Shadow King: Another One Bites the Dust

[x-jeangrey.livejournal.com]

Lorna and Dani find the next lost psi, who's clearly lost something besides just her powers.



Scared and confused didn't even begin to describe the red-head's state of mind. She was alone, she was lost, and she desperately wanted her mother. She'd eventually made her way out of the confusing labyrinth of a house, only to be completely floored by how much this place didn't look like home. It was a freaking mansion and the drive way went on forever and how was she ever going to find her way home? Chewing on the ends of her hair (which was somehow longer than she remembered, but she was very decidedly not thinking about that, or how tall she'd gotten, or... any of it) she tried to decide what to do. Her dad had always said if she was lost she should find a police man, but she was practically in the middle of nowhere. She could try to find a phone and call home, or 911 maybe, but that would mean going back inside, and who knew what would happen then.

No, Jeanie was clearly better off outside, hiding here around the side of the building.

Lorna was used to being up with the insomniacs and early risers. It took a lot of work to feed a school full of hungry youngsters by yourself and it wasn't unusual for her to be awake and in the kitchen long before the sun rose. Of course, the fact that the whole psi population had gone nuts meant that breakfast was going to be cereal and lunch whatever sandwiches she could throw together but at least she hadn't been yanked out of bed like nearly everyone else on this snipe hunt.

But not like her partner tonight. Dani probably hadn't been sleeping, being one of the aforementioned insomniacs. Lorna slanted a look at her as they hurried down another hushed and darkened hallway, "Any ideas on how we can track her?"

Dani bit back her initial comment about assuming all Indians knew how to track long enough for her brain to kick in, "Follow the debris?" she suggested, pointing at a broken lamp. This was almost the time when Dani would wake up from what little sleep she tended to have and go running to start her day. She liked the quiet of the wee hours of the morning, although this wasn't exactly what she had expected when she had woken up, such was Xavier's.

"Well, that's one theory, I guess. Hang on, I want to..." Lorna paused and closed her eyes, letting her perception slip from the ordinary to the strange, fluid green of the EM spectrum, trying to seek out the one thing that she was fairly sure Jean had to have on--her wedding ring. "Tchah, too much interference, still. Okay, let's go."

"Outside?" The lamp was near the door and they were running out of places to look in that area. Dani turned to Lorna, shrugging, Jean wasn't in her right mind and that's where Dani would go. For once, perhaps the craziness was a boon and not a hindrance.

Lorna nodded and followed Dani out into the night, muttering curses under her breath at the cold. She really hated winter. Outside, the EM fields were much more placid, just hot spots here and there of activity--sprinkler heads, the occasional lost key or earring and, faintly, the familiar feeling of a gold band on a human signature. Without a word, Lorna picked up her pace, trusting Dani to follow.


Jeanie was cold, and getting colder, but even as part of her was thinking maybe inside wouldn't be the worst idea in the world, what with the heat and the phone, the stubborn redheaded bit was insisting that the current course of action was the way to go and hiding was safest. Her arms wrapped around legs, both of which were weirdly too long and she was still trying not to think about that, she huddled down, burying her head in her knees, trying to keep as much warmth in as she could.

Lorna moved fast but didn't run, not yet. No one knew what they might find when they caught up with Jean and neither Lorna nor Dani were a match for the worst that she could throw at them. The older woman wasn't far and wasn't moving, so that at least was an advantage but the very last thing Lorna wanted to do was startle her. At the corner of the mansion, Lorna slowed further and walked the last couple of feet. "Jean?" she called out, glancing over at Dani to see what she was thinking.

'Caution' was the word of the day. Normally, Dani couldn't read Jean too well, the older woman had significantly stronger shields and better control, but at night when they were both asleep sometimes something slipped. Right now though, it was almost as if Jean's shields were tissue paper, at least where Dani's powers were concerned. Ignoring what she was seeing in her brain, Dani did her best to strengthen her own shields and block Jean out. If Jean tried, Dani would be no match for her, but right now, huddled on the ground, she wasn't trying.

Putting out a hand to restrain Lorna, Dani paused then crept a little closer. She didn't want to spook Jean and she was the weaker of all three of them in terms of powers and ability. "Cold, innit?" she asked softly.

Jeannie nodded, face still burried. She wondered if she wished hard enough she could disappear and wake up at home. Somehow, she didn't think so, and that was what drove her to finally look up. "Wh... Who are you?" The stammer was part cold and part fear.


Squatting down near Jean, but far enough away not to be a threat, Dani replied, her voice steady and low, "I'm Dani. And that's Lorna," she pointed to the green haired girl behind her, "And you're Jean," she understood how terrifying it was not to know the things you should know. And to know something isn't right, but you can't recall what.


Lorna leaned against the side of the building, wrapping her arms around herself. She really needed to invest in a parka. Something rated for Arctic temperatures maybe. At least she had a jacket though. Jean looked to have run outside without stopping for something like sensible clothes. "What do you say we go back inside, Jean? Get warmed up. It's freezing out here."


Jeannie had started to relax, but Dani recognizing had her eyes widening, seemingly in fright. "How do you know who I am?" There was a definite touch of hysteria in her voice, and the shivering was getting worse. "I'm not going with you! I'm not supposed to talk to strangers."

Lorna frowned a little in thought then, like Dani, dropped into a crouch near Jean. "Hey, it's okay. We're teachers at a school. We're not going to hurt you. They told us you were lost and we've been looking for you." Having a best friend who occasionally thought he was 10 made it much easier to accept when the same thing happened to your other friends. "We just want to help."


Jeannie unclenched a little at that, her gaze shifting to Lorna as her eyes widened. "Teachers, really? Then why's your hair green? Teachers are always all prim and proper."

"We're a liberal arts school," Dani lied smoothly, emphasising the liberal part. "And we're not strangers since we introduced ourselves. You don't have to come with us if you don't want to, but it's warmer inside and there are cookies and answers to all your questions," not to mention the medlab and whatnot.


Great, the cookies didn't make them sound less like potential predators or anything. "Miss Moonstar is joking. My hair is naturally this color." She shrugged out of her jacket, shivering immediately in the freezing air as she held it out to Jean. "Here, it's cold. Put this on."


"Joking? I don't understand. How can your hair be naturally that way?" Jeannie's hand hesitated, and then she made a snap decision - she was freezing and if she had the jacket, it'd be easier if she had to run. She didn't quite snatch it from Lorna's outstretched hand, but it wasn't far off.

"This is a school for gifted people," Lorna explained, wrapping her arms around herself, trying to preserve what little body heat she generated. Oh please, let this not take too much longer. "Most of us are born with something a little bit different about us." And the rest are born with something a lot different but let's not mention that right now.

It was all Dani could do not to snicker at that comment, but she managed to keep herself in check. The cold was helping with that, maybe a little too much. "We work to explore these gifts and learn about them," she didn't want to push too hard about coming inside, but it was really cold out, and she had her jacket on.

"Then what am I doing here," Jeannie asked, shrugging into the jacket without standing up. "I'm nothing special. I'm just a kid..."

"Uh..." Lorna looked over at Dani, then back at Jean. Her teeth chattered as she answered, "I really think you might want to come inside. We've got a lot of things to explain to you and I really would rather avoid hypothermia."

Jeannie considered for only a moment, but really it was the knowledge that she was now making life harder for these people, who seemed nice enough, which decided her. "Yeah, ok. Whatever. Let's go."

"You're a gifted kid too, you know," Dani added, grateful that Jean was coming willingly. She stood, offering Jean a hand to stand, "One of the brightest I've ever met."