Through the Fog, chapter 17!!
Sep. 3rd, 2009 02:31 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
Woo! This one was fast! Gotta love that! Rapidly nearing the end now!
Title: Through the Fog.
Codes: X-men Evolution, Nightcrawler/Toad.
Part 17/19
Rating: NC-17.
Warnings: Angst I think.
Beta: None. Probably loads of weird errors and typos, but at least it's only myself who's to blame.
Feedback: Yes please. Even 'it sucks' would be appreciated.
Disclaimer: I don't own any green prehensile delights or fluffy goodness elfs. Or even the concepts thereof. *sigh* Not mine. At all. Oh I only wish.
Summary: Todd gets an unexpected visit from his past after 10 years, and the war moves in again.
Notes: German translation provided by the awesome
mrs_picard ! Thank you, darling! (Sentence in English at the bottom of the page.)
Chapter 17.
Broken images flittered past Todd's eyes. Like a TV badly tuned in to two different channels at the same time. There was Kurt's worried face hovering above him, calling his name. The next second there was the inside of an ambulance and some guy muttering under his breath about fucked up, smelly freaks. There was the mansion ceiling with the chandeliers and then a blur of dreary white hospital walls. Some old crow was yapping about social services and money, making him roll out of bed and make a magnificent escape with bandages flying behind him.
No time to lose. Wanda... he had to save Wanda... The city streets flew past him in a daze, and his drugged mind thought the lights were awfully pretty and distracting. Like Wanda... Had to save Wanda. That thought kept him focused and he kept going as fast as he could towards Geek Central.
At the mansion grounds, he paused at the wall to catch his breath and uncross his eyes for the jump inside. If it was like he remembered, someone would be out to 'greet' him as soon as he jumped the wall. He was sure he wouldn't be allowed to just walk in this time around. His bandaged arm made it difficult to get the angle right and his head was wrapped so thoroughly in gauze that it felt twice as heavy.
Just as he was crouching for the jump, an arm was flung around his neck from behind, easily shutting off his air supply. And there was that voice. The voice from the warehouse. The mind-fucker.
“Time to forget, little toad...”
Todd was flung out of his own body and watched the whole bizarre scene from afar. He was dragged away by some mutant and he wanted to follow. It was his body after all. But his detached self instead made its way to the brotherhood house with dizzying speed and when he slowed down, the sun was lower in the sky and early evening descended on the sorry excuse for a building that housed the Brotherhood of Mutants.
He saw himself staggering up to the door, which to his immense surprise was locked. Amazingly uncharacteristic for that particular door, considering that last time he saw it, it couldn't even close properly, much less lock. His fifteen year old self looked confused and scratched his bandaged head without thinking, which resulted in a loud curse, clearly audible inside the house.
The door opened, and there was Freddy, easily blocking the entire entrance, preventing the ever more confused teenage Todd from entering the house.
“Yo, dawg! What's up with the door?”
Freddy looked rather grumpy, perhaps even angry, and didn't move an inch.
“You can't come in.”
Todd heard the whine in his younger voice and remembered how the pain was really emerging then, as the drugs wore off.
“Why not? What'd I do?!”
Pietro's blonde head peaked over Freddy's shoulder and leered:
“We don't house treacherous little slime balls like you. So buzz off!”
Young Todd gaped and froze, completely dumbstruck as the door almost hit him in the face when Freddy slammed it shut with a muttered: “Traitor”.
And that was it. Todd remembered it clearly as it was yesterday, but now it suddenly made sense. As he watched his younger, oblivious self go to sleep behind some of the scraggy bushes in the yard, Todd reflected on what he had learned. They hadn't just kicked him out for no reason. They had somehow found out what he had overheard and that he had gone to the X-geeks for help. Guess Todd hadn't been as successful at sneaking as he'd thought.
Pietro had probably gotten a message from “daddy dearest”, to find Todd and stop him from talking to Kurt. Maybe the mind fuckery was just because Pietro got squeamish and couldn't kill him. Improbable, but not impossible. Or maybe someone else from The Brotherhood actually stood up for him and cared. Either way, he was lucky to be alive. Magneto didn't take too kindly too betrayal after all.
Had it been more recent times, Todd probably would have been dead within seconds of overhearing Maggy's fatherly plans for his only daughter. But if the plan was so good, then why hadn't the whole damn planet blown up yet? Was it just too risky? Or had Wanda proved to be not so easily controlled after all? Whatever the reason, it only meant that Magneto still potentially had a horrific weapon on hand if it looked like he was going to lose the war.
It was a really scary thought, and Todd tried desperately to find a way to snap out of this way too realistic dream, so he could tell the Professor. As if on cue, suddenly the Professor's face appeared hovering before him, and without moving his lips, Xavier casually remarked:
“I think we've seen what we need to see. Don't you agree, Todd?”
Todd would have yelped, but he didn't seem to really have a voice. So he simply tried to think what he wanted to say. Not so very freakin' easy for someone, who in his own opinion, had just about as much mental capacity as a wet cotton ball. The Professor got the hint though, and the ten year old world faded away slowly, to be replaced by the present and a blue, furry and extremely worried face.
"Oh, Gott sei Dank! Danke, Gott, dass du ihn mir nicht genommen hast! Barmherziger Vater..."
Todd was completely engulfed in furred gecko, clinging to him and babbling in German into his ear.
“Hey, woah, Fuzzy! English! And a little air!”
The grip loosened a little, but Kurt didn't let go completely. He pulled back far enough to look Todd in the face.
“Sorry, but I vas so vorried about you. You almost died. If the Professor hadn't found you...”
Trying to sit up, Todd fought to get his bearings as the urgency of the situation suddenly occurred to him.
“The Professor! Where is he? I need to...”
A wave of nausea forced him back on the couch in Xavier's office and the Professor's voice calmed him immediately.
“Don't worry, Todd. I took the liberty of looking over your shoulder, so to speak, as the memory barriers you had broke down. I was afraid to tamper with them myself, in case they would cause damage being lifted prematurely. Some things are better left for the mind to work out at its own pace.”
Todd turned his head carefully to look at Xavier with annoyance.
“So you knew all along that I was fucked up in the head?!”
Xavier simply smiled his usual kind smile.
“Not exactly. I knew there were barriers, but they were unusual, so I thought it best to leave them for the time being. More often than not, the brain overrides such barriers without help, given enough time and a few hints. I managed to pull out a few of the memories at our first session, and the rest came along just now by an amazing stroke of luck.”
Kurt help Todd sit up slowly and he fixed Xavier with a puzzled and still annoyed look. Xavier wheeled himself behind his desk and let his fingertips meet in his usual thoughtful position.
“It seems you were grazed by another of Bane's darts at your last encounter, and I'm sure even he could not have realized the effect it would have on your memories. I didn't have to do anything, I simply tagged along while it all unravelled inside your head. It was not without risk, however. You were very close to dying.”
Todd's eyes widened and he croaked:
“...the hell? How?”
Kurt's hand closed painfully tight around Todd's and provided a much needed anchor to cling to, while Xavier fixed him with a piercing stare.
“You were very deeply immersed in your memories. Your heart rate and breathing slowed down, and I didn't want to risk further damage by trying to pull you back out. We called for Sascha when you were found, but she's still about half an hour away, so we had no way of knowing just how badly the poison affected you.
“Your vital signs dropped so low that we thought you were dead. But then it slowly righted itself. Maybe it's just the nature of this type of poison, or maybe you've got a lot more mental strength than you think. Either way, it seems you've cheated death yet again.”
Todd let his gaze drop to the carpet and squeezed Kurt's hand. It was all just a little too much for him. But at least this way, he was saved the trouble of retelling the whole, weird story. Todd rubbed his eyes and groaned. He felt like he had been wrung out completely and he just couldn't face it all right then. Perhaps the Professor sensed it, perhaps not, but he cleared his throat and said:
“Well. I'd say you've certainly lived up to your side of the bargain. I sent Jean and Scott to find Wanda and bring her to safety, if possible. Kitty is waiting with the jet to take you to your new home. Kurt, would you be kind enough to help Todd pack his things and take him down to the hangar?”
Kurt looked up as if he had completely forgotten the Professor was even there.
“Oh! Uhm... of course, Professor.”
He helped Todd up from the couch and made sure he was steady on his feet before letting him move. They headed for the door, but stopped when Xavier extended his hand across the desk. Todd shook it, left the office, shut the door behind them and closed his eyes when Kurt embraced him and they vanished.
Onwards.
(German sentence was: "Oh, thank God! Thank you, God, for not taking him away from me. Merciful Father...")
Title: Through the Fog.
Codes: X-men Evolution, Nightcrawler/Toad.
Part 17/19
Rating: NC-17.
Warnings: Angst I think.
Beta: None. Probably loads of weird errors and typos, but at least it's only myself who's to blame.
Feedback: Yes please. Even 'it sucks' would be appreciated.
Disclaimer: I don't own any green prehensile delights or fluffy goodness elfs. Or even the concepts thereof. *sigh* Not mine. At all. Oh I only wish.
Summary: Todd gets an unexpected visit from his past after 10 years, and the war moves in again.
Notes: German translation provided by the awesome
![[profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
Chapter 17.
Broken images flittered past Todd's eyes. Like a TV badly tuned in to two different channels at the same time. There was Kurt's worried face hovering above him, calling his name. The next second there was the inside of an ambulance and some guy muttering under his breath about fucked up, smelly freaks. There was the mansion ceiling with the chandeliers and then a blur of dreary white hospital walls. Some old crow was yapping about social services and money, making him roll out of bed and make a magnificent escape with bandages flying behind him.
No time to lose. Wanda... he had to save Wanda... The city streets flew past him in a daze, and his drugged mind thought the lights were awfully pretty and distracting. Like Wanda... Had to save Wanda. That thought kept him focused and he kept going as fast as he could towards Geek Central.
At the mansion grounds, he paused at the wall to catch his breath and uncross his eyes for the jump inside. If it was like he remembered, someone would be out to 'greet' him as soon as he jumped the wall. He was sure he wouldn't be allowed to just walk in this time around. His bandaged arm made it difficult to get the angle right and his head was wrapped so thoroughly in gauze that it felt twice as heavy.
Just as he was crouching for the jump, an arm was flung around his neck from behind, easily shutting off his air supply. And there was that voice. The voice from the warehouse. The mind-fucker.
“Time to forget, little toad...”
Todd was flung out of his own body and watched the whole bizarre scene from afar. He was dragged away by some mutant and he wanted to follow. It was his body after all. But his detached self instead made its way to the brotherhood house with dizzying speed and when he slowed down, the sun was lower in the sky and early evening descended on the sorry excuse for a building that housed the Brotherhood of Mutants.
He saw himself staggering up to the door, which to his immense surprise was locked. Amazingly uncharacteristic for that particular door, considering that last time he saw it, it couldn't even close properly, much less lock. His fifteen year old self looked confused and scratched his bandaged head without thinking, which resulted in a loud curse, clearly audible inside the house.
The door opened, and there was Freddy, easily blocking the entire entrance, preventing the ever more confused teenage Todd from entering the house.
“Yo, dawg! What's up with the door?”
Freddy looked rather grumpy, perhaps even angry, and didn't move an inch.
“You can't come in.”
Todd heard the whine in his younger voice and remembered how the pain was really emerging then, as the drugs wore off.
“Why not? What'd I do?!”
Pietro's blonde head peaked over Freddy's shoulder and leered:
“We don't house treacherous little slime balls like you. So buzz off!”
Young Todd gaped and froze, completely dumbstruck as the door almost hit him in the face when Freddy slammed it shut with a muttered: “Traitor”.
And that was it. Todd remembered it clearly as it was yesterday, but now it suddenly made sense. As he watched his younger, oblivious self go to sleep behind some of the scraggy bushes in the yard, Todd reflected on what he had learned. They hadn't just kicked him out for no reason. They had somehow found out what he had overheard and that he had gone to the X-geeks for help. Guess Todd hadn't been as successful at sneaking as he'd thought.
Pietro had probably gotten a message from “daddy dearest”, to find Todd and stop him from talking to Kurt. Maybe the mind fuckery was just because Pietro got squeamish and couldn't kill him. Improbable, but not impossible. Or maybe someone else from The Brotherhood actually stood up for him and cared. Either way, he was lucky to be alive. Magneto didn't take too kindly too betrayal after all.
Had it been more recent times, Todd probably would have been dead within seconds of overhearing Maggy's fatherly plans for his only daughter. But if the plan was so good, then why hadn't the whole damn planet blown up yet? Was it just too risky? Or had Wanda proved to be not so easily controlled after all? Whatever the reason, it only meant that Magneto still potentially had a horrific weapon on hand if it looked like he was going to lose the war.
It was a really scary thought, and Todd tried desperately to find a way to snap out of this way too realistic dream, so he could tell the Professor. As if on cue, suddenly the Professor's face appeared hovering before him, and without moving his lips, Xavier casually remarked:
“I think we've seen what we need to see. Don't you agree, Todd?”
Todd would have yelped, but he didn't seem to really have a voice. So he simply tried to think what he wanted to say. Not so very freakin' easy for someone, who in his own opinion, had just about as much mental capacity as a wet cotton ball. The Professor got the hint though, and the ten year old world faded away slowly, to be replaced by the present and a blue, furry and extremely worried face.
"Oh, Gott sei Dank! Danke, Gott, dass du ihn mir nicht genommen hast! Barmherziger Vater..."
Todd was completely engulfed in furred gecko, clinging to him and babbling in German into his ear.
“Hey, woah, Fuzzy! English! And a little air!”
The grip loosened a little, but Kurt didn't let go completely. He pulled back far enough to look Todd in the face.
“Sorry, but I vas so vorried about you. You almost died. If the Professor hadn't found you...”
Trying to sit up, Todd fought to get his bearings as the urgency of the situation suddenly occurred to him.
“The Professor! Where is he? I need to...”
A wave of nausea forced him back on the couch in Xavier's office and the Professor's voice calmed him immediately.
“Don't worry, Todd. I took the liberty of looking over your shoulder, so to speak, as the memory barriers you had broke down. I was afraid to tamper with them myself, in case they would cause damage being lifted prematurely. Some things are better left for the mind to work out at its own pace.”
Todd turned his head carefully to look at Xavier with annoyance.
“So you knew all along that I was fucked up in the head?!”
Xavier simply smiled his usual kind smile.
“Not exactly. I knew there were barriers, but they were unusual, so I thought it best to leave them for the time being. More often than not, the brain overrides such barriers without help, given enough time and a few hints. I managed to pull out a few of the memories at our first session, and the rest came along just now by an amazing stroke of luck.”
Kurt help Todd sit up slowly and he fixed Xavier with a puzzled and still annoyed look. Xavier wheeled himself behind his desk and let his fingertips meet in his usual thoughtful position.
“It seems you were grazed by another of Bane's darts at your last encounter, and I'm sure even he could not have realized the effect it would have on your memories. I didn't have to do anything, I simply tagged along while it all unravelled inside your head. It was not without risk, however. You were very close to dying.”
Todd's eyes widened and he croaked:
“...the hell? How?”
Kurt's hand closed painfully tight around Todd's and provided a much needed anchor to cling to, while Xavier fixed him with a piercing stare.
“You were very deeply immersed in your memories. Your heart rate and breathing slowed down, and I didn't want to risk further damage by trying to pull you back out. We called for Sascha when you were found, but she's still about half an hour away, so we had no way of knowing just how badly the poison affected you.
“Your vital signs dropped so low that we thought you were dead. But then it slowly righted itself. Maybe it's just the nature of this type of poison, or maybe you've got a lot more mental strength than you think. Either way, it seems you've cheated death yet again.”
Todd let his gaze drop to the carpet and squeezed Kurt's hand. It was all just a little too much for him. But at least this way, he was saved the trouble of retelling the whole, weird story. Todd rubbed his eyes and groaned. He felt like he had been wrung out completely and he just couldn't face it all right then. Perhaps the Professor sensed it, perhaps not, but he cleared his throat and said:
“Well. I'd say you've certainly lived up to your side of the bargain. I sent Jean and Scott to find Wanda and bring her to safety, if possible. Kitty is waiting with the jet to take you to your new home. Kurt, would you be kind enough to help Todd pack his things and take him down to the hangar?”
Kurt looked up as if he had completely forgotten the Professor was even there.
“Oh! Uhm... of course, Professor.”
He helped Todd up from the couch and made sure he was steady on his feet before letting him move. They headed for the door, but stopped when Xavier extended his hand across the desk. Todd shook it, left the office, shut the door behind them and closed his eyes when Kurt embraced him and they vanished.
Onwards.
(German sentence was: "Oh, thank God! Thank you, God, for not taking him away from me. Merciful Father...")