"Momo"? Storm smiled at Fuzzes' nickname for her. "Is it eight o'clock already"? The green haired girl nodded as she made her way into Storm's room. Moving what was left of the un-graded papers off her desk Ororo turned to face the child. "How was school today"? Fuzz's smile faded at Storm's question as she turned to the open book bag on the floor. She had hoped Momo would not ask her and sought for an excuse not to answer deciding on offering a question instead. "Can we read Huck Fin now"?
Crawling into the bed behind them Fuzz patted the space on the mattress beside her. "Sit here Momo". Storm stood looking at the girl a moment before sitting down on the recommended spot. It was not like Fuzz to pass up an opportunity to talk about school. In the past there had not been a night she had not come home beaming over a recent good grade or project. This past week however had proved to be an exception. In that nights reading Huck and his Slave Jim had managed to escape Huck's new home via a makeshift raft which they used to begin sailing north to freedom.
"They must have been scared" Fuzz whispered as Storm closed the book. The weather goddess nodded. "Yes they were". "Do you ever get scared" the girl continued? "Scared of what" the woman asked. Fuzz licked her lips nervously before speaking again. "Of…of bad people…people who want to hurt you because you're different". Storm felt a single hand unconsciously move to her chest in an effort to stop the sudden pumping within. "I…whe…what made you think of that"? The girl shrugged hoping her caretaker wouldn't notice the shaking of her hands beneath the sheet. "Sometimes…sometimes I". Fuzz was silent again aiding in the building of Ororo's curiosity and worry. "Sometimes you what"? The girl was quiet for a long moment this time. Her eyes searched the ceiling and floor for answers but when she found none returned to Storm. "I'm sleepy".
Fuzz had never shown any signs of being afraid of the dark before but insisted Storm retrieve a nightlight for her room that night. Leaving the room Storm found a small plug in bulb in the kitchens socket returning a few minutes later only to find Fuzz fast asleep in her bed. It truly was a sweet sight. She slept in a tight ball at the corner of the bed and despite the girls age she still had a habit of sleeping with her thumb resting between her lips. Storm would have considered waking her had it not been for the strange sight that caught her interest.
Returning back to her place beside Fuzz Storm looked on as the child slept. In the dim light of the hall the woman frowned as she noticed a small dark spot beneath the girl's neck. Gently she brushed aside a tuff of hair and studied the discolored patch. Based on the shape of it she knew it was not a shadow and upon further inspection found that there were four more identical imprints forming the shape of a hand on the child's neck. The gasp that came from Ororo's lips released every ounce of air her body contained.