tell him the good news, so she went upstairs to put her book bag away.
********
Christy spent an hour talking with Erik about mental shields and what Emma had told her. Emma had managed to explain it in less than twenty minutes, but Erik was testing the theories out in a way that Christy couldn't. The small smile that started on his face let Christy know it was at least helping some.
Her expression got serious and she moved to close the door to the room so they couldn't be overheard. "There is something that I need to talk to you about." The brief look of guilt on his face made her think Jessi had mentioned the scolding. She was going to let that go for now. He'd gotten it second hand and it was already a tough time for him. She was probably being a push over, but he didn't know her that well yet, and scolding him before he'd even finished moving in wasn't how she wanted to get to know him. She wasn't here to be the mommy figure. "You are welcome to live here, and I have absolutely no problem having you here, but…" Christy sighed. She didn't want him to take this the wrong way. "I told you I'm not the most qualified teacher out there, and the woman I talked to in New York thinks you should go to their school. She's better equipped to help you." She could see his emotions overwhelming him again and his eyes started to sparkle. She spoke quickly. "I just want you to know if you feel like you need more help I won't be insulted. I can give you their number in case you want to find out about it."
"My family is here, and I don't want to…"
"Then you don't have to." Christy tried for a reassuring smile but she didn't feel it. He belonged at the other school, but it would hurt his feelings too much and he'd resent it if he didn't come to that conclusion on his own. She took a deep breath and changed the topic. "Well, she's sending me some materials, books and articles. Normally I let students pick what they teach, but you are going to be our only resident expert in mental powers, and you are the only one that can test someone's mental shields to see if they work. I'd like it if you studied whatever she sends and see if you can…"
"Oh I can." He interrupted her sounded a bit more upbeat. Teaching this looked like it would be good for him. That was part of Christy's motive in having them all do a teaching night. Self esteem and the feeling of belonging. Both are very important. Learning valuable skills was also good, but making them teach each other was the way she preferred to work. He gave her a searching look while his eyes started to sparkle again. "I can't sense you at all. You didn't make those shields?" He looked a little embarrassed, "When I took your class I could sense you, but now… I get nothing."
Christy's jaw clenched just a little. Usually the students didn't bring up the classes she taught them too often and in such a general way that Christy could figure out what she would have done. They sometimes teased her now about how she didn't even remember them in the faceless masses that she taught, and she went with that excuse, but truthfully these students would have stuck out in her mind if she'd actually been the one to teach them. Now she didn't know how to explain the sudden appearance of super strong mental shields.
"No, I didn't put them there." Christy's eyes narrowed, "You didn't happen to use those powers to get say… an extension on a deadline did you?" She'd gotten a bit better at redirecting conversation. He looked ashamed.
"No, not on you." He looked at the wall. "I'm sorry about Jessi's boss."
Her voice got a bit softer. She felt a little guilty about her diversion tactic. "She told you what I said?" When he just nodded she continued. "Then I don't have to say it again. You're a good guy, I know you'll learn from this."
As she walked up the stairs she started to wonder what would happen if she told her students the truth. But if she told some people eventually it could get out and then she'd have to deal with telling…
"Christy, your mom called and she's hoping you can drop the van off at her place." Jessi told her once she was upstairs.
"Thanks, I'll call her." Christy sighed. If she told anyone the truth she'd have to tell that woman her daughter was dead, and had been for months. No, she just couldn't do that to her.
********
Professor Xavier called them into his office as soon as Jean and Scott got home Sunday night. Emma crossed her arms in front of her and leaned on the wall waiting for whatever announcement he had. The rest of the team was already seated and she'd been the last to arrive.
"I've got some disturbing news." Charles started. "Apparently there are some people out there taking in young mutants, training them, and using them to commit crimes." He pulled out an article. "The mutants are brainwashed into wanting to do this to support the person they believed saved them from the streets." Emma grimaced. This kind of abuse was truly sick. "I've found evidence of a house in Florida that might have this going on. I want you to investigate it." His voice got softer. "This isn't one or two instances. This is a new trend, and I want to see if there is a connection between these houses. I'm thinking there is someone in charge of this, and I want to take that someone down. This is a horrible abuse of already scared and desperate teens. When you encounter the teens, see if you can get to them, talk to them."
"Charles, how did you come across this information?" Emma shifted a little as she asked.
"Police reports." He sat back in his chair. "Two recent groups were arrested: one in Los Angeles and one in Houston. By the time the police thought to check the mutants' group home the adult was gone, along with other stolen items that the teens confessed to taking. They are being tried for the crimes." Emma gritted her teeth.
"Well, if there isn't anything else." Scott glanced at Charles for permission to go. "We should get the BlackBird ready to go."
While Scott piloted the plane Jean and Emma looked over the files that Charles had supplied about the teens they were going to see. Emma glanced up at Jean. "Your friend Christy Taylor called. Apparently she's run into a young Empath and needed some advice."
Jean glanced at her and something in her expression made Emma stare a moment. "You don't know a Christy Taylor, do you?" Emma's eyes got cold. Bobby had told her the woman was a friend of Jean's and Emma had admitted to being a telepath over the phone to a woman she didn't know. She'd sent that woman clear evidence that the Xavier Institute wasn't a regular school. She felt Jean's mental touch and rather than just brush it off she let the woman in to see what had happened.
"I'll contact the Professor and have him look into her." Jean spoke as soon as she pulled out of Emma's mind. "I don't know that woman at all."
********
Author's Note: Feedback greatly appreciated… please…