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Post by phase on Jul 23, 2006 17:52:37 GMT -5
Hannah sat up quickly in Kitty's bed when she heard the scream.
"Kitty?" She whimpered, her eyes wide. Getting up and running to the door, she heard more screaming, and got scared.
"Bobby?"
Running back over to the bed, she let herself fall back as her spirit left her body.
Phase's ghostlike figure ran down the hall, running right through an end table as she went around a corner.
"BOBBY! KITTY!! MISS MONROE!!!"
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Post by Iceman on Jul 23, 2006 18:01:45 GMT -5
Bobby had been coming up the back stairs to the boy's dorm wing when he'd heard the screams start. They sounded like they were on the other side of the building, maybe around the front of the school. He couldn't tell clearly if it was upstairs or downstairs, but since he was almost at the top he continued up to the second floor. He set off at a jog down the long hallway, planning to go to the landing and see if he could see where the screaming was coming from, and what was causing it.
The screaming stopped, and moments later, a different voice screamed out. This time, words were being screamed at the top of a young girl's lungs. He heard his name among others', and broke into a full run, coming around the corner.
He saw a ghostly figure coming toward him. For a moment, his heart jumped to his throat, thinking he was seeing a ghost (though he'd never particularly believed in them, when one sees a see-through figure those beliefs fly out the window). He quickly recognized the figure as Hannah.
He slowed down but continued toward her as she raced down the hall. "Hannah! Are you okay?"
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Post by phase on Jul 23, 2006 18:06:50 GMT -5
Not at all changed in demeanor in her astral form, her small hands went to her mouth and she hopped in place, looking a little scared.
"What happened Bobby! Who's hurting!" She looked around, turning in a circle. "I'm in Kitty's room! Should I leave?"
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Post by Iceman on Jul 23, 2006 18:13:23 GMT -5
Bobby couldn't help but stare. "I, uh--I don't know what happened, but don't worry, somebody has it under control. It's okay."
He crouched down so that he could be more her height and looked at her calmly. "Howabout I come and keep you company? Do you want to phase back and meet me there, or do you want to walk with me?"
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Post by phase on Jul 23, 2006 18:15:06 GMT -5
She shook her head. "Miss Monroe said I shouldn't be phasing, but I was scared so I thought it was okay. Kitty's room!" She yelled, and vanished.
The room held the smell of ozone and a certain cold haze drifted around her body, slowly fading as she said up in bed once more. Oh, her chest ached so badly. She rubbed it, and put her legs over the side of the bed, waiting for Bobby.
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Post by Iceman on Jul 23, 2006 18:21:31 GMT -5
A minute later, the door opened slowly and Bobby poked his head in. He asked someone from the landing what had happened, and had been told about 'some girl' attacking Forge. Zapped him with electricity. It sounded a lot to Bobby like Rayen from the younger student's description of the girl. He was worried--for both of them--but he'd promised Hannah he'd meet her and he wasn't about to leave her there, alone and scared.
"Hey Hannah banana," he said comfortingly as he shut the door behind him and started across the room. "I asked what happened. A girl just got scared, was all. She's okay now." He felt bad lying to her, so he added, "She accidentally hit somebody but they're okay too. Are you okay?"
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Post by phase on Jul 23, 2006 18:25:17 GMT -5
Her little fingers knitted together, held in front of her chest like a prayer, but it seemed mostly it was an expression of nervousness. Her small feet kicked off the end of the bed one, then the other, over and over again as if she needed to burn off energy.
Hannah nodded to his question. "I'm okay. I was sleeping, and then I got woke up."
"Hannah banana. I like that." She smiled softly.
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Post by Iceman on Jul 23, 2006 18:40:55 GMT -5
Bobby sat on the bed about a foot from Hannah, his hands resting on his legs. He smiled at her. She looked tired, he noted.
"Do you want to go back to sleep? I can stay here if you want, I don't mind."
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Post by phase on Jul 23, 2006 18:46:42 GMT -5
Hannah looked at him. Her question was sudden, but relaxed. "Bobby, how come this place is so fancy?"
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Post by Iceman on Jul 23, 2006 18:54:11 GMT -5
Bobby wasn't expecting her question, and he looked over at her with high eyebrows. "Well, the man who used to live here had a lot of money," he answered carefully. It was not pleasant to say the Professor used to live there.
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Post by phase on Jul 23, 2006 20:40:01 GMT -5
"How come we have a lab in a house? Is it cause its so big we can all be here?" Hannah's pale eyes looked to him for the answers she was too shy to ask this morning.
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Post by Shadowcat on Jul 23, 2006 20:56:30 GMT -5
Kitty had no sixth sense for when people were in distress. Well, sometimes she did, but she chalked it more up to coincidence than anything else, and maybe really good hearing for sniffles or whatever. But half a house away? Nothing. Nada. When Hannah was screaming through the upper stories of the mansion, Kitty was quite calmly digesting a peanut butter sandwich while going through a paper on Dante's Inferno for English. It was only when she found her red pen running low on ink that she decided to venture back into her room.
Thus it was that with no small surprise Kitty found not only Hannah still asleep in her room when she noiselessly cracked the door so as not to disturb her, since Kitty thought she'd still be sleeping. When she found both Hannah and Bobby sitting, perfectly alert on her bed, she opened the door the rest of the way and entered, closing it behind her and instinctively assuming a concerned expression, a little crinkle between her brows, and her hand out to touch Hannah comfortingly on the shoulder as she sat down beside her on the bed, putting the little girl between herself and Bobby.
"Hey," she said to both. "What's up? Is anything wrong?" The latter was directed more towards Bobby, who had become the Situational Adult in her head.
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Post by Iceman on Jul 23, 2006 21:19:17 GMT -5
"There's a lab because they do lots of science here--And in case somebody gets sick--"
Bobby stopped short and looked up as the door opened. He hadn't thought about Kitty coming back, despite the fact that it was her room. He'd been preoccupied with making sure Hannah was okay. But the second Kitty appeared in the doorway, the smile wiped straight off of his face.
The temperature of the room plummeted at least ten degrees in seconds. Bobby's jaw clenched and he swallowed hard as he looked at the ground. As his anger washed back over him, he found himself wanting to really give Kitty a piece of his mind over what she'd done. He'd been telling himself just to avoid her, not to say anything to her--but it was much harder to have that self-control when she was right there.
Hannah was the only thing that kept him from blowing his top outwardly. He kept silent as Kitty came and sat down on the other side of Hannah.
"Hey. What's up? Is anything wrong?"
It took Bobby a moment to answer, but he did. "No," he said, with a voice like ice. There were times when he truly lived up to his name, despite what Ororo had said the night before. He looked down at Hannah, which was as close as he would get to looking in Kitty's direction. "Someone was screaming, and it scared her. She's okay now, though, right Han?"
Bobby didn't give anyone the chance to reply. Hannah could sense emotions, he knew, and he didn't want to effect her. It wasn't her fault he was so mad. "Look, I gotta go," he said quickly, not even bothering with an excuse. If didn't matter, as long as he got out of there. He stood and took a few steps for the door.
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Post by Shadowcat on Jul 23, 2006 21:27:42 GMT -5
As she sat down on the bed, Kitty realized she was suddenly chilly, despite the jeans she'd exchanged her little biker shorts for - she was still in her tank top, though. It was May, after all, and heating up. Summer in New York was hot.
But apparently not in her room. She ran one hand up an arm, slightly confused, and then realized that, oh yeah, Bobby was in the room. He must've changed the temperature so he'd be more comfortable.
Honestly. He could think of Hannah. But maybe she liked it cold, too. Kitty liked everything warm and cozy, with lots of blankets, though she liked it cold outside. Inside, though, was for cocoa and huddling under quilts.
"No. Someone was screaming, and it scared her. She's okay now, though, right Han?"
Kitty turned her Concerned Face on Bobby. Maybe it hadn't been a comfort adjustment; he certainly sounded a little... well, icy, to overuse the pun.
She tried to speak, to ask him if anything was wrong with him, but he didn't give her the chance.
"Look, I gotta go."
Bobby got up and headed for the door.
"Bobby!" Kitty said, her arm dropping from Hannah's shoulder, now more confused than anything. "Are - are you sure you're okay?"
Who'd been screaming? Had something bad happened to Bobby? Kitty rose, reaching out to place a hand on his shoulder, since nothing seemed to be the matter with Hannah anymore.
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Post by Iceman on Jul 23, 2006 21:38:45 GMT -5
In an instinctive action, Bobby started to shrug her hand from his shoulder. He stopped himself, but it was all too obvious already what he'd done. He stepped to the side, away from her, squeezing his eyes shut for a moment and kicking himself. But it was getting really hard to keep himself from exploding at her.
"Look," he said forcefully as he stepped away from her, his eyes on the ground, the wall, anywhere but at her. "I just...don't think I should talk--Right now. To you." He paused there for a moment, shifting uncomfortably.
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Post by Shadowcat on Jul 23, 2006 21:44:16 GMT -5
Even if it hadn't been obvious, Kitty had been trained to notice tiny rolls and shifts in muscle; the tiniest tic would've let her know what he was going to do. (After all, when you were being flung into the air or held up as much as eight feet above the ground, a girl needed to know which little ripples in the shoulders and hands meant 'I'm gonna drop you now.')
She removed her hand herself even before he stepped away, cradling it to her chest defensively, her face a mask of hurt. The only thing missing was the wobbling lower lip. She was not going to cry. She did enough of that on her own.
"Look. I just...don't think I should talk--Right now. To you."
"Okay," Kitty said in a small voice. "Um. Bye."
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Post by Iceman on Jul 23, 2006 21:58:14 GMT -5
Through his anger, Bobby felt a small twinge of guilt--He didn't have to look at her to know when Kitty was close to tears. He'd heard that voice before. He lifted his hand and ran it down over his face. "I'll find you in a little bit," he said, his voice only slightly less harsh. He then dropped his hand and went to the door. He opened it and stepped outside, letting it swing closed with a minor slam as he walked out of sight down the hall.
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Post by Shadowcat on Jul 23, 2006 22:00:33 GMT -5
"I'll find you in a little bit."
"Okay," Kitty said again, voice getting dangerously hoarse.
The door swung closed with a little slam, but a slam nonetheless, and Kitty flinched. Taking a deep breath, she sat back down on the bed with Hannah and smiled, not very convincingly.
"You gonna be all right?" she asked. "Do you need anything?"
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Post by phase on Jul 23, 2006 23:03:45 GMT -5
Hannah was dizzy with all the anger swirling about the room, and tucked her feet under her, listening to the interaction. She'd never been given the opportunity to see two people in an argument, and the intensity of the emotions left her at a loss.
She tried to disappear into the corner of the bed.
When Kitty turned back to her, she nodded a bit, her eyes reflecting both their sadness. "I'll be okay. Bobby's mad though. You should make it better."
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Post by Shadowcat on Jul 24, 2006 11:33:45 GMT -5
"I'll be okay. Bobby's mad though. You should make it better."
Kitty sighed, pressing the heel of her hand into one of her eyes, collecting herself for a few seconds.
"I'll try," she said. "I just don't know what he's so mad about all of a sudden..."
She stood up and brushed nonexistent lint off herself smartly, smiling and tucking her hair behind her ear. "If you're okay, I'll let you get back to sleep," she said. "There's coloring books in the desk drawer right there - don't tell anyone."
With that, she exited the little room, but Bobby was already gone from the corridor. Maybe she'd just... wander around. Until she found him.
Or a pint of Ben & Jerry's.
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