Oni awoke and sat up looking around. He saw the professor silently roll in. "Ah you're finally awake. We were having a pool to see when you both woke up, looks like I lost ten dollars now doesn't it?" He chuckled lightly, glad that all the things of the past week were behind them and maybe Oni could truly start to deal with his past now that he wasn't hiding from it. "Well, how are you feeling?"
Oni rubbed his head, "Like I got hit by the x jet. Ow... But I'm fine, no broken bones; no contusions or bruises. I'm physically fine even though I don't feel like it."
Professor Xavier said, "well I think that's a side affect from all that's happened. You took quite a mental shock, the both of you did." Oni nodded, his mind full of thoughts that raced through his mind.
Jean woke up shortly after, hearing the Professor's and Oni's voice. She opened her eyes slowly, having a headache as well.. She put her hand to her head and smiled over to Oni and the Professor.. "Good... er-whatever it is." She laughed slightly.
The Professor laughed. "It's Three o' clock. You two have slept for a good twelve hours, but that's understandable. Well, I'll let you two talk.. I'd like to talk to the both of you later, but it doesn't need to be tonight. So whenever you are ready." With that, he smiled and left.
Oni looked over to Jean. "Well, that would make it, Good Afternoon, or.. Konichiwa." He smiled. "So, you feel like you got hit by the X-jet, too?" He laughed and got up, preparing ingredients to make something that would make them both feel better. "Alright, here. Drink this, it should help you." He downed his own and looked to her. "Feel better?"
She looked to the substance he handed her and she drank it. "Ughn... That's... bitter." She placed the cup back down.. "Just a little.." She pushed herself up from the bed and leaned against it for a minute. She looked up to him. "Thanks.. Now, all I need to do is get that taste out of my mouth," she played. "...I'm up for some breakfast, lunch.. whatever you want to call it..." She chuckled. "Do you want some.. I'm famished." She smiled. She hadn't ate in days; and it was one of the good things that she could do. It gave her a smile, thinking about the last time she made breakfast for them.
"It might be slower than usual." She smirked.
Oni smiled. "You know me, I am always up for food. I'll help this time." He stood, doing a few stretches ending with a back flip. "Alright, let's go." He wandered off, trying to figure out exactly where it was. He eventually found it with Jean's help. He looked to her. "Hey, if I can find it in here, I'll make Fettuchine Alfredo. I spent a couple of months as a cook in a multi-cultural restaurant. Japanese, Chinese, French, Italian, all sorts of stuff. It was pretty cool." Oni started to take out the ingredients and started pouring them into a bowl. "This will be good."
Jean watched him and laughed; mixing up a few things. She grinned and put some flour on his face. She laughed, looking at him. She placed a few biscuits in the oven and started on something else. "...Fettichuni Alfredo sounds nice.. Oh, and good.." She smiled. "We haven't had anything really good, in a while. I can't wait to taste your cooking," she looked over to him and laughed again, the flour still on his face.
Oni looked at Jean deadpan when she threw the flour at him. He picked up some coffee grounds he was using to make coffee and said. "Yeah, I am even going to make desert!" He laughed and tossed the grounds at Jean, really laughing for the first time in a long time.
She looked to the coffee grounds and cocked a brow. "Oh, desert sounds nice.." She closed her eyes as the coffee grounds fell on her. "Oh, yeah?" She picked up some extra dough and threw it at him. "Ha!" She stuck out her tongue. She hadn't acted like a child, or laughed like this in such a long time.. It felt wonderful, she hadn't had real fun in a long time either.. This was probably the best time she's had in so many years.
She picked up some more dough and rolled it into what looked like a little snowball.. "I've got more, ya know." She winked.
Oni laughed. "Yeah, well I have nin-jitsu's!" He picked up three long noodles and threw them then made seven hand signs. "Replications," the three noodles turned into a hail of noodles and pelted Jean. Oni smirked. "I've got more where that came from."
Jean laughed and closed her eyes, dough raising into the air by itself forming into a little ball. She threw the ball of dough at him as about 15 more balls hit him at the same time. "Take that, and that! And that!" She said, laughing sitting down at one of the stoods, pulling noodles from her hair and shirt. "..This is fun," she smiled to him.
"Not yet," Oni said, he turned and looked around finding a kids super soaker. He swiftly filled it with some sauce and fired. "Yeah! Take that, and that, and that! Now this is fun!"
She laughed and wiped the sauce from her face. She looked to him, cocking a brow. "You, brat. You cheated!" She chuckled; tossing some sauce from her face. "...I think we'll definitely need a shower after this, huh?" She smirked and picked up a handful of custard and tossed it at him. She laughed and tasted the sauce. "Eh, this is pretty good!" She laughed, grabbing a towel for him and her.
Oni dodged the custard and the sauce. "Heh.. That's over. Oh, the base is done!" He looked back to Jean and smirked. "No more throwing stuff, this is when it gets complicated." Oni started pouring spices in, little by little. "There, now the chicken and noddles.. Here we go.. and We're done!" He poured some onto two plates and set them down. I can make this for supper too if you want. Eat up! Desert will be later." Oni threw the desert into the fridge and sat down, beginning to eat.
She chuckled and wiped the food and sauce from her hair, or as much as she could anyway. "We'll need to clean this place up afterwards," she chuckled and started to eat. "This is very good, Oni! You're a very good cook.. Better than I am." She chuckled, taking another bite. "I can't wait to taste your desert.. It must be delicious." In only a few minutes, she was done.. She really was hungry! She took a sip of some water and smiled. "..That was probably the best meal I've had in ages." She smiled, looking to him.
She pushed herself up and put the dishes in the sink, starting to clean up a little bit. She wiped the sauce up from the counter as the mop started to clean it up from the floor by itself. She sat beside Oni. "...This was wonderful, Oni."
Oni smiled. "Don't worry about the cleanup." He smiled, making seven more hand signs and said, "kage bushin no Jutsu!" Eight Oni's started cleaning. "Let's go. They'll disappear once they're done. What do you want to do now?"
Jean smirked, watching the replicates start cleaning. "Well.. It's up to you. We should probably clean up first, before we go and see the Professor." She laughed, pulling some dough from his hair and a noodle and some sauce from hers.
"They'll do all the cleaning for us. Don't worry about it, trust me." Oni looked down. "I-I don't know if I want to go to talk to him yet. I know he had to do what he did, but I'm just a little uneasy. It really hurt and to be honest, it scared me how easily he was able to do that. I'm just.." Oni couldn't finish the sentence, remembering the pain and fear of last night, how deep the Professor had gone and what he had brought to the surface. He hoped that Jean would understand what he was trying to say. He was being rather inept at explaining it.
She looked to him and looked back down. "...I understand, Oni. I understand, perfectly." She gave a short lasting smile. "..But you don't need to worry about the Professor," she said, rubbing his back comfortingly. "I'm always here for you, Oni.." She could see it in his eyes, as well as feel it. She looked down for a moment and closed her eyes.
Oni nodded. "Okay, I shouldn't be such a coward anyway. He's a good person, too. So I shouldn't worry so much but, it just hurt so much in a way I've never felt before. That was something I was so unprepared for." He looked to her. "Alright, so long as your with me. Let's go." Oni was nervous, but trying not to show it.
She smiled. "...Things like that, you can never prepare yourself for." She said, walking beside him. "The Professor, is... Well, he is very strong. But he isn't like Magneto. He doesn't use his powers against others to get the advantage.. He uses them to help." She smiled and looked over to him. "Don't worry," she poked at him. "I'm here, and nothing bad will happen.. Not again, okay?" She looked into his eyes, making sure he knew she was telling the truth.
She led him down the corridor that led to the Professor's office. "Are you ready?" She asked, looking over to him.
The Professor smiled but could tell that Oni was nervous, but he would try to get him to relax. "Yes, you both look like you're feeling much better. You can both sit down. I am going to set up some appointments with both of you to talk to you personally for the next few weeks. We can deal with some of your issues, then too. But, right now, I wanted to see how you were coping with all of this. I wanted to talk to you about the link established and you will have some decisions to make."
Jean looked to Oni, and then back to the Professor. She didn't know what he was getting at--she knew about the Link between them, now. But was there anything else. She sat back in the chair, and looked into Xavier's eyes.. "What kind of decisions, Professor?" She asked; a hint of curiousity in her voice.
Xavier frowned. "Jean, you know more about Links than Oni does, more likely but I don't know how much you've explained to him. Oni, I know you've probably noticed that you now have a link with Jean. But, this is more than you know, perhaps. You will both have a portion of each other in your mind, and with this, you'll know how the person feels, sometimes even be able to talk to Jean. The same goes for her, but here's where it gets complicated. You share such familiar pasts, that the link will grow stronger over time. Normally, the link would fade and wouldn't be lasting like that one Jean made with Scott, but because both of what Oni did, and your similar pasts, your connection will remain unless actively dissolved. This could create problems, maybe. Because both of you have, lets say Inner Demons or different aspects of your personality that are negative, and with the link not only will the dominant part be in connection, but the negative aspects as well. This could be good or bad. Now, here's an example—If Oni's negative aspect takes control, you, Jean, might be able to support the positive and dominance of Oni, but it could go the other way. It could possibly unlock Phoenix and then we would have a true, very huge problem. So you have to choose whether to keep the link or to have it dissolved. I'd like to give you time, but you have to make the decision within the week. As by that time, the link will be too strong to be dissolved. I hate to throw all of this at you after what you've been through, but it is unavoidable." He sighed and looked down, waiting to see what would happen.
Jean looked down for a moment, and looked over to Oni, remembering what he had said in her dream. We'll just have to fight our demons, together.. She closed her eyes; she didn't know if she wanted to link to be severed, but the Professor had a point. What if Phoenix did come back, or.. what if Oni lost control as well? That would be a major problem for them.. She sighed heavily; she wanted to keep the link, but she also wanted to keep the safety for the children and the others.
She opened her eyes. She really didn't know what to do. The link was probably the best thing to have, but.. it could just as easily turn out to be the worst. She sighed. "I don't know, Professor."
"If one of us loose control, like the last time.. The only person that might be able to stop us, is.. well, each other. But, like you've said.. It may go the other way.." She looked over to Oni. "...What do you think?" She asked, looking into his eyes not knowing what to do herself.. She bit her lip.
Oni thought not sure what to say; he knew it could be a risk or a good thing but still he didn't want to loose this. Then he remembered something. "ESSBF! Emergency self-sealing bulkhead and flooding procedure. I know its different in a person's mind and I don't know all about this linking thing yet, but I worked on a ship and we were carrying hazardous materials that were extremely flammable. I remember going over the procedure. If a fire started, and reached a certain section, emergency sealing bulkheads would activate, sealing the section off from the rest of the ship. The ship would sink itself partially. We had reverse bildge pumps that literally stuck the deck underwater, extinguishing the fire. What if we set up a mental equivalent? If one of us looses control, we can help each other. But if the negative self reaches a certain point in the link it shuts down until its clear. I don't want to put anyone at risk but I also don't want to loose the link. What do you think?"
"It's definitely a unique idea, but I don't know if it can work out. What do you think Jean?" He asked, looking over to her.
Jean looked to him for just a moment, nibbling on her bottom lip. She looked into the Professor's eyes. "I'm not sure.. But, we could probably try it. It sounds like it could work; but.. how would we do it?"
The Professor considered this for a moment. "I can create a partial link and link us all together. In times of distress, I can protect you both. It will be nothing like the link you two shared but it will work. If you're ready, we can begin now." Oni subconsciously backed away.
Jean looked over to him.. "Don't worry.. It won't be like last time." She told him. "...It won't hurt," she looked to the Professor. 'That much..' She gave a small smile and nodded. "...That would be the best Professor. If anything goes wrong, with the both of us though.. I hope you are able to handle us." She sat on the edge of her seat, taking a breath.
Xavier waited on Oni's decision. He knew what happened last night still had him a bit shaken, all of the things he had revealed. "Alright," Oni nodded and watched as the Professor put his hands to their temples and began to connect. Oni felt a small presence, but it was almost as if it didn't exist.
Jean closed her eyes as the Professor pressed his fingers to their temples.. She bit her lip, getting just a bit light-headed. Her eyes fluttered open as the connection was made. This was the only thing that could satisfy all of the safety needs.. If they had lost control, the professor would be their anchor.. To bring them on back from the darkness that wished to inhabit them.
Oni stood after he was done. "Thank you, Professor."
Xavier nodded. "We can talk later about things, alright?"
Oni nodded and left. Xavier turned to Jean. "I wanted to talk to you privately first. I have spoken with the rest of the X-men about giving him the test for entrance of our team. He clearly has the combat techniques and after some training with you, I think he'll be able to control his telekinetics. I think we could have him on a limited basis, go on missions with the rest of you. I think that will be the best place for him. I think for the next while, we should focus on his control and if he wishes, flight training and work to develop his own training regimine. What do you think?"
Jean looked to him and nodded. "..I could help him with his Telekinetics; I think you're right, Professor. He is highly trained already. He will be a great asset to the X-men team, with all of the skills he has. I am not arguing with the decision if you go through with it, Professor. I, too, think its the best place for him." She smiled brightly. She hoped Oni would agree to it; he was such a strong person and he was probably better than her, skill wise. "..Do you want me to speak with him about it?"
Xavier smiled. "That would be fine. Make sure he understands that he would have to go to classes, and work hard. I don't think it would be a problem but the academic part will be somewhat hard for him. I hope he accepts."
Oni had walked back to his room and had tried to meditate and clear his mind of all that had happened recently.
Jean nodded. "Yes, Professor. Thank You." She stood and smiled. "Talk to you later, Professor." She said, waving and walking out of his office. She walked along the corridors with a wide smile on her face. She looked to some of the students in the passing classes and her smile widened even more. She hoped he would accept it, though she knew he probably would.
She took a deep breath and walked up to his door, knocking on it quietly. She opened the door slowly and looked to him. "Oni?" She asked, quietly.
Oni's eyes popped open. "Jean. Sorry, I was just trying to get my head back into order. What can I do for you?"
She smiled, looking into his eyes. "It's alright.." She said, sitting in front of him. "..I have a question to ask you, Oni.. And, I want you to think about it before you answer.. It's not as hard as the question the Professor asked," she chuckled. "Well, at least I don't think.." She bit her lip. "...The Professor and I had a talk.. about you." She paused. "Would you like to be a part of the X-men?" She asked. "..You'd have to take classes, work hard and.. I'd help you with the Telekinesis.. But, would you like to?" She looked into his eyes, hoping his answer would be an absolute yes.
Oni thought for a moment. "I promised I would stay, and I will never take back my words. If I can help people, that's all the better. I'll work hard.. and I will join the X-men."
Jean smiled brightly. "Good, then we're glad to have ya.." She smiled.
That's it, folks! Thank you so much, Wen1, for reviewing. We really appreciate it. A sequel is coming soon, so stay tuned. ;)