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1-Shiva
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62-epilogue
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SHIVA—CHAPTER SEVEN (NC-17) Standard disclaimers apply. A/N Thanks to Foxfeather for reading all of the stuff I send her! J Special muse cookies for her…. Thanks to everyone who reviewed! I love reviews---hint, hint, wink, wink, nudge, nudge…Flames are used to burn off excess plot bunnies. Don’t make me be mean to the bunnies, people. The Professor tapped his fingers against his chin, an old gesture he rarely used but found somewhat comforting nonetheless. Kitty was entering into shiva, a period of mourning highly regulated by tradition in the Jewish faith. He had heard her mental cry when the phone call came and he had head her plea, silent to other ears, for strength. As heart-rended as he was by her pain, the Professor could not help but feel something was not quite right about the situation. Kitty sat before him now, already clad in the black garments tradition required. She had cut slashes in the sleeves of her blouse and scrubbed all traces of makeup away. Her hair hung loose and her feet were bare.[1] She avoided looking into the mirror in the hallway when she entered his study, the Professor noted, and she would not hold Kurt’s hand r thr the initial shock wore off. “Kitty, I’m deeply sorry for your loss.” “Thank you, Professor.” Her usually lilting voice was flat and subdued. She stared at her hands, resting on her knees. “You know our traditions?” “Actually, Kitty, at one time I practiced myself…It’s been a very, very long time since I have been in Temple.” “You don’t have to go to Temple to…I’m sorry. It isn’t my place.” She sniffedin ain and tightened her hands into fists, wrinkling the fabric of her skirt. “Pardon me for saying so, but I had the impression you were a reformed practitioner? If I recall, you are not one of the seven relatives who are required to undergo such extreme measures…” “I’m not by Law, but in my heart…Ruth may have been the one to get me in trouble overt rt last Chanukah, but she is the only one in my family that is still living who I was close to, who I actually loved.”[2] “Your clothes…?” “She deserves respect in Death if not in Life…Please, Professor, this is the only thing I can do for her…They won’t let me go to her funeral!” She sobbed then, the sound harsh and torn from her breast in the otherwise silent room. Kurt, lurking by the door in the shadows, winced and his own heart shattered anew at Kitty’s grief. “Kitty, I understand. You need to do this…Are you going to mourn for the full seven days?” Kitty dabbed at her nose with a tissue proffered by the Professor before shaking her head in the negative. “Three. Starting today. She would never have put up with the full seven…” Kitty chuckled mirthlessly. “When we were at Bubie’s funeral, she asked me why the dead take so long to mourn. Why seven days is any better than three….” “I’ll contact the school. You do not have to attend tomorrow or Tuesday. Go rest now.” Kitty’s eyes were wet and red but she gazed steadily at the Professor. “You know what I need to do…” “Yes, child, I know. Go rest now and you will have help later.” Kitty nodded and stood shakily, eyes searching for Kurt. “I’m here, Katzchen…” He stepped from the shadows and held out a hand to her only to have her refuse with a simple shake of her head. “I can’t. No sexual contact during shiva.” “It’s holding hands…” “Kurt, you know how I feel about you and touching you would make my mind wander…Please understand?” “Ja, I understand. I’m sorry.” He wanted to hold her so much, to make her feel better with words and touches, but she was closing herself off. “Kurt, please stay. I would like to speak with you. I’ll be seeing you later, Kitty.” Kitty gave Kurt a smilsmile and murmured thanks to the Professor before phasing herself out of the door and out of sight. Silence reigned for several minutes and Kurt had the distinct feeling the Professor was having a conversation with someone in his own head, so fixed were his features in an attitude of concern. The older man nodded once and soon Logan entered the room. Kurt tensed, not quite sure what to expect, and flinched a little as Logan sat next to him. “Elf.” “Herr Logan…” Kurt shifted, trying to look as if he had not been thinking interesting thoughts about Kitty just a few hours ago. “Gentlemen, you are both aware of Kitty’s mourning period. However, I feel there is something…sinister…at work. I called to speak with her parents this morning, after I found out, and they denied knowledge of Ruth’s demise. Well, that is what I was told before they hung up on me. Kitty’s uncle and aunt told me that their daughter was dead to them, and they had not been to the hospital in days. I may be putting two and two together to come up with five, but…” The Professor made no bones about it. He passed a handful of newspaper clippings and internet print-outs to Logan, who scanned them before passing them to Kurt. “Was? I don’t understand…What does all this have to do with Kitty and Ruth?” The articles were about crimes throughout the Midwest and Atlantic Seaboard, all occurring at trucking companies, ore refineries, and nuclear facilities. For the most part, they had been petty crimes considering the possibilities each scene presented. A few empty trucks stolen here, some slag iron there; the nuclear facilities had only been broken into, nothing was mis or or altered as far as anyone questioned could determine. “Look again, Kid.” Logan said, tension making his voice harder than usual. Kurt scanned the topmost article, the most recent crime, again. It had occurred in Kansas, at a major trucking firm. Three big rigs had gone missing, “lifted right out from under our noses,” according to the manager on duty that night. “Keep on reading,” the older man said when Kurt looked up, half way through. The Professor nodded in agreement and Kurt shrugged and continued. It was the last paragraph that got his attention. The gates to the facility had been torn as if by massive hands, the metal twisted and bent. Kurt froze, rereading the paragraph. “Magneto?” His voice shook. “Now read this.” The Professor shoved an article at Logan, who quickly scanned it and growled. “Mystique!” “Was?” Kurt snatched the paper, letting the other articles drift to the floor. It was little more than a blurb, a few sentences in a recent edition of the Houston Chronicle[3] in the “Oddly Enough” section. “Local children reported seeing their babysitter morph into a blue, lizard-like woman from a kindly elderly, very not-blue, woman today during a break in their play time. The oldest child called the police who came at the insistence that ‘a strange lady was in their house’. Finding only the babysitter present, the police lectured the children on proper use of the 911 system.” “This is only the most recent in a string of reports placing Mystique in the South and Midwest. She seems to be growing careless, though why I cannot tell as of yet.” The Professor regarded Kurt and Logan, waiting for some sort of response. “Are the working together, do you think?” Kurt was scared spitless. “I am not sure. All indications would seem to point to yes, but with those two…” The man spread his hands, letting his words trail. “What does all of this have to do with Ruth?” Logan settled back, crossing his arms in preparation for a lengthy story. “Actually, quite a bit. Ruth’s telekinesis is her known mutation, as I am sure we are all aware. However, before the hospitalization, Kitty told me some more about her cousin. From the bits and pieces the revealed, I believe that Ruth is quite dangerous, uncontrolled.” “What do you mean? Like Rogue or Scott?” Kurt leaned forward in morbid interest. “Kitty told me a story about when she first discovered Ruth’s mutation. The girl apparently lifted some silverware, giving Kitty quite a scare for it reminded her of Magneto. However, it came out that Ruth was telekinetic and the two girls discussed at length Kitty’s own mutation and those of several people Kitty knew, identities remaining anonymous, of course.” Kurt knew better, he knew that Kitty had told Ruth not only his name but thtailtails she knew of his mutation, but since he was not actually bothered by this, shrugged it off. “Is there a point to this, Chuck?” “Patience, Logan…” The Professor hid an amused smile behind a cough and continued. “Ruth projects quite strongly. Not only her emotions but her physical feelings. It isn’t something she is quite aware of, Kitty thinks. She just told me that Ruth knows, if she concentrates, she can make someone feel bad. Or if she is very, very tired, the people around her experience her feelings as well.” “How does this make her dangerous, Professor?” “She has the capacity to cause great harm, Kurt. Terrifically great harm…” The Professor wheeled around the desk and seemed to be torn over his next words; “I cannot say with great certainty that Magneto or Mystique have anything to do with Ruth or that Ruth is actually still alive. It is best that Kitty go through with her mourning and let her cousin be dead. However, it is my personal feeling that one or both of the two mutants have something to do with Ruth’s disappearance from the hospital.” “Why can’t Kitty know? It’d give her some hope!” Kurt was on his feet, pacing rapidly in frustration. “How can you let her think…?” “Siddown, Elf!” Logan jerked him into a chair and got in his face. “Chances are good that if Ruth wasn’t dead before, she will be soon. She isn’t strong enough to stand under Mystique or Magneto, especially if she’s already ailing.” Logan leaned back, taking a deep breath to calm himself. Kurt gnashed his teeth to keep silent, waiting for the man to continue. “Let Kitty mourn now, let her lay her cousin to rest. If it happens that Ruth is with Magneto or Mystique or even both, and she does survive whatever they want her for, then we’ll work on saving the girl. Until then, let’s not give Half-Pint any false hope.” “Try to understand, Kurt…” “Ja, I understand! How can you be such…such an ungehobelter Klotz[4]?” Logan was on his feet and had Kurt pinned to the wall in a flash. “I’m gonna pretend you didjustjust say that, bub. If you did…” “Logan, he’s upset. Yes, he was rude, but he is still a student here and is merely concerned about Kitty. Now put him down and step away.” The Professor was not upset at Kurt’s insult but rather upset at the situation. Logan growled again and dropped Kurt who promptly scrambled to his feet. “I’ll keep quiet about this to Kitty, but I am very mad. Understand that!” Kurt ‘ported away before Logan could make another grab. Jean found the envelope pinned to her door when she woke up that morning. She knew it was from Scott and tucked it into her pocket to read later, so fearful and excited was she about the contents. She had avoided him all morning, dodging into rooms where other people were so that he could not speak with her alone. She was not sure what to say to him and afraid of what he would say to her, opting instead to insulate herself behind layers of deception, laughing when Jubilee launched into ribald jokes after breakfast, flirting back when Remy toyed with her hair and said it was the color of fire, helping Rogue with science homework, all the while aware of Scott’s eyes on her and all the while pretending she could not care less. Finally, after lunch, Jean sequestered herself in her room and opened the envelope. What the…? A poem? It was in Scott’s handwriting but she knew instinctively it had been copied. Closing her eyes for a brief moment, she read the words on the small sheet of pale blue paper. Center of all centers, core of cores, almond self-enclosed, and growing sweet-- all this universe, to the furthest stars all beyond them, is your flesh, your fruit. Now you feel how nothing clings to you; your vast shell reaches into endless space, and there the rich, thick fluids rise and flow. Illuminated in your infinite peace, a billion stars go spinning through the night, blazing high above your head. But in you is the presence that will be, when all the stars are dead Rainer Maria e, Be, Buddha in Glory Jean read the poem over and over until she knew it by heart. Folding it over into a neat square, she saw more writing on the back. Jean—I did a piss-poor job of trying to explain my gift to you the other night. These words are better than mine. Try as she might, Jean could not stop the pin-prick of tears that welled with her emotions. I have to go talk to him now…As an afterthought, she tucked the poem into her cleavage, feeling an absurd need to keep it close to her heart. Almost jogging, she left her room and went in search of Scott downstairs. She found him in the rec room, shouting at video games with Bobby Drake. She only had to wait a few moments for him to be free. “Man, you froze the controls!” “Sorry—got excited!” Bobby threw his control down in semi-disgust. Let it thaw and we’ll go again!” “Sure, sure….Hey, Jean!” Scott visibly started at the sight of her sitting there but kept his voice controlled. Bobby smirked and winked at the girl, earning a wink in return. “Um, Bobby…why don’t you see if Jamie needs help in the Danger Room.” “Suuuuuuure, Fearless Leader. Get right on it.” Bobby snorted and left the room, throwing Jean an amused glance as he cleared the door. “You got the note?” ‘Yeah…Look at me, Scott.” He had ducked his head as soon as they were alone, embarrassed and excited all at once. He tuned his eyes to her now, damning his glasses and their red tint. He wanted to see Jean flesh-colored for once. Jean dropped to her knees from the chair and made her gaze level with his, breaking his train of thought. “I understand.” “What?” “I understand how I feel and how you feel and…damn it, I’m tired of being sensible Jean and controlled Jean. I love you. I love you so much I can cry sometimes. What I’m trying to get to is…I want to be your girlfriend.” Scott felt his heart explode. “I…I, ah, have to sit down now…” “You are sitting down.” Jean felt her lips tug upwards in amusement. He looks like he’s seen a ghost.. “Maybe I should…Oh.” Scott slumped forward in a faint. Jean couldn’t help herself then. She did the most irrespone, e, uncontrolled thing she could think of then—she laughed. “Wake up, Scott!” Making sure his glasses were in place, she rolled him onto his back and patted his cheeks lightly. “Upsy daisy.” “Wha….” He blinked and saw who was over him. “Oh, I want to die now.” “It’s okay---shock does that to people.” “All the blood left my brain for a second there…” “Heh. Noticed.” Jean scooted back to give him room to breathe and regarded him with new eyes. “Did your whr what I said?” “Did you not see me faint? Which, by the bye, we will never speak of to anyone, right? Right.” His face took on an eager expression as he leaned towards her, “So does this mean we…?” Jean held up one hand in a “stop” gesture. “We need to work some things out, first. I want to go slow, get used to this. I e yoe you but I don’t want to lose myself in you, got it?” “Got it…” “Second, we respect boundaries. No sex, just kissing for now, okay?” “Okay…” “I won’t walk your thoughts, either. Just to let you know.” “That’s good…” Especially with the direction my thoughts are taking at the moment. “And I’ll break things off with Duncan tomorrow, but I want you to leave him alone, okay?” “Do I have to?” At her annoyed expression, he waved his hands in supplication. “Okay, okay—no Duncan-baiting.” “Good. We’re settled. On your feSummSummers.” She rose and held out a hand to help him. “We’re due in the Danger Room in ten minutes and if we’re late, Logan will skin us alive.” Scott smiled like a fool and followed Jean from the room, blissfully unaware of anything but her red hair bouncing from her ponytail like flames over wood. [1] Kitty is hodge-podging orthodox and reformed traditions. http://www.ahavat-israel.com/ahavat/torat/death.asp [2] The seven relatives are mother, father, sister, brother, husband, wife, child. Half-siblings are included in this. [3] Couldn’t resist…nearest big town to me and had to throw out props. J [4] Insensitive jerk (thanks, Foxfeather!) |
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