To Live To Suffer
Answers
Jean stared at the Professor, one hand still holding the tin of vegetable soup, the other hovering by her side. Her green eyes clear and confused.
"But Kurt's asleep, he can't walk," she said, disturbing the tense silence that had fallen into the kitchen after the Professor's news.
Charles Xavier, having closed his eyes a second ago, did not respond to Jean for a moment. Ororo and Hank's gazes were on him too as he opened eyes and looked at Jean.
"He's not there now," he informed them in a low, serious voice. "Nor is he in the institute." Before Jean or the adults could react, he added, "He's moving towards town."
The tin landed upright on the kitchen counter with a heavy THUD as Jean dropped it, hers eyes wide and unblinking as they stared at her teacher. She didn't appear to have felt her grip on the tin loosen. Her body turned to face him as a bewildered frown creased her beautiful features.
Ororo's own radiant face was spoilt by a frown as she confusedly inclined her head. "But why? Why would he leave the institute?" She asked quickly.
Professor X fixed his eyes on hers. "He read the newspaper article."
Jean, having heard from Ororo only minutes ago what Logan had read at breakfast, made up her mind quickly, and moved towards the door hurriedly, saying, "I'll go get him – he can't be walking around outside."
She rushed towards the door, red hair bouncing on her back with every footstep, and disappeared past Xavier as Ororo got to her feet and followed swiftly after.
Charles Xavier wondered how on Earth Kurt had found the energy to make his way from one end of the mansion to the other, and then continue to the outside. However strong Kurt thought he was, Charles Xavier was worried for his student.
Making their way back towards the other side of town where Home was situated, Kitty and Rogue groaned as the light drizzle turned into a downpour. Their hair was already heavy with rainwater, but in less than a minute it was matted to their faces and dripping onto their soaked shoulders.
"Who's ah-dea was it to not bring any money for bus faire?" Rogue grumbled, throwing Kitty a moody glare.
The younger girl's bangs flew about as she looked up. "Hey, like I knew it would throw it down with rain," she grumbled. It had been a nice day earlier; the chances of predicting it would turn into a downpour hadn't been great.
Their mission to search for clues had been unsuccessful, and they had left the forest fifteen minutes ago to head back to the Institute. The rain had dampened their moods even more, as they felt they had failed Kurt by not having found anything.
Both girls stopped short upon hearing the same voice in their minds.
Rogue, Kitty – Kurt's left the Institue! Jean's voice announced with worry. Immediately a frown dominated both mutants' features. He has his inducer, and I think he's heading to the hospital – get there quickly!
Jean's voice ceased, but the echo remained in Rogue and Kitty's minds as they exchanged shocked expressions. Kurt was up and about? But why?
They both took off without a word at a run. They weren't far from the hospital, and would make it there under five minutes at their current pace.
With the rain flying off them by the impact of their feet against the sidewalk, they sprinted around the corner of the street on which stood the huge hospital, three minutes later.
"Kitty – Rogue –" Jean appeared from a side street with Ororo in tow. Both looked to have been dropped into a river.
"Where is he?" Rogue demanded as she and Kitty jogged hurriedly towards them.
"He's inside the building," Jean told them breathlessly. "He's faster than I would have thought possible in his condition."
"What's he doing?" Rogue very near shouted.
"We'll find out," Kitty said determinedly, pulling her roommate after her in the direction of the hospital. Jean and Ororo dashed after them, rain particles flung into the air from their heads and feet, splashing back down into the puddles that rippled on the concrete.
Logan watched silently as the young boy before him sniffed and frowned at the floor, avoiding his gaze. The white bed sheets were crumpled about his small form, and his black hair sat on his head naturally messy. He had told them his name was Josh, so proved by the name on his records clipboard that hung on the end of the bed. Aside from the few little scars on his skin he seemed fine.
Logan had been told everything – all of what had happened the night Kurt had been found beaten and almostkilled – at least from this boy's perspective.
At his side, Scott and Evan were staring, brows furrowed over glazed expressions. Evan glanced at Logan, who was expressionless.
"So your brothers beat him up," Logan said quietly, continuing the conversation.
The boy raised his head, his eyes hurt by Logan's word 'beat'. "They were protecting me from that thing." He told them, watching Logan.
"Then, the demon didn't hurt you physically?" Scott pressed.
Josh's large brown eyes turned to him. "No," as though he didn't want to admit he wasn't cruelly injured. "But it did make me iller . . ." He didn't like the fact that these strange people seem to be favoring the demon's side rather than his, the victim's. They had introduced themselves as friends, visisting only to hear what had happened to him.
"That wasn't –" Scott began, but was cut off. The door to the room had been flung open and an exhausted voice cried "Vait!"
The little boy screamed.
Kitty sped into the corridor ahead of the others, as murmurs from the waiting room increased at the sound of the scream. Hospital personnel looked up, alarmed at both the noise and the sudden appearance of four soaked females.
But the mutants made it to the room before the staff, and Kitty burst across the threshold of the boy's room, jerking herself to a stop.
"Kurt!" She breathed.
He barely glanced at her, eyes frantic, before he fixed his eyes on the little boy, who was staring at him through wide, terrified eyes. Logan had grabbed Kurt as Evan and Scott had jumped to their feet, surprise etched into all of their faces.
"That's the demon!" Josh yelled, having thrown himself out of bed away from them all, almost tripping on his tangled bed sheets.
"I didn't mean to hurt you," Kurt cried breathlessly to the child, from the restraints and support of Logan's arms. Kurt's eyes glistened with tears, made invisible by his inducer. The rainwater on his fur and clothes soaked Logan's front and arms. It was a wonder why his watch hadn't short-circuted in the rain.
"You made me ill, demon!" The kid shouted, then flinched as if Kurt would suddenly jump at him.
"No," Kurt sobbed quietly, his eyes squinted in pain at the boy's words.
"You're wrong, Josh," Logan spoke up, turning to him as the sounds of concerned and confused staff hummed away in the background, blocked by Storm and Jean. "It wasn't his fault – it wasn't anyone's fault!"
Everyone seemed to have turned their eyes to Logan, and listened. The nurses being barricaded from the room silenced their protests. Distant hospital noises were unheard as Logan spoke.
"This kid saved your life," Logan bore his eyes into the ill child's, jerking his head down towards Kurt. "If not for him you'd be in here with a lot more than poisoning, you'd probably be in a body bag sat in the morgue –" Logan stared at the kid, realizing that his tone was perhaps a little to harsh, and his words not something that he should really be telling to a youngster. "You told me that you were climbing trees in the forest. You said you followed your older brothers onto a high branch, but you lost your grip." He paused as the boy stared, wide-eyed as though afraid to hear Logan's words. The older man wasn't just telling Josh this, he was explaining to everyone. "You fell, but instead of hitting the floor, you were teleported into a clearing, kid – saved from what would have likely been your death." He let silence float in for a second before saying, "But the smoke from Kurt's teleportation didn't go down with you too well, did it? You were already ill before all of this, the nurse told me you'd been in here before. Your illness reacted with the brimstone – the smoke – and caused you to have fits, increased your illness."
Josh's lip trembled. "Buh – but he changed, he looked different – he was blue and – and he looked like a . . . a demon" he snuffled, voice barely louder than a whisper, eyes catching the light. They were transfixed onto Logan's. "He didn't stop my fits . . ."
"He couldn't," Logan answered, and Kurt's sad eyes closed in guilt. "No one but the doctors could make you better, kid, and no one could have seen this happ'ning. It was no one's fault that you were made ill . . . but your brother's didn't think about that. Not when they saw what Kurt really looked like." Josh's eyes had strayed to the floor, but at the mention of his brothers, they returned to the older man's. "You caught a device on his arm that lets him look like you and me, but you and you brothers judged by looks. They beat up your rescuer while your were carted off to hospital – they almost killed him, Josh . . ." He let it sink in the small boy's head.
Kitty and Rogue watched silently, their eyes having unintentionally opened a little wider. Water droplets sat on their skin in perfect tear shapes while some fell from their drenched hair. Scott and Evan's faces mirrored them, as did Jean's. Storm's face was much like Logan's: expressionless. All glanced from Logan to Josh.
"They said I would be safe from now on," Josh whispered. "They said they'd took care of it all."
Logan softened his voice. "They almost did . . . they nearly killed an innocent person."
The lip trembled again, and tears started to well and fall from Josh's eyes. "My brothers aren't bad, they were only protecting me," he wept.
"I know, kid," Logan said gently. "But now you know the truth." Kurt was still in his arms, but he had collapsed entirely on his own support and was replying on Logan's. The older mutant could feel small droplets of tears fall onto his arms.
Josh looked up through his own waterlogged eyes and laid them on Kurt. "I'm sorry," he sobbed through a whisper.
Kurt blinked at him but said nothing, his strength drained from him.
"It's alright, kid," Logan spoke up again, softly. He picked Kurt up properly and looked at the little boy who was still on the floor behind his bed. "You're fine, now. Kurt's fine. Everything's been put right . . ." He began to turn, but stopped and looked back at Josh. "And lets not advertise Kurt's real identity, huh, kid? A secrete between you and us . . ." He gave Josh a small smile, which from him was considered a rare treat.
Josh stared back, fear, sadness and guilt gone from his eyes, replaced with a relieved glint. He smiled back.
The nurses returned to their posts with no recollection of what had just happened, courtesy of Jean. The mutant group followed them out of the corridor and continued on out of the building, receiving looks for the teenager in Logan's arms. He led the way with Rogue and Kitty, who stared in concern at Kurt. He was weak and tired, almost unconscious and in a lot of pain from his injuries. But the worst of the pain had been lifted, the suffocating weight that had been hung over his head was gone, the emotional torment was no more. He just wanted sleep now. Blissful sleep.
Jean and Scott walked side by side behind them, and Storm and Evan followed.
"It's over, isn't it?" Evan asked his aunt as they walked out into the rain once more. His dry shirt began to turn darker as it absorbed the water.
"Almost," Storm replied, her eyes forward. She called on her concentration as the rain continued to patter around them, her eyes glowing faintly as her powers activated inside her. A second later the rain slowed to a drizzle before completely stopping.
They finished their journey home under the grey clouds without the rain to soak them through, silent as they followed the brawny form of Logan.
At the doors of the Institute they were met by Professor X and Hank; each looking upon Kurt's limp form in Logan's arms with concern.
"Logan, with me to the infirmary," Hank said softly, waiting for Logan to move first before following a step behind. Together they took Kurt away, with Rogue and Kitty following closely behind.
Storm, Evan, Scott and Jean remained in the foyer with the Professor, watching as the others disappeared out of sight.
"I gather, without probing anyone's mind, that things will be alright, now," Xavier tried with a hopeful and questioning tone.
Jean nodded. "I don't think Kurt could stand anyone knowing what he thought he'd done without his apology first . . . so he went after Logan, Scott and Evan at the hospital," she explained. Her hair seemed far longer down her back when it was weighed by rainwater.
"Why couldn't he tell us?" Evan asked softly, looking up at the taller mutants. "I mean, it was horrible, I know, but . . ."
"He thought he'd killed that boy," Jean explained quietly. "He didn't know what happened to Josh after he saved him from the tree incident. I picked up in his mind that he believed he had killed an innocent boy – until he saw the article in the newspaper . . . I wouldn't want to tell anyone I was a killer either"
"He thought it was his own power that hurt Josh," Scott added with a solemn tone. "That's why he didn't 'port away from Josh's brothers . . . he though he deserved the beating . . ."
Evan shook his head sadly as similar expressions fixed themselves on everyone's features.
"Well," Professor X gained their attention, "the worst is over, the truth has been given to Kurt and to us all. He, as well as we, can breath much easier." He looked at them. "All that needs to be done is helping Kurt return to health . . . and being there for him. I feel this will still leave a mark on the boy, and he will need our support."
Small nods were given to this, and the Professor smiled. "I am extremely glad, though, that it has all turned out with the answers both Kurt and we sought. Now, you can all properly fill me in over a well deserved hot mug of chocolate."
There were mutual smiles and grins, and the five of them made their way to the kitchen, their spirits considerably lighter than they have been all week.
One more chapter to go.