Disclaimer – I do not own X-Men: Evolution in any way, shape or form. They all belong to their most respected owners who have my full appreciation. Any quotes that you recognise are not mind, they also belong to their respected owners.
A/N – I want to apologise for the lateness of this chapter and this time I have a valid reason. Lol. I have just moved back down to University and I do not have a computer of my own so I am forced to use the computers at the university. So hopefully I can keep updating. Also a kind thanks to all of you who put up with my delays and leave very kind reviews. Now on with the show…
Chapter Eight
Kitty opened one eye and looked out upon her surroundings. For a moment, she did not recall where she was and she expected to see sterile white walls with a menacing steel door in the middle. Instead, she saw warm coloured wallpaper and soft but cheerful looking light but what pleased her most was curled up in an armchair with his blue tail twitching slightly.
"Kurt" she whispered softly.
His tail twitched again.
"Kurt, wake up" she said a bit louder this time the tail stopped moving.
"Kurt, get up now!" she demanded.
The figure on the chair jumped up suddenly in shock and Kitty could not hide the smile that covered her face. The smile hurt but it felt good.
"Kitty, you're awake" he exclaimed and Kitty noticed that his accent seemed thicker than she remembered.
Kitty lowered herself to the floor and gingerly walked towards him. Her feet were sore from running
so far on concrete but that did not bother her at the moment. She was free.
Lance is dead a small voice reminded her but Kitty ignored it for the moment.
Kurt was up as well and he ran towards her and enveloped her a big hug.
Kitty grinned "Okay oxygen becoming an issue" she managed to choke out.
Kurt let go and held her out at arms length as if she were a special object that he had not seen in many years.
"I missed you, Kurt" Kitty choked out, she knew she was crying but it was a release that she needed.
That moment the door opened and a sleepy looking Rogue wandered in.
"Ah'm ready to take over, fuzzball" she drawled, rubbing her eyes.
Kitty didn't wait for Rogue to notice her, she ran over and hugged her although she was very mindful of her skin. She had just woken up and she didn't want to go back to sleep anytime soon.
"Oh my god, Kitty, you're awake" Rogue said and Kitty heard the shock in her voice.
Kitty couldn't say anything. After everything she had been through she felt exhausted and at a loss for words.
"I'm home" she whispered, her voice hoarse as she felt her legs tremble and go weak.
Rogue and Kurt caught her as she fell and they helped her back to bed.
"Kurt, go get the Professor" Rogue ordered.
"Why me?" Kurt grumbled but he did as he was told disappearing in a puff of smoke.
"I missed that" Kitty said absently.
Rogue looked at her and Kitty felt uncomfortable with all the staring.
"Your hair is longer" Rogue said finally.
"Your dream of becoming a detective never looked so close until now" Kitty replied sarcastically.
"You're not supposed to be sarcastic, that's my line" Rogue laughed.
Kitty stared at her in shock and realised that that was the only way for her to deal with what had happened then she began to laugh as well, both of them sounding a little hysterical.
They were still laughing when Kurt got back, apparently he hadn't just woken the Professor but all of the X-Men and some of the new recruits. They all piled into the room which now seemed a lot smaller than before making Kitty feel a trifle uneasy.
"Kitty, it is good to see you awake" she heard the Professor's voice inside her head.
The emotions were so overwhelming that Kitty burst into tears once again.
"He shot Lance" she hiccupped.
The mood in the room darkened in a second.
"I can't let you be happy for me until we get the others out" she continued.
"Is he dead?" she heard someone ask.
"I…I don't know. He looked so pale and he wasn't moving."
Kitty looked at the ground feeling guilty for being home and alive while Lance was probably dead.
He is dead though, isn't he. You left him to die her conscience told her.
~*~
Hank McCoy wandered around his lab feeling jubilant, Kitty was safe and there seemed to be no physical problems, mental one were certain but for now the fact that she was healthy was enough for him.
"So what has she told you?" a voice asked from behind.
Turning as agilely as only he could she found himself face to face with Lorna. Her green hair had been tied back and he could see the dark circles that had formed under her eyes. Although she had never met Kitty she was still as worried as any of Kitty's friends were.
"No she doesn't want to talk about it and I do believe that she is rather upset by what happened to Lance" Hank replied.
He had become rather fond of the girl and she had come down to his lab often to help with various experiments. It turned out that she had quite a scientific mind. He only wished that more of the students would help.
"I wonder if she would talk to me. I mean I did meet the guy who did this and I sort of know what it's like. The only other person I can suggest is Rogue but I think Rogue is too close in the situation" Lorna suggested.
"That actually might be a good idea but you might want to talk to Xavier before you go ahead with your plan" Hank mused as he flipped himself upside down, delicately holding a small beaker.
"I might just do that Dr. McCoy" she said before turning around to leave.
"What a curiously polite girl" Hank said to himself.
He hung there for a few more minutes before righting himself and looking over another experiment.
~*~
It had been a week since Kitty had woken in the Institute feeling safe for the first time in a long while. But even though she was in a safe place she often got the feeling that she was being watched. She thought that Kale would spring out of nowhere and take her back. She was having dreams that terrified her and although she knew that, she was safer here than she could be anywhere else she still could not stop the dreams.
She stayed close to someone at all times of the day. Mostly it was Kurt or Rogue. Sometimes it was Scott or Jean and every so often, it was Logan. When it was Logan she felt safer but that was because he was a father figure to her and father figures where supposed to protect you from everything.
Her parents had been around a couple of times but they felt uneasy around her as if she had changed dramatically. She spoke differently, she knew that but she was still the same. She had to be she would tell herself all the time just to make it true.
Often she would find herself staring in the mirror wondering if she really was Kitty or whether she was someone else. Someone who looked like Kitty but was different in everyway. It was at one of these times that Logan walked in and found her staring absently at her reflection.
"Half-pint what are you doing?" he had asked in his gruff voice.
She had jumped up and swung around to hit him like he had taught her and had actually hit him. It wouldn't hurt but the shock showed on her face. He, however, had looked very pleased that his training was working.
~*~
Aidan Kale looked around the room that had once held his greatest success and which now held nothing. He was angry but underneath that anger he felt a sense of power that was almost intoxicating. He was going to succeed. He knew this now, after Katherine's escape. She was going to help him rid the world of the mutant problem and make him a hero in the eyes of men.
He walked out of that room and into another one that was almost the same. In this room there was a single bed and on the bed lay a body surrounded by various machines. Some measuring heart rate and others slowly feeding the body nutrients through an I.V.
"Lance, how are you today?" he asked before laughing softly to himself.
To Be Continued….