Like Waiting on Your Train to Come

Chapter Four: Stole Your Thunder? Have Some Lightening

Ray woke up the next morning hanging over the side of his bed. Looking around, he saw that Sam had already come and gone, by the looks of fresh clothes on the floor and a still messy bed. Ray sat up, and changed out of his shirt, replacing it with a new one. He got up and walked downstairs. The smell of a hot pocket wafting through the air had Ray running for the kitchen. He really was addicted to those things.

Rounding the corner and entering the kitchen Ray stopped and smiled when he saw Meg pulling a hot pocket out of the microwave. She was singing, her soft, reedy voice carrying throughout the room. It sounded like an old song, a mountain song. She had not noticed Ray standing in the doorway, and soon she had her back turned to him as she pulled a dull knife from the silverware drawer, intent on cutting the hot pocket in half.

Ray walked into the kitchen, his steps silent, light as air. He spread his arms out, and as he stepped behind Meg, he slowly wrapped his arms around her waste. She gasped with surprise, the knife momentarily falling form her hands.

"Shh, don't stop singing," Ray whispered into her neck.

Meg smiled, and quietly picked up the song again. Ray closed his eyes, listening to the tail of heartache and war and loss. It really was a sad song, but the beat and the way it was sung made the hurt lessen. Ray gently kissed Meg's earlobe, moving to her cheek. Meg giggled and the song was forgotten as she turned and her lips met Ray's. Soon, even the hot pocket was forgotten.

"Wait," Meg said suddenly, after separating; "Ray, Ah think we're goin' too fast…"

Ray looked at her expectantly; "Why?" he asked quietly.

Meg sighed; "It just… feels like we are," she explained; "I mean, at the rate we're goin'…" she looked away as her voice trailed off.

"I get it," Ray said, and she looked at him with a small smile.


The alarm beeped loudly with no remorse, and Amara leapt form her bed in a startled instant. Gasping until her heart rate slowed and her breathing regulated, she then growled and threw a well-aimed fireball at the clock, melting it. The beeping slowed as the clock melted, and then stopped. Amara groaned; she would have to clean the mess up whenever it dried.

Sighing, she looked over across the room, at the messier side where somewhere under the pile of blankets, lay her roommate, Meg. She was buried to mimic the heat she was accustomed to. The room was kept at a steady fifty-eight, Amara had made sure of that so she didn't overheat at night, but Meg, being so frail and thin and used to heat, was obviously suffering. Amara walked over, and pulled three quilts off the figure before lightly slapping a bare thigh. Meg always wore the skimpiest pajamas.

"Get up, Belle!" She cooed, and Meg rolled over and groaned, hand groping around for a quilt. Amara laughed; "Come one, it's the first day of school!"

"Wha'…?" Meg asked groggily, lifting her head up to look around; "Well I be darned, it is Monday, ain't it?" she asked airily, nonchalantly, as she sat up, rubbing her eyes.

Amara started to laugh, hiding her merriment, or trying to, behind her hand; "Wha'?" Meg asked, and Amara only shook her head as she walked over and began picking out clothes.

Meg eyed her, and then got up. She walked over to the dresser, and stared into the mirror. Her hair was a tangled mess, so unlike how she normally kept it wavy, neat, and knot-free.

She sighed, and gathered her bathing supplies, change of clothes, and hair supplies. She darted out of the room, and stood in the hallway. Wanting to test her control over her ability, she closed her eyes and focused on the bathroom. She held onto her belongings as she felt herself becoming weightless, then the choking sensation of being airborne. She felt her feet touch solid ground, and looked around.

She was in the bathroom.

Meg quickly locked the door and set about getting ready. She quickly showered and got out to dress. Spying a hairdryer, she dried her hair a little, and then put in a special gel that kept the frizz away. She then got her things, and fazed back to her room. On the return she stumbled as she came to, and Amara was lucky to be in the room to catch her.

"Hey, easy!" she said with a chuckle.

"Sorry," Meg said, embarrassed; "Almost over shot it, din' I?" she mused, looking to see she was only a foot shy from the wall.

Amara shrugged; "Still hit your target, didn't you?" she asked with a small smile; "I'm going on to the dining hall for breakfast. You coming?"

"Inna minute," Meg said as she took her eyeliner from its bag.

"Need me to oversee you doing that?" Amara asked jokingly, remembering the first time Meg had attempted to put eyeliner on. She had poked herself in the eye, and for about ten minutes had a second pupil.

"Ah'll be fine!" Meg insisted, and laughing Amara waved and departed.

Meg then turned to the mirror, completely focused, and put on her makeup. Satisfied, she then grabbed her bag, and slipping on her shoes, she darted out of her room and soon was standing at the top of the grand staircase.

The residents of the manor were gathered together, discussing traveling arrangements. Those with driver's licenses stood over at the door, and they were picking people to ride with them.

As Meg walked down the steps, she saw Ray get up from his seat at the bottom step, two helmets under each of his arms. He smiled at her and greeted her as she reached the bottom of the steps, kissing her softly on the cheek.

"Here!" he said excitedly, holding a helmet out to her.

Meg took it slowly, looking at him; "Ah dunno, Ray," she said uneasily, looking the helmet over, "Ah… crotch rockets scare the far outta me," she said with honesty, and Ray laughed.

"Crotch Rocket? My bike? No," he said, "Meg, I'm a safe driver. Trust me on this. Come on, we can stop and get breakfast on the way to school!"

Meg smiled; "Always thinkin' with yur stomach, huh?" she asked as she lightly punched Ray's torso.

Ray feigned pain, gasping and holding his hands to his stomach; "Oh, low blow!" he groaned, and when Meg started to worry, he smiled; "Kidding!" he said, "Come on, gimme one shot, just one. If you don't like it, you can ride in the x-van. Pwease?" he asked innocently, his eyes wide as he held his hands together under his chin.

Meg crumbled under the puppy-dog eyes. She sighed and nodded; "'Kay, but ya only get one shot, got it?"

Ray smiled, and taking her hand he called out to Logan before they left the manor. Ray and Meg went into the garage, Ray shocking the switches so that the lights snapped on and all of the garage doors rose up. Meg saw two motor cycles, a black one she knew to be Logan's, and another, slightly smaller bright blue one with black and silver lightening bolts trailing down the body. Obviously, that one was Ray's.

"Come on!" Ray said excitedly, climbing onto the bike and starting it. He patted the seat behind him, looking at Meg expectantly; "It doesn't bite," he said.

Meg sighed, and then walked over to the bike. Ray kicked the kickstand as she got on, and as he set the bike upright, Meg put her helmet on. Ray did the same, and then revved the engine. Out of fear, Meg wrapped her arms around his waist. Grinning, Ray shot off down the drive. He heard Logan hollering at him, but didn't stop. Soon they were flying through the gates and on down the road. Meg gritted her teeth and shut her eyes, and Ray was suddenly short on breath.

Soon they had reached the school parking lot. Ray took a sharp turn and pulled into a space before another car, and with a confidant air, set the bike on its kickstand and took his helmet off. Meg was still attached to his waste. Laughing he eased out of her grasp, and helped her off.

"See, I was an okay driver," he said.

Meg didn't reply, only motioned for him to turn around. Ray did, and groaned. He'd stolen the wrong space today. Three lettermen were walking towards them, Duncan Matthews at the head of the small pack. Ray stepped in front of Meg protectively.

"Is this what it's always like?" Meg whispered nervously, gripping her shoulder bag.

"Only on bad days," Ray muttered, but he lost all emotion from his face When Duncan stood in front of him.

"You just stole my parking spot, punk," Duncan sneered, popping his knuckles.

But the display of strength and warning did nothing to move Ray. He stared placidly back, "And, you're point?" he asked.

Duncan glared at him; "Move that shitty trash you call a bike outta here, or else."

"Look, jock," Ray said, stepping up; "It's the first day, and you're really not givin' this school a good image to new students. So why don't you just step back, let me through, and we can sort this out another time."

Ray took Meg's hand, and as he began to step around Duncan, the other two lettermen cut them off. Duncan stepped between Ray and Meg, his back to Ray.

"Hey, what the—!" Ray started, but the letterman grabbed him and one punched him in the stomach.

"Ray!" Meg began, but as she raised her hand, Duncan took it; "What's a girl like you doin' with a guy like him?"

"What, like Ah'd wanna hang out with a letterman, a jock?" Meg retorted, and she spit on his shoe; "You disgust me," she wrenched her hand out of his grasp, and walked over to Ray. Shoving the jocks away, Ray got up and lunged for Duncan. Meg held him back.

"Mess with Meg again, Matthews, and that precious Sedan of yours is scrap-fucking-metal," Ray said through gritted teeth; "Now get the hell away from my bike."

"What'll you do?" Duncan asked with a laugh.

"He won't have to do a thing, we'll handle it!"

Nate came out of seemingly nowhere, along with three other boys. The all crowded around Ray and Meg; "Step off, Matthews," Nate said, hand going to his back pocket.

Duncan glared at them all; "This isn't finished, Punk," he said; "I'll catch you alone one of these day." And, so saying, he and his minions left.

When they were alone, Nate whooped and whipped around, a wild smile on his face; "What a way to start the new year!" he said; "Ray, man, how'd you piss off the jock huh, huh?"

Ray told them all how it happened, and then got around to something more important; "Guys, this is Meg," he said, "Meg, this is Nate, Adam, Cameron, and Joel, the guys."

A chorus of hellos greeted her and Meg smiled bashfully; "Nice to meet y'all," she said.

"alright, well," Nate said, cocking his toboggan to the side professionally, "Do we storm through the front doors in a giant posse, or quietly make our entrance?"

"Hell, Grand entrance!" Joel said.

"Alright," Ray said, once again taking Meg's hand in his own. He smiled at her as they all began the walk to front doors.

Joel and Cameron kicked the doors open, and the metal slammed against the walls, sending the loud boom echoing down the hallways. Everyone in the main hallway froze for a second, watching as the six walked in. the doors slammed shut, but the group paid it no mind. Meg noticed how the five boys seemed to have an air of control over the crowds. They parted for them, like Moses and the Red Sea. She glanced at Ray but he didn't catch it. He was too busy looking formidable and uncaring, like his four friends. Meg sighed.

"Where's the office?" she asked.

"Oh! Here, I'll take ya to it," Ray said; "See ya later, guys."

They parted from the other four, making their way to the office; "Here it is," Ray said, holding the door open for her.

"Thanks," Meg said, smiling as she walked past him.

Ray stepped into the office and watched as she disappeared through another door. Looking over, he saw Lance Alvers sitting in a chair, looking bored. Their eyes met, and Ray nodded once. Lance did the same: a simple understanding. Ray neither like, nor hated Lance. He'd never fought with him, but never held a conversation. But there was a basic unity between the two. He was on the outside of most social circles, and Ray tried to stay that way as well.


Five minutes later, Meg stood outside of her first class, alone. Ray had needed to depart, but gave her his locker number and a quick note of his classes just in case she needed anything. Now Meg stared at the letters on the window in the door. CREATIVE WRITING, KOBLER, 114. With a sigh, Meg turned the door knob, and walked in.

The first thing she noticed was the general lack of students her age. Most seemed to be juniors or seniors. Maybe she had enrolled in a bird course? Again she looked around. There was Scott in the back, talking with a friend. At least there was one familiar face.

Meg began to walk over, but the teacher, Adrian Kobler, got up from behind his desk and stopped her; "Are you Meg DeBonte?" he asked, and Meg nodded.

Kobler smiled; "Well, just take a seat. Oh, name's Mr. Kobler," he held out his hand.

"Nice to meetcha," Meg said, shaking his hand.

Meg turned and began to slowly walk towards Scott. He turned to his desk and saw her approach, and his mouth hung open for a moment.

"Meg? What are you doing in this class? It's normally reserved…"

"For juniors 'n' seniors, righ'?" she finished, smiling as she sat down; "Yeah, buh Ah'm in it so Ah guess thing's're different now."


An hour later, the bell ring, signally the end of the period. Students flooded the hallways as they headed for their next classes. Meg managed to find her locker, but as she was walking to her next class, she was caught up in the mayhem of the packed hallway. In the chaos she ran into someone, dropped her books, and followed them soon after to the floor.

"Uh, I'm really sorry about that!" she said as she rose, but was shoved to the ground again. When she finally looked up, she saw that she had run into a jock, and Duncan was standing right beside him. Her heart sank and she knew her face went white as chalk with fear. She was not up for fighting and Ray was no where in sight.

"Watch it, bitch," The jock said, kicking a book off of his foot.

By now a crowd had gathered. Meg glared, color returning to her face. She was not one to tolerate that kind of talk. In a flash she was up, her hand raised to slap the jock. But as her hand went mobile, Duncan's shot out and grabbed her wrist.

"Learn your place," he growled.

"What, still mad Ray stole yur parkin' spot?" Meg spat, slipping fluidly form his grasp. "Grow up, jerk."

Duncan smirked, stepping closer to her. Meg didn't back down, she in fact stood straighter, prouder, braver, her glare hot and fiery with a burning passion.

"There's a certain hierarchy at this school, so listen close," his breath smelled of cigarettes, hot against her face. "You're new, and a little over confidant. Already you're not fitting in well. I'm top dog, I make the rules. Mess with me or anyone else higher than you, and you're bound to fuck yourself into a corner. But, I'll give you a chance to climb the ladder somewhat," he ran a finger down the side of her face, and Meg swatted it away.

"I'll have to pass," she whispered; "I ain't about to waste myself on a punk like you," so saying, she bent down and picked up her things.

"Punk! Me!" Duncan asked critically; "Who the hell do you think you are?"

Meg whipped her hair back and it smacked Duncan's face. She looked at him, and replied; "Ah'm Meg DeBonte, and I ain't about to take shit from you."

So saying she walked away, the crowd parting for her, Duncan shouting obscenities and threats. She ignored them and kept her head high, ignoring the whispers. In a way, she had just climbed to the top of a new ladder. She had officially become the Queen of Renegades. Meg heard the name pass over her ear and it made her stop for a second. Queen? This school was messed up.

But where was her King?


Ray was in the middle of gym, opting for running around the track instead of weight lifting. Running was not a problem for him; he could run for miles without tiring. It was just part of who he was. Nate was attempting to keep up. But his illegal habit was quickly catching up with him, and he had to stop. Bent over and gasping for air, he fell over into the grass. Ray stopped, turned, and jogged over to his friend. With a laugh he helped Nate up.

"I told ya, man, you've gotta stop with that stuff," Ray sad.

"What…ever man," Nate said between gasps; "You're just… showin' off…" he wiped grass from his clothing; "Hey… look…" he said, pointing.

Ray looked to see a freshman running over to the fence, ushering for them to meet him. It was Zach McPhee, one of Ray's self-proclaimed "informants". He seemed out of breath, and Ray urged him to calm down.

But Zach shook his head; "You missed it, man!" he said, and with excitement he proceeded to relay the events that had occurred. Nate had stumbled up during the middle, but quickly caught on. Ray was angered when he heard what the jock had called Meg, wanted to ditch his class to hunt the boy down, but kept his anger in to hear the rest of the story.

"And the crowd just parted for her, man! It was crazy!" Zach was saying with awe; "Matthews tried to shut her down, but she acted like it didn't matter, like he wasn't even talking sense! It was incredible, man! I've only seen you show him that kinda defiance!"

Ray smirked; "See? Told you she'd be fine," he said to Nate ,then returned his attention to Zach; "so, she's fine, right?"

"More than that, man, way more than that!" Zach said; "On my way over I heard kids talking about how she'd risen up Duncan's stupid 'ladder'. She's supposedly a 'queen' or whatever," now he was becoming cynical and sarcastic; "She's risen to your place, Ray. She's your new Queen."

"Oh not with that shit again, Zach!" Ray said with a moan, turning and leaning against the fence.

"Dude, you are the anti-Duncan! More people have more faith in you than you wanna admit. You could easily knock Duncan off his pedestal. Hell, you'll probably become the new 'king' once that jerk graduates," he said absently, arms threaded through the links of the fence.

Ray gnawed on his lower lip as he thought. Nate watched him with a blank look, then looked at Zach; "Thanks Zach. If anything comes up tell us?"

That was Nate's polite version of "Okay, now get fucking going". Zach nodded, and ran off. Nate looked at Ray again, and then rolled his eyes. "Dude, admit it, your reputation proceeds you."

Ray looked forward for a moment, then looked at Nate; "why's it gotta be this way?" he asked; "Why's there gotta be a leader and a follower?"

Nate shrugged; "Such is the ways of humanity, my friend," he said. For all his bad habits, Nate was a genius in his own right. "You're defiant, arrogant, smart and loyal. Who wouldn't want you at the top of the pyramid? I mean, as a close friend I know of some flaws that…"

"Alright, alright! I get it," Ray grumbled; "So, 'knower-of-all-things', where's Meg in all of this?"

Nate regained his blank "can't believe you don't know" look, and simply replied; "Up there with you man, duh. I stated this earlier."


Jean had heard about what Duncan had done, and she hadn't liked the stories. It was just like him, to pick on younger students, and especially newbies. This stupid hierarchy of his… she was sick of it, even though being his girlfriend had its perks. When it was lunch time she stormed down the halls in search of him, and found him by the soda machines with several jocks.

"Duncan!" Jean said loudly, drawing attention from gossip to her.

Duncan looked at her and smiled; "Well, hey baby—!" he began, but Jean simply took his hand and dragged him off to a deserted hallway. Once they were alone she turned and confronted him.

"What did you do earlier?" she asked forthright.

"Aw, nothin' much baby, just tried to put a newbie in their place," Duncan said languidly.

"Why would you bother? I mean, what is it with you? Who cares about a social hierarchy, anyway?" Jean said; "I mean, all it does is—"

"Keep order around this place, that's what it does!" Duncan said loudly; "Without structure, there would be anarchy, Jean! If anything I'm doing a service! The fact that that little bi—!"

SMACK!

Before Jean could think twice she had slapped Duncan. Duncan was shocked; his hand went to the side of his face, and when he looked up he saw Jean's back quickly leaving him.


Lunch time rolled around, and Ray found Meg to escort her. They found a table outside in the court. It was a circular stone table, able to seat six or seven. Ray and Meg shared a seat, and then Nate came along with Joel and another girl. Her name was Amy, Joel's girlfriend. And finally, Cameron showed up.

"Alright, so tell us about your deal with Duncan," Cameron said suddenly.

"What deal? I just told him off is all," Meg said as she sipped on her Pepsi.

Ray rubbed his eyes; "Does it matter?" he asked the group; "This stupid hierarchy is pointless as it is."

"Yeah, but unfortunately your girlfriend here has managed to totally mess it up," Joel said.

"Hey now," Meg said; "He messed with me. I wasn't gonna let 'im."

"You should have!" Joel insisted; "Duncan can ruin you."

"So can his girlfriend Jean," Amy added.

"Jean? Nah, she ain't bad," Meg said, shaking her head.

Everyone save for Ray looked at her; "You're kidding," Nate said; "What planet are you from again? Jean's a cold hard bitch."

"Yeah, Duncan's," Joel said under a cough.

Meg shook her head again; "I don't thank so," she said.

"Well, to each his own," Nate said, sighing; "So, Ray, think Duncan will try and beat you up like he promised?"

"He'll have a hard time tryin'," Ray said with a smirk.

"Gonna give him the one-two?" Joel asked.

"Or a good shock?" Amy asked with a light laugh.

Ray tensed, and Meg did as well. Did they know? They couldn't possibly…

"Yeah, how's he gonna do that, let Duncan hit 'im?" Nate asked, and Amy laughed.

Ray sighed inwardly. No one knew. He was safe. Meg sighed as well, outwardly, though. She had gotten worried, worked up, for no real reason at all except for the fact that Ray was.

And that somehow scared her.


At the end of the day, Ray whistled as he gathered up his things from his locker, and headed for the parking lot. He had stayed after for Chemistry help. Only Two months into the school year and he was already lost. Kicking the door open with his foot, he jumped down the steps, only to hear a shrill whistle.

"Hey CRISP!" someone called loudly, and Ray whipped around.

Duncan and two other jocks were waiting around Ray's precious bike. They were all grinning, and as Ray walked over, Duncan met him halfway.

"Told ya I'd get ya," he said maliciously.

Ray stared at him apathetically; "Yeah, I know," he said, looking around; "Sad though, how no one else is around."

Duncan stared at him for a moment, then rolled his eyes; "Whatever. Put down your bag, punk."

Slowly, Ray sat his backpack down. He popped his knuckles, his neck, rolled his shoulders and his knees. "Ready?" he asked Duncan, who nodded.

Without warning, Duncan's fist swung out and clubbed Ray in the cheek. He was sent back several steps, heard laughter, and his anger was sparked. Catching himself he nearly growled as he launched himself at Duncan, tackling him and bringing him to the ground. He punched whatever felt like Duncan; stomach, leg, head, shoulder, arm, it didn't matter. As long as he did damage, Ray would rest easy tonight.

But Duncan had a strategy while Ray's movements were edgy and spastic. He carefully aimed his blows, dealt more pain by twisting his hand as he did. Twice Ray lost his breath; twice more did he taste fresh blood in his mouth.

Ray finally jumped up from the ground, breathing heavily. Duncan, still on his knees, was briefly perplexed by Harry's reflexes, but gradually he rose as well; "What…" he panted; "Had…enough…punk?"

"Hell no," Ray said, breathing a soothing breath to regain himself. He wiped the blood from his lip; "You're gonna pay now. I didn't do shit to you."

"You're stealin' my thunder, punk, that's the shit you did to me!" Duncan roared; "I won't be topped! Not now!"

He lunged then, and Ray dodged out of the way. Suddenly, he was in Recruit mode, locked in the Danger Room in a session. He dodged Duncan's advances, through punches when he could. His speed increased and his accuracy was one hundred percent. Soon he had Duncan breathing heavily from excursion.

With a final resort, Duncan suddenly held out his arm and clothes-lined Ray. Breathless Ray collapsed, not expecting that at all. Duncan grinned arrogantly as he stood over Ray, getting on his knees and locking his hands around Ray's neck.

"Now, I'll teach you… who the King…is…" Duncan muttered.

Ray's hands clawed at Duncan's arms as the jock began to squeeze. Ray coughed and sputtered obscenities, hitting Duncan repeatedly and kneeing him in the stomach. But it didn't stop the jock. Ray soon began to fear for his life. His mind raced faster than his heart. He felt a buzzing in his ears, literally felt it. Suddenly, power was coursing through his arms and to his fingertips.

Duncan howled as he was electrocuted, releasing Ray and flying back from the voltage. Ray gasped and coughed violently, retching though nothing came up. Duncan didn't move to show he was living; his foot only twitched. Worriedly, the two goons who had stood by watching rushed to him, bending down and picking him up.

"What the fuck did you do, Crisp!" one asked frantically.

Ray coughed again and looked over. Shit, he thought, getting up. He hobbled over, limping, looking at Duncan. There were slight burns on Duncan's arms, from his finger tips. How much power had he put out?

He suddenly thought that he had killed the jock. Worriedly Ray looked him over; his chest was moving.

"He's just unconscious…" Ray muttered.

The two jocks looked at him fearfully; "This never happened," Ray said; "I didn't want it to, you guys didn't want it to. Duncan became a little crazy because of his anger. He hurt himself. He. Hurt. Him-Self."

The two jocks nodded. Ray nodded as well; "Take him home, he'll come around." He instructed; "You two shitheads touch my bike?" he asked as he turned.

"No way," they jocks said in unison.

Ray went and picked up his backpack. He then trudged over to his bike, and saw his face in the reflection of the metal. He sighed. This would not go well at the institute. He tried to pick his bike up, but realized he had hurt his hand. He winced and tried to fold his fingers over; he could barely do that. He assumed that he had broken some knuckles. He bit his lip and grabbed his bike anyway, channeling the pain elsewhere as he picked the bike up. He got on, kicked the stand, and nearly fell over in the process. He was suddenly very weak. With hooded eyes, Ray started the bike, driven solely on his need to get home.


TBC


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