Update A/N: Okay, so I accidentally deleted a section that I didn't want to delete (curse you, Microsoft word! shakes fist) and this is why there is an update. Also, thanks to Sylvarpen for the critique, if you want to learn about constructive criticism, read his review. Love you all and enjoy! (PS everyone knows by now that I, unfortunately, own nothing except my own characters)

Healing

McCoy spoke into a small device that was located in his left ear, shouldering the shaking Shifter.

"Lex, you want a lesson, get in here." He spoke with authority, but there was a tenderness that overlapped the sentence, as if he wasn't used to talking to teenagers with the mindset of a teacher. Kela was tired, tired of everything, and she just wanted to sleep for the rest of her life, however short it would be.

You should have listened to me, you know. The voice said, but all the same, you handled the situation very well. They might have a chance, with you at the X-Men's side.

A chance, a chance from what? And what is an "X-Men"? Can you tell me what is going on? Kela asked. There were so many questions she had, but there seemed no room or time in her head to ask them all. Kela slowly calmed down as McCoy held her tighter, allowing her to soak in the warmth his body offered. He smelled like her father, the smell of books and ink, of long hours and countless emotions over certain types of issues, from politics to social issues. The image of a tanned man, with black hair disheveled with kind dark-green eyes, similar to her own, appeared in her mind. Her heart constricted in painful memories, and she banished him from her mind. Can't remember, not good for me, she thought.

Hank opened the door to the medical room, and placed Kela down on the metal table that had been her bed for however long she had been unconscious. An adjacent door opened, and a boy, older than Kela by perhaps three or four years, entered. He had a face that had all the angles and mannerisms of a man. He had long, blonde hair that nearly covered his deep brown eyes. He ran a hand, almost self-consciously, through the mane, and he finished pulling off the grime-covered gloves, the smell of oil rolling off them.

"I was in the middle of changing the jeep's oil, and then you get all angry and call me in here. What is it? Need help de-clogging the shower drain again?" he smiled, the light British accent trailing across the room, into Kela's ears. She tightened her hand, and the searing feeling lanced from her mid-arm and into her brain. She hissed in pain.

"God, that's a nasty burn." Lex went over to the sink, and began furiously scrubbing his hands and arms. Hank shook his head, and pulled on some gloves. He started to treat the burn on her arm. It wasn't deep, but it still felt as if she had been run over with a sander. She turned her head away from McCoy as he settled to work on cleaning and treating her burn. Lex had turned around, and pulling on his gloves he asked, "So, what's your name? Mine's Lex, and I think that I might learn yours before I start to help you." He smiled, and she just stared at him.

Hank McCoy chuckled. "She doesn't speak much, so good luck getting her to talk to you. It's Kela, right? I heard Caliban talking about you. You have some interesting powers, from what I saw. I just want to know how you can stay so invisible?" his eyes showed his curiosity. Kela was still unsure, as if at anytime, she would wake from this dream, and be back from where she started. She just turned down her eyes, avoiding any kind of contact to which she was afraid of.

Better off not letting them in, that way, when I leave, it won't be as hard. Kela decided.

You need to let people in sometimes, it helps. The voice responded.

I've tried that before, it's not that easy, and it makes you ripe for betrayal. I would rather be alone and alive than surrounded and dead. Besides, they don't want me; I would just get in the way.

Trust me, they need you. There was a pause, as Kela thought about this.

Can I ask you something?

Yes?

How is it that you know more about me than I do myself? And why is it that you picked me?

I am more than what you think I am. As for the other question, you will need to figure that out for yourself.

Kela wrinkled her nose in impatience. She didn't like not knowing the whole plan; it made her feel, useless, vulnerable. McCoy and Lex kept working, oblivious to the silent conversation she had just had with the voice called Charles.

Back in the danger room, Logan and Storm were finishing up telling the tale of the Shifter girl who had come from Costa Rica, and how she just appeared in Caliban's mind. They all were a bit skeptical about the small girl who suddenly appeared in the danger room situation.

"So…she just randomly gets on the radar long enough for Logan to fly down to Costa Rica, save her butt, and come back here, only to have her arm nearly shot off by one of the robot sentinels? And what exactly can she do?" Bobby asked, obviously underestimating what she would soon be able to do.

"In a nutshell, yes. But we need to give her time. She's had quite a shock, being alone for quite some time, and now she's shoved into a new situation, a new life. Which is why she is rooming with Kitty and Jubiliee." Ororo reasoned. Sometimes it was difficult for them to understand that they were still finding new mutants who needed their help. It may have been two and a half years since Charles had died, but with Caliban's help, they could continue to keep the school in its true form: a place for mutants to gather and learn to control their powers in a safe environment, away from prying eyes and prejudiced stares.

Pete didn't seem to mind. He was one of the more accepting mutants, with the girl even reminded him of his younger sister back home. She was a small person, but all the same, he sensed something great about her. He would trust her, even if Kela did not trust him.

"Well, all the same, I think we should give her a chance. Like Storm says, we need to keep this school going, if only for the Professor, if nothing else." Peter said. That stilled any complaint any of the other mutants had. There was a consensus.

Putting the last touches on the bandage on Kela's side, Lex and McCoy cleaned up any remaining gauzes that they had laid out. They were talking animatedly with each other, about who did what and what mutant did this with what powers. McCoy did a primary check over on Kela, making sure that any trace of the disease she had come in with was gone.

"So, how long was she out?" Lex asked. McCoy had told Lex about the girl who had been brought to the school under unsusal circumstances, the insect bite that caused her to faint and bring out a fever.

"About a week. Actually, I'm surprised that she could get better so quickly, normally a disease like what she had would take months to recover." Hank had turned, loading a syringe with some kind of vaccination that would make sure the disease was gone and would stay that way.

One week! I've been here too long, they could be coming right now. Kela thought. Kela was never one to be unconscious surrounded by potential betrayers, people who would turn her in to make a quick buck. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the glint of a needle.

Kela jumped onto the bed with agility that surprised even her; until now she had been wiped out from her ordeal in the Danger Room. Her mind flooded with images of darkened rooms, cold metal tables and mysterious concoctions that usually yielded dangerous results. she backed up until she reached the other end of the bed, yanking the cape tighter around her, and would have fallen off if it weren't for the bars that were raised to prevent a patient from falling off and injuring themselves further. Lex seemed unsurprised, but still concerned for the girl that was terrified of a little needle that would help her rather than harm her.

Hank, on the other hand, backed off. He had seen what happens when you back an animal in a corner, and though Kela was no animal (that he knew of), she was showing signs that she could either change and attack, or she would hurt herself further by trying to escape.

"It's alright. the needle is just something to make you feel better." What happened to you? McCoy thought. To show her, he injected the needle into his own arm. It would neither hurt nor harm him. To his relief, Kela relaxed, and moved back to the edge of the bed. He disposed of the used needle and got out another one, which he filled with the same serum. She turned away as he injected her with the vaccination. She sighed, and McCoy saw her mouth moving, telling herself that nothing was going to happen. He frowned, desperately want Kela to trust someone, anyone.

He cleared his throat. "Now you'll want to let that burn rest for a bit, so no overexertion for a while. If my theory holds true, you should be able to take off the bandages after a couple of weeks."

Kela was beginning to feel the aftereffects of the adrenaline rush, but try as she might; there was no rest to her weary mind. Millions of things kept creeping into her brain, from where she was, who these X-Men were, and what exactly was she hear for. She closed her eyes, and tried to concentrate. A thing kept coming into her mind, that of the killer Primeval that always threatened to come out of the cage.

There was one things Shifters had that were their greatest adversary: a Primeval. This thing that would appear out of thin air, take over a Shifter's conscious, and destroy everything in its wake. With the Primeval, it would strike without warning and never fully retreat back into its shell. Only the most skilled Shifters could destroy their Primeval, any less so died in the attempt, or were killed.

Kela opened her eyes at the feel of a hand on her shoulder. She turned and saw Lex standing next to her with a worried look on his face.

"Dr. McCoy, can you get Kela something to eat, she seems pale." Lex had become the exact opposite of what he was portraying. Instead of the careless joker that she had seen before, here he was staring at her, looking right through into what she was feeling.

McCoy cleared his throat. "Keep your powers to yourself. She doesn't need you snooping around. Lex can enhance and detect mutants' powers, which is why Caliban could find you. One little bump and Caliban could reach to the farthest part of Central America. Quite lucky, actually, I don't think you would have survived much longer if we hadn't found you." He smiled, and Kela baulked, she would rather think that she would be perfectly fine if Logan had never shown up. She felt a slight tap on the shoulder, and Lex held out a set of clothes. He had stepped out during McCoy's talk, and had found the smallest size.

Hank and Lex turned around while Kela got dressed. The sweatpants he had given her were a bit too long, but the jacket and tank top fit perfectly. Kela loved the feel of the smooth cotton on her skin; she hadn't worn something this soft in quite some time. She seemed emboldened.

"Thank you." Hank McCoy smiled. Tenderly, Kela flexed her arm and side. The ointment that McCoy had wiped over the burn had eliminated nearly all of the pain, leaving a slight discomfort. Kela felt something she hadn't felt in nearly five years: contentment. Being in this place had given her a sense that she might belong here, how the people, these non-Shifters could help her, allow Kela to feel a sense of normalcy, if only for a certain amount of time, however brief.

Kela let them in, let this place in. This could mean your survival, and the survival of others. The voice told her, reading her thoughts. Kela took a deep breath, and subtly nodded.

"So, whenever you…change, do you always lose your clothes? I think I might have a way to fix that. I am quite the engineer, you know. In the meantime, try not to change and rip your clothes off, as much fun as I might have with that." Lex smiled at his little joke, and Kela blushed. She itched her arm over the bandage, and was rewarded with a small jolt of pain at scratching skin that felt like hamburger meat.

Logan, Storm, and Kitty walked into the medical room, and Kela slinked into the farther edge of the room, waiting for any one of them to bombard her with questions about what she was and how she ended up in the Danger Room. Logan frowned. So she still is afraid. He thought. Logan knew it would take time for Kela to get used to the way things were here, and he would wait. He noticed that she kept flicking her gaze to his hands, then back up to his eyes, as if she would be able to sense he might release his claws and attack her. Absently, he rubbed his knuckles, right where each claw would appear, and folded his arms.

"Well, this is going to take some getting used to. I'll let Kitty and Storm fill you in on the whole deal here, I need a drink." Logan said, seeming to forget he worked and lived at a school. He turned and walked out, a bit awkwardly. Kitty just shook her head. "Don't worry, you'll get used to him. I think. Anyway, you can come with me; I'll show you your room. Space is a bit tight, what with all the mutants that keep showing up due to the MRA and all. By the way, sorry about mistaking you for a hologram, but at least you didn't get blasted away right?" Kela stared, not sure what Kitty was trying to say. She shrugged and continued on her way. Kela felt the stares some of the younger "non-Shifters" were giving her, but she was intent on walking ahead, trying to ignore the growling in her mind.

Kela, you need to sleep. I can help you get rid of the thing inside you, but it will take some work. I've never seen a power this strong before, excepting one or two.

Charles, how can you help me? You are just some voice in my head, something I created, I guess, to deal with this place.

You have no idea, do you?

Kela focused on a spot on the back of Kitty's head, ignoring the Charles-voice. Kitty showed Kela a room with a couple of beds.

"Jules is out for a bit, so you can have her bed. I guess you'll want to sleep now. If you're hungry, there's food downstairs in the kitchen. I will be out, and the bathroom is down the hall. See you in the morning, I guess." Kitty walked out of the room, and shut the door. Kela sighed, and slunk down on the bed. She itched the bandage on her side, and lay down on the bed. Try as she might, her mind would not rest enough for her to sleep.

Absently, she stared at the wall, twirling her hair. She didn't notice the window opening, and a boy about her age slink inside. When Kela turned over in her discomfort, she saw the boy clamp a hand over her mouth.

"You need to come with me." He said. "We are here to help."