New School Blues
Look at her.
Ooh, check out the new girl!
Skinny… leggy… she'd make a great cheerleader if she were taller!
Oh, my… GOD, there goes Duncan!
Kylie struggled to keep the barrage of impressions out of her head. She wished she wasn't so curious; she wished she didn't want to fit in so badly. She wished that she could just walk straight and not worry about bumping into anyone.
Too bad she's already hanging out with the wrong crowd, the thought came loud and clear, like a bell, and Kylie slowly turned to set eyes upon the principal. Mr. Kelly stood in his office door as Lance and Todd led around Kylie. She kept stumbling, as Lance tugged her first one way, then Todd responded by pulling in the opposite manner. Her dark eyes widened as Kelly retreated into his office, and she was forced to face around forward again.
"And down this hallway's the cafeteria," Lance was chiming. "And out that door and across that lawn is the science building… the uh, soccer field's still kinda toast right now."
"No thanks to us," Todd inserted with a proud sniff. He reached into her backpack and pulled out the schedule. "So… wow! You got some smarts, yo!"
Lance suddenly brightened, and sped up his pace. Kylie was mildly interested to find the object of his quest was a petite brunette in a pink cardigan. "Hey, Kitty!"
Todd sighed and tugged on her sleeve. "C'mon, homeroom is this way," he sounded slightly bitter. Kylie glanced back over her shoulder as she allowed Todd to lead her away. Lance was obviously not having any luck talking with the object of his affections.
She followed Todd quietly, still listening to some of the thoughts that she passed by. One girl she walked by, a tall, leggy redhead, was a complete blank slate. Kylie would have paused for a moment to regard her longer, but Todd's tugs got slightly more urgent.
"Hey! Tolensky!" a gruff voice called out.
Todd froze, and moved to hide behind Kylie as they turned. Kylie could see the redhead watching from her locker, while a trio, led by a burly blonde in a football jacket, approached with closed fists.
"I see you've found yourself a girlfriend, Toady," he sneered, eyeing Kylie appraisingly.
"She ain't my girlfriend, Duncan!" Todd defended from behind her legs.
"Good, then she won't mind if I pound your face!" Duncan placed his hand on Kylie's shoulder to push her out of his way. But she refused to budge, grabbing his thick wrist with both of her hands.
"I may not be his girlfriend… but I am his friend," Kylie said quietly. "So, I suggest you leave him alone."
Duncan seemed astonished that a girl would stand up to him. But he refused to bend, and pushed a little harder on her shoulder. Kylie bent slightly under the pressure, and partially released his wrist. With two fingers, she reached forward and jabbed them up under his armpit. Duncan yelped, and let her go.
"What was that?" he cried indignantly, holding his numb arm.
Kylie simply put her
hand on Todd's shoulder. "Let's go," she said, gently
leading him further away. "Have I ever mentioned that I hate
jocks?" She spared one glance back over her shoulder, meeting the
redhead's emerald eyes coolly.
They continued in silence again,
as Kylie keep half an eye out for the football jocks to try something
else. Her mind was so busy wandering all over the school that she
didn't even notice that Todd had stopped hopping to talk with
someone. He grabbed her hand and pulled her back to reality.
"Hey, Earth to dreamer girl! Kylie, you in there?" Todd was laughing at her expense; Kylie blushed a deep crimson, and hid behind the dark corkscrew curls.
"Oh, wow," Todd's companion, breathed. "She is… I mean, you are very pretty."
Kylie blushed even deeper. He was young, probably closer to Todd's age than hers, with raven hair and a bright wide smile. He clutched his books to his chest, as if protecting himself from something, or perhaps protecting her.
"Ky, this is Kurt," Todd waved his hands around by introduction. "Kurt, this is Kylie. She's stayin' at the Boardin' House."
"Oh," Kurt seemed to be at a loss for words suddenly. He nearly dropped his books at the bell rang just overhead. "Ah! I'm gonna be late!" He ran off at top speed, sliding around the corner as he ducked into his classroom. The bell, like a firehouse alarm, rang for thirty seconds, while Kylie swayed slightly on her feet.
The heat was tremendous, a blazing ball of napalm dropped directly on top of her. Wreckage was strewn all around, shrapnel, bits of cars, bits of people… a strip of smoldering cloth drifted down before her eyes. A hand reached through the fire, burning, blackened and crisping. The stench of burning flesh made her gag. Tearful blue eyes stared at her from a living column of flame. Kylie fell.
"Ky? Ky?" Todd was leaning over her, his arm looped under her head. "Hey? Hey, you with me?" He brushed her hair from her face as her dark eyes fluttered open.
She drew in a deep breath, and shuddered to the bone. Patting Todd's hands, she sat herself up slowly. She shuddered again and rose shakily to her feet. "We… we're goin' a be late." She pulled at his hand, removing it from her shoulders. It took her another few moments to get the courage up to walk, and even longer to shake the vision from her mind.
"Amazing, Miss McManus, you have incredible talent," Mrs. Keyes leaned slightly over Kylie's shoulder as the girl continued to smudge charcoal around the paper with her fingers. The teacher continued to hover as Kylie ignored her, wishing only to be left alone. Her dark eyes lifted from the paper for a brief second, connecting with a pair of green eyes staring at her across the table.
"Thank you," she muttered under her breath, turning her attention back to the portrait she was working on. She darkened the area around the eyes with a few quick strokes, and wished the teacher would just go away.
"When you are finished, may I sho-"
"No!" Kylie didn't even let her finish, hunching a little further over her project. "No," she repeated in a softer voice. "I don't want anyone else to see it."
The teacher straightened with a quiet harrumph, and Kylie closed herself off by trying to capture the perfect degree of… bestiality in the charcoal drawing. Kylie worked feverishly, her shoulders aching from protecting her art from those around her. Suddenly, she was aware of the redhead across the table standing up, and peering over. Kylie's heart stopped in her throat as those green eyes widened slightly in recognition. Accusingly, Kylie lifted the front of her paper, curling it over to block the other girl's view.
"Excuse me?" Kylie asked, her voice touched with irritation. "Something I can help you with?"
The redhead smiled. It was the same one who stood by and watched, while that jock had tormented Todd. Her smile was popular-perfect, and Kylie fought the urge to sneer in her face. "You're new, aren't you?"
Rocket scientist, aren't you?, she was tempted to answer. She bit back the response, and attempted to smile in return. "Kylie."
"My name's Jean," the redhead flashed that dazzling smile again. "She's right you know, Mrs. Keyes, is. You have an amazing talent; you shouldn't be afraid to show it off."
Kylie suddenly raised her brow, cocking one high over her eye in an expectant manner. The girl never continued, as the lunch bell rang. Kylie was quick to bundle her things up, throwing her duffelbag over her shoulder and vacating the room before the redhead could pursue.
She ran into Lance in the hallway, nearly fumbling and dropping her sketch in her astonishment.
"Hey," Lance steadied her with a hand. "What's the rush? Don't like the school?"
Kylie shook her head slightly, letting her curls fall forward over her shoulders. Behind her, the class was emptying out slowly. Jean turned in Kylie's direction, then seemed to think better of the action. Kylie noticed that she and Lance exchanged knowing looks, before the upperclassmen disappeared down the hall.
"I get it," he continued. "You let Ms. Popular rattle your cage." He grinned and looped his arm around her shoulders, leading her towards the cafeteria. "Let me let you in on a li'l secret…" He leaned over and whispered into her ear.
Kylie's eyes widened with joy. "Really?" She smiled then, feeling much better about things. "That explains a lot; I had a suspicion."
Lance let his arm drop from her shoulders, laughing with her now. "Come on, we gotta get to the café before Freddy eats all the food!" He picked up his pace, running a little as he dodged and wove between people. Kylie kept up easily, her smaller size making for easier passage in some places.
The café was littered with kids, both upper- and lowerclassmen lingered in and about the lines. Two swinging glass doors led out into the campus, where twenty or so picnic tables waited. Already, Duncan's crowd was seated outside, while Jean's red hair stuck out like fire among the crowd, inside.
Fire. Kylie's eyes tore from the thought as she fell into line behind Lance. Her appetite took a huge dive as she eyed the offered foods. She caught sight of Todd, and Pietro, and Wanda, and almost wished she could avoid all of them too. Todd smiled broadly, and waved her over with a long arm. Kylie returned his smile, shyly, and touched Lance's shoulder to get his attention.
"I'm… not very hungry, Lance," she admitted quietly. "I'm just going to go sit down."
Lance gave her a worried glance, but nodded. Kylie slipped out of line, and threaded her way through the crowd quietly. Todd scooted closer to Wanda as she approached, making room on the bench for her. Kylie rested her dufflebag on the table, threw one leg over the bench, and proceeded to slide her sketchbook inside. Wanda was watching her carefully; Kylie avoided eye contact, though she could hear the other girl's thoughts as clear as day.
I don't know what your gig is girl, but you're really starting to annoy me.
Kylie wrapped her arms around her duffle, and hid her face in the canvas. She felt Todd's hand on her back lightly, but it was gone in seconds. She screwed her eyes shut and sent her consciousness out, looking, feeling, skimming over students' thoughts. She extended her perceptions beyond the school, and felt them lingering around. Biting her lip, she opened her eyes, and looked directly at Lance. Her heart lurched.
His eyes were blue.
"Please, Lance, you just have to trust me," Kylie pleaded with him on the way to chemistry class. "We need to take a different route to the boarding house after school."
"I don't understand why," Lance returned, shoving his hands deeper into his pockets. "The quickest way home is up the interstate. It'll take us over an hour going up the back roads."
"God, Lance, please," Kylie grabbed his arm, stopping him in the middle of the hallway. "Don't make me outline this for you…" He continued to stare at her blankly, and she pulled him off to the side. "I had a vision."
Lance arched a brow. "A vision?" he repeated.
"I watched you die." Kylie didn't temper the blow. Lance's face drained of color. "The jeep was on fire, and so where you…" On the edge of her perception, something moved. Turning slightly, Kylie realized that it was her mental perception that was shifting. They knew where she was again. She bit her lip. "We need to take a different route to the house…"
Lance grabbed her shoulders. "You're scaring me, you know that?" He leaned down until his gaze was level with hers. "But I trust you, so the long way home it is."
Kylie breathed a sigh of relief, and let Lance lead her the rest of the way to chemistry.
"So because of Kylie's warning, we're going to take an hour to get home instead of twenty minutes?" Pietro refused to get in the truck. "I can run faster than that."
"So run, then," Kylie snarled from the front seat. Her patience was about run out; she leaned over and rummaged around in the bag at her feet. Withdrawing the 9mm from the bottom of the bag, she checked the safety and tucked it under her leg.
Lance climbed into the driver's seat. "I for one, am not going to risk that she's telling the truth." He adjusted the rear view as Todd and Wanda wedged themselves in beside Freddy.
Pietro shrugged. "I'll see ya at home then!" Kylie squinted against the gust of wind that rose up around him. He moved faster than the eye could track him, and was gone in moments. Kylie found his pseudonym QuickSilver quite fitting.
She glanced into the back seat, where Wanda had resolutely crossed her arms and taken to staring out the window. "Let's get going, Lance," Kylie said quietly. "Max isn't used to being inside; he's probably going nuts."
Lance smiled, but the smile faded as Kylie pulled the 9mm out from under her leg, to rest it on her lap. She watched the roadside as it passed by, her eyes nervously darting around. She was expecting trouble.
Lance pulled the Jeep into the driveway, and cut the engine. "See Kylie, nothing happened. You're just paranoid."
Kylie hopped out of his jeep, and threw her duffle bag into her Wrangler. She tucked the gun into the waistband of her jeans, and looked around. Her eyes closed as the rest of the Brotherhood began to pile out of the vehicle. Todd stretched, cracking the joints in his back and shoulders. As Kylie's eyes opened, she looked around at the others.
"Where's Pietro?"
Wanda's brow furrowed; her brother wasn't out here gloating about their long trip. She was the first to move toward the house; Kylie ran to catch up with her. Wanda's hand had barely touched the door, when it swung slowly open. Her dark eyes widened, and she covered her mouth. Kylie pushed past her.
Pietro lay sprawled on the floor, barely past the entrance. A bright scarlet trail threaded through his platinum white hair. Kylie stepped around him delicately, letting Lance and Freddy take care of him. She felt tremors start in her hands, her limbs shaking as she moved slowly through the house. Three days, she hadn't even been here three days! She turned the corner into the living room, and backed up suddenly.
"MAX!" Kylie's scream shook the windows.
Todd scrambled around the corner, nearly loosing his footing. His stomach rose to rebel as he took in the scene before him. Holding his breath, he fought the urge to vomit. Kylie knelt in the center of the living room, with Max's giant black head in her lap. The dog had been eviscerated, and dismembered. The poor creature's body parts were strewn all about the room. Todd tried to back pedal to get out of the room but found his way blocked by his compatriots.
"Kylie?" Lance's voice broke the silence, but she didn't move. She continued petting the dead dog's head, rocking slowly back and forth on her knees. Wanda tapped Lance's arm lightly, and pointed to the opposite wall.
'You're Next, Prophet,' was written in long bloody letters. Lance moved into the room, pushing past Todd.
"Wanda, can you get in touch with Mystique?" He asked over his shoulder, quietly, before leaning down behind Kylie. He placed his hands on her shoulders; she was crying, silently, her tears causing big wet marks on the dog's fur. "Kylie?"
She refused to look up at him, but gave a half-hearted attempt to shrug his hands off. She hiccupped, and sniffled, and petted Max's soft dense fur. Lance pulled on her shoulders gently, and found that she didn't resist. He scooped her up into his arms, and tried to let Max's head fall as gently as he could. Letting her cry into his denim vest, he carried her up to her room.
Wanda returned to the living room; Pietro came behind her with a bag of ice on his head. Todd looked up at the tall senior.
"Who did this, Piet?" he asked, expecting an answer. "Who'd be this mean?"
Pietro shook his head gingerly. "I didn't get to see them, okay? They got me from behind."
In silence, they all surveyed the carnage, and the tattered remains of the dog. Freddy wiped a tear from his eye as he turned again, to slide out of the doorway. Lance reappeared, scowling, but found he had nothing to say either.
"So," Todd glanced up at the others, finally breaking the silence. "Who's gonna like, clean that up, yo?"