I sat down slowly; I didn't like the look on his face. Although I only saw
it briefly before Papa put his head in his hands. I was about to say
something witty; to lighten to mood, but my mouth wouldn't move. I knew
Papa too well to know that this wasn't something serious. So I sat in
silence and waited for him to speak; my arms crossed across my legs and
stared at the bandages that were starting to itch.
" Cherie, Papa is sorry 'bout what he said t' you de other day." Papa started, I raised my eyes to meet his and nodded. I knew he would never say something like that on purpose to hurt me. " De truth is dat Papa had a little meetin' wit' an old friend who he had hoped never t' see 'gain."
I swallowed the lump in my throat that threatened to rise as he continued his story. I didn't need to hear who it was, I already knew.
" Cherie, d'you ever miss your maman?" Papa asked looking deep into my eyes with an intense emotion that I couldn't place. I shook my head. I had never missed her. She left us, not the other way around. Why would I miss anyone who didn't want anything to do with me? Papa's brow furrowed and he looked back at his hands.
"Papa, you saw Marie non?" I said finally. I wasn't ready for the heartbroken look Papa gave me after that statement; partially because I knew and partially because I hadn't called her Maman. He slowly nodded and carefully watched for my expression to change. It didn't. I had no feelings left for her.
"Dat it?" I asked standing up to walk away. I smoothed the front of my pants before finally looking back into Papa's eyes. There was a mix of anger and pity in Papa's eyes as I turned on my heel and walked out of the house.
I couldn't breathe, I walked across the grounds towards the mansion as quickly as possible without breaking into a run. Anger was boiling inside me as I reached the front doors. I didn't bother saying hello to anyone as I stalked through the corridors to the danger room. I opened the solid metal doors to find it empty, this made me glad.
I programmed the computer and suddenly the room went dark. The lighting kicked in as various things suddenly attacked me. I had programmed it for ninja's so I wouldn't necessarily have to use my arms to fight. It was me against two ninja's one in white and one in black, in order for the white ninja to attack me I would have to kill the black ninja. It was my favorite program in the Danger Room.
Being careful not to use my hands for blocking I took out all the anger I had on the stupid simulation of a ninja. I was waiting for it to be shut off by Papa, Hank or the professor but it never happened. Finally I stomped on the ninja's skull and watched the simulation flicker away. I had never beaten the white ninja. But the fire in my soul was burning hotter than ever before.
After a few short combinations of moves I realized that I couldn't beat him without my arms, but they didn't hurt so much right now so I figured it would be okay to use them. With a few skilled kicks the ninja had me on my back. I swiped at his leg, bringing him down beside me and rolled over on top of him grabbed his shirt collar and laughed in his face. Well I laughed for about three seconds until I felt his hands wrap around my neck, attempting to choke me. This made me even madder, the type of mad that had caused the bandages to take a semi-permanent location on my arms.
I felt the familiar burning but didn't try to stop it. Instead I focused all my energy on pushing it out of my system. The next thing I knew flames burst from the palms of my hands, burning the bandages and killing the white ninja. I expected pain to burst forth, causing me to black out again, but it never happened. The room went dark again and soon the familiar look of the metallic room came back into view. I stayed in the same position, kneeling on the floor, my hands in my lap, I watched, waiting for the blisters to surface once more. When they didn't I looked curiously at my hands, shoving my sleeves up farther on my arms I noticed my burns were gone.
"Well wasn't that fascinating?" someone said from behind me. I didn't have to turn around to know that it was the professor's voice. When I didn't respond or move forward he moved his chair closer to me. "I suggest that you and I pay a visit to Hank, to see if we can figure out what went on."
"No t'anks Professor." I said quietly, finally getting to my feet. " Dis don' mean nothin'." I left the room quickly, it felt like my skin was on fire and as much as I liked the feeling it was creeping me out. I ran towards the back door, not stopping to say hello to anyone. I ran outdoors and did a flying dive into the pool. Clothes and all I resurfaced to find a few curious faces watching me. I expected a nice cooling sensation to start on my skin, however when I dove into the pool nothing happened.
"What's going on Kaley?" Jubilee asked, looking at me with a worried expression on her face. I made eye contact briefly before diving underwater again. I sat at the bottom of the pool for as long as my lungs would let me before blasting up through the water and getting out of the pool.
Bishop was waiting among everyone holding out a towel for me to use. I thanked him quietly and took the towel from him. He clapped a hand on my shoulder, trying to show everyone that I was fine, when he screamed and brought his hand to his chest.
"Bish, you okay?" Scott said running towards the massive man. Bishop nodded curtly.
"I just burnt my hand a little." Bishop said giving me a weird look. "Are you alright Kaley?"
"I'm fine Bish, are you okay?" I asked walking closer to him, not too close though. I didn't want to hurt him anymore. "I didn't mean to hurt you."
"I know you didn't child, it's just your skin.it feels like its on fire." Bishop said looking at my shoulder where my shirt had ripped during my Danger Room session.
"Hey Kale.what happened to all of your burns?" Jubilee asked. I looked down at my arms again; it looked as though nothing had happened. I ran my fingers across the skin, not feeling anything at all. "What's going on?"
"I don't know." I said, tears brimming in my eyes. I sat down on the pool deck and pulled my knees towards my chest. Resting my forehead on my kneecaps I started to cry.
I don't know how long I sat there for. I just remember being wrapped in a blanket and being carried back to the med lab.
"S'ok cherie, Papa's here." Papa said as he carried me through the hallways. I had no more tears to cry with so I silently let myself be carried.
They put me on a stretcher or something and took some blood. I noticed they were all wearing gloves, and I didn't understand why. I looked up at Hank with fearful eyes and he gave me his best supportive smile, not knowing I could see the uncertainty in his eyes as well.
"Well Kaley," the professor said, breaking the silence. "It seems as though you have almost completed your mutation."
I grimaced at the word mutation; I never did like that word. It annoyed me; it sounded too much like freak or weirdo.
"Wait a sec, what d'you mean almost? You mean I ain't done?" I asked sitting up a bit straighter. Hank tried to explain something about a double helix or something but I wasn't too keen on getting a biology lesson at the start of summer. "Hank you 'n I both know dat I don' know what d'hell you talkin about."
Hank laughed, and never did finish explaining it.
"Did I hurt Bish? I didn' mean t' hurt anyone!" I said just remembering the look on Bishop's face.
"I'm fine child. You just gave me a bit of a scare, that's all." Bishop said entering the room with the rest of my family.
"Dat's good." I said leaning back in my chair. "Dis means I can play de guitar." I said smiling. Everyone laughed again. It felt good hearing the group laugh, it seemed like it had been a while since that happened.
"You beat the white ninja." I heard someone growl from behind the crowd. I saw Wolverine push through the crowd, standing right in front of the bed I was laying in. I nodded slowly, not knowing what he wanted. "Congrats, I know you've been tryin' t' do that for a while."
"Why thank you Wolverine, dat means a lot t' me." I said smiling at the man, who I just then realized, was very short compared to Bishop. "Hey Scott, does dis mean dat I get t' play in de war room?"
Scott let out a huge laugh. "Not yet Kaley, not quite yet." He said after he finished his little laughing fit. I nodded disappointedly; I had always wanted to train in that room but it was restricted to everyone under certain something or other...I didn't really pay any attention to Scott.
"Well dis was fun everyone, but I wan' t' go play some pool, if you don' mind." I said and left the room without anyone saying otherwise. I walked calmly to the game room and picked up a pool cue. I continued to play against myself for a few games, of course I won. Finally Papa came into the room and played against me like nothing had happened.
Just the way I wanted it.
========= ============ ========== ============
A/N: Thank for everyone who's reviewing, keep it up!!! I actually don't know quite yet where this story is going, I have a pretty good idea but I wouldn't mind a few suggestions.HINT HINT!!!! If you have any questions, comment, queries or concerns..don't hesitate to e-mail me and ask... REVIEW NOWWWW!!!!!!
" Cherie, Papa is sorry 'bout what he said t' you de other day." Papa started, I raised my eyes to meet his and nodded. I knew he would never say something like that on purpose to hurt me. " De truth is dat Papa had a little meetin' wit' an old friend who he had hoped never t' see 'gain."
I swallowed the lump in my throat that threatened to rise as he continued his story. I didn't need to hear who it was, I already knew.
" Cherie, d'you ever miss your maman?" Papa asked looking deep into my eyes with an intense emotion that I couldn't place. I shook my head. I had never missed her. She left us, not the other way around. Why would I miss anyone who didn't want anything to do with me? Papa's brow furrowed and he looked back at his hands.
"Papa, you saw Marie non?" I said finally. I wasn't ready for the heartbroken look Papa gave me after that statement; partially because I knew and partially because I hadn't called her Maman. He slowly nodded and carefully watched for my expression to change. It didn't. I had no feelings left for her.
"Dat it?" I asked standing up to walk away. I smoothed the front of my pants before finally looking back into Papa's eyes. There was a mix of anger and pity in Papa's eyes as I turned on my heel and walked out of the house.
I couldn't breathe, I walked across the grounds towards the mansion as quickly as possible without breaking into a run. Anger was boiling inside me as I reached the front doors. I didn't bother saying hello to anyone as I stalked through the corridors to the danger room. I opened the solid metal doors to find it empty, this made me glad.
I programmed the computer and suddenly the room went dark. The lighting kicked in as various things suddenly attacked me. I had programmed it for ninja's so I wouldn't necessarily have to use my arms to fight. It was me against two ninja's one in white and one in black, in order for the white ninja to attack me I would have to kill the black ninja. It was my favorite program in the Danger Room.
Being careful not to use my hands for blocking I took out all the anger I had on the stupid simulation of a ninja. I was waiting for it to be shut off by Papa, Hank or the professor but it never happened. Finally I stomped on the ninja's skull and watched the simulation flicker away. I had never beaten the white ninja. But the fire in my soul was burning hotter than ever before.
After a few short combinations of moves I realized that I couldn't beat him without my arms, but they didn't hurt so much right now so I figured it would be okay to use them. With a few skilled kicks the ninja had me on my back. I swiped at his leg, bringing him down beside me and rolled over on top of him grabbed his shirt collar and laughed in his face. Well I laughed for about three seconds until I felt his hands wrap around my neck, attempting to choke me. This made me even madder, the type of mad that had caused the bandages to take a semi-permanent location on my arms.
I felt the familiar burning but didn't try to stop it. Instead I focused all my energy on pushing it out of my system. The next thing I knew flames burst from the palms of my hands, burning the bandages and killing the white ninja. I expected pain to burst forth, causing me to black out again, but it never happened. The room went dark again and soon the familiar look of the metallic room came back into view. I stayed in the same position, kneeling on the floor, my hands in my lap, I watched, waiting for the blisters to surface once more. When they didn't I looked curiously at my hands, shoving my sleeves up farther on my arms I noticed my burns were gone.
"Well wasn't that fascinating?" someone said from behind me. I didn't have to turn around to know that it was the professor's voice. When I didn't respond or move forward he moved his chair closer to me. "I suggest that you and I pay a visit to Hank, to see if we can figure out what went on."
"No t'anks Professor." I said quietly, finally getting to my feet. " Dis don' mean nothin'." I left the room quickly, it felt like my skin was on fire and as much as I liked the feeling it was creeping me out. I ran towards the back door, not stopping to say hello to anyone. I ran outdoors and did a flying dive into the pool. Clothes and all I resurfaced to find a few curious faces watching me. I expected a nice cooling sensation to start on my skin, however when I dove into the pool nothing happened.
"What's going on Kaley?" Jubilee asked, looking at me with a worried expression on her face. I made eye contact briefly before diving underwater again. I sat at the bottom of the pool for as long as my lungs would let me before blasting up through the water and getting out of the pool.
Bishop was waiting among everyone holding out a towel for me to use. I thanked him quietly and took the towel from him. He clapped a hand on my shoulder, trying to show everyone that I was fine, when he screamed and brought his hand to his chest.
"Bish, you okay?" Scott said running towards the massive man. Bishop nodded curtly.
"I just burnt my hand a little." Bishop said giving me a weird look. "Are you alright Kaley?"
"I'm fine Bish, are you okay?" I asked walking closer to him, not too close though. I didn't want to hurt him anymore. "I didn't mean to hurt you."
"I know you didn't child, it's just your skin.it feels like its on fire." Bishop said looking at my shoulder where my shirt had ripped during my Danger Room session.
"Hey Kale.what happened to all of your burns?" Jubilee asked. I looked down at my arms again; it looked as though nothing had happened. I ran my fingers across the skin, not feeling anything at all. "What's going on?"
"I don't know." I said, tears brimming in my eyes. I sat down on the pool deck and pulled my knees towards my chest. Resting my forehead on my kneecaps I started to cry.
I don't know how long I sat there for. I just remember being wrapped in a blanket and being carried back to the med lab.
"S'ok cherie, Papa's here." Papa said as he carried me through the hallways. I had no more tears to cry with so I silently let myself be carried.
They put me on a stretcher or something and took some blood. I noticed they were all wearing gloves, and I didn't understand why. I looked up at Hank with fearful eyes and he gave me his best supportive smile, not knowing I could see the uncertainty in his eyes as well.
"Well Kaley," the professor said, breaking the silence. "It seems as though you have almost completed your mutation."
I grimaced at the word mutation; I never did like that word. It annoyed me; it sounded too much like freak or weirdo.
"Wait a sec, what d'you mean almost? You mean I ain't done?" I asked sitting up a bit straighter. Hank tried to explain something about a double helix or something but I wasn't too keen on getting a biology lesson at the start of summer. "Hank you 'n I both know dat I don' know what d'hell you talkin about."
Hank laughed, and never did finish explaining it.
"Did I hurt Bish? I didn' mean t' hurt anyone!" I said just remembering the look on Bishop's face.
"I'm fine child. You just gave me a bit of a scare, that's all." Bishop said entering the room with the rest of my family.
"Dat's good." I said leaning back in my chair. "Dis means I can play de guitar." I said smiling. Everyone laughed again. It felt good hearing the group laugh, it seemed like it had been a while since that happened.
"You beat the white ninja." I heard someone growl from behind the crowd. I saw Wolverine push through the crowd, standing right in front of the bed I was laying in. I nodded slowly, not knowing what he wanted. "Congrats, I know you've been tryin' t' do that for a while."
"Why thank you Wolverine, dat means a lot t' me." I said smiling at the man, who I just then realized, was very short compared to Bishop. "Hey Scott, does dis mean dat I get t' play in de war room?"
Scott let out a huge laugh. "Not yet Kaley, not quite yet." He said after he finished his little laughing fit. I nodded disappointedly; I had always wanted to train in that room but it was restricted to everyone under certain something or other...I didn't really pay any attention to Scott.
"Well dis was fun everyone, but I wan' t' go play some pool, if you don' mind." I said and left the room without anyone saying otherwise. I walked calmly to the game room and picked up a pool cue. I continued to play against myself for a few games, of course I won. Finally Papa came into the room and played against me like nothing had happened.
Just the way I wanted it.
========= ============ ========== ============
A/N: Thank for everyone who's reviewing, keep it up!!! I actually don't know quite yet where this story is going, I have a pretty good idea but I wouldn't mind a few suggestions.HINT HINT!!!! If you have any questions, comment, queries or concerns..don't hesitate to e-mail me and ask... REVIEW NOWWWW!!!!!!