XCave.NET

Yesterdays & Tomorrows

Summary: “Feel it to second nature.”

“One again please, if you don’t mind. That was so good that I’d like to see it again…that is if you are up to it.”

The cultured voice of the school headmaster and X-Men’s mentor sounded into the communicators of the two occupants of the institute’s underground training room or as it was better known as, the Danger Room.

“Yes Professor,” the younger voice of the two responded to the Professor’s request.

“Thank you Kendall,” Charles’s returned, his ears catching the strain rising in the child’s voice. After more than hour of testing, it was something that he expected and understood completely. He had seen it on more than occasion…although not with one so young. “This is the last time. Just this once and then the test is finished.”

“Yes sir.” The communication lines closed Kendall once again closed her eyes to concentrate to collect herself and start on the next run. It had been two days since she showed her mother and the Professor what she could do…what he Daddy had taught her. Since then, she had gone through a full physical with Dr. Blue. Once those results came through, it was over to a ‘sit-down’ session with the Professor which was nice but tickled the back of her neck. Uncle Charles told her that he had done this once a long time ago when she was a little baby and at that time along with him, both her parents had ‘come in’ to meet her. He even showed her a little of it…from his memories of it. Good thing that she had grown since then and as had the hair on her head.


“Ready Kendall?” The smooth, controlled voice of her mother reached her from above.

“Umm-hmm,” nodding her head, the young feral-windrider slowly started to rise in the air, opening her eyes at the same time, until she came alongside her mother. “Same?”

“Yes. First go through the loops, stop just after the last one and then do what you did on Monday, rain and snow.” Ororo repeated the instructions that she had given twice before. “After that come back through the other loops, going downwards until you reach the ground. Ready?”

“Yes.”

“Go.”

---

“Her control is….” The second observer commented over Xavier’s shoulder, his arms crossed at his chest.
“Impressive,” Xavier supplied as he kept track of the readings from the various sensors.
“Especially for someone who hasn’t been trained….well, not in using these powers,” Scott agreed as his eyes followed the slowly but surely moving child. After the first run in which she got her right foot caught in the first loop itself, Kendall had been cautious in moving through them, keeping her feet crossed together.
“Yes.” As the girl finished the first part of her run and was joined by her mother as she started on the second, the Professor with a few clicks brought up the file from a previous test…one he had done of her mother almost a decade and a half ago. Even though this last run would provide an average of ‘from fresh to strained’, he was already moving onto the next step….especially to check to confirm one particular guess of his.

---

“Scott,” he spoke as his fingers moved over the keyboard.
“Yes Professor.”
“How is Ororo doing?”
“She…” Scott hesitated in his answer. Even though the question was simple enough, he sensed the underlying meaning. “She is…as expected.” Almost as an afterthought he added, “You know about Logan?”
“Yes,” Xavier answered without turning away from the screen. “I had sensed him in the mansion that night.”

“He saw us.”
“Saw you?” This time the older man did turn. He knew that something had happened that had caused Logan to return Kendall and James on Saturday rather than the usual Sunday evening. But the reason behind it….? “Saw you where?”
“At the Jewellers,” Scott sighed, his temple creasing at the fresh memory. “I had taken Ororo to get a ring….he was there….Kendall and James were with him.”

“Scott. What were you...?”
“I know Professor,” Scott sighed, once again turning to the scene below. “But we discussed it….you know that. You were there.”

Unable to say anything in response, Xavier turned back to the files he was working on. Everything fell into place now…or depending on which side one saw it from, fell apart. He recalled the swell of anger, pain and other dark emotions he had caught from Logan’s projections. This explained all of them….and also the events since.

----

“Take a look at this,” he drew Scott’s attention to the computer screen. “At these test results. Tell me what you see.”

Siding up next to the Professor, Scott pored over the results, his visor covered eyes narrowing as he compared the two records. “Professor…” He did not quite get what Xavier wanted him to do. After all, Ororo had been in her late teens at the time of the test, almost twice Kendall’s age.
“Notice anything special?” The older man looked up just as Kendall started on the last part of her test with Ororo keeping a close eye on her. Given the similar nature of their powers she had been the obvious choice to oversee the test…in case the young girl lost control or worse yet, overexerted herself. However, except for the loop mishap and one time where her concentration wavered causing her to almost fall, Kendall had worked independently and most of all kept her powers’ release in control.

Once Scott finished reading and shook his head, not able to find anything apart from the expected difference in power levels and control, Xavier brought up a particular section…one where the brain’s synaptic activity had been recorded.

“This…” he pointed to one record first. “Is from what I got from Ororo’s test, and this…” his finger moved to the one beside it. “...this is Kendall’s. How about….”
“Their powers aren’t the same,” Scott’s eyes shot up in surprise.
“More like don’t work in the same way,” Xavier corrected him. “…to be more specific, they are not channeled through the same pathways. Ororo’s, as we know are tied into her emotions. She needs to retain control of her emotions to keep her powers from running rampant and…”

“Test completed Charles,” Ororo’s voice interrupted whatever Xavier was going to say to Scott. “Anything else?”
“No, that will be all,” Xavier spoke into the mike. “Thank you Kendall. That was really impressive.”
“Thank you Professor,” Kendall replied the smile forming on her lips faltering at Xavier’s next words.
“Even Scott says so.”

“Uh, thank you,” answering quickly, the soaking wet child ran away to the door, exiting it and heading to the changing rooms.

“Ororo,” Xavier called on the retreating Storm. “Please join us in the control room. I have something very interesting to tell you.”

“Yes Professor,” and then she was gone too, leaving both men to act as if they had not noticed the change of mood in both the young girl and her mother.

---

Fifteen minutes later,

With Kendall on her way back to the upper levels, Ororo, her clothes changed and her hair freshly dried, stepped through the door of the control room, her eyes filled with questions…and more than a hint of concern.

Showing her the same results as he had shown to Scott, Xavier picked up from where he had left off.

“As I was telling Scott, your powers are tied into your emotions, necessitating the strict control that you exercise.”
“Yes…” that wasn’t anything new for Ororo. For more than two decades, ever since her mutation had first manifested in Africa, keeping her emotions under control had gone from being a forced effort to becoming second nature for her. And now with Kendall… “What does this have to do with Kendall?”
A knowing somewhat secretive played on the telepath’s lips. “Aren’t you wondering how you and all of us, everyone in this mansion failed to notice this change in Kendall’s power levels?”
“I…” neither Ororo nor Scott had any answer for this. As far as Ororo was concerned, she had already gone beyond the ‘wondering’ stage and directly to ‘self-blame’. It was her fault that she did not notice it. She should have been more observant, more caring, more….she should have been there (more) for her children.

“It is because…” Xavier hoped that his next words would bring some respite and maybe even joy to the mother. It pained him to see her like this and even more to not be able to do anything…anything worthwhile. “It is because, unlike you, Kendall’s control is not tied into her emotions.”
“Not tied into her emotions!!” Scott echoed his words.
“Then what are they tied into?” Ororo was equally quick with her question. Even without knowing the complete details, she at least had one consolation that unlike her, her daughter would be able to enjoy the full ‘unfettered’ spectrum of emotions without being afraid of losing her control and causing destruction.

“I don’t have the scientific term for it…” once again turning to computer, Xavier brought up a third set of test results, one which caused both Ororo and Scott to pause. “…but as far as I can say, while you feel your powers and their control, to Kendall it’s a matter of instinct.”

‘Logan.’ Even without mention and without being there physically, the name and the man it belonged to made his presence felt in the room.

“As we know, Kendall shares her father’s feral nature. According to my hypotheses, her emotions are tied into her feral nature and its is that nature which powers her weather manipulation powers and her instinct is what keeps them reined in…and lets them out.” The silence he got caused him to simplify his theory to the basic level. “In a way, the wind elements themselves are Kendall’s claws. As for the expanse or their intensity, its her feral nature that powers them.”

“So, she needs to learn to control that to control her other powers,” Scott’s words got a shake of the head from the Professor.
“No Scott. She doesn’t learn to control them, just how to channel them. Being born with an active mutation and years of growing with just one half, the feral half, have ingrained it into her. So much so that when and however her others powers were released from the mind block, she already had years of practice at controlling them….over nine years worth of practice.”

“Then what was Logan teaching her?” That was another point of contention with Ororo…even if she realized that given the way she had been treating Logan, especially over the past couple of months, ever since….No. Still, he could have at least told the Professor and through him her.

“That I do not know…yet.” Xavier acceded. He would have to talk to Logan about that. “Whatever it is, it seems to have worked. Kendall needs help and guidance but only how to exercise her powers….not so much how to keep them under control.”

“This is good then,” Scott looked from Xavier to Ororo, growing confused and concerned at the look on her face. “Ororo? This is good. Right?”

“Yes Scott, this is good.” Even as she agreed to it, her mind was involved elsewhere. If Kendall’s weather manipulation powers would be controlled and fueled by her feral nature. What if she too has a point of no return?

‘What if she too has a berserker rage?’

---

Next day,

The phone ran thrice before it was answered,

“Yes.”
“We gotta meet.”

“Very well. You can come….”
“NO. Not there.”

“…” (silence) “Place?”
“Tomorrow. Central Park. East side.”

“Central Park? It is a public place. Are you sure?”
“Yeah. Be there at eight.”

“I…”
“Eight. Evening.”

*Click*

---

Monday, the week after,

With a fortnight since the last time she had seen Logan, things had pretty much settled down for the mansion’s residents and even for Ororo herself. She was just about to collect the test papers for the surprise test she had given to her class when Xavier telepathically hailed her.

Minutes later, walking into his office she noticed that he had company….someone vaguely familiar.

Sensing her entry, the tall, handsome, smartly dressed, dark glasses wearing man turned to face her. “Good morning Ms. Monroe,” he nodded in greeting.

“Good morning Mr…” an uneasy sensation rising in the pit of her stomach, Ororo lifted her hand to shake the stranger’s. One look at Xavier and the feeling did not let up but intensified multiple fold.

“Murdock…Matt Murdock. I’m Mr. Logan’s new legal representative.”