Yup, people hate cliff hangers, but unfortunately I'm going to leave you with one again. This might be a bit of a boring chapter, so if you find yourself dozing off, just skip to the end. I promise, my feelings won't be hurt :) But trust me, the next update is going to be intense.
xXx
There was a collective gasp and a few people screamed as we watched our teacher be attacked by our ex classmate. The television went blank as the broadcasters tried to regain control, but that made everyone more upset. We needed to know what was happening! Everyone began talking at once and many girls were crying. Benny struggled against my hold, demanding to know what happened. I quickly motioned Kitty over to take hold of him. She nodded and phased the boy through the floor. He was much too young to have to deal with this.
"Everyone, calm down!" I bellowed, standing on a chair. "This isn't helping!"
I couldn't blame them for acting as they did (hell, I wanted to join them) but I knew we had to be strong.
"Listen up!" Peter roared. This time people listened. People turned to Peter but he motioned to me.
"We're the seniors, we have to help." I said in a loud but calm(ish) voice. "If the juniors saw this, they are going to be freaking out more than us. A group of people should go check on them. But if they haven't heard, we have to do our bests to keep it from them. Anyone with control over emotions or are just good at comforting, go check on them please."
A group of eight seniors (known telepaths and empaths) left the room. I saw Taren and Alex, who I knew was really good with kids, also leave.
Wow, people are actually listening to me. That's freaky.
"Alan and Stacy," I looked over the group to find the two healers in our year. "You two should probably hurry down to the MedBay."
"Why? We all saw what happened. Mr. Summers is gone." Alan argued, his eyes glistening.
That set everyone off again.
"Hey!" I called, drawing back people's attention. "We don't know that! We don't know how bad the damage is-"
"Yes we do, Cyclops got his throat ripped out." Someone muttered.
I ignored them and continued. "It looked pretty bad but Angel was with them. If he started transfusing his blood to Cyclops soon enough, he might be able to heal him or at least stabilize him! But he'll need help. If there is the slightest chance that you can help save his life, wouldn't you rather do that then stand there looking at me stupidly?"
Stacey grabbed Alan's arm as he opened his mouth to argue and dragged him from the room.
"What now, oh fearless leader?" Remy muttered to me.
"Ask everyone to pray?" I whispered back.
Because really, after you've seen your teacher murdered on live television, what is there to do?
And then my eyes caught sight of Alex.
Oh right, I thought guiltily, comfort his brother.
I hopped down from the chair and hurried over to my teammate. Alex was horribly pale and he was shaking. His eyes were unnaturally wide and he wasn't breathing.
"Alex, hey," I put my hand carefully on his shoulder. Don't ask him if he's okay, he's not okay and asking him would just be stupid and it wouldn't help and-
"Hey man, are you okay?" Bobby asked gently.
Slow clap for ice boy.
Alex began to hyperventilate. I did what I could to help him, but it wasn't much. I made people give him a wide berth and tried to coach his breathing. I said comforting things and rubbed his back soothingly, but nothing helped. He looked at me with pitiful, desperate eyes, silently begging for help. He had gotten to the point where he could not control himself and I was worried that he'd pass out from lack of sufficient oxygen.
Professor! Help! I called out with my mind.
Almost instantly, Alex's breathing calmed. The moment his breathing became normal, he fell asleep. Kudos to the Professor.
"Peter, could you carry him to his room, please?" I asked the giant boy softly. "I think the Professor's going to keep him under for awhile."
"Of course Leah." Peter answered, bending down to lift up his friend.
"I'll come and help with the doors." Bobby offered, leading the way.
I breathed a sigh of relief. Thanks Professor.
No, thank you Leah for alerting me to Alex's condition. I should have checked on him immediately, but regrettably one of the younger students has the gift of seeing things as they happen from great distances, and saw the attack. She was so distraught she told the other children what happened and I've been busy helping Ms. Moonstar calm them down. Professor Xavier replied in my mind.
Have you heard any news? Is Cyclops-
Thankfully Angel was quick to begin transfusing his blood to Cyclops, but unfortunately he's still in an unstable condition. Professor Xavier answered, his voice sounding dejected.
I inhaled a sharp breath. Is there anything I can do?
You have done enough, leading the seniors. I imagine now it's up to the doctors and healers.
xXx
Though Angel, Hank and Jean arrived back with Scott less then half an hour after the news broadcast, Mom and Dad didn't get back till around two in the morning. Of course the rest of the X-men had to stay and help, they couldn't just decide 'uh oh, one of our teammates are down, I guess we'll just let the Brotherhood destroy this hospital!'. I was waiting on the couch for them to arrive home. The moment they opened the door, my head snapped up and I rushed to greet them. I threw my arms around my parents and held on to them tightly.
"Whoa, Leah," Dad said in surprise. "What are you still do'n up darl'n?"
"I just wanted to make sure you guys got home okay." I let go of my parents and took a step back to give them some space. They both looked so tired and Mom's eyes were shining as if she'd been crying. While Dad and me were no Summers fans, Mom and Scott had been friends a long time.
"Oh sweetie," Mom sighed. She pulled me towards her and cradled me against her as if I was a kid again.
"I-I," My voice caught in my throat and my eyes began to water. "I saw what happened and then Alex completely broke down to the point where he couldn't breathe, not that I could blame him, I mean, Scott is the only family he has left and and then I started to think what if it was one of you? What if Eric had done that to you and I lost either of you and-"
"Shhh, shh, it's okay darl'n, it's okay." Dad soothed, smoothing back my hair.
"I love you guys, and I don't think I could function if I lost you again." I whispered softly.
"You're not going to lose us." Mom said. "And we're not going to lose you."
I calmed down slowly, appreciating the comfort of my parents' love and protection. Even though I'm almost an adult, I still need my parents more than anything else in this world. They are my air. I've caused them so much trouble over the years, been a pain and a brat, but they've loved me through it.
"Is Cyclops okay?" I asked softy.
"We checked on him when we arrived. They've finally gotten him stable." Mom answered. "But the healers could only do so much."
My brow furrowed with concern. "What do you mean?"
"She means, they still don't know how much damage Summers' has suffered. They don't know if his voice box has grown back." Dad answered grimly.
"So he might not be able to talk anymore?" I asked.
Mom nodded grimly.
"How's Jean?" I asked, guessing the answer.
"Just as bad as Alex, I suspect." Dad said. "The Professor had to put her to sleep as well."
"We'll go check on her in the morning, the same as Alex." Mom stated. "But its late and I think we all need some sleep."
"Alright." I agreed, turning to go to my bedroom. "Oh, and ps. Benny's back and sleeping in the guest room. And he's requested waffles for breakfast tomorrow morning."
"We'll make sure he gets them." Dad replied, not even phased.
I got to my bedroom door and turned around. "I love you guys."
xXx
Scott's attack was the main topic the next morning. The cafeteria buzzed with concern and rumours. Mom and I went to the Summers' apartment with breakfast for Jean and Alex so that they could avoid people. Jean cried onto Mom's shoulder while I tried to comfort Alex. While both of them were relieved that Scott was going to live, they were both extremely worried about his recovery and the chances of permanent damage being done.
In the afternoon, I brought down a bouquet of flowers put together by Mom from her personal indoor garden to the MedBay. Mom planned on coming down to visit Scott later, but had asked me to deliver the flowers for her because she was still comforting Jean. I had hoped that he'd be asleep so I could just sneak in and drop them off, but he was fully awake. And apparently in the middle of a meeting. I glimpsed in the room to see Scott lying in bed, propped up on pillows and attached to many tubes and wires. He was pale from blood loss and his throat was wrapped thickly with gauze. Crammed into the small room around his bed were Dad, Hank, Angel and the Professor.
Oh, this seems like a private meeting, I decided as I quickly ducked out of view of the open door way, I guess I'll just hide out here and eavesdrop.
"-without the Professor's help, Eric has gone completely wild." Hank stated. "He can't control his inner beast."
"I'm not saying I don't believe you, but come on, you and Logan are both feral mutants, just like him and we don't see you two switching sides and ripping out people's throats." Angel countered.
"Eric is much younger than Hank and Logan and he has less control." Xavier said. His voice sounded like it had aged another ten years. "As well, Eric's animal instincts are so dominant that they seemed to create a whole new personality within his mind. For years I've been assisting Eric with building up barriers around this animalistic personality, but without my help, that side of him has completely taken over."
There was the sound of a pen scratching on paper and then silence.
"Scott has a point, we can't let him keep hurting people, even if he's not himself." Hank declared. "He's even more dangerous than Sabretooth at this point."
"How is he more dangerous?" Angel inquired.
"Because bub, if Sabretooth is hurting people, we don't have a problem taking him out. Permanently." I heard Dad say wearily. "But the case changes when it's a student."
There was more scratching from the pen.
"Unfortunately, Scott is right. Everyone one of you cannot let your guard around him falter again." The Professor said in a serious tone. "All of you must be prepared to do what is necessary to protect the civilians and yourselves."
"So you're just going to kill him." I voiced, stepping into the doorway.
The men in the room looked guilty and Dad swore. "Damn, I thought I smelled her."
"If Eric has this split personality disorder or whatever, we have to help him." I tried to keep my voice steady. "You can't just kill someone because they have a mental disorder!"
"Of course we are not planning on killing anyone, Leah." Professor Xavier soothed. His eyes looked pained. "But this is not as simple as a person suffering from a mental disorder."
"Eric's condition is brought on by his anger." Hank explained. "Much like Sabretooth's. He won't fight his inner animal."
"So it's his choice?" I frowned.
Scott scribbled down something on his paper and then held it up for us to see. It read 'He has to make the choice. The animal in him might make him want to act a certain way but it's up to him whether or not he does them."
"It's like a kid who really wants to have a cookie but isn't allowed. He knows he's not supposed to but he lets his wants take over so he sneaks one." Angel supplied.
I remembered how Eric acted. He was just as I remembered him, but the moment something made him angry or he wanted something. Then he changed.
"Nobody wants to kill Eric, Leah." Dad explained, putting a hand on my shoulder. "But we have to be prepared to protect ourselves. We can't let attachments interfere again."
Dad nodded towards Summers. I felt a shudder of guilt over Scott's condition, just as I had for Remy's arm.
"I just want to help him." I said pathetically.
"We know Leah, but practically, I don't know if anyone can." Angel stated.
All the men looked at my with pity. Like I was a stupid little girl who needed protection from herself because she thinks all the strangers in the vans are her friends.
"Well, you don't have to worry about me. I'm not going to let my guard down." I said, placing the flowers on Scott's bedside table. "Catch you guys later."
I left the room, but I wasn't out of hearing range when I heard Angel say "We still have to worry about her, don't we?"
"What do you think birdbrain?"
xXx
"Stop being stupid, stop being stupid, stop being stupid!" I snarled at my reflection as I tried every possible trick to make my hair look nice.
Funny thing was, my hair wasn't listening. What a shocker.
"Quit fiddling with your hair, it looks great." Kitty's overly perky voice scolded behind me and I unleashed a girlish shriek (which I was so not proud of).
"Kitty! How many times do I have to ask you to use the door like a normal person?" I sighed, watching my friend walk through my bedroom wall like a ghost. "You scared the bejeebers out of me!"
"What's the fun in using doors? Besides, I like making you scream." Kitty grinned mischievously as she threw herself onto my bed.
"Great, just what I need," I muttered. "more things to fry my nerves tonight."
"Deep breath Sapien, you look amazing." Kitty consoled as she helped herself to the jellybeans on my nightstand.
"You have to say that, you're my friend." I moaned.
"I mean it! You could be a model!" Kitty exclaimed.
Bless her lying heart.
Tonight Remy was taking me out on our first date. And I was so nervous I had begun my old habit of biting on my lower lip again.
I stared at my reflection judgingly. I wore light make up, because I once overheard Remy saying to Angel that he liked the natural look on girls. I had gone out with Taren and Alex earlier and picked out a cute, short, strapless cherry red dress. It wasn't overly fancy, but it wasn't too casual either. To complete the look, I borrowed an adorable pair of white heels from Kitty.
As excited I was about spending the evening with Remy, I couldn't shake the horrible guilt and confusion I felt about Eric. I felt like I should be focussing on getting him better, not on fooling around with Remy. I had this feeling like I could help Eric fight his inner beast, like he would possibly allow me to help him. Also…I felt like I was somehow cheating on him. Though him and I had never dated, we had flirted. And I had kissed him.
But I was also completely pissed at him for his choice to let his urges rule him. For God's sake, he had almost killed Scott!
"Uh-oh, I know that look." Kitty said, frowning. "You better not be thinking about skipping out on this date, you-"
I waited for Kitty to finish scolding me, but she didn't continue. I laughed, turning to face her. "What's up with-oh no."
"Now, what kind of greeting is that?" Alaban purred in his silky voice. "My, my! Don't you just look good enough to eat?"
He wore an expensive looking black suit and a blood red tie. He stretched out on my bed beside Kitty, who appeared to have been turned into a human statue. I suspected Alaban had cast some sort of dark magic spell on her and I hoped it wasn't permanent.
I had really been hoping I wouldn't see him again.
"Oh don't worry about your perky friend, she'll go back to being her bubbly self once I leave." Alaban drawled in a bored voice.
"Oh, great, in that case you can leave now." I said, faking a cheerful smile.
"Leah, Leah, Leah," Alaban shook his head as if I had hurt his feelings. "After all I've done for you, you treat me like this. You wound me."
"I will wound you if you don't get out of my room!" I barked.
Alaban began to braid Kitty's hair, ignoring my commands. Realizing I couldn't make him leave, I groaned. "What are you doing here?"
"You assume I'm here to cause trouble, but I'm not. Scout's honour." Alaban crossed his heart mockingly before elegantly standing up and sauntering over to me. "You know how you supply me with such entertainment."
"If you want an autographed picture, you'll have to buy one off eBay like everyone else." I said boldly.
Alaban unleashed a musical laugh that made the hair on my neck stand on its end. "So amusing. I really hope you survive the night."
My eyes flashed. "What are you talking about?"
Alaban ignored my question and pulled a camera seemingly out of nowhere. "Like my camera? So many people now a days just use their phones to take pictures, but I'm a purist and insist on using the real thing."
"Stop playing your games and tell me what's going on." I said more firmly.
Instead of answering, Alaban put a cold arm over my shoulders and pulled me close to him He held up the camera and flashed a smile as he took a picture.
"All I wanted was a picture of you and me together." He said innocently, his eyes blood red. "Because who knows if tomorrow you'll even be alive."
"Alaban!" I shouted, but he was already gone. Kitty became mobile again and shivered as if she had just felt a cold draft. Curiously, she felt the braid in her hair that hadn't been there moments before.
"Uh, did I miss something?" She asked.