Disclaimer: I don't own them. So don't sue me. I promise that I'll personally have nothing to give you anyway. I'm officially broke. Just doing it for the enjoyment of myself and others. (pulls out pockets, which are empty.)

Author's Note: Hey it's me again. Don't wanna make this too long, so I'm begging you to please, find some kindness in your hearts and review!! I'm not threatening, but I need reviews to live, it's the only thing that keeps me going and I don't see a lot of enthusiasm on your parts. Like I said, I make no money, just like to write and hear people's comments. Thanks to all those who previously reviewed, I am thankful to that. Don't worry this story is getting there, not too quickly because I wanna take my time with it. I'll update as soon as possible. So enough of my whining. Read, Review, and ENJOY!

Slickboy444: Thank you for your gracious comments. I think I'd be going insane if you didn't review!! I'm glad you liked my chapter and where this story is going. Yeah, Rogue and Kurt have had their nightmares now you've gotta see what might and might not happen to them. I gotta tell ya that there's a cliffhanger in this chapter, so I hope you don't hate me for that one too much!! Hehe. As always, I give many thanks and look forward to hearing more from you.

Lil Jean: Thank you for also consistently reviewing. You keep me going and that's why I'm able to finish this story no matter what. Thanks for your time. Enjoy this chapter.

Wen: As always, thank you for the comments you sent me. It made me happy to know that you are commenting on every aspect of the story. Thanks for reading and enjoy this chapter.

Sweet-destiny3: How do I even start? Well, first, thanks for your time and bugging me to get off my lazy butt and finish writing the chapter. Hope this doesn't disappoint you. Enjoy!!

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Sacrifice

By: pinkchick

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Chapter 4

The students bustled around the kitchen early that morning. The rest of the new mutants were asleep, which only left Rogue, Kurt, Jean, and Kitty in the kitchen fending for themselves. The adults of the house were all down in the infirmary. Having heard about what had happened last night from Jean, they all started to fear of what was going on in this particular situation. There was an intense silence that brushed over the entire room. No one said anything to each other. They all just sat there in silence, only exchanging worried glances every now and then. Even Kitty, the overly happy girl of the house, stayed silent. She just sat there fiddling with her spoon and looking down at her now mushy cereal. Kitty didn't really know what was going on until this morning. Something about nightmares, but that's all Rogue and Kurt would ever muster. Every time they even mentioned it, a haunted look crossed over their features, one of fear and worry.

Jean had a far away look on her face, her line of vision sweeping up the beauty of Mother Nature outside. Jean had gone down to the infirmary earlier, only to be rushed out of there quickly by Logan. She didn't know why they wouldn't let her see Scott, but she felt things were only getting worse for him and that scared Jean. The worst part was that she felt so vulnerable in this entire situation. She felt so helpless and useless, sitting back just watching what was happening through some kind of glass window and not being able to get through. Jean had thought about not going to school that day, but her instincts told her that she wouldn't be of any help to Scott or Evan if she stayed there. It would also only increase her worry of just sitting there, watching and waiting. For now, she knew deep down that that's all she could do.

Kurt sat there. He just sat. He didn't teleport all around the table, he didn't make an enormous amount of food to eat, and he didn't talk as much. His now brown eyes, thanks to the inducer, were clouded over with fear and uncertainty. In all of his years he had never seen anything so petrifying like he had seen last night in his nightmare. Nothing could amount to it. He felt himself shrink back into the chair like a little child, horrified of the monsters in his dream. Kurt seemed to be entranced in the kitchen counter, but all his mind's eye could produce were the horrid images that had washed over him last night. It was unspeakable, the evil that he had seen in his dream. Kurt just closed his eyes and just desired to be safe. He envisioned a beautiful place where he was just having some fun with his friends, no worries, no nothing. For a moment, Kurt's entire demeanor seemed to relax. Unfortunately, the beautiful place that Kurt had dreamed up didn't exist and was replaced with those same horrible images that he wanted erased from his memory. All he could hear was that maniacal laughter, insulting and ridiculing him as the torment of his nightmare continued. He suddenly felt something click on his arm, and Kurt started to panic. "No," he muttered softly.

"So, you're, like, not done with your cereal?" Kitty asked, confusion written on her features.

Kurt immediately snapped out of his trance and looked at Kitty, his face also contorted in confusion. "Huh?" he asked, referring to what Kitty had been saying.

"I asked you if were done with your cereal," Kitty repeated what she had asked, annoyed that he hadn't been paying attention to her to begin with. "Geez, Kurt! Like, pay attention, wouldja?!"

Kurt looked down at his cereal bowl, which hadn't been touched and then looked back up at Kitty. "So?" Kitty pressed as she narrowed her eyes at him.

"So vhat?" Kurt asked, amusement at her annoyance of him hidden in his voice. Kitty pushed back her chair and grabbed his cereal bowl from in front of him. With a slight toss of her ponytail she stalked over to the sink and dumped his bowl in there, muttering something about people with short term memories. With that, she walked out of the kitchen, calling out, "I'll be waiting at the car!"

It was as if that were everyone's cue to exit the kitchen before the new mutants arrive and ransacked everything in their view. Kurt got up and followed her, teleporting to Jean's SUV instead. Jean followed suit, placing her plate of French toast in the sink and then heading out. It would be better to make it to school early today so they could make it back quickly and Jean could sneak in to see Scott, if only for a minute. Jean stopped at the kitchen door and turned back around. "You coming, Rogue?"

Rogue looked up at her and gave a half smile, which was rare to find on Rogue. "Yeah, Ah -- Ah'll be raght there," she answered, her Southern drawl coming out deeper in her statement.

Jean nodded her head and walked out of the kitchen, leaving Rogue alone with only the company of the deathly silence. Rogue looked around the kitchen in paranoia. She shuddered at the thought. Why should she even be paranoid to begin with? The mansion was safe, wasn't it? Rogue got up to also take her plate to the sink when something stopped her. She felt a cool gust air sweep past her and Rogue immediately turned on her defenses. There was no one there. She didn't even know where the gust of wind came from. The window wasn't open at all. It was also odd that the wind blew, yet Rogue felt herself heat up. She still felt goose bumps make their way up and down her arms. She dropped her plate as a hideous image blocked her mind. Rogue closed her eyes and held her breath. The images of last night flashed before her in a haze of red, orange, and yellow. Something once again clutched at her. Something or someone wouldn't let her leave. It was holding her back and it's grip tightened as she saw herself struggle. She was losing her breath when something snapped her back into reality. The honking of a car horn.

Rogue immediately exited the kitchen and headed into the foyer. "C'mon, Rogue!" Kitty shouted. "We're gonna be, like, late to school!"

Rogue opened the door, grabbed her backpack from the side and walked out of the mansion. She hopped into the back seat of Jean's SUV as they sped off and away from the mansion. Rogue looked back cautiously as the mansion grew smaller and smaller as the distance between it got larger. Rogue turned back around and hoped she could have a normal day, away from anything that had been going on. Maybe, just maybe, her visions would go away.

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"Has any of their conditions changed yet, Hank?" Ororo asked, the tiredness of the night creeping into her voice. She had stayed with Evan and Scott and nothing seemed to change in her point of view, both only growing paler and what seemed to be weaker. Ororo closed her eyes and hoped to wake up from some kind of dream. Why was any of this happening to any of the students? They never did anything wrong. Ororo stifled back a small cry that was about to escape her. No, she couldn't. She had to be strong for Evan and Scott. She had to be strong for everyone around her.

Hank walked up to her with a clipboard and eyed her suspiciously. He knew how hard this was on her. It wasn't something to take lightly. He, like Ororo, had been up all night running tests and other things to figure out what was going on with two of his students. Whenever he stopped, his fatigue seemed to catch up with him. Hank sighed and looked at his two patients who still lay on the medical beds, in the same still positions. They hadn't shifted one bit. It was beginning to worry him. Hank was a scientist and doctor. It killed him that he couldn't figure out what was wrong with Scott and Evan. It was as if there was something going on within their own beings that was causing their bodies to react. Hank scratched his head in thought and then looked once again at Ororo.

"I'm afraid not," Hank answered. "If anything, it's only gotten worse overnight."

"What exactly do you mean by worse?" Ororo asked, her voice shaky and full of concern.

"Evan's body temperature has lowered considerably and I'm afraid he might go into shock. Although, it's strange," Hank stated, pondering the thought on his mind as he brushed the subject that had been bugging him the entire night.

"What is?" Ororo questioned Hank, sitting up straighter and awaiting the answer she knew wasn't going to be good.

"Well, his body temperature is low, but he is sweating considerably. Which is, unfortunately, the opposite I can say for Scott," Hank replied. Ororo tilted her head and raised her eyebrows in question. "Scott's body temperature is rising and he's also sweating considerably. I can't seem to stabilize either of them."

Ororo stopped the unshed tears from falling and swallowed. Hard. This could not be going on. She still couldn't receive an answer. Hank looked at her and wished he could give her some good news, but he didn't want to lie to her. He cared about the two boys, and all of the students also, and he also hated to see them like this. And Hank couldn't do anything about it. He was helpless. Hank just watched Ororo and realized that she needed to get out. She needed to get out of the mansion and take a breather, like Logan had gone to do. There was only so much a person could handle.

"Why don't you go upstairs and get some rest, Ororo," Hank suggested to the white haired woman. "I'll stay here and watch over them."

Ororo looked up at him and gave him a small smile. She glanced over to the other side and noticed that Logan was no longer at Scott's bedside. Hank followed her gaze and then turned back to her. "Logan went upstairs to get some food and cool off a bit. He'll be back."

Ororo just nodded, not feeling up to arguing with Hank about resting. So she would take a small break. What was the worst that could happen anyway? She looked up at Hank and noticed his worry lines. Although anyone could hardly see, there were little black marks under his eyes indicating that he hadn't had enough sleep. Ororo began to worry.

"What about you, Hank?" She asked him as he looked up from his clipboard to meet her gaze. "You also need the rest and you obviously have not gotten any in the past twenty four hours."

Hank sighed again. He couldn't rest now. Not when he had work to do and everyone was relying on him to give them all answers. He shook his head as she got up out of the chair. "No, Ororo. You go, I'll be fine. You probably need the rest more than I do anyway."

Ororo just nodded at him and began to head towards the exit. She turned around and took one last glance at Evan and Scott. Hank saw her and ushered her out quickly. "They'll be fine. Go."

Ororo gave him a tired smile and started walking out of the infirmary. She very slowly walked down the long metallic corridors, running her hands across the smooth but cold metal walls. She wanted to stay with Evan. And with Scott, but she was just so worn out. Logan had told her earlier that Jean had come down to the infirmary this morning to check up on Evan and Scott. But of course, even Ororo knew that she was more worried about Scott. Logan had ushered her out of the room without granting her wish. He had made an excuse that about no visiting until they knew for sure what was going on. Ororo knew that Jean and Scott shared some kind of bond and that it was tearing her up inside to not know what was going on with him. It felt as though she was being shut out. Ororo knew how that felt. She was more or less following Logan's instincts. There was something going on with these nightmares and the professor did seem to be hiding something from all of them.

Ororo brushed a hand to wipe away a stray tear that had silently made it's way down her cheek. All she was doing was waiting, and that obviously wasn't satisfying enough for her. She had promised her sister that Evan would be safe here and that she would never let anything happen to him as long as she was watching over him. Ororo laughed inside. So much for that promise, Ororo thought. She was beginning to think that she was a bad aunt. How could she ever let things spin out of control like this. But, listen to her. Ororo had promised herself to be strong and here she was wallowing in the world of self-pity. Professor Xavier was searching for some answers, Logan was always comforting her, Hank was finding answers to Scott and Evan's conditions and here she was, blaming herself as if the entire world rested it's worries on her shoulders.

Ororo stopped her guilt trip and stopped to listen for a moment. There was nothing but the now far away beeping from the infirmary and the light sound of rain coming from outside. Ororo's eyebrows went up slowly. She didn't know if it were her emotions making the rain fall outside or if it was Mother Nature. These days, she couldn't tell which was which. She just shook her head and reassured herself that everything would be ok if she just stayed calm. Ororo finally made her way to the elevator when she heard it. Two sounds that would forever be embedded in her memory. Ororo widened her eyes as she immediately ran back to the infirmary in a panicked hurry as the sound of the beeping machines flat lining buzzed in her ears.

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It was an extremely boring day at school as all the students waited for fourth period to be over with so they could go to lunch. It had been a stressful day, the students groaning the entire time about it only being Wednesday. Time seemed to pass by slowly, but not as slowly as it was going for Jean Grey. She had been sitting in Physics class for what seemed like eternity. She just sat there staring blankly at the chalkboard as the teacher went on explaining about this and that. She didn't really know and she frankly didn't care as of right now anyhow. Jean had tuned out the teacher and was lost in her own little world. She didn't have time to worry about school and projects and assignments. She could only worry about one person. Scott. He had been on Jean's mind ever since last night causing her to not have the most relaxing sleep.

Jean gnawed at her lip and closed her eyes. Last night replayed over in her head as she tried to sort out what was going on with their link. She had only so much as felt that he was in trouble and that's it. Something was shutting Jean out and she couldn't figure out what it was. That irritated her completely to the point where she was aggravated. Everything had happened so fast that she couldn't possibly stop to sort out all of the details. With Evan and Scott both collapsing in pretty much the same day it was pretty hard to get one's head straight. Jean ignored the teacher completely and turned to look out the window. But, that's not what she was really wanting to see. What she really wanted to see was Scott giving her one of his looks as they both entertained each other to pass the time. But, the seat next to Jean was vacant and as she looked out the window she felt her heart grow empty inside. This was Scott's seat and he wasn't even here to share the misery of school with her. Jean outlined the chair and placed her chin in her hand as she tried to hold back the tears that were stinging the tip of her eyes.

Jean breathed heavily and bit her lip to hold back all of her emotions. School was definitely not the place to lose your cool. She needed to stay tough. She could do this. Jean sat up straighter and tried to wipe her mind of recent events and instead focused on the teacher. After an entire second, she slumped her shoulders back down and bowed her head in defeat. Who was she kidding anyway? The concern and worry was slowly eating away at her and she could do nothing. Deep down Jean felt that there was something wrong as her heart thumped faster and grew emptier. She hoped school would end soon so she could go home and make sure that Scott was ok. Relief spread quickly over her face as the school bell rang and she was free for at least a half hour. Jean quickly collected her books and headed out of the classroom, hoping not to bump into anyone right now. People weren't exactly fond of mutants these days anyway. She wanted to avoid all possible contact.

Jean speed walked down the hallway and to her locker before she halted mid-step and goose bumps ran down her spine. Jean narrowed her eyes suspiciously and slowly turned around. She had the weird feeling that she was being watched. She could feel someone near her but she didn't know who it was. She immediately sensed pure evil and then it vanished. The hallway was clearing and all she saw was Principal Kelly walking by her, giving her a scowl and a glare of hatred. Everyone knew that mutants weren't exactly on his favorites list. Heck, even that was an understatement. Ever since the sentinel incident, Principal Kelly made it perfectly clear that he didn't want mutants at his school, dubbing them dangerous. But, the school board disagreed and he wasn't exactly too happy about that. His expression immediately changed when he saw one of the human students walk by him. Jean continued watching him until he disappeared from view.

Jean breathed a sigh of relief. She turned back around, her destination still her locker, when she almost bumped into Mr. Flemmings. Jean steadied her books before they toppled over and adjusted herself before she looked up and into the face of the not too happy teacher in front of her. Mr. Flemmings cleared his throat and narrowed his eyes dangerously. "Shouldn't you be somewhere, Miss Grey?" he asked, studying her with a look of pure hatred. He obviously knew that she was a mutant and the entire student body at the Xavier Institute knew that Mr. Flemmings was second in line next to Principal Kelly for hatred of mutants. That, Jean knew, was clearly evident by the look on his face.

"Um, yes actually, Mr. Flemmings," Jean replied, slowly backing away from him. "I was just heading to the cafeteria, but I--"

"Look, Miss Grey," Mr. Flemmings started, cutting her off. "We have rules, and don't think because that mutant professor of yours has connections, that you can get away with doing whatever it is you want."

"Of--of course not, sir," Jean said, both disgusted and taken aback by his behavior and attitude. Whoever said that schools were supposed to be the safest place must have been living in a shell.

"If anything, you and your little friends of mutant scum shouldn't even be in this school," Mr. Flemmings practically spat out. Jean just stared at him, flabbergasted and wide-eyed. "Now, I don't expect to see you out here alone again, do you understand me, Miss Grey?"

Jean looked behind him and noticed some students, human obviously, walking around and about. Jean raised her eyebrows at the teacher and scowled. She usually didn't lose it, but he was going too far. He obviously meant a mutant alone in the hallway. "Is that a threat, sir?"

"Maybe, and maybe not," Mr. Flemmings replied. "But," he lowered his voice and stared her down. "You and your friends have my warning."

"Is there a problem here, Mr. Flemmings?" a kind, yet firm voice asked him. At the sound of the voice, Mr. Flemmings backed away from Jean, but he didn't answer. Instead, Jean turned to Mr. Gehenna and smiled at him, thankful that he had saved her from this mutant hater before she completely lost her temper. Definitely not something that Jean wanted to reveal in school. Principal Kelly would definitely throw her out of school.

"Oh, no, nothing, sir," Jean answered quickly. "I was just on my way to lunch." Jean abruptly looked down at her watch. "I'd better go." Jean walked past Mr. Flemmings and Mr. Gehenna, who was now standing next to his colleague, and mouthed a thank you. Mr. Gehenna just smiled at her and watched her until she disappeared down the hall. Mr. Gehenna silently wondered where Scott Summers was. He and Jean usually went to lunch together, or at least he had always seen them. He hadn't seen Scott for two days, that was odd. His attention, though, finally turned to Mr. Flemmings in front of him, who was now walking down the hall in a quickened pace. Mr. Gehenna sighed as he watched him go; anything for that man to avoid any confrontation about his actions.

Mr. Gehenna was about to head back into his classroom when he felt that he had completely forgotten to ask Jean about how Evan was doing. What had happened yesterday had been a horrible sight. Mr. Gehenna shook his head as he recalled the scene that had happened yesterday right in his very own classroom. He shuddered and was at the door to his classroom when he stepped on something. Mr. Gehenna stopped and bent down, picking up the large envelope on the floor. "What in the world?" he asked himself. He examined the envelope and looked at the front of it. It had a label on it that read: 'Private: Dan Flemmings'. Mr. Gehenna sighed and realized that he'd just have to drop by his colleague's house and give this back to him. But, he had a feeling that it was going to be another long day.

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Kitty and Kurt both walked down the hall at the end of the day, thankful that it was finally over. They wanted to head home as soon as possible, check up on their friends and maybe, just maybe, try and concentrate on their homework. It had been a rough day. Rumors around the school were spreading about Evan and what had happened to him yesterday. Some were saying that he was demented, while others were spreading that he had a 'totally non-curable disease'. Kitty shuddered at that thought. Usually, she was into gossip, but not when it spread bad things about other people. Then again, to just about everyone in the school, mutants weren't really people anyway.

Kitty and Kurt finally made their way outside and to Jean's car, where Rogue and Jean already waited there patiently. Kitty laughed inside herself. On a usual day, Scott would be waiting for them and he would have the 'you're always late' expression written all over his face. The part that you could see at least. Then Kitty and Kurt would make up a stupid excuse, he'd nod his head with a hint of a smile on his face, and they'd get into the car. Then Kitty would turn her head only to see Evan skateboarding away from the school, the familiar sounds of the wheels making it's way into her head. But today, Kitty realized, Scott nor Evan were there. Everyone was just in a bad mood. Nothing could really lift her spirits right now.

The four of them got into the car slowly and silently. They didn't bother to exchange any words between each other; all of them having different things and worries on their mind. Jean started the car and thought that she saw Mr. Flemmings pass by and give them a glare. Jean narrowed her eyes, but still kept her cool. She rolled down her window and turned on the radio so there wouldn't be complete and utter silence in the car. Just as she was about to roll out of her parking space, she was stopped by a car horn. They all turned to see Mr. Gehenna come to a standstill next to them. Curiosity getting the best of them, they all rolled down their windows so they could hear what he had to say.

"Jean, um, everyone," Mr. Gehenna started, looking at each and every one of them in the eyes. "I forgot to ask you about Evan's condition. Is he alright?"

Jean breathed a sigh of relief. She didn't even realize that she was holding her breath. She thought that Mr. Gehenna was about to ask her about what she and Mr. Flemmings had been talking about earlier that day. Luckily, that wasn't the case.

"Right now, Mr. Gehenna, Evan looks like he's going to recover," Jean lied. None of them actually knew what was going on with their teammates' conditions.

"Well, tell him that I send my regards," Mr. Gehenna said with a half a smile.

"Don't worry, sir, I will," Jean complied, smiling in return.

"Oh, and Jean," Mr. Gehenna started. Jean looked at him questioningly. "Tell him to get well, ok."

"Will do, sir," Jean reassured him. "Thanks."

Mr. Gehenna just nodded and watched her pull out of the parking lot faster than he'd seen anybody drive out of school before in his life. He turned back to his thoughts and looked down at the envelope in his hands. He sighed. Now, he had other business to attend to. Mr. Gehenna didn't think the confrontation between him and Mr. Flemmings was going to be pretty, but he had to face it. Ever since his colleague had made it clear that he despised mutants, he had been avoiding him. It's not that mutants were Mr. Gehenna's favorite people in the world, but they were still people nonetheless, and he treated them as equally as he would treat any other student of his. Mr. Gehenna wiped the thought from his mind. Why would he even bother with a man that was probably thick headed anyway? He would just do his duty of returning the envelope and hoped that eventually, Mr. Flemmings would change his mind about the whole mutant issue. Mr. Gehenna drove off not knowing how completely wrong he was.

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