Now we are forced to recognize our inhumanity
Our reason co-exists with our insanity...
And though we choose between reality and madness
It's either sadness or euphoria...
(Billy Joel -- Summer, Highland Falls)
Yawning, Justine opened her eyes, stretching her legs out on the bed. The morning sun streamed in through the window across from her bed, lighting up the colorful bedspread. She reached for the sunglasses on the night stand and hooked them on over her ears. These weren't the same glasses Logan had given her; these were photo-sensitive, getting darker or lighter depending on the available light in the room. They were a gift to her from Kurt her first week in the mansion. Her eyes were becoming used to brighter light, but it wasn't something that was going to happen overnight. The glasses were helping a great deal and she wore them almost from the moment she woke up until she went to sleep.
She curled her legs underneath her, marveling at the softness of the bed. Too much of her life she'd been the girl and too much of her life she'd been underground. Now she was Justine again, and Justine lived above ground.
When the sun's dance finished, she climbed out of bed went into the bathroom to shower. This was another miracle for her; no longer did she have to wait for Saturday night to bathe, she could shower every day. Not only that, but it was almost expected that she shower every day.
Justine finished her shower and slipped into her clothes when there came a soft knock at her door. She froze, forgetting for a moment what that meant, then shook her head, feeling silly. Just a knock, she told herself. Remember? People knock on doors when they want to talk to you, they don't just barge in. "C-come in," she called softly.
The door opened a crack and Kitty poked her head inside. "Morning, I see you're awake!" She grinned to Justine.
Justine grinned in return. She liked Kitty. "Yeah, I'm up," she said, trying to sound as if she'd engaged in casual conversation all her life. "What's up?" She hoped Kitty wasn't going to ask her about the nightmare she'd had last night. She felt rather silly about waking everyone up with her screaming.
"Nothin' much," Kitty answered. "Illyana and I are on breakfast detail this morning. We heard your shower running and just wondered if you wanted to come down and keep us company, maybe give us a hand."
"I-I'd like that," Justine said softly, "but I'm afraid I won't be much help."
"Aw, I'll bet you can crack a few eggs or work the toaster as good as we can." Kitty's eyes sparkled brightly. "C'mon, it'll be fun. Wolvie and Storm are out taking a walk and everyone else is asleep. We have the whole place to ourselves for at least fifteen minutes." She opened the door all the way and motioned for Justine to follow.
"Well, okay then," Justine agreed, following Kitty.
Illyana was sitting on the counter by the sink, head bend over a cookbook when Kitty and Justine walked in. She looked up at both of them. "Good morning Justine. Hey Kitty, what do you think of omelets?"
"If it were just us, great," Kitty said, "but omelets for everyone would be a pain. Everyone here has different tastes for one thing. For another, we don't exactly have a skillet big enough to make a dozen omelets at a time."
"You're right." Illyana sighed and closed the book. "I guess it's scrambled eggs--again."
"What's so bad about scrambled eggs?" Justine asked.
"Nothing, except whenever we're on breakfast detail we always end up making scrambled eggs," Illyana answered. "I just thought it would be nice to make something different."
"Uh.. how about we put out a box of corn flakes and some milk?" Kitty suggested grinning.
"Surrrrrreeee!" Illyana rolled her eyes. "Let's do scrambled eggs." She walked over to the refrigerator and took out a carton of eggs. "Justine, you wanna start getting the eggs ready?"
"Al-ah-all right."
"Great." Illyana handed her the eggs. "You mix up the eggs, I'll start the bacon."
"And I'll turn on the radio!" Kitty reached up and pressed a button on the radio mounted under one of the cabinets. Music filled the room.
"Ohhhh, that must have been taxing." Illyana looked over at Kitty. "Pressing that big ol' button all by yourself." She tossed a loaf of bread toward her. "If you've recovered enough, you can start making toast."
"I don't know," Kitty said, shaking her head. "I'm pretty tired after all that work." She pretended to struggle with the twist tie on the bread. "But...." She paused to wipe her hand across her forehead. "I'll try.... for your sake Yana, I'll do my best. I-I know what toast means to you."
Justine listened to the girls banter and smiled. They reminded her of something ... no, someone she hadn't thought about in many years. A face seemed to appear behind her eyes. Smooth, dark, skin and friendly brown eyes. She paused from breaking eggs and concentrated on that face, trying to remember the name that went with it. The name came to her and she cried out, "Tamara!"
"What about tomorrow?" Kitty asked, looking over to Justine, her brows furrowed in a puzzled expression.
"No, not tomorrow, Tamara." Justine blushed. "It's.. someone I remember. A friend I used to have." She swallowed, feeling as if she should say something more. "I-I just remembered her now, watching the way the both of you are with each other. Tamara and I were friends like the both of you are."
"Really?" Kitty asked, eyes bright with interest. She knew about Justine's years in the basement and her gaps in memory. Magnus had told all of them, when she first came here so they could understand why she acted oddly at times. Kitty also knew that it was important for Justine to get her memory back and wanted to encourage her. "What else do you remember about her?"
Justine thought carefully. "She was pretty and smart. She could sing real good, and dance too. She loved to dance."
"A lot like me," Kitty said. "At least the smart and the dancing."
"The pretty part too," Illyana interjected. "Kitty everyone knows you're a raving beauty." She giggled as Kitty looked over at her, crossing her eyes and sticking out her tongue. "Especially with that look on your face. Oh, if my brother could see you now."
"Well, I don't think she took dance lessons." Justine bit her lower lip, thinking carefully as she sorted out memories. "But any time we were listening to music, she was always dancing to it." She began cracking eggs into the bowl again. "She hated Jericho."
"I don't blame her," Illyana murmured.
"Why didn't she like the town?" Kitty asked.
"Because a lot of people didn't like her or her family," Justine explained. "Uh.. her father was white. Her mother was from Haiti." She started blushing again, wondering why she felt ashamed of her "home" town. "Some people in Jericho thought that was wrong." She shrugged helplessly. "Some of the kids we went to school with... their parents didn't want them to hang around with her.
"I understand," Kitty interjected smoothly. "People get some pretty stupid notions."
"They're afraid of anything they don't understand," Illyana added, frowning for a moment as she thought of her own small town. "Did your folks mind that you hung around with her?"
Justine shook her head. "No..." Her voice trailed off as she remembered a few arguments after Tamara left the house. "Well, I think He-," she stopped abruptly, remembering who "he" really was. "I mean, my father, didn't like it that much." Her brows furrowed. "But, I don't think it was that he didn't approve of Tamara, I think he was just worried about the town, what they thought of us being friends. My... mother didn't mind. She liked Tamara." She started mixing the eggs together with a fork.
"Do you wonder what happened to her?" Kitty asked as she pushed the lever on the toaster, sliding four slices of bread out of view.
I wish I could say yeah, but since I just remembered her today, no." She smiled. "But if my memories of her are right, I'll bet she got herself a scholarship to a good college and is now running General Motors or something. She's too smart to get stuck in Jericho."
"Maybe some day you can find out what happened to her." Illyana suggested. "If her folks still live in Jericho, I'll bet they'd know where she is."
Justine wasn't sure she wanted to find Tamara, at least not any time soon. "Maybe," she finally said. She didn't know what Tamara was told about her disappearance. What would I say if I did meet up with her? she thought. Tamara, I was locked in the basement for over ten years. People in Jericho knew I was down there and they didn't do a damned thing. And for the life of me, I can't remember what it was I did that got me there!
She looked up to say something when a sharp pain shot through her temples. "Oh!" She closed her eyes, leaning on the counter for support.
"Justine!" Kitty looked over at her. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah," she lied, feeling the pain spread through her head. "Headache.. hit me suddenly."
"Ouch," Illyana looked over at her. "Want me to get you some aspirin?"
"Good idea, go get it," Kitty said, taking Justine's arm and leading her over to a chair. "God Justine, you look like you're going to be sick."
"No..." Justine shook her head. "Just a headache." She sat down. "It just hit me suddenly that's all."
"You wanna lay down?" Kitty asked.
"Yeah, maybe I'd better." Justine looked up at her. "God, I feel dumb."
"For having a headache? Don't be stupid." Kitty looked up as Illyana came back into the kitchen with the aspirin bottle. "Want to take a couple aspirin first?"
"Yeah." Justine nodded.
She was able to convince Kitty and Illyana she could make it up to her room herself. Once she'd shut the door behind her, Justine closed the window shades and lay down on the bed. Jesus, she thought. Where did this come from? She remembered very few headaches in her life and this was a whopper. Maybe it's because I'm remembering stuff. Maybe I should just stop thinking so much.
She rolled over onto her side, closed her eyes and waited for the aspirin to work.
"Are you feeling any better now?"
Justine looked over at Magnus, peering at him through the dark glasses. It was early afternoon, and she'd woken up half an hour ago. "Yeah," she answered him. "I'm better. It was just a headache. The aspirin and the sleep must have gotten rid of it."
"I'm glad to hear that." The corners of his mouth turned up in a faint smile.
"So am I, it hurt." She stated, returning his smile. They were sitting in the kitchen together. Justine was finishing up a sandwich she'd made. She looked around the room. "Quiet today, where is everyone?"
"Enjoying the day," Magnus answered. "It's Saturday afternoon. The world doesn't need saving and there's no school, so I'm sure everyone is taking advantage of it."
"It's been a long time since Saturday afternoon meant much to me," Justine murmured. She picked up her can of Sprite and took a sip.
Magnus watched her carefully, making sure she really did feel all right, that she no longer had a headache. Kitty and Illyana told him Justine looked ready to pass out when it hit her, but now she was looking like herself. "Kitty mentioned you were remembering something when you got your headache."
Justine nodded. "Yeah. I was remembering an old friend." She leaned back in her chair, kicking her legs out in front of her. "I'm wondering if that gave me the headache."
"It's possible," Magnus said evenly. "Remember that time I tried to probe your mind?"
She nodded. "We found out I had a wall there." She looked down at the table, studying the pattern in the wood grain.
"I think that all those memories you've locked away are behind that wall," Magnus said, keeping his voice carefully modulated. Sudden changes in tones and sounds had a tendency to startle her. "The headache might have been part of that wall breaking away."
She stared at the tabletop for a very long time, her shoulders starting to hunch over, her hair falling into her face. "Justine," he said softly. "Are you all right?"
She looked up at him, her eyes hidden beneath the dark glasses, but her lower lip quivered slightly. "I-I don't know if I want to remember Magnus," she said softly. "If I don't know what I can do.. then maybe I'll never do it again."
"Justine, we've spoken about this before." It bothered him to see her like this. It was as if all the changing, all the learning she'd been doing disappeared and suddenly he was looking at the girl in the basement. "You're not the anti-Christ. You're a mutant. There is nothing wrong with being a mutant. It doesn't mean you are wicked and sinful. It simply means you were born with something extra. Your parents locked you in the basement out of fear and stupidity."
"How can you say that, not knowing what I can do?" She whispered. "Wh-what if it's something... devastating?"
"No matter what it is, we will deal with it." Magnus reached out and put his hand over hers. "We will train you and try to find a way for you to use it for good. You are not evil Justine. Someone evil would not have stayed in the basement willingly. She'd find a way to get out of there."
She looked over at his hand resting on top of hers and felt tears prickling behind her eyes. It had been so long since people reached out to her. There were times when she was afraid she would lose all of this and end up back in the dark. She bit her lower lip, forcing the tears back. "M-maybe I was too young, too stupid to escape," she suggested. "And when I was old enough, I just didn't know any better."
"Justine, you aren't evil." Magnus' voice was gentle, but firm. "I've known a great deal of evil in my life, so I should be able to recognize it. You are a young woman who has a rough past. You've been told lies about you, terrible lies, but that's all they were--lies. They aren't true. You have to believe that. You are not the anti-Christ. You are a mutant."
She looked up at him, slipping her hand out from his. "Magnus, isn't it possible that if there really is an anti-Christ that she could be a mutant too?"
Magnus smiled. "I don't know if I believe there could be such a thing as an anti-Christ. But even if I did, I know it isn't you."
Justine was about to say something when Sam came into the kitchen and walked over to the refrigerator. "Hi, Ah don't mean t'bother y'all, but Ah gotta get some stuff."
"That's all right." Magnus watched as he opened the refrigerator and pulled out two six packs of soda and one of beer. "Beer?" He raised his brow. "A little young aren't you Sam?"
Sam looked over at Magnus turning bright red. "Aw Sir, it ain't fer me! Bunch of us went down to the lake t'go swimming. The beer's for Logan." He looked over at Justine, seeming to see her for the first time. "Hi Justine."
"Hi Sam." Justine liked the tall, quiet young man, although sometimes his broad southern drawl made her slightly uneasy. She'd made a conscious effort to lose her own.
"Well, as long as Logan doesn't intend to let you drink any of it, I suppose it wouldn't hurt to let you bring it down." Magnus suppressed a smile.
"Aw, I ain't gonna drink it." The color spread up to Sam's ears. "Ah've tried it before an' Ah don't like the taste."
"Who else is down by the lake?" Justine asked.
Sam thought for a moment, as he tucked the soda under one arm, and held the beer with his free hand. "Uh.. me, Logan, Dani, Illyana, Kitty, Peter, an' Roberto." He grinned. "You guys wanna come along? It's a hot day an' the lake is cool. We put up a rope swing too."
Magnus shook his head. "I appreciate the offer, but I'll pass. I have some work to do." He looked over at Justine. "Why don't you go Justine? Sam's right, it is hot today."
Justine looked at Magnus. "You don't mind?"
"No, of course not," Magnus said. "You're an adult Justine. You can do what you want. I'd just recommend you wear some sunscreen."
She nodded and looked over at Sam. "I-I'd like to go if you don't mind."
"Like t'have ya," Sam said, smiling. "You can help me carry the soda."
"Let her carry the beer," Magnus suggested, his expression completely neutral. "Since she's of legal age."
"Aw Sir!" Sam blushed again.
Justine rose from her chair. "Can you give me five minutes? I just want to go put on some shorts and get my sunscreen."
Sam nodded, putting the soda and the beer on the counter. "No problem, Ah'll wait."
When Justine left the room, Magnus looked at Sam. "You and Logan keep an eye on her. She's still not used to much sun. Don't let her suffer from heatstroke."
Justine sat down on the shore of the lake. Kicking off her sneakers, she stretched her legs out so her feet were in the water. It was a hot day, but the trees growing along the shore shaded the lake, so the water felt delightfully cool. She wriggled her toes, drawing in a deep, contented breath. This reminded her of when she was a child. There was a lake in Jericho, on the outskirts of town and if her memory was correct, she and Tamara spent a lot of time there, along with most of the other kids in town.
"Hey Justy, mind if I join ya?"
She looked up at Logan, raising her hands to shade her eyes. "No, I don't mind." She smiled. "I'm not very exciting company though. Just soaking my feet."
"Aw, nobody has to be exciting twenty-four hours a day." Logan sat down next to her and handed her a can of soda. "Here, I grabbed this for ya before the mob drank it all." He jerked his thumb in the direction of Sam and the rest of the group who were surrounding the six packs of soft drinks she and Sam had brought with them.
"Thanks." She accepted the container and popped it open.
Logan settled down next to her, opening a can of beer he'd brought over for himself. "Gonna take a swim later?" he asked her.
She shrugged. "I might. I mostly came down to see the lake." She flexed her feet, making tiny ripples in the water. "There's a lake in Jericho, everyone use to hang out there. On the fourth of July there was a giant party there."
"Massive cookouts, fire works at night eh?" Logan asked.
Justine nodded. "Yeah, all of that stuff. I don't know if people really cared it was independence day or if it was all just a big excuse to cut loose."
"Probably both." Logan pulled a cigar out of his shirt pocket and lit it up.
"Yeah..." Justine's voice trailed off as she watched the group heading back into the water. "They're like his group," she murmured.
"Who's group?" Logan asked.
She turned her head to look at him, frowning. "I don't know," she answered him honestly. "I just said that... it was as if this thought came into my mind and I just blurted it out before I knew it." She reached up and ran her index finger between her lip and her chin. "His group," she repeated, then shrugged. "More of those memories breaking through the wall." She tried to grin but failed in the attempt.
"Don't worry 'bout it kid. All things will come with time, including those memories."
She hardly heard Logan, as she watched the group of young people splashing around in the water. Illyana, and Kitty were doing their best to splash Peter and laughing loudly. Sam was standing in the water up to his waist not swimming, but just enjoying the cool water.. Dani floated on her back, looking up at the sky while Roberto swam around her in slow lazy circles.
Suddenly Roberto dove under the water. For some reason she didn't quite understand, Justine felt her breath stop in her throat until she saw him break through the surface. "Hey guys, I'm gonna go test the rope swing!" He called out.
Justine watched along with the group as he swam to shore and walked over to the tree with the rope swing. It was a tall, strong looking tree with branches hanging over the water. Her heart pounded and the blood seemed to swim in front of her eyes as he shimmied up the tree and started making his way out on one of the large branches overhanging the lake. For a moment it was as if she shifted in her mind, she suddenly saw him as being taller, lighter skinned and with longer hair. She blinked several times, until he looked like himself again, biting her lower lip. She didn't know why, but there was something very wrong here. The lake seemed to be shimmering, changing in front of her eyes. "No," she whispered. "No.. don't."
"No, don't what?" Logan asked, but she never heard him. Her eyes were glued on Roberto, glued on him.
Roberto reached up, grabbing onto the rope hanging from the branch above him. "Hey everyone, watch this!" He called out. "I'm going swing out half way across the lake!"
The group turned their attention to him. "Show off!" Illyana called out cheerfully. "Let's see you do it, Berto!"
"Be prepared to get splashed Yana!" Roberto declared as he crouched, using his legs for leverage. He pushed off the branch, holding onto the rope and swung out over the lake.
"No!" Justine screamed, suddenly. "NO! Stop!" Everything was happening too fast.
"Justine, what's wrong?" Logan asked, looking concerned now.
Again she didn't hear him. It was as if something inside her head shattered into a million pieces and she felt like something was pushing her, pushing her deeper inside herself, into a memory she'd completely blocked.
No longer seeing anything around her, Justine fell into the memory. She was twelve years old and she was down by the lake; not this lake, but the lake back in Jericho. Tamara was with her. It was the fourth of July and the whole town seemed to be there too, laughing, talking, and splashing around in the water. Tamara had her portable radio and they were listening to music..
"Ah hate this song!" Tamara yelled out, reaching to turn down the volume of the radio. "Undercover Angel, make me puke!"
"Ah think it's funny," Justine said. "Undercover Angel, midnight fantasy..." she began singing. "I never had a dream..."
"Uck!" Tamara interrupted. "Don't sing Justy. You're a girl of many talents, but your voice sounds like fingernails on a blackboard."
"Well we can't all be talented like you Tam." Justine stuck her tongue out at her friend.
They were at the edge of the crowd, standing down by the shore, near the rope swing. Justine had reasons for picking this spot for them to talk and enjoy the sun. The rope swing was very popular with a certain group of high school kids. Justine would have given her left arm to be accepted by this group of kids, but they all thought she was too young to hang around with them. But that didn't mean she couldn't happen to be here when they showed up. If she was lucky one of them might even talk to her. One in particular would be nice. She scanned the crowd to see if any of this group were coming towards the rope swing.
The song on the radio ended and a Thelma Houston dance tune came on--Don't Leave Me This Way. Tamara turned the volume up on her radio, moving gently, effortlessly with the music. "Don't see him yet huh?" she asked.
"Who says Ah'm looking for anyone in particular?" Justine asked, feeling suddenly defensive. She didn't know why in this last year suddenly boys--one in particular-- were so much more interesting.
"Because you're always looking for him." Tamara said, her soft brown eyes glittering with amusement. "Justine Miller, face it, you're half way 'round the bend in love with him an' for the life of me Ah don't see why. He's ugly!"
"He is not!" Justine flew to his defense quickly. "He's cute!"
"Huh!" Tamara snorted. "Trust me Justy, you're worth two of him. Don't waste your time. Man like that'll only drag you down."
Justine rolled her eyes. She loved Tamara like a sister, but sometimes she was a little too serious about things. "If you're going to give me another of those talks about getting good grades an' getting out of Jericho, skip it 'kay? Ah'm not the brain you are and Ah don't mind Jericho. There are worse places to live."
"Maybe for you," Tamara stated flatly. "Not for me though. Gonna get out of this town soon as I can."
"Can we wait till after the party is over?" Justine asked, rolling her eyes back in her head until only the whites were showing.
"Uck!" Tamara shivered. "Ah really hate it when ya do that Justy. Makes ya look like ya died or somethin'."
"That's why Ah do it, just to gross you out!" Justine rolled her eyes back down, giggling. The radio started playing an old KC and the Sunshine band song--That's the Way I Like It. "Finally, a song Ah like!" she exclaimed, leaping to her feet. "This song screams, 'Dance!" She started moving with the music.
"Shake it girl!" Tamara laughed, moving with Justine, in time with the music. In the past year her friend had shot up three inches, getting that long limb look and started feeling awkward and self conscious most of the time. Tamara liked seeing her cut loose and have fun.
"Well lookie heah," Someone called out, interrupting the girls. "Guess it's true what they say, even zebras can dance."
Tamara's eyes narrowed into steely slits as she turned to face the high school aged boy. Justine gulped, looking around as the group of teenagers started coming towards them. "Buck, you got a big mouth!" she said. "Tamara an' me weren't bothering' you, so why don't ya just shut up?"
There were eight kids in the group. One of them was him.
"Aw whatsamatter Rusty?" Buck cooed, "Did Ah jes' insult yo' girlfriend?"
"Shut your yap Buck," Tamara's voice was sweet, but her fists clenched. "'Fore Ah shut it for you permanently."
Justine looked over at him, silently hoping he'd come to their rescue and tell Buck to shut up. He stood in the middle of the group; his arms crossed over his bare chest. This was his group, they would do whatever he said, but he didn't do anything, just watched, the corners of his mouth curled into a small, almost mean little smile.
"Everyone in town knows these two are like this." Buck held up two crossed fingers. "Probably after the dance, they were gonna start necking."
"Oh God Buck, you are such a PIG!" Carla Green said, looking embarrassed. Justine wasn't surprised she'd come to their rescue. Carla didn't like to see anyone being insulted; she was that type of person. "C'mon, leave em' alone. They weren't botherin' nobody."
As grateful as Justine was for Carla's help, she wished it was his instead. She looked over at him, trying to tell him with her eyes to please stop this now. He looked at her, the smile still playing at the corners of his mouth. No, I'm not going to do anything; that smile said. Actually, I'm enjoying this. Justine turned away, whirling to face Buck.
"Buck, just bug off!" she said, hoping she sounded angry instead of scared. "Tamara an' me weren't doin' nothin' t'you."
"Oh.. Tam, yo' girlfriend is getting pissed!" Buck crowed, looking pleased with himself. "Do you like her when she's in foaming at the mouth like this? Does it get you hot?"
Justine felt the wave of anger flowing from her friend. For a moment, she thought Tamara might jump Buck and reached out, putting her hand on Tamara's shoulder.
"Buck Wilson, that's enough!" Carla shouted, loud enough so that most of the people on the beach must have heard her. "Good god, they're just kids! Leave em' alone an' lets go swimming!"
"Yeah," a few of the other kids in the group agreed. Justine noticed he wasn't one of them.
Realizing he'd lost the support of his friends; Buck shrugged and turned away, heading into the water. When they saw the incident was over; the rest of the group drifted away, leaving Tamara and Justine alone. They sat back down on the beach. "I-I'm sorry Tam," Justine mumbled, wishing she could think of something better to say.
Tamara turned and looked at her, her eyes still flashing with anger. "It isn't like this is the first time somethin' like this has happened. Now do you understand why Ah wanna get outta this town so damned bad?
"Y-yeah," Justine looked away, feeling ashamed of herself, of the other kids. She looked out over the water, watching the group swimming. "But heck Tam, Buck is a jerk. He's always been a jerk, always will be a jerk."
"Yeah, but he isn't the only one in this town with that attitude."
Justine didn't know what to say, what she could say, to make her friend feel better, so she said nothing. She watched him instead, climbing up the tree where the rope swing hung.
Tamara noticed where Justine's eyes were looking and snorted. "Justine, you got some taste in boys."
"Tam!" Justine pulled her gaze away from him and back to her friend. "He wasn't picking on you. He didn't say anything."
"That's the point," Tamara argued. "He didn't do anything. If he'd told Buck to stop, the whole thing would have ended right after the first insult. He's the leader of that damned group. They always do whatever he says."
A cold feeling started creeping through Justine. Part of her was wondering if the first love of her young life was really as great as she thought he was. She didn't like thinking this way.
She didn't want to look at Tamara, afraid she wouldn't like the look in her eyes, so she watched him as he swung out into the lake on the rope swing, admiring his body, the way it moved fluidly, his tanned skin glistening in the bright sun. She felt her breath coming short in her throat as he let go of the rope, plunging into the deep water. Goose bumps broke out on her arms as she waited for him to resurface out of the water. She watched and waited, but he didn't appear.
Justine jumped to her feet, scanning the area of the lake where they were swimming. "Nah, he's just playing around." she muttered.
"Huh?" Tamara looked over at her. "Who's playing around?"
Justine didn't hear Tamara. The tingly feeling she had while watching him diving had switched into a cold, dark panic. "Get to the surface!" she called out, even though she knew he couldn't possibly hear her. "C'mon, get up!"
It was then that the group of kids noticed their friend hadn't resurfaced. One of them, probably Carla, started screaming for help. Suddenly time stopped making sense to Justine. Parts of it seemed to rush, while other parts slowed down. She was aware of people moving around her, rushing to the shore, out in to the water to find out what was wrong. She wished there was something she could do, but she felt frozen to the spot, only able to watch as people started diving into the water, searching the area around the rope swing.
Tamara stood up next to her. "Oh God Justy, I hope he's all right!" She squeezed her friend's arm.
"Yeah..." Justine's voice sounded slow to her own ears, as if she was trying to talk through a mouthful of glue. She couldn't take her gaze off the water where people were searching, watching them dive into the water, looking for him. Jim Stuart, the owner of the Pontiac dealership broke the surface, the water glistening off his balding head.
"I found him!" He shouted. "His foot's caught between a couple of rocks, c'mon, gimmie a hand, it's wedged tight!"
How long does it take for someone to drown? Justine thought. She was vaguely aware of being crowded on all sides by people, two of them her parents. She wanted to say something to them, but she couldn't speak; she could only watch.
She didn't know if it was minutes or hours before they managed to free him. She thought she remembered watching the group of men breaking through the surface of the water to catch their breath a few times and knew this wasn't a good sign. She also felt Tamara's fingers squeezing her left arm and her mother's hand on her right shoulder. Then the next thing she knew, they were bringing him up to the shore, close to where she was. Sheriff Hurley was kneeling beside him, trying to pump the water out of his lungs. "Somebody call for an ambulance!" he shouted.
Shouldn't someone already have done that? Justine thought. She felt her feet moving forwards, towards the Sheriff. In the background, she heard the DJ on the radio announcing he was about to play the new hit by the Climax Blues Band. None of it seemed real, all she could focus on was the white, still, figure lying on the sand while the Sheriff bent over him, trying to get him to breathe.
She pulled away from her parents and Tamara and pushed closer to Sheriff Hurley. Quite a crowd had gathered around him and the young man, but there was still enough space when she broke through that she could kneel down in the sand near him. No one tried to stop her as she reached out and put her hand on the boy's shoulder. It felt cold.. too cold. She looked at the Sheriff. "He.. He..." she began, then stopped. She knew the truth.
Sheriff Hurley looked up at her, and she could see the pain in his eyes. "Yeah," he whispered softly. Rising to his feet, he hung his head, letting the crowd know from his actions what they already suspected.
The radio seemed to get louder and louder in Justine's ears, even though she knew no one turned it up. The Climax Blues Band was happily singing:
"But I kept on looking for a sign in the middle of the night
But I couldn't see the light, no I couldn't see the light
I kept on looking for a way to take me through the night
I couldn't get it right, couldn't get it right..."
He couldn't get it right, she thought. He couldn't get it right and-and-and...
"HE'S DEAD!" Justine shrieked. She was vaguely aware she wasn't in the past anymore, but nothing seemed clear. She knew someone was kneeling over her, but she didn't know if it was Sheriff Hurley or Logan. "He died!"
Logan looked down; his eyes fixed on hers. "Who died Justine? You've got to tell me, who died?"
Justine felt the last of the memories grip sliding away from her. She was back in the present now, but the pain was still there. She rolled away from Logan, sat up, and drew her knees up to her chest. "He did," she whispered.
"Justine, who's he?" Logan asked. "Tell me! Who was it? A friend?"
Justine looked over at him, tears streaming down her face. "Victor Black."
Magnus looked up from the papers he was studying as Logan walked in the door. He hadn't knocked, so Magnus knew something was going on. "Hello Logan, is something wrong?"
Logan's expression was grim. "That depends on how you wanna look at it Mags. I found out this afternoon what Justine's Mutant gift is."
"You did?" Magnus asked. He was surprised to see that whatever it was; it had Logan obviously concerned. "Well, tell me, what is it?"
"She can raise people from the dead."