Winteress: I'm glad you do! I hope you keep on doing so :D
Calandra: I believe that all of these kids must have had a perfect lifestyle at some point – e.g., Rogue, Bobby. Then things goes horribly wrong.. Which is were the "dead-end kid" part comes into it. Thanks for your review P
Chapter 5Raven quickly threw herself in through the front door, closing it behind her nosily before she scrambled into the living room to collapse on the sofa in tears. What was she to do? Everyone in the class had seen the unnatural blueness of her skin. Word would spread around like wildfire. Soon, every teacher and student would know, including Cass. She could never go back there.. Her quiet sobbings were cut short as she heard a sound upstairs. Immediately Raven froze with widened eyes. Of course, her parents were still in, how could she have forgotten? They would have heard her entry, they would be downstairs soon.. seeing the inevitable.
With no scarf to cover her neck, she desperately tugged the collar of her coat around her neck, burying into it whilst still crying. What could she say? Why had to ran home without her parent been contacted first?
"Raven?" came a curious voice from the hallway. Her mother proceeded round into the living room, blinking down at the curled up heap on the sofa, which peered at her owlishly. "I thought I heard the door shut.. why did you go to school today? I thought I said you needed to stay away from school for now," her mother moved closer to her, sitting beside the girl in the sofa, "I should have known you'd have been coming home." She sighed gently, resting a hand on her daughter's arm. Her eyes had stillened on her daughter's cheeks, did they have a blue tint on them? She must be going mad.. she brushed it aside, the light must be playing with her eyes.
Raven found herself exhaling a sigh of relief. Her mother appeared to have assumed that Raven had come home due to the fact of Peter's death. Well, Raven was willing to go along with that. "I just thought it'd help clear my head if I got back into routine," explained Raven sheepishly, averting her eyes from her mother. She felt guilty, but that had been her original plan, she didn't expect her day to go so devastatingly wrong.
"It was too soon dear.." her mother said softly, squeezing her daughter's arm comfortingly, "Did you not tell the school you were coming home?"
"No," murmured Raven, "I just.. ran home."
Her mother nodded in understanding, "Alright darling.. I'll go ring the school to let –"
"No!" Raven had quickly gasped, before sheepishly averting her eyes again.
"Raven? Why not? They need to know you're safe."
Raven quickly had to think up of some excuse, "But.. they might.. um.. mark it down on my records or something that I run from school.. or something.."
"Nonsense Raven, they know what's happened.. they'll understand."
Just then, the telephone in that hallway began to ring shrilly – and Raven felt her insides run cold with dread. What if that was the school.. or Cass. Anybody who was going to admit the truth.
"Evan? Will you get that?" called her mother from the room, "Evan?" she sighed when he refused to answer and rose from the sofa herself to disappear into the hallway. From her seat, Raven heard her mother's footsteps head across the wooden flooring to the telephone table, the ringing stop and her mum politely request down the phone, "Hello?" Raven buried her face behind her faces, hoping to the heavens that it wasn't bad news. She continued to listen.. "Raven? Yes, she's here now, at home."
"Oh no.." moaned Raven softly into her palms, feeling her tears spill once more.
"Be careful? What on earth are you on about?" her mother questioned with a derisive tone, "There's nothing wrong with her.." Raven heard her mother impatiently sigh, then the sound of fingernails tapping the windowpane. That was always a sign of her mother's growing temper, "Look, there is nothing wrong with Raven, she's just having a difficult time." Another scornful sigh, "Oh, I'm not listening to this.. she – What?" the words had stopped mid-sentence and a surprised tone had come, "She's.. no, don't be ridiculous. There's no such thing it's just media propaganda, yes. What are you – now look here. There is nothing wrong with my daughter!"
Raven turned in the sofa, burying her face into the plush cushions to quietly sob, her mother was defending everything the school was saying.. how wrong she was..
"Fine! Fine! I will look, but I don't believe you, there's absolutely nothing wrong with her. And don't listen to the media!" her mother growled her words impatiently, "Yes, good day," came the last snarl as she slammed the phone back down.
Gemma stared at the phone she had just shouted into sighing heavily. How dare they accuse her daughter of being such a thing.. mutants weren't even real anyway.. The woman shook her head gently, turning as she heard the stairs creak and saw her husband walking down apprehensively.
"What's wrong Gemma? Was that the school?" he asked, reaching the last few steps to join her side.
"Yes.. they had the nerve to put forth some shocking accusations about our Raven," she fumed, "They called her a mutant, can you believe that? They're not even real – as I said, media propaganda.. don't you agree?"
But Evan was silent.
"Evan?" Gemma questioned, "Don't you agree?" she persisted, a frightened expression overcoming her face.
But Evan shook his head slowly, "I'm afraid I don't.. I've seen it with my own eyes, Gemma.." Gemma narrowed her eyes gently, shaking her head in dismissal. "No," insisted Evan, "I have.. the police carried a boy out of a house a few blocks away on my way home from work last month.. He was a mutant.. he was vicious, snarling."
"No.. Evan," gasped Gemma, "But Raven - "
"I've seen it Gemma! The boy had claws for God's sake, vicious black ones! They said he was a mutant. These mutants are dangerous, Gemma!"
"Before anyone calls her anything.. we must ask her," said Gemma with frightened eyes upon her husband, "But she's not.. not our Raven."
Raven had heard everything her parents had said from the room, the door was slightly ajar and the words had struck her like ice shards in her heart. Her hands were trembling, the tears still pouring, what was she going to do? Dangerous? She wasn't dangerous. Surely they'd see that. The more her sobs came, the more angst and worry that built up, the more the blueness of her skin began to develop, slowly taking over the tops of her hands like someone dripping blue ink into soft tissue. It spread so easily and seamlessly.
When she heard the door home she made a frightened gasp, shoving her hands into her pockets as she stared up at her parents with tearful eyes, "Mum.. please.." she begged, her tears pouring over her cheeks that had now heavily darkened.
Her mother moved forward slowly to Raven, "This is not true.." she whispered as she lowered beside her trembling daughter, "Raven.. " Evan had grabbed Gemma by the shoulder, as if expecting Raven to suddenly develop claws of her own and rabidly slash her mother. Gemma turned her head to Evan, tears quietly forming, "Evan, stop it. She's our daughter for God's sake."
"She.." but Evan turned his head away, releasing Gemma's shoulder.
"She's what? cried her mother, spinning her head to Evan, "She's not our daughter anymore, is that what you're saying?!"
But her father couldn't answer, a helpless shrug formed. Gemma turned her head back to Raven, watching he daughter carefully, "Raven.. are you what the school say you are? A.. a mutant?"
"I don't know.." Raven managed to whisper, "I don't know what's wrong with me," her mother appeared to be at least trying to defend her daughter from Evan's distant repulsion, so with desperation she leant force to mother, wanting to held and comforted like some small child. She wanted her mother to embrace her tenderly and tell her everything was going to be all right. But Gemma looked almost revolted by the approach and scrambled back from the stretched out arms. Raven stared in shock at her mother's repugnance, "Mum!" she cried, horrified.
"I'm sorry.." gasped Gemma, who was watched by her stern looking father, "I'm sorry Raven.." she continued breathlessly. Evan had lowered besides her, resting his arms around Gemma as though Raven had thrown her on the floor. Gemma raised her head slowly, her panicked breathes still sounding before her eyes widened and she let out a horrified yell at Raven, "Oh my God! Evan!" she screamed, scrambling to her feet and backing away from Raven.
Raven jumped up at the shout, alarmed and apprehensive. As her head turned to the distant mirror, she saw the shocking yellow eyes take over her own, brighter than ever, eerily contrasted against the blueness of her face which was now darkening at an incredible pace.
"Her face!" her mother screamed, "She – S-she's blue! Her face! Oh my God, her eyes!" her mother was becoming hysterical with the shouts as the signs of her daughter's mutation became apparent to her family's eyes.
The alarmingly bright yellow eyes watched their reflection with a certain despair and sadness. Raven finally lowered her head from the reflection, casting one last glance to her parents before she grabbed her bag and spun out of the room. But to her surprise, her father had rushed forward, grabbed by the collar of her jacket and whirled her round to face him, "You're not going anywhere. You are not leaving the house looking like the freak you are."
Raven stared up at her father, shocked by his rough handling when his hands used to always so tenderly hug her and comfort her like she was some china doll. "What do you mean?" she said quietly, insides tearing up at the distrust and repulsion in her father's once caring gaze.
"Get to your room," he growled, thrusting her out of his hands. Raven cried out as she fell backwards, hitting the banisters of the staircase and collapsing on the wooden flooring of the hallway.
"Evan!" came her sobbing mother's voice, torn between the love for her daughter and the fear of the revelation. But even at her fall and her mother's voice her father didn't flinch, "Go on! Get up there!" he bellowed, edging towards her with a warning hand. Raven gasped and cried as she slipped to her feet, quickly hurtling herself up the staircase, the tears streaming continuously down her cheeks as she heard her father's angry breathing and her mother's weeping calls to Evan..
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