When Things Go Crazy
By: Cece Williams
((Disclaimer: Well, I still don't own "XME," but I still own Melanie. Any actual persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental. This is set right after Melanie fought Pyro… and barely beat him. R&R.))
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Kurt was in his room, hanging upside down by his tail. He had the window open, so a soft breeze came through, making the curtains dance. The blue fuzzy mutant started humming a song from one of the concerts that he had gone to earlier that year when he heard shouting, possibly from Melanie's room. He 'ported outside the door and started walking until he heard the voices clearly. One was the Professor, one was Logan, and one was a bigger shock, her father.
"Melanie, do you have any idea how stupid that was, trying to fight a mutant like Pyro by yourself?" her father said to his daughter, who was literally backed into a corner of her room.
When she didn't answer, the Professor placed a hand on his shoulder. "Maybe you would like to sit down in the common room and cool down," he said. "Yelling at your daughter isn't going to solve anything."
Mr. Portman looked at his daughter once more before agreeing. "I do believe her punishment is a very strict one, but she deserves it," he said as they left her room.
The normal cheery, peppy Melanie was now a broken-down teenager in her room. She looked up at Logan, who she called her surrogate uncle. "Uncle Logan, you have to believe me," she said, her voice cracking with emotion. "I'm sorry and I'll never do it again, I swear."
Logan just looked at her once and, without an answer, left her room after the Professor and her father. He thought to himself, [I want to believe you, Duchess, but I can't.] He walked down the hall, past a confused Kurt.
Kurt looked into her room and couldn't find Melanie at all. He looked around with his yellow eyes, trying to find out where she was. "Melanie?" he asked softly, trying not to upset her any more than she already was. He walked in and looked over her bed and found Melanie, sitting on the floor against the wall in the corner. The sight shocked him; she held her knees to her chest, laid her arms on her knees and her head was on her arms. Her shoulders rose and fell from her crying, and she had no idea he was even in her room. "What's wrong?"
Melanie sniffled and looked up, her green eyes almost bloodshot from crying. Her reddish-brown hair, which was normally styled perfect, looked as if a hurricane came through it. Her flawless face was now tear-streaked, and when she tried to talk, her voice sounded like meat going through a grinder. "Kurt…" was all she could get out before bringing her head to her arms again.
Kurt sat next to her, wrapping an arm around her shaking shoulders. "What happened?" he asked her. "What's gotten them so upset at you…?"
"Upset?" she interrupted. "Try 'angry' or maybe even 'mad to the point I want to wring your neck'." She looked at her side and saw Kurt's yellow eyes for a few seconds before she turned around, her back to him. "I tried to get away from him…"
"Tried to get away from who?" he asked her, wrapping his arms around her waist. "Anyone try anything with you?"
Melanie shook her head, her mouth letting out a hiccup from her throat. "It's not like that," she answered.
As she began to tell him about her fight with Pyro, Kurt recoiled. "Were you out of your mind?" he asked her.
She slipped out of his embrace, drying her eyes as she stood to her feet, looking down at him. "I knew you were going to act that way, too," she said, her voice cracking. "I just wanted to do something by myself, and besides, he attacked me first." Her voice was close to squeaking from her throat. "What did you think I was going to do, just stand there and let him kill me?"
Kurt seemed shocked at the sudden change of her voice. She sounded hysterical and irrational, which was kind of unusual for a normally cheerful girl like Melanie. "But have you ever thought about calling us to help you?" he said, trying to remain calm.
Though the tears continued to fall, her voice was rising. "All my life, I've been raised to be just a little girl that you can put on a shelf," she said, the anger in her voice rising. "I feel like I'm some kind of trophy."
Kurt stood to his feet, trying to keep his voice calm. "Melanie, I've never thought of you as a trophy," he said, walking until he was only inches from her. "Sure, I know you've gotten tougher, but I was worried about you. You could have gotten yourself killed." His yellow eyes searched through hers as he brought his hands to her shoulders. "What do you think I would've done if anything happened to you?"
Melanie knew he was right; what she did was reckless, and she could have gotten killed, but still, no one understood what her father was making her. Hearing the last statement from Kurt almost made her tear up again. "I … I don't know," she answered as honestly as she could, her voice calming slowly.
"I'll tell you," he answered her, holding her chin and pulling her head up to meet his eyes. "I wouldn't know how to handle it. Melanie, I know you're upset, but something's upsetting you much more than this 'discussion'; you know you can tell me what's really going on."
Melanie felt Kurt's fuzzy hand lead her to her bed and they sat down. She could feel his eyes burning into her. "I'm pretty much grounded," she whispered.
He wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "How bad is it?" he asked.
"Well, to put it bluntly, I have to come here directly after school, not using my powers at all or joining you guys on any missions, and train with Logan for three months," she said. She scratched an itch on her shoulder. "I either follow through with this, or my father will take me back to London and put me in a boarding school."
The last statement from Melanie made Kurt jump off of her bed. "And that means that…" he started.
"That I'll probably never see you again," she finished her dreaded thought. She bit her lip nervously. "I guess I have no choice if I want to stay here with you, Kurt. So, I decided that I was going to take the training with Logan."
He sat back on her bed, pulled Melanie's head on his shoulder and rubbed her arm. "Oh, man," he said, "and I thought that washing the uniforms, waxing the X-Jet, and cleaning out the Danger Room every day for a month was bad…"
"Come on, Kurt," she said, looking up at him. "That's not bad at all."
"Oh, really?" he asked her. "How about that and Logan's sessions?"
Melanie cringed slightly, only to have Kurt's hand rubbing her arm and then it went to her back. "You think I made a good choice?" she asked him.
"Yeah, you're going to be fine," Kurt answered, ruffling her hair. "Just do me a favor and don't do that again."
"I promise," she answered, wrapping her arms around Kurt, who hugged her back. "I'm not going to try that again."
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Three months went by, and her grounding was over… well, almost; the next day was the last day. During her grounding, Melanie thought about what to tell the Professor and Logan, not to mention her father about her reckless behavior. After dinner, she asked the Professor, her father, and Logan out into the hall for "something important," was the way she put it.
They obliged and walked outside. They looked at Melanie, who was looking behind her to make sure she was only with them. "So, Melanie, what did you want to say?" the Professor asked her.
Melanie took a deep breath and held a hand to her heart, which was pounding. "Professor, Uncle Logan…" she started as she looked up and saw her father's face. He looked calmer but still upset at her. "Dad…" she continued. "I want to apologize for my extremely reckless behavior; what I did was irresponsible, stupid, and careless, and I promise you I will never do it again." She swallowed a lump in her throat. "I'm sorry for acting the way I was…" She lowered her head, which caused her hair to almost fall at her eyes and tried to hide the fact that she was crying. "And, Father, if you think I should return to London, then so be it."
Mr. Portman looked at his daughter, who had obviously learned her lesson. He walked up to her and gave her a hug, something she didn't really expect. "My little Duchess," he said, running a hand through her hair. "I know at times I'm overprotective, but it's just because I love you."
Melanie hugged her father tightly, the tears falling freely from her eyes. "Oh, Dad," she said, her voice cracking again. "I love you, too."
"That reminds me, about you going home to London…" her father said to her. Knowing that Melanie was probably expecting the worst, he smiled. "The Professor and I had a long talk, along with Mr. Logan. They agree that you're getting better, and I want you to stay here…"
Melanie's eyes were shot wide-open. "You mean, I'm not going back to London?" she asked him.
"Nope," he answered. "Now, for Christmas, I expect you at home…"
Melanie smiled and laughed. "I know, I know…" she started and they finished together, "before Christmas Eve at 4:30 PM."
He let go of his daughter and looked at her. "And I also hope that your boyfriend's intentions towards you are well-mannered," he said.
"Oh, who, Kurt?" she asked him. "Don't worry; he's not that kind of guy." She looked at the Professor and Logan. "I hope you can forgive me…"
A poofing sound came from above them on the chandelier before Melanie can finish. "Uh, tender moment?" Kurt's German accent came to their ears. "Sorry to interrupt you all."
"Mr. Wagner…." the Professor's voice sounded calm. "This is a family affair…"
"Oh!" Kurt said, blushing through his fur. "Sorry!" He 'ported out of sight again before Melanie's father said anything.
The Professor turned back to Melanie. "You don't have to say anything," he said. "Just don't do it again, all right?"
Melanie nodded her head as if her head was a bobble-head. "Yes, Professor, Uncle Logan," she answered. "Should I suit up for tonight's session with Uncle Logan?"
Logan shook his head. "Don't worry about it, kid," he answered.
"Melanie, consider your grounding over," the Professor added.
Her face lit up like a little girl who saw a puppy in a pet store window. She hugged the Professor, Logan, and her father tightly. As soon as she let go, thanking them, she skipped down the hall, singing happily at the top of her lungs, "It's raining men! Hallelujah! It's raining men! Amen!"
Her father laughed while the other two stood there in shock. "That's Melanie's favorite song back home," he explained while Logan held a hand to his head and shook his head. The Professor smiled, knowing that Melanie was thrilled to hear the news.
Down the hall, Kurt was leaning against the wall leading to her room. "So, got to train with Logan?" he asked her.
"Nope," she said. "I wanted to tell you that I'm sorry about the way I was acting that day."
"Aww…" Kurt hugged her tightly. "I forgive you, too."
Her eyes grew in shock. "You mean you were eavesdropping?"
Blushing, Kurt nodded, racing on down the hall on all fours.
Melanie chased after him. "Kurt Wagner, get back here!" she shouted. As Kurt 'ported out of sight, she stopped and sighed. Everything was getting back to normal. Melanie smiled, knowing she was going to keep her promise to them. As for Kurt, … well, that's another story.
"Melanie…" the Professor's voice entered her mind.
"Okay, I'll forgive him," she said out loud. "When I can find him, that is."