*-*-* Weeping Willow *-*-*
*-* Chapter Nine *-*
"If you judge people, you have no time to love them."
~ Mother Theresa
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A/N: Okay, before you read this chapter, I oughta inform you that the focus switches from Willow to Jackie in the middle. I couldn't stand leaving out the school being attacked. Until they are all reunited, the focus may switch back and forth like it does in the movie. Just a heads up.
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After almost an hour of traveling, Professor Xavier's voice came over the jet's radio.
"I've got the coordinates now," Xavier said. "I'll send them to you."
"Thank you," Jean said.
"Where are we?" asked Willow.
"We're about twenty minutes outside Boston," Jean told her. An anxious knot was growing in Willow's stomach. She watched out the window like a hawk for the next twenty minutes. She was looking for the church, but the altitude being what it was, and considering how dark it was outside, she would have never been able to see it. Soon the jet began to drop and start to land. Willow felt about ready to explode. She couldn't take the suspense. They dropped lower and lower until Willow could feel the vibration of the landing gear coming out from under them. She felt the jet bump to a stop. She fiddled with the seat belt to get it off. Storm dropped the hatch and she and Jean got up. Willow began to climb down the stairs but Jean stopped her.
"Maybe you should wait for us in here," she said.
"What? Why?" asked Willow. Her face reflected the distress in her voice.
"We don't really know if he'll be hostile or not," Jean told her.
"Hostile?" Willow laughed. "Not Kurt. Plus, I can defend myself," Willow said.
"I know you could, but I'd feel better if you stayed here," Jean said. "We'll bring him back with us."
"Please?" asked Willow.
"I would also feel more comfortable if you at least waited outside for us," said Storm.
"Outside, okay. Just not in here," Willow said. They climbed down the steps and Willow found herself in front of the church from back in November. New graffiti had been sprayed on it. In huge, crude letters was the message 'Nature Laughs Last.' Jean and Storm approached the doors carefully at first, then Storm blew the doors wide open with a powerful gust of wind. Willow watched them enter and saw pigeons inside take flight. Suddenly, like she had heard when she first entered the church, Kurt's voice echoed off the church's stone walls in German. Willow inched closer to the church so she could see a little better. She saw Jean grin.
"He's a teleporter," she told Storm. "Hey," she said, staring up into the rafters. "You wanna come down and talk to us?"
"Gehen Sie aus!" Willow heard Kurt growl. Months of taking online German classes made her recognize what he said. Get out.
"Are you sure you don't wanna talk?" Jean asked him sweetly. She looked at Storm. Willow could hear thunder rolling over head. A bolt of lightning came down and struck somewhere inside the church. Willow heard Kurt yell in surprise. She gasped and got closer to see what was going on. She saw Kurt hanging upside down in mid air. He looked very frightened.
"Please don't kill me!" he said. "I didn't mean to hurt anyvan!"
"We're not going to hurt you," Jean said. "We've got someone with us who's been anxious to see you." Kurt's eyes widened. He looked scared of who or what she meant. Willow walked slowly up the stairs and into the church. She smiled at Kurt, who's mouth was open in a mixture of fear and surprise.
"Hi, Kurt," she said softly with a smile. She was so happy to see him, but so sad to see how frightened he seemed to be.
"Weide!" he said, struggling in the air to get to her. He teleported out of Jean's grasp and appeared in front of Willow. "Es tut mir leid!" he cried miserably. He hung his head and began mumbling in German. "Ich bedeutete nicht was ich tat, ich verstehe, wenn Sie mir nicht verzeihen, den ich über mich so beschämt bin!" He shook his head the whole time he rattled this off, and he looked as if he was almost in tears.
"I didn't understand any of that except 'I'm sorry,'" Willow said with a hint of a smile.
"I said zat I didn't mean vat I did, and zat I understand if you'll never forgive me, and zat I'm ashamed of what happened," he said, avoiding her concerned eyes.
"I forgive you," she said softly. "Of course I do."
"I don't deserve your forgiveness," he said sadly.
"Sure you do! You've done too many nice things for me to not forgive you," she said. He looked reluctantly into her eyes like a puppy might after he's gotten in trouble for chewing up a shoe.
"I failed you. I broke my promise. I couldn't get you to ze school," said Kurt. "I am sorry."
"You didn't fail me! I probably never would have found it if it wasn't for you. Come'er," she said, pulling him gently into a hug. Kurt was shocked at what was happening. She's touching me, he thought amazed. He hesitantly put his arms around her and let his head drop onto her shoulder. His cheek brushed hers. His skin was very soft, even the tattoos. His whole body was shaking, but not too visibly.
"I'm so sorry," he whispered to her. "I feel as though I've deceived you."
"You haven't. It's alright, Kurt," she comforted him. Jean and Storm watched the both of them quietly. "I know you didn't do it on purpose."
"No, of course not," he said quietly, his voice muffled by her sweatshirt. "I vish it never happened." He hugged her a little tighter, then inhaled sharply and pulled away, his odd three fingered hand flying up to a spot right below his left shoulder.
"Are you hurt?" she asked him, looking concerned.
"Only a little," he said.
"What happened?" asked Jean.
"I think I vas shot," Kurt told her.
"Shot?" Willow cried in shock.
"Would you mind if we took a look at it?" asked Jean. Kurt shook his head. Jean went out into the jet and came back with a first aid kit. They had him take off his coat and shirts and lay down on the altar that Willow had slept on four months ago. Willow looked at his shoulder and saw a small, red bullet hole. She was still worried about him. She found herself blushing a little while looking at Kurt's exposed torso. She didn't know why. For all she knew, they were just friends, nothing more. She didn't think he saw. She hoped he didn't. What would he think?
"Can you tell us about what happened in the White House?" asked Jean as she examined him.
"Ven I vas inside, I could see myself attacking za guards. I tried to stop, but I couldn't control myself," Kurt told them. "Perhaps He is testing me," he said, looking over at the crucified Jesus statue.
"And you don't remember anything before the White House?" asked Storm.
"No...nasing right before...except Weide," he said looking up at Willow with sad eyes. She smiled at him. "I'd been doing so much teleporting zat ven I tried to get back here, I vas taken...but I don't remember by who or ver zey took me."
"This is all my fault," Willow said.
"No. It vas my choice to take you to New York," Kurt said. "I did zis to myself." There was a long pause. Storm had been looking at Kurt's tattoos inquisitively.
"Who did these?" asked Storm.
"I did," Kurt said.
"They're beautiful," Storm told him. Kurt smiled slightly at this. Jean had him roll over so she could better see the extent of the injury.
"And this?" asked Storm, motioning to a raise circle on the back of his neck. He reached behind him and touched it but said nothing.
"The bullet's still in there. I'm going to take it out, but it's going to hurt," Jean warned him. He nodded. Jean held her hand above Kurt's shoulder and concentrated. The bullet began to work its way towards the surface. Kurt gritted his sharp teeth and groaned. Willow watched as the bullet came out of the entrance wound. Jean caught it and set it aside. She used gauze to clean the old and new blood off Kurt's shoulder. She used some medical tape to stick a thick piece of gauze over the wound.
"Sank you," Kurt said.
"Not a problem," Jean said with a satisfied smile.
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Jackie sat on the floor of the dorm room bathroom feeling like there was a rock in the bottom of her stomach. She groaned and leaned over the open toilet, ready to let all hell break loose if she had to. She thought that she might be feeling a little better until she threw up everything she'd eaten over the course of the day. When she was done she groaned again. The taste in her mouth was horrible and acidic. When she was absolutely sure there was nothing more to be thrown up, she reached over to the handle with a shaking hand and flushed the toilet. She got her feet shakily and washed her mouth out with cold water. She splashed some over her face and wondered what had made her so sick. She went over in her mind all that she'd eaten that day and decided that it must have been the left over pizza that she'd snagged for lunch. She honestly had no clue how long it had been in there, but it tasted fine...until now.
She turned off the light and decided to go downstairs for some Sprite. Maybe that would cure her churning stomach. Then she remembered that Logan was somewhere in the house and Willow saying how he looked dangerous. She grabbed her chain off her and Jubilee's nightstand and tip toed downstairs as best she could. She walked quietly into the kitchen, passing Blinky on her way in. She came across Bobby, who was eating ice cream on the island in the middle of the kitchen.
"Hey Jackie," Bobby said.
"Yo," she answered unenthusiastically.
"What's the matter?" he asked.
"I feel like crap. I just got done tossing my cookies all over the damn place," she said. The she noticed out of the corner of her eye someone standing there. She looked over and saw Logan. She lifted an eyebrow at him before she went and dug through the refrigerator.
"Who are you?" asked Logan.
"Jacklynn Dunn," Jackie said, still looking around. "You can either call me Jackie or Blackout."
"Why Blackout?" asked Logan.
"'Cause that's what I do. I black shit out," Jackie said. She found a two-liter bottle of 7UP that was almost gone. She got it out and closed the door. She found a cup and poured herself a glass.
"Whaddya mean, you black shit out?" asked Logan.
"Just think of me like one big electric charge," Jackie said. "I go anywhere from static electricity to serious voltage, but I gotta either be touching what I want to fry or have a conductor. Hence the chain."
"You weren't thinkin' of using that on me, were ya?" asked Logan.
"Of course not, what makes you say that?" asked Jackie sarcastically before she drank half her soda in a single gulp.
"I like you, kid," Logan said with a smirk. "I think we're gonna get along." Jackie grinned before slowly draining the cup. Just as the liquid was coming away from the bottom of the cup, she could see a shadow move across the doorway through the plastic and left over carbonation. She gasped, causing the soda to go down the wrong pipe. She dropped the cup and coughed and sputtered.
"Holy shit!" she wheezed. "There's someone..," she coughed. "Fuck..." Bobby patted her on the back. "Quit it! There's someone in here!"
"What?" asked Bobby.
"Someone just crossed the fuckin' door!" cried Jackie. Bobby listened carefully. After a few seconds he heard a heavy footfall and a creak from upstairs.
"I think you're right," he whispered.
"Quiet," Logan said sharply he walked out of the kitchen slowly, sniffing the air as he went. He disappeared into the shadows. Jackie and Bobby watched in suspense and listened. A silhouette came towards the door, and Jackie could tell that it wasn't Logan. Just as the intruder reached the kitchen, he cocked a long gun at Bobby. Logan came up behind the man and put him in a headlock. Suddenly, a high pitched, inhuman scream pierced Jackie's eardrums. Her hands flew to her ears and she crouched onto the floor. The man began firing the gun out of surprise and pain. Jackie shoved Bobby behind the island and dove behind it herself. They both sat against it, covering their ears from the unearthly sound. Jackie knew that it was Syrin, a girl that lived down the hall from her, and she wished that she would stop before her eardrums exploded. All at once, the sound ceased and Jackie and Bobby both uncovered their ears.
"Huuuuaagh!" Logan yelled. Jackie could hear the sound of sliding metal before the gun stopped firing. She peeked over the island, which resembled Swiss cheese, and saw Logan, three blades protruding from each fist. They slid back in and she looked at the dead intruder on the floor. "There's someone in the house," Logan agreed. Jackie grabbed her chain off the counter.
"Stay here," Logan said as he went out into the hall. Bobby and Jackie looked at each other for a moment.
"I have to find Rogue," Bobby said.
"Well you're not leaving me here alone," Jackie said. She was very frightened.
"Come on, then," Bobby said getting up. They went as quietly as possible into the dark hallway. There was no one in sight.
"We should take the elevator," Jackie whispered. "It's faster and we have less chance of running into someone."
"Good point," Bobby said with a nod. Jackie held her chain balled up in her fist as to not make any noise. They walked quickly and quietly to the nearest elevator. Jackie could now hear people screaming upstairs.
"Oh, shit," she squeaked. "This is really bad."
"Shh," Bobby whispered. They reached the elevator and pushed the up button. The doors slid open, throwing a pool of light onto the hallway floor. Before they even stepped inside, they could hear the clomping of boots coming down the hall towards them. They jumped in and punched the second floor button. The footsteps were coming closer, and the doors weren't closing.
"Fuckin' do something!" Jackie cried.
"I'm trying!" Bobby said, still pushing the second floor button. Finally the doors slid closed, and Jackie could hear something small hit the doors and stick.
"Jesus H. Christ!" Jackie breathed.
"Get ready to attack someone as soon as the doors open," Bobby said.
"We're not gonna...you know, kill anyone...right?" asked Jackie.
"Try to just injure them so they won't get up," Bobby advised.
"I dunno if I can do that. To tell you the truth, I don't have all that much control over it," Jackie said.
"Try to just stun them, or something. Nothing over low voltage," Bobby said. The elevator dinged, making Jackie jump. She bit her lip as the doors slid open. She let her chain dangle below her fist. Several kids ran past in a panic. Bobby and Jackie got out of the elevator and looked around.
"I can't see a damn thing in the dark. I wish I could see color, it would really help right now!" Jackie grumbled. They hurried down the hall towards Jackie's dorm room, but as they turned the corner, they were met with three intruders armed with guns. Jackie gasped and stopped in her tracks. One of them raised his gun at her. Bobby stuck out his hand and a blast of ice froze the man's hands. Jackie quickly swung the chain out, which wrapped around the gun. Violent blue sparks lashed out from Jackie's hand, up the chain, through the gun, and finally shocking the intruder. He crumpled onto the floor. This all happened very fast, and it took the other two a moment to figure out what had just happened. They raised their guns and Jackie wrapped the long chain around one of their wrists. With another blue shock of electricity, the man was down. Bobby had taken care of the other one by making him so cold that he dropped to the floor shivering.
"Lets go," Bobby said. They stepped over the fallen intruders and headed into the dorm. There was no one there. "Rogue?" Bobby called. There was no answer.
"She's not here," Jackie said. They ran back down the way they came, dodging the people they'd just attacked. A group of kids ran down the hall in front of them, one of which was John.
"John!" Bobby cried. John stopped and came down the hall towards Bobby and Jackie. "Have you seen Rogue?"
"No," John said.
"We gotta find her," Bobby muttered.
"Didja check her room?" asked John.
"Yeah, she's not there," Bobby said. They run down the corridor, and were about to take a right.
"Bobby!" cried Rogue. She ran towards them. "Come on, this way!" she said directing them down the hall that she had just came from. A bright light suddenly lit up the round window in front of them. A moment later, it exploded, sending chunks of glass and wood everywhere. Rogue screamed and more men came in through the window. They turned back and ran downstairs. People were coming in through the side door as well. They bolted into the entryway where more of them.
"Oh shit...," Jackie whispered. The men raised guns right before they heard Logan let out a yell. He jumped over the banister above them, his metal claws out, and impaled two of the intruders. They crumpled onto the floor before two more tried to attack Logan. He stabbed them both and threw them backward into the wall.
"Go," Logan said. Bobby led the way down one of the halls.
"This is it," he said. He pushed on a section of wood paneling, and it slid open.
"Get in there," Logan said. The four of them piled inside.
"Logan!" Rogue cried just before Logan shut the panel. There was a long, dark passage before them, and the door was stuck. Rogue struggled to get it back open, but it wasn't budging.
"Come on, Rogue!" cried John. "We have to get outta here!"
"I agree with John, those guys are everywhere!" Jackie said.
"Please, Rogue," Bobby said. He reached out to take her hands away from the panel, but recoiled when he noticed she had no gloves on.
"We can't just leave Logan out there, they'll kill him!" Rogue cried.
"He can take care of himself!" John said.
"Please," Rogue said helplessly. Jackie looked over at John and sighed, a look of mingled concern and fear. John looked at her, trying to read her face. Finally he sighed.
"Fine," John muttered.
"The door's stuck," Rogue told them. They all got behind it and pulled, trying their best to move it. Finally, after a minute or so of trying to get the panel to open, it slid to the side. Logan was standing perfectly still while a large man with shining spectacles was grinning and talking to him. There were about six men guarding the one talking to Logan. Bobby put his palm flat against the wall. Jackie watched as a trail of ice slid across the wall. When it got between Logan and the man with the glasses, it began to spread into the air. Soon there was a wall made of solid ice between Logan and the man.
"No! No!!" cried Logan. The silhouette of the man touched his hand to the wall of ice. Logan put his hand over that of the silhouette.
"Logan, come on!" cried Rogue.
"You go, I'll be fine," Logan said.
"But we won't," Rogue said, a note of sadness registering in her voice. The man on the other side of the wall stuck something into the ice. Logan took one more backward glance before he climbed through the opening. The panel shut just before an explosion rocked the building around them. They ran down the slightly damp passageway. There were several passages leading off from the main hall, all of which were labeled. Logan headed down one marked 'garage' in white stenciled letters. He opened the door at the end of the passage and they followed him into the garage. Logan approached a blue car.
"I'll drive," John said, stepping in front of Logan and reaching for the handle.
"Maybe next time," Logan said. Rogue took shotgun and the rest piled in the back.
"This is Cyclops's car," Bobby said.
"Oh really?" Logan muttered, jamming a single claw into the ignition. He started up the car and opened up the garage door. They sped out of it, leaving the school behind them.
"Here," Rogue said taking off the dogtag and chain she kept tied around her wrist. Logan took it.
"What the hell just happened back there?" asked John, thoroughly rattled.
"Stryker. His name is Stryker," Logan said.
"But who is he?" asked Rogue.
"I don't remember," Logan said with frustration. A few minutes of silence passed, and Jackie waited for the uncomfortable lump of anxiety to fade away. John leaned over her to get between the front seats.
"I hate uncomfortable silences," he said pushing the button for the radio. Bye Bye Bye from N*SYNC blasted through the speakers. John winced.
"Turn that crap off!" cried Jackie. He pushed another button and the radio face lowered, exposing a compartment.
"That doesn't look like the CD player...," John said.
"Get back," Logan said. John sat back in his seat but still peered around the seat to see what he had done. A devise came out of the compartment. Logan took it off its clip and looked at it. One side of it extended down with a snap.
"What is that? A cell phone?" asked Jackie.
"I dunno," Logan said. He put it to his ear but could only hear static. He slid the bottom up and set it down.
"Where are we going?" asked John.
"Jean and Storm were headed to Boston. We'll try to meet up with them."
"My parents live in Boston," Bobby muttered.
"Good," Logan said.
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Okay, guys, this next chapter is the start of the fluffy-ness between Kurt and Willow. I'm not really sure what exactly a Mary-Sue is, but I hope since my readers have been praising me that this story isn't one, that this next chapter has no Mary-Sue-ness involved. All I can say is it gets sorta cute from now on between them, but their relationship doesn't take over the story line. At least I hope it doesn't 'cause that wasn't my aim….anyway, I've done enough rambling…
