Sighing, Sean got to his feet and began to pace the room anew. Paige sat, leafing through a magazine. Monet stood by a window, watching the sun rise. Everett, who had been released from the hospital that evening, refused to go back to the school, and now sat in a chair dosing, still a little groggy from the pain medication. Sean looked at his watch for what must have been the tenth time in as many minutes. He gazed over at the door, but there was no sign of Jean.

"Could one of you ladies go check on Jean? It's been a while since she left, and, well, she was lookin' a little. . . ." His voice trailed off as he searched for the right word. Somehow "upset" and "worried" each seemed like an understatement. The girls, however, immediately understood his meaning.

"Sure," Paige said at the same moment Monet said "Of course." They looked at each other and smiled.

"Why don't ye both go," Sean suggested. "No use in all of us sittin' here, anyways."

Thankful for something to do aside from waiting, the girls quickly headed for the ladies' room.

"Mrs. Summers was looking rather distraught, wasn't she?" Paige whispered to Monet.

"No more so than Mr. Cassidy. Frankly, they both look like they're on the verge of getting sick themselves. Neither one has slept or eaten much, if at all, since Jubilee was injured. They're so worried about her, they're letting their own health deteriorate."

They entered the restroom, they found Jean standing by a sink. She had just popped a pill into her mouth and was cupping her hand to the running water in order to swallow it.

"Mrs. Summers?" Paige asked as they approached her. "Are you all right, ma'am?"

Jean nodded. "I'm fine, Paige. I'm just taking an antibiotic Hank prescribed for me-- I injured my leg during our last mission." Jean began to splash cold water on her face.

Both girls could see that her eyes were puffy and her nose quite red. "Are you sure?" Monet asked. "You look as though-- ow!" she cried out suddenly as Paige elbowed her in the ribs. She gave Paige a dirty look, but the Southerner merely glared back at her.

*For someone who claims to be super-smart, she sure can be dense sometimes,* Paige thought with a sigh. *And totally insensitive.*

"It's nothing. Really." Jean dried her face with a paper towel. Then she looked at them and smiled, but they still seemed unconvinced.

"Monet, could you go get Mrs. Summers some soup from the cafeteria?" Paige asked.

Eyes narrowed, Monet looked at her distrustfully. Paige, however, returned her gaze with an unblinking stare which said, *I'll handle this. Alone.*

At first, it seemed as though Monet were going to protest, but she ultimately conceded. "Sure. I'll meet you two back in the lounge," she said, leaving, albeit reluctantly.

"You should eat something," Paige told her simply. She paused a moment. "Mrs. Summers, I realize we hardly know one another, but if you feel like talking. . . ."

"That's very sweet of you, Paige, dear, but I'm fine. Really."

"You're feeling helpless, aren't you? And, for a few minutes, the despair really got to you, overwhelmed you. You began to lose faith, and then became angry with yourself for letting the doubt enter your mind. Which only made the sadness increase."

Jean looked at the young woman who stood before her in surprise. Slowly, she nodded her head. "You're quite perceptive for your years, Paige."

"We've all seen a lot more than most people twice our ages, I'm sure," she replied. "But I know how you feel. I was going through something similar after I saw Jubilee."

"Yes, I suppose you're right. I'm trying to be strong, positive. But, sometimes, it's so hard." Jean felt the tears returning.

"You don't have to be the strong one all of the time. That's why we're here-- to lean on one another." Paige took a step toward her, but then stopped, hesitating.

Jean immediately sensed the girl's intent to reach out to her, and slipped into her embrace gratefully. She held tightly to the girl as her tears slowly subsided. Paige handed her a tissue. Jean dried her eyes and blew her nose. "Thank you."

"I'm glad I could help. Now, are you ready to head back?"

Jean nodded, and they left the bathroom.

"Do you think she'll be out of surgery soon?" Paige asked.

Jean looked at her watch. "Hopefully. They should be finishing up pretty soo--" As they entered the lounge, Jean stopped in mid-sentence. Sean was sitting beside Emma Frost, who looked a little shaken up: her hear was unkempt, there was dirt and some dark red substance-- most likely blood-- smeared on her face and clothes. Standing across from them was Wolverine, whose torn clothing also showed signs of a fight, although his healing factor would have taken care of any injuries he may have received. Logan turned around at the sign of their entrance, and, seeing Jean, his eyes widened in concern.

"Hey there, Red," he said, walking closer. "You look like hell."

"Yeah, well, you don't look so good yourself," she replied with a wry grin. "I'm so glad you're back." Then, more quietly, she said, "I hope it was worth it, Logan. We really needed you here."

"Irish told us about the kid bein' in surgery. She'll make it through. She's a real trooper."

"Yeah, well, she learned from the best, right?" Jean said with a forced smile.

Paige, meanwhile, had walked over to her headmistress. "Ms. Frost, are you all right?" she asked.

"I've been better, Paige, dear, but it's nothing a little soap and water and some brandy won't remedy."

"What happened?" Jean asked as she sat down.

"On the way to my chateau, my limo was run off the road," Emma explained. "I never saw who did it. I managed to escape from the limo right before it tumbled down an embankment and crashed into a tree. Aside from a few scrapes and scratches, I was uninjured; the driver was not so lucky. I traveled back to my chateau by foot. I realized it was foolish to return there, but I needed supplies if I were to go anywhere else. I found that the housekeeper, the butler, the cook, and all the other workers had been killed. My personal assistant appeared to be brain-fried. I found the cook's young son, hidden in the pantry, and scanned his mind, where I found images of Sebastian Shaw and Tessa. They were sloppy in that they didn't detect and kill him as well."

"Maybe they wanted you to know who was responsible," Jean suggested.

Emma nodded. "That thought occurred to me as well. I took the boy with me to check the rest of the house. While in the communications room, Wolverine suddenly appeared."

"After I searched the warehouse, I had Gateway 'port me to her house," Logan replied, leaning with his back and foot against a wall, arms crossed.

"He told me what happened to Jubilee and Everett," Emma continued. "I was determined to discern Shaw's location and settle the score. I was downloading some files from my computer onto a disk while Logan searched other parts of the chateau. Then I sensed a sudden urgency in his thoughts. I psi-linked with him, and he told me there was a bomb. I grabbed the boy and ran. We escaped by the skin of our teeth. Needless to say I was quite upset; that made twice in one day that someone tried to kill me. My best limo and my chateau destroyed, and a dozen innocent workers slain. We brought the child to the proper authorities and began our hunt."

"It wasn't easy," Logan said, picking up the story. "But we tracked them down to a safe house in the French countryside, 'bout fifty miles away. Emma was able to mask our presence from their thoughts-- her psi powers are much more developed than Tessa's. I duked it out with Shaw while Emma and Tessa had a battle of wills on the psi-plane."

"Let's just say it was a short battle," Emma said smugly. "Tessa has improved over the years, but she still has a lot to learn. I then helped Wolverine confront Shaw. It seems that in his warped mind, he somehow blamed me for the destruction of his own business. Since we were once fellow members of the Hellfire Club's Inner Circle, he thought I somehow owed him my loyalty. Professional courtesy, I believed he called it. While my business maneuvers may have contributed to falls in his stock, the honor of ruination of Shaw Enterprises belongs solely to his son, Shinobi. And he felt the fact that I was now working with Xavier was like pouring salt on an open wound. He wanted me financially ruined, and destroyed. He did not expect to learn much, if anything by attacking the children-- if he was lucky, he thought he might get some sort of secrets he could use against me in the corporate realm. But, knowing that I care about their safety and personal welfare, he knew roughing them up a bit would greatly upset me."

"What is Project Acquisition?" Sean asked.

Emma sighed and shook her head. "An indiscretion on my part, I'm afraid," she replied softly. "Several months ago, I naively gave some orders to my top executives to attempt to acquire Shaw's company by less than amiable means. Needless to say, the plan backfired, and it would seem that Shaw found out."

"How did the fight end?" Paige asked.

"Shaw's men arrived, and we were overwhelmed by sheer force of numbers," Emma reluctantly admitted. "We were forced to retreat. Luckily, Gateway's portal appeared at that moment, allowing us to leave."

"Luck had nothin' to do with it, darlin'," Logan replied. "But we didn't leave before I told Tessa that if she were ever to come near Jubilee or any of the other kids again, she would regret it. And let's just say it was a lesson she won't forget anytime soon," he growled, popping one of the claws that extended out of his hand. "'Specially any time she looks in the mirror."

Jean winced and Sean shut his eyes, shaking his head sadly.

"You ask me, she got off easy," Everett said coldly. "She deserved that, and a whole lot more, for what she did to Jubilee."

"How's she doin'?" Logan asked.

Jean looked at Sean and sighed. She told Logan and Emma all that had transpired concerning the girl over the past few days. ". . . and now we're just waiting for the operation to end," Jean concluded.

"You say your attempts to scan her mind revealed a great deal of psychic damage?" Emma asked.

"Yes," Jean replied. "Once she recovers from surgery, I'm planning to try again, but this time to be a direct participant in events, and not just an observer."

"Perhaps if we combine our skills, we might be able to--"

"She's out of surgery," Monet announced as she entered the room, a cardboard container in hand. As she looked around the room, her eyes widened. "Ms. Frost, Mr. Logan, you're back."

"Yep," Logan said. "How's the kid doing?"

"The nurse said she made it through okay. Dr. Knight will be in shortly to speak to us."

Sighing, Jean looked at Paige and grinned. Everett sighed in relief. Emma placed a hand on Sean's knee and he smiled at her, the relief filling him. Paige ran over to Everett and hugged him.

"I'm going to go call the school, let the others know she made it through okay," Sean said, getting up. "Somebody come get me if Dr. Knight arrives while I'm gone."

"Hold on, Sean; I'll go with you," Jean called, also rising. "I should call New York and let Ororo and the others know what's going on."

Smiling, Sean put an arm around Jean's shoulder and walked with her out of the room.

End of Chapter 6
Jennifer Sorowitz '98