Eye of the Beholder

Author's Notes: This has got to be the longest Christmas ever. A big thank you to Aymiah, Kris_A, onewing, blue_lioness, Cougar, Michael, Anon, Capt_Davy_Jones_Lover, jesi and Aderiana for your reviews.

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“Hello, dear friend, how are you?” he greets as soon as he picks up the call, turning his collar up against the chilly wind.

“Merry Christmas, Hank,” Ororo replies happily. “How's Vermont?”

“I wouldn't know,” he answers as he trudges along the snow covered walk outside of the hospital. “I'm in Virginia right now.”

“What are you doing in Virginia?” she asks in surprise.

“That's a rather long and detailed story,” he replies with a sigh and she can tell from the tone in his voice he needs to talk.

“Why don't you tell me about it?” she suggests.

“I wouldn't want to bore you,” he says as he finds a bench and clears it of snow

“Hank, you could never bore me,” she gently assures him as she gets comfortable more in her chair. “Now tell me. What's bothering you?”

With a sad sigh, he settles down on the cold, hard seat and starts to tell her about his unexpected detour.

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“She could have died, 'Ro,” he says sadly some time later after relating his story to his old friend. “If I had gone after her when I wanted to, she wouldn't be in the hospital with a broken arm and a concussion.”

“If you hadn't gone after her at all like her family wanted, then she wouldn't have survived,” she points out. “You saved her life, Hank. Don't beat yourself up over what could have been.”

“I suppose you're right,” he sighs just as Mike comes around the corner of the building.

“Of course I am,” she teases and he has to chuckle. “What are you going to do now?”

“I don't know,” he answers as Mike steps up to him. “It all depends on what Amanda wants to do. Excuse me a moment, 'Ro, there's someone here who wants to talk to me. Yes, Mike, what is it?”

“Thought you'd like to know that they've moved Amy to a room and that they're planning on keeping her for the night just like you thought they would,” Mike tells him, trying not to shiver as a stray breeze seems to shoot an icy blast down the neck of his jacket.

“Thank you, give me a moment to end this call and I'll go up and see her,” Hank replies as he lifts the phone towards his ear once more. “'Ro? I need to go now.”

“Ok, you take care of yourself,” she responds. “I hope things get better.”

“Thanks, 'Ro, so do I,” he says as he stands up. “Bye and merry Christmas.”

“Bye,” she replies and he closes his phone a second later before turning to the other man.

“How is she?” Hank asks as Mike turns and starts to lead him back inside.

“The doctor confirmed what you said,” Mike answers, trying not to slip. “If she hadn't been found, she would have been dead before morning from hypothermia. That really unnerved Cathy and Stuart. I've never seen them so shaken.”

“They thought I was lying?” Hank inquires as the doors automatically open and a wave of warm air hits them.

“I think they were hoping you were exaggerating,” Mike replies while they walk past the waiting room and start down a hallway.

“I would never exaggerate about something like that,” Hank tells him sincerely as they reach the elevators, a bit peeved that anyone would think such a thing.

“Here, the girls gave this to Cathy before she came here,” Mike says as he pulls a prescription bottle out of his pocket and hands it Hank. “Do you know anything about it?”

Hank pulls his glasses out of the pocket inside of his jacket, puts them on and reads the small printed label as the elevator doors open with a 'ding'.

“It's a prescription for anti-depressants,” Hank replies while they step into the small compartment. “I was unaware that Amanda was taking them.”

“Neither did we,” Mike tells him as he pushes the button for the fifth floor.

“How did the girls know about this?” Hank inquires as he hands back the pills and takes his glasses off.

“They said they found them in a new hiding spot in Amanda's closet,” Mike answers with a shrug.

The elevator stops at the fifth floor and they continue their journey in silence until they reach a room about half way down the hallway. They step in and find Cathy in the chair next to the bed, her eyes red and puffy from recent crying, with Stuart standing behind her, his hands on her shoulders and a worried look on his face. They're both staring at the bed's occupant and the two men also turn their attention to the woman laying there.

Her dark hair seems to be all that keeps her face from blending in with the pillow beneath her head, the bandage on her forehead stands out like white flag of surrender and the bright red scratches across her cheek are a stark reminder of how it all started. Though the blankets are pulled up to her chin hiding what she's wearing, Hank knows that she must be wearing a hospital gown because with the exception of her coat and panties, the rest of her clothing was cut away so they could work on getting her warm and to move her broken arm as little as possible. Even though she is sleeping, he can see they've already strapped her arms down to keep her from tearing out the IV in the back of her hand and while it is disturbing, he knows it's a necessary evil.

Beast whimpers with worry and it takes quite of bit of self control for Hank not to echo him. He's so mesmerized by her current condition that he doesn't even realize he has moved until he reaches out and starts to gently stroke her hair. He leans over and softly kisses her forehead, noting the smell of the iodine and the woods mixed in with her own scent and then carefully touches his forehead to hers. He ignores the tear that slides down his cheek until it lands on her face and then he softly brushes it away with his thumb, completely oblivious to everyone and everything else.

“Here, have a seat, Hank,” Mike offers as he pushes a chair closer to Hank's legs, startling the large mutant out of his revere.

“I'm fine, thank you,” Hank assures him, not moving so much as an inch.

“Please, Hank, you've been hovering over her for the past ten minutes,” Mike nearly pleads. “You're making my back hurt just watching you.”

Hank turns to offer the seat to Mike and sees that everyone else is already seated, waiting for him to do the same. He sheds his coat before hesitantly taking a seat across from Cathy and then he goes back to stroking her hair as soon as he's settled. He ignores her parents, especially any nasty looks Stuart might be sending his way, so when a container of food is thrust in front of him, he nearly jumps.

“Thank you,” Hank murmurs as he takes the offered item and carefully opens it.

“Thank you for saving her,” Cathy softly says while she hands over cutlery for him to use.

“I could do little else,” Hank responds as he carefully stabs some food onto his fork.

“I know you must think we're horrible parents,” Cathy starts.

“What I think is of little importance right now,” Hank quietly replies and then quickly stuffs his fork in his mouth to prevent himself from uttering what he's really thinking.

“You should know that when Annie was very young she became very sick,” Cathy tells him and all he can do is nod that he understands. “For a while we thought we were going to lose her, but a miracle came to us in the form of a doctor with an experimental treatment. We had tried everything else, so we had nothing left to lose. I won't bore you with the details, but obviously the treatment work and Annie survived. However, Annie was always getting sick with every little thing, so eventually we moved out to the country so she wouldn't get sick so often.”

“Amanda told me about Annie's illness on our first date,” Hank finally states after a lengthy pause. “She told me that was when she developed her...dislike...for needles. She also stated that the reason you moved was because that Stuart had become sick of the rat race and that you didn't like the way the schools were teaching.”

“Those were also factors,” Cathy assures him a bit too hastily. “But Annie's health was our main reason. She was always delicate after her illness.”

“I know that I've only known Annie for a few days, but she seems perfectly healthy now,” Hank points out as he cuts up his meat. “However, since I have not examined her, nor run any tests on her, I am only basing this on my observations.”

“According to her doctor, Annie's healthy as a horse,” Mike puts in, leaning back in his chair and seeing how his in-laws react to that.

“I know Annie isn't a sickly little girl anymore, but old habits do die hard,” Cathy admits with a sigh. “It doesn't help that Amy delights in tormenting her sister whenever she can.”

Hank goes back to eating, knowing full well that if he were to say anything, it would more than likely alienate these people even further from him. Silence descends upon the room like a heavy fog with the only sounds coming from Hank as he eats his dinner as quietly as he can. As Hank is finishing the last morsel of food for which his stomach is grateful for, Mike excuses himself to call Annie.

“Thank you, it was delicious,” Hank says as he hand back the dirty container and cutlery.

“You're welcome,” Cathy replies as she takes the items back. “I'm glad you liked it.”

“Haaannnnng,” Amanda moans and all heads quickly turn in her direction.

“I'm right here, love,” Hank quietly answers her as he stands to be nearer and starts stroking her hair again.

“Huuurrd,” Amanda slurs, turning her head towards the sound of his voice while he pushes the button for the nurse.

“I know it hurts, love, the nurse on the way,” he assures her, moving his face closer to hers and he can 'hear' Beast whimpering in the back of his mind again.

She finally cracks her eyes open to stare at him blearily and then tries to reach out and touch him. She gets a scowl on her face as she tries to move her arm again and still can't get it loose. She makes an unhappy sound in her throat as she tries to free her arm from its restraint and Hank carefully holds the arm still.

“Just relax, Amanda,” Hank softly instructs as his free hand gently cups her face to keep her looking at him.

“Can't move,” she whimpers and he can hear her heart starting to beat faster as her breathing speeds up.

“You're alright, my love, just lie still,” he quietly tells her, conveying as much soothing calm with his voice and his touch.

“Hank's right, Amy,” Cathy briskly puts in and inwardly Hank cringes. “You need to hold still or you'll pull your IV out.”

Hank silently prays that Amanda is still too addled to understand what her mother has just said, but a second later he can feel her body tensing under his hands as her heart rate and breathing skyrocket and he braces himself for the inevitable. With a scream that leaves his ears ringing, she starts thrashing around, trying to break free. He quickly grabs her left forearm to keep her from hurting that injury any further just as she tries to push herself off the top of the bed with her legs. He leans more of his weight onto her to keep her still and she lets out another shriek. When trying to push herself off of the bed doesn't get her anywhere, she starts wildly kicking, sending the blankets every which way and not caring who or what she's hitting.

“What's going on here?” a nurse demands, drawn more from the screaming than the fact the call button that had been pushed. “Sir, please get off of the patient.”

“I will gladly let her go,” Hank grunts as a knee connects with his ribs, “once she's either sedated or the IV has been removed. She has aichmophobia and she will not calm down until she's either sedated or the needle has been removed from her person.”

“I don't have the doctor's ok to remove the IV,” she states, a bit surprised by his response.

“Then I suggest you get a sedative into her and quickly if you please,” he strongly suggests, his voice a bit strained.

The nurse quickly leaves and a moment later, Mike comes rushing in.

“I heard the screaming all the way down the hall,” Mike says as he stays clear of the thrashing legs. “What can I do to help?”

“Would you please grab her legs and hold them down?” Hank requests in a surprisingly calm voice.

“Uh, yeah, right,” Mike hesitantly replies as he approaches the bed, trying not to get kicked himself. “How about you hold down her legs and I'll hold down the top half?”

“I'm afraid I can't do that,” Hank tells him with slightly forced pleasantness.

“Why not?” Mike asks as he dodges a foot that goes whizzing past his head.

“Because her teeth are rather deeply embedded in my sweater and I'm afraid that she has quite a few of my arm hairs trapped in there as well,” Hank replies with a small grunt as she kicks him again. “Could someone please grab a hold of her her legs?”

“Ok, Stuart, mind helping me here?” Mike requests as he makes a grab for the closer leg.

It takes several tries, but the two men finally wrestle her legs back down onto the bed and she immediately starts screaming again. Hank tries to think of a way to get her to bite him again since she's giving him the granddaddy of all headaches with her shrieking right next to his sensitive ear. She continues to struggle despite the weight of three men on top of her and Hank silently urges the nurse to hurry up.

“That's enough, young lady!” Cathy sternly tells Amanda between screams. “You're make a spectacle of yourself!”

“She can't hear you,” Hank nearly growls, barely keeping his anger in check. “She's too frightened to understand anything right now.”

Before she can retort, a doctor, two nurses and three orderlies come charging into the room and Hank quietly thanks the universe that the other bed in the room is empty since its quickly becoming claustrophobic in there.

“What's going on?” the doctor demands, staring in horror at the three men holding down the one woman.

“Amanda has aichmophobia and as such, we're keeping her from harming herself,” Hank calmly explains just before Amanda lets out another ear piercing shriek.

“She has what?” the doctor asks in confusion.

“Aichmophobia,” Hank repeats as he shoves his shoulder closer to her mouth in hopes that she'll bite that instead of screaming again. “She's deathly afraid of needles. Now please do something or I will have take action just for the sake of saving my hearing.”

Without another word, the doctor holds out a hand to one of the nurses and she immediately lays a filled syringe in his palm. He then goes over to the bed where he wedges himself between Hank and Mike and then quickly slides the needle into the catheter on the back of her hand. He depresses the plunger as quickly as he safely can and she lets out another scream as she tries to arch off of the bed, trying to buck them off.

The doctor steps back, hands the empty syringe to one of the nurses and then waits to see if the drug works. Within a couple minutes, her struggles lessen and the screams turn into sad whimpers. Hank, Stuart and Mike carefully loosen their hold on her and Hank looks down at her face to see eyes filled with emotional hurt and pain staring back at him.

“I'm sorry, my love,” he whispers as he goes back to stroking her hair, barely noticing Cathy straightening out the bed clothes.

“You promised,” she whimpers with a sniff as a tear slides down her cheek and the guilt from earlier hits him again.

“I know, love, I know,” he sadly murmurs as he gently nuzzles her cheek with his nose. “Sleep now, you need to let your body heal.”

She lets out a few more sad noises before the drug finally pulls her under and with a sigh that's part relief and part regret, he retakes his sit next to her bed again as he takes her limp fingers in his. He half listens as he hears the doctor telling one of the nurses to keep Amanda sedated during the night and to remove the IV before she wakes in the morning. He's relieved that her doctor has enough sense to make sure his patient doesn't need a full body restraint.

“Such a shameful display,” Cathy huffs as she sits back down and Hank does his best to ignore her. “Once this gets out we'll be the laughingstock of the whole town again. It wasn't bad enough that she had to embarrass us when she was a teenager, but she even does it now that she's supposedly an adult.”

“Right, I'm sure that's exactly what Amy was thinking when she fell down into the ravine,” Mike retorts as he suddenly launches himself to his feet and heads for the door. “How can I embarrass my parents so everyone will laugh at them? Yeah, I bet that's exactly what she was thinking.”

“Where are you going?” Stuart demands, Cathy too shocked by Mike's outburst to say anything.

“The bathroom,” Mike responds, barely pausing to answer. “I'm feeling sick to my stomach.”

With that, Mike marches out of the room, leaving Hank to deal with Amanda's parents and all of their hangups.

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“'Ro, whatcha doin' in here?” Logan asks, poking his head around her office door.

“Thinking,” she answers, not bothering to look at the man, but continuing to stare into space with a frown wrinkling her brow.

“About what?” he questions, stepping further into the room.

“About something Hank said,” she replies as she taps a manicured nail on the desk.

“Which was?” he prompts, leaning against the wall and crossing his arms across his chest waiting.

“He mentioned a name and I know I heard it somewhere before, but I can't remember where,” she mutters, her frown deepening.

“Well, can ya remember a little faster?” he encourages. “The natives are getting restless for the party ta start.”

“Is it that time already?” she asks in surprise as she looks over at the clock on the wall.

“Accordin' ta Jubilee, you're takin' like forever,” he snorts.

“Patience never was one of Jubilee's strong suits,” she chuckles as she gets up and heads for the door. “Come, Logan, let's go spread some holiday cheer.”

“My holiday cheer is cold and comes in a six pack,” he mutters under his breath.

“Just keep that cheer in your room,” she warns as they head down the hallway towards the library.

“Yes, Mom,” he retorts.

She just shakes her head with a sigh and a small smile and goes to get the Christmas party started; the name and Hank's problems temporarily forgotten.