*-*-* Weeping Willow *-*-*
*-* Chapter Fourteen *-*
"If you judge people, you have no time to love them."
~ Mother Theresa
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A/N: Whew, it's been a while. Sorry for the delay, but I really haven't had the time to update. Right, well, you've only got three more chapters to read through. Only three!
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The jet landed on top of the basketball court during the early hours of the morning. They brought out a wheelchair for the Professor and helped him into it. Kurt followed Storm and the Professor into the mansion, carrying Willow in his arms. The interior was a mess. Dead men that looked as if they were from the S.W.A.T. team littered the floor, flies buzzing around their stab wounds. Kurt stepped over them.
"Vere should I put her?" he asked quietly.
"For now, in her dorm room. We'll move her to her own room so that she is not disturbed later. Jackie, will you show Kurt to the room?" asked the Professor.
"Sure," Jackie said in a monotonous voice. She was not taking the days events well at all. Jean was dead, Willow was severely injured, and John was with Magneto. It couldn't get much worse.
She led the way up to the dorm room. When she reached the top of the stairs, she could see the dark shapes of the men that had attacked she and Bobby two days ago. They were dead. I've killed someone, she thought in horror. I'm a murderer... She looked away from the men's bodies and showed Kurt to the dorm room.
"Her bed is the one on the end," Jackie said. Kurt walked over to the bed and lifted up the blankets with his tail. He deposited Willow beneath them and took the blankets from his tail so he could tuck her in gently. He ran a hand over the curve of her cheek. He sighed. "I'm sorry," Jackie said.
"It isn't your fault," Kurt said.
"Will you be alright?" asked Jackie.
"I sink so," Kurt said.
"If you want to stay in here with her, I don't mind," Jackie said.
"Sank you," Kurt said in a voice that was just above a whisper. He sat down on the bed next to Willow's and sighed again. Jackie left him alone with Willow and went back downstairs. She put her hand over her face as she passed the men in the hallway. She joined back up with everyone else.
"This place is a mess," Logan said.
"Yes. It will take a long time to get everything back to normal. But the house is the least of my worries. We have to find the children," he said. Logan showed him where Peter Rasputin had lead the children before they left for Bobby's parent's house while Storm and Scott checked around the house. They found some cowering under beds, others in closets. Some were just under their covers. Most of them were reluctant to come out of their hiding spots. Logan found Peter with a good-sized group of kids in a small room off the secret passageway they had entered.
"Some of the kids ran off outside, I think," Peter said.
"We'll use Cerebro to find them," Xavier said.
They worked the rest of the night. By the time the sun rose the next morning, the last of the kids had been brought back to the mansion. Most of them were still on the grounds, but others had ventured out into the neighborhoods around them. The Professor made a call to one of his friends who was a coroner down in the city morgue. He said that he would be happy to help remove the bodies from the mansion. After the bodies were taken away, the Professor paid a visit to Kurt in Willow's dorm room while everyone began to pick up the debris. He found him crouching next to her bed in silent prayer.
"How is she?" asked the Professor.
"Breazing, but not avake," Kurt responded.
"Normally I would be able to rely on Jean to take charge of the medical needs around here, but now...," he trailed off. "I do know someone that might be of some assistance. Do you know who Dr. Hank McCoy is?"
"I sink I may have heard of him," Kurt said.
"I think he'll be able to help her," said Xavier. "I'll send someone to collect him as soon as possible."
"Sank you," Kurt said. Xavier left the room. Kurt found Willow's hand and held it gently in both hands. Please wake up soon, Weide.
Kurt barely moved from that spot all day. Storm had come up a few times offering him food and rest, but he politely declined. He wasn't hungry. He didn't want to leave Willow unattended. At about four in the afternoon, Kurt heard the jet leave the grounds. He waited several hours for it to return with help, but it felt like several days. At around seven that night, Xavier came back into the room, followed by an enormous man with huge hands and feet. It surprised Kurt to see someone so large and unusual looking. But then again, he himself was far more unusual looking. The man wore slacks and a nice white shirt with a tie that was loose around his neck. He was wearing a pair of small round glasses and a white lab coat that was unbuttoned in the front. His clean, obviously ironed clothes and polished spectacles had an air of intelligence about them.
"Kurt Wagner, Dr. Hank McCoy," the Professor said, introducing them.
"It's nice to make your acquaintance," Hank said.
"Ja," Kurt said.
"Is this her?" he asked coming closer.
"Yes," said Xavier. Hank put two fingers against Willow's throat. He looked at his watch.
"Her pulse is fine," he said. "It's a little faint, but there isn't anything abnormal about it.... You say she over used her powers?"
"Yes," said the Professor. "She has the power to create plants. She was holding the dam at Alkali Lake together, and when it broke, the death of the plants severely injured her. We all thought that she was dead."
"It's no wonder. Her strength is completely gone. She just barely made it," said Hank with a sigh. "This one is a fighter, I do believe."
"Is she going to be alright?" asked Kurt.
"I think so," said Hank. "She probably won't be able do much more than blink for a while when she wakes up."
"Ven do you sink she vill be able to get up again?" asked Kurt.
"I'm not sure," Hank said. "As long as we can find a way to feed her, I think she'll be up and around in two weeks at the most. But first and foremost, I think she should stay in her own room."
"There's an extra room downstairs," said Xavier. Kurt stood up and lifted Willow into his arms. He followed the Professor and Dr. McCoy down the hallway. "I'll meet you downstairs," said Xavier as he directed his wheelchair towards the elevator while Kurt and Hank took the stairs. They met the Professor as he exited the elevator.
"This way," he said. He showed them to a vacant room with a queen-sized bead, a nightstand with a lamp and digital clock on top, a large dresser with a mirror over it, and a TV/VCR. Kurt set her down on the bed.
"Can we get this suit off her?" asked Hank, reaching for the zipper at the neck. Kurt grabbed Dr. McCoy's massive wrist with one of his three fingered hands.
"Don't," he said firmly.
"It must come off," Hank said in a serious tone.
"Can't somevan else do it? Somevan she knows better?" Kurt asked the Professor.
"I'll have Ororo come and help," the Professor said. He called Storm telepathically. She came in and the Professor told her what needed to be done. She agreed to help, and Kurt herded everyone else out of the room, including himself. Storm came out minutes later, the X-men uniform in her arms. They reentered the room.
"Good. Now, as the doctor in the house, I don't want a lot of comings and goings through here," Hank said. "No loud noises, nothing that would disturb her."
"Are you going to let me stay?" asked Kurt, dreading the answer. Hank looked a little reluctant to kick this poor tired man out of the room when he so obviously cared about its inhabitant.
"I don't want to say that you can't come in here, really, I just don't want there to be a lot of noise, is all. Occasional visits aren't at all out of the question," he said.
"I won't be staying all ze time," Kurt said. "I just don't vant her to be lonely."
"I understand," Dr. McCoy said. "I think for right now though, the poor thing just needs to rest."
"And I think you need some food and rest as well, Kurt," said the Professor.
"Oh, I'm fine," Kurt said.
"The bags under your eyes beg to differ," he returned. "There's a bedroom right down the hall that you can stay in. I'll have Ororo bring you something to eat." Kurt reluctantly agreed and left Willow's side for the first time in over a day. He followed the Professor to a room two doors down from Willow's. Kurt looked around at the bare walls and neatly made bed. He observed the thin layer of dust that coated the TV screen. He remembered Willow telling him about all the movies they were going to watch, and it made him sad. He sat carefully on the edge of the bed; pressing his tail against his leg and letting it hang over the edge. He bowed his head and took up his rosary beads and began to pray.
Ororo came in with a bowl of soup and a glass of water for him. Kurt looked up and thanked her as she set the tray on his bedside table, but he did not make any movements towards it.
"Are you going to be alright?" asked Ororo.
"I'm fine," he told her.
"Do you miss her?" Storm asked, meaning Willow.
"Terribly," Kurt said with a shaky smile. "It's very lonely visout her. I vas sort of counting on her to be vis me ven I got here..."
"I feel like it's my fault...I let her go out to the dam," Ororo said.
"No, it isn't your fault. It vas her choice. Ve make choices all ze time. If ve didn't, life wouldn't know vere to go next," Kurt said.
"Maybe that's why Jean did what she did," Storm said softly.
"Possibly. She vas a brave woman to sacrifice herself for ze vans she loved," said Kurt. Storm nodded, trying not to show the pain she felt inside.
"She was my best friend," Storm said softly.
"I am sorry," Kurt said sincerely. "I vish I could make you feel better."
"It's a sweet offer, but I'm afraid I'll have to fix this one on my own," Storm said. She headed for the door. "See you tomorrow, Kurt."
"Good night," he said. Storm left him to his own devices. He ate a little soup and drank all of the water before going back to his prayers. The only person who could help Kurt now was God.
Kurt discarded his heavy coat and leather vest on the desk chair before climbing into bed at around ten, but could not seem to sleep well not knowing if Willow was safe. He left his bed several times in the night to check on her. She stayed in the same position all night.
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The next two weeks passed slowly for Kurt, but he was glad to hear that Willow was getting better. During that time, Dr. McCoy was able to get a hold of an I.V. He hooked Willow up to a liquid diet as soon as he could. The mansion was starting to be repaired. Everyone helped, even Dr. McCoy who possessed super human strength and the ability to climb walls, among other things. He and Kurt helped to fix the hard-to-reach places like second story windows and walls. Every night after the sunset on the workers, Kurt would come into Willow's room and told her of all the things that had gone on during the day, even though he knew she couldn't hear him.
"Vis all of us vorking, ze mansion should be done in no time," Kurt told her as he held one of her limp hands in his. "But I feel sorry for ze children. Every night I hear zem wake up screaming. Ze attack still haunts zem in zeir dreams," he said sadly. "Mr. Summers isn't doing at all well. I rarely see him, and sometimes I can hear him crying in his room. Volverine isn't doing much better, but I never hear him cry," he paused for a moment, gently massaging the warm skin on the top of her hand with his thumbs. "I hope zat you can hear me, and zat you're avake...It is very lonely visout your smile." He scanned her peaceful face, looking for some sign of acknowledgment. He wanted her to know he was there. "It's getting late...I must leave you now. Please vake up soon," he told her quietly. He gave her hand a gentle squeeze before he left the room with a bamf of imploding air.
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The next morning, Kurt woke up with a headache. He rubbed his face with his hands and sighed. The sun was shining through the slats in the blinds and he could see dust particles swirling in the rays. He got up and put his long-sleeved black shirt over his bare chest. He tucked the bottom into his pants and zipped up the vest over it. He straightened it and pulled it down further over his belt before teleporting into Willow's room.
What he saw made Kurt gasp. Willow had turned over on her side in her sleep sometime during the night. Kurt felt like laughing with joy, but kept quiet. He didn't want to wake her up before she was ready. He watched her sleep for a minute, noticing how much more alive she looked than the day before. The doorknob turned and the large figure of Dr. McCoy entered.
"How is she this morning?" he asked.
"She turned over. I sink she's getting better," said Kurt.
"That's a substantial improvement. At least we know she's recovering," said Hank.
"Do you sink zat she vill vake up soon?" asked Kurt anxiously.
"I don't see why she wouldn't. Her strength is obviously coming back. I wouldn't be at all surprised if she was up and about in a couple days," he replied cheerfully.
"Zat's good news," Kurt sighed.
"Why don't you go get some breakfast while I check up on her," Hank suggested. Kurt's stomach had been growling, but he had been good about ignoring it. He agreed reluctantly and used the door to exit the room. Hank checked Willow's pulse and found it to be stronger than ever. He was extremely surprised when she shifted her weight when he touched her neck. Child's got strength to pass around, Hank thought with a smile. He unhooked her I.V. carefully. She hadn't been experiencing any major weight loss, and at the rate she was going, she would be up fairly soon. There was no need to keep it in. He chuckled gently to himself, satisfied with the results of his examination. He left the room and went downstairs to join Kurt for breakfast.
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Wow, what a short chapter. The next one is longer…Willow wakes up!
