Post by forge on Jul 24, 2006 16:05:17 GMT -5
Rayen looked at him, a certain adolescent resentment on her face, as if to tell him he couldn't just tell her what to do. But then she had to look away. Such a conflict of emotion, wanting badly just to hug him, in the same step wanting to beat into him until she had no more strength. He'd left her there. He deserved whatever pain he was now in.
Forge was almost out the door when he looked back to see her still standing there, a look of conflicting emotion on her face to equal his own. He took a few strides back to her, and put his hand around hers.
“Rayen, let’s go talk about this… but it needs to be outside. C’mon.” He walked towards the door again, hoping she would allow herself to be dragged along, and not toast him a little to make him let her go.
Raven's feet stepped forward a little clumsily, half of her not wanting to go, the other half following eagerly.
She said nothing as they walked out onto the lawn towards the tree. Her hand grasped his, and tears slowly drew down her face as the contact scraped at the walls she'd built around her heart.
It hadn't occurred to her to wonder at the chances of them finding one another here.
When finally outside, a safe distance from the threat of electrocution, Forge turned to face his sister… his sister? What the hell were the odds of this? A brief analysis in his head conjured the fact that if both were mutants, then the likelihood of running into each other eventually at the Xavier Institute wasn’t as remote as it would seem. They did share the same father, he thought, and it was told the father carried the gene.
A spear of pain was burning in his chest, ever-present since this renewal of his past – intentionally buried beneath a mountain of technology. He looked at her tears, and felt his own eyes wetting.
“Rayen… I know you must hate me furiously. I… can’t blame you for that. You and your mother must have had a terrible life after I fled, and I should’ve done something to help you. Know that I tried, at least. I knew he’d… well, he’d do what he does. I knew he would, and I tried to come to you, to at least talk to you. He wouldn’t let me. He put every resource at his disposal to stop me…”
Rayen listened, shaking her head halfway through. She fists went up to her face, and she shook before putting them down again.
"I was a little girl! He didn't have me locked away you know!" She gasped after that rush of emotion, only to yell again. "You should have taken me out of there!" Her voice was a torrent of the sort of hurt only he would understand. He'd grown up in that household too. "She left, did you know that?" She looked at him, a little crazed and broken. "And so did you."
Turning away, she sat down hard on the ground and sobbed, unable to hold it back any more.
“She left?” He asked, only a half second before it hit him. “Oh… oh no, Rayen… I…”
Without her mother there as a shield, he knew EXACTLY what it must have been like to be with that man. How could someone leave their own daughter with such a person? He felt hot tears stand out on his cheeks, just at the thought of what it must have been for her. He left, then her own mother left. Both left her to rot in hell.
He dropped to his knees beside her, pulling her face into his chest, letting her sob. God knew he wanted to sob right then too. Instead he squeezed his eyes shut, and attempted to absorb her into him with his arms.
“Rayen... he actually had me beaten, as a lesson. I tried to get you, and he had me beaten.” His voice sounded wavery, and the flashback of the three heavies raining kicks and punches onto his face and body didn’t sting him as much as the thought that he had failed to help her. “I gave up, though, I thought your mother would surely… Oh God Rayen, I can’t apologize enough. My mother died, you know that, I was raised alone with him… I know it was terrible. I should’ve done more, should’ve went to the police, I… I’m so sorry, Rayen.”
Rayen cried thirteen years of tears, and sounded not too different from the little girl he was forced to leave behind. Leaning into him, she pressed her face to his shoulder and slowly began to calm down.
"I'm so sorry Bandero," she whispered, hiccuping. "I'm sorry I hurt you. I was just so angry. Sometimes... sometimes I think I'm becoming exactly like him."
“No… no” he whispered back, petting the back of her head gently. “Don’t be. I had it coming, I think, and anyway – I’m pretty okay now.”
He breathed in a few deep breaths and took control of his voice once more.
“Not in a million years could I think you could become like him, Rayen. That man wasn’t human… wasn’t even close.”
She stayed there in his arms, not wanting to move. It felt like coming home to a feeling she had almost forgotten. "You're a mutant...?"
He laughed a little, sounding like a nervous chuckle. “Yeah. I’m a mutant. I’m a minor telekinetic, and have a version of psychometry – object reading. And… uhh, I also have some electrokenetic skills, though thinking about it… I think the accident, with you, was responsible for the latter. Seems to make sense. I was building up a resistance to your charge in the hallway – it’s why I’m alright.”
Then he added: “But you are! I can’t believe it! That’s awesome… you’ve got electricity control, right?”
Rayen sat back, wiping her eyes. She nodded. "Yeah. I think that's what happened that day at the casino. I don't think there's a limit to the amount of current I can pass through myself."
She looked at him a moment, a hint of a smile on her otherwise sad face.
"I'm so glad you're here..."
He smiled too, there for comfort and because he couldn’t hold it back. He sat there on his knees, studying her for the first real time in ten years.
“Yeah… I’m glad you’re here too. I can’t express how glad. Here with others like us, in a place of such commradery.” He smiled now more freely, thinking of how great the school was for any mutant, then added as an afterthought: “I’m an X-Man.”
She laughed tearfully. "An X-Man, really? Mohanes told me I would find my road here. I don't think he knew it would be you." She spoke of the man they had both known as children, but only Rayen knew as something close to a grandfather. Did Bandero know she'd been on the reservation the last seven years?
“Mohanes?” He asked, eyebrows raising. “How is that Methuselah? It’s awesome he’s still around, I always liked that guy. Have you been to the reservation, then?”
Her road would be found here. He had no doubt the truth in that… if there was thing he discovered about the mansion, it had a lot to offer. And he was here now to protect her. He’d always be here to protect her.
Rayen smiled. "I ran away when I was 16. He took me in... I've been there ever since. I never left, not even for a day." Her smile faded a bit. "Did you ever hear about the kids that died under that tower back home?"
He had. How could he have not heard about it? 12 kids killed in a freak electrical explosion… Forge frowned. “Rayen… look, I know it must be hard, I really do. There are more than a fair share of mutants here in this school who have similar horror stories. I want you to know that. They’ll help you here – help you control it, help you deal with it, help you learn. Plenty of people to talk to and share these experiences with… I’m one of them. I definitely am.”
He smiled, looking down a bit to look into her eyes, a gesture of understanding.
“We… the X-men, we’re about to go to Baltimore. Hear about the cure? Well, anyway there’s going to be some trouble brewing there. We’re about to have a meeting about it. I want you to come with us, to Baltimore. It’ll give us more time to talk, and it’ll be a good opportunity to put your abilities to good use. What do you think?”
Rayen sighed softly. He didn't shame her, or think she was horrible... he just... understood?
There was no way she could know what exactly they were up against in Baltimore, but something inside her still responded to Bandero as if she were that little girl and he the dashing, brilliant older brother. She smiled softly.
"Yeah. Let's do that."
Forge was almost out the door when he looked back to see her still standing there, a look of conflicting emotion on her face to equal his own. He took a few strides back to her, and put his hand around hers.
“Rayen, let’s go talk about this… but it needs to be outside. C’mon.” He walked towards the door again, hoping she would allow herself to be dragged along, and not toast him a little to make him let her go.
Raven's feet stepped forward a little clumsily, half of her not wanting to go, the other half following eagerly.
She said nothing as they walked out onto the lawn towards the tree. Her hand grasped his, and tears slowly drew down her face as the contact scraped at the walls she'd built around her heart.
It hadn't occurred to her to wonder at the chances of them finding one another here.
When finally outside, a safe distance from the threat of electrocution, Forge turned to face his sister… his sister? What the hell were the odds of this? A brief analysis in his head conjured the fact that if both were mutants, then the likelihood of running into each other eventually at the Xavier Institute wasn’t as remote as it would seem. They did share the same father, he thought, and it was told the father carried the gene.
A spear of pain was burning in his chest, ever-present since this renewal of his past – intentionally buried beneath a mountain of technology. He looked at her tears, and felt his own eyes wetting.
“Rayen… I know you must hate me furiously. I… can’t blame you for that. You and your mother must have had a terrible life after I fled, and I should’ve done something to help you. Know that I tried, at least. I knew he’d… well, he’d do what he does. I knew he would, and I tried to come to you, to at least talk to you. He wouldn’t let me. He put every resource at his disposal to stop me…”
Rayen listened, shaking her head halfway through. She fists went up to her face, and she shook before putting them down again.
"I was a little girl! He didn't have me locked away you know!" She gasped after that rush of emotion, only to yell again. "You should have taken me out of there!" Her voice was a torrent of the sort of hurt only he would understand. He'd grown up in that household too. "She left, did you know that?" She looked at him, a little crazed and broken. "And so did you."
Turning away, she sat down hard on the ground and sobbed, unable to hold it back any more.
“She left?” He asked, only a half second before it hit him. “Oh… oh no, Rayen… I…”
Without her mother there as a shield, he knew EXACTLY what it must have been like to be with that man. How could someone leave their own daughter with such a person? He felt hot tears stand out on his cheeks, just at the thought of what it must have been for her. He left, then her own mother left. Both left her to rot in hell.
He dropped to his knees beside her, pulling her face into his chest, letting her sob. God knew he wanted to sob right then too. Instead he squeezed his eyes shut, and attempted to absorb her into him with his arms.
“Rayen... he actually had me beaten, as a lesson. I tried to get you, and he had me beaten.” His voice sounded wavery, and the flashback of the three heavies raining kicks and punches onto his face and body didn’t sting him as much as the thought that he had failed to help her. “I gave up, though, I thought your mother would surely… Oh God Rayen, I can’t apologize enough. My mother died, you know that, I was raised alone with him… I know it was terrible. I should’ve done more, should’ve went to the police, I… I’m so sorry, Rayen.”
Rayen cried thirteen years of tears, and sounded not too different from the little girl he was forced to leave behind. Leaning into him, she pressed her face to his shoulder and slowly began to calm down.
"I'm so sorry Bandero," she whispered, hiccuping. "I'm sorry I hurt you. I was just so angry. Sometimes... sometimes I think I'm becoming exactly like him."
“No… no” he whispered back, petting the back of her head gently. “Don’t be. I had it coming, I think, and anyway – I’m pretty okay now.”
He breathed in a few deep breaths and took control of his voice once more.
“Not in a million years could I think you could become like him, Rayen. That man wasn’t human… wasn’t even close.”
She stayed there in his arms, not wanting to move. It felt like coming home to a feeling she had almost forgotten. "You're a mutant...?"
He laughed a little, sounding like a nervous chuckle. “Yeah. I’m a mutant. I’m a minor telekinetic, and have a version of psychometry – object reading. And… uhh, I also have some electrokenetic skills, though thinking about it… I think the accident, with you, was responsible for the latter. Seems to make sense. I was building up a resistance to your charge in the hallway – it’s why I’m alright.”
Then he added: “But you are! I can’t believe it! That’s awesome… you’ve got electricity control, right?”
Rayen sat back, wiping her eyes. She nodded. "Yeah. I think that's what happened that day at the casino. I don't think there's a limit to the amount of current I can pass through myself."
She looked at him a moment, a hint of a smile on her otherwise sad face.
"I'm so glad you're here..."
He smiled too, there for comfort and because he couldn’t hold it back. He sat there on his knees, studying her for the first real time in ten years.
“Yeah… I’m glad you’re here too. I can’t express how glad. Here with others like us, in a place of such commradery.” He smiled now more freely, thinking of how great the school was for any mutant, then added as an afterthought: “I’m an X-Man.”
She laughed tearfully. "An X-Man, really? Mohanes told me I would find my road here. I don't think he knew it would be you." She spoke of the man they had both known as children, but only Rayen knew as something close to a grandfather. Did Bandero know she'd been on the reservation the last seven years?
“Mohanes?” He asked, eyebrows raising. “How is that Methuselah? It’s awesome he’s still around, I always liked that guy. Have you been to the reservation, then?”
Her road would be found here. He had no doubt the truth in that… if there was thing he discovered about the mansion, it had a lot to offer. And he was here now to protect her. He’d always be here to protect her.
Rayen smiled. "I ran away when I was 16. He took me in... I've been there ever since. I never left, not even for a day." Her smile faded a bit. "Did you ever hear about the kids that died under that tower back home?"
He had. How could he have not heard about it? 12 kids killed in a freak electrical explosion… Forge frowned. “Rayen… look, I know it must be hard, I really do. There are more than a fair share of mutants here in this school who have similar horror stories. I want you to know that. They’ll help you here – help you control it, help you deal with it, help you learn. Plenty of people to talk to and share these experiences with… I’m one of them. I definitely am.”
He smiled, looking down a bit to look into her eyes, a gesture of understanding.
“We… the X-men, we’re about to go to Baltimore. Hear about the cure? Well, anyway there’s going to be some trouble brewing there. We’re about to have a meeting about it. I want you to come with us, to Baltimore. It’ll give us more time to talk, and it’ll be a good opportunity to put your abilities to good use. What do you think?”
Rayen sighed softly. He didn't shame her, or think she was horrible... he just... understood?
There was no way she could know what exactly they were up against in Baltimore, but something inside her still responded to Bandero as if she were that little girl and he the dashing, brilliant older brother. She smiled softly.
"Yeah. Let's do that."